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The Royal Family | Chapter Three

Summary: When two royal family’s decide to conjoin their countries, they arrange a marriage between their eldest children. Once the two royals meet, it takes a lot of convincing before they are ready to begin their reign together...

Warning: sexual tension, flirting, mentions of injury

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Type: The Royal Family Series

MASTERLIST

The light streaks through the boughs in both brilliant and shadowy beams. In the summertime they were white gold, illuminating the greens into virescent riots; yet the gift of those warm days has passed for the season. On the wintry days, the togs cast those same beams of light into sepia tones, and the woodland becomes the most beautiful of photographs. The trunks of fallen trees bare icicles longer than my hand, no two of them the same- more enchanting than any work of man.

Every twig and blade of grass grows winter "leaves" of ice crystals, frost thicker than the fleece in gloves. And never is the woodland silent, though it is quieter than any village street for sure. There are the birds above, calling, pecking for grubs. There is the movement of mammals, mostly small, sometimes not. There is the water that flows quietly until it meets the sharp rocky scree slopes and forms the raging waterfalls. The winter season was upon them.

The young princess was standing near her bedroom window, gazing at the beautiful landscape. Her eyes followed the small snowflakes littering the morning sky. The princess's eyes softened upon watching the snowfall in the early morning breeze. It was calming, almost relaxing.

"Your Highness," Elsie called behind her. The princess had turned her head to look over the small stretch of her shoulder, staring directly at the young servant standing in her presence. The young servant was holding a neatly wrapped present in her hands. She had been told to deliver it to the princess’s bedchambers.

“Yes?” Princess Y/N spoke.

"This came for you," Elsie claimed. The young servant had carefully placed the present on a nearby table. She took a step back. She bowed her head in respect.

The princess had furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. She was quick to walk towards the nearby table. She dropped her gaze to stare down at the neatly wrapped present. She could see a small note attached to the side of the package. She squinted her eyes to read the fine print of her own name.

“Who sent this?" Princess Y/N wondered.

"P-Prince Thomas," the servant said, stumbling over her words. "Says he nearly searched all of England trying to find it. It's quite rare to find...this time of year," the servant further explained.

"Well, you send my regards to Prince Thomas. Would you do that for me?" the princess of the east questioned. The servant nodded her head before taking a step back, curtsying for the princess. The servant turned around and walked towards the door, preparing to leave.

The princess of the east had turned her attention back towards the large present in front of her. She had taken the top off the present.. She set it to the side. Then she leaned forward to look into the nearly hollow box. Her eyes widened in realization.

Carefully, the princess slipped her hands into the contents of the box. She took hold of the gift. She pulled the small gift out of the box. She stared at the beautiful creation in utter disbelief. In her hands was a crown made of mostly white roses, which were her favorite flower (changed that). She could feel a small smile growing at the corners of her lips.

The princess looked at the crown of white roses, marveling over the natural beauty. She quickly turned around and looked at herself in the mirror. She lifted her hands, placing the small crown on her head. She had only wondered if he had crafted this himself.

Without hesitation, the princess of the east had turned to walk back toward the present on the table. She grabbed the small note attached to the present. She brought the note closer to her face, flipping the note over to read the back of it. It read:

the smallest things can warm the heart

The princess's soft pink lips curved into a smile. She had strode towards her vanity, sticking the small note into the wedge between the white polished wood and the shiny mirror. She smiled to herself again. What a thoughtful gift...

The northern prince was currently laying on the back, staring up at the ceiling of his quarters. His younger brother (Sam) was sitting in a nearby chair, reading over a letter that his mother had sent to him that morning. His other brother (Harry) was standing near the fireplace, looking into the mirror that hung above the mantlepiece.

"Your mother is asking about you, Thomas," King Dominic said. The elderly man was sitting at his writing desk, reading over the last letter from his beloved wife. He turned his head and looked at the letter again, reading over her fine message. "She is asking about this girl of yours,” King Dominic claimed.

"She is not my girt...not yet," Thomas mumbled quietly to himself.

"Tell me, brother," Harry said. He found himself spinning around on the heels of his feet to face his brother. He folded his arms across his chest. "When are you going to start calling on her? It's been nearly six months since we arrived. She is of age now. It's not deemed inappropriate or forbidden. When will you start courting her?" Harry wondered.

Hesitantly, Thomas turned his head and looked at his younger brother. He breathed a deep sigh and shrugged his shoulders in defeat. "I am calling on her," Thomas said in a low voice.

"What?" King Dominic said. He had completely disregarded the letter in his hands now. His eyes widened in surprise. The other princes were slightly taken back. The two of them leaned forward in anticipation, wondering how their brother could pull off such a thing.  

"What? How are you calling on her?" Prince Harry asked. He took one single step forward in his place. His arms were still folded across his chest. He seemed to only narrow his eyes at his brother like he was trying to challenge his words.

"I sent her flowers and...a note," Thomas said quietly. He had shifted into a sitting position on the couch. His legs swung over the side of the couch and placed his forearms on his knees, leaning forward in his place. He looked down at his hands, twiddling with his fingers nervously.

"You sent her flowers?" Prince Sam repeated. He was trying to ponder and process his older brother’s words, playing them over in his mind to find any flaws. “And a note?” Prince Sam also added.

"Y-Yes, I sent her white roses. There are her favorite flower. She told me months ago that her mother used to braid them into her hair. They remind the princess of her mother. I-I thought she might like to have some. So I sent them," the prince said, shrugging his shoulders in defeat .

"Where on earth did you find wild roses in the month of December?" Prince Harry wondered. His lips tugged into a devilish grin. He was just teasing his older brother. He could see the evident blush on his brother’s face.

"It was an appealing thought. I am sure she greatly appreciated your kind gift," King Dominic claimed. He nodding his head in acceptance. "Though, I am afraid that is not considered calling on someone,” King Dominic concluded.

"It's not?" Prince Thomas wondered.

"No," King Dominic said. He shook his head at him. He was quick to stand to his feet so that he could approach his oldest son. He had lifted his hand to place it on his son’s shoulder. "Courting is not simply about sending flowers to your significant other," King Dominic explained.

"Then...then what is it?" Prince Thomas questioned. He had turned his head to look at his father for an explanation. He watched his dear father sink into the seat right beside him on the couch. He was trying to collect his thoughts on the matter.

“Courting...courting is about intentionally bridling a foundation for marriage. It is a period of agreement entered between two people in love for them to be able to know each other between. It is a period of clarification that both participants are read and suited for a life-long companionship,” King Dominic further explained.

The young prince had taken those words to heart. He nodded his head understandingly. He was heavily relying on his father for assistance and guidance. He wanted to do things the right way.

"It's clarity. You shouldn't make a permeant decision for your temporary emotion. It a time for both of you to hopefully realize that you two we made for each other," King Dominic added.

The prince had turned his head to look down at his hands. He forced himself to swallow the heavy lump lingering at the back of his throat. He was slowly nodding his head in confirmation. The king had not taken his hand away from his son’s shoulder, keeping a firm grip on it. He did not hesitate to look down at his dear son with the softest and kindest smile on his face. He spoke his name softly.

"It is your destiny to marry her,” King Dominic concluded. The young prince had turned his head to look down at his hands again. His shoulders had slumped down at his sides. He shook his head. He had denied his father's words.

"I am not so sure she agrees to that," Prince Thomas mumbled to himself. He had this unsettling feeling down in the pit of his stomach. He gnawed on the inside of his cheek. He was thinking to himself.

“It may take some time," King Dominic agreed with him. He had nodded his head understandingly. He had dipped his head down to get a better view of his son. He could see the evident look of conflict in his son’s eyes. 

"But father," Prince Thomas begun. "I have never called on a woman before. I haven't even had my first kiss yet. I cannot woo her or make any romantic gestures. I-I don't know how to act around her. How can you expect me to start courting when I have no experience at all?" Prince Thomas explained.

"You do not need experience to love someone," King Dominic said with a simple shake of the head.   

The northern prince had turned his head to look at his father, tilting his head to the side in bewilderment. He repeated those words in his head. He couldn’t seem to say anything in response. Instead, Prince Thomas had leaned forward and listened intently to his father's wise words. He was most eager to hear more.

"When you kiss her, take your time. There is no place you'd rather be. You should kiss, but not like you're waiting for something else to happen like your hands going beneath her skirt or tangled in her corset strings. Nothing like that," the northern king said, waving his hand in the air.

The other brothers had been quick to direct their attention to the conversation. The two of them were looking at their father with the same spark of curiosity. The princes’ eyes were practically sparkling, listening intently to their father's love written poetry. They were making mental notes in their head.

"You ought to kiss her with a curious childish delight. You should laugh into her mouth, inhale her sighs, and swallow her moans. You should kiss her with her face in your hands or your hands in her hair. You need to put her closer by the waist, embrace her, hold her,” King Dominic continued.

At the given moment, Prince Thomas was too caught up in his father’s beautiful description. He had dropped his chin into the cup of his hand. He was staring directly at his father with this look of childish curiosity on his face. He had audibly sighed at his fine words.

"Take your time with her, boy. Treat her like the princess she is. You need to love her, ravish her. You should kiss her like the first and last piece of chocolate you're ever going to taste. You should savor her and savor the moment shared between the two of you,” King Dominic claimed.

Slowly, the King of the North had shifted his hand from his son’s shoulder to his backside. He patted his back once or twice. He found himself leaning forward in his place to make some final remarks.

“Kiss her..until she forgets how to count. Kiss her silent. Kiss her passionately. Kiss her lovingly. Come away, ask her a question —any question in the world— and I can guarantee you...she will say your name in answer,” King Dominic believed.

The young prince's lips curved into a soft smile. He was quick to turn his head away from his father. He had tried to hide the evident blush flooding his cheeks at the moment. He silently laughed to himself. 

“You do not need experience to love someone. You should already know —in your heart— that she is the one for you. You do not need consultation. You do not need a previous failed experience. You should already know that she is the one. You should already know that you love her,” King Dominic concluded.

With great hesitation, Prince Thomas had dropped his gaze to stare down at his hands lingering in the contents of his lap. He nodded his head in confirmation. He had forced himself to swallow the nervous lump at the back of his throat. He was fiddling with his fingers in a nervous manner.

"Now the question is..." King Dominic said. He had shifted closer to his oldest son. He had turned his head to look down at his son’s face with a small hint of curiosity in his eyes. He spoke: "Do you love her?"

The young prince lifted his head and looked at his dear father sitting beside him. He didn’t even that there were fresh tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. He had blinked once to force the tears down his cheeks. He pondered his thoughts for a brief moment. He nodded his head in answer to his father's question.

"Yes," Thomas breathed. "I love her."

It was an odd time of the year. The white snow would graciously fall down from the heavens, but the snow didn’t like to stay on the earth for very long. The snow would easily melt away once the sun had risen over the line of the horizon. The temperature was still low, but it wasn’t low enough to keep the snow from staying a little longer. It had rained the night prior.

The sweet surrendering scent of the morning dew filled the forest with a scent that did not belong on earth. The leaves from the tall trees by scattered on the forest floor; each of them turning brittle brown; there was a sound that crunched underfoot, pushing their papery dry remains deep into the soft soil. The dark shadows of the voluminous trees and the surrounding bushes had become the backbone of the forest, standing as passive protectors of a peaceful place. 

The rain fell down the blades of grass into the already wet soil, the droplets pausing on the surface before being sucked into the dark particles. The soil was so damp that the worms had surfaced to breathe and the crows fluttered over the grass with their inky wings, each of them eating at the sudden buffet. The earth was the richest tone having bathed in the rain.

The young princess was seated side-saddle on her black horse. She had taken the time to admire the beauty of the forest around her. She was relishing in the sweet scent of the damp forest ground. She had planned to go on a ride with the princes. The two princes were sitting on their own horses, standing at a short distance. They exchanged a small look. 

"You must forgive us," Prince Sam began. The princess snapped out of her daze before directing her attention to the two princes in front of her. She raised her eyebrows at them, mentally questioning them to enlighten her.

"Our brother," Prince Harry explained. "He is usually not this late. We could have been off on the trail by now if it hadn't been for his unusual tardiness," Harry said, shaking his head.

"Tis fine," Princess Y/N claimed. "I am a patient person." 

The princess looked away from the two princes, humming softly to herself in contentment. She closed her eyes and breathed a small sigh. She was basking in the beauty of the forest. There, she convinced herself that she could wait a few extra minutes for him to arrive for their ride through the forest. 

In a few minutes, the older prince trotted down the long dirt pathway on his white steed. He slowly approached the small group on his horse, pulling the reigns until the horse carne to a halt. The prince did not hesitate to apologize for being late.

"I am sorry," Prince Thomas said. "My father wished to speak with me upon the matters of my inheritance. He would not let me leave the study until all the details were sorted out. I am here now." 

Slowly, Prince Thomas had turned his head to look directly at Princess Y/N. When he looked at her, it was as if every ounce of breath was taken from his lungs. He could feel the whole world coming to a slow stop. His bright brown eyes were sparkling at the mere sight of her, gazing at her with a hint of interest in his eyes.

The two princes had turned their heads to exchange a well-knowing look. They were easily able to see that the two lovebirds were lost in each other's gaze. They had planned something in their heads.

"Dearest brother," Prince Harry said. He gently tugged on the reigns of his horse. "I'll race you to the end of the small pond for thirty pounds," Prince Harry tempted his twin.

“You're on,” Prince Sam yelled.

Together, the two boys clicked their heels against the side of the horse. The two horses darted off down the pathway, racing each other to see who would reach the pond first The two boys had found themselves forcing their horses to run faster, whipping the reigns. They clicked their tongues to encourage the horses to race to the very end. 

Once out of sight, the prince and princess were left alone to themselves. They were unattended and unsupervised. Slowly, Prince Thomas dismounted his horse by throwing his leg off the side of the mighty steed. He jumped down off his horse, holding onto the saddle for support. He walked towards the princess's horse, staring deeply into her eyes. 

The prince had shifted to approach the side of the horse. He did not hesitate to lift his hand, stroking the horse's mane in a calming way. He turned his head and looked up at the young princess staring down at him. He offered his other hand to her.

Slowly, the princess had lowered her hands onto the prince’s shoulders for support. The prince placed his hands on her waist before hoisting her off the saddle of the horse. He pulled her closer into his embrace, holding her firmly for a brief second. They stared into each other’s eyes, feeling lost in the world of emotion.

The young prince lowered the princess onto her own two feet, setting her down on the ground. They held onto each other for a moment, staring into each other’s captivating eyes. The two of them were quite hesitant to pull away from each other. They stood in an awkward silence for a brief moment.

“I never had the chance to thank you for the flowers by the way,” Princess Y/N cleared her throat. She had sheepishly lowered her gaze to stare down at her hands, hoping to find the blush on her cheeks. 

“You're welcome,” Prince Thomas replied. His lips had curved into the most genuine smile in the world. He was just able to see the small blush on her cheeks. It made his heart soar.

“Wherever did you find them?” Princess Y/N wondered. She had lifted her head to look up at him with this spark of curiosity in her eyes. She had subconsciously shuffled on the heels of her feet, standing at attention.

“I have my ways,” Thomas chuckled softly to himself. He didn't want to spoil it for her, so he choose to be as vague as possible. He could see his two brothers growing smaller and smaller in the distance. He turned his head to look back down at the princess of the east standing in front of him. “Shall we take a walk?” Thomas suggested.

The two royals had chosen to take a different pathway for their walk. It wasn’t even a real path at all. The forest did not seem to have any path. In the forest the sky vanishes almost completely, only a few fragments of blue remain- like scattered pieces of an impossible jigsaw puzzle. The air is rich with the fragrance of leaves and loam. Even so many hours after the rains have passed, the soil remains quite damp.

The only movement is the occasional bird, startling in a trees or a squirrel dashing up a nearby trunk. The sound of running water in the brook has the same hypnotic quality as music. The huckleberries are mostly red tart but with just the right amount of sweetness.

The two lovebirds had turned their and looked at each other as if they could already read each other's minds. In an instant, the two royals had started running through the vast forest. They could feel the smiles growing on their faces as the adrenaline pumped through their veins. 

The air had that smell of woodland before a rain, perhaps above the canopy, there are clouds fit to burst. It was dark for that time of day, no perhaps soon the filtered light will be accompanied by water droplets. The woodland floor was a million hues of brown, the crisp leaves from the tree had fallen some time ago. Some acorns littered the ground, having tumbled down from the tall pine trees. 

The trees were veiled in the lightest of mists, their trunks sombre brown with sable cracks that gnarl the bark. The vines and roots twisted beneath the canopy of leaves on the damp floor of the forest. The trees grew thicker at the trunks. The couple raced deeper and dee er into the dark forest.

The prince had taken off his riding cap as they raced keeping into the forest. The princess was holding onto the skirt of her dress, making sure she didn't trip or fall as she ran. She turned her head and looked behind her, laughing at the prince chasing her.

The princess didn't seem to notice the small incline nearing closer to her feet. A small hill —nothing too steep— was growing closer as they farther they raced. In a split second, the princess's foot caught underneath an uprooted vine. The princess tripped over the vine, falling down the small incline instantly. She gasped to herself. She had hoped that the prince would catch her, but it was far too late now. 

The prince's eyes widened in realization. The prince extended his hand, hoping to grab onto her before she fell on her back. Their fingers brushed together, but it was not enough to pull her to safety. The princess landed in a heap of leaves, hitting the solid dam forest round hard. She could feel the wind getting knocked out of her. She lay there for a brief moment.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Prince Thomas wondered.  He was quick to drop down to her side. He had lifted his hand to hover over her body, checking for any exterior signs of injury. But he wouldn’t touch her without permission.

The princess had lifted her hand towards the front of her face, roughly brushing her hair out of the way. She didn’t seem to tear her dress (thankfully), but the silky material was absolutely drenched in wet mud. She could feel this sharp white pain in her ankle. She whimpered softly to herself for the pain was growing stronger with each passing second.

"M-My ankle. I must have twisted it," Princess Y/N groaned. She had gripped onto the skirt of her dress, maybe hoping that it would relieve her pain. The prince turned his head and looked in the direction of her feet. He directed his gaze back to her, choosing his next words very carefully.

"Mind if l have a look at it?" Prince Thomas questioned.

The princess turned her head to stare directly at him in disbelief. She had half expected to find this smug look on his face, but she was greeted by this look of innocence instead. He wasn’t joking or teasing her. He was being serious. He was staring down at her with the utmost look of worry and concern in his bright brown eyes.

It was not proper to have some boy looking underneath a woman's skirt, especially if she was unmarried. If a woman lifted her dress to show her ankle, it was considered very provocative. It was even worse since it was a flirtatious practice to gain attention or arouse interest. It would be deemed as indecent. It was a scandalize thought.

She wouldn’t dare...

He spoke her name softly. The princess of the east had blinked a few times, returning to reality. She turned her head and looked at her prince charming, contemplating whether or not to allow him to see her ankle. She forced herself to swallow the heavy lump in her throat before slowly nodding her head in agreement. 

With some hesitation, Prince Thomas had shifted downwards to move past her legs. He maintained eye contact at all times; something only a gentleman would do. He turned his head and looked down at her large skirt. He reached down and grabbed a small handful of her dress skirt in his hands, lifting her dress to reveal her swollen ankle. 

The hemline of the dress was pushed upwards, though it traveled no farther than her knee. He was gazing at the princess, mentally asking for her permission to continue. She found herself shifting in her place uncomfortably, thinking of how wrong it felt.

"I won't look at anything else," Prince Thomas reassured her. He had lowered his hand to grasp onto her ankle. He lifted her ankle to slip her shoe off her foot. He set her shoe to the side. Then he had lowered her foot to place it in his lap. Her white stockings were muddy and dirty, seeing as though she was running through a forest. 

The prince's fingers wrapped around her ankle, drawing a gasp from her lips. He was quick to lift his head to her, staring directly at her with worry and concern in his eyes. He moved her ankle around to make sure nothing was broken. He grasped onto her foot with both his hands, feeling around for any broken bones. 

"It...is a bit swollen," Prince Thomas acknowledged. "Does it hurt?" 

"O-Only sometimes. I-It depends on where you are touching it," Princess Y/N explained, shifting slightly in her place. The prince nodded his head understandingly. He dropped his gaze to look down and examine her ankle once again. He tried to get a better view of her foot.

Her knees were bent in an upright position. The prince had to reframe himself from sneaking a peek at her bloomers which were almost on full display for him. He took a deep breathe, holding it for few moments. He could feel the rush of heat rising to his cheeks. He forced himself to look away, mentally acknowledging that the temptation was too great. 

"Please, tell me when it hurts," Thomas said. He turned his head and looked at the princess. He moved his hands around her small ankle, feeling for any source of pain. "Here?" Thomas spoke softly.

The princess kept silent. 

"Or here?" Thomas suggested. His hands had moved to another small point in her ankle. He tilted his head to the side for he noticed that she was not speaking up. Little did he know, she was still at a loss for words. He moved his hand again. "Here?" Thomas wondered.

"Oh," Princess Y/N said, moaning in pain. She flinched as soon as his hand pressed against the swollen mound. She had lowered her hand to grasp onto her skirt, shifting the material away from her ankle. Her eyes were squinted together, focusing on the pain in her ankle. 

"There it is," Prince Thomas whispered. His lips had tugged into a small smile across his face. He could see the bright blush creeping onto her fragile face. "Do you think you can walk back to the palace?" Prince Thomas questioned. 

She couldn't seem to form any words. She timidly shook her head in denial. She could only wonder what he would do if she couldn’t walk back to the place. He found himself smiling at her timid reaction. He did not hesitate to take her other shoe off her foot. He handed her the pair of shoes to hold for the moment.

Then Thomas had shifted to her side and laced his arm underneath her bent legs. He placed this other arm behind her back to support her. He lifted her into his arms like she weighed no more than a small child. He had started walking back towards the pathway. He was carrying her bridal style through the vast forest. 

The princess was gazing at him like he was some knight in shining armor that he just saved her from a ferocious dragon. She had placed her hand on his broad chest to steady herself. Her dress was effortlessly flowing in the wind. Her little toes peeked out from her dress from the angle her was holding her. 

Once the two royals had made it back to the path, the other brothers of the prince were waiting for them. The two of them were standing beside their horses. They were quick to step forward in their place. They stopped themselves once they saw the situation unfolding in front of them. Their eyes widened in realization. 

"What the hell happened?" Harry questioned. He had shifted to stand beside his older brother. He took into account how the princess’s dress was muddy and tattered. He could also see that her hair was frizzed and frayed. He had just briefly seen her toes peeking out from her dress. He could only imagine what happened deep in those woods.

“The princess took a small tumble off an incline. She sprained her ankle. She needs to have a doctor look over it," Thomas explained to them. The two princes were scrambling to gather the horses. They needed to get back to the palace immediately. 

"We can help you mount your horse, princess," Sam said, offering his assistance. The older prince had turned his head and looked at his younger brother in confusion. He furrowed his eyebrows at him.

"What? Are you joking? Do you really think she can ride her horse all the way back to the palace alone?" Thomas said, challenging his brothers. He could see his two brothers shaking their heads in response. "Of course not! She shall ride with me,” Thomas insisted with a nod of the head.

"Oh, t-that's not necessary," the princess said, pipping up. "I-I can ride my horse just fine. It’s only for a few miles,” the princess claimed.

"Nonsense," the prince said, stalking towards his white horse. He did not hesitate to hoist the young princess onto the saddle of his horse, securing her in place. He swung his leg over the horse behind her, mounting his horse properly. 

The princess was seated in front of him, lacing her arms around his neck for security while her legs dangled off the same side of the horse. One thing was for sure, sitting side-saddle with someone accompanying you was no easy task. The prince laced his arms around the princess's waist, grabbing hold of the reigns. He clicked his tongue a few times to urge the horse down the pathway with his brothers trailing behind him. 

Once the small group had returned to the palace, a flood of servants had hurried to them. The servants had been fretting over them. They asked a number of questions. The young prince dismounted his horse in an instant. He had shifted to take one single step forward in his place, but one footman had been quick to stop him. 

“Would you like me to carry her highness into the palace?” the footman wondered. He hadn’t meant to be rude or noisy in the slightest bit. He was only trying to be useful and helpful. He was also trying to be a gentleman.

“No. It’s fine,” Thomas claimed. He had lifted his hands to her sides, grabbing onto her waist in a secure manner. She carefully slid off the horse and stood on her own two feet unsteadily. She had practically collapsed into his grasp upon feeling the tense pain in her ankle. But he was sure to catch her this time.

The young prince had swooped down to lift the princess into his arms, carrying her into the palace with the servants trailing behind them. The King of the North must have overheard all the commotion because he came hurrying towards his dearest daughter. He stopped to stand in front of them, reaching out to brush a few strands of hair out of her face. 

"My lord," the King of the East exclaimed. He brought his hand to cup his mouth. His heart was practically clenching at her disheveled state. "What on earth happened to you, my girl?" the King of the East wondered.

"Really," Y/N sighed. She had turned her head to look at the various servants standing around them, believing that they were making a big deal out of absolutely nothing. "I'm fine. I just fell down and twisted my ankle. I-If it hadn't been for the prince, I wouldn't have ever been able to make it back to the palace. He saved me, father," Y/N claimed.

"Oh pish posh! No need to be so dramatic, my dear. If it hadn't been for your sense of clumsiness, you would have never been in this mess. Don’t go start making stories of your own,” the King of the East scolded her.

"Yes, father." Y/N agreed.

She hung her head down low. She was hoping to hide the tint of pink flooding her cheeks. She could feel a strong sense of embarrassment creeping over her. She choose to drop the matter. She didn’t want to argue with her father about it. 

"If you wouldn't mind, I would like to carry her up to her room now" Thomas said. He had been quick to step forward to offer his assistance. He could feel her shifting in his grasp. “She might need a doctor to look at her ankle,” Thomas concluded.

"She resides in the northern quarters of the palace,” the King of the East stated. He had pointed his finger towards the grand staircase behind him. He shook his head at her one last time. The young prince had dipped his head down in acknowledgment. He started to walk towards the flight of stairs while carrying the princess in his arms.

They walked down the hallways of the palace until they came across the princess's chambers. The prince opened the door and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He walked towards her bed and laid her down carefully. He grabbed her shoes and set them to the side. He pull the large comforter over her body.

"I hope..." Thomas began. "You recover soon. That way we can walk in the gardens again...just like we used to," Thomas said. His voice had come out in a soft whisper.

"I am looking forward to it," Y/N said. She had slipped down into the comfort of her own bed, snuggling into the warm blankets. She held the comforter near her chin to hide the blush on her face.

"And..." Prince Thomas’ voice trailed off. He found himself rocking back and forth on the heels of his feet. His hands were laced behind his back. "In given time, I am going to need to ask you a question of importance," Prince Thomas said.

"Will this question have anything to do with our future together?" Princess Y/N wondered. She popped her pink lips into her mouth to hide the smile on her face. She could feel that her cheeks were burning this vibrant shade of pink. She was acting like a giddy schoolgirl.

"It might," Prince Thomas further teased. They smiled at each other and chuckled to themselves softly as to not be heard by the servants outside the bed chambers. Their laughter dialed down as they stared into each others eyes. They could both feel this unknown sensation growing stronger in the depths of their chests.

The young prince had carefully grabbed onto her hand holding onto the comforter. He pulled her hand towards his lips, pressing a small kiss to her knuckles. He had lingered just a moment longer than normal. He had lowered her hand back down onto the bed. He bowed in respect.

Slowly, Prince Thomas had started walking towards the door of her chambers. He grabbed onto the solid gold door handle. He had winked at her teasingly. He was sure to close to the solid wood door behind him. 

In that moment, the young princess had nestled deeper into her large bed. She didn’t hold back the squeal of delight that slipped past her pink lips. She pulled the covers over her head and grabbed a pillow, forcing the pillow to her face. She screamed to herself in absolute delight though her screams were muffled by the pillow. In that moment, Princess Y/N knew that she was utterly and hopelessly in love with the prince of the north. 

A few weeks later, the young princess was able to stand and walk without feeling any more pain in her ankle. There was a servant that opened the grand doors of her chambers. She popped her head through the door to encourage her fellow servant to hurry and finish up. The other servant was placing silver pins in the princess's hair, pulling it back nicely. 

"Your Highness," the one servant said. She had turned her head to look over the small stretch of her shoulder in fear that one of her advisors would come for her hide. “The prince is calling on you. You must hurry," the one servant persisted.

"I know. I'm coming. I won't be a moment longer," Princess Y/N said. She had lifted her head to look through the mirror of her white vanity, staring directly at the one servant standing by the grand door. She smiled at her kindly.

The servant bowed her head before disappearing into the hallway of the palace. The young princess did not hesitate to grab her most expensive bottle of perfume which conveniently smelled of wild roses. She picked up the silver dropped, squeezing it slightly to allow the pink drops to escape the dropper.

The rich liquid spread across the princess's silky skin, which would intoxicate her wrists and neck. The princess was staring directly at herself in the mirror, admiring her look for the night. She had gingerly lifted her hand to touch the diamond neckless around her neck, smiling at its beauty. She spun around in her chair, holding on the back with her hand.

"Do fetch my best gloves. I want to look presentable for the prince,” Princess Y/N instructed. The servant dipped her head slightly before turning around and walking towards one of the chests. She lifted the lid of the chest and pulled out the expensive pair of silk gloves.

The princess gently took hold of the gloves before slipping them onto her hands, rolling them up her forearms. She pushed her chair back and stood to her feet, smoothing out her dress. She looked up and fixed her hair once more, making sure she looked perfect.

"Can you believe it? He's finally calling on me," Princess Y/N said with a broad smile on her face. "It's been nearly six months. I'm surprised he has finally found the courage of asking me. At this rate, I was thinking it would be another two years before he called on me,” Princess Y/N teased.

The servant's lips tugged into a soft smile. "You look beautiful, your highness."

The princess turned around and tipped her head down, acknowledging her servant. She thanked the kind woman for all of her assistance. Finally, the princess turned her body and walked towards the door, opening it before stepping into the hallway of the palace.

Slowly, the young princess made her way around the palace. Her head moved from the left to the right, looking down each hallway in search of the prince. She twiddled with her hands nervously, anxiously awaiting to see the prince. The princess walked through the hallways until she found the prince standing near a fireplace in the northern corridor.

The prince was resting his forearm against the mantle of the fireplace, staring into the burning flames. He was thinking to himself. He was rehearsing the words in his mind for the thousandth time. The princess straightened her back in posture and clasped her hands together, holding them tightly. She cleared her throat, drawing away the young man's attention.

“Oh,” Thomas said. “I-I didn’t see you there.”

“Nor I,” Y/N said, chuckling nervously to herself. “I was informed that you called for me. Do you have something to ask of me?” Y/N questioned.

“Well,” Thomas began. He had pulled his hand away from the mantlepiece of the fireplace. He had taken one single step forward in his place. He was forcing himself to maintain eye contact with her. “Yes, I have something to ask of you,” Thomas said. 

The prince had found himself staring into the young woman’s eyes and feeling absolutely mesmerized by her beauty. She had a kind of understated beauty. And perhaps it was because she was so disarmingly unaware of her prettiness. Her large liquid blue eyes were basking in the form of intelligence and serenity that it was impossible to look away from her captivating gaze. She had the kindest pair of baby blue eyes that were trimmed by long gorgeous lashes. Her cheekbones weren't especially high. And her nose was a little small to be considered perfect. Nevertheless, there was an undeniable symmetry to her sparking features.

All of her features were placed together on her delicate angelic face. However, her awestruck beauty was running down to the very core of her heart. She was unwittingly kind and generous to the other students around her, never failing to smile at them. And she was a very likable person. Her laugh and smile were so captivating and contagious; it was impossible to not smile back. To be in her company was to feel that you had been warmed in summer rays regardless of the season. She was perfect.

For some odd reason, Thomas couldn't keep his eyes off her figure in the distance. His gaze was practically transfixed on her little figure, feeling a sense of slight control slip away from his own being. He was looking at her with a blank stare on his face, basking in the appearance of her beauty. He was entranced with her kind and sweet personality, knowing that there was a sense of gentleness in her heart. He seemed to admire all of her features. Though his attraction for her did not stop there, it ran all the way down to his core.

“Well...I-I was partially wondering if you...if you would like to...” Thomas’ voice trailed off again. He took another step forward in his place. He forced himself to swallow the nervous lump lingering at the back of his throat. He almost couldn’t bare to look her in the eyes. 

“Thomas?” Y/N spoke softly to him.

The young prince had taken his final step forward in his stance. With his head hung low, the prince had gingerly reached forward to take hold the princess’s delicate hands. He held them close to his chest before he gathered enough courage to look the princess in the eyes. As soon as they locked gazes, his thoughts had flown out the door. He found himself at a loss for words.

“I-I-I” Thomas stuttered. He wasn’t able to form any coherent words. “Can you...no. That sounds wrong. W-Would you...would you,” Thomas continued, correcting himself along the way. “Would you...allow me...to start...” Thomas stumbled over his words.

The prince groaned to himself. He threw his hands into the air. He spun around on the heels of his feet, striding back towards the fireplace. He was running his hands through his hair in frustration. The princess did not hesitate to comfort him during this hard time. She had taken to approach his side. She placed her hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

“I-I can't say it,” Thomas said. He had turned his head to look over the small stretch of his shoulder slightly. He could barely see her out of the corner of his eye. He wouldn’t dare meet her gaze in fear that she might see the blush on his face. 

“Thomas,” Y/N said. “You can tell me anything.”

Finally, Thomas had turned his head and looked her in the eyes. His eyes darted between her lips and eyes, contemplating whether or not to ask her the question. He had opened his mouth to speak, feeling the words falling out of his mouth.

“I would like to start courting you,” Thomas said firmly. His voice was clear and slow. He didn’t have to repeat himself. He was sure that she had heard him. In a split second, the princess’s lips curved into a pleased smile. She had laced her hands with his, holding them close to her. She gazed up at him with smiling eyes.

“I thought you would never ask,” Y/N said with the shake of her head. She could feel the tears forming in her eyes. She lifted her hand to wipe away her happy tears. He had been slightly taken back by her comment. He had shifted to straighten his back in posture, turning his body towards her. He was staring directly at her with the hint of disbelief in his eyes.

“R-Really? Are you going to agree to this? Are you really committing to me? Or is this all just some dream?” Thomas wondered. He was hoping to contain himself for the time being. He didn’t want to give himself false hope.

“No, Thomas. This is no dream. This...” she said. She lowered her gaze to stare down at their hands, holding his hand tightly. She looked back up at him with shimmering eyes. “This is real,” she claimed. 

“I-I didn’t think you would say yes to me,” Thomas confessed. His voice was shaky and unstable. His heart was fluttering in his chest, beating a million times per minute. He couldn’t contain himself any longer.

And then he did the simplest thing in the word. He leaned forward and kissed her. And the entire world cracked open. The kiss was very quick for it ended less than a second later. It was not a solid kiss. It was not forceful, heavy, or passionate. It was a gentle kiss. Their lips only brushed together, pecking each other’s lips. When the prince pulled away less than a second later, the two of them gazed at each other with wide eyes.

The prince could feel the strong sense of guilt and regret coursing through his veins. He was staring down at her with unsure eyes. His mouth had dropped open in disbelief. He had hoped that the kiss wouldn’t ruin their relationship with one another. The princess looked up at him in utter shock and surprise. He was scrambling to collect his words.

“I-I’m so very sorry. I didn’t mean- I just thought...I-I-I couldn’t help myself. I truly am sorry—” the prince was cut off when the princess stood on the tips of her toes and pressed her lips against the prince’s lips.

The young prince's eyes widened in realization. Instinctively, the prince wrapped his arms around the princess's waist, holding her closely in his embrace. His eyes fluttered closed to savor the moment. Their lips danced together as if the music was playing for them. Their lips locked together in perfect harmony, convincing themselves that they really were made for each other. 

Her plump soft lips were compelling against his slimmer warmer lips, molding in the perfect manner. She had wrapped her arms around his neck to draw him down closer to her. He drifted into a dreamy state of mind, responding to the kiss by allowing himself to loose control over himself. He was pressing his lips against her small mouth, kissing her back with the same amount of passion. Their lips were moving and bonding together in synchronized harmony. 

The feeling of epiphany and elation was percolating through their veins, surging throughout their entire systems. The sudden sensation of warm and comfort was coursing through their bodies at the same moment. The euphoric bliss was blossoming within their bodies, warming the coldest part of the soul. The sparks were bursting thorough the veins in their bodies, creating a warm sensation in the pit of their stomachs. It was a small and warm kiss.

The kiss obliterated every thought. For the first time, Thomas and Y/N's minds were locked into the present moment. The worries and concerns of life were evaporating within an instant. The worries, troubles, and problems were disappearing out of their line of sight, melting away from the entire picture. Their usual mode of working things out in a timely order was completely suspended for the moment; neither of them wanted the kiss to end. Nothing seemed to matter at the given moment. The two of them only seemed to be focusing on each other at the time.

The feeling was so strange. It was stretching throughout their whole bodies. The foreign feeling was so overwhelming. And yet, it made them feel complete. The unknown feeling has no bound, nor length, nor depth. It is just absolute. The happy feeling was able to make it feel like their hearts were dancing around their chest. And a hole (that they were not aware of) had been filled to the very brim. Although they were quite young (and most people would consider them to be foolish and naive), the two of them were more than certain about their feelings towards one another. 

The emotions of passions, love, and affection were coursing through the millions of veins in their bodies. The foreign emotions had managed to cause a warm sensation to rise in the pit of their stomachs. The little flutter of a feather was tickling every part of their bodies, causing their abdomens to crunch at the unbearable feeling of giddiness. With each touch, the sparks were flying in the different directions of their bodies. The feeling of love had never felt more comforting. The two of them were more than convinced that they were destined to be together. And that kiss was the beginning of a promise of much more to come.

When they pulled apart, they rested their heads together. They panted heavily, hoping to regain their breath. They gazed into each other's eyes, staring directly into one another’s hearts. They could feel their hot breaths mingling together in the tight space between them. The prince's nose brushed against the princess's little nose, nudging it gently. He reached up and cupped her face with one hand. 

"You...have no idea how long I have wanted to do that," Thomas claimed, breathing steadily. He didn’t mean to brush his nose against the tip of hers, nudging it gently. He lifted his hand to cup her face with one hand. "How long! have waited to kiss your lips. How I have longed to hold you in my embrace. How long I have wanted you," Thomas continued.

“Well, you have me. All of me,” Y/N whispered. She was gazing into the prince's dashing brown eyes. She was almost able to get lost in them. She could see his lips lift into a soft smile. She forced herself onto the tips of her toes, so she could press her lips against his once more. 

"This...commitment we have made to each other...it calls for something that I need from you," Thomas further explained. He had pulled away from her embrace for a brief moment. 

"What do you need of me?" Y/N wondered. She had furrowed her eyebrows in slight confusion, swaying slight in his embrace. She could see him lean forward to brush his cheek against hers, whispering into her ear seductively.

"A lock of your hair," Thomas whispered to her. He almost didn't want to pull away from her. He could smell the rich scent of perfume on her neck. He found himself savoring the moment once again. 

Slowly, Thomas had pulled away from her embrace. He knelt down to his knees. Their gazes never left each others. Her hands fell to his shoulders as he kneeled in front of her. He moved his hand towards his boot, pulling out a small knife. He slowly stood to his feet again. 

The prince had brought his hand towards the side of her face, plucking a small strand of hair near her slender neck. He was fiddling with her hair in his hands, feeling the smoothness of her silky hair. He turned his head and leaned forward until his lips brushed against her ear. His hot breath sent a cold shiver down her spine.

“May I?” Thomas asked for permission.

The princess nodded her head in response. She had lifted her hand to grab onto his forearm. She drew her lower lip between her teeth. Slowly, the prince pulled away from her ear. He had carried the small knife towards her head. He grabbed a small strand of hair underneath her ear, gathering it in his hands. He brought the knife towards it, effortlessly cutting through the hair. When he finished cutting off a strand of her hair, he placed his knife back into his boot. He pulled a handkerchief out of his coat jacket.

The prince placed the strand of hair into the handkerchief before holding the cloth over itself. He had decided to tuck the handkerchief into his coat pocket, securing it close to his chest. He patted his chest one time.

"I shall keep it here," Thomas said softly. "Close to my heart." 

She had lowered her gaze to stare down at her feet, hoping to hide the pink blush creeping onto her face. He had lifted his hand to place his fingers underneath her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes. He was staring deeply into her captivating eyes. He savored the moment as instructed by his own father.

"I shall call on you tomorrow," Thomas further explained. He could see the princess’s pink lips growing into a small smile across her face. He smiled back at her. He was quick to lean down in his place, pecking her lips once more. 

"I am looking forward to it," Y/N breathed. She really didn’t want to wait until tomorrow to see him again. She could only wish to meet him in her dreams.

The two royals had found themselves leaning forward in hopes of sharing one last kiss together. Suddenly, a familiar voice called out from the hallways. It was one of the prince's brothers, calling to see if he wanted to visit the stables. The young couple turned their heads to look in the general direction of the voice.

"I-I have to go," Thomas declared. He had turned his head to look back down at the princess standing in front of him. He hesitantly pulled his hands out of her grasp. He had only taken one step.

"Wait," Y/N exclaimed. She did not hesitate to reach forward to grab the prince’s hand. She watched him turn his head and look at her in slight confusion. She opened her mouth to speak. "Meet me tonight after everyone has gone to sleep," Y/N offered.

"What are we going to do?" Thomas questioned. He had furrowed his eyebrows at her statement. He had known that it was entirely improper to meet with a young woman after dark, especially if they were unmarried. But it had been proven in the last few weeks that they didn’t care what was improper anymore after her fall. She looked at him with loving and adoring eyes. 

"That's all up to you,” Y/N teased. She was staring at him with loving and adoring eyes. He had immediately raised his eyebrows in surprise. He found himself nodding his head in confirmation. He could hear the voice call out again. He pulled away from her with great hesitation. He had turned to race down the hallways of the palace, leaving the love of his life alone. 

The princess breathed steadily. She found herself lifting her hand towards the frontside of her face, feeling her fingertips brush against her soft lips. She shook her head in disbelief. She couldn't help but suppress the smile growing on her face. They were living in secrecy. Something that brought a rush of dangerous adrenaline into their beings. It wasn't a rebellious or forbidden love. It was a secret love; one that nobody knew about just yet.

At midnight, the prince turned his head and looked at the time. He stood to his feet. He was sure to grab a small candle to lead him through the dark hallways of the palace. He had quietly closed the door behind him. He had started walking through the dark hallways of the palace, hoping to avoid any guards standing by the doorways. He finally made it to her royal bedchambers. 

With hesitation, Thomas had raised his fist to the solid wood door. He knocked on the door of the room as quietly as possible. He took a single step backwards, waiting for a brief moment. He could hear the doorknob slowly jingling. He saw the solid gold door handle twist and turn in attempts to open the door. 

When the door had finally opened, Thomas had straightened his back in posture. He could see the young princess poke her head out of the door. She had turned her head to look up at him with a small smile on her face. She was quick to step out of her room, closing the door behind her. 

At the sight of her, the prince was forced himself to look away from her. He wanted to be respectful of her privacy. He could clearly see that she was only wearing her white nightgown. He was trying not to think about whether or not she was wearing her corset underneath her nightgown, but his best bet was that she wasn't. 

"I-I’m sorry. My servants wouldn't leave until I got in my nightwear. I had to change," Y/N spoke in a soft whisper. She had pulled on the ribbons of her robe. She carried the soft material over her white nightgown to hide her modesty, tying the ribbons together.  

"No," the prince blurted out. "No, it's fine. You look fine." 

The princess had lifted her hand to the side of her face to tuck a small strand of her hair behind her ear. Her long dark brown hair was stretching the bottom of her shoulder blades, dripping over her shoulders in a mesmerizing manner. Her hair was flowing down. It was not pulled back, curled, or pinned. It was free, flowing effortlessly over her shoulders. Her long hair reached down to her lower back. It was brushed until it looked silky. There were no knots or tangles. 

She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks, thinking it may not have been the best idea to invite the prince to meet with her. Her eyes drifted upwards to drink in his manly appearance. She could see that he was no longer wearing his formal jacket or uniform. His white button-up shift was loosely buttoned, showing off some of his broad chest.

The two of them were breathing steadily to themselves. They were taking the time to admire each other in the silence of the night. Their faces were glowing due to the small candle in the his hand. Slowly, Thomas had reached down to grab onto her hand. He had started leading her down the hallways of the palace, following the light of the candle.

“Where shall we go?” Thomas whispered in a soft tone of voice. She could feel the broad smile growing at the corners of her lips. She thought about his words for a brief moment. They had stopped in their steps. The two of them turned their heads and looked at the grand front door standing in front of them.

“To the stars.”

New Eddie x Fem!Reader dropping tomorrow morning called “A Deal With God.” Prepare to cry your eyes out 😭

HE'S SKIPPING TWO STEPS AT A TIME TO GET TO HER FASTER

SOMEBODY SEDATE ME

OMG! I just read part 2 and holy cow!!! I loved it so much! I loved the whole thing and this little series was just SO GOOOD!!!! AHHHH! And I cannot get over the beginning! It was just so well written and pretty! I love your writing so much! I hope you have a wonderful day!! <3

Thank you so much!!! That’s so sweet of you 🥹

Diana and for Halloween she could dress up as Wonder Woman since the comic came out in 1940. You know one of the Hellfire guys is gonna connect the two

Just a thought!

Love this idea!!!

The Sergeant's Senator | Chapter 7

Summary: The day of the vote has finally arrived. As the senator prepares her departure to the senate, the assassin makes one final attempt which ends up causing more destruction than anticipated.

Warning: language, suggestive sexual content, assassination attempt, weapons used (guns and bombs), sniper/shooter/assassin mentioned, characters getting shot at, blood lose and major bodily injuries, slight language, somebody dying

Pairing: Hunter x Fem!Reader Senator

Type: Short Series

Word Count: 4.4k words

Series Masterlist

An agreement had been reached the following morning. Despite their growing feelings for one another, the sergeant and senator came to realize that they could never truly be together. Should it come out that they were a thing, they'd both be demoted from their positions and the sergeant would be decommissioned. Therefore, they decided the sever the connection altogether. And it was the most painful thing either of them had to do.

For whatever time they had left working together, they created boundaries with one another to prevent feelings from developing any further. The distance between the two was bound to cause a deeper longing to reunite. But they knew this couldn't happen and their time was running out.

In the morning, Senator Rayna made the decision to fill out the application form for a new escort. Signing her name had never been so difficult in her life and sending the form off to the guard only caused tears to well in the corners of her eyes.

There was no point in putting it off, especially since Echo knew about it and it would have only been a matter of time before the others found out. As the leader of the group, Hunter ended up breaking the news to them when they arrived that day. He explained that the senator sent in the paperwork and that they should be receiving new orders any day now.

The Bad Batch took the news with mixed emotions. While they missed being in action on the field, there was something simple about protecting a senator in a busy city. It seemed like Crosshair was the only one who was the most pleased with the news, muttering a "finally" under his breath.

The Senator of Coruscant had been standing near the back of the room, listening to the entire conversation with her head hanging low. Her heart never ached so badly then it did in that moment. She tried keeping the tears back.

The memories of their night spend together weighed heavy on her mind, wishing more than ever that she'd be able to have that again with him. Though it was highly unlikely.

After breaking the news, Hunter's eyes drifted up to gaze at the senator from across the room. Only Y/n was quick to look away in order to avoid any more unnecessary pain. He wanted nothing more than to reach out to her, to touch her arm and reassure her that everything was going to be alright even if they weren't there. But he just couldn't do it.

What drew Hunter out of his thoughts was when Echo went up to approach him. He saw the conflict behind his eyes and in his demeanor. He brought a reassuring hand to his shoulder.

"That couldn't have been an easy conversation for you two," Echo noted with a sense of concern in his voice.

"No," Hunter hung his head low. He pushed the pain in his heart away. "It wasn't."

"You really did care about her, didn't you?" Echo wondered. He tilted his head to the side slightly.

"Still do," Hunter acknowledged painfully with a shrug of the shoulders. "Just...can't do anything about it now."

With some hesitation, Echo nodded his head as if to say he understood where he was coming from. He gave his shoulder a couple pats, reassuring him that he'd get over this eventually. But Hunter wondered if he truly could.

Near the back of the room, Crosshair managed to sneak his way over to stand right beside the senator. He leaned back against the wall and cross his arms over his chest. His eyes briefly glanced up at Hunter from across the room, curious to what Echo was talking to him about. He struck up his own conversation.

"He looks miserable," Crosshair grunted. He pulled a single toothpick out of his box, popping it into his mouth to naw on. "Makes you wonder what kinds of things were said between you two yesterday."

"It was a private conversation," Y/n said sourly. She wore an evident frown on her face. "What was said is meant to stay private."

"It doesn't matter anyways," Crosshair shrugged off. "Because we'll be shipped off soon. And everything will go back to normal like how it always should have been."

His words sounded like they were laced with fire. The senator turned her body to face him, staring up at him with a slight look of shock on her face.

"You've never liked me," Senator Rayna pointed out. "From the moment you got here, I could only see the contempt behind your eyes."

"I don't just dislike you," Crosshair pushed off the wall to face her. He leaned down to be eye level and pushed himself forward slightly. With narrowed eyes, Crosshair spat out how he truly felt: "I despise you."

Upon hearing those words, Senator Rayna's face only dropped. A massive wave of newfound hurt sought to drown her and consumed her entire body. She felt the tears gathering in her eyes, which she tried to hide because she knew it would only bring him satisfaction.

"W-What have I ever d-done to you?" Y/n said through her tears.

"It's not what you did to me. It's what you did to him," Crosshair acknowledged. He tipped his head to gesture to his oldest brother from across the room. She turned her head to look towards the sergeant. "You made him weak and soft," Crosshair scowled.

The sniper took a step towards her, which only caused her to stumble over her own feet as she put distance between them. He towered over her to intimidate her. She hated to admit that it was working.

"If anything happens to you, I wouldn't give a damn because that would mean we'd finally be rid of you. Leaving this place will be the best thing to happen for this squad," Crosshair spat down at her.

"Crosshair," Hunter's voice called from across the room.

Neither of them turned their heads to address him, but they knew he was looking directly at them.

"That's enough," Hunter scolded.

For a brief moment, Crosshair and Y/n had forgotten about Hunter's enhanced senses, particularly his hearing. Their entire exchange hadn't gone unheard. He heard every word of hatred that came from his brother and he resented him for it.

Because the senator didn't deserve to be treated that way and if his brother had a problem with how he was acting, then he should have confronted him instead.

"We should get going. I don't want the senator to miss the vote," Hunter announced.

The senator didn't care about the speech she had given a week prior, the vote that was about to happen, or even the results that she worked so hard for. Her mind had been completely captivated by her sergeant that she couldn't have.

Without wanting to cause any further arguments, the Bad Batch proceeded to follow the senator out of her office. They followed directly behind her and would escort her to the vote. However, Crosshair and Hunter lingered behind for a brief moment until the room was completely empty.

In that moment, Hunter sent his brother a glaring look of disapproval and complete anger. His hands had subconsciously clenched into tight fists at his sides. He looked away and started heading towards the door of the office, but right as he met the threshold, Crosshair finally broke the silence.

"You fucked her, didn't you?" Crosshair's tone didn't seem to waver.

Upon hearing those words, Hunter stopped short in his steps. His shoulders began to tense up and his hands remained clenched. It was getting harder to him to not blow up. He didn't say anything at first.

His silence was enough of an answer.

"That's why this has been so hard for you. You got attached," Crosshair pointed out.

Slowly, Crosshair went to approach his the doorway in which his brother stood. He let out a small scoff, quickly glancing him up and down.

"Didn't think you had it in you. Hope you left her feeling satisfied," Crosshair spoke with venom in his tone. He threw another toothpick into his mouth before wordlessly making his exit. The sergeant was left alone in the room, but the weight of his guilt was ever present.

The hired hitman felt a single bead of sweat sliding down the side of his face as he hid behind one of the pillars in the sniper's nest. He clutched a small device in his hands, hanging his thumb over a solid red button. He waited for the perfect moment.

Unbeknownst to the Bad Batch, there were three hidden bombs scattered around the landing platform that they just walked out on. One of the bombs was hidden right underneath the airspeeder and had been activated a couple minutes ago. Any electronic frequencies from the bomb would remain hidden since it was attached to a vehicle that also emitted frequencies. The other two bombs were yet to be activated.

The sniper was careful to peer around the pillar; his gaze fell on the small group walking across the platform and heading directly towards the airspeeder. He pressed the single red button which activated the countdown from one of the other bombs.

In that exact moment, Hunter froze in his place. He held up his hand to stop the rest of the group. His eyes seemed to narrow in slight confusion as his hearing focused on the little faint beeping sound coming from the opposite side of the platform. He looked over his shoulder, settling his sights on the entrance of the building they just came from. He felt the frequencies radiating heavily from one specific area.

"What is it, Hunter?" Echo inquired.

"There is a bomb nearby," Hunter whispered under his breath.

"A bomb?" Wrecker repeated just a little too loud. He quickly looked around as if he magically spot it. He raised his own blaster a little higher. "Where is it? I'll take it out."

"Not your brightest plan," Crosshair said while rolling his eyes.

"We must calculate our steps," Tech pointed out. "Any certain movement could trigger it."

"Wait for my signal," Hunter order. He began to make his way through the group, heading back towards the center of the platform.

"Hunter," Y/n called after him. "I don't like this."

"Don't worry," Hunter reassured her with a small smile. "If anything happens, Tech will stay to protect you."

"Alright," Y/n agreed. "Just be careful."

With some hesitation, Hunter started walking back towards the entrance of the building. He had retrieved his own blaster from his holster and now held it up. He peered through the scope in hopes of spotting something. He waved his hand to signal the other members to follow him.

Now Wrecker, Echo, and Crosshair began moving towards the center of the platform with their own weapons raised. They scouted the peaks in the tower, searching for any sign of the sniper. Back near the airspeeder, Tech made sure to stand relatively close to the senator in case anything happened. He held his blaster in front of him.

Kneeling down, Hunter spotted the small beeping device that was tucked behind one of the pillars. He felt a tight knot forming in his stomach at the mere sight of an active bomb in front of him. He quickly called for Wrecker to disarm it.

Slowly, Hunter forced himself to rise to his feet so that Wrecker was able to get into position. He spun around on the heels of his feet in order to face the senator. He gave a single wave of the hand as if to say they had the situation handled.

Suddenly, Hunter could feel his heart dropping so fast in the pit of his stomach as his eyes landed on the same beeping device hidden underneath the speeder. He broke into a run, urging them to get down. But it was much too late for that.

The device had detonated, which sparked an explosion of destructive fire that consumed everything. There was a loud and echoing boom that caused ears to start ringing in pain. The shockwave that came from the explosion only pushed the others back to the ground. The bright red, yellow, and orange flames only grew as more fuel was added from the airspeeder. Cracks had begun to form on the platform and black smoke surrounded them.

Just as the device had detonated, Hunter had lost sight of the two people standing in front of the speeder. Their bodies disappearing in the midst of flame and smoke. Before he knew it, Hunter was lying on the ground having been thrown back from the blast. He rolled onto his side.

The sergeant groaned in slight pain. He held his arm up to shield his visor from the blinding flames. He did manage to find his footing as he stood on two shaky feet. He quickly turned around to find his other brothers behind him which brought a wave of relief over him. But that also didn't last long because the other two bombs detonated a second later.

The Bad Batch was knocked down from the force of the blast and debris falling around them. The pillars from the building caved from the destructive explosion, crumbling down and striking the platform with such force that it made deeper cracks. More clouds of black smoke swept around their bodies and the ash began fluttering through the air. The world disappeared underneath the veil of darkness, claiming the conscious mind of the sergeant.

The dust had failed to settle anytime soon. With the fire still burning steadily, a thick aroma of black smoke consumed the area. The platform could be heard groaning in pain because the supports holding it up had been compromised. It was only a matter of time before parts of the platform began to give way.

On the sidelines, Tech had to take a moment to gather himself. He had only just come to a second ago. Squeezing his eyes shut tightly, Tech tried to ignore the painful ache that consumed his entire body. His armor had done its job of protecting him from the explosion, but it had still grown hot to the touch from the flames.

Rolling onto his back, Tech's eyes drifted to the bright blue sky above him. He pushed himself into a sitting position, finally turning to address some of his surroundings. There was a small explosion on his left, which caused him to wince roughly and cower behind his arm.

"D-Does anyone copy?" Tech spoke into his communication system, silently praying that someone would hear his message. "I-I r-repeat: does anyone copy?"

The line remained silent much to his dismay.

Forcing himself to stand, Tech tried to use his helmet to scan the area in search for any remaining lifeforms. His visor illuminated the form of a red body underneath some heavy debris not too far away from him. He quickly made his way over to the body, mindfully avoiding the cracks below him.

Upon closer inspection, Tech had recognized the figure belonging to that of the senator. He knelt down beside her unconscious form, desperately searching for a way to lift the heavy debris off her body. Though Tech didn't ignore the fact that the side of her head was dripping with blood, having sustained a traumatic head injury. Right now, Tech just needed to get her out of there.

"If anyone can hear me, the senator is down. I repeat: the senator is down." Tech announced through the communication line though it came through super spotty to the others. As the other squad members came to their senses, the words 'senator' and 'down' were coming through their helmets.

Despite his efforts, Tech was unable to lift the cement debris by himself. He tried a couple times; He pulled and pushed with all of his might to move the huge chuck of pillar, but he wasn't the muscle of the group.

All of the sudden, Tech was able to hear a familiar groaning coming from the cloud of smoke beside him. The familiar figure of the biggest group member appeared to pierce through the smoke. He slowly trudged towards his brother while holding his arm and limping slightly.

"Wrecker!" Tech exclaimed. "I've never been more happy to see you."

"Yeah," Wrecker groaned in slight pain as he approached his brother. "Good to see you too, Tech."

The platform shook slightly under the added weight to that specific area. In response, Tech's eyes fell onto a large crack developing on the ground near them. He realized that the platform was beginning to fall away. He looked up at his brother with wide eyes.

"Watch your step," Tech ordered strategically. "This place could give away at any second."

With a firm nod, Wrecker made sure to watch his steps carefully and maneuvered his way over to them both. He quickly found a sturdy place to stand. He bent his knees and took hold of the debris.

"I'll lift. You pull her out," Wrecker explained. He counted down from three before lifting the heavy piece of cement upwards a couple inches. It was just enough space for his brother to pull the senator out.

Once the senator was secure, Wrecker slowly lowered the pillar back down onto the platform while being careful not to destroy the ground. He knelt down beside them just as Tech began scanning the senator with his data pad.

"How bad is she?" Wrecker inquired with a sad look in his eyes.

"Bad," Tech said blatantly. He typed something into his data pad. "She is suffering from severe internal bleeding and will likely succumb to her injuries if she does not receive immediate medical attention soon."

"We need to get to the Marauder," Wrecker realized.

In another part of the platform, Echo felt like he was reliving what he gone through years ago. The familiar aches and pains were almost too much for his body since he had been close to the explosion. He struggled to compose himself, standing to his feet slowly and shakily. He let out a low groan.

In a brief moment of panic, Echo turned his head to the left and to the right in a desperate attempt of locating the others. He called their names a few times, but failed to receive a response from them. He brought his hand up the the ventilator of his helmet, coughing slightly as he ingested smoke that failed to filter.

"I-If anyone..." Tech's voice cracked through the comms. Echo quickly pressed his finger against the side of his helmet to hear the message more clearly. "Sen-n--nator--d-do-own. M-M-Mauad--now," Tech called.

The only thing going through Echo's mind was how he needed to get to the Marauder. He quickly broke off into a sprint back towards the building with every intention of retrieving the ship from one of the other platforms. He shielded himself from the burning flames and rising smoke, risking it all for the mission.

"I'm o-on...my...way," Echo's voice spoke through the weak communication line.

Upon hearing the broken message, Tech and Wrecker breathed a small sigh of relief. They could rest easy for a moment knowing that help was on it's way and that another one of their brothers was alive. They glanced at each other before redirecting their attention back to helping the senator.

"Senator?" Tech spoke softly while gazing down at her. "Can you hear me? We need you to wake up."

But she hadn't moved.

All the while, Wrecker watched his brother's hands work quickly and skillfully. He had a handful of gauzes and serums from his pack. Pulling out his data pad again, Tech pressed a button which imitated a blue scan over her entire body. He didn't like the look of what showed up on the screen.

"Brain activity is dangerously low," Tech commented more to himself than anyone.

"W-What does that mean?" Wrecker worried.

"She's dying, Wrecker." Tech replied.

Without hesitation, Tech removed his helmet and tossed it to the side. He proceeded to take off his gloves next. His gaze shuffled down to the large gaping wound on the side of the senator's abdomen. The blood was seeping out of her body at a rapid pace. And Tech didn't know if he could slow it down.

"Wrecker," Tech called. He pointed to the leaking wound on her side. "I need you to apply pressure right here. Don't let up. It will slow the bleeding."

Carefully, Wrecker's large hands hovered over the spot. It took him a second before he finally gave into the internal conflict. He pressed his hands into the fresh wound in hopes of stopping the blood from flowing so quickly. He tried to ignore the way the blood seeped over his fingers. And he had to look away in fear of losing his stomach to the sight of gore.

In the midst of chaos, Hunter was slow to come back to his senses. His body was screaming in pain from the mere force of the blast. He shifted his hands underneath himself, pushing his upper body upwards slightly. His muscles shook as he did so; a small groan escaping past his filtered helmet.

With some difficulty, Hunter was able to get to his feet. He desperately searched for the others, but he couldn't see anything beyond the smoke and debris surrounding him. His senses failed him as well because he couldn't seem to pick up their all-too familiar smell. He called for them over the comms, but it seemed like his helmet was busted.

All of the sudden, a blaster shot came out of nowhere and lodged itself in the back of his right shoulder. The proximity of the shot caused him to stumble forward onto his knees. He grabbed his shoulder in pain, hissing at the sharp pain. He just barely managed to glance over his shoulder to spot the assailant walking through the black clouds of smoke with a blaster raised in his hand.

"I must admit: it hasn't been easy trying to take my target down. You're one hell of a soldier," the mysterious assassin spoke with a deep cynical voice behind his mask. He took a couple more steps forward until he was standing right above the clone.

"What do you want...a medal?" Hunter groaned in slight agony. He gripped his shoulder a little tighter in hopes that it would relieve some of the pain.

"Oh, I don't care about you." He knelt down in front of him, pointing the blaster directly at his face. "I only care about killing the senator and getting paid. I'm looking forward to cashing those credits in."

The assailant was taunting him. The anger and rage began to boil within the sergeant's veins, threatening to break loose at any moment. He held a stoic face, but was biting his tongue until he tasted his own blood. He wanted nothing more than to punch that stupid helmet off the guy's face.

All of the sudden, another random blaster bolt had whizzed through the air. The blaster shot smacked into the center of the assassins chest, sending him flying backwards until he was laying flat against the platform. The sergeant scrambled into a sitting position, shifting to glance over his shoulder. His eyes landed on the familiar sharpshoot pointing his rifle at the body.

For a brief moment, Hunter had never been more relieved to see his brother despite the risk he had taken in shooting the assassin down. He tried to rise to his feet while still holding onto his shoulder. However, Crosshair had joined his side and grabbed his arm. He helped him rise to his feet, double checking to make sure his oldest brother was alright.

"T-Thanks," Hunter said. He looked at his youngest brother with a small hint of pride in his eyes.

"Don't mention it," Crosshair scolded him with a serious look behind his eyes. "I mean it."

Together, Hunter and Crosshair made their way over to the suffering body of the assailant that was still laying on the ground. As they drew closer, Hunter was the first to step forward and kneel down in front of him. He pressed the bottom on the side of mysterious man's helmet, activating the trigger to retract the facemark.

What they both saw was shocking. It was a clone.

However, he wasn't wearing the typical clone armor; this style was coated in black and the mask had dark green eyes. They weren't even sure what generation of clone he would have been. His tactics were far from a regular clone. But he wore the face that millions of clones shared. This was something else, something new.

"This...complicates things," Hunter noted. He furrowed his eyebrows in slight confusion. They stood tall above him. "You're just a reg. Why are you trying to kill the senator?"

The clone assassin only let out a crazed laugh, which caused a few steams of blood to escape the corners of his mouth. His body was starting to succumb to his injuries, growing weaker with each passing moment. He looked up at the two enhanced clones, shaking his head slightly.

"L-Like I said, I was just doing a job to get paid."

"Who hired you?" Hunter demanded an answer.

"I'll never tell you," the assassin hissed. "You'll have to shoot me de--"

But the man was never able to finish that sentence because the sharpshooter had shot him once more to silence him forever. He silently strapped his rifle onto his back, turning to walk away and ignoring the look his brother was sending him.

At the given moment, Hunter was overwhelmed with a million different emotions. He wore a shocked expression on his face, not believing what his brother just pulled off. Not only that, but he was also incredibly taken back by the fact that he shot a clone without hesitation. He watched his figure retreat, but he called after him.

"What the hell were you thinking? Shooting a brother like that," Hunter gestured to the motionless body behind him.

"He's not a brother," Crosshair shrugged his shoulders. "He's just another reg. They're disposable."

"We didn't know anything about this clone. What his motives were, where he came from, or why he was trying to kill the senator," Hunter listed off. "He deserved to stand a fair trial," Hunter argued.

Upon hearing this, Crosshair stopped in the middle of his tracks. He threw a brief glance over his shoulder with a taunting smirk gracing his lips. He huffed.

"Starting to sound like your little girlfriend," Crosshair mocked.

"That's enough, Crosshair. You shouldn't have done what you did. You crossed a line," Hunter said through gritted teeth. His hands began to clench at his sides.

"You know...you should be thanking me," Crosshair replied. He was now turned to face his brother head on. "The threat is gone. Your girlfriend is safe. And we can finally leave this place. We completed the mission."

"You killed a clone," Hunter ignored him.

"I completed the mission," Crosshair corrected. The two brothers stared at each other with dangerously narrowed eyes, waiting for the other one to break first. But a familiar voice pulled them out of their internal war.

"H-Hunter...H--Hunter," Echo's voice broke through the communication system. "Come in. D-Do you read me?"

"I hear you, Echo." Hunter spoke while pressing the side of his helmet.

"I-I'm bringing the Marauder around now," Echo explained. The line was starting to get a little clearer and crispy as he spoke. "Tech says we need to get the senator out of here as soon as possible. She doesn't have a lot of time."

"Copy that," Hunter nodded. "We are on our way."

The ship was able to round the side of the building. The wind blasting from the engines was enough to push the clouds of black smoke away from the platform momentarily, providing a clear direction for where the others were on the opposite side. The ship was descending until it hovered right by the edge of the platform.

With great precision, Crosshair and Hunter began to make their way towards the group of others. They avoided the cracks in the ground, coming up beside their fellow brothers. The sergeant took a moment to stare down at the senator's motionless body, surveying her injuries carefully.

Though Tech was still working on bandaging up some of her wounds, Wrecker was still keeping his hands pressed against the gaping hole on her side. He made sure to avoid his sergeant's gaze, feeling a bit helpless in their failed attempt to protect her from harm. The sharpshooter was the only one brave enough to look directly at the sergeant with an all-knowing look in his eyes.

It was like Crosshair was saying it all over again to Hunter. Don't get too attached. Because this is what he'll get.

CHAPTER EIGHT HERE

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THE SERIES IS ALMOST OVER! HOPE YOU'VE ENJOYED IT SO FAR.

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The Sergeant's Senator | Chapter 4

Summary: The Senator has spent the last couple weeks locked inside, but now wants nothing more than to go outside. The others need to find a way to get her outside without being spotted or recognized.

Warning: mention of the shooter, vial of blood is alluded to, characters have slight anxiety, mutual pining, suggestive talk, weaponry mentioned (not used)

Pairing: Hunter x Fem!Reader Senator

Type: Short Series

Word Count: 5.4k

Series Masterlist

The day following the attack was spent talking to The Coruscant Security Force. They had come to the apartment to investigate the destruction, opening a brand new case file against the shooter. While some officers were snapping photographs of the scene, the other ones were questioning the people who witnessed the attack.

In the meantime, Crosshair made sure to keep a close eye out the window with his sniper in hand. His eyes scanned the city skyline thoroughly. By the couches, Senator Rayna and Hunter gave their statements to an officer. The man took notes on a pad of paper.

"And where you able to get a good look at the shooter? Maybe what they were wearing," the officer suggested.

"No, we didn't get a good look. It was quite dark out and we went in the best position to look at them," Hunter explained. Even with his heightened senses, Hunter wasn't able to get a great look before he fired his shot.

Just then, Tech came to approach the small group. He held his data pad in one hand and a small vial of blood in the other. He passed the vial to the officer.

"This might be of some assistance to you," Tech told the officer. "It was found on the rooftop where the shooter was located. That is their blood."

The officer went to open his mouth to question how he managed to get a sample of the shooter's blood, but the technical clone beat him to talking by saying:

"You should be able to run a DNA diagnosis test to pinpoint who it is exactly. Then you can release a warrant for his arrest," Tech explained to the officer as if he didn't know how to do his job. He typed away at his data pad.

The senator was forced to stuff her lips into her mouth in hopes of stifling a small laugh. She glanced up at the sergeant who gave her a shrug and a look that said: "That's Tech for you."

"R-Right. We'll get right on that and get back to you once the results are in," the officer stammered over his words. "We should have this place cleaned up in a few days. I presume you have a place to stay?"

"She does," Hunter interjected before Y/n could speak for herself. He left it at that, not wishing to disclose where the senator was staying just in case unwanted ears were listening.

The officer gave a firm nod of the head, showing them appreciation for their willingness to answer their questions. "Thank you for your time."

Over the next couple weeks, Senator Rayna was fully immersed in her work back at the office. Her schedule consisted of attending meetings, writing her speech, and sitting in on what was happening at the senate. All the while, the Bad Batch escorted her to every function. They kept a close eye on her while being fully aware of the dangers that could accompany them.

It had been many weeks since the attack at the high-rise, which was now the longest amount of time between attacks. Something was not right. His suspicious grew with each passing day. That only made him want to take extra precautions when accompanying the senator out.

"I don't like it," Hunter grumbled more to himself. He paced back and forth across the office.

The senator spared him a quick glance before returning her attention to the papers in front of her. "Stop pacing," Senator Rayna spoke from behind her paper.

"It's been weeks and nothing. We haven't heard a thing from this guy," Hunter complained. He raised his hand to gesture out the window.

"Well, I am most certainly thankful for that. You're not the one who's a target here," Senator Rayna stated. He slumped down into a chair facing her desk. He fidgeted with his fingers nervously; his eyes darting around the room.

"He's gonna strike. I just know it," Hunter claimed.

"Hunter," Y/n spoke softly. "I think you're a little paranoid."

"And you're not?" Hunter inquired, glancing at her.

"Not anymore," Y/n confessed with a soft smile on her face. He stared directly at her with a hint of intrigue in his eyes.

"Why?"

"Because I have you," Y/n explained. She felt herself getting lost in those dark brown eyes of his. She quickly snapped out of it and redirected her gaze away from him. She cleared her throat awkwardly. "A-And your brothers looking out for me," Y/n added.

The senator pretended to go back to her work, but she was secretly thinking about the sergeant in front of her. She tried so hard to push those thoughts away, knowing that it wasn't right to be pining after and crushing over her sergeant who was assigned to protect her. It wasn't like he could reciprocate the feelings; he was a clone after all and they were programmed to not meddle in those matters.

Despite the looks, Hunter wasn't void of all emotions. In fact, as of recently, Hunter discovered that he was shifting towards having a more domesticated heart. His thoughts wandered back to his friend named Cut who was a deserter clone settled on Saleucami. He had gone so far as to marry a Twi'lek named Suu and have two children together.

The difference between Hunter and Cut were their priorities in life. While Cut found purpose in providing for his family, Hunter was still a soldier for the Republic and served in the war. Now, Hunter envied the life Cut made for himself and wished that someday after the war, he'd be able to seek the same kind of life for himself.

However, despite this optimist approach that the war would end, there was still a matter at hand. Once the war ended, Hunter may be free to chose a life for himself, but Y/n would not be. She'd still be a senator, sitting through meetings and making grand speeches. She herself would be working hard to make the galaxy a better place. That was something that Hunter would never be able to pull her away from. It was her purpose.

Which was why, for the past few months, Hunter tried to distance himself from the senator emotionally. He still needed to be in close proximity to her in order to keep her safe, but he simply wouldn't allow himself to become too attached. One day, they'd have to go their separate ways and that would be the end of it.

This was a tricky task for him. His head screamed to stop, but his heart pleaded to try. Once the senator returned to her apartment after it was fully restored, Hunter found it incredibly difficult to stay away from his bed aboard the Marauder. His once undisturbed bed now smelled so strongly of lavender that it drove his senses wild.

More often than not, Hunter came to discover how she was constantly invading his senses. Whether the senator wore a particularly flattering dress or gingerly touched his arm, it drove him wild. He tried wearing his helmet more, igniting the feature that blocked out those senses for his own sake.

But right now, sitting in her company, Hunter wasn't wearing his helmet. He stared at her longingly, admiring the way a few baby hairs fell around her face. He also seemed to catch the soft pink tone on her cheeks, but she quickly shielded her face from him behind a piece of paper. The gentle flutter of her heartbeat did not go unnoticed either.

Just then, the door to the office slid open to reveal the other four members of the squad. They had just come back from grabbing lunch in the cafeteria downstairs. They figured, given the quietness over the past couple weeks, that they could afford sneaking down for quick bite to eat. But that had been an hour ago.

"Took you long enough," Hunter huffed. He crossed his arms over his chest, seemingly unamused by their prolonged absence.

"That's because Wrecker kept going back for more food," Echo scoffed.

"It never ends," Wrecker exclaimed with a bright smile on his face. He came around the side of the chair. "They let you take as much food as you want. I haven't been this full in a long time."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Y/n smiled at him.

"So," Wrecker clasped his hands together rather loudly. "What's on the docket for today?"

"Nothing," Tech and Y/n replied simultaneously.

"Her schedule is empty," Tech spoke. His nose was buried deep into his data pad.

"No meetings? No speeches?" Wrecker questioned. He seemed rather confused as he felt there was almost always something the senator had to do. But it was only two hours past noon.

"Not really," Y/n shrugged her shoulders. "I initially planned to spend the whole day finishing writing my speech, but now, I'd like to do something else."

"What did you have in mind?" Hunter inquired curiously.

When the senator saw all eyes on her, she felt her nerves go uneasy. She twiddled with the pen in her hands, thinking about what she was about to say. She didn't know if it was such a good idea after all.

"I-I'd like to go out," Y/n confessed timidly.

The room remained silent for a moment. The senator glanced between each of the clones in attempts to read their expressions and predict who was going to speak up first. Sure enough, the sarge was the first one to speak for his brothers. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Out?" Hunter clarified.

"Your speech is in two days," Tech pointed out.

"Shouldn't you prioritize that?" Echo questioned.

"I haven't been able to properly go outside for weeks," Y/n ignored them. She threw her hands up in defeat, resting against the back of her chair. "The most fresh air I get is going between here and my place."

"Do you really think it's a good idea to go out in public? With everything going on?" Echo chimed in.

"Not to mention the fact that you have easily one of the most recognizable faces on Coruscant," Tech pointed out.

"I'd wear a disguise," Y/n replied.

"Really? A disguise," Hunter held back a laugh.

"Believe it or not: I do own civvy clothes," Y/n reassured them.

"I'd pay to see that," Wrecker laughed. He rather forcefully nudged Crosshair who was standing right beside him, but he just shook his head in annoyance.

Trying to ignore his brother's comment, Hunter found himself leaning forward in the seat. He came up with a hypothetical situation. "Say we do go out, what would you even want to do?" Hunter asked her.

"Anything," Y/n sighed. "Just get me out of this office."

For a moment, Hunter contemplated the choice to leave. He averted his gaze to ponder some more. He found feel his brothers gazing at him expectingly, which made him realize just how much they too wanted to get out. The risk was almost too high given that she had a massive target painted on her back.

Sensing how he was leaning more towards a negative response, the senator quickly rose to her feet and rounded the side of her desk. She knelt down on the floor right beside his chair. She placed a hand on his forearm which drew his attention towards it. Her eyes were pleading, begging for a little freedom.

"Twenty credits says he caves," Crosshair said discreetly to his twin standing right beside him.

Before Tech was able to accept the challenge, Wrecker spoke up quietly. "You're on."

To which Tech rolled his eyes. He went back to his data pad.

"Please sarge," Y/n urged. Her other hand went up to trace his fingers gently, coaxing him to watch her intently. She drew small shapes on his palm. Her eyes flickered up to him. "Just for a little while?"

Finally, Hunter began to withdraw his hand away from her in a slow manner. He flexed his hand once or twice to get rid of the feeling of her fingers having just graced him. He refused to look at her.

"Fine," Hunter sighed heavily.

A bright smile grew across her lips. She thought about throwing her arms around him for an embrace, but she figured that she may be overstepping if she did so. Instead, Y/n stood to her feet from her spot. She could barely contain her excitement.

In the background, Wrecker and Tech went to place their twenty credits into Crosshair's expecting hand. Both of them looking rather solemn, but the third was rather pleased with his new change. He pocketed the credits into a pouch.

Before Y/n was able to turn away, Hunter reached out to grab her wrist. The excitement was quickly disappeared from her face. Now she wondered if he'd changed his mind. She went to look down at him, fearful of what he was about to say.

Under his fingers, Hunter felt her pulse growing faster on her wrist and he could hear the thumping of her heart. He wasn't sure if it was anxiety or excitement coming from her. But he spoke to her to get his point across.

"But if we are doing this, you are gonna do things my way," Hunter's sulky voice ordered. His eyes flickered up to meet hers in a stern glare. "You got that?"

"Yes sir," Y/n gulped.

Upon hearing this, Hunter instinctively tightened his grip on her wrist without realizing it. It drew a small gasp out of her lips which only spurred him on more. Now satisfied with her answer, Hunter began to release his grip on her. He gestured to the side as if to encourage her to keep moving.

As the senator walked away, Hunter redirected his line of attention to his band of brothers standing on the sidelines. He had already come up with a plan to execute this outing.

"Go back to the Marauder," Hunter spoke to the muscles of the group. "We are going to need the old crate."

A few minutes later, Wrecker had returned to the office carrying a massive crate in his hands. He brought it to the center of the room and dropped it on the floor, which resulted in a loud thump. Opening the lid of the crate, Tech began digging through the various items within it. He was searching for something in particular.

Without glancing up, Tech grabbed something black and handed it to Hunter. He strode across the room towards the senator, offering the odd black material to her. She furrowed her eyebrows upon further inspection.

"What is this?" Y/n inquired. She gingerly took hold of the material.

"We call them blacks," Hunter stated.

"And what am I supposed to do with it?"

"Take off your clothes," Hunter explained. Her eyes snapped up to his face, showing the evident look of surprise in her eyes. He finished what he was saying: "And put these on."

Silently, Senator Rayna nodded her head understandingly. She went towards the restroom on the other side of the room, stepping inside and closing the door behind her for privacy.

With Hunter's eyes still locked on the door, Crosshair approached his side. His eyes followed the line of his brother's. He adjusted the toothpick in the corner of his mouth.

"Didn't take you for the flirting type," Crosshair noted. His voice sounded like it was poison in the brother's ear; like it was laced with ill intent.

"I'm not," Hunter spoke firmly without taking his eyes off the door. "Just telling her what to do."

"You're a horrible liar," Crosshair scoffed with a shake of the head. He proceeded to turn away from him and return to his other brothers side by the crate.

Just a moment later, the door creaked open ever so slightly, but it successfully drew the attention of all the clones. They looked up to watch the young senator emerge from the private space. Their eyebrows shot up in slight surprise once she finally stepped into their view.

The blacks were designed to fit any body shape, which meant that the material naturally looked small before one put it on. It was truly a "one size fits all" type of clothing. And boy, did it show.

It fit her body like a black glove. The black material hugged her figure so tightly that it showed every single curve of her body. While to some, it may look incredibly uncomfortable, it was actually one of the softest materials available in the galaxy. It was lightweight, versatile, and rather cheap. Every soldier for the Republic wore blacks under their armor.

Breaking the silence, Wrecker let out a wolf whistle which only brought a swift nudge in the side from Echo. She avoided their gazes expertly, keeping her eyes on the ground. She shuffled across the small stretch, bringing her arms to cross against her chest.

"I-It feels odd wearing just this," Y/n said honestly.

"You'll get used to it," Hunter reassured her, feeling a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

"Found it!" Tech exclaimed from behind them. The rest of them redirected their attention towards him.

Finally, Tech retrieved a single piece of black armor from the crate. It was a clone chest piece. He held it up for further examination. However, Senator Rayna only furrowed her eyebrows in slight confusion once again. She had no idea what he was doing with a piece of armor.

"This will do nicely," Tech stated with a nod. He rounded the side of the crate to offer the chest piece to the senator.

But she initially didn't take it from him, which meant he'd need to explain his motives to her.

"I have taken the liberty of riffling through our old armor crate. Given your physique, I have selected one of Echo's old chest pieces." Tech pushed the chest plate into her hands.

"You want to me put this on?" Y/n questioned.

"That's the plan," Hunter interjected.

"So I look like a clone?"

"So you have protection," Hunter corrected. He raised a single finger to emphasis his words. "Along with a disguise."

"I won't fit in this," Y/n exclaimed. She tried holding up the chest plate to look at it closer, but it was incredibly heavy.

"Which is why I provided you with Echo's piece. He's the smallest," Tech stated as a matter of factly.

"Hey," Echo chimed in, taking offense.

Before the senator was able to protest, Hunter had already taken the chest plate out of her hands and was fitting it over her head. She slipped her arms through the holes on the side. He moved the piece of armor around until it was comfortable resting on her chest.

In the meantime, Tech and Echo began to bring the other pieces over for assembly. They handed each piece to the sergeant who knew exactly where they went on the body. The senator was beginning to feel the armor's weight as the pauldrons were attached to her shoulders.

"It feels quite heavy," Y/n realized.

"That is because it is katarn-class armor, which is much more stronger and more resilient than your typical plastoid clone armor. It will weight approximately 45 pounds once put together," Tech explained as he fitted a spare piece to her side.

"Is this really necessary?" Y/n wondered. She raised her arms upwards as the belt was attached across her waist.

"Provided that this may save your life by deflecting a blaster shot, then yes, I would say it's necessary." Tech shrugged.

"Hunter," Echo redirected. He quickly tossed him another piece from the crate, which he caught without looking.

While distracted by Tech's rambling, she didn't even notice the hands that grabbed her hips and directed her body to turn. She shuffled on her feet until she was fully facing the sergeant. He slowly lowered himself to the ground, getting on his knees in front of her.

For some unknown reason, Y/n felt something ignite within the pit of her stomach at the sight of him on his knees in front of her. She felt his fingers encircle around her ankle, silently encouraging her to lift it up. He fitted the thigh gauntlet through her foot, sliding it up the long length of her leg.

His fingers brushed against the inside of her thigh, which pulled the smallest gasp out of her. The sergeant couldn't contain the sly smirk from tugging at the corners of his lips. He felt her eyes burning into the top of his head, documenting his every move. He secured the piece as tightly as possible before glancing up at her.

She could have sworn she saw his eyes darken.

"Don't give me that look," Y/n begged quietly. She tore her gaze away from the sergeant's captivating eyes in hopes of hiding her blush. She tried to balance on one foot.

"What look?" Hunter teased.

"You know what I am talking about," Y/n insisted with a playful roll of the eyes. He chuckled deeply to himself.

Now moving, Tech shifted in his stance beside her which resulted in her loosing her balance slightly. She stumbled to the side, but she placed her hand on the sergeant's shoulder for better balance. Her hand was desperately close to his neck; so much close that she felt the strands of hair tickling her fingers.

For the time being, Hunter needed to push those feelings down once again. He fought the desire to feel her fingers threaded through his hair and tugging at his locks. He felt a slight flutter in the pit of his stomach, feeling the blood flow shifting south.

A heavy lump in his throat was forming as one of her fingers delicately brushed against the side of his neck where his pulse would be.

Through distractions, Hunter focused on finishing the task at hand. He secured one of the knee pads before moving onto fitting the boot onto her foot. After this, he began working on the other leg, helping her get into each respectable piece until she started to look like a clone trooper.

Upon completion, Hunter began to rise to his feet. He let out a small groan when he felt his knees popping, but he ignored the aching pain. He stood at his full height, towering over her. He held up the final piece into view.

"I'm not wearing that," Y/n stated with the most unamused look on her face.

"It's a codpiece," Hunter explained.

"I know what it is. I am not putting it on," Y/n said with a shake of the head.

"You won't pass as a clone if you're not wearing it," Hunter argued. This wasn’t convincing enough for her. "It would look even weirder if you weren't wearing it."

"He's right," Tech's unwanted opinion came out of nowhere.

"Fine," Y/n grumbled in slight defeat. She stopped him before he could go down on his knees again. She took the codpiece out of his grasp. "But I'll put it on myself."

"As you wish," Hunter gave up easily with hands raised in defense.

Fitting the final piece, Y/n put her hands out to show off her new black clone armor She looked at each of the clones for their thoughts about how she appeared. She most certainly could pass for a clone with the exception of the missing helmet.

"Woah! You look just like us," Wrecker exclaimed with a broad smile on his face.

"That's kinda the point," Crosshair mumbled beside him.

"Not without this," Echo jumped in. He tossed a spare helmet over to her, which she caught awkwardly. She surveyed the helmet, staring down where the eyepiece was.

"Who's helmet is this? Another one of Echo's pieces?" Y/n wondered.

"It's actually one of my old ones," Hunter confessed. He scratched the back of his neck.

"Oh," Y/n nodded. She now saw the resemblance between his old and new helmet. "I see."

Stepping forward, Hunter took the helmet out of her hands. He turned the helmet around and raised it above her head. He lowered it onto her until her face disappeared behind it. He kept his hands on the sides.

"This okay?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah," Y/n's voice came through the modulator. He slowly removed his hands from the helmet, but her gaze remained on him. "Thanks," Y/n spoke softly.

Putting distance between them, Hunter went back to his brothers' side. He rifled through the craft one final time, looking for an old holster for a blaster. He pulled out a regular black one before handing it over to Tech.

"This is the final piece," Tech explained to her. He fitted the belt around her waist so that the holster fell over the side of her thigh.

"A holster?" Y/n questioned.

"For your blaster," Tech said while briefly glancing up at her.

"I don't carry a blaster," Y/n informed him.

"It's just for today. It's all for looks. You won't have to use it," Hunter chimed in. His arms were crossed over his chest.

Next, Tech took one of his own spare blasters out of his backpack. He handed the weapon to her for which she held for a second. She examined the weapon carefully, rotating it. She slid it right into the holster at her side, bringing the disguise to completion.

Upon leaving the main building, the Bad Batch began walking down the street and blended into the crowd of citizens. They made sure to keep their eyes open, realizing that an unexpected attack could occur at any given time. Not only was the senator a target, there was also a high chance that the other members that become recognizable targets for the unknown shooter.

Walking through the crowd, Y/n quickly came to realize how little passing people were looking at them. They still got the occasional glances from some, but that was obviously because of their unique clone features.

The senator and sergeant were currently walking a few steps ahead of the small squad. They picked up their own conversation.

"It's weird being unrecognizable to people in public," Y/n whispered to the sergeant striding beside her. She remembered what she was wearing though.

"Clones are everywhere," Hunter explained to her. "We all look the same so people don't need to look twice at something they've already seen."

"Well, not all of you look the same." Though she was wearing a helmet, he was able to hear the smile in her voice.

"Which is often a downside," Hunter stated. "Because then, people look."

"I'm sorry," Y/n spoke with true sincerity in her tone.

"We didn't ask to be made," Hunter replied. "But our differences...we see them as a bit of a perk. Even though they make us outcasts."

The small group had just managed to round the corner of the street, heading in one direction. The others didn't seem the least bit interested in the conversation. Instead, they focused their attention on their surroundings for added precaution.

"What's it like to have heightened senses? I imagine a place as busy as Coruscant is hard to endure," Y/n took note.

"I've...grown accustomed to it," Hunter hinted. It wasn't just Coruscant that he had grown attuned to.

"I'm sure you'll be glad once it's behind you," Y/n breathed a long sigh.

For a moment, Hunter contemplated her choice of words carefully. While she had redirected her attention back towards the sidewalk in front of her, he found himself staring at her profile.

"Have you ever thought about it?" Hunter inquired.

She glanced up at him. "About what?"

"Leaving this place?" He gestured to the grand skyscrapers.

"Well, this is my home. I was born here and I grew up here. I rarely leave unless for business matters." She seemed to shrug her shoulders. "It's a bit like Kamino for you."

The sergeant remained silent.

"Kamino is your home, is it not?" Y/n pressed. She now peered up at him with curious eyes.

"That's where they made us, trained us." Hunter agreed. His voice grew solemn as he spoke truthfully. "But it's not much like a real home. We spend more time on our ship than we do back there."

"If you did settle down--after the war, where would you go?" Y/n shifted the direction of the conversation in attempts of making it more lighthearted. She waited for his answer patiently.

"Never really thought about it," Hunter shrugged. "Never imagined a life outside the war."

"I'm sure it'll end soon," Senator Rayna often spoke with optimism. "For me, if I were to leave the planet, I'd want to go somewhere quiet."

Hunter released a small chuckle at this. "Coruscant too busy for you?"

"Always moving," Y/n insisted upon it. She watched her foot be placed in front of the other. The two of them grew silent for a moment. That was until she spoke up again: "Maybe there'd be a beach."

"You want to live on a beach?" Hunter wondered.

"I've never been to the beach," Senator Rayna corrected him. She spoke with such a dreamy voice as if she was envisioning it now. "I'd just like to relax in the silence and listen to the waves crashing."

"That does sound nice," the sergeant agreed with a small nod of the head.

"You think it's silly."

"I think it's good to have dreams," Hunter altered.

In that exact moment, Hunter felt her arm brush against his own, which made him realize how close they were walking together. They both lowered their gazes to the ground. They seemed to enjoy the silence between them because it wasn't awkward at all.

Unbeknownst to them, the others had been watching their exchange with curious eyes. However, they weren't really able to hear the conversation clearly. They only heard the senator laughing a few times at something he'd said. All this to say that they looked at one another with the same look on their faces. A face that read: "There is something going on between them."

"I'll take you to the beach one day," Hunter offered quietly.

Her head snapped up to look directly at him. "You would?"

The sergeant nodded his head silently in agreement. He promised her: "Just the two of us."

"I'd like that," Y/n confessed sheepishly.

As the two of them walked alongside each other, their shoulders would occasionally brush together. Barely any words were further exchanged between the two, which resulted in a tender silence falling over them. They each felt this giddy bubbly feeling in the pits of their stomachs.

Ever so gently, Hunter felt the back of his hand graze against hers. This happened a handful of other times as they toured the streets of the city. He tried to see her reaction when it happened through the corner of his eye, but she never pulled away from him.

After a while, Hunter gathered the smallest amount of courage to tease the back of her hand with his pinky finger. He was testing the waters, half expecting it to go rather poorly for him. But he once again found that she remained silent and didn't withdraw from him.

Slowly, Hunter curled that single finger to hook around her own. He held it as gently as possible in fear of breaking it. He waited with a sharp breath held in his chest. But she never pulled away.

Feeling contact only ignited a burning flame in the pit of her stomach, resulting in the heat rising to her face. Her heart began to flutter like a hummingbird's wings and her smile only grew wider under her helmet. She wanted nothing more than to link the rest of their fingers together until they were properly holding hands, but she knew she wouldn't be able to.

For now, Y/n would have to be content with this. And she truly was.

By the time evening had come, Senator Rayna was safely back at her own place. She worked on the finishing touches of her speech, changing a few things to her liking. A sound knock came from her bedroom door and she invited them in without thought.

Naturally, Echo had pushed the door open in a silent manner. He was the only one on duty for tonight, which meant he was stationed at her door for the next couple hours. He held a small pile of papers with his good hand.

"These came for you," Echo explained. He stole a quick glance at the paper on the top.

"Bring 'em over," Y/n encouraged with a wave of her hand. He strode across the room, setting the stack of papers down on the desk beside her speech.

"I'll leave you to it," Echo dismissed himself. He knew that she was close to finishing her speech and would prefer to work alone. He walked back to the entrance of her room, shutting the door behind him. His hand lingered on the handle as he tried to process what he had seen on the top of the pile.

Now alone in the room, Y/n's eyes had shifted to the small stack on her right side. The paper on the top of the pile had red ink that indicated where it came from and it's utmost importance. It was an application form which came from the Coruscant Guard.

The Coruscant Guard had sent this to inform her of available troopers in their rank. This was something that they were unable to offer her a couple weeks ago when she really needed the escort. Now, things had changed.

The only thing she'd need to do was fill out the application for a new escort. The Coruscant Guard would take the time to process her application, eventually sending a new set of guards to accompany her like they had beforehand.

An issue arose with this. If the senator were to receive new guards, that meant her current escort would be transferred. They'd return to the front lines, heading back to the war. She contemplated her next step.

At first, Senator Rayna thought about the small squad that had grown on her the past couple weeks. She figured that they'd probably prefer to return to the war effort. They were much too gifted to be stuck escorting her around the city. Their skills had so much value, guaranteeing success in the war. They'd want her to fill out the application. They could go back to all the action; that's what they liked.

For some unknown reason, Senator Rayna's mindset began to shift into a more selfish one. She told herself how she'd never felt more safe than when this squad was beside her, remembering how the last two guards had been killed protecting her. And she thoroughly enjoyed their company...one more than the rest.

Taking the application in her hands, Y/n made a final decision. She tossed the piece of paper into the drawer of her desk. Without this, the Coruscant Guard wouldn't send a new escort to her aid and the Bad Batch would remain with her in the meantime. This is what she wanted.

CHAPTER FIVE HERE

Taglist:

@justhavingsomefun1 @totally-not-your-babe @jedipoodoo @gyllord @roam-rs @totallyunidentified @redheadgirl @mrcaptainrex @whore-of-many-hot-men @graciexmarvel @qweenrogerina @arcsimper5 @queenofspades6 @cadihyo @jediknightjana @elthoughtzos @lokigirlszendaya

This felt like a longer chapter but I did take out one scene where Hunter helps her take off the armor (lot of sexual tension there). Let me know if I should still post the now deleted scene!

You look good in red, boys. <3

The Royal Family | Sneak Peek

The three princes had found themselves walking amongst the preparation of the party in the front yard. The three of them did not pay any mind to the servants scurrying around them, frantically trying to make the last minute adjustments. They would settle their gazes on the young princess who was growing more stressed with each passing moment.

"Tell me, dear brother," Harry said with an evident smirk plastered on his face. He turned his head to look at his older brother standing beside him, tilting his head to gesture towards the princess in the short distance. "Have you kissed her yet?" Harry wondered.

"That is none of your business," Thomas said. He had been quick to avert his gaze, choosing to pretend to be focused on something else instead of having to listen to his brother’s taunting voice. Though he could feel the heat rising to his cheeks, he couldn't suppress the smile from growing on his lips. This would give away any secrecy in the matter.

"Oh...so you have kissed her,” Harry concluded. He could see the evident blush on his brother’s cheeks. He would only raise his eyebrows in amusement, chuckling to himself at the notion. "My brother has had his first kiss,” Harry exclaimed a little too loud for his brother’s liking.

In the background, the prince’s personal assistant was making sure to linger behind them. He had turned his head to search some of his surroundings, watching the servants scurry around with keen eyes. His baby blue eyes would settle on this young servant carrying a bundle of neatly folded lace tablecloths. He could have sworn he had never seen anyone more beautiful in his life.

COMING SOON!!!