There’s No Place I’d Rather Be

A lifelong appreciation of women

[tiny-maus-boots]

Darkest of Nights pt 28

Chloe

She didn’t like the Alpha and if the wolf wasn't careful, Chloe would spit her like a boar and roast her over a pit. Fur and all. She didn’t trust Kommissar to keep her word after they defeated the Council and had planned to keep Beca well away from her. A task made much harder by Beca’s loyalty and closeness to her friend, Jesse. Even thinking of the manling made her want to glare daggers at him. 

He hadn't done anything wrong exactly, but his insistence at staying near Beca was annoying. Aubrey turned her head slightly and gave a barely perceptible nod acknowledging the need to remain alert. It was clear she didn’t trust Kommissar any more than Chloe herself did.

Beca cleared her throat and held her hand out for Athan to take. He took it and rose to follow her to the center of the space they were gathered in. And much to Chloe’s annoyance, Jesse and Kommissar were a step behind them. She knew it was necessary but it bothered her, seeing a constant shadow at Beca’s shoulder. Always watching with her heart in her hands.

Wait. Her?

“Does it bother you as much as it bothered me? Seeing you follow Aubrey around like…a puppy.”

Chloe swallowed back the hiss and straightened her spine. So now he was picking on her and playing on her insecurities. She had been wondering when Harun would finally try to hurt her the way he had obviously been cutting at Aubrey and Beca. In all her years she had never felt guilty about her choice to join the Guard so she could remain at Aubrey’s side. There had been no other choice for her to make, it was the only way to ensure she would always be near enough to protect her.

But she had never seen it from Harun’s perspective before. 

“You were always just there. In the periphery of our life together. Always with your centuries of secrets and jokes. Always holding on to a part of her so that she would not give it to me. I was her husband, I was the one she had chosen, and yet you lingered there, holding her back from sharing everything with me as I shared with her!”

She expected the hot barrage of hatred that rained down on her and braced for it. She knew she would have felt the same had she been in his place. The feeling of jealousy filled her as she glanced at Jesse. It was sickening and she was angry at herself for letting it distract her from their goals. Or maybe she just didn’t want to focus on the fact that she had done exactly what Harun was accusing her of. Or the fact that she would do it again without so much as a hint of remorse or guilt. Even now, knowing how that felt as intimately as she did, how it must have felt for Harun especially…even now, she would do whatever she must to stay at Aubrey’s side.

Chloe bore the anger silently. She couldn’t let Harun distract her. Wouldn’t. She and Aubrey were meant to be and Beca was a part of that. That is what she needed to hold fast to. The moment she committed to that thought the pressure of Harun’s anger broke. The vampire stumbled back a step and shook her head to clear her thoughts. A cool hand closed over hers and laced their fingers. The blonde gave her a searching look full of concern. It was just like Aubrey to check in on her even in the midst of everything else. Chloe smiled reassuringly and squeezed the hand in her own. Beca’s voice rose and they broke eye contact to focus in on her.

“You're going to want to make room. Anything that tries to cross the line of my circle will die. Final death die.”

It was enough of a warning to make most of the Clans and vampires take several healthy steps back. Beca took the bowl and small machete from her new little friend and jerked her chin to the group.

“You too, Bump. I'd be sad if you got crispy.”

“You'd…you'd miss me?”

“Don’t get attached.”

Bumper gave her a lopsided grin and scooted toward the rest of the group. Beca took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Power rose up around them pulling a collective gasp from those that hadn’t felt how strong Beca really was. The necromancer turned and handed Jesse the bowl before she sliced her own arm with the machete without the slightest hesitation. It was deep enough for blood to flow freely into the bowl he held for her. Perhaps too deep.

“Bec…”

“Jesse shh.”

“Yeah but Beca that cut…”

Beca cut him off with a dismissive wave. “It's just a scratch.” 

“Yeah but…”

“I told you before Jesse. I don’t sacrifice anything or anyone for magic, that’s evil. Besides blood magic works better when sacrifice means more. And right now..nothing means more than my blood. But also that’s enough blood and maybe halp. Woozy.”

Kommissar was closer and ripped a sleeve from her shirt to make a quick bandage for the wound. Beca winced as it was tightened around her forearm but didn’t complain. Chloe was fairly sure if she had complained Kommissar would let go of her steadying grip and let Beca fall where she stood. Chloe moved to support their third but Beca steadied herself and nodded that she was okay.

“I’m okay, just a little dizzy for a second. Let me close this circle, it’s going to go fast from here.”

Chloe stepped back and let Beca walk the perimeter of the cleared circle around them. Each step was followed with a flick of the bloodied machete. Heavy droplets of blood fell to the concrete like peals of thunder that only grew louder as she approached the close of it. She could see her parents organizing the vampires with urgency but she couldn’t hear them through the roar of magic cresting over them. Athan and the wolves glanced around, responding to the magic surrounding them.

The necromancer’s steps brought her back to where Chloe and Aubrey stood. She swayed a moment but managed to get her balance before Chloe could reach out to help.

“I'm good, I'm okay. Yep.”

Chloe’s voice softened and lowered even though she knew everyone within the circle would hear her well enough. 

“Bec…are you sure you're okay?”

Beca nodded and leaned into the vampire’s side clearly too weak to close the circle on her own. Chloe wrapped arm around her waist even as Aubrey helped raise Beca’s arm for the final flick of blood. The circle closed around them making her ears pop with the change in pressure.

Outside was a flurry of movement but inside it was as silent as Aubrey’s tomb. Beca took a breath and gave them a smile before she dropped to her knees.

“Jesse…”

This time it was too hard to bite back the snarl and Jesse gave her a worried look when he approached. Beca patted Chloe’s leg reassuringly then held up the bowl.

“It’s the Alphas’ turn now.”

Jesse took the bowl with a hand far less steady than he should have. It made Chloe remember that he was young and inexperienced. And probably scared out of his fur.

Aubrey held out the blade but he gave them a cheerful smile and flexed his hands, letting his fingers shift to claws. It was a show of power only an Alpha could master and Kommissar eyed him predatorily.

“We got it. Thanks.”

Chloe watched as first one wolf then the other bled themselves into the large bowl. They knelt before Beca, showing a reverence she hadn't expected but perhaps they now understood who and what Beca truly was. 

“Ath..”

He was there before she even finished. Athan bowed his head to the ground but Beca raised it gently and laid it in her lap. She stroked his head then turned it toward the bowl.

“Drink, Athan, drink and be mine.”

The command in the statement was final and unmistakable. It made Chloe shiver in response and Aubrey struggled to contain her demon face. Their Necromancer tipped the bowl to Athan's lips. Sluggish thick blood dripped on his chin and the thin slash of flesh that was all that was left of his decayed mouth. His thin withered hands clawed weakly at her arms trying to draw them closer for more of the offering.

Beca emptied the bowl and tipped her head to the side, no doubt listening to whatever allowed her to tap into her ancestral line. Hooded lids closed and Chloe was worried the blood loss had been a bit much for Beca but the necromancer opened her eyes and pinned Chloe with her gaze that held the fire of all of Beca's will.

Athan licked greedily at the last drops of blood in the bowl but she was too caught up falling into the widening pools of the necromancer’s pitch black pupils to care. Chloe reached out to Beca at the same moment Aubrey did. Their hands ghosted over Beca’s arm and the ancient vampire resting his head in Beca’s lap gasped as the circuit of power flared at their touch.

He rolled to his side and struggled on to knees that cracked and fractured under his own weight. There wouldn't be much of him left but a bag of ground powder if they didn't act quickly. 

“Athan of Macedonia, Father of Wolves, you seek to break the curse.”

“Yes…please. I beg of you.”

He inched forward until his head bumped against the necromancer’s thigh. Beca's voice had shifted to a layered multi-tonal sound. It was still Beca but her voice now carried the echoes of her ancestors. 

“And what would you give to be whole once more? Think you well on this, vampir. Your sacrifice must be in equal measure to your request.” 

Chloe could feel the solid weight of Aubrey’s body next to hers, pressing them ever closer to Beca. The energy shifted and eddied around them, seeking contact with Athan. It was hungry for the ancient vampire despite how coy the Michile ancestors were acting now.

“I have nothing, I am nothing. If my true death would serve then I would offer it gladly. Anything to end this misery.”

Beca’s head dipped in a short, considering nod. “Death? Your death serves no purpose to us. But your life…that we will accept.”

Athan crawled closer still, pressing the crown of his head against Beca’s leg like a dog seeking affection from its master. He mewled softly and tentatively licked a drop of blood from Beca’s fingertips. His voice scratched out wearily but the truth rang out in his words. 

“If by my life I can serve the Michile, then willingly I offer it. Make me your creature to call and by your whim I would gather all my power to bring nations to their knees.”

Kommissar inhaled sharply, understanding what that meant. But Jesse, for all his natural power, had no idea. And to be fair, Chloe hadn't seen it coming either. She turned her head to give Aubrey a startled look but it was clear by the vampire’s sharp gaze that she had already known this would happen. Maybe had even counted on it.

Jesse looked at everyone wondering what he was missing in the sudden tense silence. “Beca?”

The necromancer looked up at him and whatever he saw made him instinctively lean back. To his credit, the wolf hadn't actually taken a step back but he was clearly putting distance between them.

Beca shifted so she was no longer in the circle of Chloe’s arms. The necromancer rose to her feet, no longer swaying from blood loss. She walked a slow circle around Athan until she faced them all.

“We accept your offering.”

Kommissar growled and tried to take a step forward toward Beca but found herself rooted to the spot. She snarled and snapped at the air in Athan's direction. He raised his hand and slowly drew it to the ground, forcing the blonde wolf to her knees.

“Whoa whoa whoa! What is going on?? Bec? Beca, look at me!”

Beca sighed heavily and rolled her gaze toward him. “This one is distracting.”

“Beca?”

“That is not your friend, dummkopf! Don't you realize we are betrayed?”

“What? How?”

“Your necromancer has enslaved us to him! And he to her!”

Jesse looked at Beca and frowned. “Beca wouldn’t do that.”

Chloe admired his loyalty and belief in Beca. Even if it was kinda exactly what she had done. Though not for the reasons Kommissar was likely thinking. She hoped anyway. A nervous glance at Aubrey's still calculating countenance, however, didn't set her at ease in the slightest.

“Did you think she was not prepared for this? That she didn’t orchestrate this? You are stupid as the puppy.”

Chloe looked at Aubrey again then shook her head to clear her mind of Harun's presence. Aubrey may have realized this could or would happen but she didn’t plan for it to happen. Aubrey was better than the Council, no matter how ruthless she could be. Chloe had to believe that. 

“Bec, you wouldn't do that, right? Right, Beca? Be-caw?”

Beca seemed to struggle with herself for a moment, enough to flash him nothing more than a wink before the Elders regained control of her body. It was enough for Jesse who gave a nervous nod of acceptance. 

“You can't trust the vampires, Jesse.”

He looked at Kommissar and nodded once. “I don’t. I trust Beca.”

Athan's lips quirked in a small smile that split the paper thin flesh of his cheek. It crumbled away and lifted like smoke in a breeze. Chloe was wondering how long it would be before he was gone entirely. Even now the energy that flowed through and around them could sense his weakness. 

As if reading her mind, Beca turned to the redhead and beckoned her closer. “I need you Chloe.”

It wasn’t entirely Beca. The tone was wrong, but it wasn't not Beca either. She was in there, among the many, watching and guiding. Like Jesse, Chloe trusted her.

“You totes have me.”

Beca hummed a soft approving sound traced a fingertip over her bare shoulder. Power and desire rose within her at the contact and she shivered. The necromancer closed the distance between them and pressed them into a kiss. Chloe could feel Beca pulling energy from her as she deepened the kiss and she gave it all without hesitation. The brunette pulled away only to resume her kiss with Aubrey. The draw of power pulled the blonde’s demon along with it forcing a shift in features. Beca kept them close but whispered against Aubrey’s lips.

“You have to let him go now.”

For a second she didn’t know what Beca meant but the other vampire stiffened. And then it hit her. Chloe had never created another vampire but the bond between sire and progeny was strong in most cases. Most siring vampires were not Aubrey, however, and her bond to Harun had lasted past the true death of his body and kept his spirit attached to them all. He couldn’t leave unless his sire released him.

Aubrey was going to have to let go of a lot more than just her ownership of the vampire he was. She was going to have to divorce herself from the love that she had put into the bond that had created him in the first place. All these centuries after his death she had held fast to his memory. The memory of the man she loved, her husband, her partner in building a new nation, her hero. 

A tear rolled down her cheek and she wiped it away. Of all the pain Aubrey had endured up to now this would be the worst of it.

“I can not Beca Mitchell. For all he is now, I still love him and he is mine.”

“If the legacy you two built is to survive, you must release him. His body is gone, there is another his vampire will serve better.”

The truth of it took the strength out of Aubrey and she dropped to a knee with her shoulders bent in grief. Chloe knelt by her and did the only thing she could. She wrapped arms around her bondmate and held her as she struggled to dredge up the words that would give her husband freedom.

“Harun…”

“Aubrey, do not…”

“Iubital meu, my beloved, I…”

“AUBREY STOP!! DO NOT SAY IT!”

“...I release you.”

The scream echoed through all of them and Chloe raised her hands to her ears to protect herself from the echoes of rage and mourning. But there was no protection from the sound that tore at her very spirit. It was full of a loss she couldn’t begin to fathom, she could only suffer through the pain of it until it faded like a howling wind. 

“Bree, are you okay?” 

Aubrey didn’t look at her. The effort to raise her head too great for the vampire. Chloe looked up at Beca and found the necromancer already leaning over Athan, tendrils of hair wafting in the breeze generated by her power.

“Come to me Athan. Come my servant, and I will restore what the Council has taken.”

Beca pulled on the lines of power tethered to her through the blood she had fed Athan and had shared with Chloe and Aubrey. They all gasped at the rush of energy that raced out of them and was thrust without warning into Athan. His body bowed with the force of it, a half cry strangled in his throat as power ripped through him. 

Chloe reached down and held tightly to Aubrey, both of them watching in horror filled awe as Athan’s body twisted and curled on itself. He writhed in pain, the power within him burning even as it healed him. It felt like forever but the vampire knew it could only have been moments. Several eternally long seconds, maybe even minutes, and then as suddenly as it had begun it ended. 

Beca let out a breath and blinked rapidly, her eyes more clear than they had been since the closing of the circle. She looked adorably bewildered. “Did I do it?”

Athan groaned and slowly rose to his feet, stretching finally to his full height. They stared as he gazed down at his own hands, strong and whole once again. Beca stumbled a step as the last of the power seeped from her body. Aubrey was quick enough to catch her before she fell to the ground.

“Beca!”

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

[lespetitesmortsde]

Prompt! For bechloe, please.

Photo

Hi anon, thanks for sending something in!

If anyone else is interesting submitting an ask with a prompt, here are my guidelines. No promises, but so far, so good.

I hope you enjoy it, anon!

PHOTO, a Bechloe fic.

Beca can't explain why she suddenly feels the intense and unignorable urge to take Chloe's photo. It's there, though; there's a fresh and relentless awareness of a buzzing beneath her skin, of an itch in her fingertips. It's the kind of thing she used to have haunt her back before she thought she could touch Chloe—of her own volition, not just whenever Chloe instigated. Lord knows Chloe instigated a lot of physical affection.

It was too new, at first, the softness of Chloe's skin when they held hands—when Chloe pulled her across campus or otherwise after the Bellas—and the solidity of Chloe's arms around her when she forced Beca into a hug. It was too alien, too much of a shock to Beca's system to really process fully. Not until Chloe'd been doing it for weeks.

And Beca, well, she didn't like to upset the apple cart. At least, not unnecessarily. She'd go with the flow until she couldn't anymore and touching Chloe followed much the same structure. It took a couple of months before Beca stopped tensing up and going rigid in her arms. A few months after that, Beca could even sink into it a little—Chloe'd more than earned her trust by then.

Only after about a year did Beca ever try to instigate something and even then it was just a pat on Chloe's shoulder. Consolatory that first time, because she'd misplaced her yellow cup. Beca was just trying it out. But it was like that one action on her part opened up the floodgates. She felt this burning need to touch Chloe after that. Needed to be the one to reach out, to wrap Chloe up in her arms.

She fought it. Of course, she did. But she wasn't invincible, wasn't impervious. After a month and a half of clenching her fists to make them obey, of letting there be just a little more distance between them to try and keep temptation at bay, Beca didn't have the stamina to fight it anymore. She found Chloe lying on her bed, reading a Dostoevsky novel in the original Russian, and she answered the siren call. She crawled onto the bed beside her, half-lying atop her with her head comfortably on Chloe's shoulder.

"Was that so bad, Becs?" Chloe asked and then turned a page.

Beca poked her in the side, but she could feel the rumbles of the laughter in Chloe's chest.

"You're welcome anytime," Chloe said. Her voice was soft and lovely and Beca was only so strong.

She took those words and ran with them. The tingles in her fingers ebbed away with every indulgence Beca made in getting closer to Chloe. Eventually, she felt normal again. A little grumpy, but mostly fine—her usual.

But now—now the feeling's back and she doesn't understand why.

Beca's not a sentimental type of person. She doesn't have stuffed animals from her childhood, doesn't have a lot of photos of the people in her life. At most, she's got her little collection of concert ticket stubs, but that's for professional development.

Yet somehow, Beca needs a photo of Chloe like she needs to mix music. It's haunting her thoughts, looming in the back of her head no matter what she's doing or how much she tries to focus on something else. Since the feeling started, she's had no desire to repeat the discomfort of the first time around this rodeo.

She's tried to make the feeling go away. She's snapped countless candids on her phone: Chloe with a red cup in her hand at a party, Chloe offering guidance about choreography to Cynthia Rose, Chloe smiling, Chloe singing, Chloe reading in different corners of the Bellas' house.

The itch persists.

She doesn't understand. The photos are pretty good. They feel like they capture who Chloe is, how Beca sees her. But somehow, they're still not good enough. She's not sure what else she should try. Asking Chloe to pose for her feels a little gross, like the start of a shitty porno which is not the vibe she's going for. She's pretty sure of that.

So what's wrong with the pictures? What more could she possibly need to do?

Beca opens the door to her and Fat Amy's bedroom, grumbling, before she flops onto her bed. The tiny bit of a scream she unleashes into the pillow makes her feel a little bit better.

Almost immediately, Beca hears someone else walk into her room and then a tall, lithe body is climbing into bed beside her.

"What's going on, Becs?"

Beca mumbles incoherently into the pillow.

It makes Chloe chuckle, at least. "Come on, talk to me. Something's been bugging you for weeks."

Except what is Beca supposed to say? What version of what's going on with her could she possibly make sound normal and not creepy and woo-woo.

Beca turns her head towards Chloe a bit, just enough to get her mouth out of the pillowcase. "I'm fine."

Chloe snorts and adjusts herself on the bed, clearly getting comfortable. Her hand settles just north of Beca's hip. "Does it have something to do with your newfound hobby in amateur photography?"

Beca starts, intending to push herself up and away, except Chloe's grip doesn't let her go too far. "How do you know about that?"

It's really unfair that Chloe's laugh is so pretty. "You thought I wouldn't notice my best friend—who loathes using her phone for anything not music-related—has suddenly developed an attachment to carrying it around in her hands and aiming the lens at me?"

Damn it. She's too smart. How is she failing Russian lit, again?

Beca sighs, going limp and resettling back against Chloe's side. "Yeah, I guess," Beca admits reluctantly. She burrows a little bit, closing her eyes, trying to hide in the safety of Chloe's presence. The issue is that Chloe is too easy to talk to; she's too kind, too compassionate, too understanding.

Chloe nudges her with her shoulder. "What's the problem?"

"I don't even know," Beca whines. "I just haven't gotten it right yet, but I don't know what that even means."

"We could try different lighting?" Chloe suggests. "I can round up the girls, I'm sure they'd be down to help you."

Beca feels her face flush and curses her own body's betrayal.

There's a pregnant pause and then Chloe asks the question Beca really wishes she wouldn't. "Unless… it's not just pictures of me, is it?"

Can Beca please just die? Perish on the spot? Please?

"Becs, why're you taking so many pictures of me, specifically?"

Oh, no, Beca doesn't want to answer that one either, actually. She tries to sink deeper into her mattress, hoping it might just do her a favour and swallow her whole.

She almost chokes on her own tongue when Chloe speaks next. "Do you want me to pose or something?"

Beca rolls a couple of inches and opens her eyes to look at Chloe incredulously. To her credit, Chloe seems to be 100 percent serious. There's no teasing note in her voice, no flirty raised eyebrow.

"You… you'd do that?" Beca asks, taken aback.

Chloe shrugs. "I mean, if you get a photo of me out of this, then I want a turn to get a photo of you after, but, yeah," Chloe says. "If this'll help you, of course I will."

Beca's heart is threatening to burst, but that's how the two of them find themselves moving about Beca's room, adjusting lighting and the curtains and shuffling furniture to find the perfect picture.

It's easy to lose track, once they've been at this for a while, of how many poses Chloe's given her, how many smiles and winks, and, god, how much patience Chloe's gifted her.

That's why it's more than frustrating that with every new picture Beca checks on her phone, they haven't yet uncovered the one. She's starting to be at a loss for what to try next. It just feels hopeless and unfair because Chloe's also been trying so hard, except Beca doesn't know what she's looking for, so she can't even be helpful.

Beca barely resists the urge to launch her phone at the wall.

"Beca, it's okay if that one's not it either," Chloe reassures her softly.

"No, it's not," Beca says petulantly. She continues, frustrated first and foremost with herself, "You're so pretty and you look beautiful in all of these, but—"

"You think I'm pretty?" Chloe interjects, brow furrowing just a little, just enough to push Chloe over the pretty line and into the realm of cute.

Beca rolls her eyes. It's a safe statement. Anyone would think Chloe's gorgeous. "Chlo, of course you're pretty," she says, fondly exasperated.

A look settles into Chloe's eyes. "Okay, take my picture again," Chloe orders, adjusting herself on Beca's desk chair.

"Chloe, you really don't have to—"

"Trust me," Chloe says and her mouth falls into the softest smile Beca's ever seen.

Beca's nodding before she even realises she's agreed.

She lifts the phone back in front of her face, moving it a little to get the right angle for the awkward lighting in the attic. Then she waits. She waits for Chloe to tell her, "Okay," and then she taps the button.

Beca clicks on the preview of the photo to enlarge it and stops breathing.

This is it. This is the one. It's not that different, really, from some of the others they've taken, but it's… perfect. The light in the photo is more coming from the sun out the window than the artificial light above them and it casts Chloe in this ethereally soft glow. Chloe's turned toward the camera, her chin just slightly dipped to draw attention to the line of her jaw. She's smiling—of course she is, Chloe Beale was born to light up a room and to smile wide enough to convince everyone within a thirty-foot radius to smile along with her.

This smile, though, it's not her signature mega-Watt beam. It's subtler, gentler, and Beca feels it resonate within her like a punch in the gut. That's not what causes Beca to gasp, though. No. What causes Beca to gasp are Chloe's eyes. They are normally such a piercing combination of shades of blue, alight with optimism and occasionally mischief. In this photo, though, they're not just that.

The blues border on stormy, with tinges of greys at the edges of the irises. While the characteristic brightness of them is there, it's subdued by how much warmth seems to pour out of them, by how much love radiates into Beca's awareness just by staring at them.

By staring at her.

"Is that the one?" Chloe asks, after Beca's been speechless and gazing helplessly at the photo for almost a minute.

Beca nods silently, still unable to pull her eyes away. Yes. It's perfect. The tingling in her fingertips is blessedly absent because she has it. She finally has it. This is the picture she'll be able to look back on, once Chloe's graduated and they've all moved on with their lives, away from each other. This is how Beca will want to remember her when she has no choice left but to revisit Chloe in the past.

Beca's throat tightens, trying to stave off the impulse to cry now that she understands what this has been about. She needs to stop looking at it, needs to stop living in the past when that past is still the present.

She forces herself to look up, to break eye contact with the photograph and focus on Chloe right in front of her instead. "How did you know?"

Chloe's smile wavers, but it's still that softer version of it. "Lucky guess."

There's something odd about the way she says it, though, something that scratches at Beca's brain. "I don't believe you," Beca says, eyebrows knitting together as she tries to reevaluate the Chloe in front of her. "You know what changed; you did it on purpose."

Chloe's lips purse together briefly and then she nods. "Yeah, I had a hunch."

"So what was it?" Beca asks, trying not to sound too eager at the prospect of uncovering what she'd thought was unknowable.

Chloe's tongue pokes out first and then Beca watches closely as she nibbles on her lower lip. "Don't freak out," Chloe warns.

"I'll take three words to make me freak out immediately for $100, Alex," Beca says. She tries to make it a joke, even throwing in a half-hearted laugh, but suddenly she's wound too tight for that kind of levity to come across as genuine.

"Beca," Chloe says, almost stern.

"What was it?" Beca asks again.

The sigh Chloe lets out is subtle, but Beca hears it easily. "The issue wasn't the lighting or the angle or even the background was it?" Chloe asks, clearly rhetorically. "The issue was in the way I was looking," Chloe divulges. "Whether I was looking at… the camera," Chloe says this and her face changes minutely, eyes no longer a storm. "Or at you," Chloe finishes, and then the greys are back, sharpening the blues in her eyes and the affection seems to thicken.

"Oh," Beca comments blandly. She's not even sure what to say to that. How does that— "Why would that make a difference?"

Chloe raises one skeptical eyebrow. "Really, Beca? Are you really going to stand there and pretend like we're not different with each other than with everyone else?"

"You're my best friend," Beca answers.

Chloe's nod borders on sad. "Yeah. Which totes explains why you hated Tom and why I hated Jesse."

"You hated Jesse?" Beca blurts out. She can't help herself, she hadn't known. Why does Chloe think she'd known that?

"Yeah, I told Aub you wouldn't twig, but she insisted even you weren't that oblivious," Chloe shakes her head with a kind of glum amusement.

Beca's denial rises to her lips and falls like a thousand kilogram stone with the look Chloe levels at her. She swallows nervously and then says, "Spell it out for me, then?"

Chloe's breath is shaky with the tremor across her shoulders, but she nods. "Beca," she starts and Beca starts to sweat. It's extremely unusual for Chloe to call her by her first name instead of the nickname she's favoured for over a year. "The difference in the photo is that I wasn't hiding how I feel about you."

Beca might be stunned. Is this what shock feels like? "How you… feel about me?"

"I love you, you nerd," Chloe says then, like it's an admission. Her eyes are glossy now and Beca can't focus on anything else.

"Yeah, I know," Beca says, confused. "I love you, too." It's a recent development, saying the quiet part out loud like that, but Beca could never tire of hearing those words from Chloe's lips—not when they're meant for her.

Chloe shakes her head. "Not like that, Beca," she says quietly. "I look at you like I'm in love with you," she admits in an undertone. "And if I don't try to hide it, anyone can figure me out within minutes."

She's—Chloe's in—

"But—Tom?" Beca asks, brain short-circuiting as it tries to work in double-time to process what the actual hell is happening right now.

"What, a girl can't have a little fun without being in love with a guy?" Chloe says. "No, I mean, he's fine, but I'm not seriously into him," Chloe explains. "And I haven't seen him in like a year."

"You haven't?"

Chloe shakes her head. "No, I've been… too focused on someone else to bother with that, honestly."

Someone else—

"You mean me?" Beca asks, still trying to find her footing in this new world she's been dropped into.

Chloe smiles a little and rolls her eyes in a fondly familiar way. "Obviously."

"Oh."

Is that what this has been? Is that why Beca's needed to be as close to Chloe as humanly possible? Is that why she thinks about her in a near constant loop in her head? Is that why there are ten USBs in her desk drawer with different mixes Chloe inspired?

Is that why she needed the photo, with Chloe looking at her like that?

"I'm not expecting anything," Chloe says, after Beca's been silent for a little too long. "Nothing has to change."

"What would you want to change, though?" Beca can't help but ask. The question's out there before she can even think of keeping it locked tight inside her head.

"We don't have to talk about this," Chloe says, sidestepping the question in a way Beca would admire if it wasn't contrary to her goals at the moment.

"What if I want to?"

"Why?"

Beca chews on her lip for a second before replying. "I… think I might look at you like I'm in love with you, too," Beca admits. The statement is a little clumsy, but it feels right as soon as she says it, settling across her shoulders like a comfortable blanket.

"Really?" The astonishment in Chloe's voice is palpable.

Nodding, Beca says, "I think, maybe, that's why I needed a photo of you—this photo of you." She gestures down at her phone. "But I've never—and I don't want to steer you wrong or anything, so… what would it look like?"

Chloe considers her at length. She has on her thinking face, complete with the little crease of consternation in the middle of her forehead. "Okay," Chloe says. "Come here." She waves at her lap and Beca approaches her, automatically climbing into the desk chair to sit on Chloe's thighs.

"Are you sure you want to know?" Chloe checks.

"Yeah," Beca says.

Chloe nods slightly and then leans in against Beca's ear, her breath warm against the shell of it in a way that sends a shiver down Beca's spine. Chloe whispers examples and scenarios straight to her brain, noting things they could do and where and how and why and Beca's whole body grows warm up and over her collar. Her pulse skyrockets. Chloe's lips are so close to her, they graze her ear every so often and goosebumps rise on Beca's arms.

She squirms a little in Chloe's lap and Chloe just wraps her arms tighter around Beca's waist, securing her in place.

Eventually, Chloe finishes telling her in vivid detail some of the things they could get up to. She leans away from Beca as Beca tries to corral the thoughts racing around her head faster than lightning strikes. Her heart's beating fast and if there isn't a deep, ugly blush on her cheeks, Beca will subject herself to another horrible evening of Jesse's supposed moviecation.

"So, what do you think?" Chloe asks, voice still low and a little raspy. It's like it rubs against Beca's skin.

"Yeah, yes, please, yes, let's—yeah," Beca babbles, trying and failing to find a coherent combination of words suitable as a response to… all of that.

"Great," Chloe murmurs and then she brushes her lips against the edge of Beca's jaw in such a way that Beca almost drops her phone.

"We could go get dinner," Chloe offers, still nosing along Beca's skin and Beca's heart is still pounding in an effort to calm down. "Or jump right to dessert."

Oh dear god, okay, being the recipient of Chloe's full attention like this?

Beca's kind of looking forward to Chloe breaking her brain on the regular.

AN: I'll throw it on AO3 at some point, but for now, a lil tumblr fic.

[chloebeale]

chloe couldn’t ask what she really wants to ask without getting the blessing of beca’s other favorite person first……. 💍

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

[shawtyidontmind]

bechloe fic rec masterpost

as promised, here is a more detailed masterpost of my bechloe fic recs! some of these are nsfw so make sure to check the rating. this isn’t by any means complete (or in any specific order), so I’ll be adding more every now and then but for now:

song beneath the song, by gilligankane (the one that started it all for me)

this love ain’t enough to leave you, by lismicro (one of my honest-to-god favorites, a one shot au where they’re strangers on a bus to LA)

you were out of my league, by foxbones (this futurefic almost made me late to work. i must warn you, it hasn’t been updated so you might end up suffering like i am)

my kind’s your kind, by lismicro (another amazing au by lismicro that hasn’t been updated and it’s k i l l i n g me)

stare into the sky until we’re blind, by lescousinsdangereux (the road trip au that made me fall into a road trip au hellhole)

Love’s A Burning Building, again by lescousinsdangereux (srsly adorable apt neighbors au)

Expectations (and Equations), again by lescousinsdangereux (literally hysterical Kimmy Jin POV)

Bulletproof Use of Bullet Points, by sexonastick literally hysterical Aubrey POV)

swallow the key so nobody knows how they beat, by Care (historical au, i may or may not have cried)

Experimentation, by redlance (if you haven’t read this yet then reevaluate your life)

Favorite Record, by eliseboobman (if you haven’t read this yet then reevaluate your life v2, aka the road trip au that everyone needed) 

Be Still My Heart (Cause It’s Freaking Out), by awriterofthings (because who can resist a hospital au? not me)

Beca Mitchell Must Die, by chloebeale (confession: i love john tucker must die)

Stone Hard as Bulletproof Glass, by inkstainedpinky (if you want something long)

i’m a little unsteady (hold onto me) by gilligankane (ok literally everything by this user is A++++ go check ‘em out)

this is a beautiful start (to a lifelong love letter) by thelastpoisonapple (honestly.. i didn’t know how good a hogwarts au could be for bechloe until this)

School Me by timeclones​ (i didn’t even kno i wanted a high school teacher au but this is everything)

I See Fire by MsLane (beca somehow becomes even more adorable in this. my pal [stillfallingdowntherabbithole​] is also an amazing artist so go check out her art!!)

Just Like Glass by recallthelove (i really love this bc imo *slightspoiler* it shows a realistic version of beca working through her sexuality/feelings which is so so important)

The Storm Before The Calm by recallthelove (series. sarah’s writing makes me feel literally all the emotions. just read all of her fics ok)

Two Brides and the Bellas by Galpalkru (i just really love bechloe in any and all wedding scenes OK and the buildup is unnnnf)

Whoever Fights Monsters by getpitchslapped (police officer/FBI agent au. one of those fics you can’t really put down until you finish. tw: contains graphic depictions of violence, including sexually motivated homicide and the death of children)

This is Not a Kia Commercial by emilyjunklegacy (i’ve been crying about this fic ever since it was written. I even made fanart about it. read it. breathe it. worship it. bless)

Proving Them Right by flabbergasties (the fake dating au that makes you want to fall in love at a wedding)

and basically you should just read literally everything by these users:

flabbergasties

bechloehuh

Redlance

novel_concept26

sinandmisery

Care

recallthelove

gilligankane

Galpalkru or bicamitchell

emilyjunklegacy

amanaryouserious or getpitchslapped

snowybeale 

these are of course just my personal favorites, so please feel free to give me fic recs of your own:)

[kailoraurelius]

I’ll forever keep checking your page for updates so its alright, life happens we understand! And you’re the best for offering to answer our questions / short prompts

Can I request a tiny bit of an angsty argument-interrupted-by-danger trope where one of them leaves after a fight and gets into danger then the other comes to their rescue and theres a soft ‘I thought I lost you’ reunion 🥺🥺🥺

Thank you so much for your understanding <3 Life do just be like that sometimes.

Oooh this is an interesting prompt and generally not my style, so this will be a challenge. If I may, I'll flavor it in a medieval setting to balance it with something I do write often lol!

"Get out. I am done with this childish argument."

"No!" Chloe pulls the tent flap closed behind her, catching the guards posted to either side of it glancing at each other. But she doesn't care. She's beyond worrying if anyone will hear them. "Beca, you've been lying to me since the beginning! Deceitful, manipulating—"

"Oh, you are maddening!" Beca rips off her sword belt and slams it onto the table, not even bothering to turn around and face her. "I did not even know you then! I thought you were just a pawn in a game you didn't know was being played, another noble girl chasing the queen's skirts for favor—"

"So that is what you see in me! Do you think that is what this is? That I've simply given up the queen's skirts in favor of your chainmail? Do you not think I know my own mind and wants?"

"It is how I saw you when I did not know you, Chloe," Beca snaps. "Do not twist my words in the same breath you call me manipulator!"

"Then tell me the truth! Tell me what you see now."

"I see you getting out of my tent!" Beca's shoulders are tense as she goes about removing her armor. Each piece of leather slaps against the table as she slams it down. "Cynthia Rose will escort you wherever you wish to go in the morning."

Chloe waves her hands around the tent, the camp. "I am where I wish to go. Where I should be! If you would just—"

"Just what?" Beca rounds on her, harsh anger in her voice even as her face stays just as infuriatingly calm as always. Her deep blue eyes seem even darker in the tent, with only the small central fire to light them. "Just let you give up your life of luxury? Your lands and inheritance? For what? To camp in the mud with us! Fight a war you have no business being in—"

"No business!?"

"—when you cannot even follow a simple order such as: Get. OUT!"

"FINE!" Chloe spins on her heel, striding over to slap the tent flap open. "We will talk more of this in the morning."

"You won't be here to do so, Lady Beale," Beca growls after her, but Chloe ignores it. Both the words and the hurt that comes with Beca shifting back to using her title. She is trying to put distance between them and Chloe thinks viciously that it's yet another decision Beca is making for her. Chloe does not want distance. This is just as much her war to fight as anyone else's here. The risk is her choice. She is no soft handmaiden or royal consort. Inexperienced she may be, but she can learn if Beca would just agree to train her.

She is just ducking into her tent when the shouts begin.

"Attack! To me!" Uni's voice calls from the east edge of camp.

Chloe doesn't hesitate. She draws her weapon and races toward the growing shouts and sounds of swordplay. Firelight glows brighter than it should just beyond the supply carts.

As she throws herself around the corner of one of the wagons, she is forced to skid to a halt. Steel flashes past her face, far too close, and Chloe scrambles back, bringing up her sword. It's luck that puts the blade where it needs to be to deflect the next blow.

Her attacker stumbles back and Chloe quickly glances around. The man is older, dressed in dirty tunic and breeches, with long, stringy hair and two gold teeth that shine in the light of the fire racing across the ground nearby. Beca's soldiers are scrambling, some trading blows with more enemies in equally dirty attire, some throwing dirt and water onto the flames before they can reach the tents. A horse screams somewhere and Chloe jumps as her attacker lunges back in.

The sword is heavy and clumsy in her hands, but she quickly realizes her opponent isn't very skilled either. They are evenly matched, but she has the advantage of being younger and faster. And smarter. He goes in for another swipe at her and she leans out of the way, letting the weight of his swing pull him past her. She drives the hilt of her sword into the back of his skull. With a sickening crunch, he goes down.

"TO ME!" Beca's voice is nearby and the soldiers react like a tide, pulled toward her in an unstoppable flood. Chloe joins them, lost for a while in the fear, the flashing of blades and faces. She's not sure if it's been a few seconds or hours. Her arms ache and the cool night air burns in her lungs. So focused on the steel around her, Chloe does not see the fist until it's too late. Pain lances through her temple and cheek as she's thrown back and she finds herself up against the side of a wagon. The hulking man in front of her—not older or slower like the first had been—swings a massive battle axe and Chloe braces herself, raising her sword. She is able to stop the blow from cleaving her in two, but the tip rips through the skin of her forearm and she cries out at the searing pain. The man chuckles, the axe curving back around for her.

This is just as much her war to fight as anyone else's here. The risk is her choice. She braces her feet and raises her sword.

Something slams into Chloe's side, throwing her out of reach of the blow that likely would have killed her. Beca, teeth bared, is a blur of steel and snarls. The man is easily three times her size, but it doesn't matter. It is all he can do to keep his axe between himself and Beca's sword and he gives ground quickly. Blood blooms on his face and arms as his parries come up slower and slower. Until, finally, he cannot get his axe up in time. His breath rushes out of the new opening in his throat and he collapses. His axe thuds into the dirt a few feet away.

Her head is pounding awfully and her arm has gone cold, but Chloe grabs the wagon's wheel and pulls herself up just as Beca returns to her side.

"Are you all right?" Beca grabs Chloe's chin, turning her face to examine what must be a terrific bruise already.

"I'm fine. The battle—"

"Is over." Beca jerks her chin over her shoulder and Chloe follows the movement to find she's right. Beca's soldiers are putting out the last of the fire, removing the dead, and tending to the wounded. Chloe is relieved to see none of the former are their people. "You need to sit."

"I can—" But even as Chloe tries to protest, her head throbs harder and she groans, letting Beca lower her to sit against the very wheel she'd just pulled herself up on.

"Rest. I will have Stacie come to check on you."

Chloe wants to say she's fine. To offer to help the others. But the pain is so strong that she just closes her eyes and obeys. Maybe a little rest...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chloe wakes all at once, startled from sleep one moment to alert the next. Her head hurts, but the pain in her arm is sharp and radiating up to her shoulder. She hisses through her teeth, reaching for the ache.

"Don't touch." Beca's warm hand wraps around her wrist. "It is nearly done."

It takes a moment to fully comprehend where she is. In Beca's tent. In Beca's bed. Sunlight is pouring through the open doorway and sleepy voices are murmuring throughout the camp. It's morning. The time Beca had said Chloe would be sent home.

Beca is sitting on the furs beside her, looking smaller and softer out of her armor and dressed in just a simple laced-up shirt and riding pants. Stacie is kneeling beside the bed, stitching up the cut in Chloe's arm. It hurts awfully, but it's sort of interesting to watch the curved needle work. Chloe is torn between nausea and fascination.

Stacie makes the final knot with practiced movements. "There you are. Keep it dry for a few days. Take it easy, if you can." She shares a glance with Beca that Chloe knows holds an entire conversation, then she leaves. The tent flap whispers closed. In Stacie's wake is an awkward silence that Chloe is desperate to fill, but she isn't sure how.

She feels rather foolish now. Their near-screaming match suddenly feels like a petty squabble in the face of the attack. It's worse that she can't read Beca right now. As ever, there is no hint of her emotions on her face. She just watches Chloe quietly, her hip almost brushing Chloe's leg.

"I'm sorry," Chloe says finally. For the argument, for storming away, for getting injured. For being here in the first place to be injured, maybe. She isn't sure what for. "What happened?"

"Bandits. An unfortunately common occurrence on the road."

"Was anyone else hurt?"

The question seems to soften Beca's face a moment. "A few. One of the new recruits required many more stitches than you did, but he will be well again soon. Otherwise, we came through it fair enough. We are well-versed in fighting off bandits."

Chloe sighs, hearing the unsaid part. That she isn't well-versed. She's injured because she's inexperienced and her being here is a liability. She opens her mouth to apologize again.

Beca's hand cups Chloe's jaw firmly, but her lips are oh so soft. Chloe startles, but kisses her back. All the pain is gone in an instant, replaced by a fluttering flame rushing through her. Injury be damned, she grabs hold of Beca's shirt to keep her there, to keep tasting her kiss a few moments longer. She would take a thousand more axe-wielding men to stay right here forever.

When Beca does break away, it's with a quiet, ragged breath that puffs across Chloe's cheek and is seared into her mind forever. "You need to rest more. Tomorrow, we begin your training."

"My— You're letting me stay?"

Beca's gaze is soft, a far cry from the battle rage or the apathetic stare she is so known for. It's softer than Chloe's ever seen it and it takes her breath away to be the recipient of such a look.

"You scared me last night. When I saw you there against the wagon, I—" Beca closes her eyes, as if she's seeing it anew and can't take the image. When they open again, there is the faintest shimmer of tears before she blinks them away and Chloe feels like she's been kissed all over again. "It was one thing to send you away myself. I could have lived on the belief that you were safe elsewhere. Angry with me, perhaps, but safe. But to think you'd been taken... You would expect it to solidify my fear of you being here." She sighs and her voice drops to a whisper. The sound of a breathless confession. "But instead I find the very idea of you being anywhere but at my side unbearable. Anywhere I cannot get to you immediately when you need me. The soldiers told me you were one of the first to rush into the fray last night. I saw you prepare to take the next swing of that axe when others would have run. Bravery like that cannot be taught and, gods, I wish you didn't have it. But if you are so damn determined to fight, Chloe, then you will do so with me." Beca kisses her again, slow and thorough. "Now rest, love. You will need your strength."

Chloe hums against her lips. "Stay with me?"

"There is nowhere else I would rather be."

[sakamotokaori]

so gorg

[thiswolflikes2write]

I haven't updated Desperados in over a year... That is crazy. But I have been going through a lot. Good news is that I've been working on the chapter for quite awhile now. And I'm happy to say it's almost ready, the only problem is that it is a whopping 17K words and it's missing about 30%. So question to my fansom friends. Should I break it up into 2 parts and post part 1 this week. Or wait until it is fully done?

[chloebeale]

THE RIGHT TIME (1/1)

RATING: T. PAIRING: Bechloe. WORDS: 6,408. NOTES: Two pivotal days, four months apart. Fic to go along with this gif set. PP3 setting.

***

“What do you think, this dress or this one?” Chloe’s voice chimes above the sound of Beca’s music. Beca can see her from the corner of her eye, see the way she is holding up her options, and finally Beca has to give in, to bring her gaze toward the sight of Chloe standing there in a matching bra and panties set, an admittedly pretty dress held in each hand.

Beca notes the soft waves Chloe has styled into her newly cut shoulder length hair, and refrains from making any kind of comment about how that is her favorite Chloe Beale hairstyle. She doesn’t realize she is taking a little too long to respond.

“Beca?” Chloe prompts, shaking the garments gently. “Which one?”

Beca’s gaze drifts between the two dresses; one purple, one green. She has seen Chloe wearing both of them before, and recalls that, in each of them, Chloe had looked incredible. Then again, Chloe always looks incredible, so it is really no surprise.

“Uh, I don’t know,” Beca shrugs, gaze moving deliberately back to her laptop screen. “Either.”

While she does not look back up, she can see the way Chloe’s stare is burning into her. In fact, she can practically feel it. Beca very intentionally makes sure not to meet it.

read the rest on ao3!

[kailoraurelius]

I miss writing Bechloe and I am, sadly, so busy these days. But how about this: send me some questions about my existing stories or (small, pls) prompts and I'll try to get through them this week!! A little motivation for me and maybe some cool stuff for y'all.

Love you awesome nerds 🧡

[cx182]

Bechloe fic - Stained Glass

Hey #bechloe people: have you been reading this new story called Stained Glass? I’m just melting over it. It’s a MUST READ. Also, it’s getting updated pretty much daily. https://archiveofourown.org/works/16057196?view_full_work=true

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[kailoraurelius]

God, remember when this story was new lol?

[beca-mitchell]

DEADLINE: Anna Kendrick to direct The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Source: https://deadline.com/2026/06/anna-kendrick-directing-the-seven-husbands-evelyn-hugo-1236931590/

READ MORE @ DEADLINE.

https://deadline.com/2026/06/anna-kendrick-directing-the-seven-husbands-evelyn-hugo-1236931590/

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

Brittany Snow for Hollywood Reporter Women in Entertainment awards 💙💜💙💜

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

Brittany Snow taking no prisoners

[dailybrittanysnowpics]

Brittany Snow and Malin Akerman on their way to cause some Chaos 💜💜