This Is Absolutely Fantastic! I Love It So Much And It Means So Much To Me 🥹🤍

Hey, friend. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed your Eddie works. Hope you Lee finding inspiration to write! Besos 🤘🏼💋

Thank you so very much! That’s so sweet of you! I am currently working on another Eddie fic. Might post that tomorrow or the following day!

They really fed the Hunter girlies today

*everyone* Echo's back!! 🎉💞😍🥳💜

5 minutes later

*everyone* Oh no, Echo's back 😨🫣💀🫨😭

Oh pleeease Beth Munson!!! That would be so super cute!!! 😍

I was married to that name! My only problem is that there is a Dad!Eddie Munson series out there and his daughter’s name is Beth in that one. I don’t want to make it like I’m stealing the name. Idk what do you guys think???

A Deal With God | Eddie Munson

Summary: Heavily inspired by the song “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush in which, instead of Eddie Munson sacrificing himself to buy more time, the reader makes a deal with God to switch places with him.

Warning: FAIR WARNING major character death, mentions of injuries, gruesome descriptions of injuries and attacks, mentions of blood, failed attempts to revive, extremely sad, very angsty

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Type: Oneshot

One cannot find the words to describe what it feels like watching the life drain out of someone’s body. All of the sudden, their eyes will lose focus and fall completely blank. The jagged movement of their chest will stop entirely, meaning that they no longer found it hard to breathe. What’s left is a limp, dead weight body. And that's it.

It was the most heart-wrenching thing Y/n ever had to experience in her life. She just watched her best friend die in her arms. She couldn’t hold back the tears from falling down her face. She was devastated.

Right before he had passed, Eddie spoke about how he didn’t run away this time and he sounded so proud of himself. He convinced himself that this was gonna be his year. The last thing he did was send her a weak smile and tell her how much he loved her. 

For a brief second, Eddie struggled to catch his breath. His eyes became unfocused as his breathing came to a final halt. His body went limp, which made all his tense muscles relax. His soul was taken to the heavens in that exact moment. He was gone. 

“Oh god,” Y/n silently sobbed to herself. 

She clutched his lifeless body in her arms, holding him as close as humanly possible. She rocked back and forth in attempts to soothe herself from the pain of loss. She closed her eyes to say a little silent prayer.

“Please, God. Let me take his place,” Y/n begged. But she knew it would be no good and she knew her prayer would go unanswered.

There was something bright that caught her eye in her peripheral vision. When Y/N turned her head to look towards the unknown source of light, she was to squint because she was so blinded by the light. She didn’t even notice that it had grown closer until it had completely overtaken her body. Then there was nothing.

When Y/N was finally able to open her eyes, she found that she was standing in the middle of the trailer in the upside down. She was holding onto the trash can shield and the makeshift spear that they had crafted a couple hours earlier. She was quick to realize that she faced the closed bedroom door. 

The demobats were ruthlessly pounding against the solid wood door. They scratched violently in hopes of breaking through the barrier. Their screeching became more desperate and more hostile.

“Come on, Y/n!” Dustin called out. “Come through now!”

Upon hearing her name, Y/n spun around on the heels of her feet. She lifted her head so her gaze could follow the sheet rope through the portal on the trailer ceiling. Now she clearly saw that Dustin and Eddie had already gone through the portal.

The two of them were watching her through the portal in the ceiling of their world. They begged her to climb up the rope to them. They called her name multiple times as if they were desperately trying to get her attention.

In that moment, Y/n discarded he makeshift spear and trash can lid off to the side. She went to grab onto the rope with the full intention of climbing it. But the sounds of clawing, scratching, and shrieking drew her attention back towards the bedroom door.

“Y/n!” Dustin called out. “Come on. Let’s go!”

“You’re so close! You just need to climb,” Eddie yelled over him.

So Y/n gripped the rope of sheet tightly and began pulling herself up. She struggled to climb at first. When Y/n glanced towards the bedroom door through the corner of her eye, a haunting thought came into her mind. It made her fall back onto the floor and she loosened her grip on the rope.

Those demobats would eventually break through that wood door; it wouldn’t hold them off forever. If they broke through the door, what was to stop them from going through the portal into their world? They were going to have to stop them somehow. And right then, Y/n could only think of one thing that would work.

“I have to draw them away,” Y/n said more to herself than anything.

“What?! No!” Eddie shouted at her. 

Upon hearing his voice, Y/n had lifted her head and stared up past them longingly. It was almost as if she had this all-knowing look in her eyes that told them exactly what she was going to do. And neither of them liked her plan.

“Those things will kill you,” Dustin tried to reason with her. “You can’t do this!”

“I have to try!” Y/n responded in a persistent tone of voice.

“Not if I have something to say about it,” Eddie said through gritted teeth.

Out of pure instinct, Eddie grabbed hold of the rope and began climbing to get back through the portal. However, Y/n was quick to pick up the makeshift spear once again. She sliced the rope with the spear so that the rope fell to the ground in both worlds. 

So Eddie’s feet landed flatly on the ground of his trailer. He held the limp rope in his hands. His mouth was hanging open in a manner of utter shock and disbelief. No, this can’t be happening.

“What the hell are you doing?” Dustin yelled desperately.

“Don’t come after me,” Y/n ordered them. 

“Y/n! Stop! Don’t do this!” Eddie exclaimed. 

“Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop!” Dustin repeated over and over again.

“Come back!” Eddie begged.

But she chose to drown out their calls and pleads. She slipped out of their line of sight, heading towards the front door of the trailer. She proceeded to kick the door open before using every ounce of energy to run as fast as she could. She grabbed hold of one of the bikes laying in the heap of dirt, clambering onto the seat and riding as far away from the trailer as possible.

The demobats began to follow her in a thick cloud of black fury. They were screeching in anger. But they were drawing away from the trailer, which was exactly what she wanted. It was all going according to plan.

All she needed to do was keep pedaling. She wouldn’t dare look over her shoulder in fear that she would be right on top of her. The thundering sound of her heart was beating against the confines of her chest, threatening to break through at any given second. She had to keep moving.

Together, Dustin and Eddie lifted the mattress on the ground. They tossed the mattress off to the sidelines. They had to figure out a way to get back through that portal, but without the rope, it wasn’t going to be easy.

Setting up a random chair under the portal, Eddie took a few steps back in order to get a running start. He counted to three in his head before sprinting towards the chair. He leaped onto the base and launched himself upwards as far and as high as he could. He caught hold of the end of the portal which allowed for his head to go through and his hair fell upside down.

With some difficulty, Eddie managed to pull himself through the portal. He landed on the heap of the mattress. He got out of the way quickly. Then Eddie encouraged Dustin to do the exact same thing he did. 

Meanwhile, Y/n could feel the beads of sweat running down the sides of her face. She seemed to ignore the burning feeling in her legs from pedaling so hard. It felt like time was starting to slow down and everything moved in slow motion. 

For a brief second, the upside down fell silent. She could still feel the rumble in her chest when the thunder sounded from the black and red skies. She closed her eyes to relish the small moment of tranquility. She knew this was going to be the end for her.

All of the sudden, a demobat collided into her side which threw her to the side. They began to swarm around her, circling in the most taunting manner. It was just like seeing hawks swarming before devouring their fallen prey on the ground.

Without a second to lose, Y/N had to force herself to stand to her feet. She began to run away once again, but she knew she wouldn’t get far on foot. She was going to have to hold them off for now. So she stopped running.

Slowly, Y/n turned around in her place. She faced the heavy storm of demobats. She pulled out her makeshift spear and nail pierced shield, moving into a more defensive stance. This would be her last stand.

“Hurry!” Eddie called over his shoulder. 

He didn’t even look over his shoulder to check if his friend was following close behind him. He didn’t seem to care about the burning feeling in his lungs, which were desperately trying to help him breathe. He was forcing himself to run faster; he had never run so fast in his life. He only had one thing in mind: he needed to get to her.

It had taken them a couple minutes before they finally reached her, but it was much too late. What they found was such a gruesome and grotesque sight. The demobats had all fallen to the ground. Some of them were brutally stabbed, laying motionless in their own cold blood. Others looked like they were untouched.

What had happened was hard to explain. It was like a light switch. As soon as that switch was flicked down, the demobats naturally fell out of the sky. They were dead with no explanation as to how or why. 

It was quite sad to think that the switch could have been flicked sooner. If it had been, Y/n might still have had a chance at survival. So there, on the dirty ground, surrounded by heaps of dead demobats, was the young teenage girl. 

The two boys only stood there looking at the horrific scene in front of them. Thinking that there might still be a chance to save her, Eddie hurried to the seemingly lifeless body on the ground. He scooped her into his arms and started checking for any signs of life. 

As soon as Eddie caught sight of her wounds, he let out a shocking ‘oh’ sound. He squeezed his eyes shut tight in hopes of forgetting the horror he just saw. Bringing the back of his hand to cover his mouth, Eddie felt the swell of bile coming up his throat and he had to swallow it down. It was an honestly sickening sight.

From the looks of it, the demobats had definitely attacked her. They must have keep her down for much longer than what Steve had experienced just a day or two ago. Her wounds were far worse than his had been. 

The demobats had latched onto her sides, ripping large chunks of her skin out. Her once soft and smooth skin was now littered with numerous scrapes and scratches from the demobats sharp claws. 

Hesitantly, Eddie went to touch her face. He tried to be as gentle as possible, hoping to coax her awake. He also took notice of the large gaping wound around her neck, which was bleeding profusely now. A part of him knew that she wasn’t going to make it even if they could carry her back to the trailer. But he simply refused to accept that reality right now. 

“Hey Y/n,” Eddie whispered in a soothing tone of voice. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. I’ve got you,” Eddie tried to reassure her.

Much to his surprise, Y/n’s eyes began to flutter open at the sound of his voice. She found it quite hard to breathe. With each breath, there was a stabbing pain piercing her chest. She wheezed in hopes of taking in small doses of air.

“E-Eddie?” Her throat burned and her voice was weak. She didn’t know that the demobats had torn through some of her vocal cords, which would explain why it hurt so much to talk.

“Yeah. I’m right here, honey.” Eddie spoke softly. He tried to shuffle closer to her since her voice was so faint. He watched her face twist in pain which ultimately made his heart ache for her.

“I-It hurts,” Y/n wheezed and winced at the sharp burning feeling.

“I—I know, honey. I know it hurts,” Eddie nodded his head. “I’m gonna get you out of here though.”

“I— can’t move, Eddie. I can’t f—feel anything,” Y/n claimed. She paused for a second, realization striking her hard. “I’m not going to make it, am I?”

“D—Don’t say that,” Eddie said through gritted teeth. He brought his clenched fist to the front of his head. “You’re going to make it,” Eddie lied to himself.

On the sidelines, Dustin stood there with tears in the corners of his eyes. He lowered his head and squeezed his eyes shut. He honestly didn’t know what to do. He could feel the deep pain in his chest; it was the feeling of hopelessness. There wouldn’t be enough time for her. 

For a second, Y/n began to grow more tense. Her muscles clenched as she was overcome with a fit of coughs. The taste of copper lingered on her tongue. She didn’t know that her mouth was leaking with blood and that it was now running down her chin. 

Out of pure concern, Eddie called her name in a desperate tone of voice. He helplessly held her in his grasp. He watched her writhe in pain. He couldn’t bare to see her like this. He squeezed his eyes shut and attempted to block out the pained coughing sounds.

When Y/n’s coughs subsided, she was able to relax once again. Her chest was rising and falling steadily with each breath she took. But it was getting harder for her now. She could faintly see a hue of black in the corners of her vision.

She tried to hold off fading into the darkness, trying with every ounce in her body to fight off death. She only had a couple more minutes though. It felt like ages before she finally spoke again. 

“It was real, wasn’t it? You felt it, right?” She wondered. She furrowed her eyebrows slightly. She looked up at him with a hint of curiosity in her eyes. “You and me,” she clarified.

“What we had? Yeah, that was real,” Eddie confirmed while nodding his head.

“It felt like such a long time ago,” Y/n sighed as she remembered the good old days with him. She felt the smile growing at the corners of her lips. “We were just a couple of kids running around, having fun together.”

Upon hearing this, Eddie let out a soft chuckle. He smiled down at her. He went to brush a small strand of hair out of her face. He gazed down at her with the strongest sense of admiration and sincerity in his soft brown eyes.

“But we really loved each other, didn’t we?” Y/n whispered to him. 

“Yes. We did,” Eddie confirmed. 

“Promise me—” Y/n began. She leaned forward so he could hear her message better from the proximity. “That you’ll keep on living.”

“Oh honey,” Eddie choked back a sob. He shook his head at her request. “I don’t want to live in this world without you. I just can’t do it. You mean everything to me. You are my world.”

Though she was most flattered, she tilted her head to the side and looked at him with a glimmer of disbelief. She knew that he could do it; everyone has to do it at some point in their lives. They eventually have to move on. People come and go. Nothing is permanent. Nothing is certain. Nothing is known. 

“What am I going to do without you?” Eddie began to cry. His tears were streaming down his cheeks mercilessly. His shoulders bounced in time with his cries of desperation. “What am I going to do without you?” Eddie repeated for he seriously wanted an answer.

Slowly, Eddie lowered his head until he hurried his face in her chest. He clutched her shirt so tightly that her blood seeped through the cracks between his fingers. He clung to her in fear that she would slip out of his grasp.

Hearing him cry hurt more than she wounds that covered her body. It made her heart ache for him. She regrettably didn’t have an answer to his question. She couldn’t think of anything to encourage him or give him a piece of advice. Instead, she chose to simply hold him and hoped that would be enough comfort for him. She ran her fingers through his soft black curls.

“You’re going to be okay,” Y/n whispered. 

Hesitantly, Eddie raised his head to look into her eyes one last time. He swallowed the heavy lump that lingered at the back of his throat. His tears blurred his vision slightly. He sniffled.

“Eddie,” Y/n choked painfully.

Instantly, Eddie went to hold her hand. This was him silently communicating that he was there for her and that he could hear her clearly. He felt her squeeze his hand. He waited patiently for her to speak up again.  

“I love y—” but her voice faded into nothing. 

Her eyes lost focus and went blank. Her grip was limp. Her last breath seeped out of her chapped lips. And she was gone. 

Upon seeing her body fall to the clutches of death, Eddie could feel his heart dropping from his chest to the pit of his stomach. He scurried backwards as if he were desperately trying to get away from her. He was horrified.

“E—Eddie?” Dustin spoke weakly. He stumbled backwards slightly in disbelief. “Is she—” Dustin couldn’t bring himself to say it.

All of the sudden, Eddie scrambled back to her side. He didn’t want to believe it. He denied it in his mind. He took up her body in his arms once again. He desperately searched her body for any signs of life. 

Come on, baby.

He pressed his two fingers to the underside of her neck, feeling for a pulse. But he didn’t feel anything. Then Eddie laid his head down so that his ear was pressed against her chest. He listened for a heartbeat, but he didn’t hear anything. He waited to watch her chest rise and fall in short breaths. But he didn’t see anything. 

Come on, darling.

For a brief moment, Eddie didn’t know what to do next. He tried to think of other ways to get her to wake up again. He wanted her to look at him again, but her eyes refused to focus on him. He so desperately wished that he could switch places with her. He wished that he could have been the one to die, not her. 

Let me steal this moment from you now.

From the pain in his heart, Eddie grabbed onto her shoulders harshly. He shook her in attempts to bring her back. But her body wouldn’t respond to him. He proceeded to place his hands on her chest, pumping at a steady pace. He tried giving her CPR since he knew how to preform it.

Come on, angel. Come on, come on, darling.

However, all the came from it was more blood. It came out of her mouth. It gushed from the wounds in her sides. It began to cover his hands. Nevertheless, Eddie was pressing harder and harder with each thrust of his hands. He was trying so desperately to start her heart again.

Finally, Eddie stopped himself. He raised his hands to his face and looked down in horror. It almost looked like he had just committed a murder for real this time. He came to the realization that he wouldn’t be able to do anything to help her anymore. She was gone. She was dead.

Let's exchange the experience.

In the most gentle manner, Eddie brought her back into his grasp. He held her against his chest and buried her face in his neck. He cradled the back of her head, rocking back and forth to soothe himself. With tears falling from his eyes, Eddie sobbed quietly at the painful feeling of loss. It stabbed at his heart and only left a gaping hole that would never be filled again.

Oh, the things he wish he had said to her. The things he wished he had done sooner. The thought of ‘what could have happened’ racked his brain every day after that. How he wanted so badly to have been the one to die instead of her.

There was a small gravestone for her. Eddie picked flowers for her every week and brought them to her grave. Most of the time, they were just wild flowers. But on special occasions, like her birthday or a holiday, Eddie would bring roses from the supermarket. Those were always her favorite.

He’d never get over the feeling of losing her. He’d never forgive himself for not being there to save her. There wasn’t a day that went by where he didn’t think of her at least once. He had nightmares about the way she died in his mind, hearing the horrors of her screams and cries as the demobats feasted on her flesh. It was torture to him.

He wrote letters to her to express his thoughts and feelings, even writing a few songs about how much he loved her. He found comfort by just sitting in front of her grave. 

One night, Eddie was seated at the foot of her grave. He lifted his head to admire the night sky. There was one particular star that caught his eye because it was much bigger and brighter than all the other stars in the sky. It sparkled down at him.

For the first time in months, Eddie smiled to himself. He directed his line of attention back to the grave in front of him. For he knew that she was that bright, shiny star in the sky, looking down at him and always watching out for him. And whenever he felt sad or lonely, he could just look up to the starry sky and she’d be there for him. 

He wasn’t alone. After that, Eddie chose to only remember the positive aspects and parts of the life he shared with his best friend. He remembered how beautiful her smile was, how happy she was on Saturday mornings, and how kind she was to everyone around her. 

He remembered the soft and sweet sound of her voice; he loved the way his name rolled off her tongue. In dark times and low moments of life, Eddie would remind himself of how she called his name. It brought such comfort and relief to him. It was almost healing.

Undoubtedly, Eddie knew just how much she had loved him. It was the last thing she tried to tell him before she died. He held onto that thought and he would continue to hold onto that until the end of his time. She had loved him so dearly and he cherished that more than anything in the world.

She had loved him, but he loved her more than she could ever have imagined. 

Hunter: Could you take out the trash? Crosshair: [removes hand] Can't do it, Sarge. That's a two-handed job.

I'm not ready for the end of The Bad Batch.

Just A Bartender | Kaz Brekker

Summary: There was nothing special about the head bartender at the Crow Club. For Kaz Brekker, he could list off thirty people who were more valuable assets or investments to him. But there is something about the bartender that ignites a desire to protect her at all costs.

Warning: alcoholic beverages, mentions of gambling, slightly demeaning behavior

Pairing: Kaz Brekker x Fem!Reader

Type: Oneshot

Word Count: 4k

The Crow Club had such an enticing ambience filled to the brim with thoughtless pigeons. The Ketterdam tourists didn’t know any better than to visit one of the most well-known clubs in the Barrel. A place where they could put down a couple wages, drink until their hearts content, and get tricked into spending more money than they realize.

It was the perfect trap set by Kaz Brekker himself. The tables and dealers weren’t rigged, but a gambling hall is still a gambling hall. People lose their money at the tables and invest in a couple drinks. Before they know it, all their money is gone and it has all goes right into his pocket.

The Crow Club was never not busy, besides when it was closed in the early hours of the morning. It was Friday, which only meant that it was going to be a busy night and the start of the weekend. The tables were filled with some bystanders even standing on the sidelines awaiting their turn. 

The bouncers guarded the door to monitor the people coming in and out of the club. The waitresses whisked around tables, carrying tray after tray of various alcoholic drinks. All of which were provided and stocked by the head bartender. 

Near the back of the club, Y/N was standing behind the bar counter. She had a pint in her hands and was filling the pint to the brim with rich golden beer. She placed the pint onto a tray that was almost full of other drinks. She quickly pushed the tray into the hands of a waitress, sending the orders out. 

On busy nights like these, Y/N barely had a moment to think to herself. Instead, she opted to bury herself in the work in front of her because she knew how well it paid. She wiped her hands clear of beer on the apron tied around her waist before grabbing a nearby rag to clean the countertop. 

In that given moment, Wylan had returned to the bar with an empty tray in his hands. He slipped behind the bar and began helping by drying some cups with a rag himself. 

Over the past couple weeks, Y/N had been training Wylan in the art of bartending. She had seen firsthand how well he performed when mixing different chemicals to create his signature bombs. She wondered if he would take an interest in bartending since it was somewhat similar. And he most certainly did.

Wylan was a quick learner. Despite still not knowing how to read, Wylan was able to memorize which bottles of alcohol where which by the shape, size, color, and even smell. He always measured out the correct amount for each drink, since precision was insanely important when it comes to pyrotechnics. In no time, Wylan had become well knowledge in how to make certain drinks.

To have a second bartender was very helpful, especially on busy nights like these ones. For the past week, Wylan also doubled as another waiter since one of the girls had called out sick on short notice. He would take orders, return to the bar, create them himself, and then deliver them to the pigeons. 

With Wylan often at the bar, this meant that Jesper spent even less time at the tables. For the majority of the night, Jesper would find himself perched on one of the barstools at the bar; his head perched in the palm of his hand as he stared longingly at the young bartender. This distraction was one that Wylan, Y/N, and Kaz were most thankful for as they knew how bad his gambling problem really was.

“Might I have another refill?” Jesper wondered as he lowered his now empty glass onto the bar counter. He winced at the burning in the back of his throat.

“I think you’ve had enough tonight,” Y/N said warringly as she took his glass away. “Don't want to develop a drinking problem on top of a gambling problem.”

Jesper snorted in response, but nodded his head in agreement. She sent him a warm smile and cheeky wink. He went to push the barstool back, standing to his feet. He stretched his arms over his head.

“Well, then I might head to the tables.” Jesper began. She went to protest, but Wylan beat her to it.

“We’ve talked about this,” Wylan quickly came to stand beside him and took his arm as if to stop him.

“Don’t worry about me. I won’t spend more than an hour at the table,” Jesper claimed. He leaned forward to press a soft kiss to his forehead, burying his nose in the ruff of hair. He quickly pulled away and slipped into the crowd to find an empty table.

Left at the bar, Wylan slumped down in the empty barstool left by Jesper. He breathed a long sigh of defeat. His gaze drifted down to the wet rag in his hands, finding a loose string and pulling on it without thought.

“I’ll send Inej to make sure he leaves the tables after an hour,” Y/N tried to cheer him up. He looked over his shoulder to send her a weak smile, mentally appreciating the effort. He redirected his line of attention to the crowd, spotting his lover situated at one of the tables. 

From across the room, Y/N’s eyes had landed on the dark and looming figure of her boss walking the floor. He was currently being trailed by one of his informants; a pesky man who honestly didn’t know when to stop talking. 

The bartender just knew by the look in his eyes that his patience was already warring thin. His jaw was locked in place and his pace quickened despite the use of his cane. He also had that clear look of annoyance in his eyes. 

In that moment, Y/N began to prepare his usual order, which was a glass of the finest whiskey in Ketterdam. She knew he was gonna need it after that conversation. Sure enough, Kaz spun around on the heels of his feet and said one thing to his informant. Without another word, the short and stout man scurried past him to leave the club. 

Now, Kaz headed straight to the far side of the bar. He stood with his eyes facing the shelf full of the alcoholic beverages. The head bartender placed his usual on the countertop before sending it sliding down the long length of the counter. Without looking, Kaz caught the small glass of whiskey with his leather black glove. He raised the glass to his lips, taking a long sip of the rich liquid and relishing in the burning sensation felt near the back of his throat.

When Y/N turned her head away, Kaz shifted his gaze to stare at her discreetly unbeknownst to her. He remembered the day he hired her, which was only a few days before the club opened. He hired her for one reason and one reason only: if she agreed to not to ask any questions. And she had kept her end of the bargain ever since.

He knew this would be a difficult task for anyone. There was always the mystery behind the black leather gloves he wore and the limp accompanied by the crow cane. The origins of where Kaz Brekker came from. Why he was so ruthless and heartless even as a twenty year old now. But she wasn’t allowed to ask questions.

When Kaz would come back to the Slat bloodied and bruised because he had gotten into a fistfight with a local gang, Y/N couldn’t even ask what happened or who did that to him. She simply sit silently while tending to his cuts with a damp rag.  She never pestered and she never pried.

She wasn’t anything special herself. She wasn’t part of the Six Crows. She didn’t participate in the heist. She didn’t wield any foreign knives, have the heartrending ability, or have a sharpshooter’s eye. She was just simply the bartender. 

She wasn’t part of the fight. She didn’t attend meetings. She brought very little to the table, besides the occasional alcoholic drinks as per requested. 

She played no role. She had no importance. She didn’t have a name for herself. She most certainly was expendable. If she disappeared, nobody would know her or even remember her. Her job could easily be filled by the next person who walked into the room or even Wylan if that was an option. 

She had little value and she knew this.

“Hey lady,” Y/N was pulled from her thoughts by a customer sitting at a table nearby. He raised his empty glass. “Be a sweetheart and get me a refill,” the man grinned wickedly.

Now Kaz’s gaze shifted from the customer to the bartender. He watched carefully. She grabbed a clean empty glass, choosing to fill up the pint without saying anything. She went to hand the glass to Wylan, but the customer stopped her by calling out again.

“Bring it to me yourself, lady.” He almost groaned. He sent a cheeky wink to the other men around the table. They chuckled deeply to themselves. 

With some hesitation, Y/N made her way around the side of the counter with the pint of beer in her hands. She went to approach the table, carefully placing the glass down for the customer. She began taking a single step back, but was stopped when the man gripped her wrist.

Out of instinct, Y/N let out a small gasp of surprise. She clenched her fist tightly and attempted to pull herself out of his tight grasp. She tried to contain herself, in attempts of hiding the clear fear and discomfort she felt. Because she knew that if she showed even an ounce of fear, that they will feed off of that and tear her to pieces. She held her ground.

“Kindly let go,” Y/N demanded firmly but quietly.

“What you gonna do about it, pretty girl?” The man said with a deep chuckle. The beer drenched his long orange beer, dripping onto his fine waistcoat. His breath stank of alcohol and tobacco.

All of the sudden, a loud click of a cane came in contact with the wooden floorboards. The table went silent. Everyone’s heads turned to the source of the sound; their gazes falling on the one who ran the club. 

In all his glory, Kaz Brekker stood facing the table of pigeons. His two gloved hands rested on top of the crow head cane. He said nothing to them, simply staring them down with a hard look in his eyes. 

A little click of a gun caused the men at the table to turn their heads once again. On the other side of the room, Jesper stood with one of his precious pearly guns in his hand. It was already cocked and ready for a fight. He narrowed his eyes at them as if challenging them. Wylan shallowed heavily in fear of the worst happening.

The sound of a knife being pulled out of its sheath could be heard much to everyone’s surprise. They turned their heads one final time to see a dark cloaked figure standing on the other side of the room. She drawn knives glistened in a yellow light of the club. Her face covered by a thin blue cloth. It was the Wraith.

“I’d chose your next step very carefully if I were you,” Kaz threatened darkly.

With little hesitation, the man released his tight grip on the bartender’s wrist. She took a couple steps back in retreat. She pulled her wrist to her chest, rubbing the tingling pain away with her other hand. She wondered if it would bruise tomorrow.

Kaz didn’t say anything. He tipped his head to Jesper as if to say ‘escort this man and his pals out of the place.’ He nodded knowingly before calling over the bouncers. They acted quickly by escorting the whole table out of the club despite their protests that their money was good and they didn’t do anything wrong. 

The owner of the club went to stand in front of his bartender. He kept his eyes on the door of the club as the men were forcefully pushed out of the club. She looked at him expectedly. She half expected him to ask if she was alright, but she should have known better because all he said was:

“My office after work.”

Her shoulders slouched at her sides in defeat. She stared at him with a hint of sadness in her eyes. The pain in her wrist was starting to become more prominent with each passing second. It was bound to bruise at this point. 

“Yes boss,” Y/N accepted. 

With her head hung low, Y/N returned to her rightful place behind the bar to finish out the rest of her shift. She dreaded the conversation that she was expected to have at the end of the night, left expectant in the dark about what their topic would pertain to.

Many hours later, the Crow Club was finally closed. The tables had been cleared. The dealers and bouncers had all gone back to their quarters at the Slat. Even Jesper, Wylan, and Inej had made their way back to the place they called home. All that was left was the bartender.

For starters, Y/N had to walk around the club in order to collect all of the glasses and pints. Many of them were left empty, but some of them still had liquid leftover. She returned to the bar to wash the dishes and dry them with her spare rag. She placed the rest of them upside down on the counter to dry overnight.

Next, Y/N made her way to each table to clean the table tops. She then proceeded to stack the chairs on top of table. This took quite some time as they were a lot of tables in the club. But once the tables and chairs were taken care of, Y/N was able to get out a broom and dustpan.

The pigeons often brought in heaps of dust and dirt from the road, which made the naturally brown floorboards this disgusting black color. It took close to an hour of sweeping the place before she was able to move onto the mopping portion of her tasks. 

By this point, it was close to the early hours of the morning. While the sun wasn’t peeking over the horizon, it was bound to in an hours time. Rather sluggishly, Y/N returned to her place behind the bar. She opened a hidden cupboard to retrieve a single pristine teacup. She filled the teacup with a rich black coffee before placing the cup on a silver tray.

Carefully, so not to spill the cup of coffee, Y/N made her way upstairs to the upper level of the club. She cautiously went to approach the door to her boss’s office. She raised her hand to knock twice.

Even though she heard nothing in response, Y/N was able to open the door and make her way inside. She saw her boss sitting behind his desk, working through some of the books. She strode over to his desk to lower the silver tray on top of it. 

As per request, Kaz liked to have a cup of coffee while working on the books every night before leaving the club. He never took any creamer or sugar with his coffee, opting to drink it straight black. Almost fitting to his persona.

Black gloves. Black coffee. Black soul.

Without taking his eyes away from his work, Kaz’s devilishly long fingers curled round the handle of the teacup. He brought the cup to the seam of his lips, tipping the cup slightly upwards to get a taste of its bitter and strong flavor. 

In the three years of working for Kaz Brekker, Y/N always brought him a cup of coffee at the end of the night. She’d watch him drink his coffee, waiting for her next orders. Sometimes Kaz would ask her to restock the new shipment of vodka that had come in from the harbor. Other times, Kaz would ask her to look over the books for him to make sure he didn’t miss anything.

The longest wait had been over an hour long of her just standing in front of his desk, waiting for a verbal dismissal from him. It was always how she ended her night at the club. Sometimes her dismissal came in the form of a short nod. On rare occasions, Kaz would say something like ‘you may go.’ 

Tonight would be different. A fight had almost broke out in the club. A gun could have been fired by Jesper had his patience run out a minute earlier. Blood could have been shed over a mere bartender.

A few moments passed in utter silence. The only sound was coming from Kaz flipping through some papers and when he lowered his drink back down onto the silver tray.

“I’d like to apologize for tonight--,” Y/N began but was quickly interrupted.

“What for?” Kaz said without drawing his gaze away from his work. She paused for a moment.

“There was almost a fight,” Y/N replied blankly.

“Happens from time to time,” Kaz claimed. He wasn’t wrong. “I just prefer to keep my floors clean of blood.”

She knew this better than anyone. He’d always get so frustrated if someone shot a gun off in his club or if someone ended up dead on his floor. Unbeknownst to her, it was solely because she was the one who always had to clean up the mess. He hated seeing her on her hands and knees, scrubbing the blood out of the floorboards. 

He knew that she’d wake up the next day with sore knees and splinters in her hand. An ache in her back that wouldn’t go away for another week. Her hands stained pink from the blood she washed away with a scrubber and bucket. Her eyes tired from having to stay later.

Kaz Brekker knew well of pain. He was old buddies with him. The effects of firepox had caused an unbearable pain when he was much younger. However, the worst pain that Kaz ever endured was when he was fourteen years old. In which, he jumped off the roof of a bank and broke his right leg. That pain failed to leave his side and still resides with him to his day, hint the cane. 

Kaz Brekker knew well of the pain of others. Often times, Kaz found a somewhat sense of joy upon seeing the look of pain in others faces, particularly other members of rivalry gangs. To see a man writhing in pain due to being shot in the leg or being witness to a solid left hook to a jaw. It was often satisfying to say the least.

However, Kaz Brekker concealed behind all his hard armor, could not stand to see one particular person in pain. It shouldn’t have been an issue, but it had been for the past three years. His bartender of all people was the one person on his mind.

He always knew that he liked to take care of his investments, particularly his crows in which he had invested a lot of his money and time into. His bartender was not much of an investment. He had paid off Inej’s indenture years ago and she worked for him as a spy in disguise. He gave Jesper a line of credit in which he quickly became his right hand man. Even Wylan, whom Kaz had taken under his wing, was part of the crew and was a much more valuable asset than any bartender could be. After all, she was just a bartender.

She brought nothing to the table. No intel. No skill. No muscle. Just the ability to make one hell of a cocktail and the strong sense to not ask any questions.

The investment in her was not one for the books. It wasn’t one of the best choices he’d ever made. She made drinks and kept the place tidy. That was it. She was dispensable.

And yet, for some reason, Kaz protected her. He always protects his investments, but especially the ones he truly cares about. He protects his crows as they are the closest thing he has to a family now. He protects the other members of the Dregs as they are what holds his empire together. And he protects his bartender because...

Kaz lifted his head to finally meet her soft gaze. She offered him a small smile that went away as quickly as it appeared. He found himself standing to his feet with the help of his cane, shifting around the side of his desk. He stood in front of her.

He very slowly lowered himself to perch on the edge of his desk, studying her figure with a blank look on his face. She faltered under his strict gaze, dropped her line of sight to stare at the ground instead. She closed her eyes to calm herself.

Suddenly, Y/N felt the soft pads of two leather fingers touch the underside of her chin. Her head was lifted by those fingers until her gaze met those of her boss’s. She held her breathe as she stared directly into the eyes of the bastard of the barrel. 

He took the time to admire all of her features. Her skin was illuminated by the soft golden glow of the fireplace beside them. Her hair smelt of alcohol from the drinks she had been pouring all night. Her lips so perfect because they had never been tempted once to ask a single question.

“Your wrist...” Kaz said softly. 

His other hand made contact with the wrist that had been clutched tightly that night. He brought her hand up to view himself. He went to push away the sleeve of her blouse, settling his gaze on the small purple bruise that had begun to form around her wrist.

“It’ll heal,” Y/N claimed with a shrug of the shoulders. He cast a glance to her.

“They won’t come near you again. That I can promise,” Kaz gave a nod.

“B-But they bring in money. They meant no harm--,” Y/N tried to reason with him.

“They meant harm,” Kaz said curtly. He lifted his head to stare at her hard, unwavering in his opinion on the matter. He examined her wrist once more. “Those kind always do.”

“It’s only a bruise. Not a break or even a sprain,” Y/N replied. She tried to recapture his attention by lowering her head to insert herself into his line of vision. “I am fine. You don’t have to worry about me,” she claimed.

In that moment, Kaz Brekker could feel the walls around his mind and heart begin to fall away at her words. His mind wasn’t plagued with the fear that someone might overhear their conversation. He always believed attachment meant weakness, but just for a moment, he forgot all about his beliefs.

“I do worry,” Kaz said in a soft whisper. He stared into the depths of her eyes, now taking notice of their proximity to one another. That he was able to feel the soft fanning of her breath against his face. “All the time,” Kaz added.

“W-Why’s that?” Y/N replied, almost baffled by his answer.

“Because...” Kaz couldn’t find the words. He was reminded that if he spoke his mind or showed any sense of vulnerability, that he would be deemed weak in his own eyes. So he changed his answer. “You’re an investment. And I like to protect my investments,” Kaz lied under his tongue.

“I can take care of myself,” Y/N chuckled at his response. She wanted to take a step back and turn away from him entirely, but she was too drawn to him.

“The thing is...you don’t have to,” Kaz responded. He dropped his voice to a low whisper so that they couldn’t be heard by anyone other than themselves. His lips curved into a michevious grin. He was up to something. “I can take care of you for the rest of our lives.”

“How?” Y/N narrowed her eyes at him, knowing this was far beyond a (what she thought was) simple confessor of feelings.

“Found myself another job,” Kaz replied. He smirked at her wickedly. “One that will make us rich beyond our wildest dreams.”

Author’s Note:

IT’S BEEN A WHILE, HASN’T IT? I AM HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE MY RETURN.

Im terrified HAVE MERCY

dianaaaa, it’s the cutest name

Right! And I’m thinking like the reader could really be into Princess Diana and it would be perfect! Thank you for voting!!!