deeply darkly dreaming

just a series of random writings from stories and ideas swirling in my head

[shadowynnn]

ya got me hooked on Star-crossed! It’s a pleasure to read and can’t wait to be gifted with more! Lots of love xx

Thank you!! That means a lot!

I’m super sorry I’ve been so inactive, though. Finals and writers block kind of got me bogged down, but I’m hoping to get some more updates and posts up soon! :)

[shadowynnn]

star-crossed | part three |

star wars

pairing: kylo ren / ben solo x reader x general armitage hux

soulmate au

part one | part two

~~~

It wasn’t long after your conversation with Ben that the door to your cell opened once more. Your heart had quickly begun to speed up, afraid that he might have returned. You still hadn’t completely recovered from your earlier conversation and dried tears still clung to your cheeks at the inability to wipe them away. There was no way you could handle a second round; the first had been bad enough.

But it wasn’t him. 

Instead, three stormtroopers marched inside the small room causing a different form of fear to arise in you. 

What was going on? What were they going to do to you?

Were they here to kill you?

“Huh! So it was true,” the stormtrooper closest to you muttered when his blaster brushed against the black marking on your thigh. “Look here.”

“Don’t touch me!” You recoiled from the cold metal of the gun, doing your best to hide the letters the stormtroopers had been gawking at and the blush which began to tint your cheeks.

The stormtrooper only laughed at your reaction causing your blush to deepen as you glared back at him. He was lucky you were chained up, otherwise, you would have been quick to make sure he never laughed again. 

“Come one, let’s just get this over with.” One of the stormtroopers hanging back spoke up and you could feel his nervous energy as he looked between you and the others. “I don’t know what they intend to do with her, but I don’t want to get mixed up in any of it.” 

The other stormtrooper muttered his agreement, and while the one who had mocked you earlier seemed annoyed by his comrades nerves, he reluctantly agreed. This didn’t stop him from complaining about them, and you, under his breath, however.

“Don’t think you can try anything, though,” he said getting over his sour mood as he moved to release your restraints. “We have orders to shoot if you try anything stupid.” Two blasters were quickly aimed your way to prove his statement.

“What’s going on? Where are you taking me?” 

You struggled to understand the situation and their previous statements when the restraints holding you were finally released, but you were met with only silence. Instead of answering any of your questions, you were grabbed on each arm and marched out of the cell before you could rub any feeling back into your wrists. 

You stumbled as they dragged you along, feet and legs still wobbly from lack of usage over the past hours. Every time you lost your footing, the blasters trained against your sides were pushed harder into your sides and your body was given a sharp tug to keep you going.

“If you’re going to kill me, just tell me.”

But this statement, just like your earlier questions were met with silence as you were dragged through the First Order base. You felt your nerves grow with each passing step, especially with their refusal to let you know if you were about to die or not. You wanted to believe that you weren’t being marched to your death, but it was hard to think otherwise. Where else would they be taking you? You were still a prisoner, after all. Not even the names on your skin would allow you to be otherwise. 

You had thought your soulmate status would keep you fairly safe, at least from death, but despite the high-ranking of each man, they weren’t the ones in charge. Perhaps he, much like your old master, saw the ties as a sign of weakness and wanted to put it to an end before anything could become of it. Perhaps he wanted to make a show out of it. Show the galaxy what happened to those who opposed him, no matter whose names might be etched on their skin.

And despite telling yourself to keep calm, there was no way to know for sure if they were leading you to your death yet, you still felt your heart speed up and your breathing catch as your anxious thoughts started to overwhelm you. You always knew you faced potential death when you went out on each mission, but being so close to it now, and without Poe, terrified you. You didn’t want to die, especially not alone.

But just when you thought your nerves would get the best of you, the soldiers stopped at a doorway in an unknown hallway. A quick code was inputted into the panel next to it before it hissed open and you were dragged inside. 

You weren’t sure what you had actually been expecting to see on the other side, another dark cell or an execution chamber, maybe, but it wasn’t even close to either. It appeared to be someone’s living quarters, but who’s, you didn’t have a clue.

There was a small living and dining area upon first entering. A couch and chair faced a window to the space outside and a table for three set against the opposing wall. In the far corner was a bed that looked so comforting to your aching and tired body that you wished for nothing more than to sink inside it and sleep the rest of the day away.

You were so surprised by the contents of the room around you, you had no time to ask who’s it might be, or why you had been brought here, before all three stormtroopers left without a word or explanation, the door sliding shut behind them. 

You stood there awkwardly at first, unsure what to do or think. Despite being brought here against your will, you still felt like an intruder in someone’s personal space. You knew this room had to belong to one of two people and you weren’t keen on being here when either one of them got back.

You needed to get out of here.

Backing up to the door you had just entered, you began to inspect the panel to its left. It needed either a handprint or a code, and you didn’t have a code, so you lifted your hand up to the screen to scan hoping for some luck on this awful, awful day.

It didn’t work.

The screen only beeped angrily and flashed red at you causing you to frown. When it did the same thing the second and third time, you huffed in defeat. You didn’t know why you had gotten your hopes up to begin with, the likelihood of the door actually opening was very close to zero. But you didn’t give up there. It was only after prying at the door itself for a few minutes and having no more luck than the panel, you eventually gave the door a good, hard kick before sinking to the floor in defeat. You may have no longer been in chains, but you were still very much a prisoner.

Your gaze once again roamed over the room before you, taking in the sleek style of the furniture and the immaculate state of it all. There was no personalization, no telltale sign that anyone slept, let alone lived in this room making you once again wonder who’s it might be.

Standing up from your spot on the floor, you cautiously walked further inside, fingers gliding over the plush leather of the sofa as you took it all in. There were two other doors to your right, near the entrance, and you made your way over curious to see what laid on the other side. 

The first door led to a closet, empty but for a few scattered articles of clothing all ranging in the dark, neutral tones befitting the First Order. You thought the lack of clothes was strange, who had this few of clothes, and made to close the door in case someone entered the room and found you snooping in their closet when an article in the back caught your eye.  It was a dress, black and fairly simple, but a dress nonetheless. 

You were almost certain you were in one of your soulmate’s rooms, where else would they have taken you if not there, but why would a dress be in the closet? As amusing as the thought was, you doubted either man was much of a cross-dresser and the dress appeared much too small for either man to fit in. 

This led to only two other conclusions in your mind. The first, which left a bad pit in your stomach despite you trying your best to fight it, was that one of them had a lover. It would only make sense to keep some of her clothes in the closet if she was frequently staying the night. The second was that this was supposed to be your room and these were supposed to be your clothes.

And as preposterous as the second conclusion sounded, you terribly wished it was the correct assumption and not the first one. It wasn’t as if you cared they had lovers, you had no intention of ever forming a relationship with either because they were your enemies, goddammit, but your body reacted differently to the thought of your soulmates being with someone else. 

Before you could even realize what you were doing, you found yourself shuffling through the rest of the clothing items to see if they were all women’s articles or not. You told yourself you didn’t care, but that didn’t stop the wave of relief rushing over your body when you realized the few articles of clothing in the closet would have all belonged to a woman. The cuts were all too slimming and feminine to be otherwise.

Realizing how you had acted to the situation and hating every second of it, you quickly closed the door and tried your best to throw the whole situation behind you. 

Damn soulmarks.

You made your way to the other doorway to find a bathroom that put yours back home to shame. A shower stood in the back corner along with a bathtub in the other. It wasn’t either of these which drew your attention, however, but your reflection in the mirror.

You didn’t want to say you looked horrible, but your appearance definitely matched the way this day had gone so far. Which had been completely awful, so yeah, you didn’t look too great.

Cuts and bruises scattered across your skin and the majority of your hair had long since fallen out of the braid you had pulled it in before the mission had begun. Dark circles laid underneath your eyes from exhaustion and your cheeks were still stained from tears. 

What you needed was a long shower and an even longer nap.

Your eyes left your reflection, taking note of the shower you had briefly noticed earlier. It wouldn’t hurt to use it, would it? While you weren’t certain, you did think this room was meant to be yours, until you managed to escape that is. But if you weren’t supposed to use it, what’s the worst that could happen to you. You were already their prisoner and if you weren’t dead yet, you didn’t figure they meant to kill you anytime soon.

But if they didn’t plan on killing you, what did they want from you? They already knew that BB-8 had the map which meant they probably also drew any other information relating to the Resistance from Poe as well. You had nothing more that they couldn’t have gotten from him. 

So, what did they want from you? Why were you still alive?

They had to want something. It wasn’t like they gave all their prisoners fancy rooms to stay in while they were being held captured, let alone kept them alive after they had served their use, so what was it?

Was it really because you were the soulmate to two of the highest-ranking officials here? But if so, what were they playing at? 

Did they expect you to play housewife?

The thought made you curl your lips in disgust. If that was the case then they would be in for a rude awakening. Just because you had their name on your skin didn’t mean you owed them anything, including your body, thoughts, and time. 

You quickly shook the thoughts out of your mind before they could take you to a place you really rather not go. You were only going to be here until you found a way to escape. And once that happened, you were never going to set foot anywhere near either of them ever again. The universe had given you a bad luck of the draw with your soulmates, but you had accepted that fate a long time ago. Meeting them now in these circumstances didn’t wouldn’t, change anything. 

Shaking the thoughts away, you forced yourself to stop worrying over the matter. Worrying over it wasn’t helping anything right now. What would though, was a nice long shower.

Stepping back outside of the bathroom, you walked over to the closet, deciding it wouldn’t hurt to borrow until you were able to wash your current outfit. There wasn’t much to choose from, but there was a plain, black shirt that looked long enough to do until your shorts were dry enough to wear again.

You took your time in the shower, enjoying the way the hot water fell across your skin and washed away the dirt and filth covering your body. You stayed underneath the water even after you and the clothes you had been wearing were clean. This was the best thing to happen to you since the day had begun and you were going to enjoy it to the best of your abilities. 

You shoved the thoughts of your captivity away, closing your eyes and pretending you were back on D’Qar. You and Poe had succeeded in your mission. You had gotten the piece of the map and escaped before the First Order had ever appeared. You had never been captured, had never had to see Ben again. General Armitage Hux had no idea who you were. You were just enjoying a nice, hot shower after a successful mission.

You didn’t realize you had started crying until you felt the sobs racking your body. Collapsing to the floor of the shower, your body curled up in a ball as you let yourself cry, releasing all the pent up emotions you had kept under lock and key for so long. You cried for the mess you found yourself in and for Poe and whatever might have befallen him, but you also cried for that night, five years ago, and all the pain and heartbreak it had brought with it. 

Which made you begin to wonder. Had Ben spoken the truth? 

Would he have given everything up for you if you had only admitted what you had both known? All you had to have done was tell the truth, admit the bond between you and perhaps you could have saved him, saved both of you.

So was he right? Was this all your fault?

The thought only made your body shake harder and a new wave of fresh tears streaming down your face because you knew the answer.

He was right. The only person to blame for what had happened was you. You were the cause of it all. All the torment, the heartbreak, the brokenness. It was all because of you. Because you had been too scared to tell the truth, to believe that the two of you could have been together. 

You didn’t know how long you sat there, curled up on the floor of the shower. Your tears had long since run out, but the hollow brokenness inside you remained. It was only the strong desire to sleep which gave you the strength to pull yourself up and out of the water’s warm embrace. 

You dried off quickly, pulling the black shirt you had found over your body. It fit well enough, just a tad big as the hem hung just below your bottom. You couldn’t seem to find a hairbrush, so you did your best to comb through your hair with your fingers before pulling it into another braid. 

You made sure your old clothes were hanging up to dry before you made your way out of the bathroom, so consumed with your burning want to sleep that you were oblivious to the fact that someone else was in your room until you ran right into them.

The impact wasn’t hard enough to knock you down, but you still stumbled and only found your balance when a pair of hands grabbed your forearms to settle you. You didn’t want to see who it might have been, but you found yourself looking up and finding a pair of very blue eyes staring down at you. 

The embarrassment you felt upon first running into someone was nothing to what you felt now upon realizing who you had actually run into and how very little clothing you were wearing. 

But even then, the embarrassment was all at the back of your mind as you found yourself face-to-face with Armitage Hux for the first time.

You knew you needed to move, to say something, but you only found yourself capable of taking in the man before you. You had seen him on screens before, and then just briefly from a distance upon your first few moments on the base, but this, this was different. You were finally close enough to see how blue his eyes really were, the slope of his nose, and that there were faint freckles scattered across his face.

It was the first time you found yourself acknowledging that the man standing before you was attractive.

It took more time than you would have liked, but you found yourself breaking out of the daze, snapping your arms back to yourself as you took a few hurried steps back nearly falling once more when you backed against the couch. Your arms crossed against your chest in self-defense, but upon feeling your shirt ride up at the action and remembering how little clothing you were wearing, you quickly dropped them in front of you hoping he wouldn’t have noticed. You fought the urge to tug on the black fabric, knowing the action would only bring attention to your lack of pants. 

It didn’t matter. It only took a few seconds for his eyes to leave your face, trail down your body and see your legs causing another blush to break out across your cheeks. 

You had really thought nothing else could happen to make this day worse, but you found yourself sorely mistaken. The universe clearly wasn’t done tormenting you yet.

“Why-Why aren’t you wearing pants?”

[shadowynnn]

star-crossed | part two |

star wars

pairing: ben solo/kylo ren x reader x general armitage hux

soulmate au

part one 

~~~

“Sol? Sol!”

Your head felt like a ton of bricks when you slowly started to regain consciousness. At the onslaught of pain which met you, you let out a low moan wanting nothing more than to sink back into the black and away from the pain. But try as you might, you only began to grow more aware of your surroundings as the seconds ticked by.

Someone was calling your name, but all you could hear was a faint murmur over the roaring of your head. You tried to focus on it but found it hard to think about anything but the throbbing pain in your head. 

What had happened?

You could feel your body being dragged beneath you, a tight grip on each of your forearms as they pulled you behind them with your feet sliding uselessly against the ground. Each rough jostle of a resituated grip sent another wave of pain rushing through your head, but you couldn’t focus enough to try and stand on your own feet, let alone open your eyes.

Focusing on one thing at a time, you took the next few seconds to peel your eyes open but ended up only letting out a slight yelp of pain as the bright lights of the base around you caused another sharp flash of pain and your stomach rolling.

“Solidae!” 

There it was again, your name. It sounded a bit clearer this time as you became more conscious with each passing second and your memories slowly came back with it. You had been on a special mission with Poe, your commander, and partner, to find a piece of the map to Luke Skywalker, but the First Order had come and-

Your eyes snapped open as the rest of your memories came rushing back to you and though it hurt, you forced yourself to keep them open as you took in your surroundings in a slight panic. Though they were foreign and unfamiliar, the stormtroopers around you and the fleet of enemy ships was enough to let you know you were somewhere deep in the First Order regime. You were surrounded by enemy soldiers and you had no idea how to get yourself out of the situation, let alone alive as well.

And while the thought didn’t sit well in your stomach, you found yourself growing more anxious about your connection to two of the highest-ranking officials in the First Order to worry about where exactly you were and what might happen to you once they realized you didn’t have the map. One of them was already aware of your mark and you weren’t keen on the other, or anyone else here for that matter, to find out about either one. You didn’t know how the First Order would react if they found out who you were the soulmate to and didn’t really want to stay and see.

There was a sharp jolt forward from both of your captors when they realized you were now awake and were too lazy to keep dragging you along. You were forced clumsily to your feet at their action, stumbling and gasping when it sent your head rolling. Why did they have to knock you out? It didn’t look like Poe had been knocked out and you felt, no knew, he was a bigger threat than you were on escaping. With the odds far from your favor, you knew there was nothing you could have done to be able to escape capture then or now. The only thing it had served to do was leave you with a killer headache and a sour attitude.

“Solidae!” 

You heard your name called out again and your head wrenched to the side where it seemed to be coming from. At the pain the quick action caused, you immediately regretted it, afraid you might empty your stomach in front of what seemed to be the entire First Order, but you managed to hold yourself together as your eyes caught a glimpse of Poe a few yards to your left. 

He struggled against his captors as he saw your drooped and dragging figure but was unable to get away and make it to you. One of the stormtroopers behind him, finally tired of his struggling, gave him a sharp jab of his gun against Poe’s back causing him to stumble and you to wince.

“I’m fine, Poe,” you managed a weak reply to his concern, not wanting to see him suffer any more for your cause.

While his concern was mildly sweet, you wished he would start focusing on himself as it only served to get him and you in more trouble. You didn’t know if your soulmates would offer any sort of protection towards your captor, but you bet it at least put you in a better position than Poe when it came to you not having what they were looking for. Once they had the map, they had no more use of him. He would become a liability and the First Order was not known to keep liabilities around for long.

You tried not to panic as the weight of the situation continued to settle on your mind, but found it increasingly harder to as you stumbled along after your captors. You and Poe always managed to find a way when things seemed bleak, but all of those past positions combined were better odds than this.

But it wasn’t just your capture that had you panicked, but being reunited with him after all these years too. Your mind flashed back to the surface of Jakku and of the exchange that had happened before you had been knocked unconscious. It had been hard enough seeing him again after all these years, but him seeing you, him capturing you made it all the worst. He had to have known by now that you lied to him that night, there were too many letters by now to be able to deny it was your name etching itself on his skin.

You could only just hope he hadn’t also come to the realization of what it had meant when you had shown him the curling A of your other soulmark in hopes of discouraging him five years ago.

At the thought of your other mark, your eyes glanced down to where it should have laid safely hidden beneath your bandana. But your bandana was long gone, falling away at some point in the fray of your capture. You felt your heart begin to speed up, suddenly feeling very bare under the scrutiny of the passing soldiers and hoped none of them would look too closely and make the connection. It was bad enough that he now knew you were here, but you definitely did not want the First Order’s general to know who you were to him either. You didn’t know how the general would react to knowing his soulmate was part of the resistance, but you doubted it would lead to anything good. You were enemies on opposing sides, never meant to be together. It was better if you never met, and if he never knew.

As if sensing your thoughts and deciding you weren’t in deep enough shit already, you felt the mark suddenly begin tugging against your skin and you stumbled at the surprise and shock of the foreign sensation. 

How did he know?

Soulmarks only began reacting to their counterparts when both parties became aware of their soulmate. Sharp tugs and pulls were the first sensations it created once you realized who the person before you was, your body reacting in a manner in hopes of getting you closer together because they were, in a sense, your other half after all. But if your other soulmark was now acting up that would mean he knew, but how? How?

It took little time for your eyes to wander over the sea of soldiers around you to find him, your mark easily guiding them to where he stood at a balcony above. He must have overheard Poe yelling your name and put the name with the letters on him.

He was staring at you, an unreadable expression on his hard face as he watched you being dragged away to a holding cell. Your eyes met for the briefest of moments before he quickly turned around and walked away leaving your heart and mind a fluttering mess. 

You had thought before your birthday could never get any worse, but this, this was definitely worse. This wasn’t good at all.

~~~

You didn’t know how much time had passed since you had been locked away in your cell. Minutes, hours, days? It had all flown by in a blur without any means to measure the time. Your only companion in the silence was your still throbbing head.

After the stormtroopers who had delivered you to your cell had left, not another soul had entered. There had been no interrogations, no beatings, but also no food. You had thought it a blessing until your stomach began to twist in on itself and your throat became parched. 

You hated the waiting, the not-knowing. They wanted the piece of the map, but other than the brief search before being thrown in your restraint, nothing else was said about the matter. Were they interrogating Poe for now? Trying to pry the information out of him? They would be damned if they did by physical force. Poe would die before he put the Resistance in any danger, but he wasn’t trained to resist the First Order’s other way of retaining information, not like you had been and they knew that. 

You may have not actively used the Force since the Jedi order fell, but your mind had remained strong. You knew you wouldn’t be able to last long against him, he had continued his training when you had left it all behind, but you would be able to put up a much bigger fight than Poe would ever be able to. It would be easier to twist and pull the information out of him. And with Poe’s previous responses towards their handling of you, you didn’t doubt they would attempt to use threats against you in some way to break him. He had unknowingly made himself the weak link.

You shivered at the thought, praying that you were wrong, that they had left him alone as they had left you. But as much as you wished for it to be, you knew it couldn’t be true. They wanted the map and they were going to get it from you as quickly as possible. The more time they wasted, the more time BB-8 had to get it away from them and closer to the resistance.

But your thoughts and worries remained unanswered as time continued to tick by without any change. You were beginning to wonder if they were going to just leave you here to die until you sensed some sort of commotion outside. There was the slight tugging at your chest signaling to you who was out there and leaving you in nervous dread as the feeling increased. You didn’t want to face him again. You weren’t ready to face him again.

The door hissed open a few moments later and he strode in before it closed once more behind him and left the two of you alone.

There was only a stifling silence at first, neither of you willing to be the first to talk as you stared at each other, face to mask. You could hear your heart thumping in your chest. A sound which felt deafening in the silence and you prayed he couldn’t hear it too. 

“You lied to me.” 

It wasn’t his voice which spoke, but the metallic sound of the mask he hid behind.

“After everything we’ve been through, that’s what you’re concerned about?” You couldn’t stop the hurt expression covering your features at his statement. “That I lied to you?”  

His words shocked you. They angered you. Yet they still wounded you because you had lied to him. You had selfishly lied to him to keep yourself safe ever since the first letter of your name had appeared on his skin nine years ago. Because even then, you had known and been thoroughly reminded, you could never be together and only wanted to spare you both the pain.

“What good would it have done if I had told the truth?” You continued, voice cracking at the lack of water and the emotions flooding you. You felt the tears pricking at your eyes and wished nothing more than to be able to wipe them away. “Would you have still destroyed the order we were both once sworn to? Would you have still succumbed to the dark?” 

Your words left him silent and it was impossible to gauge how he was processing them with the mask keeping his emotions locked away from you. You hated it. Hated the onesidedness of the conversation where your entire heart was in the open while he could hide behind that stupid mask.  And while the thought of seeing his face after all these years terrified you, it had to be better than this. You selfishly wanted to know he was as torn up about it as you had been, as you still were.

“I would have given it all up for you.”

His reply was like a stab straight through your heart. That simple statement hurt more than you could imagine, far more than the pounding inside your head and far more than when you were left behind in the ashes of the temple. It spoke whispered promises of what might have been if you had only let them.

“Don’t say that.” Your voice was soft, a strangled cry as you tried not to show how torn up his sentence left you. “Lies or truth, we could have never been. We were never meant to be.”

“And who told you that?” You could sense the anger in him, the bitter hurt which filled you as well when he suddenly strode closer to you. But despite the emotions flooding you both, all you saw was a man in a mask devoid of any inflection of he felt. “Did he feed you those lies as well?”

His sudden approach surprised you, yet it was the words he spoke which caused you to flinch. They were a bitter reminder of your past and of the life, you both were supposed to have lived. Together but always apart.

“Take off the mask...Ben,” Your voice slipped when you spoke his name and felt the tears finally begin to fall. It had been so many years since you had last said it, last let yourself acknowledge who this man before you really was. “I won’t-I can’t keep this conversation going with it in the way.”

Despite his hidden features, you still noticed the way his body tensed when you said the name he had long forgone. How long had it been since someone had last addressed him by it?

You saw his hands clench at his side as if conflicted. For a second you thought he might do as you asked, but he only moved slightly closer towards you instead. His hand raised and you flinched in your restraint thinking he would try to enter your mind. Though why or for what, you didn’t know. Your heart was already in the open. What more could he want?

His hand paused for a second at your reaction, hovering a few inches above your cheek as he took in your terrified expression. It was then, in that moment, that you realized he had wanted to wipe away your tears just like he had done the night he left. But perhaps he had thought better of it and his hand only dropped back to his side. 

It was all just another sharp stab at your heart.

“Where is it?”

His question caught you off guard. The topic far away from what you had just been speaking about and left you wondering if you had heard him right.

“The map?” you asked, incredulous. “You want to talk about the map now?” Your words grew louder as your anger grew. “You wanted me all emotional and unstable just so you could find the map? Was that what all this was for? For a stupid, fucking map?”

He tensed once more at your scathing words, but slowly shook his head. “We already know the map is in the BB-8 unit and have deployed troops to retrieve it.” 

“Then what else do you want from-” 

Your words along with your anger quickly fell away when you realized what he was trying to ask. His face had fallen ever so quickly to your thigh and the soulmark which laid bare and exposed there. You still couldn’t see his face, but his hands clenched again and you could feel his negative reaction to the name slowly appearing there. Did he not like the general? Was he jealous that he wasn’t the only one? Or...was it both?

Did he still care?

You tried to shift your leg so that the mark was hidden from his view, uncomfortable with the way he had looked at it and wished you had your bandanna back to cover it up. 

His face lifted back up to yours, stained with tears but full shock at his want to see his name on your skin. Did he still ache for you after all this time? Was the old Ben still there? You wished you could see his face, hear his voice to find out. You used to be able to read each other like a book, but now, now you were for a loss. He was a stranger in a mask.

But before either of you could say anything to break the silence, he suddenly straightened himself up and you could feel his emotions fade away and any trace of the old Ben was gone. With one last unreadable look, he spun around and left the room leaving you alone once again, but this time with a deep yearning for things that might have been.

~~~

a/n: thank you all so much for the wonderful feedback on part one. it made me super inspired to write this second part and continue the series. :)

also, i know it’s been lacking in the hux department, but never fret, he’ll be making a swift appearance in the next part.

part three

[shadowynnn]

star-crossed | part one |

star wars

pairing: ben solo/kylo ren x reader x general armitage hux

soulmate au

a/n: Due to names having significance in the soulmate aspect of this fanfic, the reader will have a name designated to better coincide with the soulmarks I have planned for each person. :)

~~~

“When you turned me down and said you had big plans for your birthday, Sol, I expected something a little more...I don’t know...big?”

Upon hearing your partner’s familiar voice, you rolled out from beneath the X-Wing you had been tinkering with and peered up at his hovering figure.

“I decided to fix up your precious X-Wing out of the goodness of my heart and this is the thanks I get, Dameron?” With a roll of your eyes, you attempted to keep the smile his words brought at bay as you sat up and unwrapped the bandanna tied around your thigh to wipe away the sweat threatening to pour into your eyes from hours of work. “You’re welcome, by the way,” you added, a smile finally breaking its way through as you quirked an eyebrow at the man, silently savoring the way his mouth twitched at your previous use of his last name.

“I just can’t believe you’d rather spend your special day with my starfighter instead of me.” Poe shook his head, faking a pout as he outstretched his hand towards you. “I mean, I really thought we were getting somewhere after our last mission together-you got a little smudge there, by the way” 

You wiped at the grease spot Poe had mentioned before taking his extended hand and letting him pull you to your feet. Your face scrunched up as your partner’s words brought up memories of the Kowakian ape-lizard. It had seemed to take weeks before you had finally managed to erase its scent from your mind and his reminder brought the pungent scent rushing back.

“Don’t go acting all bruised on me now, Poe.” You gave your partner a pointed look, throwing the memories of that mission far behind as you plopped yourself down on a nearby tool bench and took a long swig out of your canteen. “You know I don’t like celebrating my birthday.”

You meant the words in a casual manner but felt your demeanor fall as thoughts you had tried to push away by tinkering on Poe’s starfighter came tumbling back. Images of that terrible night rushed through your mind in swift flashes of fire, smoke, and blood. Nearly five years had passed but you could still hear the screams of the dying and feel the heat of the flames as they ravaged the temple. But worst of all, you could still clearly picture the boy whose name was slowly etching itself across your chest as he had begged for you to join him. And while you never dared mention the thought out loud, you couldn’t help but think it was all because of you.

As if sensing where your thoughts had tumbled, you felt a hand lightly brush across your bare thigh. Following his line of sight, you watched as Poe’s fingers gently trailed across the sweeping black letters that had appeared over your past birthdays.

With a soft sigh, you brushed Poe’s hand away in order to wrap your bandanna back around your leg and hide the other source of resentment for your birthday.

“It might not be him, you know. There aren’t enough letters to be-”

“But it is.” You shook your head interrupting Poe before he could finish his thoughts, a sharp bitterness in your tone. You were quick to soften though when you noticed the downward tilt of his lips. You hadn’t meant to direct your resentment towards him. He was just trying to help, after all. You were just frustrated at the cards fate had played you and the yearly reminder it brought. You were supposed to be counted lucky that you had two soulmates, but you didn’t see how anyone would think you were blessed. Ouf of the billions of souls in the universe, you had been given two people you could never be with. “I don’t know if it’s a soulmark thing or the bloody Force that tells me so, but it’s him. I’m certain of it.”

“Well, my offer still stands if you ever...you know...get a little lonely.” Poe’s eyebrows waggled as he gave you a knowing smirk. He may have not known about the other name etching itself on your body, only General Organa-er Leia as she had repeatedly told you to call her-knew about that one, but he was one of a very few select people who knew about the one you kept hidden with your trusted bandana and often jokingly offered - at least you were pretty certain it was a joke because lately, you had been more unsure - for the two of you to get together until he found his own soulmate, whoever the poor soul might be.

“Oh, keep dreaming, Dameron.” You tried to throw Poe a cutting glare as you promptly kicked him in the side, but you could only keep your smile at bay for a few seconds before it snuck its way through. He might have driven you crazy at times, but he always knew the right thing to do or say when you started slipping back into one of your darker, reclusive moods. No matter how alone you felt at times, Poe was always there to remind you he was there for you.

“Is there a reason you're here, or did you just feel like pestering me again?” You then asked after kicking him once more for the snide comment he muttered about your smile. “Unlike you apparently, I have work to get done, you know?” 

“Your ‘work’ will have to wait,” Poe answered. “General Organa’s assigned us another mission and while she wished it could have waited until after your birthday - which reminds me that she says happy birthday, by the way - we can’t afford to push it back. We need to leave as soon as you’re ready to.” 

“What’s the job?” You ask, your curiosity piqued at the way Poe seemed to straighten back up as he remembered why he came to find you in the first place. It had been a few weeks since you had last been able to leave the Resistance base and you were just itching to get away. It would also serve as a very welcomed distraction.

“A piece of the map’s been located.”

“Are you serious?” Your whole body froze and your earlier excitement suddenly faltered at his words. So much for that distraction. “This isn’t a joke, right? Because if it is, I swear Poe-” 

Poe shook his head interrupting you before you got yourself too worked up. “The General received a message from an old acquaintance on Jakku. We’ve got to go pick it up before the First Order also catches wind of its location and beats us to it.” 

“So, it’s finally happening.” You muttered softly more to yourself than in response to Poe as the weight of what this mission meant began to sink in. “I mean, I always thought we’d be able to, but still...” You shook your head in disbelief. “To think that we might be able to find him after everything that happened.” 

“Are you going to be okay?” Poe asked when your words trailed off and laid a hand tentatively on your shoulder. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. The general would understand, especially with your history...”

“No, no, I’m good,” you replied as you jumped down from the table, suddenly restless and eager to move as a million thoughts started flowing through your brain. “Can’t have you going off on your own, anyways. God knows how much trouble you’d get in without me.” You attempted to throw Poe a smile but the way his brows softened made you realize that he could see right through it. “Trust me, Poe, I’ll be fine.” You cupped one of Poe’s cheeks briefly with your hand as you spoke, in an attempt to reassure him as much as yourself.

You gave him another smile, this one just a bit less pitiful than the first one, before patting his cheek gently and running off to your room to get dressed and ready for the mission before he could argue any further on the matter and before you could talk yourself out of it.

~~~ 

The surface of Jakku was quiet as you and Poe quietly made your way to your destination. The only sounds to be heard were the distant rumblings of the village’s animals and a stray windchime tinkling in the wind. 

Despite the peaceful setting, you couldn’t help but feel on edge as you strayed close behind Poe, your hand hovering over the blaster attached to your belt as your eyes scanned the scene around you. It couldn’t be this easy. After years of searching for Skywalker and the map to lead you to him, it couldn’t be as simple as flying into the village and walking out with the map as this.

But there wasn’t another ship in the night sky and all was at peace on the surface below. You couldn’t make out another soul outside beside you and Poe and even the animals were calm in the pens. 

Upon finding the house of the man you were here to meet, Poe knocked quietly, his dark eyes studying the desert around you as you waited. A few seconds later, a hand pushed aside the curtain and motioned you in. You followed the commands quickly, eager to get out of plain sight and slipped inside the lighted hut while BB-8, Poe’s loyal droid, stayed outside to keep watch.

“Lor San Tekka?” Poe asked as the braided curtains came to a close behind you and the two of you got your first good look at him.

While he was along in age, his face was also wizened in a way which showed he had seen and been through much in his long lifetime. His hair, a bright white, was a stark contrast to his tanned skin, but it was his eyes which caught your attention the most. You could see a sadness in them, a deep mourning for some loss and a startling reflection of your own.

San Tekka nodded his head, moving to sit in one of the empty chairs while motioning for you and Poe to do the same. Once you were all seated, he reached inside his robe and brought out a small, leather sack. 

“This will begin to make things right,” He spoke softly, placing the sack in Poe’s hand and closing it. “I’ve traveled too far, and seen too much, to ignore the despair in the galaxy. Without the Jedi, there can be no balance in the Force.”

His eyes turned to you as he spoke about the lost order, somber eyes staring deep into your own with an understanding that startled you.

He knew. 

Somehow he knew, but you didn’t understand how.

“I can’t.” You shook your head furiously, panic rising in your voice as your hands clenched and unclenched in your lap. “I’m sorry, I just can’t, not after what happened.”

A sad smile filled his features as he reached to take your hands in his and calm their restless movements. 

“Try as you might, young Rhodair, you cannot forgo your destiny. The Force will always be a part of who you are and who you will become.”

You opened your mouth to argue his statement. The Force may always be a part of you, but you would be damned if you ever continued your Jedi training. The order may have been good, but it had only brought you trouble and grief. You would never be a Jedi now, not after everything that had happened. 

But before you could explain any of this, BB-8 interrupted, frantically beeping about an unknown fleet of ships entering the atmosphere as he rolled into the hut.

“We’ve got company.” 

You exchanged a nervous look with Poe, your old thoughts fading away as the growing predicament took priority. Although none of you dared to speak, you all knew whose ships were on their way. It was only a matter of time before the First Order had caught wind of the same tip you had and made their way here. You were just lucky you had managed to be a few minutes earlier.

Your hands slip out of San Tekka’s grip as you swiftly follow Poe out of the hut, a new fear rising up deep within you. You were no stranger to fights with the First Order, but you had never experienced one when you were so disadvantaged. It didn’t matter that you had the best pilot in the Resistance fleet with you, the two of you could never stand alone against an entire fleet of First Order soldiers.

Several of the other villagers were beginning to become aware of the coming ships when you made your way back into the open air. Growing shouts of surprise and warning were heard throughout the village around you. The previously quiet animals grew restless and filled the air with anxious squawking and braying. 

Poe took out his quadnoculars and began scanning the horizon to your east, his dark brows furrowing at what he saw. You couldn’t see what was coming in the dim light, but knew it couldn’t have been good based on his reaction.

“You have to hide.” Poe turned to San Tekka, his face twisted in concern as he handed the quadnoculars to you.

You felt your heart speed up as you saw the number of ships coming your way. There were at least a dozen that you could see at the moment and you didn’t doubt each ship itself held a dozen or two of stormtroopers with them. There would be at least a hundred stormtroopers in the village in a matter of seconds and all you had were yourself, Poe, BB-8, and a few scraggly villages. It was going to be a massacre unless you could think of something fast.

“And you have to go!” San Tekka responded leaving your stomach twisting as you spun around to face him startled at his words. You couldn’t leave them at a time like this. It would be impossible for this small village to be able to hold its own against the trained soldiers of the First Order and would no doubt be slaughtered when they found what they were searching for was no longer here. “Go! You must return the balance!” San Tekka added, pushing you and Poe in the direction of your ships when neither of you made a move to do what he had said. “I’ve done all that I can do. Our hope rests in you now!”

You didn’t want to leave the man but saw little choice. While the thought tore you up inside, you couldn’t sacrifice your help for the map. If you stayed and the First Order got their hands on it, then what hope was left for the Resistance and those who still believed in it? As awful as the thought settled in your stomach, the village had to be sacrificed for the good of the universe.

Exchanging a knowing look with Poe, the two of you took off in the direction of your ships. 

The quiet village quickly erupted into the chaos of a battlefield around you as the stormtrooper transports landed. Sounds of blasters filled the air as the little village tried their best to fend off the elite soldiers of the First Order, but dying screams were quick to follow as the shots hit their mark. 

You did your best to ignore them as you tore after Poe towards your fighters. In the back of your mind, you knew the First Order would be here even if you weren’t but you couldn’t help but feel guilty about their presence nonetheless. This village was innocent, it’s only crime housing a piece of Luke Skywalker’s map and they were paying with their lives.

Shaking your thoughts away, you scrambled inside your fighter. You needed to stay focused on the mission, on the importance of the map Poe had in his jacket. That was all that mattered at this moment. It held the only hope the universe had at this point.

Your fingers flitted over the buttons and screens in front of you, hurridly trying to bring the ship around you to life. But just as you felt the familiar rumble of the engines starting beneath you, you were jarred forward as it was hit. Glancing behind you, you found a few wandering stormtroopers.

“Shit!” You mumbled as your fighter was hit once more causing the engines to sputter a few more times before coming to a stop. 

Casting another glance at the approaching enemy, you saw them fall when Poe quickly took care of them, but his own fighter was starting to catch fire. You grumbled a few more curses as you clambered back out of your ship to assess the state of your X-Wings. You had just fixed his ship and now it was probably going to be scrapped or lost completely.

Your cursing only grew as you took in the state of your own. It would take hours for you to at least be able to get it back in working order, precious time you didn’t have at the moment. As your frustration grew, you gave your shot X-Wing a swift kick. You didn’t think this day could get any worse.

“You take this. It’s safer with you than it is with me.” You spun around thinking Poe was talking to you, but his attention was towards BB-8 as he offered the small robot the map. “It’s safer with you than it is with either of us.” 

BB-8 was quick to disagree but upon Poe’s determination it still begrudgingly took the map and locked it away. 

“Go on, BB-8, we’ll be fine.” You encouraged the bot when it looked to you despite Poe’s urges for it to leave. 

You didn’t like the idea of parting ways with BB-8, or the map for that matter, but knew it was your best bet at this point. With both of your ships completely shot at the moment, you would have to stay hidden to not only stay alive but escape capture as well. But upon glancing back at the battlefield, you felt your luck already beginning to run out. Your ships weren’t hidden and it wouldn’t be hard for the First Order to realize Resistance members were still on Jakku with the map. With that knowledge, you knew they would sweep the planet and kill anyone in their way until they found you. What BB-8 now held was that important to them and to you. Just as the villagers’ sacrifice was important, so would be your own.

“Don’t worry buddy, we’ll find you when this blows over.” You gave the small robot a reassuring pat on the head, hoping it was unable to see the worried state you were in. Glancing between the two of you once more, BB-8 let out a series of nervous beeps before taking off into the desert.

With the fighting starting to quiet down, you swiftly made your way to a nearby patch of grass to hide and watch the scene unfolding before you. The remaining villagers had started to surrender upon realizing their ultimate defeat and were being rounded up by gunpoint towards the center of the village. You found San Tekka among the survivors and shuddered at the slaughter that would undoubtedly take place among the First Order realizing they were moments too late.

The stormtroopers seemed to be waiting for something as they finished up rounding the villagers, though you were unsure as to what it might have been. It didn’t take long for your curiosity to be sated when another ship landed amongst the others, but you shuddered upon looking at it. This one was different. With the imposing vertical wingspan, you knew it belonged to someone of importance.

Deep down you knew who was aboard that ship before you saw them walk out, knew that it was only a matter of time before you were forced to face him again, but the reaction upon seeing his dark figure striding out was still inevitable.

Your entire body froze, a soft gasp escaping your throat as your eyes locked onto him. Visions of that night flashed before you once more, aided by the heavy smell of smoke and fire around you. 

Everything you had tried so hard to bury away came rushing back with a sudden ferocity you nearly cried out, only barely able to stop yourself with a quick hand to your mouth. You could hear his voice as he had begged you to join him, feel his hands as they had caressed your face, and then see his face through your tears as you had broken both of your hearts with just a few words.

“Sol?” You could barely hear Poe’s soft cry over the roaring in your head. “Sol? What’s wrong?”

Poe’s gentle hand against your cheek startled you causing you to nearly cry out again, but caught yourself just in time as you recognized the man beside you as only your partner.

“...I’m fine,” you managed to mumble out, breath heavy as you struggled to relax. “Just give me a minute.”

“You’re crying.” 

It was a simple statement and you saw his face soften dramatically despite the situation around you. You reached up, shocked to see Poe was right as you felt the wetness on your cheeks. You had been crying.

“I’m fine,” you mumbled out again, desperately wiping at the tears and hating the weakened state it put you in.

It didn’t matter that he was here, that you had to face him again after so many years. All that mattered was BB-8 getting the map to safety and you not getting caught. You couldn’t freak out now, couldn’t lose control of your emotions now when yours and Poe’s lives depended on it. You needed to straighten yourself up, but one quick glance in his direction and you were back in the past again.

Poe opened his mouth to debate the matter. He may have not known what was going through your head and upsetting you so much, but he did know it must have been significant because you always had such a tight lock on your emotions. 

He never got to voice his concern. Upon seeing your startled reaction to the scene unfolding before you, he quickly pushed aside his concern and turned just in time to see the dark figure from before cut down Lor San Tekka. And before he or yourself could stop him, his hand was at his blaster as he tried to kill the dark figure who had just slaughtered San Tekka.

A hand immediately stifled your mouth as you watched Poe’s idiotic move in horror, able to do nothing about it without exposing yourself and making the situation worse. Poe’s blaster shot only made it halfway to its target before it and Poe were frozen. 

Poe struggled against the invisible bonds of the force, clearly shocked at the display of power. You tried not to be too angry at him, he was ignorant to the power of the force, but you still couldn’t believe he thought he could take down the dark figure with a surprise shot. 

Your thoughts began to scramble at Poe’s capture, the only coherent thought was about how much of an idiot he was. You knew you needed to do something, anything to start formulating a plan on rescuing Poe without your capture as well, but your eyes kept falling onto the dark figure before you and all ability to focus and think fell apart. You were completely helpless.

It wasn’t until you saw them dragging Poe away that the weight of the situation began to kick your brain into overdrive. If you didn’t do something now, you would lose Poe. But what? What could you manage to do against a troop of First Order soldiers and the man from your past?

But before you could worry too much, you noticed the stormtrooper approaching him from the side and then the sharp point in the direction of where your ships were at. Someone else had found them and now they knew Poe wasn’t the only Resistance fighter on the planet.

You slinked further into the shadows when both men suddenly turned in your direction. And then Poe, noticing this exchange and the men heading in your direction, started struggling against his captors causing you to curse the man once again. 

The troops picked up their pace when your location was verified by Poe’s actions and you swiftly took your blaster in your hands. You weren’t going down without a fight, you weren’t going to be forced to face him again without a fight.

But despite your determination, you only got off a few rounds before the blaster was knocked from your hands and you were forced to your knees. You struggled against your captors, cursing and kicking as you were dragged out of your hiding spot and into his view. 

You told yourself not to look, to not give him the satisfaction of seeing your face, of knowing it was you, but you couldn’t do it. You could feel his eyes on you, almost hear the soft intake of his breath at the shock of your presence after all these years.

You looked up at him from the distance and felt the sharp tug at your chest from the mark which laid there. His eyes caught yours quickly and despite the mask which kept his face from you, you could still see and feel the reaction your sudden presence pulled. 

Once again, you felt the sharp tug at your chest, a cruel reminder of just who this man before you was before you felt the biting sting of the butt of a gun against the back of your head and everything went black.

~~~

part two  |  part three

[shadowynnn]

among the dragons | part two |

a song of ice and fire / game of thrones

synopsis: When you left for the Harrenhal tourney, the last thing you expected was for Rhaegar Targaryan to ask you for your hand in marriage. With a betrothment to the prince, you have no choice but to leave the safety of the North and become a vital piece in the war to overthrow the Mad King once and for all. (eventual au)

part two synopsis: You arrive in Harrenhal oblivious to Rheagar’s watchful eye on you.

pairing: rhaegar targaryan x stark! reader

words: 3276

~~~

The journey to Harrenhal had been a lengthy one.

You had been ecstatic your first few days into the trip; too excited about the destination and upcoming weeks to pay much mind to the eventual hardships of long travel. Enjoying the freedom of getting to ride your horse to your heart’s content without any sharp repercussions from the Septa, you had ridden up near the front of your caravan between Ned and Lyanna, listening pleasantly to the former as he spoke tales of the history surrounding the country you traveled through. 

But after the first week, you felt your spirits begin to sink as the weariness of the road began to take root inside you. Each day grew hotter than the one before and the dresses you had been forced to wear during your time away from Winterfell grew so hot and uncomfortable in the stifling, southern weather you would have given anything to be able to just take them off. How in the world people managed to endure these conditions year after year, you hadn’t a clue. 

And as if the heat wasn’t enough, there was then the aches and pains from entire days spent bobbing along the Kingsroad on top of your mount. You had ridden quite often in Winterfell, but your legs were still beginning to be rubbed raw from your continual riding. You had been welcomed, in fact, highly encouraged by the Septa, to join her and a few of the other ladies accompanying your journey in the carriage, and while the idea of being able to just sit in the cool shade of the carriage and give your body rest was highly tempting, the thought of having to suffer through hours in a confined space with the Septa to do so was enough for you to continue suffering in silence on top of your mount beside your brothers.

But just when you believed to be at your breaking point, Brandon had pointed out the scraggly tips of Harrenhal’s infamous towers, dark against the setting sun when you had stopped to make camp a few weeks in. With another of your father’s men claiming to reach the castle by at least midday the following day, your spirits had suddenly renewed. Every ache and complaint on the tip of your tongue had slipped away at the prospects of being so close to your destination. By this time tomorrow, you’d be feasting in Harrenhal’s great hall with all the other great houses.

You could hardly sleep that night, your excitement keeping you wide awake in your tent. Instead, you had spent the long hours into the night chatting and giggling with your sister until the Septa, fed up with your noise, put a swift end to it. While neither of you was quick to obey - both of you had then spent the following minutes quietly muttering about her - you did eventually fall into a restless sleep a few hours before the sun arose and the time came for you to begin packing for the final leg of the trip.

While the majority of your party rode to the open fields to set up your house’s tents, you had raced after your siblings towards Harrenhal and through the gatehouse, threats of whoever was last being thrown into the God’s Eye Lake fueling your race.

It was Brandon who had instigated it, taunting Lyanna to the point they began galloping across the road before them and sending the rest of their father’s bannermen tearing out of their way. Benjen was quick to chase after, threatening them all with the lake as he went. You exchanged a look with Ned, and while he had shaken his head in amused disbelief at their actions, he hadn’t wasted any time to join in when you suddenly urged your horse forward, grey skirts billowing behind you.

“Looks like little Ella’s going for a swim,” Brandon jested, dismounting when you were the last to pass the gatehouse due to Ned inching past you at the last moment.

You blanched. “But that’s not fair! You, Lya, and Ben had a headstart!” You complained as you dismounted your own horse and approached your siblings to argue the matter. Crossing your arms, you stood up straight to try and make up for your short stature. There was no way you were going to let them throw you into the lake. “Plus, you don’t have to wear a stupid - Oh, Brandon! Put me down!” You screamed when your eldest brother suddenly swept you off your feet and threw your thrashing body over his shoulder. “I swear to the gods, Brandon, if you throw me into that godforsaken lake, I will-”

“You’ll what?” Brandon ignored Ned’s quiet suggestion to let you be as he continued his playful teasing while Ben and Lyanna, suddenly not bitter over their losses anymore, cheered him on.

“Why, I’ll...” You began a long line of threats at your brother as he carried you through the sea of tents, too aggravated at him to notice or care about the eyes of the surrounding crowd following you. You had given up thrashing, but gave him an occasional boot to the chest when you heard him chuckling at your empty threats.

But instead of leading you to the lake as you feared, you soon found yourself in a sea of direwolves. Brandon settled you back on your feet in the middle of the Stark’s camp where everyone was too used to behavior like this to pay it much mind and have come to your rescue earlier. You were left with little time to feel relieved as Brandon murmured a cautious warning for you to watch your back before disappearing through the crowd of Northerners to attend to whatever lordly duties he was charged with upon arriving at your destination.

“I hope he realizes if he throws me in that stupid lake, he’ll be coming in with me,” you huffed to Lyanna as you watched his figure disappear. You would not be going in the lake without a fight. Lyanna giggled at your response, stating she’d love to see you try before asking if you wanted to explore the grounds with her as she took in the foreign castle before you.

Thoughts of your loss were quickly forgotten at her offer and you eagerly nodded your head. Your excitement, however, was quickly diminished when the two of you didn’t even manage to make it out of your camp before being swiftly halted by the Septa. 

Thankfully, she hadn’t seen the rambunctious exchange between you and Brandon - you could only imagine the fit she would be in if she had -  nor was she crossed with either of you for the first time in, well, probably since she had first arrived in Winterfell. Instead, she had been tasked with overseeing your preparation for the night’s feast at Harrenhal’s dining hall and she was determined to see it through with no mishaps.

Lyanna had swiftly argued, stating the feast wasn’t for another few hours giving them a bit of time to explore, but this had only caused the Septa to grow red at the thought of you two wandering alone. Taking a hand each before either of you could even think about disappearing, she hauled you off to your tent all the while raving about the dangers of not having a guard with you when you left sight of your family’s tents.

While you had originally agreed with Lyanna’s statement, getting ready for the feast couldn’t possibly take that long, you had both been quickly proven otherwise. 

The Septa had wasted no expense at prepping the both of you for the event. Baths were had first, filling the tent with foreign smelling perfumes and soaps native to Southern Westeros as your hired handmaiden scrubbed your skin raw. Once clean from your day’s ride, you were dressed in a light gown fashioned in the Southern style. The bodice was tight against your chest, accentuating your waist and bust before falling loose from your hips to the floor; while the pale blue fabric brought out the soft flecks of blue in your grey eyes.

After slipping on a pair of silver slippers, or freshly oiled boots in Lyanna’s case, a few strands of hair were pulled back into intricate braids to keep them from getting into your eyes throughout the night. The Septa quickly began reminding you and your sister of the proper etiquette befitting a lady of your stature as your hair was being braided, causing both of you to roll your eyes more than once. She didn’t state it, but you knew it was so Lyanna didn’t chase off Robert Baratheon and you could manage to attract a befitting suitor of your own.

Your brothers stood outside your tent, waiting so that you might all walk to the great hall together and while none of them said a word, you could tell they were all taken back by your appearances. It wasn’t often either one of you - Lyanna even less - got all dressed up and it was a sharp contrast from the flowing shirts and riding leathers you often wore back in Winterfell. Before any word could be spoken on the matter, Lyanna swiftly told your three brothers to ‘shut up’ and began stomping in the direction of Harrenhal. While you looked forward to the night’s events, Lyanna couldn’t wait until it was all over.

Benjen spoke steadily as you made your way to the hall, rambling about the other great houses, the Kingsguard, the royal family, and nearly everything else in between. His speech came to an abrupt stop, however, when you entered Harrenhal’s great hall and saw the spectacular display set before you. 

The massive space glowed in the blazing light of dozens of hearths lining the walls, casting dancing shadows along the dark walls. Long, wooden tables lined the edges of the room, with several occupied by the other great houses already. A large spot towards the front was left open for what you assumed was dancing making you nervous. You hoped no strange men would ask you to dance because unlike Lyanna, you found it difficult to say no. 

Throwing your nerves behind you, you followed your brothers towards a table, eyes wide as you continued to take in the spectacular display around you. In your distracted state, you nearly ran into several bustling servants and only managed to avoid any contact when Ned swiftly took hold of the crook of your arm and guided you to your table.

It wasn’t long after the feast began in full spring. Lyanna and Brandon had started bickering early on, both taking full advantage of the flowing mead and their father’s absence, while you nursed your first cup. Your attention was quickly enraptured by Ned as he pointed out the various people around you.

There were the Baratheons a few tables down from you with a large, booming man you came to quickly know was your sister’s betrothed. You thought him quite attractive with his dark curls and warrior frame but frowned slightly at the amount of ale he seemed to be chugging down. You would never say it aloud, but it seemed to you that he lived up to the rumors. 

Then there were the Lions of Lannisters, whose Lord was also the King’s Hand. Cersei Lannister was just as beautiful as you had heard tales of with her honey, golden hair and slender frame. She sat dainty and composed beside her brother, a lovely smile on her face as she appeared every bit the lady the Septa wished you’d be. 

You fought the urge to frown as you watched the way she covered her mouth while she giggled at something her brother had whispered in her ear. No wonder so many men, even supposedly the prince, seemed to vie for her attention and hand, she was so lovely and charming. And you had no doubt you were looking at the next queen of Westeros.

Your attention was quickly drawn from the Lannisters when Ned moved on to the royal family and you couldn’t suppress the sudden shudder overtaking you when Ned motioned to the king. You had never seen him, or any Targaryen before, but you would have been able to recognize him even if he wasn’t wearing a crown. With his matted white hair, dark, beady eyes, and gaunt figure, he looked nothing short of what you had always imagined the mad king to be. 

You were careful to not let your eyes linger on his hunched form for any more than a few seconds for fear of accidentally meeting his suspicious eyes with your own. You swiftly moved on to the man sitting on his right when Ned began speaking of his firstborn and heir, Prince Rhaegar. 

Tales of the prince’s beauty had also not been exaggerated. His pale face was framed by silver locks and while you couldn’t see them, you knew he possessed the Targaryen violet eyes. But for all the attractive features he possessed, you found yourself leery of the man. Who knew what was hidden behind his pretty face for his mind could have been just as easily tainted as his father’s.

You were just about to turn away when his eyes suddenly shifted to you. Startled, you quickly looked away hoping it hadn’t been you whom he had seen. Your gaze was now directed at the Arryn’s, but you found it hard to listen to Ned’s words as your heart still raced inside your chest. The last thing you needed or wanted was to attract the attention of the prince. You had no desire to pursue a betrothment with a Targaryan where madness must flow through their veins. 

But upon looking down at your lap, you found the idea ridiculous and a blush crept its way up to your cheeks. There was no way you could manage to attract the prince even if you had wanted to. Many men had called you and your sister beautiful, but it was a wild, unnatural beauty. It wasn’t a lovely, awe-taking beauty like Cersei Lannister or a gentle, warm beauty like Elia Martell, the other supposed interest of Prince Rheagar. It was a cold, hard beauty of the North and pretty Southern princes weren’t attracted to that.

The realization didn’t really upset you. It wasn’t like you wanted to marry the prince, but rather the opposite. You were fortunate the prince didn’t find you pretty to look at like the other ladies because you wanted to stay as far away from the royal family as possible. No, it was better if you let the dainty Southern ladies play the game of thrones. You were perfectly content to watch from the distance. 

~~~

“Are you going to speak to her, or do you intend to continue watching her from up here all night?”

Ser Arthur Dayne followed Rhaegar’s gaze towards the young lady in blue, eyes glowing as she danced with one of her brothers. He had caught the young prince glancing at her often throughout the night, thought the object of his fascination seemed utterly oblivious.

“I think it would be best if I kept my distance at the moment.” 

Rhaegar’s eyes flitted to the now-empty seat beside him. His father had retired for the night a while ago, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t catch wind of the rest of the night’s activities, especially if he were to dance with Lord Stark’s unbetrothed daughter. While King Aerys had openly spoken his distaste towards Cersei Lannister and Elia Martell, many still expected him to marry one of the two. Rhaegar didn’t know how his father or anyone else for that matter, would take if he danced with Lyella Stark. His father was already wary of the Northern Lord and his children with the vast land in the North, after all.

He had seen her eyes on him only once throughout the night and when he had caught her gaze she had looked away quickly, startled as she seemed to try and fade from view. It was unlike the other ladies and their many wistful looks throughout the night in hopes of catching his eye. And now, with the dancing in full swing, he had noticed their flittering eyes more often in hopes of garnering his attention for a dance.

But Rhaegar didn’t particularly feel like dancing with them tonight. He was tired of their subtle advances, honeyed words, and hopeful actions of winning his eyes and more importantly, his hand. They dreamed of a crown and a title, but they would never receive it. He needed a marriage which secured peace once again in Westeros, but the one girl who unknowingly offered just that seemed completely uninterested in any of it.

His eyes fell on her once again, laughing as she tried to help guide her brother through a dance. He couldn’t decide how he felt about her. She wasn’t at all like he expected, and by that, he meant she wasn’t like any of the high born ladies he had meant before, or really like any lady he had meant before. She had an untamed wildness about her, an icy fire flowing through her veins.

When he had heard mention of the Starks’ expected arrival earlier in the day, he had walked down towards the gates with Lord Whent and Ser Arthur in hopes of catching a glance of his future betrothed and her family and caught by great surprise at what he saw.

He had been unsure of which girl she was when he saw the first few horses flooding through the gate, surprised to see both of his daughters on top of their own mounts as they came in view. Lord Whent had been quick to clarify the one last through the gates was the youngest, though how Rhaegar couldn’t tell because of how identical the girls appeared. Lord Whent had laughed at his questioning, stating it didn’t take long getting to know them before you were able to pick them apart. 

He hadn’t understood what Lord Whent had meant then, but upon watching both girls throughout the night, he thought he was beginning to see. Both girls had a wild, Northen aura about them, but hers felt calmer, more tender and gentle, preferring to sit and listen while her sister took charge.

“Shall I go then, your grace? I would much like to make her acquaintance.”

Rhaegar saw the amused smile on Arthur’s face as he spoke, memories of the day’s earlier events playing in both their minds. While Rhaegar had not known what to make of seeing her brother carry her away in such a barbaric manner, Ser Arthur had seemed pleasantly amused at the scene and stated his immediate like of the girl.

“You may do as you wish,” Rhaegar responded indifferently wishing the entirety of the betrothment and wedding was already underway and done, so he could work towards securing his alliances and an heir. 

Ser Arthur seemed pleased by the response, taking off to steal the Northern lady from her brother while Rhaegar watched the exchange from above. He watched as she flushed at his interruption, seeming quite taken back by the member of the Kingsguard asking her for a dance. Despite her shock, however, she recovered quickly, nodding her head and giving him a timid smile as her brother let her take his extended hand. 

Rhaegar sighed, running a hand through his hair as he once again wondered what to make of the beautiful wolf-girl.

[shadowynnn]

touch

my hero academia

~~~

Misadventure 02 in The Whimsical Misadventures of One Pro Hero Mimicry

Pairing: Shigaraki Tomura x OC (Aiko Akiyama, Mimicry)

Words: 1597

Misadventure 01

~~~

“...Aiko….” His only word your name, a silent, begging plea.  

You looked up at him startled, fighting hard to resist the shiver racing down your spine which that single word evoked. In all the time you had been together you had never heard him say your name in such a way, so full of want and need.

When you found his face you could no longer hold yourself back and felt your entire body shiver at the way he looked down at you. His dark eyes shone with such a strong desire and necessity so unlike him, you wanted to look away but found yourself unable, completely captivated by the man before you. 

“...Aiko…” There it was again, just as desperate as the first time. “...could you?...please?”

You felt him nudge something towards your hands and looked down to see him offering a pair of gloves with all but two of the fingers cut off.

Understanding what he was asking, you gazed back up at him, a small blush forming as you once again was overwhelmed by the need in his features. 

“Of course, Tomu.” A soft smile crossed your face as you took the gloves he was offering you and slipped one on. 

With your still bare hand, you gently grabbed hold of his chin with three fingers and pulled his face towards you, his desperation causing your own to bloom inside you. Your sudden actions startled him and you felt his body tense under your touch but did nothing to stop you as your lips brushed against his ever so softly.

“It’s done,” you murmured against his lips, your own desire keeping them from lingering too far. You were careful to drop your hand, however, making sure not to touch anything as it fell from his face.

He pulled back at your words, a doubting wistfulness in his eyes as he gazed down at you. “Prove it.” 

With a gentle smile, you quickly scanned the room around you for and grabbed a nearby candy wrapper. Very carefully you wrapped all five fingers around the wrapper and watched as it dissolved into dust in your hands. You couldn’t help but shiver at the display, slightly horrified by the foreign quirk you would be holding until you gave it back. 

You heard his sharp intake of breath at the sight and his hands warily brushed against the dust which remained in between your fingers. 

“Careful,” you murmured at his touch withdrawing your hand long enough to pull on the other glove. You didn’t want to take any chances. The amount of trust Tomura was putting in you at this moment was unbelievable and you would never forgive yourself if you accidentally broke it.

His hand found its way to your chin, pulling your gaze back towards him as his pinky hovered just over your skin. You could still see the doubt in his eyes, full of a dark fear if he were to accidentally hurt you. 

“It’s okay, Tomu.” 

Ever so gently you reached up and guided his pinky towards you. He jerked back as it made contact, sure that you would start dissolving before him despite the assurances you made.

“It’s okay, Tomu,” you repeated just as gentle as the first time when you reached for his hand again. He flinched as your fingers brushed against his skin, but did let you take it. “You can touch me.” You brought your his hand to your cheek, very carefully guiding each finger towards you as your eyes never wavered from his own. He flinched once more when his thumb hit, but he didn’t let go this time. “See, Tomu, you won’t hurt me.” 

His eyes widened, disbelief blooming as he watched all five fingers caress the side of your face without any sign of it crumbling beneath him. It had been sixteen years since he had last been able to touch someone like this, to feel someone else’s skin without fear of hurting them. You couldn’t imagine how it must have felt, how lonely it must have been.

In hopes to encourage him, you leaned your head into his touch wanting him to know you had craved this moment just as much as he had.  He seemed shocked by the action, but after a few more seconds, you felt his fingers slowly begin to move, flitting across your face as if he were touching you for the first time and in his own way, he was. 

Cautiously his other hand approached and you felt your eyes close involuntarily as it made contact. His fingers skimmed across your skin growing more daring with every passing second. A thumb trailed over your bottom lip causing them to part as a newfound hunger buried itself inside you. 

When his hands suddenly left, you opened your eyes confused and slightly disappointed.  Your mouth opened to ask him what was wrong, but all that escaped was a soft, startled cry when you felt him grab your hips and pull you forcefully towards him. Despite your shock, you were quick to adjust to his actions, wrapping your legs around his waist as he sat you down in his lap. Your hands reached up to grab his shoulders wanting to pull yourself closer but he quickly pushed them away. It was his turn to touch you.

His hands wound themselves in your hair, quickly pulling off your headband so that it fell naturally around your face. Your eyes fluttered closed once more as his deft fingers went to work in your hair, gentle tugs and pulls growing rougher and more desperate with each passing second. An especially hard pull left an audible gasp escaping your throat but was quickly silenced as his mouth fell swiftly on yours.

His kiss was clumsy, a subtle sign of his lack of experience, but full of a burning hunger. You melted into the kiss, carefully guiding his lips with your own until they moved in synch with one another. 

Your hands reached up to bury themselves in his hair, but this only caused him to grumble in annoyance and push them away again. He didn’t want your touch to distract him from this moment. He wanted, no needed, all his focus to be directed solely on you.

“Tomu…” you whined against him, lips pouting as you tried once more to touch him. 

“No,” Another growl as his hands quickly stopped yours before they could make contact. “...my turn now.” The last bit a soft mumble as he grabbed both your wrists with one of his hands to stop you from making any more attempts. 

You frowned in return. This was entirely unfair, but any thoughts on arguing further disappeared as his lips began to work their way across your jaw and down your neck, teeth nipping at the fragile skin every so often.

You found it hard to focus on anything but his touch and the desperate fervor behind it. You could feel the need in every little brush of a fingertip and the desire in every lingering kiss against your body. 

Eventually, you found yourself lying down, shirt long discarded as he moved on to feel and explore new regions of your body. You let him have his way, savoring the feeling of him finally letting himself go. In all your intimate moments in the past, you had never realized just how much he was holding back for fear of hurting you until now. 

“Tomura.” Finding a burst of courage from the burst of emotions running through you, you pulled his face away from your stomach and towards your own. He seemed aggravated at first and ready to quickly pin your hands again, but his annoyance melted away at seeing the expression on your face and hearing the loving way you spoke his name. “...I think-”

“-Tenko,” 

Your brows furrowed at his quick interruption, confused by what he had said or meant in that moment. “Hmm?” You murmured, enjoying the way his distracted state allowed you to twirl a strand of his hair through your fingers.

“...My real name is Tenko.” 

You could see the effort it took for him to speak, the uncertainty in his voice as he bared one of his biggest secrets to you. Though the sudden revelation caught you by surprise, you were quick to smother it with a warm smile. Your hand left his hair as you cupped his cheek feeling a sliver of the frustration he probably met when the glove kept you from full contact.

“Tenko,” You tried the name out, smiling at the reaction it pulled from the man above you. “I think I love you, Tenko.” 

His eyes widened at your words, body tensing as he stared down at you in shocked disbelief. You couldn’t help but giggle at the stunned reaction your words caused the man and you quickly pulled his lips down to you. His body slowly relaxed once more under your touch before taking control once more by pinning your hands above your head. 

You didn’t worry about the lack of an actual worded response from him. It would have surprised you more if he had actually returned your bold sentiment with one of his own. But despite the silence following your confession, his actions spoke loud enough. It might still be time before he dared to speak those same words out loud, but for now, in the way he handled your body with such love and care, you knew he felt the same. And that was more than enough for you.

[shadowynnn]

Misadventure 01

~~~

Prompt: The kids, they ambushed me!

Pairing: Aizawa Shouta x OC (Aiko Akiyama, aka Mimicry)

Misadventure 01  of The Whimsical Misadventures of One Pro Hero Mimicry

Words: 2986

~~~

A/N: (Sorry it’s sort of long…)

Here’s the first of hopefully many one-shots centered around my OC for My Hero Academia! It’s a bit different than my normal stuff, but I’m super excited to see where this heads and I hope you all are too! 

Here are a few extra notes about this series to hopefully clear things up as you read:

1. These are not written in chronological order, but rather when I find a prompt inspiring one or whenever I can’t get a certain idea, episode, scene, or thought out of my head. If it’s inspired by a prompt though, I’ll be sure to include it! With this in mind though, I’ll be trying to do my best to explain things about her in a way that makes sense as you go along. Her quirk, family, and background will hopefully be revealed in a way which can be understood even if the events aren’t written in order. I’ve never written in this way before, so fingers crossed it’ll work. 

2. This series will also be a bit AU. Because I think it would be super cute to see the relationships my OC would have with Class 1-A students, I’m made an AU where each class at UA has a teacher’s assistant which follows a class through their years at UA and I’m excited to see where and what kind of new opportunities this will allow her to experience. It’s just a lot of fun to imagine how she would react/be in different situations with the class!

3. There will occasionally be other OC’s throughout this. If you’re ever interested in learning more about them, or even my main OC as well, I’d be happy to share more in a separate, more detailed post. Just let me know!

4. Lastly, and on a slightly different note, I’m planning on intermingling other one-shots/possible imagines with some of the other characters in My Hero Academia (or even other fanbases altogether) which won’t be OC’d based or take place in this series. Let me know if you’d also be interested in these! If so, I might make a separate and more detailed post and we can go from there!

I think that’s most of the things I wanted to explain before you started reading and I apologize for this being really long. I just thought it would be important to note before you started reading and I *hopefully* continue this series! 

Thanks for sticking through this - especially if you actually took the time to read all the way through. I hope you all enjoy! :)

~~~

Your legs swung idly from where you sat perched on Shouta’s desk listening absentmindedly to the latter inform Sekijiro Kan and his class assistant, Kaito Takahashi, on the students of Class 1-A. You were trying your best to pay attention, adding short comments about students when you felt it necessary, but your head just wasn’t in it today. Normally you loved your work as 1-A’s class assistant, but with summer break officially starting and camp still a few weeks away, you were bored with all the paperwork, preparations, and meetings. 

You couldn’t complain too much, though, as it was partly your fault. Class Assistants weren’t required to be as involved with the end of semester documentation as you had been, but you had just felt bad with all the extra hours Shouta was having to put in that you eventually offered a second pair of hands.

He had refused you at first, coming up with several stupid excuses before you could convince him otherwise. While he constantly reminded you you could stop whenever he saw you losing focus after an hour or two at the computer, it was easy to see he welcomed your help and was more relaxed having you around him more often, especially after realizing your villainous ex-boyfriend was still kind of hung up over you, which was another matter altogether you didn’t really want to think about at the moment.

Either sensing your restlessness or simply growing tired of the dragging meeting himself, Shouta dropped his papers on the desk beside you and leaned against the edge just close enough to where the side of his body lightly brushed against your own. While a casual enough gesture to be seen as innocent by those who were unaware of your relationship, it was still enough to make you inwardly smile. Shouta wasn’t one to initiate contact very often, especially not in public, so it always meant a lot to you when he did so and you struggled to keep yourself from melting into his side. 

While most of the faculty was aware of your outside relationship, you had been dating before you were hired at UA after all, you were still careful to keep a work-appropriate demeanor around your coworkers. It wasn’t hard though - with Shouta being his usual reserved self and you being sociable and affectionate with nearly everyone you met - and the majority of the school was completely unaware you two were even together. Hell, even your own class was oblivious until the USJ incident, though a few - aka, the girls - had had their suspicions.

Shouta stayed by your side for the remainder of the meeting, only moving once to place a hand on your knee to stop your legs from swinging when the constant movement against his own began to annoy him.  While the gesture was normal for the two of you - you were never one to be able to sit still - you were surprised to note he left his hand there once your movement had stopped. You didn’t read too much into it, however, as he was probably just stressed with the upcoming camp and extra classes. Shouta always got more touchy when he started stressing, stating your presence helped him relax and it had shown the past few days. You did your best to try and play it off though, not wanting to draw any attention. 

Luckily, Sekijiro was too enthralled with the papers in his hands to notice the exchange, but your former classmate and close friend Kaito, on the other hand, was quick to notice the simple action and sent you a sly wink when Shouta wasn’t looking. You shook your head just the slightest and a soft huff of amusement escaped before you could stop it. You felt Shouta’s eyes on your figure at your movement and quickly asked Sekijiro a question about a boy in Class 1-B who had a quirk faintly similar to your own to try and draw his attention off of yours and Kaito’s exchange. You knew if he realized what he was doing he’d drop his hand and you really didn’t want that to happen.

The meeting eventually finished up after a few more minutes, much to your relief. Sekijiro was quick to leave, but Kaito stuck around for a little longer wanting to hear about your recent venture to I-Island for the annual I-Expo and the villain attack which took place during your stay. You chatted idly with Kaito, giving him all the juicy details about the expo and the attack itself while Shouta moved to sit at his desk and finish up some last-minute work. He was silent for most of your conversation only muttering in agreement when Kaito made a comment about you always seeming to attract trouble to which you promptly flicked both in the arm for.

Eventually, Kaito too had to leave and left the room silent with his absence as Shouta was too focused on his work to talk. You glanced over at him, lips twisting as you mulled over whether or not you should offer assistance. You didn’t want to but you would be able to head back home faster if you offered to split the work. But then again, you really didn’t want to. 

“I’ve got just a few more minutes of work to finish up. Why don’t you go down and tell the class their time is up while I finish and then we can head home.”

Your eyes lit up at Shouta’s suggestion and you quickly nodded your head. It was the perfect solution. Not only were you were getting out of work, but now you didn’t have to feel bad about not doing anything.

“Sounds good, Sho!”

You dropped down off his desk eager to get out of the room, but his hand grabbed your wrist and held you in place before you could go anywhere.

“Five o’clock sharp, Aiko. No bending the rules.” Shouta glanced over at you, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tried to make sure you wouldn’t let the kids convince you for a bit more time...It wouldn’t have been the first time something like that had happened, after all.

“I know, Sho, I got this.” You rolled your eyes. Sure, you were sometimes ‘too’ lenient around the kids, but you preferred to think of it as ‘good cop’ and ‘bad cop’. Your leniency just balanced out with Shouta’s strictness. School, especially UA hero school, was tough and the kids deserved some fun every once in a while. It definitely wasn’t because you were a big pushover when it came to your students. 

Shouta sighed, but let you go without another word. 

He might have not said it outright but you knew he assumed you weren’t going to get them out of the pool by five. And while you might have thought his strict adherence to the rule was ridiculous - who was it bothering if they strayed around for a few extra minutes anyways - you were determined to prove Shouta wrong as you headed down to the pool...At least you were determined until you heard Iida propose the boys race to find who could swim fifty meters the fastest and all thoughts of Shouta flew out your brain.

“A race? Sounds like I came at the right time!” 

You were met with various lively greetings as you made your way towards the class and you returned their words with a bright smile and a wave of your hand. You regretfully heard the bitter remark Mineta whispered about you not being in a bathing suit but chose to ignore it because apparently there was some sort of rule about teacher/student relationships and you couldn’t bop him on the head no matter how much he asked for it. Thankfully, Jiro quickly came to your rescue with a quick earphone jack to his ear.

“So how’re we gonna race? Quirks or no quirks?” You asked giddily as you approached Iida, eyes shining. This was the most excitement you had had since the I-Expo. Which was actually kind of sad when you thought about it too long...

“Are we even allowed to use our quirks?”

“As long as you don’t damage each other or school property, quirks are fine with me.” You nodded your head to Ojiro’s question shoving thoughts about how lame your summer was so far out of your head. “Otherwise I just might have to steal your quirk for the rest of the summer...Bakugou, I’m talking to you there.” Your eyes made their way to angry blond, who simply crossed his arms and angrily muttered, “I’d like to see you try,” under his breath.

With an agreement on how the racing would be done, you went to grab a whistle from the locker room while Yaoyorozu randomly split the boys into three heats. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” Sero was the first to start complaining when Bakugou easily won the first heat by using his quirk to explode himself to the other side. 

“You didn’t even touch the water!” Kirishima was quick to add, just as frustrated with his best friend as Sero was. 

“It’s called freestyle swimming, you idiots!” Bakugou yelled in return, tiny explosions coming off his hands as he let his anger take over again. 

You fought the laughter bubbling up in the back at your throat at his response and hid your smile quickly with your hand as Sero and Kirishima both looked back at you for support in their arguments. “Sure, he didn’t technically swim, but we agreed quirks were fine and he did manage to not damage anything so…” You shrugged leaving both boys looking rather dejected.

While those whose quirks weren’t helpful in swimming started to regret their agreement to use quirks rather quickly, those who did have useful ones began to quickly follow Bakugou’s lead. In the following heat, Todoroki, Aoyama, and even Sero crossed without touching, that is until Aoyama ran into Sero causing them both to fall into the water below. Even Iida, a total stickler for rules, joined in, using his engines to boost him across the rope. 

“I thought we were supposed to be swimming!” Kirishima, whose hardening quirk would have only slowed him in the water, yelled once more in aggravation at seeing their class rep’s actions.

Despite the lack of swimming, you still enjoyed the thrill of watching the boys race, cheering with your students from the sideline. You hadn’t realized how much you had enjoyed spending time with them until you weren’t around them for eight hours a day anymore. They may have been your students, but you had bonded rather closely with them over your first semester together and looked forward to the next two and a half years you would have with them.

With the preliminary races done and the finalists, Bakugou, Todoroki, and Midoriya, chosen, chatter and bets began to be put in place for who the winner would be. Many of the students complaining earlier about the lack of actual swimming were looking for Midoriya to win, seeing as he was the only one who actually swam, but some of the others still spoke for Todoroki and Bakugou.

You couldn’t help but giggle as you watched the three prepare to race, Bakugou was being his normal angry self and yelling at the others to make sure they didn’t go easy on him as if this was some sort of big competition and not a simple class race. As you continued to watch him go at it, you briefly wondered which Bakugou hated more: losing or winning against someone who didn’t give it their all, though you leaned towards the latter. He was absolutely livid after winning against Todoroki at the sports festival and you and Midnight had been quickly forced to intervene before he managed to hurt himself or someone else. 

“Alright you three, you ready?” You asked, interrupting Bakugou’s incessant grumbling and motioned for them to take their place at the start. Once in place and with a curt nod from all three, you raised your whistle to your mouth and began your countdown.

But when you blew the whistle, all three only fell clumsily into the pool with loud yelps of surprise. 

The reaction was instantaneous. 

“What are you doing!?” - Kaminari

“Why didn’t you use your quirks!?” - Sero

“Now you decide to get in the water!?” - Kirishima

All the pent up excitement and anxiety to see who would win fell apart at the lack of racing which was now taking place. You, however, knew what had happened the moment the boys fell in the water and once again remembered why you had come down here earlier.

“It’s past 5 pm.” A blush crept across your face as you heard the familiar voice speak behind you. “You’re authorized pool time is over. Hurry up and go home.” 

“Ah, come on! Just a few more seconds!” Kaminari was the first to complain about the sudden stop but was quickly followed by several of the other classmates all as eager as you to see who might have won the race.

“Quick, I’ll distract and steal his quirk while you hurry up and finish!” You spun around to face your boyfriend trying your best to hide your blush from his view while you shot his annoyed face an innocent smile.  At the unamused twitch your teasing statement brought, however, you quickly rebuked your statement before any of your students could speak in favor of it. “Which is a joke by the way and will not be happening...?” Your statement tumbled off as you shot Shouta a questioning look in hopes of convincing him for a little more time. At the subtle shake of his head, you sighed. You had already pushed him enough as it was and it wouldn’t do to try and push him any further, especially not in front of your students...even if he was being sort of an ass at the moment. “You heard Mr. Aizawa, hurry up and start getting ready to head home.” 

Your words were met with disappointed moans and loud complaints, but they quickly followed your instructions after a bit of encouragement from Shouta. 

“Before you say anything, the kids, they ambushed me,” You spoke up when all the kids had started on their way home and you were once again left alone with Shouta. 

“Is that so?” he murmured, eyebrow cocked as he gave you an incredulous sideways glance. And though he tried to hide it, you could still see the way his lip curled at your words. 

“Mmhmm,” you continued, your own smile evident at the realization he wasn’t too aggravated at you. It wasn’t like you had really thought he was though, you practically had Shouta wrapped around your finger and the both of you knew it, much to his distaste. “I had no choice but to let them race. I was practically held hostage.” 

“They give hostages whistles now, do they?” 

“Oh, shut up.” You shot back, giving him a playful shove at not being able to come up with a comeback quickly enough. Shouta only chuckled at your childlike behavior and grabbed your hand to catch his balance. He made no move to let go either as he led you in the direction of the exit. “You’re lucky I love you, otherwise you’d be sleeping on the couch for that!” 

“I’m the lucky one?” Shouta huffed in playful annoyance. “I’m not the one who let them stay an extra twenty minutes and then threatened to steal my quirk. If anything, you should be the one on the couch.” 

“Shit! Was it really that long?” You asked, ignoring Shouta’s last statements as you checked the time on your phone. You had thought it was only a few extra minutes, but Shouta was right. It was just after half-past five. “Oops, sorry.” Your face flushed as you gave him a sheepish smile.

“Now who’s the lucky one?” 

“And in what way am I lucky, again?” You pulled Shouta to a stop, a coy smile spreading across your face as he was forced to look back at you.

Shouta shook his head at your childish antics, but his hand still brushed against your cheek as he tucked a stray hair behind your ear and leaned down. “You’re lucky...” His mouth brushed ever so softly against your ear before suddenly pausing. “...”

“Ooo, Jiro, I can’t hear him anymore! What’s he saying?” - Ashido

“Shut up, Ashido, they’re going to hear you!” - Hagakure

“Why are we even doing this again?” - Jiro

“Because I want to see them kiss!” - Ashido

Shouta stood up abruptly as the sound of loud whispering coming from the other side of the UA gate. As frustrated as you were at their interruption, you couldn’t help but start giggling at their antics, especially Ashido’s last statement. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be on your way home?” 

Your head fell against Shouta’s chest as your laughter only grew louder at the yelps of surprise Shouta’s words brought and the several “Yes, sir!”s and the one “You better not make Miss Aiko sleep on the couch!” from Ashido that followed as they took off down the road.

“You heard the girl,” you giggled when you felt Shouta sigh. Pushing yourself back just enough to be able to look up at him, you continued. “You  better not make me sleep on the couch.”

Shouta only shook his head unamused by your statement as he started pulling you in the direction of the exit once more. But despite his reaction, you still barely managed to catch him mumble, “You know I like sleeping with you too much to ever do that.”

A light blush settled across your face at his words and you gave his hand a loving squeeze as you softly replied.

“Me too, Sho, me too.” 

[shadowynnn]

among the dragons | part one |

a song of ice and fire / game of thrones 

synopsis: When you left for the Harrenhal tourney, the last thing you expected was for Rhaegar Targaryan to ask you for your hand in marriage. With a betrothment to the prince, you have no choice but to leave the safety of the North and become a vital piece in the war to overthrow the Mad King once and for all. (eventual au) 

part one synopsis: With an invitation to the Harrenhal tourney, the Starks discuss plans of going south while Rhaegar Targaryan furthers his plan to overthrow his father from the iron throne.

pairing: rhaegar targaryan x Stark! reader

words: 3888

a/n: name and hair color will be written in with this series, but it’s not too terribly important, so feel free to change if you want :)

“Stop. Going. Easy. On. Me.”

You peered up from the book you had been reading at the sound of your sister and eldest brother in the middle of a mock fight, wooden swords cracking with each deafening blow. A small smile crossed your lips as you observed the large scowl currently covering your sister’s face. Your grin only continued to grow as you faintly heard the obscenities which fell from your sister’s lips and the chuckles those words caused your brother to emit in return.

“What’s that, Lyanna?” Brandon Stark taunted. “I can’t seem to hear you.”

“I...said...you’re...a...bastard!” Lyanna managed to bite out between breaths with an icy glare to match her growing annoyance.

While these words simply fueled Brandon’s amusement, Lyanna was able to take advantage of his slightly distracted state and swung her wooden sword with a newfound ferocity. Catching him off guard, she managed to clip Brandon on his side causing him to stumble back ever so slightly, not at the force of the hit, but rather at the shock of her managing to blow a reasonable strike against him. If Lyanna was as surprised as he was, she didn’t show it and instead attempted to take advantage of his falter. To her dismay, Brandon was quick to regain his balance and deflected her next strike just in time.

You couldn’t help but laugh at your sister’s frustration though you were quick to smother it with one of your hands. Lyanna might have paled in comparison to their older brother but Lyanna almost always beat you when the two sparred and you didn’t quite feel like adding any more bruises to the ones she had given you a few days ago because she had caught you laughing.

“They’re still at it?”

You turned away from the fight as one of your other brothers, Eddard, sat down on the stone bench beside you. You smiled warmly at him before nodding your head and sending your dark curls bouncing. Ned was nearing the end of his fostering at the Eyrie under Jon Aryn and had returned to Winterfell for a short visit much to your excitement.

“I feel as though the two will be the death of each other,” you sighed settling your chin to rest in your hand, though a small smile remained on your face as you turned your attention back to the fight. Brandon and Lyanna were too alike to get along and were consistent with their taunting of one another.

“Then I guess it’s a good thing that they will both be marrying before they have time to kill each other.” 

Ned had meant his words in a playful manner but quickly realized his mistake when he saw your stature deflate and your smile leave. While Brandon’s engagement to the eldest daughter of Lord Hoster Tully had been arranged weeks ago, it was Lyanna’s recent betrothal which upset you most as it signified it was finally time for the two to part ways. Even if the two of you were different in many ways, there was no denying the strong bond you shared with your sister. You had shared your mother’s womb, after all, and had hardly ever been separated in your sixteen years.

“What’s he like? Robert, I mean.” Your voice was soft as you questioned Ned on his close friend and Lyanna’s betrothed. 

The announcement of Robert and Lyanna’s engagement had been made just a few short days ago and you could still clearly recall when Lyanna had come weeping to you about it. It had broken your heart to see your twin so torn up over her impending marriage to a man she had yet to meet and had offered al the emotional support you could muster that night and had let Lyanna voice all that weighed heavy on her heart as they shared in her sorrow.

But as torn up about Lyanna’s engagement as you were, you didn’t know what caused you more grief: seeing your sister so discouraged over her future or knowing your own betrothal was already in planning. You knew you only had a few more weeks, at most, until your own fate would be decided and you would begin preparations to leave the halls of Winterfell and join another in matrimony. The only reason it was Lyanna who had been matched with the Baratheon and not you was because Lyanna had been born just a few short minutes before. While this was a fact Lyanna had often liked to boast and you often grew frustrated in, you had never been so thankful to be the younger twin.

“Robert...oh, Robert.” Ned shook his head as he thought back on the boy who was a ward of Jon Arryn with him back at the Eyrie. “He’s a brilliant fighter and...how should I put it...quite charismatic, I suppose, but I’m certain our father made a wise decision when he accepted the Baratheon’s request for her hand in marriage.”

“I heard he’s already sired a bastard up at the Vale.” Your jaw was set and you refused to meet your brother’s shocked expression at your brazen statement to his description of the man.

“And where, pray, may I ask you heard that?”

You snorted. “Does that mean it’s true then?”

While her father’s household was careful to gossip around the Starks and the other highborn in Winterfell, it didn’t stop you from hearing the scarce rumors running around shortly after Lyanna’s betrothment. Unfortunately, this also meant Lyanna had heard of Robert Baratheon’s fondness of ale and women.

Ned sighed at your bitter tone. “I won’t deny that Robert has his...faults, but I stand by Father’s decision. I think the two might just meld well together.”

Your features softened at Ned’s words. Out of all the Stark children, Ned was the most like your father with his thoughtful and patient nature and you had come to respect his advice and opinions more highly than those of others. You didn’t like what you had heard about the sort of man Robert was, but if your father and Ned both approved of the betrothment then you knew it couldn’t be as awful of an arrangement as you had believed it to be.

“Does that mean we can safely assume Lya won’t be the death of him, then?” you asked, a twinge of a smile appearing on your face as you turned your gaze back towards your twin who was still hacking away at Brandon. Lyanna had never been one to take orders from those she deemed didn’t deserve it, a list which included most of her brothers right at the top. You could only imagine Lyanna’s future husband would surpass all three of them in no time at all and you prayed your sister would come to no harm because of her stubbornness.

It was at this moment Brandon finally managed to knock Lyanna off her feet with a graceful sweep of his blade, and she landed harshly on her back while her own sword dropped from her hand and came to rest a few inches from her reach. Before she could even think about reaching for her fallen weapon, the tip of Brandon’s wooden sword came to rest against her neck.

“Yield,” Brandon commanded, ripping off his helmet from his head and dropping it to the ground beside him. His chest heaved at his lack of breath and he was dripping with sweat, but you could still see his haughty smirk from where you were watching.

Lyanna refused to speak at first, her own grey eyes glaring daggers at Brandon as she found herself beaten once more.

“Fine, I yield.” She spit the words out as if they were poison when the tip of Brandon’s sword was pressed ever-so-slightly harder against her neck.

Taking Lyanna’s words for agreement, he removed the blade from her neck before extending a hand to help her back on her feet. But to everyone’s surprise, except for you who saw your twin’s cunning move from the moment she had ‘yielded’, Lyanna took Brandon’s hand and pulled him on the ground beside her causing the two to begin wrestling it out on the ground both wildly reaching for their weapons as Brandon began spouting off obscenities at Lyanna’s ‘cheating’ move.

“I guess we’ll still have to wait and see about that.” Ned shook his head as he watched the two struggling on the dirt in front of them.

You couldn’t help but let out another soft giggle at Ned’s words which you quickly attempted to smother with your hand once more. Perhaps you had better start praying for Robert’s wellbeing instead of your sister’s. The gods knew he needed it if he would have to put up with Lyanna’s streak of wildness.

“Did you hear the news? We’re going South!” 

Your giggling was cut short when your youngest brother, Benjen Stark, came running out of a door of one of the halls towards them, a wild smile on his face as he approached his siblings breathlessly. You assumed he had run all the way to where you were gathered in his excitement to share his news, but while he seemed overjoyed by the news he had brought, his other siblings were not quick to share in his feelings.

A stab of unease fell in your stomach as you cast a wary glance towards the brother beside you. The northern lands of the Starks spread across almost half of Westeros and you had only ever left them once in your life, though you had been too young to clearly remember it. At an earlier point in time, you would have shared in your brother’s excitement in venturing south, but that age had since past. Turmoil was growing steadily in the South and news of the king’s growing madness had traveled even to the coldest corners of the North. And while your father’s men were careful to talk ill of the king who lived leagues away in King’s Landing, even you had heard of how many in Westeros had begun to call him “The Mad King”. 

You felt Ned reach for your hand in an attempt to still your unease, but you hardly paid him any mind as your focus stayed on Benjen’s lean figure, eager to hear what they might be going south for.

“What?” Brandon was the first to speak. At the mention of going south, he and Lyanna had ceased their fighting and were sitting up side by side on the dusty ground. Wiping a sweaty piece of hair out of his eyes, Brandon cocked an eyebrow at his younger brother. “What would we go south for?”

“A tournament, of course!” Benjen replied as though the answer was obvious. Oblivious to his siblings’ apprehension, the youngest Stark rocked on the balls of his feet as he spoke. “Lord Whent of Harrenhal is holding one for his daughter’s name day and we’re all expected to attend.” Benjen’s words came out in a rush as his excitement grew. “The whole royal family will be attending as well, which means the Kingsguard will be-”

“A tourney for Lord Whent’s daughter?” Brandon cut off Benjen’s wild rambling and began to gnaw at his bottom lip in deep thought. “What’s she done to garner our attendance?”

You shared your brother’s confusion. The last significant tournament to be held was in Lannisport by the King’s Hand to celebrate the birth of the king’s second son, Prince Viserys, but only your father, Brandon, and a few of his men had ridden to the tourney. Lyanna and yourself had both begged your father to let you attend as well, but he had claimed them too young much to their disappointment. Four years had passed since then and you still very much desired to attend one of the tourneys you had heard so much about. You longed to see the famed men of Westeros ride against each other on their gallant mounts and shared her younger brother’s interest in seeing the mighty knights of the Kingsguard, particularly Ser Arthur Dayne who had managed to defeat Prince Rhaegar in the last tourney to be crowned champion.

“Perhaps its to do with the prize money. Father said the rewards are three times the amount offered by the Lannisters.” Benjen shrugged his shoulders, clearly uninterested about their wanted attendance. “All the great houses are expected to be in attendance though! Can you believe it? We’ll get to see-”

“I take it Benjen has already broken the news, then?”

It was their father who interrupted Benjen this time, approaching from the same direction his youngest son had appeared from moments earlier. A smile was set upon his face, but it was a grave one. He seemed to have taken their summons in a similar manner as you and the rest of your siblings had.

“Does Benjen speak the truth, Father? Are we to ride for Harrenhal?” Brandon asked as he stood up from the ground before extending a hand to help Lyanna. She took her brother’s hand honestly this time and began to brush off the dust still clinging to her riding leathers as she stared curiously at her father.

“The matter is still being discussed; there must always be a Stark in Winterfell, but I do believe it is high past time my children attend their first tournament, perhaps even ride.” His deep grey eyes glanced at his eldest son.

Your brow scrunched up as you began to mull over your father’s words. How would a Stark remain if he wished for all his children to attend? Did this mean he would not be attending himself? Or would one of them be expected to remain? You didn’t think highly of either option. If you were to ride south to Harrenhal where the royal family would be in attendance, you did not wish to have neither your father or all your siblings at your side.

“Let us not further ponder these matters here as it is not the right place for them,” Lord Rickard spoke before you could question what he meant. “Brandon, Eddard, come with me and we may discuss them further with the other men in a more private setting.” Both of your brothers nodded their heads in compliance while Benjen’s brow furrowed in annoyance at being left out. 

“Lyanna, Lyella, I believe I heard Septa Mordane was searching for the two of you sometime earlier, something about not arriving for needlework?” 

While his words were meant to sound chastising, you didn’t miss the amused smile working its way onto his face as he spoke. This, however, didn’t stop your face from scrunching up in distaste or the annoyed groan to come from Lyanna. If there was one thing you shared with your sister, it was your hatred for needlework. 

“Go on,” Lord Rickard continued when he saw neither of his daughters made a move to find the Septa and begin their lessons, “it won’t do to keep her waiting any longer.”

Knowing it would be better to oblige to your father’s wishes while he was in a good mood, you closed your book and stood up to wipe the dirt clinging to your own riding leathers. You didn’t bother dusting them off too much, the Septa was already bound to scold both you and Lyanna for wearing them. She would be too upset about the leathers to notice any dust or dirt clinging on them.

“This isn’t fair,” Lyanna huffed when they were far enough away from the others to not be overheard. “Brandon and Ned get to go with Father and discuss the upcoming tourney and we’re stuck doing needlework.”

“Do you think we’ll get to attend?” you asked in return. You were just as frustrated with the matter as your twin was, but your mind was too focused on the impending journey to complain.

While the news had come as a frightful shock at first, the more you began to ponder over it, the greater your desire to attend. This would finally be your chance to see all the important men and woman you had learned about throughout the past years in your lessons with the Maester. And while you were terrified at the thought of being near the king, a part of you was excited at catching a glimpse of him to see if he looked as mad as everyone claimed he was.

“Well if Father states we’re too young to go again, I’ll simply tell him I’m too young to get married. The gods know one’s wedding night is more scaring than a tourney could ever be.” 

“Lya!” You scolded at your sister’s risque statement, but your chiding was betrayed when a giggle escaped your throat and was quickly followed by more. You may have believed her statement a bit too bold, but you wouldn’t deny that what your sister had said was true.

“There you two are!” 

Their giggling fell to a quick stop when you heard the voice of the new Septa calling out from behind them. Turning around, you found the broad woman quickly approaching them, one hand clutching her scarves as they billowed behind her and the other hitching up her skirts. Her lips were set into a scowl and her face flushed red, from exhaustion or anger, you couldn’t tell, but your twisting gut told you it was the latter.

Septa Mordane had entered the Stark’s household a few months ago after the death of their former Septa, much to both of the twin’s distaste. While you had been able to get away with skipping lessons for swordplay or archery and wear their riding leathers to your hearts’ content with the former Septa, the new one was not quite so lenient. She was hardly five years older than them, but you would never have been able to guess it with the way she reprimanded you daily about your lack of proper ladylike behavior. 

“Where have you been? Lessons began an hour ago, ladies!” She began to scold as she stood breathless before the two of you. “And what have I said about the pants? It’s not proper for a lady to parading around in them for any man to see!” Taking a hand from each of you, she began to pull them along behind her as she continued to scold the two for their behavior. “I thought it was an honor when they assigned me to Winterfell, only now I see it was because no one else wanted to deal with two wildlings in disguise of Lord Stark’s daughters!”

You exchanged an exhausted look with your sister behind the Septa’s back as she continued her ranting. If she kept this up, which you were certain she would, you were in for a long next few hours. And while you found comfort knowing you would have your sister by your side, you couldn’t keep the frown from crossing your face at remembering how little time together you had left.

Closing your eyes momentarily, you sent a silent prayer to the old gods; one for your sister and Robert Baratheon and then a selfish one for yourself. 

As the Septa continued to drag you along one of Winterfell’s many corridors, you could only hope that they heard you.

~~~

“How is he?” Ser Arthur Dayne asked Westeros’s crowned prince as he entered the latter’s private chambers though he sensed the answer to his own question as he saw the prince’s worn stature.

“He’s getting worse,” Rhaegar murmured, his eyes never shifting from the dark night in front of him. “If we don’t finish this soon, someone else will.”

Arthur grimaced at the prince’s words. It was hard enough for him to secretly take action about the king’s growing madness as a sworn member of the Kingsguard, but he couldn’t imagine the mental toll it was taking on the king’s own son. Rhaegar was a good man, and while it pained him to go against his father, he knew it needed to be done for the good of Westeros.

”Does he suspect anything?”

“No, he thinks it a means for the Whents’ to boast their wealth and an opportunity for me to choose a suitable bride.” Rhaegar sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Which brings up another matter in itself. I have to find a bride before the tournament ends.” 

“Have you given it any thought, your grace?”

While King Aerys had been on to Rhaegar over his lack of marriage for a while now, most of Rhaegar’s recent time had been consumed by planning the upcoming tournament with Lord Whent and not over the trivialities of finding a bride. 

To Arthur’s surprise and relief, Rhaegar nodded his head. The last thing they needed was for the prince to have to worry about a betrothment while his attention was focused on overthrowing his father.

“Tywin Lannister has made it obvious he wishes for me to choose his daughter, but the Lannisters’ have never been trustworthy. They crave power and do not care in which manner they receive it. It would be impossible to know if Tywin would remain loyal to the king whether I was married to his daughter or not.

“The more reasonable choice would then be the Dornish princess, and while I have given it earnest thought, I don’t see it being a wise decision. I can see marriage gaining us the loyalty of the Dornishmen, but how much would a few Dornishmen be against the rest of Westeros? Furthermore, I don’t doubt we wouldn’t be able to get their support through Ser Lewyn.”

Rhaegar’s words left Arthur confused, yet curious. While little thought or planning towards the prince’s betrothment had been broached, the Dornish princess and only daughter of the House Lannister had been the two significant choices for the prince. While he agreed with Rhaegar’s words so far, he couldn’t think of an option with a better outcome than the Dornish princess.  

“If we truly wish to utilize my marriage to overthrow my father, then the wisest choice would be with the Starks.”

The Starks’ lands extended far across Westeros, taking up nearly half the country and hardly ever left the confines of it. While the Starks were a powerful Great House, they often slipped Arthur’s mind with their lack of interaction outside their vast lands.  

“Ah, the Northern Lords of Winterfell. Lord Rickard has two daughters, does he not?”

“Twins,” Rhaegar nodded his head, “though the eldest has already been promised to Robert Baratheon.” 

“Thus, if you were to marry the other, you could succeed in gaining the Baratheon’s fealty as well as the Starks.”

“With Lord Rickard’s eldest betrothed to one of Lord Hoster’s daughters and then his second fostering in the Vale with House Arryn, we could potentially secure an alliance with four of the Great Houses.” Rhaegar paused for a moment looking at Arthur for the first time, a hopeful glint shining in his violet eyes. “With Winterfell’s fealty, we could easily take the throne and put an end to my father’s mad reign.”

Rhaegar’s statement left Arthur speechless. If the prince was right, and they could secure fealty of the Tullys, Baratheons, Arryns, and Starks through a single girl, then her hand in marriage would be crucial to their plan.

[shadowynnn]

la tua cantante | part five |

twilight saga

synopsis: You’re a half-vampire with a past you more than wish you could forget. Your life takes an unsuspecting turn when you travel to Volterra to save your adopted brother and discover you’re the mate of the Volturi leaders.

part five synopsis: You try to process the fact that you’re the mate of the Volturi leaders.

pairing: Aro, Caius, and Marcus x Reader

words:  2984

a/n : In this series, Aro and Marcu’s physical age will be the same as the books, mid 20′s, and 19-early 20′s respectively, while Caius’s age will be the same as portrayed in the movies, early 20′s.

also, i sincerely apologize for the long wait. i’m working full time this summer, had a bad case of writer’s block, and suffered from a severe lack of motivation. but it’s finally out, so thanks for being patient and please enjoy :)

~~~

God, you were such an idiot.

You were their mate.

She’s tied to each of us.

That was what Marcus had said in the beginning, the words you hadn’t understood. You had just let it go because you were so overcome with unknown sensations that you hadn’t cared whether or not you had understood what it had meant. Now that you were beginning to piece it all together it served as confirmation of the unbelievable.

And while you still found the idea absolutely impossible and slightly laughable, you couldn’t see anything else making sense. You had to be their mate. It was either that or you were dreaming.

“I assure you, cara, you are very much awake.” 

“But...no...that can’t be.” You shook your head quickly as you struggled to process your current situation. “I’m not even a full vampire. I can’t have a mate. I..I’m just a half-breed!” Your ramblings came to a close when you felt your eyes beginning to water in your frustration and you furiously blinked them back. You always cried when you were frustrated and if you cried now you would only serve to make a bigger fool of yourself, if that was even possible anymore.

“Please, stop, my dear!” Aro’s other hand reached your cheek and a gentle thumb wiped away a stray tear you hadn’t realized had fallen. “You’ve had several long days and as much as I want to discuss everything with you, now is not quite the time nor the place.” Before you could even think about arguing any further on the matter, Aro planted a chaste kiss on your forehead before turning to the man who had brought you to this place and the other gigantic man you had briefly noticed earlier. “Demitri and Felix, please escort the Cullens and Miss Swan to the reception area to wait until we are ready to further discuss their situation. Until then, we have a much more pressing affair at hand.”

You knew the more pressing matter Aro spoke of was yourself and while you thought this realization would frighten you, you were too flustered from the fleeting feeling of Aro’s lips on your forehead to feel much fear. 

As the two men Aro had ordered nodded their heads and moved to lead Alice, Edward, and Bella out of the room, you made to follow after hearing Aro mention the Cullens. You hadn’t made it a single step, however, when Caius grabbed hold of the crook of your arm and stopped you. You jumped at the contact and spun around quickly, but the panic was stifled as quickly as it arose at seeing the warm amusement on Caius’s face and the low chuckle emitted from him.

“Not you, amore.” 

Your head tilted to the side as you found yourself suddenly enraptured at the man standing before you and was once again at a loss for words. The amused smirk dancing on his lips made your insides swirl and you found yourself utterly at a lost as to how someone like you was supposed to be the mate of someone like him. 

“Caius is right. I believe a hot, relaxing bath is what you need at the moment.” Aro spoke from beside you drawing your mind back to the present situation. 

You quickly shook your head as you tore your gaze from Caius. “I really don’t think that’s necessary.” As amazing as a bath sounded at the moment you wanted to talk through what was happening and what exactly was going to happen because of it.

“Nonsense. “ Aro smiled from where he looked at you causing you once again to question how this man was supposed to be you mate. “Jane, would you care to escort (F/N) to the bath? After she is finished, you may escort her to the courtyard.”

You wanted to open your mouth to once again try and argue the matter but merely nodded your head in agreement at the realization that it was pointless to argue any further and risk making any of the three men angry or any potential danger on yourself or the others you had come with. The possibility they were your mate was very high meaning you may have had some leniency, but you didn’t want to risk pushing that leniency any further at the moment, especially in front of everyone else.

“Miss Cullen, if you’ll follow me.”

Caius dropped his hold on your arm when a blonde vampire approached you. She was very young, appearing a few physical years younger than you, but there was no denying the beauty and power the small girl held. You were a bit unnerved by her presence, not at all wanting to leave the room and go with this girl standing in front of her, but after a gentle push in Jane’s direction and a sweet promise of no harm from Marcus, you saw no choice but to follow after her.

Jane took you through enough hallways and turns to nearly make your head swirl before finally stopping in front of a mahogany door. Producing a small key from somewhere in her robes, she unlocked the door and motioned for you to follow her inside. 

You were met with a breathtaking bedroom on the other side and slowed to a stop as you took in the furnishings around you. Splashes of golds, reds, and blacks colored the space around you including the large bed to your left which looked so soft and comfortable you knew you’d never want to leave if you laid down. It was a room fit for royalty and you wondered who’s it might be and if they would be angry for you entering.

“The bath is through this door, Miss Cullen. Please take all the time you need.”

You were drawn from your thoughts as the young girl spoke once more and motioned to the door she had opened beside her. You thought about asking her whose bedroom you were in, but second guesses of asking out of place caused you to keep your mouth closed and walk towards the adjoining bathroom. 

Upon realizing Jane was holding the door to the bathroom for you, you awkwardly picked up your pace to keep her from waiting any longer.

“I’ll be out here if you need anything,” she spoke as you stepped onto the white tile of the bathroom to which you politely thanked her before closing the bathroom door behind you.

With a loud breath of relief at finally being alone, you collapsed against the door behind you. Your eyes closed as you rested your head back against the wood behind you. Your head was already clearing and you felt your heartbeat slowing down to its normal rate. You didn’t feel so tizzy anymore, but you still felt like you were dreaming as you struggled to process exactly what was happening.

You actually had a mate.

You had always just assumed you didn’t have a mate since you were a hybrid. You never had anything to back up your theory, but you never saw how you could have a mate. You would just end up outliving a human because you were unable to turn them and then you had needed to stay away from vampires if you wanted to survive in their world, so a vampire mate was never plausible either.

But here you were in the middle of Volterra with the impossible staring you right in the eyes. You, a mere half-breed, were the mate of not one, but all three of the Volturi leaders, the very men who ruled the vampire world.

And while part of this realization shook you to the very bones, you couldn’t stop the giddy smile from breaking out across your lips which you hid quickly with one of your hands in embarrassment despite being alone. 

The movement caused your eyes to catch sight of the sleeve of Aro’s jacket and you were quickly reminded of the current state you were in. You didn’t have to see your reflection to know what a complete mess you were at the moment from the rain you had been drenched in earlier.

Knowing that you probably resembled a wet rat, or something close to that description, you felt your face flush once more. It was just like you to meet your mates for the first time looking nothing short of a drenched mess. 

Determined to have a better second appearance, you picked yourself up off the door and made your way to the large mirror across the room to attempt and make yourself look at least halfway presentable.

Upon seeing your appearance, you were thankful to note it wasn’t as terrible as you had previously believed, but your face still flushed slightly from embarrassment. Your (h/c) hair hung in damp waves around your head and your (e/c) eyes were slightly ringed like a raccoon’s from where the rain had smeared your eyeliner. 

Determined to fix this mess, you bent down to the cabinets beneath the sink and began a desperate search for a hairbrush and anything else which would help to improve your current state. You briefly thought about taking a bath like Aro had asked, but you were too anxious to see them again and figure out the mess you had found yourself in to take the time to bathe.

After a few scrambled minutes of searching, you managed to get your hands on the much-needed hairbrush, a washcloth, a bottle of vanilla scented soap, a hairband to tie your hair back with. You made sure to note where each item was retrieved so that you could put everything back in its proper place before you left and hoped that whoever’s bathroom this was didn’t mind your borrowing.

You quickly tugged the hairbrush through your hair before pulling the damp locks into a loose side braid and secured it with the band you had pulled across your wrist. You took the soap and washcloth to wipe away the remnants of your makeup, wishing to at least have some concealer to hide the growing bags under your eyes but knew it wasn’t possible for you to get your hands on any and settled for just not looking like a raccoon anymore. 

Once you were satisfied with yourself, you picked up Aro’s jacket from off the counter and made your way back to the bedroom eager to figure out what was going to happen next.

“You didn’t take a bath.”

Your thoughts were broken when you exited the bathroom and Jane stood waiting for you. The girl’s angelic face was unreadable as she spoke, but you could still tell she was curious as to why you hadn’t done what you had been told.

“No, I...um...didn’t think it was quite necessary.” You flushed slightly at the girl’s brash statement and wondered if Jane wouldn’t let you leave until you had done exactly what Aro had asked you to. “I’m also just sort of anxious to figure out what exactly is going to happen now with me being their...” You trailed off unable to actually say the unbelievable out loud. It also didn’t help the way Jane seemed to be assessing you as you spoke and you clutched Aro’s jacket closer to your body for comfort.

To your surprise, Jane only shrugged her shoulders. “Follow me, then,” she replied and motioned for you to follow her once more. 

“Do you think Edward, Alice, and Bella are going to be okay?” You found yourself asking as you followed Jane through the winding halls once more. 

You had been so consumed with what had happened to you since arriving in Volterra it wasn’t until now that you remembered the reason why you had come here in the first place. Edward, Alice, and Bella were still somewhere in the castle as well and you could only hope they weren’t in any trouble themselves. You had never been able to ask if you and Bella had succeeded in stopping Edward, and the not knowing was beginning to gnaw at you.

“Under the current circumstances, I believe the Cullens and Miss Swan are fairly safe from any harm.”

You were surprised to actually receive a response from Jane, but relieved at her response. You could only assume the ‘current circumstances’ involved you being..well, the leaders’ mate.

Silence once again settled between the two of you leaving you with the time to think over what might be said when you met with Aro, Marcus, and Caius once more. What all did being their mate involve? Would you stay here in Volterra with them? And if so, what did they expect from you in doing so? You were at a complete loss.

You could feel the open gaze of the vampires you passed as you walked, your nervous thoughts not enough to distract their stares. You knew they were whispering about you, you could faintly make them out when they thought you were out of hearing distance, but you couldn’t make any of the words out, even with your strained ears. 

Before today you had come in contact with fewer vampires than you could count on your hands but now the number had more than tripled. Their numerous scents were starting to grow slightly overwhelming and making you more and more jittery. Your father had always told you to avoid any other vampire like the plague, especially any with ties to Volterra, but here you were right in the heart of it all and couldn’t help but feel like an outsider with the way everyone was looking at you.

You had thought Jane was terrifying before, but you felt yourself inching closer to the young girl in your discomfort and did the best to ignore the others around you. 

You felt yourself letting out a breath of relief as the corridor around you transformed into a covered walkway outside. Looking to your left you could make out the courtyard Aro had mentioned earlier. An elegant fountain, similar to the one you had sat by earlier in the day, was set in the middle and filled with crystal blue water that would have sparkled in the sun if it weren’t for the rain. Several pathways laced the open area, leading to numerous spots furnished for lounging. Most of these areas were covered, but some were left in the open. 

As you ventured further outside and away from the confines of so many vampires, you found yourself slowly relaxing once more. Their strange, sweet scents still lingered in the air, but the familiar smells of nature began to overpower them. The smell of rain hit you the hardest and you couldn’t help but smile as you took a deep breath in. Despite being halfway across the world, the weather was the exact same and brought a strong sense of familiarity to you.

Jane stopped when the two had reached one of the covered patios. Sensing you had reached your destination, you dropped Aro’s jacket on the back of one of the chairs being sure not to wrinkle it as you did, and stepped towards the edge of the roof above you. You outstretched your hands to feel the raindrops, giggling softly as they tickled your skin. But as much as you enjoyed the feeling, you longed for the warm rays of the sun hidden above the clouds.

You raised your eyes to the sky and with a small amount of focus, the rain slowly fell to a drizzle before stopping altogether. A warm, gentle breeze began to flow through the courtyard and the overcast sky gradually began to dissipate.

“You can control the weather?” 

You turned your head to face Jane, a shy smile on your lips as you nodded your head to answer her sudden question.

“So this sudden storm that blew in, that was you?” Jane cocked her head to the side as she slowly approached the edge where you stood before craning her eyes to look up at the clearing sky. 

“It was my attempt to save Edward, though I don’t know if I succeeded or not.” Once the first ray of sun peeked its way out, you stepped off the stone path and onto the wet grass.

“What about your diet? Do you drink blood?”

You couldn’t keep a giggle from escaping your mouth as you turned back and found the younger girl staring at you in awe as she watched the sunlight glimmering against your pale skin.

“I usually prefer to eat human food, but do occasionally drink blood in order to keep my thirst at bay. I’ve tried to go vegetarian like my adoptive family, but...” You trailed off as your words took you to the darker corners of your mind, “it’s hard to feed on any living creature when you know what it...what it feels like...so I’ve kind of stuck to blood bags.” You shrugged your shoulders trying to remain nonchalant as you forced the memories back to their corners.

Jane opened her mouth to ask another question but promptly shut it and straightened herself up. As you drew in your next breath you realized why Jane had done so. The ambrosial scent of the Volturi leaders filled your head once again and you could feel your heartbeat speed up in excitement. But despite your excitement, you found yourself also growing nervous. As wild as knowing they were your mate made you feel, it made you just as anxious. What were you supposed to say? How were you supposed to act? You were clueless to it all and found yourself nibbling on the bottom corner of your lip as your nerves grew and your insecurities began getting the better of you.

You could only hope you’d figure it out sooner rather than later because they were fast approaching and you found you couldn’t quite wrap your head around your name anymore.

~~~

taglist: @gay-and-immortl

[shadowynnn]

Love la tua cantante! Can’t wait for the next update! :)

Thank you! Glad you enjoy it, love! Hoping to have the next part up soon!

[shadowynnn]

la tua cantante | part four |

twilight saga

synopsis: You’re a half-vampire with a past you more than wish you could forget. Your life takes an unsuspecting turn when you travel to Volterra to save your adopted brother and discover you’re the mate of the Volterra leaders.

part three synopsis: Your meeting with the Volturi doesn’t go exactly how you thought it would. 

pairing: Aro, Caius, and Marcus x Reader

words:  3613

a/n : In this series, Aro and Marcu’s physical age will be the same as the books, mid 20′s, and 19-early 20′s respectively, while Caius’s age will be the same as portrayed in the movies, early 20′s.

“Ah, our dear Demitri has returned! And he’s brought us another guest! Wonderful!”

Your eyes quickly transversed the room, not to find the source of the man who had just spoken of your appearance, but to find the source of the intoxicating scent that tickled your nose the moment you entered. It was unlike anything you had ever smelled before and you were unsure how to fully describe it. It was sweet...no, ambrosial, a constant shifting of your favorite fragrances blended together to create something so pleasing you found yourself slightly tizzy. It felt like the sweet aroma had completely wrapped itself around your body and left you blanketed in its warm embrace. The intensity of it all made you feel lightheaded and dizzy causing you to reach out and grab hold of the nearest person, the man who had led you here-Demitiri as you know learned-to keep yourself from collapsing.

You fought to keep your head clear but each breath you took sent a new wave of pleasure coursing through your body and you struggled to wrap your head around anything which didn’t focus entirely on it. You faintly wondered what could be the cause of the heavenly smell, and why no one else seemed to be affected the way you were by it when your eyes latched onto the most beautiful man you had ever laid eyes on.

His back had been turned to you, but the moment he spun around to face you, you felt your breath leave your lungs as complete wonder overtook you. The man’s own eyes, first filled with haughty confidence, soon widened in a similar manner of your own expression.

Something was said, not by the man whom you had been staring at, but rather another. It took much effort, but you forced yourself to tear your gaze from the first man to find an equally beautiful man staring at her in a similar manner as the one before. While the first had hair as dark as night, the second’s was a bright, white blond. 

You had been so hypnotized by the first man that you had not caught what the blond had said and sincerely hoped he had not been speaking to you and cause you to make a fool of yourself in front of them. Thankfully you were spared any embarrassment when a reply came from another.

“It seems our predictions were right.” You were once again forced to tear your eyes away from the second unnaturally attractive man to find yet another, causing you to blink your eyes several times in utter disbelief. “She’s tied to each of us.”

You didn’t quite know what to do or think as your eyes kept gliding from one man to the next and then back again. You had managed to catch what the third had said, but the words didn’t make much sense to you. What did he mean you were tied to each of them? If they were even talking about you, that is. But you couldn’t take much time to wonder as your mind and body were too busy dealing with your burning desire to touch them, to be near them.

You shook your head, completely shocked with yourself and the thoughts and desires taking over your body. This wasn’t like you. This wasn’t like you at all.

All fears and signs of panic which had filled you throughout the past hours had left your body the moment you stepped through the door. Every single negative thought you had had at one point during these past few days completely disappeared. It all became unimportant. Instead, you felt tingles of warmth and pleasure flood through your body, all the way down to your toes. Your brain felt a tad foggy, but it wasn’t a bad feeling. For the first time in a long, long time you found yourself feeling completely and utterly...content.

You didn’t realize the third man had been moving towards you until you felt a cold hand gently brush the hair that had fallen into your face back behind your ear as if to get a better look at your face. You looked up at him, lips slightly parted in surprise, but you did nothing to remove the hand which lingered against your skin. His physical age looked to be the youngest of the three, most likely the closest to yours. Long, brown locks framed a face which seemed to be sculpted from the gods, and his eyes, god, his eyes although a deep red, captivated your entire being and you didn’t know if you would ever find your way out of them. They seemed to hold a deep knowledge which well surpassed his young appearance and you longed for him to share it with you.

“Amore mio,” You shivered in what you could only assume was delight as the man ran his knuckle along her jawline. You didn’t know what he had just said to you, but the way he said it made your heart flutter. “it is you.”

You were completely entranced with the man, your eyes never leaving his own as you allowed him to gently lead you further into the crowd of people and towards the other two. His touch was like electricity against your skin, the longer it lingered, the more you wanted it, no, needed it, and before you could stop yourself, your mind began to race with all the wild things you wanted him to do to you.

Your attention was soon stolen as another hand, one which sent very similar feelings soaring through your body, cupped your chin in order to pull your gaze in his direction. Your eyes were met with the blond. He was the tallest of the three, with a strong jawline and high cheekbones. He faintly reminded you of the German gladiators who fought during the Roman Empire and the want to see the strong muscles which were sure to be lining his body under his clothes hit you hard and sent your cheeks aflame.

“At long last, you have found your way to us, mia dea.” The blond purred in your ear and you suddenly found it very hard to concentrate on anything except for the lips which ever so softly brushed against your ear.

Dead. 

I must be dead.

The man who was bringing me to the Volturi must have killed me on our way there and I have arrived here, instead, my own personal heaven.

You could think of no other explanation as to what was happening than the fact you must be dead in an alleyway somewhere and moved on to the afterlife. It was the only solution as to what you were seeing and feeling at the moment. No other idea made as much sense in your eyes.

“(F/N).”

Your attention went swiftly towards the voice who made your name sound like the most beautiful word in the world. You found the first man who had captured your attention when you had walked in the room but had held back unlike the other two. A soft, timid smile tugged at your lips as you saw him looking at you with a bright smile as he took in your entire being, not with eyes full of bloodlust, but as though you were the single most precious thing in the world to him.

“You are even more beautiful in person than I imagined.”

He took a step closer as he saw your sole attention was on him once again and you felt your face heat up at his words. The only coherent thought running through your head was that this gorgeous man had just called you beautiful.

“Who are you?” You asked when you realized you didn’t know his or the others’ names and found yourself upset at the upper hand they had on you. 

Wow, (F/N), real classy. You don’t even know these men’s names yet you’re throwing yourself at them like some cheap whore. Get your head out of your ass and stop acting like some lovesick puppy!

But try as you might, you were putty in each of their hands. You longed for the feeling of contentment and safety which came from their sweet scents and gentle caresses. It was a feeling you hadn’t felt in such a long time and the feeling of being wanted was more than you thought you would be able to take.

“I am Aro,” The one who had spoken your name earlier replied before motioning to the brunet who had removed his hand from your back but kept close to you. “This is Marcus and Caius.” Aro then added as he motioned to the blond.

You froze as your brain registered the names which were just spoken to you. The panic which had disappeared the moment you had stepped in the room immediately resurfaced as you realized just who you had been lusting after. Your eyes widened with disbelief and shock. These three beautiful men were the leaders of the Volturi and you had just made a complete fool of yourself by practically throwing yourself at their feet. It had to have been some sort of trap they had planted to catch you off guard before using you for your blood just as he had before.

You were at a loss of words and didn’t have a clue as to what had just happened. You needed to clear your head, but every breath you took enwrapped you in their glorious scent and left your brain all warm and fuzzy. You needed to find a way to clear it before you got all wrapped up in their trap again.

With what took extreme effort, you stepped back quickly from all three of them, eyes wide with confusion as they flitted from one man to the next. Your hands, though shaking, wrapped around your neck in an attempt to protect yourself. You would not let another vampire take advantage of you in the same way as he had. You would never let it happen again as long as you could help it. You would rather die.

But these men weren’t even just ordinary vampires. They were the leaders of the Volturi, the vampires which struck fear inside each and every creature’s heart. These were the men whom everyone had warned you to stay very far away from. These men weren’t like him at all. These men made him look like a puppy.

You ignored the sad frown which crossed Aro’s face as you tore yourself from Caius’s touch and continued to back away from them. Caius let out a low growl when you forced yourself away from him, causing you to flinch involuntarily. Whether they were truly upset by your actions or if it were all just an act, you didn’t have a clue.

You needed to get out of here, go somewhere where you could clear your head and get away from their intoxicating scent. Your eyes scanned the room in an attempt to find a way out, but there seemed to be no escape. When your back reached the wall, you began to truly panic. You were trapped.

As you continued to eagerly search for an escape, you eventually found the only people in the room whom you felt a small level of comfort from: Alice and Edward. You wanted to run over to them, but the members of the guard which surrounded them made you keep your distance. One glance at the towering man to Edward’s left was enough for you to see you stood no chance against them. A part of you may have been a vampire, but the other part, your human part, made you vulnerable and weak.

Edward, please, what’s going on?! You screamed at your adoptive brother in your mind as your eyes pleaded with him to explain.

“Please, beloved, I see that you are scared, but you are safe here.” Your eyes moved on their own accord when you heard Aro begin to speak to you. “Not a hair on your head will be harmed, this I can promise you.” His voice sounded so gentle and sincere that you half-believed him.

“(F/N), listen to Aro. He’s telling the truth.”

You spun back around to see it was Edward who had just spoken to you at this time causing your nerves to lessen ever so slightly, yet you were still wary. You trusted Edward with your life. Why would he lie to you now? If he told you, you were safe and the Volturi would not harm you, then it had to be true, hadn’t it?

But then again, that didn’t make any sense at all. Why would the Volturi not wish any harm towards you? That was completely against every story you had ever been told by the Cullens and your father before.

“Give us time to explain, little one,” Marcus spoke, his voice soft and ever so gentle. “All will come to make sense.”

He slowly approached you and as much as you wanted to run away, another part of you yearned desperately for his touch once more. Much to your dismay, this part overruled your instinct to run and you allowed Marcus to approach you. His scent beginning to overwhelm and calm you once again.

Sensing your consent, Marcus slowly lowered your hands from your throat and kissed the top of each, leaving you with reddening cheeks as he gently coaxed you back to the other two.

“I’m sorry to have startled you, angelo mio,” Caius spoke as you neared him and Marcus let go of you to allow Caius to take your small hands in his. The deep sorrow which filled his eyes told you he was telling the truth, though you didn’t understand why. Why would a leader of the Volturi be apologizing to you, a mere half-breed? Despite your confusion on the manner and reasons completely unknown to you, Caius’s sorrow deeply bothered you and you yearned to make his sorrow go away. “Will you forgive me?”

You nodded your head if only to see his frown go away and allowed Caius to pull you closer to him. As his arm wrapped around the small of your back, you found yourself leaning your head against his chest. This action seemed to relax him as much as it relaxed you and you found your eyes fluttering close at the contentment which filled you once more.

As much as you felt like you couldn’t trust Caius, Marcus, or Aro, everything about them told you, you could trust them with your life though you didn’t understand why.

“I know there is much you do not understand, my dear, but to make things easier for you to, I must first find out what you know.” Your eyes opened once more as you heard Aro speaking to you. “With your permission.” He held out his hand for you to take and Caius gently let you go so you could focus on Aro and oblige to his request.

“I don’t understand.” Your brows scrunched up in confusion, slightly embarrassed and frustrated by your ignorance on the matter. “What do you need my permission for?” 

“Much like yourself, I have been given a gift. With a single touch, I have the ability to read one’s thoughts.” Aro lowered his hand as he gently explained the matter to you. You felt slightly better at the smile he sent you when he spoke, it helped you to not feel so stupid over not knowing what was going on. “I want you to understand that I will be able to read every thought you have ever had, however, and not those which are just crossing your mind at the moment like your brother.”

Aro’s explanation made you pause. He would be able to hear every thought you had ever had? This would explain how he knew your name and the fact you had an ability like him as he must have gotten it from Edward’s mind. You didn’t care if he already knew things like that about you, but you didn’t want him to know the other secrets you kept hidden in your mind. You didn’t want Aro to learn about the scars or him for that matter. 

You unconsciously tugged at the ends of your sleeves and pulled your hair around to hide your neck from view. What would he think if he learned of the faint scars scattered across your pale skin, or even about the dark thoughts you had found yourself mulling over at different occasions. How embarrassing would it be when this man who seemed to be sculpted by the gods themselves saw how terribly flawed you really were.

“Please, my dear, it would comfort me to know you willingly gave me your thoughts and I did not force myself upon them.” 

Aro raised his hand once more for you to take and you saw the sad smile upon his face as he gazed down at you. It wasn’t hard to see he truly did not want to hear your thoughts without your consent, but he would do so if you did not comply. Why he was being so gentle with you and cared about your privacy, you didn’t understand, But then again, you didn’t understand much of what was going on at the moment. Perhaps you were just dreaming and would wake up at any moment to find the Volturi were not the beautiful, gentle men before you, but the ones wh everyone had told you of, the ones which caused fear to run down one’s spine.

“You’ll explain everything if I do this, right?” You cocked your head to the side and when Aro told you he would, you sighed. Besides, if this was just a dream like you believed it to be then what harm would come from doing this?

So, against your better judgment, you raised your hand and allowed Aro to take it if only to make him happy. The bright smile which came from him when you obliged to his request gave you much comfort and reassured you that you were doing the right thing.

The moment Aro’s hand made contact with your own made you instantly feel better and you knew you had indeed made the right choice. His touch, very much like the other’s, sent little sparks of electricity running through you. You didn’t want him to just hold your hand but wanted his touch everywhere if only for the feelings it created inside you. It made you feel more alive, but more importantly, it made you feel wanted. One small touch and you were like an addict. You wanted more, no, you needed more.

At seeing the sly smile appear on Aro’s lips, your own face erupted in flames. You had forgotten he could hear every thought which had just run through your hear at the moment and it made you feel all awkward inside knowing that he now knew of the deep desire you held for him and his two brothers.

When his smile slowly faded you didn’t know whether to feel relieved or not. Without having to be told, you knew which parts of your past he had come upon. Certain parts of your past weren’t the most pleasant and your mind had taken a darker turn on more than one occasion. 

“(F/N), my dear, you have nothing at all to be ashamed of.” Aro’s lips curled into a sad smile before he raised the hand he had been holding and softly kissed the top of it. “You are one remarkable, young woman.” You couldn’t keep your whole body from shivering at the contact and the words he spoke, but as much as this seemed to embarrass you, it seemed to please him.

Before you could even rebuke Aro’s statement-there was nothing remarkable or astounding about you-Aro whipped off the black suit jacket he had been wearing and wrapped it around your shoulders. Your eyes instantly widened at his actions and your brain raced to process what had just occurred. Aro, one of the leaders of the Volturi, had just taken off his jacket and placed it on your shoulders.

After stepping foot in the room and being overwhelmed by the scents surrounding you, you had forgotten about your rain-soaked state and the cold biting at your skin. You had forgotten, that is, until now, and was thoroughly embarrassed by the ugly, drenched state you were sure to be in. 

“You’re making some sort of mistake.” You managed to stumble out before removing your hand from Aro’s grasp in order to take off his jacket and hand it back to him before your wet state ruined it. You didn’t know much about fashion, but even you could tell this suit jacket was not something cheaply bought. 

“Stop, my dear, you’re going to freeze yourself.” Aro forced you to stop messing with the jacket around your shoulders before cupping your right cheek in his hand. “You have had several long days and-”

“But you don’t understand!” You interrupted, not at all realizing the repercussions your action would have caused if it were done by someone other than you. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I do know that you’ve got this all wrong here. There’s-”

Your words stopped and shock overcame your face as the realization of what was happening finally hit you, but it was so preposterous you didn’t know whether to believe it or not. It was highly unbelievable, but it was the only solution that answered nearly everything that had happened since you entered the room.

You were their mate.

taglist: @gay-and-immortl

[shadowynnn]

I love your stories!

Thank you, love! I’m glad you enjoy them! 

[shadowynnn]

la tua cantante | part three |

twilight saga

synopsis: You’re a half-vampire with a past you more than wish you could forget. Your life takes an unsuspecting turn when you travel to Volterra to save your adopted brother and discover you’re the mate of the Volterra leaders.

part three synopsis: Edward’s suicide attempt has you racing to Volterra in order to save him.

pairing: Aro, Caius, and Marcus x Reader

words:  3800

a/n : In this series, Aro and Marcu’s physical age will be the same as the books, mid 20′s, and 19-early 20′s respectively, while Caius’s age will be the same as portrayed in the movies, early 20′s.

You listened attentively to the update Alice was giving on Edward’s current predicament as you sat in the backseat of the Porsche Alice had managed to steal at the airport. Edward had been denied the request of the Volturi killing him, thank goodness, so he was left with breaking the law in order to get the death he so craved. To do this, Edward had decided to walk into the sunlight at exactly noon in order to expose himself to the human world. It was a bit overly dramatic in your opinion, but it did give them the time you needed to keep him from following through with it and just maybe save his life. This also enabled you to be able to stop his plans if Bella couldn’t get to him in time and prove he was alive.

“You have to be careful, (F/N),” Alice warned as she pushed the car as fast as it would go, weaving in and out of cars. “If you do it too soon he might realize something’s up. Too late though...” 

You nodded your head not trusting yourself to speak at the moment. Knowing that you could still save Edward if you didn’t make it to him in time did little to comfort your nerves. While you were confident in your abilities, self-doubts began to trickle into your thoughts. What if you messed it all up? You would never forgive yourself if you ended up ruining everything you had tried so hard to fix.

“I want you to stay far away from us though,” Alice added after a moment. “Edward will be at the main plaza under the clock tower. We will come find you the moment we’re in the clear.” You quickly opened your mouth to oppose, but she beat you to it. “If we can go through with our plan without exposing you, you’re staying out of the way.”

You shot Alice an icy glare, but you knew she was right whether you liked it or not. Alice simply ignored the look you sent her way and instead turned her attention to Bella who had asked whether she had seen anything else which might be helpful to the situation at hand.

“There’s something going on, some kind of festival, I believe. The streets are full of people dressed in red and red flags are everywhere. What’s the date?” Alice murmured as she sped past a minivan.

You glanced at the date on your phone. “The nineteenth.”

“Well, that’s ironic; it’s Saint Marcus Day.” Alice let out a bitter laugh.

“Saint Marcus?” you asked leaning forward in your seat to better communicate with the two. “As in the Volturi?”

She nodded her head. “The city holds a celebration every year. As the legend goes, a Christian missionary, Father Marcus drove out all the vampires from Volterra fifteen hundred months ago before being Martyred in Romania. Of course, that’s utter nonsense as Marcus has never left Volterra, but it did lead to the superstitions of crosses and garlic. Vampires don’t mess with Volterra, so they must work.”  A smile appeared on Alice’s lips, but it didn’t sit well with you. “Saint Marcus Day has become more of a celebration for the city as Volterra is incredibly safe. While the citizens credit the police for the safety, it goes to the Volturi. They love their city so much they don’t even allow hunting in its walls.”

“They’re not going to be very happy if Edward messes that up then.” Bella cringed as she realized the extra emphasis the day had on their current dilemma.

“No, they’re going to act very quickly.”

“Is he still planning on noon?” Bella asked as her eyes glanced towards the clock once more. The numbers were creeping much closer to noon than any of you liked.

“Yes, he’s decided to wait and in turn, they’re waiting on him.” Alice kept her eyes on the winding road. “Remember Bella, he just has to see you. He has to see you before he sees or smells (F/N) and me. I’ll take you as far as I can go and then point you in the direction. Go as fast as you can; (F/N) will have your back. Though please don’t trip; she can’t buy you enough time to deal with a concussion.”

Bella groaned, leaning her head against the back of the leather seat she was sitting in. You fought the urge to groan with her. You could already see one of Bella’s acts of clumsiness ruining everything they had come so far to accomplish.

“Volterra.” Alice breathed and pointed to the castle city on top of the closest hill. Ancient sienna walls surrounded the towers and the city, isolating itself from the rest of the world. If you weren’t so terrified at the moment, you would have found the city breathtaking. Instead, it only sent waves of fear down your back as you realized whose city it was. It was the one city in the entire world you were always told to stay away from, yet here you were on your way to enter it.

As you drew closer to the city, the street became more and more congested. Eventually, cars were so close together Alice could no longer weave in and out of them and you were stuck to a painstakingly slow crawl. There was nothing any of you could do about it, however. Alice had informed you this was the only entrance to the city and you couldn’t very well run or else you would expose yourselves to the humans surrounding you and end up in a worse position than you already were.

You were a bit surprised to see many cars pull over to the side of the road and their inhabitants getting out to walk the rest of the way. You thought it was just impatience, but when you saw the filled parking lot on the outside of the city and no cars being allowed to enter the city’s walls, your heart nearly stopped. What were they to do?

“Alice.” Your voice was barely over a whisper and your heart began to quicken once more.

“I know,” Alice bit back, but continued the slow crawl to the city. You didn’t offer any further comment. Alice had to know the fastest way for them to get into the city.

As more people began to walk up to the city, you soon noticed the color donning every person they passed. Red hats, red shirts, red scarves, and then the red flags many held in their hands. It was the exact shade of blood and made your stomach roll. 

You could survive on human food or blood, but you could only go so long without drinking before the smell would start to drive you a little wild. So while you often liked to depend on human food to keep yourself from starving, you did occasionally hunt to keep your bloodlust under control. Like your adoptive family, however, you had taken up the vegetarian diet because it was easier than stealing blood from a local hospital. It didn’t taste nearly as good, but you refused to ever bite a human. Your bite wasn’t poisonous, at least not that you were aware of, but you knew exactly what it felt like to be drank from and you refused to ever submit anyone through that as well.

“I can’t see what the guard will decide,” Alice spoke once you drew near to the entrance. “If we can’t get through I want you both to jump out and go on ahead without me. Bella, just keep asking for Palazzo de Priori and run in the direction people point. (F/N), keep your distance and be ready. Make sure to make it look as natural as possible.”

You nodded your head, already concentrating on the task at hand while Bella kept mumbling Palazzo de Priori under her breath in the front seat. You did your best to ignore her and focused on the dark clouds seen breaking the horizon in the distance.

You kept your attention on the storm clouds coming towards you from the west as Alice moved up in the line of cars before reaching the guard. You were thankful a strong breeze was already coming up from the west as well so you didn’t have to concentrate on that as well. It also allowed you to move the upcoming storm faster than you normally could.  You had learned to perfect your ability over the years, but you still struggled to control it once you got a large storm brewing. It was also difficult to not affect the weather when your temper got out of hand or you got overly emotional, which was actually quite often if you were to be truly honest with yourself. Luckily in Forks, rain and thunderstorms were never uncommon.

You hadn’t even noticed Alice had gotten you in the city until the car slammed to a stop and Bella sprinted out before it was even fully stopped. You were quick to jump out after her.

“Shit, they’re everywhere!” Alice hissed when she too stepped out of the car fully wrapped in clothing to keep the sunlight from hitting her skin. She spared a glance at you, a frown painted on her lips.

You took a deep breath yourself and realized Alice was right. You could smell the sweet scent of many foreign vampires surrounding you and it was nearly overwhelming. You had never been this close to so many vampires before. A chill ran along your spine at the thought of them hiding in the shadows and you spun around in an attempt to locate them. You didn’t like the thought of being watched from the shadows.

“Forget about them, you have two minutes. Go, Bella, go!” Alice pushed Bella in the direction of the square before turning back to you.”There’s a water fountain a few blocks west of the clock tower. Go find it and we will come to you when this is all over.”

You desperately wanted to disagree with her, the chances of some vampire catching wind of your scent was all be certain, after all, but Alice ran off in her own direction before you could even state your point. 

“Yes, Alice, I’ll go and hide away like a coward while you all face your potential death.” You mumbled under your breath before bitterly stalking in the direction Alice had motioned you to. continuing to mumble several other obscenities as well as you went.

Alice’s directions were easy to follow and you soon came to a beautiful fountain made from the same bricks which decorated the walls of the city. The water was a crystal blue that sparkled in the sunlight and was topped with several vibrant waterlilies. If you hadn’t been so annoyed at your present situation, you would have found the fountain beautiful. Instead, you just saw it as another prison.

Your annoyance quickly dissipated as the first loud toll of the clocktower could be heard reverberating through the city. Each ring sent a fresh shiver of fear under your skin and filled you with terrible anticipation. Had Bella made it yet? Had she tripped and fallen? Was Edward safe? Had they succeeded in their plan?

You attempted to keep each and every question locked away as you focused on the sky and the large, dark clouds that had found their way over the sun as the clock struck twelve. If you hadn’t been so overwhelmed and frightened, you would have taken pride in your accomplishment.

Seeing your job now complete, you made your way over to the fountain and collapsed on top of its edge. All you could do was sit and wait. If they didn’t come back soon then you would ignore Alice’s orders and go searching for them yourself.

A sigh escaped your lips as you watched the people celebrating around you, smiling and laughing as if they didn’t have a care in the world and you wished you could join them in their ignorance. You would give almost anything to be back home in Forks curled up in a blanket as you watched cheesy horror movies with Jacob, a bowl of popcorn in between you.

Minutes slowly ticked by and still you were alone. You could barely smell Edward’s, Bella’s and Alice’s scent anymore which scared you. You could, however, smell the scent of the other vampires. A few more minutes is all you would wait before you went off in search of them.

A steady rain had begun to fall as your mood sunk further. The red donned crowd around you began to scream as they ran around to get out of the rain, but you kept your spot at the fountain. The rain helped to soothe your fears and worries. It was familiar and comforting.

Your stance stiffened, however, when one particular scent became stronger than all the others. You jumped up to find him clothed in a black robe and standing in front of you. The rest of the crowd was too worried about staying dry to pay attention to the two of you.

“I guess Alice and Edward aren’t coming back to fetch me, are they?” Your head notched ever so slightly to the side as you watched the man quietly assess you from underneath his hood and fought the urge to shiver. You weren’t going to show any sign of weakness if you could help it.

“Hmm, I thought I was informed wrongly when I was told of a girl who smelled of a strange mixture between a vampire and a human, yet here you are standing before me. It seems as though they were telling the truth.” He cocked his head to the side, mirroring your earlier movement as he further took in your now drenched figure. “Your friends are already on their way inside. If you follow me, you may join them. I’m sure the masters will be quite interested in you.”

You swallowed the lump building in your throat at his words. You didn’t want to follow him but didn’t see much of a choice. If you wanted to see Alice, Edward, and Bella, then you would have to follow the vampire.

“Lead the way then.” You tried to keep the fear out of your voice, but knew you had failed when your voice shook ever so slightly.

The man chuckled, clearly amused by your fear before motioning for you to follow him.

“Is everyone alright?” You built up the courage to ask as you saw the top of the clock tower in the distance. You didn’t really want to talk to him, but your curiosity was getting the better of you. You needed to know whether your plan had succeeded or not.

“Everyone is alive...at the moment.” He replied with a backward glance at you, but his words did little to soothe your fears. What did he mean by that? Had Edward stepped out too early? Had he still broken the law after their attempt to stop him?

You kept these questions to yourself despite the itch to throw them at the man. He didn’t seem too keen to answer your questions anyway, so there wasn’t much point in asking.

After a fairly short walk, the man bent down and pushed the cover to a grate open below them and motioned for you to drop down the small, open hole. “After you.”

You gave the man a sharp look, briefly wondering if you should make a run for it. Quickly realizing that option would only end up doing more harm than good, you bent down to the ground and slipped your body through the hole.

You landed on the hard ground with a thud, stumbling ever so slightly to catch your balance. The man dropped down beside you a few seconds later and the grate fell back to place above you. Without the outside light, you struggled to make out your surroundings. Your vision, like your other senses, weren’t nearly as powerful as a vampire’s.

Either not noticing your disorientation or simply not caring, the man set off down the tunnel leaving you struggling to catch up with him. You could feel the decline of the floor as you went, telling you they were descending farther underground. The further they went, however, the colder it got. You had been wearing a jacket, but it had become thoroughly soaked from the rain and left you shivering in the cold air.

You cursed yourself for letting it rain and in an effort to keep warm, you tightly wrapped your arms around your body. You yearned for a hot bath to work out the kinks in your body from the stress of the past days and to also just warm yourself up. 

Eventually, the end of the dreary, freezing tunnel could be seen and the man opened the door which laid at its end. You flinched at the bright light that suddenly appeared, raising your arm to shade your eyes. When your eyes adjusted to the new light you saw it was a nondescript, plain hallway on the other side and swiftly stepped through when you heard the man yell at you to keep up.

Their trip in this new hallway was small and they soon approached an elevator guarded by another vampire in black robes. You could feel his gaze on your body and briefly wished you had Edward’s ability to know what he and the other vampire you were following thought about you. When you feard the guard take a deep breath as you walked by, however, you were glad to not be able to hear his thoughts. You didn’t think you wanted to know based on the way his eyes took in your shivering figure.

As the elevator began to ascend, you caught movement from your side and saw the man you had been following had pulled down his hood and you were finally able to get a good look at him. His skin held a slight olive tone to it, a weird combination with the chalky pallor which came with being a vampire, but it took nothing away from his vampiric beauty. His hair was short and a sandy, brown color, slightly mussed from the hood he had been wearing to protect his identity. He was tall too, much taller than you had initially noticed.

He seemed to notice you assessing him, and his eyes, a bright red, caught you (E/C) ones causing you to shuffle back a bit. You were used to the CUllens’ gold eyes after living with them for a little over a year now, but these were the first red eyes you had seen since your trouble with...

“Are you wearing colored contacts?”

“What?” Your face scrunched up in confusion as the sudden question had taken you by surprise. You hadn’t expected him to talk to you.

“Your eyes.” He leaned slightly towards her as if to get a better look at what he was talking about. “Are they naturally (E/C)?” 

“Oh...um...yeah.” You managed to stumble out, your eyes quickly looking anywhere else in the elevator except for him. You could still feel the intensity of his gaze making you rather nervous and uncomfortable, but at least he was looking at you like you were a meal.

“Interesting,” the man breathed before straightening back up an turned his gaze away from you. From the sideways glances, he kept throwing you afterward, you could tell he had several more questions he wished to ask, but kept them to himself.

You began to nervously nibble on your bottom lip as the elevator ride continued. You urged it to finally stop and allow you to escape its small confines. With each passing glance your way, the more nervous you grew. So far he had shown no signs of hurting you but after previous engagements with vampires, you were just waiting for the moment when he would finally pounce.

The elevator soon reached its destination and you were relieved to see the man had made no move to attack you and instead continued to lead you through yet another hallway. This hall, however, was quite different than the last few and was lavishly decorated with expensive looking decor and beautiful arching windows towering above them. You could only imagine how beautiful it might look if the sun were out and shining through them, but you were too nervous and panicked to concentrate on letting the sun come back out so that you might see what it would look like.

You soon passed by a woman at a desk, lazily working on the computer in front of her and you were shocked to see that she was human. Why would the Volturi have a human working for them? Better yet, did she know what kind of monsters she was working for?

She jumped to her feet when she saw the two approaching. Smiling brightly at the vampire you were with, she greeted him in a language you were largely unfamiliar with but recognized as Italian. He gave her a sly smile as he passed her by, making the woman’s dark complexion blush before she turned back to her work, not even giving you a single glance.

You had no time to process whether you were offended by her actions or not when you noticed the man you had been following had stopped in front of a pair of doors which looked to be made out of gold. They climbed all the way to the ceiling and were carved with intricate swirls and patterns. If you didn’t know they led you to your certain doom, you would have found them beautiful. Instead, you simply saw them as the gates to hell.

“Nervous?”

Your eyes tore from the door as the man gave you a knowing smile of his own before reaching forward to grab one of the doors’ handles. You attempted to throw a sharp glare in his direction in an attempt to mask the terror that had suddenly burst into you at knowing you were about to meet the Volturi, but the sharp swallow that followed and the frantic beating of your heart was enough to expose your facade.

He simply laughed at your response before easily swinging the door open and exposing you to the contents of the other side. You stood still as you peered at the other side, feet glued to the ground as you didn’t have enough courage to step forward. Before she realized what was happening, you were given a small, but oddly gentle push by the man who had guided you to this spot and entered the one room you really hadn’t wanted to.

taglist: @gay-and-immortl

[shadowynnn]

la tua cantante | part two |

twilight saga

synopsis: You’re a half-vampire with a past you more than wish you could forget. Your life takes an unsuspecting turn when you travel to Volterra to save your adopted brother and discover you’re the mate of the Volterra leaders.

part two synopsis: You find out Edward is in danger and decide to travel to Volterra with Bella and Alice.

pairing: Aro, Caius, and Marcus x Reader

words:  3063

a/n : In this series, Aro and Marcu’s physical age will be the same as the books, mid 20′s, and 19-early 20′s respectively, while Caius’s age will be the same as portrayed in the movies, early 20′s.

You were startled from your restless sleep when you heard your phone ringing on the table beside you. Confused, and slightly disoriented, you reached for the buzzing device ready to tell off whichever family member had decided now was a good time to check up on you. It had been a long couple of flights to Forks and all you wanted to do was sleep. You stopped, however, when you saw that it was not a Cullen, but rather Jacob who was calling her.

“Jake?” You said as you begrudgingly accepted the call and put your phone up to your ear fighting the urge to close your eyes. “I had just gotten to sleep you know.”

“Did anyone else come with you?”

You were taken back by the abruptness of his question and the underlying panic it held. You were suddenly very awake.

“No, it’s just me, Jake.” You responded as evenly as you could, doing your best to ignore the panic starting to rise up in you. “Why? Did something happen?”

“Someone’s at Bella’s house. She said it was Carlisle’s car, but I don’t trust it. What if-”

“I’m on my way.” You jumped up at Jacob’s words, already reaching for your shoes as you felt your already fast heart begin to speed up even more. “I’m just a few miles from her house; I’ll be there in less than five minutes.”

“No, (F/N)-”

You ended the call before he could argue and try to convince you to stay away. If Bella was in danger, which she highly doubted as it was Carlisle’s car, after all, the right thing to do would be to help protect her. The Cullens had done so much for you in the past year, so the least you could do was protect Bella in their absence.

As you ran through the woods, you tried to think of who could have come to visit Bella. You knew it couldn’t be Carlisle or Esme despite it being Carlisle’s car in Bella’s driveway. They had been on their way to Isle Esme at the same time you were on your way to Forks. The other Cullens, though, you were unsure of. You didn’t know the current location of the rest of them, but it wouldn’t be totally impossible to believe one of them, most likely Alice, could have decided to visit Bella without your knowledge. Edward had been very adamant about all of them staying out of Bella’s life completely, but perhaps Alice had seen something important enough to warrant a visit.

Your suspicions were proved correct when Alice’s familiar scent reached your nose, though you were unsure to feel relieved or not. It was comforting to know it was just Alice and not some other vampire out to harm Bella...again, but you were nervous to find out what Alice had seen to make her break her promise to Edward and visit Bella. Whatever it was, it had to have been extremely important and you didn’t know if you really wanted to find out or not.

You slowed to a walk as you climbed out of the forest behind Bella’s house and made for the nearest door. Despite the area being fairly secluded, you could never be too sure if you were being watched by any of the townsfolk or not. It was better to be safe than have someone spot you running much faster than any normal human could.

As you rounded the side of the house you noticed Bella’s truck in the driveway with Carlisle’s car parked behind it. You frowned when you also noticed Jacob’s own vehicle parked in the road and saw he was not inside waiting for her to come over. You should have known Jacob wouldn’t have waited for you to arrive, but dive headfirst into the situation. You could only hope he hadn’t begun to butt heads with Alice already.

“We have to go then!”

You didn’t bother to knock on the door and went ahead and let yourself in when you heard Bella raise her voice. Within a few seconds, you arrived in the kitchen where Jacob, Bella, and Alice were. You felt your heartbeat pick up again when you not only felt the thick tension in the air around them but the panic and fear as well. Bella’s and Alice’s eyes were both wide and she could tell the panic she felt was radiating off of them in waves. Clearly, this was not just some random trip to come see Bella but held a much bigger reason.

“Alice?” You exclaimed in part happiness and part confusion, as you brushed past Jacob’s brooding figure and wrapped your arms around her adoptive sibling. “What are you doing here? What’s going on?” You asked quickly as you let her go and glanced over at Bella who seemed very shocked at seeing you in her house. “Bella.” You nodded at the girl and attempted a smile.

“We might be in a bit of trouble, (F/N).”

“Trouble? What kind of trouble?” Your gaze shifted back to Alice at the word trouble.

Alice frowned as she quickly filled you in on the details of her visit. Apparently, Bella had gone cliff diving a few days ago, and Alice, who had been monitoring Bella throughout the time they had left, saw the vision of Bella jumping off the cliff and had assumed Bella had committed suicide. In a panic, she had flown down to check in only to find Bella alive and well. Rose, on the other hand, had let it slip to Edward that Bella had supposedly died, and now Edward was hellbent on dying himself unless they found a way to stop him.

“Let me call him.” You scrambled to grab your phone inside your pocket. Edward couldn’t possibly be thinking about killing himself, could he? Even if Bella was dead, he had his family to think about. He wouldn’t throw all of them away because the girl he had refused to turn had died, would he? How could he be so selfish?

Alice grabbed the phone from your shaking hands before you could get Edward’s number pulled up. “I’ve already tried that. He threw his phone away.”

“We have to do something!” You moaned. You had just found the Cullens, a coven you could consider your own; one which defied and broke all your previous thoughts on vampires. The thought of losing one of your newly adopted family members was not a thought you wanted to have nor think about, especially not based on such selfish reasoning as this.

“Alice, you said we would have to hurry. Hurry how? Hurry where? We have to do something!” Bella broke your thoughts as she spoke up from beside you.

Glancing at the girl, you saw Bella was in even worse shape than yourself. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her body as if they were the only thing keeping her together at the moment, and perhaps they were.

“We may already be too late. I saw him going to the Volturi...and asking to die.” Alice’s fingers fluttered quickly in an attempt to calm her nerves. She paced along the kitchen as she spoke and all three of them flinched as she spoke of Edward asking to die. “However, they might deny his request. Carlisle lived with the Volturi for a while and they are rather fond of him. And then we can’t forget their interest in the particular gift Edward has. They wouldn’t want it to go to waste.” Alice began to ramble as she walked, her brows scrunched as she mulled over the situation. “But, if they do deny his request, Edward has come up with a backup plan. He knows how much the Volturi love their city. If he disrupts the peace then he thinks they will act on it. He’s right though. They will.”

“Then what are we doing here?” Bella groaned, blinking back the tears pricking the corners of her eyes. “We need to get going now!” 

Alice held her finger up to silence Bella. “Whether we are in time or not, we will be in the heart of the Volturi city. I will be considered his accomplice if he is successful. You will be a human who not only knows too much but also smells too good. And you,” Alice turned to look at you, an unreadable expression on her face. “I don’t even know where to start on why you should stay clear of Volterra.”

Before you could even voice your complaints, Bella quickly beat you to it. “Alice, if there is any chance, large or small, that we can save Edward, I will risk anything and everything to take that chance.” Bella’s brown eyes pleaded with Alice’s dark golden ones. “If you won’t take me to Italy, then I will find a way on my own without you.”

Alice sighed, but you could tell she was giving in. She wanted to save Edward just as much as Bella did. “I’ll call the airlines, but, Bella, you need to leave a message for Charlie.”

Bella’s eyes widened at Alice’s words, but not out of surprise that Alice was allowing her to travel to Volterra, but at the fact that she had forgotten all about her father until right now.

“I’ll think of something,” she mumbled out before running out of the kitchen and past Jacob who quickly followed behind in an attempt to stop her.

“Don’t even think about going without me.”

You knew it would be dangerous for you to go with them, but you couldn’t just sit back and idly wait while the others did the dirty work. If you could help save Edward’s life then you would do anything in your power to do just that. You couldn’t live in hiding for the rest of your life. Eventually, your existence would be discovered whether you wanted it to or not, and you would much rather risk it being now for saving someone you cared about.

“I only have your best interest at heart, (F/N).”Alice bit the corner of her lip nervously. By the way her fingers rapidly tapped the counter, you could tell she had seen something that upset her greatly.

“You think I don’t realize that, Alice?” Your voice rose, upset from the resistance and the secrets you knew she was keeping from you at the moment. “I know the danger I could be in if the Volturi find out that someone like me exists, but I’m willing to put myself in danger in order to help. I can’t spend the rest of my life hidden away as one big secret. I’m not doing that again.”

Your words left her silent for a few moments. You hadn’t meant to take it that far, to bring back up the painful memories of your past, but you weren’t going to let Alice, or anyone for that matter, control your actions. You were tired of other people constantly telling you what you could and couldn’t do. It was your life and you would spend it any damn way you wanted to.

“You’re right,” Alice sighed. “It would only make things worse for everyone if I end up leaving you here, especially with him.” Her eyes flickered to Jacob who had returned from trying to stop Bella from going, another unreadable expression on her face as she spoke words that made no sense to you. “We’re only prolonging the inevitable.” She gave you one last sorrowful look before turning around to call the airlines and get their tickets in order without giving you any time to question anything she had just said.

Alice’s words left you with little want to celebrate your victory as the implications of it began to quickly weigh heavy on your mind. You didn’t know what would happen to you in Italy, didn’t know what Alice had meant by saying it would make things worse if they left you here with Jacob, but you didn’t think you particularly wanted to know either.

“(F/N).”

Your fears intensified when she felt Jacob’s hand fall on her shoulder causing you to twirl around to face him. Despite the warmth of his touch, you shivered at the intensity he was gazing down at you with.

“I have to go, Jake.” You lifted your hand and laid it against his cheek, relishing in the heat radiating off of him. “Edward was there for me when I needed it; now it’s my turn to be there for him.” You hated causing your friend pain, but you couldn’t lose Edward either.

You were saved from making any more painful excuses to go when Alice stepped in for you. “I know you don’t like this, but we will be in even more trouble if (F/N) stays here and the Volturi find out about her.” 

“Then don’t tell them,” Jacob growled causing you to drop your hand at his intensity.

“It’s not that easy,” Alice bit back with the same force. “The Volturi have ways to find out your every secret. They are the very essence of what our kind can and will do. They’re the reason your hand stands on end when you smell us. They are the substance of your nightmares and the dread behind your instincts. How else do you think they’ve been able to reign over us for as long as they have?”

A shiver ran along your spine at Alice’s words. You had never heard anything good about the coven that ruled the vampire world. Your first memories of their existence were warnings from her father and what would happen to her if she ever crossed paths with them. Those had been enough to make you happily keep your distance from them and any other vampire until you had messed everything up with him. Now you were willingly risking everything in order to save a vampire. You would have laughed at the irony if you weren’t so terrified.

“Then why are you taking them like champaign to a party?” 

“Jacob, everything’s going to be okay.” You knew you didn’t believe the words you spoke, but you hated seeing the hurt and fear in his eyes. “Besides, if anything starts to get too crazy, I’ll just strike them all with lightning.” 

You didn’t know if striking a vampire with lightning would do any damage, but it was always worth a try. You were strong, but not against a vampire. Your control over the weather was the only thing that could enable you to hold your own against them.

“Please do,” Jacob replied a slight grin on his face, before wrapping you in a tight hug. You returned the tight embrace with similar fervor and prayed this wouldn’t be their last goodbye.

“Who exactly are the Volturi.”

You hadn’t paid much attention to Alice or Bella as they sat idly on the airplane making their way to New York, but the question Bella had asked Alice caught your attention enough to cause you to pause the song you had been listening to and glance over at the pair. 

You only knew of the reputation the Volturi had built over the past centuries, but not much about the vampires which made up the Volturi. All of your knowledge on the subject came from what the Cullens and your own father had explained to you, that they kept the law and god show mercy on those who were dumb enough to break it.

“I was surprised you recognized the name. I thought I would have to explain it to you.” Alice leaned in close to Bella and whispered softly in her ear, but your sharper senses were still able to pick up her words. “How much did Edward tell you?”

“He just said they were an old, powerful family, much like royalty. That you didn’t antagonize them unless you wanted to...die.”

You mimicked Bella’s choke she made as she spoke that last word. The realization of not only what you were getting yourself into hitting you once again, but also of the thought that Edward might be dead before you could get to him.

“There were three of them originally, Aro, Caius, and Marcus.” Alice paused for a moment, her eyes flickering to you. You assumed this was to see if you were listening or not. “Women have joined over the years, but usually leave after finding their mate. It’s not unusual for relationships to take place between two vampires who aren’t mates, but no relationship is truly like the bond that mates have with one another.” There was another quick glance in your direction.

“There's only three?” Bella’s eyebrows quirked in confusion.

“Those are just the ones who are in charge; there’s also the guard. No one truly knows the full number or extent of their guard, but most are talented in the way (F/N), Edward, and I are. Most of them are chosen because of these abilities, physical or otherwise. They don’t get too many confrontations because of this. No one is stupid enough to mess with them.” 

You leaned back in your seat not wanting to hear anymore or else your nerves and fears would get the best of you once again. What would the Volturi do when they discovered that a hybrid between humans and vampires existed? Would they let you be as long as you continued following the law? Or would they make you stay with them so that you could be studied? Or worse, would they decide you were too much of a risk and kill you?

You shivered in your seat, pulling your jacket tighter around your body in an attempt to warm yourself. You couldn’t afford to think about what would happen when you came forward before the Volturi. You would make yourself sick if you did. You needed to focus on saving Edward, as that was what truly mattered at the moment. But even that was a topic you wished you could bury away. You knew your chances of succeeding were slim, very slim, but hearing the words Alice had spoken made you feel that your task would be impossible.

It seemed as though whatever outcome occurred at the end of their journey, it wasn’t going to be a pretty one. You would just have to wait and see which terrible one it ended up being.

[shadowynnn]

la tua cantante |part one|

twilight saga

synopsis: You’re a half-vampire with a past you more than wish you could forget. Your life takes an unsuspecting turn when you travel to Volterra to save your adopted brother and discover you’re the mate of the Volterra leaders.

part one synopsis: You take a short trip back to Forks, Washington to meet up with your close friend, Jacob Black.

pairing: Aro, Caius, and Marcus x Reader

words:  2936

a/n : In this series, Aro and Marcu’s physical age will be the same as the books, mid 20′s, and 19-early 20′s respectively, while Caius’s age will be the same as portrayed in the movies, early 20′s. 

The weather was like it had been every day during your short stay in Forks: wet and dreary. It was nearly midday, but the sun was still stuck behind one of the countless grey clouds and left the little town in Washington in its cold, wet embrace. 

You watched from your seat in the back corner of the diner as the fat raindrops fell against the glass of the window next to you, enthralled by the streaks and patterns they fell. Your entire life had always revolved around the weather: the rain, the snow, the sun-it was a part of who you were, after all-yet it had never failed to amaze you.

A stray raindrop caught the corner of your eyes and a smile crossed your face as you lifted a finger to the window where it slowly fell along the glass. In a blink of an eye, you traced a new path for the droplet and it quickly obliged to your commands, defying gravity as it performed loops and twirls before breaking apart against the pavement below.

Your attention was quickly drawn from the window, however, as the diner’s door opened and you were overwhelmed with the smell of wet dog. Nose wrinkling in disgust, you quickly raised a hand to help stifle the smell as your eyes searched for the source of the stench. When you saw the man you had been waiting for standing at the diner’s entrance with a playful smirk dancing on his lips, your hand fell and your eyes widened in shock.

With a few long strides, Jacob Black sat down in the seat across from you and took off the coat he had been wearing. “Long time, no see, (N/N),” he said with that playful smile still plastered across his face before shaking his wet hair out in a similar fashion that a dog would.

“You’re a werewolf?” you loudly whispered, taking your best friend in with wide, shocked eyes.

“And you’re a vampire,” he chuckled back, leaning forward in his seat to better assess your current state. While his transformation had taken you by complete shock, it was easy to see Jacob was aware of your state of being before he stepped foot in the building.

“Technically half,” you were quick to point out, settling back in your seat as you seemed to finally get over your initial shock and take in this new Jacob. You hadn’t seen your best friend since you had left with the Cullens over four months ago, and boy, had Jacob changed drastically during that time. His long locks of hair and baby face were long gone and it looked as if he had aged years in the past few months. Especially with the amount of muscle he had put on in that short period of time. “I mean, come on, Black, I’m not that pale.”

“Really now?” Jacob laid his arm across the table to compare the dark color of his skin with your own.

“That’s not fair!” You giggled, pushing his arm away and noting the way your arm was blindingly white compared to his own.

“Can I get you two youngins something to eat?”

Your giggles faded away as an older woman, one that you only faintly recalled from your previous stay in Forks, came over to take your order. Upon seeing you, the older woman eyed you up and down with a look you couldn’t read. “Say, you look pretty familiar. You don’t happen to be one of Dr. Cullen’s kids, do you?”

You slowly nodded your head in reply, awkwardly fiddling with the end of your jacket sleeve as you did so. You hoped the news of your return to Forks wouldn’t travel too far as you had promised Carlisle you would have no involvement with Bella during your brief visit back to Forks.

“I thought so!” The waitress beamed at you, excited to place your face with a name. “You guys decide to move back? I sure do miss having your father down at the hospital.”  

“No, ma’am. I just came back to visit some friends.” You tried your best to remain cordial, but you really wished she would just take your order and move on. “But I’ll be sure to tell him he’s duly missed here.”

She smiled at your reply, seemingly content with it before finally taking yours and Jacob’s order and moving on to put it in.

“Hungry?” You teased after hearing the long list of items Jacob had ordered. While you had settled on a chocolate shake and fries, Jacob seemed to have ordered the entire menu.

“When am I not?” Jacob leaned back in his seat. “Food seems to burn through me as soon as I put it in my mouth.”

“Perks of being a werewolf, I guess. You can eat as much as you want and never gain a single pound.” You took a sip of the water you had flagged down while you had waited for Jacob to reply. “So when did it happen? The big transformation, I mean.” 

“Umm,” Jacob’s brow crinkled slightly as he stopped to think about it.  I think about a month or so ago. It definitely took a while to adjust to the whole supernatural side of things, however.”

“I bet they told you all about how big and bad we, vamps, are then?” You eyed Jacob carefully. You had had your suspicions of the Quileute tribe down in La Push when you had first arrived in Forks, but you had never expected Jacob to end up becoming a werewolf, himself. You couldn’t find it in you to be upset by this change, but rather pleasantly happy. It felt like a burden had been removed from your shoulders at not having to keep your biggest secret from Jacob anymore.

“Oh, Dad had always told me to stay away from you and the Cullens, but what can I say? I’m a sucker for girls with (E/C) eyes.”

You looked away, a small blush dusting your cheeks at his words. You knew they were just playful fun, he had always been too enraptured with Bella to take a romantic interest in you, but his words still made you all flushed, nonetheless. It wasn’t just the words that got you all flustered though, but the hidden meaning behind them as well. Jacob may have learned that she was a part of the race that was enemies with his, but he didn’t care. He still wanted to be her friend.

You still remembered the night you first met the Quileute boy with his long, black hair. After discovering that you had never experienced prom before, your new adoptive siblings had managed to drag you to prom with them even though it had been the last thing you had wanted to do after everything that had happened shortly before. You had come up with every excuse not to go, but Alice and Rosalie had practically shoved you into a dress before curling your (H/C) hair and decorating your pale face in makeup. You had been miserable until Jacob had shown up in a worn-out suit. He had come to talk to Bella, but after being politely shut down by her, he had made his way to the door to leave. With a random burst of courage and thinking of nothing better to do, you had marched right up to the boy and asked if he had wanted to dance. To your surprise, he had agreed. After realizing they were both more than miserable at the cliche high school event, they had gone out to the very same diner they were at now and spent hours talking about anything and everything. After a rocky past, Jacob had been the light to pull her back up and on her feet.

“What are you thinking about?”

You were shaken from your thoughts when Jacob’s hands tentatively touched you wrist causing you to flinch. When your brain registered the question he had just asked, you turned to face the window and politely pulled your wrist away. “About the night we met.” You smiled softly at the memories. “Though, Black, the fact I had to ask you to dance still baffles me.”

He chucked at your words, but you could still make out the slight blush which covered his cheeks making you feel a small victory. It never took much to make you blush and Jacob often took full pleasure in this fact, just like your adoptive brother Emmett did, so you always felt victorious when you managed to make Jacob blush in turn. 

“I still remember when I got back home that night and my father assumed that it had gone well between Bella and me since I was out for so long. When I told him that I had actually spent time with one of Dr. Cullen’s children at the diner, he nearly had a heart attack. I thought he had lost his mind when he was shocked to learn you had ate as well.”

“I can just imagine him going back to his room mumbling, ‘I bet she was faking it,’ under his breath.” You laughed. You could just picture Jacob’s father questioning your eating habits after learning they had spent hours at the diner together. But you couldn’t blame him for his disbelief, you didn’t know of any other vampire with quite the background or genes that you had.

You could also still remember the awkward conversation you had found yourself in one fateful day after you had been hanging out with Jacob for a few weeks. While he had originally asked for you to stay the hell away from his son, he had lightened up a bit upon learning you weren’t fully a vampire, but half human as well. Upon then learning you could almost fully sustain yourself on human food, he begrudgingly allowed for the two to continue hanging out. With a little coaxing on Jacob’s part, he eventually even allowed you to cross the treaty line and hang out at their house with Jacob and go to the beach. You doubted he would ever admit it, but you were pretty certain the older man had grown to like you.

“Here you guys go.” 

Your thoughts on the past were once again interrupted when the waitress returned with your order and set the numerous plates down on the table. Jacob immediately dove into the food muttering brief comments on how hungry he was. You made idle conversation with him as you ate. Jacob stopped shoving his face occasionally to make brief comments and answers to questions. You managed to pull out how Bella was holding up and the full story of his transformation, laughing when he spoke of the awkward movie disaster Bella had pulled him and Mike into. In return, you spoke of all the places Carlisle and Esme had taken you since you had left Forks.

“You know, (N/N),” Jacob started as he finished his second cheeseburger. “You never really talk about your life before Forks.”

You froze at his words. You didn’t like to talk about your past. You would occasionally mention a few things, moments and memories from your first few years spent with your biological father, but you had often kept your mouth shut on the years between living with him and living with the Cullens. That particular part of your past was not nearly as pleasant as you liked for others to think and often wished to forget it entirely yourself.

“Well, it’s not the best of conversation makers,” You mumbled in response. You fingers idly rubbed the pale scar that covered the inside of your wrist as your mind descended into the memories of those awful years once more. The scar was just one of many you attempted to keep hidden away from others and yourself. They just served as constant reminders of things you only wished to forget.

You jumped as your wrist was quickly grabbed by Jacob with enough force to keep you from being able to pull it back. Jacob brought your arm close to his face and studied the faint, white scar. “What’s this?” he asked as he squinted his eyes in order to see the bite more clearly. “You were bit?” 

“It’s nothing,” you mumbled out, yanking your arm back with enough force this time to escape Jacob’s grip. You couldn’t keep the blush from covering your cheeks as your face heated up in embarrassment. The last thing you ever wanted Jacob to know about were your scars. 

You tugged at your sleeve, pulling it down to the palm of your hand to hide the scar from sight and hoped Jacob would drop the subject.

“It’s not nothing.” 

You could feel Jacob’s eyes searching for yours, but you refused to meet them. Partly out of embarrassment, and partly out of the memories that came rushing up to meet you. Despite the fact you knew he was dead, the thought of him still sent shivers down your spine, still caused you to wake up screaming from nightmares that occasionally haunted you in your sleep. You had watched the Cullens rip his body apart and throw the pieces in the fire, but you still couldn’t seem to make peace with the past and move on. 

“(F/N).”

At the sound of your name, you managed to shake yourself out of your thoughts and focus on the boy sitting across from you. You fidgeted in your seat, nervous for what he was about to say to you, but also agitated he wouldn’t take your hints and drop the subject. Jacob never used your full name unless he was serious.

“If some bloodsucker hurt you, I want to know so I can personally kill him.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore, okay?” You snapped before you could stop yourself. Your eyes instantly softened when you realized what you had done. You hadn’t meant to snap, but it was such a sensitive subject and you truly hated to talk about it. “I’m sorry, Jacob, it’s just that...I’m trying to forget about that part of my past. Besides, he’s dead now. The Cullens beat you to it.” You attempted to toss a teasing smile in his direction but failed miserably. 

“Well, if you ever need to talk, you know I’m always here for you.” Jacob reached across the table and took your hands in his own. “I’m always up for bashing some undead leeches.” 

This time you were able to summon a genuine smile. You had never been so thankful in your life that you had had enough courage at prom to ask this boy to dance with you. Sure, you had once been upset that Jacob would never be able to return your romantic interest due to his infatuation with Bella, but you had been able to move past this and see the boy as your best friend. You didn’t know where you would be if it wasn’t for Jacob.

“Even though I’m part undead leech,” You gave Jacob a teasing glare at his choice of words. “I have to admit that you’re right about one thing, Jake.”

“Which is?” Jacob asked, a hesitant smile crossing his face as he saw your own genuine smile.

“Vampires suck.”

Jacob immediately burst out laughing at your statement to which you soon followed suit. “See, it’s not just a werewolf thing,” he replied between barks of laughter.

You stayed at the diner for several more hours talking with Jacob. He didn’t speak anymore of your scars but instead questioned you heavily on your half-human, half-vampire state. His interest was immediately piqued when he learned you could control the weather and laughed at the realization that it hadn’t just been luck that kept the clouds and rain away whenever the two went to the beach at La Push.

You didn’t realize how much you had come to miss your best friend until the time came for you to part ways for the day. Jacob had pack duties to attend to and you were starting to grow tired from all the traveling you had gone through to get back to Forks. As you got up to leave, and Jacob begrudgingly allowed you to pay for his meal, you made him promise you would hang out at some point tomorrow and the following day before you had to leave of Monday. Jacob was more than happy to oblige to your wishes and promised to go hiking with you tomorrow morning as long as the weather was nice. You teasingly replied that you thought their chances on nice weather was fairly high.

Jacob walked you to your car and you wasted no time in attacking him with a tight hug, relishing the way his unnaturally warm body felt against the biting chill. Trying your best to ignore his stench, you buried your face into his chest and mumbled a thank you for everything he had done for you in the past year. It drastically fell short on conveying how grateful and appreciative you really were of him, but he seemed to understand and gently kissed the top of your head and squeezed you ever so slightly more in reply.

You were sad when the tie came for you to let go, shivering at the temperature that seemed to drop ten degrees without Jacob’s touch. You exchanged goodbyes once more before he took off into the woods and you climbed inside your car. As you started the car, you could faintly see the outline of a shiny black wolf to which you smiled. 

[shadowynnn]

fire and ice |part three|

far cry 5

fire and ice synopsis: After a drunk driver kills both of your parents in an accident when you were sixteen, you eagerly leave Hope County for college a few years later to escape the demons that haunt you there. After six years away, a strange dream prompts you to return home where you find things not quite how you left them. With a mysterious, and possibly dangerous, cult on the rise, you attempt to juggle finally coming to peace with your parents’ deaths and the cult’s increasing interest in you. (Begins a few months before the events in the game take place.)

part two synopsis: Your first encounter with Jacob Seed.

pairing: Jacob Seed, Joseph Seed, John Seed x Reader (though mainly Jacob Seed x Reader in this part)

words: 1731

You were utterly exhausted from last night’s party at the Spread Eagle Bar. While you had been ecstatic to see and catch up with everyone again, it had left you drained and yearning for time alone.

You knew that the mature and responsible thing to do was start the long process of fixing up your parent’s old cabin and moving in your belongings before you started up your job at St. Francis the following week and really lost all willpower to do just that, but you had always been a procrastinator and knew that the work could stand to wait another day. So instead of getting to work at settling back into Hope County, you had opted for a nice, long hike. It had been too long, after all, and you were eager to spend the day wandering through the Whitetails.

You had planned on allowing yourself to sleep in, letting your body have one good night of sleep before you got to work on the cabin and then eventually began your shifts at the hospital, but you awoke early all the same, breathless and heart racing from the dream you had been having. What the dream had been, however, you couldn’t seem to hold onto as time slowly ticked by. The more you tried to remember, the hazier everything became.

Figuring it was better to leave it forgotten with the way it left you shaky and anxious, you put the dream to rest and climbed out of bed. There was no way you would be able to get back to sleep now, so you decided you might as well begin the day bright and early.

It took you longer than normal to get ready as your old bedroom in your uncle’s house was crammed with boxes and you hadn’t done a very thorough job of organizing things when you had packed everything up. After a few minutes of haphazardly rummaging through the boxes, you pulled an army green utility jacket on over your t-shirt and shorts before slipping on a pair of your old hiking boots. You then quickly tugged your tangled curls into a messy ponytail before pulling on your backpack guitar case and strapping your trusted Glock into the holster on your waist-you could never be too safe hiking by yourself in the valley-and were out the door just as the sun was peeking its way over the horizon.

You would be lying if you said the case didn’t grow uncomfortable and cumbersome to carry throughout the day, but finding some quiet, isolated place up in the mountains and playing to your heart’s content was one of your favorite things to do. It calmed you; kept you grounded when nothing else could and your fingers were just itching to play.

You didn’t have a destination in mind, but rather, let your feet take you away when you arrived at the start of some of the trails. It was a beautiful day, the morning sky dusted with just a few wispy clouds and the temperature just cool enough to make you appreciate bringing a jacket for the first few hours. Fall was fast approaching, but the afternoons were still pleasantly warm.

You softly hummed along as the hours passed by, your feet traveling up and down the worn trails. You had yet to see another soul, just a few deer and other harmless wildlife scattered among the trees. 

Eventually, your legs began to grow tired and you could feel your breath starting to catch. Looking at your watch, you saw it was nearly noon and decided now was probably a good time to sit down to rest, eat, and perhaps play for a little bit.

You walked just a bit longer as you looked for an appropriate place to stop, finally finding an open place to your left which opened up to part of the valley below. After settling down on one of the larger rocks, you ate the meal you had packed for yourself before getting your guitar and beginning to tune it.

Ever since you were born, you had had a knack for all things musical. You were quick to pick up instruments and had an ear for being able to play things you heard. You could read music, your mother had taught you at a young age, but you often didn’t need the sheets. You found it easier and more enjoyable to just hash out the notes yourself and see where they took you.

Your fingers strummed idly across the strings, playing a few chords of this and that as you tried to find something which resonated with you at the moment. After a few minutes of indecisiveness, you found yourself strumming the beginning chords to an Axel Flovent song, your voice softly humming along before they turned to form the actual words.

“Your dreams are incredibly loud tonight; you're creating forest fires. You can't even change your sight; it's stuck in you like --”

You stopped abruptly when you heard rustling behind you. Startled, your guitar dropped from your hands which immediately moved to hover over the Glock at your waist while you spun around to see what had made the sound.

You didn’t know quite what you were expecting, some sort of animal most likely, so you were shocked to see it was a man standing a few yards back, staring intently at you.

“Holy shit, man!” You breathed out when you felt your heart begin to slow once again. “Don’t you know better than to sneak up on someone out here?” 

Your common sense told you to keep your guard up, but you were just so relieved it was just another person and not a wolf, mountain lion, or god forbid, a bear, that you found it hard to still be wary of him. With a dead whitetail strapped around his shoulders, you reckoned he was just a hunter who had wandered by when he heard your singing.

“I’m sorry, that was kind of rude of me.” You blushed when you saw his eyes glance at the hand still hovering over your gun. You quickly dropped it against your better judgment as you began to ramble from your still buzzing nerves. “It’s just, you scared me, is all...Which I guess, now that I think about it, there probably wasn’t a very good way to announce yourself without scaring the shit out of me, so I guess we’re just...equally...to...blame...” Your words trailed off at the end as you realized you had begun to ramble. You felt another light blush creep up your cheeks at your actions. The man probably thought you were an idiot.

Deciding it was better to keep your mouth shut and not embarrass yourself any further, you took a few seconds to truly take him in. He was older than you, you thought by at least fifteen years, though it was a bit hard to be sure. His hair, a few shades lighter than your own was cut short on the side but kept longer on the top and the lower half of his face was covered in a shaggy beard just as red as the rest of his hair. His jacket appeared to be military and you could just make out the glint of dog tags around his neck confirming your suspicions. You weren’t familiar enough with the military, however, to figure out what branch he had served in.

You were unnerved by the silence which followed your previous ramblings. He had yet to say a word since you had acknowledged his presence behind you. This silence along with the intensity of his scrutiny over you caused you to shift uncomfortably in your seat.

The time it took him to reply, though only a few seconds, seemed much longer due to the way he kept looking at you. It wasn’t in a lustful manner, but rather a careful, almost wary one. Nonetheless, it made you uncomfortable and you were about to open your mouth to break the silence. With what, you had no idea, but any rambling on your part seemed better than this stifling silence.

“Don’t you know it’s not smart for you to be out here by yourself?” 

Before you could break the silence yourself, he finally spoke, his words a mocking reference to one of your earlier statements. 

Despite the blush his words brought to your cheeks, you narrowed your eyes at the statement. “Puh-lease, I’m just as safe out here as you are. I could shoot you square between your eyes if I wanted to.” You scoffed, rolling your eyes at his obvious condescension from your appearance. Sure, you probably didn’t look like it, but you had been taught how to shoot a gun since you were ten and you had become a pretty straight shot after the years. “You’re just lucky I’m not a trigger happy kind of gal.” He was also lucky that it had been a few years since you had practiced, though he didn’t need to know that.

The man smirked at your statement, resituating the deer hanging off his shoulders as he gave you another one over. He took another bout of silence as his eyes took you in once more, almost as if he was seeing you in another light.

“Well aren’t you a little spitfire.”

“Wow, real original.” You narrowed your eyes at him again. “It’s not like I’ve never heard that one before.”

“Not surprised,” he snorted.

“Don’t you have something better to do than annoy girls just trying to mind their own damn business?” You retorted, before picking up your fallen guitar and checking for any damage. It wasn’t so much the words which bothered you, you could go back and forth all day with talk like this. You just really didn’t like the way he kept looking at you, with a gaze and intent virtually impossible to read.

“You’re right.” His head tilted to the side, taking one last long look at you before beginning to walk down the trail, seemingly losing complete interest in you. “See you around, Spitfire.” You heard him shoot back at you before he disappeared around a clump of trees and out of sight.

You turned back to your guitar, brushing off the dirt still clinging to it and trying, yet failing to hold back the blush creeping up your face.

[shadowynnn]

fire and ice |part two|

far cry 5

fire and ice synopsis: After a drunk driver kills both of your parents in an accident when you were sixteen, you eagerly leave Hope County for college a few years later to escape the demons that haunt you there. After six years away, a strange dream prompts you to return home where you find things not quite how you left them. With a mysterious, and possibly dangerous, cult on the rise, you attempt to juggle finally coming to peace with your parents’ deaths and the cult’s increasing interest in you. (Begins a few months before the events in the game take place.)

part two synopsis: Your first encounter with John Seed.

pairing: Jacob Seed, Joseph Seed, John Seed x Reader (though mainly John Seed x Reader in this part)

words: 1694

a/n: Due to having some significance to the story, the reader is written as having red hair and blue eyes.

“Lil’ Red!” 

You were knocked back by the body which had nearly tackled you the moment you had walked into the building. The force of the embrace caused you to stumble, but you managed to keep yourself from falling by taking a few quick steps backward before returning the hug with the same amount of fervor you had been shown. 

“Mary May!” You squealed when she finally released her tight grip on you and allowed you to get the first good look of your childhood best friend in years.

“I can’t believe you’re back!” Mary May took a few steps back to fully take you in, her blue eyes sparkling. “I’ve missed my favorite redhead!” She added before wrapping you in one more tight squeeze.

“I’ve missed you too!” You managed to breathe out once she finally let you go again.

“You do know the party’s not for another few hours?” Mary May asked once the long-awaited greeting had passed and turned to close the door to the Spread Eagle.

“I thought I told you no party!” Your eyes grew wide at the mention of the party you had thought you had managed to deter her from. “You know how much I hate parties, especially ones for me.”

“Aw, come on, (n/n), everyone’s dying to see you again. You’re like the prodigal son returned.” Mary May retorted as she motioned for you to sit down at one of the stools at the bar. “Wheaty even got a karaoke machine rigged up with all your favorite songs-which was supposed to be a surprise, so act surprised, okay?”

“I can sing, Mary May, not act, remember?” You reminded the blonde with a playful grin. “But I didn’t hear it from you when he sees right through me,” you add as you pretend to zip your lips shut.

“He’s going to kill me,” Mary May sighed, shaking her head and causing you to giggle an apology in response. Wheaty would know who had told you the instant he realized you knew about the supposed secret. You were as easy to read as an open book and everyone knew it. 

”Hey, Casey, can I get two slices of huckleberry pie?” Mary May yelled at the man in the back of the kitchen before sliding a glass of lemonade towards you and you were warmed at seeing she had remembered your favorite drink after all these years. “Casey makes the meanest huckleberry pies in the whole county.”

“Maine may have had their blueberries, but they have nothing on these bad boys,” you moaned at the sight of Casey bringing the pie, eager to have that first bite. 

You hadn’t had huckleberries since you had left Montanna six years ago but still remembered when you, Mary May, and Kim used to go rummaging through the woods for some of the berries when you were just little girls. More often than not you would all go home berryless and soaked to the bone from spontaneous water fights in one of Hope County’s many little creeks. 

“Man, you were right, Mary May, this is heavenly,” you sighed contentedly after taking your first bite.

“Hey, Daddy, look who finally made it back.”

You looked up from your pie to see Mary May’s father coming down the stairs. It had only been six years, but it looked like Gary Fairgrave had aged twice that since you had last seen him. His former sandy hair had turned completely grey and the wrinkles on his face had deepened. He looked completely exhausted, but he forced a smile on his lips when he saw you sitting on the barstool.

“It’s a pleasure to have you back, Miss (L/N).” Mr. Fairgrave extended his hand for you to shake. “You coming back has definitely brought a small piece of joy back to Hope County.”

You smiled at his words but sent Mary May a confused look as he turned his back to you. What did he mean that your coming back brought joy back to Hope County? You had only talked to your uncle, Sheriff Whitehorse, since you had gotten back, but he hadn’t mentioned anything too bad going on currently. Nothing ever happened in Hope County. But then again, there was that cult Uncle Earl had mentioned. Perhaps they were a bigger problem than he had been letting on.

‘I’ll explain later,’ Mary May silently mouthed behind her father’s back to which you could only nod your head in agreement. This didn’t stop your fingers from beginning to trace the rim of your glass at your eagerness to be in the loop.

Mary May’s easy smile fell, however, when her father bent down and whispered something in her ear too softly to be heard by you. Her blue eyes lost their playful gleam as they turned towards the entrance to the building, your sitting figure forgotten. Something had rattled her and her father, but before you could ask what it was, the door opened and two men walked in.

While the second was tall and broad, it was the first which immediately drew your attention. He was fairly tall as well, perhaps a few inches taller than yourself, making him near six-foot. His hair, a dark, rich brown, was slicked back, and a neatly trimmed beard covered the bottom half of his face. He was attractive, you couldn’t deny that, and he walked with a confidence and ease which matched his looks. He must have been a tourist or someone new to town since you had left-you leaned towards the latter as it seemed the Fairgraves knew the man-as you didn’t recognize him and knew you would have remembered a face like his. 

His eyes, hidden beneath blue-tinted aviators, never turned to look at your staring figure, fingers still fiddling with your glass of lemonade, but stayed focused on the Fairgraves behind the bar much to your relief. You knew you were ogling, but you couldn’t seem to stop yourself.

“Hello, Gary.” He smiled at the older man as he took his aviators off and pushed them to sit at the top of his head. “Mary May,” he added as he took in the young blonde beside her father. Though a smile still graced his lips, it was smug and cruel.

“What do you want, John?” Mary May was the one to speak first, her arms crossing as she stared the man down.

It was easy for you to see this man, John, was not well liked by the Fairgraves, and it wasn’t hard for you to see why. Despite his attractive features and seemingly charming ways, there was something cruel and hard about him.

“Nothing really,” John shrugged his shoulders as he put his hands flat on the bar and leaned down to make himself even to Mary May’s eye-level. “It’s just that a little bird told me some interesting things.”

“Like what?” Mary May took the man’s bait but didn’t let him intimidate her as a scowl crossed her lips.

While you knew that this exchange was probably none of your business, you couldn’t help but fiddle with a strand of your red hair as you watched the scene unfolding in front of you with deep interest. You could tell that this John guy wasn’t originally from around anywhere near here, as his voice held the lightest touch of a southern twang to it.

“Oh, a lot of things, like how you’re still selling alcohol for one.”

“Wow, someone give that man a pay raise,” You sarcastically mumble under your breath as you took another sip of your lemonade. You couldn’t help yourself though, sarcasm was second nature to you. It was how you coped in bad situations, your defense mechanism. It always managed to slip out whenever you were scared, nervous, embarrassed, or angry, and right now, that man with the pretty blue eyes was making you just a tad uncomfortable.”Selling alcohol in a bar, who’d have thought?”

Your nerves only intensified when four pairs of eyes suddenly turned your way.

“Well, crap.” You quietly yelped, somehow managing to successfully swallow your drink and not start choking and make a bigger fool of yourself. You had thought you had mumbled the words quietly enough to only be heard by you, but you quickly saw this was not the case.

You found your eyes instantly gravitating towards John, curious to see how he reacted to your statement. You expected angry irritation, and you were met with it, at least at first. For a split second his eyes did narrow and his lips did fall from their smug smile, but they were soon replaced with a different expression as his eyes quickly took your figure in. At first, there was shock, the slight widening of the eyes and mouth, but this was quickly masked by a cool, suave exterior. The smirk returned to his lips as he slowly sauntered his way over to you, his blue eyes taking in every feature of you as he did so.

“Mary May, why didn’t you introduce me to your pretty, little friend here?” He leaned against the bar next to you, gaze finally releasing you as he turned to Mary May and waited for her to introduce you to him.

Mary May was silent for a while, slightly squirming under John’s gaze as if debating whether or not to tell him. You could tell she didn’t want to get you swept up into this mess, and while you appreciated it, you knew it would only make matters worse than whatever they were. Besides, telling him your name was completely harmless, wasn’t it? 

“(F/N) (L/N).” In order to try and ease Mary May’s distress, you answered for yourself drawing John’s eyes back towards you. 

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss (L/N).” John drawled, that slight southern twang of his growing stronger as he gave you a charming smile to match it. And while his arrogance had dropped his attractiveness dramatically, you still felt your heart quicken and a faint blush cross your cheeks as he took your extended hand and gently kissed the top of it. “I’m John Seed.”