.

𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.

⊹ pairing: morpheus x reader

⊹ summary: only expecting to meet up with hob, morpheus ends up meeting someone else

⊹ warnings: none

⊹ word count: 799

morpheus follows the red arrow painted on the wall.

he is already late for his meeting—by a century and a few decades—though none of it his fault. but their last fight and his abrupt leaving of hob in the rain in 1889—that, perhaps, was his. but he takes the red direction as a good sign and follow it until it leads him to an inn across the street, appropriately called "the new inn." he doesn't think it's very creative, but he doesn't say anything. he simply walks in.

his eyes first scan over the people sitting on the tables, then those ordering drinks at the bar. he keeps looking until his eyes spot a man at the far corner in a brown jacket scribbling away, a glass of beer half-drunk to his right. when he stops beside his table, the man finally looks up, an amicable glint in his brown eyes as he recognizes him. his smile comes quick after that, reassuring morpheus that he was in fact not angry.

"you're late," hob gadling says.

morpheus chuckles. "it seems i owe you an apology. i've always heard it impolite to keep one's friends waiting."

hob's smile widens. morpheus takes that as a good sign and he claims the seat—his seat—in front of hob.

"so, my friend," morpheus begins, smiling. "how has your life been?"

hob takes a deep breath before launching into all that has happened since they last saw each other. and like the first time hob talked about his life, hob maintains his appreciation for his immortality, his eagerness to keep living, and his excitement for the future, no matter what he went and will go through. morpheus listens quietly, like always, and even asks a question or two and makes several comments to show he is enjoying the conversation.

“i’ve made a new friend, too,” hob says before he takes the last sip of his drink. “she’s coming here, actually. i didn’t know you were showing up today, so i already had plans.”

“then i shall take my leave.”

“oh, no! you should stay for a little bit and meet her.”

“i think our meeting has been enough—”

“but, she’s already here. y/n!”

morpheus turns as he stands, and suddenly he is facing you. you are looking up at him curiously, head tilted slightly to the left in an endearing way. your hair is in a low bun, front strands free and framing your cheeks that makes his hands itch to brush behind your ear. you are pretty, of course, enough to make the men and women passing by to take a second look at you, but it’s the way you’re looking at him, a complete stranger who has always looked scary to others, unafraid and innocently curious, that makes morpheus stop.

then you blink and you smile. it's the kind of smile reserved for strangers who you wished weren't one. it pushes your cheeks up, making the growing pink flush on them more noticeable to his eyes.

“hello,” you say. your voice is gentle—the gentlest anyone has spoken to morpheus in a century—and he is surprised at how he has to put a hand on the table to keep his knees from buckling.

“ah. this is y/n. y/n, this is...an old friend of mine.”

morpheus turns back to hob. “I think i should like a drink, now.”

hob looks at him with confusion. in all their meetings, hob had always set out food for him and he had never touched it. “you—”

morpheus looks pointedly at his empty glass. “and i think you need some more too.”

“if you’re getting this round, hob, then i’d like one too,” you add, glancing at morpheus with a teasing glint in your eyes to say you were in on his game.

morpheus can’t help but look at you pleased and a bit amused.

“you—” hob starts.

“quickly, hob! before a line forms.” you pull hob out of his seat and gently shove him in the bar’s direction.

“he's known her for five seconds and he's already given her his name,” hob mutters as he walks to the bar. “not to mention making me buy her a drink.”

you slide into hob’s seat with a chuckle. “i didn’t get your name,” you say.

morpheus glances at hob, his friend for several centuries who still knew nothing about morpheus, not even his name. Then he thinks about lucienne who, if present, would introduce him by his many formal titles.

but to you, with your lively eyes, pretty smile, and the faint pink on your cheeks that he has already grown to like and which he thinks he’ll like even more if he was the cause of it, he simply says, “morpheus. call me morpheus.”

𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲: 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗅𝖿 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗀𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝗇𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗁𝗈𝖻 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌? 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗌 𝗇𝗈𝗍. 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝗇𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗍𝗈 𝗆𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖾𝗉𝗂𝗌𝗈𝖽𝖾 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝖺𝗎𝗍𝗂𝖿𝗎𝗅 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗈 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗂𝗋 𝖿𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉? 𝗒𝖾𝗌.

𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘧!

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐎𝐎𝐋 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢.

⊹ pairing: morpheus x reader

⊹ summary: you're missing, and morpheus nearly goes insane in longing and desperation in his search for you

⊹ tags: angst, morpheus copes (he doesn't) with you gone, established relationship

⊹ warnings: spoilers for 1.06, 1.07, & 1.08

⊹ word count: 3039

⊹ previous part: prologue/teaser

⊹ up next: part ii

⊹ now playing: everything i wanted by billie eilish

𝚒 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚊 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚒 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚒 𝚠𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚞𝚙, 𝚒 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚖𝚎

The first person Morpheus swallows his pride and asks for helping regarding your whereabouts, is his sister.

After enduring an earful from her not of not trusting her and being too prideful to ask for help when you were concerned, Death reassures him that she did not reap you in the years you were gone.

"I kept my word to you, brother. I did not touch Y/N. But I have reaped many who came across her," Death says.

"Y/N killed them?" Morpheus asks, surprised. Though the laws that keep an Endless from hurting mortals does not apply to you, you tried not to take their lives anyway.

"No. At least, not directly." Death drops her voice to a whisper. "The humans call her the Lady of the Whispers. She's a notorious serial killer, Dream!"

"Have you talked to her?"

Death shakes her head. "She hasn't allowed me to get close to her. I sometimes see her when I reap the humans she leaves behind, but she never says anything to me. She just runs away."

They are silent for a while. Morpheus aggressively throws a chunk of bread at a pigeon, hitting it on the head, while Death makes small conversation with a man playing soccer.

"I think she's using her powers," she says finally.

"She would never abuse it," he says immediately. He might not know what you were doing or why you were doing it, but his trust in your remains unwavering. There was a reason you possessed the power you did.

"You need to find her, brother," Death says. "Before someone finds her first."

She faces the street as a car collides with the man playing soccer. Unbeknownst to the man in question, he jogs over with the ball, whistling at how the car had missed him. Death gives him a warm smile and links their arms as she proceeds to explain while they walk away.

Morpheus' gaze darkens at her back, and for a moment, his eyes look like hot, twin white stars. "I know," he says quietly.

Hob Gadling is the second person he swallows his pride for you for.

"I haven't seen her since the last time I saw the two of you together a few centuries back," Hob says.

'A few centuries back' was when he and Hob had a fight after Hob accused him of being in need of companionship. In Morpheus' defence, he was more prideful then. More than that, to suggest he was lonely despite having you, his wife, was an insult to you that he would not stand for. It had been you who demanded he apologize, but by the time he followed you to the pub (his punishment had been your refusal to hold his arm) Hob was gone.

"You better show up here in a hundred years," you told him firmly.

"For you, my love, I will. Now give me your hand before someone mistakes you for not being taken for."

You lightly hit his arm. "Not for me, Morpheus! For Hob! He's your friend, whether you like it or not. And you need someone apart from me. Who will you have if something happens to me and we are apart?"

He hadn't glorified that question with an answer. He simply grabbed your hand himself and refused to let go.

His capture led him to missing his and Hob's next appointment and being late to fulfilling his promise to you. But here he was, fulfilling it, and you weren't here to see it or to finally offer your hand.

Morpheus sighs heavily as he straightens in his seat.

"Just because I haven't seen Y/N, doesn't mean I haven't heard about her," Hob says. Though the New Inn is boisterously loud, Hob drops his voice to a hush and leans forward. "I hear there's a bounty on her head."

Morpheus looks at him warningly. "Have you tried to claim it?"

"What? No! Of course not! The opposite. She's more my friend than you are. I tried to offer her refuge, but she never replied to my attempts at contacting her. I did manage to see her once by pure coincidence."

Morpheus doesn't bother trying to contain his eagerness. "How did she look? Did she say anything about me?"

"She looked terrible," Hob admits. "Exhausted and always looking over her shoulder. And no, she didn't say anything about you. She didn't say anything at all, actually. It was quite odd. Maybe her tongue got cut off—"

"I'll cut your tongue off, Hob Gadling, if you dare voice such insolent thoughts again about my wife."

Hob chugs the rest of his drink in apology. But Hob's words aren't the first time Morpheus heard you refusing to talk to anyone. The few dreams and nightmares who also caught a fleeting glimpse at you also reported that although you recognized them, you didn't utter a single word to them. A normal person would have taken this as confirmation that you had turned your back on your duties as his wife and Lady of the Dreaming. But Morpheus knew you. He had loved you for more years than you were official his. That, plus the murders associated in your wake, causes the suspicions in Morpheus to grow.

He needs to find you.

Sooner rather than later, if not for his sanity, then for the good of the waking world.

Morpheus enters his throne room, exhaustion and longing for you nearly bringing him to his knees.

He doesn't have the strength to walk all the way up his staircase, so he settles for sitting on the fourth step—your step—and drapes his coat around him.

His throne room is large and barren—a sign that your touch was missing. When you were by his side, you had conjured ivies to scale the walls and flowers to drip from the ceiling. The multi-coloured lights from the stained glass windows would blend nicely with the streaks of gold from the candlelights and chandeliers you had placed throughout. The mere presence of you brought him warmth.

Morpheus doesn't think he'd ever felt as cold as he does now.

Outside, he hears hushed whispers between Mervyn, Matthew, and Lucienne. They are debating whether not is the right time or not to ask him about you, or if that'll earn them a front row seat to being unmade.

Truthfully, Morpheus doesn't know what he'll do either. All he knows is that he's so tired and misses you, like a starving man longs for food or a drowning man desperate for air. The pain of missing you makes it hard to move, but it's the thoughts of you that threatens to drive him insane—neither is a good state to be in for the Endless responsible for everyone's dreams.

If they were drawing sticks, Lucienne must have pulled the short end.

She sticks her head past the door, not daring to take another step. "May I disturb you, lord?" she says, attempting to hide the fear in her voice by sounding cool and formal as she normally does.

Though he barely had two seconds to rest, he pushes himself up. "Speak, Lucienne."

She takes a deep breath before crossing the room to him. She talks about menial things first, like how Cain and Abel seem to have accepted his apology with Goldie and how the dream folk are planning to throw a celebration for his return, which they have invited him to come.

He says no. It was always you who dragged him to these things, and you are not there.

"What is it you really want to ask, Lucienne?"

"It's not only from me," she says slowly, "but your other subjects as well."

Morpheus already knows what she's going to say, and at the thought of your name, his exhaustion grows heavier against his limbs, threatening to send him to the floor.

"Now that your tools have been returned to you, and many of your subjects are back in the Dreaming, the dream folk are wondering where Lady Y/N is and why you have not come for her yet."

"I do hope that question is not from lack of faith that I have abandoned my wife," Morpheus says sourly, although he knows that is not the case. Lucienne had already been by his side when he met you. She witnessed the years he pined after you, counselled him into acting on his emotions and courting you, and it was she who officiated your wedding and watched the blissful years after. While he appreciated Lucienne's loyalty to him as his librarian, he also knows Lucienne and you had become close enough to be friends, to the point that she would sometimes let go of formalities and call you by her name. If anyone was to know how much you meant to him, it would be her.

"Of course not, lord," Lucienne says, as expected, "but it has been days since you have returned to full strength. How can you bear to be away from her any more than you have to?"

"I cannot."

Lucienne pauses. "My lord?"

"I cannot bear being from her for so long," Morpheus admits, and he lets his tiredness show by taking his seat on your step once more. He sighs heavily as he looks up at her. "She is my wife, Lucienne."

"Perhaps you can ask your siblings—"

"No." Morpheus scowls at the idea. He had already done enough by asking Death and a human. If any of his other siblings found out he was incapable of finding you—Desire, especially—then there would be real cause to fear for your safety.

"I can still feel her," Morpheus murmurs. "She is somewhere out there, alive. I will find her, Lucienne. You can tell my subjects that their lady will be back."

"You know," Lucienne says after a pause. "That was the last thing Y/N said about you."

Morpheus tries not to recoil from what her words imply. According to Lucienne, you had not entered the Dreaming since your last attempt at rescuing him, which was also the day Jessamy died. As heartbroken as he was witnessing the death of his beloved raven, he was even more terrified at what could have happened to you that prevented you from protecting Jessamy. You never would have let her go down to that basement unguarded and unprotected. You cared for the bird more than Morpheus did. Whatever happened that day, whatever stopped you from going downstairs, must be linked to whatever you were running from.

But what? What could you possibly be running from?

Was it him? Had the century of being apart taught you that you didn't love him as much as you thought you did, and like his other dreams and nightmares, you took your shot at freedom and left? Was he the threat you were running from?

"I will find her," Morpheus repeats. "But wherever she is, she must be safe." Lucienne frowns but he continues. "No one knows who she truly is to me, and she would not have told others. She has to be safe—"

"She is not safe, lord Morpheus."

He looks up at her immediately. Suddenly, he's standing before her and Lucienne takes a step back in surprise.

"What did you say?" he asks lowly, the words scratching his throat.

"Forgive me, lord. I thought you were aware."

He shoots her a look, as if to remind her where he had been the past century. "Aware of what, Lucienne?"

"There is a bounty on lady Y/N's head."

Morpheus struggles not to stagger back. Was this another one of Desire's games? Perhaps Desire had looped Despair into one of their ploys? Though Desire had not been invited to the wedding, Delirium had been, and he had no doubt Desire's had intimidated their youngest sibling into telling them everything.

"For what?" he manages. "Because she's my wife?"

"For being your wife," Lucienne answers, "and for being one of your tools."

For a few seconds, he is unable to speak. He simply stares at Lucienne, waiting for her to say she was joking or mistaken, but she does neither. The secrecy of you being one of his tools was the only thing Morpheus had to reassure himself that you were safe. But if that was out, then...

Lucienne meets his gaze, reaffirming the truth behind her words.

"That's not possible," he finally says. "Few people knew of that ceremony. Fewer still attended and can confirm it happened."

"It was the Corinthian, sir."

The Corinthian. His pride and joy. His greatest masterpiece and the first nightmare you helped him with.

His rogue nightmare left a bitter taste in Morpheus' mouth. The Corinthian had been at the power transference ceremony—a sign that Morpheus truly loved his nightmare the most. His defiance was already heartbreaking enough, but now this? You? This was unforgivable.

Morpheus didn’t even want to imagine what sort of prize could be promised for the wife of an Endless, let alone for being one of his tools. Was that what he left you? Loneliness and enemies? Did you resent him for that? Was that why you had not returned or called to him for help? He had no reason for falling out of love with you in the century you were apart, but it seems that you had plenty of reasons to fall out of love with him.

"My theory is that something happened between him and her the day she ran away. What, I do not know. But Matthew reported the same thing: he heard whispers of a bounty placed on the wife of the Dream King by the Corinthian."

Rage simmered in Morpheus, and the Dreaming responded as such. Across his realm, the land trembled. Volcanoes bloomed and exploded, lava rapidly surging forth as a message to the Dreaming’s inhabitants that all was at the mercy of their king and his rapidly declining patience at his missing wife.

But in the library, Morpheus remains eerily still. "You may go conduct that census now, Lucienne," he says.

She stands there for a few more moments, as if wondering whether she should press the problem that was you. Thankfully, her years of servitude has taught her of his limits, and she departs with a dip of the head.

Morpheus waves his hand, locking the doors behind her. Only then does he released a long, exhausted breath as he sinks to his back on your step. A hot tear spills over his cheek as he touches the step, remember the days you and him have spent on it. Talking sometimes, kissing on others. He can feel your lips on him still, but it's starting to fade like a dream.

He is drowning in his grief for you. If missing you had not been enough, now he is plagued with fear that perhaps you did not want to be found. Did you blame him for your predicament? Did you hate him? Morpheus doesn't think he'd be able to handle not seeing love in your eyes if you look at him? And if he sees resentment, he thinks that might just break him.

How painful it is, he thinks, to grieve for the living. How unbearably painful it is.

It takes Lucienne a few days to conduct the census.

When she finishes, Morpheus is in a slightly better mood. She talks about the census first, then the three major missing arcana: Gault, the Corinthian, and Fiddler's Green. One was unsurprising, the second expected, but Fiddler's Green was hurtful. It was in Fiddler's Green he had married you, after all. Now he had lost another part of you.

When Lucienne brings up the vortex, Morpheus is smiling as he corrects her on the vortex not being an 'it' but a 'she'.

Lucienne eyes him suspiciously. "You don't seem worried."

"Rose Walker will be my answer and solution," Morpheus declares.

"But she is a vortex. She is not a solution. She is one of our problems!"

"You said it yourself, Lucienne. She is a vortex. Sooner or later, she will bring them all to her: Gault, the Corinthian, Fiddler's Green. My wife."

Lucienne is struck silent for a few moments, and he can see that is she is torn between listening to her duty as the Dreaming’s librarian and her loyalty to you as her friend. In the end, she picks duty, and Morpheus does not blame her for that. Neither would you, if you heard her. After all, you would have said the same thing.

"But she could destroy the realm first," Lucienne says nervously.

"I will take that risk if it means finding her. I've built my realm once and rebuilt it another time. With my wife back at my wise, both will be easier to accomplish."

"But sir—"

"I will hear none of this any longer. You may go tell my subjects that the Lady of the Dreaming will be returning son." Morpheus smiles towards the ceiling at his conjured image of Rose Walker. "I will ensure it."

When Rose Walker dreams her way to his throne room, uninvited but welcomed, Morpheus' worry about the vortex' growing powers is superseded by the hope that you will find your way to her soon enough.

"She shouldn't be here," Lucienne says agitatedly.

"No," Morpheus says, eyeing his solution with fascination, "but I should like her to stay."

As he explains to her what and where she is, he thinks of you. "I need you to look for someone for me, Rose Walker," Morpheus says as he finishes circling her. "Y/N. She is neither a dream or a nightmare. She is my wife. When you find her, you must tell me. But first, I need you to tell her something."

Morpheus bends close and Rose and whispers the words into her ear. he waits for her to nod in understanding before straightening.

"But how will I know who she is?" Rose asks. "Do you have a picture?"

Morpheus turns towards the painting on the wall of you. He points to the marble statue in the midst of the water fountain that is of your body, which he had carved with his own bare hands from memory. Then he summons a flower to spiral down from the ceiling and land in Rose's palm. All mementos of you.

"Believe me," Morpheus says with a smile. "You'll know it's her. My wife is...unmistakeable."

"Can I have her name, at least?"

"Y/N," Morpheus says tenderly. He always says your name that way. Borderline a reverent whisper like you are the goddess he's praying to. "Her name is Y/N."

ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ɴᴇxᴛ ᴘᴀʀᴛ…

Your throat is throbbing. You touch your throat gingerly, and you don't need a mirror to know that the handprints of that man are visible against your skin. But even as you cough, the motion raw against your raw throat, you don't stop running.

You catch sight of a hotel, and you feel relief as you turn away from the road and bolt up the hill to the building. It'll be easier to hide in one of the many rooms, but the guarantee of people in the hotel was cause for concern. But as long as you keep your mouth shut, all should be fine.

You slow into a walk as you pass a trio of people in the parking lot. Name tags dangle from their chest, one of who is named, The Music Teacher. In the centuries you've been alive, you've never heard such an in-depth and seriously spoken topic about their favourite methods of cooking barbecue and collecting grills.

As you hurry inside, you pass by a sign that reads: CEREAL CONVENTION.

ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛɪɴᴜᴇᴅ…

09/03/22 𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁: 𝗂𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 24 𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗋𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗈𝗎𝗍, 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗇 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗆𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗈𝗇𝗒𝗑 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝗅𝖺𝖼𝗄 𝗃𝖺𝗒. 𝗂'𝗆 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗂𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗆𝗈𝗏𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝗍𝗈 𝗆𝗒 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌, 𝗌𝗈 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝖻𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗎𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗌𝖾𝖾 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝖺𝗇𝗒𝗆𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗈𝗋 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝖿𝗎𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝗈𝗇𝖾𝗌!

𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲: 𝗐𝗁𝗒 𝖽𝗂𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖽𝗋𝖺𝖿𝗍 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝗌𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝗍𝗐𝗂𝖼𝖾? 𝖺𝗆 𝗂 𝖻𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗉𝗎𝗇𝗂𝗌𝗁𝖾𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗍𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗈 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗍? 𝗈𝗋 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝗇𝖼𝖾, 𝗂 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗌𝗇𝖺𝗋𝗄𝗒 𝗌𝗆𝗎𝗍𝗍𝗒 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗈𝗇𝖾?

𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗐𝗁𝗒 𝗂𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗌𝗈 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀? 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗐𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗌𝖾 𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗎𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗋𝗇. 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝗅𝖾 𝗂 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖺 𝗆𝗂𝖽𝗅𝗂𝖿𝖾 𝖼𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗌 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝖿𝗎𝖼𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗎𝗆𝖻𝗅𝗋, 𝗂 𝗁𝗈𝗉𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝖾𝗇𝗃𝗈𝗒𝖾𝖽!

𝖿𝗒𝗂 𝗂 𝗀𝗈𝗍 𝗌𝗎𝗇𝖻𝗎𝗋𝗇𝗍 𝖾𝗑𝖼𝖾𝗉𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗉 𝗎𝗉 𝗆𝗒 𝗅𝖾𝗀 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝗂 𝗉𝗎𝗍 𝗌𝗎𝗇𝗌𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖾𝗇. 𝗍𝖺𝗅𝗄 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗎𝗀𝗅𝗂𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝖺𝗇 𝗅𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋. 𝗍𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝗁𝗈𝗍 𝗀𝗂𝗋𝗅 𝗌𝗎𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗋 𝗅𝗂𝗍𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒. 𝗌𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝗉𝗋𝖺𝗒𝖾𝗋𝗌.

╰┈➤ 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵!

╰┈➤ 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘧!

𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩: @justviktormlolm, @aurorarevenclaw1927, @amirahroronoa, @sunna-fangirls, @mrs-captainsteverogers, @absbdbshhs, @urbanbts, @theamuz, @ac-procrastinator-13, @thegreatestsandwich, @julegrav009-blog, @harrypotter55, @blossomedfloweroflove, @lestaikkeullsokka, @thetrashypanda423, @ponyboys-sunsets, @izzicle, @dilfsandtherapy, @mischiefmanaged71, @grippleback-galaxy, @cynic-spirit, @thecrazytealady, @violet-19999, @junobutbored, @avanisbored, @redskull199987, @bilesxbilinskixlahey, @ladymoon666, @celestialceremonials, @mm2305, @ttae-yong

I want to say, I've read two of your fics and already I'm amazed by your writing. I have a strong feeling I'll read anything you produce with Dream in it :D Even if it's Dream x Reader going grocery shopping. Or Dream learning to drive. Or Dream at an animal shelter just meowing back and forth at the cats cause he is a big kitten himself. Anything.

𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗎𝗎 <3

𝖺𝗅𝗌𝗈, 𝖽𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗆 𝗅𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾? 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝖽𝗂𝖽 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗄𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍'𝗌 𝖺 𝗌𝗇𝗂𝗉𝗉𝖾𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗆𝗒 𝗎𝗉𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗆 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖼𝖺𝗇𝗈𝗇𝗌…? 😏

𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗆𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝗆𝖾 𝗂𝖿 𝗂 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝖾 𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗈𝗋 𝗍𝗐𝗈 𝗈𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗂𝖽𝖾𝖺𝗌 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗂 𝖼𝖺𝗇 𝖽𝖾𝖿𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗍𝖾𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝖾𝖾 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗎𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝗂𝖿𝖿𝖾𝗋𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝗍𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗐𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖾, 2%, 1%, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗄𝗂𝗆 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗄 ("𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝖼𝖾𝗇𝗍𝖺𝗀𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝖾𝗋𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝗆𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗄 𝖻𝖾𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗐?" 𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗌𝗄𝗌 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗌 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗅𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝖺𝗍 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝗂𝗇 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗅𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝖽𝗈𝖾𝗌𝗇'𝗍 𝗄𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗄 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝖼𝖾𝗇𝗍𝖺𝗀𝖾𝗌 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄.) 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗐𝗁𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾 𝖺 𝗐𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖾 𝖺𝗂𝗌𝗅𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝖽𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗈𝗂𝗅𝖾𝗍 𝗉𝖺𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝗋𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗌 (𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗀𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝖽𝗈𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗌𝗎𝗅𝗄𝗒 𝗉𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝗈𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗒 𝖾𝗉𝗂𝗌𝗈𝖽𝖾 𝖺𝗌 𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗈𝗐𝗌 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝗅𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝖺 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝖽𝗈𝗐 𝗈𝗋 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗌𝗂𝗅𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗅𝗒 𝗉𝗎𝗌𝗁𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝖻𝖾𝗁𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗌 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗄𝖾𝖾𝗉 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌 𝗂𝗇)

𝐣𝐣𝐤 | 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜.

⊹ pairing: jeon jungkook x reader

⊹ summary: the inevitability of being in a relationship with a popular kpop idol

⊹ tags: idol!jungkook, author!reader, secret relationship, fanboy jungkook, female reader, established relationship

⊹ warnings: fluff with swearing

⊹ word count: 1563

you always knew it was going to happen

and not just because both of you were ready to announce it. you always knew your relationship was going to get leaked because of who jungkook was and because of who you were. your status as an author wasn't as popular as that of a kpop idol, but being a famous author meant you weren't as obscure as you'd like. there were photos and videos of you on the internet which others could digest to learn about you

you had come to terms with it when you answered jungkook's question to be his girlfriend. this was simply one of the requirements to date a member of bts. being in a secret relationship was as beneficial for him as for you. and you never really minded. as an author, you wanted an obscure life. sharing your relationship to the world wasn't an integral part of your relationship

the plot twist of it all was that it would end up being your boyfriend himself who leaked your relationship

you would think that jeon jungkook, member of bts since he was fifteen, would be used to keeping aspects of his life well hidden from the camera. that he, of all people, would be used to it. and honestly, he thought that of himself too

until he met you

turns out, he didn't like the secret aspect of your relationship that much. and when jungkook doesn't like something, he doesn't put much effort into it

he starts dropping the most obvious hints. everyone already knows that he was a fan of your work—that in itself already broke headlines since jungkook had always admitted to not being much of a reader—but he starts to praise you on every social media outlet he has. arms on vlive, instagram, twitter, and weverse are now subjected to his praises of your work and you as an author

of course, some fans will defend him by saying he's just being a fan and should be allowed to express interest in someone without being shipped. and he is a fan. but he's also in love with you. and the smile on his face that pops up whenever he talks about you becomes the biggest evidence that he has feelings for you

on vlive, to an audience of ten million people, he makes the "mistake" of showing his phone to the camera to show the time and also reveals you as his lockscreen. not just that, but the picture he has of you is one no one has seen before (yes, the internet went digging through it and confirmed his lockscreen was the only one. cue some of your readers asking him for that picture.) he has the audacity to act all baffled in front of the camera and don't comment on it. but you're there behind the camera when this happens, and he looks at you with a shit-eating grin as you glower at him

then its revealed this man has a fan page (the magic of army and the internet). you might be an author, but he's a kpop idol, and he's only knows how to be a kpop fan. that picture he has of you as his lock screen? he uploaded it. not all the pictures are privately, of course. some are from public events that he took of you from backstage. but the pictures are up for all to see, much to your incredulousness

he shows his bookshelf once. because he doesn't actually read anything but your book, it's basically just a shrine dedicated to you. he has each version of your book. though he read the korean translated version of your book first, he does own the english version and uses that to study and learn english. (expect him to say your lines to you as that's what he learned.) and let's not get started on him making fan art

you are much better at hiding your relationship. in fact, you give nothing away, and this annoys jungkook a little bit. how could you not mention him in your every sentence? you were dating, weren't you?

the next time you do a live video where you answer questions from your readers, he purposefully texts you. the first time, it was innocent and encouraging, which makes you blush and grow pink as you grow aware that he's watching you

the next time he texts you, it's explicit. this time, you're flustered and turn red. you reader picks up on it your reactions and ask you what you read and who it was. you stumble and say, "it's my—" but stop immediately. you clear your throat and say no one before tossing your phone to the side, much to jungkook's glee on the other side of the live

his public admiration for your work obviously starts to have an impact on your own image. during an interview for your upcoming book, you're caught off guard when the interviewer suddenly asks you for your favourite bts member. it's known that you were an army, of course, so you don't think much of it. you name your bias, which happens to not be jungkookk

jungkook explodes. he posts a video of him reacting to it and acting heartbroken

then the internet explodes. memes are made of his reaction, and more attention is thrown in your direction. questions are asked if you were aware of having captured jungkook's attention.

enter whiny jungkook era

he whines about not being able to show off anything about your relationship (as if he's already been doing a good job.) to appease him, you concede and allow both of you to publicly show a couple accessory. you didn't think he would be the type to want couple accessories and you hoped he'd shoot it down, but this man was fucking thrilled. (you should have known, considering how many accessories he wears). you said something low-key and could be brushed off as coincidental if even noticed

you suggest a ring. a simple band with each other's name or birthday engraved on the inside

he suggests a necklace with your letter hanging from his and his letter hanging from yours. (you smack him for that.)

its what you give him as a birthday present that you find your solution. with him being an idol from korea and you a writer from your country, you're in a long distance relationship for most of the year. not only are you physically separated, but there's a time difference as well

that's why you buy him a pair of watches that are able to display dual time zones. on his watch: korea and your country. on yours: your country and korea. it's perfect as its both a couple accessory but also functional. he does pout at not thinking of it first and you had to pay for it, but you brush it off with a kiss on his cheek and whispering to him, happy birthday

then it happens

the two of you are spotted for the first time

and it's all jungkook's fault

of course people were going to see you two together. he went to your fucking book launch. he stood in line to get his book signed with nothing but a cap that didn't hide his distinguishable jawline, his iconic smile, and his lip piercing

jungkook even brought one of those huge-ass fan cameras and took pictures of you the whole time. as this was a book signing and not a kpop meet and greet, he became very obvious and attracted everyone's attention. when you read the first chapter of your book out loud, he clapped the loudest and even shouted your name. (just be glad he didn't start a fanchant)

"i'm a big fan," he says with a shit-eating grin when it's his turn as you smile murderously at him

when the event is over, you hit him on the arm repeatedly. he only gets you to stop when he wraps his arms around you and holds you close to him, chest to chest. he looks down at you with a pout and admits the truth you already know: he doesn't want to hide your relationship anymore

"I 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝖺𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝗒𝗆𝗈𝗋𝖾," 𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝖽𝗆𝗂𝗍𝗌. T𝗁𝖾 𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍-𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗁𝖾 𝗎𝗌𝗎𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝗉𝖾𝖺𝗄𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗅𝖺𝖼𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗈𝗎𝗌𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗌. T𝗁𝖺𝗍'𝗌 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗄𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌𝗇'𝗍 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗌𝗈𝗆𝖾 𝗂𝗆𝗉𝗎𝗅𝗌𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗌𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝖾'𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗇𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗌. H𝗂𝗌 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗌 𝖺𝗋𝖾𝗇'𝗍 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝖺 𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍, 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗆. A𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗐𝖾𝗋. "I 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗒𝗈𝗎'𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗆𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝗆𝖾. I 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎'𝗋𝖾 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝗂'𝗆 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁.

I𝗍'𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗆𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗂𝗓𝖾 𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝗆𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝗅𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉 𝗆𝖾𝖺𝗇𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗂𝗆. H𝗈𝗐 𝗆𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗆𝖾𝖺𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗂𝗆. "W𝖾𝗅𝗅, 𝗂 𝖽𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗄 𝗒𝗈𝗎'𝗏𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗌𝗎𝖼𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖿𝗎𝗅 𝖺𝗍 𝗁𝗂𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗎𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝖺𝗇𝗒𝗈𝗇𝖾," 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗌𝖺𝗒 𝗍𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗅𝗒, 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗋𝗇𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗈𝖿 𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗅𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝗍𝗐𝗂𝗍𝖼𝗁 𝗎𝗉𝗐𝖺𝗋𝖽.

"W𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗀𝗈 𝗉𝗎𝖻𝗅𝗂𝖼 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗆𝖾?"

"Wi𝗅𝗅 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗉 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀?"

H𝖾 𝗉𝖾𝗉𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖿𝖺𝖼𝖾 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗄𝗂𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗉𝗈𝗇𝗌𝖾. "Y𝗈𝗎 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗆𝗒 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀," 𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖻𝖾𝗍𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗀𝗂𝗀𝗀𝗅𝖾𝗌.

"I 𝖽𝗈, K𝗈𝗈𝗄," 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝗌𝗉𝖾𝗋. "I 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎."

H𝖾 𝗉𝗎𝗅𝗅𝗌 𝖻𝖺𝖼𝗄, 𝖻𝖾𝖺𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗀. "I 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗍𝗈𝗈."

the next day, you and jungkook post a picture of each other from the book launch. jungkook praises his girlfriend for being the best writer he knows, while you thank jungkook for coming out and being your biggest fan

"jagiya!"

𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲: 𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗉𝗒 𝖻𝗂𝗋𝗍𝗁𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝗃𝗎𝗇𝗀𝗄𝗈𝗈𝗄! 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖻𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺 𝗇𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗂𝗇 𝗆𝗒 𝗅𝗂𝖿𝖾

𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘵𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘧!

What exactly are the readers powers/abilities in the fourth tool?

𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗂 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗂𝗂 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝗍 𝗂𝗍 — 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝖺𝗅𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝗒 𝗎𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝗍 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝗌𝖺𝗂𝖽 𝗈𝗋 𝖽𝖾𝗌𝖼𝗋𝗂𝖻𝖾𝖽 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗂𝗍𝗅𝗒 — 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗂𝗍'𝗅𝗅 𝖻𝖾 𝗆𝖺𝖽𝖾 𝗆𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝖼𝗅𝖾𝖺𝗋𝖾𝗋 𝗂𝗇 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗂𝗂𝗂 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗂𝗏 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖽𝖾𝗌𝖼𝗋𝗂𝖻𝖾𝖽 :)

𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐚𝐧'𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬.

⊹ pairing: the corinthian x reader

⊹ summary: how your favourite nightmare loves. this is a slightly dark version, as the corinthian is a nightmare. you don't expect someone like him to love someone in a good, pure way, do you?

⊹ warnings: descriptions of violence (eyeball popping), borderline nsfw (in par with his character since his only scenes are either being a serial killer or serial fucker)

⊹ word count: 3193

𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 with a voice that oozes charisma and is thick and sweet like honey, (makes you want to open your mouth to him), you bet words will be the love language he uses in abundance. but is he talking to you sweetly or manipulating you? does it really matter?

morpheus seems to have given the corinthian the verbal skills he himself lacks

this nightmare is a talker. as you can see by how hooked everyone is on his words, from little jed, naive rose, and by inspiring a cult of serial killers, this man knows how to use his looks and his words to get people to do what he wants: to trust him

but the first time he meets you, he is speechless

the person he's talking to and who he was going to kill later that evening, is forgotten as he's too struck to do anything else but look at you curiously. your eyes meet across the room, and the room goes in a bit of a haze as all he can see is you.

obsessed with you immediately, and he doesn't even know why (guess he takes after his creator in having intense, all-consuming relationships)

approaches you and talks to you immediately. in minutes, has your back against a wall, his body covering yours from others and has your attention the entire night. has one hand on the wall beside your head

stands close enough that you can smell his aftershave and woodsy cologne

he has never lathered on as much sweet talk to a person as he did that night to you

by the end of the night, you are as consumed by him as he is by you

he loves to talk to you. domestic bliss with him is him telling you all about his day—the weather, the news, what he had for lunch

abundance of pet names, but mostly sweetheart, baby, and a little darling—all said with that slowed, drawl of his that just hearing is enough to make you tense and your breath hitch

enter: praise talk (is this still sfw?)

he'll praise you for every single thing you do, and make it sound like you did it for him. after awhile, you get used to his praises and get hooked on it. you start doing things just to hear him praise you, and don't you worry, he will

he does this thing where he watches you from the side as you do something, then he'll praise you

"i see you for who you truly are." (did i just take out of context the quote he said to serial killers? yes)

builds up your self confidence with an onslaught of compliments and praise

"you look beautiful, darling."

"with that on, everyone in the room will be staring at you and grow envious of me for being with you."

never lets you doubt yourself and your abilities for one second

is actually quite encouraging for whatever your aspirations are. who is he to judge, after all?

the first time you try to take someone's eyeballs, he's standing off to the side, leaning cooly against the wall, his tongue running over his lips from how dry they've become at watching the person he loves doing something he loves. but taking eyeballs is careful work, and you fail. the nerve snaps in half

at the first dismayed sound you release, he's by your side immediately and cupping your face, murmuring reassurances that you did so well for the first time and he's so proud of you

he shows you how proud by taking your hand and placing it over the tent in his pants

the first time you successfully take someone's eyeballs, his praises are said with a voice low and from the back of his throat

"well done, sweetheart."

"you did so good, baby. so good."

he moves in front of you and takes the eyeballs from your hand, but you move your hand away. he's confused at first, but then you raise your other hand towards his shades and remove them—all while looking at him with innocent eyes that have become slightly hooded with lust and adrenaline

he drops to a fucking knee and tilts his head up at you. he looks at you reverently, like you are the only higher being he'd submit to. he holds onto your wrist, more to steady himself than control you, as you bring the eyeball to one of his eyes (or is it still called mouths?), never breaking eye contact all the while

and when he's done, and you kiss away the blood that escapes down his cheek, he rises and kisses you hard and leaving you with no sense of direction but him, him, him

𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 the corinthian has always been demanding with your time, but after morpheus is released, he starts bringing you everywhere you go. he doesn't know if it's to keep you safe so morpheus can't take you from him, or him just wanting to spend as much fleeting time as he can with you.

the two of you are stuck to the hip, and it's not you being clingy, but him, not that he'd ever admit it

it's him who insists that he go everywhere with you in case something bad happens?

corruption kink

you're definitely innocent the first time he meets you. but there's something in your eyes that's not quite...right. you're innocent but accepting. too accepting. meaning you'll see a person commit the most atrocious act and still somehow understand them. empathize with them

it turns him on, not gonna lie

takes you with him on his kills

the first time he does, it's a test to see if you'll scream and run away and he has to take your eyeballs

you don't and pass his test

the next few times, you don't do anything. you just stand or sit to the side while he does his usual thing at the office

but one day, he sees it. a glint of interest in your eye. the tilt of your head that tells him you're interested in whatever you're watching and trying to memorize it.

he confirms his suspicions when he beckons you to come over to him with a tilt of his head. he nearly forgets to kill his victim as he's too busy kissing you against the wall

from then on, you alternate

while killing them is more satisfying to him, it's the way you feed him afterwards that makes him willing to let you kill since that intimacy always brings him to his knees

but during off hours when you're both not being an infamous serial killer couple, you both like to sightsee

the corinthian has been to a lot of places in the past hundred years, and has grown to like travelling just so he can experience many countries'…delicacies

you accompany him as you fly business class everywhere. coliseum in rome. great wall of chine. northern lights in iceland

he's also a surprisingly good babysitter

exhibit a: that episode with jed (yes, he was lowkey kidnapping him), showed that he's good at handling them. (he teased jed if he wanted to drive and kept him safe from that one serial killer)

so when the time comes that you ask him to babysit someone with you, he's actually quite good

the kids like and trust him immediately

seeing you with them could give you baby fever, and the smirk on his face tells you he knows what he's doing

he's that cool, laidback dad who lets you do things the other parent doesn't as long as you keep your mouth shut for it

(why am i alternating between nsfw headcanons and dad headcanons?)

𝗽𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵 did you see how firm yet gentle he was with the people he hooked up with? this nightmare will caress you too ruin

caress

that's the only appropriate word to describe how this man touches you. the brush of his knuckles against your cheek while you sit on the edge of the bed while he stands in between your legs

sometimes closes your eyes with the pad of his thumb and gently rubs it

some couples get kisses on the cheek or the forehead

you get them on your eyes

he'll gently close them with the paid of his thumb and rub it slightly. then he presses a soft, lingering kiss against that soft, fragile skin that protects the organ he loves the most

has a thing for pushing you against objects when kissing you (exhibit b: pushes roommate-lover against bed, pushes fake serial killer-lover against wall)

shoves you on the bed before getting on top of you

pushes you against a wall, hands cupping both sides of your face, forcing you to stay still as he kisses his way with you

grows aware that you need oxygen to breathe but he needs your kisses more than you need that

the first time you remove his glasses, he's surprised at how intimate that is, and how he falters at your touch. the first time you do it is also the first time he realizes that his emotions for you surpass lust and he might actually love you—whatever that entails

and when this does happen, he just gets so much more protective of you

and possessive

in public, hand always on your waist

kisses you (with tongue and lip biting) for the entire world and their mother to see

might even kiss you in front of morpheus to show off to his maker what he has and what morpheus doesn't

even with shades on, there's still intense eye contact

it's the way his entire body faces you

does this thing where he stands behind you, his chest warm and flush against your back. crooks a finger around your hair to brush it back, then hovers his lips right next to your ear so you can feel his whispers and it makes you shiver. he then presses a kiss to your neck, as if he's pleased with the reaction he's elicited from you

you know that couple thing where the boy will stand behind a girl and put his hands over hers as he teaches her how to play golf, or do billiards, or during pottery? that's him when teaching you the proper way to pop out an eyeball

his calloused hands wrapping over your soft hands around the hard handle of a knife

that same hand trailing up your arm, down the side of your chest, brushing your waist, then coming to a rest on your hip as he grips you slightly while bending you over

the protectiveness that grows after morpheus is freed, is also laced with a desperation to stay with you

on one hand, he holds out hope that he'll stop morpheus from taking him so he can stay with you. on the other hand, there's a feeling of inevitability and he can feel himself running out of time with you

he becomes softer but firmer with you

each kiss lasting longer than the last

starts to savour you. whispers his last prayers against your skin. draws his apologies on your arms

he stares at you more often, as if trying to commit your face to memory because if he is unmade, it could be centuries that have passed before he is made again. he doesn't know if he'll retain memories of you, but either way, you'll be long gone

and when the time comes that morpheus catches up to him and he is unmade, morpheus is able to feel the genuine love the corinthian had for you

because the corinthian didn't want you to stay with him, but him to stay with you

you become the corinthian's sole redeeming quality, and as you wail and plead against morpheus' coat to bring him back or to unmake you too, morpheus takes pity and grant your wish: which one is up to you to decide

𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 what else do you expect a serial killer nightmare to do for the person he loves? kill for them, of course. scaring others is what he was made for anyways

the first time you tell him someone's been giving you some trouble at school or at work, that someone ends up dead with their eyeballs taken out

the corinthian takes you out for dinner in a restaurant directly in front of that someone's apartment. as you eat dinner in front of a window, rather than be engrossed in the flickering candlelights, you focus on the blue and red lights of the police cars and hear the ambulance sirens as they load the dead body up to an ambulance that's heading straight to the morgue

happens every time you tell him about someone giving you trouble, even if it was just them cutting in line by accident. sometimes, he tells you what he did to them. other times, he doesn't

it's no problem to him, really. think of it as you packing him a little...snack

given that he bleeds charisma, parties are a regular occurrence for both of you

he makes you be his plus one to the parties he's invited to, and when you're invited to go to a party, he expects you to ask him to be your plus one as well

always has a hand around your waist during these events

kisses your cheek occasionally

if you're wearing lipstick and you leave a kiss mark against the bottom of his jaw, he won't wipe it away

might even intentionally move his head to the side to expose it, like it's a badge of honour

apart from killing others though, i don't think he'd go out of his way to do much else for you. at least, domestic things.

why would you need to cook if he can just hire a maid? folding laundry? maid. walking the dog? hires someone

but the one thing he always makes sure you do is eat (exhibit c: he asks jed if he wants more ice cream)

whether it's because you're so accepting of his diet or just because he puts a lot importance in eating, meals are the one thing he always looks out that you do correctly

and it's not just ensuring you eat three meals a day

but eating three healthy meals

he cooks for you—whatever you want. hell, he even learns to cook for you. it's the one thing he doesn't hire a maid for

you feed him, he feeds you mindset

always orders more of his meal because he knows you like to take some of his

unless you have a good, healthy reason for going on a diet, he won't entertain it

ice cream after dinner is a must

has your coffee order memorized, and you can trust him to order ahead at a restaurant

always drives you everywhere with a hand on your thigh that slowly creeps up

gives you his suit jacket when he's cold—and that's how you know it's true love

but the biggest act of service he does for you is not bring you to the cereal convention

it's not about not wanting to expose you to serial killers, but rather morpheus

though he hopes that he might walk out, on the event that he doesn't, he breaks his need to bring you everywhere and keep you at home

all so you don't see him be unmade, as he fears it will break you

and it would have

his last act of love to you

𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 have you seen the expensive suits he always wears? this man lavishes himself and his serial killer lifestyle, so he'll do the same for you

like his creator, this man is a giver. it might be one of the things morpheus put from himself in him

if he can dress in an expensive suit everyday all while maintaining its pristine state given his...lifestyle, then he expects the same from you too

introducing: matching outfits

you wouldn't think he's one for it, but he is. maybe not identical, but in a cool, stylish way that makes it clear the two of you are meant to be seen together and as one

suits or dresses that compliments his outfits

and it's not you matching to him, but the other way

he wants to match with you

he always waits for you to get ready and pick out an outfit first before going through his closet and finds a suit that matches

and jewellery

he strikes me as someone who wants to give his partner jewellery for them to wear—his way of marking them, so make sure to always wear one

necklace (choker), anklet, belt, hair accessory, ring

always watches you put it on. he likes its when he's the one putting it on, but falls to his knees (is his knees okay?) when you ask him to help you put it on

you need help putting your necklace on? turn around and he'll brush a finger down the nape of your neck, enjoying the way you shiver, as he clasps the necklace and places a kiss where the metal and your skin meets

might even leave a hickey

and if you wear socks or stockings, he'll drop to his knees (there he goes again) and slowly rolling the fabric up your legs, going higher and higher. kisses your inner things while he's there. his hands keeps climbing and climbing until his hand reaches your—

ahem.

black card user

"you want to go shopping? take my card, baby."

when the bill goes to his phone for what you bought, he sends you a text praising you for using it and says he can't wait to see you try it on

and if it's lingerie, he might ask for a photo and tell you to come home so he can see and take it off—

sets aside a trust for you

you get to take advantage of his lavish lifestyle. you don't really own a home, but instead live out for a few months at a time in various five star hotels before moving on

and if you do bring up settling down, he'll just smile at you and explain patiently why he can't settle down and why he wouldn't be able to bear being so far away from you for such long periods of time.

"i can't live that far from you, baby. can you live without me for that long?"

and how can you argue with that logic?

so you stay with him. and he gives you presents to praise your "choice"

yes, he loves to give you gifts. but more important, he wants you to love them

he likes seeing the special containers you put the jewellery he gifts you in and how you handle them so carefully, as if treating them as an extension of him and his love for you

and when you lose him, they are all that remains of him

and perhaps morpheus takes pity on you as he sees the genuine love you have for him

he uses his sand to recreate a better version of the corinthian using one of the objects he gave you

then maybe it's your turn to corrupt this new corinthian to change him back into the version you know and love

and that's okay

in conclusion, while i might not have been in love with mr. mouths-for-eyes, writing this headcanon and witnessing my eventual failure from keeping sfw might have changed my mind. he does, after all, have a very nice voice...

𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲: 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗒𝗈𝗎, 𝖽𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗌. 𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗎𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖽𝗈 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗄 𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝗋𝗎𝗌𝗁𝖾𝗌 𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗍𝗁-𝖾𝗒𝖾𝖻𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗌 𝗍𝗈𝗈? 𝗈𝗋 𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝖼𝖺𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝗆𝗈u𝗍𝗁𝖻𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗌? 𝖼𝖺𝗇 𝗁𝖾 𝗈𝗇𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝖾𝖾 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗇 𝗁𝖾 𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗇𝗌 𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗒𝖾𝗌? 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗌𝖾 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗇𝖾𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾 𝖺𝗌𝗄𝖾𝖽.

𝖺𝗅𝗌𝗈, 𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗂𝖺𝗇'𝗌 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗎𝖺𝗀𝖾 𝗈𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗂𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗌𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌'? 𝗈𝗋 𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗒'𝗋𝖾 𝖾𝖺𝖼𝗁 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋'𝗌 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖿𝗈𝗂𝗅𝗌? 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗂𝖺𝗇, 𝖺𝗌 𝖺 𝗇𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗆𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗆𝖺𝖽𝖾 𝖻𝗒 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗀𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖽𝖾, 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗌 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌' 𝖿𝗅𝖺𝗐𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇 𝗁𝖾'𝖽 𝗅𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝖺𝖽𝗆𝗂𝗍 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖾𝗇𝖽, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝗂𝗌 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗁𝖾𝗎𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗅𝖽 𝖻𝖾 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗈𝗌𝖾𝗌 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾. 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖺𝗒—

𝗌𝗂𝗆𝗂𝗅𝖺𝗋 𝖿𝗂𝖼𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌: 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘶𝘴' 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴, 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘶𝘴' 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘸 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯

𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘧!

𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩: @aurorarevenclaw1927, @juniebugg