Jade Leech X Reader - Blog Posts

How bout a second part to the angsty floyd and jade hcs? Like after some time they realize they are indeed in love with reader but they have moved on, maybe how would the twins try to win them back if thats not too much 👉👈

Of course darling!! Today we are on a love mood, lets see what these eels have on their heads!!

If you don't know their are asking for a second part of this

Leech Twins realizing that they actually loved their s/o and tries to win their back, but...

Jade Leech

It was hard for him to realize this, since he was the one who insisted so much on you being boring to him.

But your sweetests memories goes back to haunt him day and night. Even he finds himself following shadows that look alike your figure on Octavinelle. Or looking you in the campus.

One night he couldn't sleep he realised this; He had never stop falling in love from you.

Even if you were "boring" he still loved you. Maybe he had to talk about it, say how he felt after breaking up with you.

Then so, the day after this, he goes to talk with you after your classes, but he finds another picture he didn't like...

You were hanging around with your friends like normal, but Deuce and you looked different. And then he noticed how he looked at you and took your hand.

There was someone in love with you. Even if he was right there to apologize, a little flower bouquet in hand, you didn't mind.

“Jade, you don't have to. I understand now, the relationship was something stopping you... We can be friends!”

Those words break his heart in pieces.

Maybe this was.. what you felt when he said you were boring... And even so, you forgive him...

He left the bouquet with you and walked away.

You were going to love him. If this feelings are still on you and not in that Deuce.

His smooth way to win your heart is easy! He becomes your friend again and gift you sweet things that makes you remember the sweet times with him. He compliments you more and decided to talk more with you. Taking note of everything you say. Attentive to you like he used to be.

One day he gave you a small mushroom trinket. It had your favorite color! And then, he admitted everything.

“Y/n, i may not be in the place to ask for a second chance, but let me talk. I never stopped loving you, i was such a horrible boyfriend for what i have done. I don't expect you to come back to my arms, yet you have given me only forgiveness. Thank you for that. If you still feel the same... My arms are open.”

If you hug him and cry, saying that this is all you wanted, he will promise to be a better boyfriend, talking his feelings instead of acting like an animal!- Or Floyd!

If you reject him, he will accept it and try to move on to became your best pal ever. Maybe you two are better as friends and staying like this isn't a bad option :)

Probably supports you on your Deuce relationship if you go after him.

Floyd Leech

He still tought he didn't like you anymore. He was in totally denial since he didn't think of you as entertaining.

But oh boy, he tought of you every second of the day. Soon his normal activities always had Floyd saying this line;

“If y/n was here they would do this and that...”

Yeah, he think of what would you do when he was just drinking water or training in the basketball club.

The imagines of you supporting him and helping him stood with him, and soon, he found himself loving you like always.

Guess little shrimpy never bored him, huh.

The moment he realised this, he jumped to get you two back together but..

He found you hanging around with your friends like usual, laid down in the grass and looking at the sky while saying stupid things. But the person that looked you in a different way, like with almost heart eyes, was Ace.

He was at your side, hand by hand, he didn't like this at all. He stood besides you two and talked.

“Heh, crab, get away from what is mine, shoo shoo i have to talk with little shrimpy here”

You two looked in confusion but you took the word

“Floyd, it's okay. I get it. Our relationship was boring and got nowhere. I don't feel bad right now, i kinda left it in the past. We can be friends!”

WHAT WAS THAT BULLSHIT??? HUH??? EXCUSE ME???

He looks so confused specially when you still talk with that stupid crab about helping him study. YOU SHOULD HELP HIM, NOT THAT USELESS CRAB.

He lefts the place and decided to get help from Azul and Jade. They say how to get your heart back but he just takes what he thinks is useful.

So at the next day in class you encounter a small gift very bad wrapped and a note that was obviously from Floyd. You take it not even opening, but putting it on your backpack. Floyd sees this as a fail.

So he still try it. Going full speed hugging you, leaving you gift, talking bad about Ace and you being a "couple" and being so damn OBVIOUS.

In the end, you take him to talk about his temper these days.

Like fr one day you saw Ace flying far away from a kick that Floyd gave him wtf.

So he confessed;

“Well, well, shrimpy~ Thing is, you aren't boring anymore. I noticed that little shrimpy can be boring sometimes, but even in those moments, i still see little shrimpy as a beautiful partner! What i mean, is that maaaaybe we can be together again, if shrimpy wants so~ But, really. I still like you.”

Now, if you accept him and hug him, he will laugh and hug back as tight as he can; He makes up to you by treating you like his best "toy". Taking you everywhere in his shoulder. Of course you two talked about it more seriousness!!! And he apologized in the Floyd-style. But he did.

But, if you say that you prefer him as a friend and you really feel something for Ace.... He will not take it very well.

He will become aggressive and silent, he will criticize every part of that stupid crab and how he will eat it. You walk away in terror of his eyes and his words.

He wouldn't talk to you again, not even to pass the page.

Probably you talk to him and if he's behaving well, he accept into being friends. If not, you two just... Drift apart.

A little sad here huh

Hope you liked this answer!!! It was very funny to write it! I loved it lol Request more once the request box is open again

— Rose

Rip out my heart and stomp on it. Hcs with the leech twins (separately) getting bored of their s/o and just telling it straight to their face. Angst angst angst

OHHHH IM READY FOR THIS FUCKING ANGST. LETS FUCKING GO.

Leech twins getting bored of their s/o and telling them.

Jade Leech

Your personality was kinda boring as now.

You didn't react to their sudden plans and appearings. It seems like you are okay with them.

Now your rambles just feel like hearing Azul cry over money wasted.

He sighs everytime he is with you and this slowly makes you insecure. So you try to change the subject or hearing him.

Obviously he planned this all along but...

Even your reaction was boring.

One time he stand up from his seat and left you there.

This one day come to an end. When you asked him, with a trembling voice, what happened. He answered.

“Hm. Its easy. You don't please me anymore. You are boring. Your thoughts are boring, your voice is boring, your reactions are boring. I can already know what you gonna think and what you gonna do. This relationship has become more boring than i thought. I think it may come to an end”

This.... Really hurt you. You stand there with tears falling from your eyes and tried to say something, but your voice was taken away.

“Even this reaction was predictable. You disappointed me, human. I prefer to even stay and hear Floyd complaining about his old shoes.”

And so, he left. No expression on her face. And don't even caring that you were crying out his name and on your knees.

You tought he was gonna be more gentleman-like because of his personality? You foolish human. He even tried to enjoy this. But he couldn't. He only feel pity

Floyd Leech

Different from Jade, he is so straight forward.

He doesn't find funny your reactions or your clingy attitude towards him. It just seems like he already tested everything from you and you only were bones in a plate.

He avoids you forgetting completely that you two were on a relationship. Even if you search for him he just finds you annoying and tell you to leave.

Slowly you feel Floyd become distant and something was off. So you decided to go confront him at the Mostro Lounge.

He was there passing the time when you asked what was wrong, and then...

“Huh? Little shrimpy? I tought i left you for good~”

What?

“Well, its veeeery easy to explain, shrimpy. You started to get boring. Very boring. Like, you didn't screamed when seeing me! And you even tried to hug me. It was not funny~ so i just decided to leave you. Like, never getting together. I tought you understood, seems like i have to tell you: Im. Bored. Of. You. Hehehe.”

You started shaking and crying, don't knowing what to do.

Everyone at the Mostro Lounge was there hearing you and whispering about you and him, probably talking bad about you or feeling pity.

“Now get lost shrimpy. You are being annoying in my job...”

And so you left slowly, while holding back tears and shaking.

But Floyd didn't even flinch. He just played with a drink Azul gave him.

This request was so funny and easy to write!! I love it, hope this pleases you ^^

[Octopus piercing - Jade Leech]

Summary: Hand slipping down from his cheek to his chin, you pull away to take in the whole picture. Jade, octopus piercing covering his whole ear, skin flushed a delightful shade of light pink, eyes looking at you the whole time, entranced. 

Notes: gn!reader, based on the early concept of punk Jade, in this household we like flustered Jade who's down bad while also being a tease, now I'm certain he had a punk phase at some point and still has the piercings!

"Oh? What's this?"

Your voice rings out in the otherwise silent room, being quickly replaced by the sound of clinking metal.

Jade turns his head around your direction, tilting it to the side in interest. If you had been looking at him, you might have noticed the ever so slight widening of his eyes as he realizes what you found (you always do, as attentive to his expressions as he is with yours), but alas, something else had caught your eye.

It's as if the air in his bedroom stilled and time had stopped for a moment as you lift up your hand to look closer at your finding. He watches attentively, wanting to drink in your reaction.

You don't disappoint (you never do). Your lips part as you let out a breath of amazement, your eyes shining as they reflect the light of the jewel. Something so simple managed to mesmerize you. Your fingers delicately, as if afraid they could break it, toy around it, spinning it from one side to the other, taking in the texture and the coldness.

Jade gets so deep in watching you he almost forgets his comeback. Almost.

"Prefect, you shouldn't mess with other people's things, it's not very polite."

You turn to him, making him feel exhiliration tickle down his spine from having your attention on him, your humorous smile directed at him and only him. 

"You didn't seem to share the sentiment a few months ago, huh?" You refer to the little... incident with Azul's contracts at the end of the year. It was all water under the bridge now, but you still liked to tease them about it.

"These were very different situations, wouldn't you say?" 

For emphasis, he lowers his voice and slides to the side you're seated on his bed, his leg touching yours and his face close enough you could count his eyelashes if you wanted to, but not enough for his nose to touch yours. 

There's a hitch in your breath, so quiet that if it was anyone else they would have missed it. Jade doesn't. His smile turns more genuine at the corners.

"No, I don't think so." 

Instead of trying to get away, you stay where you are, attracted like a moth to the flame. Your hand comes between your faces, putting the object of your fascination in display.

It was an octopus tentacle piercing, one that would curl around the top of the ear and pass through the earlobe. It was quite detailed, with all the suction cups carefully craved in silver.

"It's beautiful. I didn't know you had other earrings."

There it is, that curious look in your face, the one that promises to deliver endless entertainment. He decides to indulge you to see where you're heading with it, although he already has an inkling.

"That must be because I only use this one nowadays." He touches the signature scales earring he's using. "But there was a time I was still experimenting with my appearence. I suppose I couldn't bring myself to get rid of them."

"It's a bit hard to imagine you using anything other than this one, but..." Your gaze turns to the octopus earring, evaluating it, before sliding to his face again. Jade feels as if he was being examinated from the inside out, as if you could investigate his very soul from the intensity of your stare. "I think this one would look pretty good too."

"Shall we check?" 

His fingers do quick work of taking off the backing and pulling his current earring away from his ear, leaving it bare. He puts it on the nightstand and turns around, exposing his side to your ministrations.

You stare for a second, caught of guard. "May I?"

"Of course, go ahead."

You hesitate for a second longer, hearing him let out an amused huff of laughter, before your fingers approach him. You tuck the longer strand of black hair behind his ear to give you space to work. In the process, your warm hand brushes against it, making him shiver. 

Taking your time, you let your touch ghost his cold skin, captivated by such a rare chance to be so close to his space. You notice, for the first time, that there are more little holes alongside it, where other piercings might have been before. The image you conjure in your head is charming enough to make you smile.

The pad of your thumb strokes his earlobe before you insert the post and screw the back, holding it in place and sliding the cuff to hook it on his upper ear. 

Your hand stays in place as you admire your work, rubbing the helix absentmindedly. You hum, your other hand cupping his cheek to turn his head in your direction so you could see how it looked.

"Something's wrong?" You whisper, noticing how he feels warmer under your touch.

Jade's pupils look slightly blown when his eyes meets yours. "Go on." It comes out in a rushed breath. 

Humming once more, your smile widens. "As you wish." 

Hand slipping down from his cheek to his chin, you pull away to take in the whole picture. Jade, octopus piercing covering his whole ear, skin flushed a delightful shade of light pink, eyes looking at you the whole time, entranced. 

"What's the veredict?"

"I was right, you know. It does look good."

"Is that so?" There's something to his tone, something you can't quite name.

You turn his head around, enjoying the thrill you get when he complies and lets you do as you please.

"Actually, maybe I wasn't."

At this, he turns around by himself, a calculating look on his face, trying to guess what you where going to say. He catches up just before the words leave your mouth, but it doesn't make them any less enjoyable to say.

"It's more than good. You look lovely."

The sincerity in his answering laugh is elating.

"You flatter me, prefect. If this is the reaction I'll get, then I might change around my looks more often."

"There's more, right? I'd like to see them too!"

The pleased glint in Jade's expression turns into mischievousness as he pulls away from you, moving to get up.

"Perhaps another time. This would take time I can't afford without risking running late to my shift at Mostro."

"C'mon! Just one more!" You hold his arm before he can move out of your reach, looking through your lashes at his towering form. "Please?"

Sighing, he concedes. "If you insist so much, I suppose we could look at another one." You cheer, pulling him back to where he was, already looking through his other piercings in the drawer. "For a price, naturally."

You only deadpan at him, earning an amused chuckle.

"My, my, what's with that face? Can you say you weren't expecting it?"

"Of course I was, it is you after all. What will it be then?"

A sharp grin exposing his teeth blooms. Most would be scared by it, but the only thing passing through your mind is how this expression goes quite well with this new piercing.

"Not backing down? Very well. How about you participate in this week's Mountain Lovers Club meeting?"

"Deal." There's not even a moment to blink before you agree. Truly, you didn't mind going on his club meetings. In fact, they were very enjoyable most of the time, and if that would make him happy you could sacrifice a few hours from your day. Besides, you were having a lot of fun with your new discovery. "Now, how about this one?" 

You show him the piercing you chose, a little fish skeleton that looked cheaper than the other one. You thought it would look quite cute.

"This was a gift from Floyd, so I'm rather fond of it." You can tell it's true from his softer tone. "We have a deal, you can go ahead."

Letting you have full access to his ear once more, you explore the options where you could put this new piercing. Since the other one covered a good part of the available space, you decided to insert it on the helix, where they wouldn't clash.

You carefully hold it on one hand while your other supports his ear. It's almost reverent the way you insert it, treating it like it was a precious jewel, watching intently as it pierces the skin and appears on the other side, nimble fingers screwing it in place.

Like before, you take his chin between your thumb and index finger, taking in the sight of him. Your lips pout as you think, his eyes darting to stare at them as if in a trance before quickly glancing back to meet yours.

"If feels like there's something missing..." You mumble, thinking out loud. "Oh! Maybe if I just..."

Without further explanation, your free hand combs his hair backwards, messing with it enough to get a spiky look that could rival his twin's. The strand of black hair you had tucked behind his ear gets loose, only half of it staying in the place you left.

Thumb gently rubbing his skin, you push his face away. The messy hair alongside the piercings made him resemble a delinquent. If it wasn't for his awestruck expression, Jade would look quite intimidating. 

"There you go! You look great!"

A second passes where he just stares at you, as if taking this moment in and commiting it to memory, before there's a signature smile adorning his face.

"I trust you did a good job then."

"Nah, you already did before, I just tweaked with a few things here and there."

The amused huff of breath he lets out warms your fingertip. You feel your cheeks getting hotter. 

"I see. In this case, thank you for your assistance. Hopefully Azul will be able to appreciate this new look as much as you do."

Imagining Azul's reaction to his usual put together employee going to work with such a carefree look makes you chuckle.

"I have no doubt that he'll love it. Not as much as I do, but close enough."

"That's a relief, seeing as I have to go now in order to not get late." 

He gets up again and extends his hand to you. You take it, letting him help pulling you up to your feet, standing so close you're pressed against his chest. You can feel his hum resonate through it. Your arms embrace his torso to keep you balanced.

Before you can make a comment, his hand holds your chin, mirroring the position you were in minutes ago, while his other tousles your hair.

"I enjoyed our time together, it's truly too bad it had to be cut short. Let's meet up another time for you to look at the other piercings, yes? There are quite a lot of them, after all."

"I'd like that." You close your eyes to enjoy his touch, leaning into it.

"I'm sure you do." Jade's teasing actions turn softer as he starts to stroke your hair affectionately. "I'll look forward to our next meeting, prefect." 

His tone makes you open your eyes to peek at him. It sounds far too tender, far too sincere. His smile betrays nothing of his thoughts, but you know he said the truth. 

"Me too. Make sure to prepare a special activity for the club meeting since you'll have a special guest!"

"I'll do my best to keep you entertained, don't you worry. I'm sure you'll enjoy what I have planned."

"You sure know how to make someone curious." You tease, hoping he'd give you a hint at what he had planned, but no luck.

"I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see."

You sigh exaggeratedly. "That I'll do." 

"I promise it'll be worth the antecipation. Now, I truly must get going." 

Leaning down while his hand combs your hair backwards, his lips leave a fleeting touch on your forehead, an almost kiss that leaves you wanting more.

"Until we meet again, dear."

With that, he leaves the room in quick strides, leaving you alone to process what happened. Your hands shoot up to your forehead as you splutter, trying to get your thoughts in order. 

Just what was that?

Sighing, you decide you'll have to wait until the mountain lovers club meeting to confront him. It's shaping up to be quite an eventful day and you can feel your excitement bubbling up.

Jade sure knew how to keep someone on their toes.

Glancing one last time at the nightstand, the light catching on his scales earring laying there innocently, you leave to go to your dorm.

Your thoughts turn to the mental picture of Jade, flushed face and blown pupils, messy hair and piercings on his ear. Involuntarily, your lips shape into a giddy smile. 

There was a jewellery shop at the island's city, right? Maybe you'd take a look at which piercings they had next time you go run errands.

BONUS SCENE!

"Azul! Jade's here!" Floyd's excited giggle rings out in the otherwise silent office as he opens the door with a bang.

"Finally! I was starting to think he forgot about his shift..." Azul trails off as he takes in the sight before him.

Right next to a smiling Floyd was Jade. His outfit was in perfect condition and his posture was as formal as always. Still, Azul couldn't stop staring at the different hairstyle and piercings he was using.

There was a time when they were first years and very new to living on land in which Jade decided to experiment with his appearence. He got a lot of piercings and cut his hair in what could be known as a "punk hairstyle", contrasting terribly with his buttlerly personality. He seemed to find it very amusing, but after getting in trouble with the teachers for breaking the dress code and getting bored of the usual reactions he'd get from the other students, he decided to take them off and let his hair grow, going back to his usual look.

So it was quite a shock to see them making a comeback, although in a much tamer way than how he used to be.

"What... what has brought this back?" Truly, Azul thought he'd gotten used to the twin's antics by now and couldn't be surprised anymore, but they always found a way of surpassing expectations. 

"Yeah, I wanna know too! When I asked you to put them back you just ignored me." Floyd pouts, crossing his arms and slouching dejectedly.

"It's a long story, but it started when the prefect and I were studying in my room..."

"Wait, you know what? You can stop right there, I don't want to know. Please just get to work." Azul sighs, massaging his temples.

Whenever Ramshackle's prefect was involved, there surely was some crazy story following, and they were already behind schedule as it was.

"Of course, as you wish." Jade agrees with his usual polite smile, but no one in the room was fooled by it. They both knew he was extremely amused by their curiosity. 

"Awn, I wanted to know." Floyd complains, whining. 

"Perhaps I'll tell you another time. Right now, let's get to work, shall we?"

With a groaning Floyd in town, Jade walks out of the door as if nothing was amiss. Azul simply accepts that he'll have to deal with this new development and decides to have a talk with the prefect later. Not that it would change much of anything. When Jade had his mind set on something, he didn't stop until he was satisfied, and for some reason or other he seemed to be interested in experimenting again.

The Octavinelle dorm leader could only wonder what had caused this sudden interest.

Masterlist

[Strawberry tinted - Jade Leech]

Summary: Jade sighs, closing his eyes. He wants to scream. These feelings of infatuation had long involved past a simple crush. No matter how much he denied, they wouldn't leave him alone anytime soon. You weren't leaving him alone anytime soon. 

Notes: gn!reader (use of they/them), fluff and humor, just a silly romcom based on this ask! jade is so whipped for the reader, I was having so much fun writing it got away from me and almost reached 10k what??? special shoutout to ramble anon <3 now cross posted on ao3!

Jade Leech was not one for sentimentalism.

It was quite clear for everyone around him. Jade didn't show his true emotions on his face and always kept his suave persona up at all times. If he was shocked or sad or angry, no one could ever tell behind his polite smile and sharp eyes.

Even Azul and Floyd, the ones closest to him, had trouble discerning his feelings at times. Jade was very discreet with his actions and words, oftentimes leaving things to be read between the lines.

Thus, everyone and their mothers could atest to that: Jade Leech was not a sentimental person. He was calm and collected, acting as if he was above and in control of every situation, untouchable by such fickle things such as emotions.

Although, not for the knowledge of many, there was just a tiny little exception in the shape of a certain magicless human.

Not even Jade himself could tell how this came to be. It was part of the charm, how you fascinated him so easily, without any extra effort on your part. There was something appealing in your sincerity and affection, things he was not that used to. You always managed to surprise him, making him fall deeper and deeper for you everytime you caught him off guard. His heart fluttered everytime you kept up toe to toe with him, be it in friendly banter or in deeper conversations.

There were not many people who could say they were able to see Jade showing his true emotions. You just happened to be one of them. When he was with you, his smile would reach his eyes and he'd show just a bit of his teeth, his voice would take a teasing tilt laced with barely concealed affection, his face would light up like the sun whenever you asked him to tell you more about a new mushroom he was tending to or about his newest mountain expedition.

It was the first time anyone made him feel like this. While Jade had no trouble holding his usual mask in place, his heart would race faster on his chest, his hands would get slightly clammy, he'd feel the urge to bite his lips or to play with his hair to release some of the pent up energy he felt around you. And he wanted more of your time, to be able to see you between his classes and work, to spend some time relaxing together or discovering new things. 

Life at the deep sea was very different from life on land. Love at the deep sea was very different from love on land. Perhaps that's what made the whole experience so fascinating, after all. It was something he'd have never been able to have if he had stayed down there on the murky cold waters. He'd never been able to bask in these warm feelings, so new and unknown. 

Jade thought he was doing a good job, overall. He didn't change much about how he acts normally, most people wouldn't notice a single thing was different. There were times he had the impression you did, like you could see right through his façade as if it was nothing, melting away his walls and looking straight at him, for who he is. It was frightening and exhilirating at the same time, to be seen. Jade didn't know what to make of it, as of yet.

Azul and Floyd seemed to disagree, though. At first, Floyd thought it was hilarious, how his usually serious brother could have something as innocent as a crush. He'd tease Jade constantly whenever they crossed paths with the prefect just to ruffle his feathers and get a rise out of him. Seeing the unbothered Jade glaring at him with a clearly annoyed look was so entertaining. Azul didn't care, as long as it didn't affect his work at the lounge, Jade could like whoever he wanted, though he was quite curious as to how the situation came to be.

And then Jade's feelings grew and it become obvious, to them, that it was a little more than a simple crush. By the way Jade acted around you, as it seemed like he glowed when you were near him, and how he talked about you, mentioning something you did or liked or that reminded him of you every once in a while in conversation. It was subtle, as most things involving Jade were, but enough for them to take notice. It was almost at the level of his mushrooms obsession, and that was saying something.

No one dared to make a move. Having Jade being infatuated with someone broke the careful balance of things in the trio, taking him out of his position as the cold and calculating Vice-Housewarden and putting him in a more complex label. Floyd and Azul always relied on him to fall back onto should things go wrong, trusting he'd make it alk work out as someone that was above everything. Taking such a pedestal out, Jade seemed much less like some higher being and much more... human.

Not that they didn't know he was capable of feelings, of course. They were aware Jade cared about them, otherwise he wouldn't have sticked around so long by their side. It was just surprising to see someone else entering the little bubble of people Jade cared about after such a long time with it being just the two of them there.

That's why they thought Jade should do something about his crush. It was almost painful to watch you dance around each other, every interaction filled to the brim with affection, stolen glances and flirty tones. Floyd wanted to just tell you about his brother's feelings and get it over with, but he knew that wasn't the best way to go about it, as Azul had drilled onto his head after he suggested they did that. Jade insisted he was fine with things staying as they were for the time being, still not done with observing and experimenting with both his and your reactions.

"Prefect, what a wonderful surprise. How may I be of service today?"

You laugh, recognizing the irony on his tone. You tried to visit Mostro Lounge as often as you could when Jade was on the clock, even if your wallet weeped at this. He was expecting you, as he always did.

"Oh, I don't know, I don't come around too often. What would you reccomend?" You tease back, playfulness dancing in both of your eyes. It's a game you're used to, the banter coming naturally to you.

"You really should, then." He winks, somehow managing to look suave while doing so and wiping a glass at the same time. "How about... a strawberry milkshake?"

You gasp dramatically, doing an exaggerated expression of surprise. "That's my favorite! How could you know? Maybe it was destiny I came here after all..." 

That earns you a chuckle, making satisfaction swin in your stomach at warranting such a reaction. Jade's amusement is clear by the smile on his face and his scrunched up eyebrows. You can't help but smile back, warmth surrounding you as you take in the sound and commit it to memory.

"Perhaps it was. I'll bring you your drink in a minute." 

You lean on the counter of the bar, watching him work gracefully. At the corner of your eye, you can see Floyd making some kind of annoyed expression. Jade pointedly ignores him, making flourish of adding the finishing touches on the milkshake, adding in a little umbrella on top of the whipped cream, near the strawberry hanging onto the glass. 

"Here you go. I hope you enjoy it, prefect, I made it with the utmost care, after all." 

He hands the drink to you, hands making contact just for a second longer than necessary, and slides a biodegradable straw to the cup's side. You insert it on the milkshake, drinking in and closing your eyes in delight. It tasted wonderful, as all of Jade's drinks did. 

"I take it you do like it, from that reaction." He teases, leaning into where you're seated. There are other workers attending to the bar and the lounge isn't too crowded, so he can afford to keep conversation with you for some moments. You looked quite cute enjoying something so simple as if it was a five star meal.

"It's delicious! Here, have some." You spin the cup around, putting the straw right in front of him. Jade's eyes widen just the tinniest fraction as he looks taken aback by your proposal.

"Oh, it wouldn't do for me to drink something from a client. Azul would have my neck, you see." 

You roll your eyes, knowing Azul didn't intimidate him at all. Plus, what Azul didn't see couldn't hurt him. "Then don't drink it as a Mostro worker, but as my friend."

His eyes bore into yours for a few seconds before his blank expression breaks into a smile, the lighest pink tint coloring his cheeks, almost imperceptible. "Well, if you insist, I suppose I'll humor you." He tucks his longer strand of hair behind his ear before leaning in, taking a sip from your straw and closing his eyes to mimick your earlier action. It was quite a sight. Your heart beat faster and your throat seemed dry all of sudden, making you swallow on air.

"You are right, as usual. It does taste delicious." He keeps his head inclined, lips almost touching the straw as he licks them, eyes looking at you through his lashes, voice low. You grip your tigh and bite your lower lip, hoping your face won't betray how warm it feels.

"Of course, it was made by the best. I'll have to show you that guy sometime, he's really good." 

"I would be delighted to meet him."

He turns the milkshake back to you, still leaning in as his eyes sparkle with mischief. He seems as entertained by this game as you are. You put your hand on top of his, still at the bottom of the cup, and bring it closer, taking a sip while keeping eye contact. His smile softens at the corners and there's something fond on his expression. Your hand squeezes his before letting go. He opens his mouth to say something before he's called to attend another client. 

His face falls and he looks disappointed to leave this little moment behind, almost as if he forgot he was still working. He apologizes for the interruption and you wave him off, saying how it was your fault for taking so much of his time anyway. The milkshake is still as good as it was once he leaves, but it feels like it's missing something.

By the corner of the bar, Azul and Floyd stand observing the interaction. Floyd wants to tear his hair out and Azul looks constipated. How long will they have to watch you two doing this? It's about time they staged an intervention, for both yours and their sake.

Things continue like normal for some time. You still visit him at the lounge, Azul and Floyd still suffer through your blatant flirting, Jade still observes things carefully. 

And, as usual, Jade tends to his beloved mushrooms. He's gotten a new species on his latest mountain excursion, one with a pretty pink and wrinkled cap and white stem. It reminds him of your strawberry milkshake and he thinks you'd like to see them. He'd even give one to you in a carefully decorated terrarium if he was absolutely sure it wasn't poisonous. Oh well, just seeing them would have to suffice. Jade would make sure to keep them as pretty as possible.

They grew on a hardwood trunk, the soothing scent of camphor drifting through the wet air of the botanical garden. Under the canopy of dense trees, they looked even more peach in the midst of all the greenery. The wrinkles tickled his gloved fingers as he caressed the mushroom, treating it with care. The artificial river followed it's course nearby, providing with a lullaby of serenity. The scene felt comfortable, Jade felt content. He felt as much at home as he did under the sea.

Perhaps it was due to this mushy atmosphere that Jade felt compelled to talk about you. He's used to talking with his mushrooms, as he'd read that it helps them grow, but this time it felt different, like revealing a secret to a confidant. Almost like a confession. 

"The prefect came to visit me at work today, once again. Even if the menu of the lounge takes a toll on their budget, they come almost every day. I don't see why they keep doing it." 

The mushroom doesn't reply, as it is simply a fungi and it doesn't know how to talk. 

"You are right, I do know why. They want to spend more time with me, just like I do with them. It is truly a shame I'm so busy we have to resort to meeting while I'm at work. I wish I could give them my full attention, without having to go serve other customers." 

The river goes on, birds chirp outside, the wind rattles the foliage gently. 

"The fact they keep going makes me... happy. I'm glad to see them there. I would even dare to say it is the highest point of the day. I look forward to it every shift."

Naturally, a gentle smile takes over his face. His eyes are soft as he keeps caressing the mushroom's cap.

"Azul and Floyd say I should confess soon. How out of character it would be for me to do so. I have considered it before, even, but... I'm not sure if I want to change our current relationship. It is comfortable. And I don't want to lose it."

Jade sighs, full with yearning. The next bit comes out as a whisper, almost as if he spoke a little louder it would become more real than it already is. He feels vulnerable admiting such a thing, as he's not one for sentimentalism, but it also feels... right.

"I really like the prefect. I would like to take them out on a date and give them my full attention. I would like to receive their affections and have their smile directed at me. I would like to hold and to kiss them. I would like to bask in ther warmth for as long as they would let me."

It feels ecstatic, like a weight being lifted off his chest. Now, if only he could tell this to the person who was meant to hear it.

Footsteps pop the bubble of quietness, startling Jade and making him get up from the ground, dusting of his pants and calming down his heart. He was unusually jumpy, as if the admission of his feelings out loud could have reached your ears.

"Jade, here you are!"

Talk about the devil and he shall appear. Although in this case, you were more like an angel, such an ethereal presence lightning up the path, quite literally as the sun shone past the leaves and created a halo on your head. 

"Prefect. Were you looking for me?"

He's sure his voice was perfectly level, but something on his tone makes you pause and tilt your head at him, a contemplative look passing through your face fast as flash, gone as soon as he saw it. Jade feels like you saw through his act, but decided to not comment for his sake. 

"Oh, there's something I want to give you!" 

Your sing song voice breaks the tension on his shoulders. He remembers you mentioning being busy working on a surprise for him, though you wouldn't budge at any of his questions to expand more on what exactly this surprise was.

"Is it related to a certain surprise, perhaps?"

"You know me too well, Jade! C'mon, close your eyes and give me your hands."

He considers not doing so just to see your reaction, but the excitement dancing in your eyes was too endearing for him to disturb, so he complies.

"My, my, I wonder what could it be that you couldn't wait for my shift to give it to me."

"You'll see!"

You deposit something gently on his hands, a small and fragile thing by the feel of it. There are two of them, smooth with a pointy end and fitting on his palm. He opens his eyes, curious, while you stare expectantly. 

On his open hand sits a pair of handmade mushroom earrings. They are blue dotted with white spots, a twist on the classic red to fit more with his color scheme. They had been lovingly coated with paint and varnish, wrapped with silver wire. 

"There you go! Do you like it?"

Jade blinks. He can't stop looking at them, at every detail imbedded on the accessories, at the care you must have for them.

"Did you make it?"

"Yep! I saw it on magicam these days and thought of you, so I decided to try my hand at it. I get it if it's a bit wonky, that's the first time I do something like this."

"It is perfect."

He says it on a whisper, almost as if all the air on his lungs was used to push the words through the lump around his throat. His heart flutters and Jade feels the overwhelming urge to thank you over and over again. It's a simple gift, but the mere fact that you made it simply because you thought he might like it meant the world to him.

You seem mesmerized by his reaction. It is quite uncharacteristic of him to show so many emotions, but he needs to express his gratitude, he needs you to know how much he appreciates it.

"Thank you, prefect. They are truly wonderful." He pockets them carefully, making sure they won't be damaged. He can't meet your eyes. He's sure that if he does, you'll see straight through his heart, dissecate his chest and pull out all his ribs to discover the mushy feelings inside, growing like vines on his lungs. "Ah, I don't have anything to offer in return, I'm afraid."

"There's no need to give me anything back. I just did it because I wanted to make you happy, that's all there is to it."

"I... I see." Jade wasn't sure what to make of it. Your smile was sincere, your body language suggested you were entirely too comfortable, your tone of voice was it's usual melody. "You might want to be careful when making such heartfelt remarks like that, prefect. People might get the wrong idea."

His atempt at deflecting the topic was quite weak, not fooling you in the slightest. "Let them think whatever they want. I only said how I feel, after all."

And against facts there were no arguments, were there?

"I suppose you are right once more."

You only laugh, looking around the area for the first time since you arrived. You notice the mushroom quickly, it's peach color catching your attention and making you coo at it.

"Oh, it's so pretty! That's the new species you found, yes?"

You crouch near the trunk, observing the fungi. Your hair falls slightly over your eyes as you take in the sight. The sun still shines above, surrounding you and creating an illusion of dancing light specks around your figure. There was something magical on the scene itself. Jade was captivated, he couldn't look away.

"Jade, they're beautiful." You murmur, extending your hand to touch it lightly, a delighted smile spreading through your face at the tickle of the wrinkles. 

"Yes, they are." Jade agrees. He's not looking at the mushrooms. There's something much more charming for him to see.

You turn to face him, unguarded wonder on your expression, as if Jade had shown you one of the most fascinating things you've ever seen. His ears are most likely as pink as the subject of your admiration. He mirrors your smile, adapting a softer version of it.

"Can you tell me more about it, please?"

Oh, what was Jade going to do with you? You were going to kill him with an arrhythmia at the rate things were going.

"Of course, it would be my pleasure to do so."

He crouches down by your side, your legs pressing against each other. His hand comes up adjust your hair behind your ear, fingers grazing your skin just a touch more than necessary. He starts with a low whisper, making you lean into him to hear. "You see, this is a rare species called Rhodotus Palmatus. It is quite unique, as there are no others that can compare to it. It is said to be the prettiest mushroom in the world, so imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon them on my latest excursion..."

You let him ramble on, making questions or comments to show your interest. Jade feels his chest blooming with pink azaleas, throughly charmed by you.

He ends up getting late for his shift at Mostro Lounge. Before Azul could berate him for it, you took responsability and said you were the one taking his time. Azul, strangely enough, decided to let it pass and just told him to get to work. Your milkshake that day had an extra strawberry and a pink flower decorating the cup. 

After they closed up the lounge, Jade got Floyd to pierce his other ear. His brother looked at him with curiosity at the sudden request but obliged, not kicking much of a fuss. 

The eelmer found himself on quite the embarrassing situation. He was alone on the bathroom, staring at his reflection on the mirror. On one ear, his usual sturgeon scales earring. On the other, a shiny new mushroom earring. He kept staring, feeling the sensation of the extra weight, how it'd shake alongside his head movements, how the blue was the perfect shade to match his hair.

Jade took it off, staring at it in his hands. It was so small. He thought about how much time you might have spent on the details, each white dot made with the utmost care. How you might have struggled to get the shape right, as noticible by the slight imperfections around the edges of the mushroom's cap. How, through it all, the thing motivating you was to see him smiling.

Such a sentimental thing innocently resting against his palm.

His other earring was taken out as well, the three of them put on a small box at the bathroom cabinet. Jade brushed his teeth on automatic. He went to the empty bedroom, Floyd nowhere in sight, and sat on his bed. There was some kind of restlesness shivering under his skin, his heartbeat didn't feel right, his face remained warm. He had to admit, you had quite the effect on him. 

Jade Leech was not one for sentimentalism. Then why did a simple earring cause such a reaction on him?

He had to remain calm. It would not do to lose the firm grip he held on his emotions. His usual polite façade relied onto such control, on how Jade managed to keep a level head in all kinds of situations. If he broke that mask, what would become of his reputation? The cunning vice housewarden of Octavinelle, one known to be just as dangerous as his twin brother, acting all sappy with the magicless human, arguably the least threatning person in the entire campus.

Your words from earlier come to mind, sweet voice carrying like a whisper on the breeze. Let them think what they want. Either way, he had other means of making them talk, whether they thought of him as weak for showing his affection or not. It could even be advantageous, creating a more open image of him that might make them more willing to share their secrets.

Once he thinks of you, a calm look in your face as you feel at home in the middle of the foliage, listening attentively to every word he says, eyes shining with fondness, he can't be bothered about what others would think at all. He thinks of strawberry milkshake, a lazy afternoon at the lounge as you fill him in on the gossip of the freshmen. He thinks of a peach and a teal mushroom, the two making quite the pair together. He thinks of your concentrated expression as you ramble about your latest interest on a nightly walk. He thinks of your warm touch on his cold skin, never shying away from his sharp edges.

Jade sighs, closing his eyes. He wants to scream. These feelings of infatuation had long involved past a simple crush. No matter how much he denied, they wouldn't leave him alone anytime soon. You weren't leaving him alone anytime soon. 

On an uncharacteristic manner, he threw himself on the bed, his face smushed against the pillow. There was no one around to judge this slip of posture and show of vulnerability. Just him and his thoughts of you. He felt the childish urge to kick his legs and trash around, something so like Floyd it almost made him laugh. He felt feverish, his chest ached with a yearning he couldn't describe. Pathetically, he wanted to be yours, he wanted you to be his, a feeling so overwhelming he didn't know what to make of it.

He had to get a grip. 

He did kick his legs a little though. Simply to see what was so appealing about it. 

Unbeknown to him, Floyd happened to open the silent door at that exact time. He took one look at his brother's state, remembered the handmade mushroom earring he was given as a gift and your cheery presence by his side once he arrived late to his shift, and decided to close the door again. He was so not in the mood to deal with this.

It was time him and Azul did something about it. If neither Jade nor you would give the first step, Floyd had the perfect plan to give you the little push you needed.

And so, the next day had the twins walking together at the hallways of Night Raven College, moving from one class to another. It was an uneventful scene, something that could be observed everyday. Still, there was something bothering Jade. He could feel something was different, somehow, but couldn't put his finger on what it was.

After he had a mini breakdown of drowning in his own feelings in the previous night, he felt more on edge. He was sure he looked immaculate on the outside before leaving his room, uniform ironed and buttoned up impecably, hair combed properly and the usual polite smile on face. It would do no good to look frazzled. The only difference was the teal mushroom earring hanging from his right ear.

Floyd was in one of his good moods, chirpy and with a skip on his step. He seemed to be looking for someone but kept himself at Jade's side, despite them having different classes that period.

Both twin's faces light up as soon as they see you coming out of a classroom, balancing books in your hands. Floyd's scream of "Shrimpy" is enough to clear the path to your direction and to catch your attention. You try to wave at them, almost making the books fall before you catch them just in time.

"There you are, Shrimpy!"

"Good morning, prefect."

"Ah, Jade, Floyd, hi! It's good to see you guys!"

Floyd ruffles your hair playfully, making it stick in every direction and letting out a laugh. Jade finds your answering pout endearing.

"Prefect, if you wouldn't mind?" Jade offers his free arms, letting you slide most of the books to him. It was a natural action, well praticed as Jade was used to helping you with little everyday chores. Even when you tried to deny giving him more work, he insisted it was his pleasure to help. Eventually you understood that was simply his way of showing affection and let him do as he wanted to, as long as he didn't overwork himself in the process. 

"Thank you! C'mon, I have to take these to professor Trein before we have our next class with him at the end of the hallway." 

The three of you walk together, even though the twin's classrooms weren't near yours. You appreciated the company, so it wasn't like you were about to complain. Floyd wraps an arm around your shoulders, leaning on you, as Jade looks on curiously, wondering what his brother could have come up with this time.

"Say, Shrimpy, are you free tomorrow?"

"Hmm... tomorrow is Saturday, right? Then I think that I've got some free time, yes."

"Great! You know who else is free tomorrow? Jade is! How about the two of you have a date, then?"

It's as if time paused, the three of you stopping in the middle of the halls. Both you and Jade stare incredulously at Floyd, not daring to make eye contact with each other. Jade feels his heart stopping for a second as well, followed by a feeling of annoyance. Oh, he'd have a few choice words for his dearest brother once they were alone.

"I didn't hear a no from either of you, so I'm taking it as confirmation. You'll have dinner together at Mostro Lounge! Don't be late or else Azul will raise the price of the bill, you know how he is." And with that, Floyd simply turns around and leaves you two stunned into silence, watching his retreating back. 

Jade would have gone after him if he wasn't busy helping you carry your books. As it was, he was left to deal with the mess Floyd caused, as usual. He clears his throat, making you turn your attention to him. The confusion in your face would normally warm his heart, but this time he only feels dread.

"I'm sorry, prefect, I don't know where this came from. I will have a talk with Floyd for the inconvenience."

There's a pensive look on your face before you avert your eyes, words coming out in a low tone.

"Actually... I wouldn't mind going on a date with you tomorrow. If you want to, that is."

Jade feels his heart stop once more, for an entirely different reason from the last time. He should get it checked with how often it's been doing that.

"You... wouldn't?" His words are laced with tentative hope, so fragile.

"No. I'd love to, actually." Your cheeky smile blinds him like the sun and gives him the confirmation he needed. Wearing his confidence like a well worn glove, he puts on his best charming expression.

"In this case, allow me to ask you out properly. Prefect, would you like to go on a date with me tomorrow?"

You chuckle, mirth coloring your gaze as you bounce on your feet. "Why, yes Jade, I'd love that."

"Perfect. Then, I'll pick you up at your dorm for dinner. My treat."

"Oh, how charming. I'll be waiting for you!"

Before Jade can answer, the bell rings and you're reminded you do have a class to get to. You both scurry to your classroom at the end of the hallway, stealing glances between yourselves, a giddiness enveloping you. Jade arrives fashionably late for his own class with a smile on his face, teeth exposed and all. His classmates give him a wide berth, creeped out by whatever trouble that expression could bring. Jade doesn't mind, too busy thinking on what to put on the menu for your dinner to care about his classmates fearing for their lives.

Later on the day, he had quite a pleasant conversation with Floyd about the stunt he pulled. Floyd got to feel how his squeezing victims felt. He's sure it was eye opening for his brother.

Azul also got bombarded with an intricate menu request for the following day. He knew Floyd had to be involved with this somehow, but couldn't he had asked him beforehand about reserving the lounge for the night?

It was not until the next day that you saw Jade again. As promised, he was knocking politely on the door of Ramshackle by the time the clock hit six p.m.

He looks stunning. You had to take a moment to take him in fully. The smart suit fitting him perfectly, black social shoes and hair properly combed. On both his ears, blue mushrooms hanging contently. You could feel a faint scent of cologne, some earthy smell that was so much like him you couldn't help feeling endeared by it.

"Good evening, prefect. You look wonderful."

"Thank you. You're not that bad yourself." You wink, letting him in as you finish putting your shoes. 

"Not that bad? My, my, you wound me. And after I took so much time getting ready to meet your standarts, too."

You chuckle, shaking your head, sincerity taking over your teasing tone. "Oh, Jade, you already met my standarts, no need to get all dolled up."

"You flatter me." He offers his hand for you to stand up. 

"Maybe I do. Would you rather I stop?" You accept it, letting him pull you.

"No need, I'm quite content as it is." He brings your hands to his lips, grazing them so lightly you almost can't feel them. It sends shivers across your arm and heat to your cheeks. "I brought you a gift."

"Really?"

"Of course. Here, please allow me to put it on."

Jade shows you a necklace with a silver chain and a pretty peach colored shell. You brush your fingers on it, feeling the spiral pattern and it's roughness. It has a slightly salty smell, as if there was a piece of the sea itself imbedded on it.

"It's beautiful, Jade, thank you." The way you say it as if Jade had given you some priceless jewel makes satisfaction wash through him in waves. 

You turn around, holding your hair out of the way for him to put it in place. His cold fingers brush against your sensitive neck, once again making shivers rise along your skin. His hands rest on your shoulders as he leans in, mouth so close to your ear you can feel every puff of hot air.

"It was the least I could do after receiving your enchanting gift."

He pulls away, leaving your neck feeling oddly bare despite the extra weight on it. You spin around to face him, holding the shell close to your heart.

"I told you there was no need to give me anything back!"

"Don't get it wrong, this isn't pay back, prefect. I merely did it because I wanted to make you happy, that's all there is to it." He looks quite smug throwing your words back at you.

"That's not fair, you know." You pout playfully, making a low chuckle leave his lips. "Oh, I got a gift for you too! Wait just a second!"

That picks his curiosity, as he wasn't expecting anything this time. It seemed that you truly took delight in giving him things. His chest felt warm at the thought.

You come back holding a bouquet of pink hydrangeas, the shade remembering him of the newest mushroom he had showed you. It's beautifully done, wrapped in a light blue paper and tied by a pink ribbon. 

"My heartfelt emotions, to you." You make flourish when giving it to him, bending down in a bow.

His cheeks tint pink, matching the lovely shade of the flowers. He accepts them gracefully, thanking you. It's quite a sight, Jade fully buttoned up, the image of a perfect gentleman, carrying the flowers as if they were the most precious thing he owns.

"C'mon, let's get going before Azul charges us extra for the wait."

"Don't worry, he wouldn't dare to." There's a hint of pointy teeth in his smile, enough to imply the threat Azul'd be under should he try something.

You lead him out of the door, walking side by side to the mirror chamber. Neither of you are in a hurry, so you take your time to appreciate each other's company. It feels like only a second has passed by once you're in front of Octavinelle's entrance.

"Shall we enter, my dear? We can't have the food turning cold on us."

His free hand finds it's way around your lower back as he guides you through the mirror and to the lounge, navigating tables expertly. The whole establishment is empty besides the two of you, smooth jazz playing on the background and dim lights creating a cozy atmosphere. The fish pass you by on the water tanks, creating an entrancing dance, a blur of colors reflecting on the glass.

You take your seat on a table right in the middle, one more decorated than the others, a white cloth and a vase of flowers sitting on top of it. You can see the whole room from there, from the bar to Azul's VIP room's door.

Even with the formality of the situation, you find yourself comfortable in his familiar presence. Jade can talk with you for hours on end, each word capturing your attention wholly. As you wait for your order to come, you let the jazz rythm lull your conversation, playing with the shell on your necklace from time to time.

Many would say Jade Leech is a scary man. It's true, you think. The way he's entranced you is terrifyingly thrilling. At the same time, it isn't true at all, not to you at least. You know how dangerous he can be, you're not that naive, but you feel safe with him. How ironic that the sharp smile that makes so many shiver from fear is what warms your heart. 

Floyd is the one to arrive with your order, making a show of spinning it before putting it on the table. You chuckle at his antics, watching him dance as he retreats to the kitchen. 

"I hope it is up to your taste. I made sure there were only the best ingredients being used, handpicked by myself."

"It looks delicious! Not sure if I trust the handpicking part, tho. You're sure you didn't slip any poisonous mushroom on it?" You joke, taking a bite of the food. The taste disperses on your tongue and you hum contently, the warmth spreading to your body as you swallow. You take another bite, making amusement shine in Jade's eyes.

"Well, now that you mention it... you can still feel your tongue, yes?"

You almost choke in your laughter, coughing as he makes a worried face that doesn't fool you for a second. "Ugh, you're the worst. But this is so good I think it'd be worth the trip to the infirmary."

"I'm glad you like it so much, then."

"Yeah, the company isn't half bad either."

"I could say the same. You're rather delightful to have around. Much more so without being delirious from an unfortunate accident, so you don't have anything to worry about."

Your smile grows bigger at the compliment, mischief sparkling in your gaze as you wait for him to take a bite before answering. "Awn, you care about me? That's cute."

It's Jade's turn to splutter, although he does so in a much more dignified and contained way than you did. If it wasn't for the rising of his shoulders and the widening of his eyes, you wouldn't be able to tell he was fazed at all. Lucky for you, you took notice of his reactions as much as he did for yours. Before he can retort, there's an interruption in the shape of a certain Housewarden. 

"Is everything going alright? How do you like the food?" Azul has a polite costumer smile plastered on his face, but his curiosity is obvious. You and Jade exchange a glance between yourselves.

"It's wonderful, as always."

"I see, I see." He pauses for a second too long, taking in the scene fully. Jade glares at him once they meet eyes. You stifle a giggle. "I wouldn't want to take more of your time. Please continue to enjoy your evening." 

"We will." Jade replies curtly, eyes boring into Azul until he's out of view. He turns to you, composure back in place, which only makes you want to laugh more. You pretend you didn't notice it, taking another bite from your dish.

"You know..." You catch his attention, making him look inquisitively at you. "Your plate looks really good too. What is it?"

"Interested, are we? It's a mushroom risotto, made with mushrooms I collected on my mountain expeditions."

"Oh, I think I saw one similar to this on the cafeteria once!"

"Yes, the club contributes with foraging some of the ingredients used on the cafeteria's dishes."

"Woah, that's so cool. How come I didn't know this?"

"You didn't ask." His eyes wrinkle at the corner, clearly pleased with your praise to his beloved club.

"How was I supposed to ask this? It's way too specific!"

"Hm, I suppose it is."

You stick your tongue at him, knowing it's just like Jade to pull something like this. "As recompensation, I want a bite!"

"It does taste delicious." He takes another bite and chews slowly, eyes locked with yours the entire time. 

"C'mon Jade! Please?" You bat your lashes at him playfully, although it seems to have some effect. He gets a good amount of it on his fork before lifting it to your lips. You take it eagerly, humming.

"Well?" There's a certain antecipation on his tone.

"You're right, it tastes as good as it looks. Which is saying a lot."

"If you would like, I can cook it for you on another occasion."

Your eyes widen, the sincerity on his voice taking you by surprise.

"For free?"

"Of course, I wouldn't charge you for it. It would be my pleasure, truly."

"Then I accept! We could cook it together at Ramshackle sometime next week." 

"That would be perfect."

"It's a date then." You wink at him, patting yourself on the back for your smoothness.

"Enjoying this one so much you can't wait for another?" He answers with a smirk, tilting his head, his earrings tilting alongside it.

"How could I not enjoy it with such a charming gentleman across me?"

"You will make me blush if you keep saying things like this, prefect." 

"That means it's working! You'll fall in love with me in no time."

You chuckle, but Jade's gaze only softens. His eyes look so tender it makes your breath catch on your throat. You can't look away from him, from the way his smile curves just right.

"Can I bring the dessert now?" Floyd asks, making both of you turn to him in surprise. He scratches the back of his neck and stand casually at the end of the table as if he hadn't sneaked his way to it.

"We haven't finished eating yet."

"So?"

The twins hold eye contact for a few seconds, surely having some conversation you stand clueless about.

"So. You can bring it later." 

"Ah? But it's ready, shouldn't I bring it now? Shrimpy would like it fresh, right? You were the one that said that!"

Jade sighs at his brother stubborness. You stifle another giggle. 

"Floyd, I don't mind eating it a bit after it was done. I'd prefer to finish the main dish first." 

"Hm, if Shrimpy says so. I'll see ya in a bit."

"Now he listens..." Jade comments as you both watch him leaving. The frustation in his voice is a little funny, honestly. You sip on your drink.

It goes on like this. As your conversation with Jade follows it's usual course, Azul and Floyd interrupt constantly, always with a different excuse. You can see Jade getting fed up with their antics, but as much as you sympatize with him, you can't help but find the whole thing rather amusing.

Dessert consists of a mouth watering strawberry shortcake, the whipped cream melting in your tongue, the strawberries, coated in sugar, fresh and sweet, the cake fluffy. You make a different pleased sound at every bite, savoring it to the max. Jade seems fixated on your reactions, not paying nearly as much attention to his own slice as he's doing to you.

The jazz on the background takes a slower rhythm, as if accompanying the passage of the night. You feel at ease, smiling at Jade once you finish eating your slice. His intent gaze on you holding an unspoken weight, affection shining through. It makes your own feelings scream at you to do something, and that's what you do. It feels right to take his hand resting onto the table and interwine your fingers with his.

The touch of your hands sends eletricity through his skin, shocking his heart. Your eyes are littered with stars as you look at him, the colorful sea life reflecting on them beautifully. You look beautiful. The way his name falls from your lips, dripping as sweet as honey, makes him want to hear you say it again and again. He's addicted to your charm, letting himself drown on it.

Jade wants to confess his feelings to you at that moment, spill his mushy insides in your palms, transfer the warmth from his chest to your cheeks. He licks his lips, glancing at yours looking so inviting and soft, and opens his mouth to say it, to give you the key to his heart, to trust you and give himself to you fully, to be frighteningly open.

Before a single word can make it past his throat, there's a loud crash on the background that breaks the moment, making you jump and look around in alarm. Never in his life has Jade felt so frustrated, teeth digging through his bottom lip so hard he feels the coppery taste of blood.

There's a hiss of Floyd's name and a slurred complaint of Azul's. The two emerge from the bar, looking slightly frazzled. 

"Are you two ok?" You ask, more curious than concerned. 

"Perfectly. No need to worry about us." Azul smooths out his shirt, not really looking you in the eyes.

"Shrimpy, when are you gonna make a move?" Floyd pouts, arms crossed.

Jade's glare is a promise of pain in the future for the two that dared to interrupt him once more. How could Azul and Floyd be so irritating when they were supposed to be helping him? He makes to get up and have a talk with them in private, being at the limit of his patience, but you hold his hand closer to yourself, making him stay put.

"If you two leave us to have a private moment I'll do it." 

His eyes widen at your boldness, no hint of a joke in your tone. 

"Bet. C'mon Azul, let's leave the lovebirds alone." Floyd basically drags Azul away with him, finally leaving the two of you. 

"Prefect..."

You don't let him continue, bringing his hand closer to your heart, to the shell necklace, and taking a deep breath before letting it all out, looking at him in the eyes the entire time. You feel a rush of energy run through your nerves, the moment you've been waiting for finally having arrived.

"Jade, I really like you. I enjoy every moment I spend by your side, even when you can't give me your full attention. I know I'm in your thoughts and you're in mine, too. I love to hear you talking about your interests and I feel safe when I'm with you. You have my trust and my affections. My heart beats faster because of you. These are my heartfelt emotions. I'd be really happy if you feel the same for me, my pearl."

You close your eyes, bringing his hand to your lips and kissing his knuckles, holding it tenderly. Your thumb press against his pulse point, relief flooding you at confirming it's as accelerated as your own. Your look at him through your lashes, seeing his face is coated in the pretty pink you love so much.

He calls you by your name, each letter molding perfectly to his lips, as if it was choosen to be said by him. "Do you have any idea of the effect you have on me?"

You smile gently, squeezing his hand and letting it go. "Hm, no, I don't think so. Please, elaborate on it."

Jade gets up from his seat, standing in front of you before kneeling down, taking your hand in a similar way you did with his.

"Jade, don't you think it's a bit early to ask for my hand in marriage?"

He chuckles, his face radiating so much fondness there's no doubt in your mind that he reciprocates. He takes your hand to cup his cheek while he speaks, nuzzling into it and looking up at you, making himself vulnerable, as close to a lovesick expression as you'd ever see on him.

"Dearest, I'm most devoted to you. There's not a day that passes by without you filling up my thoughts. You have carved your way into my heart in a way none were able to before. I want to give you anything you may wish for, as long as you'll give me the one thing I ask of you. Would you allow me the pleasure of belonging to you, just as you would belong to me?"

Your thumb brushes against his skin, passing through and pulling on his lips as your lidded eyes take them in. Jade lets you do as you please, a show of great trust from someone as guarded as him. 

"Of course. I'd love to."

It's fascinating, the way a smile blooms on his face and his eyes light up, as if you had promised to give him the world. Perhaps you had, you just didn't know it. Your hand pulls him closer, making him get up and put his hands on your shoulders, leaning in, foreheads touching.

"I recall you saying something about wanting to hold me and kiss me, right? What are you waiting for?" 

That makes him pause. "Wait. Were you listening to me on that day, at the botanical garden?"

"Maybe, maybe not, who knows." You sing song, the glint of amusement dancing in your eyes enough to answer him. He chuckles incredulously, wondering just how used to your presence he was to not have noticed you approaching him then. 

"How secretive of you, prefect." He sounds proud as he says it. Maybe he's rubbing off on you after spending so much time together. "Very well. If that is what you wish for, I will do it." His thumb and forefinger hold onto your chin, tilting your head to meet his easier. "May I?" His low voice, laced with desire and yearning leaves you breathless before the kiss even has started. You whisper your consent, closing your eyes in antecipation. 

Jade, the bastard, teases you by leaving a little kiss by the corner of your mouth before grazing his lips against yours in a feather like touch, making a needy noise leave your throat. You can feel his smile against your lips, his hot breath mixing with yours, his nose brushing against yours in a tender gesture before your lips finally meet with a firm yet gentle hold.

He tastes like strawberries. You let out a delighted groan, your hands coming up behind his head to play with his hair, pulling him even closer to you.

As he makes to pull away, you nibble on his lip, getting a surprising whine in response. It only fuels you, the sound reverbating through your head like a prayer. It sure felt like a holy experience, to get such a sound from him. 

His face is flushed a pale pink and his hair is messy, lips red from kissing. It's the most beautiful sight you've ever seen. You're sure you don't look much better, but you can't bring yourself to care, the ecstasy pumping your blood and making your heart race.

Your cheeks hurt from how wide they're being spread by your smile, one so sincere you couldn't fight it even if you wanted to. You brush your nose against his, making a loving sigh escape his lips.

"...How do you like it?" For once in his life, Jade Leech let's himself be vulnerable, completly at your mercy. You feel powerful, at the top of the world having him in your palms like that, drinking up the sight. Although you know, he's got you just as good.

"Strawberries."

There's confusion on his voice as he repeats the word, taken aback by how suddenly you said it, how firm your tone was. You bury your face on his neck, whispering your answer against his skin. 

"You taste like strawberries. My favorite."

"Oh. I see it was a good idea to have strawberries on our dessert." There's the usual satisfied tone on his voice by knowing his plan was a success.

"You planned this?" You laugh, knowing you should have expected it from him. There is a buzzing of contentment swallowing you whole, fondness swimming in your chest.

"Naturally. I wanted it to be a most joyous experience."

"Well, you succeded. You taste delicious." You lick your lips for extra effect, nuzzling your head on his neck and leaving a little bite. "Still do."

You can feel the shivers of his skin against your lips. You pull on his hair a bit and hear the yearning sigh he lets out. It's exhilirating. You pull away, coming face to face with his lovely infatuated expression, one reserved just for you.

"One more?"

"As you wish, my dear."

Your lips meet once more, the pressure of his against yours making you light headed. It's wonderful, he's wonderful. You could get used to this.

Unfortunately, the moment is broken by the loud cheers and polite clapping from the backgroung. Floyd whistles as Azul congratulates you two. Jade's hands' grip on your shoulders tightens and you can feel the annoyance from before coming back tenfold, his red and swollen lips not making his sadistic smile any less treathining.

"And just what do the two of you think you are doing? Haven't you interrupted enough?" 

Your head falls back on his shoulder, not being able to hold your laughter anymore, your giggles against his ear making him soften the slightest bit, almost enough to forgive the two noisy merman. Almost.

He could deal with them later. Right now, he had much better things to do, as your breath tickling his neck reminds him. 

Jade Leech is not one for sentimentalism... perhaps he could make an exception for you.

Masterlist

JADE LEECH WITH SIREN READER JADE LEECH WITH SIREN READER JADE LEECH WITH SIREN READER!! This is a huge brainrot I'm having rn. Jade leech with his siren s/o, and Jade, being the little sadomasochist, he is absolutely loving it. He loves his siren s/o so much. They have all the qualities of a siren (beautiful, charming, seductive, manipulative, etc). IM SORRY, BUT THEY'D BE SUCH A POWER COUPLE. (I would prefer fem! Siren Reader or fem! Yuu Siren reader, but it can be gn siren reader if you'd like.) But I'm sorry I could just see Jade falling in love on SIGHT!!

Characters: Jade, Mentions of Floyd and Azul.

CW: Jade is a simp, maybe OOC Jade, Siren!Yuu is gorgeous, Female MC, not proofread.

A/N: Hello!! I am going to name you Siren Anon. I will have a lot of fun with this ask since 1 it's Jade, and 2 Sirens!! This is my first Fem!Yuu ask and I am excited for that. I read a post that someone head cannoned Jade and Floyd to kind of be the embodiment of Gomez Addams in a relationship and I say YES. So Jade will be a lil bit Gomez-coded. I hope this was to your liking if you wish to see a part 2 feel free to ask.

If you like this Reblogs and Likes are appreciated <3

When Jade saw Yuu for the first time he thought she was gorgeous like any other student would think. Being a Merfolk himself he could instantly tell she was a Siren and considering he didn't know her he kept a note to be cautious, but he was also curious about her.

Azul also wanted to try and coerce her into working with him since she can easily manipulate convince people to sign contracts (And assuming Siren!Yuu is the only female in the school) it would also bring attention the only female in school works at the mostro lounge. However Jade ended up getting to her first knowing she is a Siren he had to be wary she wouldn't hurt his brother or Azul.

As time went on he fell for her charm and he was in love, or maybe was it her siren call? Who knows Jade saw her as a mate and he was down bad. He knew if she was manipulating him he could easily find out as Floyd is worried about her exploiting his brother, but getting to know her she didn't seem like that..right?

When Yuu takes up Azul's offer to work with him Jade gets a little protective as he loves his girlfriend he's wary other people will try to hit on her, or even try to court her so during shifts he will try to make excuses for her to go in the back, or help Azul with deals.

When Yuu comes to helping with deals she gaslights, gatekeep, girlbosses, and easily gets people to sign the contracts. It's kind of a win-win situation. She gets to spend time with Jade during shifts, and she gets paid for literally exploiting people to fall for her charm.

Jade mansplains Yuu girlbosses and manipulates people it's literally a perfect duo.

I believe Moray eels are territorial so I feel like because she is a siren he will be like not insecure, but more like Protective?? Posessive??.

I feel one day Jade and Yuu would be having a conversation, and they would probably try to manipulate each other into not leaving them I'd be funny. Jade is a sadist and he is a good manipulator Yuu is just as good with the both of them they'd be so iconic and powerful.

Jade would very much love his partner and would do anything for her. He knows she can take care of herself and will only step in if he needs to (Such as someone starts getting physical or a little too close).

If they were to get into a fight I feel like fights can become nasty. Not on the verge of breaking up (hopefully), but if the fight happened because of Yuu I can definitely see her going to talk to Jade when he's ready and she drops her facade and let's herself become vulnerable they both love each other dearly and I know they'd want to fix the relationship. If the fight is Jade's fault he would give Yuu some space before talking about it as well if she's badly hurt I feel Jade would be mad at himself a little for making you feel that way, but eventually it would all work out.

Imagine them becoming Mafia bosses and committing world domination????

I am all for that.

Jade Leech🥀

🌷- 𝑭𝖑𝖚𝖋𝖋

💐- 𝑨𝖓𝖌𝖘𝖙

🌻- 𝑪𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖐

🌼- 𝑯𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖈𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖔𝖓𝖘

🌺- 𝑺𝖚𝖌𝖌𝖊𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖛𝖊 (𝜨𝜪𝜯 𝑺𝜧𝑼𝜯)

Mafia Eel Theory🌼

Pirate Fairy UM 🌼ft. Deuce, Azul, Jamil, Vil, Idia, Malleus

Reader really likes Moray Eels 🌼ft Floyd, Azul, Lilia

𝑭𝖔𝖝𝖌𝖑𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖕𝖓𝖌™

i rewrote this ask like three times already trying to word it perfectly lmao. fem!yuu x octavinelle (separately). the pair attends NRC’s annual winter ball together as friends, though they’re both unaware of their mutual crushes on each other. at the end of the ball azul/floyd/jade confess their feelings!! also if possible could yuu’s dress be based on either ariel’s pink one or cinderellas original one (the silvery one) if any part of this was unclear pls feel free to message me and i’ll clear it up! my brains literally melting rn bc i just finished this horrible essay for history and tbh atp im just word vomiting everything out 😭😭

This is my second time writing this, I lost all of my progress the first time 😭

I had so much fun with the second version of Jade's part 💀

@nisobird 🚨🚨azul🚨🚨

Warnings ;; none

Relationship ;; Platonic, turned Romantic

Type ;; Short Story/One-Shot

OCTAVINELLE

Azul Ashengrotto ;; Octavinelle Housewarden ;; Second Year

You were late, and Azul was panicking. Why were you late? Did you just not want to see him? Were you just blowing him off? Azul as terrified of you not coming, not wanting to see him.

Upon seeing the doors open, revealing you, in a dress similar to that of the Sea Princesses, Azul's jaw dropped. He straightened his back upon seeing you come his way.

He gave a small laugh, "well.. you look.. wonderful." You couldn't help the small laugh that came from you, "Thank you. You can blame Vil, he wouldn't let me come in a normal outfit." You laughed.

Azul gave a laugh in return, holding his hand out toward you upon hearing a slow song start overhead. "May I.. have this dance?" He asked, obviously nervous for your response.

You gave a smile and took his hand, "You may." Azul smiled and led you to the dance floor, one hand gliding toward your hip, and the other taking your own hand.

As you danced, he cleared his throat. "If I may, I have something to tell you." You nodded, motioning for him to continue. He gave a small, nervous chuckle. "I think I... No, I know that I love you." He said quickly, before giving a sigh. "That.. wasn't as bad as I'd suspected." He said with a nervous laugh, awaiting your response.

With a small laugh and shake of your head, you responded. "I love you too, Azul."

Jade Leech ;; Octavinelle Vice-Housewarden ;; Second Year

You hung out with the tweel, not exactly fond of the dance floor, especially while wearing heels and a puffy, long dress. "Hey, Jade. Are you good at dancing?"

Jade gave a chuckle, "Why, I'd say I'm all right, but I wouldn't say I'm the best." He admitted, "Although, Floyd is a much better dancer than myself." Jade gave one of his normal, light chuckles.

"Despite how good my other half is at dancing, he finds it.. boring and uninteresting." Jade hummed, taking a sip from the punch he held in his hand.

You gave a laugh, "yeah, that sounds like Floyd." Jade simply nodded in response. "Say, may I talk to you after the ball is through? I have something to tell you." He told you, finishing off his punch.

Your brows furrowed in confusion, but you nodded nonetheless. After some more conversation with the eel, the ball was over and Jade guided you outside to somewhere quiet and concluded.

Jade turned to you, "I must admit to you that you are quite entertaining. Assuming you know my brother and I as well as you do, you know that we are very fond of those who are entertaining."

You listened, giving a nod toward the end. "Which is where I'd like to tell you that I-" A shout was heard from a tree, looking over, a fallen Floyd laid on his back at the bottom of the tree. "Oh, just tell 'em, stupid."

Jade and yourself couldn't help but laugh, "tell me what?" You asked. "I love you." He said simply, kissing your forehead lightly.

Floyd Leech ;; Octavinelle ;; Second Year

Floyd had even shocked himself upon asking you to this ball, he had no intent on even coming in the first place. But the idea of seeing you in a dress, all completely dressed up, had him in a chokehold.

"Woah. You look nice." Floyd blinked, and you laughed in response. "Thank you, Floyd." He nodded and held a cup of punch toward you, and you took it. You thanked him once more before taking a sip on it.

"Hey, Shrimpy." Floyd said, getting your attention. "Yeah? What's up?" You asked. "What do you say we get out of here?" You blinked, "Floyd, we both just got here." You said with a laugh. "I know, but if we stay any longer then Crabby or Little Mackerel will come up and steal you. So." He said, making a popping sound with his lips as he waited for your response.

You shook your head with a laugh and nodded, "alright, but where do you want to go?" Floyd shrugged, "I don't care." You laughed, before taking his hand and simply taking him back to Ramshackle.

His eyes were glued to his hand even after you'd gotten to Ramshackle. You snorted, "Floyd." You said, waving a hand in front of his face. "Huh?"

"what's up with you?" You laughed, and Floyd shrugged in response, simply resting his chin on your head. He spoke up after minutes of standing like that. "Hey, Shrimpy?" He said, "yeah?"

"Love you." He said simply, kissing the top of your head before reverting back to resting his chin on top of your head.

Can i request for any twisted wonderland characters that's fit x reader who don't know how to cook

yeah, of course!

Some of these characters have shorter parts because I added every character in the game, minus side characters such as (Artemiy Artemiyevich Pinker (Che'nya), Rollo Flamme, et cetera)

Also! If there are any inadequacies with grammar, I apologize, I'm at a friend's house while i'm writing this and I'm very easily distracted.

If it's not obvious, I'm a sucker for soft Sebek

Ortho is strictly platonic!

And Reader can be viewed as either Yuu or not!

@nisobird because there's Azul

Warnings ;; None

Relationship ;; Romantic

Type ;; Headcanons

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts ;; Heartslabyul Housewarden ;; Second Year

Riddle's world comes crashing down, in all honesty.

The boy was raised with the ideal that a partner is supposed to be at least a decent cook, but you are the exact opposite.

He will eat your food only to be nice.

Even though he can't cook all that well himself, he'll try to suggest ways to make it better even though none of his suggestions really, truly help the awfulness of your cooking.

Let's just hope you don't end up cooking for his mother.

Trey Clover ;; Heartslabyul Vice-Housewarden ;; Third Year

Trey is quite literally the sunshine to your moonlight, your sky to your ground.

You two are total, clear opposites.

He can cook almost anything without flaw, especially pastries and sweets.

He will panic if he ever sees you in the kitchen, trying to cook something.

He'll subtly take over for you, slowly taking more and more control of the kitchen.

Cater Diamond ;; Heartslabyul ;; Third Year

Cater would not care one single bit.

He is taking so, so many photos and posting them on Magicam, he does not give two shits whether it looks amazing, or absolutely terrible.

He will post it, specifically because you're his partner, you're his significant other.

And yes, he will shove it down his throat even if he needs to vomit it up later.

Ace Trappola ;; Heartslabyul ;; First Year

Ace can't cook, not one bit.

He's also very weird about his tastes.

He'll eat pickles and ice cream but he probably won't eat a single slice of cheese.

He'll eat anything you make at all whatsoever, unless there's cheese. (I headcanon he absolutely hates cheese, don't ask why)

He'll watch you cook and won't even interfere.

He does notice how bad your cooking is but he won't say or do anything about it because he genuinely does not care.

He'll even tell you it's actually good

Deuce Spade ;; Heartslabyul ;; First Year

Deuce doesn't even notice how bad it is, and if he did, he wouldn't even care.

He'll anything and everything, minus bell peppers.

He cannot, and will not, eat bell peppers.

He hates the taste, the texture, everything about bell peppers is everything he hates in all of Twisted Wonderland.

He tends to not watch you cook and has no reason for it.

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingscholar ;; Savanaclaw Housewarden ;; Third Year

Leona's not exactly shameless when it comes to meats, despite any sort of meat being among his absolute favorite foods.

He's not very picky about meats though. Just as long as it's cooked decently, and seasoned alright, he's fine.

Despite being a literal prince, he does not have a prince's palette.

He'll literally eat raw meat if it suits his needs

Of course, that's mostly because of the lion beastman part of him

Ruggie Bucchi ;; Savanaclaw ;; Second Year

Ruggie is literally shameless, make him anything and he'll eat it.

Just as long as it's not rotten, he'll eat quite literally anything.

He's not the greatest cook, but he'll help in any way he possibly can.

He'll most definitely bring your food to the kids in his neighborhood, no matter how terrible it is.

He wants to make sure they're fed, and he's happy when you're willing to cook.

He never tells you if he genuinely thinks you're food is bad, he'll end up feeling terrible and he knows that so he won't say a thing about your cooking.

Unless it's any sort of praise.

Jack Howl ;; Savanaclaw ;; First Year

Jack isn't entirely picky, but he's not the biggest fan of your cooking.

Being who he is, he'll feel bad for even thinking that your food is bad.

Also being the honest man he is, he'll sadly point it out to you, admitting his wrongdoing.

He's a big sweetheart, so he'll try to be as kind to you as he can, no matter how you end up reacting.

Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto ;; Octavinelle Housewarden ;; Second Year

Given that Azul grew up with his mother owning a restaurant, and he himself owning a restaurant, he's a bit... iffy over your cooking skills.

Of course, he'll always be nice when he brings it up. You're his significant other after all.

He'll point it out and he may give you some of his mom's recipes to help you follow along.

He helps you cook much more than he used to, letting you have most of the control, but he will come in if he sees you do something wrong.

Jade Leech ;; Octavinelle Vice-Housewarden ;; Second Year

Jade finds you and your cooking very, very entertaining.

He doesn't ever actually help you unless he finds you cooking mushrooms and.... screwing them up.

After that, he's immediately on your case and helping you cook.

Within the next two or three weeks, you're an absolute master chef.

Especially with mushrooms. By time Jade is done with you, you're more than likely a better chef when it comes to mushrooms than he is.

Floyd Leech ;; Octavinelle ;; Second Year

Floyd thinks you are the most entertaining human he's ever met.

Like some other people, he doesn't think your food is bad, just that it's so unbelievably entertaining and unique.

He actually doesn't try to help your cooking or change it or buy you anything new.

He simply watches the chaos of your cooking unfold, while occasionally adding his own, odd concoction to the mix.

And he will eat your food, no matter what you put on his plate, or what you put in the odd concoction you call your cooking.

Just don't add any shiitake mushrooms, he begs of you.

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim ;; Scarabia Housewarden ;; Second Year

Kalim more than likely trusts you enough to not have Jamil test the food you give him.

The only way Jamil would let Kalim eat your food is if Jamil himself trusted you.

So, if Jamil trusted you, Kalim would more than happily eat your food himself.

He probably wouldn't care if your food was the best food in the whole of Twisted Wonderland, or if your food is the worst thing in all of Twisted Wonderland.

He'll eat it happily and won't complain one bit.

Jamil Viper ;; Scarabia Vice-Housewarden ;; Second Year

Jamil, if he truly trusts you, will eat small bits of your food and will help you cook every single time you step in a kitchen.

He won't completely take over like Trey would, but he will guide you in every single way, subtle or not.

Once you get better and better, he'll eat your food more and more.

He'll take over for you at any time and finish the cooking for you, if that's what you'd like, all you'd have to do is say the word.

Pomefiore

Vil Schoenheit ;; Pomefiore Housewarden ;; Third Year

You're going to make the Vil Schoenheit break out. And that's a feat, especially considering his rigorous skincare routine.

He won't eat any of your food, and he will flat-out tell you, in a relatively nice tone of voice, that your food is not exactly good.

If he realizes that it hurts you, he'll try to find ways for your cooking to taste relatively better, whether it be buying you new utensils, or buying you cookbooks or any other things like that.

He promises you that he never meant to hurt you, he just wants to... help.

Rook Hunt ;; Pomefiore Vice-Housewarden ;; Third Year

Oh, Rook does not care. He genuinely thinks that your cooking is beautiful and wonderful in every single way possible.

He will eat your food and compliment you even if you put whole-ass children's toys in your food.

He'll buy you whatever you need for your cooking without you even need to ask him, he's kind of a freak like that.

Epel Felmier ;; Pomefiore ;; First Year

Epel is very in the middle, he's fine with your bad cooking just.... don't make him eat it because he will act like a toddler having to eat vegetables.

Or, that's what he says he won't do.

He says he'll be all manly and eat it like a man, but you know for a fact that he won't and he will act like a little kid.

Ignihyde

Idia Shroud ;; Ignihyde Housewarden ;; Third Year

Idia barely eats as it is, so when you bring him food, his hair will immediately turn pink and he'll try to hide his face by tightening his hood over his head.

He won't care whether it's bad or good, he'll only care about the fact that you actually... brought him food.

Of course, Ortho does so all the time, but it's different when your significant other brings you a whole meal because they don't want you to starve.

Once again, he doesn't care whether it's good or bad, he'll shove it down his throat either way.

Ortho Shroud ;; Ignihyde ;; First Year

Ortho can't exactly eat, given that he's both a robot and a machine.

But he'll look up recipes and help you cook and help you get as best and as good as you can get.

He'll always help, and use every single upgrade he's ever got put into him by his big brother to help you cook as best as you can.

Diasomnia

Malleus Draconia ;; Diasomnia Housewarden ;; Third Year

Oh, boy. Malleus is scared that he has another Lilia on his hands. Of course, your food is not as bad as Lilia's, but it's still not, for lack of a better word, good.

He will eat it, but he'll compliment and praise your cooking in a very... odd way.

He'll compliment you, yes. But he'll also add in some, not-so-subtle ways you can improve.

Don't tell him, he genuinely thinks his attempts at helping are extremely subtle, when they are absolutely not.

Lilia Vanrouge ;; Diasomnia Vice-Housewarden ;; Third Year

Lilia, like Rook, Kalim, and Deuce, won't even notice that your food is bad.

And that is mostly because he, himself is a bad chef.

He's such a bad chef he can't even tell when foods are actually bad.

Even if he could tell that your food was not good, he still wouldn't care because he just loves you far, far too much to even think of pointing it out.

Silver Vanrouge ;; Diasomnia ;; Second Year

Silver is internally sobbing. First, his Father, and now, his significant other.

He's very sweet about telling you ways you can improve.

He actually does this with his father, too. But you're the only one who picks up on it, Lilia, sadly, does not.

Silver tries his absolute hardest to help, but he eventually succumbs to his sleep, but he always profusely apologizes afterward.

Sebek Zigvolt ;; Diasomnia ;; First Year

Sebek is oddly much sweeter about it than you'd ever expect.

He doesn't yell, but he does let you know that it doesn't taste good.

He explains ways you can fix it, despite he himself not knowing how to cook all that well.

He explains everything he knows about cooking to try and help you.

If Sebek manages to view a human as a significant other, or partner, he will dote on your every need or want in the sweetest way that you'd never, ever expect from him.

He's very sweet as he helps you cook, making sure that you do everything to the best of your genuine ability.

Hi I’m sorry if this is too silly a request, but can you do savannaclaw and octavinelle (separately) x reader who has really soft cheeks and how they find out about their soft cheeks + what they do with this knowledge? Thank you! <3

Yup!

And if you haven't noticed, I quit colour-coding names and pronouns simply because I'm lazy

And this is my first time writing Ruggie and Jack so, please forgive me if they're bad 😭

The Reader is Yuu and is gender neutral

@nisobird because Azul is in this

Warnings ;; None

Relationship ;; Romantic

Type ;; Headcanons

OCTAVINELLE

Azul Ashengrotto ;; Octavinelle Housewarden ;; Second Year

Azul would more than likely find out during his overblot, although he wouldn't much care or notice it at the time.

With his magic, you'd get thrown to the ground and your cheek would squish up against the hard floor.

Upon returning to his normal self, his immediate reaction would be to run to you and tilt your face up toward him.

Despite still being in shock over what happened to him, he remembered how your cheeks squished up against the floor.

Despite how your cheeks don't look squishy, they are, and Azul takes total advantage of this.

After finding this out, he kisses your cheeks much more often.

Jade Leech ;; Octavinelle Vice-Housewarden ;; Second Year

Jade would've found out through his job at the Lounge

You'd more than likely bump into him and end up squishing your cheek against his back or his chest.

Upon learning this information, he'd be similar to Floyd in terms of reaction.

No matter who's around, what's going on, if it suits his needs, he'll randomly squish and your cheeks and give a light chuckle at your facial expression.

Floyd Leech ;; Octavinelle ;; Second Year

Floyd would more than likely find out from a normal squeeze.

He'd squeeze you, and because he's so tall, he'd feel your cheek squish against either, his own, or his chest.

He can and he will use this against you.

I would run if I were you.

He is not afraid to just randomly bite your cheeks, especially in front of people.

Your cheeks are like stress toys for him and don't even ask why.

He'll come running up to you while on break and just squish at your cheeks, he will not care who's around.

SAVANACLAW

Leona Kingscholar ;; Savanaclaw Housewarden ;; Third Year

Leona would most likely find out during a nap.

You'd try to wake him up and he'd try to swat you away, lightly smacking your cheek in the process.

After that, he immediately sat up before pulling you onto his lap.

He'd mess with your cheeks for a solid five minutes before laying back down and taking you with him.

It honestly took him by surprise, because your cheeks looked nowhere near as soft and squishy as they were.

Of course, he never actually made this known, simply laying back and going back to sleep with you in his lap.

Ruggie Bucchi ;; Savanaclaw ;; Second Year

Ruggie would have found out through a simple dare.

Using his signature spell on you and pinching his cheeks, and in return, making you pinch your own.

Ruggie would've immediately released the spell before taking your cheeks in between his pointer fingers and thumbs.

Just like the others, it took him by surprise.

And he will use it against you to get doughnuts, even though it's nothing to "use against you"

Jack Howl ;; Savanaclaw ;; First Year

Jack would more than likely find out through someone else.

He's very respectful of your boundaries and wouldn't ever want to cross them.

So when he sees Ace or Deuce squish at your cheeks, he asks you why.

You explain to him that your cheeks are just naturally soft and squishy, and that you really don't mind it.

Jack would nod and completely understand.

But even knowing this situation, he still wouldn't even touch you unless he had your firm, verbal permission.

OMG this made me feel,,,, so loved,,, Sjsjsj and the fact that Floyd and jade are are sea creatures and the little feature you added about Jades constant work and how Floyd reckless is just like Icarus djsnksna omg it’s so good!!!

How the twisted wonderland boys will sleep on you

PART THREE

Octavinelle

Azul

He does take a liking to tight,enclosed spaces,given his past in octopus pots. He’ll seek out your arms,pulling them around him. He enjoys sleeping with his head squished into your chest,you curled around him. It’s a security blanket of sorts,for him.

Unlike Ace,he isn’t so shallow in terms of his partner. If it fits,he sleeps. He genuinely thinks that his partner,no matter the gender,the body shape,is beautiful. Maybe it’s because he’s so hard on himself that he doesn’t want anyone else to go through that pain. Man really really likes being the small spoon. It’s comforting,really,being hugged to sleep. He’s also fond of tangling your legs with his,it has a certain intimate feeling to it.

All he wants is to be as close to you as possible.

Is that so wrong?

Jade

A rather hard man to read,to be honest. But even the more proficient workers get tired. After a busy day at the Mostro lounge,all he wants to do is to sleep,with you by his side. Being an ocean animal,warmth is something… foreign to him,when everything around him has always been so cold,and dark. Your presence is hot enough to set him ablaze,and he’s a little surprised to find that he doesn’t mind dying to this heat if it means that you’re beside him.

He’s not all together too fond of literally using his lover as a pillow,but he does like snuggling into the crook of your neck from behind,whispering sweet nothings into your ears. May rub circles into your back,for the sake of his hands,who are too used to being busy.

It’s hard for someone like him to fully relax,but you seem to help.

Floyd

Similar to Jade,he wasn’t exposed to much warmth growing up. The ocean was deep,dark,and scary,so that’s how he turned out. So upon meeting you,was like seeing the word for the first time. You are his sun,his warmth,his light,and he’ll gladly throw himself into the sun like Icarus if it meant feeling your kind touch.

It’s hard to pry this man off your body in the day,so it’s much worse when he’s tired,and all he wants to do is to use his beloved shrimpy as a pillow. Has the most awkward sleeping positions, and he tends to stretch out in those poses much like a house cat dozing in the sun’s glow. He needs you beside him,his arm around you. He would probably never admit it,but he falls asleep easier when you’re in his arms.

It’s bliss for him,so please just stay there,alright?

twst players who can hear this must touch, feel and consume grass immediately

When they found out that Mc has wings (Angel! MC) pt.2!

notes: Male!mc x the various vice dorm leaders. I’m gonna add only the official vice-dorm leaders (no Ruggie, sorry) and I couldn’t write lilia either… I don’t feel like I know the character enough…sorry

prompt: when the vice dorm leaders found out that MC has angel-like wings after he’s been injured lightly (TW alert) by their dorm fellows

Trey clover 

He was walking to his dorm ‘cause Riddle called for him when he saw you in the roses garden, covered in red paint to the ground and two boys laughing

He went in protective big bro mode and scolded the two, sending them to meet Riddle and face their punishment for such thing

only after he realized that you were covered by something, its texture was almost completely invisible thanks to the thick red paint

Trying to move the thing, Trey realized that the thing wasn’t something like a jacked that you used for covering- Those things were "”glued”” to you body...and were feathered-

after two second of staring he understood that those were wings- but it wasn’t a deal at the moment! the red paint spilled on your hair and uniform as well.

not noticing that you were awake, he picked you up bridal-style and just carried you to ramshackle dorm

the moment he picked you up you started panic, in fear that he might not like you anymore or just as well think that you are some kind of strange beast to hate...stupid though? yeah, but you didn’t think of it at the moment!

you just excused yourself, asking him not to tell anyone as he left you on your bed.

he smiled softly, saying that there was no need to worry as he left a kiss on your forehead and left for you to proper rest and shower

the next day you invited him at your dorm and gave him a feather that fell in the night as a gift

he chuckled and gave you your favorite flavored cake! baked by him, of course

you ate the cake, cuddle and fell asleep right next to him as he caressed your head gently

“ thanks for your gift, my little angel. I will keep it safe and sound…just as I intend to do with you, of course”

Jade leech

Mostro lounge was closing after a very busy night, and Jade was cleaning the last tables, when he found you, asleep on a table

then he noticed two boys mocking you, saying some strange things and playing with something that were attacked to your back...wings?!

he rushed behind the two boys, putting a hand on his chest, eyes closed and bright creepy smile

“I’m sorry gentlemen, but we’ve already closed and I need you to help me clean the tables, so go to work ok?”

the two felt shivers down their spines as the tall boy talked and ran to go their chores.

later, Jade asked Floyd to take care of them :>

Jade held you in his arms as he made is way to the infirmary; one of the boys left your wings fall to the ground, and he wanted to assure that you were alright

As you woke up you found Jade standing by the bed, making sure that you were alright

you looked at him, a glimmer of admiration in your eyes: he just commanded the boys to go away and they ran! You probably neither would or could do that to someone...he was just so strongwilled!

you clang up to him as a thank you and left a kiss on his cheek, which became rosy after some seconds

you chuckled as the boy touched his cheek, as for making sure that it was there

After the little moment of unbelieving, he smiled at you: a warm, soft smile of his, as he asked if he could touch your wings, as he was curious about them

you smiled and nodded. He caressed them as soft as he could, praising you for your wings’s feathers softness

in the end he smiled, kissed your cheek as he greeted you and walk away, since Floyd was calling.

You were just  SO flustrated that you hid yourself in the wings

when Jade returned, he giggled at that pleasant sight

“ Aww...is my angelfish’s embarassed now? such a lovely view~”

Jamil Viper

Jamil just escaped Kalim’s attentions and was going to a room in the back of the dorm where he uses to practice break dance, When he saw you, trying to...pull sand out of your wings?!

He stayed there, at the door, with wide-opened eyes. He wasn’t disgusted or anything. Just surprised

Once you noticed him approching, you started to panic. Two boys from scarabia pulled you in the hot sand of the outstanding desert, mocking you all morning.

When jamil saw you with fear in your eyes as you closed your wings like a shield he felt horrible. You feared hum...? but why?? Was he this terrifing-looking?!

“yo-chill-” he tried to say as he kneeled in front of you, sitting with crossed legs. “ you...you ok? you’re injured or something?? I see that your wings have some little burns..can i assist you in some way? maybe medicating?? mh?”

“p-please just be careful..they’re very fragile...” you mumbled as you relaxed your wings for Jamil to take them in his hands

he was actually really tender as he medicated the wings, caressing them as an attempt to make you relax as well. He never meant no harm... especially after the overblot accident, everyone tended to avoid him even more. 

“ ok..should be ok” he spoke after some minutes

you opened your wings, which were double your body, big and pearled-looking. You looked like a mighty god who just ascended on earth to estirp all evils

that’s what Jamil thought. a ‘oh mighty seven’ escaped his lips as he watched you strech.

you looked flattered at him, smiling tenderly. “ something wrong?”

he blushed the moment you made him realize that he said those words out loud, looked the other way but didn’t get up. He somehow liked staying under your shadow. It was comforting, for once.

You smiled and hugged him, kissing his cheek with a ‘thank you, Jamil!’ As you got up.

he pressed his hand on his cheek as he watched you protect your tiny waist with your wings and made them invisible

“If you don’t mind, would you like to come to my room sometimes? No! not as a hangout, you dummy! For...the medications! yes, for the medications!”

Rook hunt 

Rook was going around in the forest just as always, hunting down little animals and such. That’s what he always did in his spare time other than going around stalking people 

He felt something move. Something leaned against a tree. He smirked and squat-walked to the place the rumor came from

You didn’t notice him at first. You got into a fight because a bloke mocked Epel. They pulled you against a wall and your wing got hurt

“Oh dear…” Rook let out the words flow in surprise. You squeaked in fear and tried to run away, but he catched you by the wrist and made you seat. You could hear your heart in your ears because of how fast and loud it was. 

You were sure he was going to kill you or something…he was a hunter after all. It didn’t matter that he was your crush and he was still very handsome in your eyes, he could’ve been a threat! You squeezed your eyes close, ready for a shot or something.

But that shot never arrived. You instead felt very soft caresses on your feathers. You opened your eyes to see Rook looking at you in worry 

“mon petit ange, what happened?”, he said, starting to caress your face as well. His face without a fox-like smile was indeed a rare view. “ oh, it’s nothing” you tried to say, but he didn’t left your wrist free. He had such a firm grip it almost felt like having a handcuff or something like that

“your wing is broken. Don’t try to fake to be ok, I notice when something’s off”. He kept cupping your cheek with his hand, caressing it with his thumb, which arrived almost on your eye. You looked down, “if I admit it you’ll hurt those people, and I don’t think it’s necessary”

He smiled lovingly, “oh, mon petit ange..” he kissed your forehead, making you cheeks heat up, before picking you up bridal style and bringing you back to your room, where he patched up your wings and spent a lot of time with you

He told you about his family, how (headcanon!) he had a lot of older siblings and thought that they would like you a lot

“ thank you…” you whispered. You both were on your bed with your shoulders touching. “No need to thank me, mon petit ange” he said as he  took your hand in his, kissing it lightly

 “If you ever feel threatened, please call me, dearest~”

Worry not tho, he will make the lives of those who hurt you a living hell <3

  I hope you enjoyed! bye!

Twisted Wonderland - He Hears You Singing (About Him)

Twisted Wonderland Writings Masterpost

Heartslabyul Edition, Savanaclaw Edition

Prompt: While relaxing, and doing chores around the Ramshackle dorm for your weekend restoration of the barely standing building, your thoughts drift to love songs from your old world. You think of songs that remind you of your closest fellow NRC student and significant other, and end up singing one while you work.

Reader: GN reader - They/Them pronouns and they are referred to as 'MC/Prefect' in this one. And let's all just agree that MC is a great singer- cuz some of these songs have mad vocals that I would never dream of trying to sing myself with my incredibly average voice, and I imagine a lot of you are the same.

Included Characters: Octavinelle Edition!

Warnings: None.

Request Rules & Information Here

~~~

Azul Ashengrotto - "Adore You" by Harry Styles

- Why did he stop by Ramshackle? He can't remember. It was something about taste testing the new spring menu, maybe? He's not sure it matters anymore, given how enamored he is with the sound of your voice right now.

- Is frozen in the doorway like a deer caught in headlights, he hadn't even realized it was you singing (he thought it was from your phone or something on a radio) until he turned the corner and saw you.

- When you see him, he turns all kind of shades of scarlet, embarrassed at being caught staring, but he quickly composes himself.

- Immediate compliments followed quickly by an offer to sing at the Mostro Lounge sometime- you'd be paid generously of course-

- On the outside he's acting cool, but the song in question really did fluster him quite a bit, and thoughts of you singing it again just for him keep intruding in his mind, and if you look closely you can see his ears remain a pretty shade of pink the whole conversation after.

- Does truly think you would look stunning dressed up in lavish clothes, preforming on the stage of the Mostro Lounge, are you sure you don't want to? He'll throw in a free meal plus pay!

"My, my, MC, that was a lovely performance. You should put those wonderful vocals to use, I'm sure everyone would be in awe of you at the Lounge. Some may even show up just to see you- I certainly would."

~~~

Jade Leech - "Dive" by Olivia Dean

- He's honestly quiet pleasantly surprised when he enters Ramshackle (without knocking of course) and hears your wonderful singing voice.

- A soft (dare I say genuine?) smile makes it's way to his face as he approaches the living area where you're cleaning, and stands patiently in the doorway for you to finish the song- one he's never heard before but it flows rather smoothly, much like the jazz played at the lounge.

- He finds the lyrics rather intriguing too, now what would inspire you to sing such a romantic song? A crush perhaps? The idea of you having enough of a crush on someone to sing such a song about them makes him... Well, he'll just focus on what he has right in front of him for now, and save those pesky feelings for later self-analysis.

- When you catch him he is completely shameless in his staring, as a matter of fact, his smile grows, before he gives a curious tilt of his head and motions with his hand for you to continue.

- What? Your voice was beautiful, of course he wants to hear it more. What's he doing here? Oh, well, he's come to ask if you'd like to be the first to taste test the Mostro Lounges new spring menu.

- Sure he didn't knock, but it's honestly your fault for not locking the front door- oh, the locks are broken? That can't possibly be safe. Perhaps you should stay at Octavinelle until they are fixed, that way he can hear your voice much more often.

- As a matter of fact, instead of 100 thaumarks a night for a room, he's sure he can arrange for you to sing at the Lounge every night for payment instead.

"Oh, please don't mind me, continue. Your voice is quite delightful, you should consider singing at the Lounge- though, I'm not sure I want anyone else to hear you but me..."

~~~

Floyd Leech - "Risk" by Gracie Abrams

- oHohOHo, you're never gonna live this down PT. 3

- The moment he barges into Ramshackle in a poor mood, looking for his favorite Shrimpy to cheer him up, he freezes at the sound of you're voice.

- But not for long.

- One second, you're alone, singing as you do some chores, and the next second you're being spun around in Floyd Leech's arms as he laughs cheerfully.

- He loves your voice. Keep singing! He wants to dance with you while you do! Forget those boring chores! He's here now, so you can both have fun! You're so adorable he could squeeze you till you pop!

- You should come by the lounge sometimes and sing to him to make his shifts less boring. He's sure Azul wouldn't mind- and if he does, then you two can just leave and have your own party elsewhere!

- He will, without a doubt, demand that you sing to and for him at the most random of times, hell, he might even barge into the middle of your class in a foul mood and demand a serenade from his Shrimpy.

- If you truly won't sing to him, his mood may worsen and you won't see him for awhile while he sorts himself out, whereas if you do sing for him, he will immediately start to feel better.

- The best moment he could ask for to fix his mood, is laying beside you his head in your lap, while you sing. It helps him decompress, and feel so much better from whatever was overwhelming him or souring his mood.

"Shrimpy~! Nice set of pipes! Well, don't stop singing, let's dance together! I knew you'd be doin' something fun, you always cheer me right up!"

~~~

Can you guys tell that Octavinelle is one of my favorite dorms? Particularly the twins? Especially Floyd, his unpredictability with his mood swings are very relatable as someone with severe untreated ADHD and bipolar tendencies. I just think he's neat guys. And fun to write. Anyway! Merry Christmas everyone, and I'll see you next post! ~ Roo

⭒ Sympathetic Solace ⭒

⭒ The tweels comfort you after you’ve come seeking a place to get away as a result of a recent fight with your significant other. ⭒

⭒ Pairing: Floyd Leech x GN!Reader x Jade Leech ⭒

⭒ Genre: Comfort ⭒

⭒ Word Count: 2247 ⭒

⭒ Apologies if either of them are out of character. It’s been a while since I written for TWST, so I may need to brush up a little. Anyhow, enjoy! ⭒

Knock..

Knock knock..

Knock..

The door swung open with a soft creak as the man looked down at whoever it was knocking on his room door. Heterochromatic eyes caught onto their figure with surprise, worry interlaced in his expression. Cold rain water dripped from their hair and onto the carpeted floor, staining the neutral color with a darker variant. 

“Oya?” Jade spoke with curiosity. “What are you doing here?” 

Jade stood in the doorway, a loose white shirt hanging from his figure. Dark grey sweatpants adored his bottom half followed by a pair of black socks. His unique hair seeming messier then usual. The singular black strand that hung down having a few strays branching off of it and towards the side.

You hesitantly looked up at him before speaking. “I uhm.. had another fight with them.”

Jade’s eyebrows raised in concealed anger for just a split second before a usual sly smile overtook his lips. “Come in then, I will get you a towel.” 

You gave a small smile and a nod, stepping past the tall male. Once you were inside, your eyes fell on an almost identical one sitting on his bed with his legs swinging, his phone in hand. His own set of heterochromatic eyes looked up and upon locking with yours a large smile became present on his lips. A cyan shirt adorned his figure with a pair of black sweatpants and socks that all relatively hung off him loosely. You were however, used to seeing him in disorderly and loose clothing, so this didn’t come as a surprise. 

“Ahh, Koebi-chan~ What brings you to our room?” He called out before standing up and throwing his phone to his covers. “Are you here to dance? Play games?”

You shook your head, bringing a hand up to your eyes and wiping them. Your scleras red from tears and rain water as the crystalline water dripped down your cheeks. 

“Aww what’s wrong Koebi-chan?” He asked as he knelt down in front of you to better lock eyes with your concealed face. 

“I.. had a fight.” 

“Again?” Floyd said with an upset look on his face. “Maaaaan I hate them! They always ruin the fun, eh Koebi-chan~?” 

You simply nodded before forcing a small smile onto your face. “Yeah.. they, they really do.” 

“You really should leave them behind, y’know.” He recommended, raising his left hand up slowly. You felt him lightly brush his pointer under your left eye before bringing his hand back to its previous spot. “We should dance to help you feel better~!”

Suddenly Floyd shot up from his position in front of you, interlacing his hands with yours and dragging you along with him. He hummed a light tune as he swung you around at a moderate pace with him. You reluctantly followed at first, but quickly found yourself feeling more up to dancing with Floyd as time progressed. Your wet hair flung droplets of water around the room, staining the floor and the furniture. His vibrant eyes ran all over your figure, seemingly checking for something with an almost distant expression on his face. However, in a split second his expression returned to that of one he normally held when the two of you danced like this.

You heard Floyd let out a content laugh as he saw a genuine smile cross your lips. Hoisting you up with his strong arms, he threw you onto his bed, causing you to bounce upon impact with the mattress. He fell onto the covers beside you with a happy smile spreading across his face, showing off his many serrated teeth. 

“See Koebi-chan, dancing always makes you feel better!” Floyd said.

“Yes, but it certainly doesn’t make the floor and covers less wet.” Jade called out from the doorway. 

You instantly sat up upon hearing his voice. He certainly was quiet, after all you’d been so caught up with dancing that you hadn’t even heard him come in. He was holding two towels and a dainty cup that had a tea bag in it, ever the clever one he was. He’d anticipated Floyd would end up dragging you around the room for a song and dance to try and cheer you up, so he brought another towel to clean up the mess. 

You stood up and walked over to Jade, gratefully taking both towels from him. “Thank you, Jade.” 

“Ah, ah, one second.” He tutted. “This tea is for you, the towels are for us.” 

You tilted your head in confusion as you heard Floyd let out an annoyed groan. “Do I haaave to clean?”

Suddenly it hit you as you smiled up at him graciously, placing the towels back around his arm and taking the tea instead. Floyd begrudgingly bounded over before taking a towel from his brother. You turned your head to watch Floyd splay out the towel, but were quickly interrupted by Jade lightly pushing you towards his side of the room. 

Walking over slowly and unsure of what he had planned, he lightly grabbed you by the shoulders before turning you around and seating you on the edge of his bed. Unwrapping the towel from his arm, he reached up with it covering your hair entirely. 

Your grip on the cup within your grasp tightened exponentially upon realizing the close confines you were in with the man. However, he didn’t seem to notice. Or at least, he was playing it off extremely well. 

“Ah, yes, I assume you’re going to be staying the night?” He asked. 

A faint smell of mint wafted through the air before you responded. “Oh, if it’s okay I would like that very much.” 

“Koebi-chan is staying over?” Floyd called out from the other side of the room, seemingly sprawled out and wrapped in his towel. 

“Splendid. I will be sure to grab some extra sheets and pillows on my way back then.” Jade responded as he finished drying your hair with a satisfied look on his face. 

He stood up and made his way over to his brother as you watched him. The cup in your hands shaking due to your own actions. Your eyes directed themselves down to the light brown liquid, seeing through it and to the bottom of the cup. The liquid rippled with the movements of your shivering hands. Events that happened moments before arriving here replayed in your head. You felt your heart pang and eyes sting with worry and unhappiness. Narrowly escaping what could have been a much worse situation, you continued to blame yourself for it. 

However your thoughts were cut short as you felt a pair of hands wrap around yours, steadying the shaking of the liquid in the cup. A lone black strand of hair swayed in the top of your vision before you looked up. 

“Please do relax.” Jade spoke simply. “I hate seeing you like this as a result of that damned person.” 

You let a smile peak its way out from behind your upset display. Upon seeing this, you saw just the edges of Jade’s lips curl up into a content looking expression. 

“Alright, I will return again before long. Ask Floyd for something to wear or just take something from the closet, whichever you prefer.” He said as he stood up and turned his back once more. 

You nodded even though you knew he couldn’t see it. With the two towels draped over his arm, he once more left the room, leaving both you and Floyd to yourselves. 

“Oh oh that’s right, let me get you something to wear Koebi-chan~!” Floyd called out from the other side of the room. 

You stood up from the edge of the bed and slowly walked over to him, eyes observing the extremely neat looking stacks of clothing. However, the neatness slowly turned into clutter as Floyd haphazardly shifted around piles of clothes to find the specific thing he wanted. Your eyes scanned over the things he threw around with curiosity and slight pity, for Jade of course, since he was probably the one who was going to have to clean everything up. 

Floyd spun around as he held out two things for you. A pair of black basketball shorts with light blue accents on the sides, and plain black t-shirt with a small sea anemone on it. If you had to guess, you’d place bets on the shorts being Jade’s and the shirt being Floyd’s. Totally not because you watched Floyd pull the items from different sides of the closet though..

You took the clothing from Floyd before turning around so your back was facing him. “No looking.” 

“Waah~?” Floyd simply responded with a sound before sighing. “Alriiiight, fine Koebi-chan, I’ll go cover my eyes...”

You turned your head as you watched him walk over to his bed. He simply flopped down on top of it and wrapped himself up in the scattered covers. He didn’t stop until he was a full burrito, however it covered his vision so you didn’t really care how he did it. 

Turning around, you stripped out of your damp attire and put on the new outfit. The shorts were very loose, even still when you had pulled the drawstring tighter and tied it together. The shirt hung loose off of you as well, nearly meeting the end of the shorts. You opted to keep on your own pair of socks before turning around again. 

Upon seeing that Floyd hadn’t yet moved at all from his burrito-like state, you let out a small chuckle that you quickly covered with your arm. Walking over to him, you leaned down and placed your hand on the end of the covers. Peeling it down a little you saw his eyes light up with surprise. 

“Aah, Koebi-chan, you’re done! I promise I didn’t peak at all~” He said, as he rolled himself out of the blanket causing you to take a step back to avoid being hit by his actions. 

Watching him unroll himself and nearly fall off the edge of the bed, due to his large frame, you smiled. The door then opened again with a soft click as you turned around, meeting Jade’s sly grin and upturned eyes. 

“I see Floyd actually did what I asked him to do.” Jade spoke as he walked into the room further. “He hardly ever does that, you must be special.” 

Your eyes lit up slightly as you looked over to the lazy eel that was now sitting with his arms crossed, head nodding up and down. 

“Of course, Koebi-chan’s special~” Floyd spoke, a sudden change in demeanor. He now had a rather sly smirk on his lips as he spoke again. “After all, you said so yourself, Jade.”

Your eyes flickered over to Jade, seeing a temporary slip in his usually calm collected demeanor. His eyes seemed to slightly widen, and his lower lip dropped slightly seemingly in awe that Floyd would dare expose him like that. However, the momentary slip was covered again as he cleared his throat and spread the covers out on the floor. 

“I did in fact say that.” Jade spoke. “I wasn’t lying, you are special to us, you know.”

You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Almost as if on cue, Floyd draped himself over your shoulders before letting out a short giggle. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to say anything right now.” 

Turning your head to him slightly, you nodded. He gave you a smirk before lifting himself from your shoulders and walking back over to his side of the room. You turned your gaze to Jade as he finished laying out the covers and flickered his gaze over to you. 

He’d laid down two blankets on the ground, setting a pillow at the crown of them both. Another blanket was laid on top of it, you’d assumed the two blankets on the bottom were because the floor was rather hard, and it was to soften having to sleep there. Two more pillows then flew past you in your peripherals, causing you to whip around. 

Floyd was walking over, his blankets in his arms. You tilted you head in curiosity. Floyd seemed to notice this as he set his blankets on the ground. 

“Neh~ You’re so silly Koebi-chan~” He commented. “You really think we’d let you sleep on the ground by yourself?” 

“Yes, that’s true, you’re our guest after all.” Jade spoke from the other side of the room, you assumed he was also gathering his blankets and pillows. 

“A guest that needs to be cheered up no less!” Floyd finished for the both of them as he smoothed the blankets out. 

As you watched the two, you felt tears well up in your eyes. Your heart ached with admiration and the feeling of being wanted. You didn’t often get this feeling with your current partner and it made you wonder just how good for you they were. Wiping your eyes with your hands you smiled and ran over to the pile of blankets on the floor. 

Making a jump for it, you landed on the soft comforters, lightly skidding on top of them. Floyd clapped from beside you as he to jump down on them with a laugh. Jade simply smiled, shaking his head at the scene going on in front of him.

The two of them made you feel like you truly mattered. Like you meant something. Truth be told, you couldn’t feel more overjoyed. 

© Aruchemihq - 2022

Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto

Nothing yet..

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Jade Leech

Nothing yet..

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Floyd Leech

Nothing yet..

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Other characters.. related to Octavinelle

Rielle

Nothing yet..

(A/N) : Now open for requests!!

Back to TWST masterlist

Did you know that some eels express their interest in mating by opening their mouths really wide? You might not know… But Jade and Floyd sure do.

Mc drinks morning coffee in Mostro Longue *

MC: * Yawns *

* Congratulations! You have successfully summoned Jade and Floyd *

Jade: Oh Mc did it… You know what that might mean Floyd.

Floyd: Yeeeee shrimpy is finally willing to mate. Now we just have to take care of the competitors * smiley *

Mc: * trying to ignore the two horny eels *

Floyd: Floyd: Yeee Shrimpy and us are in a relationship now!

Jade: Isn't that so Mc?

Mc: Jade we have this same conversation almost every time I come here for my morning coffee. The answer is still no. I don't want to mate… The only thing I want is to drink this overpriced coffee in peace.

* Congratulations! You have successfully summoned Azul *

Azul: Did I hear someone complaining about the price of coffee?

Mc: *Mumbles* I'm going to get my own coffee maker

Poor Mc...

IM GOING BATSHIT CRAZY YHIS IS SO GOOD FUUUCCKKKK

"The moon is beautiful tonight" bro if someone said that to me I'd choke 💀. So here's a request ig. Octavinnle and scarabia saying this phrase in casual conversation causes like. it doesn't mean anything in twst, but yuu doesnt know that. So yuu just looks at them like

And suddenly they're being a hell of a lot more affectionate towards them specifically, which is really starting to fuck with their emotion at this point. Cause like. "I've thought of what we'd act like as a married couple a million times and you are acting exactly like that"

So now like, idk, 2 months later or something, the boys basically do a "reject me so I can move on. Or not, please not, actually"

And yuus like? We've been together for 2 months now? I thought we were taking it slow but not this slow??

He doesn't even fully remember what he said, or the context that brought it up. If someone were to offer him all the world's wealth and power he wouldn't be able to tell them what brought about this change.

If he did he might find it ironic that in your world there was a place and time where "I love you" could be translated into "the moon looks beautiful tonight." For what else could he have been trying to say?

I LOVE THIS TROPE I LOVE IT SO SO MUCH. UNREQUITED REQUITED ACCIDENTAL LOVE CONFESSION MY BELOVED. Anyway yeah sure I can do this easy. Also can someone tell me what "ig" means I am an elderly woman ☆ヽ(o_ _)o notes: they/them used for Yuu, angst with the intent of comfort, not all of them follow the flow of the prompt exactly sorry, idk if I like this one? I'm so sorry it took so long I loved this prompt but for some reason when I sat down to write it my brain fried. More fic can be found on my masterlist here.

Azul

What He Says:

You can't actually see the moon from Octavinelle, so how the conversation topic got around to it is quite lost on you. "You just don't really seem like an astrology h- person to me?" It is all you can do to bite back a different description as you try to pretend your focus is on the silverware you are rolling and not the ever so slightly disheveled octomer across the office. You treasure these times, though you have to wonder just how intentional they are. Azul always has an aura of manufactured perfection around him, so to see him with ink stained hands and a crooked tie... you wish you were quick enough to get a picture with something other than your mind's eye.

"I could say the same about you," he smiles as he speaks in a way you want to believe is affectionate "though I suppose it shouldn't, every planet large enough to host life will have a moon." Your fingers fidget with the napkins as you wonder where to take this talk, talking with Azul is a lot like a dance at a masquerade you haven't been invited to. One small slip and he has you at his mercy.

"I was surprised your moon looks so similar to mine." You try. "It was very comforting to know it still represents my deepest, truest self."

"Then it must look beautiful tonight." Azul says softly, as if he is more testing the words in his mind than he is saying them. But still you startle and drop the silverware and make him jump.

"I'm sorry?" You stumble over yourself to pick it up and see a worried Azul standing in front of you.

"I said the moon must look beautiful tonight." He says as he bends to help, so casually that he has to call out to you again to make you realize this isn't a dream.

"It is." You pull yourself up and stand closer to him than you have ever previously dared.

When He Breaks (Two Months Later):

Ramshackle Prefect: Morning Azul ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

Azul stares at his phone as if he is unused to the words on his screen. His thumb hovers over the heart as if he could reach out and touch what sits on the other side and know.

You: Morning, a bit early for you isn't it?

Not that he is upset exactly, this is a lovely thing to wake up to. But it's torture, pure torture to lack the context for any of this. When you started messaging him in the morning he had been too pleased to think critically. His mind conjures up images of how sweet you could sound when half asleep, what it would be like to hear that wish from you every morning out loud instead of on a screen. He shakes his head trying to blink back the tears as he rises, these thoughts are like one of those mirages he'd heard Jamil describe before. If he looked too hard it would disappear and leave him with nothing but sand, and there is nothing a merfolk fears more than the absence of water.

Ramshackle Prefect: (｡•̀ᴗ-) Ramshackle Prefect: hehe im goin back to sleep now. Ramshackle Prefect: dont overwork urself. it's supposed to be the weekend!!!

"Supposed to be the weekend" he wants to die. His heart hammers away at his chest as reads and re-reads his messages searching for a sign of how or why he is getting these messages. It's a thankless task, he's done this every day for... it feels like years but he knows from his carefully kept notes it's only been two months one week and three days. And he does mean notes, so what if he's taken to keeping Yuu's file in his night stand it's still kept in a file which means it isn't a diary. Not that it would be a problem if he did-

Ramshackle Prefect: oh before I forget is it ok if I stop by the lounge later? I tried making a pudding and want to know if it tastes good Ramshackle Prefect: y'know to people who don't eat literal dirt

-so no he wasn't keeping a diary but maybe Jade is on to something and he should really start because he hears those are good for managing stress.

~~~~

"Not that I am unimpressed with your efforts," is what Azul says out loud with a great deal of effort "but is it just me or have you been trying to cook a lot more lately?" It had started with little sandwiches and maybe a salad on days he was still at work late into the night, dropped off with the claim that Yuu was worried he wasn't taking care of himself but they never actually stayed to watch him eat it. This was new, as if they were testing the waters of something from their position on his couch, face still puffy with sleep as they settle themselves deep into its puffy cushions and watch him at his desk. Maybe they were concerned he would not want a desert and intended to stay and make sure he didn't throw it out. That had to be it, but then why visit dressed so casually? He can count on one hand the times he has seen Yuu out of an NRC uniform, and none of those allowed him a glimpse of their actual preferences in clothing.

It's like they've forgotten who they are dealing with.

"Well yeah, it's a good skill to have." Yuu looks at him with a genuine unguarded smile. "Besides it's fun to get your opinions on my food, I don't always understand how you come up with them but I feel like it helps."

"My I didn't realize you held my advice in such high esteem." He feels much more like himself now with this information. Of course Yuu has been messaging him more, they need him for something. It might sting, but it's safe. Logical. Something he can work with. "Maybe I'll just have to start charging you, can't have you taking my secrets and stealing away my customers, can I."

But for some reason this just makes you laugh. "No need to worry about that, I only really cook for you. And Grim I guess but like I said, he literally eats dirt. I mean just the other day-

"What did you say?" Azul's voice sounds strained.

"About Grim eating dirt?" You say, and Azul finally for someone so smart and so proud on his ability to read people thinks that he might have made a mistake. "He says he's making a tier list."

"Why are you so painfully human?" His smile is strange, you can't say you have ever seen him like this before, it's a strange mix of happiness and resignation. "Your heart is so- prefect do you trust me?"

"Yes." You answer, seemingly confused as if your answer to that question shouldn't have been something he doubted.

"Would you trust me with your life? Your secrets?" He makes his way out from behind his desk to stand above you, to look down at you and confirm that for some damnable reason you are still calm. "Would you trust me with your life?"

"...only if you wanted it." Finally he sees a trace of fluster in you, finally you feel as nervous around him as he does around you constantly. He places a finger under your chin and forces you to look at him.

"Then tell me how you feel about me truthfully. Because everything you have said and done up to this point has been driving me crazy into thinking I have a chance." You blink. Once. Twice. And then a look of pure confusion distorts your perfect face.

"You- you don't know? But I thought- I mean you said-" And then suddenly Yuu has managed to jump out from the couch and the intensity of the moment stutters closer to comedy as Azul watches you curl under his desk like it's an octopot. "You said the moon was beautiful."

It's Azul's turn to blink. Once. Twice. He feels like he should be holding back tears, or disappointed in some way but- "I did say that... but what does that have to do with, anything?" You don't move and Azul considers his options, and decides to walk slowly to his desk and pick up the pudding before settling himself just out of sight from where you are hiding. And he waits, he waits for you to speak like his hands aren't clammy and he is not worried at all about what you might have to say.

"In my world when you say that it means something." You sound so small and alone, but still he waits. "I was really happy to hear you say it, but I didn't think... no I just didn't think. I'm so so so sorry."

"What did you think I said?" His mind is racing with the possibilities, but he has an idea because really what else could he have said that would explain all of this behavior?

"I don't wanna say it. It's embarrassing." You sound close to tears and Azul can't have that now can he? He crouches down to look at you curled under his desk and thinks that Floyd must have been wrong when he called you a shrimp, how could you be anything other than another octopus, waiting for someone who understood them too?

"As embarrassing as saying it again?" He doesn't wait for you to reply. "The moon looks beautiful tonight." He watches your breath hitch in delight as he fully invades your space and whispers what it looks like he should have just said all along. "I love you."

And gets to hear the one thing he has wanted most. "I love you too."

Jade

What He Says:

"And that is the Hero constellation." Jade makes sure to keep his hand as close to you as plausible, resting the back of it against yours as he uses his pencil to point at the star chart you are examining to avoid having to move it away from your addictive warmth. He delights in the way you try to suppress your shudders yet make no move to shake him off, what a dangerous game it is you have decided to play tonight. "Named after the Hero who dove into the underworld to fetch back his beloved from death itself."

"It looks familiar." You swallow and try to focus on the stars, Jade had been kind enough to offer you some "opinions" (because help would cost you and he has no intention to charge yet) when he saw you struggling to read your astrology homework. "But I don't think it was as important to astrology back in my world..."

"Oya? Your world also values the guidance of the stars?" Jade is always hard to read, but even more so in the dark. Something to do with his natural habitat you suppose, not that you are excited about the potential he sees you as some sort of prey. Not that you couldn't be if you knew just what sort.

"Well yeah sometimes. But I think it has more to do with the zodiac constellations and the position of the planets." You smile and hope this little bit of information is enough for Jade to take as payment instead of a favor but he simply hums.

"Yes I do seem to recall you saying something like that." He says with a smile and you desperately wrack your brain for how he could know that when you know damn well it wasn't to him.

You were only sort of right, he had been there, just out of sight listening intently as you described the differences in the mythological origins of the various signs and their importance in match making.

"Only in some cultures Ace!"

But you had made no mention of whether or not that culture was yours, which was all Jade really cared about. Not that he placed much interest or faith in the stars but if you did that was important data. But no matter how carefully he tried to poke the only thing you ever seemed to really like talking about was the moon. "The moon looks beautiful tonight." Jade says, bitterly, head full with ideas that he wants to give but cannot without overplaying his hand. And yet-

"Do you mean that?" He turns his head abruptly, blinking in confusion down at your flustered self. Jade knows right away that he has said something without meaning to, your reaction screams it but just this once- no he is always selfish when it comes to you. So in keeping with his habits, he drops the pencil and folds his hand around yours properly.

"Every word." It is all he can do to keep his teeth from showing as he watches you fold into him. Normally when Jade offers to walk you home you make up an excuse or outright decline, but when he offers tonight you are happy to accept. You even let him help you pick up your things and when he decides to push his luck and ask for your hand-

You let him take it. His brain is fried, the only thing he can think of and feel is the texture of your skin and the weight of your fingers intertwined with his. Neither of you speak on the way back to Ramshackle, Jade barely hears himself whispering you a goodnight as he swears you stare at his lips in the same way he always dreams of yours.

His mind works overtime as he walks back to his dorm, thinking and re-thinking his words and wondering if he has reached the right conclusion. Data, he needs more data on this change. You have let him get close to what he wants in moments of weakness before, but you have never let him touch and as much as he wants to throw himself into you and be consumed with his assumptions...

When He Breaks (3 months later):

He is long past collecting data at this point, he is just being a coward. Jade is fairly certain that Yuu is courting him... but that pesky doubt keeps creeping back in the longer he looks at them. Not that Jade is unfamiliar with doubting himself, or waiting to strike but you...

"Are you alright, Jade?" You're laid across his lap without a care in the world watching that damn moon again, completely unaware of him unraveling beneath you. "You've been spacing out a lot lately."

"I've just had a lot on my mind~" He caresses the side of your face and you let him, you even whine a bit when he retracts it and speed up his heart rate just enough to make him hyper conscious of his breaths. "Can I ask you something?"

"Technically you already have." You squirm to try and dodge his flick but don't seem too fussed by it. "But sure, what's bothering you?"

"Do you hate me?"

"What?" Oh that look of shock on your face is precious he hasn't seen it in a while. Slowly, giving you just enough space to run if you want Jade bends towards you, smiling wide and tootful as he repeats the question.

"I was wondering if you hate me dear Prefect. Because you see," he sniffles and tries to pretend he doesn't hear you groan in exasperation "our relationship these past few months has been nothing but pure torture for my poor self."

"Oh has it now." You don't sound like you believe him how tragic. "I didn't realize I was such bad company."

"Oh the worst sort." He whimpers. "The sort of company that takes advantage of the thin lines between you and does all sort of things to your poor heart."

"... thin lines?" Finally. FINNALY. You sound just as worried as he's been these past three months. He ceases his blubbering and looks at your embarrassed face properly. It's adorable, he'll have to ask for your forgiveness later for his lengthy pause admiring it later.

"Please be truthful." He whispers just a tad lower than is necessary. "And be gentle with me in your rejections so I can move on if I must but first-"

"We're not dating?!?!?" How rude you don't let him finish before you interrupt and try to run away. His long arms interrupt your retreat, pulling you down with peels of laughter (from him it's clear you don't find this funny) as he rolls you onto the grass, pinned directly beneath him. You look good like this, eyes focused entirely on him and no longer pining after the moon.

"There seems to have been a misunderstanding." He says and you try your best to glare threateningly up at him. "I can't quite remember anything I might have done to make you think we were together. Was it something I said?"

"You said... I'm so stupid."

"I don't seem to recall ever having said that outloud." You try to knee him in the groin but he pins your leg down with his own, such useful things though a tail would have made this entire confrontation much more efficient.

"Of course it doesn't mean the same thing. This is a different world." You look genuinely distraught, and though Jade doesn't regret his teasing one bit he doesn't want to keep you in suspense much longer. So he bends his face directly next to your ear and whispers.

"The moon looks beautiful tonight." Your breath hitches and Jade rolls to his side, pulling you up onto his chest before you can go back to being angry at him. "You're right, it doesn't mean whatever you think it should here. After all if I wanted to say how I feel about you I wouldn't use a metaphor."

"And just what would you say about me?" You sound so impossibly small, just as in need of reassurance as he had been just mere moments ago.

"I would say that I love you, of course." It's hard to say out loud, but worth the reward of your warmth settling into him once more, with clarity this time and no need for cowardice.

Floyd

What He Says:

Floyd has been in a strange mood lately, not quite bad, not quite good, and yet somehow very clearly not somewhere in between either. Reflective is the word you would choose yourself, but no one is really asking your opinion they just want you to fix it.

Not that you have any real clue how you are going to do that, you will be the first to admit you didn't have much of a plan when you asked if Floyd wanted to climb up to Ramshackle's roof and shoot the breeze. Not that you are really complaining it had been funny watching him try to figure out the climb.

"I though you were supposed to be good at this." You laugh from your perch waving a bag of flavored potato chips in encouragement as Floyd snorts just below you.

"I'm real good at parkour, just haven't really climbed trees before. I ain't a monkey fish." Still he manages to hoist himself up just fine and plop himself next to you with a thud that reminds you of just how much weight there is to him. He's tall and lean, his figure seems to go on forever as he stretches himself out next to you, eyes fluttering shut as he lets out a breath and holds out a hand for a chip.

You stuff it into his mouth and try not to laugh too hard when he chokes. He spits some of the chip shards back at you and tries not to smile too wide when you sputter and whine about how gross he is for spitting on you.

"Ya do this a lot back home?" It's not the first time Floyd has asked about your world, but it is certainly the most random.

"We've got stars in my world too." You snort, trying to think about just how you are going to turn this conversation around into something more cheerful. "But nah, pretty sure someone would have called the cops if they caught me on the roof at 2 am." Floyd rolls onto his side, propping himself up on his arm to really look at you as you look through your grocery bag of loot deciding which of the drinks you brought up you want to drink.

"I meant invite people to hang out real late." You stop your search to look down at him and find your words caught somewhere between your heart and your throat. Not like this. You want to say. Not for this reason. But instead you shrug and try to offer a bottle he doesn't take. You aren't avoiding the question tonight. "Ya gotta have done something for fun, right?"

"Sometimes I'd walk around a store or something." It's weird explaining stuff to a merman, sometimes they get what you're trying to say but other times they come back with "so it's like that time Jade and I got caught chasing a dolphin around the school playground and got yelled at for tying him up in seaweed" and you just have to smile and say "yeah totally" because what the hell. You're pretty sure it's not but you lack all sorts of context to try and make him understand. "Or we'd sneak out and just drive around and talk about stuff. There's- not a bunch of exciting things I know how to do I guess." If this was a normal night Floyd would roll his eyes and lie back down, whine about that's why you always make him do all the work because shrimpies have shit for brains and his plans are always so much better.

But he doesn't. He reaches over and tugs on your leg, gently enough that you can run away if you want but clear in his desire to have you closer. So you move, expecting his hand to drop but it doesn't, not until he settles his head in your lap and he physically can't keep it there anymore.

"Ya ever talk about things that matter with those guppies?" Maybe he's homesick and that's why he's so focused on this. "Things that make ya miss them?" Maybe he's just projecting that onto you since he knows you will listen and be nice about it. But then his hand reaches up and turns your head so you can look him in his eyes.  They're glowing, you barely realize your own hand going to cup Floyd's cheek before he moves his other to keep it from going.  "You ever miss one of em in particular?"

"Not really."  How could you when Floyd looks like this?  "It'd be nice to see my friends again, sure, but it's not like there's one specific person I miss."  Floyd lets out a breath that it sounds like he has been keeping in for a long, long time.  His hands both fall to his side as he lets you look away in embarrassment, wiggling in slight happiness when you choose to rest your hands on his shoulders.

"The moon looks beautiful tonight." Floyd's voice sounds sleepy and oddly content.  Your eyes immediately snap back to him, but he isn't looking at you now. There is a a slight red tinge to his ears that makes you laugh quietly as you run a finger over the shell of one.  So that's what this is about.

"It's always beautiful with you around Floyd."  And finally he is looking at you with a smile.

When He Breaks (2 weeks later):

When you gave Floyd a guest key to Ramshackle he'd been extremely happy. Sure he'd acted like it was no big deal in front of you, beyond a few teasing comments about how buttering him up wouldn't get you anywhere unless you put it in writing. But back at his dorm he had been beyond insufferable, obsessing over just what color thread he should attach to it (purple for the sea witch, teal for the eel, or grey for ramshackle? decisions decisions), wanting to keep it close at all times until he had an excuse to replace it with you.

Because that's what he needed right? An excuse? Floyd wasn't exactly... shy in showering you with his affections but you. You. Until that stupid conversation on the roof a month ago you had always been sort of shy about it, if not outright dismissive. He assumed it was because you just didn't reciprocate but now...

"Floyd?" You can't really remember the last time he knocked, even before you gave him the key he sort of just let himself in. But today he knocked, only once and waited for you to open the door in eerie silence. Even when Floyd was coming over because he was bored he still managed to drag himself through the door or a window if he was so inclined.

So why not today?

"Not having a good day?" You try softly, he walks into your lounge with an eerie quiet about him. The last time you saw him something very nice happened, so you can't exactly say you are too worried but. It still sucks to see someone you care about in distress.

"Kinda." Floyd doesn't look like he had much of a plan now that he's in your dorm. "Had a lot on my mind is all."

"Aw that's no fun." You both stand doing nothing for what feels like an hour but you're sure is only a few seconds. "Do you uh want to talk about it?"

"..." And just like that Floyd feels really silly. He wanted to see you so that's why he came, but he wants to be as far away from these painful feelings as possible. "I kind of want to take a nap."

"Oh?" You don't sound surprised, but are clearly confused. Floyd begins to head towards the guest room without looking back. The guest room feels like you just enough that it can soothe his longing and distance himself from his internal conflict. "Would you like to use my room?" Or he could just not be allowed to distance himself at all because you could just say- "I've got some stuff to do but I can join you af-"

"Are you fucking serious." Floyd's voice is dangerously low and he is dangerously close to your face like you have said something wrong. "Look Shrimpy-" He swallows, like he's really considering what it is he has to say so he breathes and just goes for it "Yuu. You're killin me with this. Humans are already so fucking confusing. I give ya a shell and you get all cold for a week, and now, now you wanna sleep with me?" He pouts at you, like your suggestion had been scandalous. "'s like you think we're together or something."

"... we're not?" That's the only thing you can think to say even though the fact you have to say it answers the question for you.

"No?" Now Floyd sounds confused. "Ya- you can't do this to meeeeeeee." Despite his protests he seems just fine with grabbing onto you and dragging you into an embrace and resting his cheek on your head so you can't see his face anymore. "There's supposed to be a process to these things ya know? I'm supposed to give you gifts, and then you're supposed to give me some back and then I tell you I love you but every time I tried that I said something stupid instead. Like 'oh wow the moon looks beautiful tonight or some shit." He huffs and he puffs and he waits for you to say something. But you don't, you take a deep breath.

And laugh.

"Is this fucking funny to you?" Floyd is taken so a back he lets go of you only to find you laughing harder. You stand and reach to cup his face. Floyd doesn't like being squeezed, but there's something about the light squish you give to his cheeks that he likes, he likes a lot.

"No- well maybe a little bit. It's just, I knew. I knew what you were trying to say." Yuu says it like it is the most obvious thing in the world, like it's something Floyd should have known all along. "I owe you an apology, I should have asked, made sure you knew. In my world, it's sometimes considered too forward to say 'I love you' so instead..." You close the distance between you once more, leaving just enough room that Floyd can back away from you if he wants, "instead we say 'the moon looks beautiful tonight.'" Floyd takes in a deep, deep breath and you wait. The anger and frustration slowly fades as he exhales, shoulders sagging as he searches your face for signs.

"The moon looks beautiful tonight." He says it slowly, voice dipping low with the same strange gravity it had the first time he said it.

"It does, doesn't it?" You smile, and Floyd finally reaches for you, arms wrapped much more loosely than you ever thought possible.

"You're really mean sometimes ya know that." As if he doesn't find that attractive.

Kalim

What He Says:

Sometimes you worry about Kalim. He has this way of talking about things that, if it had been anyone else who said it, should be a major cause for concern. But because Kalim seems relatively happy most all of the time and has a family with a bunch of money no one really makes much of a fuss about it.

So when he says, off handedly, completely as a joke, that you should listen to his worries sometimes you don't give him a chance to play it off. You sit up from where you had been lying down in the Scarabia Lounge and move just a bit closer to where Kalim is relaxing so he can see how serious you are.

"Of course you can talk to me if you have worries." Your voice must have been abnormally serious because Kalim doesn't respond immediately. At first you wonder if the noise of the party behind you had somehow drowned out what you said but then you see Kalim's face. He looks conflicted, as if there is something he desperately wants to say, but instead he looks at you with a smile.

"I don't really have any." But he doesn't laugh when he says it, not that he sounds unhappy exactly just thoughtful. He doesn't move away from you either.

"Even if it's something you think might be silly," you say slowly forcing yourself to continue even as Kalim looks away "of if you're able to dismiss them. If something makes you sad for even a moment, you can tell me. I won't offer my opinion if that's not something you want, or won't help, I can still listen."

"You're really insistent about this huh?" Kalim sits up now too and you turn to look up at the stars decorating Scarabia's night sky. You wonder briefly about how exactly they might have gotten that to work when he says it. "The moon is beautiful tonight." He sounds so wistful but it's gone in a blink as he reaches for your hand and doesn't let you respond to his admission. "C'mon! Let's take the magic carpet and get a better look." You try to contain your excitement as he lets you lace your fingers together and doesn't even try to let go.

What He Breaks (1 week later):

Technically, Kalim isn't the one who breaks. He notices, of course he notices, the way you are more comfortable in seeking him out. How comfortable you now are with his casual touches, how willing you are to hold his hand and even give it a little squeeze. It's heaven, like he found the treasure cave the Sorcerer of the Sands had searched so long for. If it was up to him he would have let it go a little longer.

But it isn't exactly up to him, it never is. Not that Jamil looks angry exactly, but then again as Kalim has come to accept he's not the best at reading his moods.

"I thought you said you weren't going to ask Yuu out?" No Jamil sounds confused and Kalim fidgets with his bracelet under his questioning stare because he knows what he's about to say will probably actually make him mad.

"I didn't." Jamil takes a deep breath and Kalim immediately waves his hands to try and soothe him. "Promise! I remember everything you said about wanting to know and I agree it's just... are you sure you aren't misreading things? That Yuu isn't just... comfortable around me now?"

"... it's always a possibility given just how weird the prefect can be, but no. I'm pretty sure you must have said something that's given them the wrong impression." Jamil sighs and rubs his chin thoughtfully. "It's going to be awkward, but you should probably clear things up with them and tell them how you really feel."

"You mean tell them I'm not allowed to-"

"Like I said before," Jamil actually smiles now, and Kalim really hopes it's real "it's not my place to tell you who you can and cannot date. Sure your parents might have an idea about what they want you to do, but you and I know that a political marrige would never really work for you. It's just not how you're built." And with that he leaves Kalim to his thoughts.

~~~~

"Have you ever considered throwing smaller parties?"

"Haha this is a smaller party~ I only invited you and your freshmen friends." So Kalim says and so you see, but you suppose everything Kalim does comes from a rather skewed sense of small. It's nice to look out on though, Ace is amusing one of your other classmates with his card tricks while Jack and Deuce take turns at arm wrestling. Epel even manged to get Sebek to participate in something, though he might have regretted making it an eating contest. And above it all, tucked away in a little alcove, Kalim rests his head on your shoulder and hums along with the music playing through his dormitory loudspeakers. It feels domestic in a way despite the grandiose display around you.

"It's very nice Kalim." You lean your head on top of his and he sighs in contentment. "But you said there was a worry you wanted to tell me about?"

"Mhm. I'm worried I said something accidentally that made you realize that I liked you." If he wasn't holding you so intimately his words would have been like ice water over your self confidence. You still cringe and Kalim laughs slightly, happily holding you just a bit closer. "Hey I didn't say that I don't like you, I just want to make sure you understand what that means. I could put you in a lot of danger you know?"

"More than half a dozen overblots?" You lightly joke but Kalim just hugs you a little harder at the thought. "We'll cross those bridges when we come to them, it doesn't make me love you any less. After all," you press a gentle kiss to his forehead and smile as he shakes in happiness "the moon looks beautiful tonight." Kalim gives a little gasp.

"Oh that's a wonderful way to say it!"

Jamil

What He Says:

"I get that your world is a bit behind ours because it doesn't have magic, but really?"  Jamil's voice lacks the usual venom that would accompany his teasing if he hadn't been the one to propose this idea.  "Wanting to make a mix tape has got to make you practically per-historic."   You try to suppress your own smile as you watch him work from across the floor.

"I prefer vintage."  Your smile breaks free as Jamil finally laughs, you wonder if he knows just how beautiful he is as he swipes a misbehaving hair out of his eyes and gives his stereo another once over.  "I'll have you know making mixtapes have a long and storied tradition in my world."  You keep some of the possible implications to yourself, and try to pretend the concept hasn't been swirling around in you brain since he first suggested this.  "Why aren't you using magic to clean it?"

"Because I get to keep you here longer."  The words dance on the tip of his tongue and he forces them away with a smile.

"It's old, and I don't really want to go searching for a new one if I break something."  The lie has just enough of a trace of truth to fool you, but Jamil isn't one for taking chances.  "Aren't you supposed to be looking for stuff you like?  You won't get that by staring at me."

"Not like I'm going to find anything till your done cleaning."  You snort and finally take your distracting eyes away from him and direct them to his tapes.  "I don't know any of this stuff."  But you can still tell this collection is pretty impressive.  Some of the tapes look newer, but there are others that while well cared for are clearly old.  Album art featuring sandy landscapes and people posing is sandwiched between vaporwave cartoons and aesthetically confusing 3-d models.  This belongs to Jamil so you have a feeling it's organized, but you can't tell how.  Not that he leaves you wondering for long lightly taps your nose with a new cotton swab and nudges your pouting face towards a specific section of the box.

"Here, I set some aside based off the kind of music you said you liked."  And some that just reminded him of you, but that's nothing you need to know, yet if ever.  "Anything else you can think of?"

"Do you have any songs about the moon?"  The question pops out of your mouth before the thought that birthed it is fully formed, making you stumble over your explanations.   "Yeah go ahead and laugh there's just... this one song I miss."  It makes you think of him, from the few words you can remember.  You've written it down again and again to try and make sure you don't forget them, but the tune has begun escaping you; much like all your memories of home will one day be fragmented, not that the reality makes it hurt any less.  "I'm worried I'll forget what my moon looks like."  Jamil's amused confusion remains, but his eyes soften in response to your distress.

"Is there a specific reason you need the song?  Yo- The moon is beautiful tonight, do you need the exact song to see it?"  Jami

"N-no."  Your voice shakes.  Neither of you move to look away, what gives you the strength to move yourself to sit next to him you don't know.  But he doesn't move away and you let out a deep breath from sheer and relief and joy.  "I think I'll be able to see it just fine next to you."

What He Breaks (two months later):

Things have been going missing from Jamil's room lately. Nothing he actually needs really, the sort of little things you would take if you were really desperate to remember the feel of a person. The sort of things you would take if you were dating that person, which isn't at all the thought he would have had if he didn't know who was taking them. Not that Jamil could come up with a reason for Yuu to be taking these things, his first thought had been to take something of Yuu's the next time he visited Ramshackle, but that seemed to make you happy. "Fair game" he'd thought. "I want an excuse to see you and you want an excuse to see me."

Still he wasn't prepared for this.

"Jamil!" there is something refreshing about how calm your happiness is. You've always had a way of extending that calm to him, wrapping him in it and allowing him some space to breathe. But today, today. Today the Ramshackle Prefect has decided that he wasn't allowed peace, because yesterday they had stolen his sweatshirt, and today they have decided to wear it. "Everything ok?

"ha." Jamil wants to tug the hood of his dorm uniform over his head. He wants to run, he wants to shake you, he wants to scream. He wants to do a three act play complete with an interpretive dance because that would be easier than trying to speak. But he has to, because there's only so many deep breaths he can take before you reach out to make sure he's ok. So he takes your hand in his as you do and places it directly over his heart. "You know," for some reason he finds it easier to smile now that you know how nervous he is "you can't have taken that without knowing what people might say."

"Oh I don't know." You smile and bring yourself into his space, that strange calm he finds in your happiness begins to weave itself around him again. "Maybe I wanted to clear some things up. Make it good and clear where I belong." Jamil takes another deep breath, your arms go around him and he makes sure to look long and good into your eyes to make sure there isn't a shred of a crimson glow. That this is something you have decided of your own free will and not a dream or an accident involving magic.

"I never properly asked you out..." Technically he never asked you out at all, but Jamil would rather die than say that out loud. Maybe sometime long long in the future when he's ready to laugh at it and not now when he needs you to confirm that's what you thought he did in the first place.

"Oh! That's not-" You bury your face in his chest with a light laugh and he tries not to die in the time between the seconds until you respond. "I was so happy to hear you say the moon line it didn't really occur to me you might be worried about that."

"Who wouldn't?" Not that he's worried now, every other possibility has been ruled out so he can say exactly what he's been wanting to for so long. "Will you be mine?"

"I already was." It sounds so much better outloud than he could have ever dreamed.

Hey everyone, I’ve been trying to find two specific works but haven’t had any luck yet.

The first is a future child angst and it includes Leona and Jade. For Leona’s part he meets his future kid and thinks it means he and reader end up together. However, the kid’s mom is actually a noblewoman. In Jade’s part the child he thinks is his and reader’s ends up being Floyd’s kid with reader.

The second is one is where Vil meets a child and based on their appearance he thinks that its his and reader’s child. Turns out its actually Rook’s and reader’s from the future. This fic is pretty light hearted and short. The ending twist is meant to be funny

Thanks for the help!

Hi hi! Could I order a scenario of how Jade and Floyd would react to MC hiding behind them because they’re being chased by bullies?? Maybe grabbing onto the tweels (о´∀`о)

I like to think they’d be surprised of someone hiding BEHIND them instead of FROM them lol..

I'm a sucker for platonic tweels! This is my lifeline rn!!

...

Shrimpy Protection Agency

Three of the more troublesome NRC seniors decided that they weren't too pleased with all the attention you were getting, having been in Twisted Wonderland for only a few months.

The students decided to corner you in the hallway, much to your surprise and demand that you apologize for the trouble you've stirred up.

When you refused, they accused you of being disrespectful and threatened to hurt you if you didn't start respecting your upperclassmen.

Through your fear, you managed to slip between the students and make a break for it.

You knew they were older, stronger, and faster than you so you wouldn't be able to outrun them.

Your only hope was to hide.

You frantically searched for a place to hide as you sprinted into the courtyard.

You were hoping someone would be there to stop the upperclassmen from pummeling you but it was empty.

No, not empty.

On the very far side of the courtyard, hidden in the shadows, the Leech twins stood, both looking mildly bored.

"Jade! Floyd!"

They both perked up upon hearing your voice.

What was excitement to see you, quickly became confusion as you ran to them and wrapped your arms around Floyd's torso from the back, shielding yourself from your pursuers.

Jade almost never showed his emotions on his face which made it all the more terrifying when his expression darkened as the bullies followed you to the courtyard.

All three of them stopped in their tracks when they saw the intimidating look on Jade's face, worsened by the wide-eyed and manic Floyd.

It wasn't usual to see either of them, especially Jade, without their signature customer service smile on, even when threatening someone, but when it came to you, there wasn't any pleasantry.

They didn't even try to pretend like your bullies weren't in danger.

"I will give you 5 seconds of silence before I begin my pursuit," whispered Jade, though the attackers heard him loud and clear in the echoey silence of the courtyard.

The one that appeared to be the leader scoffed and nervously chuckled.

"You're just a second-year. I'm not afraid of you. And I sure as he11 wouldn't need a headstart."

"Oh, you misunderstand," Floyd laughed, his eyes still crazed. "Five seconds wouldn't help you for a headstart. We're giving you a chance to pray to every God who'll bother to listen to a pathetic bottom-feeder like you."

"You're monsters!" one of the goons screeched after a few seconds of listening to their panicked breathing. Both twins just smiled in the same unsettling form.

"That bridge was burned a lot time ago, my friend," Jade chuckled menacingly before he went back to staring into the bullies' souls. "5."

"Listen, dude! We were just messing around!"

"4."

"Okay, you're seriously starting to freak me out!"

"Better get on that praying then. 3."

"I'm gonna... tell the headmaster!"

"Oh, I'm so scared. 2."

"Guys, let's get out of here!"

"That little shrimp isn't worth this."

"Only I get to call them that!" Floyd screamed after the goons as they stumbled over themselves to get away.

You could hear the bullies leaving but you still slayed firmly attached to Floyd.

"I'm a touch offended you didn't latch into me that way. Do you trust Floyd more than me?"

You looked up to see Jade smirking at you with his usual calm composure, much opposed to his "predator mode".

"I'm sorry," you sniffled, though you all knew you didn't really mean it. "Next time, I'll hide behind you instead."

"Oh, no, no, no, Shrimpy," Floyd glared at you. You could tell it wasn't directed at you specifically but it was still intimidating. "There's not going to be a next time."

"At least we can agree on that note, brother dearest," Jade mused, brushing a hair behind your ear. "We'll make sure no one will ever mess with you again, Y/N."

"What are you going to do?"

"Well, that's a secret," Jade put a finger to his lips and you could see the angry fire behind his eyes.

"You can hug me anytime you want though, Shrimpy!" Floyd chimed in cheerily. You laughed and leaned into his chest.

"Thank you so much. I don't know what I would've done with out you," you sighed and grabbed Jade's hand, tugging him into a group hug. "I love you. Both of you."

Jade wasn't usually particularly affection and Floyd didn't often practice restraint but both of them cared enough about you to just smother you in a brotherly hug, as long as it will make you happy.

Jade and Floyd made eye contact over your shoulder, making a silent agreement to break every bone in your bullies' bodies and make it look like an accident.

Mage x Menace || Jade Leech

You, a struggling mage-in-training, tried to summon a majestic beast to escape your cursed fate in the botany stream.

Instead, you got Jade Leech—chaos incarnate, collector of mysterious jars, and disturbingly enthusiastic about plants.

He now lives in your dorm, calls you "Master" with a straight face and might be seducing you via herbal tea.

this is a present for @hyperfixating-rn <3 I'm very late but happy belated birthday!!

You were going to be a great mage. A legendary one. The kind they wrote poems about—long, rhyming ones with unnecessarily dramatic metaphors. You had dreams. Ambitions. A Pinterest board titled "Epic Wizard Core." You practiced basic spells in your room, blew up your mirror once, and were 96% sure your magical aura was purple (which is obviously the most powerful one, everyone knows that).

So imagine your surprise when your entrance exam results came back and you were… sorted into the Botany stream.

Botany.

As in, plants.

As in, dirt and roots and sunlight and “communing with nature.”

You had never communed with nature. You had once tried to grow a cactus—the most resilient plant known to humankind—and it had withered in protest within a week. You had named that cactus Spiky. Its death was a tragedy. A murder, some said. By you.

So naturally, you stood there on orientation day, holding your shiny new textbook titled “Green is the Heart’s Color: Love and Magic in Leaves”, with the same vibe as someone who had been given a live grenade and told to hug it.

Your fellow classmates looked excited. Eager. Too green, in more ways than one. You watched one of them gently cradle a sproutling like it was a newborn. Another was crying over the “beautiful potential” of transpiration. Meanwhile, you were googling "can you accidentally poison poison ivy."

And then, of course, came your professor. You don’t remember much from the orientation speech because you were too busy having a silent breakdown about the phrase "the gentle whisper of chlorophyll." But you do remember one very important thing:

You’re in so much trouble.

You raised your hand at one point to ask if you were allowed to… switch majors. The professor smiled.

A warm, benevolent, lethal smile.

“Oh, dear. The plants have chosen you.”

What does that even mean???

You don’t know. But the tiny seedling on your desk keeps wiggling like it’s happy to see you. You don’t trust it. You name it Vermin and pray it doesn’t unionize with the moss on your windowsill.

You are a mage in training. A powerful wizard in the making.

And now you are at war… with horticulture.

After a week of trying to bond with leaves like they were long-lost family and nearly getting strangled by a particularly enthusiastic vine, you decided you’d had enough.

You needed a way out.

Not in the dramatic “storm out of class, set fire to the greenhouse, and flee into the mountains” way. (Though it was on the table.)

You needed a loophole. An escape clause. A forbidden back door in the curriculum forged in ancient times by other students who had also accidentally murdered cacti.

So you did what any desperate, dignity-depleted mage-in-training would do.

You found a senior.

Now, seniors in mage school are like cryptids. Powerful. Elusive. Sleep-deprived. And terrifying in the way only people who’ve once accidentally turned themselves into a plant can be. Your chosen senior was sitting under a tree, drinking coffee from a mug that said “I survived Magical Ecology II and all I got was this mug and lifelong trauma.”

You approached, clinging to your textbook like it was a lifeline. “Hi. I’m—uh. I’m not vibing with the flora.”

They looked up, eyes dark with knowledge and probably caffeine. “Botany stream?”

“Against my will.”

A pause. A long, sympathetic sip. Then: “You have two options.”

Your heart fluttered. Hope! Salvation! Maybe—

“One: Fail everything, get held back a year, reapply next cycle. Pray the plants forget your face.”

“I can’t afford that. Option two?”

“Summon a familiar so powerful, the faculty has to bump you into a combat-heavy stream for your own safety. And theirs.”

You blinked. “Like. A dragon?”

The senior shrugged. “Sure. Or a demon. Or a vengeful raccoon. Anything above ‘mildly homicidal housecat’ works.”

“And then they’ll just… change my stream?”

“If your familiar is terrifying enough, yes. Preferably something with fire. Fire fixes everything. Except greenhouses.”

You nodded slowly, feeling the stirrings of a Plan™. A terrible, beautiful, questionable plan.

"How hard is it to summon a familiar?" you asked.

They smiled, and it was not comforting.

“Not hard. Doing it without summoning something that wants to eat you is the tricky part.”

You thanked them and walked off into the distance, muttering under your breath and already flipping through your grimoires.

You were going to get out of this stream or die trying.

Hopefully neither.

But if a hellbeast had to be involved, well…

You were prepared to negotiate.

You had one job.

Just one.

Summon a powerful familiar. Save your future career path. Escape the dreaded Botany Stream before you're eaten alive by carnivorous radishes with anger issues and questionable ethics.

You’d studied forbidden texts. You’d drawn your summoning circle to perfect mathematical proportions using a protractor, three compasses, and something called “Manifestation Oil” you bought off a sketchy alchemy influencer.

You even lit candles by hand like a peasant. That’s how serious this was.

You had one last step: focus your intent. Picture what you wanted. Channel all your magic and will into the ritual. A dragon, perhaps. A fearsome spirit. A beast of legend. Maybe even a war general.

Instead, the unagi you were saving for dinner—your actual, literal eel—slid off the table mid-chant and splat landed right in the center of the summoning circle.

The summoning circle hissed.

You had precisely one second to scream “NO, YOU STUPID SLIPPERY FISH—” before the circle detonated.

There was light. Screaming wind. Something smelled vaguely of seaweed and crime.

When your retinas finally stopped sizzling and your ears recovered from their astral slapping, you looked up.

And there he was.

A tall, elegant man standing in the still-smoking circle, dusting off his sleeves like he hadn’t just been yanked across the realms by an overcooked eel. His teal hair shimmered like deep water. Heterochromatic eyes. He looked like a minor sea god and a professional tax evader all rolled into one.

He tilted his head. Smiled. “That was… dramatic.”

You stared. Still holding the empty microwave-safe eel tray like a sacrificial relic.

“I was trying to summon a dragon,” you croaked.

“Ah,” he said, eyeing the smear of soy sauce in the center of the runes. “Then why the seafood?”

You didn’t have an answer. Mostly because you were too busy silently screaming.

“I suppose I’m what happens when your spell gets rerouted mid-delivery,” he continued, delight practically oozing off him. “Fascinating. I'm Jade. Jade Leech.”

You, a mage of great ambition and even greater regret, took a deep breath and said the only thing that made sense.

“…Are you allergic to plants?”

Jade Leech, freshly yanked from the dark, swirling depths of somewhere much cooler than here, watched with the amused detachment of a man who had just witnessed his summoner go through all five stages of grief in under forty seconds.

You cursed the gods.

You cursed the stars.

You cursed your entrance exam, your cactus, your birth, and at one point—yourself in third person.

He said nothing. Simply folded his hands behind his back and watched with the kind of serene interest normally reserved for people observing an exotic animal fling itself against glass.

Eventually, once your vocal cords began to shred from impassioned screaming (and possibly mild sobbing), you whirled toward him, red-eyed and wild-haired, and gestured at him in disbelief.

“Are you—” you wheezed, dragging a sleeve across your face, “perchance a dragon?”

He blinked slowly. His smile widened.

“Perchance?”

“I don’t know!” you shouted. “You’re tall! You appeared in a bunch of smoke! Your hair defies gravity! That could be dragon behavior!”

“Hm.” He tapped his chin thoughtfully. “And if I say yes?”

You squinted. “...Do you breathe fire?”

“I’m more of a ‘poison your tea and watch what happens’ sort of creature,” he replied, pleasantly.

You screamed again—this time in cosmic betrayal—and stomped your foot so hard the candles trembled.

He made a note of this. You had good stomping technique.

“Well then what are you?!” you demanded.

He shrugged, like this wasn’t a magical emergency and more of a casual day.

“A Moray Eel, technically.”

You stared at him. Then at the summoning circle. Then at the empty microwave eel tray still on the floor. Then back at him.

“Oh my gods,” you whispered in horror. “The unagi redirected the target circle. I was summoning a power dragon and the ritual downgraded to ‘long sea worm.’”

He chuckled. “How dare you.”

“I wanted to cheat the system,” you whispered, falling to your knees like a tragic protagonist. “And the gods sent me seafood.”

“I’m standing right here, you know.”

You threw yourself to the ground and started sobbing into the floor.

Jade’s smile grew wider. He might stay. This was already more entertaining than anything back home.

And honestly, watching you spiral was kind of charming.

Jade made tea.

You weren’t entirely sure how or when. One moment, you were crumpled on the floor, dramatically mourning your dreams of becoming a cool elemental mage with a dragon familiar. The next, he was handing you a dainty teacup on a saucer you definitely didn’t own.

There was a slice of lemon in it. The mug was warm. You were terrified.

“…Did you summon this tea set too?” you asked, eyeing the porcelain like it was going to explode.

“No,” he said pleasantly. “It was in your cupboard.”

“No, it wasn’t.”

He smiled wider. “Was it not?”

You stared at him. He stared back, sipping his tea with the calm of someone who knew exactly where every spoon in your home was and wouldn’t hesitate to replace them with slightly longer spoons just to gaslight you.

You took a sip of the tea to assert dominance. It was delicious. You hated that it was delicious.

He watched you, unblinking. “So. Why the desperate summoning?”

You groaned, slouching like the tea had robbed you of whatever spine you had left. “I got sorted into the botany stream.”

There was a silence. You sipped your tea again to drown in the shame.

Then his eyes sparkled.

You felt it. Like a shift in the atmosphere. Like the moment before a lightning strike. Like the second someone said, “Trust me,” and you woke up four hours later in a tree, covered in glitter and mild regret.

“Oh,” he said, delighted. “Botany.”

“No,” you said immediately. “Don’t do that. Don’t say it like that.”

“Fascinating field, truly.”

“Nope. You’re not going to help me switch out, are you?”

He leaned forward, chin in his hand, elbow balanced too gracefully for someone who had appeared out of eel magic and poor life choices. “Why would I do that? I think you’ll thrive.”

“You don’t understand,” you said, pleading now. “I killed a cactus.”

“Oh, I completely understand,” he said. “And I'm going to help you fulfill your potential.”

You froze. “…You mean, like, help me survive until I transfer?”

“No,” he said.

You dropped your cup. He caught it without looking. You wanted to scream.

The only thing worse than being a botany student… was being a botany student with a chaos eel who found fungi romantically intriguing as your familiar.

You were so doomed.

Unfortunately for everyone involved—and by everyone, specifically you—magic law was a clingy little thing. Once the summoning circle did its sparkly flashbang thing and delivered you one (1) butler-themed eel man, the universe basically clapped its hands, said “it is what it is,” and slapped a contract in your face.

Minimum term of servitude: one year.

“But I didn’t mean to summon him,” you argued to literally no one who cared. “There was fish involved! It was a mishap, not a magical invocation!”

Jade, very unhelpfully sipping tea that you definitely hadn’t bought, slid the scroll across the table toward you like a cheerful IRS agent. “Intent is only one part of the ritual,” he said with the infinite patience of someone who enjoyed watching trainwrecks in slow motion. “The contract is already half-formed. You really should sign it before your house explodes.”

You stared at the scroll.

Then at him.

Then at the scroll again.

“Do I at least get a trial period?” you tried.

“No,” he said, smiling.

“A free return policy?”

“No.”

“Is there, like, an eel clause I can exploit?”

He chuckled. You were going to die in this major.

With the kind of reluctant grace that only someone who’d just accidentally legally bound themselves to a smug sea-creature man could muster, you signed.

The moment the pen left the paper, the air shifted with a cozy little pop, as if magic itself was tucking you both in and whispering “congratulations on your joint custody of chaos.” A faint glow danced around Jade’s shoulders. Your window exploded.

(You’d ask questions about that later.)

“There we are,” Jade said, clasping his hands. “Familiar and mage, officially contracted. Shall I begin compiling a weekly schedule for our fieldwork?”

“Field—oh no.”

“Oh yes,” he beamed. “We’ll be revisiting the entire kingdom flora catalogue, starting with mosses.”

You suddenly understood the reason why some mages went mad.

And unfortunately, you’d just handed yours the clipboard.

The next morning, you dragged yourself to class like a condemned soul to the gallows, weighed down by a sense of impending doom and also by the deeply unsettling realization that your familiar had organized your bookshelf by spore reproduction categories sometime during the night.

Everyone else looked so normal. There was someone with a fire spirit coiled lazily around their shoulders, someone else with a giant spectral wolf that radiated unbothered energy, and even one smug jerk with a miniature dragon who was definitely using it to cheat on practical tests.

And then there was you.

With him.

Jade stood a respectful half-step behind you, dressed like a mildly menacing butler who might also commit tax fraud if given the opportunity. He carried your books. He bowed to your professor. He smiled at your classmates.

You didn’t trust that smile. That was the smile of a man who had definitely poisoned a royal court and got away with it by turning the queen into a toadstool.

Someone asked what type of spirit you’d summoned.

You opened your mouth to lie.

Jade answered for you. “They were aiming for a dragon,” he said, serene as ever. “But an eel will have to do.”

The entire class stared at you. You stared into the void.

“It was the unagi,” you muttered, already defeated.

No one knew what that meant, but it sounded stupid, so they all laughed.

Jade patted your back like a supportive guardian. You were ninety percent sure it was to check your spine for eventual harvesting.

Gods help you. It was only the first period.

The Academy was in shambles.

Centuries of magical history. Thousands of successfully summoned fire spirits, storm wolves, mildly angry raccoons. And you—a botany major with a dead cactus on your record—had gone and summoned a person.

Not a ghost.

Not an illusion.

Not even a creepy guy pretending to be summonable.

No. A fully functional person.

“Technically,” the Dean said, staring at the magical contract hovering over your heads, “you… own him now.”

You almost threw up on the ornate rug.

Jade Leech, the man in question, just smiled—sharp, calm, entirely too pleased.

“This is so cursed,” you whispered.

“Oh no,” he replied sweetly. “This is fate.”

And that was only the beginning of your descent into contractual hell.

Because Jade? Oh, he thrived under magical servitude. Took to it like a duck to water. Like an eel to crime.

He started calling you Master.

In public. Loudly. With emphasis.

“Good morning, Master,” he purred on the way to breakfast, gliding past stunned first-years who immediately assumed you were either very powerful or very into some stuff they weren’t ready to Google.

“Jade. Stop.”

“As you command, Master.”

You tried reasoning with him. You begged. You threatened to cry in front of the Headmistress.

Didn’t matter.

In fact, the more embarrassed you got, the worse it became.

“Master, shall I carry your books?”

“No.”

“Your lunch?”

“No.”

“Your emotional baggage?”

“Jade—”

“Ah, but you summoned me, Master. Now we’re bonded.”

You looked around, desperate for help, but every professor just kind of shrugged. Magical contracts were sacred. Breakable only through death, divine intervention, or, apparently, a system of interpretive dances before the moon goddess during a blood eclipse. None of which were happening before finals.

So now this was your life.

You were the “owner” of a smug eel man in a waistcoat who made you do your homework, made better tea than your own grandmother, and insisted on calling you Master while looking like a very polite threat.

You used to be a normal student with no future in botany.

You should've just failed your exams like a normal student.

Jade settled into your dorm room like he’d been planning it for years. Which was frankly insane, considering you’d only accidentally summoned him a day ago.

You woke up the morning after signing the magically binding familiar contract to find your room… different. Not horrifyingly so, just enough to make your eye twitch. Your desk had moved three inches to the left. Your bookshelf now had labels. Your cactus—previously deceased—was somehow thriving in a suspiciously fancy ceramic pot.

And then there were the jars. Oh gods, the jars. They lined the shelves now in neat, alphabetized rows. Some were normal—“Chamomile,” “Sea Salt,” “Lavender Sprigs.” Others were less so. “Tooth Collection (Domestic)” sat right next to “Rainwater (For Legal Use Only).” You wanted to ask, but Jade had a look in his eye that said whatever answer you get, you won’t like it.

He also brewed tea every morning. Not the relaxing kind. The existential crisis in a cup kind. You drank one (1) polite sip and suddenly understood what “the color eleven” looked like. Your body remained seated but your soul went on a brief vacation.

You had no idea how, but you were scoring higher in Botany. You still couldn’t identify a single plant, but Jade kept slipping you notes mid-lab with things like “This one bites. Do not sniff.” or “Lick at your own risk.”

So yes, your GPA was rising. Unfortunately, so was your blood pressure. And your heart rate. And your sense that you were, somehow, very much in danger.

Jade simply smiled every time you panicked. “You’re thriving, Master,” he’d say, and sip his tea like he wasn’t actively reorganizing your entire life.

You were not thriving. You were surviving. Barely.

The assignment was simple on paper: identify twenty local plants, label their genus, and list their magical and medicinal properties.

Which was all fine and dandy if you weren’t a person who had accidentally killed a cactus by underwatering it because you “didn’t want to overwhelm it.” 

You’d gotten through most of your academic career via a potent combination of vibes, frantic late-night study sessions, and an almost supernatural level of spite. But this—this was science. With labels. And botanical terminology. And leaves that all looked the same.

So, you did what any sane, desperate mage-in-training with poor decision-making skills and a total lack of botanical knowledge would do.

You brewed a bathtub-sized cauldron of universal poison antidote and decided you’d taste-test each plant to figure out which one was lethal and, by process of elimination, identify the rest.

Jade found you leaning over the cauldron, mumbling something about statistical mortality rates and chewing on a leaf like a feral squirrel trying to beat natural selection.

“I thought you were joking,” he said, in that same unsettlingly pleasant tone he always used when you were actively concerning him.

“I wasn’t!” you declared. “This is science, Jade. And survival. I’ve made enough antidote to survive an assassination attempt—”

“You made it in your bathtub.”

“—and I’m going to lick nature into submission.”

Jade sat you down at the table, folded his hands neatly, and asked you—politely but with the weight of an ancient curse behind it—to repeat your plan.

You did.

He stared at you.

You shifted in your seat.

He continued to stare, like a disappointed headmaster.

“...Okay fine,” you finally muttered. “It is a bad plan.”

“Thank you,” he said calmly. “Would you like to identify your plants using logic, reference books, and assistance from your familiar, or would you prefer a slow and humiliating descent into gastrointestinal regret?”

“I mean, when you say it like that—”

“Wonderful. I’ll prepare the tea.”

You hated how soothing (mostly) his tea was. 

You found out purely by accident.

Your friend sat down at lunch with a heavy sigh and a tear-streaked face, muttering something about how their fox familiar had gone limp and glassy-eyed after being ignored for two days straight in favor of midterms. Apparently, he needed “emotional engagement” and “frequent pets.”

You had not known this. You had not known any of this.

You returned to your dorm in a panic.

Jade, as always, was seated like an eerie portrait come to life, sipping tea and reading a book that looked suspiciously bound in scales. He raised one eyebrow as you burst through the door carrying three different types of fruits and a hand-sewn blanket you’d made in Home Ec two years ago.

“I heard that familiars need enrichment,” you blurted. “Do you—are you enriched? Are you feeling under-enriched? What’s your favorite snack enrichment type? Is it eels? Oh no wait, is that cannibalism? I don’t know your rules!”

Jade blinked slowly. “You believe I am in poor health?”

“I don’t know!” you wailed, thrusting the blanket at him. “I don’t know the maintenance routine for familiars! You could be dying from sadness and I wouldn’t know!”

He looked down at the blanket. It had uneven edges and a sewn-on mushroom that looked like it had witnessed terrible things. Slowly, he took it. Draped it over his lap. Sipped his tea again.

“You are a very considerate Master,” he said with a pleased little smile that absolutely shouldn’t have made you feel like you’d just earned an A+ in Familiar Wellness. “I feel much better already.”

You weren’t sure if he was messing with you or not. But then he let you tuck the blanket around his shoulders like a shawl, and even let you hand-feed him a strawberry.

You decided you didn’t care if he was messing with you. His ears were flushed. That was a win.

You needed Nightshade. Not the safe kind either—the real, reactive stuff that tended to hiss if the humidity wasn’t just right and once exploded in someone's bag for being stared at wrong.

Unfortunately, your professors had firmly, repeatedly, and increasingly frantically refused to let you anywhere near it. Something about “prior incidents,” “a trail of fire ants through the dorm hallway,” and “we are begging you to stop licking mystery leaves.”

But you had an experiment to finish, and a lack of official approval had never stopped a single mage in history. Which was how you found yourself sneaking into the restricted greenhouse under cover of darkness, with your overly smug eel-familiar following like he was on a stroll and not a felonious B&E.

“This is clearly illegal,” Jade said cheerfully, as he helped you pick the lock.

“You’re a summoned being. Laws don’t apply to you,” you muttered, shoving the door open.

“That’s speciesist,” he said mildly, and you ignored him on purpose.

The two of you tiptoed through rows of glowing plants, whisper-bickering the whole way.

“Don’t touch that. It screams.”

“You scream.”

“Yes, and I have a great voice.”

He huffed a laugh. You tried not to grin. You failed.

Honestly, it would’ve been a perfectly stupid and smooth heist—until the Shrike Vine noticed you. Apparently it was pollination season and it was feeling bitey. You froze as a thick green tendril snapped toward you like a whip.

Except it never hit.

Jade moved faster than you thought was possible. One hand caught the vine mid-strike, the other calmly flicked a tiny blade across it like he was trimming hedges instead of saving your life.

And then, because he was a menace, he leaned in close—just enough for you to catch the sharp gleam in his mismatched eyes—and murmured:

“I’m very good at protecting what’s mine.”

You were not about to combust in a greenhouse. You were not. Absolutely not.

Still. Your face was hot. You blamed the bioluminescent plants.

“Wh—That’s not—you can’t just say things like that,” you hissed.

He tilted his head, looking unbothered and devastatingly pleased. “Why not?”

You opened your mouth. Closed it. Pointed at the vine. “Is that one safe to lick?”

“Absolutely not.”

“…Cool, cool, just checking.”

The incident itself wasn’t even your fault this time, which was frankly insulting, considering you usually caused at least 70% of the department's arcane emergencies. 

No, this time it was Jeremy from Spell Calculus who accidentally overcharged a fire enhancement glyph and sent a wayward jet of magic careening through the lab like a feral gremlin. It ping-ponged off three protective wards, vaporized a desk plant, and promptly singed your familiar.

Specifically: Jade’s sleeve caught a little fire. For exactly three seconds.

The sleeve was barely charred. His skin wasn’t even red. He smirked.

You, however, reacted like you’d just watched him be stabbed in the heart by a divine lance.

“OH MY GOD YOU’RE BURNING—ARE YOU OKAY?! Is it fatal? It’s fatal, isn’t it?! What’s the protocol for familiar injury?! Do you need a resurrection spell?? Should I call the nurse or the exorcist—?!”

Jade, blinked once. Then calmly patted the faintest whiff of smoke from his robe and said, “I believe I’ll live.”

But the glint in his eyes said he smelled weakness. And he would absolutely exploit it.

The next morning, you showed up with a full care basket: enchanted cooling balm, a wonky scarf you’d panic-crocheted in the night, a potion for nerve regeneration (completely unnecessary), and a whole assortment of healing snacks from the infirmary vending machine.

You even hand-fed him a soothing honey drop.

That was your next mistake.

Because the very next day, Jade reclined across your bed like a drama major rehearsing for a role in “The Dying Swan: A Magical Tragedy.” He had a lukewarm towel across his forehead, your blanket wrapped dramatically around his shoulders like a cape, and a very deliberate look of fragile suffering.

“Alas,” he whispered, placing the back of his hand to his (completely fine) forehead, “I fear the lingering effects of the trauma are… worsening. There’s a tightness in my chest. I may never wield a kettle again. My tea senses are dulled.”

You squinted at him, deadpan. “You brewed two pots this morning.”

“For you, dearest Master,” he said, with an exaggerated wince. “But at what cost?”

You refused to indulge him. For about ten minutes.

Then he started coughing. Badly. Into a silk handkerchief. That you were pretty sure he’d dabbed with food coloring beforehand to resemble blood.

“Do you think you can bring… strawberry lollipops?” he asked, voice trembling. “Before I pass on to the next world.”

You shoved five into his mouth. “You’re not dying. But you are insufferable.”

He sucked dramatically on the sweets, sighing. “I find this treatment emotionally compromising.”

You fed him another one.

And started plotting your revenge with a very bitter herbal “recovery” tea. It smelled like wet moss and tasted like betrayal.

He drank it all. Smiled. Said it “added intrigue to the healing experience.”

You were no longer sure who was winning this war. But you were definitely losing your mind.

It started subtly. Jade would casually set a teacup in front of you in the mornings, unprompted. You’d ignore it. He’d raise an eyebrow. You’d argue that caffeine was a food group and you didn’t need anything else, thank you very much. 

He’d say something cryptic like “I’d rather not have to explain malnutrition-related hallucinations to the administration,” and then slide you a plate of suspiciously elegant finger sandwiches.

Somehow, you’d end up eating them.

A week later, you found yourself sitting down for actual breakfast—tea, toast, even fruit—without remembering how it happened. He’d simply adjusted your routine. Quietly. Steadily. Like a moss infestation with an agenda.

He began packing you lunch. Bento-style. With little hand-drawn labels.

You didn’t even know when he started doing it. You just opened your bag one day, reached for your emergency gummy stash, and pulled out a thermos of miso soup and a side of rice balls shaped like sea creatures.

He started accompanying you to the dining hall under the excuse of "needing seaweed access." He monitored your meals. Commented on vitamin intake. Replaced your sugar gummies with dried fruit. Told you that if he caught you drinking energy drinks for dinner again, he’d report you to botanical safety for trying to poison a living plant (Vermin had still not recovered from the one time you tried to share a Monster with it).

Eventually, your friend—sweet, concerned, possibly one skipped breakfast away from passing out—cornered you between lectures.

"Hey," she said, tugging your sleeve with wide eyes. “I need to ask you something and I don’t want you to freak out.”

You, holding a bento box labeled ‘Don’t Forget to Finish Your Spinach, Master’ with a small smiling mushroom drawn on it, tilted your head. “Okay?”

She glanced around, lowered her voice, and whispered, “Who’s the familiar here?”

You stared at her.

She stared back.

In the distance, Jade waved at you politely while handing a professor a jar of suspicious glowing jam.

You opened your mouth. Closed it. Thought about how he’d reorganized your pantry by nutritional pyramid. Thought about how your life had improved and yet somehow spiraled out of your control in the exact same breath.

“I… don’t know anymore,” you whispered back.

And that was the beginning of your existential crisis about power dynamics, dietary fiber, and eel-based emotional manipulation.

The more you thought about it, the more the terrible, horrifying truth settled in: Jade had been slowly taming you.

Not in a leash-and-collar kind of way (though you weren’t entirely convinced he wouldn’t enjoy that visual), but in the slow, methodical way one might tame a particularly wild housecat. One that hissed at vegetables and believed microwaved instant noodles were the pinnacle of culinary achievement.

When you’d first summoned him—on accident, via unagi-induced chaos and a summoning circle that was technically illegal in five countries—you’d been expecting a fae general. A terrifying beast of war. A dragon, maybe. 

What you got was a polite, well-dressed man with a smile that could curdle milk and the calm demeanor of someone who’d enjoy watching your academic career spontaneously combust. 

You were sure he would spend his time reclining in your dorm like some cryptid, sipping tea while you panicked over assignments and singlehandedly ruined your chances at survival in botany.

That had been your first impression.

But it wasn’t what happened.

Instead, Jade made it his mission to ruin you in the most terrifying way imaginable: through care.

He made sure you ate. He brewed tea tailored to your stress levels. He reorganized your notebooks by topic and color-coded them while claiming he was “bored.” He calmly extracted you from five different poison ivy incidents. He taught you how to pronounce “photosynthesis” correctly after you spent an entire presentation calling it “plant vibes.”

And you hated to admit it—but it worked.

You stopped waking up in a panic. You stopped considering glitter glue a legitimate potion ingredient. You even passed a midterm without attempting to bribe a forest fairy.

It was subtle. Devious. Soft.

And worst of all, it was making you feel warm. Cared for. Grounded.

You used to dream of summoning a dragon—a grand, legendary familiar that would impress the entire academy and maybe light your homework on fire for dramatic effect. But now?

Now you watched Jade hum to himself in your kitchen, cooking something that smelled like lemon and dreams, and you didn’t care about dragons. Or status. Or changing streams.

You just wanted to figure out if there was a spell that could describe the exact way your heart skipped when he smiled at you and called you “Master” with that infuriating glint in his eye.

And if not… well. Maybe you’d make one.

From Jade’s point of view, your summoning had all the signs of an impending disaster—and thus, a highly enjoyable evening.

The circle was sloppy, the candles were the wrong color, and the ambient magical pressure was off by several kilopascals. The unagi that had plummeted into the center as a last-minute offering had been particularly concerning. Jade had arrived in a flash of light and fish-scented smoke, bracing for either mortal peril or at least a good laugh.

And then he saw you.

Wide-eyed. Covered in ink. Mumbling about “hoping for a dragon or something.” The perfect storm of magical desperation and zero planning skills. He had thought you’d be amusing. A novelty. A fun little side project to pass the time while bound by contract for a year.

And at first, that was exactly what you were. You were so spectacularly bad at botany that Jade was convinced you were a social experiment.

You called mushrooms “leaf meat.” You once referred to an entire genus of plants as “the crunchy ones.” And your plan to identify herbs by tasting them like a medieval poison tester had nearly given him a stroke. (Emotionally. He’s far too composed for physical symptoms.)

But somewhere between force-feeding you actual meals and dragging you out of exploding greenhouses, Jade started feeling… something. Not just amusement. Not just secondhand horror.

Affection.

It was awful.

So naturally, he did what any emotionally stunted eel-man would do—he ramped up the teasing. Called you “Master” in public. Smiled just a little too sharply. Hovered with a quiet attentiveness he pretended wasn’t genuine.

But when he thought back to that summoning—your hopeful eyes, the half-charred fish, the complete magical disaster—Jade realized something horrifying.

He owed his current happiness to a piece of grilled eel.

The next time he saw unagi on a menu, he gave it a respectful nod. After all, not every familiar bond is forged through fate, fire, and ancient prophecy.

Some are forged through sheer dumb luck and seafood.

You had always believed, deep in your feral little heart, that if you ever fell in love, it would be with the intensity of a meteor crashing into the earth. There would be pyrotechnics. An orchestra. Maybe a cursed bouquet of sentient mushrooms arranged in the shape of your initials. Something properly dramatic.

You were prepared for a sweeping romance. A declaration shouted from a balcony. A confession under a blood moon. At the very least, a sword fight followed by heavy breathing and an emotionally repressed kiss.

What you were not prepared for was... a random morning.

More specifically: today morning at 6:42 a.m., in your tragically unventilated dorm kitchen, where you shuffled in half-awake, wearing a blanket like a disgruntled ghost. Your hair looked like it had seen war. Your socks didn’t match. You were only conscious due to residual academic panic and caffeine withdrawal.

And there Jade was. Crisp and awake and annoyingly gorgeous, as usual, humming some eerie little tune while cooking god-knows-what on your stove. The sunlight framed him like he was in a toothpaste commercial. There were suspicious jars open on the counter labeled things like “Fenugreek??? (Maybe)” and “Do Not Inhale.”

He glanced at you over his shoulder, amused. “Good morning, Master.”

You grunted. It was too early for sarcasm or formal titles.

So, with the sleep-deprived logic of a creature who had survived exclusively on coffee and academic desperation, you trudged over to him, latched onto his waist like a needy koala, and rested your cheek against his back.

You did not plan this. Your body moved on its own, possessed by the Spirit of Affection.

To his credit, he didn’t question it. Jade simply chuckled, adjusted his stance, and offered you a spoonful of something suspiciously green and steaming.

You tasted it. Your neurons barely fired. It was delicious and probably illegal.

And then, without thought, without warning, still pressed against him and one brain cell away from sleep, you mumbled, “I love you.”

There was a beat of silence.

You blinked.

Wait.

Wait—

What the hell did you just say—

YOU SAID THAT OUT LOUD—

Jade paused with the spoon still in his hand, his entire body going still like a predator that just heard something interesting. Then—slowly, like he was savoring it—he turned.

He looked at you. He really looked at you. And then, in true chaos spirit fashion, he grinned.

Not his usual polite smile. No. This was different. This one had teeth.

“Oh?” he said, softly. “Oh?”

And that was the moment you realized: you had said those three words to a man who considered emotional vulnerability an invitation to hunt.

You tried to backtrack. Tried to say you meant “I love you—r soup.”

Or “I love you as a friend. A colleague. A sentient eel.”

But before you could decide on your lie of choice, he leaned down and kissed you.

It started sweet. Gentle. Thoughtful, like maybe he was giving you time to flee.

You didn’t. That was your mistake.

Because then his hand slid around your waist, and the kiss deepened, and suddenly your kitchen felt too small, and too warm, and definitely not rated for public indecency. Your legs threatened to give out. Your brain flatlined.

When he pulled away, you were breathless and dazed. You looked at him, heart hammering, pupils blown wide.

He tilted his head, still grinning, and said, “You taste like honesty. How rare.”

You briefly considered combusting on the spot.

And as he turned back to the stove like nothing had happened, humming again, you realized something terrifying:

You were in love.

And you were the prey.

And you were kind of okay with that.

When familiar contract renewal season arrived—accompanied by the usual administrative chaos, enchanted paperwork that bit fingers, and panicked first-years realizing their mushroom toadlings had exploded again—you were… calm.

Weirdly, suspiciously calm.

You should have been stressed. You were, after all, still a mage in training with a botany grade being held together by duct tape, blind luck, and the sheer force of your familiar’s passive-aggressive hovering.

But no. You weren’t worried. Because somehow, over the past year of accidental poisonings, illegal greenhouse heists, and near-romantic tea-induced hallucinations, you and Jade had fallen into something far more dangerous than summoning magic: mutual affection. Possibly even love. Terrifying.

And yet, when the day came, you expected a conversation. A little back and forth. Maybe some dramatic flourish on his part—Jade had a flair for drama and mild emotional terrorism, after all. At the very least, you thought he’d present a contract with a smirk and some cryptic line about “servitude never being quite so delightful.”

But he didn’t.

You woke up one morning to find him already seated at your desk, as if he’d been waiting all night. The early sun filtered through your window, highlighting the soft teal of his hair and the amused glint in his eyes. You were still blinking the sleep out of yours, shuffling over in your raccoon-print pajamas with all the grace of a zombie when he slid the document toward you.

A thick, arcane-heavy contract. One that glowed softly at the edges. Titled:

“PERMANENT FAMILIAR CONTRACT — LIFELONG BOND”

Your eyes snagged on the signature line.

His name was already there.

Signed in an elegant, curling script with a wax seal that looked like an eel tail. No jokes. No teasing. No loopholes.

You stared at the paper. Then at him.

“…You want to be stuck with me forever?” you asked, because your brain short-circuited and apparently decided that was the most romantic response it could muster.

Jade raised a brow. “You make life—interesting,” he said, voice inflected with all the warmth and amusement of someone who once watched you attempt to eat a venomous berry “for science.”

You blinked again. “That’s not a no.”

“It’s a yes,” he said easily, his smile softening. “I’d like to be yours. If you’ll have me.”

You didn’t even hesitate.

You picked up the pen and signed your name beneath his. The moment the ink dried, the paper vanished in a swirl of moss-green smoke, the pact sealed with a pleasant little magical ding.

“So,” you said, heart thudding in your chest as you looked up at him, “we’re really doing this.”

“We are,” he said.

“Forever is a long time.”

“Not nearly long enough.”

And you had to kiss him after that, because what else do you do when your familiar—not-quite-boyfriend-but-very-possibly-soulmate says something like that?

He kissed you back like he’d been waiting years. And you let him, sinking into his arms like it was the only place you’d ever belonged.

You, a chaotic disaster of a botany student. Him, a merman familiar who brewed tea that could bend time.

A perfect, absurd, slightly terrifying match.

Later that evening, when you sat together on the windowsill, legs tangled and laughter echoing, you realized something else: you'd meant to find a way out of the botany stream. A bigger future. A stronger school of magic.

But with Jade by your side, maybe botany wasn’t a prison—it was just where you bloomed.

It started, as most disasters in your life did, with you tripping over your own feet. Specifically, you’d tripped face-first into a rare carnivorous plant while trying to impress your professor with your “innovative approach to hands-on learning.” (Your professor had screamed. The plant had screamed louder. You still didn’t know plants could do that.)

And while you were nursing your slightly-bitten pride and applying salve to your dignity, some golden-haired, obnoxiously perfect fourth-year had wandered over, all pristine robes and condescending smiles.

“You know,” he said to Jade, completely ignoring you like you were a decorative shrub, “it’s a shame. A familiar with your magical potential? Tied to someone who’s clearly... not invested in their future.”

You scoffed. Loudly. “Excuse you. I am very invested in my future. I just think the universe should meet me halfway and stop putting venomous moss in my study patch.”

The student didn’t even blink. “You deserve a master who challenges you. Who brings out your best.”

Jade tilted his head, politely smiling the way a shark might if it had impeccable manners and was about to swallow a surfer whole.

“I see,” he said, sipping his tea. “And that would be… you?”

“Why not?” the student said, and you hated how confident he sounded. “They're wasting you.”

You froze.

You knew it wasn’t true. Jade had chosen you. Signed a lifelong contract. Literally brewed you soup after you set your eyebrows on fire.

But the words stung in a way you hadn’t expected.

You tried to play it cool. Shrugged. “If he wants to leave, he can. No one’s stopping him.”

Jade’s eyes flicked toward you, a tiny crease between his brows. “Is that what you think?”

You shrugged again. Forced a smile. “Why wouldn’t it be? Go ahead. Take your tea. Find a master who challenges you.”

And with that, you walked away, head high, hands clenched so tight your knuckles cracked.

You spent the rest of the night trying not to cry into your pillow.

The next morning, your pillow was suspiciously warm. And breathing.

You cracked open one eye to find Jade wrapped around you like a clingy snake with boundary issues and an attitude problem.

“What—Jade—get off—!”

“I’m sleeping,” he said.

“You are not! You’re emotionally ambushing me!”

He didn’t move. Just curled tighter.

You squirmed, shoved, flailed. Nothing worked. The man had the tensile strength of a vine and the stubbornness of ten toddlers.

Eventually, you gave up and pouted at him. “You were mean yesterday.”

“I wasn’t trying to be,” he admitted cheerfully, his tone dangerously close to smug. “But in my defense, I expected my master to realize I have taste.”

You sulked harder. “You owe me.”

“Oh?”

“And I’m cashing it in later.”

“Of course, Master.”

“…Stop calling me that in the dorm.”

“No.”

You didn’t bring it up again. But the next day, as you passed that fourth-year in the hallway, he looked pale, shaken, and was clutching a charm pouch so tightly it might’ve become a fossil.

You glanced at Jade. He looked serene. Suspiciously serene.

“…What did you do?” you whispered.

“Me?” he smiled. “Nothing serious.”

You stared at him. He sipped his tea.

You decided you definitely weren’t asking.

But later, when he draped himself across your bed again and offered you a cup of calming lavender-citrus tea with a wink, you realized one thing:

You may be a borderline disaster of a mage, but Jade Leech was yours. And gods help anyone who forgot it.

You'd been holding back.

It wasn't that you were scared. Okay, no—you were absolutely terrified. Because the “what are we” question carried the weight of galaxies, of shifting dynamics and possible heartbreak, and you weren’t emotionally prepared to deal with that when you were already behind on your fungal studies and had just accidentally set your robe on fire trying to dry herbs.

Still, it was getting harder and harder to ignore the fact that Jade Leech, your familiar, your chaos partner, your maybe-something-more, had kissed you good morning again that day. Just a soft brush of lips while you were half-asleep, before you could even form coherent thought. And you’d just blinked at him, dazed and blushing and maybe a little dead inside.

And then that horrible, arrogant, no-chin-having senior from the advanced familiar studies track said—loudly—that if someone like Jade were his familiar, he’d “treat him properly” and “not waste potential on a person who still mistakes fertilizer for potion ingredients.”

You saw red. Possibly green. Maybe fuchsia, depending on how much of Jade’s tea was still in your system. But whatever the color, something snapped in your soul.

Because no one was taking Jade from you.

Not when he brewed you anti-headache tea with honey because he knew you hated bitter things. Not when he cleaned your desk with the gentleness of a man legally married to your organization system. Not when he smiled at you like you were a curious algae bloom he couldn't stop poking at. Not when he kissed your forehead, your temple, your nose, your cheek—like loving you was as natural as breathing.

So.

You marched.

You stormed into your dorm room where he was casually rearranging his jar collection (you didn’t ask, you'd learned not to the hard way.) and pointed an aggressively trembling finger at him.

“Be mine!” you shouted.

Jade blinked once. Then tilted his head, that infuriatingly pretty smile already forming. “I thought I already was, Master.”

Your brain combusted. You flailed. “Huh?!”

“I assumed the constant kissing and emotional intimacy might have been a clue.” His eyes sparkled. “Should I have drawn a diagram? I could make a chart—”

You launched yourself at him in mortified fury. “No charts!”

He caught you with practiced ease, laughed that horrible, lovely laugh of his, and kissed you again—this time slower, deeper, like he’d been waiting for this exact moment.

You melted. Fully collapsed like overwatered moss in his arms.

When you finally came up for air, dizzy and giddy and mildly offended at how good he was at this, he tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear and murmured, “Now that we’ve established that… shall we discuss what we’re calling the wedding mushrooms?”

You screamed into his shoulder.

He laughed again.

And that night, you dreamed of rings made of sea glass and mushrooms that glowed softly in the dark.

Masterlist

If Lilia broke up with you, who would you go for next? (Cannot be Diasomnia)

Lilia Vanrouge x reader 

DM Requester: @kimura-uzuri

Reader: Intended female audience but no use of pronouns nor description.

Warning(s): Yandere themes. Overuse of words. 

Word count: 6.9k 

You don't need to read part 1 or other versions to understand. ^^

All rights reserved. Do not steal/copy and paste and upload it anywhere.

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║Lilia Vanrouge║ Sweet and Naive Pt 2. / “Our” Happily Ever After

Being the oldest kingdom in existence, there were bound to have many legends and myths. One such tale was of the popular ones which entails a sleeping princess awoken by a charming prince whom had slayed the mighty dragon. The lesser known ones consist of a tale which was estimated to be at least a hundred or two years old that started off as a rumour.. That rumour involves a prestigious and most respected old noble house.. Vanrouge.

It is said that a beauty with an angelic voice could be heard in the far west side of the Vanrouge’s estate where those who had worked for the family before years ago had reported to have never been allowed in that area before they all simultaneously were fired one day by the lord of the house, Lord Vanrouge. 

When pressed about it, they revealed that the lord used to have a lover who occupied the entire west side of the house. When the lord had reported that they had gone on an adventure for who knows how long, he said that the west side won’t be needing servants to keep going to and fro from one side to the other for a while and thus, dismissed them. They are willing to bet that the west side of the building is much dustier than any other part of the house. 

From that stems questions from the common folks of the Valley of Thorns whom didn’t have any lesson of proper etiquette and who didn’t know any better, though the nobles at that time were curious as to the rumour spread around about the great general as well– but being nobility, they kept their mouth shut; not a single word uttered regarding the rumour of their beloved general whom lead the kingdom to many, many victories.. Even questions such as why couldn’t the lord keep it clean until his lover returned? Why did he suddenly tell everyone to keep away from the west side of the house where even when his lover went on a trip, they could now hear sobbing from that area instead of singing now that no one occupied that area?

Though many have reported this, they could easily be chalked up as the lord being saddened from the decision of his lover to go travelling and leaving him alone in such a big and lonesome house for who knows how many years and wanted to preserve the memories until he can create new ones when the love of his life returns.

Yes. Surely this must be the case. However, the lord had not said a single word regarding the rumours to edge it on further; adding more fuel to the fire, and remained completely stoned-faced as his reputation lived up to be so quickly, many thought of the whole rumour to be just that– a rumour and quickly left the minds of many people. Yes, many and not all. After all, what makes the world unique is that not everyone will completely agree on one thought. There are always those who would like to be the abnormality and firmly believe the rumour, even going as far as to tell a tale of them sneaking inside the estate and hearing sobs on the west side of the house. However, they couldn’t be too sure who’s tears were shed– if it were even crying that they heard– since they could not get any closer to the manor without alerting the lord of the place. 

And so, the rumour started to dwindle like a candle at its last few moments. It will be there but won’t be really brought up. 

This was good for Lilia as now, he wouldn’t have to deal with those pesky flies that lurked around the walls of his place and focus on taking care of his beloved. Ah yes, his beloved whom he told left to go on an adventure as it was her favourite thing to do.. The same lover who he is keeping well hidden in the west part of the house. 

Heels clicking against the stone cold floor, he made his presence known to you well before he opened the door. It had been a good few years since he left you in isolation up in your chambers, though that was not his choice and felt a little guilty about leaving you up there by yourself. He had duties that needed him to be at the castle at all times– which was raising the future king to be the best ruler that he and the people would accept and greatly respect .

“Little fairy, I’m back~!” His voice chirped the moment the doors opened. It has truly been so long that he is suddenly hit with the feeling of nostalgia the moment he sees your form from behind, remembering how much he missed and thought of you while at the castle. However, he doesn’t get a reply from you. 

Your head was pointed downwards, eyes obscured by the strands of hair in front of your face. Lilia rounds you until he is in front of you. “Hm?” Upon closer inspection, he sees that your eyes were closed and face very relaxed as if you were sleeping. 

He draws close and bends slightly, holding up your face by the chin, his long black– and highlighted strands– of hair brushes your skin. With his expression neutral, he looks upon your features, noting all the things that remained the same about you and the nothing that changed from the you in his memories before he left.

He smiles. O’ how his eyes soften every time his ruby-like eyes gaze upon your form and how his heart slightly accelerates when his fingers brush lightly on your soft face, a tinge of excitement passing through him. How are you able to bring out this side of him, a side that even he, himself, wasn’t aware of until he met you? 

He held your face as if it was a prized gemstone that would crack at any moment if held by careless hands. “Please wake up soon, little fairy,” he breathly says, lips closely brushing against your own, “It must be lonely in that little world of dreams of yours.” 

He chuckles. How stubborn could you possibly be? He has known you far longer than anyone, yet some things remain unknown to him such as your relentless pride. Even though it has been years of isolation, you not once look at him and seek comfort in another's warmth– of his embrace. 

—

You can feel it. The sudden shift of the air around you. The already still world of yours suddenly felt as if time had been forcibly stopped by a force far greater than it. You knew what this meant and just as you were starting to have a growing friendship with the mice that would occasionally come in through means you aren’t privy to. 

He was coming and every part of what was left of you suddenly felt heavy as if you’ve suddenly been turned to a statue; it grew stiff. Lilia Vanrouge– a name you loathe uttering aloud, yet feared at the same time– has returned. Great. Just great, you thought grumbly, just when life was going wonderful for you. 

How long has it been anyway, since you were sensory deprived of sight and touch– two important things that you need in order to know the world around you? You couldn’t walk either so what else were there to touch besides the floor and your shackles that bound your wrists and ankles? 

All that was left to know that you weren’t just an empty shell– something hollow with nothing residing inside– were your hearing and taste, and not to forget, your ability to smell things, though that was useless as there was nothing to smell except the dust that would accumulate over time if he didn’t come regularly to clean up your cell. 

He specifically left hearing just so he could chat away with you, though you don’t answer often but when you do, it would be snide remarks. He would chuckle and call you and your remark adorable with a tone you would use when talking to a child, despite you being hundreds of years old.  

You hear the clicking of his shoes draw to a halt right in front of your door momentarily before the doors make a loud, exhausted creak. It has been a while since those doors were open. The last time, you remember, was after he said his goodbyes with a peck on your lips. He said he would be away for a while and couldn’t bring you along, much to his dismay but very much to your delight– if it weren't for the fact that you were once again bound to the ground by chains that could only barely reach the door before pulling you back further into the room.

A warm breath fanned against your cool cheeks yet you remained still, pretending to be asleep. You didn’t want to face him, let alone talk to him. He hasn’t done anything to you since your captivity that would make him be deemed cruel and not worth talking to, but he was the reason you were shackled in the first place. 

He holds your face so he could take a look at you, cool touches sending shivers down your spine. He held your face so gently that if you didn’t know any better, you would have thought that it was just the wind gently brushing cupping your face. It’s eerily frightening how his touches can one moment be filled with a caring warmth as if you meant the world to become cold and covered in blood– your blood– smearing blood on your face when he holds you when you once almost perfectly escaped him. “Kufufu, you almost had me, little fairy.” The way he looked then scared you and since then, you hadn’t tried to escape. 

You hear shuffling around and the next thing you knew, you were lifted up. You could hear the beating of his heart, slow and rhythmic. With you in his arms, he makes his way to the door and leaves the room altogether– the room that you familiarize yourself with these past years he had to forcibly lock you in yet again. 

After a while of walking, he yet again opens another door. You aren’t sure where you are now despite counting the steps he took and corners you felt he turned. You felt like an outsider to this manor you once called home, not remembering the layout of the place. 

Carefully, he lies you down on a comfy mattress with your head propped up on some pillows. Afterwards, there was a long silence and some more. You wanted to take a peek, wondering if he was still standing beside you, but you were afraid. You became hyper aware of whenever he would draw near to your cellar or when he would stare at you so you didn’t need to look around to look for him. Not that you could even see him. 

Just then, another sound was made and you can feel the side of the bed where he stood slowly pressed downwards from whatever weight caused it. “Little fairy.” You can feel his breath on your lips again. He reaches a hand and cups your face and leans down so that your foreheads are pressing against each other. 

Your lips slightly quiver and you prayed that he hadn’t noticed so you can keep this act of sleeping for just a bit longer. Your already sharpened senses sharpened more as you could hear the rapid heartbeat of yours quicken and drum against your ears loudly. 

Why isn’t he saying anything more? What did he want? You just wanted him gone. 

A breathy half-chuckle reverberates from his throat before saying, “My dear, as much as I find your sleeping face adorable, this one doesn’t look so much as cute as the others.” Your jaws clench. He couldn’t have known– “You need to try to relax your face a bit more if you want to make me believe you.” 

There it is.

He chuckles in amusement when you still weren’t opening your eyes. “My dear, you can open your eyes now that I’m here.” There was no more pretending, in other words. 

Slowly, a pair of beautiful orbs stare back at him, Lilia Vanrouge, the Valley of Thorns’ beloved general. His smile widens. He could feel his heart quickening at the sight of those two eyes that he loves dearly as they were a part of you. 

You can see again..

Of course you can now that he was here, but you would rather go permanently blind if it meant you didn’t have to be greeted by his smile every time you opened them. That soft smile that holds so much love to you. That smile that deceives people– even yourself– and makes them think that you two were a match made in heaven, a cut in those red strings never severing your bond with each other.  

“Good morning, my love.” Something inside you feels like it wants to crawl up and out your mouth. It was sickening. He caresses the top of your head. You shot him a glare and shooed his hand away, though this did not result in any anger from him. “Kufufu, aren’t you adorable? Are you surprised to see me still looking the same, hm~?” 

He pulls back and straightens his posture, eyes still glued on your form that sat up slowly, bewildered at how your wrists were once more freed from the chains that bled in with your skin. You can move them again.. You can feel again. “It’s only been a short while, but it certainly has  felt like a millennia since I have seen you.” 

You look up into those blood-coloured eyes (you wonder if they were like that because of the amount of people he has killed) filled with adoration for you only. “Why are you back here?” You croaked, trying your best to voice your spite with the unused vocal cord. You don’t understand how someone who kills could have it in them to love. Just the thought that a monster was running amok in the disguise of a noble fae sends shivers down your spine. “Why? Kufufu, little fairy, this is my home. Of course I should be returning once in a while.” You wanted to say something but you didn’t know what so you continued to glare at him.

“You have been behaving well while I was gone, I presume, hm?” He smiles. You don’t answer, but once again, he doesn’t take it to heart and merely shrugs his shoulders. “You must be hungry, hm?” He stands up and dusts away the non-existent dirt on him then looking at you with that cheeky smile that you used to love. “Kufufu. Come, my dear, I wish to dine with you.” 

__

He has made you a favourite dish– or, tried to at least. At times like this when it comes to dining, you would often take the  however, you were not in the mood to entertain him nor to eat so you sat there, poking at the.. Questionable mush. 

“My dear..” The clanking of utensils halted when Lilia saw that you hadn’t eaten a single bite. “Is the food not good?” You wanted to say yes, but you weren’t sure how he would react. He’d always been unpredictable and during those times before you took on cooking duty, you would swallow hard at his cooking but never outright said it was the most disgusting thing that you have ever tasted. 

If he would just spend more time learning to cook rather than swordsmanship.. You wouldn’t have to endure this painstakingly crafted inedible food. 

“I’m–” You cleared your throat. It’s been a while since you’ve used your voice that it sounds so foreign to you. But you will never forget his voice that haunts your sleep at night. “I’m just not hungry right now..” You lied– err, half-lied. You were somewhat hungry but after looking at the food, you’d rather just starve yourself. 

“Hm~ Very well then,” he shrugs. “Now, you must have been curious as to what I was doing while I was away, yes?” No, not really, you wanted to say. In fact, life had been better than ever before during the times he was gone. “Kufufu, it has been.. A century now, yes? The young prince has grown to become quite the handsome young boy. Who would have thought that it would only take a century for a little fae to become so big.” He chuckles amusingly to himself. “In just about a few more decades, he’ll be able to attend Night Raven College–” You drowned him out. 

There was not much to think of, seeing as you’ve had little to explore and worry about, so you blanked out. “Ah! But don’t worry, little fairy, I have thought of you every day for the past century. I have told the young prince all about you as I could not help but miss you so,” he said, concluding the one-sided conversation. 

—

Spring came and went. Now, the fluffy, white ball that comes every winter covers the ground that flowers once sprouted happily. Those flowers, dead. How many years ago was it when he had come back? You did not know, but since then, he hasn’t left the house to go anywhere. “Fufu, the young prince had granted me the blessings of being able to go home to see you,” is all he said. 

Blinking away from staring off into space again, you avert your gaze from the window. If you had the choice to do embroidery or exploring, you would choose the latter without giving it a second to think. Sadly, you don’t so to pass time, you were doing, you guessed it, embroidery. 

“My dear, why don’t we go on a walk?” Lilia spoke from beside you on the sofa. “Fine,” you nod. 

And so, you were now bundled up with a winter cloak that protected you from head to toe from the sheer cold brought from the north, walking side-by-side with Lilia in the garden. “It’s a good thing that those pesky flies have long gone bored of those tales,” Lilia said suddenly. “Who knows what they might do to you if they had gotten their hands on you.” He once again reminds you that you belonged here– in this home– with him. But you knew better than to believe those lies that he whispers o’ so sweetly. If you had been a bit younger when he met you, you would have believed him to a fault, but luckily you weren’t. 

So now, you were waiting for an opportunity to escape his clutches. Was it a mistake on his part for you to be roaming around? Perhaps. But you aren’t going to use this bit of freedom to sit idly by and be his trophy. 

Slowly, you’ve gathered things you thought you might need in order to leave and survive outside all without his knowing. You weren’t a child anymore, you knew that the world is not as magical as those written in books, but you also know that there are still good in the world. Though you had only had a few centuries to yourself before you had met Lilia, you were old enough to know things. 

“Little fairy, what seems to be occupying your mind, hm?” Lilia asks when he had noticed you were awfully quiet and not trying to pick a fight with him. In fact, you’ve been keeping to yourself a lot these past few days. “Nothing,” you answered snappingly. For appearance sake, you occasionally threw tantrums. “I don’t want to walk with you anymore.”

With a huff, you turned on your heels to return inside the manor. Lilia sighs defeatedly. He admires how you’re so relentless in being cold towards him. It was cute in a way. But a few centuries had passed and so you had grown (though not physically– you were as youthful as you were those years ago), yet not matured. You were still acting very much like a spoiled child. It was tiring the old fae. “I suppose this is my fault for giving her the world..” He mumbles, watching your back retreat inside. But, a smile soon after tugged at his lips lightly, “No matter.” If this is the price for keeping you caged, he does not mind. 

You’ll be his and his alone. 

—

The first day of spring was drawing nearer by the day. You could tell by the early spring flowers that were slowly sprouting in the garden as well as the mushy snow that were beginning to melt away It would be spring, you decided, to make your escape. And one night, when you believe that Lilia is fast asleep beside you, you quietly climb out of bed, carefully moving his arms on your hips and putting a pillow underneath it. 

Not wasting time as you feared for the sun rising soon, you walked out of your shared bedroom to a random door somewhere down the halls. It was so random that Lilia would not have bothered to look inside. But, just in case, you did hide your stuff inside a large vase of flowers in a far off corner of the room. 

There it was. Your satchel with everything you’ve managed to gather as well as light clothing– not those frilly, heavy clothes that he’d dress you up in– to change into and boots that you used to wear for horse riding. If you changed in the room, you were sure he would hear the ruckus you were making and wake up. 

To leave no trace of your escape route, you took your nightgown– it was thin enough to be small when folded– and put it inside your satchel. You took the kitchen window to escape, sure that the doors would have traps laid out for you should you dare try anything at night. He always had believed you were gullible but you let him think so anyway. Sure, he had the thinking of a long-time general, but he had not the mind of yours. He relied too much on his strength and magic whereas you were stripped of magic and lacked the other. He had nothing to fear since he is aware of his abilities to capture you, but because of that, he did not use his head too often.  

The kitchen window was a small fit, but you managed to fit through. 

Not looking back at the house, you covered your hair with your cloak. With the black colour of your cloak and the darkness of the night, you slipped away seamlessly. 

You were not going to stop walking until you made it outside the gates of the Valley of Thorns. No way. This entire kingdom was his domain where he had the most power and puppets to dispose of to search for you. It would also be easy to catch you here since you had an accent of a fae that’s not from the kingdom.  

Once you were outside, he could do nothing to chase after you since by morning, he would have to go back to the kingdom. Yes, you watched many seasons come and go knowing that one day, he’ll have to go back to his prince. You remembered once where you were sitting across Lilia and rolled your eyes, crossing your arms over your chest, thinking that this prince was probably as no good as his guardian since it was him raising the prince. You pitied the boy since it was Lilia who was taking care of him. He would have been a great king if he was under someone else’s care. 

—

The sun was high above you when you were two villages away. You were a bit tired. You hadn’t stopped walking until you knew you were far, but it was nothing too draining for a fae such as yourself who had plenty of energy set aside due to not having anything to do. 

Soon, you were standing in front of the gates to– Rose Kingdom? Now, where had you heard of that name before? As if on cue, you suddenly recalled a fairytale that you read in Lilia’s library when you were younger and curious of the other places outside your little world. It was a story of a girl who fell into a hole where she met all sorts of strange creatures before meeting the Queen dressed in red. What was the story called again? Something Wanderland? Wonderland? It went along those lines, you shrug. 

This is one of the many kingdoms that humans built for people like them just as how the Valley of Thorns created theirs for faes like them. 

You looked around you, amazed at the lively and bright atmosphere. There were humans conversing with each other with smiles on their faces. They dressed differently than faes of the Valley, their colours more vibrant– or could it be just you? Everything seems much brighter here. Everywhere you went, every turn you turn, there were humans and not an ounce of violent tendency hinted at in them. 

Walking further inside the kingdom, you were too engrossed to notice that a little boy was running in your direction, unaware of you since it seemed as if he was running away smilingly, presumably playing a game with children his age. Small as he might be, he had caused you to fall on your bottom. 

“Ow..” The boy rubs his head, looking up at what he had run into and lets out a loud. “Oh! S-sorry! I didn’t see you, I’m sorry!” He had stood up and walk to be at your side with worries eyes. 

“It’s okay,” you said, dropping a hand down from your head. The racking had stopped and you were unharmed. 

The boy watches you before letting out another– this time, loud– gasp that draws attention to some people. “Your ears..!” Your eyes wandered to your ears and in an instant, you felt your heart drop into your stomach. Your hood fell off and your ears were out on full display.  You shot up quickly and covered your ears with the hood, but it was too late. “You’re a fae!” He shrieks. At that, the crowded streets that were full of chatter stilled and all the people stared at you. There were looks of fear, panic, and outrage. 

“What..” You gulped. “What about them..?” 

“You’re a disgusting fae! You ruined us!” A burly man shouts. “N-no! I, I didn’t! I’m harmless, I promise–” “That’s what they all say! We had a peace treaty but your kind attacked us!”

“What are we waiting for? Capture that filthy creature!” Another shouts. 

“Let’s teach it a lesson!”

“Hang it!”

You begin to back up as they close in on you. You tried to look for a way out but there was a wall behind you and you didn’t have any magic to defend yourself, not that you have it in your heart to harm magicless, innocent humans even if you were a bit stronger in brute strength. 

“DIsgusting fae!” 

The man who hurled the first insult was at your back and hooked his arms under yours so you could do nothing but wait for the oncoming punches and kicks thrown to you. You lurch forward at the sudden impact of a fist to your stomach. 

They did not give you time to understand what happened to you before the man who held you pushed you harshly and with a kick to the middle of your back, you fell on the ground. Instinctively, you had shielded your head with your arms as they continued to stomp on you, probably hoping you’d die.

“Hurry up and let’s burn it at the stakes!” One of them shouted aloud and to which many others voiced their agreements. “This is what it gets for creatures like them who burned our old village!” 

You were hoisted up and dragged hershey by the arm. You have to escape, you think. You can’t be here.

With the strength of a fae, you managed to pry yourself from the clutches of these monsters and ran. Where? You did not know, but as long as you kept running, you will be safe from these people. 

It was only when you grew weary, did you stop to take a breather somewhere deep into the woods. By now, it was evening and probably time for supper. At just the thought of dinner, your stomach growled. If I was still in the manor.. You would have dinner served fresh and warm and won’t have a single thing to worry about hunger.

Luckily, you did pack bread and cookies for times like this. But, not right now. You had to preserve what little food you brought and continued walking. Just a bit more, you see warm hues of orange and yellow.. A light. 

You drew closer to it and saw that there was a small house deep in the woods. It looks warm.. You rested a hand on a tree, mesmerised at the alluring colours of the light.. And the smell of food? 

Before you could do anything, you heard a click behind you and then something cold pressed behind the back of your head. “You, who are you?” A man’s voice said from behind. “You better have a good reason to be lurking in the dark or I’ll blow your brains out.”

“I.. I’m lost..” you answered. “That’s what they all say,” the man said and pressed the item closer to your head. “I, I swear, sir.. I really am lost.” 

“Oh my sevens! Dan, what are you doing!?” A woman’s voice drew yours and the man– who’s probably the owner of that name. The woman hurriedly walked towards you two and assessed the situation and noticed your young features and panicked. “Goodness, Dan, you can’t just put a gun to someone’s head like this. This here is a child!” 

“I’m..” “Not right now,” she shoots the man a glare. “Sweetie, why are you here?” 

“I’m lost,” you repeated the same answer. And once again, your stomach growls. “Oh dear.. You must have been lost for quite a while..” The woman guesses, “Come inside; it’s getting dark and cold– I don’t want you wandering around after dark. There are things that love to play after dusk..” She says cryptically. You didn’t notice the darkness that loomed over her eyes for just a second. 

Inside, you were sat down at a dining table and the woman– who introduced herself as Lilith– prepared dinner for all three of you. Well, four if you counted the baby growing in her stomach. She had told you of the baby and you would have never guessed that she was pregnant if she hadn’t told you. 

She mostly leads the conversion with you while her husband mainly listens as he eats. “Where are you from?” She asks. “I’m from a faraway village..” you answered. If you were to tell her of the village of faes where you were born and raised, she might freak out too. At that thought, you subconsciously pull your hood to hide your ears. “Oh? Then what brought you all the way here?” She pushes about your motives. “I wanted to travel..” 

“Hmm, it’s quite dangerous around this time to travel,” she says with a concerned look on her face. “I heard from the people of the kingdom that a war might break out soon.. And if you’re travelling by foot, then you might run into some monsters. It’s dangerous for a child such as yourself.”

“It’s fine..” you say, not sounding reassuring. 

After dinner, Lilith had told you of the room that you’ll stay in. It wasn’t even comparable to that of the rooms in the manor– it was smaller than that of a servant’s room. Nonetheless, you were grateful. 

“Oh, but dear, don’t you want to remove that cloak of yours?” Lilith asks as she passes you something to change into for the night. Your body stiffened. “N, no.. It’s okay..” 

She eyed you concerningly but let it go. “Alright..” And so, you went your way and washed yourself up before sitting on the bed, drying your hair. There was bruising from the man who had gripped you earlier but you should heal in no time. 

It was peaceful here, you thought. These people don’t mind being so far out here, isolated by everything else. 

You imagined the warmth of your bed and how comfy it would be right now.. 

Before you could sulk anymore, you hear the sound of shoes clicking against the floorboards coming closer. “Is there, [Name], is there anything else–” The voice of Lilith drew closer and before you could even reach for your cloak, she had already opened the door. You felt your heart drop as the world stilled. The wide-eyed look that Lilith gave you could only mean one thing.. 

“Oh dear.. Where was I?” she asked, blinking a couple of times. “Sorry, I was just surprised by how pretty your hair is.. And those ears..” Her eyes trail to the side of your face. “You must be a fae.” 

You waited for her to shriek or become hateful and throw punches at you, but none of those came. “Anyway, I was wanted to know if you needed anything?” Surprised, you couldn’t utter a sound so you shook your head. With a nod, she smiled and was about to leave until you stopped her, “You’re.. You’re not going to hit me?” 

Once again, her eyes widened. “Goodness, no! Why would i?” she asks, her brows drawing closer to each other. “Because you’re a fae? Goodness, no.” She moves gracefully across the room to sit with you and hold your hands in hers. “I don’t care what you are– be it a human or a fae. To me, we are all equal.”

She strokes your hands with her thumbs. “Dan and I moved all the way out here to live in tranquillity because honestly, this war that’s about to break is all pointless and silly.. I don’t want my baby to grow up fearing and hating people.”

At the end of her words, the tears that were threatening to fall, broke loose. You cried for the first time that night and in a long time. She hugs you and soothes your back. Afterwards, you went to sleep soundly, grateful to know that not all creatures outside are evil. 

—

Later that night, your ears sharpened and yourself, alerted. You heard the sound of the wood underneath you creak. A bit more slow creaking sounded and now, your eyes shot open and in one swift motion you sat up and looked over your shoulder.  

There he was, Dan, his face illuminated by the moon’s light. In his hands was.. A gun. “W, what are you doing?” You stammered. “You’re a fae. He said, eyes holding onto anger. You stuttered to say anything.

“You’re a filthy fae!” He said, this time, louder. “Please, don’t shoot! Lilith would–”

“Oh? What about me?” Just at the door, Lilith stood leaning on the frame. You could feel your stomach churn and your head dizzy. “Lilith.. I thought you–” 

“I what? That you don't actually despise your kind, do you?” She laughed. “I thought you all were smart. I guess not.”

She walks to you, the moon showing her in all her glory. “Creatures like you are destructive, manipulative.. You used that silver tongue of yours to kill my father and my friends!” She grabs a handful of your hair, making you wince. “It was just Dan and I who survived that nightmare..” She pressed her forehead against yours and it was then that you noticed the malice that hid within them. Her eyes were hateful like Dan’s but held crazed. 

“No.. No, no please.. I didn’t, I didn’t do anything–” You were crying and pleading to them, on your knees on the bed and hands clenched into a prayer. You can’t just die right here just when you have finally.. Ran away from home. 

She held you like that before roughly pushing you back. She steps back before motioning towards Dan. “Go on. Shoot this creature.”

He was right..

Lilia was right all along about the outside world.. 

It’s honestly laughable how you were acting so coldly towards Lilia and held so much resentment when in truth, he really was just shielding you away from the truth of reality– that the reality will come and hurt you and be too much for you to handle. 

These people– these monsters, are what he was protecting you from and you thought of it as him being controlling. 

“Lilia..” You sobbed.

Just as you said his name, the window behind you– on the other side of the bed where Lilith and Dan stood– was smashed and the glass pieces fell onto the floor. “What the–”

“Kufufu. I’ve found you, my little fairy.” At the familiar sound of a chuckle, you whip your head to the side and just over your shoulders, Lilia stood in his full height with a dark glint in his eyes. “Lil.. Lilia..!” You stood up from the bed and went to hug him, burying your face into his chest. The sobs that you let out were incomparable to when you were pleading for mercy. 

“Shh, hush now, my dear,” he strokes your head lovingly as if there was no imminent danger. “You’re safe.”  

The click of a gun drew Lilia to stop his actions and let his eyes wander to the couple who were in the room with you. “You..!” Lilith shrieks, a look of horror and familiarity dawns on her face. “Oh? Do you know me?” Lilia blinks owlishly. 

“How dare you show yourself here, you murderer!” “Me? A murderer? Oh dear, you must clarify for me, for you see, I am getting quite old,” he says amusingly. 

“You–” “Ah-ah.. Not a step closer. One step and this house will go down,” he warns. Lilith looks towards her husband who got the memo. In one swift motion, he raises his shotgun once more and aims it towards the fae, pulling the trigger. But nothing. No fire was sounded nor cries of agony. 

“Kufufu, you must have forgotten that we faes possess great power. Your weapon has long been disarmed of any bullets.” The two look at the gun in disbelief. When? How? 

“My dear, have they harmed you in anyway?” He cups your face and makes you look up at him so he could check. You shook your head but he inspected anyway and found your face to be slightly bruised from the kicking your face dealt with earlier at the Kingdom of Roses. He frowns. “Then what is this? You can’t be suggesting to lie to me to save these humans who tried to kill you?” You shook your head, “This was.. From other humans.. At a nearby Kingdom..” Yes, you’re telling everything that has happened, finding a boost of confidence. Now that Lilia is here, he’ll surely do everything in his power to cast judgement for you. 

Lilia’s eyes narrow a bit and a frown casts upon his lips. He was upset, but he tries his best to act calm in your presence. I mean, he has just earned your good graces; there’s no way he’ll lash out and become a monster to you once more. 

He lets out a deep breath and returns to the current problem at hand. “Anyway, do pardon me and my little fairy here, but we have to be returning home now,” Lilia shrugs and lifts you up into his arms bridal style and coolly walks past the two and out of the house through the front door. 

When you two got to a safe distance, a snap throughout the forest like a droplet in the still water echoed and just as you were going to wonder, Lilia spoke in that velvety voice of his, “My dear, do not look. Come, wrap your arms around me and sleep.” Obeying his words for the first time in a long time, you relaxed in his arms, too tired to refute. But, you did hear something.. Like a crackling of wood in a fireplace and further drowned out by the flames, screams. Still, you did not look back as Lilia whisks you away. 

“I love you, Lilia.” With that, you bury your face into his chest and fall asleep. 

Unbeknownst to you, Lilia smiles wildly– crazily. In the far distance, the house burns. You did not look back, you did not ask questions, nor did you throw a tantrum and run away from him. “Once you’re truly awake, you’ll be at home and on your bed, not questioning the reality before you..” Lilia says when he has ascertained that you are in deep slumber. Not once had you questioned how he got to you.

In the distance, the once bright flames that roared as it burns the house disappear into the dark. The cries of anguish stopped and the two couples left their suit in dark matter. The house itself and the surrounding area turned into shadow-like particles and broke away from the scene. 

Lilia laughs maniacally before he finds himself again and calms down. He looks down at you, loving eyes tracing every part of your face with a smile that hid everything that just happened.

“I love you too, little fairy.”

~♡~ 

All rights reserved. Do not steal/copy and paste and upload it anywhere.

Lilia Vanrouge is a dilf. That's it. That's today's post.

I am the anon of Yan Diasomnia's last request (Tumblr does not allow me to put URL). I'm sorry if I confused it with my request, I promise to be more specific and pay more attention next time. It's fine if you want it to be a one-shot, whichever is more comfortable for you^^ I have a favoritism toward Lilia, so it's fine if you just want to write about him

Lilia Vanrouge x reader

Reader: Female pronounce/titles used.

Warning(s): Yandere themes. Overuse of words.

Word count: 3.9k

Additional Note: This is before current-day Lilia and thus, will have no resemblance to the Lilia we know today.

All rights reserved. Do not steal/copy and paste and upload it anywhere.

—

Message to requester: Hello! Oh, no, you're good! In fact, I am feeling ashamed that I lack the brain to do your headcanon as well as future ones.. If you want the other Diasomnia members as well, you can go ahead and request them. I don’t mind!

Edit: Sorry that this took too long! I really wanted to give it my all on this one. ^^

—

║Lilia Vanrouge║ Sweet and Naive

It was no question that faes were powerful, dominant beings. No matter what size, shape, or form they take, they're terrifying creatures of the dark that one could even call a monster.. Though I suppose that name is reserved for faes in the Valley of Thorns.

There are indeed faes- though few and far between- that lay low outside the ever-dark kingdom. Weaker creatures, they were, compared to those inside the kingdom, but nevertheless, were faes in the end. Much were these creatures pure and rid of sins of war and bloodshed, though this meant they did nothing but cower in hiding of their own little world built just for faes like them.

But that just meant they were much naive to just how terrifying the monsters that lurked outside their abode. Pure.. Naive.. And vulnerable. You were all that and much more.

Though you know how to fear those of a higher standing than you– those of stronger power than you– you couldn’t help but want to explore the surrounding areas of your little village that you were all so familiar with by now. The areas where the stronger faes run amok. But you were sure that you wouldn’t be encountering any faes from the Valley of Thorns and it held true for a while until one fateful encounter when you did your daily exploration.

You went a little further this time and stopped short, out of breath from a moment of awestruck as you stared upon the crystal waters of a lake. Your voice was stuck in your throat when you walked around the lake, looking at it at every angle so that you could preserve such a sight in your memories and confirm your doubts of it not actually looking so magical.

“Oh!” You were stopped when you felt your foot hit something which also made you tear your eyes away from the lake. You look down and gasp at the sight of a man with long black hair with pink streaks, covered in blood.

Panic kicked in and you looked at your surroundings frantically. What were you supposed to do? Was this man dead? If he’s not, you should bring him back to the village and get him treated! But wait, how did he end up here? Was there someone looking for him, worried about his safety? Or worse, was there someone out to finish him? Then, you can’t just leave him here where he’d be found soon enough!

Hurriedly, you got the man’s arm around your shoulder and dragged him, though it wasn’t an easy task since he was much heavier than you had originally thought and that you had to take a longer route home to avoid the people and children. You didn’t want to be seen carrying a bloodied man.

When you finally closed the door behind you, you slumped the man on your couch. You stared long and hard at his unconscious state. What to do now? “Oh! Right..” You crouched down by the couch and extended your hands out, a faint glow followed by warmth emitted from your hands. Though your kind was that of a weaker fae, you were still a fae nonetheless and strong power was something that courses through you naturally (although you did have to learn the fundamentals of using magic).

While you sat there in silence, the sun’s light cascaded upon him, and if there wasn’t any blood on him, it would make him look like a beauty simply in deep slumber. He’s pretty, you thought, and your heart raced at the sight of his face. Where did he come from anyway?

Your eyes then caught something glinting and averted your attention to his collar area. There was a beautiful red broach with silver linings around it with bat wings at the side. That was when it hit you; your eyes widened at the realization that this man probably wasn’t someone from the village based on his attire. It looked a little luxurious despite it being covered in dried blood. Your village didn’t tailor clothing like that. But if they did, it would be for those of important status. And his face! You were sure to recognize such a well-kept, porcelain-like face that was free of blemishes in your village. His face practically glowed and anyone passing by would have him etched into their minds.

Your heart now raced for another reason. You were in fear. Was he a fae from the Valley of Thorns? Your hands began to shake. What was he doing near your village? You gulped. Was he sent here to wipe the village out?

As you began to ask questions in your head, you didn’t realize that the man had woken up. Normally, he would have grabbed the person in question and break their arms immediately, but the warmth– from what he knew was magic– gave him a sense of comfort and it was as if it was telling him that whomever was beside him meant no harm.. That was until he noticed that the magic was wavering a little.

He grabbed your hand. A little bit on the harsher side, but he couldn’t help it as it was nature to him. You jolted a bit, snapping back to reality and looked at the man. He was awake. He sat up and and scanned your home until they returned back to you. His crimson eyes were unreadable to you but it felt as if he was piercing right through your very skull.

“A, ah..!” You felt your throat run dry. What should you do? Should you knock him out and drag him back to where you found him? No. That probably wouldn’t be possible and even if you did manage to knock him out and return him to where you found him, he’s sure to find this village. It wasn’t that hidden away after all.

You two were basked in silence as one– him– stared at the other with a terrifying look while the other– you– looked back in fear.

He let’s go of your wrist.“Have I scared you, my lady? My apologies.” When he spoke, it sounded as if it was laced with velvet. He is not sure where he is, but he should act in accordance of noble etiquette, and as politely as he can so that he doesn’t terrify you to the point you can’t answer his questions.

“O, oh! No, not at all! I was just surprised you had woken up so quickly!” You stammered, going quiet right after. There was another silence. You looked down at your hands that lie on top of your lap. As beautiful as his eyes were– like gems– it was a bit terrifying. Was he not a fan of talking? Well, you weren’t the best at coming up with things to talk about.. But what if he is expecting something from you? You’ve heard how scary faes from the Valley are. “Um, I’m sure you must be exhausted.. Is there something you’d like to drink or perhaps eat? I’ll prepare you a bath too!” You looked back at him. If he is being waited upon for long, you feared that he’ll have your head.

“I neither need any of those.. Though could you answer my question instead?” he asks patiently. His face showed no change from the moment he woke up; it was void of any expression. “Of course!” You nod your head readily. “Is this the Valley of Thorns?”

Last he remembered, he was in the middle of a battlefield. He was sent out alone to clear a small camp of enemies– presumably an ambush team. It was nothing he couldn’t handle by himself, but they certainly fought back till their last breath. He closed his eyes and recalled the men’s faces that he’s sure to forget soon enough. They managed to put a scratch on him but it wasn’t enough to make him kneel. At the end of it, he stood victor, the blood on his clothes weren’t his and it proof that he had finished his task.

Shortly afterwards, he stumbled upon a lake a few metres away from the camp. It drew his attention and that was where he decided to rest, closing his eyes.

You shook your head. “I see.. Then I assume that this is that village of faes..” He said, mumbling the last part to himself, though you could hear it clearly enough. This confirmed that he was a fae from the Valley.

While he was thinking to himself, you scanned him with your eyes. Though you knew he was a fae of the Valley and that he was much more stronger than you and have been taught to fear them, you couldn’t help but be a bit curious of him and the world outside the village.

You were ever the curious one who always got scolded for going even a metre away from the village as a child. “Um, if I could ask you a question as well..” You weakly speak, almost in a whisper. He looks at you side-eyed. Though he said nothing, you knew he was waiting. You looked at your hands briefly. They were beginning to become clammy. You took a deep breath. “What.. What is it like outside?” When your eyes returned to look at him, he momentarily forgot how to breathe. Your eyes swirled of stars who yearned to step outside their galaxy that they’ve known all through their life. It was a look that newborn children would have. So curious and hopeful of the world before them, not knowing the dark reality of it.

He can’t help but be a bit bitter. O’ how wonderful it is to remain oblivious. It makes him recall his childhood days. The days where there was never a day where he truly felt like he had the childish curiosity. He was a child who knew too much for his age. A child born in a household trained to be at the right-hand side of the throne.

You saw the conflicting look on his face that finally morphed from something from being blanked and panicked. “Oh! Y, you don’t have to tell me!” you quickly said, flailing your hand in front of your face. He nodded and remained quiet. You were a bit disappointed that you couldn’t get an answer, but it seemed that he didn’t have an answer to your question anyway.

“Anyway, why don’t you rest here for today? You look a little pale and unwell..” You suggest with careful words and changing the topic. “I’ll make you dinner since it’s about that time already.”

The rest of that day blurred past. You cooked him a meal and prepared him a bath, which during that time, you washed his clothes and offered clothes from your late father which barely fitted his muscular build.

–

“Thank you for allowing me to have stayed the night, my lady,” he said, now standing in front of the lake where you had found him unconscious the day before. “It’s no problem!” You smiled, though both of you knew it was forced. Not because you feared him, but because there was a tad bit of emptiness. You stayed up late into the night, wondering what is out there that the world had to offer. You knew of the monsters that lurked out there but you were a fae! Faes are strong beings and you are confident in your abilities. Though you were a weaker fae, you were a fae in the end.

He noticed the longing in your eyes. He felt a little pitiful, but he knew that it was best for you to remain where you are. Though your village might not know of it, faes of the Valley of Thorns know of your village and have protected it along with theirs. A bit laughable seeing as they’ve allowed you to live free of sins and carry the burden of war, yet you were taught to fear them.

He was about to turn and leave without a word but was stopped short when he heard you whisper out to him. He looks at you and you said it louder this time. “[Name]..” You said. He was confused so you speak again. “My name.. It’s [Name].” You said it with a bit more confidence as you stared right into his eyes.

His eyes widened momentarily and then narrowed. “My lady, don’t you know not to give a monster your name?” he asked. “But you aren’t a monster. You’re like me– a fae,” you said which caught him by surprise.

He stood there for a moment. Your heart raced, feeling a bit anxious. But then you see the corner of his lips curl upwards. “Lilia Vanrouge. It has been a pleasure meeting you, my lady.” He turned on his heels and walked away, leaving you no time to say anything else.

You knew what it meant by giving your name away and it was precisely what you wanted.

Or what you wanted at that time.

–

"A much curious little fairy, you are.” A deep voice makes its way to your ears. You couldn’t see where the owner of the voice was, but you knew he was behind you not too far away. Lilia Vanrouge. That name used to make your heart flutter and take you to the skies, but now your heart beats rapidly out of fear.

Before he came, you were quietly sobbing, locked away in some dark room. You couldn’t see anything but darkness. You were scared of the dark just as you have been taught to be afraid of the dark that the monsters outside your village lurk. You didn’t hear him come in so you stiffened when you realized that you were no longer alone.

“Do you regret it now, my little fairy?” He said, staring at your back, your ankles and wrists were chained to the cold stone floor. You remained silent and prayed that you didn’t make a peep. “Fufufu, always the shy one..” He sounded much more childish than what you remembered all those years ago and more carefree. However, he hadn’t changed his mind one bit with you after locking you up somewhere in the Valley of Thorns.

You said nothing and closed your eyes and tried to tune out his voice. “Come now, there is no need to be so shy, little fairy. We’ve known each other for a good hundred years now after all.” A hundred years? You doubt that it had been that short, but your judgement was clouded as you haven’t seen light for so long. You didn’t know how long the sun had risen and set to know.

Lilia went silent and his smile dropped. The next thing you knew, his breath was right against your ears, his chest pressing against your back. “Little fairy, why don’t you talk, hm?” When you persist in staying mute, he roughly grabs your cheeks and turns it towards him. He audibly clicked his tongue. “I’ve been gone for so long and you have nothing to say to me? I can’t say that I am not a bit hurt by that.”

He wants you to say something? Fine then. “I hate you.” You muttered under your breath angrily. You can’t see him, but you did your best to show a look of disgust for the fae. “Oh? You hate me? How curious..” He blinked owlishly. “You were the one that threw themselves at a stranger shamelessly for hope to see the outside world. You were the one that gave their name out so willingly.”

You bit the bottom of your lips. If you knew what he would have become, you wouldn’t have given out your name. “Weren’t you taught to fear the monsters that lurked in the darkness? And didn’t I say that I was a monster? Do you regret it now?”

You forcefully pried your face from his grasp and remained silent once more. He was annoyed, you were sure of it but you couldn’t care less. But he was right with what he said and you were very much regretful. “Insisting on playing mute with me, I see. Hmph. Very well then.. But,” he sighs as if he was disappointed. You knew he wasn’t really. “I was going to give you your sight back.. But that was only if you cooperated with me.”

“I also wanted to reverse the paralysis spell on your legs so that I could stroll with you in the garden.. You do need to work your legs once in a while..” He mumbled. “Oh, but I suppose that is not needed since I am sure to put the spell back on you. I can’t fully trust you yet to use your legs without me around.”

“A shame, truly,” he said and sighs deeply once more. “Oh! Before I could forget, I was maybe also thinking of reversing the paralysis spell on your hands. Sweet little Silver has never been once carried by his mother.. Oh, but don’t get me twisted. I don’t plan to return your magic to you. After all, you haven’t apologized for burning my hair.”

“Hm~ That reminds me, the young prince did the same thing to me when he was young. To do such a thing at a young age? Ah, I do still feel proud.” He waits with you in silence for a while before giving up. “Very well then. I suppose that you need some more time.”

As soon as he leaves the room, you begin to sob. Where did everything go wrong? You recalled the days of you waiting eagerly for him to return after parting with him that fateful day and when he did, you gained a bit of confidence to start a conversation with him. He soon opened up and told you stories that you’ve never heard before.

He took you to visit his home, Valley of Thorns. You remembered being fearful of the other faes but wasn’t as terrified knowing that you had Lilia with you. All was well so where did things go wrong? Your sobs broke out into loud cries. Your broken cries that were laced with sadness. Where was the man you later fell in love with secretly?

–

“Lilia, I want to go outside..” you said one normal day. The fae with crimson eyes looked up from his book and looked at you questioningly. Aren’t you already outside, he silently asked himself. Your eyes were glued to something outside, your chin resting on top of your palm. Well, perhaps it wasn’t something outside the window that you were looking at, rather, looking past the Valley and at the vast land outside of it.

He had taken you out of the village after the war and promised to protect you during those times. You must have gotten too relaxed since he was protecting you and have forgotten this world was not welcoming to children like you. “I’ve already seen enough of your home and I want to know what else is out there.” Your eyes tear away from the window and face him with a hopeful gleam in your eyes. “It’s too dangerous for you.” O’ how he hates the stars that danced in your eyes. Haven’t you learned enough? “Haven’t you seen me covered in blood? Do you think you can face what is out there?” He was starting to become forceful with his tone.

“W, well I am still a fae–” “[Name].” Though he did not yell, his eyes stared at you with a terrifying, glow of red. He was angry. You noticed that he never liked it when you brought up about travelling to other places but never knew why. “T, then why don’t you come with me? That way, I’ll be safe!” He sighs at your persistence. It was starting to get annoying, frankly. “You know that I can’t do that. The queen and king need me and so will the newborn prince.”

You huffed and crossed your arms. You went silent and he assumed that you were finally done so he returned to reading his book. “This is not fair, Lilia! You promised me that you’d take me to see outside!” You said after a while, your brows knitting together in anger. “Not fair?” He stops at a word and looks at you. “Didn’t I already give you your wish?”

“But I want to see what outside is like!” His eyes narrow. “Didn’t you say the same thing back when you were in your village? So what, you will go to another place and demand to see ‘outside’ as well?” He stands up and walks over to you with a hint of anger in his face. He places his hands on both sides of the chair’s armrest, trapping you like a caged bird. “Do you wish to see ‘outside’? Then, I’ll give you a taste of what ‘outside’ is like.”

After he said those words, he teleports the both of you to a place unknown. You two were surrounded by trees from all sides and up ahead was what you assumed to be the remains of a village. “If you can last here until dinner then I’ll allow you to travel.” You were about to ask what he meant but when you turned to look behind you, he was gone.

It was like it was a perfect timing for him since not a moment too soon, you heard uncontrolled growls. When you look back, you see many eyes staring at you just beyond the entrance of the rundown village.

“Li, Lilia..!” You called out his name but there was no response. Had he truly left you there and returned home? You couldn’t face these monsters– there were too many of them!

You quickly found yourself stumbling as you ran from the beasts that chased you. You were overexerting your body’s limit from both stamina and magic power. You collapsed, your legs giving out. You were sure he left you to die because you angered him. You cried out for his name once more, ugly tears flowing down your muddied cheeks.

“You couldn’t manage to last 15 minutes by yourself. My, and to think you wanted to travel.” You looked up and see the fae look down at you with a feigned pitiful look. He kneels down and grabs your chin. “Do you see now, little fairy? You are no match for this twisted world.”

The next thing you knew, you were chained in the very room that you were in now with your vision gone and having both hands and legs paralyzed. But before it all happened, you did try to run back home. It was a fight you never had a chance of winning really. “This is for your safety.” He once said to you when you woke up one day in sheer panic and fear when you couldn’t see or move.

–

On the other side of the door, stood Lilia. He hadn’t simply walked away after closing the door, no. It truly aches his heart to see you broken like that. But now you know that the world wasn’t so nice, especially to those who don’t know a thing about the real truth of it.

“There are monsters who can disguise themselves, little fairy, and giving out your name is equivalent to selling your soul to them.. I’m sure you were taught that back home, no? Fufufu. Ever the naive one, I see.”

~♡~

Pspspsp. I don't really like the ending, but it was getting a bit too long.

I have a question regarding Twst English version. So, as you may or may not already know, I have the JP version. I downloaded the English one that's released today.. Do I have to restart my progress or is there a way to share my progress for both versions?

Hm, I don't know if I should choose Lilia again but for the English version or go for Malleus.. Anyway, I'm feeling excited all over again.

You can now download the English version of Twisted Wonderland (though I heard it doesn't play until 1/20)! 🎉

Happy playing~!

║Jade Leech║ Do You Love Me? / Geraniums

Jade Leech x reader / slight Floyd Leech x reader if you squint

Reader: Gender-neutral/not mentioned

Warning(s): characters might be a little out of character

Word count: 11.6k

Character count: 61.9k

Angst with comfort , but then with a tiny bit more angst.

All rights reserved. Do not steal/copy and paste and upload it anywhere.

—

Note:

I’m still quite new to the Twisted Wonderland community so I do apologize sincerely that the characters might seem out of the norm.

My first contribution to Twisted Wonderland.

Also, is it spelled Grim or Grimm? The wiki says Grim but if I remember correctly, the brothers’ surname is spelt Grimm, if ‘Grim’ is actually referring to the brothers, that is.

—

You loved him and you were sure he loved you too.. Err, you hoped that you were sure he loved you too. You can't deny that although Jade is a gentleman and very kind to shower you with presents which are things you've never dreamt of wanting, let alone ask somebody else to buy them for you, there is something missing in the interactions between you two. It almost seemed like there is no love in everything he does with you.

But you daren't speak of that to Jade and only to appear as a clingy or paranoid lover. Maybe it's just you. Maybe he still needs some time to adjust to the current flow of having someone else to take care of other than his twin. You couldn't fault him, seeing as you were the one who confessed first and the one to take another step in the relationship. You were rushing things, you've noticed. It may have been months into the relationship but maybe he needs years. As a lover, you have to be patient if you want things to work out between the two of you.

“..--man..” Inside the depths of your mind, thoughts regarding Jade and the rocky relationship you have was all that mattered that you didn’t realize that a certain furball was calling out to you until blue flames were in your line of sight, scaring you. “HUMAN!” “Gah! Grimm, don’t do that to people!” You said, although the tone of your voice did not sound as angry as one should, seeming that your mind is still elsewhere to not care enough. “Yeah? Well, you were spacing out that you didn’t even realize we walked past your classroom!” He snaps back. 

You look at the number above a classroom door and he was correct. “Oh.. Sorry..” You turn around and walk back down the hall and to your respected morning class. Grimm, who was tailing not too far behind you, had judging eyes; you have been spacy ever since the last date you and Jade had- which was 3 days ago to be exact- and had barely replied to anything he’s saying. He could be cursing you for all you’d know, but got either silence or a quick hum that didn’t even sound like you were acknowledging him. 

He was furious at first since a henchman should always listen to their master, but now he wonders if there is something wrong with you. He is aware that humans like you, who have no ounce of magic and are susceptible to anything, will find it difficult to live in a twisted world like his where magic holds supreme. The stronger you are, the more you are feared in this twisted world.

“Hey, is something wrong?” he asks, crossing his arms as he stands on the desk, looking up at you with questioning eyes. “Yeah, I am. Have I done anything to worry you?” “Gah, whatever, it’s nothing then.” He turns away, feeling stupid for even asking such a question. “You humans can be so confusing.. Saying that you’re fine when you aren’t,” he mumbles, which you didn’t hear nor bothered to ask to repeat since you were mostly in your own world. 

‘Maybe.. I should buy him a gift?’ You thought. He said that he has rather been awfully busy, you noticed. With what exactly? You weren’t too sure, but on top of whatever he’s busy with, he has Monstro Lounge. You don’t have much madols in your pocket, but you’re sure you can buy something heartfelt that he might like. 

Deciding on it, your spirits lightened and in your heart, a burning flame of determination. Maybe what Jade needs is to relax and if you come to him bearing a gift, he might get the message that should he need to seek comfort in someone who he can be himself around with, you are there. You can hope that this will work and that the feeling inside you of having a strained relationship will disappear.

Grimm, who was watching you closely beside you, eyed you judgmentally. To him, and to anyone who was looking, you looked like a crazed person who switched from being  unbearably depressed to smilingly widely in a span of a few seconds. 

-

Come after school, you make your way to Crowley’s office for permission to go outside the school’s premises– and hopefully get a little more madol out of the bird man– this weekend, which isn't too far away, seeing as it's tomorrow. It would rather be a tiring thing– to go outside over a gift you planned to make– but what you needed couldn’t be found in any of the campus shops. 

“Oh, Shrimpy! There you are.” An all too familiar voice calls you from a not too far away distance. “Floyd!” You smile. “What do you need?” 

“Nothing. I came on an errand for Jade,” he states plainly. You tilt your head to the side. It was odd for Jade to have someone- let alone Floyd- to do something for him instead of coming to you himself. This made you worry. Was he starting to feel burned out? Was he falling sick because he wasn’t resting enough? “O, oh.. What does he want?”

“Mm.. This.” Floyd reveals a single flower. “He said that this is a.. Uh..” Realizing that he forgot the name of the flower, he took out a small paper- presumably with the flower’s name on it- before continuing his sentence. “This is a geranium.” 

“Oh! They’re lovely.” You happily accept the flower. Although it may be only one single flower, knowing who gave it to you- your significant other- meant more than receiving the world given by someone else. Floyd wanted to say something else, eyes briefly looking at the small piece of paper in his hand and to your bright expression, seeming as if he wanted to say something more. But he didn’t. He dared not read aloud what was on the next line and opted to smile his familiar, goofy smile that you’ve come to love. Platonically, of course. 

“Hah..” He sighs after a while. "This is tiring.." He mumbles, which could be interpreted as being tired from doing errands for Jade although in truth, it meant something different.

"I'm going back to the dorm now. Bye, Shrimpy~" He says lazily as his entire, sluggish body turns around and walks off before you could get a word out. Nonetheless, he knows how appreciative you are towards him for bringing the gift. After all, it was a gift from your beloved Jade. 

Jade who, despite being so busy and probably under stress, still thought about you and even if he couldn't come to you personally, still sent someone else to deliver his heartfelt words of love in the form of a flower.

Safe to say that you completely forgot about your plans and head off to Ramshackle to preserve the flower for as long as you can.

-

"What's with that look?" You finally asked when you snapped back to reality. Grimm was staring at you so intently that the reason you came to, was that you felt a gaze on you. Turns out it was just Grimm. “Hmph, you’re really a weird one..” He mumbles, which you could barely make out, before he walks off to the kitchen downstairs, leaving you alone with the geranium placed in a glass vase filled with water to gaze at O’ so lovingly. 

Unbeknownst to you, back at Octavinelle, Jade was in his room, completely unoccupied– well, if you don’t count him admiring his terrariums as something to be busy about, that is- opposite of what you were thinking about the past couple of days. Now, why didn’t Jade come to you to deliver the flower if he was so free? That is something only he knows the answer to. 

Sluggish footsteps could be heard dragging outside the halls of his room until finally, it stopped at his door. He didn’t need to answer nor did the person outside need to knock- as if they ever- since the two knew each other well. “I’m back~” Floyd says lazily the moment he opens the door and slumps on the bed, face plastered on a pillow. Jade looks at his brother from the corner of his eyes– eyes with two completely different yet beautiful colours that allured you to him in the first place, but were mysterious, mischievous, calculating, and always looking as if they were plotting something– and spoke, “Thank you, dear brother.” His lips curled upwards into a twisted smile. 

This prompted Floyd to look up at his twin, hugging the pillow that supported his chin. “You owe me one..” He began to say, but sighs. “Eh, Shrimpy’s smile was worth it though so I’ll consider this favour done.” He yawns and places his face back on the pillow once more, still eyeing his brother who was now doing something with his terrariums. After a couple minutes of more comfortable silence, Floyd speaks up once more, with a tired yawn. “Why do you still bother with Shrimpy, brother? I know that you don’t really like them.” This halted Jade from whatever he was doing– actions with his hands stopped mid air before they continued to work away. “You know why, brother.” 

Indeed, Floyd knows, but he doesn’t agree with the method Jade has opted to use. Eh, this was Jade’s problem and not one he wants to involve himself in. If anything happens, he’s sure his brother can make the situation turn to his advantage. After all, Jade was the brains out of the two while he was the brawns. If he were in a similar situation– Eh, what is he thinking about? It’s too tiresome to even achieve such a thing in the first place. And so with that, he turned the other way and took a nap.

-

“I think these are good enough!” You exclaim as you look through the bag at the stuff you bought from Mr. S’ Mystery Shop. He surprisingly has all the stuff you wanted to buy, and at a cheaper cost too! It was a good thing because one, you weren’t sure if the money you had was enough for the shop outside and two, you totally forgot about your plan for the first day of the weekend that you had only the last to go out and do what you sought out to do. “Can’t you hurry up? I’m starving!” Grimm complains. “Right. Sorry!” You apologized as you walked a little faster to catch up to your tiny, floating companion. Glass could be heard clinking inside the bag which reminded you to be careful of where you step. One trip and fall might be enough to break the glasses inside.

“And I also haven’t forgotten that I should be giving you extra tuna today.” You smiled at the furball. Hearing about extra food made Grimm a little less pressed on the matter of rushing, but he pretended to not seem to care about it, opting to turn away with his paws over his chest. 

You stifle a chuckle, not wanting him to get angry. Then, from just barely what your ears could reach, you hear students talking amongst themselves in a.. Somewhat suspicious tone. You look over your shoulder and see students from Savanaclaw on one side and Octavinelle on the other. A bit far from each other but all the same, eyeing at your direction– at you–, grinning and snickering. You suddenly felt uneasy. Being the only magicless student made it a bit tough on adjusting to life at Night Raven. Predators seemed to lurk everywhere you went and without your first year friends around with even a bit of magic, it felt as if you were a naive rabbit who stepped into a den of wolves without knowing. 

“Hey, uh, human..?” Grimm noticed their presence too and with better ears, could pick up their up-to-no-good conversation. You quickly turn to face Grimm and force a small smile. “Let’s just hurry back.” 

Every step you took, you noticed that they, too, took the same amount of steps. You didn’t mean to panic, but you felt too frightened, and so your brisk pace broke into a run, the glass in the bag clanking aggressively. You weren’t the fittest out there so whatever amount of stamina you had, you felt slowly slip past you. Nevertheless, with the help of Grimm’s shouts of attempt encouragement and urgency, you pushed your legs past their limit, and a good thing that you did since you crashed onto a hardened chest– but still better than running into a tree. 

It was a sudden surprise that, fortunately, was received with a quick response; arms wrapped around you and a foot stepped back to stabilize the both of you. “Oh? And what is this?” A familiar deep and smooth voice makes its way into your ears followed along with a chuckle. 

Upon recognizing it, you look up in an almost tearful joy as you look at the familiar mismatched eyes of your lover. “Jade!” You smiled, tears pricking at the corner of your eyes, threatening to fall.  Your racing heart begins to calm and Jade looks up at the incoming herd of students. He could surmise what is happening, but he did not flinch or take your hand to run away with him. No, he stood and watched as they drew to a halt once they were close enough. “My, don’t tell me you were running away from.. Fufufu, no good nobodies,” Jade said to you while eyes never leaving the students. “Come on, you’re on a much higher standing than these men.” He said the last words with an almost spiteful tone, but one can never tell with Jade. 

He spins you around to face your pursuers, both hands on your shoulders and leaning down to the same eye level as you. You look at him, confused and scared. “Don’t look at me– look at them.” You followed where his eyes stared at– at the guys. “See, they don’t look much. They don’t even look like they’re worth your time. What’s so intimidating about them?” He says in that voice that would cause your legs to quake. 

One of the students got ticked off, but Jade, wasting no time, narrowed his eyes and the air around them seemed to suddenly grow cold. “Oh? A nobody dares challenge me? Fufufu.” He straightens his hunched back, looking ready to fight. His height, although not the tallest ever seen, was intimidating enough that inflicted hestiance in the students that they grumbled a few words and scrambled with tails between their legs.

After they had disappeared, paired with a few more long minutes of silence, you turned around, ready to say you thanks. “Thank you, Jade!” He smiles slightly, saying nothing, and brings a hand to hold your cheek, wiping what small tears you had that lingered at the corner of your eyes. “No need to thank me. Although, I do wonder what would have happened if I wasn’t around to protect you.” You dare not dwell on the thought. “Well, we’ll never know,” you joked.

“.. Mm, a shame..” He says under his breath with a smile, continuing to brush your cheek with the hand that was already touching your face. You were in a trance as you looked at him but broke out when he noticed your bag and asked about it. “O, oh! Uh, these are for a.. Uhm..” You sweat, eyes darting everywhere and nowhere all the same. “Oh! Right, these are supplies for a class assignment!” You mentally slapped yourself. It was a poor excuse of a lie but thankfully, Jade bought in, although it did look like he was suspicious of you. He asked no further questions, probably not interested in whatever class assignment it was, and just escorted you to Ramshackle safely before bidding goodbye. 

“That was a close one..” Grimm states to which you agreed.

-

“Eh? Shrimpy was chased?” Floyd knitted his brows with a deep frown, eyes following Jade who sat down on his chair to work on his terrariums again. “If I find those guys.. You let me know who they are if we see them!” Jade sighs. “There is no need for that, Floyd.” 

“But we need to let these guys know that Shrimpy has us!” Floyd said. “We should teach them a lesson so that they don’t try to hurt Shrimpy again!”

Shrimpy this, Shrimpy that. It makes one wonder who you were dating. “Floyd, are you perhaps interested in [Name]?” Jade asks, eyes not leaving his work. “Huh~? Of course I am! Shrimpy is a human without magic~ Hehh~ They’re fun to play with,” Floyd answers, rolling around on Jade's bed. Jade sighs, not meaning the question that way. Nevertheless, he knows the answer. “Well, would you like it if ‘Shrimpy’ was with you forever?” 

Floyd halts his actions. “Huh?” That was all Jade needed to continue. “Since you find them so fun to play with, I don’t mind giving them to you,” he said nonchalantly as if you were nothing but an object that, if no longer wanted, could just be tossed away– or in this case, given away to another man. 

“Heh? But what about–” Floyd asked, sitting up on the bed. “I’ve changed my mind,” he quickly responded. “Is there any need for me to keep a fragile pearl that is always looking for someone else to protect it and not find themselves a shell to protect itself with instead. You know how boring it can be when the same fish stays around you like a fish stuck to a hook.” Such cryptic words flew over Floyd’s head, but he understood that Jade had grown bored of you. 

“You’re going to break their heart if they hear you,” Floyd said. “Don’t worry, I’ll personally tell them myself.” 

-

“Gahh!” Back in your room, you have yet to perfect the gift you planned on giving Jade. Another failed attempt. It was late at night and you were nowhere near finishing. You followed the book down to a T but you can never seem to get the result you wanted. “Grr, I’m trying to sleep here!” Grimm roars. “S, sorry!” 

You look at Grimm and then to the work on your table that has yet to go anywhere, contemplating over something before returning to attempting at perfecting it. You allowed yourself to work on it for a little bit more before heading to bed. Sleep is crucial after all.

-

Sleep is crucial, you had told yourself last night, however, you never really pulled through with that statement since the first thing your friends are greeted with is a zombie you, yawning every few seconds. Throughout the day, your friends will point out how you looked like you haven’t slept at all yesterday– which, they weren’t wrong. You had completely lost track of the time and before you knew it, your alarm clock went off and that’s when you realized that you haven’t slept at all and would have to survive classes without falling asleep through any of them.

It was a challenging task– you either try to put effort in paying in class or try to not fall asleep. Listening in on the subject would be the first option but classes tend to live up to their reputation of being boring and make you sleepy. You opted to stay awake by keeping note of when you feel yourself nod off. 

At the final stretch of classes, you may have drifted off once or twice but you were thankful for your friends to wake you up.

As you walked down the halls, happy that your were finally able to go back to your dorm, Grimm was poking at you about how dumb you could be, saying how not getting any sleep was a much dumber move than having an hour or two of sleep. But to you, it was worth it since at the break of dawn, you have finally perfected the gift. You were honestly excited to see it work its magic itself, but that excitement was hidden under the layer of drowsiness.

You ignored your tiny friend as you pulled yourself sluggishly. However, your attitude completely changed when you saw the familiar back of your lover talking to his twin. It could not be a more perfect timing since you couldn’t wait to look at your gift to fruition. Before you could walk up to them and call out their names, Floyd sees you over Jade’s shoulder and tells his brother so. 

Jade looks at you over his shoulder. You were smiling despite how dizzy you were from how tired you were. You were about to call his name but before you could, he turned around and brushed past his brother. You were confused and.. A little bit hurt. Nonetheless, you decided to talk to Floyd instead. “Shrimpy~!!” He leaps onto you, tackling you in a bone-crushing hug. He rested his cheeks on top of your head and rubbed them, like how a cat would rub their head against their owners. “F.. Floyd.. A little too tight..!” You patted his back in hope he understood and he did, getting off of you. You take a deep breath in and out before asking your question.

“Where is Jade going?” you asked, tucking away the hurt deep in your heart’s darkest corners. “Mm~ He said he has things to do,” he answers, shrugging. “Oh.. Okay. I’ll just send him a text then,” you whispered the last part. “Mm? A text? Do you have something to talk to him about?” he asks and you nod. “It’s more like I want to give him something and I was hoping he would like to come with me to receive it.. But then again, I can always give it to him during school.” 

Floyd was silent which made you concerned for the eel. “Is something wrong, Floyd?” you asked. “Hm? Oh! Hehehh~ Nope!” He puts a hand behind his head. “If it’s a gift for Jade, I can give it to him.” It was a rather attractive offer since you couldn’t wait for Jade to receive it but.. “Thank you, but I would like to give it to him personally. I want him to know how much I appreciate him and care about him,” you said and added, “And besides, I want to watch it with him..” 

-

When you got back to your dorm, you passed out after quickly changing out of your uniform. You didn’t wake up at all that day and it was only when your alarm went off that you woke up, feeling fresh. 

You looked at your table in a small jar– the gift– and made a note to message Jade to meet up after classes are over since you wanted to give him something. You didn’t get a reply, but that didn’t bother you at all since he was still probably getting ready at this time.

But it did bother you later on when classes were about to be over and you’ve had zero text notifications from him. It also made you worry. Was he in danger? Was he sick? You doubt that he got into some trouble since he didn’t seem the type to. Maybe he was sick and couldn’t answer? But he seemed fine yesterday.

“Hey, you have been looking at your phone so intensely.. You can’t burn a phone with your eyes, you know..” Ace said once the bell rang, signalling that classes are over for the day. “O, oh! Was I?” You laughed awkwardly. “I have been waiting for a text actually..”

“Hm? A text? From who?” he asked. “From Jade.” You smiled, thinking about Jade. The mention of your boyfriend draws a halt amongst your friends. Noticing that your friends weren’t keeping in pace with you, you stopped and turned around. “Uh, hey, what’s wrong?”

“[Name], you haven’t heard?” Deuce asks. Your heart dropped. Did Jade go and got himself hurt? “W, what? What haven’t I heard?” you almost demanded shakily. “Well, we heard that–” Before Ace could say anything further, Deuce clasped his mouth with a hand. “It’s nothing. We just heard that Jade wasn’t at, uh, school today,” Deuce quickly makes up a lie. But this did not calm your heart. Was he sick? If so, you should go over to him right now! 

You sprinted away from your friends and Grimm, not hearing them bicker over something. When you turned a corner, you were greeted with the students from the day you went to buy things for Jade’s gift. “He won’t show up, right?” one asks which another answered. “Yeah, I’m sure.” 

Oh no. Was Jade’s sickness made aware to these guys and knew that no one will be able to help you? The only way to go to Jade right now was to pass through the guys but you don’t have magic to defend yourself nor know any self defense. It seemed that the only option was to turn around and run, but when you turned around, you couldn’t take a step forward before being grabbed by the arm. “Hey! Let me go!” you shouted, hopefully loud enough for something to hear and come to your aid. 

“Heheh, you’re weak and hopeless. No wonder why he left you,” the student who grabbed you laughed. “But I can take better care of you and I won’t dump you because you’re weak.”

“What are you talking about? No, nevermind that– let go!” The more you struggle, the tighter the grip on you becomes– to the point that you wince. The grip on you became tighter and you felt tears trickling down your cheeks. “Hahah! Look, look! They’re crying,” a student watching pointed out. “What a cute thing, eh? Hahah.”

“Ehh~? What’s this?” Down the halls, the heels of a shoe echoed and soon a silhouette appeared in the dark. You felt relieved that someone had come and even more so when that silhouette revealed itself to be Floyd, a hand behind his neck.

He looks at the situation with lazy eyes; first at the guys surrounding you before his mismatched eyes landed on your terrified yet slightly relieved form. “Shrimpy!” His eyes widened and before you knew it, he ran at an incredibly fast speed and punched square in the face at the guy holding your arm in a bruising grip.

“So are you the guys who were chasing Shrimpy down?” he asks in a demanding tone, referring to the shopping incident not too long ago. He cracked his knuckles and neck; ready to beat somebody– or in this case, the guys in front of you. 

He was about to grab the one nearest to him but you stopped him, grabbing his arm slowly and carefully. When you got his eyes on you, you shook your head. If he were to fight them, he would get into trouble and that is something you don’t ever wish to see him in. 

He hesitated. And by the look of the pained expression he had, it seemed as if it was a hard thing to do. But thankfully, he listened, but not before saying some threatening words to the guys who scampered off for good. 

“Shrimpy, are you okay?” Floyd ask you, having his full attention on you. You nod, wiping off the streak of teas on your face. “Other than this bruise that can be treated, yeah, I am. Thank you, Floyd.” You look up at him and smiled a genuine smile. “Hehe~ Anything for you, Shrimpyy~” he said and added, “Those guys won’t ever come back and if they do, make sure to tell me. I won’t let them go this time.” You laughed. “I promise to tell you.”

You would have thanked him once more and left, but you quickly remembered why you were there in the first place. “Oh! Right, is Jade okay?” you ask, catching Floyd off guard. “Mm? Why wouldn’t he be?” he ask, raising an eyebrow. “W, well I heard that he wasn’t at school today and thought that he might be sick.. He hasn’t answered my message from this morning too!”

Floyd was about to directly deny Jade's absence but pondered on it a bit. “Heh~ Where did you hear that?” “From Deuce!” you answered without a second to waste. He tilts his head, looking at you blankly before his expression changes, smiling widely with closed eyes. “Ehh~ So is that it?” You nodded. “Hehe, don’t worry, Shrimpy. Jade is not sick,” he said and patted your head reassuringly. “So he did come to school today? Why didn’t he answer my message?” 

His eyes wandered to the upper corner of his eyes, thinking, before smiling his closed-eyed smile again, stroking the top of your head. “I’m sure he was just busy. I’ll tell him about it.” You smiled. “That would be great. Thank you, Floyd!” You give him your own bone-crushing hug– which couldn’t even hold a candle to his hugs– and walks away, turning every once in a while to wave goodbye to Floyd.

Once you were gone, Floyd’s cheery expression dropped along with the hand that waved at you, a darkness shadowing over his eyes. Mix that with the surrounding light and it made it look like his eyes glimmered. With a deep frown, he went back to Octavinelle where his brother most likely was.

-

Several, long and agonizing days went by and you still haven’t heard from Jade. You didn’t see him around campus and so is Floyd. You wanted to ask him if he told Jade or forgot about it, but he was nowhere. Soon, it was to the point where your gift had to be remade again because it was.. Fading, let’s say. This made you tear up and frustrated when you had to remake it again. Once again, it took some time to make it, but this time you couldn’t bring yourself to perfect it once more. Your mind was too busy with other thoughts concerning Jade. It felt like he just up and disappeared on you. Frustrated, you get up from your seat and go to bed, hoping to catch some sleep with what remaining hours. However, not long before you lay your head did you get up again to work on the gift again. Tomorrow, you will make it so that you will see Jade, even thinking about storming up to Octavinelle’s dorm and demanding answers from him should he not be around the halls.

It was going to be raining the next day and if the sky was telling you something, you wished you listened. There was yet to be rain when you head off to school though and you presumed that it would be raining some time after classes. You showed up to school tired the next day and sat through each class impatiently. It was only after the ring of dismissal that you rushed out of your class, leaving Grimm and your friends, and walked around the main school building, hoping to see any of the twins. When you couldn't, you went to your dorm, got the gift for Jade, and headed off to his dorm. 

Once you got here, you cleaned yourself up a bit to not look like a ghost like your friends had stated, taking deep breaths before you went and looked for Jade’s room. When you got there, you prepared yourself again, giving yourself some encouraging words in your head before raising a hand, knuckle facing the wooden door, ready to knock. 

However, before you could ever make contact with the door, you heard your name. It made you curious so you stayed silent, hoping to know what they were saying.

“Mm, I haven’t seen Shrimpy today.” Floyd takes a deep breath before letting out an even deeper sigh. “When will I be able to see Shrimpy, Jade?” Well, at least you now know that both of them were in the room together. But this begs the question, were they purposely avoiding you? Based on the second part of what Floyd said, it really seemed like that.

“Tell me, Floyd, did you ever tell them what Geranium meant?” Jade asks, not answering Floyd's question. “While it can mean happiness and friendship, it originally represented stupidity.” Jade, who had a vase full of geraniums, plucked one and brought it close to his lips which tugged upwards in a sly smile that was most easiest to do if you had been dealing with the dark for a long time.

“Fufufu, soon, Floyd. But not now. I can’t have them use you as a middleman to get to me,” you hear Jade say. Why didn’t Jade want you to reach out to him? “You haven’t been replying to their messages too, right?” Floyd asks, hugging a pillow as he situated himself on the bed with crossed legs. “Don’t you think you’re being a little too mean, Jade? At this point, I would have come and stormed to the dorm to find you.”

Floyd frowned, feeling bad about how his Shrimpy isn’t aware about the heartbreak that would follow up soon after a few more days of avoidance. “Fufufu, though they were much fun to tease, it’s no longer needed to keep up with this charade. I have gathered all necessary information for Azul should he need to blackmail them,” he chuckles. 

You gasped and quickly put a hand over your mouth, hoping they didn’t hear it. Tears gathered at your eyes and slowly took small steps back before breaking out into a sprint to hurriedly get away from the dorm and Jade. Geraniums.. O’ how it fitted you so. A naive, foolish human like you could never hope to hold a candle to Jade so how dare you think it so? 

Back in Jade’s room, Floyd sighed while Jade returned to his work as if nothing had just happened. Both of them knew that you were coming and purposely started talking when you were at the door, as instructed by his brother. 

“Jade, why couldn’t you just break it off to them yourself? This is way too mean,” Floyd said. “Fufufu, I need one more fun out of them before I can no longer have that chance.”

-

When you got out of their dorm, it was raining heavily and to rub more salt on how stupid you could be, you forgot to bring an umbrella. The only thing to do was run in the rain, the raindrops hiding your tears as you ran through to get to Ramshackle. You clutched onto the jar tightly that glowed much brighter in the darker skies, your heart shattering with every step you took. 

If the rain wasn’t enough to obstruct your vision, your bleary eyes made it worse as you ran. Suddenly, and without warning, you tripped on a tree’s roots, causing you to trip and fall, the jar shattering into pieces like your heart. The pain you felt cursing through you from your hands couldn’t compare to the pain in your heart. All this time, Jade had only seen his time with you as an errand for Azul where you, on the other hand, felt something more. You had felt happiness beyond what friends and family could hope to offer. A much more intimate stage of love.

You cried harder, allowing the rain to drown out your cries and hide your tears, not caring about the gift that had spilled. It was only when the rain had died down and the sun had set well beyond the horizon that you made your way to Ramshackle where Grimm awaited about to get angry with you. But upon seeing your state, he said nothing, eyes following your retreating form to go to your bedroom. 

Grimm and the ghosts in Ramshackle stayed silent that night, hearing the wails that threatened to break your vocal cords. But you did not care and only fell asleep when your eyes felt heavy and forced itself shut.

-

It was a bad idea– going to bed in soaked clothes and open wounds that weren’t treated because in the morning, not only did you feel cold, you felt the pain from the wounds become much worse. You hissed as you got up, making your way to the bathroom and finding the first aid kit to treat yourself. It wasn’t an easy thing to do since both of your hands were in pain and that everything that it touched felt like thorns were pricking on your skin. 

You wanted to shower with what had happened yesterday and getting soaked in the rain, but you felt that the water would just add more pain to the wounds on your hands and knees.

When you showed up to classes that morning, you had your friends question what happened to your hands and legs and why your eyes were red and puffy. You made an excuse of having forgotten to bring an umbrella and having to run out in the rain and tripping on a root which made you cry. It wasn’t a complete lie, but you did omit the part of why you were out and about during a rain and about the heartbreak, though that part did not need to be said, and that your teary eyes only confirmed the rumour that was up in the air a couple days ago. 

You were in shambles and it was only at your downfall did Jade make his appearance in school normal again. To every hall you walk from class to class, you saw him. You stopped at some point and made eye contact with him. You felt your heart tightened at the sight of him. The eyes that you thought were clouded with love for you seemed ordinary. Were his eyes always like that? Did it never hold any feelings towards you? Was it all a delusion that you had convinced yourself? It most likely was when you see that he looks ahead and ignores you.

You felt slightly dizzy and nauseous so you returned to your dorm where your sickness grew worse. You didn’t feel like eating that night so you promptly told Grimm to have dinner by himself and went to bed.

The next time you woke up, which was in the afternoon of the next day, your state turned for the worse and you knew you were having a fever. When you got up, you had the immediate urge to puke so you ran to the bathroom. Grimm stayed home when he noticed you weren’t waking up and looked really out of it. He and the ghosts watched you in silent worry. 

Once you were done puking out whatever you puked out, you looked at your hands, realizing you had forgotten to change the bandages on your hands so it looked very unsanitary. You groaned and got up, looking for the first aid kit to change them again. “Human, your friends came by this morning..” Grimm begins, hoping to get you to talk to him. “They were, uhh, worried.” This was not so Grimm of him and it made him almost shiver but he pushed past that. 

When he got no word out of you, he stayed quiet, fidgeting a bit. He didn’t know what to do. I mean, what should he do in a situation he had never encountered before? 

“Grimm..” You groggily say. Man, was it hard to force yourself to speak. However, Grimm’s ears perked up; ready to listen to what you have to say. “Could you.. Get me a glass of water.. Please?” you asked. “You got it!” He said quickly and went downstairs. 

After he disappeared from your sight, you returned to your room and changed your clothes from the uniform worn yesterday to proper, comfortable clothes. The moment you sit down on the edge of your bed, Grimm comes back with a large glass of water. You would chuckle at the state of urgency he was in, but all you could master was a small smile and a close to a whisper ‘thank you’ before you downed the glass to almost nothingness. 

It made you feel a little better. You rested your head on the pillow again, checking your phone just in case and later scrolling through Magicam. Your friends texted you– just the Adeuce duo, Epel, and Jack really since they were the ones most closest to you seeing as you guys were in the same year– saying that they heard about your state and wished you a good and speedy recovery. Sebek.. Well, Sebek was Sebek and off to care about his young master more.

When you opened Magicam– you shouldn’t have– the first thing you saw was your page and your profile. It was of you and Jade. Your bio was some along the lines of ‘I would never trade you for the world’. Although it was true that you still would never trade Jade up for anything the world had to offer, it looked like Jade would do the opposite; ready to trade or throw you away. 

Now that you look at it properly, you noticed that Jade never posted a thing about you, had a profile picture of you like you had, nor mentioned you in his bio or any text post. He knew that it would be only a matter of time before he ended things with you. How heartless he was.

You started to cry silently at first but it quickly turned into messy sobs. 

The routine of waking up at random hours of the day, going to the bathroom to puke and change your bandages, then later crying yourself to sleep occurred for the next three days.

One day, however, something was different. You had a dream. You quickly forgot what it was the moment you opened your eyes. Your fever has gotten worse at this point since you did forget to do one thing: to take care of yourself; maintaining a healthy appetite despite being ill. 

When your eyes fluttered open, the room was pitch black except for the light coming from the moon outside. You heard shuffling somewhere around you and you assumed that it was Grimm so you quietly called out for him. “Fufufu, you called out my name throughout your sleep, yet you now call another the moment you wake up?” You were confused at who the voice belonged to, still in a daze with your fever. 

You meant to ask who was there, but you couldn’t voice it out so you opted to look at wherever the voice originated and surely enough, you see a human silhouette– not Grimm’s– just a metre or so away from you. You tried to call again but nothing came out. 

Whoever was in the room was not Grimm, but you didn’t feel scared. I mean, if it were some other student, you were sure Grimm or the ghosts would have chased them out by now. And besides, the presence was very calming.

The figure made its way to your bed, sitting down at the edge of it, their back facing away from the moon’s light so you couldn’t see their face. “Here, why don’t you drink some water?” They help you sit up and support you up, having a hand rest on your lower back while the other guides a glass of water up to your lips.

Once you downed the glass, they helped you lie down before standing up to fetch a wet towel to place over your head. “Don’t speak,” the voice orders and you listen surprisingly.

Scared that whoever the person in your room would leave, you held on to one of their hands. So far, this person was very kind to have helped you in your worst state and you could not bring yourself to let them leave. This gesture made the second party chuckle and stroke your head with their free hand. “My, what would you become if I wasn’t around to guide you? Look at you– it hasn’t been long and you have already went and gotten yourself sick.”

Whatever they were saying flew out of your other ear as you allowed them to stroke your head since it made you feel sleepy. The person only stopped when they were sure you were asleep, your light snoring to prove it. 

At a specific angle, did the moon cast a light at two different coloured eyes. They seemed to glow as they watched you intently, mind running a million miles a minute with thoughts that no one else could guess. 

However, after a while and in the moment of you dreaming, you whispered something that caught the figure off guard. “Do you love me.. Jade?” The way you said it sounded broken, but the person did nothing to console you– not even say under their breath what you wished to hear and hope it makes it into your dreams. 

-

Jade was on his way to his dorm when a loud and annoying furball was racing at him with flames in his eyes and shouting at him. He and Floyd stopped on their tracks and watched as Grimm came crashing into Jade. He quickly pulls away and proceeds to hit Jade with whatever strength he’s got. 

“Hm~? What are you doing here, earless seal? Aren’t you supposed to be with your master?” Floyd asks. “[Name] has gotten worse and keeps calling out this jerk's name,” Grimm states angrily. “This is all your fault! After all the things they went through to make you a gift– failed attempts, broken shards that cut their hands, not getting a wink of sleep–”

“Woahh, calm down there–” Floyd was cut off. All Grimm could see was red. “You go and do this to them!?” At the high level of rage, one would think he would unleash magic that would cause an overblot any time soon and that was something the twins weren’t excited about. 

Floyd reached a hand out and clamped his mouth shut, ears ringing from the shouting. “You’re annoying.” 

Grimm was silent and when Floyd was sure he wouldn’t go and yell anymore, he pulls his hand away. “Now, why don’t you start from the beginning? Make it one sentence only while you’re at it,” Jade said. Grimm crosses his arms. “Hmph. If you haven’t noticed by now, my human isn’t around because of a fever caused by a jerk.”

“A fever? Shrimpy has a fever?” Floyd repeats. He wasn’t aware of this since he wasn’t in any of your classes at all this week– not that he attends them frequently. “And I assume that jerk would be me, yes?” Jade asks, not needing to hear an answer. 

“Mm.. I think you should go and check on Shrimpy, Jade. You’re being a little too mean to them,” Floyd suggests. Jade honestly felt like it wasn’t his responsibility to go over to you and take care of you, but he did agree with his brother that he would just be lower on the standing compared to the guys who chased you days ago. 

After drawing out a long sigh, he eventually agrees. Floyd kept Grimm with him, wanting to play a game of chase. When Jade arrived at the front steps of your dorm, the sun was quick to almost set and the dark colours of the night skies slowly took over. When he entered, he was met with the ghosts that dwell in the building. They were ready to give him a fright, standing right at the door, but he dismissed them and made his way upstairs and to your bedroom where a clutter of things obstructed his path. 

He moves them aside with his legs, sometimes just stepping over them with his long legs until he is finally at the side of your bed. You were mumbling incoherent things by that point that Jade had to bend down to hear what you were saying with that pained expression. “Jade..” Ah, so it was him you were calling out even in the midst of your dreams. How funny it is that you were still uttering his name despite being the one to make you feel worthless. 

Eyes tearing away from you, he looks around at the mess and sighs. Here he thought he would just check up on you before leaving, but remembering Floyd words, he decided to clean up the mess. It would be a bad thing if the dirt of your room made you even more sick. And if you were to become worse, he knows for a fact that his brother wouldn’t stop nagging him.

While cleaning up, he would hear you mumble his name under your lips as if it was a chant; as if it would bring him back to you. He would often stop, close his eyes and take a deep breath in and out before continuing. 

When the floor was spick and span of obstacles, he felt that he did not need to stay anymore. But when he turned around, his eyes caught a glimpse of something in the far corner of the room– where your desk is at. There was a faint glow on the table. It was much dimmer than the light of the moon, but still noticeable if you weren’t in a rush. Curious, he made his way over and noticed all the jars and potion bottles messily scattered. In the garbage bin beside were broken pieces of glass. 

He thinks back to when Grimm had come running towards them in fury, his arm hugged around his waist, supporting the other arm that was drawn close to his face, a finger to his lips. “These must be the failed attempts..” He mumbles, eyes scanning the desk until he was satisfied, though he did not see a book or note of what you were trying to make. 

He recalls you saying that they were for a class assignment, but it has seemed to stretch on for quite a long time and wonder when the due date is. He ponders if you were being foolish again in wanting to be ‘creative’ in potion making or not. You weren’t Rook and you know that so why would you attempt to do something dangerous like potion making without supervision? He would never know with that head of yours. 

He chuckles at that. You were truly a foolish human.. His foolish– Oh? What’s this? Why is he now just thinking about you in this way? He doesn’t believe his feelings towards you have changed. You were always seen as somebody dumb and always needing protecting to him. 

“Jade..” The call of his name snaps him out of his thoughts and looks over his shoulder over to your bed. Your breathing had become quick and shallow. “My, what a dream you must be having,” he says under his breath before leaving the room for only a short duration of time and returning with a bowl and towel in one hand and a glass of water in the other. 

When he returns, he notices your eyes flutter open slowly. And though in the dark, he could tell that your vision was hazy. His shoulders relax at the thought of not being easily identifiable to you. He would hate it if you were to cling onto him again. 

Not wanting to waste anymore unneeded time away from his terrariums, he got you to go to bed after making you drink water and place a cool, damped towel on your forehead. But to his dismay, you held on to his gloved hand. Are you that naive to trust your life to a person you can’t properly identify? He might have been a bad guy and if he truly was one, seeing your vulnerable state would make him think that you were easy to deal with.

The light of the moon and the darkness of the room sculpted out his face perfectly and mismatched eyes that looked at you glowered at that thought. Had you not learned your lesson from being chased by those students? He was amazed you had come this far in life– to make it to Twisted Wonderland. Were you chased at school back in your world? You do come across as the easy type for any predator looking for a prey. Then again, in your world, humans there are also defenceless like you, right? 

At that thought, he was curious about your world. How do so many magicless and helpless humans manage to survive– let alone create a community– without any magic? He wished to ask you, but you were happily snoring away. 

What is he talking about? He was shocked that he wanted to know more about you and the world you came from. He never had asked a single question that would be considered as personal to you.. However, he was amazed. The corner of his lips pulled slightly upwards and in the cast of the moonlight, did he have a genuine smile. Just how did you do it, he asked himself, not realizing the small smile.

After a while, he decided that he should go but once he was about to pull his hand back, his attention was caught on to something else– Despite having a temperature that skyrockets past roofs, your hands were awfully pale and cold.. And poorly wrapped in bandages? He wouldn’t have known through touch by his gloved hand, but both of your hands were indeed wrapped in bandages that were too loose to even prevent whatever wound you were trying to heal to be treated properly. 

He sighs once again at how much tending you needed. It was annoying but he did not complain. He went to your bathroom after carefully getting your hands off of him and searched for the first aid kit– which was just sitting on top of the counter. It was scattered like how your room was just before he entered and decided to clean up. You were almost running out of bandages, which makes him concerned– though he won’t admit it– to just how deep of a wound you have gotten. Just what type of injury did you have anyway?

When he returned to your side again and carefully undos your wrapping, his eyes were shocked to see the deep cuts on your hands. What the Sevens were you doing to have gotten ugly cuts? He would have bombarded you to tell him the truth, but since you were asleep, he couldn’t. He thinks back to the coward guys a week ago now. Were it those guys? He purposely spread word to only a small few, but to think that those guys took advantage of you when they thought he wouldn’t be around you anymore to hurt you? He wished he hadn’t let them go at that moment. 

Pushing his anger aside for now, he wraps your hands in the bandages nicely. It wasn’t too tight nor was it too loose that it would come undone quickly. 

Just when he was about to get up from the bed to return the kit, you weakly ask a question in the midst of your dream. “Do you love me.. Jade?” Your voice was hoarse despite having drank a large glass of water not too long ago. It sounded hurt– no, broken as well.

Does he love you? No, he did not. But, so then what was this unnecessary anger? If he did not love you, he should not feel angry for you. He said nothing and decided that it was rather past the appropriate time to be loitering around your room.

It was at this point that he was sure he had no further tending to, so– subconsciously– he took away the towel on your forehead for a short while, only to place a kiss on the middle of it before putting the towel back on. He hadn’t realize what he did, only doing something routine to him when he would come by your place. 

He would come by your place to chat or do some baking and when it had gotten past the time, you would urge him to tuck you to bed and place a kiss on your head. It was a distant thing to him now that his heart– unknowing to him– still holds onto. 

-

When you woke up, the sun had yet to peak through the cracks in the horizon, but you were feeling much refreshed after sleeping days away. When you wake up, the first thing you notice is the feeling of light pressure on your forehead. Your hands reach for it, and sitting up, you realize that it was a towel. 

You try to think hard of what happened yesterday, drawing a finger to your chin as your eyebrows knit. You closed your eyes and eventually, you did recall someone being in your room, but you just couldn’t remember who it was.

“Human!” Grimm says almost happily when he opens the door to see your figure sitting up. “About time you got up.” He makes his way over to your bed and climbs on top to be by you. 

He crossed his arms and observed your state. Colour had come back to your cheeks and you looked much alive, though you do seem to have lost weight by just sleeping the majority of the time. 

“Oh, right, thank you, Grimm,” you said, making your little companion make the sound of confusion with a raised brow. “You know.. For taking care of me last night.” 

“That wasn’t me,” he said coolly, though did not speak further. “What? Then who..?” Your voice trailed as your eyes wandered to the towel in your hands. That’s when you noticed that your hands were wrapped nicely– a much nicer job than what you could ever do. This only proved that Grimm couldn’t have done it because well.. He doesn’t have proper fingers to grip the bandages– and let’s not forget that he has never done these kinds of things to easily get a beautifully wrapped hand.

You were quiet for a while that Grimm became concerned. Then suddenly, your head shot up and looked at your bedroom. It was clean. Your eyes then landed on your desk where your stuff lay– organized. Someone had come by. Someone other than Grimm had some by and that someone had come to care for you in your worst state possible. If you could just figure out who they were.. 

“Do you know who came by?” you ask. “Nope.” Such a quick response made you raise a brow questioningly. You were about to force it out of him but decided against it; knowing Grimm, he most likely will get angry and call you annoying. You did not push the topic and just hoped that your silent thank yous would be carried by the wind to the recipient. 

Grimm did not want to tell you about Jade and how he came to be in your room which was fine with Jade since he did not want you knowing. After leaving Ramshackle, he warned Grimm to not speak of him to which Grimm replied snappily about not wanting to tell you about him in the first place. Both worked in their favour.

You might have forgotten what happened last night and your dream, but when you woke up, you were very happy. Whatever dream you had, it grew into a new burning desire inside you and you quickly got out of bed and headed over to your desk. This time, you were sure you could make the gift in one go. 

Although you still haven’t forgotten the pain Jade had caused, you still want him to receive your gift and your silent words of appreciation. 

-

When you got to school, your friends came rushing up to you excitedly. “[Name], you’re back!” Epel said, a smile adorning his beautiful complexion. “Man, aren’t we glad that you’re back!” Ace said, a wider smile on his face.

You chatted with your friends and at the corner of your vision, you see two teal headed guys walking inside the building. Knowing that they could belong to no other, you quickly made an excuse and apologized and went to try to catch up to the tall eels. “Jade!” 

Surprised to hear his name come from a voice he had heard many times, he turns around. “Shrimpyy! You’re okay!” Floyd was the first to speak. When you got to a few feet away from them, you stopped. You were brimming with energy and Jade couldn’t help but chuckle at that, though it did not appear visibly. It was only last night were you calling his name and clinging onto him as if your life depended on it. Let’s not forget that he was the one to have broken your heart.

“Uhm, Jade, do you.. Do you have time to meet up with me after school?” you said shyly, looking down at the ground while you fidget with your hands. A clear sign of nervousness. He was surprised and it showed when Floyd looked at his surprised face and snickered.

Don’t tell him that you were still trying. Had he not hurt you enough? “I wanted to give you something.. As a friend, of course!” You quickly added the last part. After not hearing a word out of him, you became doubtful that he would accept. “I, it’s okay if you’re busy.. I–”

“No, I’m not busy. We can meet up,” he said after recomposing himself to how he normally is. You look up, a smile so bright that it was hard to describe with words how it would make one happy. “Okay! I’ll see you then!” You wave and hurried off, presumably to look for your friends once more. 

“Isn’t Shrimpy so nice?” Floyd said once he sees that you have turned a corner. “Shrimpy’s been wanting to give you a gift for a loooong time now. You’re a true villain, Jade.” Jade’s eyes narrow, still looking at where you had disappeared, and smiled slyly. “Indeed, I am.”

-

You had texted him to come meet you at Ramshackle the moment the sun started its descent in the distance. It was such a long wait that you almost couldn’t bear it. But, just as told, he was at your door when the sun began to set. 

“You came!” you said, failing to hide the excitement and relief in your tone. “Fufufu, well, I did say I would come. Now, what is it that you wished to give me?” 

“Follow me!” You got outside, without Grimm and walked to the direction of the forest beside the dorm. The walk was silent, but there was no air of awkwardness between the two of you; as if you two were just merely friends on a stroll. He notices that you have something wrapped in a cloth which he assumed was the gift, held tightly in your still bandaged hands. So why did you need to bring him all the way out here?

By the time you got to a small clearing in the forest, the day’s light completely vanished and in place, was the queen of darkness– the moon– and its colours in full for display.

He stopped walking and so did you, after taking a few steps forward to be in front of him. Without saying anything, you sat down and urged him to do the same things, patting the grass beside you. He complied and sat down where you wanted him to. 

Putting the gift on your lap, you began to unravel what was inside. It was a jar that he had seen in your room. The only difference is that it now had glowing specks of light inside of it. No, they weren’t fireflies.. Just tiny floating orbs of light. 

“Watch.” Was all you said. Silently, you remove the lid and the both of you watch as they proceed to fly out. Some glowing orbs seeped into the soils and before you know it, blue flowers sprouted from where the orbs had gone under. The flowers glowed a faint hue of blue to add more to the enchanting feeling. It was a sight to behold and made him feel much relaxed.

He recognizes these flowers to be smeraldo flowers– a flower that some had come to believe to only be an urban legend. But some do beg to differ and believe that they were flowers of the distant past that no longer grew for some unknown reason.

He was about to ask you how you had come to make these– now true– flowers to grow by yourself, but when he looked at you gazing at the floating orbs of light so fondly– looking so ethereal– with a relaxed smile, he decided not to. 

After a while, your eyes looked at the ground and gasped. “Oh! These are beautiful! I didn’t know that it had this effect.” You smiled widely, happy about what you had created. You had found a book in the dustiest part of Ramshackle’s library and after reading it, you were intrigued. You had never made it yourself– as proven with the many catastrophic explosions– but when you decided to give something in return to Jade, you thought this would be a beautiful present. Though, you must say that the book never said anything about it growing flowers. 

You pluck one closest to you and draw it closer to Jade, hoping he would take it. He eyes the flower, before taking it, a small smile evident on his face. “This is the gift I wanted to show you.. Well, not the flower part– it was something I wasn't aware of– but still, it turned out beautiful,” you said, your voice barely audible that should there be a wind to brush past, you were sure that no one could hear you.

“I heard you were busy lately and I was sure you were stressed so I thought of this in hopes that it would make you relax.. Even if it’s just for one night.. But some failed attempts were inevitable.. As you can see with my hands.. So it took some time.” You chuckled at your foolishness. You didn’t add the part where the bigger cuts were from the time you tripped because you felt that he would just make fun of you again and you didn’t want that to ruin the mood.

What? The cuts were from the times you couldn’t perfect the gift? It wasn’t anybody harassing you? He now felt like he was the stupid one. Ah, he should have guessed as much when he approached the cowering students after talking with you that morning. They were truly scared out of their wits when he showed up. He should ask Floyd what happened as he felt that his brother had done something to them. Nevertheless, what was done is done and he’s sure that they will never look your way again.. That is if they could leave the infirmary. 

When you smiled, your eyes were on your hands that sat on your lap. “Even though we aren’t together anymore.. I was hoping to still give it to you and maybe.. Hope that we could at least be friends after this..” 

Friends? His eyes widened slightly. He was confused, but knew one thing for sure: your heart are like these smeraldos; they are delicate. And you yourself would be what the field of flowers would be; a one of a kind amongst millions. 

“Friends..” he repeats, looking away from your eyes that seemed to make his heart race slightly, and to the field of flowers. “Yes..” He gulps back a lump in his throat that he didn’t know he had. “Yes, that would be nice.” 

When you returned to gazing at your gift to him, it was at this moment that he knew that your heart had pieced itself back together.. And that he had messed up. 

“[Name]..” he calls you, voice almost in a whisper. You hummed in response. “Do you know what these flowers are?” He looks at you to which you do the same. You shook your head. He chuckles. You were still the [Name] he had known before this. “These are smeraldos.”

“Wait, smeraldos?” Your eyes widened in recognition. “I thought they weren’t real!” You felt really accomplished to have found that the flowers of myth were actually real and right in front of you. “Fufufu, I thought the same.”

You returned to look at the sigh before you, now with a newfound pride. Jade looks at you in earnest and before he knew it, one thing struck inside him that made him smile bitterly as he fondly gazed over you.

Now, it was his turn.. It's his turn to go through the heartache you went through because of him, because the look in your eyes tells him that you weren’t looking to go back to the past with him. 

And at that moment, in the field of flowers, did he realize one thing: geraniums aren't fit for you at all. These smeraldo were. They fit your once in a lifetime love for him and that once these flowers dwindle and fade to urban legends once more– as if they were never there– it represents the end of your love for him.

But he chuckles bitterly upon remembering what the flowers represent: the truth that couldn't be told. It seems that the flower could fit him as well. 

His newfound and growing love for you will forever be kept a secret between himself and nobody else for he does not wish to hurt you anymore. 

The truth that couldn't be told, huh?

~♡~

the way i BINGED the whole master list of this blog- omg i’m obsessed. the writing is immaculate, with the one-shots being giggling, kicking your feet, blushing type of good.

i wanted to reblog this one specifically bc it’s my absolute favorite. for some reason this little fish mafia has a special place in my heart, and i love reading cute scenarios between yuu and the octotrio. love love love

highly recommend this blog to twst fans, and i can’t wait for another post 🥳

【 three's a party (and yuu does not want to play host) 】

author's note: this is a repost of my fic, but in tumblr-friendly format in case anyone dislikes ao3's formatting sjdkfsj (i've been there too dw) it's a little fic i wrote bc i had lots of octatrio brainrot n wanted to see how they'd react to crowley overworking the prefect. n then somehow this happened. kind of a filler as i work on the rest of the reqs + my leona fic, so i hope you enjoyed it if you haven't read it already !

characters: gn! yuu, azul ashengrotto, floyd leech, jade leech

warnings: non-graphic depictions of biting + blood (gee, thanks tweels but also please be careful if you're squeamish !!)

word count: 6.8k (i brainrot too hard-)

tags: uhhh octatrio *jazz hands*, yuu is overworked and underpaid (courtesy of crowley), let's pay floyd to become a professional cuddler, and pay jade to be a professional floyd-enabler, we blame the biting on both tweels, azul-typical deal making (becoming one of my fav tags ngl), protective octatrio ? hell yeah, protective octatrio !!

[ read it on ao3 | previous tumblr post ]

Yuu was tired. They shuffled the papers in their arms, carrying two more folders filled with them. That sad excuse of a headmage has once again tasked them with something almost impossible. This time he was shirking his own duties to go off on some weekend getaway at the Scalding Sands.

"Now I leave these duties to you, Yuu-kun," Crowley had said, not even bothering to hide the suitcase or the travel outfit he had on. Heck, he was even slathering on sunscreen as he spoke to them.

"What is it this time, headmage?" Yuu asked, Grim clearly not paying attention as he gorged himself on the cookies Crowley had set up as a bribe.

Crowley pats at the two stacks of folders on his desk, "This side is the invoices, and this side is the supplies that we received. It'd be so helpful if you could, ah, help me out in matching and making sure they're all in order."

"F-funyah... That's gonna take a long time..." Grim backed up to the door. "I-I have to turn in my potions homework... Bye, henchman!" And, there goes Grim, leaving them alone to stare at the stack of papers.

"Ahem," Crowley awkwardly picked up his suitcase. "Well, I suggest you get started soon since I need this done by the end of the weekend. I wouldn't want you to shoulder your...excessive food funds." And then he was gone. Leaving Yuu with two stacks of terror and sleep deprivation.

Yuu's been working hard, with frequent breaks to nap so that....well, so they don't keel over and die. They've bounced around several different locations so far, searching for a spot to take care of these papers. They've been working at the library, infirmary, their own room, the cafeteria (when it wasn't mealtime), and even in Trein-sensei and Crewel-sensei's classrooms. The two teachers had sent Yuu equally as pitying looks before taking a few invoices and checking them over in the middle of their own work, which Yuu was really grateful for.

Their next spot was this place: Mostro Lounge. They just hoped that the Octatrio wouldn't find them too quickly. They still had work to get done after all. It wasn’t Jade that greets them at the entrance, much to Yuu's relief. Mostro Lounge was an ideal place to do work and almost no one would be willing to disturb a customer or gaze at their work too hard.

Yuu was quickly guided into a booth near the back next to the tank. Virtually no one sat there, due to the smallness of it but Yuu quite liked it. It was almost cozy there. They ordered a drink with espresso in it, trusting the Lounge would make something presentable out of it. Yuu then set out to work.

They had almost thirty minutes of undisturbed work before someone tapped their shoulder. Yuu looked up to see Floyd, leaning his whole body over the table, a wide grin on display. Great Seven, why did it have to be Floyd that found them first?

"Why didn't you tell me you were visiting today, Little Shrimp?" Floyd easily scooted into the booth, placing their drink down. "Thought I was smelling things earlier but Shrimpy’s name's on the order and that means I win~!"

"What...what did you win?"

"Well, it doesn't matter! Now let's go play~" He tugged hard at their arm, and it felt like he was about to rip it out of its socket. "We can go visit Azul too, to tell him I won, and then we can go swimming-"

"I can't, Floyd." The taller stopped talking immediately, his grin deflating into a frown. It tied Yuu's stomach in knots. They never knew how Floyd would react to rejection.

This time, he just whined, "Why not? 'S not like you're doing anything interesting."

"Uhm," Yuu tapped at the table. "It's not interesting, but imagine if Azul was bossing you aro-"

"Azul always does that though. Don't needa imagine it."

"-okay, so Azul's bossing you around. And he tells you to do something. Or else he'll make you do something you hate, for example...?"

Floyd pouted, "...letting Jade beat up all the small fries while I'm stuck with the dishes."

Yuu paused at the example, "A very Floyd answer. Or else he won't let you beat up the people who breached his contracts. For a whole month, you have to wash dishes instead."

"Not for a month!" He was whining even harder now.

"Exactly, that's why I need to do this," Yuu vaguely gestured at the papers.

Floyd's eyes lit up, "Or else Azul won't let you beat people up? Didn't know Shrimpy liked fighti-"

"No! Or else Crowley will do something like not letting me eat food at the cafeteria!"

"Oh," And Floyd gave them a pitying look– the Floyd Leech was feeling sympathetic for them, how pathetic did they have to be?– "Then we'll play next time?"

"Yes, I'll swim with you next time," Yuu said, relieved that he understood. "I promise. Thank you for letting me work, Floyd." The blue-haired nodded, but he didn't move from his spot.

Yuu sipped at the drink– something sugary that hid the espresso really well– as they continued to work. Floyd's gaze burned into them quite intently but there was nothing they could do when he was already being so good.

Then there was a finger squishing their cheek and Floyd was grinning again, "I had a great idea~ How 'bout we sit so I can squeeze Shrimpy and Shrimpy can keep doing the boring stuff? C'mon, c'mon I'll keep you company." Yuu nodded and was immediately lifted up right into the air by the armpits. Like a cat. Yuu swore that they weren't that light, it was just the students at this school that were on crack or something for them to be that strong.

Floyd hummed as he placed them between his thighs, "See, see~ This is so much more fun." His frame draped over them slightly, arms wrapping around their waist as their back met his front. It was kind of like having a weighted blanket wrapped around them, except it wasn't warm, just...oddly comforting.

"Alright, Floyd," Yuu felt him fiddling with their uniform. "Just...don't squeeze too hard." Work went on as usual, with Floyd occasionally playing with their hair, or even nipping at their ears or neck. Yuu elbowed him when he did that. His teeth were too sharp for those seemingly innocent actions to actually be innocent. One bite and they might just bleed out, right in that dingy corner at Mostro Lounge. There was also a chance that he might pick them up and drop them on the ground once he got bored of sitting around.

But after a while, Floyd was suspiciously still. His head settled onto Yuu's shoulder, the little puffs of his breath tickling Yuu's neck every few seconds. Yuu looked over at him, brushing back his bangs to see what Floyd was doing only to find him...asleep.

The Floyd Leech was asleep. On their shoulder. That wasn't something they expected to happen when they walked in here. Floyd whined a bit in his sleep, squeezing a bit tighter. Yuu shushed at him, patting his hair to placate him. He grew silent after a bit, and Yuu released a breath.

Waking Floyd was probably going to be a headache, so they continued to work. Or was trying to continue their work, before a set of familiar footsteps had stopped at their table. They didn't bother looking up, assuming it was the waiter, here to take their drink.

"My, so this was where Floyd escaped to," – Yuu's shoulders tensed before remembering they had a sleeping eel at their back– "He was always better at sniffing out prey than me."

Ignoring the fact that they got called prey, Yuu acknowledged the calmer-looking Leech, "Jade-senpai."

"I'll come back with some tea," Jade said, taking their empty glass. "Something relaxing, perhaps? You look a little stressed, Yuu-san."

Yuu nodded, "I'd...appreciate that. How much will that be? I already paid for the drink before, just in case I forgot."

"Mmm," Jade's expression turned contemplative. "It's supposed to sell at 12 thaumarks, but since I'll be dining with you, I'll foot half the bill."

"That's...oddly nice of you," Yuu said, knowing that the other wouldn't take offense at such a comment.

And surprise surprise, Jade merely smiled, razor-sharp this time, "I'm offended that you'd think so little of me." Then Jade was gone, in a flurry of perfectly placed movements. Yuu sighed, looking down at the papers in front of them. It just never seemed to end, and they would be hitting their limit soon. A nap was in due order.

Jade arrived with the tea set in no time, "Ah, think of this as repayment for getting Floyd to sleep. He's been complaining that his teeth were hurting and that he wanted to go back to the ocean...it has been quite troublesome, for both me and Azul."

"That's...not good." Yuu watched, enraptured by the way Jade was very elegantly preparing the tea. Damn him and his near-perfectionism in everything. It made him that much harder to be wary of.

"Well, he was asking me to play around, but I had really pressing work and he seemed to get it so..."

"He fell asleep soon after that?"

"He was squeezing me, but after a while, he must've dozed off," Yuu shrugged.

"My, how soft, to fall asleep in front of prey," Jade placed their cup in front of them, staring over at the sleeping Leech. "Try adding some sugar to the tea." Yuu pours a spoonful in and gasped as the tea turns from a dark blue to purple color.

There's a delight in Jade's face, maybe at their reaction, "Stir it, Yuu-san."

Yuu does, and the color changes once more, from purple to light pink.

"What kind of...magical tea is this?" Yuu held up their cup like it was going to run away from them.

"A...personal blend of mine," Jade chuckled lightly. "I've found that some plants I encounter while I do my club activities make the most fascinating teas."

Yuu narrowed their eyes at the cup, "This isn't...going to make me see hallucinations right? I really need to focus on this before Crowley wrings me out."

"Oh no, although I do know of a blend that does so, this is merely a relaxant." Jade takes a sip of his own cup as if to demonstrate its harmlessness. "I make this blend for Azul sometimes when he's got a lot of work to deal with."

Yuu braved a sip and felt a warm tingle make its way down their throat. With a sigh, Yuu felt all the muscles start to soften and they sag back against Floyd's front.

"Good?"

"Oh yeah, very good," Yuu took another sip, flexing their hands to get the invisible ants out.

"What have you been working on?" Jade asked, gesturing at the papers. "Something for the headmage?"

Yuu groaned, staring at the still-hefty stack of papers, "Crowley- I mean, our benevolent headmage has left a student in charge of checking invoices for the school's purchases while he goes off for a weekend escapade."

"That is...certainly a difficult situation," Jade eyed the papers. "I could help you with some, but I might need to go if Azul calls. How many of these have you gone through already?"

"There were two stacks of these, a meter tall on his desk before he left."

Jade patted their head sympathetically, grabbing a folder, "I think I can relate, especially on the part where my boss makes unreasonable demands. But at least the pay is, mmm, more handsome on those days."

And then they were working. Amicably, to Yuu's surprise. Jade Leech was a good work partner when he wasn't condescending or trying to be scary. (He didn't have to try that hard, he was already imposing enough.) Jade was efficient, and Yuu felt like their brain was turning to mush by the minute. The tea was making them drowsy as well, so that wasn't helping their situa-

Suddenly, there were teeth at their neck...? There were teeth at their neck, real and sharp from the way the jaw of their perpetrator flexed slightly against their skin. Yuu's head snapped up, "Uhm, Floy...d...?"

Floyd was grumbling quietly before the teeth are gone, "Ja~de, stop tryna steal Shrimpy from me!" His hold on them suddenly tightened, his leg moving to tangle in theirs. The teeth are back on their neck as if they'd never left. Yuu swallowed slowly, hoping that they'd get to leave this situation alive as they looked at Jade.

Jade looked unimpressed at Floyd's behavior, "Floyd, it is rude to treat Yuu-san that way when they've been courteous enough to let you sleep as they work." He set the papers he was working on aside as he focused on his twin.

It's nerve-wracking to be in the middle of a fight between these two because, well, Yuu had never seen them fight before. Sure, there are times when they disagreed, but they usually settle it quickly. Now, being the main reason why they were fighting in the first place...Yuu wasn't sure they could survive this. Maybe they should start writing a will, to give away what little possessions they had.

"I know! 'S not Little Shrimp's fault," Floyd whined and rubbed his head against Yuu's nape. "It's cuz of you, now go away, Jade, I don't wanna share."

And then like a switch was flipped, Jade smiled, all provocation, "Well, Yuu-san doesn't belong to you, Floyd." There's a tense silence and Yuu lamented going back to writing their will. Why would Jade say something that would rile him up even more? Now Floyd had his legs wrapped around Yuu's thighs, arms squeezing to the point of discomfort. And the worst part was that those teeth were still scratching at their nape.

"Floyd, I'd appreciate it if you don't bite my ne-" - Yuu shivered as the teeth pressed in a little harder. "My neck." They sat up as best they could, reaching a hand back to pet at Floyd's hair. His grip relaxed the slightest bit. "I'll die if you do."

"But if I don't bite, then Jade'll bite first. And I wanna bite first." Floyd said, so matter-of-factly that any other person would've thought he was talking about lunch. Yuu glanced over at Jade, who doesn't refute the statement, and instead looks amused. Amused, of all things! The gall of this...this overly tall mer-eel!

"No one's biting anyone, please," Yuu argued weakly. "I...really need my neck in one piece." It's a stalemate because Floyd won't let go, Jade won't leave, and Yuu's literally stuck between a rock and a hard place. And they've been stressed all day, so whatever they could do to get out of this...

A flicker of an idea appeared in Yuu's mind, and before they could think too hard, they blurted, "Does it have to be my neck?"

Jade looked visibly surprised by their statement, "You're...going to let him bite you?"

Yuu felt miserable at the prospect, "I have work to do. If this will get you both to quiet down then it's worth it. I think."

"Yay! I get to bite Little Shrimp!" Floyd cheered, jostling Yuu around. "I wonder, will Shrimpy taste like a shrimp...?" The question was asked so innocently that it left Yuu dumbfounded.

"Uhm, then how about my arm...?" They were facing Floyd now, offering up their right arm.

Floyd took it, kneading it between his hands, "Hmm... Not as squishy as your cheeks or tummy, but it'll do for today!" Jade hasn't said anything in a while, but he seemed interested as his twin rolled up the sleeve of their uniform and blazer. Well, there goes their last chance of getting out of this.

"Don't move, Little Shrimp, or else the blood'll go everywhere, like whoosh," Floyd made a gushing motion. "Kinda like those fancy fountains, 'cept it'll be blood~"

Was this a horrible idea? Yes. Were they going to regret this later? Oh yes, most certainly. But was it happening? Begrudgingly, also yes.

And Yuu tried not to imagine the blood fountain in their mind as Floyd clamped down on their arm. He didn't waste any time, immediately biting down. They winced. His teeth were sharp enough to cut into their skin effortlessly. Floyd smiled against their arm in content, once again confirming that Floyd Leech was slightly insane. They didn't move until he finally pulled away.

There was blood everywhere, on his teeth, lips, and even his chin, but Floyd grinned, "Y'know, 's not bad! Doesn't taste like a shrimp, but still good." He made a show of licking the wound again, "Aha, my teeth hurt of so long, so thank you, Shrimpy!"

Their arm is throbbing– burning, actually– but it didn't hurt as much as they'd expected. Maybe it was the adrenaline rushing in their ears, but they felt a little too calm and overwhelmed at the same time. There was a tingling when Floyd licked over it again, and Yuu belatedly wondered if eelmer saliva was toxic to humans.

"C'mon, Jade. You wanna bite too, right?" Floyd smiled gleefully, facing his twin. Wait...what? "Look, Shrimpy. He looks so hungry~" Yuu looked up and there's something dark in Jade's eyes. Shit. Shit, shit, shit, they had almost forgotten that both of them were clinically insane. What kind of sane person liked the taste of human blood anyway?

Jade stood, politely smiling, "Scoot over, Floyd." Said Leech backed up in the booth, giggling all the while and tugging Yuu with him.

"W-wait, how come Jade-senpai's biting me too-!"

Jade's hand grips at their forearm, glove staining with red, "My, it is rude to offer this one of us and not the other."

"He's right! And you taste good, so don't worry."

"I- I thought you didn't want to share !"

Floyd looked sinister as he grinned again, still bloody, "Well that's before. Now's now. Now be a good shrimp and let Jade bite you~" Yuu resisted the urge to kick at Jade as he settled between their legs. Calm down, this guy was just helping out before. Calm down.

Jade swept back his hair as he brought their arm closer, "I promise I'll be gentle."

It's not reassuring at all when Jade says it while smiling that smile that reminds Yuu of a predator baring its teeth. And just like that, there was a second bite on their arm. It didn't hurt as much as the first, but maybe they were growing numb to the pain by now.  Jade lapped at the blood and hummed as if pleased by the taste before retracting his teeth.

Yuu stared at the twin bites on their arm with disappointment, "You two are...literally the worst. If I die of an infection, I am not writing you guys into my will."

“Shrimpy didn’t move so it’ll heal,” Floyd petted their hair to mollify them, "Tastes pretty good, right Jade? It scratches that itch, so there's also a bonus~"

Jade nodded, licking the blood dripping down his chin, staining his shirt, "I must say, that was satisfactory." The twins flash Yuu their sharp grins, both equally caked in their blood and now Yuu remembered exactly why these two were twins. They were cut from the same piece of cloth, after all.

"Please don't say you're gonna eat me or something, I'm not food," Yuu grumbled, cupping their arm. "Could you at least get some tissues? The blood's getting everywhere." Floyd grabbed the whole tissue stand, stuffing it into Yuu's hand. But he made no effort to move from his position where he was cuddling into Yuu. Jade was no different, passively watching and occasionally helping with the used tissues.

"What in Seven's name are you doing?"

The voice made them flinch. Yuu looked up, only to make eye contact with one horrified Azul Ashengrotto. Jade doesn't look all that surprised as he turned, and Floyd gave Azul a big wave.

"Is that...Yuu–?" Azul sighed tiredly. "Up, all of you. To the VIP Room. Now."

"Yes, sir."

"Yessir!"

"O-okay."

Floyd lifted them up with him as he stood, acting as a barrier between the rest of Mostro Lounge and their little party of four. At this point, Yuu couldn’t bring it on themself to say they could walk and just let Floyd do his thing.

"Ooh, Azul looks real mad," He mused, frowning. "But we were just havin' fun, me, Shrimpy, and Jade were."

They're placed on the couch. Or, they're placed on Floyd's lap as he sat on the couch, was a more accurate statement. Jade walked in, bloodied glove in his breast pocket as he carried a stack of papers.

"Thanks, Jade-senpai."

"Not to worry, it was me and Floyd who, ah, inconvenienced you," He sat down next to the two, exchanging another chilling smile with Floyd. Crazy, both of them were.

"Tell me why I was working peacefully when I get a report that, and I quote, 'The Leech brothers are mauling a customer'?" Azul paced around in front of the three on the couch. “Mauling” was...well, it wasn't entirely off. Their arm was still throbbing, and the blood hadn't stopped flowing yet.

"We weren't mauling the Little Shrimp," Floyd huffed, offended at the accusation. "We were just playing 'n Shrimpy said a little bite was okay."

"Quite," Jade nodded as if saddened. "I was having a nice conversation with Yuu-san before the, ah, biting, as Floyd said." They said it as if both of them didn't have blood staining their chins and the collars of their shirts. Yuu just wanted to work in peace. Why did they end up in this situation?

Azul dragged a hand over his face, "Show me." Yuu leaned as far forward as they could with Floyd holding on to them. The bites certainly didn't look as clean as before. The blood was beginning to drip. It looked kinda scary, actually. Yuu was sure there was some sort of paralyzing agent in their saliva, or else maybe they'd be screaming their heads off from the pain.

"I'll hear your explanations later. Jade, Floyd, for now, step outside the room."

Floyd's grip tightened, "Eh, but I don't wanna~"

"Floyd, let's let Azul have a turn," Jade placed a hand on his twin’s shoulder. "It'll only be about five minutes."

"I'm not some toy you can have a turn on." And Jade just smiled at the retaliation, as if he thought it was funny they were complaining after everything that happened.

Floyd reluctantly let go, "I'll be back in no time, Shrimpy."

"If you heal it all the way, we might just have to bite Yuu-san again, Azul," Jade called out before he left. Crazy bastards.

"Don't forget to change your clothes, you got blood everywhere!" Azul shouted after them before standing. He grabbed a cloth and a potion from his drawer.

He sighed as he stared at all the blood, "Let's get it cleaned up before you get an infection."

"Is their saliva poisonous?" Yuu tried not to flinch as Azul ran the cloth around the edges of the bite.

"Not as toxic as their animal counterparts, but I know that there's something that may cause infections," Azul looked up at Yuu before looking back down. "Why would you, out of all people, give them permission to bite you?"

"Well...Floyd was threatening to bite my neck-" Azul almost dropped the cloth at that. "L-Long story short, he was...er, squeezing me and he fell asleep. Jade-senpai came around with some tea, we were discussing my work and Floyd woke up."

"I see. I'm assuming he didn't want to share?" He poured half of the potion onto the bites. The skin knits together, and it's almost like it never happened, save for the light pink scars left on their arm.

Yuu sighed, "It wasn't my brightest decision, I was really tired so to save my own neck, I offered my arm. To Floyd. but then Jade-senpai just..."

"That's when you should be cautious," Azul ruffled their hair. "Rule number two when dealing with the Leeches, what one gets, the other covets too."

"What's rule number one ?"

"Where one goes, the other will follow," Azul looked a bit sorry as he ran a finger over the scars. "Next time don't let them bite you. Call me when they're being unreasonable."

"What's the price?"

"The...price?" Azul looked momentarily askew as if deals or favors from him don't usually have a price tag attached to them. But he recovered quickly. "Well, the payment will be–"

The door is flung open unceremoniously, "Azul! It's been five minutes so now I get a turn!" And there are the twins, looking more like students rather than murderers this time.

Jade placed himself next to Azul. Yuu paid them no mind, no doubt they must've been talking about Mostro Lounge's affairs. Floyd nestled back beside them, this time burying his face in their stomach. Yuu sucked in a breath at the action, having seen literally firsthand what the eel’s teeth can do. The blue-haired giggled like it was funny.

"No more biting," Yuu pleaded. "I really need to do this by the end of today." Yuu picked up the abandoned papers, eyeing the one folder that they haven't sorted through yet. They won't be getting any sleep if that isn't done.

"What've you been doin' Shrimpy?" Floyd asked, wrapping his arms around their torso.

"Hmm? Oh, these are invoices. There are papers that say what's been delivered and what's been ordered. Crowley's forcing me to check them."

"Sounds bo~ring," Floyd singsonged, snatching a paper from Yuu's hand. "What if we set them on fire and build one of those bonfire things instead?"

Yuu took the paper, "I'd get in trouble. Remember washing dishes?" And Floyd shuddered at that, which Yuu found to be a little bit of a cute reaction.

"Are you getting paid, Prefect?" Oh, so Azul was paying attention to them.

They glanced up to find both Azul and Jade staring at them, "Well no. But he did threaten to cut the food funds again, so-"

"Cutting the food funds?" Azul scoffed.

"Again?" Jade's eyebrows furrowed.

There was a short silence before Floyd sat up, "I volunteer to squeeze the headmage! I'll do a great job for you, Little Shrimp."

"What? No, he'll expel you." And the eel deflated before latching onto them again like they were some sort of throw pillow. Yuu glanced warily at Azul and Jade, who all of a sudden had their business smiles on.

Azul approached them first, "How about you work for Mostro Lounge?"

"You mean as waitstaff?" Yuu tilted their head. "I already take up shifts most weeks, but-"

"Not work at Mostro Lounge, Yuu-san," Jade said in that ever so polite tone of his. "Work for the Lounge. Like me and Floyd."

"Uhuh...like you and Floyd," Yuu briefly imagined themself fighting students from other dorms and...nope. That's impossible because one spell and they'll be sent straight to heaven. If they even had heaven here.

"Your work wouldn't be too different to what you're doing right now," Azul sat down on the coffee table, minding the papers. "Usually I am in charge of matching up invoices, but since the business has grown it's been getting a bit...much. I can assure you that you'd be paid handsomely." And Yuu felt like they were being dragged into a trap.

"Ooh, Azul's got a great idea! I get to see Little Shrimp every day!" Floyd's gaze turned contemplative. "But it might get boring. But it might not. So let's do it~"

"Plus," And Yuu jumped when they heard Jade's voice beside them, his arm already on Yuu's forearm. "If you're here then maybe we'll get another taste."

Yuu whipped their arm back, "No more biting. I'm serious, one time's enough." And ugh, Yuu really didn't want to get stuck between these two again.

"If I may," Azul spread his arms wide. "We can set up a contract– a work one, now don't look at me like that– and work out the details of that some other time. For now, we just need your affirmation to the deal."

"Maybe you should hire someone more capable?" Yuu couldn't believe that Azul was hiring someone like them for this job. It's not like they were a professional, they've been doing this for two days after all.

"You're more than capable, Yuu-san," Jade gestured at their work. "You've been doing the headmage's work for him. There might not be anyone as capable as you."

"Jade is right. And also, Mostro Lounge doesn't only value capability," Azul held their gaze, and there's something like warmth there. "We also value trust. There's a reason why we haven't hired another working for the internal system all this time." It's because they haven't found someone trustworthy enough. The words were left unspoken but Yuu swallowed hard.

Azul? Trusting them? Even though they were just invoices, nothing like contracts or other sensitive details like funds, it was still...something. A lot more than they thought Azul, and the Leeches by extension, would've been willing to give them. The trio had always seemed to be impenetrable, so why were they suddenly making space for someone like them?

In an instant, there were arms binding theirs, accompanied by Floyd's cheerful voice, "Shrimpy's taking too long. Imma squeeze till you say yes~"

And, well, there goes the touching mood. Azul and Jade look unfazed as if this was part of the plan should they turn away the deal. Which meant that...this was a trap all along. Was that whole spiel about trust real...? Yuu didn't know when they had time to coordinate their attacks like this, they worked too seamlessly for them to notice.

Yuu thumped their head against Floyd's chest, "Coercion. Great. Fine, I'll do it."

There's a short silence before Azul takes their hand, "It's a deal." His voice was uncharacteristically soft and Yuu barely registered the chaste kiss that he gave their knuckles. Then Yuu felt their brain short circuit because what. Azul just kissed their-

"Aha, Shrimpy's face was so funny," Floyd cupped their face, leaning closer. "Hey, will Shrimpy do it again if I kiss on th-"

Yuu scrambled, pressing a hand to the grinning eels' lips, "No kissing! No more kissing! Not now, not ever." They tumbled back-first into Jade, Floyd's weight still insistent on their front.

"My, I am quite offended that Azul got a free pass on that rule," Jade said lightly, though his arms were gripping Yuu's shoulders quite firmly. "What do you think, Floyd?"

"Well...I let Shrimpy work. And Shrimpy let me sleep. But then I bit Shrimpy. And now there's no kiss," Floyd counted on his fingers. "That means that we get to choose what to play next time~"

And oh Seven's above, that sounded like a terrible idea.

Yuu looked over at their potential savior, "Azul-senpai, you-"

"I'm already helping you," Azul said, waving a hand. "As your future boss, I'll handle these last few invoices. You can handle their games for a little more, right?"

"Poor little Yuu-san has no one to help," Jade said in a mocking tone. "Then, as Floyd said, we'll choose what to do next time. For now, you can do what you'd like."

"Mhm! I'm bein' super obedient right now, like one of those Savanaclaw pups," Floyd boasted, still in the process of crushing their ribs with his weight.

And Yuu was tired. These two were too unpredictable, and Azul...Azul was a dick when he chose to be. Which were most times. The exhaustion was clinging to them now, and their body ached, from the biting and the sitting and the working and- everything.

In a small voice, they voiced their request, "Uh, then can I borrow a bed...?"

Jade raised an eyebrow, "Well, that's quite forward of you to ask-"

"N-Not for that kind of bed stuff, ugh," Yuu made sure to pinch the inside of his wrist. They were sure they saw Azul turning red too behind the papers he was reading.

"Ooh, what type of bed stuff then, Little Shrimp?" Floyd sat himself up, sitting on Yuu's lap now. "Pillow fighting? But Azul's banned us because we broke a lot of things last time."

"No, I just...I wanted to take a nap," And their ears burn at the request. "I've...been working all day long and I didn't get any good sleep last night." Maybe it's because it's Jade, Floyd, and Azul, but it seems too silly to ask something like that out loud.

But instead of the teasing response that they expected, Floyd looked sympathetic. He patted their head, "I get that too when my teeth ache too much. 'S annoying."

Jade returned– when did he even leave?– with a pillow in hand, "You can use this couch to lie on. It's a lot more comfortable when we remove the back pillows. Azul uses it to sleep sometimes."

Azul coughed into his hand, "Ah, it's convenient to have a bed in the office, I work late hours, so I had them put it in." And it's kind of...domestic to imagine Azul squeezing onto this couch late at night.

Yuu dragged themself up, watching as Jade detached the big pillows and unfolded a sheet. The sight of something bed-like had the melatonin rushing their brain, and they can feel themself growing hazier and hazier by the minute.

"C'mon, little sleepy Shrimp," Floyd tugged them onto the softness of the couch. "I'll be your blanket for today~" And Yuu couldn't find it in themself to argue as they removed their blazer, flopping into the pillow Jade had laid out. Floyd immediately covered them much like a blanket, folding his limbs around them. Jade was sitting by their head, and there was a gloved hand stroking their hair. Oh, the couch felt like heaven against their skin, and Floyd didn't make that bad of a blanket. And Jade was...comforting... Yuu stifled a yawn.

"Sorry that I'm bothering you guys so much," Yuu found themself mumbling as they grew sleepier.

"No, no," They heard Azul reply. "It has been a rather good day since you've decided to bother us." They were sure Jade had said something, and Floyd had chimed in, but they couldn't hear it anymore. The tide of sleep had already swept them away.

[ omake : octatrio’s new companion ]

"Their heartbeat's real slow," Floyd commented, ear pressed against the Prefect's chest. "I think Little Shrimp's already asleep."

"Shame they didn't hear what we said," Jade chucked, still stroking at their hair. It seemed that they got a haircut since he saw them last, and it looked...quite good on them, he thought.

Azul clicked his tongue, "I can't believe that headmage. Giving them two stacks of these to get done in two days? No wonder they were exhausted." The three were thinking about how Crowley sometimes abused the power he had over their little Ramshackle Prefect, and how they didn't quite like how tired Yuu had been.

"When they wake up, maybe let's play swimming, but in the pool," Floyd said, gently tracing the scar on their arm. "Feel bad for Shrimpy if we go to the Coral Sea all of a sudden."

"You're being really nice, Floyd," Although it was Jade who asked, Azul agreed. Floyd was being really docile around the Prefect at times.

"Well...I like the way Shrimpy talks to me!" Floyd tightened his grip on Yuu. "They don't get mad every two seconds like everyone else. But 's not like they don't ever get mad, 's just they're better than everyone else." An answer that was equal parts genuine and Floyd.

"I noticed that too," Azul said, collecting the papers into a stack. "They seem to treat us without that many reservations. Which is equally foolish and brave."

"It is quite amusing to see them still being occasionally wary," Jade said, smiling down at their sleeping prey. "They choose the best moments."

"Ooh, can we keep 'em longer?" Floyd asked in a bright tone. "Wanna play with them some more~"

The three silently gazed at the sleeping human. The subtle movement of Yuu's chest alerted them that they were alive, and showed just how fragile this person in front of them was. Magicless. There would be no way for them to protect themselves with magic. They would die from the simplest of poisons, too. So...very weak. But that's also what made them all the more worthwhile for the trio. They were quite fond of this magicless and weak creature they had befriended.

"Let's see where this goes," Azul glanced up at the twins. "If everything goes well then maybe we can take them with us to the Coral Sea someday?" And the Leech twins smile something not-so-sinister, the closest they can get to warmth. Azul himself has that grin on his face as he continued to take on the extra work alongside Jade, while Floyd watched over them.

Maybe that little sleeping shrimp would be the one to scale the tall, tall walls that the trio had built around themselves. Maybe they would let Yuu actually see who they were, instead of a mix of the personas they had built to keep themselves safe. But that would be for another time. Today, they were just content watching them peacefully doze.

thank you for reading my octatrio brainrot ! if you'd like to check out more of my work: my ao3 + twst masterlist

if you'd like to be tagged for the sequel, go to this post