Lt. Simon Ghost Riley

"once more to see you" ; aventurine

summary — to him, love was like a religion waiting to be discovered and he’ll find god in the way the sun looks on your skin; alternatively, aventurine thinks he’s rotten work and tiring to take care of but not to you, not if it's him (please get the reference).

pairing — aventurine (w/ gender-neutral reader)

tags — established relationship (but aventurine wants to de-establish it), somewhat fluff, slight angst with comfort, never proofread never what?!!, 1.3k ; ficlet

note — 2.1 broke me (the whole quest knocked at the door of my house, shook my hands, congratulated me, and invited itself into my home before pouring water on my face, slapping me, throwing me around, and left with the door open, all the while, my family watched). this is day 1 of writing for aventurine until i have him.

“you have a lot of moles.” his voice, despite a gentle whisper, tears through the silence of the night like a drop of water that ruptured and disturbed the surface of the pond. “especially here.” he gently taps on your skin; they seem like stars, he swallows the words back down. 

you feel aventurine’s finger trace on the back of your neck and the curve of your shoulders, seemingly drawing—or connecting something. it was ticklish, the way he gently drags his hand and ghosts over your skin, a soft laugh slipping past your lips (you’ll capture his touch on your skin as if you were a sinner remembering how forgiveness tasted on your lips). there was something intimate that lingers in the air between you two as you lay in his bed with him, a fleeting moment that will be inked into your mind. 

(the both of you leave your titles behind, mixed together with the scattered objects on the floor, laid on the cold ground to be picked up and worn later like a shiny medal even if you weren’t proud to have them.)

“they say it’s where your lover kissed you the most in your past life.” you stir in your position as you speak, coming to face him and meet his pretty jewel-like eyes—how alluring it was, painted with vivid colors yet it never shines. the sound of mirth laughter bubbles from his throat, a pleasant melody to your ears.

he asks, curiosity tracing the tone of his voice, “and from where did you even hear that?” and you shrug, bringing your form closer to him as you seek for more warmth, “i can’t recall. perhaps i heard it from topaz or maybe from one of the members of the ipc? they’re the only ones i often see and talk to.”

“the doctor?” he wraps his arm around your figure, his hand settling on the small of your back.

“that man will only scorn at that idea and call it stupid. he’ll most likely say that ‘only fools would believe such concepts.’” you mimic the way the esteemed doctor spoke, from the serious expression that he always don on his face to the deepening of his voice. your seemingly successful imitation earned a chuckle from the blonde-haired man before you.

“i’m sure he will.”

silence falls between you two and you took this time to adore each and every line of his being. a few strands of hair fall over his eyes—beautiful, captivating, mesmerizing, you could list out every word to describe his eyes but it would never be enough. you had always wondered why he would hide it until you witnessed the reason why he does so. 

aventurine seems to study your expression at the same also, a soft look on his face as he did, and you can’t help but be curious. “what are you thinking about?” you ask him, breaking the silence that nurtured itself in the space between you and him.

you, he wishes to answer. how you look at this moment in his embrace: you were wearing one of his shirts, albeit, not exactly to your size but you insisted, saying that you liked it as it smelled like him. how gentle, loving, adoring, you were everything; he looks and thinks of you as if you were his everything (he doesn’t deserve you). but he doesn’t say it—the thought weighs too heavily on his mind, claws at his throat, and suffocates him—, instead he utters something entirely different that creates a shift in the air between you two. 

“i don’t think i can do this.” he turns his head to look away from you, staring at the ceiling instead. it seems to extend itself far and far away from him.

the horrible part of being human is the tendency for destruction that lies in your bones. stained palms, calloused pads, despite the gentleness of your touch and the comfort of your caress. the desire to devour flesh and bones, to understand the underlying thoughts and meanings behind words and unexpressed feelings by consuming them. to submerge and drown in the depths of one's despair and desire (too close that the line blurs into one). the horrible part of being him was his tendency to destroy—hesitation and doubt lies in his being and aches at his chest, tugging on his heart’s strings, and settles on his throat—, it’s not like he doesn’t want to hold you, it’s just that he can’t.

“do what?”

“this.” you know exactly what he was referring to, know what he’s afraid of. he has laid himself bare and vulnerable in front of you countless of times that you have memorized the constellations that adorns his skin. you know him, you have known him enough to recognize the fear that tugs on his voice and see the walls that he tries to build up in front of you. you know him enough to know what thoughts are plaguing his mind.

“why do you think so?”

“don’t you think i’m too much to take care of?” he tries not to choke on his words and bite his tongue, careful not to let his voice crack lest he crumbles underneath your caress. i am undeserving of it. worthless. failure. selfish. discarded. coward. loser. nothing. you are bound to leave. 

“not for me.” you caress his cheek and guide him to look at you—instead of the ceiling that seems to appear farther than it originally was in each passing second as the walls glean over him like a shadow—, to meet your gaze and see the sincerity that lurks deep within. “never will i get tired of you. so, let me carry your burden.”

he takes a few seconds to answer, uncertainty lingering in his tone: “it’s not yours to have.”

“it may not be.” you answer with no hesitation, “but it doesn’t mean that you must shoulder them alone.”

he opens his mouth to speak but unable to find the words to say, he closes them. there was a moment of stillness shared between you two. comfort, relief, assurance seeps into the ache of his bones and you say something too heavy even for this steady and silent night to hold, the words too much to be held—light spills in like a flood as if it was pouring out from the sun itself.

“i love you.”

“you utter such words as if it’s something easy for you.” as if loving him was just as simple as waking up in the morning and adoring the way the honey-light hugs your form as the dust settles in the corner of your room. when he’s stripped of everything and left with nothing, would you still love him the same? would you still kiss him as gently as you did? would you still hold the shards of his form even if it makes your hand bleed? 

you spoke in a gentle yet firm croon, gaze unwavering, “because it is.”

you see the falter in his expression: his face, that once was crumpled, relaxed and so did his gaze soften. and you smile at him with only adoration in your eyes—like a devout follower to a divine being. “are you still afraid?”

“i don’t know.” he whispers.

“it’s alright. you have all the time in the world.” your hand weaves itself into his own, fingers lacing with one another, and you gently squeeze. it was a form of reassurance, a way of telling him that you’re here with him through all of it.

the warmth has settled in your being and you spill yourself into the cracks of his vulnerability. “i love you.” you say once more and you kiss the mark on his neck—lingering and soft as if you wish that it would take all his hurt away. the way he shudders underneath your touch, the hitch of his breath soon followed by a gentle sigh as he cradles you closer to him tells you everything that you wish to hear. for once, he sleeps as if he had nothing to carry, nothing that shackles him to the stars that forsakes him.

© azullumi — do not plagiarize, copy, repost, nor translate any of my works.

Mission Wetwork(?) all i could think about was emerging from the water and a lilly pad on Price instead of his little hat

please take this. I made myself cry writing it and I have nothing to say except that putting ya’aburnee and darling by halsey on my jason playlist was a brutal choice. also look up flower language if you want additional feelings.

There’s so many things you want for Jason Todd.

You want him to get a good night’s sleep for once. You let him close his pretty seafoam eyes and lay his head in the crook of your neck as you scratch gently at his scalp. It always calms him down, grounds him in the here and now. Your arms around him, your fingers carding through his hair, the rise and fall of your chest that’s synced with his–it all reminds him that he’s safe, that he’s home. You want that feeling to follow him into his dreams, to let him find true rest. So when his body goes tense and his breathing gets labored, you hold him closer and hum gently into his ear until whatever haunts him in his sleep is chased away by the comfort you bring.

You want to make sure he’s protected. You wish you could deflect every hit, blade, and bullet away from his body. You wish he would see his body as something worth protecting. He would stop if you asked, would settle into a normal life as best as he could. You would never ask because to do so would be to deny the part of him you love most: his heart that beats to help others. So you protect him in the ways that you can. You stitch cuts and treat burns, you mend his jackets and help clean his guns. More than anything, you guard his peace of mind like it’s the most valuable thing in the world. You’re never cruel to him, never scream vicious words or toss him out into the cold night. You call Bruce and thank him for the first edition Jane Austen novels that arrived on your doorstep on August 16th when Jason just…can’t. You let him grip your hand brutally tight under the table when you go to the manor for Thanksgiving for the first time. And when it gets really bad? When he feels the burning of green waters that breathed life into him that he didn’t want, when hideous laughter echoes in a place it’s never been? You do something no one has ever done for him. You wait. You stay. You stay by his side until he can breathe again, until dawn breaks and he can see the light again. And always, always you, haloed in it like an angel he doesn’t think he deserves. He does.

You want him to have a good cup of hot chocolate. He told you about it once when he came home after a long winter patrol. Half delirious from exhaustion, he reminisced about how Bruce would make them both a cup of hot chocolate after particularly rough or successful patrols in December. How this specific hot chocolate had no equal—even Alfred couldn’t replicate the richness and warmth. You noticed the fondness in his voice, the longing so intense that it still makes your heart ache for him. So you do some light stalking and hunt down Tim Drake, demand that he give you the information you want or else you’ll disclose how he really lost his spleen to Bruce (why he was dense enough to tell Jason, you’ll never know). And that is how Bruce Wayne, billionaire philanthropist single father and the Batman, receives an email with the subject line “URGENT: Recipe Request” that reads as follows:

To whom it may concern,

I have been made aware that you have a remarkably compelling hot chocolate recipe that is hitherto unparalleled by cafes, franchises, and butlers alike. I am emailing you to inquire about my being sent this recipe post-haste. This is less a request than a demand. I will do my best to ensure that you, at some point in time not specified (it will take great effort on my part), are able to witness the consumption of the hot chocolate by the individual that will be receiving the product of the recipe.

Best regards,

Someone who loves your son.

Bruce sends the recipe the second he receives the email. He has to sneak his phone under the conference table at the Wayne Enterprises board meeting to do it, but he still manages to reply in two minutes and forty-seven seconds. And you make good on your promise. You don’t think you’ve ever seen Jason shine as brightly as he does that Christmas, lit up by the lights on the twelve foot tree as he sips his hot chocolate from the same red mug that’s been sitting in the kitchen cabinet since he last drank from it. The matching black mug is clasped in the hands of the hot chocolate connoisseur himself, who smiles softly like the magic of the season has returned to his life for the first time in ages.

You want him to heal. It’s a big ask; you know that. But you’ve never been one for giving up hope, and if anyone can manage to achieve the impossible, it’s Jason. So you tell him it’s a great idea when he jokes about getting a therapist. You wait for him in the car the first time he goes and you let him open up to you in his own time when he comes out of the appointment body tight as a bowstring and eyes bloodshot. You watch quietly and celebrate the little victories you see him win. He can call his father first now; he doesn’t do it often, but he can. He can talk to his younger brother without hating his hands and the blood that’s been spilled on them, without going out on patrol and intentionally letting all the worst hits make contact. He can go out to lunch with his older brother and his youngest, can laugh with them over that ridiculous thing Bruce did at a gala once to make them all laugh. He can bear his birthday a little bit better now, can accept the cake you bake and actually make a wish when he blows out the candles. But you’ll never know about the moment that you start to get what you want. Jason goes to visit his own grave on the anniversary of his death and finds a bouquet of red carnations, baby’s breath, and honeysuckle with a note in your handwriting that reads “Someone told me once that you were magic, that that was the best thing about you. I think it’s far more important that you were loved. I don’t know what you could’ve been. I don’t wonder about it like those that loved you did because all I know is who you became. He’s wonderful. He’s still magic. I think you’d be proud of him. I’ll do my best to take care of him for you.” He sits there for an hour in tears. Then he takes one bud of each flower and the note, goes home and presses them into the pages of his favorite book. He holds you in his arms in bed that night and feels, for the first time in a long time, a sense of peace down to his very bones.

You want—above all else—Jason Todd to feel loved. You want him to feel so cherished and wanted that he cannot possibly look at himself without realizing that he is something precious, something beloved. So you tell him that you love him and you accept his warm embrace as his way of saying it back. You make him chocolate chip cookies and sneak one into the pocket of his tactical pants when he goes on patrol (they’re soft, they don’t get crunched when he’s thrown from a roof). You read his favorite books to understand what he’s saying when he goes off on tangents about class and social hierarchy and how they governed life in the 19th century. You trace his scars and kiss away his tears when he can’t believe that he could be transformed from a being marred by brutality into a man revered with gentleness. You will love him until the day you both die. You will love him in death, until whatever atoms made up you and him come together again. You will love him until everything that ever is or ever was ceases to be in a supernova of light. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll love him in whatever is born after.

Me: I’m tired tomorrow

i lost the ask my bad! but here is jason for an anon

meow meow meow

“But if you forget to reblog Madame Zeroni, you and your family will be cursed for always and eternity.”

request // celebrations of your and aventurine's birthday :) written with gender neutral reader in mind, fluff ! :) perhaps his final gift for you may be considered ooc by some, but I truly and firmly believe in sentimental, romantic aventurine with all my might <3

* last part in your birthday's celebration, I left an open space so you can imagine the place that may be important or romantic to you in some way, so I don't ruin the moment, eheh :3

dividers by @/cafekitsune :)

• Aventurine's birthday

as mentioned before, given Aventurine's rather rough childhood, he never got to experience the perks of being a child or having his birthday celebrated. Truthfully, he rarely got celebrated as a person given his roots, so it's quite an unfamiliar experience for him overall. Due to that, he doesn't expect anything from you. He doesn't daydream about it simply because he doesn't even understand what birthdays are all about. Anything he wants, he can get now, so it's really not a big deal to him

however, contrary to his beliefs and mindset, you have a lot of ideas. You are aware that there isn't really a gift you can buy that he didn't already get for himself long time ago, so your main focus becomes the celebration of him and pouring your love out by preparing a huge surprise!

he is an intelligent man, but he tends to be slightly naïve around you - that, combined with his genuine disinterest in his birthday makes your plan go smoothly! You plan out for weeks in advance, making a deal with Topaz and a few other of his coworkers to surprise him at work in order to start the day in good spirits and get most out of it. They promise that they won't mention anything about you as you behave like his birthday isn't a big deal to you either - all while preparing a huge surprise for him at home

he texts you at some point, telling you about the surprise his coworkers threw for him. From the tone of his message, you can tell that he was, in fact, pleasantly surprised, however you ignore a message as you begin to put up decorations of all sorts. You mostly go for peacock colors as they do represent celebrations, pride and happiness. You tape balloons in green, blue and red colors all over your shared apartment, making it much more vibrant and beautiful. You use golden balloons to spell out "happy birthday", taping them on the biggest wall in the living room <3

you bake him a cake after going through all sorts of recepies, finding the tastiest one based on the ratings - a huge chocolate cake in a heart shape with strawberries on the edges. You spell "I love you" in a white frosting, admiring your good work for a moment before putting it on the table so he sees it almost immediately as he enters the apartment <3 You add one candle as he is turning one year older, but it's also more sufficient given the nature of the cake

gifts were a tricky part, but you managed to find something that he doesn't have, yet it might be meaningful to him. You get a custom pair of golden rings, one having engraved "pride" on the inner part and the other having "love" engraved in order to always remind him that he is your pride as well as your love. Aventurine does have a lot of rings, but none of them are truly sentimental in any way, so you hope that this will be up to his taste while also having parts of your heart on them <3

then, you nervously wait for his arrival. He should be home in a couple of minutes and each minute feels a year long. You are slightly worried about his reaction, but you hope for the best as you closely listen for the footsteps. Finally, you hear the key going into the lock as your heart beats out of your chest, hand quickly reaching for a lighter to light up the candle and place the rings in front of the cake

"Hey babe, I sent you a message, have you-"

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Rinnie, happy birthday to you!" you sing happily, clapping your hands as your body trembles with mixture of excitement and nervousness. Aventurine remains still, hands filled with bags of gifts from his coworkers, gaze rushing throughout the room. He blinks a few times, lips parting a bit as you rock your body back and forth, trying to subside the anxious nerves.

"I don't know if you mind.." you finally speak up in a insecure tone, unsure of his thoughts at the moment. He quickly drops the bags on the floor, embracing you into a tight, such a tight hug, slightly lifting you up in the process.

"Why did you drop the bags?! Topaz got you an expensive watch!" you say panicky, but quickly return the hug with a soft chuckle.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you..!" Aventurine whispers into your ear, gratitude and excitement evident in his tone as he gently twirls you around, finally putting you on the ground, even though he still keeps you close. He slowly leans away, eyes admiring you, then the cake, then you again.

"How did you know about the watch?" he raises his eyebrow, tone suddenly more serious, but a soft smile spreads across his face as he gains a nervous reaction out of you.

"Ahh, don't mind that! The candle is going to melt away completely, time to make a wish!" you point at the cake, voice a mixture of nervousness and happiness. He just gives you a knowing look, gently kissing your cheek, then your nose, your forehead and finally placing a soft kiss on your lips.

you sing him a song again before he blows a candle that was barely even holding up, but it didn't matter. Nothing mattered to him right now, but you. When he sees the gift you got him and hears your messy explanation of the meaning behind it, he just embraces you into a tight, warm hug again. Immediately after, he takes off his usual rings and puts the ones you got him, making you kiss them so they hold more of you in them. He won't tell you that when you are away from each other and he misses you, he might just kiss the rings himself <3

you spend the rest of the day enjoying together, but Aventurine makes sure to tell you how much this means to him as it truly changed his perspective on things once more. Now, he looks forward to celebrating his birthdays, even gaining a bit of playful cockiness as he jokes how he deserves a prince treatment for every single one of them. But, what he truly believes in and feels deep in his heart is exactly what he wished for while blowing out a candle - he wishes to keep growing old alongside you as your laughter and sweet song welcomes him every next birthday <3

• Your birthday

Aventurine is less of a stay-at-home surprise for your birthday. He is probably more excited about it than you are, truth to be told. Which can be confirmed by the way he anxiously waits for midnight to give you all the gifts as well as the endless kisses and birthday wishes!

as soon as the clock turns midnight, he is on top of you, embracing you in a bear hug as he places kisses all over your face. He will be a bit cheesy and dramatic about it, repeating "It's my baby's birthday!" over and over again as he rolls you around in the bed, keeping you tightly hugged with him <3

as soon as you manage to utter words of gratefulness as soft giggles sneak up in-between, he jumps, quickly going to a place where he was hiding all the presents for you! Now, be prepared, because he can and he will get you every single thing you mentioned in past 6 months or so, no matter how absurd, no matter even if you aren't interested in those things anymore :3

he will eagerly wait for you to open them, praising your shocked expression each time you open a gift, only to be met with some things that you mentioned perhaps once, with not even giving it remote importance at the time. Books, electronics, clothes, shoes, mangas, jewerly, equipment - truly anything you may have even thought about is yours now :3

before you get a chance to scold him, as he knows you probably will, he runs out of the room, leaving you alone for a couple of minutes. You did know that he is extra, but as he walks back into the room with a cake that has 3 levels - you truly see how extra he is. You have to remind him that it's only the two of you, so he should bring some to his coworkers when he goes to work. Your idea is met with a harsh scoff, you do own a fridge and this is your cake in your favorite colors and flavors - therefore, no one else gets a taste! (besides him, of course)

then, he sings you a song while lighting up the candles, softly admiring how pretty you are, especially when you are all mushy and happy. He makes a joke that you have nothing to wish for when he is right in front of you, which is most likely the truth, however you roll your eyes at him, not wishing to feed his already well-fed ego. He cuts a piece of cake after you made a wish and the two of you enjoy it in comfortable silence, gazing at one another from time to time, while smiling tenderly <3

you finally go to sleep after endless vocal pours of Aventurine's appreciation and love for you. You tell him that he truly could be an actor in some ancient romantic drama given the way he speaks, but he only takes that as a compliment. On the serious note, listening to him telling you what he admires the most about you (which is everything) all while going into great detail while describing your personality and how wonderful you are, does indeed melt your heart. There wasn't a better thing to hear before going to sleep, so you express your gratitude to him in your own way as you slowly doze off while his warm body keeps you close <3

contrary to falling asleep in such a soft, loving way - you are awaken by Aventurine almost pulling you out of bed at 8am. He talks too fast for your ability right now, all you understand is how you need to get up and you have places to be. Can't a person get a bit more sleep during their birthday? In Aventurine's book - nope. So, you get up feeling a bit grumpy as you get ready for the day you knew nothing about

the whole ride, Aventurine holds your hand tightly, his body quite literally busting from excitement as you try to keep your eyes open. First stop - IPC! Everyone got gathered together by Aventurine to throw you a huge birthday surprise. They know it's 9am, but being an IPC worker required some odd schedules, so they do apologize to you. Meanwhile, your sweet boyfriend goes around and tells everyone how it's your birthday! They...know already. So, naturally, as planned, everyone go up to you to wish you a happy birthday, giving you small gifts and presents, every single one quite thoughtful !

you enjoy spending time with them as no one really pressures you into talking or doing anything special unless you wish to, so you feel pretty comfortable and happy. It wouldn't be bad at all to spend your birthday here with lots of interesting people, good food and laughter, but next stop awaits as you learn when Aventurine grabs you by your hand and tells you it's time to go :3

you spend rest of the day visiting all of your favorite places with Aventurine. Libraries, amusement parks, museums, galleries, shops, cafés, reasturants, fields, game rooms, sport event(s) - whatever you may have ever mentioned of liking and everything that he knows is quite dear to your heart will be visited throughout the day. He takes a lot of pictures of you, his heart melting each time he sees a big smile on your face as you point out something that holds a meaning to you <3

finally, he takes you to a place where you kissed for the first time. It's warm, the breeze is sweet on your skin as there aren't any people to be seen.

"This is actually the gift I wanted to give you the whole day, so I hope this is the right space to do that." he says a bit nervously as he takes out a big book of a sort out of one of the bags he was carrying around.

You gaze down, taking the heavy book, opening it with a slightly hesitant move, only to be met with photos of yourself. You keep turning the pages, noticing written dates at the corners of each. What really catches your eye are small hand-written notes by each one, describing what was happening at that moment and how Aventurine felt about it. Further you go, you also notice pictures and stickers of your birth stone, birth flower and an actual dry flowers being kept safely between the pages. Aventurine would get you flowers all the time and you thought whenever they would dry that he just threw them away, but he kept them in this little photobook of his love for you.

Least to say, your heart turns into a pool of warmth as you keep turning the pages, being met with more and more love, quite literally nothing but the pure love. He did add a couple of more "embarrassing" moments, but it didn't matter because everything he did for you, he did out of love and wish to make you feel as appreciated as you make him, not by using materialistic things, but rather something that comes from bottom of his heart and is made by his own hands.

His collection, just like his love for you keeps on growing every next birthday of yours that you spend together.

under the red hood

blurbs

period comfort | fluff

dating jason whilst having cold hands | fluff

sing me to sleep | fluff

headcanons

five things you love about jason | fluff & smut

imagines

gods & monsters | fluff & smut

summary : ‘put your hands on my waist, do it slowly.’

antidote | smut

summary : where jason finds a deep desperation to get rid of his anger using his darling girlfriend after a loss

you're here, that's the thing | fluff

request : “jason todd x reader where he’s all clingy after coming back from patrol”

kiss me on my open mouth | fluff

request : “smothering jason todd in kisses"

want you so bad | fluff & smut

request : “what about reader (who's a virgin) having her first time with jason?? I think it would be so cute!”

love potions | fluff & smut

summary : where play fighting with jason ends with his face between your thighs.

lamentations of eros | smut

summary : hot summer nights, mid july, the evening breeze & the intimacy between two souls

cigarettes out the window | angst & fluff

requests : “yooo, i think you asked for jason's resquests so i would love to read a jason x thief reader, like a girl like selina yk, with very much tension xoxo”

just wanna be one of your girls tonight | angst & smut

request : “need some angst about being worried about Jason's exes and after babying you, he fuck's those thoughts out your mind (he's both gentle and rough).”