harry's creature inheritance

lashing out

Arthur's POV

I'm mad. So mad. Enrico is such an annoying brat. Seriously, why did he pick me? Out of all the others, he had to pick me? Had to prank me and scare me senseless?

Flashback...

I wake up, get out of bed, and go through my usual morning routine. When I brush my teeth, the toothpaste suddenly turns my teeth bright green. Then, my shampoo turns my hair blue, and my soap leaves my skin orange. I'm baffled.

Then, I see a body lying on the living room floor, completely still. I panic and rush over—only to realize it's fake. I hear Enrico's laugh echoing down the hall as he runs off. I chase after him...

End flashback.

I catch up to him and glare hard. "What the hell?! I thought you were hurt! I thought you were dead! That wasn't funny!"

"Lighten up, babe. You've pranked me plenty of times."

"Not like that!"

I freak out and, in a moment of anger, I hit him—hard—right in the leg.

As soon as I realize what I did, I bolt away, scared of the consequences. Lucius and Sev are walking down the hall looking for us. I tell them where Enrico is and keep walking. I know I'm in trouble. I've never hit anyone before, let alone my pregnant mate.

Time skip (10 minutes later)

I hear my mates calling me into the bedroom. When they enter with Enrico, none of them look happy.

I know I messed up. I should never have hit him. He played a harmless prank, and I should have just laughed it off. Now I've hurt Ric.

I take a deep breath as I step into the room. My doms are there, and I see Ric curled up with Sev, tears streaming down his face.

Lucius stands and approaches me, his face serious. "What happened?"

"When I was doing my routine, the toothpaste turned my teeth green, shampoo turned my hair blue, and my soap made me orange. Then I found someone lying on the floor—I thought it was Enrico, but it was fake. I panicked and ran over. I heard him laughing and running off. I got mad, chased after him, and when I caught him, I yelled. He tried to calm me down, but I hit him in the leg."

Lucius sighs. "What Enrico did wasn't fair, and he knows it. He's been punished for it. But it was a prank. You should have come to one of us instead of lashing out. You both know better than to freak each other out, especially with both of you pregnant. You can't stress each other out this early."

He looks at me sharply. "Look at me. I know you regret it, but you can't go unpunished. You were violent with your mate. The last time Ric was, he ended up with a red butt."

"I know," I whisper.

"Here's what's going to happen. Sev and I are leaving for a few minutes to let everyone calm down. Ric is going to rest in the spare room. You're going to stay here and think about what happened, what went wrong, and what you can do next time. Then we'll come back, and you'll get your punishment. Understand?"

"Yes."

They leave, and Ric looks at me, hurt and upset.

Fifteen minutes later...

I've thought a lot. I feel awful for hitting Ric. He didn't deserve it. The prank scared me, but it was just a prank. I shouldn't have hit him, and I'm ready to accept my punishment.

Lucius and Sev return. Sev sits to my left, Lucius to my right.

Sev starts, "Here's what's going to happen. We want you to take your trousers off and lie with your stomach on our legs, your bottom facing up."

I obey, lying across their laps, bare-bottomed.

(Skipping to after the punishment — I got thirty-five from each of them.)

Lucius gently rubs my back as Sev softly strokes my hair. "You took that really well, baby. But you still need to apologize to Ric."

"I know... Is his leg okay?"

"It's bruised but nothing serious. It did upset him, though. You know what his past has done to him emotionally lately."

"Can I see him?"

"Yeah. Knock first, though. If he's not ready to talk, give him space."

I walk to the spare room and knock.

"Who is it?"

"Arthur."

"Come in."

Ric is sitting on the bed, his data book in his hands, looking up as I enter.

"I'm really sorry I hit you. I have no excuse. I should have calmed down like you told me, and we could've talked it through. It was just a prank. I shouldn't have hurt you. Is there any way I can make it up to you?"

He sets his book aside and smiles softly. "I'm sorry too. I should've thought about how the prank would affect you before I did it. I'll change you back to normal. I forgive you, douchebag. Come here, give me a hug."

I step forward and wrap my arms around him, feeling the tension melt away.

Just then, Sev and Lucius come quietly into the room and sit beside us, wrapping their arms around both of us. We sit like that for a long time—quiet, safe, and close.

Sev whispers, "You both did good. It's okay to mess up. What matters is how you come back from it."

Lucius nods, kissing the top of my head. "We're here for you. Always."

Ric squeezes my hand. "I love you, Arthur. We'll get through this, together."

I smile, tears threatening, feeling so grateful for this little family and the love holding us together.

DISCLAIMER: I do not condone violence of any kind. If your partner is hurting you repeatedly, please seek help. This scene is written to show a realistic conflict and healing between two imperfect people learning to care for each other better.

edited - 5/7/2025