The Diabetic Asexual

26 years with diabetes

[beatricetonguedi]

Y'all are not allowed to hate on Valko until his storyline, his myth, and a few cards are released. Do you hear me? You don't know the man yet. He is a stranger in our house, we need to be good hosts. THEN we can decide how we feel about him. No one is asking you to fall in love him right this minute. Just let Infold cook.

[humanjarvis]

here with you always

synopsis: during a fruitless meeting, zayne gets a harrowing message: there’s been an emergency.

in which you wind up at your least favorite place, and zayne is the only one who can calm you down.

pairing: zayne x fem reader tags: angst, comfort, fluff, reader is injured in a car accident, reader has a fear of hospitals, mentions of blood and wounds, anxiety all around, reader is strongly attached to zayne, reader is somewhat dependent on zayne, reader is clingy as a result, reader cries, lots of skinship, zayne in scrubs, zayne reassures reader, he encourages her to prioritize herself, yvonne cameo, greyson mentions, i am not a doctor nor have i ever been to the emergency room word count: 3k

Giving his colleague time to respond, Zayne adjusts the placement of his watch on his wrist. Illuminated by the morning sun, the silver band catches on the lens of his glasses, reflecting a rhombus onto his black slacks. 

It’s the most stimulating thing about this meeting.

“I…” A swine-like wheeze reveals the hospital executive’s desperation as he turns to other stakeholders for support. “I don't love the idea of it either, Dr. Li. But what other choice is there? Akso’s profits are falling for the first time in years. Increasing the cost of care is the only way to keep up with the evolving economy!”

“And how do you suppose the hospital will operate when its clientele are priced out of our services?” 

Just as the executive’s flush turns from pink to red, the conference room door opens, saving him from what was sure to be a lackluster rebuttal. 

Dressed in her white scrubs and mask, Yvonne rushes in, frazzled and panting. Not one for impoliteness, she coughs out a hasty greeting before meeting Zayne’s gaze and making an urgent gesture.

“Excuse me,” he says, mildly disappointed to cut the debate short. He was just warming up.

Almost immediately, the tension in the air dissipates. A quiet sigh of relief slips from the executive’s mouth as the biggest adversary he’s faced since college plagiarism checkers steps into the hall. 

Several paces from the closed oak door, Yvonne turns to face Zayne, wringing her hands out with nerves. “I’m sorry to pull you away, but there’s been an emergency,” she whispers. 

Zayne squints slightly, dark eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “Dr. Greyson should be available right now. Is there a reason wh—” 

“Your partner, Dr. Li.” It’s a rare interruption. “She was just in an accident.” 

The stairs are a blur as he rushes down them two at a time. Still, it isn't fast enough. 

“What’s happened?” Zayne demands. “Tell me everything.”

Yvonne follows closely behind him, her clogs hitting the floor on the offbeats of his heavy steps. “It was a collision with another vehicle. The other driver had only minor injuries, but hers are more serious.”

“How serious?” Careening around the corner, he nearly plows through a gaggle of interns heading toward the fifth floor. 

Typically, the sight of calm, collected Dr. Li is enough to make the younger staff gape in wonder. But frantic, distressed Dr. Li? That’s a new concept entirely.

However, as Zayne flattens his body to pass by them without hindrance, their gawking goes even less noticed than usual.

“They can’t tell the extent of the damage,” Yvonne explains. “We tried to evaluate upon arrival, but she won’t accept treatment until she sees you. When I left the ER, she was thrashing around and calling out for you.” 

“She’s afraid of hospitals,” he responds robotically.

Just a few steps farther.

The searing burn in his legs reminds him of the hike he’d gone on with you just a few days earlier. The way he tripped on a well-camouflaged branch, and you caught him with an ill-concealed snicker. The way you paused under a maple tree to catch your breath after, oblivious to the bustling beehive ten feet above you. 

“EEEEEEgetitoffgetitoffgetitoffgetitoff!”

As you permanently damage the hearing of the bee on your tank top, a retaliatory snicker escapes Zayne’s lips.

“You think this is funny?” you screech, holding deathly still lest you provoke the beast on your shoulder. “I’ve never been stung before! What if I'm allergic?”

“All right, all right.” He cautiously waves the insect off with his hand, and it flies onto a nearby flower. “See? You’re safe now.” 

While you catch your breath, a dramatic hand plastered to your chest, he curls an arm around your lower back and guides you away from danger. 

At the base of the mountain, you’d stopped at an ice cream truck, gifting each other compensatory snow cones for your troubles.

That memory of you, smiling in the sun with sweat-slicked skin and blue-stained lips, won’t leave his mind. What kind of state were you in right now? Would you be able to go out like that, to laugh like that again? Would you want to?

A chill creeps through the sterile air as he finally reaches the bottom of the stairwell. With an anxious breath, he bursts through the ER doors, eyes scanning with urgency unknown.

Zayne is used to seeing people bloodied and bruised—too used to it, if you and his parents had anything to say about it. After years of stitching the broken back up again, he's grown desensitized to the most off-putting aspects of the human body. When he sees blood, he can’t afford to panic. He's got a job to do.

Now, at perhaps the one moment he can afford it the least, there's a delay in his actions. It’s immoral for him to think this way, and he'd never say it out loud, but it's not a patient who's hurt. It's not just anyone. It’s you.

You, who demoted lonely from a frequent feeling to a foreign one. You, who showed him, for the first time, how to love and be loved.

So when he sees you frenzied and bleeding, swatting at several nurses’ hands like a cornered stray making its last stand, he freezes. And in that moment, your eyes meet.

Your tired, broken whimper is what finally springs him into action. 

He rushes to your side, forcing the metallic tang of your blood a step down from salience. The nurses clear a path for him immediately. 

He tries to examine the extent of your injuries, but your attempts to cling to him make it difficult. More than once, he has to beg you to stay still. 

“It hurts,” you mewl, weakly clutching his left arm.

“I know. I know. But I need you to stay still for me, all right? Just while we figure out what's wrong.” So much blood. “Here, give me your hand.”

Your palms meet with identical iron grips. You squeeze him in pain and fear, he squeezes you in simmering panic—as well as to keep you still.

Needing to be heard but not wanting to startle you, he calls out his observations with the steadiest voice he can. “I see abrasions on the right temple and significant bruising on the upper body. The arm and shoulder lacerations will likely need staples.” 

Slowly, he lifts your lolling head to examine your unfocused eyes. “What’s your full name, and where are we right now?” 

“We’re in…” Through slurred words, you blink slowly, pausing to take in your surroundings. It’s like you’re seeing it all for the first time—the somber staff, the sobbing families, the lifeless bodies on the beds—and your face is the picture of panic. “Why…why are we here? I don’t want to be here. I want to go home.”

Zayne grimaces, shushing you and smoothing your hair down. “She may have a concussion as well.”

Your swollen face contorts in panic. “I have what?” 

“Shh. I’m sorry if this is uncomfortable,” he whispers. Gathering you in his arms, he rises to full height and nods swiftly to the surrounding staff. “I’m going to set her down slowly. Ensure the gurney is stable.”

Your sense of smell is the first to return to you. 

At home, you keep diffusers scattered throughout the space; it brightens your day when your favorite fragrance fills the room. 

Here—wherever here is—a piercing sterile scent burns the inside of your nose. 

Bleach and artificial lemon.

Something is wrong.

In your ears, the high-pitched hum of equipment.

On your tongue, the aftertaste of iron.

When you finally manage to crack your eyes open, blinding light forces them shut. You try again a moment later, gradually processing the thin blue gown hanging loosely on your sore frame.

It all comes flooding back. 

A sickening crash. A crushing impact. Flashing lights, loud voices.

Screeching sirens. Fragments of motion sickness.  An abrupt stop. 

A big, bright Akso sign. Shining like a beacon.

Not here. Not here. Not all alone.

Your own voice, crying out for Zayne. 

Zayne.

Where is he now?

The hospital bed groans under your thrashing body. It hurts, but it won’t be for long. He’s here somewhere, and if you can just get to him, he’ll make it better like he always does. 

Zayne. Zayne. Zayne. 

As soon as you manage to plant one foot on the ground, the door to your room swings open. 

When Zayne steps through, face weary and teal scrubs more ruffled than he’d usually allow, your body melts in relief. 

His dim hazel eyes lighten a bit when he sees that you're awake. Then, they zero in on your injured form hanging precariously off the bed. 

“Going somewhere?” His voice is flat, unamused. He crosses the room in four long strides, gently lifts your errant leg, and repositions you properly on the mattress. All the while, he expertly dodges your weakened attempts to pull him down with you. “You need to stay here. Movement can exacerbate your injuries.”

“Okay.” You swallow thickly, eyes brimming with unshed tears. This time, when you reach for him, he wraps you into his warm embrace. 

Zayne shifts to hold you as best he can, avoiding the wounds and gauze on your head, arms, and shoulders. In the silence, your breaths and heartbeats slowly start to sync.

Clutching his shirt in your fingers, you speak softly into his skin. “You weren’t here when I woke up.” It’s not an accusation, but more a lamentation.

“I’d planned to stay with you, but a patient needed an emergency operation not long after they brought you here. I was in surgery for the last five hours. I came as soon as I could.”

You start to nod into his shoulder, but he stills your head to limit your movement. Instead, you give him something between a hum and a grunt. 

“What happened?” he asks after a moment.

“I tried to take the interstate on my way to work. The one we used to practice since I was so scared of all the traffic here. But when I went to merge…I barely even saw the other car. I just remember the crash, and the ambulance, and I knew they were taking me here—I saw the sign—and I panicked. I haven’t been in the hospital since I was a kid. Every time they’d let me out of bed to walk around, there was a new family crying in the halls. I didn’t ever want to go back.” Your voice is hoarse by the time you finish—barely more than a whisper. Pulling back slightly, Zayne cracks open the bottle of water on the bedside table and holds it to your lips. You drink gratefully, wrapping both hands around his wrist.

Once you’re done, he leans in close and presses a kiss to your hair. “You’re very brave for trying that by yourself. But should something like this happen again, you can't delay getting treatment because of me. Let them help you.” 

“You know I don’t—I’ve never felt comfortable in places like this. There’s so much pain and grief here. I don’t know how you handle it.” Your throat constricts, and his hold on you tightens as wetness seeps into his shirt. “I was so scared.”

“I know. But I was, too. Not knowing what I was walking into, what kind of state you’d be in when I arrived…I was terrified.”

You bite your lip, discovering an undetected cut at the top. “I didn’t mean to.”

“Of course you didn’t. Just promise me that you'll always make your wellbeing a priority, whether or not I’m within reach.”

“I want to. But it’s hard,” you mumble. “You’re really responsible, you know. And kind. And nice. And smart. And—”

You’re ready to prattle on, but you cut the praise short once you spot his pink-tinged cheeks. “You’re a lot of good things,” you pivot. “Most of all, you make me feel safe. But…”

“But?” he echoes, threading a hand through your hair.

“I get anxious without you,” you admit. “When I’m with you, I feel like everything will be alright, but when I'm not…it feels like the world is ending sometimes. And I'm there in the thick of it, lost and alone.” Your self-deprecating laugh worsens the ache in your chest. “I just feel like I depend on you a lot. Maybe too much.” 

He’s quiet for a few beats, constructing his response with the utmost care. “You should be able to depend on me,” he begins softly. “That's my job as your partner. But you lived many years before we met. Your agency isn’t reliant upon my physical presence, though you may feel it is.” He clears his throat. “I’d never be opposed to spending every second by your side. But when I can’t, I hope you’ll still feel me right there with you. Cheering you on, supporting you. That’s when I feel most at home.

“I could never stray too far from the one I love. So, although I may not always be present, I’m in your heart, as well as your thoughts. Even if you have to ask yourself, ‘What would Zayne do?’ to find your way forward, I trust you can come to the right answer. He would do whatever he could to keep you safe and healthy.” 

If you weren’t certain he’d scold you for moving, you’d duck your head under your blanket in embarrassment. Instead, you simply whine and avert your gaze, heart fluttering at his words. 

“You understand, don’t you?” he coaxes. “Can you take care of yourself for me?”

You purse your lips, still clutching his scrubs tight despite his ask. When you answer, your voice wavers in uncertainty. 

“I’ll try.” 

For the first part of the afternoon, Zayne keeps you company. He reads to you from Yvonne’s romance novel, supervises while you switch between games on his phone, and opens the blinds so you can people-watch from the comfort of the seventh-floor window.

When boredom strikes, you put on a game show on the midsize TV, guessing most answers wrong while he gets them right. 

When a staff member brings you a snack, you urge Zayne onto the too-small bed with you and share a tapioca pudding cup, tactfully ignoring the healthy serving of carrots on the side.

Soothed by his warmth and steady heartbeat, you feel your eyelids grow heavy after a while. In his arms, the room’s oppressive white and whirring machinery become no more than a quelled threat. But when the shrill beep of his pager cuts through the quiet, your body goes rigid with fear forgotten.  

“There’s another operation soon. I'll have to leave in a moment.”

“A-Are you sure?” Your eyes widen in dismay. “Can’t Greyson—” 

Recalling your promise from earlier, you reel yourself in and take your bottom lip between your teeth. As you lower your head and prepare to apologize, Zayne cups your warming face in his hands. You nuzzle into him greedily. 

“Greyson has already done all he can. His selflessness this afternoon is the reason I’ve been able to stay with you for this long. I suppose I owe him a coffee for that.” He curves his lips upward slightly, hoping your frowning ones will follow. “On the bright side, it’s the last surgery of the day. I'll be back here to see you once it’s over.” 

“Okay,” you whisper. You know he hears your voice break. Even if he doesn’t, you can't blink fast enough to stop the first few drops from falling.

Regret quickly takes the place of his smile. His face contorts into a grimace as he racks his brain for a solution, eventually nodding to himself resolutely. “Wait just a moment, all right? I’ll be right back. There’s something I need to do.” He kisses your hair once more, then waits for you to nod your agreement. Then, he walks briskly out of the room. 

The temperature seems to plummet. 

You curl in on yourself as best you can, the last round of painkillers wearing off fast. But Zayne brings you a warmth that’s unreachable alone.

You try to wait for him, you really do. But maybe it’s a miracle that sleep tugs at you in a place like this. 

When you pry your heavy eyelids open, the sun is just beginning to set. You’re certain you were out cold whenever Zayne returned to your room earlier, and you can’t help but groan. From the looks of it, he’s still in surgery—no telling when he’ll be back to help you spend the night in your least favorite place. 

Desperate to pass the time, you start to reach for the TV remote, only to nudge something soft tucked into your side. Upon further inspection, you recognize the hospital’s gift shop logo stitched onto a black paw pad. 

Beside you is a grinning polar bear plush, a pair of lensless spectacles sitting on its short snout. On its blue bib sits a get well soon message; between its outstretched paws is a brief note. That paradoxically legible handwriting…you’d know it anywhere. 

I’m here with you always. Take care of yourself. 

Your Zayne

[rllyobsessedgirlie]

3 times Frat!Kuna clocks misogynistic fratboys

Summary: Dating a women’s studies major has turned Sukuna into the frat house’s most feared feminist. Now the frat boys can’t make a sexist comment without getting a lecture, while you sit back and watch.

A/n: just fun lil thing i thought of :)

The frat house was unusually quiet, no music, no party, no sports discussions.

This was because Ryomen Sukuna was standing in the living room with his arms crossed, looking genuinely disappointed.

“Did you just call her a bitch?”

Satoru Gojo, halfway through stealing someone’s energy drink from the fridge, blinked. “What?”

“You called that girl a bitch.”

“She literally stole my hoodie after our hookup,” he shrugged him off.

Sukuna pointed at him. “And? Speak like a man. Have some respect.”

The room went silent.

Satoru looked around. “Did anyone else hear that?”

“No, seriously.” Sukuna continued. “You don’t get to call women bitches because you’re annoyed.”

Satoru stared. “Who are you?”

“My girlfriend says that’s misogynistic.”

“Your girlfriend also made you stop saying ‘females.’”

“And she was right, it’s disrespectful. Some shit incels say.”

The entire frat house collectively recoiled.

Across the room, you sat on the couch, sipping an iced coffee and watching the chaos unfold. A smile on your face, because god were you enjoying this.

This was better than reality TV.

Satoru pointed at you. “YOU DID THIS.”

You raised your coffee in acknowledgment.“Damn right.”

———————————————————————————————

The frat party was loud enough to shake the walls. Music blasted through the speakers.

Drinking games to your left, a fist fight to your right; and you were just observing from the kitchen.

And in the middle of it all, Toji was sprawled across the couch with a beer in hand.

His girlfriend was standing nearby talking to some friends when Toji waved his empty can in the air. “Hey.”

She glanced over. “Yeah?”

“Grab me another beer.”

A few people looked over.

She frowned. “What?”

“You heard me.” Toji pointed toward the kitchen. “Get me another beer.”

Before she could argue, another voice cut through the room.

“No.”

Toji closed his eyes. “…God.”

Across the room, Sukuna was already walking over.

You perked up immediately, ready for your boyfriend to set Toji straight.

Sukuna stopped directly in front of Toji. “Hell no.”

Toji looked exhausted. “No what?”

“No disrespecting your girl in front of me.”

A few people turned their attention to the potential altercation.

Toji rubbed his forehead. “I asked her to get me a beer.”

“You ordered her.”

“It’s not that serious, right baby?” He said, trying to save his ass.

Sukuna crossed his arms. “If you want a beer, use your legs, or ask nicely.”

Toji stared, “You cannot be real.”

His girlfriend was already trying not to laugh.

Sukuna pointed toward the kitchen, “Go get your own drink.”

“Or what?”

The entire room collectively leaned forward.

Sukuna grinned. “Or I’ll disrespect your face by punching it.”

You giggled. Only Sukuna could point out misogyny while trying to solve the issue with violence.

A guy standing nearby immediately whispered, “That’s the most Sukuna version of feminism I’ve ever heard.”

Toji looked around the room. Nobody was helping him. Not even a little, most probably in fear of Sukuna.

Finally, Toji sighed. “Fine.”

Sukuna nodded. “Good choice.”

Toji turned toward his girlfriend. “Sorry.”

She raised an eyebrow, suddenly she had more confidence than before. “Sorry for what?”

Toji was clearly embarrassed now, “Sorry for talking to you like that.”

“Thank you.”

Sukuna gave an approving nod. “There. Growth.”

“Shut it,” he said staring down Sukuna. “You know what? I’m getting my own beer.”

As Toji disappeared into the kitchen, the room broke into applause.

His girlfriend laughed and shook her head.

Then she turned to Sukuna. “Thanks.”

Sukuna shrugged. “Don’t thank me.”

He pointed across the room toward you. “Thank her.”

Everyone looked.

You were sitting comfortably on a stool in the kitchen; chin in hand, eating chips like you’d been watching a sporting event.

You gave a little wave.

“Kuna’s a women’s studies soldier ,” she said proudly. “I teach him everything I know.”

———————————————————————————————

The fraternity and sorority had gathered in one room to brainstorm ideas for a charity fundraiser. People were throwing out suggestions.

Raffles. Bake sales. Auctions.

Then Satoru snapped his fingers. “I got it.”

Immediately, you looked concerned, because he never had good ideas.

“We do a joint event with the sorority.” Satoru grinned. “The girls wear maid outfits and serve drinks.”

The room erupted into approval.

“That’s genius.”

“People would love that.”

“Easy money.”

Across the room, Sukuna slowly lowered the energy drink from his hand.

“Interesting.”

“NO,” Gojo yelled. “Let me have this one good idea,” he groans.

Sukuna stood. “Let me understand… the women wear maid costumes.”

“Yeah.”

“And serve drinks.”

“Yeah.”

“And what are the men doing?”

Toji shrugged. “We could do some strength challenge.”

“What kind?”

“I don’t know. Lifting something heavy.” Several people nodded.

“Classic.” Sukuna stared. Then looked at you, looking for approval to go on a rant.

Sukuna turned back to the room. “The women get assigned a service role. The men get assigned a strength role.”

More silence.

“Based on gender.”

The room collectively sighed.

Sukuna pointed dramatically. “Why.”

Satoru finally spoke. “Because that’s what people want.”

Sukuna gasped.

You smiled proudly at your boyfriend, waiting for him to call out their blatant sexism.

“PEOPLE EXPECT IT?”

“Yeah?”

“So we’re just reinforcing traditional gender roles for profit now?”

The room erupted.

“IT’S A CHARITY EVENT.”

“YOU’RE MAKING IT SOUND EVIL.”

Sukuna ignored them. “Misogyny is evil.” He pointed toward the sorority members.

“Why are they the ones serving drinks?”

One of the sorority girls raised her hand. “Honestly, I don’t want to wear a maid costume.”

“THANK YOU.” Sukuna was fully activated.

You were delighted to see how this was playing out.

“Explain to me,” Sukuna continued, “why the men can’t wear maid costumes and serve drinks.”

The room went dead silent, and you almost spit out your drink.

Toji blinked.

Satoru blinked.

The sorority sisters were stunned. “What?”

“The men.” Sukuna spread his arms.

“No.”

“Why not?”

The room burst into laughter.

“If serving drinks is easy money, then congratulations.” He slapped the table.

“The fraternity is serving drinks.”

The sorority girls immediately started cheering.

“YES.”

“MAKE THEM DO IT.”

Toji looked horrified. “Absolutely not, I’m not wearing a maid outfit.”

Sukuna leaned forward. “Fragile, typical response from men. Toxic masculinity, machismo, societal expectations.” He says pointing a finger at different men around the room.

You had your face in your hands, trying to hide your laughter. You had to show support for your boyfriend, but couldn’t handle him naming every term he could think of.

Sukuna pointed around the room. “If the costumes aren’t degrading, wear them.”

Silence.

The sorority girls were having the time of their lives. One of them pulled out her phone. “I’m ordering maid costumes right now.”

The fraternity erupted in panic.

“STOP HER.”

“WE CAN STILL NEGOTIATE.”

——-

Two weeks later, the fundraiser ended up being the most successful event in frat history.

Mostly because nobody could resist paying money to watch a group of deeply embarrassed frat bros serve spiked lemonade in maid outfits.

Toji looked dead inside.

Satoru refused to make eye contact with anyone.

Meanwhile Sukuna carried a tray through the crowd completely unbothered.

His maid outfit fit surprisingly well, as he served you a drink.

Across the lawn, Satoru was being forced to say “Welcome home, master” for a twenty-dollar donation.

The sorority was making a fortune.

Sukuna took one look at the donation total and smiled. “Look how good we’ve done so far,” he said enthusiastically.

“I’m so proud of you,” you said before leaning in for a kiss.

“By the way, I think you should bring home this costume when you’re done here,” you said; snapping the thigh high sock on Sukuna’s thigh.

“Whatever you want baby,” he winked.

Dividers by: @cursed-carmine

[liahcharms]

she's my collar

God of the Dead was always alone. With the coldness weighing his heart and the stench of gastly doom clinging to his skin. But then, one day, the world under his feet shifted. Heart bloomed with bizarre fondness. And the Lord of the Underworld soon started to wish for nothing but to taste Spring Goddess's sweetness every single day. Even if he were to accomplish it by force.

requ ested (pray forgive me for waiting so long)

included in Tales, Myths, Romances

pairings: Hades!Trueform Sukuna x Persephone!Reader

content/warnings: MDNI 18+, greek mythology au, mythologically accurate, possessive behaviour, slightly dark romance, kidnapping, devotion, obsession, heavy smut, Sukuna is his own warning, proper use of belly mouth, double penetration, belly bulges, mating press, oral sex (both), facesitting, yearning, symbolism, Cerberus is just a baby, pussydrunk Sukuna, he's down bad, but he's also toxic

WC: 13.7k (the visions have plagued me)

a/n: I think we all know the story of Hades and Persephone, so this time there's no need for a history lesson! I just hope you'll like it because I had lots of fun writing it! And thank you, dearest anons, for the request <3

divider by @/diviniye art by @/phantomosis on x

It was a universal truth that opposites attract.

Knowledge older than the Gods themselves.

Carved in marble and rivers, bending under the Greek sun in crystal serpentine. Crossing the lands, fields and meadows, with single droplets caressed by nymphs and fair birdies playing in the calm waters.

Everyone knew that opposites work together. 

Everyone could look up and see the sun and the moon frolicking in the same sky. Brush their feet against the hard, stony paths covering the mountains, and yet see little snippets of flowers breaking through the surface. To experience sadness and joy, two contradictory feelings, yet impossible to exist without each other.

Everyone could enjoy the sharp breeze from the thunderstorms, preceded by the sizzling warmth coating their sweating skin. 

Everyone knew the night had no meaning without a day. That spring couldn't exist without a death.

Everyone knew it. 

Or did they?

Or was it maybe something that one, love-possessed God simply wished to believe in? That opposites could attract even in the most impossible-to-imagine scenarios. 

It's not that the Gods of Olympus weren't paired in a rather bizarre manner. For there was a beauty of Aphrodite who cherished the brute God of War dearly. Zeus and Hera, so different and yet ruling over the divine world. And also Dionysus, who haunted by love towards a mortal, made her a goddess.

And yet, Lord Hades couldn't shake off the feeling that his love was plagued by a tragedy from the very beginning.

As how could it be that the Lord of the Underworld's heart, after thousands of years of being burdened by coldness, suddenly bloomed with restless warmth?

With a feeling so unknown and strange, his hand rested on his chest as if in desire to breeze the burning skin up. Long fingers tried to grab the muscle and tear the rosy flesh that separated him from it. But even the God of Death couldn't stop the lovely beating of his heart and mind tormented solely by a thought of… you.

It happened on a sunny day, when, usually hidden in the depths of hell, the Lord of the Underworld decided to take a stroll. Around the spring meadows, with the air carrying the flowery scent of blooming nature. So strange and bizarre, never floating around the endless plains of his domain. 

He didn't show his face often up there, as God of the Dead was much, much busier than one could think! Humans were weak, reckless, dying like flies and flooding the Underworld with their restless souls. 

Heron crossed the Styx like a madman, and Cerberus couldn't close his eyes even for a second, as the hell was a mad and troubled place.

But then, that one day when the sunlight finally blessed his crimson eyes, Hades, or Sukuna as he much rather preferred, could finally pleasure himself in breathing the air not stained by a musty smell of death.

Each of his steps left the lush grass withered, and the air bent under the heaviness of his aura. Birds would fall silent whenever the God of the Dead passed through the trees they sat in, as if in fear of being taken by the Grim Reaper too soon. Fruits hanging off the branches would suddenly fall rotten, not allowing God to taste the sweetness of their pristine juices. 

As there was no sweetness or warmth in Sukuna's life and it had been a long time since he learned how to live with it. For why would anyone care about the wellness of the Lord of the Underworld himself?

And so the world withered and shattered around him, but God truly didn't mind. 

Until he saw you, the Goddess of Spring.

Beautiful, alive, with sun smooching your laughing cheeks and eyes curving under the golden rays. Little flowers were tucked in your hair sweetly, and single strands framed your face heartily. Sukuna enjoyed looking at blooming plants, although they quickly withered under his bloody gaze. 

But not you.

You quickly became his most dearest petal, with loose, light robes always in a riot of pastel hues and lovely laughter carried by spring winds through the vast meadows. Bare feet ran through the fields of flowers without any worries, and eyes always glanced somewhere over the horizon. Somewhere, towards the seas and trees and frolic nymphs playing near the rivers. Fingers weaved wreaths one by one, and a cooing voice helped the flowers grow and blossom beautifully. 

Your robes were always slightly dirty from the earth, warm cheeks marked by pollen, eyes bustling with warmth and kindness, that touched every plant, every animal that cuddled into your open arms.

He usually lurked among the trees. Tall, broody, with a massive body covered by dark robes and a grim aura clinging to his skin. Four arms crossed on a wide chest and two pairs of eyes fixated on a young Goddess frolicking with her friends.

Soon, he started coming more often. 

The usual workaholic, a gloomy God who liked nothing and no one, a brute, as some liked to call him, suddenly found something that started haunting his mind. His dreams and nightmares, as even there, you always seemed to smooch his cheeks like a soft petal.

There, you always seemed to be his.

 His lovely, dear wife. A Queen of the Underworld.

For all those days he watched you carefully, you've never noticed him.

Not even once, as if completely blinded to everything else outside the walls of your little world.

Until one day, you were left alone.

No friends chirping to your ear, no animals warming your legs – just you.

And, well, him. 

He didn't know when and how, but a warming tiredness fell on his eyes, and oh-so-mighty God of the Death slipped into a light slumber. With withered grass lulling his heavy body and birds ogling him from the thick branches. Wind whirred quietly, brushing his pink hair, slipping between the strands and massaging tired temples.

He could almost swear that he fell asleep on the grass. Hard ground moulding under his even harder body and green tuft giggling his cheeks. And yet, after turning and squirming like a restless child, he felt something softer under his head. 

Something plush, squishy, beaming with the sweetest, flowery fragrance he's ever smelled. The wind's murmur turned into a lovely hum. A melody that coiled his senses and flooded down his spine, filling his body like the sweetest wine.

He didn't dare to open his eyes. 

As he knew, the sight of the lovely Goddess brushing gently through his hair would lead to his death. For Sukuna was rather sure that the only thing in this world that could truly stop his heart was the graceful look of your eyes fixed on him.

Not on flowers, not nymphs, nor animals.

Him.

And thus he lay quietly, with your thighs dipping under his head and soft fingers playing with his hair. 

"The Lord of the Underworld in my spring domain," you hummed, swirling a pink strand around your finger. "What a bizarre sight, I must admit."

A chuckle slipped from between your lips when his brows furrowed. Slightly yet rather openly stating that the God of the Dead, with his colossal body bending your earth, has not, in fact, been sleeping. 

But there was no need to out his silly manner, and your fingers continued soft curls around his temples. As everyone, no matter their origin, was most welcome in your domain.

Something changed around him. The air, the melody, the structure of grass.

Your presence brought life back to the withered plants and silenced animals that feared him. The birds sitting high on the branches slowly flew down, huddling shyly on his chest. Decayed grass turned lush once again, smooching his skin with its plushness.

"There's no need for fear," you whispered warmly, seeing how wary the animals were of his presence. "He is a good creature too."

Forest animals started to come closer, and closer, and closer, with deer sniffing his body and frogs clumping on his shoulders. Their little, sticky toes left traces of gluey slime, but he didn't mind.

Because God of the Dead rarely felt a life embrace his body.

And thus he decided to cherish it and pray that this single, intimate moment would last forever. With your thighs beaming warmth under his head and animals cuddling to his limbs. Surrounding him in a tight circle with furs and feathers tickling his skin. 

He couldn't open his eyes, to not destroy the moment, although, heavens, he truly wished!

To see your hearty face up close. To brush the lower lip coloured with fresh berries and tuck a single strand of hair behind your ear. To see the way pastel robes clung to your skin like a mist, and eyes peeked down at him. But instead, he could only lie quietly and listen to the melody slipping past your lips, curling around his mind like a viper.

A moment has passed, and the deep slumber began to coo his senses. He tried to fight it, longing to stay in your embrace a little longer. To remember the melody of your voice and the pattern of fingertips massaging his temples. The flowery, honeyed fragrance clinging to your skin and filling every corner of his body, taking away his privilege to smell anything else for the next few days.

Before the darkness blanketed his mind and breath became shallower, he could hear the last whispers of your voice:

"Go to sleep, my God. Allow me to accompany you for a while."

When he woke up, you were no longer there. Just a withered grass bending under his body and the warmth of the setting sun bathing his hair in red hues. 

No sign of you or animals, and the God, once again, felt devastated. As if deprived of something he should hold onto with all his strength. He was a divine being, after all, and yet your misty figure slipped between his fingers like flowing water. 

But his mind recalled those few words. Allow me to accompany you.

And thus, Sukuna decided to take this wish too faithfully.

⛥ ⛥ ⛥

"Stop going out there alone," your mother has sighed, looking at your figure swirling around the wooden hut. "It's dangerous, the Gods are unpredictable–"

Your head shook, lifting the little willow-wined basket used for gathering flowers. "I am a Goddess, mother," you chirped in with a giggle, before glancing at the woman's creased forehead. "And you are too. There's simply no need to fear anything. Besides, we're safe in the spring domain."

Liar.

You didn't tell her about the God of Death crossing the border between the Underworld and mortals much more often than he should. Than he used to. With his gloomy aura beaming off the woods, although he thought that you didn't notice it. Crimson eyes followed you every single day for the past few weeks, and whenever he appeared, one side of your domain suddenly went quiet. Withered, under his death-bringing feet and the silent atmosphere he spread around himself.

And as a Goddess of Spring, you knew of everything happening on your land. 

At the beginning, you thought it was rather funny. To see the animals and flowers frightened by his sole presence. You didn't give it much thought, as various Gods had strolled through the plains of your earth and chit-chatted whenever they spotted your figure hunched over the flowers.

But Lord of the Underworld wasn't the talkative type, nor did he engage in any closer relations. In fact, you didn't know much about him aside from what you'd managed to notice over the past weeks.

And you've noticed a lot. His body was built like a mountain, with a heaviness that couldn't be put into words. Two pairs of crimson eyes, lidded like sweet almonds and framed by rather long lashes. Pinkish hair reminding you of blushed peonies, and you wondered whether it would feel equally soft under your touch. Four muscular arms carried the little birdies up their trees when he thought you didn't see, and black stripes curled around his body – like deathly mist, tattooed all over his chest, back, and cheeks, as the God of the Dead didn't mind relaxing his beastly, naked body in the nearby rivers.

The water spilt over the grassy edge, and four arms rested on drenched earth. Crystal water looped his body shyly, smooching the sun-kissed skin with cold kisses. He couldn't see your hazy figure lurking in the bushes.

Your eyes glimmering like two fresh peaches and lips curling in a sly smile, upon seeing muscles upon muscles bending on the God's back. Slick and bulging, stripped of the heavy, dark robes he usually wore and enjoying the kisses of the Mediterranean sun.

Sometimes a nymph would notice him bathing at the river and coo shyly at the handsome but rather intimidating God. You've always observed those interactions from the tree, lurking curiously, with birds perched on your shoulders. All the encounters always ended in a rather pathetic failure, with the Lord of the Underworld ignoring the sweet chirps of little nymphs and their promises to warm his cold body. 

All of them flew quickly upon seeing a grave grimace twisting the God's face, and all four palms curling into fists. 

"Always so, so angry," you murmured to the red bird sitting on your finger, as it nodded its little head. 

And so you didn't tell your mother about these few encounters, for there was no need to worry her. She kept you away from the Olympian Gods as long as she could, yet couldn't stop you from becoming a Goddess too. Truly unfortunate, if she had to admit it, as she had tried for a whole life to keep you well hidden in the far, far corner of Mount Olympus, in your own little spring domain.

"Just be careful," your mother whispered, pushing back a few loose strands of your hair. A small basket hung on your back, and robes clung to your skin. "You know how Gods can be…"

You knew. For you heard of Apollo and Daphne. Of Medusa and a curse sent upon her for being a maiden far too beautiful. About Zeus and Callisto, and more, more Goddesses, who suffered a terrible fate from the hands of Gods themselves.

You understood your mother's worry. Why she tried to tie you up to this little hut hidden in the woods of Olympus. Why she was the Goddess of Agriculture and tried so, so hard to keep her dear spring flower hidden from the prying eyes.

And yet, the serpent flow of destiny was truly twisted and unpredictable. Bending under the Moirai's deathly whispers, with a thin thread slipping between their bony fingers like a river of silk. 

As many Goddesses before you, you too were soon to learn that playing with Gods – particularly those who seemed to take a special fondness for you – was a treacherous path. That approaching them cheekily, taking pleasure in keeping them in your arms and cooing like a wounded animal, was simply foolish. Mad, in every deep sense of the word, as out of the many Gods in this world, you particularly should not play like a fox with the Lord of the Underworld himself. 

So, on the same day, as golden rays dribbled down your figure hunched over flowers, hands picking the season's most beautiful blooms, the earth suddenly burst open. With a raw, brutal rumble, unleashing chaos across the peaceful meadow. Birds rose from the lush branches, and all the forest animals that were cuddling near your body ran off.   

The heavy dust had covered your eyes, smooching flimsy dress and delicate petals that bent under the heavy, little droplets of curled earth. 

The obsidian chariot harnessed with three black horses appeared right in front of your eyes. Tall and eerie, still carrying the coldness of the Underworld and a man whose crimson eyes stared down at your figure.

No words could slip past your lips as one muscular arm lifted you up and easily flipped you over the shoulder. Locking you in place with the sheer strength of one hand, until your head hung down the man's back.

"Wait!" Rolled in a scream as the world in front of your eyes started to spin. 

A voice you hadn't heard yet punched you like a bucket of cold water. "Don't be afraid, my Goddess," Sukuna said, before whistling to his horses. "You'll soon be able to run through the meadows of the Underworld."

It tasted raw, heavy, so, so low, licking your ears with flamed tongues. A voice truly worthy of the God of the Dead himself.

Before you knew it, the earth had swallowed the chariot once again. The rumbling tore through your spring domain, causing vast fields of flowers to vanish as if slowly devoured by the sky. The horses sped downward, pulling the chariot deeper into the earth, until only a faint glimpse of the familiar sun remained – a warmth you wouldn't see again for the next few months.

The darkness engulfed you, wrapping your skin with icy, deadly touches. It felt as though the three sisters had already severed your thread of fate, sending you to the Underworld sooner than anticipated and plunging you into the claws of the beast you inadvertently unleashed. 

"My God," you mumbled, trying to wriggle under his heavy arm. "Where are you taking me?"

Sukuna chuckled lowly, his whole body trembling with a laugh that made your spine tingle. "To home, my dearest Queen."

Deathly whispers curled around your body with curiosity, as if the air in the Underworld had tasted such a sweet life for the first time. Dark clouds filled the sky, and the chariot plunged even lower. Soon, a vast, grimy land spread beneath you, with a thick river curling around the dark soil.

You have never seen the Underworld and have never shown any interest in it. Yet, from that point, with the obsidian chariot soaring high in the sky, it looked mesmerising. Almost magical, with deep, dark forests and withered meadows stretching across the land, lit only by the pale blue light of the moon and little gleaming shadows wandering aimlessly across the plains.

It wasn't difficult to spot Hades's temple. Or maybe you should say a castle.

Sitting quietly on the cliff, with Styx's calm waters flowing beneath its heavy walls. It towered over the whole domain, glimmering in blue light under the moonlight's kisses, and something in your breath has hitched upon seeing an enormous garden filled with withered trees looming over the dead flowers. 

The air was biting cold, and yet the closer you were to the temple, the warmer it seemed to smooch your skin. It didn't carry the familiar flowery fragrance, but rather a heavy, woody scent, as if something alive still lingered in the bleak land filled with agony and doom. 

When the chariot came to a halt on the dark grass, Sukuna set you down gently. With one strong arm still stalling on your back, as if afraid the moment your feet touched the earth, you would try to escape. 

But there was no chance for it, as the Underworld was a trickery and a dangerous place.

"From now on, this is your home. My Queen," his crimson eyes never left your face, even when the hand showed towards the temple looming deathly.

You moved a step away, trying to slip from between the heavy fingers brushing your waist. "It is not my home, and I will not be your Queen. Now take me back to my domain."

Looking up was a mistake, for the gravity of his gaze almost pulled you down to earth. Four eyes stared down at your fuming face before one hand lifted and fingers traced the softness of your warm cheeks. "I cannot do it, my Goddess. That's what I decided, and that's what the Gods accepted."

"The Gods?"

His big thumb brushed your lower lip, and you smacked his hand away. A low chuckle slipped through before he pushed you towards the temple. "Zeus agreed, and that's all that matters. Neither you nor even your mother has any say in it."

You tried to move away again, but his strong arm only pulled you closer to his massive body. Twice your height, with four arms ready to manhandle you like a beast – you knew standing up to him would be foolish. And yet, you tried.

But he didn't mind, as you weighed less than a feather and lifting you was not a sweat for a God of his calibre. Your body once again rolled like a sack over his shoulder, but this time you tried to fight. With nails dragging down his back and teeth digging into the muscles bulging under his robes.

For you, it was a matter of life and death. 

For him? A flimsy, sweet teasing from his dearest Goddess, who was yet to accept her fate. 

Oh, his heart swelled with the purest joy at the sight of your misty figure wrapped in his arms after weeks of yearning. It didn't matter whether you wanted to stay here or not – Sukuna aimed to use every possible means to soothe your mind and pamper you like his precious wife.

"You ignorant brute, a beast, freak!" Rolled furiously, as you once again left the bloody, tooth marks on his back. "You cannot do it!"

Another throaty chuckle escaped from his side, with his arm cuddling around your waist with fondness. "I can, my Goddess. That's how love works."

"And what can you possibly know about love, my God?"

Sukuna didn't know much, but his greedy desire to always keep you in his sight and worship you as if you were the only Goddess in the pantheon must have been close to what love felt like. To get drunk on your laugh and the plush skin of your body every single evening, as if his whole world twisted around nothing but you. To hear your chipper run with stale wind through his decaying land and once again feel your fingers brush through his hair. 

The God of the Dead, the elder of the mightiest brothers, harbinger of death, wished for nothing but to taste the nectar of your love. 

But with a frown you looked at him, your teeth digging deeper into his skin – for now, it seemed rather fruitless.

He entered the temple and moved towards the massive stairway curling to the heavens themselves. Your furious shouts could be heard throughout the whole land, but it seemed that neither he nor the servant who suddenly appeared seemed to mind.

"Uraume, prepare a bath for the Queen," Sukuna said, glimpsing quickly towards the woman. Her white, short hair curled around her slim face, and deep eyes blinked in amusement at your sorry state.

"My Lord, I don't think the Queen likes this position," she muttered, sending you a pleading look.

Sukuna scoffed, correcting your body on his shoulder. "The Queen acts like a brat, so she will be treated like one"

Uraume nodded before going down the stairs and disappearing somewhere in the deep chambers of the temple.

Thus, it was the two of you again, and Sukuna moved slowly through the dark corridors, with blue flames licking your writhing body. He didn't mind the shouts, the nails scarring his back through the dusky robes till crimson droplets formed under the material and bites that your teeth have left on his shoulders.

In fact, the God of the Dead took a bizarre pleasure in feeling your flaming touch on his skin. Something in his chest swelled whenever your lips travelled to his neck, and it didn't really matter that they left the bloody bites and not the nectar kisses he yearned for.

At some point, you've finally entered the big chamber. The weird warmness crept through the tall windows, bending in heavy, marble arches. Vast plains of the Underworld rolled like waves on the horizon, and you stopped scratching Sukuna's back when the full land came in view.

Beautiful, endless, mesmerising, so different from what you grew up with. With only a pale, blue moon constantly shining upon the lost souls and deep, agonising cries coming from the Tartarus.

Sukuna finally put you down. "That's our chamber," rolled almost proudly, and you looked around the bedroom.

Dark, draped in misty veils, with a huge bed covered with crimson sheets and a baldachin moving together with gentle swooshes of wind. Warm flames have lit the place, with torches and long waxed candles glimmering shyly around the whole chamber.

Just behind the crimson curtain, you've heard the dripping of water and Uraume's hushed voice. So that must've been the bath.

"I will not be sleeping with you in one bed, my God," you barked, but Sukuna seemed not to care at all.

He pushed you towards the balcony, with a heavy hand placed on your lower back. "That's the garden. I made it for you," your chest squeezed. For you. "You can do anything you want with it, of course."

"It's impossible to grow life within your domain," slipped harshly, before your eyes looked up. Crimson moons stared down at you. All the time. "So you kidnapped me to grow you a garden?"

His sharp jaw tightened. "I did it for your own good," he muttered, hand lifting to brush away your hair. "For our good. I want you to be the Queen of the Underworld. My wife," fat thumb kissed you fuming cheek. "My Goddess."

And as much as you wished to stay angry, it felt impossible to hide the special fondness rising in your chest. A mix of hate and curiosity, as it was difficult to imagine why the Lord of the Underworld himself was such a desperate beast to lock you in his clutches.

Your eyes went back to the garden, taking in the withered earth and flowers bending in death.

But then you've noticed something – a tree. Dark, yet looking rather alive, blooming with red, round fruits that looked as if ready to burst.

Pomegranate.

And you, as the Goddess of Spring, knew why it seemed to be the only fruit growing deep within this deathly domain.

Sukuna followed your lidded eyes before a low hum filled the air. "You'll eat it at some point," seeing a sudden shock bathing your face and a slow shake of your head, he added. "Even if I have to force you."

Soon, you would discover that there were many, many other things the God of Death would force upon you, just to keep you within his touch.

And as surprising as it seemed, eating the pomegranate seeds to bind you eternally to the Underworld would be the last.

You didn't say anything, looking at the pomegranate tree with a grim expression ripping your lips. A Spring Goddess you were, and yet the single look of this rich fruit made you want to burn it right here and there.

"My Lord, my Queen, the bath was prepared," Uraume slipped in politely, before once again disappearing into the darkness.

Sukuna came inside, and you followed, passing under his heavy arm as he lifted the curtains between the chamber and bath.

Multiple candles licked dark walls, and the steam curled in the air. The big, marble pool filled with hot water called your name like a madman, and you were ready to tear your dress in half just to dip inside. The air in the Underworld was much, much colder than up in your domain, and after the eventful day, you truly wished for nothing but a simple bath.

And yet, even this was to be wrecked by Sukuna's four hands slipping the misty robes of your shoulders. Your trembling finger caught the dress in front of your chest before it could fall.

"My God, may I know what you are doing?" There was no trace of madness in your tone, only simple weariness and irritation.

His lips curled in a smirk, and if not for both hands gripping your dress, you would surely smack his cheek. You would try at least, as bending your head back to meet his gaze was already difficult enough.

His dark robes hit the floor before you've noticed it, exposing you to the view that – rather unfortunately – made your thighs clench. Massive thighs bulged under muscles, and it seemed clear that he could snap your neck with a single clamp.

But it wasn't the thighs that hit your cheeks with a maddened fever. No, rather two, fat cocks, with shafts so heavy they barely stood straight. Droplets of sticky pearls curled around two pulsing heads, sticking like a net to his pubes. The smooth, reddened skin glimmered under the dimmed flames, and your breath hitched while taking in the inhumane size.

And then your eyes followed up to his belly, mouth grinning mischievously, torso wide as mountains and four arms, just waiting to grab your flimsy body.

Sukuna was… terrifying. Alluring, feral, obscene, but oh so beautiful. With a body worthy of a God and an almost tyrannical aura that clung to him like a second skin. The mortals have feared him, Gods always tried to keep the relations as polite as possible, and yet you somehow found a wisp of fondness coiling in his gaze.

"I'm planning to bathe with my Queen, of course," Sukuna murmured, tilting his head with a cheeky grin. Four crimson eyes burned your skin, and you've never, ever felt as small and helpless as now. "Let me help you with it." Fingers tugged on your dress, trying to slip it down.

You took a step back, gripping the robe even tighter. "My God, I'm fine. But please enlighten me why we should take a bath together?"

He, however, was relentless, and it took a single, harsher tug to let your robes fall down the marble floor. A gasp slipped past your lips as you tried to cover yourself with pathetic moves.

Sukuna lifted your body with a single arm, and soon both of you sat on the little bench carved in a pool.

He took a deep, deep sigh, leaning against the edge. Two muscular arms kept you in place, with your back plastered to his chest and ass brushing against the massive cocks, while the other two started to soap you up.

A shiver ran down your spine, feeling big, yet soft hands smooching your skin in gentle circles. Slowly, tenderly, massaging your shoulders and back, going down, and down, to the swell of your wet breasts.

A quiet, shy moan escaped your feverish cheeks when his thumbs brushed the perked nipples. You wriggled under his touch, as if fighting against itself to give into the warmness beaming from his body and heavy fingers washing your tired skin.

Your hips jerked again when he pinched your nipples, sending a sudden, electrifying wave down your spine.

"My Queen, try to keep yourself in place," he said with a low voice, and only then did you notice that your ass had been bumping against his cocks for this whole time.

You didn't look back, as if in fear that even a single glance could pique Sukuna's curiosity and test the dangerous waters of your patience. "Is it necessary, my God? I can wash myself."

Two hands gripped your hips, quickly turning you towards him.

Your hands rested on his shoulders as he sat you right on his muscular thighs. The water spilt over the pool's marble edge, and crimson eyes stayed fixed on your face. On your slightly parted lips and hair sticking to your cheeks.

His upper arms slipped up to your waist, while the lower ones started to massage your thighs. In slow, gentle circles, dangerously close to the naked pussy that bounced against the fatness of his shafts.

He played a dangerous, oh so dangerous game, but took a maddened satisfaction in observing the changing looks on your face. Anger mixed with delight, as if you wanted to hit him and nuzzle into his touch at the same time.

"What's wrong, my Queen?" he muttered, soaping up your waist. "Why would you wash yourself alone if your husband is here?"

At this point, both of you knew that the bath was a mere, foolish excuse for the Lord of the Underworld to finally enjoy the sight of your naked body. To take a pleasure in feeling your naked skin against his and test his own patience, feeling the warmth of your cunt brushing against his cocks.

His moves were deprived of any sexual manner, and yet your insides burned with the most wicked flame. Your drenched fold were bumping against his cocks, yes, and the fat shaft brushed against your clit, maybe, but even then, he didn't try to push you.

To force himself on you, as if waiting for your consent.

As if he wished you craved him as much as he did you.

But even then, every few seconds, he would move closer. His fingers would brush your trembling nipples, hips move beneath yours, and he would always take in your muffled moans with a sly smile.

"You're not m-my husband," rolled embarrassingly weak, and Sukuna hummed, brushing your lower lip with his thumb.

"Not yet. I'll give you time to make yourself at home," thick digit slipped inside your mouth, and you quickly bite it. Hard, feeling his bones crack under your teeth, although he only smiled. Like a man possessed. "As I was saying, I'll give you a month–"

"And what then?" you mumbled, with lips still curled around his thumb. "What if you won't tame me after a month?"

Pink strands of hair stuck to his wet forehead, and you needed to dig your nails into his chest, not to lift the fingers and brush them away. Four crimson eyes – two big, lidded in slyness and two smaller, curved like a moon – drank in the sight of a sweet little Goddess squirming on his massive body.

"Then I'll force you to love me," spilled calmly, without hesitation. And maddening yearning in his eyes told you that he was ready to do it. That his understanding of love was far from the sweetness and kindness you've known of.

His fingers travelled up, through the breasts, collarbones, and neck, till the second hand joined your face. He cupped your cheeks gently yet lined with restrained violence.

Possessiveness, madness, that filled his flamed eyes.

"Don't test my patience, my Goddess," he murmured softly, pulling your face closer. His lips nearly brushed against yours, and a wave of warmth washed over your body. "Let me love you in my own way, and I promise to make you happy. Within my domain, you can be as free as you desire."

It was difficult not to have your heart flutter upon hearing those words.

He knew how crazy your mother was about you. That you spent most of your life chained to her leg, never leaving the spring domain, never feeling the winds of freedom.

That's why his promise sounded so exhilarating. Wild, absolutely insane, and yet letting you let out a deep sigh. Because finally, after so many years, you were alone.

Without your mother, without the prying eyes of Gods, without the same meadows caging around you like a prison.

Only with a much, much bigger, heavier, and mind-spilling problem, of a God of the Dead who seemed to take a special, wicked interest in you.

Your hands, still trembling on his chest, pushed yourself away. Hips slipped from his cocks, but not before giving two, feverish heads one last brush. As if you wanted to push him over the edge.

He groaned and squinted his eyes. "Where are you going, my Goddess? We're not done yet."

Four hands shoot towards you, fingers trying to catch your slippery body. It curled at the end of his fingertips, teasing him mischievously with full breasts dripping with crystal droplets and soft skin glimmering under the gentle flame of candles.

His cocks moved, eyes tried to take the wholeness of your divine beauty, and yet, after weeks of watching you every single day, he still couldn't believe that a woman of your sort truly walked this earth.

"I am done with you…" your eyes curved cheekily as you slowly moved back. "My God. I agree to a monthly trial–"

"It's not a trial, you'll be staying here forever."

Your back hit the pool's edge, but Sukuna didn't move. Instead, he observed you. Like a predator, preparing for a deadly attack.

"As I said, I do agree. But if you won't manage to persuade me to stay," slipped in a whisper, and you smiled even wider, seeing a furrow creasing his forehead. "I will simply kill myself. Just like Daphne did."

His heart nearly stopped, crimson eyes bloodshot. Before you could escape the pool, two arms yanked you back, pressing your chest against his. He lifted you, wrapping your legs around his waist. Finger gently squeezed your face with a slight pinch, until salty fog blurred your sight.

"My God–" you barely muffled.

"Don't ever," he growled, gripping your cheeks harsher. "Ever say that in front of me again. I will break your legs if I have to. I will tie you up to bed if you force me to," something warm spilt from his belly, and just then, you remembered about his mouth. Heavy tongue took a long, fat drag of your wet cunt, and you cried within his brutal embrace. "You are mine. Every dream of yours, every part of your body, every single laugh, all of it belongs to me."

His grip on your cheeks was too strong to let you shake your head, but light enough to allow another moan to spill from your throat. In sweetness and pain, feeling the teeth of his belly mouth pinch your clit.

"My God–"

"Do you understand me?"

"I-I–ahh," a cry filled the foggy bath, feeling his tongue slurp on your wetness. It felt heavy, girthy, tasting you with a maddened pleasure as if feasting on the honeyed juices dripping down the water.

"Do you understand?" he gritted through his teeth, loosening up his grip on your cheeks. "I don't like to repeat myself."

With another sweet mewl, your head lulled to one side in a nod, and he finally released you from his clutches. You stood right in front of him – wet, trembling, with slippery thighs and cunt already missing the swirling of his tongue on your clit.

His thumb followed down to his belly, gathering traces of your cum. A second later, thick digit found its way to your lips, pushing the stickiness right onto your tongue.

It tasted sweet, almost milky-like, clinging to the muscle like a spider's web while his thumb smeared it all over your insides.

"Tastes delicious, hm? That's what you're keeping away from me," Sukuna groaned, drinking in the sight of your teary face. "I am not a patient man, my Goddess, but my heart belongs to you, and I wish to treat you the best I can," he lifted up your face, creaming your cheeks with the rest of the cum. "But I do warn you, dearest. When the month passes, I won't be holding myself anymore. So you'd better accept this fate and just let me love you."

You didn't nod, didn't even blink. Just observed his devilishly handsome face with teary, wrecked eyes beaming with fury.

You tried to snap back, but his thumb pushed harder on your tongue. "Uraume," he called, looking somewhere over your shoulder. "Take the Queen back to our chamber. I think she's a bit tired."

Light, white robes curled around your shoulder, before Uraume gently pulled you away from Sukuna's clutches. "My Queen, allow me to–"

You shook off her hand, wiping the rest of your cum from your cheek. "Thank you, I know how to tuck myself to sleep."

And so you left your future husband alone, with rage and ecstasy still mixing beneath your chest.

⛥ ⛥ ⛥

The next few weeks passed with silence and tension binding the Goddess of Spring and the God of the Dead like a thin thread of fate. Only the three sisters were able to cut it swiftly and release you from the torment, and yet no one ever came to save the poor petal.

The first few days you spent mostly in the garden, lying under the pomegranate tree and observing the darkness blanketing the sky. The withered plains of the Underworld have never been touched by sunlight, and the lack of it started to bother you too.

There was no way to tell day from night, as the air was always slightly cold and the sky never turned any colour other than dark blue. Sometimes a sudden fog has risen over the horizon, curling above the parched trees.

The agonising screams from Tartarus could be heard over from your balcony, although after complaining to Sukuna about your lack of sleep, they somehow quieted down. You didn't pry into his methods, nor did you need to exactly know how he accomplished it.

It was difficult to grow anything in the garden, and after days of trying, you finally gave up. Well, not entirely, for you spent more and more days trying to think of a plant that would not need sun nor much water to bloom and if Sukuna could let you out even for a few days, surely you could find something.

He, however, was fully relentless at your begging as there was nothing binding you to the Underworld. Yet.

Fresh pomegranates whispered sweet sins to your ears as you looked at the round fruits bursting with crimson seeds. You wondered what they tasted like. How pristine their juices were.

Sometimes your finger would trace their hard skin with delicacy and quickly pull away, feeling Sukuna's heavy gaze drilling the hole in the back of your skull.

He seemed to always have you in his sight. It didn't really matter whether you strolled around the garden or went deeper into his domain – he was always there. Somewhere, lurking at your misty figure, the only colourful thing in his vast world, even if you didn't see him.

For the first few days, you didn't talk at all. And he was oh so angry with your nasty mood swings, even though it seemed he truly tried to be on his best behaviour.

For a while, you even refused to sleep in the same bed. He would wake up in the middle of the night only to find you cuddled into Cerberus's massive, soft body, snoring like a little baby and nuzzled under his heavy neck.

The beastly dog quickly became your favourite creature in the whole domain, and Sukuna couldn't count the times when you strolled with it through the dark plains and meadows, giggling sweetly whenever it rolled in withered grass.

It seemed the beast was particularly fond of and protective of you, so that even the God of Death himself could not approach you without the beast's shiny, sharp teeth growling his way. Crimson eyes observed him carefully, as if ready to rip his heart out if his lone finger brushed your silky skin.

And whenever Sukuna reminded you that Cerberus also had his role in the Underworld, the loveliest pout would twist your lips, and a dog's low growl would slash through the air.

And because Sukuna was softhearted only for you, he didn't have another choice but to allow you to adopt Cerberus as your own, exclusive pet.

But he absolutely couldn't stand waking up to the coldness wrapping around his body, and thus, for the first few days, in the middle of the night, he would travel all the way to Cerberus's cave only to take his Goddess back.

"Where is she?" the God would growl, with all four arms folded on his chest and eyes lidded with sleep. "Give her back, she'll come back to you in the morning anyway."

And the dog would usually ignore him, with three massive heads pretending to be plagued by a heavy slumber. Sukuna would sigh and slip a soft plea, trying to resonate with a beast he raised himself.

Three pairs of bloodshot eyes would glare at him deathly, but after a few quite embarrassing and yet desperate pleadings, the dog would lift his head up, only to reveal your peacefully slipping body. Curled against his fluffy neck, with fingers gripping the soft fur and shallow, peaceful breaths coming from your parted drooling lips.

Sukuna would lift you up with utmost care and bring you back to your chamber, wrapping himself around your body with all six limbs.

When the "morning" came, he was always the first one to slip from the bed. But not before getting himself untangled from your body. Lying serenely on his broad chest, with a drool pooling right above his heart and soft strands of your hair tickling his chin.

It was his most favourite sight during that month, and the only chance to see your face without a pout or crease forming on your lovely forehead. No matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't get close to you as much as he wished to.

But at least, after the few weeks of constantly going back and forth between your chamber and Cerberus's cave, you finally stopped escaping from his clutches and slept in his embrace for a whole night.

Moreover, during those weeks spent in each other's presence, you seemed to enjoy nothing more than pissing the God of the Dead off.

During one eventful night that both he and Uraume would recall in the future with a painful headache, you sat quietly at the long table. The wooden furniture bent under the heavy supper, with meats, fruits and vegetables prepared in feast portions.

Sukuna loved to see your cheeks stuffed full, and sometimes you would even joke that he tried to fatten you up only to eat you for dessert. He chuckled lowly, every time answering that if only you spread those thighs nicely, my Goddess, I would gladly eat you for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

An embarrassed, nasty slip from your lips, as you tried to ignore the warmth blooming in your lower belly.

One evening, however, Uraume interrupted your supper with a heavy panting and trembling gaze.

"My Lord, my Queen," she said, taking a few deep breaths. "Forgive me for the intrusion, but something deeply concerning has occurred."

"What is it?" Sukuna mumbled, not even looking her way. Instead, he poured you another cup of wine, while you tried to hide your flushed cheeks behind a curtain of hair.

Oh, you were so, so fucked.

"All the souls lingering on the river's banks have entered the Underworld."

Sukuna suddenly stopped and put the jug of wine back on the table with a loud thud. "What?!"

Both you and Uraume shrugged.

"Charon took them all," she said, glimpsing your way.

You, however, looked down at your plate, as if trying to completely erase yourself from this conversation.

"All of them were buried with a coin? How is it possible?" Sukuna growled.

Uraume took a deep sigh, with deep, sorry eyes still lingering on your hunched figure. "He said that…" She hesitated, biting down on her lower lip. "The Queen ordered to let them in."

Fuck.

The air suddenly stilled, and a moment passed before Sukuna's crimson, angry eyes looked your way. But it's not like you could see the rage blazing in his gaze, as you still carefully observed the fresh fig lying on your plate.

The fact that he somehow got delivered all your favourite, fresh fruits down to the Underworld was truly–

"Do you want to tell me something, my Queen?" he asked with utmost politeness, although you sensed the displeasure bubbling in his throat.

"No, not really," you murmured, playing with a juicy fruit.

He took a deep sigh, curling all four of his hands into fists. A soft vein popped on his forehead as he truly, really tried to keep himself calm.

"I will ask you again," slipped softly, before his two hands pulled your chair closer to him. Your thighs brushed against each other, and his fingers lifted your chin up. Till you were forced to meet his heavy, bloody gaze. "Is there anything you wish to tell me?

Oh, lying to him like that was much, much harder.

"Listen," you started, and he already sighed. "I don't see any problem with it. Why would you keep them there if Charon can just take them all to the Underworld? Isn't that the whole point of your domain?"

His fingers tightened on your chin because, dear-fucking-heavens, he really struggled to hold it together. Four bloodshot eyes looked down at your pouty lips and doe eyes, as if your pure loveliness could melt his anger.

Well, it usually could.

"They cannot enter Hades if they do not get buried with a coin. That's the rule all of them must obey," rolled harshly, and your pout became even sweeter. Fuck. "How did you even force Charon to do it? This old man is stubborn as hell."

You nestled into his palm, attempting to ease his heart with a gentle, pleading look. "It turns out most of the creatures here are quite afraid of Cerberus," you giggled, even though Sukuna was clearly unhappy. "Um, and they’re also afraid of you. The threat of reporting to the Lord of the Underworld himself tends to work quite effectively."

Sukuna pulled away with a heavy groan and started massaging his temples. One side of him was rather happy that, after weeks of fighting, you decided to use both your title and him to get what you wanted. But the other wanted to curl his fingers around your neck and snap it clean, for the mess you have caused with your need to piss him off.

He closed his eyes, taking a few deep breaths. "Why did you do it?"

"They looked sad."

His crimson gaze once again snapped to your face. "Sad? The souls?"

You nodded. "Well, all of them wanted to enter Hades so–"

"My Goddess, you can't do such a thing!" Uraume cried, looking out the tall window as if all those souls were travelling up Hades' temple.

"Why? I thought I was the Queen of the Underworld." A cheeky smile curved your lips, and Sukuna almost lost it. "I can do whatever I want. Your own words, my God."

Well, he did tell you that from now on, this domain was under both his and your control, but his mind ran far too short to predict that you, in fact, wouldn't know the most basic rules of this land.

And thus, he could only swallow his rage and look back at Uraume. "Catch them all and bring them back to the shore. Also, tell Charon that from now on he's forbidden from listening to the Queen's orders."

You scoffed, crossing arms on your chest. "I'm just going to set Cerberus on him."

"Right," Sukuna growled, sending you a short, angry look. "And also chain the dog to his cave. This beast has forgotten who his real master is."

You could forgive him mistreating the poor souls and Charon, but a line had to be drawn regarding your beloved dog.

Your fingers grabbed his forearm, eyes bulging in worry. "Wait! Leave Cerberus out of this," Sukuna looked at your nails digging into his skin and a jittery gaze. "I'm sorry, okay? Just…" There was a thread linking you both – dangerously thin, leading to an emotion your relationship hasn't yet discovered. Forgiveness. "Please don't hurt him. It's my fault. Cerberus listens to everything I say, he's just a silly dog. So let him be. If there's someone who should be punished, it's me."

Sukuna didn't say anything for a while, staring at your pleading eyes with a furrowed brow. A storm of feelings coiled in his head, and you noticed his gaze soften slightly. He often acted like a brute, of course, but you believed that somewhere, deep, deep beneath his chest, there was still a man who placed the little birds that had fallen from the trees back in their nests.

"Fine," he finally muttered and oh, how shocked he was when you chuckled and wrapped yourself around his neck. For a moment, he sat frozen in place, but soon all four arms curled around you, as he inhaled the sweetness coating your skin.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Uraume looked away to hide a little smile tugging on her lips, as it was a long, long time since she had seen the God of the Dead blushing like a virgin nymph.

Sukuna coughed, sending her a deadly gaze. "But I still believe that you and Cerberus could use some time away from each other. I'm tired of raising two brats at the same time," he mumbled, and you giggled into his neck.

"Well, my God, try to suggest it to him, and we'll see what happens," you pulled away, with hands still wrapped around his neck. "I'm afraid your beast found himself a new owner."

And so, since that evening, a little, hopeful grain started to bloom in Sukuna's heart.

As it seemed that his lovely Goddess had finally begun to warm to him. During the evening baths, you chirped into his ear like a fair birdie, sometimes even washing his muscular back and massaging his always-creased forehead.

At night, your body instinctively nuzzled into his. Legs wrapped around him tightly, hands curled around his arms, and a slightly wet cheek left a small puddle of saliva on his chest. He always beamed with warmth, and you, like a cat, used his body as a heater.

During the shared breakfast, you kept talking while he fed you the sweetest, juiciest fruits. What's more, your roles would shift, with your fingers occasionally placing a piece of orange onto his lips – sometimes upper, sometimes lower.

Whenever you stole a few apples for Cerberus, as he's tired of eating raw meat, he would only scoff and wave his hand. The beast has been living on meat and water for thousands of years, and yet, a few weeks after your appearance, he suddenly developed a lavish taste for fruits picked only by you.

On some afternoons, when Sukuna would nap under the pomegranate tree, you would creep to his side. Carefully place his head on your thighs and hum a lovely melody, just like you did back then in a forest. He would always try to stay as still as possible, just to prolong those precious moments – your fingers brushing through his hair and flowery fragrance coating his skin.

One special afternoon, your hum was interrupted by something else.

Something… alive.

The high trilling of crickets, soft chirping of birds and muffled croaks of the frogs, coming from the little pond Sukuna has built up for you.

Your fingers suddenly stopped in their tracks, and the God coughed quietly, wriggling under your touch. Like a dog, begging for more pats.

"How is it possible?" you asked, looking down at his "sleeping" face.

There was a minute of silence before he slowly, carefully opened his eyes and sighed heavily, meeting your solemn gaze. "The animals also need to enter Hades. Just on different rules," His eyes fell on something crawling up your hand. "Look there."

And to your surprise, you've noticed a grasshopper sitting serenely on your skin. It wasn't as lush and green as you remembered it to be, but misty, almost like a cloud, with only his foggy soul still crawling up your arm.

And then you've noticed birds sitting high up on the pomegranate tree, with their little wings looking like a shadow.

Something heavy formed in your throat and heart stirred with affection. "You brought them for me?"

Sukuna hummed, closing his eyes and gently placing your hand back on his head. "You can say that. Most of them were already here. I simply ordered to be bring them to our garden."

Your fingers started working through his hair again – scratching and massaging his head, till the beastly God stretched on your thighs like a cat and nuzzled into the softness of your belly.

You didn't push him away but rather giggled and whispered a sweet thank you. A little smile tugged on Sukuna's lips, and he purred softly my pleasure, Goddess.

And thus, for the first time in your life, you have felt free.

With Underworld's woeful air smooching your cheeks and shadowy animals following you around the withered plains.

You have never felt more alive than in the realm of the dead.

That's why when Sukuna called you into the main hall one day, your heart froze. With dread and fear, upon seeing your furious mother standing right next to him by the altar.

The altar, decorated with your small marble figures and fresh flowers, he ordered to be changed daily since no plant in the Underworld could survive longer than a day.

Your fingers curled in fists, lips fell in line, and somehow, even though you loved her dearly, you simply couldn't take a step closer.

Sukuna stood still, with four arms crossed on his chest and eyes looking carefully at your trembling body. As if he could read all the thoughts coiling beneath your furrowed brows.

"My darling, oh Gods," she sighed, crossing the distance between you two in a few steps. Before you knew it, she pulled you into a hug, although your arms hung loosely by your sides. "I thought I'd lost you forever. Can you believe that I needed to threaten Zeus himself to finally find you?"

She pulled away and grabbed your cheeks, only to meticulously ogle your face. "Oh my, you're so pale! This place did you no good, but at least you're fine. This brute…" she looked over her shoulder, glancing at Sukuna's stony face. "My heart almost stopped upon hearing that he was the one who kidnapped you. Did he touch you? Are you okay? Did he, you know, force you to–"

"Mom," you quickly interrupted her and wriggled yourself out of her embrace. "Why are you here?"

She looked dumbfounded – with warm eyes bulging in shock and lips slightly falling open. When you stepped back, her forehead creased.

"I came to take you back, of course."

A gentle sigh echoed through the vast temple hall as you glanced over her shoulder. Somewhere nearby, a man was attentively listening to you, with a heart pounding loudly in his throat. Filled with fear, anticipation, hope.

Sukuna rarely looked at you with that gaze – filled with love and dread, as if he understood that neither anyone else nor he himself was truly worthy of your heart. He scarcely ever seemed so weak and afraid, as if his mind, soul, heart were fully, completely wrapped around your finger.

And thus now, after so many of his threats, you could make a choice.

To stay here, with him, or go back to your mother.

"Let's go, darling, I'm getting nauseous just from being here," she tried to grab your hand, but, once again, you stepped away.

"I'm not going back," slipped in a whisper. "I can't go back."

She looked shocked, and her lips curved in a nervous smile. "What do you mean, you can't?"

"I'm bound to the Underworld."

Lie.

But oh, how good it felt in your heart, lifting the weight of all the mixed emotions you've buried over the past few days.

"Bound? What do you–" she started, and then, as if suddenly enlightened, gasped. A sharp cry escaped her throat, and her eyes looked back at Sukuna with a frightened, intense gaze. "You! You forced her to eat the seeds!"

Before she could step closer and smack his cheek with an open palm, you grabbed her. "No, mom. I did it myself."

She stopped, turning back your way. With disappointment filling her eyes and trembling lips. "You did what?"

"I love him."

And that, well, that was a confession no one expected. Not you, mother, and particularly not Sukuna. His breath hitched, eyes bulged, and he almost, almost took a step closer.

As his heart, mind, and soul were consumed by a desire to hold you and caress you yearningly until your lips swell from the sweetness of the kiss.

Your mother quickly interrupted, holding your cheeks. "You don't. Don't say it. You don't love him. He's a beast who manipulated your mind, love has no place here. Don't act foolishly, that's not how I raised you."

Your heart shuddered in wretchedness upon her words. As you knew how much she hated all the Gods. How hard she tried to keep this sweet, yet so foreign feeling away from you, as if the little seed growing in your heart was something shameful.

Crystal droplets trickled down your cheeks, wetting her pads. "But I do, mother. And I will stay here, with him. That's my home now."

There was no need to listen to her further. Sliding her trembling hands from your cheeks, you turned and quickly disappeared into the comforting darkness of a temple you used to hate that much.

Her low pleadings filled the main hall, but you could only ignore them. Seeing her again, after a whole month, brought dreadful memories of years spent in her golden cage.

You entered the chamber and sat down on a plush bed. Your hands still slightly wet from nervousness, eyes taking in the cosiness and warmth of the bedroom you shared with… him. Candles licked your skin sweetly, and moon lurked through misty curtains.

Even the usual shrieks coming from Tartarus were mild that evening, allowing you to enjoy the little crickets slipping from the garden.

Cerberus barked somewhere deep within your domain, and a smile tugged at the corners of your lips. You were on your way to give him his daily dose of apples when your mother suddenly appeared.

You sat on a bed, hunched and frozen, not noticing a massive shadow that swooshed closer. Dark robes appeared in front of your feet, and soon a heavy, musky fragrance followed.

"My Queen," Sukuna started, not quite sure what to say. A silence has fallen – pleasant, warm, homey. He sighed and crouched to meet your gaze. "Are you okay?"

Only then did he notice crystal droplets still dripping down your cheeks. "My Goddess, why are you crying?"

"Don't allow her to take me," slipped in a crying whisper, before a muffled choke followed. His big hands gripped yours, trying to stop the trembling. "Please, let me stay here."

His fingers lifted to gently cup your face. "What are you talking about? Of course, I won't let you go," crimson eyes softened as a large thumb brushed your lower lip. "Have you forgotten my words? You're never leaving my side."

"Never?"

He shook his head. "Never. I will stand against all of Olympus if that's the price of loving you."

Another sharp cry rolled from your lips as you nuzzled into his hand.

He changed your positions, sitting on the bed and letting you climb onto his thighs, only to push your crying face into his neck. Four hands embraced you before he began to cradle you like a baby.

With soft whispers and kisses placed on your forehead.

When the first shock rolled away and the tears finally stopped, you pulled back. With swollen lips and puffy cheeks, that made Sukuna's heart swell with fondness.

His tongue lapped up the last salty droplets before big palms cupped your hips. "You'll stay here, with me," plush lips peppered your cheeks, nose, and the slightly trembling chin. "And you'll let me love and worship you as you deserve," his hands rolled your hips against his, drawing a moan from your throat. "No one will take you away from me. Not now, not ever."

Your arms wrapped around his neck, back bent in a delicate arch. You looked at him with a plea, taking in the divine beauty of his beastly face. "What if Zeus himself comes for me?"

His lips were barely brushing against yours, and a woody, heavy smell of his body tickled your heart. "I'll kill him. My Goddess, you truly underestimate me. I will move heaven and earth to keep you by my side."

And then, with a last longing gaze connecting your starving souls, your lips have finally crashed.

In a slow, gentle, yet raw kiss, with his teeth biting down on your lower lip and throat swallowing all your sugary moans.

All four hands quickly found their way around your body – caressing, holding, gripping the swell of your ass and moving your hips in harsher rolls.

Misty robe hanging on your shoulders slipped down with a gentle tug, and soon his two upper hands lifted to cup your breasts.

The softness of your skin made Sukuna's mind spin, and a craving to sink himself into your warm cunt felt almost maddening. His cocks, still clothed by a dark tunic, brushed against your folds and the sweetest, purest moan rolled right into his lips.

"Feed me, my God," you murmured, pulling away slightly. "Feed me the pomegranate seeds and tie me to the Underworld. To you."

Of course, you lied to your mother.

And Sukuna knew it too. He observed you for a whole day and night, never leaving your giggles out of his sight, and thus he was aware of your little, desperate lie.

What he hoped for, however, was that your confession was sincere.

Tasting the sweetness of your lips, he realised how truly doomed he was – completely entangled with the scent of your skin and the beauty of your eyes. His heart skipped a beat when your fingers pulled his pink hair, causing his hips to buck instinctively, seeking the intense pleasure.

You pushed his chest, forcing his massive body to lie down on the mattress. "Feed me, and I shall let you have a taste too."

Your lips met his cheeks, jaw, and dropped down through the bulging throat and collarbones, while fingers slipped from the dark robes. He wore nothing beneath the long tunic, and soon your lips curled around his nipple, biting it softly with a hum.

Two upper arms swiftly pulled you up to his face, while the lower ones still held your bare hips. "What will you let me taste, my Goddess?"

A cheeky smirk tugged on your lips as you placed your leaking cunt right over his open belly mouth. "Your favourite fruit, my God."

With a loud moan, you lowered down onto its tongue, feeling the heavy muscles giving you a long, nasty lick. A shudder washed over your spine, and Sukuna drank the next cry that escaped your throat.

"You taste even better than I remembered, my Goddess," he groaned, feeling the saccharine droplets coat his lower tongue. Sticking to his teeth and inner cheeks like the sweetest honey. "But I have a much better idea."

And with that, you quickly found yourself facing his massive cocks and hovering over his face. Your puffy, drenched folds hang right above his lips, and he looked at your dripping cunt with a low groan.

"Fuck, my Goddess," two fingers parted your folds, only for a small, sticky droplet to drip down his chin. "You smell so fucking good, lower yourself a bit."

He didn't wait for your answer as two big hands pulled your hips down with a single, strong move. A groan slipped past his lips and went straight to your cunt, sending a wave of trembling pleasure straight to your clit.

"That's right, my sweet fucking Goddess," he mumbled, lips curving under the weight of your hips. "Don't be shy, get yourself comfortable."

"I-I'm not shy," and if not for a heat that slapped your cheeks, he maybe would believe you.

But your body was too honest, too inexperienced to hide the way your hips rolled against his tongue. Another pitched moan filled the foggy air when his tongue slipped inside your tight cunt.

His lower hands landed on your back and slowly, slowly bent you down. Till your wet lips met with two, pulsing heads and breasts hang right over the belly mouth.

Oh, he was right, this position was absolutely killing… both of you.

Because the moment big, beastly lips curled around your nipple, your hips buckled, and a sweet moan tickled both leaking heads.

"Nghhh," bounced sweetly off his veiny shafts. "That's–mhmm, my God, feels so good."

Sukuna chuckled, slurping on your swollen clit and pushing another cry from your chest. "Give them a little lick, my Queen. They've been waiting for you whole fucking month."

With a hazy gaze, you glanced at two fat cocks smooching your cheeks. Wet and massive, with droplets of musky precum oozing down the pulsing skin and a strong fragrance making you even wetter. He smelled so heavy, manly, and the moment you gave the first cock a kitty lick, Sukuna groaned straight into your clit.

Your hand grabbed the other one and started pumping it in slow, gentle moves, with your thumb brushing the reddened head. Belly mouth sucked on your breasts as if waiting for something more creamy to release itself onto his ravaging tongue, and you cried even louder whenever the wet tongue travelled between both of your nipples.

"How is it possible, fuck," Sukuna groaned, scooping a hefty gush of your cum and drinking it straight from your fluttering hole. "That you're so sweet everywhere. My beautiful, divine Goddess. Come on, try to suffocate me with your cunt. Put your whole weight into it."

With your cheek stuffed full of his cock, you pulled away with a nasty pop and looked over your shoulder. "My God, please take a deep breath," you reminded, because Sukuna seemed to be absolutely lost between your drenched thighs.

With a single finger thrusting into your tight hole and an open mouth catching all the dripping sap. His teeth grazed your clit, before a warm tongue kissed the pain away. He slurped like a madman, whispering little obscenities straight into your pussy and kissing her with nasty squelches. Gluey cum stuck to his nose, lips and chin, connecting him with your parted folds.

"I can't, I don't have to, she needs me," he groaned, giving you another heavy lick. With tongue covering the entirety of your cunt and finger pushing through your pulsing walls. "So sweet, my Goddess, you're so fucking delicious."

Oh, there was truly no remedy for him!

And thus you went back to his pulsing, almost bursting shafts. Your puffy lips kissed two heads before sucking on one gently. Fingers squeezed his constricting balls, juggling them softly and giving them a shy lick.

Sukuna trembled under your body, so you did it again, and again, and again, kissing, licking and sucking on his balls, while rolling your hips against his tongue.

"My God, are you okay?" you slipped shyly, although a cheekiness shimmered in your haze.

Sukuna pulled away from your cunt, and took a deep breath. "Don't ask me stupid questions, my Goddess. My patience is already hanging by a thread, so unless you want me to fold in half and fuck that cunt raw, you better shut that pretty mouth of yours."

You giggled, biting gently down on his balls. "I'll take that as a ye–ah!" you moaned, when the second finger slipped into your tight cunt. "My G-God, that's too–"

Too much wanted to roll, but Sukuna soon added the third . "You're so tight, my Goddess. I'm afraid both of them won't fit in," he slurped, feeling the desperate squeezes of your walls and juices trickling down his fingers.

Both?

An unsettling, truly frightening thought has crossed your mind. He could tear you apart with one, and using two seemed to be a completely foolish idea!

When his pads pushed something, slightly swollen and plush, your whole body shuddered. Pleasure washed over your spine, dripping down to curled feet, and a sugary moan wrapped around his leaking cock.

"There it is," Sukuna growled, looking at your raw, soaked pussy trying to mould itself around his fingers. "My Queen, you're doing so well. Squeezing my fingers so tight, I can't wait to feel you wrapped around my cocks."

The weird warmth has been coiling in your belly since his lips landed on your clit. But now, with fingers pushing your walls and pads brushing against the plump spot, something warmer, wetter started to plash inside your pouch. Something dangerously pleasurable and ready to burst beneath Sukuna's tongue and his big, stomach mouth sucking sweetly on your tits.

"My G-God, I–" you moaned, when all of his three fingers bent against the sweet spot and lips slurped on your clit. "I'm going to, mhmm, allow me to cum on your cocks, p-please."

And a single teary look over your shoulder, with hair sticking to your wet cheeks and lips fallen open, was enough to make him lose his mind.

"Whatever you wish, my Queen," he said, quickly pulling you away from his mouth.

Your body turned again, and this time you found yourself back on top, with two massive cocks squirming beneath your drooling folds and his lower hands gripping your thighs.

"You want me to…?"

He nodded, gently pulling your hips up, to help his leaking heads kiss your fluttering hole. "Ride me, my Queen. I want to watch you take it up…" his fingers traced the softness of your belly, before pushing on a spot somewhere just beneath your button. "here. Both of them."

Your pussy was ready to burst any second, and you could already feel something else, other than your normal wetness, drip down his cocks. The fog in your mind grew thicker, sweat coolly lined your neck, as you pressed both hands against his chest and leaned on trembling, feeble arms.

Rough thumb from the upper arm slipped between your folds, rolling gently the puffy clit. "Slowly, my Queen, take a deep breath." You did just that, with eyes looking straight into his. Both heads started forcing their way through your tight walls, gathering the slippery juices on the way. "That's it, that's my good girl, deep breaths."

He talked you through it, with thumb rubbing the sweet button and lower hands slowly, slowly, pulling you down his shafts.

A sharp cry rolled past your lips when both heads slipped inside. Pushing into your contracting walls and ripping you open, till the metallic taste of blood pooled somewhere at the back of your throat.

The water plopping inside your belly was filling you full, together with Sukuna's cocks constantly trying to thrust inside. You could feel every vein, every detailed curve of his shafts lick your gummy insides, as he pushed, and pushed, and took in the maddening beauty of your face, utterly lost in pleasure.

Your pussy squelched around his monstrous cocks. Cried sweetly, with a clit slowly getting much harsher rubs, till the swollen button started to tremble.

"My God, w-wait, something's wrong," you cried, trying to pull yourself off.

But Sukuna's lower hands kept you in place, and his hips bucked up, trying to meet yours. "Everything's good, my Queen. Deep breaths, you're doing so well."

"No, you don't get it, I–"

The heat hit your cheeks, walls clamped down half-thrust, and the alarmingly plopping water, finally, finally, spilt.

You came.

Or maybe, gushed.

With his cocks barely inside, a hefty wave rolled through your spine, spraying Sukuna's hands, belly, and chest with your cum. Your body trembled in pleasure, and he used this short moment of distraction to thrust his cocks fully, till your hips finally met his.

It was brutal, mean, absolutely filthy, with his lower mouth drinking your squirt and crimson eyes glimmering with maddening yearning.

Something in his mind snapped when he noticed a big bulge right under your belly button, and within a second, your position changed once again.

And this time, you knew that it was over.

He folded you in half, till your ass peeled off the drenched bed, and pussy glistened under his fiery gaze. All four arms kept you tightly in place, with lower limbs spreading your soaked thighs and upper ones taking something from the bedside table.

Only then have you noticed a crimson, bursting pomegranate, licked by the candle's warm tongues and dripping down Sukuna's forearm. He ripped it in half with a single, gentle move, before drinking the seeds with eyes never leaving yours.

"Deep breath, my Goddess," he said again, before both of his cocks rammed into your needy, stretched hole and lips crushed against yours. "Swallow it," he muttered into your reddened teeth, pushing all the pomegranate seeds straight into your mouth. "My little slutty Queen. Coming on my cocks when I barely thrusted in."

The fruit tasted sweeter than honey itself and mixed with Sukuna's sweet spin. His tongue trailed against yours, before lips moved towards your cheeks, chin, jaw, leaving all over your face a sweet, bloody trace of the fruit.

The power that tied your body, heart and soul to the God who wished for nothing but to love you like a madman and worship every piece of your skin.

His thrusts became more erratic, brutal, with squelches filling the wet, foggy air and his heavy, massive body leaning on your folded legs. His hips met yours with each roll, and whenever he pulled away, a long, sticky strand stretched between his soaked shafts and your sensitive cunt.

"Open up, my Queen," he growled, digging his fingers into your jaw. "Show me how well you swallowed it all."

Your lips fell open, and a string of drool trickled down his fingers. Big thumb pushed on your reddened tongue, and you sucked it sweetly, with eyes crossing in pleasure.

The long, fat tongue of his lower mouth slid out and gave your clit a long, filthy lick, before its lips sucked on it raw. Irritating the sensitive button and slurping on the last droplets of your squirt. Sukuna groaned, feeling your walls clamping around his cocks and pushed harsher, as if trying to fight the merciless squeeze.

"Fuck, my Goddess, let me–ahh–let get to your womb," he groaned, giving you a single, brutal thrust. You cried around his thumb, but he simply shushed you sweetly. "Don't cry, it's alright. Ngh, squeezing me so fucking hard," he leaned over, licking off the salty droplets.

His hips moved with unbelievably violent motion, rocking your bed against the wall and drawing a loud cry from your throat. Two pulsing heads kissed your womb with squelches till it swelled like a juicy peach and bent under his heartless thrusts.

A familiar warmth once again started to pool in your belly. Your arms curled behind Sukuna's neck, pulling him into another, filthy kiss. "My God, I'm g-gonna… soon… mhmm so good, s-so–ahh!"

He chuckled against your lips, but couldn't ignore the lovely tenderness filling your teary eyes. His heart jumped, and lower hands folded you into an even meaner mating press. Till you could barely breathe under his massive body, squeezing you down.

"Say it," he whispered, letting his cocks rip you raw. "Say it again."

Two fat shafts slipped in and out, smooching every little corner of your tired, swollen cunt. The pleasure filled you from head to toe, overflowing your body in electrifying strokes.

You knew what he wanted to hear. But his thrusts made a mushy mess out of your mind and eyes rolled back each time his hand pushed the bulge forming under your belly. Not even pregnancy could get you that bloated.

When your head lulled to the side, his fingers dug into your cheeks again, forcing you to look into his eyes. "Say it, my Goddess," he said, licking the last red traces of pomegranate juice from the corner of your lips. "I beg you."

"I love you," slipped like a dream. "I–I, mhmm, I love you. My God, I–"

His lips joined yours in a yearning, maddened kiss. "Fuck, my sweet Goddess. I love you so much, so fucking–fuck."

The warmth in your belly spilt again, and watery cum flooded his abdomen. The belly mouth sucked itself onto your clit, drinking each and every bead of your sweet nectar.

A second later, his hips finally stilled. Pulsing heads nuzzled into your womb, filling it with heavy, gluey cum. He pumped you full, with maddened pleasure creasing his forehead and knees digging into the mattress. Everything, just to get as close to you as possible.

His hefty cum filled your belly before bursting outside and buttering your folds.

"My God, at this point, mhmm, you'll knock me up," a sweet, tired giggle slipped past your lips, feeling his seed overflowing your poor womb. "Although I truly wouldn't mind."

He sighed, nuzzling warmly into the crook of your neck. The plushiness of your skin still made his mind spin, and the flowery fragrance haunted him like a spirit. "My Goddess, don't play with fire."

Your fingers brushed through his hair, pulling a low hum from his massive chest. "I'm not afraid to get burned," you said with full seriousness.

But God didn't answer. Just cuddled closer to your body – plush breasts, soft neck, and hair tickling his nose. He reminded you of Cerberus whenever the beast tried to cuddle into your side.

And with the same love and fondness, you kissed his temple, whispering simple yet oh so important, I'm yours, forever.

Forever it truly was for you, as no other couple on Olympus would ever conquer the utter devotion and love of the Goddess of Spring and the Lord of the Underworld.

Such contrary characters and yet relishing themselves in the most maddening obsession the Olympus has ever seen.

©liahcharms all rights reserved. Do not copy, plagiarise, feed AI, translate or modify my works.

Oh god, I'm tired but so, so happy. I think it's pretty good, but please let me know your thoughts in the comments <3 Pray forgive me for any mistakes, the wizard was proofreading it at 11 p.m.

Collection taglist: @silverklaus @buttclencher28 @anothergojostan @sirensdairy @waterisntwetanymoreiam @somekindofcelebrity @prome911 @iridescentshine @venussdovess @classycreationlight @bokenessa @sashabearsstuff @gater-grabber96 @venetiandream @luvducks19 @koreluvsspring @moonlight-inthe-sea @hashahasha @mysicnote @sukunasl-ttywh0re @princesstiti14 @kissthegoatt @chosoismyeverthing @getospuresoul @ane5e

permanent taglist 1/3: @mellyrally @1cckedheart @ham-star @indom-itus @satorupied @msheds0519 @a-dizzle777 @man1cslut @naxinomi @getopilleds @shittypunkbarbeque @urgirl-jijiiii @mariaflor873 @wiishies @d34dg1rl101 @disaster-rose @levisotakugf @yailuxe @palanggaaa

˗ˏˋ ꒰ ✉︎ ꒱ ˎˊ˗ want to join permanent taglist? sign up here ꨄ︎

[chuluoyi]

𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒, 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐋 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐒

- caleb x reader

a doting husband, a devoted father. watching him spoil your little girl rotten makes you start wondering… would it make you a bad wife to ask him for another baby?

genre/warnings: 18+ suggestive content—minors do not interact!—fluff, dad!caleb, explicit smut, breeding & pregnancy kink, crack, domestic bliss, veeery self-indulgent, you and caleb have a daughter (her name is lynn!)

notes: takes place around five years-ish after weightless paradise. i’m just hungry for caleb okayyy </3 the propaganda i totally fell for: caleb is an amazing girl dad and i need whatever browcara he uses bc look at that thicc eyebrows 🤨

“Another baby, huh?”

After eight and half years of marriage, you had come to realize that your husband was not only a man in love, but also an incredibly wonderful father.

Taking care of others came as naturally to Caleb as breathing. It was in the way he always packed your daughter’s favorite snacks before preschool, in the patience while enduring her tea parties with plastic crowns perched atop his head, and how he would come home exhausted from work, but would scoop his little girl into his arms and smother her with kisses because she had apparently spent the entire evening waiting for him.

At the tender age of five, Lynn adored her father and had him wrapped around her pinky. Her preschool teachers adored him too, always giving him heart eyes without you knowing. And you... well...

“Well, your makeup’s smudged now...” Caleb wiped the ruined lip gloss from your lips with the pad of his thumb, his own lips glistening with it after kissing you senseless. His violet eyes twinkled with amusement. “So… do you want me to continue, or...?”

You want another baby with him.

The wish had settled into your heart long before today, though you had been too embarrassed to say it aloud. The thought of another little person with his eyes, his laugh, and his gentle heart was enough to make your chest flutter—

“Say something, hmm?” Caleb poked your cheek with a finger and you pursed your lips, trying to swallow the heat warming your body inside out.

“What, you don’t want it?” you defiantly looked up to him, despite how embarrassingly hot your face felt. Caleb openly chuckled at the sight, before pinching your cheek again.

A lifetime together had made him frighteningly observant— he could tell what you were thinking from the changes in your expression alone. The lingering way you had watched him play with your daughter, the softness in your gaze whenever he carried her around the kitchen, the way you had gone quiet afterwards…

Of course he knew what you wanted. It was, after all, what he had in mind too.

So, he wasted no time, asked you point blank the moment your sweet little girl fell asleep and let you come to his trap. As he expected, like a moth to flame, you were caught hook, line and sinker.

His hands tightened around your waist then, pulling you flush against him before he captured your lips once more.

“Mmmh...”

The scoff that left you dissolved instantly into a breathless sound when Caleb kissed you again— slow and dizzying enough to make your head spin. His grip remained firm while your hands instinctively slid upward into his hair, fingers threading through the soft strands as he kissed you deeper, pleased by how quickly you melted for him.

“Well then, to that I say... we should have another,” he growled finally when he broke the kiss.

. . .

The way his hands had wandered over you for the past hour told you everything his mouth had yet to say aloud. Caleb touched you like he was reacquainting himself with every inch of you, tracing each curve and hollow as though committing them to memory.

His fingers then drifted across the slight softness of your belly, over the skin that had stretched through the baby you had carried for him. Nonetheless, you were still enticing and beautiful to him.

Beneath him, legs wrapped around his waist, with his hot, girthy length buried deep inside... was you. You unwittingly let out a gasp, feeling how deliciously stretched and full you were. Caleb had moved against you with agonizing slowness, as though he was savoring every second instead of racing towards the end of it.

“Caleeeb,” you breathed, almost whiny, though even you couldn’t tell whether it came out as a protest or an encouragement.

“Yes?” His hips rolled forward, pulling a startled moan from you before a knowing smile curved at the corners of his mouth.

The sight of you putty under him, torn between salvaging your dignity or begging him to help was his favorite sight of you to date. Ever so shy with a touch of innocence...

And he is the only one who gets to corrupt you.

“What is it?” Caleb asked again, voice low and teasing as he brushed his nose against yours. “Tell me what you want.”

Are you cooked? Didn’t you cook yourself though? Anyways, you had gone to far to go back.

“Ahh—” you mewled, throwing your head back when he hit that one spot before slowing again, frustrated. “Go faster... already...”

His lips curled into a wicked grin. “I can’t hear you.”

Your daughter was five. Five years since you had carried life within you. Five years since sleepless nights of soothing a crying baby while Caleb lingered by the doorway, quietly watching you with unmistakable fondness in his eyes.

Lynn was fussy as a baby, but with each passing day, she resembled both you and Caleb even more— possessing your earnest disposition, his quick wit, and adorable to boot as he trailed after Caleb like a tiny shadow, asking endless questions about sky and stars while staring up at him with sparkling, curious eyes that had the very same color as his own.

You loved being a mom, and you didn’t need to ask him to know that your husband loved fatherhood just as much.

“Give me—” You gripped his shoulder, staring hard at him as your nails digging in his skin sharp enough that he hissed, “another baby. Now.”

His amethyst eyes widened a fraction at your demand. You could have sworn his face reddened too at your boldness, but then a haze clouded his beautiful eyes, as he whispered in your ear:

“In good time, honey.”

And in the very next smooth thrust, he tore a startled squeal from your lips. It was hard, fast, and overwhelming after all the slow teasing from before, enough to leave you with tears in your eyes.

“I love her—” Thrust. “I love watching Lynn grow—” Thrust. “hearing her silly stories—” Thrust. “I love being a father, damn it—”

He punctuated each statement with a fast-paced thrust, and you felt your voice dissolving into strangled moans. Your fingers dug even deeper into his shoulders, nails leaving crescents in his skin.

“But I love this too,” he groaned, voice in a growl as his hand slid down to rest against your lower belly, thumb stroking gently over the skin there. His gaze darkened that it make your pulse stutter.

“I love the thought of giving you... another baby— so t-that everyone... can see and know that you are mine.”

A certain population of men found their wives unappealing during and after pregnancy, but not him. Oh, he so adored the very image of you waddling and swollen with his baby. It gave him the primal satisfaction— that everyone who looked at you would know exactly who had done that and to whom you belonged to.

It just made him feel powerful in a way nothing else did.

“You... like it?” you almost chuckled. Your hand rested over his where it pressed against your stomach. “You like... seeing me pregnant?”

“Yes.”

The answer left him rugged and breathless, almost strangled from how quickly it escaped him. Whatever restraint Caleb had been clinging to began slipping after that, his movements losing their earlier patience.

“God, yes,” he admitted in a grunt as he thrusted again harshly and your eyes rolled to the back of your head. “I love it.” His forehead pressed against yours, like he could not bear even an inch of distance between you. “I love watching your body change. I love seeing your belly grow and knowing we made that together. I love—”

He broke off with a shaky exhale, burying his face against your neck as though the rest of the words were too overwhelming to say aloud.

Damn. He loved it when your breasts swelled with milk in the later stages of pregnancy. It made you even more sensitive than you normally were, and he would spend hours worshipping and pleasuring you with his mouth and hands— and your blissed out expression when he did that was so priceless he wished he could get you even more pregnant than you already were.

His rhythm had become desperate and erratic now, as he lost his control entirely. You could feel him getting close. Your own pleasure was building too, heat coiled low within in your lower belly, steadily tightening until your thighs trembled around him.

“I’ll put another baby in you,” he breathed against your mouth, words rough and broken between kisses. “Maybe this time it’ll be a boy—”

“Ah— Caleb…!”

Your voice dissolved into a helpless cry as your head fell back against the pillows, back arching to its fullest.

“That’s it,” he whispered shakily as he felt you tremble, his eyes unfocused and dark with lust. “Yes— Just like that. Come for me. Let me feel you!”

You did, pleasure crashing over you in waves that left you gasping. Your body clenched around his massive cock, pulling him deeper, and he followed almost immediately after with a breathy groan that might have been your name or a prayer or both— burying his face in your shoulder as his potent release flooding your womb in swift rush.

He collapsed against you, still buried deep, his heart hammering against your chest. For a long moment, neither of you moved. You could feel him pulsing inside you, still filling you with everything that was his.

“So… you have a fetish,” you accused between uneven breaths, still trying to recover.

Caleb let out a muffled laugh against your neck. “I don’t have a— that’s not—”

“You absolutely do.”

“It’s not a fetish,” he argued, lifting his head to look at you with a grin despite the flushed state of both of you. “I just happen to love my wife too much I want to give her more babies.”

Caleb kissed you before you could even think of responding. There was laughter hidden somewhere, fondness tangled inseparably with desire.

“You’d spoil a son just as badly as you spoil Lynn,” you managed breathlessly when he pulled slightly.

“I will spoil all three of you because I love you,” he shot back instantly, voice strained but certain, eyes crinkling. “You won’t have to fight for my attention, don’t worry.”

“Daddy, daddy, can you please do my hair?”

“Shh… Mommy’s still sleeping, sweetheart. Quiet voices, remember?”

You stirred awake slowly at the sound of whispering nearby, warmth still lingering through your body as the morning light filtered softly through the curtains. For a moment, you remained still beneath the blankets, eyes only barely open as you watched the scene unfolding at the edge of the bed.

Your little girl, Lynn, sat cross-legged between Caleb’s legs, clutching a hairbrush in both hands while your husband—still entirely shirtless and very much half-awake—carefully gathered her hair into sections.

The sight alone nearly made your heart melt. Caleb looked absurdly serious for someone braiding tiny pigtails at sunrise.

“There,” he murmured once he finished, gently tightening the braid. “All done. Does it hurt?”

“Nope!” Lynn chirped. “You’re better than Mommy!”

You nearly scoffed aloud at the betrayal. Caleb, meanwhile, looked unbearably smug. “Oh? Is that so?”

“Mhm!” she nodded enthusiastically. “Mommy makes it too tight sometimes.”

“That’s because I spend extra time making you look pretty,” Caleb said with a grin, patting her head. Then he leaned down to nuzzle his nose against her cheek, making her burst into giggles. “Which is exactly why I’m keeping you.”

Lynn laughed a little too loudly, causing Caleb to immediately place a finger over his lips.

“Shh, baby,” he whispered dramatically, glancing toward the bed. “If Mommy wakes up, she’ll steal me away from you. So we’ve got to stay quiet, okay?”

“That’s because Mommy loves you the most,” Lynn whispered back just as seriously.

Caleb pretended to think about it. “Hmm… I don’t know. I think you might love me more.”

Your daughter gasped softly. “Nooo. Mommy loves you this much.” She stretched her arms wide as far as they could go.

“And how much do you love me?”

Lynn paused dramatically before suddenly throwing her arms around his neck. “Thiiis much!”

A quiet laugh escaped Caleb as he wrapped an arm securely around her small body to stop her from toppling backwards.

Hidden beneath the blankets, you could only smile at the sight, so overwhelmed with affection that it almost hurt.

Your daughter loved him completely, and Caleb cherished her with every ounce of tenderness he possessed. He looked at Lynn the same way he looked at you—with gentle wonder, as though she alone hung every star in the sky.

And watching them together now made warmth bloom inside your chest, because you knew with complete certainty that if you were blessed with another child after this, then Caleb would love them just as fiercely too.

Epilogue

“Oh, Lynn,” Caleb said suddenly, putting her down. “That reminds me. Daddy wants to ask you something.”

“What is it?”

Caleb’s lips twitched faintly. “Mommy and Daddy are currently working to give you a little sibling… so would you rather have a baby brother or a baby sister?”

?! You shifted in your blankets and Caleb immediately flicked a knowing, suggestive glance towards you. Oh, he absolutely knew you were awake!

Lynn gasped softly like this was the most important question she had ever been asked. “A baby sister!” she declared excitedly.

“Oh? Why a sister and not a brother?”

“Because I already know how to be a girl,” she explained with complete confidence. “So I can teach her things. If it’s a boy, he’ll eat bugs.”

“I see… A very important concern,” Caleb nodded solemnly, clearly fighting his amusement. “But what if Mommy gives us a baby boy first? You’ll still love him too, right?”

“Hmm... sure, I can...” Lynn puffed out her cheeks, but then looked at him with shining amethyst eyes. “But can you promise to make me a little sister next?”

Caleb laughed softly before pulling her closer with one arm. “Of course, sweetheart…”

And then, shamelessly, he looked towards you again, who was gaping at him, a satisfied smirk slowly spreading across his face.

[crimsonrubie]

Caleb Tarzan AU

Description: You're a professional photographer who got invited to an expedition with a group of researchers wanting to uncover and learn about an undocumented species of apes.

When you thought you were on the trail of something important, you happened to stumble into a strange unhostile wild man in the forest.

Word count: 11.1k+

A/n: I kinda dragged it out-? I REALLY wanted to write something like this so yes thats all I'm gonna say. Hope you enjoy!

Reblogs and comments would be really appreciated!!♡

“Oh these photos are great! I am so glad you came with us, couldn't have done this without you!” Professor Lucius exclaims as he inspects the photos you took of the wild animals living in the forest.

You're a professional photographer and was offered to go on an expedition with a team of researchers that wanted to learn more about the wild animals living in the forest. You found this an opportunity to explore and improve your camera skills so you agreed right away, which puts you now in the middle of the forest in the teams’ camping ground.

You were miles away from civilization but had enough supplies to last you till the end of the expedition which was planned for two months at most.

“So glad they are to your liking professor Lucius.” You exclaimed, happy with your work and adjusted the strap of your camera on your shoulder. You received a pat on the shoulder and looked beside you to see the fellow hunter that came with you on this expedition in case of any emergency with a vicious animal looking for a meal or a wanderer attack.

“How are you holding up?” Xavier asks. He kept checking in on you, making sure you weren't finding the humid environment troublesome but you eased his concerns with a shrug and an excitement that rivals the researchers to find more species of animals out in the wild.

“Great! This is so different from what I'm used to but man, it's so cool to be here.”

“Glad to hear it. I'll be on the look out if you need me.” You nod to him and join the team of researchers, some mumbling to themselves and others engaged in a heated conversation.

“Still nothing on the gorillas?”

“Our main subject was to conduct research on the gorillas but we didn't find a single one yet!”

You furrow your eyebrows and look at the looming forest trees ahead. You knew they were looking for the gorillas specifically but you were nearing the end of the second week with still no sign of them and everyone was becoming restless. You couldn't come back empty handed because the species of gorilla living in this forest hadn't been documented and your team was adamant on being the first to capture every detail.

“We can still keep looking, and I'll be alert with my camera. I'll find them.” Everyone looks towards you when you speak.

“Well we still have a month and a half. Let's not give up.” Professor Lucius speaks as he joins the group of restless researchers. He pats some of their shoulders and comforts them that you still have time and that you leave for another scout in ten minutes. Everyone scurries to get their bags and books while you walk ahead to make sure you've got enough film rolls tucked away in your camera bag and all the necessary items you'll need for this scout.

…

“We're never gonna find anything this way. The moment we appear, all the animals scurry away.” Nero grumbles as he scribbles something on his notebook.

You're walking a few steps behind them, keeping your camera at eye level in case you catch anything. You're looking through the lens when movement catches your attention further up in the trees and you tense, your hand moving the camera to the last spot where a thin tree branch was swinging. Something was just there and you were determined to find it. Your team continued forward and you unknowingly left the trail and went in search of the movement.

You trusted your instincts when it came to photography and right now they were screaming at you not to stop moving and let this trail escape your sight. The crunch of tree branches underneath your foot was the only thing registering in your brain as you followed the quick movements of… of something.

You failed to observe your surroundings though, too absorbed in looking through your camera and chasing that before you could act, your foot caught on slippery ground of mud and you yelled when you went toppling down a hill, screaming as leaves and thin branches collided with you while you had your arms up, crossed in front of your face to shield you.

“AHH!!” You rolled down to a stop right before a stream of water, groaning as your body protested when you tried to get up. Your body was sure to be filled with bruises by tomorrow and your clothes were all scratched up, thanks to all the branches you encountered with the sharp edges.

“Ahh just great. I didn't only lose the trail of whatever I was following, now I'm lost. Great just great…” You grumbled to yourself, checking your camera for any damages and sighing in relief when you saw it still in good condition. You pushed yourself up, albeit a little slowly when each body part protested in pain whenever you moved.

The only sounds you were able to hear right now was the swooshing of the water going down the stream of river beside you and some species of birds perched high in some of the tall trees around you and the light buzzing of cicadas. The loud sounds had failed to alert you of something creeping up behind you, that is until you heard a snarl.

Your eyes widened and you spun before you could think and your body froze in fear the moment you caught the sight of a coyote. It was snarling at you, stepping around you, seizing your size before it could jump. Your breathing cut off, almost not there as you tried making yourself seem invisible. However the coyote prowled closer and bared its teeth and you looked around for a weapon. The closest thing to you was a decently sized branch the height of a baseball bat. You quickly snatched it from the ground and pointed it at the coyote, trying to mimic the movement of hitting to scare it off.

However that plan quickly backfired when it swiped at your weak weapon and you yelped, losing grip of the branch and falling backwards, cornered between the river and the predator now opening its jaw, ready to pounce. You whimpered, closing your eyes when it jumped but then a swoosh of air passed by your tightly shut eyes and a twig snapping in the distance from a powerful shove had you jumping and you looked only to see the coyote was no longer in front of you.

You looked to the side and your body froze when you gazed at the scene in front of you. There was a man, tan skinned and he was growling back at the coyote. He had his back to you and you gulped, your hands trying to find purchase on the slippery ground underneath you to crawl backwards.

Your heart was hammering in your chest and it beat so loudly in your ears, it was the only thing you could hear.

The coyote whimpered, letting out a weak howl then escaping back into the woods. Your chest was moving up and down with your quick breathing, your body shaking in terror at the fact you were about to be coyote food.

“Hmgh.” You looked up and screamed when you came face to face with uniquely deep purple eyes staring at you in wonder and curiosity. This… man was naked. His shoulders were wide, and he had a toned stomach, and visibly strong arms. His matted brown hair reached just a little under shoulder length. Your eyes accidentally trailed down only to widen and snap back up before you can look further at his nether regions.

“Hm?” He tilted his face at you and came closer, on all four feet- eh, two hands and legs. His mannerisms made you think of a gorilla, all with stepping around with his knuckles on the ground. He furrowed his brows, getting closer while you crawled back till your back came in contact with a stray rock at the side of the river.

“No… No, no, stay back! I-I don't-” Your clutched your camera close to your chest and closed your eyes. You tensed when hands suddenly reached out to cradle your messy hair, tugging it towards him to sniff at and you yelped, pulling back with your hair back in your grip. “No, don't touch my hair! Oh God you know nothing of personal space do you?”

“No.” Your eyes widened at the gruff voice and you looked up, for the first time making eye contact with the man as he stared cautiously at you. “No.” You blinked. He was only imitating you, which made you realise he really was a wild person, lost in the wild and has no knowledge of human language.

“Yes, no. You… You can speak?” You tried asking, but he made another grunt and hit his chest once with his fist, exactly like a gorilla would. He was going to say something before loud voices reached your ears.

“Hey!! Are you there?! Where are you!!” That was Tara. You let out a relieved sigh, knowing your companions were close by but the man seemed alarmed at the commotion and gave you one last glance before he jumped up and somehow, scaled up the trees and hanging vines with ease, disappearing in the distance. You wanted to call out to him, but then Xavier and Tara emerged from between the trees and ran up to you in a hurry.

“Oh my God are you okay?! You're scratched up all over!” Tara fussed over you and you tried to tell her you're fine but she was muttering to herself about the dangers of wild animals and the unforgiving forest.

“Come on, we have to get you back to camp. Grab onto me.” Xavier crouches down in front of you, giving you his back and you wrap your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist. He pulls you up and the three of you start back to camp all the while your mind drifts far from the conversation between Xavier and Tara.

You think back to the wild man that saved you and even tried to speak to you before being spooked away. Your primary goal was to learn more about gorillas, but now you have this huge urge to search for this strange man again when you recover.

…

“Alright, I'm off!” You declare, hiking your hag higher on your shoulder with your camera bag and waving to the others. It was the next day and even though your body ached in some places, you were determined to go out and find the mysterious man in the forest.

“You sure are hyped up.” Xavier yawns, rubbing his eyes. It was the afternoon, but the man was as sleepy as a senior cat. The other researchers were sitting in their tent, stuck in the middle of a heated discussion after the team discovered gorilla nests this morning. When you came across them, everyone's hopes skyrocketed because it only meant you were getting closer to this species of apes.

Now you had some free time for yourself after submitting the various upclose images you took of the nests and you were all packed up to begin your own search for your new subject. That subject being a wild man lost in the woods.

“Can't waste this opportunity to explore and capture more beautiful sights!” You exclaim, checking over all your things and making sure you had water and snacks, and the book you packed along with you, filled with all your photographs over your career.

“Be careful though, and don't be late. It should be safe since I haven't caught a glimpse of any wild predators nearby, but better to be safe than sorry.” You nod to Xavier, reassuring him one last time and heading off into the forest, taking the pathway and striding ahead.

Fifteen minutes went by and the only thing you saw was a nest of birds and some monkeys eating bananas on top of a tree. Not very encouraging for your search.

You sighed, your hopes dwindling by the second the longer you delve into the forest with no sign of the purple eyed man. The leaves scrunched beneath your boots and twigs snapped as you stepped on them, the buzzing of the cicadas filling up the humid forest.

It didn't help that the weather was warm and humid, but thankfully it was tolerable. You wiped sweat off your brow when you heard it. The swooshing above you had your head snapping up and you squinted at the huge number of vines hanging on top of you and looping through the tall trees. You saw a lone vine swinging slowly to a stop and you took one step forward, then two, then you were running. Something, or someone, was jumping and swinging through the trees like a professional ninja athlete in those crazy difficult obstacle courses.

You had your eyes set on the prize as you pumped your legs to push you as far as you can, trying to keep up. “Hey! Wait!” You knew that yelling out into the forest while alone was the dumbest idea but all rational thoughts had escaped your mind as the only goal you were set to reach was to catch this man at all costs.

You had to see him again, no matter what.

After about a minute of running, you started slowing down till you came to a complete stop. Your hands fell to your knees to support your body and you tried to catch your breath, your stamina clearly lacking. The path you had taken was also difficult to traverse, so it took even more energy out of you jumping over logs and avoiding sharp hanging branches.

“You… are very fast… ohmyGod…” You spoke between breaths, frowning at the end of it, disappointed he escaped you. Again.

“Very… fast. Me.”

“AHHH!!” You fell backwards and landed on your butt on a wet puddle on the grass. You added that to your growing list of bruises.

You looked up and there he was. He was hanging from a vine right in front of you and looking at you with utmost curiosity. His head was tilted and he reached his hand out to you. You looked up, your breath caught in your throat as you stretched your hand up and let him help you back on your feet. His grip was firm and you let out a tiny yelp when you stumbled forward after he pulled you up, not aware of his own strength.

You collided into him but quickly stepped back to maintain a modicum of decency between you two. You inspected him now that you were standing and realised there was something different about him. He was wearing some kind of cloth over his hips, wrapped around like made shorts, in a way.

“Oh you…” You cleared your throat to get rid of the memory of seeing him in the nude. “You're wearing clothes now, kind of.” You trailed off awkwardly and blinked when he stepped down on the ground, landing on his knuckles again and walking around you in curiosity.

You stood your ground. You felt as if you had to show him you were no threat, and let him spin around your body till he came back to crouch in front of you. He looked down at your legs and your eyes widened when he hesitantly pushed himself up to an awkward stand, looking at you for approval and you think your heart may have just exploded in your chest.

“Yes, yes! You're standing, no your knees are still more bent than necessary… Your back is still too hunched… There!” You beamed when you had moved him and helped him stand up properly but then you blushed and stepped back when you realised you were touching him to help guide him and cleared your throat.

“Do you have a name?” You asked softly, tilting your head. He looked at you with confusion and you pursed your lips, trying to think of what will make him understand. “Ah yes! My name is…” You pat your chest once with both your hands, and pronounce your name slowly.

He tries to repeat your name. The first time it comes out wrong but when you pronounce it again for him, slower this time, he says it correctly and you nod, grinning at his success. “Yes! You got it! Now, what's your name?” You gesture towards him and frown when he furrows his brows and looks down. After a while he looks back up at you and shakes his head. “You don't remember your name?” He stays still and you him. “Wait, you don't have one…?” He nods his head at that and your frown deepens at his response. He grew up like this without a name?

Suddenly he pointed to you, “Name?” you blinked then he pointed at himself.

After a minute of confusion, your mouth forms an ‘O’ shape in realization. “Oh! You want me to name you?” He nods and the first slight smile appears on his face. You rest your chin on your hand and think. “This is difficult. I'm not very good with names.” You look back at Caleb and tilt your head, jutting your lips out slightly while you contemplate.

“Hmm… Caleb?” You mumble it and jump slightly when his eyes light up and he nods in enthusiasm. You laugh and nod. “Alright, Caleb it is. Wow, nevermind that was easy. Oh and Caleb,” You paused to let him know you’re speaking to him and continued, “I can get you some help, if you would come with me back to camp.” You speak while also making gestures with your hands to help him understand you. He seems to have understood but a flicker of hesitation flashes in his eyes and he steps back, going back to walking with his knuckles on the ground.

“Come?” He asks, the words seeming to be foreign coming out of his lips.

“Yes. Come, with me?”

“Caleb, no. Can't.”

You frown, your brows furrowing but you nod after a minute and nod. “Okay, no come with me. How about I show you something instead?” You walk over to a nearby thick tree branch and sit down on it, taking out your journal with various pictures from your career with little notes scribbled down in random places.

“Show..?” He raises an eyebrow, cautiously making his way behind you and leaning over your shoulder to look at the journal.

You hum in confirmation, flipping the book open to the first page where a simple photograph of the sun setting on the horizon can be seen with tall buildings and skyscrapers being in the front of the photo. The sun was dipping between two glass buildings. You looked over your shoulder only to catch Caleb gazing at the photo in awe.

He pointed up at the blue sky seen in the picture, where a plane was caught perfectly in the frame and looked at you in question.

“Oh that? That's an airplane. You like it?”

“Airpane…?”

You giggle and shake your head, repeating it again till he gets it right. “We get on airplanes to travel around the world, we can see everything from up there. Here one second.” You pull out your phone and show him a short video you took while inside a plane. The screen portrayed the view outside your window, some clouds and smudges of the city underneath.

His look of astonishment amused you and you giggled. That's how you spend the next hour, showing Caleb more of your photographs and teaching him more words, all the while he engages like an excited school boy eager to learn more.

The sun started setting a while later and you realised it was getting late. Way too late. You cut off your current topic about plushies and teddy bears. He was baffled at the idea of having an inanimate object that looks like the animals he's surrounded with everyday that isn't, well, alive.

“I have to go. It's getting late-” You rambled as you packed your stuff back into your bag and hiked it around your shoulder but then gasped when Caleb grasped your hand and pulled you back before you could move.

He looked annoyed at himself for not knowing what to say, so he settled for standing up, and you froze up when he grips your wrist and with his other hand, lifted it to yours, first with his fingers closed like a gorilla's, but then he spread it open and laid it flat against your palm and fingers. Your breath hitched at the gesture and Caleb looked at your smaller hand resting against his. Both the same exact shape but different sizes and skin color but the same nonetheless.

He was yearning, so openly, while staring at your hands then back to your eyes. You can't tell how, but you knew without a doubt that he was pleading with you to stay. His eyes spoke volumes. Those purple hues stared into your own eyes with longing and something else you couldn't name, but you frowned and let your hand fall to your side after he loosened his grip on your wrist.

“I'm sorry but I have to go. I'll come back tomorrow, yeah?” You tried smiling, but your expression turned upside down when his eyes casted downward and his hair partially covered his face.

You were about to reach out to him, not sure exactly what for, when a nearby voice called out your name, causing Caleb to whip his head towards the sound and before you could calm him down, he was up and swinging away on the vines, climbing up till he was hidden from your view.

“Finally found you. I told you not to be late but you go ahead and still do it, huh?” Xavier emerged from between the bushes and you made yourself seem busy with packing your stuff before turning to face him.

“Ah sorry Xavier. Time escaped me. Sorry for troubling you again.” You scratched the back of your head in embarrassment and he shook his head, helping you with the rest of your stuff and offering to carry your bag for you then swinging it over his shoulder.

“It's fine. What were you doing out here for so long though?” He quirked an eyebrow and turned back ahead to the path as you walked down the trail, heading back to camp.

“You know, caught the trail of something and was hoping if I stayed still enough, I would catch it.” You shrug and do a mental celebratory fist bump when he believes your white lie with a light hum.

“Next time you might catch the attention of something hungry, so you might need to change your plan a little.” Your face falls and you let out a nervous laugh that fades after a few seconds.

…

“Ah you two are finally back. Catch anything interesting with your camera?” Professor Lucius walks up to me with his hands in the pockets of his white lab coat and a smile on his face.

“Sadly not yet. Only a few monkeys and different species of birds. Still no sign of gorillas.” You shake your head and he hums. He nods to you, and gives you a pat on the shoulder.

“No worries. A patient man always gets his reward. We keep trying the next day.” You nod with a renewed urge of determination and watch him walk away after sending a polite nod towards Xavier who slides your bag off his shoulder and places it down beside your tent.

“Are you sure you were only trying to capture animals out in the wild?” Xavier's suspicious tone doesn't escape your notice and you whip around to look at him with a confused expression. Or at least acted confused.

“What do you mean? Of course I was.” You didn't mean to, but your tone came out sounding offended but you stood your ground.

“Hm, alright then. I'll be out on patrol duty if you need anything, good night.” Before you could think of anything to pull him back and question him on his sudden suspicion, he walks away and leaves you pondering on just what he meant and if he might have seen or heard Caleb.

Xavier was definitely onto you even if whatever lead he had right now was probably only a gut feeling. You can't let him find out about Caleb even though you trust him. He's your friend and partner but more people knowing about Caleb -the strange wild man in the forest- could put him in danger of being captured and interrogated and you were not about to let Caleb fall into the wrong hands while he was still vulnerable and barely knew how to speak.

You now realize your mistake when you tried getting Caleb to come with you and you thanked God he refused, or else you would have made a terrible mistake.

…

“We have to be getting closer to the gorillas!”

“Look! Footprints! Those are apes’ footprints!” Tara exclaims in excitement, jumping up and down while clutching her journal close to her chest.

Xavier crouched down to look at the footprints closer to inspect them and hummed. “They're fresh. Probably from last night. These apes are intelligent, they keep moving. They know there are unwanted guests.” You furrow your brows, a few feet behind the group as you ponder.

Could Caleb have alerted the gorillas so that's why they're moving? You have never seen him interact with one but his mannerisms screamed gorilla so he somehow had to be a part of their troop. You were both glad and annoyed he was so perceptive because you needed the pictures but that could also put Caleb in the spotlight which was not what you desired.

“Hm, this poses a problem. If they keep trying to evade us, we won't catch them before the deadline of our expedition.” Professor Lucius states and everyone starts murmuring to each other in worry. “We keep looking, and we will use our photographer's camera to try and detect and catch any leads that might help us get closer. We keep moving forward.” Everyone seems to cheer back up at his confident statement and your group keeps moving forward, while Professor Lucius makes his way to you and walks beside you.

“I will need you to keep a sharp eye out for anything that catches your attention, and I mean anything. We have to find those apes no matter what. It's important for our research.” You nod to him, holding up your camera and getting a firm nod in return then he makes his way back to the front of the group. You trail after them, holding your camera high and start recording, making sure to watch your step and keep your ears strained for anything.

You're looking through your camera lens when movement from the corner of your vision catches your attention and reflexively, you turn your camera to the last spot you thought saw the thing move and then it happened again but this time it was closer and the vines hanging in the distance wiggled in the air.

You gasped lowly and looked through your camera lens again just in time to catch a silhouette of a man leaping into the woods and disappearing entirely.

Caleb.

No. No, no, no, what was he doing here?!

He isn't supposed to get close and now you have to somehow get rid of the tape before you can submit it to the researchers at the end of the scout.

Everyone sat down for a quick break a few minutes later and you excused yourself on the terms you needed to pee and walked off course into the bushes, going as far as you can. When you were satisfied you were far enough, you cleared your throat and exclaimed in as low a tone as you could, “Caleb?”

After a few seconds, you hear the rustle of vines and leaves and Caleb jumps down, scaring you and making you let out a tiny yelp. “You have to stop scaring me like that!” You put a hand to your heart and let out a sigh.

“Caleb here. You called. See you, with other humans.” You blinked and let out another sigh then smiled.

“Yes, that was my team, a group of researchers I'm with. Caleb, you have to stay away and only come to me when I'm truly alone, okay? Don't let anyone see you except me.” You tried talking slowly to let him absorb your words but he frowned.

“Can't be with you?” Your heart probably just exploded a second time at that.

“Yes, no, I mean look. Caleb. Only when I'm alone. If others know about you, you could be in danger.”

His eyes narrow and you step back in surprise at the complete switch in his expression. Just a second ago he looked like a kicked puppy but then his expression switched to a lethal one that promises no mercy.

“Danger. You, in danger?”

“No, not me Caleb, you. You, in danger. Please only show yourself when I call you, okay?” You speak as gently as you can and just as quickly as it came, his expression turned back to normal and his shoulders dropped. You let out a sigh when he nodded and in the heat of the moment, you held his wrist up and put your palm flat against his, just like he did the day before and he looked awestruck at you.

“You're my friend. I want you to be safe.” He nodded, probably only understanding half of what you said.

You looked behind you and back at Caleb, knowing you were running out of time. “Go, now. And don't come back till I call you. I'll try and visit you soon, now go!” He looked heartbroken at having to leave but grabbed onto a vine and climbed up and disappeared between the trees.

You sighed, making your way back to the group right as they were getting up to set off and continued on like nothing happened, though your mind spiralled at how you'll get rid of the tape where Caleb is seen.

…

It was late in the evening and you were cooped up in your tent, looking over the various pictures you took on your scout and the video tapes. You took care of the part where Caleb appears in and made sure the tape was deleted from the video then when you were satisfied that everything was in place, you attached the files to an email and sent it over to Professor Lucius.

You let out a sigh and lean back in your chair, visibly tired but proud you were able to get rid of the footage with no problem. There are many pauses in between the video so taking out what was supposed to be just a random, unimportant scene won't look suspicious.

You stretched out your hands and let out a yawn, and that's when your eyes caught the time. It was thirty minutes past ten. You had been so absorbed in your work that time flew by and now it was already too late to visit Caleb. You didn't even know if he was awake at this time so you settled with the plan of visiting him tomorrow after the morning scout. You heard the crunch of leaves outside and peaked out of your tent only to catch Xavier patrolling around the area, the twig snapping the only sound he made before it went quiet again.

You contemplated going to talk to him, since you were afraid he might go with his suspicion to someone else, then you would really be a goner.

With your mind made up, you got out of your tent and made your way to Xavier. He was looking ahead at the dark forest and foliage concealing anything that can be hiding behind them. There was little light except for one small one in the middle of the camp which was as useful as a turned off lamp.

You cleared your throat when you came closer and had your hands clutched tightly in front of your body. “Xavier, how are you?”

He turns around at the sound of your voice and blinks, “What are you doing up?”

“I wanted to apologize, for the other day. I got all offended at your accusation and couldn't control my emotions. You're one of the few people I trust Xavier, but…” You purse your lips, contemplating if you were really going to tell him. Telling him might end up in exposing Caleb's cover, but you trusted Xavier and he was the best person at keeping things hidden, you didn't doubt that.

Nevertheless, a drop of skepticism still made it inside your mind. You didn't want to betray Caleb, and you definitely didn't want him ending up in the wrong hands while he was still learning about civilisation.

“I understand if you don't want to tell me. I trust you and whatever you decide to do, I'll support you.” Hearing Xavier speak so earnestly towards you broke the dam and before you knew it, you took him by the wrist, dragged him a few feet away where you won't be eavesdropped on, and revealed everything from Caleb saving you from the coyote to visiting him again and introducing him to your language and the normal lives of humans. Then of your latest encounter with him where he almost was seen by the group.

It was a word dump of haphazard explanations and yet, Xavier listened all the while with his hand to his chin and a pondering look on his face.

“So you found this… Wild person, and he also seems to be learning fast. That could mean he was probably not that young when he went missing. Did you try searching about him on the internet?” You blinked and if you were in some kind of cartoon or anime, question marks would have popped above your head comically.

“I… I didn't think of that.”

“That's fine, go and do it when you can. I'll do my own research when I'm free and don't worry, I'll do it in my tent with no one seeing me.” You nod, relieved to know he also wants the same as you. Caleb's safety.

“Xavier.” You call out to him before you part, “Thank you, for supporting me on this.” You look down, frowning. You didn't want anyone else being involved in case the situation spirals out of control but Xavier was willingly helping you now and wanted to help keep Caleb hidden. That was something you were tremendously grateful for.

“I'll always support you.” You smile, nodding to him and giving him one last wave before retreating back to your tent.

…

“What that?” Caleb points at a photograph depicting an amusement park with a ferris wheel in the spotlight. You smiled and told him how to say the question properly then explained to him the concept of going round a circle slowly until you reach the top then back down as a form of entertainment.

“Okay quiz!” He blinks at you at your exclamation and you giggle, digging into your bag and bringing out a new journal and a pen.

Two days had passed since the talk with Xavier, and after you had gone back to your tent, you spent a good hour searching for a lost boy in the forest only to come up empty handed. You were growing irritated with your lack of answers until you came across an article of a ship that sank a few miles away from the forest you were in.

It wasn't anything surprising, ships sank all the time due to crazy weather or the unforgiving waves, but something in the article caught your attention. It mentioned the bodies of people still not recovered and one belonging to a young boy -approximately nine years old at the time- who was the only child in the ship. It was suspicious why he was the only child but as you read more, the article went back to the causes of the ship sinking. You also found out the name of the ship was undisclosed, probably for safety concerns but that in and of itself was peculiar.

Could Caleb have come from this ship? And if so, how would he have possibly made it to shore on his own? Unless he was a really good swimmer at the ripe age of nine, or someone got him there. You were doubtful of how true this article was and kept it as a theory in your mind, not ready to accept this being the final answer till you had more evidence.

“Quiz?” He blinked at you in confusion, holding the pen in his hand like a foreign object, because to him, it looked like a mini spear he could carve out from the stray pieces of wood.

“I just wanted to say it, but we will teach you how to write!” He tilts his head, and with you sitting beside him, you lay the book on his lap and adjust his grip on the pen till he's holding it correctly but in his clumsy hand, it took a good minute to get him used to it. Then, you took hold of his hand and helped him trace over the first page of the open book. With your help, he had written down his name in messy handwriting but it was there and you beamed at him, praising him and making his heart flutter with a weird feeling he was unfamiliar with. Though he welcomed the flutters it spawned in his stomach.

“This is your name. Caleb.” You smiled at him and he looked at you in wonder then back down at the paper and your breath hitched when his pen came down and traced another word. Or no, it was some kind of shape.

He drew a circle but left a gap at the side of it, then another incomplete circle inside it. His eyebrows were furrowed and you squinted down at it. It weirdly felt familiar but only appeared as rubbish in his still new handwriting.

“Bad.” He frowned at his drawing and dropped the pen on the page, and you recognized his mood had gone down when the light in his eyes dimmed. You frowned and traced his drawing with your fingers, wracking your brain for anything but coming up empty every time. This, drawing, seemed to carry bad energy with Caleb and he was almost glaring at it with the way he was frowning. You concluded it was time to stop and closed the journal, taking away the drawing to help cool him down and tucking your book back in your bag.

“Okay no more, we can sit and talk about something else?” Caleb still looked troubled and with a shake of his head, he got up. You panic and your hand shoots out to grab onto his wrist. “Wait! Are you… Are you leaving?” You try your best to make your voice gentle but it comes out frantic.

“I'm sorry. Can't stay. Not now.” He shakes his head and you glare at his back in worry, confused why he won't look at you. He tugged his wrist free from your grip and jumped to grab onto a vine then disappeared into the thick foliage in the distance leaving you with your arm limply at your side, questioning just what happened to make him switch up like that.

This was the first time you saw Caleb troubled in such a manner. Even to the point he couldn't look at you before he took off.

…

You've been spending the rest of your day trying to think of what this symbol Caleb drew represented but every time you tried, you wouldn't get anything. You tried taking a picture of his drawing and asking google but the only results it showed were a bunch of circle diagrams and was that algebra-?

“Ughhhh-”

“What's with the sulking?” You jump and sit up straight when Xavier's face peeks in from your open tent.

“Oh Xavier, it's you. Man I'm easily spooked.”

“Yeah you gotta work on that.” You sigh and look back at your laptop in defeat. Xavier glances at the laptop then back to you and makes his way inside your tent, closing it behind them as he comes up beside you. He takes a look over your shoulder and hums.

“Seem familiar to you? Caleb drew it when I was teaching him how to write earlier then suddenly his mood just… switched up and before I could stop him he bolted.” You dejectedly recount a summary to Xavier and he hummed again, with his chin resting on his hand. “Are you just gonna hum or..?”

“This does seem familiar. But I can't put my finger on it either. You said his mood switched up?”

“Yeah. After he drew it, he said ‘bad’ while glaring at the thing. It was so weird.”

“Hold on, bad?” Xavier's eyes slightly widen and you protest when he nudges you away and settles himself in front of the laptop and his fingers start flying over the keyboard. Seeing him so focused, you kept quiet in anticipation, hoping he found something. After a minute, he nudges your arm and you look his way then he tilts his head to the screen.

Right there in front of you, you notice that Caleb's vague drawing is there but as a logo with the name ‘EVER’ underneath it. You squint, confused and look back at Xavier.

“EVER? Isn't that the group with the crazy smart scientists?”

“Yes. Though they always seemed weird to me. This may be what we're looking for.”

Stumped, you look at the logo then back to Xavier, waiting for him to explain and seeing you were clearly still confused, he turned in his seat to face you and spoke, “There have been rumours that EVER was using lab rats for scientific tests, but now when you said Caleb recognized it and even remembered their logo and had this negative reaction towards it, this strengthens my theory that he could have been… experimented on as a kid. See that article you told me you found about the lost boy on that ship?” Your eyes widened, your brain was connecting the dots fast now after Xavier's clean explanation.

Overwhelmed, you stood up and paced your small tent with a hand on your hips and the other holding your head in disbelief.

“You mean to tell me that Caleb… He…”

“If you said he looks like he's in his twenties, then yeah, it all connects. He's the boy that was never found. And that ship was probably EVER's. Though even after digging in the internet for hours, nothing was disclosed of why the ship was there in the first place.”

“This is.. This is too much all at once. How can I protect Caleb? I can't just leave him to live the rest of his days in a forest! What if we reveal him later? He'll be taken straight back if EVER finds out he's still alive. What would they have possibly wanted with a boy in the first place?” Xavier frowns and walks briskly to you, holding you by the shoulder and stilling your rant.

“Hey, hey, calm down. We'll figure something out. We won't leave him alone. Remember, I'll support you.”

Xavier gives you a few moments to calm down and you pop down on your chair again, letting out a long, exhausted sigh. “Yeah, yeah I just…” Your head falls on your clutched hands. You shut your eyes tight, letting your mind process this new theory you both came up with.

It was the only possible explanation. Caleb had to be that boy from the ship. All the evidence leads to it. His age, the drawing, his reaction when he seemed to remember about EVER and probably the plethora of experiments they did on him.

This has just gotten more complicated and uglier than it was before.

…

It's been two days since you've been able to see Caleb. Every time you tried going to see him, he would never answer your calls and you started getting worried. You thought maybe he needed time alone after his sudden outburst the other day but you couldn't help worrying. Your feelings towards the purple eyed man were growing by the day but you didn't know what exactly they were growing into, you only knew that you felt protective of him.

You were going to do whatever it takes to keep him safe. That, you were sure of.

In those two days, you were coming back earlier after failing to call out to Caleb but still coming back with photographs to not raise anyone's suspicions about you. The team was getting closer to finding the gorillas and everyone was pumped up at how close you're getting to finding the undocumented species of apes.

Professor Lucius kept checking in on you about the photographs and having private conversations with you about the research and the places you've traversed and if they could lead you closer to the apes.

Tara and the other researchers were busy ranting to themselves in their own way while Xavier mostly kept to himself, napping or being on guard duty. He would come up to you for small conversations and comfort you about your lack of success in calling Caleb. “He needs some time, but he'll come around.” He had said. You surely hoped he would come around soon.

It was the third day now and the team had finished another scout and came back to camp and as you piled up all the photos you gathered and sent them over, you packed your stuff and quietly left the camping grounds, heading to the usual spot you visited Caleb in.

The buzzing of the cicadas surrounded you as you dropped your bag beside the log you used as a seat and you sighed, looking around for any hint of moving vines or a bush moving.

“Caleb? Are you there?” You gave it a few seconds but frowned when only the squeaks of birds came back with no sign of Caleb. “I know you're out there! If not then I'm talking to myself like a weirdo.” You forced out a laugh but it came out more awkward than anything.

A scrunch.

Your head whipped around to the sound and the corner of your lips quirked up. “I have a book we can read together. It's new. It's about pilots and airplanes.” You felt silly trying to draw an adult man by airplanes and pilots but you were desperate and desperate times call for desperate measures, as they say.

After a second of hesitation, your smile shined through when a head of brown hair peeked through and Caleb's reluctant expression came into view. “Airplanes? The one in the sky?” You nodded fast and dug into your bag, pulling out the book with an airplane at the front soaring in the sky. You held out the cover towards him and he finally dropped effortlessly from the vine and came towards you.

He stood before you and looked at the book while you stood still, waiting for his reaction. Instead of taking the book, he took your wrist and held it up, laying his palm against it and for some reason, it felt way more gentle and softer than all the other times you had done this. Your breath hitched when his eyes came to connect with yours and your shoulders went slack at the tender but scared look in his eyes. “I…” You took in a slow deep breath, waiting for him to continue.

Your eyes stayed on his, your hand entwining with his and giving it a squeeze. He experimentally closed his fingers and a hint of a smile crawled through at your hold. His hand was massive, nearly drowning yours but it was gentle when he held you and you all but melted inside at this side of him.

“What a sweet reunion this turned out to be. Really, I almost shed a tear.” You jolt and spin around only to see Professor Lucius coming towards you out of the bushes.

What was he doing here?! Were you not quiet when you left the camp? You were so focused to get to Caleb, you hadn't put in mind to be careful of your trail being followed.

“Professor Lucius this is-” You stepped in front of Caleb, trying to shield him but he was taller than you by a full head though you still felt protective of him.

Professor Lucius was known to want more knowledge wherever it came from and he was a ruthless man when it came to his principles. You never expected it would be aimed at you but now you see that hint of unrestrained urge wanting to escape in his eyes.

“I know what this is. You, my dear, found my lost test subject. I knew I could count on you to find him.” You were stumped.

“What do you mean? Test subject? You…” Your eyes widened. He works for EVER. This was all guise and the real goal was to find Caleb and take him back to a white cell back in their labs. You were set up, and you had just given him a free ticket straight to Caleb.

“Look, we can either do this the hard way, or the easy way. Tell him to come with us, or we use force.” At his sentence, multiple people came out of hiding and you and Caleb were startled when electric batons got taken out, aimed straight at you.

You tried so hard to keep your breathing in check but you were failing by the second. You had to get Caleb out of here, you had to. You don't care what might happen to you but you made a promise to yourself that you will protect Caleb at all costs, and that's what you'll do.

“Alright, okay. Let me talk to him, raising those batons will only make him more hostile.” Professor Lucius gave them the signal to lower their batons and you let out a tiny sigh and turned to Caleb slowly. You held his hand tightly and gulped as you looked up at him, talking as low and gentle as you could. “Caleb, I want you to do exactly what I'll say right now. Okay?” His eyes searched yours and he nodded after a reluctant moment and you took a deep breath.

“There's a vine on top of us, grab onto it, and run, as fast as you can. You're fast. You can easily lose sight of them. Do you understand?” His brows furrow and he shakes his head, his grip on your hand tightening in protest.

“I'm running out of patience here.” You give a quick glance to the professor and back to Caleb, untying your hands from his grip and pulling away.

“But you're in danger-”

“Shh, Caleb please. I don't want you to suffer more because of these monsters. The moment I turn back and give you the signal, you go.” Caleb didn't want to agree to the plan, but the desperate look in your eyes urged him to follow through. You let out a sigh when his resolve broke down and you turned back to the Professor. “Alright, he's coming.” The armed people around you put their weapons down and Professor Lucius grins in victory, and turns around to get you to walk and that's when Caleb sees your hand behind your back pointing up and he takes it as his signal and jumps up and escapes.

He hears commotion underneath him and then a frustrated yell from the one you called Professor as he disappears into the foliage and doesn't stop. However, he wasn't going to leave you with those monsters either.

…

“Should have known you would pull something childish.” Professor Lucius sighs and adjusts the glasses on his face. He was acting like a disappointed father and you felt your insides burn with rage at his disgusting betrayal and true goals.

“I won't let you hurt him.”

“Actually, you seem to be missing something.” He smiles and the creepiness from it crawls up your spine as you tense while he walks towards you with his hands clasped leisurely behind his back. “You my dear, will get him straight to me.”

…

Your hands were tied behind your back to one of the metal polls of the cage you were in. You were dangling right beside a cliff that oversees the unforgiving waves of the ocean miles below you and the harsh winds from the currents reached you and rustled your hair.

After you gave Caleb the signal to escape, you had no choice but to be captured and taken in. Professor Lucius thought it was a brilliant idea to use you as bait to draw in Caleb but you prayed he wouldn't reveal himself. You don't want him to suffer again and be experimented on like a lab rat.

At first, you were not bothered but then you saw one of Lucius lackeys come towards you with their electric batons and tensed but controlled your expression in time and looked on in indifference. You knew it was going to come to this, but you were ready to receive it all and not make a single sound to attract Caleb. You just hoped he was far away in case you did crack.

“Since you don't want to cooperate, I'm afraid we'll have to take it a step further.” Professor Lucius looks down at your crouched form in the cage with his hands clasped neatly in front of him and the lackey behind him. “Last chance, get him here. I really don't want to have to use force on a lady.” You glare at him and stay quiet in defiance. He was outright mocking you and trying to get a reaction but you weren't going to let him get a taste of victory.

His frown turned into a nasty scowl and he pinched the top of his nose and sighed. “Well then, it was your choice, sweatheart.” He gestures to my cage with his head and the lackey gets closer. He extends the length of his baton and turns it on. “Don't worry. It's only three milliamps of current- just enough to have you screaming.” You look on as electricity dances around the metal and clinch your hands into a tight fist behind you as he lowers it to the metals, and sends shockwaves right to you.

…

Caleb was rushing. He had to save you but he was going to need backup. He knew you told him to stay away from the camp, but there was someone there that he knew would join him, or at least hoped he would. You told him about your friend Xavier a couple of times and he knew this friend of yours knew of his existence, so it was the first thing he had gone on to do. Find Xavier, brief him on the situation, and get to you before any real harm could be delivered to you.

He stopped at the top of a tree overlooking the camp. It was functioning like any other day, and Caleb looked on, his eyes scanning the place for the light haired man you told him about. He was still half naked except for a pair of shorts you had taken for him from Xavier but he still couldn't just walk in like this.

Right as he was contemplating going in, he heard a voice right underneath the tree he was perched at. “I'm guessing you're Caleb?”

Caleb whipped his head towards the voice but relaxed when he had spotted Xavier looking up at him with a hand resting on the hilt of his sword strapped to his waist. He climbed down and nodded to him. “I am Caleb. Xavier?” He nodded in response and that's when he looked clearly at Caleb and around him.

“Where is she?”

That's when he had used the brief amount of knowledge of language he had learnt to summarise the past events and Xavier's expression fell into one of anger after the show of betrayal from the professor. He had always seen the professor as a weird character but never would he have thought he would pull something like this, and now you were in danger because you refused to let Caleb be captured.

“We can't involve many people in this. So we will have to do this on our own.” Xavier crossed his arms then raised one his hands to rest his chin on it. “Alright, first we find her location-”

“I know where. I can… Hear her.” Caleb clinches his fists and Xavier's eyes widen.

“Hear what?”

“Her screams. She's in pain. Too much pain. Have to save her. Get her back.” Caleb's voice cracks in the middle of his sentence and with this, Xavier forms a plan as quickly as he can and they agree on it and get to moving.

…

You don't know how long it's been. Thirty minutes? An hour? Maybe more.

Your body kept having mini shivers after being electrocuted. You couldn't move, and were barely awake but the pain was somehow stopping you from reaching the lull of sleep. They had taken a break from tormenting you and you feared it was because they suspected Caleb was on his way but you hoped that wasn't the case.

Everything in you wanted Caleb to sweep in and save you, protect you and hold you in his arms but there was still a side to you that felt protective over him and didn't want him to come back for his own safety.

Your body was slumped over and hunched in the cage. Your eyes were fluttering weakly against your cheeks, but you couldn't get yourself to just give in as the cage slightly swayed because of the strong wind currents coming in from the sea. Professor Lucius was somewhere talking on the phone, and you picked up some words.

“Yes… will get him back. X-02… back. I just need some time.”

X-02? Your muffled mind came to the conclusion that this could be the name they gave Caleb when he was in their clutches. X-02. Numbering him as if he were some object that could be replaced if any of the experiments happened to go south. You were disgusted and this only fueled your rage towards the professor but being stuck tied up in a dangling cage left you helpless.

“Hey, where's the lookout guy?!”

“Is he slacking off? This little-”

Pause. Then-

“Intruders! Intru- ugh!”

Sounds of struggle reached your ears and you fought to open your eyes and move your head to take a glance and a small gasp left you when you spotted a light shining off of a long silver blade. Could it be…?

“Ah, perfect timing. Your savior has finally made an appearance sweetheart.” Professor Lucius smiled cunningly and walked leisurely to stand beside the mechanism that held up your cage.

More sounds of struggle were heard until a low growl resounded near you and your eyes widened when they landed on Caleb. No, no he was not supposed to be here. You told him to stay away! He was going to get himself captured, and it would have all been your fault.

“The knight has arrived to save his princess! Though I'm afraid this story won't have its cliche happy ending.” Lucius frowned in mockery with his hand resting on the handle of the mechanism that threatened to drop me. Caleb maintained his distance, but his pupils transformed to slits, glaring daggers at the professor. “Listen to me X-02. Let yourself be captured, and we let her go. Refuse, and she drowns. This cage is locked and bolted, you won't be able to get her out without my help.”

“N-No! Caleb don't!”

“Let her go.” Caleb's voice is deep and his tone sends shivers down your spine. You had seen him like this before, but this time Caleb appeared even more scary and menacing.

“Then by all means.” Professor Lucius makes a show of putting out his hand and gesturing for the cage specifically made for Caleb right beside the mechanism.

Caleb starts walking and you're struggling as you shout for Caleb not to do it, but he keeps walking and only when you're about to lose all hope, Caleb lunges at the professor and gets his hands away from the mechanism. Lucius is tackled down with a grunt and groans. He yells out for a lackey to help him. You scream for Caleb to watch out when the lackey fires a shot aimed for him. He dodges it at the last second but the shot ends up landing on the mechanism.

Electricity surges out of it as it malfunctions and your cage sways and rattles when the rope holding it up slips from the pulley. It all happens in slow motion. You're descending, and the last thing you see is Caleb's distraught expression then you're out of his view.

He lets out a guttural wail and Xavier slices at another lackey and rushes to Caleb and the professor. He pushes Caleb away, holding the professor at the point of his bloody sword. “Go! I've got it here!” With no hesitation, Caleb leaps from the cliff and goes after you.

He dived head first into the active sea and pushed his limbs to swim down to where your cage was caught on some rocks. You were struggling, breath held as you pulled at your tied hands until you scanned movement across you and saw Caleb. He held the door and pulled, exclaiming in pain as he used up all his strength and by some miracle, the door nudged and he kicked it open, swimming towards you and swiftly pulling at the knots to untie you. You were losing air quickly but still found the strength to hold onto Caleb as he dragged you to his arms and swam out of the cage and up to the surface.

You coughed up all the water out when you had broken the surface and held on to Caleb tightly as he swam to shore. When you had finally reached dry ground, Caleb remained hugging you tightly to him and your limp body only melted into him. Both of you were exhausted and wet, but the feeling of being together again like this made up for it.

You breathed in his scent, familiarizing yourself with him again as your body came down from the high. “You idiot.” You sniffed. You don't know where the tears came from but suddenly multiple tears were rolling down your cheeks as you clutched onto Caleb, embracing him tightly as if holding him any gentler will make him dissapear. “I told you to stay away. I told you…”

“No.” You sniffed and looked up at him. His brows were forrowed and he frowned down at you. He raised his hand to hold your cheek albeit really gently as if he didn't want to accidentally hurt you. “You're safe now. Safe with Caleb, with me.” You blinked up at him in mild surprise and proceeded to let out a sigh in defeat.

“Yes, safe with you. And you're safe with me.” That seemed to feed into his possessive instincts as he only held you tighter and you giggled as the both of you rested on the warm sand with the waves washing over your feet every now and then.

…

“No. No! He's my property! My research cannot be all for naught!” Xavier sighed as he struggled to tie down the professor and move him to sit beside his uncounsuois lackies. “You disrespect me like this Xavier and think you know better but you and that pesky woman shouldn't have dug your noses where it doesn't belong. I will get him back no matter wh-hmph!” Xavier slapped tape on Lucius's mouth and sighed, shaking his head and walking back to the cliff side to look down.

His face relaxed when he noticed two bodies on the shore embracing and figured out Caleb got to you in time. He knew the professor was acting weird this whole expedition and was beating himself up about not noticing his motives earlier but even so, he was glad his friends ended up okay and got the situation under control before it was too late.

1 Year Later…

“Oh this is so good!” Your voice came out muffled due to all the food you were stuffing inside your mouth. Caleb laughed, happy you're enjoying his home cooked meal. After only a year of finding him and helping settle back with civilisation, you had helped him discover some hobbies. One of them ending up being him excelling in cooking. Another year or two and he will be giving Gordon Ramsay a run for his money.

After the incident with Professor Lucius, Xavier contacted his Association and they dealt with the professor and took him in for questioning because turns out, he was a wanted researcher gone MIA who had dealth with illegal wanderer experiments. After that, Caleb was able to get his rights back and when all the papers were done, you helped him get back on his feet and stood by his side when he first stepped into the city.

“Glad you like my cooking so much, pipsqueak.” Surprisingly enough, Caleb had become fluent in speaking in only a short while minus for some small mistakes here and there but other than those, he was good and was able to form long proper sentences with correct grammar. Though his writing still needed to improve but you were working on that still and helping him with his lessons.

After you swallow, you get up and jump up to wrap yourself around him, arms around his neck and legs crossed behind his back. “I like you more though. I’m so happy. I’ll never forget the day you saved me.”

“Yeah?” He chuckles, his hand coming up to hold you by your hips and the other caresses your cheek.

“Mhm. It was the day my silly Caleb entered into my life although all naked.”

Caleb’s face went red at that and he coughed to the side. You burst out laughing at his red ears and showered him with kisses all over his face. After a few seconds, he gave up and started laughing along with you, his arms wrapping around you and holding you tight to him.

Taglist: @reveries0fmine @smeetywerben

[uwingdispatch]

Y’all I am so friggin excited about these new earrings! I’ve wanted to do a mega drop of acrylic earrings for a while and the stars finally aligned. So here you go—new styles along with restocks! And I’m having a Spring Break sale this week so it’s a great time to grab a treat! Shop is here.

Shop is here. Love y’all!

[diabetic-ace]

Look at these absolutely gorgeous earrings!!!

[artsyririblobbu]

From the creator of the Fish Bug comes Apple Bug and Crow Bug!

THAT'S RIGHT! CALEB AND SYLUS 10CMs ARE NOW HERE!!! They're going for 15USD each! We ship to wherever we can~ GET THEM NOW, THEY'RE ONLY HERE FOR A MONTH!

Buy 10cm Caleb here!

Buy 10cm Sylus here!

Likes and shares appreciated~

(ideally we'd need like 50 sales for xavier and zayne to become a reality so pLEASE BUY THEM IF YOU CAN OR ATLEAST SPREAD THE WORD)

[calebxia-143]

Caaaalllllllleeeeeeebbbbbb!!!!!! The doctor says I have to wait out my autoimmune hives. It itches and hurts. I really wanna scratch even though I know I shouldn’t. *tears up* I’m soo miserable and want my Gege.

Caleb hugs you tight so you can't scratch.

There! Now I can hug you as much as I want and you wont scratch :D its a win win in my book.

[beardedmrbean]

[theman]

I GOT A FUCKING RAISE THE POTATO WORKED WTF

[tattooedzombigirl]

This potato works. Every. Fucking. Time.

[imanutcase-10]

Then bring me luck

[thirddeadlysin]

the day after I posted this last time I was notified that I was selected for a really cool mentorship gig and got an unrelated glowing review at work

[icantbearsedtothinkofone]

Hey Potato, cure my -ing cold so I can have a good time while away.

[dduane]

Here's the potato. Make what use of it you will. :)

[cangelala]

God I need this so bad for my Midterm so please let this work again for me.

[skwangmbyul]

I could use some luck

[diabetic-ace]

Just a little luck would be nice

[nonoel-art]

Messy sketch of a dress idea I had for Reiju 🦋✨

[diabetic-ace]

Omg soo pretty!!!

[ekay-i]

Xia Yizhou

Full on Bluesky and Twitter

Not gonna lie, I had a huge beef with Caleb when he officially became a love interest. But he's currently my second now.

I'm sorry, fishie. 😭

Xavier's still number 1 tho.

[painfullypatientsecret]

This tanked so bad on twt.. hi

[abyssyby]

tara coming up to your desk in the association, apprehension written all over her face as she asks for a moment of your time.

"sure, what's up?"

"two guys have been at the lobby asking for you." she says, following you as you stand and walk with her. "they refuse to give their information and remove their face masks, but they won't leave."

a heavy stone sinks to the base of your stomach. you try to backtrack, trace down who you've interacted with lately. maybe someone you might have upset or hadn't gotten the chance to get back to. maybe even if you've bombed an undercover mission and some men have come to settle grievances.

tara insists on staying as backup. you don't have the heart to send her away, despite the danger. consumed also by your own anxiety. your hand rests lightly on your weapon as the elevators open up to the sunlit lobby.

and the sight of two heads turning to you makes all fear melt away.

"ma!"

guards and colleagues flinch when luke surges forward, bypassing whoever it was barricading them back and leaping over the identification barrier and setting the alarm off.

you flail your arms in a desperate attempt to de-escalate the situation as you're engulfed in an embrace. "it's okay! he's my son, it's okay!"

"ow!" whines said son when you twist the helix of his ear.

"i told him to behave." kieran says from his spot behind the barrier, a big red box in his arms. "we're back from the mi— uh, i mean, college."

"got you some snacks," luke says proudly. "boss's out with the kids so we thought we'd grab lunch with you. it's the new year, after all."

you think you might just melt. the twins are often spontaneous, but you're not sure they've ever expressed this affection. "that's so sweet, thank you!"

but of course it was too good to be true. "but I'm not on my lunchbreak—"

"sure you are." tara interrupts, stepping forward and making herself known. "it's a slow day, you haven't eaten anything in hours. go! go!"

luke grins at her, rushes over to kieran (hopping over the barrier again) and takes a handful of snacks from the box. he offers them to tara. "i like you. you're cool."

"i'll meet you outside," you tell them, then excuse yourself to grab your things upstairs.

quietly, she whispers to you, "phew, i didn't know you had more kids!"

"they've been around since before i met skye, i'm practically their stepmom." you say.

"i think that's great, they clearly adore you." she smiles, taking a handful of imported chips and stuffing them in her mouth. "tell the babies ti'tara says hi, 'kay?"

lunch is delicious. luke and kieran have many stories to tell of their overseas mission, happy they're back in time for the new year. a glimpse of your future presents itself in the forefront of your mind of maybe lucian and kyros coming to your work and inviting you out for lunch one day and excitement floods your veins. you'll be happy to oblige them then too.

but for now, your big twins are here—clearly enjoying the premium benefits of having a mother—and so who are you to protest?

and such subscription warrants flicked foreheads and a lengthy conversation about the inappropriate nature of walking into the Hunter's Association with a suspicious package while they make demands and refuse to identify themselves.

"are you insane?!" you shriek at them in the car.

kieran winces, guilt-ridden and humiliated. "boss'ma, we have jetlag."

"you could've gotten killed!"

"we weren't!" luke scoffs.

"i'll kill you." you seethe, crossing your arms over your chest at his cavalier attitude.

"hah!"

"your father will hear about this."

they both gasp. "wait—!"

[diabetic-ace]

Aww big twins

[aurorasdaybreak]

doomsday | sylus qin (m)

summary: two years ago, you were foolish enough to believe that you were destined for love. you serve as a quiet witness to something so viscerally painful: the truth. in response to this betrayal, you damn yourself to a life of cold solitude before running straight into the arms of the enemy: EVER’s new doomsday division, dedicated to eliminating enemies quietly and cleanly. now in the present, you are the top cleaner in this acclaimed shadow division. your next target? a protocore dealer towards the top of EVER’s hit list. it’s an easy assignment…almost too easy. the issue makes itself clear to you once you step back into the N109 zone…sylus qin, one of the highest targets on EVER’s list. sylus qin, who’s been looking for you for two years. info: onychinus leader sylus x assassin afab reader | canon compliant, non-mc reader au | fiancés to enemies to lovers? maybe worse. | plot-driven, angst, smut | 28k words warnings: set in a canon-compliantish universe, non-mc afab reader, reader thinks sylus cheated on her with mc (he did not cheat this gets cleared up), mc kind of haunts the narrative but there are no instances of her interacting with reader, mentions of main story plot points + sylus myth, reader is referred to as cleaner yue, morally gray reader who kills for a living, soren + languid woman (named lihua here) + potential 6th LI as the head of EVER are characters, a lot of plot, violence and mentions of blood/killing, angst, mentions of self-hate, making up, hurt some comfort, major reader injury? death?, ambiguous ending smut warnings: not necessarily a warning but i listened to doomsday the entire time i was writing the smut and it resulted in some of the most soft and tragic porn with feelings known to man, reader has breasts and female genitalia, dom and sub does not exist here they just banter, messy kissing, grinding, use of sweetheart and darling, nipple play, f!receiving body worship, sylus leaving kisses everywhere, consent check-ins bc sylus is the king of consent argue with the wall, cunnilingus, f!receiving fingering, multiple orgasms, squirting, leg-wrapping, big cawk sylus, prone bone to missionary, unprotected sex, slow and gentle sex, hand-holding, crying during sex, check-ins with sylus, finishing together, finishing inside, creampie author's note: SHE'S BAAAAAAAAAAACK barely kind of sort of bc i have a trip in t-minus four days but also wowie guys :')) i hope you guys enjoy, thank you for the wait <3 disclaimer: not edited and not proofread, i will get around to it when i have the time (;-;) if you are a minor and you're seeing this, i ask that you turn away and do not read. this is an 18+ story and minors are not welcome. no feeding my fic into ai. if you are uncomfortable with any of the topics listed in the warning, please do not read this story! header made by me! ⏾⋆.˚ playlist linked here!

It’s supposed to be your perfect day.

You had stolen away to your special place hours before he did, letting the rare bits of sunlight filtering through the maple leaves flit across your face as you imagine your marriage to the one you love the most. To outsiders it might not have been what they envisioned, but as you smooth down the crinkled fabric of your simple white dress all you can feel is an incandescent glow and genuine happiness.

This feeling is a dangerous one. It clouds your judgement and has you thinking of another, whether on the battlefield or in between his sheets. It has you craving his affection, for his hands that can either cradle your face with the utmost care or end his enemy’s life. It’s a feeling you weren’t familiar with before you crossed paths, but it’s now all-consuming as you allow yourself to wander amongst the trees and twist the little pendant he gave you as a gift.

It’s not like the other jewels he keeps in his collection - no, this one is quietly elegant. It sits at the hollow of your throat, the teardrop shaped ruby surrounded by diamonds and lain in white gold. You still remember the way his hands shook when he clasped it around your throat, of the kiss he placed on your cheek before letting the two of you look at how it rested between your collarbones in the mirror. His cheeks had grown pink at the sight, and he murmured something in a language you didn’t understand before spinning you around and pressing you into the mirror.

That memory grounds you as the hours slip by your promised time, the light that was dancing across your face rapidly disappearing. You’re now shaking in this thin dress, feeling worry and fear spread throughout your body as you think of the worst case scenarios.

Did something happen to him? No, he’s much too smart to get caught up in something petty. Did he get swept up in something work related? Entirely possible, except he’s cleared out his schedule for this exact day. You know, because he showed you his empty calendar save for this exact date and time marked down.

So what does that leave?

You’re shivering from the cold when you return to your home, chilled to the bone and utterly confused. What could have caused him to miss your wedding day? Why would he miss your wedding day?

Something’s amiss. You can tell by the way Luke and Kieran aren’t hovering around his usual study, or the way Mephisto doesn’t greet you in his usual way of landing on your shoulder and ruffling the hair by your ear. It’s too still, and you feel your spine stiffen as you try to find the reason why.

You pass by his study, where you hear a hushed whisper accompanied by a sharp laugh. He hasn’t had a reason to sound like that in years - only electing to be soft with you. You stand in front of the ajar door, feeling your heart clench when you hear him whisper a soft kitten.

Not towards you, towards someone else.

Your stomach clenches painfully, suddenly aware of the choice that faces you. You can either live in delusion and brush this underneath the rug. Or…

You push open the door tentatively, letting yourself linger in the shadows as you look at the scene before you.

Him and her. Ruby eyes alight with genuine amusement as her face flushes a pretty pink - too pretty for a place like the N109 Zone. The bit of energy holding their wrists together, entwining them together and marking them as one.

Your hand flies to your mouth at the scene unfolding before you, shock dousing your system before you can comprehend what’s happening.

You stumble back, hand covering your mouth as you move quickly to the safest place you can think of. You burst through the doors of your bedroom, slamming them shut and locking them tightly before you make your way to your closet. You begin packing, shoving things into random bags and ensuring you have the most precious things - which you honestly find hilarious because you had little to nothing when you two had first crossed paths.

At the thought of him, you feel yourself stop for the quickest moment. Your hands fly to your pendant as you think of the quiet yearning you had for him, only for your wildest dreams to come true when he admitted he fell for you, too. All of the stolen touches and whispered promises - the life of light and care you two promised for each other.

The life you so foolishly believed in.

Your hands slip around your neck and you let your fingernail catch the clasp of your necklace. It takes a few attempts for you to clumsily remove the piece, but once it’s in your hands you feel yourself tremble. Something warm slides down your cheeks, and you take a deep breath in to try and stop the gnawing ache in your chest. You shouldn’t have stopped. You should have kept packing and moving and not thinking but here you are, sinking to your knees as you finally, finally sob at the realization that’s just hit you full-on in your chest.

It’s not you.

It was never going to be you.

It’s the end of your world as you knew it.

And as your tears dry against your cheeks, you swear to yourself that you will never let yourself be weakened by idiotic things like love again.

Upon your graduation from training, they give you the codename Yue.

And these days, you relish this new name.

It’s easy to slip into the personality of Yue. You suppress every emotion you’ve ever felt in your entire life before adopting a cold and calculated demeanor. It’s everything that Doomsday taught you, honing your skills with a sharp precision before shipping you off on your first objective with only a name and a single photo.

You never question, you only execute. Why would you question the people that gave you a second chance, anyways? They took you in when you had nothing and turned you into…this.

You’re still not sure who you are these days, now that you think about it. When you catch glimpses of yourself in the mirror, you think you still look like yourself. Maybe a little bit worn, eyes a little more dull, but you still resemble yourself.

When the objectives stack a little too high, you sometimes think features of yourself have been replaced by Wanderer parts. Claws where your nails usually are, your eyes hollow sockets. It takes a few blinks in the mirror to restore yourself to your humanity - to remind yourself you’re not a Wanderer.

The worst is when you wake up after a beautiful dream. You claw at your throat for a necklace that isn’t there as you try to gulp air into your lungs, hot tears leaving tracks down your cheeks while you frantically wipe your mind blank of a soft smile and strong arms that pull you into their embrace. It takes longer to erase yourself of those memories, having to breathe deeply while you lock the vision of ruby eyes somewhere deep in whatever’s left of your heart.

It was awful those first couple of months. Those eyes haunted your every moment, and you think you got a combined twenty hours of sleep each week that passed slowly. You had thrown yourself into training, releasing every bitter feeling into knives and guns until all you could feel was the recoil of a pistol in your hands or the cool handle of the daggers you chose to wield.

You can swallow it down more easily now that two years have passed. The taste is barely bitter on your tongue, and other things weigh more heavily on your mind now that you’re at the top of the Doomsday Division.

You don’t want to say you’re important to the cause, but you’re certainly no middleman or messenger. Since you’re the top cleaner, you’re allowed to sit in on important meetings. You keep to yourself, but your eyes are ever sharp as you examine the way Soren curses a defected Backtracker from his past and the movements of the Farspace Fleet. It’s amusing to you, how they move and whisper about their plans and the Fountain of Atei and believe that you won’t do anything. You won’t, but you still keep every bit of information tucked carefully into the file folders of your mind.

Anything to keep your mind thinking.

Something feels different when you step into this meeting, though. It’s more tense, and you can feel their stares boring into the side of your head as you take up your usual spot in the shadowy corner of the room. The conversation starts out the same: questions about progress and how far along the Fountain of Atei is. It slowly shifts, though, to a Protocore dealer who used to work hand in hand with Soren, who’s since defected and started leaking information on EVER’s movements.

It’s honestly incredibly stupid, you think. You have the shadow organization backing your every move, and you blabber out their secrets in response? That’s just sheer stupidity and practically begging for a knife to the throat.

“Cleaner Yue.”

Soren’s voice parroting your codename snaps you out of your stupor, and you barely glance up with thinly veiled annoyance. “What?”

“You’re the one slated to hunt down this target.”

“Tch.” It’s a dismissive sound, and you make a show of straightening your spine and standing up taller. “A fifty-something year old Protocore dealer who defected? Easy work, and you all know that.”

Everyone’s face grows tight at your statement, but Lihua has the grace to look amused as she regards you coolly. “It’s not just a cleaning, Yue.”

“Oh?” Now this is interesting. You’ve dealt with your fair share of cleanings, and you honestly think you’ve seen them all. What could possibly make this different?

“This cleaning won’t involve you heading into an alternate space.” Lihua pulls up a map that’s marked down with all of your recent cleanings. Most of the dots are clustered within abandoned parts of Linkon City and Skyhaven, with some further dots marked in Chansia and Dawnlight City. 

There’s a section of the map that’s not marked though.

And something sinks in your chest when you see Lihua zoom into it.

“Our target, Daniel Kim, has somehow found cover here.” She points to a specific section of the map, and you begin to sweat as Soren pulls up more information. “You are to go in and do what you do best. And since you’re familiar-”

“-no.”

The room falls silent, every eye suddenly on your too tight body.

“I said specifically I would never head back there.” Your voice is cold, but you can’t quite mask the tremor in your hands. You tuck them away, shoring yourself up so that all of these important people can’t see how shaken you are. “You can send me to the Arctic for all I care, but I will never-”

“Yes you are, lest you forget yourself.”

A tall man in an imposing suit and tie steps forward, and you can’t quite mask the way your eyes widen at the sight of him. This is the most important person in the building - the spearhead behind EVER’s efforts. This was the one man you never wanted to cross paths with-

-and now you’re directly on his radar and his line of vision.

He steps forward, hands held neatly behind his back and steps calculated. Despite the fear roiling in your stomach, you stand straighter and meet his gaze head on.

You’ll be damned if you show fear in the face of this man.

“There is only one thing I requested when I agreed to train for Doomsday.” You surprise everyone in the room, including yourself, with how shrewd you sound as you meet him word for word. “I would do your bidding and execute your plans, but in exchange you would never send me back there. I left for a reason, and there’s no need for me to return there.”

“On the contrary, ____.”

Hearing your name makes your breath catch in your throat, bravado wavering as his lips quirk up slightly. He knows he’s hit a chink in your armor, and you curse yourself for letting your weakness show.

“You are precisely the person we’re looking for.” His hand reaches up to cup your cheek, and you fight the urge to recoil as you stare at him with thinly veiled hate. “The best killer for Doomsday…quiet, clean, obedient.” His thumb delicately strokes your chin, and you swallow thickly so you don’t spit in his face.

“Know this, however.” His hand goes from gently cupping to gripping your jaw, and your hands shake when you feel his nails digging into the delicate skin of your cheeks. “You follow my orders. I hold power over you, and I won’t hesitate to use it for your entire life.”

His hand loosens, and he pushes you just enough that it has you stumbling back. You gasp and clutch at your face, your pride and your ego torn to shreds for the entire top of EVER to see.

“That’s all, Yue.” He’s gone back to his seat, face only showing boredom as he begins to upload detailed files into your comms device. “Prepare for your mission. You get however long you need, but by the end of this you will have completed your cleaning.”

Such an easy dismissal for someone with so much power, but for you it feels like the walls are closing in and you can’t find the way out.

Your worst scenario is happening.

You’re going back to the N109 Zone.

It doesn’t feel monumental when you step back into the streets of the N109 Zone.

You thought that it would be overwhelming for you, but you’re grateful in some twisted way that your training with Doomsday has left you with little patience for sentimentality. You’ve also effectively locked your emotions somewhere deep inside, so you’ve managed to maintain a bored face on this entire thing.

Inside of your mind is a different story, however. Your mind races and constantly writes and rewrites scenarios over again, catching every little detail that hasn’t changed since you’ve left. The staff of the luxurious hotel you’re staying at barely bat an eye as you check in, but you make note of the glances they pass to each other as well as the registrar that sits plainly on their desk. You see your target’s name on the paper, confirming the details EVER sent you before taking your key and leaving without tossing them another look.

Once in the privacy of your suite, you prepare yourself for whatever scenario could possibly happen. Pulling on your usual outfit that helps you blend in, tucking knives into various pockets and the sturdy boots you couldn’t do a mission without, and making sure your gun is properly secured in its holster - it’s your methodical putting on of armor, your way of washing away ____ and putting on Yue’s mask. It helps you wipe yourself clean, honing your focus into your listed objectives.

And you’re going to damn well finish your objectives so that you can get out of this godforsaken place in record time.

“Objective in play, Cleaner Yue requesting coordinates for target.” It’s cold, straight to the point as you hop onto your rented motorcycle and speed into the general direction your dossier had listed. As much as you hate to say it, your previous knowledge of the N109 Zone is helping you tremendously. It has you avoiding areas that could cause obstacles as well as taking streets that cut down your travel time.

Soren’s voice enters your comms device, and you scowl when you hear his sugary sweet sarcasm. “Say please, Yue.”

“Fuck off, Soren.” You take a right turn, gripping the handles a little bit tighter in annoyance. “Give me the damn coordinates so that I can finish this faster.”

“Fine, jeez Yue.” You grit your teeth at his annoyance, but you still murmur a begrudging cool under your breath when you see your desired information flash through the screen of your helmet. “By the way, what’s got you so twisted about the N109 Zone?”

“Why do you care?” It’s venomous, and you’re thankful he can’t see your face because you know your expression doesn’t match your tone.

“You showed up randomly one day two years ago and said you’d join Doomsday under the agreement you’d never go back to the N109 Zone.” It’s a fact, but it’s still one that makes your stomach twist as you continue to speed to your objective’s site. “You trained and you cleaned for two years, rising so quickly to the top and yet you never talk to anyone else. What gives?”

“It’s none of your business, Soren.” You’re a couple of miles out to your site, and you pull over and park your motorcycle in a shadowy street corner. Removing your helmet, you place it on the motorcycle and note its location on your communication device before beginning to walk towards your desired location.

“It is my business.” Soren’s voice comes out crackly through your earpiece, and you wince at the static as you lower the volume. “What a mystery you are, Miss Yue of Doomsday…”

“And I’m remaining that way. Now leave me be so I can finish my job.”

You don’t wait for a response, you simply end communication as you take point to investigate your surroundings.

It looks like a normal alley of crumbling buildings, but you can tell that something seedier runs afoot amongst the debris. Your eyes quickly flicker to quick movement, however, and your breathing slows when you see your target exiting a building with his forehead as the perfect target.

Look at that, you’ll be in and out before the N109 Zone even sees a sunrise.

You let him move slightly ahead of you before you start moving, tailing him quietly so that you don’t draw any sort of attention to yourself. As you walk, however, you see more people than what’s normal in what’s supposed to be a deserted street. Sure, there was the building this guy exited from, and you’re sure that there are more safe houses and black markets nearby, but what gives?

The street slowly grows emptier as you continue forward, and you pull on your half mask to disguise the lower half of your face. Something feels off to you, and you need to get in and kill this man before something happens-

“I wouldn’t move any further, Mr. Kim.”

The voice is projected from the speakers scattered around the street, and your target stops dead in his tracks. You stop as well, tucking yourself in between a pile of boxes and a crumbling brick wall as you assess the scene before you.

“W-who’s there?!” Daniel’s voice is panicked, and you can see his hands beginning to go towards the waistband of his pants so that he can grab blindly at the gun tucked in there. You also ready yourself, unsheathing two of your daggers as you take aim at his vulnerable state.

Now’s your chance.

“You don’t recognize me?” The voice is honey sweet, and you feel yourself begin to sweat at the familiarity of it. “We did just make a deal, after all.”

No.

No.

Something slices cleanly through Yue’s mask, something  ____ thinks is fear as a reddish black mist begins to surround the area. Somewhere above your head, you can hear a mechanical cawing of a robotic crow and you press yourself as close to the brick wall as you can while breathing harshly through your nose to maintain your composure.

Keep it together, Yue.

You grit your teeth and take aim again, fighting the bile rising in your throat when you see a figure emerge from the hazy mist that’s gathered. He’s wrapped in his usual trenchcoat, hair mussed and ruby eyes flashing in amusement as he regards your target. He carries no weapons, but why would he need to when he’s the most powerful being in the N109 Zone?

Sylus Qin.

The sight of your ex-fiancé has your heart pounding but you’re still able to keep your hands still while you assess this new factor. Daniel Kim, however, has stumbled back onto the ground where he’s begun begging for his life.

“Mr. Qin!” Daniel is full of panic as he begins blabbing about how nice it is to see him, but you note that Sylus looks distracted. And when you look a little closer you see that he looks…disheveled.

That’s a rare sight. Whatever happened to him that caused him to look like this? He would never let himself look like this on the streets of the N109 Zone.

Does it have anything to do with his lady friend? You smile bitterly to yourself at the thought.

Good, let him suffer as much as he’s made you unknowingly suffer.

“-or I could tell you about the new protocores EVER has recently acquired!” You snap back into focus when you hear Daniel beginning to blab out all of EVER’s secrets, and you grip your knives tighter as you take your stance. This stupid idiot is going to ruin everything you’ve ever worked for-

“-I could also tell you about the Doomsday Division and their top cleaner!” It’s a choked squawk, but it stops you in your tracks.

How does this idiot know about your division?

You can see the slight pinch in the corner of Sylus’s mouth, eyes flaring with irritation as he picks up your target by his jacket’s lapels and brings him close to his face. “Why would I give a damn about one of EVER’s secret divisions?”

“Because…” Daniel pauses for dramatic effect, lips slowly curling into a smirk even when he’s dangling in the air. “Because, Mr. Qin, their top cleaner might be someone of interest to you.”

Your heart stops.

How does Daniel know this? Doomsday isn’t a widely known division on account of the fact that everyone there is dedicated to cleaning out targets. EVER has a public reputation to maintain, and advertising your assassin division isn’t exactly the smartest thing to do.

So how does he know? How does he have information on something that’s been under lock and key - something so dirty that EVER hides it with news about the Fountain of Atei and their Protocore research? How does he know about you? And how does he know that Doomsday’s top cleaner is you?

This is very bad.

You realize now why Daniel Kim is so high on EVER’s list, despite only being a Protocore dealer. He knows all of their dirty little secrets, and if he exposes them? They, you, are absolutely done for.

You know what you need to do now, and you ready yourself for your next course of action.

From your vantage point, you can’t see the expression on Sylus’s face. But you do see the way his fingers slightly loosen their hold on Daniel’s lapel, shock evident in the way his fingers tremble against the cheap fabric. You take aim, ready to throw your knife straight into Daniel’s jugular, but Sylus’s shaky voice stops you for a split second.

“Where is she?”

What?

What does he mean, where is she?

“If you let me go, I’ll tell you all about Yue.” Daniel’s slimy voice saying your name like that has you clenching the handle of your daggers tighter, an ugly feeling flaring in your chest as your lips twist into a scowl. “Where she is, how long she’s been in the program for-”

You don't even think, you just do.

You flick your dagger towards Sylus’s shoulder. You know he sees it coming from a mile away, but that’s the point. In his dodging of your dagger, he loosens his hold enough on Daniel’s jacket for you to throw the other dagger - making Sylus completely let go of Daniel’s clothing.

Daniel, with some of his brains restored, has enough common sense to run away. This is going to be an issue for later you, but for right now all that matters is he’s alive. He’s revealed why he’s so dangerous, and the spite coursing through your veins won’t let you rest before you clean him from this world yourself.

What matters is right now. Right now, it’s you in this deserted street-

-alone with him.

“An assassin?” He sounds vaguely amused at this idea, his right eye glowing red as he scans his surroundings. “What a novel thing in the N109 Zone. Come out, you’ve thoroughly impressed me.”

He thinks he has you cornered, but you’ve already decided on your escape route a long time ago. All you need is the element of surprise, and you know you have enough of that in your identity.

You stand up, slowly moving aside from the boxes and facing him. For all of your panic earlier in the moment, all you know now is peace as you cock your head at him, sizing him up. Sylus also takes his time in examining you, and you stamp down the traitorous flicker of desire pooling in your stomach when you feel the way his eyes trace lines of fire up and down your body.

Focus, Yue.

“Shorter than I imagined.” There’s some amusement in his voice, and you don’t share it as you simply stare him down. “I can’t make a joke?”

“It’s a bad joke.” Your voice is slightly hoarse from disuse, and you unsheathe two daggers from your sleeves. “I expected more from the Leader of Onychinus.”

Sylus scoffs at that, and you see the way his finger twitches as he summons his Evol. That little tell is all you need, and you gracefully roll out of the way right before it can grab onto you. He whistles at your movement. “I’m impressed.”

“I’m not.” This is bad, you shouldn’t be talking to him in this way because it’s bringing up feelings that should be buried when you have on the mask of Yue. But the banter is so reminiscent of when the two of you would talk late into the night about everything and nothing while sparring each other-

You’re slower to dodge the next attack on you, but you’re still able to roll towards your exit. You estimate that all you need is one more quick movement and you’re able to run-

“-ah!”

His Evol knocks you flat on your back, and you register something clattering to your side as you hear footsteps slowly clicking towards you. You take a deep breath to steady yourself and you push yourself up to your feet just in time to see your half mask by your boots.

Nonononononono-

You smell him then, smoky wood and pomegranate. His dress shoes come to a stop in front of you, and you freeze when you see his Evol weaving in and out between his fingers.

“Who are you?” It’s cold, but his voice being so near you still manages to stir a messy flurry of feelings within your chest. “What is your business here?”

Now’s your time.

You lift your head, and you meet Sylus Qin’s gaze for the first time in two years.

And you see the exact moment he recognizes you. You know it, because you feel something twist painfully in your chest when your eyes catch his. It’s perfectly in time to the way his eyes widen, jaw going slack at the sight of your straight face and disheveled hair.

The world’s stopped, and it’s now just you and him.

“____?”

His voice is full of shock and something that matches that painful twinge in your chest. His eyes frantically scan every part of your face, drinking you in as his hands slowly begin to travel up so he can…you don’t know what, but you don’t want to find out. “____, I-”

You use his defenselessness to push him square in the chest, making him uncharacteristically fall to the street. He catches himself easily on his forearms, but your knives are quick to pin him to the asphalt of the cold ground. You step back to see him in a state few will ever get to see Sylus Qin in: pinned by his shirt, hair mussed and chest heaving as he looks at you with the sick realization of just who you’ve become in the two years you’ve been gone from the N109 Zone.

You just stare back at him coldly. What else is there to say? Everything good between the two of you has long withered and died, anyways.

“It’s Yue.”

And before you can let him decipher that meaning, you turn and run as fast as you humanly can, accidentally leaving your mask by his dress shoes.

“Let’s get this straight, Yue. You had a direct line with the target and instead of killing him you…let him run away?”

Soren’s voice is equal parts irritated and amused, but you’re anything but as you flop back onto your bed. “Yes, but I have reasoning for it.”

“Tsk tsk…” You can tell he enjoys relishing in your failure, even if it’s calculated on your end. “What’ll Lihua and the big bossman think about their top cleaner letting her target escape?”

“They won’t think anything because they won’t know.”

Soren laughs, actually laughs at your failure as your shoulders curl tighter in on themselves. For the first time in a long time, you feel anxiety flare in the pit of your stomach as the reality sets in: this is the first time you purposefully let a mission go awry.

You’ve never let this happen before.

“Well, Miss Yue, you better make it up to me.” Soren uploads new information into your communication device, and you breathe a sigh of relief when you see multiple coordinates for Daniel’s movements. “We’ve been tracking his movements for weeks now, and I’ve condensed the most likely places he’ll be in this list here. I anticipated you finishing sooner but…here we are.”

“And I'll still finish it faster than anyone else could.” You’ll never say thank you to Soren, but this is enough for him to know he has your gratitude as you end the call. You recognize the first coordinate of the list being a bar nearby the hotel you’re staying at, so you prepare yourself for both a cleaning and maybe a long night in between someone else’s sheets.

You had showered after you had gotten back, so you’re able to take your time getting ready for the night. You pull on a silky, ankle-length black dress with a dangerous slit up your thigh before sitting back down and zipping up a pair of heeled leather boots complete with your favorite knives tucked into hidden pockets. Your hair gets piled up on top of your head and secured with a metal hairpin that could act as a weapon if needed, and you finish your ensemble by sliding on a floor-length coat with a hidden gun holster.

You look in the mirror, satisfied with your ensemble. You look dangerous and nothing like yourself - exactly how you like it.

How you look right now paired with his reaction to you catching him off guard bolsters your confidence and reminds you of who you are as you leave your hotel, quickly crossing over to where you know the coordinates lead to. It’s an unassuming bar with flickering lights, almost dead in its appearance except for the music that pours from its closed doors. Soft jazz mixes with the ambient laughter from inside, and you’re sure you’ve found your target location as you push open the door and let yourself in.

The lounge is lush, velvet booths and chairs paired with dark stained mahogany. The bar is busy, the bartenders sliding slips of paper to guests while the jazz music hides secrets that lurk around every corner. You find an unassuming booth tucked in the corner, but you see more: the ornate mirror by the booth provides a direct view of the entrance, while being away enough from the entrance so you can slip into the back rooms if you need to make a quick escape.

There’s the added bonus of it being by the dance floor, and men of all types try to vie for your hand. You simply wave them off, sliding into the empty booth and letting the soulful saxophone lull you into a calm mindset. A waiter drops by with some water and offers their liquor menu, but you simply accept the water with a nod before turning your eyes back to the mirror in front of you, waiting for your target.

As you slowly sip, you mull over the past few…hours? You can’t believe it’s been hours, to be honest. You never purposefully would’ve slipped like that, but you think that it’s the best decision now. Daniel Kim will die a painful death, and you’ll relish every second that you’ll spend eradicating his existence and your truth from this mortal plane.

As for the other person in that encounter…

The bar stills as the front entrance opens, and you feel yourself sigh minutely when you see a flash of red and black cross the threshold. It’s almost comical how the music stops, and you feign disinterest as the clack of well-polished dress shoes comes to a stop.

“Why did you stop? Keep enjoying yourselves.”

The bass is plucked back up a little too quickly, but everyone slowly picks themselves up as you pretend not to notice how his steps walk towards where you’re situated.

“Hello, darling.”

A voice wrapped in velvet reaches you, almost lulling you into a place of your heart you don’t dare to enter. There’s an undercurrent of something bitter underneath his tone, however, and you feel yourself stiffen as you feel something brush against your ankles.

“What do you want?”

It’s flat, but your eyes stay sharp as you examine the way his Evol travels up your leg before undoing itself from your body, rewrapping itself around your wrist in a whisper of a touch. Your frown deepens when you see his signature red and black hue, and your hands slowly curl up into a ball as you begin to count your breaths.

“That’s no way to treat your fiancé, is it?”

You force your shoulders to stay straight as Sylus sets himself across from you, placing his drink right next to yours. But even with your straightened spine, you avoid his eyes as you fix your attention to his Adam’s apple, noting how it slightly bobs in the silence.

He’s nervous.

Good.

“Ex fiancé, thank you.” You can’t quite hide the bitterness as you reach for your cup, sipping slowly on the water as you try to absorb its chill into your soul. “And if I remember correctly, you were the one who didn’t show up.”

You don’t have to look into his eyes to know you’ve hit the chink in his armor - you can see it in the way the upward tilt of his mouth completely vanishes, replaced with a straight line. His fingers begin to tap an erratic rhythm onto the marble of the table, and you slowly count the tempo he’s mindlessly tapping out as you wait for his excuse.

“I showed up now, didn’t I?” You know Sylus means for it to be teasing, but there’s a raw pain hidden in the meaning as he looks at you with a depth you used to be able to decipher. “It’s been too long, ____.”

His Evol that had been tracing your wrist slowly makes its way to your ring finger, and it gently settles itself there like you had never taken off your engagement ring. You frown at the sight but for some reason, you can’t find it in yourself to make it disappear with a wave of your hand.

You try to swallow down the feeling that bubbles in your chest, but it still stays. How annoying.

“Yue.” You run your finger on the rim of your water glass, noting a quick brush of fabric in one of the rooms beside your booth. You lazily flick your eyes back to Sylus, not betraying your findings as you stealthily unsheathe a knife. “I’d prefer to be called as such, by the way.”

“I know you as ____ so I’d prefer to call you that.” His lips quirk up in the corners, and his eyes drop to your ring finger still wrapped in his Evol. “Or would you rather I call you my darling?”

Heat pools in your stomach at that intimate name, and a flashback of him sighing that blasted pet name into your ear as his hips rocked against you has you rattled to your bones.

“Stop that.” You can feel the scowl on your face deepen when you see Sylus’s lips curl into a teasing smile at how much he still affects you. “You’re two years too late, and don’t you have another woman somewhere in one of your safe houses?”

This makes him pause, and his eyes grow guarded as he examines you carefully. “What do you mean by that, ____? I’ve only ever been faithful to you-”

“Were you really?” You see the same brush of fabric from the corner of your eyes, and you toy with your knife hidden underneath the table as you stare at Sylus head on. “I saw what happened in your study the night we were supposed to get married.”

Your knife’s handle slips into your palm, and you grip onto the handle as you see a figure approach closer. Sylus wracks his brain, and at the same moment he realizes what you saw is the same moment your unknown assailant makes himself known.

With a flick of your wrist, your knife sails seamlessly through the air. It whizzes by Sylus’s ear with a silent whoosh, thudding neatly into his assailant’s chest. You stand as if nothing has happened, reaching over and draining your water cup while he looks at you with surprise and guilt.

“____-”

“-Yue.”

Your cup clinks a little too hard on the table, and you prop your hands onto the sturdy wood of the table as you lean down and glare at him with thinly veiled…you don’t know, but it’s not a pleasant feeling. “I saw you and her on a day that was supposed to be ours. You do not get to waltz back into my life after I’ve buried everything successfully.”

It’s a big fat lie if you’re still feeling your heart flutter in your chest at the sight of his ruffled state, but he doesn’t need to know that.

“____, I need to explain myself to you-” It’s a messy spill of words from his mouth as he stands so he can meet your gaze, but you push at his chest a little too harshly and force him back down to the booth.

“How many times do I have to tell you it’s Yue, dragon?”

It’s bitter poison, the name he hates so deeply falling from your mouth. You feel the slightest twinge of guilt at his pained face, but how does that compare to the agony he’s inflicted on you? How does it compare to you walking in and finding your fiancé too close to a girl who’s too good to be true, who’s everything you can’t be?

You step away from the booth, brushing your dress of nonexistent lint. The Evol that had wrapped around your ring finger quickly dissipates as you shake your hand free, grabbing your coat and not sparing the man moaning behind him another glance. You do look into ruby eyes, however, and you feel that familiar cold seeping into your chest as you regard his face for what you hope is the last time.

“____ is long dead and gone, Sylus Qin. Don’t spend your time fruitlessly chasing after a ghost just because you’ve found someone who looks similar to her.”

You walk away from the booth with your head held high, but inside, you’re shaken to your core.

As much as you want to believe this is your last encounter with him, you know that it won’t be.

Not by a long shot.

You can hear the mechanical cawing of a robotic crow from outside of your window, but you choose to ignore it as you scroll through your communication log and groan at the changes.

The crow has been a constant, but at least you haven’t seen a whisper of him since that night two weeks ago. You’ve been far too busy to dwell on your ex-fiancé, anyways - Daniel has ramped up his security since he was threatened, and you can tell it’s been bad at headquarters because Soren is being even more of a whiny bastard and Lihua’s been added as another mission supervisor.

You’re slipping, and you know it. You have been since you saw him.

You don’t want to admit it, but he’s sliced cleanly through your mask - leaving you somewhere in between Doomsday’s Yue and ____. A person who’s in between times, in between identities, and in between feelings. You don’t know whether to lean into one side or the other - but you know it’s costing you.

You can practically feel Lihua’s disapproval even though you're miles away, making you shudder in your room.

At least it’s only Soren and Lihua, though. If it were the boss…

The constant tapping on your window breaks you from your stupor, and you look outside in annoyance to see that familiar shape pecking its beak against the stained glass. Your frown deepens when you see the crow on your windowsill, but you don’t stop yourself from getting up from your chair and swinging the window wide open.

“What are you doing here?” Unlike when you were with him, your voice takes on a much softer tone as you see Mephisto circle around your room before settling on the chair you were previously on. He gives out a shrill caw!, hopping around on the chair before sticking his leg out for you to look.

“Hmm?” You approach the crow and sit down in front of the chair, immediately noting the little piece of paper stuck onto its leg. You’re quick to undo the string that ties the paper to his leg, and Mephisto lets out a noise of thanks followed by what you can only assume is his approximation of a grumble.

“Yes, yes,” you grumble softly, although you feel yourself soften slightly when Mephisto hops onto your shoulder and nuzzles his head against your cheek.

“November, Charlie, Oscar, Quebec…” You list off the words, recognizing the common phonetic alphabet from a previous time. The words don’t make sense, though. With an alphabet like this, the capitalized letters would spell out the code - but he’s just sent you a bunch of gibberish.

“Your programmer annoys me, you know that?”

Mephisto gives a gleeful cry, and you sigh before grabbing a pen and paper and settling into the chair to decipher the puzzle he’s so graciously decided to give you.

It takes you a couple of tries but when you decipher the code, you crumple and throw the paper out of sheer frustration.

FOLLOW THE CROW.

You turn your head and give Mephisto a withering look. “You knew all this time, didn’t you?”

Mephisto merely cocks his head in a mockery of your own before cawing once more and flying out of your open window.

You sigh heavily. “Stupid programmer…”

You still go, getting onto your motorcycle and following a distant crow in the distance. Why wouldn’t you? He may prove valuable yet.

Mephisto leads you to an abandoned laboratory from a time gone by, and your curiosity reaches another level when you vaguely recognize some of the facade. You push yourself off of your motorcycle and ignore Mephisto’s insistent cawing, instead walking towards a crumbling wall and wiping the soot off of the surface. You’re surprised to see a mirror, and that surprise slowly morphs into shock when you see EVER’s logo printed neatly in stained white paint.

You know that the N109 Zone used to be a prosperous place before it was reduced to the way it is now, and you also know that EVER had something to do with this destruction. Why is this here though? You thought it was only a few small laboratories, not a giant complex that now sits abandoned.

What are they not telling you?

Mephisto caws once more, and you push yourself away from the wall with shaking hands.

“What are you playing at, Sylus Qin…”

“Nothing, actually.”

You nearly jump out of your skin at the unexpected voice, and your head whips around to find Sylus leaning against a crumbling pillar. Instead of the fine business clothes he usually has on, he has on a more casual motorcycle outfit that matches your own with his leather jacket and sturdy boots.

“Don’t do that.” Your face automatically forms a deep frown at his visage, and you run your hands over your head to soothe your nerves. Sylus’s eyebrow quirks at your slight scare, and amusement slowly forms on his face at the realization that he rattled you for a split second.

“Aren’t you supposed to be a great assassin, Yue?”

He emphasises your codename, turning the syllables over his mouth as if tasting it to see if it’s to his liking. As much as you try to suppress it, you hate the shiver that runs up your spine at how his voice drops - the low timber of his voice making it sound like you’re in a much more intimate setting compared to where you actually are.

“I am.” Unlike the subtle flirtatiousness, you’re much more stoic as you look at him with what you hope is boredom. “Top of the pyramid, if you will.”

“I know that much.” He does approach you at this, and you sidestep a little bit away to maintain your distance from him. “Once Daniel told me that information, it was easy to dig it up. A long record after only two years, silent and deadly…”

He steps closer, and you force yourself to look up at his ruby eyes. You’re not going to back down from him; you’re going to keep staring at him to the bitter end.

“You’ve become an enigma when I used to know you so well.”

There’s no bitterness in the statement, only a sort of accepted melancholy that makes your chest tighten because it’s true. You used to trust Sylus with everything in you, knowing he would never let anything hurt you. You willingly gave him your heart, but that trust was broken when you witnessed what happened in his study.

“People change.” It comes out even and you’re thankful that it does. “Circumstances and things that are supposed to be secret come out, and it leaves the party who got hurt scrambling for ways to fix it. So I did.”

“No doubt about it, ____.” Sylus’s hand reaches up, about to touch you but he instead lets it fall limply by his side. “People can change, but their past still follows them and reminds them of who they are. Does that happen to you?”

Your breath hitches.

Because it does. More than you care to admit.

It goes against everything you’ve ever been taught at Doomsday. You’ve gotten good at hiding it, sure, but you were supposed to kill that part of you once you graduated from training - after your first cleaning.

So the fact that you coexist with Cleaner Yue is dangerous.

Sylus, still oblivious to your tumultuous thoughts, continues on with his own musings. His eyes really look at you, searching for something before he settles on, “I guess what I really wonder is, ____…did you ever think about me? What exactly ran through your head during those two years?”

This is bad.

This is not the conversation you were expecting. You were expecting him to threaten you, to try and kill you, maybe make a joke about what you’ve become but not this.

Not his attempt to crack you open - to try and see the part of you that you’ve hidden deep inside of yourself. The part of you that still dreams of him and aches for his touch, the part that still wears a ruby necklace around her neck and waits for a wedding underneath the cover of maple leaves.

You’ll be damned if he manages to pull her out. Not after everything you’ve gone through to try and kill her.

“What does it matter?” You step back a little further, creating space that slowly diminishes because he still takes a step towards you. “Why do you want to know? Don’t you have someone else waiting for you at the base?”

Your words are bitter, but there’s something that colors that bitterness and makes it turn a shade of grey. It makes your chest ache and your throat feel a little bit tighter, and as much as you try to swallow it away you can’t because it’s that awful feeling that’s been bubbling in your heart since he betrayed you.

Silence rings out as you let him process your words, and your arms slowly wrap around your body so that you can keep yourself warm. Everything feels too thin - the silence, his thoughts, your patience. This was a bad idea and you shouldn’t have gone here-

“-let me make a deal with you.”

From your peripheral, you see a hand reaching up to tuck itself neatly underneath your chin. You neatly deflect it by whacking his arm away from your face, and you let the opening allow you access to grab the collar of his jacket and pull him down to your height.

“I’m listening.”

Sylus’s eyes glint at your little show, and his lips slightly tilt up. “Cute.”

Your fingers tighten ever so slightly, and you unsheathe a knife from your sleeve in warning.

“Fine,” he huffs. Your fingers tighten and you focus on his nose as he begins his proposition. “Daniel is still on the large, but I’ve gotten all of the information I need from him. All you need to do is kill him, right?”

“...yes.”

His eyes gleam at the inch you’ve given him. “I’ll help you track him down and eradicate him. All you need to do is be willing to work with me for however long it takes.”

“That’s it?” Suspicion sinks heavily over you, making your fingers loosen as you regard him with curiosity. “Just…work with you?

He nods, and you hate the way his face softens at your disbelief. “That’s all I want, ____.”

What are the benefits to this?

You’re going to be able to clean Daniel Kim from this world with the help of someone who rules this area. While this is happening, you can take this closeness and use it to kill the part of you that still holds something deep for him. You can run after this.

EVER wouldn’t want you collaborating with the enemy, though. Especially not one that’s so high on their list. You’ve already messed up to the point of mission leaders changing, and you know their patience is running thin. You may be the best, but even the best is dispensable in the face of a massive entity like EVER.

But all of that pales in comparison to the one thing that’ll make or break you.

He’s currently in the palm of your hands. He leans tall at six foot two, and his ruffled head is bent down to your height as he waits patiently for your response. Even in this position, though, he has all of the power and influence - not just for how this mission ends, but for how you may end up feeling about him in the end.

You hate it.

You hate it, yet it’s your only option.

You know what you need to do.

“I’ll work with you.” You can see the surprise on his face mixing with something more as you glare at him with little heat. “I’ll work with you, but know this.”

You pull him down even lower, holding your knife to his throat as you direct his eyes onto your heated stare. Sylus’s eyes widen at your sudden display of aggression, but that shock slowly smooths out into an even, almost amused look that has you burning hot with annoyance.

“One foot out of line, one comment, one single attempt to fix the past will result in a bullet through your head and me transferring all of your assets to my private bank account.” Your fingers tighten on the collar of his shirt to maintain control of the situation, but your ire only burns hotter when you see the smirk on his face grow even more. “This is a professional team and nothing else, understood?”

In your focus, you don’t notice how his hand hovers near your face. But your entire body goes still when you feel his calloused fingertips tracing a strand of hair that had fallen onto your face. His eyes stay on yours through the movement, making your stomach turn with an emotion you can’t quite decipher.

All you know is that it makes your heart beat faster when he tucks the stray hair behind your ear and lets his fingers fall to your chin. And it certainly doesn’t help when he wraps his other hand around the wrist that holds your knife to his throat, his thumb running soothing circles against the sensitive inner skin as he steadies your shaking arm while slightly pressing the point of your knife just a little bit harder to his skin.

“Crystal, darling.”

Sylus takes you out on your first scouting mission the next day, and you decide to follow along.

Why not see what happens, anyways? You’re close to a dead end, and you need all of the help you can get to clean Daniel Kim.

You meet him in an abandoned district, crumbling walls lining the trash filled streets. Your nose wrinkles at the stench, but you still approach the coordinates he sent you. It leads you to an empty looking building, and you’re careful to conceal your face as you enter stealthily.

Inside, you see the same EVER logo on the wall that matched the logo you saw on the wall where you met Sylus previously. Seeing that logo has your stomach turning uneasily. You’ve always had your own reservations about EVER, but seeing their presence here is…disconcerting.

Like two worlds that should have never been introduced to each other.

“Odd, isn’t it?”

You nearly jump out of your skin at the new voice, and you glare at the man who’s seemingly materialized out of the wall where he was watching you from.

“You’ve got to stop doing that, you fool.” You scowl, and you breathe deeply to calm your heart rate as Sylus’s lips quirk up in amusement. You shake your head and turn back around, examining the wall. “You’re right, though.”

“I am, aren’t I?” He’s teasing, and you roll your eyes. He moves easily so that he’s standing in front of you, head cocked to the side as he sizes up the logo on the wall. “In all seriousness though, ____…”

Curiosity gets the better of you, and you decide to size up the man next to you instead. Even though he’s completely relaxed next to you, Sylus still exudes strength and power. He’s not an easy man to take down - power in every single step he takes.

“How have things been with you?”

It’s an inane slip of your tongue, your brain craving for familiarity and going against your training. Your mouth snaps shut as you realize your idiotic move, because why would you even ask your enemy how life has been with him recently? Embarrassment roils in your stomach, and you begin to clear your throat-

“It’s been the usual.” He shrugs, and the gesture is so reminiscent of easy conversations the two of you had that you feel a punch in your gut at how…familiar it is. “I, uh, I discovered some things about my past in the past two years. It made me realize things.”

“Oh?” You cock your head at him, curiosity sparking as you regard him. “What did you find out?”

It’s a genuine question, and you feel alarmed that there isn’t any sort of poison in it. It’s as if you’ve asked about his day after he came home, excited and warm to see him. You just…genuinely want to know.

“I found out some things about my Evol.” His hands flex, summoning that red and black energy that he easily manipulates in between his fingers. “How it came to be, things of that nature. All of it was quite…enlightening.”

“Is that so?” You’ve subconsciously inched closer in the confession, heads bowed together as you examine the energy that transfers itself from his fingers to your own. You were never an Evol wielder, but you can still feel the crackle of his traveling across your fingers and up your arm with the slightest twitch of his fingers. It almost feels like…home.

What an idiotic thought.

You clear your throat, trying not to convey your warring thoughts as you ask, “Anything else that you managed to find out about yourself?”

You take a chance to tilt your head up, and you feel your eyes widen at how close you and Sylus have gotten in the exchange. His lips are just above your forehead, and if you make yourself stand still, you can almost imagine he’s going to brush his lips across your head in a sweet kiss like he always does before either of you leave the base-

“We’re too close-” It’s a gasp, and you stumble back while still keeping your eyes on him. “I, that was-”

“It’s fine.” Sylus’s voice is characteristically flat, almost angry at how dejected he is at your shock as he clears his throat and looks away. “And ____, I don’t know if I should share my findings right here.”

“Oh.” That familiar icy feeling creeps back up, shrouding ___ in Yue’s cynicism. You shake your head to steel yourself, and when you come back your voice is cool and no longer curious. “All right, then. Keep your secrets.”

“____, I didn’t mean it like that-” He tries, but you’re bending down to pick up a file folder on the ground to save face and also conduct yourself back to Yue. While creased and worn with time, it’s still barely legible. You open it, and feel yourself freeze at the title you see on the screen.

DIVISION: DOOMSDAY.

“____?” Sylus’s voice comes up behind you, and you pull the file close to your chest as he attempts to peer over your shoulder. “What is it?”

“I just need to read this.” Your tone is steady when you’re everything but as you begin to flip through the pages, scanning the text and trying to score the key details into your brain. Everything you read sends a chill up your spine because this is the entire training process of Doomsday, right down to initiation before graduation.

What is a file like this doing at the N109 Zone? Wouldn’t they have kept it with them? You turn back to the front, feeling something in yourself tighten further when you see the boss’s name on the front as the proposed developer of this unit.

Your fingers continue shaking, and you flip towards the back of the file. You scan the new section, and you feel your mouth going dry at the new information that’s been revealed to you slowly. It makes you grow dizzy with anger and also fear for your livelihood because how could you not see this coming, ____? You thought it would just be servitude, not a lifetime sentence.

You didn’t know that failure meant immediate execution once you returned back to base.

No chance of escape, of wiping your slate clean. It’s only EVER or death.

You hate them, but you hate yourself more for damning yourself to this life.

“____?”

You flinch back when you feel the ghost of his fingers brushing along your shoulder, trying to ground you in the present. You shake his hand off, clutching the file tightly to your chest as you take a few deep breaths, trying to decide your best course of action. You could keep the file. Let it burn to the ground. Toss it away…

“I’d like to be alone for a couple of days while I think about some things.” You can’t stop your hands from shaking, why are you shaking? Of course you knew EVER was evil, but you didn’t know to this extent - of treating their own people as dispensable. You laugh hardly at the thought, and something in your soul grows more tired of the thought.

Dispensable in marriage and work. What a joke this is.

“____-”

“No, Sylus.”

It’s the most emotion you’ve shown, your voice cracking at the end of his name as you continue to walk out of the building and clutch the folder like a lifeline and the thing that damns you, because it is. “Leave me alone, please.”

You don’t wait for an answer, you simply walk away before he can see how your eyes have glossed over in tears.

He keeps to his word, and you’re thankful that he listens.

The days pass by in a blur, and the only constant has been the file staring at you in the face. You’ve gone through all of the stages of grief in what feels like a demented merry-go-round, going from anger to depression to bargaining and back to anger.

You think you’ve made it to acceptance, though. You had spent the previous afternoon burning pieces of paper one by one, watching the corners curl into themselves and melt into ash of the wood of your fireplace. It made you feel a little bit better as the flames warmed your cold body, but it still sits heavy in your mind as you look out the window. A crow circles above your building, cawing multiple times and it almost makes you smile with comfort.

He may not be there physically at times, but he’s still there in the form of Mephisto knocking on your window. You’ve let Mephisto come into your room a few times and also let him accompany you on walks to make it look like you’ve moving, just so you have an alibi. He’s proven to be useful, cawing when there’s immediate danger and also just serving as your companion.

You like Mephisto. Mephisto is sassy but still affectionate, rubbing his head against your cheek and helping you complete recon while giving you a knowing sound when you stare at him too long.

Mephisto is practically his own entity, you having separated him from his programmer long ago. Mephisto is safe and doesn’t turn your stomach into a weird roiling bubble whenever you start to think a little too hard about how he still listens and respects you - of how he still acts like he cares.

Like right now.

He had written little on the scrap piece of paper Mephisto was practically crying for you to remove from his leg, only some coordinates with promises of information and an additional note of “look nice.” What even is nice to him, anyways? Is it underground opera nice or jazz bar nice?

You settle for something in the middle - a nondescript black silk dress and a nice enough coat where you won’t look like a fool if it’s an extremely fancy event or extremely overdressed if it’s more casual. You feel naked without your gun, but you have plenty of hidden daggers and you’re plenty resourceful. Other people may have automatic weapons on them, anyways.

You’re relieved to see that the building that shows up is less bar and more upscale restaurant teeming with influential people craving information. You find a shadowy corner across the street, and you decide to wait for Sylus as you scan the premises for your target and any additional information you can file away. You find nothing of interest, though. Sure, you recognize some people from past dossiers you peeked at EVER, but they’re not high threats for Doomsday.

You’re not interested in completing Doomsday tasks right now, anyways. Not since your recent discoveries.

You pull your personal phone out, frowning when you think you see your lipstick smudged under your chin. You pull out the tube from one of your coat’s many pockets and uncap it, angling your phone so that you can find the right lighting to make sure it doesn’t become even more of a mess-

“You should find a better light, ____.”

You’re quick to pull your lipstick away from your mouth, and you scowl at the person behind the sleek motorcycle helmet. You can’t see it, but you know his ruby eyes are sparkling as he glances at you from behind his visor and it just makes you all the more annoyed.

You cock your head when Sylus flips up his visor, however. The lighting of the streetlamp above the two of you catches the tint of his visor just enough to make it opaque, and if you tiptoe up…

“Hold still.” It’s curt from your mouth, but Sylus pauses his movements just enough for you to lean in just enough so you can flick his visor down over his eyes. You feign disinterest the entire time, but you can’t quite hide the way your hands shake ever so slightly as you peer into his visor and begin to fix your lipstick. 

It’s reminiscent of a time gone by, when you would apply skincare in the comfort of your shared bathroom. The fleeting domesticity is almost enough for you to soften, but you swallow down the silly sentiment as you rub your lips to even out the color and place the cap back on the tube.

“All done.”

You’re thankful you sound only bored, even if your mind is frantically stamping down memories that threaten to surface. You flick Sylus’s visor up, expecting him to crack a joke, but you feel your mouth turn dry when you see his eyes and the little sliver of visible skin.

In that short moment you touched yourself up, it’s as if he’s been wrecked by a lifetime of memories. His pupils are dilated, the red of his irises a thin ring as he gazes at you with an emotion you can’t quite decipher. The little bit of skin you do see is flushed a soft pink, and you swallow thickly as you turn your head away and gesture towards the restaurant.

“Should we head in?”

“Yes.” He cuts his shakiness off with a cough, and you almost smile to yourself as you begin to walk towards the restaurant, not waiting to see if he follows. You know he will.

Once inside, you’ve both composed yourselves enough where you’re back to square one point five. Not too cordial but not too venomous towards each other. It almost feels as though you’re two coworkers with one who has a greater disdain for the other, which is hilarious given the past couple of events and your entire history with each other.

You settle into the table the server’s led you to, and you frown when you don’t see any sort of tells or ways to keep track of your surroundings. Isn’t this supposed to be a reconnaissance mission? Why is he ordering your favorite pasta and refilling your water while looking at you with eyes you don’t want to think about?

“So, ____…” Sylus tries to begin, but you can only stare at him witheringly as you continue to poke at your pasta. 

“What?” Your tone is biting with no heat as you shove a noodle into your mouth. “You brought me to this restaurant for reconnaissance, so where’s the information I want?”

Sylus merely smiles at your annoyance, only serving to fuel your displeasure at this entire situation and making you prickle in your seat as he picks up his wine glass and takes a slow sip. “What happened to enjoying beauty and taking it slow, ____?”

“Being slow kills a person,” you counter back, though the heat isn’t as intense as you reach for your own wine glass and take a sip. “Sure, it allows for someone to go through all possible options, mapping out the best strategy. By the time that person makes a decision, however, there’s already a knife in their back and a bullet in between their eyes.”

You drain your wine in one more gulp, welcoming the buzz that simmers through your veins as you allow yourself to really look at him. This man used to be your fiancé, after all - and you’d be an idiot if you didn’t admit to yourself that Sylus Qin is still as devastatingly handsome and charming as you remember.

His silver hair is ruffled, red eyes glimmering with mischief and a deeper feeling as his eyes do their own calculated sweep over your visage. He has on a black turtleneck with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, and the outfit is reminiscent of date nights he used to take you back when you were still…here. The thought causes searing pain but you stamp it down as you continue your slow catalogue of everything about Sylus Qin.

This is all objective, Yue. It’s a chant in your mind, a weak attempt at categorizing these details you’ve missed so deeply as a part of your mission, but you can feel that thought slowly slipping away when he laughs at your matter-of-factness.

“How your opinions have changed,” he murmurs softly, and his soft tone of voice has a shiver running up your spine as he leans in closer. “While I would usually agree with you, I want to know what brought about this shift?”

“Take a wild guess,” you retort back, but you can’t help the quick upturn of your lips as you happily indulge in his word war. “What could have possibly happened in my two years of being away that caused me to be like this?”

His smile falters for a little bit, eyes sobering up as he regards you with seriousness. “Doomsday.”

You simply nod, placing another forkful of noodles into your mouth and chewing so he can mull over just what you could have possibly been put through while training for Doomsday. Once you swallow, he opens his mouth again to ask the question you’ve dreaded him asking since you left all those years ago.

“Why EVER?”

The question hangs heavily in the air, and you both know that by answering, you both will be opening a can of worms. You both hate EVER for the things they’ve done to the N109 Zone, but he seems to have grown an even bigger disdain for them ever since you’ve returned. You have your own, newer reasons of hating EVER, but you still feel a twisted sense of defensiveness creep up your spine as you try to wrack your brain for an answer that won’t offend the both of you..

“They didn’t ask questions.” It’s blunt, but you still flinch at the way Sylus’s eyes glint dangerously at your statement. “They didn’t ask why I showed up, begging to join their cleaner division. They just…took me in and trained me.”

“That’s it?” He sounds incredulous and he has every reason to be so - you ran into the arms of the enemy, after all. “You went to EVER because it was…convenient?”

“Yes.” The two of you have reverted back to square one, enemies across different lines sitting across from each other. All it would take was one wrong look, and there would be blood staining the expensive tablecloths. “I needed an out. I needed a way to…disappear.”

“Disappear?” This time, the words are much more bitter, and you look at Sylus in surprise because of his sudden display of anger. “Disappear? ____, I-”

He drops his face in his hands, rubbing his temples as his eyes close in frustration. His hand moves from his forehead to the bridge of his nose, pinching tightly as he takes a few deep breaths to compose himself. All the while, you’re sitting frozen in your seat because why is he so worked up over this?

“Why does it matter?” You can’t help but inject a little bit of poison in your voice, slowly growing more frigid in the passing seconds. “Full offense, but are you truly delusional to believe I wanted to be found after what I witnessed that night in your study?”

Sylus’s head whips up, and you feel yourself grow colder at the burning anger in his expression. “But ____, did you really need to go to EVER to disappear? You could have gone to any other agency-”

“With my skillset?” You can’t help but cut him off with a laugh, gesturing to yourself. “Sylus, I am an assassin. I kill people. What did you want me to do, go to the Hunters Association and work together with your Hunter friend?”

“I don’t give a damn about her.” It’s a lethal slice of an admission, one you choose to ignore as the both of you prop yourselves up on your arms to better look at your opponent. “____, you went to the enemy because you needed to disappear? ____, that’s a cheap excuse and-” “Maybe because I did not want to be found, Sylus Qin.”

Everything stops at those words, and Sylus’s eyes widen as he realizes just what you mean.

You don’t let your guard down, instead choosing to examine his reaction as you lean back and cross your arms over your chest. Sylus’s eyes blink rapidly, trying to come up with a reasonable explanation to your statement, and he comes to it just as you let out a short laugh.

“Did you really think that after witnessing my fiancé in such a state with another woman after what was supposed to be our wedding day, I wanted to stay? To be found?” You laugh again, the noise devoid of all joy. “I wanted to disappear. I wanted to be gone, I wanted to be away. Partly because I needed the distance to think for myself and get over what happened, but also because I wanted you to feel just a fraction of the agony you gave me.”

The silence that used to be amiable becomes sour with your confession, but you only feel a little bit lighter with sharing the weight with him as you continue your tirade once more. “You know…when you’re training with Doomsday, they pair you up with someone. You build a rapport with that person, and then they subject you to a battle of the death. That’s how you graduate from training. They mark down your closest ally as your first cleaning and it serves as a reminder that love and looking out for another person is a critical weakness to the entire division.”

It’s the one bit of information you’re willing to share with him from that file. Not that you’ll be killed if you fail, or that Doomsday was conceived a year before you left him. 

Just that you’re a monster who committed betrayal to the highest degree.

“____-” Sylus tries to begin, his voice hoarse, but you simply shake your head and stand up from the table sidestepping outside.

“I’m getting air.”

The warning is there, though. Don’t follow me. Don’t try to spy on me.

Once you’re outside, you feel your shoulders sag as you approach the alleyway by the side of the restaurant. The moon shines brighter here, only serving to remind you of the passage of time and the codename they gave you upon graduation. You had effectively rubbed your first cleaning free of your mind, but you still see a hazy recollection of your companion’s face in your mind. Of their silent admission, eyes shining with acceptance as they tilted their head back to show you their throat.

You hadn’t allowed yourself to cry or dwell on it. It would have set you back if you did.

So you settled for the hollow ache in your chest that’s since followed you.

God, maybe they did replace you with a Wanderer. How could you even live with yourself after that?

Don’t think about it, Yue, don’t think don’t think don’t-

A buzzing in your pocket stops your spiral, and you take it as a blessing in disguise as you fish out your communication device and look at the name displayed on the screen.

Main Supervisor Lihua.

Main Supervisor Lihua? What happened to her working with Soren?

Your spine straightens, all senses on alert as you look at the buzzing phone in your hand. All of the new information you’ve learned comes rushing back, paired with the need to be a good subordinate and answer. It makes your head spin-

Your finger slides across the screen and you press the device to your ear without thinking, not allowing yourself traitorous thoughts as you wait for Lihua to speak. The seconds stretch as she lets you ruminate in the silence, and you can feel your palms sweat before she finally allows herself to speak.

“Status report, Cleaner Yue of Doomsday.”

You release a breath you didn’t realize you were holding in, swallowing deeply before responding in your clean, cold voice. “Target MIA. Security increased, more time needed to complete objective.”

“My, Yue…” It’s a soft purr, but you still don’t let the tension leave your body as Lihua hums on the other side of the line. “You would usually be done by now, my dear. Why all of these unexpected delays?”

You almost break.

You almost tell her about the war that’s been ravaging your head, of the chaos that’s been inflicted in your mind ever since you stepped back into the N109 Zone. Of how you really don’t give a damn about finding and cleaning Daniel Kim…not as much as you should, at least. Of how your thoughts have been consumed by someone higher on their list, but that the thoughts aren’t what they trained you to think.

You almost tell her that you know. You know how she helped conceive the entire division, of what will happen if you fail.

You almost tell her that this mission will be a failure, which you’ve never uttered in your time as the top cleaner of Doomsday. But maybe that you might actually want failure because you don’t have to do this anymore.

You don’t have to live a lie anymore.

Instead, you swallow thickly to gain back some of the moisture in your mouth as you come up with a response. “Daniel Kim has…proven to be a challenge, Supervisor Lihua.”

You know she doesn’t buy it, not by the way she snorts gracelessly across the phone. “Daniel Kim? Barely ranked seventh on our list? Cleaner Yue, surely you jest. This was supposed to be your easiest cleaning.”

“Things change, Supervisor Lihua.”

You can’t quite keep your tone even at that last statement, and you know she’s heard by the way she clicks her tongue. “You’re slipping, Yue. You know why this matters, Yue-”

“-and why does it matter, Lihua?”

As soon as the words leave your lips, you feel yourself heat in embarrassment and maybe fear.

How stupid are you, Yue? Why does it matter?

You literally examined a file about the conception of your division, about what makes the perfect killer and what happens to those who are less that perfect.

What does it matter?

It’s only your entire livelihood on the line.

Everything you’ve known, dedicated, killed for these past two years. Eliminating Daniel ensures your safety, and not eliminating him condemns you to a life forever wearing the shackles of EVER or being erased forever.

“...I don’t know what has gotten into you, Cleaner Yue.” Lihua’s voice is frigid, and you feel yourself tighten at the words that come out of her mouth. “You’ve gotten sloppy, my dear. You don’t want the boss to know, do you?”

“No, Supervisor Lihua.” It comes in that calculated, almost robotic tone of voice they drill into recruits at Doomsday, and it works for now because you hear Lihua’s exhale of relief over the line.

“Good, Yue.” Her voice turns soft, but you don’t drop your guard - you never drop your guard when Lihua is involved. “What’s your report then? And give me your real report, Cleaner Yue.”

“Nothing of interest as of yet.” It comes out so smooth you almost believe it as you list out details that could be of some interest to EVER but also get them off your back. Enough story woven in to be dutiful to the cause, but enough hidden so they don’t test you. Enough to hide the fact you’ve been associating with the enemy.

“Good.” Lihua sounds more relaxed, and you let yourself swallow just enough as you scan your surroundings for anything amiss. “Finish your job and come back.”

The call ends, and you nearly collapse into the wall as you hold your communication device to your chest. Your breath is uneven, and your eyes close as you let yourself shake for just a split second.

You’ve never done that before, omit something from EVER.

What have you become, Yue?

As you compose yourself and prepare to leave the premises without telling him goodbye, though, you miss two crucial details.

The first is a ruffled crow, uncharacteristically silent as he takes off to a familiar base.

The second is a flash of gray fabric, hidden in the shadows and witnessing your damning state.

You work on your own for the next few days.

You’ve taken to rising early and sleeping late, avoiding all of the hot spots you know him and his crow are frequenting to keep their eye on you. A lot of your avoidance stems from annoyance from the dinner, but there’s a tiny part of you that screams to keep them, him, safe from the reaches of EVER and you as their top monster.

You’re sure EVER doesn’t know about your contact with him, not yet at least. Lihua didn’t show any sign of knowing, and you’d rather keep it that way. You don’t need your superiors to know that you have ties to the N109 Zone.

You’re nearing the end of your mission, anyways. You had managed to finagle with Mephisto when he went offline, downloading some footage he had gathered in hopes of finding any evidence of Daniel and his location as well as programming your own features. You’ve narrowed the list Soren gave you to three places, and you feel fairly confident in your mission ending today as you make your way to the coordinates you had carefully plotted out on your device. You’re so confident, in fact, that you’ve suited up in your full uniform: thick leather boots, the uniform you had made for yourself, even a replacement half mask to cover the lower half of your face as you hold your gun up while examining your surroundings.

Your body moves on autopilot, pressing your body into shadowy corners. It gives you the time to reflect on the past couple of weeks and the connection you’ve…re-established in that time.

What a mess your emotions have become in just a few meetings with him. You’ve fully accepted that Sylus Qin has thrown a wrench into everything you’ve worked to become and that he’s made himself a throne on your ever turbulent thoughts. All of that progress had simply vanished when he murmured your name to you, and you’re deeply annoyed by the fact that he still has this effect on you.

The part that screams at you to protect him from EVER is that same traitorous part that wants to run home into his arms, though. It’s the part you refuse to give into because you know that if you give in, you’ll never be able to return to EVER and Doomsday.

That thought shakes you to your very core. Because if you go back, everyone you’ve cleaned would have been for nothing.

How could you even live with yourself? You don’t think you can.

Anxiety flares in the back of your skull at the thought, but you quickly stamp it down as you round a corner. ____ shouldn’t be thinking right now, this should be all Cleaner Yue. You’ve got to stop thinking about this, and you have to get a hold of yourself, ____.

You peer out, now at the exact coordinates you’ve marked down for yourself. You peer out into the alleyway-

“You know, ____, you never even offered to pick up the tab.”

You almost scream in frustration when you see Sylus standing at the end of the alleyway, lazily looking through the abandoned buildings as he walks closer to you. You know he’s not your enemy, in fact he’s little more than a thorn in your side, but you still unsheathe a knife and hold it up at his head in anger.

“What are you doing here?” Your half mask can barely hide the anger simmering in your veins, and Sylus matches your mood for once with the way his lips are pressed into a thin line. He’s a couple of feet away from you and you know you can’t win this battle, but you’ll be damned if you don’t try.

“I came to look for you after you so rudely dined and dashed.” Neither of you find it funny, and you see his fingers twitch as he summons his Evol. You’re moving before you can even think, throwing your dagger directly towards his face before rolling away. He merely steps to the side and dissolves his Evol, stepping closer to you and dodging your attacks while you make your way towards your escape.

“Fight back, Sylus Qin.” Your voice is a warped, angrier version of yourself as you continue to give everything to his apathy. You’re running low on knives, all of them having clattered to the side due to his Evol shielding him as he continues to step towards you. “You’re the great leader of Onychinus, right? Why won’t you fight back?!”

You decide to ignore your knives, and you rip your half mask from your chin and throw it to the side so he can see the wrath twisting your features. You expect him to match your energy, but you stop for a split second when you see a familiar ache on his face, matching the hurt that festers in your chest and makes your anger boil over.

You throw yourself at his body, screaming obscenities as your fists hit his chest. He stays still, though, allowing for you to hurt him in the same way he hurt you.

“We were supposed to be married, Sylus!” Your voice cracks along these words, splintering with how hoarse your voice has gotten from your screaming but you still fight on. “We were going to get married and live in the maple grove, and now we’re fucking here and I’m this and I…I fucking hate you for making me like this!”

The words sear your tongue, almost as if something is punishing your lie while everything you’ve locked deep for so long surges forth in a messy, incoherent stream of hurt and longing.

“Do you want to know the worst part?” Your voice is scratchy, but you’re no longer screaming and hitting his chest as you breathe harshly. “I dream about you and that stupid necklace at least once a week.”

You think you hear a sharp intake of breath above your head, but you can only laugh bitterly to yourself. “I dream about you. I dream about the life we could have had. I dream about a greenhouse in that grove of maple leaves, of your loud singing to our record collection, building another bird to accompany Mephisto. All of these promises and hopes…all for nothing.”

You begin to step away, but his hand stops you - one circling your wrist, the other tilting your chin up so you can look at him fully in his face. You pull yourself away from him harshly, even when you feel your chest constrict at the look on his face.

You can’t find any sympathy for him right now, though. Not after two years worth of hurt has spilled forth, leaving you bare for him to examine and crush beneath his boots.

“What, Sylus Qin?” You hope the cold fury in your voice hides the tears gathering in the corners of your eyes. “What’s keeping you from speaking honestly with me? What was so important that you missed our wedding and made me turn to a program that’s reduced who I am-”

“-we were both experimented on by EVER, the Hunter and I.”

The admission shocks you into silence, though your icy mask doesn’t slip. He doesn’t let his guard down, too, and his emotions are locked neatly away as he tells you about his heavy history as if it were the weather.

“We were both experimented on and forced to fight each other.” You see a flicker of pain flash across his face at the irony, but he quickly smooths himself off as he continues to tell you all he knows. “We…we share a past and-”

“-and nothing.”

You should listen to him, you know, but frustration and fear and devastation at being left has turned the emotions you’ve kept locked so deeply inside of you an ugly, gnawing monster that’s clawing its way to the surface as you rant at him. “We’ve all been fucked by EVER here, the N109 Zone and it’s lawlessness wouldn’t fucking exist if it weren’t for EVER! We’ve known this, everyone here knows it. What I want to fucking know is what was so different about this Hunter that made you miss our wedding. Why were the two of you connected, huh? Devotion to me, my ass.”

Your voice wavers on those last couple of words, and you make a show of wiping your entire face free of sweat to mask how you stealthily wipe away the tears that are threatening to spill out. You swallow thickly and begin to breathe deeply, counting to ten before composing yourself and wiping yourself clean of emotion.

You step further away from his shaky body, not trusting to look at his face as you process final words to say to his shoes. “...you felt something for her, I could see it on your face.” While you’ve managed to school yourself to be carefully neutral, you can feel yourself seizing up as you wrap your arms around your body to stop your shivering. “We were engaged and you still felt things for her-”

“And nothing, because it’s done, ____.”

In your confrontation, you don’t realize that the two of you have completed a dance. With every step you take back, he steps forward until you’re backed into a corner and he looms above you - not in an intimidating way, but in desperation as he begs his former betrothed to listen to the bit of truth he’s only recently discovered.

“That night when we were to be married…I discovered that our bond came from a curse.” His eyes go distant as he thinks about his shared past, but there’s no bitterness or love in it. He only sounds tired as he recalls it. “The bit of energy that you saw…it was a result of the curse. It took a while to dissipate, but I was anxious knowing I was missing our ceremony. But by the time it had been fixed, I went to look for you and…”

You were gone.

The words hang heavy in the air, but he shakes it off as he continues to tell you the truth you didn’t realize you were craving. “It took half of a year to get rid of the curse and work things through. I’ll admit, there were intimate moments but when all is said and done, she wasn’t it for me. She has someone else, anyway. A colonel that serves in the Farspace Fleet.”

You thought you would be upset at his admission, but you only feel cold relief at his honesty. Maybe it’s because it’s the first real vulnerable moment the two of you had since you’ve come back to the N109 Zone. You’re not cleaner Yue, and he’s not the feared leader of Onychinus.

The two of you are just ____ and Sylus Qin - two fiancés who used to share the world but now don’t know how to find their way back to each other.

Something still festers in your soul, though, and you look up at him just enough so you can see the torture on his face that matches yours. “Two years, Sylus. Why didn’t you look for me?”

“I did, ____.”

He steps forward again, and he reaches out to link his pinky finger against your own before letting his hand fall away. “I looked for you every day that I could. And in those days I couldn’t, I sent Mephisto and Luke and Kieran out. ____, I…”

“How can I trust that?” You know he’s trying, but you’re scared. You’re scared he’s lying, and you’re even more terrified he’s telling the truth. “How do I know you’re not just trying to weave me a beautiful story?”

The tension is thick, almost suffocating as you let your words hang in the air. You’ve given him an opening, a chance to explain himself in the face of your impenetrable cynicism.

A minute passes, and then another.

His answer comes with no words. No, Sylus answers with a simple action that has your breath catching in your throat.

His hands reach into his pocket, and he pulls out a simple chain for you to see. You know what it is already, but it still makes your heart beat faster when you let the pendant rest against your fingers.

“I never stopped.” He whispers as you slowly turn the ruby pendant over in your fingers. “Looking, caring, aching for you, I mean. Time and distance mean nothing to a man who lost the one person he cares for the most.”

The one person he cares for the most?

The realization of his confession hits you at the same time it hits him, and you’re suddenly acutely aware of him. How his breath is shallow and washes over your face slightly, how his chest trembles as he looks at you with something that looks dangerously close like hope, and how his hands flex at his sides like he wants to pull you close but knows it’s your decision.

At this moment, you have all of the power in your hands.

Your hands reach up, but you feel yourself freeze slightly when you see Sylus close his eyes and relax his shoulders. His head tilts back ever so slightly, and you realize with a start that he’s surrendering to you - trusting you with his most vulnerable spot. He’s given you access to his throat and, if you look down, you can see the center of his chest.

Your throat closes in on yourself and you swallow back tears as you gently place your hand on his cheek. His breath comes out in a shudder at the first contact, and he practically melts into your hand as you allow yourself to run your thumb along the skin underneath his eye. His hand reaches up and holds you steady, pressing your palm harder into his skin as if he’s trying to leech the warmth from your hand and soak it directly into his soul.

“I have to think about this.” You murmur softly. “This is…a lot, Sylus.”

It’s not a direct answer - it's all you can give him at this exact moment with how jumbled your thoughts have become. Sylus’s eyes fly open, though, and he looks at you like you’ve given him the world straight into the palm of his hands.

“I’ll wait for however long it takes, ____.” It’s a promise, one he seals with a brush of his lips against your palm before letting you pull yourself away from him. “As long as you need.”

You don’t trust words right now, only allowing him a small nod as you blink back your tears. You nod in thanks when he gathers your knives with his Evol, depositing them and your half mask into your shaking hands before you turn your head down and walk away from where he stands. You don’t spare him a second glance because you know if you do, Yue will be completely gone and it’ll just be ____.

____, who wants him and only him.

You’re in the middle of staring out of your window when you hear a sharp cry from Mephisto.

You simply turn your head to the other side, too busy ruminating in your thoughts to be disturbed by a robotic crow. Everything that’s been told has thrown you for a loop, and you don’t know how to digest everything you’ve learned. You’ve taken to ignoring the world outside of your hotel room, no longer giving a damn about what EVER may think.

No, you don’t care. Not when you’ve been torn clean apart.

Mephisto’s crying outside of your window, and you grow annoyed at his pitiful cries as he continues to tap on the glass with his talons. You wrench open the window and glare at the bird, but the words die on your tongue when Mephisto starts chirping out a code only you recognize.

Oh, fuck.

“Shit, shit shit,” you chant to yourself as you pull on your boots, only grabbing two knives as you sprint out of your hotel room. You don’t even grab your half mask, instead bursting out of the hotel and running after Mephisto’s form in the sky to take you to your location.

At some point in what feels like an endless run, you see Mephisto’s form hover over an alleyway before flying high up in the sky and disappearing from your line of sight. Something in your stomach clenches at the sight, but you know you’ve found your target as you turn into an abandoned alleyway a few streets down from your hotel.

You’re thankful you only have to run for a few minutes, and you don’t bother to disguise your heavy breaths and uneven footsteps as you quickly scan your surroundings. There’s only trash, anyway. Trash and broken glass and-

“-help me.”

The voice is hoarse, on the verge of death as your head whips down to where your feet are. You see a thin river of blood staining your boots, and you follow the trail to an unrecognizable lump on the floor.

“Help-” it gasps again, and you swallow the bile that rises thickly in your throat as you steel yourself and grab the thing’s shoulders, turning it so you can face you.

Daniel Kim’s face is no longer filled with sleazy charm, instead broken and bruised beyond recognition. He’s five seconds away from death, and your heart begins to hammer violently in your chest when you realize just exactly the situation you’re in.

This is not good, ____.

You wind your fingers against his torn collar, pulling his face close to yours as you begin to pry for information. “Stay awake. I need you to tell me everything you know and every detail you saw.”

“H-hurts-” he whimpers, but you don’t have the patience in you to coddle an already dying man. You shake his body, and he chokes on his blood as he continues to wheeze.

“Focus.” You’re harsh, you know, but this is pure desperation driving your actions because you need to know exactly who did this to your target. Daniel Kim was only ever known by one entity, and this is no accident. You need to confirm it, because right now you know you’re still living in denial at the truth staring at you plainly in the face.

“Who did this?” Your fists tighten on his collar as your tone turns frantic, fingers shaking against his collar as you continue to shake his body awake. You know it’s far too late, though - Daniel only coughs blood directly onto your face as he begins to slip. “Please, I need to know-”

“-gray clothes-” he wheezes out. “Masks. C-couldn’t see their face-”

Your heart stops at his details. He’s still coughing in your hold, but all you can feel is a flare of panic that spreads throughout your body as you realize what he’s just said.

Your body moves on autopilot, neatly disposing of Daniel before tossing his body aside into a pile of trash. Your hands are shaking as you pull out your communication device, marking the cleaning as a success before hastily shoving it back in your pocket because what does this mean, ____?

Gray clothes, masks…all markings of Doomsday trainees. But there’s no way, right? They’re trained to kill the second they have their sights on a target, not beat them into an unrecognizable pulp. Doomsday cleaners are never sloppy.

So why now?

Why can’t you stop shaking, ____?

A buzzing noise distracts you from your rapid thoughts, and you pull out your communication device before you’re even registering what you’re doing. You feel yourself seize, though, when you see his name on the screen.

Congratulations on completing your assignment, Cleaner Yue of Doomsday.

What happened to Lihua being your supervisor? Why is the head of EVER overseeing this mission now?

Isn’t your mission done?

Your breath escapes you in uneven beats as you wait for the catch. Do they know that you know? What’s going to happen to you-

You’ve been assigned, Cleaner Yue. You have three days.

I suggest you complete your task. You’re on the brink, after all.

Your heart freezes at the new notification on your communication device, and you feel the breath you fought so hard to keep even begin its erratic rhythm once more as you see the new file pop up on your screen. You press a finger to the file, praying and hoping-

NAME: SYLUS QIN

OCCUPATION: LEADER OF ONYCHINUS

CLEANER: YUE

INSTRUCTIONS: KILL ON SIGHT. RETURN TO HEADQUARTERS ONCE COMPLETE.

For the first time in two years, you let yourself cry.

Not because of the pressure or how much of your humanity has been stripped from you - but because you realize what’s just happened. What’s about to happen.

You have to kill the man you never stopped caring for, or risk everything you’ve become crumbling away into nothingness.

You successfully avoid everything that lurks outside of your hotel room for two days before the silence is broken by a tapping on the window.

You let yourself up, scrubbing your face of dried tear tracks as you settle yourself on the ledge and open the window, peering out and expecting a little crow hopping around on the windowsill. Instead, you see ruffled silver hair holding small objects he throws against your window to get your attention.

Against your better judgement, you feel yourself soften as you tilt your head curiously at him. “What do you want?”

His eyes widen at the sight of your melancholy, but he quickly composes himself as he does an exaggerated bow that makes the corners of your lips tilt up. “I’m here to help a princess escape from bad guys.”

“I’m no princess.” It’s immediate from your mouth, but you feel yourself loosening at how relaxed he looks as you lean against the wall. “And what makes you think I need saving?”

“Who said anything about saving you, ____?” His eyes twinkle and he smiles. “I never claimed to be a prince, either. Now come on, Mephisto’s been begging for your attention.”

You roll your eyes, but for the first time in years, you feel different.

Lighter, somehow. Like everything will be okay if you just stayed by his side.

You hesitate, though. From what you can gauge right now, Sylus doesn’t know that he’s your new target. He’s still looking at you with that quiet faith - like a man who’s simply asking the woman he cares for out on a date tonight.

He notices your hesitation, and his smile falters slightly. “Should I leave, ____?”

You know at that moment, he would do it if you asked. He would turn around and never look back, sparing you the action of breaking his heart. He would walk away to give you peace, to allow you to return back to Doomsday without anything holding you back.

“No.”

His eyes flash at the word, and his lips tilt back up quickly. “Come on then, Miss Assassin.”

The smile you give him is real before you’re moving quickly, making sure your communication device and anything related to Doomsday is off of your body before you run down to where he is.

Once you meet him at his car, he looks at you with a look that makes you want to cry. It’s reminiscent of the looks he would give you on your date nights, the ones where you would dress up and he would take you out on fancy dates you used to dream of. He looks at you like you’re the air he breathes, like you’re the reason he keeps on fighting and pushing forward.

You break the silence first, not trusting yourself in the heavy silence. “What is it? Do I have something on my face?”

“No, no…” He replies almost instantaneously. His hand reaches up and he tucks a stray strand of hair behind your hair, careful not to touch the delicate skin of your cheek before opening the passenger side seat and gesturing for you to enter. “After you, my lady.”

“Gladly, sir.” You slip into the seat and he shuts the door behind you, and you feel yourself tense slightly. Something’s missing, and you don’t know exactly what it is.

The answer makes itself known when Sylus slides into the driver’s seat and starts the car, gripping the steering wheel with both hands as he begins to drive towards the Onychinus Base. Your eyes slide from the devastating slope of his nose to the furrow of his brow as he focuses on the task at hand before settling on his lithe fingers, tapping erratically to the soft music that plays in the car’s stereo.

That’s what’s missing.

Him, holding your hand.

“You’re staring, ____.” His tone is sing-song, though rippling with something that makes your stomach turn deliciously as he continues to focus on the road ahead of him. “What are you thinking of?”

“Nothing in particular.” You let him stew in the amiable silence before you throw in a soft, “Trying to figure out the best way to catch you off guard, is all.”

He laughs at your statement, the sound rich and genuine. “____, all you have to do is smile at me and I would be off my rhythm for the rest of the night. You being around me is the only way I would ever be caught off guard.”

“Is that so?” You fight the smile that threatens to spread across your face, but your lips still quirk up at his sheer honesty. “Careful, Sylus, or I may use that against you the next time.”

“I would let you.”

You’re struck by his sheer honesty, eyes wide as you look at him in bewilderment. “Even after everything?”

“Especially after everything, ____.” He turns onto a familiar road, Onychinus’s base looming in the distance. You know that you only have a few more moments before you have to get out of the car, so you take the chance to examine him and his body language fully so you can look for a lie-

-but there’s nothing, only honesty.

Sylus catches you staring, and his lips slightly quirk up at your disbelief. “Do you not believe me?”

He pulls into the garage just as you respond. “I just…after all of these years? After everything I’ve become?”

“Especially after that.” He’s quick to kill the engine, sliding out of the driver’s seat and opening your door before you can even blink. You take his waiting hand and pull yourself out of the car, but instead of letting you pull away, he laces his fingers tightly against your own and guides you through what used to be your shared home.

The layout is still the same - long hallway leading to a multitude of rooms. Display cases line the walls, and you feel yourself pause when you see something familiar glinting in the light.

“Sylus?”

“Mm?” It’s a soft hum as he continues trying to lead you to where the kitchen is, but you instead pull him towards where your half-mask lays.

“Why is this here?” You’re not really mad, you’re just surprised that it’s here. You would have thought he would have left it on the street to be crushed into a million pieces, but as you approach the display case, you feel your breath catching your throat.

Your half-mask is displayed with your ruby pendant, along with a plaque. You let go of his hand just enough to peer what it says:

MY GREATEST FAILURE.

“Sylus?” Your voice doesn’t waver, but you’re still shaken to your core as you look at him in bewilderment. His gaze is directed to the floor, and for the first time, you see shame color his expression - and you absolutely hate it.

“I thought about what you said.” His confession is soft, and he moves to stand next to you. “Of how I’m the reason you’re like this. It’s because of me you’ve suffered and became something you shouldn’t have ever become, ____.”

His hands hang limply by his sides, and his eyes grow distant as he stares at your half mask. “I’m sorry, ____.”

You feel yourself freeze slightly at his apology, and you take the chance to look at him. His mouth is pressed thin, mind caught up in the different scenarios. Of where the two of you would be if he had reached you in time. Of what would have happened if he had just explained himself.

Your heart aches in your chest, because while he did hurt you, you chose to leave. You went straight to EVER because you thought it was your only option, and you chose to do this. The two of you are staring at the result of just missing each other, and it hurts because if things had lined up perfectly the outcome would have been completely different.

The two of you wouldn’t be in this situation now - you, caught between him having to kill him or risk your own livelihood. Sylus, having to contend with his shadows while also trying to reach through you.

Before you’re thinking, you’re opening the case and pulling out the pendant. Once it’s securely in your hands, you close the case and grab his hand, leading him to the kitchen based on your memory alone.

“____?” Sylus’s voice is shocked, but you simply squeeze his hands as you continue to guide him through his own house.

“This happened because of the decisions the two of us made.” The beginning of your speech is soft as you finally make it to his kitchen, and you lean against the marble countertop. He stands in front of you, and the two of you look at the ruby glimmering in between your fingers as you try to think of the words you locked away deeply. “We…we both made mistakes, Sylus. We hurt each other.”

“I regret it every day, ____.” Sylus’s voice is raw, and his hands land at the countertop behind you so that you’re caged in his arms. You’re not intimidated in the slightest, though - you simply tilt your head up and look at him. “____, you never left my mind. I tried to find you, and I knew that when I found you, I would make it up to you.” His fingers curl tightly on the edge of the counter, and your eyes slip shut when he presses his forehead against yours. “It’s only ever been you, ____.”

“I know that now, Sylus.” Your chest is aching, but you feel sheer relief at his words. His nose slides slightly against your own, and you relish in the comforting feeling as you try to find your next words - words that you think have always sat heavy in your soul. Words you want to be out there before everything falls apart. “I…I never stopped caring and aching for you, too.”

You feel his breath wash across your face when he registers your words. His fingers slowly undo the necklace from your hold, placing it gently onto the counter before he wraps his arms around your waist and pulls you in for a tight hug.

Your arms twine around his neck, and the two of you hold each other like that for what feels like an eternity. It’s exactly what the two of you need, though - just to hold each other like this again after so long and after so much hurt has you trembling in his arms.

“____, my darling, my world…” The words reverberate through your head, and your arms tighten around his neck as you attempt to pull him even closer to you. “I…I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you if you’ll let me.”

The rest of his life.

You don’t have the rest of his life. Or yours, for the matter.

You don’t know how much longer you have.

“I’m leaving tomorrow.”

It’s a quick slip of your tongue, but it’s enough to douse the two of you in freezing clarity as you realize the reality that lies outside of his house. Of how you’ll be their target the moment you step outside because you refuse to do their task. Sylus’s hands loosen at your sides, and his gaze darkens slightly as he registers your words. 

“You are?”

“Yes.” It spills out of your mouth, and you begin to speak even faster because the alternative is to crumble in his hold and sob your eyes out and you would rather not do that. “Mission accomplished, you know? EVER needs me back, and-”

“____, shh…”

His tone is soft, not like the anger you expected. He moves one of his hands from your waist to the back of your head, and he cradles you to his chest as you begin to tremble in his arms. Your eyes sting, but nothing comes out - even when your fingers tighten on his shirt. His breath is slow and deliberate, and you feel yourself begin to breathe in time with him.

“Were you reassigned? Or do you just need to leave since the mission’s over?”

You want to be honest. You want to tell him that they’re making him your target as punishment for forgetting their first lesson, that you’ve been discovered and that they’ve put you in an impossible situation. There are so many things you still want to say but the only thing that comes out is a raspy gasp of, “I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” Sylus is cupping your face in between his steady hands, making you look at him as you continue to fight to even your breath. “____, don’t you dare be sorry. I got exactly what I wanted, which was to see you again.”

“But our time.” It’s a painful gasp, and this time you can really feel tears gathering at your lashes as you blink up at him. “I don’t know if they’ll ever send me back here. I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again-”

“But you will.” Sylus’s hands tighten ever so slightly, pulling you as close as humanly possible as he holds his gaze steady on yours. “Now that I’ve found you, I don’t ever intend on letting you go, ____. No matter the cost or what it takes, I will find you over and over again.”

There it is, that sheer devotion to you just for you. His eyes are clear, nothing hiding his true feelings and you find yourself swimming in his gaze. Sadness at you leaving, anger at EVER for existing, steadfast dedication to you, and heady desire at having you in his arms again.

His gaze slowly travels across your face, sweeping across the tears that you rapidly blink back to the way your teeth bite at the soft skin of your lips. His gaze lingers there and you hold your breath to see what he’ll do, but he instead pulls himself slightly back and looks back into your eyes - searching for your answer.

He’s waiting for you to give him permission.

And for the first time in two years, you don’t have to think about what you want.

“Sylus-” You gasp, and he takes his whispered name against his lips as an invitation to press his mouth against yours.

The first kiss after two years isn’t gentle, not by a long shot. It’s full of heat and want and rushing emotions that have been repressed for too long. His hands leave fire in their wake - from grabbing at your face and angling your lips juuust right against his to pressing into your sides so that he can push the entire length of his body as close as he can to you. It slowly heats you from the outside in until your chest is heaving and you feel like you’re burning alive.

You pull away first, the need for air searing your lungs and making your head spin. He still chases after your mouth, though, leaving small pecks along the sensitive skin of your lips as you gasp heavily.

“I’ve waited so long for the chance to kiss you again.” It’s a heavy whisper, his voice having dropped a few octaves as he runs his nose along the length of your chin. His mouth wanders down to your neck and leaves kisses that have you sighing at the feeling, your fingernails digging into his shoulder when he finds your sensitive spot with ease.

“I don’t know if we should do this.” It’s a garbled confession, cut off with a moan when he bites down on the sensitive skin of your collarbone. Your hips unknowingly grind against the growing bulge in his pants, and you feel him moan against your neck before pulling his face away from your body.

“Tell me to stop.” Sylus’s voice is raw, eyes wide as he looks at you like a man deprived. “Tell me to stop and I will. I’ll let you walk away for good and never speak to you again-”

You cut him off by pressing your hands to his face and kissing him again, deeper and more intense this time. Sylus groans in your mouth, licking against your lips and begging for entrance inside. Your mouth falls open and he exhales sharper, letting his tongue tangle against yours.

It’s messy, almost animalistic as the two of you continue to grab and cling at any inch of the other’s body. Sylus’s hands make their way to your ass, and he massages the supple flesh - guiding your rhythm and making you grind against his clothed cock. You roll your hips hard in response, and the groan that leaves his mouth makes your head spin. His hands quickly move to the back of your thighs and you take it as your sign to jump up, letting him wrap your legs around his waist so he can carry you while the two of you continue to kiss.

It’s a blind scramble to get to his bedroom, but the both of you have the path engrained into your mind. He kicks the door open and makes a beeline for his massive bed, gently laying you down on the plush mattress as he takes the opportunity to kick off his shoes. You prop yourself up on your elbows, taking the chance to appreciate the sheer desperation on Sylus’s face as he begins to fight with the buttons of his shirt so he can get to you faster.

“Come here.”

It’s a quiet whisper, but he takes it as the most pressing command as he settles himself onto the bed, pressing his back against the headboard. You turn, settling yourself on his lap and ghosting your fingers along the buttons that still hold his shirt together.

“You’re going to tear them off if you’re not careful.” You can’t help but tease him as you slowly undo the first button, revealing some of his skin to your greedy eyes. Sylus groans at your slow pace, head falling back to the headboard as he looks at you with hooded eyes.

“Do you blame me?” His hands rest on your hips, and he absentmindedly moves your hips back and forth as you continue to slowly undo his buttons. “I’ve waited to have you again for so long, my darling. Forgive me if my patience is too thin.”

“Mmm…” Your breath catches in your throat when you feel his clothed cock rut against your wet heat, and your fingers slip on the last button as he pulls your hips flush against his thick length. Your head falls back slightly and you fist the loose material of his shirt, feeling muted pressure begin to build in your head as he exhales at the sight of you on his lap.

“What has you so pent up, sweetheart?” There’s a quick rustle as he quickly pulls his button down off of his body before his fingers slide idly under your own shirt, dragging the thin fabric up your body slowly. “Could it be that you thought about this, too?”

“Don’t flatter yoursel- ngh-” It’s meant to be scathing, but your voice cracks when his thumbs lightly run across the skin of your torso, hands slowly inching up to your chest. Your hands settle on his stomach, hips continuing to slowly rut against his as he presses his palms flat against your chest.

“So beautiful,” he murmurs softly, hands massaging your sensitive breasts as you gasp. “Still fills my hands perfectly, too…”

He pinches your nipples through the lace of your bra, making you whine and hold his hands against your chest. “Sylus-”

“I have you, ____.” He’s quick to lean back up, pulling your shirt over your head before pressing his mouth against yours once again. His fingers make work of the clasp of your bra, flicking it open and toying with the loose strap before letting it fall down your shoulders. Sylus pulls away ever so slightly, pressing his forehead against your own while looking down so he can see your bare breasts swaying with your every heavy breath.

“I dreamt of this.” His confession is warm on your lips, and he pulls your bra from your body and tosses it off of the bed before gripping tightly at your hips and flipping you over so that you’re on your back and he hovers above you. “Having you in my arms again. Of kissing you and bringing you pleasure the way that you like it.”

Sylus leans down and brushes a soft kiss against your forehead, and the sweet gesture is nearly enough to reduce you to tears as he continues to press kisses into every inch of skin his mouth meets. His lips travel from your forehead to your eyes, the tip of your nose to your cheeks, to the corner of your mouth before finally pressing against your neck once more. He inhales deeply then, as if he’s memorizing your scent before he moves on and continues to kiss his way down your body.

Nothing goes untouched from Sylus’s mouth and teeth. He treats your skin as if it’s the night sky, and every scar and mole he finds as the stars that add to your beauty. He pays special attention to your breasts, pulling one of your nipples into his mouth and sucking slowly while pinching the other until you’re whining and soaking your panties, fingers pulling lightly on his hair.

“D-don’t tease me you idiot-”

“What makes you think I’m teasing?” There’s laughter in his voice, though he follows your wishes and presses wetter kisses down your stomach. “Maybe I’m just taking my time and worshipping the one woman I only ever want in my life.”

You freeze when he mentions taking his time, mind slightly sobering at the throwaway sentiment because you’re almost out of time with him. When the clocks read 12:00 am, EVER will begin their countdown, and you know that when you do, you’ll never be able to see him again.

Sylus stills in between your legs, and his hands gently squeeze your thighs to ground you. “____? Are you okay, darling?”

“Y-yeah.” You both know that you’re not convincing in the slightest, and his eyes flash with concern as he begins to pull away from your body to check on you. Your thighs try to tighten around his neck, but he gently pries them apart so that he can peer at you.

“Do you want to stop?” His gaze is gentle, holding no expectations as he waits for you to decide what you need. His thumbs rub soft circles into the skin of your thigh, grounding you and slowly bringing your thoughts away from the things that plague you and back to him.

Your legs tighten around him, and you bring him closer to your weeping core. Sylus’s eyes flash dangerously, and he holds himself back juuust enough to technically be away from your pussy, but close enough that his lips just barely brush against the fabric of your underwear.

“I need your words, my darling.” His fingers reach up, sliding and rubbing the fabric of your panties as your hips buck up to meet his lips. He’s quick, though, pressing his hand flat against your stomach and pinning you to the bed with ease.

“Tell me what you need, ____.” Sylus pulls the elastic taught, snapping the waistband to your skin and making you gasp. “I need to hear it from you, sweetheart.”

“Please-” You whimper. Your head spins from desperation, and your hips continue to try to buck against his mouth even when he’s pinning you flat onto his bed. “I need you-”

You barely hear the whispered expletive spill from his lips before he pulls your panties to the side and presses his tongue flat against your pussy.

“Sylus!” Your back arches as you cry out his name, his tongue immediately working you in the way he knows you like. He circles your weeping hole with the tip of his tongue before spelling his name with broad strokes, faithfully avoiding your clit. As he makes his tongue work, he moves his hand from your stomach and grips your thighs with his hands, placing them on his shoulders so that you’re spread open for him like the feast he’s craved for the past two years.

He moans when you gush at his movements, and his lips are quick to move up to your clit. He moves one of his hands down, too, his ring and middle fingers barely pressing into your entrance as he looks up at you with drunken eyes.

“I need you,” you implore with a dry rasp. Your body is hot with desire, head spinning from how good he’s making you feel with just his mouth. “I need more of you, please Sylus-”

You feel his groan rather than hear it, the little vibrations traveling throughout your body as he slowly sinks his fingers into your weeping cunt. His teeth graze your clit lightly, and a little scream leaves your body when he finally sinks his fingers deep inside in time to him pulling your clit into his mouth and giving a little suck.

It’s heaven and hell, the pleasure he leaves all of your body. You didn’t realize how much you ached for his touch until you had it again, but now that you have it, it suddenly feels like too much all at once. He knows all of the spots that make you tick - crooking his fingers at just the right angle so he catches that spongy spot inside of you that makes you gush in his hand while suckling on your clit so he can continue to build your end for you. Your fingers pull tightly on his hair, and you hear the expletive that slips off his tongue before he doubles his efforts so he can help you meet your end.

“‘m s-so close-” you mewl, hips bucking against his face. “N-need you, Sylus- ah-”

He doesn’t stop or slow down, not when he’s been desperate and dreaming to see you like this after so long. He simply hums in knowing, pressing his fingers into your sensitive spot and flicking his tongue against your clit - triggering your end.

You cry out, back arching almost painfully as you cum. Stars dance behind your eyelids while your pleasure travels across your body in heavy waves, leaving you panting and boneless as your hands travel back and forth from his forehead to his hair. You’re not sure whether to pull him away or push you closer, but he decides for you as he continues to press against your g-spot and play with your clit.

“Give me another, darling.” His voice is gruff, heavy with need as he looks up at you with drunken eyes. “Need to feel your pretty pussy clenching around my fingers one more time before I give you my cock-”

“Sylus-” you slur, nearly going cross-eyed at the overwhelming feeling. “T-too much-”

“You can do it,” he replies softly, pressing a kiss to your thigh as he continues to fuck his fingers in and out of your pussy sloppily. “I know you can, sweetheart.”

Your second orgasm rolls over you with his encouragement, yet no sounds leave your open mouth. Your thighs clench around his face, and something in you unravels further because you feel yourself suddenly gush all over his face.

“Fuck,” he whispers, feeling his boxers tighten even more at the sight of you boneless and breathtakingly beautiful in his bed. “Absolutely perfect.”

You blearily watch as Sylus slowly pulls away from your soaked core, making his way back up so he can hover above your face. His chin is streaked with your slick, gaze slightly dazed as he looks at you with concern. His fingers reach up, brushing along your cheek before reaching up to your forehead and pushing the sweaty strands of hair that cling to your temples off of your face.

“Do we need to stop?” It’s a rasp on his end, and your eyes quickly flash down to the bulge that stands heavy in between his legs. His fingers lightly grip your chin, though, and he brings your eyes up to his so that all you see is his face. “Don’t focus on me, darling. Think of what you need.”

What do you need?

Your brain tries to think of some sort of twisted joke, but the only thing you can focus on is Sylus. Not just his physicality, but of his gentle care and steady devotion. His hands holding your face as he kisses you. The laughter in his voice when you say something that matches his wit.

You think you’ve ached for him for a long time now.

Your legs quickly wrap around his waist, pulling his lower half flush against your own as you lean up to kiss him. Your tongue flicks out to lick the evidence of you off of his chin and he groans at your movements, the hand that was on your chin moving to blindly tangle in between your fingers and giving you a tight squeeze.

“Please,” you whisper against his mouth, and he sighs in response.

“Okay, ____.” Your name is a reverent prayer on his tongue, and both of you make quick work of his underwear. He kicks off the offending piece of fabric before he presses himself flush against your wet heat, his cock sliding in between your pussy. Your legs tighten around his waist at the feeling, whines spilling from your mouth when he ruts his hips just right so that the head of his cock catches your clit with ease. “Fu- sweetheart-” He moans, and the hand not holding your own untangles your legs from his hips before he leans back and flips you over so that your front is pressed against the mattress and your back is arched, presenting your ass to him in the most enticing way. Your face is buried in his pillows, and you bite down on the fluffy material when you feel his hand ghost along your spine.

“My ____.” Sylus’s chest presses against your back, your arch falling flat as you’re pressed deeper into the mattress with his weight. The tip of his cock catches your weeping hole, and the two of you gasp when it nearly slips in. “My beautiful ____…”

He presses in deeper, and you feel yourself clench when the tip of his cock lodges neatly into you. The going is slow, him fucking every inch into you slowly while whispering sweetly in your ear. You’re begging in response, mind slowly going stupid with the way he stretches you out on just a few inches of his dick until you’re practically blabbering nonsense when he’s fully seated inside you, his entire body pinning you to the mattress and his cock throbbing deep inside of you.

“You still take me so well after two years apart…” The thought tapers off, tinged slightly with bitterness at the thought that this could have been your every day if things had gone right. The thought flies out of your brain, though, when his body moves slightly to kiss your shoulders, making his cock jostle slightly in your wet cunt. The two of you hiss at the sensation, and you can’t help but tighten around him.

“D-don’t do that-” he grunts, his hands gripping tightly at your hips. “I want to go s-slow for you-”

“Please.” It’s a quiet moan, your hips fucking back against his own in a bid to get him to move. “Please, Sylus-”

“Fu- I have you, ____-” Sylus begins to move his hips at your request, slowly pulling out until the tip of his cock remains in you before pushing himself back in with one fell swoop. He hits deeply then, and your cries come out garbled from your throat as his pace slowly picks up.

“Did you miss this as much as I missed you, ____?” His lips linger by your ear, and he presses a kiss to your temple as he continues his ruthless pace. “Did you dream about this while you were away?”

“Yes!” It’s almost a shriek from your mouth, the head of his cock hitting a place that makes you gush. You feel yourself begin to tear up, mostly from the pleasure but also from the part of you that never got the chance to mourn what happened and…oh God, ____, you’re still so in love with Sylus and this might be the last time you’ll ever see him.

The thought makes the tears you’ve tried to suppress the entire time you’ve been in the N109 Zone finally spill out, and you press your face into his pillows, pretending that the sobs that escape your mouth are from the intense pleasure he’s leaving all over your body and not the crushing devastation that sits heavy in your heart. Your mind is floating, caught in between trying to enjoy the moment and also racing through scenarios of what tomorrow might bring-

“-are you with me, ____?”

You slowly register that Sylus pulled out and flipped you over so that you’re on your back, and he’s looking down at you with concern and a little bit of fear. He presses the back of his hand onto your forehead, and his gaze is gentle as he slowly guides you back down to your body.

“Are you okay, my darling? Or do we need to stop?” Sylus’s hands land on your hips, rubbing soothing circles into the skin as he waits for you at your own pace. You know he means well, but it only brings back the thoughts that have been plaguing you.

You take a deep breath to calm your nerves, and you decide to leave yourself vulnerable for him to see. “I want to continue but…I’m scared about tomorrow. Of what’s going to happen. If I’ll ever see you again.”

His eyes soften, and he wraps your legs around his waist once more as he begins to leave kisses all over your face. “Of course we’ll see each other again, sweetheart…EVER will never be able to keep me from you.”

The atmosphere turns from heady to steadfast, the two of you clinging tight to each other as you let his breaths calm you down. He kisses your tears away, letting the both of you relish in the closeness. After the tears have mostly dried, his mouth begins to leave soft tracks across your face; from your chin to the tip of your nose, before letting his lips linger against your forehead in your favorite kiss of his. 

“Sylus-” you try to begin.

“Shh, ____,” he murmurs back. He tilts his head back so that he can peer fully down at your face, glowing from pleasure and stained with sadness. “Let me take care of the both of us, my darling.”

His fingers tighten in between yours as he leans back down again to capture your mouth with his. The kiss this time is gentler, full of longing and a warmth that was never fully extinguished. No, this kiss is soft and speaks the language of two fiancés whose devotion for each other never really went away. His cock slides back into you, smooth yet gentle as he gives you exactly what you want.

It’s much softer, much closer to love-making rather than the desperation that first consumed the two of you like a raging fire. His fingers tighten against yours as his hips continue to move, mouth never really leaving your own as he lets his forehead rest against your own. It’s the most comfort you’ve ever felt in your life, and the tears that slide down your cheek aren’t sad at all - they’re content, overwhelmingly full of care for him.

You feel yourself growing needier though, the two of you rapidly approaching your ends. Your fingers tighten around his, and his name leaves your mouth as a whine as you look into his eyes imploringly. “‘m gonna cum-”

“It’s okay, ____.” He kisses you gently, hips maintaining their pace as you begin to unravel. “Cum for me-”

The roar of your ears is loud as you meet your end, but it’s not as earth-shattering as the first two. This one washes over you like gentle waves on the beach, and the feeling of him kissing you deeply as he finishes inside of you has you gasping his name loudly against his mouth. He simply swallows your moans, coaxing more kisses from you until your head spins from the overwhelming care of it all.

It’s the warmest and most content you’ve ever felt in your entire life.

He settles into your side after gently pulling out, pulling you into his embrace and having your head rest on his chest. He kisses your forehead once more and you feel yourself growing sleepy, but you have to fight it because you have to prepare-

“Let me hold you, ____, my sweetheart.” It’s a soft slur from him, a hint to you that he’s slowly nodding off as he nuzzles his forehead into your hair. He whispers something in a language you can’t quite understand then, but it still makes your heart clench painfully as you allow him this last moment of peace before you disappear forever.

You float somewhere in between sleep and awake, not letting yourself fully succumb to dreams because your mind races with the need to act. You wait until you know he’s fully asleep by the way his chest rumbles slightly under your head before undoing yourself from his embrace, pushing yourself up on the bed.

You gather the blankets up to your chest, turning your head so that you can look at Sylus sleeping next to you. In this light, he looks younger - not stained by his past and everything that’s happened to him. It makes your heart clench painfully, thinking about him in this light and in a universe where the two of you just lived…peacefully.

A universe that doesn’t exist now.

Your vision grows watery, but you allow yourself to lean over and brush your hand across his forehead, slowly brushing his hair off of his face before running your hand down to rest on his warm cheek. He stirs softly, mumbling something under his breath before pushing his mouth into your palm and leaving a kiss on the center of your hand. You retract your hand instantly, almost as if you’ve been burned by fire because it feels like you have been burned.

This is the hardest thing you’ll ever have to do, but you need to do it.

You slip from the covers, wincing when you feel the ache in your body from your long night with him. You hobble to his bathroom, taking the time to relax your muscles and clean yourself before going back to the bedroom, picking up your clothes and getting dressed as quietly as you can. All the while, you keep an ear out for his sounds, but Sylus is still dead asleep as you finish getting dressed and approach the door to his bedroom.

You stop at his doorframe, contemplating turning around and giving yourself one last chance to look at what could have been your happily ever after if things had gone differently. Your fingers tighten on the wood, about to turn but you stop, pushing yourself off of the door and forcing yourself to keep moving. If you look back, you’ll never leave and you’ll damn the both of you to a life of torment - and you would never subject your Sylus to that.

There is something that does stop you, though, and it sits on his kitchen island when you’re about to leave through his front door. Your ruby pendant lays on the gleaming marble, and its sparkle catches your eye. Against your better judgement, you approach the island and pick up the ruby, turning it in the light and remembering what this necklace represents. Of your devotion and commitment to each other, even more than rings ever could. Of how the two of you never stopped thinking and caring for the other.

How the two of you will always be tied to each other.

You don’t hesitate to do it. You slide the necklace around your neck, making sure it’s secure before going for the door and leaving. It’s as if an old friend is with you, keeping you company in the face of all of the pain you’re going to have to endure for the rest of your life.

It’s your one allowance of him and the life you could have lived.

You almost smile at the thought, twisting the pendant between your fingers as you continue to your hotel so you can complete your escape.

You’re a couple of feet away from the divide that marks the end of the N109 Zone and the beginning of your self-imposed exile when your communication device buzzes against your leg.

It makes you freeze, hand tightening on the straps of the one backpack you allowed yourself to take before you reach into your pocket hesitantly, pulling out the device that was supposed to be turned off and dead of battery. Why is it still buzzing? You purposefully drained the thing when you made up your mind so that no one could track you or contact you.

Yes, the battery is still dead. But your eyes widen when you see text begin to scroll across the screen, the script making your mouth dry as your eyes read the words.

I KNOW WHERE YOU’RE GOING, ____.

DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU’LL BE FREE?

You should be terrified of his all-knowing, but you only feel tired. You should have expected this - EVER never lets go of those who betray or abandon them. They hunt them until they’re brought back or killed. 

It’s only now do you realize how fucked you are, though. He used your name. Not Cleaner Yue, but ____.

DID YOU THINK ONE NIGHT WITH THE LEADER OF ONYCHINUS WOULD SAVE YOU?

YOU WILL NEVER BE FREE FROM DOOMSDAY.

IN FACT, HE WILL BE EXTERMINATED VERY SOON.

AND YOU WILL CONTINUE TO SERVE AS PUNISHMENT.

Your communication device slips from your hands at that.

Very soon?

You frantically kneel, grasping at the shattered device but there’s nothing else on the screen. The only thing that remains is the word EXTERMINATE flashing erratically, fractured yet still legible.

Something splatters onto the screen, and you reach up to find tears streaming down your cheeks and landing on the device. They sink into the cracks and only fuel your panic even more, because you know this means they’ll be acting soon.

Right now, if you have any approximations on how EVER operates.

You stand up shakily, tossing the device aside and placing your backpack down at your feet. You force yourself to suit up, strapping your knives and your gun holster to their appropriate places before tossing the backpack aside. You look at the border between the N109 Zone and the normal world and, for a split second, you indulge in the idea of just…walking away.

You’ve spent the entirety of the past two years doing the bidding of others, staining your hands for people far more evil than you. You could just…leave. Be on the run, sure, but not be tied down to anything or anyone. Always moving, always planning, but never needing to think or dwell on your mistakes or your past anymore.

Despite yourself, though, you think about the past few hours. Of Sylus holding you in his arms, kissing your tears away. His fingers bringing you pleasure and comfort. Of the devotion in his eyes whenever you met his gaze with your own.

One step towards the border, and then one more.

The way he looks underneath candlelight, mirth on his face as he annoys you over and over again. How he tilted his head back to expose you when he knew you could easily end his life, yet not hesitating in the slightest so you could build trust in him.

You stop, feet hovering right over the border.

Sylus on one knee, rare tears streaming down his face as he asked you to spend the rest of your lives together, whether this one or the next. The way his lips moved against yours when you said yes, sealing his commitment to you with passion and warmth and care and lo-

You stumble back, nearly falling onto your back as you propel yourself away from the border. You turn back around to the streets that may signal your end, but you don’t feel anything else as you push yourself back up and run to the motorcycle you left abandoned.

No, you’re not scared.

You only feel peace and steady resolve with your choice as you begin to navigate your way back to Sylus.

It takes you a few tries to find him.

You first looked at the restaurant he took you to, mostly because it’s the closest destination when you enter back into the N109 Zone. You weren’t surprised when you found it empty and closed, though.

You search through alleys, random side streets, even the hotel you stayed at - but there’s nothing, no indication of anything going wrong. Your brain wracks for any sort of idea of where he might be, when you remember the crumbling EVER laboratory at the city center.

That’s where they’ll be, you know it.

Your heart is racing as you speed over there, mind running through all of the possible scenarios that could happen. What if EVER is just luring you back here to take you back to base? What if this is a cruel joke by another larger, even more insidious entity?

What if Sylus is already dead?

No.

You refuse to entertain that thought. He won’t be dead, he’s not stupid enough to get himself killed. EVER doesn’t stand a chance against a man they’ve wronged over and over again.

Still, you rev your motorcycle so that you can get to the laboratory a little bit faster. The more time you waste means a higher chance of the scenario you don’t want to happen becoming a reality.

You immediately know something is wrong when you get to the laboratory. The air feels heavier, the scent of ozone and smoke thick as you get off of your motorcycle and run towards the first sounds you hear. You hear bullets ricochet off of metal and the sounds of struggle, and your heart beats a little bit faster as you sprint towards where you know he’ll be.

You find yourself in the middle of a crumbling grand entrance, lighting muted from the black and red Evol that flashes throughout the sky. A crow caws high above your head, and you use that body’s position to find approximate where you know he’ll be. You don’t even think, you simply plunge in and begin fighting your way towards the center.

You take stock of a few facts as you move through the carnage. There are gray clothes and black clothes, which means both Doomsday trainees and veterans are here right now. Masks are scattered throughout the floor, the bodies they’ve fallen from not far from them. You smile bitterly at the thought - these people used to be your…coworkers. Now, you’re enemies.

You don’t quite care, though.

You approach the center of the field, where the fighting is its heaviest and most brutal. You jump into the fray, firing a bullet into an assailant and making your way to the dead center. You push past his strong Evol-

-and find Sylus, face bored as he continues to wipe out enemies left and right. You can tell he’s gotten careless, though, and your eyes widen when you see someone running up behind him. You quickly take point, firing a bullet cleanly through the person’s head.

“I thought you left.” It’s not accusatory, but you can see the relief in his eyes as his hand brushes your own. You give him a reassuring nod, taking up point to cover his weak spots as the two of you begin the dance you perfected a long time ago.

“I had a reason to come back.” It’s a loud yell, ducking underneath his arm to throw a knife. His lips tilt up at your reasoning, but you can see him falter just a little bit as his energy begins to wane.

“Where’s Luke and Kieran?” You begin to fight back with more fervor, but you frown to yourself when you notice EVER’s assailants begin to attack Sylus rather than you. “Shouldn’t they be back up?”

“They’ll be here soon.” He leans his body to the side to dodge a dagger, and his Evol wipes the person away. “There are much more than I expected, though…”

It’s true. It’s almost like EVER sent the entirety of Doomsday just to deal with two people, and you wouldn’t put it past them to have done that just to teach the two of you a lesson.

While it should be unfair, you’re somehow an even match between the horde. He is ranked among the highest on their hit list, and you’re the best cleaner for a reason. It’s almost laughable at how easy it is, but the two of you don’t know how long he can maintain his energy to maintain his consistency and ensure the two of you stay alive.

You continue to fight, but you truly begin to notice just how much they avoid trying to hurt or target you - instead choosing to throw every bit of energy and weaponry onto Sylus. Even when you deliberately target someone, they shift their attention to the man you’re trying to defend, and you realize what this is immediately.

This was never meant for Sylus, it was meant for you.

They’re testing you to see if you’re still capable and worthy of being saved, but you know that there’s no more out for you anymore. Even if they do kill him, nothing stops them from dragging you back to headquarters. If you kill him, you damn yourself to a life of serving them - even if you manage to run. If you both somehow manage to survive, EVER will spend the rest of their lives pursuing the two of you.

There’s only one solution that you can see. One that you hope won’t have to happen, but somewhere deep down inside, you know it’s the only outcome to this entire situation.

You mentally throw yourself back into the fight, watching Sylus’s back and making sure he stays alive. For every time his back is exposed, you step behind it and fire a round into a person you see far away. The two of you move like the unit you’ve both trained for so long - fluid, dangerous, and natural extensions of each other.

You’re almost out of weapons to use, though, and you can tell Sylus is growing exhausted from constantly using his Evol by the way he begins to get sloppy with attacks. The assailants are thinning out, but you don’t know how much longer the both of you can hold out or last.

“How many more do you see?” You huff out, neatly throwing one of your last knives at one of the two people you see. Sylus whips his head around to look at the area around you quickly, before looking back at you with a quick smile.

“About five more,” he replies. He tries to give you a wink, but his face is ashen and strained with the effort he puts into maintaining and using his Evol. In fact, his Evol drops for just a split second, making two assailants jump at the opening. He’s able to quickly take one out, but the other manages to leave a scratch along his arm and he winces, stumbling uncharacteristically.

From the corner of your eye, you see the last assailant taking aim at the back of Sylus’s head with their gun. The first assailant that left a mark on Sylus lunges at you, seeing the window of opportunity to keep you distracted but you’re faster, much faster-

You don’t think, you just do. You throw your last knife, embedding itself into your assailant’s chest with a sick thud. You barely take the time to look at them fall, instead diving forward to push Sylus’s body behind your own just as the assailant behind him fires their gun.

It’s almost as if you’re seeing the events happening from an outsider’s perspective as the bullet pierces your body. Your body recoils, falling back into another as your chest begins to bloom red. Somewhere behind you, you hear a panicked shout of your name and you blearily see the last assailant being dealt with a reddish black smoke before you register that you’re being cradled in someone’s arms.

Time stills, and you can vaguely hear something racing into the field and someone chanting your name above your head as your vision swims. You don’t take stock of much else, though. You just feel yourself slowly growing colder, a warm liquid soaking into your clothes and making your skin sticky.

“____.”

You feel something thick wrapping around your body, hands pressing into the center of your chest but oh, it hurts. An unholy sound crawls its way out of your mouth, piercing through the silence as you cry out weakly from the pain radiating and spreading throughout your entire being. The agony is inescapable - you can feel it with every twitch of your body and you think you’re sobbing, but you find that as the seconds pass that the pain is slowly fading away into a sort of numbness you can’t describe.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” The voice above your head wavers in and out alongside your consciousness, and you blindly grasp onto whatever material is by your cheek so that you can attempt to distract yourself from the pain slowly fading away. A hand captures your own, and you feel your cold skin press against something warm.

“____, can you hear me? Please keep listening to me-” The voice is growing desperate, you’re sure, but why would they be? The pain is finally fading and you’ve settled for shivering in these strong arms, the little warmth you’ve managed to leech from this solid wall not working to keep you alive anymore.

“It wasn’t meant for you.” The voice cracks the tiniest bit, making something in your chest throb more than the site of your injury. “It was meant for me and I saw it coming, why did you do it?”

Your vision clears for a second, and you think you see Sylus’s face hovering above your own. He has your stained hand pressed to his cheek, and you can see him frantically trying to keep you warm so that Kieran or Luke can do something he’s asked. Dream Sylus is rambling the few medical facts he knows as he grips your hand in a death grip - something about how he can’t reach in to take out the bullet that’s in your body, that he has to press his hands into your wound to stem the bleeding as much as he can, that he’s getting help and that you’ll be okay and stay with him, please stay awake my darling-

-but you’re so tired.

You don’t know how much longer you have.

You need to tell him something important.

“Sylus.”

Your voice is a rattled gasp against your chest, but dream Sylus hears you just enough to pull you in closer. He sniffles, and the sight of tears gathering at the corners of his eyes makes you want to fight harder to keep living, keep breathing, keep finding the strength because you two have just managed to come back to each other-

-but you’re freezing. You have been for so long. And it’s nice, finally being warm and feeling safe and cared for. Maybe you’ll settle here, in this place where you feel protected enough to fall asleep.

“I love you.”

It’s a labored whisper, and yet it holds your final thoughts as you let yourself be taken towards that dreamless sleep. You can feel your body relax as your eyes finally, finally blissfully slip shut.

“____? ____, my darling, I lo-”

The last thing you see before you fall into the abyss’s embrace is the look of his tears racing down his face and mixing with the blood you smudged on his cheek.

Sylus Qin is no stranger to fire.

He’s experienced ruthless heat multiple times over, whether directed towards him or otherwise. He felt the agony of being burned alive and almost welcomed it like a home because, in some strange and twisted way, it was. It was the only way he knew warmth.

That was before you.

You, on the streets of the N109 Zone who was capable of taking care of yourself despite the conditions. You, who after he took you in, made warmth mean something different. Maybe heat and fire didn’t have to be painful and destructive. It didn’t have to be an explosion signaling ruin and the end.

It could be something as simple as the heat of a shared pot of soup. The brushing of hands in the corridor because it was the only thing the two of you could manage for a while. Him draping a blanket over your sleeping figure and allowing himself a fleeting touch to brush the stray hairs off of your face.

As time went on, warmth morphed into something more comforting. It was the sun when he was able to manage it, paired with your delirious laughter as the two of you soaked in the atmosphere a grove of maple trees provided. It was the rare hesitation he felt when he first turned your face towards his, looking into your eyes for allowance. It was the way your eyes slipped shut, waiting for him to kiss you.

Something had burst forth in his chest when he got down on one knee to ask you to marry him. Hot tears made rare tracks down the slope of his nose as he slipped the ring onto your finger, and passionate kisses shared throughout the night as he made love to you over and over again felt like the fire he wanted to feel for the rest of his life.

That warmth left for two years, when he found someone else who he thought held the answers to what torments him at night. While she did hold the key to freedom, she wasn’t what he was looking for.

No, she didn’t fulfill him in the end.

The answer was you. It was always you and it was always going to be you.

He had been so cold for two years, simply coasting on the ghost of gentle fire across his cheeks and his hands. When he saw you standing there, he thought he had found his reason for burning again. But then you pinned him to the cold ground and he realized his only source of kind warmth had gone cold, too.

He searched for you. Confessed the truth he’s held heavy in his heart and waited for you as best he could. All so you could answer on your own terms.

And you did. 

And the night he finally held you in his arms again? It was the warmest he ever felt.

But now, he’s frozen solid. He can’t feel his fingertips as he strikes a match and drops it carelessly in a small pile of kindling that leads to a ruined building. He steps back and watches EVER’s headquarters go down in ash and melted material and he still only feels a bitter chill deep in his bones. He’s burned it all to the ground yet he feels nothing. No relief, no satisfaction.

Only frozen, his heart resting in the hands of a body far too cold.

He speeds home on his motorcycle, ignoring the directions leading him to his usual base and instead taking a detour. Vibrant cityscapes give way to lush forests, and he soon finds himself in a clearing of maple trees. A house is resting there, not big by any standards but comfortable enough to hold two people in love. Attached to the house is a modest greenhouse, and both structures are dappled in sunlight that’s filtering through the maple leaves. He pushes himself off of his motorcycle and makes his way to the greenhouse, slipping off his coat and rolling up his sleeves.

The greenhouse is a pleasant temperature, the sunlight dancing through the glass panes and providing warmth against the slightly cool temperature. He tosses his coat onto the table near the entry, barely closing the door behind him before making his way briskly into the main room of the greenhouse. He approaches a linen curtain, and he swallows deeply before forcing himself to push the piece of fabric aside and take in the sight before him.

You, in a hospital bed and connected to a multitude of medical devices. Your heart rate is steady, and if he focuses only on your face he can almost pretend you’re in a restful sleep. That you’re seconds away from waking up and smiling at him before pulling him down for a kiss.

He knows it’s not true, though. It’s this exact reason that he hates seeing you like this. Somewhere in between life and death.

His mind flashes back to those awful moments where he held you in his arms while you bled out. As you had faded from consciousness, Luke and Kieran had come by with the car. He made one of them drive as he sat in the back with you in his hold, pressing his hands to the deep wound in your body while he called in a favor from a doctor he knew from a time gone by. The doctor had shown to the base, black hair ruffled and hazel eyes serious as he took in your state, and he made Sylus step aside as he took you into a makeshift operating room and began the race to save your life.

He doesn’t remember much from that time, now that he thinks about it. His entire body had been locked in panic, his mind a prison for all of the agonizing scenarios that could emerge from that operating room. The doctor could walk out with your blood on his hands and you would be gone, gone right after he found you and before he could make everything the two of you right.

Gone from this world. His meaning, his purpose…buried for good.

The hours both stretched too long and felt too short before the doctor finally emerged from the room, looking exhausted yet not…defeated. He sat himself down next to Sylus and began to speak in a tired tone about your condition and what he was able to do. He talks about how if he had gotten there a little later, this would be a far different conversation, but Sylus can only feel sheer relief as he closes his eyes and lets himself cry silently.

You’re alive.

You’re alive, but you’re not here with him.

He sits heavily on the chair he’s occupied for far too long, brain laden with thoughts he doesn’t even want to entertain. His fingers weave themselves in between your own and he lets the slight pressure ground his thoughts. He works through his words, before settling on a hoarse, “It’s done, ____.”

He wishes you were there to see the downfall of the people who tormented you for so long. You above all people deserve to be the one to strike the match and let it fall, but he can at least do it for you while you continue to heal.

“Lihua asked about you before she died.” It’s bland, but he hopes you can still hear him as he speaks. “She asked if you were okay. I think, in some fucked up way, she truly cared for you. I told her that it doesn’t matter anymore, and she looked relieved. Like she knew I was taking care of you.”

His eyes drift up to the necklace against your chest, and something constricts tightly in his own body. It looks wrong on the hospital gown you’re wearing. It should be worn with a white dress, with one of his shirts - not this thin, flimsy material.

“Is this really taking care of you, though?” His voice trembles as his fingers tighten against yours. “Keeping you alive. As much as all of this is for you, there’s that part of me that’s selfish. I’m doing this for me, because I can’t bear the thought of being away from you. Of being alone after I found you again.”

Sylus lifts your hand up to his face, and he examines your fingers. Lithe and dextrous, able to throw a knife with terrifying precision or stroke his hair with an even scarier gentleness. Hands he dreams of holding his face, thumbs softly wiping away the tears now streaming down his face as his breath escapes him in a shaky rattle.

“I’ll wait for you.” He can’t quite contain the waver in his voice at his promise, and a tear slides down his cheek as he presses his mouth against your hand. “As long as it takes. I’ll wait for you to wake up, and I’ll help you through your recovery process, and I’ll wait until we build ourselves up again. Just please, ____, my darling…please wake up.”

He rests his forehead on your stomach, and he swallows down the cries that claw their way out of his throat. The waiting is agony. He wants you here with him now. He wants you to be awake and to pull him into your arms, to smother his face with your kisses as your fingers rake through his hair.

The other option is unthinkable. He hates the other option with every fiber of his being, so he’s willing to wait in this limbo for as long as he takes. Whether it be two years or two lifetimes from now, he’ll wait for you.

He’ll always wait for you to come back to him.

a/n #2: ...........hi! thank you for reading <3

[ taglist: @hirayalia @kingraspberry12-blog @elegantpoliceflower @g0d334t3r ]

[diabetic-ace]

Ahhhh…. 😭😭😭

[chuluoyi]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐑𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓

- sylus x reader

wed to the lord of the city, you expect a loveless marriage... and yet, are the affections of the conqueror truly as unreachable as they said?

genre/warnings: 18+ suggestive content—minors do not interact!—arranged marriage, enemies to lovers, explicit smut (p in v first time sex) , fluff, pregnancy, princess!reader and autarch!sylus, based on sylus' card shared lanterns, contains spoilers! from myth beyond cloudfall

note: yeah... the moment i saw the trailer, the xianxia brainrot held me hostage :'D first sylus fic in 2026—hope you all will enjoy it! :D tagging @rjreins & @cherrywinetuscany as per request <3

Sylus.

The tales of the infamous Autarch of Xianyu had spread far and wide throughout the realm. He claimed the city through brute force, carving his rule with blood.

Men feared him enough to bend the knee and women whispered of him in equal parts of dread and intrigue. Every story carried a warning, every rumor a reason to stay far away.

And yet, despite knowing all that, you still walked towards him in silk and vows… to become his bride.

Not without reason, of course.

You were a princess in name only, while in truth your family was a stone’s throw away from falling from grace altogether. However, desperation always has a way of masquerading as brilliance, and so your rotten family devised their solution.

A calculated, elegant sacrifice— you.

They offered you to the Autarch, and overnight, you went from a destitute princess to the conqueror’s woman.

“What is he like, anyway…?”

Being here was no different from living in your ancestral home, really.

You were married to the tyrant— yet aside from moving residences, nothing had truly changed. The man they called your husband hadn’t even spared you his presence ever since the wedding a week ago.

You were more or less a decoration in the vast hall of his mansion.

“Never mind,” you grumbled, your gaze drifting back to the courtyard below—the place the servants insisted was Sylus’s favored retreat, though the man himself was nowhere to be found.

Was it improper to sneak into a man's chamber and wait for him to appear? Yes.

But when that man is your husband? No— you decided it was perfectly reasonable to want to know more about the man you had been wed to.

Streets were saying he was bloodthirsty and ruthless, and more than anything, you just wanted to survive here. And so you found yourself loitering around his quarters— brushing your fingers over unfamiliar furniture, pausing before trinkets to observe them, and studying the paintings lined on the walls.

Thus three hours later, your composure began thinning.

This is ridiculous. With a quiet sigh, you finally resolved to leave. But just before you turned away, something on the cabinet caught your eye.

A long, thin crimson box was there. Driven by curiosity, your hand reached for the box and opened it.

A hairpin. You almost gasped in wonder at the intricate pattern of flowers and design. The craftsmanship was exquisite, definitely made by request.

But then the realization hit you. This was meant for a woman. Did he have a lover—

Or worse, a mistress!?

“Well now… It seems the little princess has taken quite an interest in my belongings.”

Your breath hitched and almost shrieked if it weren’t for your trained decorum. You turned slowly to find Sylus standing in the doorway—arms crossed, eyes sharp, a faint smirk playing at his lips as he watched you caught red-handed.

“Do you always make a habit of inspecting other people’s things,” he drawled, unmistakably amused, “or is it because you feel entitled enough to since we are already married?”

Heat crept up your neck. You straightened at once, lifting your chin high.

“I was not inspecting,” you replied coolly. “I was… lost.”

What were you even saying...? You wanted to whack yourself in the head for blurting the first thing that popped up in your mind.

“In my private chambers,” he retorted. His gaze flicked pointedly to the box in your hand. “With my things.”

You pressed your lips together. “…Briefly lost.”

A low chuckle escaped him, clearly aware of your scheme. Your lord husband stepped forward, unhurried, until he stood before you. For the first time since the wedding, you stood without any prefaces and eyes peering at you.

You regarded him—the way his long silver hair fell into a loose half-ponytail, the way his red eyes gazed at you with quiet intensity. The autarch was handsome, but seeing him this close only drove the truth home.

“If it eases your conscience, it was meant to be given,” Sylus said then, smirking.

“Given...?”

“To you,” he clarified, effortlessly prying the hairpin from your grasp and offering it out once more to you. “Consider it a belated courtesy. Or simply a little trinket a husband wishes to gift his wife.”

You stared at it for half a heartbeat, and flashbacks of how he treated you the past week as if you were nonexistent came to mind, making the servants whisper behind your backs—

“His Excellency doesn’t even come to see her once… Is he repulsed by the princess who has nothing to offer?”

Your pride took over in an instant. With a haughty scoff, you turned your face away.

“I don’t want it.”

“Oh?”

“I hate those common patterns,” you said flatly, feigning indifference. “They’re predictable. If you truly insist on gifting me something, at least choose a better flower, Your Excellency.”

His eyes gleamed with interest. “And what would Her Highness prefer?”

“Datura,” you blurted. “Elegant. Dangerous. Honest about what it is.”

Silence stretched, and you pat yourself mentally for making him speechless— until something shifted in the way he looked at you and Sylus laughed, genuine this time.

“Datura,” he echoed, studying you as though seeing you clearly for the first time. “How fitting.”

He withdrew the hairpin, tucking it back into its box. “Very well. I’ll remember that, my dear wife.”

Your heart thudded, visibly startled with how he addressed you. The irritation still simmered, tangled with disbelief—

As he turned to leave, he paused at the threshold and glanced over his shoulder, smirk returning.

“And for the record, Your Highness… Next time you wish to snoop, you may simply ask.”

After that snooping incident, everything that had come before felt like a trick of the mind—

Because your husband the Autarch, who had barely acknowledged you, now turned his full attention towards you.

The servants were now singing different tune too. “His Excellency visits the princess… again?”

Sylus also smothered you in luxuries. Jewels in velvet boxes. Trinkets of jade and gold. Rare silks. Imported perfumes. All things you never asked for.

And he even invited you regularly for afternoon tea in his prized courtyard.

“Oh, dearest wife? Do come and sit.”

What was this game he was playing? You couldn’t shake the feeling that, somehow, you were the one being played.

Yet to save your face, you rolled your eyes as you took the chair opposite him.

“Seems like my dear lord husband has finally taken an interest in me,” you scoffed. “What a shocking change of heart.”

“Ha.” Sylus tilted his head, feigning thoughtfulness, his silver locks stirring with the wind. “Interested is such a crude word. I’d say… invested.”

“In what, exactly? My continued, humble existence?”

Sylus smiled into his tea. “You think too badly of me. I merely find it refreshing that my wife hasn’t yet learned the art of pretending I’m fascinating.”

You snorted before you could stop yourself. “Fascinating? I’m hardly impressed.”

“You wound me, princess,” he said, tone laced with mock offense. “I suppose I simply haven’t tried hard enough—”

The air suddenly shifted with his movement. He leaned forward, peering at your face.

“—to convince you otherwise.”

His crimson gaze held yours, steady and unblinking, as if studying something rare. His plush lips hovered dangerously close and you unconsciously held your breath—

He reached out and tapped your nose lightly, almost fondly, before leaning back with a satisfied chuckle.

“Smile more often, my princess. You look beautiful when you do.”

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Meanwhile, your heart betrayed you with the way it pounded harder than it should have. The way Sylus looked at you sent warmth into your chest before you could suppress it.

And ever since that day... somehow, despite how unexpected everything was, you felt like you were getting closer to him.

“Take these to the princess’ chambers.”

“All of them, my lord?”

“Did you not hear me?”

The servant nearly squeaked at the steel in Sylus’ tone and hurried off at once, delivering the ridiculous amount of jewels and trinkets to your chambers. Just as Sylus anticipated, he returned not long after—carrying almost everything.

Sylus glanced over the items, searching for what was missing and found it almost instantly—a crimson bracelet he had specifically commissioned. Everything else had been sent back.

Heh. Just as he thought, his new wife was clever, seeking only the best.

For weeks, Sylus had been keeping an eye on you from a distance. He noted the way you carried yourself through his halls with practiced grace, how you boldly faced the chattering maids without flinching, and how you would issue your attendants to do your bidding.

Your restraint, your pride, your barely concealed curiosity… all of it intrigued him far more than he cared to admit.

You were nothing like the fragile ornament everyone assumed you to be, and very similar to the one woman who frequented his dreams.

And that was why Sylus found himself very much invested in the woman he now called his wife.

“Come with me tonight. There’s a lantern festival.”

Whispers about how the merciless ruler of Xianyu was trying to court his new wife had spread amidst all the ranks, and with his blatant invitation and upcoming festival, you felt less like a participant and more like an actress placed under spotlight.

At his command, your chambers were filled with vibrant rows of hanfu. Your maids lifted each one in turn for your inspection. Silks in blood red, moonlit ivory, jade green, and imperial gold— colors bleeding into one another until your head began to spin.

Really, what use did he need to woo you—a princess with nothing to spare? Or was it simply boredom on his part? No matter how you turned it over in your thoughts, nothing quite fit.

In the end, you decided you might as well take advantage of it.

“I want the crimson one,” you declared at last. “Do fix my hair, and make my rouge a shade darker than usual. My lord husband shall be utterly enamored with me.”

You emphasized the last part deliberately. Just as expected, one maid’s eyes widened before she quickly lowered her head.

You would make it so that by nightfall, the entire mansion would hum with the rumor. However, that was actually the least of your concerns, as growing sense of anticipation settling in your chest.

You would get the truth out of Sylus tonight.

. . .

The night unfolded in a wash of warm light and drifting color. Lanterns bobbed overhead, their orange glow reflecting off the river like fallen stars.

Sylus walked beside you at an slow pace as you gazed at the sky in wonder, leading you to the upper part of his pagoda where you could see the flying lanterns better.

After a moment, he looked at you. “Do you want to fly one?” he asked, gesturing toward the lanterns waiting nearby.

You hesitated, then nodded. One of the attendants quickly handed you a lantern, its paper warm and fragile beneath your fingers.

He watched you for a beat. “What do you wish for?”

The question lingered. You stared at the lantern, at the way the light trembled inside it, and for a moment, you said nothing at all. Then, quietly—

“To live my life to the fullest.”

All your life, you had been nothing more than a pawn in someone else’s design. It was a foolish wish, but if you were allowed to want anything at all, that was it.

Sylus didn’t react right away. When he did, his voice was low, certain. “Then you shall.”

You turned to him, failing to hold back a smile. “Oh, really?”

Yet beneath the lightness of your words, there was something unmistakably melancholic in your face, and Sylus noted it in silence.

“Your Excellency, tell me...” suddenly you turned to him. “Why are you doing all of this?”

“Hm?”

“You gain nothing from this alliance with me.” You met his gaze head-on, a slight frown creasing your brow. “Everyone paints you as a fearsome ruler, and you ended up with a useless bride. So why are you doing all this— for me?”

A faint smile curved his lips, as if he had expected this question all along.

“Is there anything wrong with a husband who wants to make his wife happy?”

The way your eyes glittered with stunned disbelief only made his smile grow. Bathed in the amber glow of the sky, draped in his colors and dolled up in a shade that suited you so well— you, his wife, were a sight impossible to look away from.

Sylus’ gaze held yours as the lantern began to lift from your hands.

“Useless or not, what if what I’ve been searching for was never someone useful at all?”

He was mesmerizing. His long hair stirred in the wind, crimson orbs gleaming in the night—yet softened, unmistakably, as they looked at you.

Your heart skipped a beat, warmth rushing to your cheeks. Just before you could calm yourself, suddenly the sight behind Sylus exploded— thousands of lanterns released at once, rising in a radiant tide that swallowed the night sky whole.

“Look.”

You turned, breath catching as the heavens filled with drifting firelight. The sight was overwhelming, breathtaking in a way that left you speechless.

Sylus gazed at you, pulling you closer, and before you could make sense of it, he immediately hoisted you on his knee and flashed you a grin, ready to take off.

“Sylus—!”

The night surged upward in a rush of wind as he leapt, carrying you with him into the sky. Firelight whirled past in glowing streams, thousands of lanterns drifting around you like constellations brought to life.

The air roared in your ears, but surprisingly your breath stolen not by fear, but by the sheer wonder of it all. Suspended among the lights, held securely in his grasp, you could only cling to him as the world fell away beneath you—heart racing, senses alight, squealing as Sylus carried you through the burning night.

And then he set you down atop one of the rooftops, the rush of wind fading as the adrenaline slowly ebbed from your veins. Lantern light washed over the tiles, warm and unsteady, and you found yourself looking up at him.

“Remember this, dearest wife...”

In that moment, you could only stare, utterly captivated— by the man who had set the sky alight for you.

“All the lanterns in the night sky... They would only burn for you.”

You were falling for him.

It was inevitable. Perhaps it was the lantern festival that did it—but how could you not fall for your own husband?

After that night, Sylus let you further into the parts of his life. Silly banters, strolls outside the mansion's walls—all of them revealed a kinder side of him he showed no one else but you.

Quiet evenings spent in his quarters became familiar too.

“Is the wine to your liking?”

You set your cup down after a sip and turned to him with a bright smile. “Mm-hmm.”

“High praise,” Sylus remarked. “I’ll be sure to inform the cellar it has earned your approval.”

Just as you were about to retort, he reached for something at his side and produced a long, narrow box, setting it on the table between you. You blinked at it.

“Open it.”

Your brows knit in confusion, but you did as told. Inside lay a delicate hairpin—its metal shaped into a blooming datura flower, intricate in its detail.

“It’s…” You were immediately reminded of the hairpin you demanded from him weeks ago.

“I have a decent memory,” Sylus said simply, his eyes lingered on your reaction.

Something warm spread through your chest. And in that moment, with the lantern-lit night still lingering in your thoughts and the fact that he had fulfilled your whim, you knew—

—that you have fallen for him wholly.

You looked up, and he was already closer than you remembered.

The rest happened quietly, naturally—your lips meeting his in a burning kiss that tasted faintly of wine.

“Mm… ah...”

And just like that, gone was the measured distance. You clung to his broad shoulders, and Sylus kissed you like he had been holding back for far too long.

You barely had time to gasp before he drove you backward. The world tilted, and you felt the solid press of wooden floor beneath you as he followed, bracing himself above you, pinning you there with effortless strength.

His hand went to your waist, the other caging you in as his lips returned and his tongue entangled with yours— slow, deep, possessive. Heat pooled low in your stomach. You were trapped beneath him, not with fear, but with want—

And neither of you pretended this was anything less than dangerous anymore.

. . .

“Sylus… Ngh...!”

You laid on the sheets still with your robes on, back arching helplessly as the wet sensation between your legs sent you spiraling into bliss.

Nestled between your shamelessly parted thighs was your tyrant of a husband, his face pressed to you—his greedy tongue working on your folds in his pursuit of your pleasure.

It was unlike anything you had felt before. The way Sylus reduced you into a mess of moans left your thoughts in complete disarray.

He looked up to see your expression—his work of art, and exhaled roughly, “Sweet.”

It felt unbearably obscene. Your face had long since gone hot, shame and sensation tangling together until you could hardly tell where one ended and the other began.

Then he inserted one of his fingers into you, and you wailed when he started pumping it in and out.

“Sylus… Sylus...!” Your body tensed, breath hitching as pleasure coiled tighter and tighter, stealing every coherent thought.

Everything narrowed to his rhythm, to the way your pulse raced and your world tilted. You clutched at his hair, helpless, the feeling cresting higher, faster until there was nowhere left to go—

And then it broke.

The release washed over you all at once, leaving you shaking, breathless, utterly undone as unfamiliar wetness burst from that one spot between your legs. You gasped, feeling the fluid smearing your thighs and the mattress.

Sylus eyed you like a lion preying his rabbit. As your juices pooled before him, something in him just became feral at the thought that he was the one catapulting you to pleasure.

“This is your first time... isn’t it?”

Of course it was. But he didn’t an answer to continue.

And just like that, he brought you to your next orgasm through his fingers alone, making you limp and tearful.

“Sylus…” you choked, his name catching in your throat, close to a sob. “S-sto—”

“Do you want me to stop?” His crimson gaze locked onto your teary ones, his fingers gripping yours. “Hmm?”

There was something in the depths of his eyes—an intensity that rooted you in place. For a fleeting moment, even you weren’t certain of your own answer.

“Because if you say so, then I will.”

The haze of your lust clouded you fully. Hearing him telling you this apparently just fueled the unbidden desire inside you.

“D-Don’t…”

The curve of his mouth lifted, slow and knowing. “As you wish, my dearest.”

Sylus shed his robe and showed himself bare to you. You gulped at the sight of his sculpted abs, and even more so when his hands reached for you.

His fingers brushed the robe from your shoulders, then traced down your arms. Each layer he removed felt painfully slow, the air against your skin making you shiver as his touch lingered.

“Most beautiful...” he murmured, voice low and sure, undressing you as if savoring every second.

You were already wet, but your body felt hot when you were left nude before him. He parted your legs and folded your knees, and then you saw it— his veiny, massive girth. Panic overtook you that instant as he was about to ease himself into you.

“W-Will it… fit?” you asked, shock lacing your voice.

Your lord husband lifted a finger to your cheek, brushing it gently. “Have no fear, wife. I will make it so.”

Really? You trusted him…

“—!” But tears spilled the moment he pushed his length into you. The sharp burn, the overwhelming stretch—everything felt too much, too big for you to accommodate. Your fingers clawed at his arms as you pleaded with him to stop.

Even with how drenched he had made you, it was still difficult to take him. The sight of his manhood struggling, half-buried inside your tight frame was both laughable and tantalizing.

Sylus lifted your chin in his hand, forcing you to look at him.

“Hush,” he commanded, fiery garnet eyes filled your vision. “Let me show you... how a man makes love to his woman.”

And then, without restraint, he drove himself fully into you, splitting you open. The sudden force left you gasping—your eyes flying open as a cry tore from your throat.

“Ahh—! Ah, aaah!”

So this was how you were deflowered. The pain of being breached drew more tears from your eyes... But more than the pain, it was the sight that stole your breath—

The faint outline of his bulge shaping your lower belly.

He growled in your ear, “Eyes on me.”

And after that, you weren’t really sure what happened. Sylus began to move and your body followed suit. His thrusts were careful as if giving you time to adjust at first, and slowly, the sting softened, melting into a dizzying rush—

“Hahh...”

The world narrowed to the sound of his grunts grounding you. You were crying, but it also felt good. So damn good when he hit the spot you didn’t know was there that you could do nothing but cling to him and let the feeling carry you under.

And soon, you felt the coil tightening again—

Thrust. It was a rush of sensation that made your back arch and your grip on him tighten.

Thrust. His name trembled from your lips, half sob, half plea, as the pressure spiked, about to burst at its seams—

Sylus searched your face, looking for you to anchor him as he picked up the pace. Your face twisted in pain and pleasure as he corrupted you, and oh, how was he supposed to last with you this enchanting?

Your scream then tore through his chambers—

“Ahhh!”

—as soon as hot ropes of his cum flooded inside your womb and filled you to the brim, the release gushed so hard that his essence spilled out of you. You shook uncontrollably under him, a mess of tears and lust, thoroughly bred.

Ah, his dearest wife was so good... just like he imagined.

. . .

It was rough for your first time, so he made up for it afterwards during the aftercare.

His lips traced reverent paths over your skin, never hurried, never careless. He treated every of your sighs like something sacred, caressing you as if you were something precious entrusted to him alone.

“Warm now?” he asked with a smile as he pulled you into his embrace. You were spent and damp with sweat, body pliant as you sank against him.

“Mmm…” you murmured against him, arms sliding around his back. Sylus drew you closer, a quiet warmth blooming in his chest at the simple act.

Too long. He had waited an eternity for this. In his dreams, it had always been the same image—the girl who dared to befriend the dragon, who offered him her love without fear. That vision bound him to her soul.

At first, he kept his distance, unwilling to frighten the unfortunate girl cast aside by her horrible family to become his wife. But then you were the one who sought him out—and the moment he saw you up close, he knew.

You were the very same woman who had lived in his dreams all along.

And now that fate had brought you back to him in this lifetime…

He would not let you go so easily again.

From that point on, you no longer returned to your old chambers. You lived in his quarters instead, and night after night, Sylus made love to you.

So it came as no surprise at all to anyone in the mansion when you fell pregnant.

You carried the signs of pregnancy beautifully. Sylus noticed it most of all—how you looked fuller, softer, luminous in a way that made his gaze linger with reverence.

“Ah… Sylus…”

You had thought he would keep his distance after you became with child, but he did the opposite. He adored you all the more.

His hands roamed your fuller hips, before his lips brushed a tender kiss to the soft curve of your belly— taking pride in his seed that had taken root and been growing inside you, then slowly traveled upward, lingering at your breasts, now exquisitely sensitive to his touch.

“Ah, ahh…” you panted as his teeth grazed and suckled you, while his two sinful fingers working on your swollen clit, coaxing helpless sounds from your throat. Amidst all the haze, at the same time, you felt a soft movement within your womb—a quiet reminder of the life stirring there.

A love secured. A future growing beneath your heart. You felt safe, blessed, complete. This must be the height of happiness.

You weren’t sure if your fates were written in the stars, but if it did then at last, you knew why the fates brought you two together in this life...

It’s so you can share your soul with his, once again.

. . .

One night, long after the mansion had fallen into silence, Sylus brought you outside beneath an open sky. Stars stretched endlessly above, as though the heavens themselves were watching.

He stood behind you, both of his hands came to rest over your abdomen, calloused palms protective of the little life growing beneath it.

You leaned into him instinctively.

“It won’t be long now,” you murmured, a gentle smile touching your lips, your fingers laced with his. You had begun to feel sporadic contractions these days—a quiet warning of what was to come. The thought of childbirth frightened you, but your excitement to see your baby outweighed it still.

Sylus lowered his head and pressed a soft kiss to the side of your neck, lingering there. “Then it’s only fitting that I gift you something when our child arrives. Tell me, what do you want?”

You didn’t answer right away. Your gaze drifted upward, deep in thought. Then, suddenly, an idea bloomed, clear and certain.

“I want a comb... Carved with three datura blossoms.”

Sylus let out a low chuckle, the sound vibrating against your back. His arms tightened around you, amused and fond all at once—as though your answer pleased him more than anything else could have.

“Then you shall have it, dearest wife.”

Beneath the endless heavens, wrapped securely in his embrace, was someone precious to his tender heart.

Across lifetimes, fate had returned you to him time and time again. And yet, he had never believed in destiny—nor in the mercy of unseen hands guiding his path.

He believed in choice. In will. In what he could reach out and claim with his own hands.

And he chose you. That was why you were, and always would be—

The conqueror’s dearest.

[nfwleri]

the reveal

pairing: no longer secret bf! caleb xia x non-mc! reader summary: mc's reaction to the reveal of your and caleb's relationship tags: fluff, established relationship, ooc caleb, (not beta-read) wc: 2.0k masterlist | part 2 of secret relationship

after the bombshell of a reveal, the double date was obviously cancelled. at the sight of mc dragging both you and caleb away, the two forgotten men, who were supposed to be yours and mc’s dates, were helplessly frozen in confusion. in contrast, caleb’s satisfaction grew even more as he glanced back at the unmoving guys.

mc, who has wedged herself between you and caleb, immediately takes action when she catches sight of caleb’s smug demeanor. you silently watch as mc reaches up to sharply elbow caleb’s side, “what are you smiling at,” she angrily accuses him. caleb is seemingly unaffected as he simply responds by turning to face mc with a teasing smile on his face. glowering at caleb, mc points out, “you still have to explain yourself, you traitor,” while she rushes the three of you back to her apartment for a proper explanation. 

undeterred, caleb happily chuckles out, “gladly,” the ends of his eyes crinkling from his beaming smile as he, finally, pushes mc out of the way to tug you back into his arms. a matching, but shy, smile breaks out on your face as you feel caleb slightly speeds up his pace, which in turn quickens yours as well.

caleb’s usual composed behavior is nowhere to be seen, and you know that it’s a result of him finally having an excuse to flaunt your relationship. all caleb has been desperately wanting to do since the beginning of your relationship was love you loudly in both public and private, and he would rather die than let this chance pass by. 

despite caleb obviously being excited about having his dream come true, he doesn’t fail to prioritize you over his desire. as the three of you approach his parked car, caleb steps forward to hold the door open for you first, then gets into the driver’s seat while he contentedly announces, “i’ve been waiting my entire life for this moment,” he confesses with his stupid grin making a reappearance on his face. 

—

as soon as you step foot back in mc’s apartment, caleb ushers you to go sit on the couch and rest up while he grabs a cup of hot tea for you. to his dismay, you insistently follow him and mc as they make their way to the kitchen. despite being adamant about being able to make your own tea, caleb refuses to back down. however, you immediately halt your complaints when you spot a mischievous smirk light up caleb’s face. 

nervous about what caleb is up to, you take a step back to prepare for whatever he has up his sleeve. unfortunately for you, you don’t make it far before caleb softly grabs your waist and drags you back against his chest. ”honey,” he sweetly draws out as he lovingly gazes into your widened eyes, which are flickering between him and mc. without waiting for a response or acknowledging mc, caleb continues on with his dramatic act and exaggeratedly pouts as he teases, “won’t you let your poor, loving boyfriend take care of you,” he puts an emphasis on the word as he simultaneously squeezes your waist. 

from the corner of your eye, you can see mc’s face scrunch up in disgust as she witnesses the pda between you and caleb for the first time. your attention is pulled back as caleb tightens his hold around your waist, essentially pinning you against his chest as he whines out, “just leave it to me, your boyfriend,” his cheek squishes against the crown of your head. 

however, before you can respond to caleb, mc is already sick of the amount of pda she has seen, so she decides to remind you and caleb of her presence as she begins her confrontation, “i have a confession.” mc’s voice causes you to spring apart from caleb and the two of you to snap your heads to see a serious expression spread across mc’s face. 

at mc’s admission, you freeze. this exact scenario was the entire reason why you were adamant about keeping your relationship with caleb a secret, and her current reaction was not making you feel better. you’re too caught up in your fears to notice that caleb has made his way to your side once more.

thankfully, before you can spiral any further, mc continues , “i knew,” she confesses.

silence envelopes the entire room. you’re still frozen, but your fear fades into confusion. however, unlike you, caleb’s face is unreadable. if anything, he’s more focused on calming you down as he wraps an arm around you to begin rubbing up and down your side.

noticing your confusion, mc’s face morphs into one of disbelief as she rolls her eyes, “c’mon,” she scoffs out, and now you’re utterly lost. on the other hand, mc starts up her rant again, but now feeling insulted, “i may be oblivious, but i’m not that oblivious,” she huffs out. “of course i knew there was something going on between you two, i just didn’t know that you two were already dating,” she exclaims while your mouth drops out in shock. 

mc is too focused on her rant to acknowledge yours and caleb’s reaction, “do you think i wouldn’t notice the lingering glances, and, oh my god,” she gasps out of exasperation, “the way that whenever someone flirts with you guys, you both would reject them a little bit faster than usual whenever the other is around?” 

now extremely embarrassed about how unknowingly obvious the two of you were being, you jab your elbow into caleb’s side as you feel him slightly shake as he attempts to hide his laughs, his hand now stationary against your side. 

“don’t even get me started on the double date tonight,” at this, caleb finally freezes for a second as he processes mc’s insinuation before he straightens up, an intense fire burning in his eyes with a slight curious tilt of his head.

at the feeling of caleb’s searing stare on her face, mc takes it as a sign to explain her complaint, “do you really think that i wouldn’t know my best friend’s type,” mc groans out as caleb’s smile grows the more mc talks, “i purposely chose someone who was the exact opposite of caleb, and i didn’t even actually want the other dude!” mc begins to pace back and forth as she flails her hands around to further emphasize her loyalty, ”i couldn’t handle you two dancing around each other anymore, but,” she pauses to glare at you and caleb while accusingly wags her finger between the two of you, “you sneaky backstabbers were together this entire time,” she reveals, annoyed that you would even doubt her.

caleb is beaming so bright that, if you glanced at him, you swear that you would get blinded. on the contrary, you’re beyond shocked at the extent of mc’s matchmaking plans. you can’t believe that she went through years of meticulous planning in an attempt to get you and caleb to end up together, yet you rewarded her efforts by leaving her in the dark. 

not being able to hold in your guilt any longer, you interrupt mc with an apology, “i’m sorry, it’s my fault,” you ashamedly rush out as mc upsettingly stares back at you, quietly waiting for you to finish. you cover the back caleb’s motionless hand that still remains on your side with the palm of your hand as a form of self-comfort. 

“it’s not that i don’t trust you,” you hurriedly reassure her, “i was just scared that, if it didn’t work out between caleb and i,” a disbelieving mumble and scoff arises out from both caleb and mc, which causes you to pinch caleb’s hand in retaliation, “then everything would get awkward and everything would get ruined between all of us,” you finally confess, but too afraid to meet mc’s eyes.

despite expecting mc to feel hurt, you hear her voice laced with understanding and a hint of distress, “don’t apologize,” she stresses out. “i’m not upset at all,” mc reassures you, nodding her head with a smile on her face as you force your gaze to meet hers. “if anything,” mc’s smile grows, “i’d rather have you hide your relationship than not be in a relationship at all with how much i’ve suffered,” she teasingly giggles.

mc looks as if she has lifted years of weight off from her shoulders by the way she refuses to stop mockingly complaining and reminiscing about everything she had to go throughout her entire life because of you and caleb. 

suddenly, mc pauses in the middle of her rant and looks as if a lightbulb turned on above her head, “let me show you guys my evidence book,” she gasps out in remembrance before she breaks out into a run into her room without waiting for a response. 

although you’re still recovering from the whiplash that mc’s confessions and constant change in conversation caused, caleb immediately makes a move to squeeze you into a hug again as soon as mc is out of the room. 

as you begin to pull back, yet still surrender to caleb’s embrace at the same time, you notice how his eyes roam your face as he hesitates, “see,” he whispers out. then, he drifts his eyes to meet yours once again, and any form of doubt is instantly replaced with confidence and content, “i told you she would be our biggest fan.” with a proud grin, caleb carefully leans down, making sure to give you enough time to move away in case you were uncomfortable after the confrontation. to his delight, you remain still, patiently waiting for caleb to continue his advances. 

caleb figures that he could kiss you breathless right then and there. you always look perfect in his eyes, but he swears that nothing compares to how you look right now. the you whose hair is still tousled from the chilly wind that you never bothered to fix; the you who proudly announced that he’s yours and that you’re his; the you who is currently standing in front of him, staring up at him with the most adoring eyes he has ever seen; the you who loves him; the you that he finally kisses on the cheek. 

sighing against your cheek, caleb reluctantly waits a second, lips still against your cheek, before pulling back while slowly opening his eyes that he didn’t even remember closing. as soon as caleb pulls back far enough to relish in your blissful expression that, unsurprisingly, reflects his own serene smile, caleb immediately regrets stopping at just a peck to your cheek. caleb has never hated his sense of restraint this much before. 

however, his selfish thoughts fade away as the sound of mc’s returning footsteps stomps towards you two. caleb is still staring at you when you drift your gaze to look at mc’s fumbling form. a doting grin grows on caleb’s face when he notices your eyes widen in shock as you process the overfilled, giant photo album that is practically bursting at the seams.

slightly pushing caleb back in order to get a better view of the evidence album in mc’s hands, you shriek out, “how many photos are in there,” as a low-quality, unfocused, high school photo of you and caleb slips out of the album and falls to the ground. mc simply shrugs as she moves to carefully place the album down, “just about 500,” she says mindlessly before retracing her steps to pick up the fallen photo.

mc straightens back up as she waves the photo back and forth in front of your and caleb’s faces as she confesses, “and this is only one album,” right as caleb carefully plucks the photo from mc’s grip. with a satisfied hum, caleb scans the old photo as he addresses mc, “how much to make me a copy of everything?” caleb thinks that a photo album that reflects your relationship’s journey would make a perfect anniversary gift, if not, a wedding gift, he softly smiles.

taglist: @cordidy