#is there anyone who's patiently been waiting for me to go back to sonic of all things. is that you anon | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

tenebraevesper · 2 years

Text

Vandalize My Heart, Entry 1: Leave Your Mark

''Did we make a work of art just so you could deface it? Did you let it fall apart just so you could replace it? Had your name on the side of a burning bridge, watch it fade when the smoke rolls in. Time that you killed, you promised to help me rebuild! Feels like you planned it, took us for granted, oh…''

– Vandalize by Sonic Frontiers

xXxXxXx

Was this really a good idea?

Sonic had to admit that hiding behind a bush and spying on Shadow, who was standing in the vicinity of the Ferris Wheel, wasn't one of his smartest ideas. True to his word, Shadow was holding a bouquet of lavenders in one hand and a golden ring that resembled one of his Inhibitor Rings in the other, waiting for RealShadowFan01 to appear. Sonic could feel a stinging sensation in his chest, as if he had been stabbed, but tried to ignore it. He had been through much worse stuff, and told himself that he should just grin and bear it. Clearly, this was important to Shadow, and whatever happened from now on, he would be happy for his rival.

Yet, he wasn't happy. He had just started processing his feelings for Shadow, realizing that there was more to them than just rivalry or friendship, and it hurt. It really hurt to know that there would be someone else in Shadow's life, someone who might be able to make him happy. Everything happened so sudden, and now he was about to lose someone he held dear.

Dude, you're not losing Shadow. Sonic rubbed his temples, teeth gritted as he was trying to break out of his grim thought process. It is not like he's going to disappear from your life. However, he had to admit that he couldn't really see Shadow being with anyone… aside from himself. Was that really such a selfish desire? After all, he didn't even know whether Shadow felt the same about him.

Sonic sighed, glancing back at Shadow, who was still patiently waiting for the would-be suitor. He had to admit that he was amazed by Shadow's patience, being able to stand at once place for so long. Sonic himself would've gotten bored after a few minutes and just started running in circles to keep himself occupied. How much time has even passed? Sonic gazed at the nearby street clock, noting how around 30 minutes have already passed since he and Shadow had arrived here. Huh, is this person going to be a no-show? Sonic lowered his head, curling his hand slightly as he placed it on his chin. Do they even know where to go? Maybe they ran into some kind of trouble?

Sonic gazed back at Shadow, who didn't appear to be particularly perturbed by the fact that that person was running late. He had a fairly neutral expression, occasionally looking around. Sonic followed his gaze, noting how they weren't alone here. Vendor booths were scattered around the area below the Ferris Wheel and there were other people walking around, playing games or just having fun. Sonic wished that he could join them, having seen a chili dog stand earlier and he even found a few vendor games he wanted to try out. However, he didn't want to be alone.

Sonic gazed back at Shadow, his ears lowered as he felt downcast. Maybe I should just tell Shadow how I feel about this whole thing… But, I don't want to ruin this moment for him!

He hated how torn he felt about the idea of confessing his own feelings to Shadow. He was used to their interactions being quite simple and straightforward. Sure, they would challenge each other, make quips and mess with each other, maybe butt heads over whatever plan they came up when they had to save the world, but ultimately, they would work together. If things were so easy, then why couldn't he make a move?

Sonic took a sharp breath, clenching his fist. One of his philosophies was to live life without regret, and while it was something he told his friends, he knew that, in this moment, he needed to follow his own advice. He knew that, if he didn't go for it, he'd have to live with the knowledge that he had the opportunity to confess to Shadow and that he blew with because he felt too conflicted over it. Gathering the courage, Sonic stepped out of his hiding spot and walked over to Shadow with a determined expression.

''Hey, Shadow!'' Sonic waved at his rival, approaching him. Shadow turned to him, his ears perked up, but his expression remained mostly unchanged. For a moment, Sonic wondered whether Shadow was actually disappointed to see him. Well, there is no turning back anymore.

''You're late, Sonic,'' Shadow said.

''I know that you- wait, what?'' Sonic was about to make small talk, only to be caught off guard by Shadow's statement. ''What are you talking about?''

''I had been waiting for you to show up,'' Shadow told him. ''For someone who claims that he is the fastest being in the world, you really took your time.''

''Did you have to take a jab at me?'' Sonic asked dryly, then rose an eyebrow, giving Shadow a curious look. ''Also, what do you mean by you had been waiting for me to show up?''

Now, Sonic did understand the implications of Shadow being somehow aware that he would be here, but he still wanted to hear it from the dark hedgehog. Shadow stared at him for a moment, brow furrowed.

''Why are you here?'' he responded.

''Well, I was on an evening run and I saw the Ferris Wheel, and I remembered how you said you'd be here, waiting for this RealShadowFan01 person. So, I thought I might keep you some company until they arrive,'' Sonic said, feeling a sting of guilt over the lie. Admittedly, not all of it was a lie, as he wanted to keep Shadow company, but for different reasons. Shadow kept staring at him, clearly not buying any of it.

''If that is the case, why have you been hiding in the bushes?'' Shadow asked. Sonic felt his heart skip a beat, realizing that he was caught. He attempted to come up quickly with a plausible answer, only to be surprised when Shadow placed the bouquet in his arms. Sonic stared at the bouquet, the scent of lavender filling the air, and looked back at Shadow, completely stunned to see the tiniest of smirks on Shadow's lips, who then held up the golden ring. ''Nevertheless, you're here, which means that I-''

''Wait, hold on a second, I thought this was supposed to be for RealShadowFan01,'' Sonic protested, feeling rather flustered. The way Shadow kept looking at him sent shivers down his spine. The dark hedgehog tilted his head, folding his arms across his chest, still holding onto the golden ring.

''I said that I would propose to whoever meets the conditions I set, and that I would be waiting for them at the Ferris Wheel. You were the one who showed up, therefore I would propose to you and accept you as my partner,'' Shadow explained in his usual business-like tone, acting as if this was the natural conclusion to the whole story.

Sonic was clutching the bouquet, his heart beating at a rapid speed, his cheeks as red as the stripes on Shadow's quills and his eyes wide as he stared at Shadow, completely baffled by what he just heard. Indeed, he was here to support Shadow, and yes, he did have feelings for his rival and wanted to confess – but he did not expect that Shadow would actually propose to him! His thoughts were scrambled, and he was unable to even form a coherent sentence. While he was used to being thrown off the track during his many adventures, and able to get his composure back just as quickly, this was something he had no answer to.

As for Shadow, he observed him in silence, clearly waiting for an answer. He had to admit that part of him was satisfied that, for once, the cobalt hedgehog had shut up instead of blabbering away, but he was already counting the seconds until Sonic would start talking again. He decided to take advantage of the silence, already predicting the question on Sonic's mind as he took the latter's free hand, this gesture flustering the cobalt hedgehog even more.

''Do you remember what I had said? That your methods are annoying, your jokes are unfunny, your skills undisciplined, your optimistic outlook towards others naïve, and that your shoes are garish,'' Shadow continued, looking slightly amused as Sonic frowned upon hearing that criticism again and hoping his rival would get to the point. ''However, I wasn't lying when I said that I don't hate you.''

''Shadow, no one doubted you,'' Sonic replied.

''Right, except that it is more complicated than that,'' Shadow said, his tone heavy.

He wanted to say more, but seeing Sonic's gaze, he realized that his rival already understood. It was rather strange, being here with Sonic, admitting to the latter that he did see him more than just a friendly rival. He wasn't the type of person to wear his heart on his sleeve, preferring to keep them to himself. He knew that he still had trouble connecting to other people on an emotional level, despite his friendship with Rouge and Omega. He knew that, even though he did move on, there were still some issues he had that were unresolved, and he kept pushing them back, putting up a front in hopes of not having to deal with them. The step he made here took a lot of courage on his part, and he was proud of it, but he had to admit that it was hard. Despite having made his decisions, he couldn't deny that he still had some doubts. Still, this was Sonic he was talking to, and he was thankful that his rival listened to him, and acknowledged how he felt without a word.

Shadow and Sonic then gazed down, realizing that Shadow was still holding Sonic's hand, the golden ring being in the other. They looked up at each other, the same unspoken question being on both of their minds, with a wide grin spreading across Sonic's lips and him nodding joyfully. Shadow felt a huge wave of relief, not even realizing that he was genuinely smiling as he put the golden ring bracelet over Sonic's wrist. Sonic held up his hand, admiring the ring bracelet, then gave Shadow a mischievous smirk. The smile on Shadow's expression faded, and the sense of relief was replaced by a familiar feeling of irritation, as he knew what Sonic was up to.

''So, since when do you have a crush on me?'' Sonic asked, having to admit that, while he was glad that this awkward confession was over, he still had some questions.

''I could ask you the same,'' Shadow said in a deadpan tone, with Sonic just shrugging; basically admitting that Shadow had a point. He then continued, ''Frankly, I don't know when I developed those feelings, but I believe there was something for a while now. You can thank Rouge for making me realize that.''

''Rouge, really? What happened?'' Sonic asked, now intrigued.

''I had been talking to her about you the other day, and I guess she got fed up, telling me that I should just go confess my feelings to you since I obviously can't stop thinking about you,'' Shadow said. Sonic grinned, elbowing Shadow.

''Aw, that's so sweet! Do you also keep dreaming of me?'' Sonic teased him, with Shadow shooting a glare at him, only to smile a moment later.

''Do you want to admit something?'' he fired back, watching the smug smirk disappear from Sonic's expression. ''I thought so. Nevertheless, that's where things started to slowly fall into place. What about you?''

''I guess I was in a similar situation, not realizing that there was something there,'' Sonic said, rubbing the back of his head. ''It all came to a head with that marriage proposal during the Takeover. I realized that I was kind of jealous when you actually accepted, but I didn't say anything because I just wanted to support you regardless of how I felt.'' He then looked around. ''Speaking of which, where is that person? Do you think they might show up?''

''I don't know, but they missed their chance,'' Shadow replied. Sonic looked around, his gaze landing on the vendor stands and an idea forming in his mind.

''How about we go and celebrate the occasion? It is still early in the evening, and I think we both deserve to have some fun,'' he suggested.

''Sure,'' Shadow replied, only to be surprised when Sonic took his hand and started walking towards the vendor stands surrounding the Ferris Wheel, with Shadow following him.

''Cool! How about we try out that water gun shooting game? I bet I could beat you at it,'' Sonic said, giving Shadow a confident grin.

''Hmph, you wouldn't be able to hit it even if you stood right next to it,'' Shadow replied, smirking as he felt the familiar competitive spirit reigniting. ''We both know who the better marksman is.''

''Yeah, probably, but don't think I won't try my best,'' Sonic replied playfully, the two hedgehogs passing by a bench, not really paying attention to the person sitting on it, their head hidden behind a newspaper.

Once Sonic and Shadow vanished into the crowd, Rouge lifted her head, lowering the newspaper she was hiding behind and sighed in relief. ''Finally! I think it was already time that these two knuckleheads confessed their feelings to each other.'' She then reached for her smartphone, smirking. ''Although, I guess some people might be really disappointed that things didn't work out between Shadow and his number one fan.''

She then opened her Twitter account, typing something and then sending it, the message reading: ''Hello Shadow Fans, it appears I couldn't meet all of Shadow's requirements in marriage''.

''Oh, well, not my problem,'' Rouge smirked, grabbing the newspaper and getting up, then looking at the night sky as she thought about something. She then took off, flying into a specific direction. ''I think I should pay a visit to my Knucklehead.''

Links:

#Previous Chapter

#Current Chapter

#Next Chapter

#Vandalize My Heart (Masterlist)

#Vandalize My Heart #sonic twitter takeover #sonic frontiers #sonadow #shadow the hedgehog #sonic the hedgehog #rouge the bat

34 notes · View notes

riversofmars · 3 years

Note

Prompt: 13 and River babysit Anthony Williams (Amy and Rory’s adopted son)

This is such a cute prompt! I combined it with a similar one and hope this works for you, enjoy! <3

Rating: G

Word Count: 1800

Read on AO3 or below

All in the Family

“And you’re sure you’re up for this?“ Amy turned to River one more time, halfway out of the door of their flat in 1940s New York.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?“ River crossed her arms in front of her chest challengingly.

“You’re not exactly the most responsible adult.“ Rory couldn’t help pointing out and glanced to his wife to find out whether they were going to change their minds at the last minute.

“I'll take that as a compliment.“ River smirked. “Remember this was your idea.“

“Yes but only because we don’t know many people here yet!“ Rory admitted.

“And having your baby stolen once, you don’t want to trust strangers, I get it.“ River gave her parents a kind smile. She was very happy for them. They deserved to have the calm family life that they had missed out on with her. Adopting baby Anthony had been a wonderful idea.

“It’s just been such a long time since we’ve been able to go out.“ Amy explained. “I just didn’t understand how hard raising a child would be!“ She sighed, running her hand through her hair. She was more exhausted than she ever had been while travelling with the Doctor. “We just really need to have an evening just for us.“

“Say no more and get yourself going before I change my mind.“ River ushered them out the door.

“You are a godsend, River.“ Amy kissed her daughter’s cheek. “Don’t get up to anything stupid.“ She wagged her finger at her.

“What, me? Stupid? Perish the thought.“ River feigned hurt but laughed.

“Just make sure Anthony is okay.“ Amy implored her and gave a little wave to the toddler that was just coming up behind River and wrapping his arms around her leg.

“You can count on me. We’ll have a brilliant time, won’t we, brother dearest?“ River smiled down at the child and patted his head.

“Ri-ver.“ The toddler nuzzled into her thigh.

“See, fast friends already.“ River chuckled and lifted him up.

“Does she… do you know anything about toddlers?“ Rory asked, insecure for a moment.

“I am married to the Doctor, does that count?“ River countered and the Ponds laughed:

“Fair point…“

“Relax, we will be fine, it’s just for a few hours.“ River kissed the forehead of her adoptive brother who was giving her a koala bear hug. “Tea, books, bed. I got this.“

“See you both later, look after each other.“ Amy smiled and kissed Anthony’s head, as did Rory.

“This is a bad idea…“ Rory hummed to his wife as they waved their goodbyes and made their way down the corridor.

“It’s a brilliant idea.“ Amy waved off his concerns.

“Right Anthony, there is someone I would like you to meet.“ River smiled at her little brother as she closed the door.

“Meet?“ Anthony echoed as River carried him back into the living room.

“Someone very special: Your brother-in-law. Well, I say brother… sister-in-law? Alien-in-law?“ River grinned,and as if on cue the TARDIS became visible in the lounge.

“I don’t know why you wouldn’t let me see them!“ The Doctor stuck her head out, having waited patiently for the Ponds to depart.

“Because they never would have left and they could do with a break.“ River explained with a chuckle as her wife skipped out of the TARDIS and towards them.

“Hello Anthony Pond!“ She grinned, ruffling the toddler’s curls who just giggled in response. He appeared fascinated by the sudden appearance of the blue box and pulled away from River, seemingly wanting to be set down.

“Williams…“ River corrected the Doctor as she sat her brother down who rushed to the TARDIS, circling around it in wonder.

“What shall we play with, Anthony?“ The Doctor ignored her wife and dropped to her knees in the middle of a pile of toys. “See, we’re gonna have the best time!“ She pulled her screwdriver from her coat and sonic-ed the toys. All of a sudden, cars and toy robots started moving on their own accord. Anthony giggled in delight and rushed over to the Doctor, the TARDIS no longer the most interesting thing around here.

“Guess that means I’m making tea?“ River chuckled as Anthony threw himself at the Doctor.

“Would you want either one of us close to a hob?“ The Doctor retorted, hugging the child tightly.

“Fair point.“ River chuckled.

——

“I don’t know why I asked you here, it’s like babysitting two toddlers.“ River was cleaning up the kitchen after tea had turned into a food fight.

“'Cause this is the closest thing you and I have to a family.“ The Doctor answered with surprising candour. Anthony was jawing, leaning against her.

“As much as I try to, I don’t really feel like part of them…“ River answered thoughtfully.

“Our lives are more complicated than that…“ The Doctor couldn’t help but agree. Neither one of them was suited to regular family dynamics.

“Would it be so bad though? Settling down for a time?“ River mused, looking from Anthony to her wife.

“Maybe at some point.“ The Doctor gave her a soft smile. This River hadn’t done Darillium yet. She had all of that to come and the Doctor missed their time there more than she would care to admit.

“Bed time?“ She asked, seeing as Anthony was virtually falling asleep next to her.

“I think so.“ River agreed with a smile and walked over to them. “Come here Anthony…“ She scooped him up. “Let’s get you into your PJs…“

Both the Doctor and River had presumed bedtime would be easy, considering how tired Anthony was, but they had thought wrong.

“Stop turning the light on and off!“ River pleaded, picking him up again to finally put him in his bed. Anthony appeared to have saved up his energy just for this.

“Still want kids?“ The Doctor tried her best to keep a straight face as she watched her wife struggle with the toddler.

“You know all of a sudden, being a big sister seems perfectly adequate.“ River retorted.

“I’ll get him a bottle of milk.“ The Doctor suggested, just as Anthony got up again and raced past River to the light switch.

“Stop it with the light switch!“ River groaned and scooped him up again. “Please, will you just stay in bed now?“ She tugged him in.

“Well well well, isn’t this a lovely sight.“ A voice sounded from the doorway that made River’s blood run cold. She whipped around, standing protectively in front of the bed.

“Madame Kovarian, how did you…“ She stared at the woman in the doorway.

“I knew I would find you eventually.“ Madame Kovarian smirked, walking further into the room. “And who is this little man? Tell me, am I a grandmother?“

“How dare you show your face here!“ River growled, regretting immediately that she left her gun in the TARDIS. She hadn’t anticipated needing it for babysitting duties.

“I believe you and I have some unfinished business.“ Kovarian retorted. “How is motherhood treating you, Melody? Where is the husband? Leaving you to do all the child care?“

“Right behind you!“ The Doctor called from the doorway, armed with nothing but a bottle of milk. She quickly accessed the situation in front of her, glaring at the unwelcome guest.

“Oh well, not your child then, is it?“ Kovarian retorted with a cruel smirk. “Now then, I think it’s time for some good old fashioned revenge…“ She pulled a gun on them.

Suddenly the light flicked off! Anthony had snuck out from behind River and gone for his favourite game again. River jumped at the opportunity. She flung herself at Kovarian and disarmed her quickly. The moment the light came back on, Kovarian was on the floor and River held her gun to her head.

“Never underestimate a Pond!“ The Doctor grinned and scooped up the child into a tight hug.

“You little monster!“ Kovarian spat.

“If anyone is a monster here, Madame Kovarian, it’s you.“ River retorted icily.

“Surprisingly quiet in here… maybe River managed to get him to sleep alright after all…“ Rory mused as he opened the door to the flat and they walked inside. It had been a lovely evening, just what they needed.

“What the…“ Amy stopped dead in her tracks as they stepped into the living room.

“Amelia Pond! And Rory the Roman!“ The Doctor exclaimed and ran towards them, pulling them into bone crushing hugs.

“River?!“ Amy exclaimed, needing an explanation. Who was this woman? What was she doing in their flat? Why did she know who they were? And why was Madame Kovarian tied to a chair in the middle of their lounge?!

“What can I say… Mum, Dad… when my husband regenerated into a hot blonde I started batting for the other team, hope that’s alright with you.“ River answered, gesturing to the Doctor who grinned widely, barely able to contain her excitement.

“What?!“ Amy and Rory exclaimed in unison.

“She didn’t want to tell you I was here cause she thought you’d be worried we’d set the place on fire…“ River explained a little bit more apologetically.

“Instead you have a tied up Madame Kovarian in our living room?!“ Amy gestured to the unwelcome guest.

“Ouch!“ Kovarian groaned when Anthony chucked a building block at her.

“Good shot, mate!“ The Doctor grinned and gave him a high five. Of course, Anthony had refused to go to bed after the excitement.

“Sorry, just got to finish building this transdimensional teleport. Teaching Anthony the basics of temporal engineering as we go. One way trip to Stormcage.“ River explained, gesturing to a circle of electrical components that had been erected around Kovarian. Long cables connected it to the TARDIS. “Unless I get the coordinates wrong… might end up in a sun instead…“ She mused.

“Melody, don’t do it, I…“ Kovarian pleaded.

“You have threatened my family for the last time. This is goodbye, Madame Kovarian, for the last time.“ River finished attaching the cables.

“Good riddance!“ Rory mumbled in agreement.

“Anthony!“ Amy called when the toddler skipped forward and hit a big red button on the contraption. Something no child would be able to resist. Kovarian disappeared in a flash of light!

“Was the teleport even calibrated?!“ The Doctor looked to River who gave a little shrug.

“I’ll check up on her when I’m in Stormcage next… she may have ended up in the cantina rather than an actual cell… but never mind.“ She looked to her parents. “So, how was your date?“

“Certainly less eventful than this.“ Amy shook her head in disbelief.

“Come on, mate, let’s get you to bed.“ The Doctor scooped Anthony up who nuzzled into her neck.

“Doc-tor.“

#Doctor who #thirteen #thirteenth doctor #river song #spaces wives #amy pond #rory williams #madame kovarian #fluff #femslash #family #river x the doctor #river x thirteen #thirteen/river #yowzah #fanfiction #prompt #dw #anthony williams

81 notes · View notes

longitudinalwaveme · 3 years

Text

Arkham Files: Pied Piper

Hugo Strange: From the patient files of Dr. Hugo Strange, director of Arkham Asylum. Patient: Hartley Rathaway, alias Henry Darrow; also known as the Pied Piper. The patient shows signs of depression and general emotional distress, but I have not yet been able to give him a full psychiatric evaluation. Session One. So, young man, your name is Hartley Rathaway?

Pied Piper: Yes, sir.

Hugo Strange: Any connection to Osgood and Rachel Rathaway, the billionaire publishing magnates?

Pied Piper: They’re my parents, sir.

Hugo Strange: (Surprised) You mean to tell me that you’re that Hartley Rathaway? The boy who was set to inherit a fortune as large as the GDP of some small countries?

Pied Piper: I’m the only Hartley Rathaway! Ever! Nobody but my parents would stick a child with a name like that!

Hugo Strange: So if that is who you are, young man, why in the world would you have ever decided to put on a costume, call yourself the Pied Piper, and embark on a life of crime using weaponized musical instruments?

Pied Piper: Because someone had to even the score.

Hugo Strange: What do you mean, even the score? You had life handed to you on a silver platter. You grew up in a palatial mansion, with servants to tend to your every need. You had the best education money could buy, you traveled all around the world, and you were set to inherit one of the largest fortunes in the country. What injustice could a pampered prince like you possibly have faced?

Pied Piper: None, sir. I’m not evening the score for myself. I’m evening it for the poor, the downtrodden, the people who through no fault of their own are denied the opportunity to even know that they’ll have a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs. My parents and people like them live in scandalous luxury that they didn’t even earn, and they have the nerve to say that the poor are lazy and selfish! It’s unjust and unfair, and yet everyone turns a blind eye! I...I had to do something!

Hugo Strange: (A bit taken aback) I must admit, young man, I was not expecting to hear a manifesto from someone of your background. (Pause) I take it that you don’t simply steal for kicks in the way that your file seems to suggest?

Pied Piper: Not often. Usually, I take the money from people who won’t even notice it’s gone and give it to people who really need it.

Hugo Strange: So you think of yourself as some sort of Robin Hood, then? Stealing from the rich to give to the poor?

Pied Piper: I wouldn’t have thought to put in those specific terms, but...I suppose I do, yes.

Hugo Strange: Why not just give away your own money, Mr. Rathaway? Certainly you have access to more than enough of it.

Pied Piper: (Laughs quietly) I tried that once. When my parents found out, it became part of the argument that got me disowned, disinherited, and thrown off of their estate without a dollar to my name.

Hugo Strange: Your parents disowned you?

Pied Piper: Yes. They even paid the FBI to give me the identity of Henry Darrow just so I could never be traced back to them. If the Flash and that brilliant young reporter hadn’t stumbled onto the connection between me and my parents somehow, Hartley Rathaway probably would have been effectively erased from existence.

Hugo Strange: That does at least explain why your file gives you two entirely separate names and histories. I admit that that had been puzzling me, Mr. Rathaway.

Pied Piper: Well, now you know. (Pause) How did I end up in Arkham Asylum, Doctor? Even if someone had become convinced that I was mentally ill, Breedmore Psychiatric Hospital would seem to be much more conveniently located.

Hugo Strange: It would be. In fact, there are any number of prisons and psychiatric facilities that would be more conveniently located to the area of the Twin Cities than Arkham Asylum...but through a series of judicial and political decisions to which I was not privy, somehow all of you “Rogues” were placed under my watch. (Pause) So, Mr. Rathaway, you went from being one of the wealthiest and most privileged people in the country to being homeless and penniless. I imagine that that was not an easy transition for you.

Pied Piper: No, it wasn’t. Although the panic didn’t kick in right away. It wasn’t until I used my sonic technology to steal forty thousand dollars from my parents’ company, and then gave the money away to people in need, that my anger subsided and it really hit me that I was impoverished. All I had left was my hypnotic flute and the silly costume I had made out of my mother’s nice shower curtains in order to disguise myself while I was stealing money from her company, and I was panicking. Which in hindsight is probably why I made the stupid decision to hypnotize a group of random crooks into becoming a sort of gang, told them that my name was the Pied Piper, and tried to become their leader. One of them probably would have ended up shooting me within a couple of days, but because my sonic abilities were quite unusual, the Flash showed up to arrest us before I got myself killed. They went to prison, but for some reason that was never adequately explained, I was released from the police station without even being booked.

Hugo Strange: How could that have happened, Mr. Rathaway?

Pied Piper: My parents’ money, of course. They hadn’t had the time to create a false identity for me yet, so I suspect that they simply bribed the police station into letting me go so that no one would know that the former heir to the Rathaway empire was now a common crook.

Hugo Strange: And what happened after that?

Pied Piper: I almost starved to death.

Hugo Strange: And what saved you?

Pied Piper: Well, I had sat down on a park bench and was sort of waiting to die when I suddenly came face-to-face with a pair of blue pixie shoes that were floating four feet off the ground. The pixie shoes were attached to a blonde kid in a garish leotard. He asked me if I was the kid with the magic flute, and when I said yes, he told me that he was the Trickster and invited me to stay with him in his apartment for a couple days. I agreed when he told me that he also had food. During the month I stayed with him, he gave me a crash course on how to survive on the streets...although most of the other Rogues insist that I must not have learned very much from it.

Hugo Strange: Why is that, Mr. Rathaway?

Pied Piper: Because I still give away basically all the money that I steal. Most of it goes to the poor, and the rest of it goes to my parents, to pay them back for the money they spent on trying to mold me into someone I could never be. That way, they can stop complaining about all the money they wasted on me. (Pause) Captain Cold insists that if I had any sense, I would keep some of the money for myself, but why would I do that? I spent my early life in unimaginable luxury. It’s only fair that I go without to help the poor now.

Hugo Strange: So you’re martyring yourself for the sins of your parents?

Pied Piper: I’m not martyring myself. I’m just doing what needs to be done.

Hugo Strange: Sacrificing your own financial well-being for the sake of others is not healthy, Mr. Rathaway. With a philosophy like yours, I’m surprised that you’re even still alive. (Pause) Incidentally, how have you managed to survive multiple stints in prison? A skinny, sheltered ex-aristocrat like you would seem to be an obvious target.

Pied Piper: Which is why I don’t call attention to myself whilst incarcerated. You’d be surprised how effective keeping your head down and your mouth shut can be. (Pause) Well, that, and Captain Cold has made it pretty clear that if anyone messes with me, they’re also messing with him. And almost no one is willing to get on Captain Cold’s bad side.

Hugo Strange: So your status as one of the Rogues protects you?

Pied Piper: Yes, sir. (Pause) But if I really had to, I think I could survive without them. I may be a sheltered ex-aristocrat, but I’m also a master hypnotist. I didn’t take up the name Pied Piper for nothing, Dr. Strange.

Hugo Strange: Yes, your file does go into great detail about the effectiveness of your hypnotic instruments. When you first arrived on the scene, there were even some people who thought that you might be the Pied Piper of the folktales, due not only to your powers but also the fact you seemed to appear and disappear almost at will, without ever really getting caught (Pause) Of course, from what you’ve told me, I can guess that the explanation for your remarkably infrequent imprisonments was due to your parents’ wealth, rather than to any magical powers.

Pied Piper: Those rumors were actually quite helpful. When people thought I might be magical, they put considerably less effort into tracking me, and that gave me a lot more freedom to do things like volunteering at homeless shelters and food pantries.

Hugo Strange: But you are not magical, Mr. Rathaway. You are only a man.

Pied Piper: I know that, Dr. Strange. If I had magical powers, I’d be a lot farther along in my goal of helping uplift the downtrodden than I am.

Hugo Strange: Mr. Rathaway, that was not what I was trying to tell you. Wanting to help others is an admirable goal, but the methods which you are taking to pursue it are decidedly unhealthy. You are a human being with human needs, and you are discounting them all in your desperation to prove that you are worth loving. While I believe that you honestly want to help others, I also believe that there is a part of you that is still trying to earn the love which it sounds like you were denied as a child. You’re hoping that if you sacrifice enough, you will finally be accepted as worthy...but you are giving too much.

Pied Piper: Too much?

Hugo Strange: Yes, Mr. Rathaway. Too much. (Pause) Think of it this way. If you starve to death because you have no money to pay for food, you will no longer be around to feed anyone else...and by giving away all of the money you bring in, illicitly or otherwise, that is effectively what you are risking. And it’s certainly what you’re doing to yourself on an emotional level.

Pied Piper: (Quietly) It’s what I was taught to do, Dr. Strange. What I wanted wasn’t important. What I needed wasn’t even important. The only thing that was important was upholding the family name. My parents have always made it quite clear that their love for me was conditional on whether I would sacrifice what I was to be their idea of the perfect heir, and I tried. For eighteen years, I tried, but it was never enough. Not after I’d been born deaf.

Hugo Strange: Yes, your files mention that. Your files also mention that your deafness was cured thanks to a pair of highly advanced hearing aids, which were created by Dr. William Magnus. The operation cost millions of dollars, and it granted you far more than the normal range of hearing.

Pied Piper: 14 hertz to 55,000 hertz. I hear more sounds than a dog. (Pause) And all the nasty things that people whisper behind my back when they think I can’t hear.

Hugo Strange: Are you glad that you were given these hearing aids, Mr. Rathaway?

Pied Piper: Very much so. Without them, I’d never have known what music sounded like. (Pause) But to be honest? If I had to choose between being deaf and knowing that my parents loved me, and being able to hear and knowing that it was entirely because my parents didn’t want the social embarrassment of having a disabled son, I’d choose the world of silence. And I hate silence.

Hugo Strange: Mr. Rathaway, you have spent your entire life sacrificing your own needs, either for the needs of others or for your parent’s desire for a so-called ‘perfect’ heir. That is why the request I am going to make of you will be so difficult. (Pause) Between now and our next session, I want you to write down something that you really want to do. Not something you think you should want to do; something that you actually want to do.

Pied Piper: But-

Hugo Strange: Mr. Rathaway, you will never be able to achieve healing until you recognize that your wants and needs are just as valid as anyone else’s. You will not be able to care for others in a healthy way until you learn to care for yourself.

#flash rogues #dr. hugo strange #pied piper #flash comics #batman comics #fanfic

27 notes · View notes

ninjakasuga · 3 years

Text

Sonally Celebration Week, Year 3, Day Three!

Day three is here, and as usual, I tend to go for my flair with thematic tones over the literal idea of the prompt. Everyone else enjoying what @gojira007 and their blog @boundforfreedomsonsal brings will find this to their pleasure.

Sonally Celebration Week, Year Three: Day Three

Foreward: This episode takes place mere months after Mystery. I know last year sometimes I hoped about the time-line a bit, while with at least episode one-through-three I’m keeping it rather linear in the story-telling. Last time we saw Sonic and Sally as babysitters to Sonic’s younger siblings; now their own time has parents twas’ nigh.

Day three: Crossroads

“Sonic Maurice Hedgehog, I love you, I love you with all my heart and soul, but-nrghh!” Grimacing, Sally Acorn-Hedgehog panted heavily as another contraction wracked her body. Her grip on the hand of her husband tightened. “But I swear, I SWEAR if you do this to me again, I-will-EAT-YOUR-SHINS!!”

Making a soft, but audible sound of physical distress, Sonic swore he felt the bones in his hand crunch. Yet he did not dare wretch it free, not that he felt he could if he wanted too. Sally’s grip was intense, and furthermore, any attempt to save his own skin would be met with death. As sweat trickled down his brow, making the mask attached to his face, and the scrubs he wore a bit uncomfortable. Yet his own discomfort was his least priority at the moment. “Y-you got it Sal, j-just hang in there a bit more…”

Sally’s eyebrow raised incredulously. “Hang in th-nrgh, t-there?! Oh my dear husband, you just did-urghhh! N-not tell me to hang in there? Just what the f**k do you think I’m doing?! I’ve been ‘hanging in there’ since my water broke and the contractions kicked in, and those two little darlings ‘you’ put in my belly can’t decide if they want to come out now, or kick Mommy’s bladder some more!”

“H-hey I’m just trying to help!’ He pleaded as she clutched his hand tighter than before. “I know this isn’t easy on you Sal, but it’s not like I can whip out a Power Ring or Chaos Emerald and make it better. If I could-ghhh, take your place I would!” Sonic knew this was in no-way easy, but in the span of a few hours he’d seen Sally run the gauntlet of her emotional range. Mostly all centered at being upset with him. Now he understood what his Dad meant by ‘Nothing will prepare either of you for this; but remember, Sally’s going to be put through a wringer, so be patient, and be understanding’. “Sal, please you need to calm down some, it’s not good for you, or the babies right Doc?”

The ‘Doc’ in question lifted her head from her position between the Queen’s legs. After almost twenty-plus years of service, Doctor Quack had retired from medicine but remained a consultant for the Acorn Kingdom Ministry of Medicine. So the new Royal Doctor, one Jolene Fredrick, and one of Quack’s protoge’s was tending to the birth of Sally and Sonic’s children. The spotted-Hyena doctor managed a bemused smile behind her surgical mask. “Your husband is quite right, your majesty, I know it hurts, but the more you let the pain stress you out, the more it will complicate things.” She spoke evenly, softly, and kindly but with a firm authority a doctor should carry. “I know giving birth to twins is not easy, especially for a first-time pregnancy, but despite the pain, it looks like the babies are finally about ready to come out.”

A part of Sally wanted to scream and kindly (or not so kindly) tell Jolene to jump out the window, or anyone else asking her to ‘bear with it more’. After all the hours she already had dealt with the discomfort, and false alarms, up until the pains really started to kick in over the last hour and a half. Yet Sally held back that urge, both from her brain managing to get through the pain and reminding her, Jolene was trying to help. Plus as a Mother herself, she’d had first-hand experience with what she was going through. The other reason she pushed her anger down was the soft touch of Sonic’s hand that wasn’t currently in the vice grip she was placing on the other. A quick glance into those emerald-pools, seeing concern and love, did much to soften her.

A small whimper left Sally as she eased her grip and held Sonic’s hand to her face. “I’m sorry, it just huuuurts.” She whined softly, feeling utterly pathetic she was reduced to such a state. Her composure was thrown out the window, cursing freely, and just, the sheer roller coaster of hormones and emotions over the last several hours had taken a toll. “I want my babies, but-rugh, I want them out, nooooow!”

“I know Sal, I know.” Sonic murmured, wincing at the defeated, pained sounds coming from the love of his life. Bringing her hand to his face, he did his best to kiss the top of her hand through his surgical mask. “I’m with you, however long this takes you got me at your side.”

A small, strangled laugh left Sally as she managed a warm smile as she gazed at her husband. “How’d I get so lucky? Some people take forever to find their soulmate and I met mine at two years old.” Letting out a dreamy sigh, Sally pulled his hand to her and planted a kiss there, with both her hands (gently) cocooning both of her hands over his. Just as quick as the quiet moment came, it was taken away as Sally let out another sharp gasp. “Oooooooff!! I felt that one!”

Eyeing some equipment next to her, Jolene made a ‘hmm’ and then turned to look over at the couple. “Good news, it looks like the babies are finally making up their minds, one is starting to make way. Take deep breaths, your majesty, just like you practiced, we’re almost at the end goal.” She smiled through her mask, her own mild fatigue visible in her eyes. Yet like her predecessor there was a fire to see things through. “You can do this your Maj-.” “J-just Sally please!” Insisted the mother-to-be as she gripped the edge of her bed rails with one of her hands, as the other still clutched onto Sonic. “T-this is too personal to keep using formal titles. Nrgh, j-just for now, please, no titles.”

A part of the doctor felt awkward at putting the habit of being so informal, but if it would help. “Alright Sally, we’re in the final stretch, deep breathes. We’ll see the crowning any moment now.”

Nodding, Sally looked to Sonic, wincing and breathing deeply as she was taught. “I love you.” “Back at’cha Sal, you got this.” Sonic fought back a wince from his extremely sore hand. Focusing more on giving Sally his support. “Back at’cha, now let’s welcome our kids and you get some rest.”

Some Time Later:

Exhausted deeply in body and soul, Sally could feel all this in the back of her mind; yet her focus was on anything but the fatigue. A warm, happy, glowing feeling replaced the fatigue as she stared at the two swaddled bundles in her arms. “They’re beautiful…” She cried, happily as she stared at the mewling infants. Who seemed to instinctively lean against her body through their swaddling. It had been worth it, the long labor, the pain, all-worth-it. The girl of the twin-set was a chipmunk-ish hybrid like Sally but clearly sported her Father’s blue hues in her fur. The boy, clearly of the hedgehog variety had the more soft browns of his Mother. Time would tell if Sally’s red hair, or the blonde or brown hair from Sonic’s side of the family would pop up.

As she glanced over at Sonic, she was nearly bowled over by the sheer awe in his eyes and face (his surgical mask was off). His eyes were misty, making her wonder if she was looking at a mirror of her own expression. “You just love in love don’t you?”

“Totally.” Sonic nodded, a strangled laugh leaving him as she leaned in, getting eyefuls of the two joys the two had both patiently and impatiently waited for all this time. It had been a long road to parenthood, both held off having kids right away due to many reasons after the war. The rebuilding efforts, just enjoying themselves free of fighting, and other small, miscellaneous reasons. Last year they finally felt ready and well, started working on getting Sally pregnant, which didn’t take long with how they were.

Sonic wondered if this surge of pride and absolute happiness was something both his parents felt when either his siblings and he had been born? The sheer high of it almost-no, no it absolutely did dwarf the high of running free in the wind. Gently he reached a hand down, running a finger along one child’s cheek, then the other. “Hey you two, glad to finally meet’cha. I’m Daddy, this is Mommy, and we’re going to love and look after you until the end of time.”

Nodding her head eagerly in agreement, Sally sniffed back more tears of joy. “Forever and ever, all ours.” She giggled, kissing the soft, furry cheeks of her newborns. “Welcome to the world Kathleen and Jaleel-Craig.

“I still think Justin-McCooiagel sounded pretty good.” Quipped Sonic with a smug, joking smirk.

“I will not let our son be mercilessly teased because his Father wanted to give him a ‘cool nickname like ‘Just Cool’ or whatever string of odd nicknames.” She firmly stated, giving Sonic a dull stare. “Seriously, one of your names was Radical. Just Radical.”

“Hey it’s a good gender-neutral name, and we knew we were having twins.” His wide grin, showcased he enjoyed pulling her chain. He mostly had been joking about the aforementioned names, well mostly. The ones they settled on were perfect. Kathleen Nicole Acorn-Hedgehog was named after Sally’s Grandmother that she sadly never got to know, and her middle name was in honor of a certain BFF of the Queen’s. Jaleel-Craig Acorn-Hedgehog, or J.C. for short, got his name from Sonic learning Jaleel had been one of ‘his’ potential birth names. Seems his Father knew a Jaleel from school who had been his best friend until he died in the war, and had considered giving him his name in remembrance, only to decide Bernie’s idea of Sonic seemed fitting. Both Sonic and Sally thought it would be a nice name, and as for the Craig addition, Sonic just liked the name, and felt a two-word name would be great for one of the kids. His desire won out after he won three out of five rock-paper-scissors matches with Sally for the final say-so.

“Sure it is…” Rolling her eyes Sally reached over and ran her hand, playfully over Sonic’s face. “You’re just lucky you are adorable.”

“Ha! Adorable wished it were me.” Murred Sonic as he nuzzled against her hand. “Although my wife and lovely children are top-tier competition.”

Snorting, Sally then yawned loudly. “Oh my, I-I *yawn*, damn it, I don’t wanna sleep…”

The door to the suite opened and Doctor Jolene stuck her head in. Having overhard the yawn, she gave the couple a knowing smile. “You should get your rest while you can. The kiddos will be tuckered out themselves, and the nurses will watch them overnight. Trust me you will want as much sleep as you can before they want to feed.” Given it was between two and three o’clock, the Royal Family didn’t have any visitors waiting on them until much later in the day to worry about.

As another yawn tore from her throat, Sally nodded in acceptance. She then poked at her own chest, semi-covered by her hospital gown. “Finally these udders will get some use. The swelling of the milk is getting annoying.”

A dirty joke formed in Sonic’s head, but he wisely (this time) fought off voicing it. A low, tired, yawn left him as well. “Snooze n’ Zzz’s sound about right Doc. Plus there’s that saying, we should get as much as we can?”

“As one parent to another, ooooh yes!” Laughed Jolene as she walked over to give the Mother and children a once over as a nurse came over with a rolling cart with two portable baby-carrier cribs for the infants to sleep in. “That should be your priority as much as looking after J.C. and Kathleen now, making sure you’re rested so you can look after them.” She then gives her Queen a playful-if-stern look. “Which means our dear Queen needs to knock off the all-nighter paper-work and project binges.”

Unable to not but wince at the accusation, Sally sighed in defeat. She knew her bad habit was one not to be ignored at this juncture in life. “I’ve already delegated my tasks to Nicole and the Council, and all necessary parties…”

“After taking weeks to painstakingly do so…” Her husband quipped with a mirroring playful-but-stern with a dash of accusatory as Doctor Jolene.

Sally sent Sonic a glare, but fatigue and looking upon the faces of her children made the frown go away. “I know what my priorities are… I know that I'm going to need to get back to running the kingdom but I’m not going to ever put these two what I meant through. I will find the balance.”

Rubbing her shoulder, Sonic leaned in, planting a kiss to her cheek. “N’ you got me to help, we’re doing this as a team forever, and always.”

“Always.” She agreed, craning her head to kiss him back. Another yawn left her as the nurse gently took the snoozing children. Her gaze followed them as they were carefully put in the sleeping cribs. “See you soon my loves’.” She murmured, eyes beginning to feel heavier as she watched them be wheeled out. “Love you Sonic…” She murmured feeling him tuck her in as her eyes closed.

“Love you too Sal, I’ll be right here.” He murmured, waiting until he was sure she was dozed off. Leaning back from her bed, he popped his back and shook his hands. One was extremely sore but thankfully not damaged. “I’m gonna get some water, and then I’m gonna crash myself Doc.”

“I have a rollaway being brought in for you.” She nodded, giving one last check over of Sally’s vitals, and pleased with what she saw, intended to conclude her rounds and get some shuteye herself. “Sleep well Prince-er Sonic.” She corrected as the Prince-Regent gave her a tired but mild glare. “Sorry, force of habit.” “S’okay Doc… Just titles n’ crap ain’t me, but I married a Princess who’s now Queen so… eh if you gotta for decorum n’ crude sure. Like this… Sonic is fine.” He grinned, giving a two finger salute before padding out of the suite. Water was his priority, his throat was dry, and then, bed. Sweet, sweet bedtime. If the way twins seemed to behave in the family held up, Sally and he would need to be on their toes sooner than later.

A new crossroad of life at been reached, and they were committed to what the future may hold for them and their family.

#boundforfreedom #Sonic the Hedgehog #Sally Acorn #Archie-Sonic #Birth #OC's #childbirth

11 notes · View notes

sonickedtrowel · 4 years

Note

oh.. River/Eleven with 25 - things you said in the back seat of a cab. If it sparks anything for you that'd be amazing, in my head it's at least a little steamy

Hey, so I write very very slow! But I wrote this!! I went back and forth over how horny on main I wanted to be, deleting and rewriting the steamy part, and decided I’ll just put part of it here and link to ao3 for anyone who wants to read the rest 😂 Tbh it might be pushing explicit a tiny bit more than I normally do even though it’s brief so I had to put it behind a link lol.

Somebody say old Eleven young River? Just me? Oh well! Thank you for the prompt!!!

the whole thing on ao3

“Oh, here,” River said, waving to an approaching car on the street, “let’s catch a cab.”

“Don’t you want to walk?” asked the Doctor, sliding his arm around her back. “It’s a beautiful night!”

It was a lovely evening. Spring on Luna always was; it helped that the weather was engineered. It was breezy and warm, the air sweet with the scent of blossoming trees. But after dinner at the sort of restaurant that essentially required time travel to get a booking, River found walking back to the hall of residence a much less appealing proposition.

“I’ve got two hearts, sweetie, not two stomachs. If you want to walk home, you can pick a place with fewer courses next time.”

The Doctor amiably relented, dropping a kiss on her head as he turned to the cab, which had paused on the side of the street. In the 51st century they were sleek, shiny things, all black with tinted glass and a domed roof. “What is that one, a Lunar Link?” he asked. “They’re all autopilot in this decade, aren’t they?”

“All the ones I’ve seen. Why?”

“No reason.” He cleared his throat, opening the door for her to step inside. As he clambered in after her, he quickly produced the sonic from his pocket and aimed it at the control panel.

“Dodging the fare?” River asked as he shut the door. “That’s usually my area.”

“Um, no. Scrambling the CC feed and facial recognition.” She raised an eyebrow expectantly, and he sighed. “Let’s just say we’re… no longer welcome in several of these companies’ cabs.”

She let out a burst of delighted laughter. “And you’re always telling me to keep out of trouble!”

“Because I’ve seen the trouble first-hand!”

“Sounds like you were more participating than observing.”

“Yes, well. You’re a terrible influence,” he grumbled, with poorly disguised fondness.

“In that case,” she said, grasping him by the lapel, “far be it from me to break with tradition.”

“See?” The Doctor smiled as she tugged him closer. “Terrible.”

He hummed contentedly as his lips met hers, and a shiver went through River’s body. She’d just about gotten over being embarrassed by how easily he could disarm her. Imagine, if she’d killed him with just one fleeting brush of her lips, a mockery of a kiss, and never experienced the real thing. What a dreadful waste that would have been.

They were interrupted all too soon by a series of chirping beeps and a polite, slightly robotic voice requesting, “Please input your destination.” They breathlessly broke apart, and the Doctor fumbled for his sonic, buzzed it at the control panel once more, and was already turning back to her as the cab pulled into the street. Their smiling mouths crashed together somewhat messily in their eagerness, and then his arms were around her, his hand under her hip, pulling her to him. River went along gladly, throwing her leg over his hip and settling in his lap.

“Destination?” she asked, brushing a kiss at the corner of his mouth.

“Taking the long way round.” He lifted his hand to her face, tipping her chin up to kiss her properly.

She sighed happily. “Have you always been this agreeable?”

“No,” the Doctor said, his laughing breath fanning over her cheek and sending another shiver down her spine. “And if— god forbid— you run into me when I’m young anytime soon, I’d appreciate it if you tried not to give me any heart attacks.”

“Mmm. I bet you’d like it.”

“Well, yeah, but don’t tell me that.”

She laughed against his lips as he kissed her again, winding her arms around his neck. His hand splayed over her back, keeping her close, while the other lingered against her jaw, his thumb brushing gently over her cheek. He always touched her with a tenderness that seemed tinged with desperation; as though she might disappear if he dared to let go. He hardly had to worry. She didn’t want to be anywhere else.

It had been a few months now of settling into life on Luna, settling into being River Song, and beginning to learn her way around their life together, such as it was. Months of leaving her last lecture each Friday afternoon to find him waiting with flowers and dinner plans or an exploding planet they just couldn’t miss. It was good to escape into the wider universe, chasing some danger and excitement after a long week of lectures and essays and pretending to tolerate undergraduates. But this was better.

River wondered if the novelty of being wildly in love would ever wear off. It was her first time with anything like this, after all, and she felt a little at sea sometimes, unsure of what she should expect. If it would ever stop being so intoxicatingly good, and just be… normally pleasant. But the Doctor was much older. And judging by the way her insides melted at the pressure of his hands gripping her hips, the warmth of his breathing over her skin, the soft curve of his tongue behind her teeth— well, it seemed the honeymoon period wasn’t about to end anytime soon.

And that was another thing, she reflected as she fumbled blindly with the buttons on his trousers. There was something very settled about him, too. Something that was just solid: comfortable and trusting and content with her. She couldn’t seem to stop wondering, particularly after her latest bit of research, exactly what the nature of that settledness was.

Eventually, curiosity got the better of her. She’d barely broken away from his lips when she blurted, “Are we married?”

“What?” The Doctor blinked at her, dazed. In his defence, she did have her hand in his pants.

“Are we married?” she repeated. “I think it’s a reasonable question, in the circumstances.”

His eyebrows lifted and he shook his head slightly, huffing out a breath as he pushed his hair out of his face. “River, you know I can’t tell you.”

“I found a book that says we’re married.”

He groaned, his head collapsing back onto the seat. “I’m sure I’ve told you not to do that.”

“Also found a book that says I’ve killed you,” she added thoughtfully. “Which, in fairness, I did. But the place and the date are wrong.”

“See? A whole lot of nonsense, so no point in filling your head with it.”

“But once you’ve read your own personal future— once you’ve been told what it is, doesn’t it have to happen?”

“Only if it’s true. We’re not all beholden to the prophecies of gossip magazines.” He sat up again, wrapping his arms around her as he began to press warm, lingering kisses to her face, her neck, her shoulder. River stifled a whimper as his parted lips lingered on her throat, sending a ripple of want throbbing through her body as her mind filled with everywhere else she’d like him to put that sweet, soft mouth. Oh, he was far too good at distracting her. Well, she supposed technically she was the one distracting them this time; they’d been busy when she was overcome with the need to question him.

“And is it true?” she stubbornly persisted.

The Doctor lifted his head and watched her silently for a moment, rubbing his hands soothingly up and down her back. “I asked you, once,” he said at last. “Well, I asked if you were married. May have sort of accidentally proposed in the process.”

“Accidentally?”

“I was young.”

“And what did I tell you?”

“The truth,” he laughed, shaking his head and looking at her with such aching affection. “You really shouldn’t have done that.”

“Because once you knew, it had to happen that way?”

“No, not quite. River, the important things— they’re up to us. We always have a choice.”

She looked him over consideringly. “You don’t have a wedding ring.”

“No,” he agreed after a moment, fiddling with his bow tie as he glanced out the window.

“But you could just take it off when you come to see me, since it would be a bit of a giveaway.”

“River,” the Doctor said wearily, “you really need to stop. It’s all spoilers.” When she didn’t object, he pulled her closer, his hand cradling the back of her head.

“Would you even want to be married?” she asked, just before he could kiss her.

He exhaled, patiently studying her face. “Generally speaking, or to you specifically?”

“Is the answer different?”

“Yes.”

River swallowed, her hearts nervously fluttering. “Either I should be insulted, or you’re showing your hand a bit, Doctor,” she said softly.

“Well, I’ll leave that to your judgement, dear,” he murmured, and she finally stopped interrogating him long enough for him to kiss her.

#dr fic #dw fic #the doctor/river song #eleven/river #river song #eleventh doctor #yeeting myself into the sun now #dont read this i said a la elliot #idek why i just had to use a Noun and i'm suffering #travelwithmethen

25 notes · View notes

olliepig · 4 years

Text

Centre Stage - chapter 5

As always, massive thanks to the ever amazing @willow-salix for her general cheerleading and betaing.

And, as usual, the whole thing is available on AO3 here.

*************************

“It’s a green light! Just go, will you?” Scott fumed, waiting for the car in front to move at the obvious filter light that had come on what felt like eons ago.

London traffic frustrated him no end, but today his tolerance for it was at an all-time low. Everything about getting there had seemed to take forever, and the joy he had felt soaring above the clouds once again had been short lived. He'd found himself wishing more than once on the flight from the island that he had chosen to bring his beloved One instead of the private jet. Despite the ultra-sonic plane being one of the fastest in the world, it was nothing compared to his ‘Bird, with whom the seemingly interminable four hours would have been slashed to just one, but he had made his decision and he was now having to live with the consequences.

However, even with the reduced flight time he’d still have to cross the congested city, and there was unfortunately no way of making that go any quicker. Selene always told him to take the tube, but the thought of heading into the dark tunnels wasn’t something he thought he could face so soon after the blackness of the Oort Cloud. So, he was stuck with crawling his way through the busy streets, his sleek, high powered car no use against the gridlock.

Sighing in frustration as the traffic light turned to red once more, he slumped back in his seat, wishing he still had John with him for company. They had gone their separate ways once the plane had landed, but having his brother present on the flight over had been a blessing that Scott was very grateful for. They had spent the majority of the time in companionable silence, each lost in thought as they tried to process the amazing events of the previous days but similarly desperate to reach their destination and see their respective partners. Having someone there, even if it wasn’t the person he was desperate to see, had calmed and grounded him.

After all the extreme emotions stirred up by their Dad’s rescue, Scott found he was craving normality above all else. Being able to do what he did was incredible, but at that moment, perhaps more than ever, he just wanted to be able to collapse on the sofa with Cat in his arms. He needed her like he’d never needed anyone before, and his overwhelming desire for her was in danger of taking over all else, his whole body aching for the comfort and safety of her touch.

Finally throwing the car into gear and inching forward, he sighed again, resigning himself to the fact that he was going to have to be patient, almost sure that another half hour wouldn’t kill him.

*****

Unable to settle in one spot, Cat prowled around her flat, her impatience taking her on a well-worn route around the room, stopping briefly at two different windows before winding back to the sofa for a brief sit down until nerves got the better of her and she started up again. Despite knowing that the chances of Scott covering the distance from the airport so quickly on a rainy October evening were slim, she’d lost track of how many times she had started pacing since finding out that he had landed and her frustration was growing steadily, her body not allowing her to rest until she had seen for herself that he was safe and well.

The past 48 hours had been torturous. The overwhelming fear that she had felt while he was deep in the Oort Cloud had completely engulfed her, leaving her unable to focus on anything else, but at least that, she had expected. What had surprised her was the impatience that had plagued her since she knew that the rescue had been a success and he was home. Her desperation to see for herself that he was safe had taken her completely aback and that, combined with the sheer intensity of her feelings over the previous days, had forced her to confront the reality of just how much he now meant to her.

Pausing in her circuit to watch a car making its way up the street, her heartbeat quickened in the hope that it was the one she was waiting for, and she realised in a sudden moment of clarity that everything that had happened since he had kissed her at Penny’s was completely inevitable. She was hopelessly infatuated with him, even she had been able to see that, and there had never been even a shred of doubt in her mind about his feelings for her. But until now, she had been holding back, not allowing herself to truly experience the depth of her feelings for him, and she had no idea why.

No more, she promised herself, sagging in disappointment as the car continued up the street into the distance. He didn’t deserve it, and she had no desire to do anything that could hurt him. Now that she knew how she truly felt, she couldn’t deny it any longer, nor did she want to.

Checking the clock, she threw herself back onto the sofa with a groan, unsure as to how it was possible that only a few moments had passed since the last time she had looked. It had been over an hour since he had landed and she was at least certain that the time was drawing near for him to arrive.

The sound of the buzzer for her door jolted her out of her reverie, sending her hurtling across the room to answer it, her heart rate now in the region that would give cardiologists cause for concern. Scott’s smooth, deep voice over the intercom when she answered was like a balm to her senses and she almost wilted with relief as she heard him open the building door. Finally, he was only four flights of stairs away.

Scott took the steps two at a time, sure that someone must have added in extra flights since he last been there. The last two days had been some of the toughest of his life, going from the lowest low of thinking they had been too late, to the unbelievable high when his dad had grabbed his hand and stopped him sliding off the edge of the planetoid to an uncertain fate amongst the debris. None of that mattered to him at that moment however. All he could think about was getting to the top of the stairs and finding comfort in the arms of the woman who was waiting at the top for him,

Finally, he was at the top, and his heart leapt as he saw his beautiful Cat framed in the open doorway, the look of longing written on her face drawing him inexorably towards her. Their eyes locked together, he took a shaky breath as he crossed the distance between them in five easy steps and enveloped her in his embrace, relief flooding through him as he took a couple of steps forward, forcing her further into the hall and allowing the door to slam behind them.

Savouring the feeling of familiar strong arms wrapped around her, Cat buried her face in his neck, holding on as tightly as she could. Breathing in the scent of his skin, all her fears over the past five days were gone in an instant. She clung to him, pressing herself against his warm body as she felt his hand snake up and tangle itself in her hair.

Shivering in anticipation, she felt his hand tighten around the strands as he encouraged her head back, their eyes meeting briefly before her lips were crushed under his in a bruising kiss. His lips were hot and firm against hers and he parted them with a groan as they deepened their kiss, allowing her tongue access.

Desperate for more, he kissed her again and again, hard and insistent, lost to the intensity as his world ceased to exist beyond the woman in his arms. All his senses were focused completely on his burning need for her and he could feel his body responding. The blood pooling at his groin caused a delicious ache when she pressed herself against him again, making his knees buckle as he struggled to regain control.

His obvious desire stirred something in Cat and her body cried out to feel his skin against hers. Without breaking their kisses, she reached under his jacket, fumbling to pull the back of his shirt from his waistband. Sliding her hands up his back as the garment came loose, she moaned softly as she felt goosebumps prickling his soft skin.

Scott groaned and attacked her mouth with renewed vigour, totally lost to the sensations she was unleashing in him. The feeling of her hands on his back made him desperate for more. His hands found their way under her jumper, tracing up her back, feeling her shiver as she pulled away, her breathing heavy as she met his eyes.

“That’s quite a hello,” she smiled, trying to get her breathing under control but struggling under the intensity of his desire filled gaze that was holding her captive. She could feel his calloused hand still on her back, the hard skin in stark contrast to the softness she could feel as she gently traced her fingers up underneath his shirt.

“Well, you know me, I don’t like doing anything by half,” he grinned back, relishing her touch, loving the playfulness in her tone and the way her eyes were hungrily watching his lips as he spoke. “Do you remember that thought I told you to hold?”

Extracting her hand from under his shirt, Cat reached up to gently stroke his cheek, nodding as she was taken back to the intensity of their farewell in that same hall five long days before. Without warning Scott moved, lifting her up as he kissed her again. She could only cling on, wrapping her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bedroom.

******

Cat huffed, flicking her hair over her shoulder again to get it out of her way while she focused on sewing ribbons onto the four pairs of new pointe shoes that would see her through the next couple of days of rehearsals but she really didn’t want to move to get something to hold it back. Not only did she have everything carefully laid out just where she needed it, but Scott was also sprawled on the sofa, engrossed in the movie they had put on earlier and she didn’t want to disturb him.

She wasn’t really paying much attention to it, but the act of doing something so normal after the week they had just experienced was a welcome relief. Moments like this took her back ten years, and she could quite easily believe that they were still in her flat in Richmond, relaxing before she had another week of rehearsals and he was back on duty with the Air Force.

Movement beside her jolted her back to the present as Scott pushed himself upright with a grunt, untangling his long legs from hers. He leaned in to kiss her on the cheek before he ambled out the room, his relaxed gait making Cat smile as she turned back to her sewing, glad that he was finally feeling at ease after the stresses of the previous weeks.

Out in the hall, Scott paused in indecision before heading into the bedroom. Contrary to Cat’s belief, he hadn’t really been paying attention to the movie either, instead spending his time watching her out of the corner of his eye. He found himself entranced by the way her hair kept cascading over her shoulder as she worked, the light catching it in a mixture of reds and golds as it moved before being flicked back to where it had come from. But no matter how much he enjoyed watching the colours dance across the strands as they fell, he could see how frustrating it must be for her and, once he heard her huff in annoyance, his mind was made up.

Moving with a conviction that he didn’t feel, he strode across to investigate the top of her chest of drawers, not completely sure of what she might need but sensing that he was likely to find something close to where he’d seen her put her hairbrush earlier. For the first time since he had known her, he found he was glad that she had not been blessed with the tidiness gene as he quickly grabbed her brush along with a selection of hair ties and pins that lay scattered across the top of the unit.

Crossing back across the living room, his precious bounty filling his hands, Scott was gratified to see that Cat hadn’t moved yet, still engrossed in her task and giving it her full attention.

“What’ve you got there?” Cat asked, her curiosity piqued by the way he was trying to sidle into the room without her noticing.

“Never you mind,” he replied with a grin, angling himself away from her as he walked behind the sofa so she couldn’t see what he was carrying.

Placing the ties and pins down on the top of the cushion, Scott gently ran the brush through the copper strands that he loved so much, suddenly nervous that this was a stupid idea as he watched carefully for Cat’s reaction. To his great delight, she put down the shoe she had been darning, which he took as enough of an invitation to carry on.

Sighing happily, Cat closed her eyes as a small smile played across her lips. She had no idea what had prompted him to lavish such attention on her, but she was definitely not going to complain. His gentle strokes with the brush made her scalp tingle, the sensation radiating out down her neck and into her shoulders. She leant back into the soft cushions, feeling Scott lift all her hair out of the way as she did so, letting it drape over the back of the sofa.

Her mother sitting behind her, talking about her day as she gently brushed her hair before bed one evening was one of the very few happy memories she had from her childhood. It was something she had clung to in the years afterwards, bringing it out and reliving it whenever the loneliness of being all but abandoned in favour of a new boyfriend got too much for her to bear. Now, some twenty years later, the feeling of Scott doing the same with such care took her right back to that heady feeling of being the centre of someone's world, making her heart soar as her smile grew larger.

Once he was sure that he had all the tangles out of her hair, Scott surveyed the selection of things he had brought through with a small frown. He’d seen enough women put their hair into a ponytail to make an educated guess that it was probably the quickest and easiest thing he could do. Grabbing a hair tie, he started to gather her hair, brushing it up and away from her neck, smoothing it out as he went and making sure that he didn’t miss any stray bits. Happy that it seemed to look the way he’d seen it when she’d done it herself, he secured it with the band before leaning forward over the back of the sofa and wrapping his arms around her.

“What did I do to deserve you?” Cat asked, nuzzling into him and kissing his cheek, her heart so full it felt ready to explode.

“Must’ve been something very bad,” Scott replied with a smile, echoing her reply when he had asked the same thing a few days before. Kissing her forehead gently, he disentangled himself before vaulting back over the sofa and landing next to her, his smile turning into a grin as she rolled her eyes at him and shook her head fondly.

“It looked like your hair was annoying you so I wanted to help,” he continued, surveying his off centre and rapidly sagging handiwork. “Sorry it’s not very good.”

“It’s perfect,” Cat countered, pulling him towards her for a lingering kiss before resting her forehead against his as she murmured quietly, “you’re perfect.”

The air seemed to settle around them as they sat motionless, neither willing to break the moment.

Cat’s heart hammered in her chest as the words crept into her head that she was powerless to deny any longer. She’d known for a long time, she realised, but had been too stubborn to accept it. To accept him.

Despite their history, she had somehow fallen into the trap of seeing him as Scott Tracy, the endlessly capable commander of International Rescue, but the last week had changed that. The way he had trusted enough to confide in her before the rescue, his desperate need for her reassurance when he had arrived that day and the simple act of care he had just shown in tying her hair back for her had combined to open her eyes to the fact that underneath all of that, he was still just Scott from Kansas, the same man she had lost her heart to a decade before.

“I love you,’ she breathed, so quietly it was barely audible even to herself.

Cat’s words sent a jolt like lightning through Scott’s heart and a small smile crept onto his lips as he leant into her, pressing their foreheads even closer together while he processed the implications of what she had just said. Finally, he was able to say those three words that had been in his head every time they were close without fear of scaring her away. He knew it was fast, but he put his all into everything he did and it wasn’t the first time that he’d fallen so completely for her.

“I love you,” he whispered, feeling like a weight had been lifted from him as he found her lips, brushing them tenderly with the lightest of touches.

Feeling Cat’s hand snaking around the back of his head, fingers sliding into his hair as she pulled him closer. Scott deepened their kiss, his tongue gliding across the seam of her lips, groaning when she granted him entry. For the second time that weekend he was lost in her, but in contrast to his all-consuming need of before, now he wasn’t sure he’d ever felt so at peace.

Cat melted into his kiss, giving herself to him entirely as his warm lips caressed hers, showing her again and again just how much he meant the words he'd uttered that made her heart soar. As their kisses deepened, she tasted the residual sweetness of the popcorn they had shared, mingled with the wine that now sat abandoned on the table beside them but, buried underneath, was the taste of Scott himself, something she had grown to associate with peace and now love.

Unbidden, her lips began to curl up in a smile, causing her to break their kiss to let them split into the grin that had been threatening since he had spoken. A heady mix of euphoria and contentment overwhelmed her, leaving her breathless as she took in the man in front of her, his eyes glittering, dimples on full display, as a matching smile spread out across his face.

Scott could feel the happiness radiating out of her as they sat grinning at each other like loons. There were no more words that either of them needed to say. Having spent the last two months holding back from telling her the true depth of his feelings, his heart was fuller than he could ever remember it being.

“Your eyes are sparkling,” he observed, drinking her in as he tried to imprint this moment into his memory forever.

“You’re one to talk, have you seen yours?” Cat laughed, feeling lighter than she had in months.

“Touché,” Scott grinned, settling himself back on the sofa and opening his arms in invitation.

Cat didn’t even need to think about it. Abandoning her shoe preparation until later, she snuggled in beside him, her head resting on his shoulder as he held her, his fingers gently tracing up and down her bare arm, raising goosebumps on her flesh.

Smiling to himself, Scott placed a gentle kiss on her forehead as they lay quietly, not needing anything from each other but to be together.

#Scott Tracy #thunderbirds fanfiction #thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds 2015

23 notes · View notes

softstarfire · 4 years

Photo

Secret Apprentice: Chapter 7

Our Last Chance

Chapter 6 - (AO3) (FF.NET)

Summary: The Teen Titans deal with the aftermath of Starfire’s betrayal. They decide to give her one last chance. When her friends arrive to talk to her someone else joins the party only to ruin it. Will a kiss save her last chance?

Starfire was almost falling down. Her powers were lacking because of the emotional stress and her endurance was significantly affected by it. She was about to pass out when Red X came in. “She is Starfire!”, he said as he pulled the mask off Starfire and he fell back to the floor in front of her. Robin backed away shocked.

Starfire was breathing heavily, trying to gather her strength back. She looked at Red X, he was bleeding from his arms, the wounds had gotten bigger and he couldn’t stand anymore. He just held her mask on his hand tightly. The alien girl let her head down. “Starfire? Are you working for- “, the door was opened up by Cyborg’s sonic cannon, cutting off Robin’s question. Is that what he noticed first? The rest of the team entered, and they froze at the sight of Starfire in the Red S suit. “Star!”, Beast Boy yelled out loud. “Starfire! Tell me, why are you working for Slade? Is it because of that picture of Blackfire?”, Robin insisted. Blackfire, she had to stop her. She couldn’t lose any more time. “Starfire!”, Cyborg yelled. “What is going on?”, Raven asked horrified. The princess let herself fall to the ground, just steps away from Red X. “Star, please, tell me why you are working for Slade. Did Red X put you up to this?”, Robin tried asking once more. Starfire lifted her head up slowly and took her gloves off. “Is Red X using you? I can- “, Robin slowly moved closer, trying to reach Red X with his hands. Was Slade that important to Robin?

She stood up, extending her right arm with a starbolt ready to blow on her hand. “Leave him alone”, she spoke firmly. The Titans looked scared as they stood there frozen, not knowing what to do. “Starfire, I am just trying to catch Slade and if Red X is working for him then I have to take him down”, Robin tried to explain himself. “You have already done that”, she responded, her eyes were glowing, and her hand had finally stopped shaking. “But I have to take him in to question him about Slade”, Robin tried to come closer once more. “Do not touch him”, her tone was firm again, no cracks even if she felt like crying. “But Slade-“, she cut him off. “Robin, I need you to let him go. Can you do that for me, please?”, she spoke softly, putting her hand down again. “You know I can’t, Star. I have to catch Slade”. His voice cut through her hope.

She closed her eyes.

“Then, I am sorry”, she opened her eyes fully lit up. She groaned as she gathered all her strength and built a green energy force field around herself and the masked thief. She walked in front of Red X and released her power in an explosion. Her teammates were pushed away because of the blast. She quickly grabbed the utility belts, carried Red X in her arms and flew out of the building.

The door automatically opened letting the Teen Titans into the main area of the Tower. They walked in silently. Cyborg and Beast Boy sat on the couch. Raven stood by the window, looking at the dark city in front of her. Robin was the last one to enter. He walked to his teammates and stopped in front of them, trying to get his thoughts in order so he could say something, but it wasn’t working.

“What was that?”, Cyborg was the first one to speak. Nobody replied. “It shouldn’t have happened”, he continued, letting his head fall into his hands. “I should’ve known. I felt her energy. It had changed since that night when Slade poisoned Robin. But I just thought she just felt sad like she said”. Beast Boy stood up after Raven spoke. “Well, I told you all that she was Red S. And what did you do? You didn’t believe me. So there, it shouldn’t have happened because I told you about it but you didn’t take my word for it”, he yelled at the others. “We didn’t believe you because you are not a reliable source”, Raven replied, turning her back to the rest of her team. “And you are?”, the shape shifter clapped back immediately. “Well, they had just stolen the T-Ship I thought that you were just shocked and-“, the green teen cut her off. “You thought that I made it up because I went all coocoo because they stole our T-Ship”, she turned back and walked to him.

“Stop it both of you. We didn’t believe it because it’s Starfire. She could never hurt us”, Cyborg stood up, pushing the empath and the shape shifter away before their argument got more heated. Robin didn’t know what to say to everything that his teammates where discussing. His mind tried to stay technical, to think critically but there was one thing that didn’t make any sense at all. If she was being forced to work for Slade, why did she kiss Red X? “But she hurt us”, he meant she hurt him, but he couldn’t bring himself to accept that. “And we have to stop her”.

Beast Boy laughed. “May I remind you that we didn’t “stop you” when you were working with Slade”, he sat back on the couch. “I wasn’t working with Slade”, the leader angrily replied. “Maybe she isn’t working with him either”, Raven sat beside Cyborg.

Robin was about to speak when his communicator started ringing. He opened it up and saw the major’s face in his screen. “Robin, turn on the news. Jump City is under attack”, the call ended. The leader immediately turned on the TV and tuned in a news channel. On their large screen they saw a video in which Blackfire spoke to the citizens of Jump City declaring that she would become the new ruler of the city and will be taking Earth soon. Slade stood next to her and behind them there was an army of tamaraneans.

“Do not try to stop me. I will not have mercy on anyone who tries to defeat me. I will be announcing the new rules of Jump City, or may I say of this new Tamaranean colony”. The video ended.

“I can’t believe it”, Beast Boy said. “She wasn’t just working with Slade, she was working with Blackfire to take our planet”, Robin stated as he walked to the screen. “Was this her plan all along?”, he continued. “Are you hearing yourself?”, Cyborg stood up and walked to Robin. “Cyborg, Tamaran is taking over our planet. Don’t you see it?”, the leader asked angrily. “The only thing I see is that you are getting Slade obsessed again. You are not making sense. Starfire didn’t come to Earth to take it, she came to ask for help and we helped her”, the half robot replied. “He’s right. We helped her, we helped you when Slade took you, we tried to help Terra when he took her, but we were too late. Maybe if we stop fighting, we can help Star once again before it’s too late for her too”, Beast Boy stood up, slowly getting closer to the pair of teens. “Come on, Robin. You know Starfire, she is our friend. I know you are hurt, but she’s your best friend”, Cyborg calmed down. “You said it before, she’s been there for all of us. We have to be by her side now if she needs us”, Raven also walked to the leader. He sighed. “Well, we know where to look”.

Starfire sat on the edge of the couch of the leaving room in the lodge. She hid her face in her hands, trying to keep her tears from falling, trying to keep herself from sobbing, trying not to break. So many thoughts, so many questions. Why did Robin react like that? Why did he get so obsessed with Slade? Would he able to hurt her just to get to Slade? She shook her head. He wouldn’t, this wasn’t him. Did Slade poison Robin again? Why else would he be able to hurt her? Why didn’t he care about the kiss? Why did she do it?

“Are you okay?”, Jason’s voice interrupter her tangled thoughts. She looked up at him. “I should be the one asking. Are you okay, Jason?”, she moved away just a bit when he came to sit beside her. “I feel better, thanks for patching me up and giving me whatever those pills were”, he smiled at her, she did too but the tears in her eyes made them sparkle with sadness.

“I am sorry”, she apologized, hiding her face again as her tears started falling down. “Hey, Star, don’t say sorry. We had a rough day, it’s okay”, she looked back up as he said that. “Slade called, he said we must wait for his order to get the diamond to him”, she tried to hide a crack in her voice, but she couldn’t, and she bit her lip to keep herself together. “I am so- It is just too much and-“, again she bit her bottom lip. “Do you wanna talk about it?”, he asked moving closer to her. She shook her head, breaking down once more, trying to hide herself again but Jason stopped her, wrapping her arms around her waist in a tight hug. She put her arms around his shoulders, her face buried in the space were his right one met his neck.

Starfire’s body was shaking as she cried her heart out. Jason held her firmly, trying as hard as she was doing to keep her from breaking. She felt so fragile in his arms, so vulnerable and so shattered. He tried his best to keep her pieces together, but he could feel her breaking again and again as a new wave of tears hit her.

She cried for a while and he waited patiently, caressing her hair with one of his hands, pushing away her guilt with reassuring words and listening to her mumbling about how sorry she was. Maybe 10 minutes after that, they had moved around. Jason was sitting with his back on the backrest of the couch. She sat beside him, her head on his chest, with her face still trying to find a hiding spot, and her arms were around his waist. He was still caressing her red hair softly, playing with it from time to time and then just brushing it with his fingers.

“Jason?”, Starfire looked up. “Hey”, he replied his voice sounded soft like a whisper. “I am grateful for your company and understanding”, she was still looking up at him. “Anytime”, he replied in his regular playful tone. “I feel ready to talk about it”, she moved away from him. The warmth of her body was no longer on his and he missed it immediately. The alien princess sat by his side, closer to the edge of the couch.

“I do not like lying to my friends. I do not like lying to-“, she caught a sob right before it made her break again. “To Robin?”, X asked, and she nodded. “But I feel hurt by him too. I know I am the one who is wrong, I am the one lying, and I am the one who betrayed them, but I am hurt too”, she sighed. “It hurts talking about him”. Jason moved forward so his face was closer to hers. “Then forget about him. I wanna know more about you. Who’s this mysterious alien princess with those amazing powers?”, Starfire giggled at his question. “What do you want to know?”, she played along. “Do you fly everywhere you go just because you can?”, she nodded. “Do you use your powers for mundane things like frying an egg or baking something?”, she looked away. “I am not good at cooking Earth foods, but I do make the best Tamaranean dishes. I shall prepare them for you sometime”, she smiled again. “Is your body always that warm?”, she pouted as she thought about her answer. “Well, the cold only affects me when it is very strong. I do stay warm even in the snow”, she nodded. “You are amazing”, the words slipped out of his mouth but the smile on her face made him feel better.

“What about you, Jason?”, she moved closer to him, pushing him a little bit when she bumped her shoulder on his. “What do you want to know, miss warm princess?”, she looked away. Her eyes looking around as her mind tried to come out with an interesting question. “Where did you learn French?”, she asked, and he moved his head to the side. “When did I tell you about French?”, she shook her head. “You did not. I received it through the lip contact. I noticed when I read a sign in the museum and I could understand a word in French”. The lip contact, he thought. “My adoptive father taught me. I am also learning Chinese, German and Russian”, somehow he hoped she was interested in learning any of those languages. “What is an adoptive father? Is it a different father?”, Starfire looked back at him. “Well, when kids lose their true parents, sometimes they will get adopted by another father or mother, those become your adoptive parents”, he explained looking away, thinking about his own ‘true parents’. “Are they not real? Why are they not just your new parents? Or are they your k’norfka?”, Bruce wasn’t his real father to him, but he was to Dick, he thought. “I guess they can become just your parents with time, but we are not there yet. What is a k’norfka? Can I learn Tamaranean through lip contact?”, Jason frowned, and Starfire giggled.

“Jason… About the lip contact”, the alien princess looked down at her feet. “I am sorry”, he looked back at her when she said that. He wasn’t sorry. “It’s okay”, no it wasn’t just okay. “I was scared, and I just wanted to…”, she moved her head to the other side, away from him. “It’s okay”, no, again, it wasn’t just okay. “I do not even know what I wanted. I just felt scared and alone, but then I did not feel alone anymore”. Both teens stayed silent for a couple of minutes. “Starfire?”, she turned her head back and looked at him. “Yes, Jason”, he looked into her emerald eyes. He felt trapped in them. “Did you-“.

Before Jason could speak a loud noise broke the mood. Jason groaned, as he took his mask from the coffee table and put it on. He looked through the glass wall in front of them while he stood up. “There’s an elephant in the patio”, he announced. Starfire stood up. “My friends. We can’t let them take the diamond or know about the plan”, Starfire put on her utility belt, which was on the coffee table too. Red X put on his too.

The Titans walked to the door and knocked on it. “They are very polite”, Jason joked around. “Starfire, we want to talk”, Cyborg yelled. “That seems worse”, X replied. “Do you want me to make them go away?”, Starfire shook her head. “We have to get to Slade and give him the diamond. Take it, it is in my room. Then drive to Slade, I will distract them and then I will go with you”, Starfire pushed Jason. “Starfire, open up!”, Beast Boy yelled. “Are you sure?”, Red X asked and she nodded.

As Red X ran into Starfire’s room, she walked to the door and opened it. “Star, can we talk?”, Robin asked as he stood in front of her. “I do not wish to talk. Please, I need you to leave”, her voice was soft like it usually was. “We won’t leave, Star. We are your friends. If you need us, we will be here for you”, he continued. He sounded more like her Robin than he did back in the museum. “Come on Star, we know about Blackfire and Slade. We can take both down together?”, Cyborg tried to get her to let her guard down, but she refused once again. “I am warning you, stay away from me”, she stated firmly. “Starfire, you don’t want to hurt us. I can feel it. Whatever it’s going on, we will help you”, Raven tried to touch her arm, but the alien princess pushed her away. “You do not understand. I am not on your side anymore. I am- “, evil?

Once again, a loud noise interrupted their conversation. This time, the cause of it made Starfire shiver. Blackfire landed behind her teammates. “Hello, little sister”, the Titans got ready to fight her. “Don’t worry Star, we’ll take care of her”, Cyborg. “Didn’t you kids hear the news? I won’t have mercy on you”, the purple haired girl walked to the Titans, playing with the red emerald shaped diamond she wore in a necklace. “We won’t have mercy on you either”, Robin declared as the team got ready to fight her. “This will be fun”, Blackfire caressed the jewel but before she could fight the teens, her sister stood in front of her.

“Star, come on, we can take her”, Beast Boy said. “What is it, sis? I thought you wanted to be on the right side of history”, Starfire’s hands were shaking. “Are you trying to disrespect your queen?”, Starfire shook her head. “Are you and your human friend traitors?”, Blackfire’s eyes burned through her sister’s. “You mean Slade?”, Robin asked as he moved closer to the purple eyed girl. “Yes, do you want me to kill him after I kill them?”. Again, all eyes were on Starfire. “It is not that, I just wish to assist you. You should not waste your time with petty fights”, the red-haired princess explained, trying to sound as calm and collected as she could. “Interesting, sister”, Blackfire playfully smiled at the thought of what was about to come. Starfire looked back at her friends, they were confused. “Does that mean you are giving up?”, Beast Boy asked. “No, ‘dude’, that means, she is taking you down”, Blackfire laughed as she lifted herself up. “Come on, sis, show time!”, the older girl announced watching from above.

Starfire turned around, her powers weren’t ready to use, she didn’t feel anger, she felt fear, just pure fear. Red X saw her from inside the lodge as he was about to go to the basement. He couldn’t leave her alone, she looked like she needed help and she was there for him before, so he decided to be by her side now.

The door opened and Red X walked out. “Starfire remember the X”, he said, pointing to the clocking device in his utility belt. “Who is this? Is he your new boyfriend, sis? You are really into capes, aren’t you?”, Blackfire asked, still looking at the scene like it was some twisted horror movie made just for her. Red X stood back.

“I got it, get to Slade”, the Tamaranean princess stated. “Wait”, Robin yelled in his regular commanding tone. “What is going on, Star?”, was he finally asking what she wanted him to ask? “Why are you two working for Slade together?”, the masked hero asked, walking up to her. “Sister, I’m getting bored”, Blackfire booed. But lucky for Starfire, she felt the fury she needed building up slowly. “What did Slade offer you?”, Robin continued approaching her. “Why do you want to protect him?”, Starfire chuckled. She didn’t want to, but she did. “Robin is there anything else you want to know?”, the Tamaranean teen firmly asked. “Yes”, Robin finally stood in front if her, just a couple of steps away. “Have you been working for him ever since you came to Earth? Is that why way became a Titan? Did you help Slade get to me?”, the shock that appeared in her face while he made his questions quickly turned into anger. “How dare you insinuate that? I would never hurt you, Robin”, she quickly answered, her eyes fully lit up. “Well you have already done that”, did he mean the kiss? “How?”, she asked, her eyes going back to normal. “You are working with Slade, aren’t you?”, his tone, his frown, Slade.

Her eyes lit up once more and another explosion of green energy sent the Titans flying away. Red X, covered behind his cape and his mask hid the horror in his expression. He had never seen her like this.

“Yes, I am. I am working with Slade and serving my sister to take this planet. But the only thing you care about is Slade”, Starfire angrily yelled out her words. Robin and the rest of the team were getting back up slowly. Raven was the first one to approach Starfire, who had a Starbolt ready to blow in her hand. When the half demon touched it, thinking the alien would let it go, it hurt her. Starfire stood still, fear trying to break her again and many emotions did the same but for the first time she couldn’t allow herself to feel them.

A birdarang pushed her hand away, when Starfire tried to reach Raven’s. She looked back at Robin. “Starfire, this is your last chance. Stop it or we will have to take you down”, the leader of the team declared. The alien princess didn’t answer, she just looked at him, trying read his eyes, trying to guess if there was any way things could go back to how they were before. When did she care that much about him asking about the kiss? The real question she wanted to hear from him was the one was about to ask back at the lodge, at least she thought he would say what she wished for. But this was her last chance and also their last chance.

She could feel the tears building up and the fury flying away. No, no, no. Don’t. Not right now. She tried to focus on the anger, on the fury, but no amount of fury could wash over the pain she felt for just thinking about losing him. No, no, no. Don’t leave. Who was she asking to stay? Did she want him to stay or did she want the fury to stay? Too many emotions, her powers were getting weaker and she let her arms fall to the sides of her body.

“Star-“, Robin walked to her but a purple blackbolt pushed the masked hero to the ground. “Well, sister, if you are not taking the trash out, I will”, Blackfire announced, her eyes lit up and her hands glowing with energy ready to shoot. A birdarang flew to the older sister and before it touched her, Starfire blasted it with a starbolt. “Do not worry”, Starfire’s eyes started glowing up again as she flew to her friends and started shooting starbolts again and again.

Red X stepped back, shocked at the scene that was evolving in front of him. Starfire was winning the fight, her abilities combined with the the Red X suit were too much for the Teen Titans. One by one her friends fell to the ground, trapped in sticky Xs, electrocuted, out of order or just hurt. The last one standing was Robin, the one who she had been avoiding. Jason knew that this was a changing point for her but didn’t know if she would come out fine from it. He tried to join her, but Blackfire shot him a couple of blackbolts that he didn’t get to avoid.

Starfire turned around to see Red X wounded, she whispered her name in despair. Her eyes going back to normal. “No sidekicks for this one. Robin gets a pass”, Blackfire laughed at the expression on the masked teen as he groaned. Starfire’s anger was back, she was angry at Blackfire for hurting Jason and Robin caught it. He threw one of his smoke pellets to run away but Starfire followed him.

This wasn’t like him; he would never let his teammates on the ground and run away. The anger she felt for Blackfire was covered with worry that she now felt for Robin. What was he trying to do? She went after him, running just like he did.

Something hit her ankles and made her trip. Robin had made her run into the woods, used his Bola to trap her and she fell to the ground as she lost balance. “Starfire, what is this?”, he asked, and she looked up at him. “Why did you hurt our friends? Why are you letting Blackfire control you?”, he stopped himself, she noticed he was struggling to say something. “Why do you care so much about Red X?”, the question hurt more than anything she had taken to this day. And it hurt because she could feel the pain in Robin’s voice. “Do you care about him?”, she sighed when he asked her that. “I do”, she answered, freeing herself from the weapon he had used on her. “And…”, again he was struggling to talk. “Do you care about me?”, again, she felt like he had just shoot her straight to her heart. She couldn’t answer, she couldn’t fall for it. Not now.

“Star, did you become closer to me to help your sister and Slade?”, the pain she felt made her step back. If only she could say what she really felt. “I don’t understand what is going on. I wanna ask you so many questions. One minute we are hanging out on our first date, then you are kissing Red X and taking Earth. It doesn’t make sense”, he continued. “Make it make sense, Starfire”, she shook her head. “No, what? No, you don’t care about our team? About me? About us?”. Us? Again, he was referring to them as a couple. But they weren’t and now she felt like they never would be.

“I have to do this, Robin. It will make sense later”, she spoke up finally and he only grew more confused at her statement. “What does that mean?”. Starfire continued shaking her head. The teen boy got closer to her, close enough for her heart to start beating faster than it normally would and for her cheeks to blush. “Look, Star, I am not good with words. I am not the right one to ask you to open up, but I need you to. Please, Starfire”, his right hand went up to her cheek, caressing it softly with his thumb. “Robin, I cannot”, he put his other hand in her other cheek. “Yes, Star, you can do it”, she shook her head once more. “What can I do to make you trust me again?”, Robin was whispering, and it made her shiver. She knew what she wanted and finally she got it. His lips softly landed on hers and she immediately closed her eyes.

Time froze, or at least that’s how it felt for her. How soft, she thought as her lips danced with his. Sweet, she thought next as their mouths opened up just enough for them to taste each other. Warm, she thought as his arms wrapped around her waist pulling her closer. No, she thought as both let go of the kiss panting. He smiled, looking at her blushing face. “I am sorry for getting so obsessed with Slade. It’s just that he’s put you in so much danger and then he made me hurt you. I still can’t forget about it. I can’t forgive him for that”, his words healed her wounds and her teary eyes reflected how much she needed to hear him. “I trust you, Star, I will help you take Blackfire down. I will follow your lead and we will get our home back”, Robin’s voice sounded so reassuring, so calming and so safe. “Do you trust me, Star?”, he asked. “I do, Robin, I trust you and I-“, as she was about to pour her heart out a purple blackbolt shot Robin on the back, making him fall into her arms.

A/N: hey! hope you like the 7th episode. so blackfire’s finally in the story and she will be even meaner next time they see her. let me know your thoughts for this episode, any guess on what’s next? hope you are having a nice day/night.

Episode 8 spoiler: The Teen Titans were waking up, slowly sitting in their pods. Robin was standing up, holding his body against one of the pod’s walls. She quickly ran to her friends, followed by Red X. “Friends”, she whispered as she stood in front of Beast Boy’s pod. “I am getting you out of there”, she joyfully spoke, walking to the next pod: Cyborg’s. “I promise”, she moved to Raven’s pod. “We will have one more chance”, she stood in front of Robin’s pod. He came closer to her, his hands trying to reach hers through the glass, but they couldn’t touch. On the glass she also saw Red X’s reflection.

9 notes · View notes

alison-anonymous · 5 years

Text

flawsome bandits pt. 2 ♡ sonic

Flawsome Bar Fights

Welcome to part 2! Updates may be a little irregular as we progress back into the school year, but I assure you lovelies that I am hard at work on the next chapter! So for now, enjoy and let me know what you think!

Warnings - implication of sexual harrassment, LOTS OF FLUFF

♡♡♡

“Alright, if this is going to be a thing, there are going to be rules,” Tom began, attempting to keep his eyes on the road.

“You seem really familiar,” Y/n hummed thoughtfully, looking Sonic over once again and completely ignoring her father. Sonic’s green eyes grew concentrated as he looked the young girl over again for the hundredth time since he met her.

“You too! I feel like I know you from somewhere.” He tapped his chin quizzically as the two stared long and hard at each other.

“Will you two please pay attention? Good lord!” Tom cried. “If this is going to work, you will need to listen to me and do whatever I say one hundred percent of the time. Got it?”

“Whatever you say, Donut Lord!” Sonic smiled, eyes ablaze with excitement. Unfortunately, the cute nickname only pissed Tom off as he took his eyes off of the road to yell at the hedgehog.

“Would you stop with the ‘Donut Lord’? I have a name. It’s Tom, and that’s Y/n.” He motioned to the girl sitting behind them. She rummaged through the console and pulled out a pair of sunglasses.

“He already knows my name,” she laughed, earning a smile from Sonic.

“Well, my name is Sonic!”

“Sonic,” Tom nodded thoughtfully. “So you’ve been spying on my family for years, or specifically spying on my daughter?” He was slipping into overprotective father mode very fast. Y/n was about to stick up for the little hedgehog when he beat her to it.

“I mean, I wouldn’t have called it stalking. We were all just hanging out only no one ever knew I was there! Like when Y/n was driving your old motorcycle and she smashed into a tree!” He sighed dreamily, leaning back against the seat. “Fun times!”

“What? You told me a semi hit it!” Tom cried out in horror, trying to keep his main tunnel of vision on the road while restricting himself from smacking his kid upside the head. Y/n chuckled sheepishly and slowly lowered herself to hide behind the driver’s seat.

“I mean, I’m more so surprised that Crazy Carl was right all along,” she mumbled. Sonic nodded.

“You should call him Super Observant Carl instead.” At that, Y/n burst out laughing. It was an adorably creative name, and from all of her time spent hanging out with Crazy Carl and helping him set up his traps when none of the kids at school wanted to hang out with her, it didn’t take too long to notice that he did have a system.

“You’re funny,” she giggled, sliding the sunglasses back up onto her forehead to reveal her humorous e/c eyes. Sonic’s emerald-like orbs lit up like fireworks as a huge, dopey grin spread across his face.

“Really? You think I’m funny?” He asked hopefully, practically throwing himself on top of the console to be closer to her. Spending most of his time alone, Sonic was only ever used to getting compliments from himself. So the fact that someone thought he was funny, better yet a beautiful girl, sent him to cloud nine.

“Hey, HEY,” Tom scolded, pointing a finger at the blue hedgehog. “That’s still my daughter, buddy.”

“Dad, leave him alone,” Y/n sighed, poking his arm gently. How much sense would that make? A human and a hedgehog? Then again, she did have no origin story, no idea who or what she truly was. How was she supposed to know that she had been a human her whole life when she could barely remember who her real parents were?

“Oh my god, stop the car right now!” Sonic exclaimed, popping his head out the side window, the big grin still plastered on his face. He read off the gigantic touristing billboard sign as Tom drove past it. “The World’s Largest Rubber Band Ball, we’ve got to see it!”

“People really need to find some hobbies,” Y/n sighed, rolling down her window too so she could imitate a dog.

“No, this is not some fun family road trip-” Tom snapped, his sanity slipping out of his fingertips with every passing second. “The government wants to dissect you, arrest me, and possibly put Y/n in the mental institute. This is serious!” Sonic exchanged a bored expression with Y/n and in a flash, he was out the window. Before Tom even had a second to flip out, he was right back in the seat with three souvenir rubber band balls, a paddleboard, and a baseball cap.

“Eh, you’re right, it was lame. Gift shop was cool though! I got you a mousepad!” He held up a little white mouse pad reading ‘I love rubber bands.’ “And don’t think I forgot about you!” He winked at Y/n before handing her a surprisingly adorable bracelet made out of what looked like fragments of rubber bands. She couldn’t stop the heat that began rising to her cheeks as she slipped it onto her wrist, still trying to get over the amazement that he was thinking about them. “When are we going to get there?” Sonic smiled, pulling out the paddle board and hitting the ball repetitively as Y/n watched his precision in amazement.

“We will get there when we get there,” Tom sighed in frustration. A moment of silence fell over the three as they watched the scenery pass by. Y/n glanced between her father and the eccentric hedgehog and finally decided that if this little creature was going to be hanging out with them, then the least she could do is try to get to know him better.

“Hey Sonic, want to play a game?”

“Is that even a question? Of course!” In a split second, he was sitting next to her in the backseat, leaning towards her excitedly. Little did she know that he was fanboying internally just over the fact that she had talked to him in the first place. This was his dream come true! Getting to spend some one on one time with the Star Chaser! She was so beautiful up close.

“Okay, which game do you want to play? There’s Truth or Dare, 20 Questions, Would You Rather, I Spy, How Well Do You Know Me, and Russian Roulette but we don’t have any guns,” she sighed in disappointment. Sonic’s eyes practically had stars in them as he grinned wider.

“Let’s play all of them!” Tom groaned in the driver’s seat.

This was going to be a long ride.

♡♡♡

It was night when Tom finally pulled the truck in to a gas station, Sonic and Y/n still deeply indulged in a game of Truth or Dare.

“I don’t know, I still think that I’d be faster than the Flash. I was born with my powers, so I’ve had a lot more time to get used to them whereas his happened from an accident in his lab,” Sonic explained, flipping her sunglasses back up behind his ears. The two had gotten comfortable after the first two hours of games and had established what they deemed to be the most comfortable position: Y/n sat against the left side of the backseat and had her legs stretched across the seats while Sonic sat on top of her legs, using her shoes as a cushion. It was amazing how four hours of playing games with someone could bring them closer together. Over the course of the car trip, the two had been through every topic from their favorite television show to what the best way to get away from the cops would be to what they would name a hamster if they ever got one.

“Fair point,” Y/n nodded. “Respect.”

Tom put the truck in park and stepped out of the vehicle, causing the internal lights to turn on. The two sat up in anticipation, wondering if they were finally going to be able to stretch out their legs. Tom walked around the truck and stopped at the open window above Sonic’s head, leaning against it slightly.

“Alright, I’m going to go in and check on Wade. See if he knows what’s going on.”

“You’re going to see Wade in that glass thing?” Sonic asked, peering out the window over at the payphone. “What is it, a teleportation device?”

“It’s a payphone, Son,” Y/n gently explained. “I had no clue what it was either when I first saw one.” Tom glanced behind him at the device and sighed.

“It’s mostly for drug dealers and fugitives, which is us. Now stay in the car, I don’t want anyone to see him. Y/n, make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.” And with that, he walked off. Sonic groaned in boredom and leaned his head against the door once more.

“This is so boring! Is your dad always this high strung?” He asked, the poor lighting casting shadows across his fur. Y/n breathed in deep through her nose and watched as her dad stepped inside the phone booth.

“Not unless we’re in trouble, which we are right now. But he means well. When I was first found and brought to him and my mom as a foster kid, they were super patient even though I was a teenager with no clue how the world worked.” She explained, running a hand through her hair and placing Sonic’s baseball cap back on her head. He furrowed his brows in concentration.

“Wait, so let me get this straight - you were found wandering around in the woods and you have no memories of who you were or what you were up until that day?” She nodded sadly, and shrugged. His ears fell back against his head a little in sadness. “I’m sorry… Well, hey, how about we make a deal? I’ll help you try to figure out your backstory if…” He got a sheepish look on his face as he suddenly broke eye contact. “...You become my friend.”

Y/n’s eyes shot open in surprise. “Sonic,” she laughed softly, her gaze softening. “You’re already my friend.”

At her words, the largest grin she had ever seen found its way onto Sonic’s face as he lurched forward and tackled her in a hug. Laughing, she reciprocated the hug by wrapping her arms around his torso but making sure to beware of the quills.

“Thank you,” she heard him mutter soft enough that if she had been breathing any louder she wouldn’t have heard it. In response, she squeezed him a little tighter. Even though it was a little strange to be hugging a talking hedgehog, it felt familiar once again. Everything about this moment seemed familiar, like she had lived through it a thousand times before. Little did she know that the same thing was happening for Sonic too. As they pulled away, mouths both opening to say something about it, they were interrupted by the sounds of beer pong and Harley engines. The duo froze, eyes already beginning to fill with comical stars as they turned towards Y/n’s open window.

Sure enough, there was what looked like a raging party going on at the club next door. Bikers littered the front, the engines of their motorcycles spewing out licks of fire. Cheers and hollers could already be heard from the open door to the bar as people filed in and out in a constant motion. It was the coolest thing that either of them had ever seen.

“Oh my god,” Sonic breathed.

“Okay, okay, so that may just be the coolest thing that we’re ever going to see,” Y/n admitted nervously. “But we have orders. I have orders. From my dad. Who is also a cop. We have to stay in the car.”

“Right…” Sonic slowly raised his head above the door until just his eyes were peering through the window at the scene before them. It wasn’t long before Y/n followed in suit. They exchanged a nervous glance before looking back at the bar.

...Damnit.

♡♡♡

“Shit,” Tom swore as he stood before the empty truck. Of course this is what he got for leaving his very responsible teenage daughter with a train wreck of a hedgehog (whom he was starting to worry was developing… feelings for his daughter). He set down the drink carrier of food and beverages he had got and looked around the parking lot for any sign of the Bonnie and Cylde duo. Finally, his eyes rested on the bar next door. Bingo.

Losing most of his dignity as he walked through the door, Tom’s eyes scanned the room for the two kids until they finally found a strange couple sitting alone at a high top table. One was a girl wearing a cowgirl hat and a bandana around her neck while the other was significantly shorter than her with a hat, shades, and a bright red shirt that appeared to be three sizes too large. He frowned the entire way to the table, enjoying the panicked look on his daughter’s face as she saw him coming towards them and frantically tapped the hedgehog sitting next to her. He swiveled around in his seat and gave Tom the most innocent look he could handle.

“Well, howdy there, partner!”

“I’m not your partner. We’re leaving, come on,” Tom motioned his head towards the door, but Sonic had other ideas.

“But there’s a ZZ Top Cover band, c’mon, you’ve got to see their beards!” He exclaims. “And we even came up with the perfect disguises and backstories so we could get in without showing ID.” He held out his gloved fist and Y/n didn’t miss the chance to bump it, leaning cooly against the counter. Tom rolled his eyes.

“Good to know you’re taking this seriously. We’ll catch them some other time. Now, let’s. Go.” His tone was sharp, daring them to object. Luckily, that was what Sonic was best at.

"I promise that if you let us stay that I'll stay quiet for the whole trip! Starting now!" He clamped his mouth shut, proving his promise to be true. Tom glanced over at his daughter skeptically, and she sent him a reassuring smile just as a waitress wandered over to their table.

“Welcome to the Piston Pitt,” she mused, sporting a traditional cowgirl from the West outfit. “What can I get you fellas?” Sonic leaned towards her excitedly, pressing his hands on the table to prevent him from falling off the stool he was sitting on.

“Ooh! I want nachos and buffalo wings and guac! Lots of guac! Isn’t that a funny word?” He then began quacking like a duck, making Y/n chuckle next to him. The waitress furrowed her brows skeptically at the behavior, trying to figure out just what exactly she was looking at here.

“Umm, kids aren’t allowed in here,” she told Tom accusingly, eyeing Sonic up and down. “Is he wearing a mask or something?” Tom opened his mouth, about to defend him when Y/n quickly beat him to it, wrapping her arm protectively around the blue hedgehog in disguise.

“Excuse me, but that’s my husband you’re talking to,” she snapped, watching as Tom’s eyes practically exploded with shock. THIS was their excuse? “And he has a height condition, mind you! A skin one, too. It’s very tragic really, stunted his growth. Isn’t that right, sweetie?” Tom’s overprotective father rage came back full force as he watched his daughter look down at Sonic with a lovestruck look on her face that could have won an Oscar. How the hell could they think that anyone would believe an excuse like that? He watched with flames in his eyes as Sonic gave the girl a heartwarming smile and rested his gloved hand on top of hers, using the fakest country accent that Tom had ever heard.

“That’s right, darlin’. The face I was born with, the confidence I picked up along the way.” Shockingly, the waitress was dumb enough to believe it, nodding her head softly and smiling at the “couple.”

“They’ll have two Mello Yellos,” Tom sighed, watching as the waitress walked briskly away. He finally turned back to the two just as they hesitantly brought their arms back to their own bodies. Y/n’s heart raced excitedly in her chest as she glanced at her friend out of the corner of her eye, her head getting slightly confused from all of the emotions she was experiencing. Sonic’s stomach was full of butterflies as he cleared his throat, trying to distract himself from thinking too much about everything going on.

“You two are insane,” Tom tossed off his cap and sat down across from them. “You owe me one.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Y/n smiled sincerely, her e/c eyes gleaming at him from across the table. She knew that he was having a difficult time with the situation as a whole, and while she was doing her best to lighten the mood on things, no one could deny that the danger was ever present. He was just trying to keep them safe. Tom gave her a smile in return. No matter how much they quarreled and disagreed, she was still his daughter. Maybe not biologically, but they were one of the lucky ones to have accomplished that bond.

“I have never sat on a bar stool before,” Sonic gushed. “Look, it even spins!” He spun around in the chair so fast that his sunglasses were thrown off, landing on a pile of crushed peanut shells by some bikers.

“Having fun?” Tom asked sarcastically. “Check this off the bucket list, right Y/n?” The girl in question pursed her lips, tilting her head to the side in thought.

“Actually, inline skating behind a car went before watching a bunch of bikers search for stray peanuts in their beards, but who’s counting?” She shrugged. Sonic stared at her with wide eyes, amazed at the pure awesomeness of this girl.

“Wait, what’s a bucket list?” He asked.

“A bucket list is, uh, it’s a list of things that you want to do in your life before you, well, you know, kick the bucket.” Tom explained, scratching the back of his neck in an avoidance to say the word ‘die.’ Sonic’s bright green eyes lit up like a Christmas Tree at the idea of it. He was learning something new every minute he spent with these two.

“I’ve never kicked a bucket before, either! I have to make my list! N/n, you got a pen?” Sonic asked, swiping a notepad from one of the bartenders and returning back to the table just as Y/n pulled out a random LED light pen she didn’t even realize was stuck in her boot. The two humans watched as the hedgehog scribbled down line after line of things he wanted to do, giggling to himself along the way. The sight of it brought a soft smile to Y/n’s lips as she watched him write away. Never before had she had so much fun with someone, enjoyed being in someone’s company for so long. She had never really had a true friend before. Until now.

“Hey,” she gently touched his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

Suddenly, Sonic stopped writing. Y/n’s pen slowly lifted off of the paper as his expression began to fall, his green eyes that were once full of joy and excitement were now filling with sadness. Y/n felt her heart instantly drop, already feeling the desire to get that smile back on his face no matter what the cost.

“There’s so much stuff I’ve never done,” Sonic responded, sitting up straight. “And now that I’m leaving earth forever, I guess that I missed my chance…”

Y/n’s heart sank. In the big rush of things, she had completely forgotten that the whole point of this road trip was to find Sonic’s rings so he could leave the planet. No matter what the connection they had (even if it was just nostalgia), he wasn’t staying. He had to go…

Tom noticed his daughter’s expression fall as soon as the words left his mouth. He sighed deeply, glancing between the two of them. They were good kids, trying to keep things light hearted through the duration of this trip. And if Sonic wasn’t going to be on this planet for much longer, then the least that Tom could do was help him make those moments count.

“Well, I guess this is the kind of place where you can get a lot of living done,” he spoke, looking around the room. Sonic and Y/n looked up at him. “I suppose we could spare an hour.”

The two exchanged excited grins and turned back to the adult. “Really? You’re going to bucket list with me?” Sonic asked. Tom shrugged, smiling.

“Sure, why not?”

“You will not regret this!” Sonic promised. Y/n laughed, grabbing the list and reading over the first couple of lines.

“I’m pretty sure we will,” Tom sighed.

♡♡♡

In forty minutes, the three were able to knock out almost half of the things on Sonic’s bucket list. They started with country line dancing, which Y/n was shockingly good at (and made the two boys stop and stare in shock because they didn’t even know that she knew how to dance). Then they played darts and successfully managed to pop open ten cans of beer in less than two seconds. The bar even had a metal basketball hoop, so in order to complete a slam dunk, Y/n threw Sonic up onto the rim where he kicked the chain so many times that he established a new high score. And what kind of country-themed bar would the Pistol Pitt be if they didn’t have an electronic bull?

“Shit, shit, shit,” Y/n shrieked, clinging onto Sonic as he held on to what she assumed to be the withers of the bull. It bucked them around in circles, making Tom laugh from his point of view as the two struggled to hold on.

“Is this bull headless or does it have two butts?” Sonic asked.

“It’s best not to think about it.” Y/n laughed just as the bull’s tail hit her in the ribs. “Ow! Okay, that was rude!” She snarled as Sonic burst out laughing. About two minutes later, the duo got flung off of said bull by Tom and Y/n flopped around on the blowup floor.

“Seriously?” She groaned, placing her hands on her stomach. Tom chuckled next to her. After a couple more minutes had passed and Sonic managed to make some lady throw her drink in Tom’s face, the three sat back down at the high top to catch their breath.

“Nice work, Romeo,” Sonic laughed, wiping a tear out of his eye. Tom faked a laugh too, wiping off the rest of the alcohol from his face.

“Ha ha, having a good time?”

“Of course I’m having a good time,” Sonic cheered. “I mean, what could go wrong?” Something moving behind them caught Y/n off guard, and the moment she tilted her head to look she regretted it.

“U-um, Dad…” She whispered, staring with wide eyes as three very pissed off looking men approached them. Sonic spun around on his bar stool to face the friendly gentleman and plastered on a smile.

“Can we help you gentlemen?” Tom asked politely, but keeping a wary eye on the men. One of them was taking a very sudden interest in Y/n, so Sonic carefully nudged himself closer to her, just in case. The man in the middle with the surly face looked Tom up and down.

“We don’t like your kind around here.”

“And what kind would that be?” Y/n asked in confusion, leaning back slightly on the table in an attempt to rid herself of the putrid smell of cigarette smoke that came from their clothes. The guy looked down at her and Sonic, using the fact that he was standing to his advantage and gritting his teeth.

“Hipsters.”

Y/n had been expecting a worse insult, so she just shrugged, but Sonic took it as a severe offense.

“How dare you?” He muttered heatedly. Tom quickly held up his hands in surrender, sensing the high levels of danger starting to appear.

“Now, now, we were just leaving,” he began, but Sonic was quick to interrupt him, wagging one gloved finger. Y/n slowly shook her head at the hedgehog, trying desperately to send him cues to back down. The last thing they needed was a bar fight to top off the wanted signs that were probably being posted right now. Y/n watched in fear as Sonic gave them a “pop quiz” which she assumed was some great one-liner from a movie, and then knocked the guy on the head with one of Tom’s empty beer bottles. Unfortunately, it didn’t break.

“Darn,” Sonic muttered, flipping the bottle around in his hand. “That was supposed to work.”

“Son,” Y/n began to slowly rise from her chair, tugging on a stray lock of her hair nervously. “I think we should go…” Her friend, however, refused to give up as he continued to knock the burly man on the head with the bottle, not quite hard enough to break it. She watched with fearful eyes as the man’s face slowly contorted into one of anger. Tom quickly made his way over to Sonic just as the man pulled back his fist and went in for the punch. Sonic was quick to duck, unfortunately leaving Tom to take a full blown fist to his face.

“Dad!” Y/n’s hands flew up to her mouth as she watched her dad stumble back.

“I’m good, kid,” He reassured her. Then the best part of the brawl flung into action. People got bumped into other people, in turn pissing them off and causing them to find their fists a much better source of anger management than their manners. Sonic, overjoyed that he was now living through yet another thing on his bucket list, took a myriad of super punches at the man who punched Tom in the face, which only pissed him off more. Even Y/n, who had been a bit scared at first, was testing out her abilities by dodging the pedophiles littering the area and taking out some people that she couldn’t tell their gender. She was doing amazing up until the point where some very drunk, very scary-looking man with a teardrop tattoo under his eye and a mangled head of dreadlocks pinned her against the wall.

“Hey there, pretty lady,” the man chuckled. Y/n squirmed under his grasp, scrunching up her nose from the putrid stench of alcohol coming from the man’s mouth. Her heart began to race from the adrenaline filling her veins as her e/c orbs looked into the man’s black ones, void of any emotion. She refused to answer, desperately trying to wrangle herself free from his grasp, but he was much bigger than her and ultimately overpowered her. Y/n frantically looked around the bar for help, but Tom was busy trying to avoid getting hit in the face and Sonic was nowhere to be seen.

“L-let go of me,” she rasped, her limbs beginning to grow weak from the fighting. Then the fear began to set in.

People began slamming into one another, beer came crashing down from the sky, men got yanked up to the ceiling with elaborate wedgies, and bikers wearing bear heads crashed into the floor. Y/n and Tom smashed back into time in shock, shaking their heads a little and looking around at the chaotic room in shock. Everyone else was lying on the floor with some sort of injury.

Meanwhile, Sonic had just finished helping rescue Tom while he was running through the air in his own slowed down time slot. He pushed the man up to the bar and turned around to see what else there was he could mess with until his eyes landed on Y/n. She was pressed up against the wall by a very disgusting and uncouth man, a look of pure terror written on her face. His expression became overcome with worry as he raced over to her. The blue hedgehog practically threw the man off of her in a fit of what he assumed was rage (but quite honestly felt like jealousy) and grabbed a pitcher full of beer, positioning it just so so that once time came back to full speed that it would spill all over his head. He turned back to Y/n and pulled her by her hands all the way to the bar where a frozen Tom was still standing. After he had assured that his two favorite humans were safe, he screwed around with some other people a bit before zipping back to Y/n just as time fell back into motion.

“W-what just happened?” Y/n asked, wondering how she had gotten out from underneath that guy so fast. Sonic grabbed ahold of her hands once again and looked at her with concerned eyes.

“Are you okay? That guy was being such a jerk!”

“Y-you did this?” Tom asked in surprise. Sonic nodded rapidly, but his focus was still on Y/n. She slowly nodded, dumbfounded. What the heck had just happened? Did Sonic save her? She looked back down at the hedgehog that was still holding her hands. He did save her, didn’t he? Wow… the only guy that had ever saved her before was her dad, and that was when she was in danger of getting sued for crashing into someone’s chicken coop. He cared enough to save her. He didn’t have to do that, I mean, he barely knew her! But there was something about him… the way that he vibed with her, his excitement and ability to make any situation a fun one to be in. He made her smile and laugh. He made her feel like she actually belonged somewhere.

A small butterfly lifted up from its perch and began to flutter around in her stomach.

“So, should we get out of here?” Sonic asked, looking over at Tom for confirmation. The man in question nodded quickly, already picturing the amount of trouble they could get in.

“Yep, time to go.”

♡ a.a.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic the hedgehog movie #sonic the hedgehog 2020 #sonic the hedgehog x reader #sonic #sonic the hedgehog imagines #sonic the hedgehog movie x reader #sonic the hedgehog movie imagines #sonic x reader #sonic imagines

118 notes · View notes

onestowatch · 4 years

Text

Lynn Gunn’s Honest Portrayal of PVRIS’ Past, Present and Future Plus Details on New LP ‘Use Me’ [Q&A]

Did you know that quicksand cannot really sink your entire body? Hollywood renditions of this frightening occurrence showcase “Indiana Jones” type heroes desperately reaching for a branch or a vine to evade being swallowed whole by the muddy foe. In real life, however, quicksand is much denser than the human body–namely your torso and lungs. So, although you may sink to some degree, you’ll only be engulfed to about your torso region. That being said, to escape the hold of this mucky captor, you’re called to utilize, not a vine or a stick, but a natural aspect of yourself–in this case, the buoyancy of your torso and lungs. Doing so allows you to adjust your positioning so that you are on your back and are therefore more easily able to free your legs and eventually, yourself.

During moments of crisis such as this, it is not often that we think to use what comes most natural to us in order to overcome difficulties. However, as PVRIS frontwomxn Lynn Gunn discovered, tuning into your natural inclinations can be exactly what sets you free.

After battling debilitating health issues, anxieties, and multiple album delays, the refreshingly new album Use Me is here, and it has the empowered LGBTQIA+ artist plastered all over it. From the distinctively raw lyrics, impassioned vocals, dexterous commixture of that classic PVRIS Alternative Rock and new-aged Glitch-pop, and even a 070 Shake feature, this new album is taking everything we thought we knew about PVRIS to much higher heights. Use Me serves as the first release since Gunn followed her heart and came forward as the sole architect behind PVRIS back in March. After listening to all 40 emotion-inducing minutes of this cinematic project, it becomes clear that Use Me is so much more than an album, it is an unapologetic reclamation of power.

We were able to speak with Lynn Gunn before the release of the album and gather her perspective on this new era of creativity, utilizing her natural abilities for this new project, and even on supporting social justice causes.

All quicksand jokes aside, sink into this interview with Lynn Gunn below:

Ones to Watch: Although you’ve been making music for quite some time, this new era seems to be of a new bloom, not only for PVRIS, but for you. As you have stated, PVRIS is still very much a collective, but you have decided to shed the skin of “band culture” and from it emerge as the sole vocalist, lyricists, and creative director of PVRIS. How has that transition been on you all? Are people taking to it the way that you imagined?

Lynn Gunn: I didn’t really imagine anyone taking it any way, to be honest, it’s happening regardless of what others want to say or feel about it. It’s felt great personally and as a unit. I’ve seen mostly support but obviously, with anything, there’s always going to be people with the opposite. At the end of the day, this is what this is moving forward and works best for us, I know my truth and what this journey has been and looked like so far. I’ve seen so many insane and comical theories and conspiracies about the transition/negative comments… but ultimately I think anyone who decides to wastes their energy like that might find their life to be much more enjoyable if they channeled that energy back into their own life as there’s clearly a lack/wound somewhere within themselves. If that seems sprinkled with “shade”, it is, but I mean that with the most sincerity as well.

The saying goes “you can never really outrun yourself”, and from White Noise to Use Me, it seems that you’ve left a bit of a breadcrumb-trail leading us to this point. Although PVRIS has primarily been recognized as an Alternative Rock “band”, we can hear tiny glimpses of the sound that best encompasses PVRIS now throughout your entire discography. Was this glitch-pop, disco-esque sound something you were intentionally experimenting within your previous projects?

To be honest, this is always where I imagined PVRIS’s sound living and the type of production I’d heard PVRIS songs being told through. I think in the past I didn’t fully know how to communicate the little production nuances that would have taken some tracks from point A to B, there was also a fear (that I now regret having) about straying from the “rock” production/experiencing rejection from the “scene” we initially started playing shows and touring in.

For the most part, and I truly mean this, there really isn’t that much of a difference in the instrumentation and sonic choices of this album from the first two, it’s still a very even play of organic instruments and electronic/synths, it’s just being produced through a different lens that’s a bit cleaner, crisper and crunchier in some areas. It’s a new interpretation of the woodwork that’s always been there.

What has kept you motivated to continue creating and sharing your truth with the world?

That’s a great question because I go back and forth with that feeling sometimes… Ultimately seeing comments from fans/listeners and hearing everyone’s stories and ways that they connect to PVRIS’s music is the most motivating thing in the world. I also feel that no matter what type of obstacle course the universe wants to throw me through, I’m always going to be grateful for the bruises/lessons and always going to feel compelled to create and share those truths through music.

I understand you’ve run into a deluge of unfortunate health issues the past few years that have affected you and the band greatly. If you feel comfortable sharing, could you talk a little bit about these illnesses and the ways you have had to overcome the obstacles they brought forth to get you to where you are now?

Totally comfortable sharing! I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) about two years ago and then about a year ago was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. AS is an inflammatory disease that mainly attacks the lower back, hips, and ribs, but it can also manifest in a lot of other ways as well such as joint pain, chronic fatigue, and even eye issues. Sometimes when my AS is really bad, I can barely get out of bed or even roll over in bed. Over time, if not treated properly or managed, it can cause your vertebrae to fuse... I’ve heard that’s super rare though. Crohn’s is chronic inflammation in the digestive tract and is a little more embarrassing but pretty self-explanatory haha…

They definitely taught me (and by taught I mean forced me) to take time in caring for myself and caring for my body. Resting properly, staying in shape, eating super healthy, setting boundaries with work, etc. It’s also just made me really appreciative of the moments when my symptoms aren’t as bad/just happy to be alive and not have it worse. I’m determined to manage both diseases holistically and through integrative medicine, so far I’ve seen great progress.

Do you believe these difficulties aided in your journey towards this self-actualization that listeners are able to distinguish in this new era of PVRIS? If so, how/in what way?

Definitely! There are definitely some references to those difficulties in a few of the songs. I think outside of the music, it’s given a lot more self-love, strength, and patience. It’s also just created even more urgency to live my truth and to live it unapologetically in the way that I want, which naturally extends into PVRIS and the art that I want to make.

youtube

If you had to use one word to describe each album thus far, what words would you use and why?

White Noise - Freshman - everything was so new and exciting and there was so much eagerness with it, like a freshman walking through a high school for the first time haha.

All We Know of Heaven, All We Need of Hell - Bootcamp (haha) - creating it and touring it were both pretty hard experiences BUT incredibly strengthening.

USE ME - Upgrade - despite all the chaos around this release, this is the freest I’ve felt and the most confident I’ve felt about a PVRIS album.

All the visuals and music video treatments that you have conjured up have a strikingly symbolic and cinematic feel to them. However, the symbolism and tone of the music videos tied to Use Me seem to take on a different nature. Can you talk about this shift in creative expression?

Mostly just working with new collaborators (Yhellow, Katharine White and Griffin Stoddard). I feel a lot less precious about things (to a healthy degree) and much more open to letting others run with the concepts as they wish! So many fun new exciting perspectives have been able to shine through.

I know you are a film fanatic and dabble in cinematography. Do you have any staple films that influenced the creation of the last five music videos?

The Holy Mountain was a big influence for the “Hallucinations” video, as well as [for] “Old Wounds”. For “Dead Weight”, I was actually inspired by the opening credits to That 70’s Show and Saturday Night Fever haha.

In July, you announced that the album was being pushed back so as to allow the floor for the amplification of Black voices, and to generate events in support of Black Lives Matter. Do you believe artists have a responsibility to take steps such as these to create a better future, regardless of whether or not these issues directly affect them?

Absolutely. We all need to be educating ourselves and actively doing the work to demand and create change towards a future that’s equal and just for Black lives.

Fans have been clinging to the edges of their proverbial seats waiting for Use Me in spite of all of the justifiable album delays. If you could relay one message to all the fans who have been patiently waiting, what would it be?

Please enjoy/connect, be good to each other and please please please vote if you are able!

Who are your Ones to Watch?

DRAMA, Jax Anderson, HDBeenDope, Royal and The Serpent, Nikki Hayes, Kat Cunning and LEXXE!

#PVRIS #Alternative #Pop

23 notes · View notes

lifeonashelf · 3 years

Text

COLDPLAY

Let’s get this straight right off the bat: Coldplay is fucking terrible.

We all know this. Designating Coldplay as terrible isn’t a statement of personal opinion, it is an easily demonstrable fact. Just listen to them; Coldplay’s music proves the existence of Coldplay’s terribleness the same way that breathing proves the existence of oxygen. Surely, even the band’s staunchest supporters understand that their songs are pretentious, monotonous, and unimaginative—they’d kind of have to; I assume these people have listened to Coldplay, too. If you like music as superfluous as Coldplay’s, that’s totally fine. I’m not here to tell you that you shouldn’t, nor to convince you to stop listening to Coldplay (you can’t stop listening to them, anyway; no matter how hard you try to escape, wherever you go, Coldplay will find you). But they are unequivocally fucking awful, and I need to make that clear before we continue in case I end up saying anything courteous about them later. And, who knows? I may indeed find something positive to say about Coldplay—I mean, nothing comes to mind right now, but it’s going to take me a few hours to write this piece so it’s possible something will at some point.

Okay, so we’re all clear on Coldplay being fucking terrible, right? Great. But that isn’t the main reason I hate them. I appreciate plenty of terrible bands just as I appreciate plenty of terrible movies. Listening to a really shitty group is sort of like watching a cast of really shitty actors—though they clearly suck at what they do, there’s something oddly appealing about the charming naiveté they demonstrate by giving it the best go they can anyway.

For instance, since I was still filing most of my Warped Tour emo discs in my punk section when I began this venture, I never got around to writing about a band called Adair. If you’re not familiar with them, don’t worry about it; they only existed for a few years in the mid-aughts and their diminutive discography merely consists of a self-released EP and one full-length album, The Destruction Of Everything Is The Beginning Of Something New. Sonically, Adair were so amusingly prototypical of every baby t-shirt screamo band that was thriving at the time, they essentially sounded like they were parodying the style of music they played (although, to be fair, a lot of those squads did). But, Adair were absolutely serious, regardless of what stridently nasal heights the vocals reached, regardless of how faithfully their compositions adhered to their genre’s textbook page by page, and regardless of the sublimely ridiculous realms some of their allegorical angst lamentations ventured into (the line “lock me up in Guantanamo Bay and throw away the key” from the song “I Buried My Heart In Cosmo Park” may very well be the lyrical apex of their entire genus).

Adair’s music is so inane that it makes me laugh out loud when I sing along to it—but here’s the thing: I do sing along to it. I have probably played The Destruction Of Everything Is The Beginning Of Something New a hundred times from start to finish since my copy was sent to me to review for some website back in 2006, and I have cued up individual high(low?)points like “The Diamond Ring” and “Folding and Unfolding” even more times than that. As silly as they sound—and trust me, they sound very fucking silly—I still sincerely enjoy their tunes and have spent enough hours listening to TDOEITBOSN for it to possibly qualify as one of my favorite records ever. Shit, even writing about it right now makes me feel like hearing the disc, so I’ll probably end up blasting it in my truck tomorrow (ed. note: I actually did). If they ever decided to do a reunion tour, I would absolutely go see them, and if vocalist Rob Tweedie did that whole “hold the microphone out toward the crowd so they can finish the lyric” thing which every frontman in every band that sounds like Adair does at least a dozen times per show, I would totally be able to fill in each of those blanks and enthusiastically do so.

Sorry, we were talking about Coldplay. To recap, they’re fucking terrible.

Unlike a frivolous whimper-core ensemble like Adair, the most off-putting thing about Coldplay isn’t their music. They’ve actually managed to excrete a few tracks that I grudgingly enjoy over the years. However, sporadically releasing songs which don’t sound like they were specifically written for Gap commercials actually works against Coldplay in this instance. Sure, most of their output is noxious twaddle, but since they occasionally come across as a marginally decent band, their work isn’t awful enough to at least ironically appreciate it for being awful.

In fact, there’s absolutely nothing ironic about Coldplay—other than U2 and Radiohead (more on them in a minute), I can’t think of another band that seems to take itself as dreadfully seriously as Coldplay does. There isn’t a single lighthearted number in their entire catalog, and the demeanor of their music is so staid and cheerless that it’s hard to imagine the dudes ever cracking a smile while they’re making it. Their approach to songwriting is rigidly Pavlovian—when the music gets louder, ring ring ring, that signals the listener the *really* poignant part of the tune has arrived and cues them to emotionally salivate in kind—yet despite their calculated use of sonic dynamics to manufacture sentiment, the vapid and unspontaneous nature of the delivery saps their tunes of anything resembling genuine soul or passion. Even when thrusting through the more energetic tracks in their litany, the musicians in Coldplay always sound like they’re actively striving to not play their instruments too hard. The result is that they consistently deliver some of the safest and least edgy rock ever created, shaping their ethos around a formula so willfully tepid and cuddly that they barely qualify as a rock band at all. Coldplay aren’t quite the musical equivalent of plain yogurt (that would be Jack Johnson, an artist so comprehensively flavorless that even his name is fucking boring) but the granola in their mixture is always judiciously distributed so as not to agitate anyone’s tastebuds.

And at the center of this slow-motion kaleidoscope, you have Chris fucking Martin (I find it difficult to cite his name without including the “fucking” in there; he’s just one of those guys—like Jason fucking Mraz, Blake fucking Shelton, or fucking Bono). Coldplay’s music may be stagnant, but you’d never know it from beholding the practiced arsenal of slinky paroxysms their vocalist bursts into while that music is playing. In performance and in their videos, Martin’s appendages are incessantly in motion, his hands ever-swaying gently through the air like he’s waving a pair of invisible cigarette lighters or finger painting on the goddamn sky, ostensibly so deeply lost in his band’s reverie of sound that he simply can’t help himself from moving his body in a cadenced pantomime of the way their music is meant to superficially move your spirit.

For the three non-ballads the group has written in their career, Chris usually switches things up by crouching in an incongruous bobbing panther-stance like a battle rapper delivering a diss track about fucking his opponent’s mama in the mouth, until it’s time to freeze in the tried and true messiah-statue pose as the number’s final notes chime into the ether. But it is in the quiet moments when Martin truly shines—which makes perfect sense given that he’s the leader of a group so systematically anodyne they probably should have actually named themselves Quiet Moments. These are the obligatory interims where the frontman takes the stage on his own to sit down at the piano, resplendent in the spotlight, and perform an intimate solo rendition of one of his most tender hits to show everyone in the audience that Chris fucking Martin is a bonafide fucking musician who, if he really felt like it, could totally do the whole Coldplay thing without the other three dudes whose names no one knows. His soaring falsetto croon is custom-feigned for the arenas the band was destined to coldplay from the moment they dropped their breakthrough single “Yellow” and caused a nation of book-sensitive sociology majors eagerly anticipating the arrival of their generation’s U2 to cream their Dockers in unison. When Martin opens his pipes to summon those indelibly contrived choruses about birds and stars and other monosyllabic nouns, it hardly even matters what words he’s singing—the leitmotifs in most of the tunes are basically interchangeable anyway. What matters is that Chris sounds like he really, really, really means it when he says he will try to fix you.

That analysis probably makes it seem like I hate Chris fucking Martin as much as I hate his band. I actually don’t—he’s too benign a character to elicit such a fervid response; hating Chris Martin is like hating turtleneck sweaters, or actual turtles. In fact, I suspect he’s probably a really nice dude. At least, I’ve never heard any creepy stories about him showing his penis to under-aged fans on Skype or anything like that.

Regardless, while I don’t specifically despise either Martin, Dude Who Plays Guitar, or the other two anonymous members of Coldplay, I do gauge their collective as the fourth or fifth worst band of all time. And the reason I loathe them more than any of their neighbors on that list is because they aren’t the kind of prodigiously abysmal group you can just ignore until their moment in the spotlight inevitably passes—which is how I dealt with Five For Fighting from September 2001 through February 2002 and how I’ve been dealing with Twenty-One Pilots for the last four years (seriously, are you fuckers done yet?). Coldplay is a far cagier nuisance because they are massively popular and have been for a ludicrously long time. I’ve been patiently waiting for them to go away for two decades now, yet they continue to pop up every third summer or so to drop a new album and remind us that, yes, they’re still here assiduously mining the middle of the road for new ways to write more tunes about clouds being pretty.

Even worse, I can’t disregard their music because it’s everywhere. I hear “The Scientist” while I’m shopping for cereal at the grocery store, I hear “Talk” when I sit down to eat at any chain restaurant, and I imagine I’ll be viewing that idiotic video for “Adventure of a Lifetime” with the posse of animated dancing monkeys on an infinite Clockwork-Orange-eyes-gaping loop for the rest of eternity when my mortal essence exits this world and I am cast into the fiery pits of Hell. I can’t even watch football without encountering Coldplay, as I discovered with horror in 2016 when they took part in the most fatuous jumbled fucking mess of a Super Bowl halftime show the NFL had ever presented (a zenith of suckery which seemed impossible to eclipse until this past February, when Adam Levine showed up covered with prison tattoos and said, “hold my beer”).

The pervasive level of esteem Coldplay has reached dumbfounds me. This is a group that has sold millions and millions of albums worldwide, even though I have never once heard a single person utter the phrase, “man, that new Coldplay song kicks ass.” I’m sure their most dedicated fans have favorite hits, tracks that are significant to them in some way, etc. But their remarkable success is patently disproportionate to how patently unremarkable the work which garnered that success really is. Nobody ever describes the band’s music as “awesome”, just as nobody ever describes a glass of pinot gris as awesome—the term simply does not apply to their province; actually, in this case, describing the mouthfeel of Coldplay tunes and recommending cheeses they best pair with is probably more relevant than discussing how they sound. Coldplay is as universally popular as they are precisely because they aren’t awesome. They’re not beloved because they’re extraordinary; most people love them because they’re innocuous, functional, and suitable for almost any occasion—Coldplay is akin to a pair of cargo shorts, and no one thinks cargo shorts kick ass. Coldplay isn’t an alternative band (on the contrary, almost every good band is an alternative to Coldplay); they are a lowest common denominator band, undemanding and ubiquitous and safe to like because everyone else likes them. Their work is specifically geared toward people who think appreciating music demonstrates sophistication, but don’t ultimately give enough of a shit about the artform to put any effort into finding music that is actually sophisticated or appreciable. You may assume Coldplay is erudite because they’re British and they cite books you’ve never read when discussing the lyrical themes in their work, but they’re merely recycling the same emotional territory as every other pop act that writes tunes about finding love, losing love, missing love, and the 18th Century French peasantry.

The best thing about being a Coldplay fan is that it’s easy. You don’t have to buy their records, go see them live, or make any concerted effort at all to receive their music. If you listen to the radio for any extended period of time (or eat at an Applebee’s), you will eventually hear one of their songs; all you have to do is not hate it and, voila, you’re officially a Coldplay fan. There, don’t you just love the security of venerating a critically and commercially acclaimed band that will never challenge you or be unpopular?

Okay, I do strive to be fair—even in this arena where I can say whatever I want and no one can argue with me. I gave this a lot of thought, so here are four things about Coldplay that are not terrible:

1) “Clocks”: I resisted it for many years, but I finally had to concede that it’s kind of a pretty song. Notes of red currant and blackberries, and it goes superbly with a nice aged brie.

2) “God Put A Smile On Your Face”: It doesn’t put a smile on mine, but that’s why I enjoy it. Most Coldplay songs sound like they’re aiming to evoke what being hugged by a koala bear feels like, so I appreciate Chris fucking Martin delivering a darker number that seems intent on making me feel depressed instead. Well played, sir.

3) Viva La Vida, Or Death And All His Friends: I sincerely respect their effort to broaden their palate a bit by working with Brian Eno and making Dude Who Plays Guitar buy a distortion pedal to use on one song. This is still an archetypal shitty Coldplay record, but at least it sounds a little different than all of the other archetypal shitty Coldplay records.

4) Nah. They’re still fucking terrible; they were lucky to get three things.

There is one additional facet of the group’s career which has fascinated me over these past several years, even though it relates more to bands that are not Coldplay rather than the band that is Coldplay. Earlier I dubbed them the U2 of their generation, and recent events in particular have coalesced to underscore that comparison. See, when Coldplay came out, the tributes to their Irish brethren in choreographed affectation were far from subtle. Chris fucking Martin’s warbling was plainly modeled after fucking Bono’s, Dude Who Plays Guitar served up an endless cycle of repetitive but hooky high-register licks that were striking similar to the distinctive methodology of The Edge, and both bands’ workmanlike rhythm sections held things down with competent yet discreet backing tracks which militantly fulfilled each song’s basic requirements rather than showcasing the musicians’ dexterity. I don’t think anyone ever disputed the collective homage in Coldplay’s dogma, and no one was terribly bothered by it either; at the time there were a lot of people craving a band that sounded just like U2, because U2 didn’t sound like U2 anymore.

When Coldplay’s debut album Parachutes was released in July 2000, fucking Bono and company’s career was on a downward arc after they largely vacated their signature approach to instead craft a couple poorly-received discs dominated by insipid rave-lite tunes that not even the members of U2 listen to anymore. Though they would temporarily rebound later that year with “Beautiful Day”, the last honestly excellent song they would ever record, U2 had left a gap that needed filling. And the most obvious inheritors of their kingdom, Radiohead, had grown tired of anthemic guitar rock; they were hunkered down creating their demanding but exceptional opus Kid A, which sounded nothing like U2, nothing like Radiohead, and indeed nothing like any other music being made on planet Earth. Kid A still had some anthems, still had some guitar, and still had a little rock, but its oblique delivery clearly demonstrated that Radiohead was chasing a far different muse and had little interest in claiming the crown (of course, this would be abundantly clarified in hindsight when they subsequently slid further down their rabbit-hole, gradually abandoning the anthems and guitars and rock altogether, until finally settling upon their current songwriting formula, which seems to mostly involve Thom Yorke masturbating on his laptop, naming ten of his climaxes, and calling it an album).

So while U2 were busy trying to figure out why they weren’t relevant anymore and Radiohead were busy doing whatever the fuck they were doing, the lads in Coldplay stepped up and said, hey, why not us? They seized the ersatz-earnest arena rock mantle with A Rush Of Blood To The Head and never looked back. Now, 17 years and seven multi-platinum albums later, they can ruin the Super Bowl, collaborate with the Chainsmokers, and even make the same kind of lameass dance music that essentially buried U2’s career with impunity. Even more significant, they have come full circle. A group that started out playing second-rate U2 facsimiles under the moniker Pectoralz (this is absolutely true, by the way) is now one of the hugest pop institutions in the universe, beloved by millions of music and wine connoisseurs across the globe. And the student has eclipsed the teacher; U2’s desperate efforts to play catchup have made their modern work sound unmistakably like second-rate Coldplay facsimiles. Chris fucking Martin and those other three guys are no longer pretenders to the throne—they are Coldplay, and this is their empire now, bitches.

These days, U2 has to reprise their old records in their entirety on nostalgia tours to get anyone to come to their concerts, and Radiohead continues to release unlistenable albums which their fans claim to love while sheepishly casting them aside to listen to OK Computer for the thousandth time instead. But Coldplay has strategically situated themselves for an eternity as the undisputed emperors of rock mediocrity. I think they’ve got another two decades in them, too; I have no doubt that long after Twenty-One Pilots is (finally) relegated to the county fair circuit where they belong, Chris fucking Martin will still be promising sold-out crowds that lights will lead them home and having a series of polite, gently-articulated seizures while he sings “Speed Of Sound”.

It seems I respect Coldplay a little more than I suspected. You know what? I’m going to amend my original valuation right here and now. As of this moment, I am formally designating Coldplay the sixth worst band of all time.

Your move, Godsmack.

May 15, 2019

2 notes · View notes

alchemy-fic · 4 years

Text

DELETED scenes from 88 and 89

The doorbell rang.

“MARI, who is it?” Eggman called.

“It’s… it’s your mother and she looks very upset.” MARI answered. “Do I enter lockdown mode?”

“Uh, no.” He escorted the Mobians to the operating room to wash up. He ran to Sheptilah and took her hands in his. “Please. Please be nice to Mama. She’s very abrasive but the sooner you meet her the better. It’s like ripping off a scab. She’ll leave on her own when she gets bored.”

“How bad can she be?” Tilly asked.

Eggman pulled her into the elevator and got off on the ground floor. “Just promise me you won’t hurt her and you’ll be patient.”

“Of course, Ivo.” Tilly cocked a brow.

“MARI, I want all the robots to treat Mama with respect. She’s still family so no blasting her, got it? Just keep her happy.”

“Yes, sir.” MARI answered.

Eggman threw open the door.

Before him stood a shorter, heavy set woman with the same luxurious mustache as her son. Her pink and white dress did not match her oversized teal church hat or her black pumps. She had the same black sclera and red irises as her son and spoke with a deep, booming voice. Her lipstick was expertly applied as was her eyeshadow. In her hand she carried an old, beat up suitcase.

“Mama!” He said through a forced smile.

“Why didn’t you invite me to your wedding, you slime bucket!? Just when were you going to tell me you got married!? ” She hollered. “I had to find out in the Mobius Home For Really Bizarre Mothers from some river rat’s bubbie that you got hitched! Is this the girl?” The woman spat.

“Mama, this is Sheptilah, my wife.” He gestured at her.

“Why does she look like Cher but with the colors inverted? Did you marry some dirty hippie? You didn’t even ask my permission to marry someone! How do I know if she’s any bad for you?”

“Mama, you will be pleased to know that Sheptilah is a queen .”

“Oh, that explains it. You married a goth queen. Who else would mix black lipstick, heavy black eyeshadow and white hair?”

“I’m wearing kohl.” Tilly crossed her arms. “It’s my custom, I’m not goth . My people never invaded the Roman empire.”

“... Not visigoths , girl.” Mama looked at her with a furrowed expression, one eyebrow cocked. “It’s like you aren’t… from this time. Nobody calls it kohl anymore...”

“She’s a real queen… It’s a nation near Iran.” Eggman interjected.

“Oh, great . Why haven’t you taken over the world or gone to war? However many goats he traded for you it was too many, little girl.” She blew past the couple and trudged into the kitchen to fix herself a snack.

Eggman looked at his wife apologetically.

“That is not abrasive.” She hissed under her breath. “That’s virulent . Also, I’m worth many, many goats.”

“I’m sorry. I love you, but please handle her until I’m out of surgery. I’ll make it as quick as possible.” He trotted after his mother.

Sheptilah took her time following them.

“Mama, I’m about to go help perform surgery on someone upstairs. In the meantime my wife and the robots will take care of your needs.”

“I didn’t raise such a wuss. Go, do your totally real surgery thing. I’m sure it’ll be all your robots and not your own handiwork.” She popped open a soda and guzzled it.

“Mrs. Eggman…” Sheptilah said, watching her husband leave the room.

Ivo winced and broke into a sprint.

“My name is Sylvia Robotnik! My slimeball of a son changed his last name years ago because he was ashamed of our family name.” She tossed the empty can over her shoulder.

“My apologies, Mrs. Robotnik.”

“You, girl, will call me Madam.” She piled on random ingredients to make a giant, disgusting sandwich.

“Right, sorry.”

“So if you’re a queen why do you live here in this dump?” She knocked the refrigerator door closed with her hip, making the appliance rattle.

“Truthfully,” she hesitated, “I am a five thousand year old queen and my kingdom doesn’t really exist anymore.”

“Of course you are. So why would my loser son marry you? Oh, no. Did he knock you up?”

“Ivo is not a loser,” Tilly grit her teeth, “And I am not pregnant.”

“He’s a loser, sweetheart; but you’re avoiding the question. Why would he marry you? ”

“Because he loves me?”

“Ivo doesn’t know how to love! I didn’t raise him to be sappy and sentimental! And what’s he trying to pull by being buff now?” She sat down to eat.

Sheptilah picked up the can and put it in the recycling bin.

“How are you even that old?” Sylvia practically ate the entire sandwich in one slobbery bite without chewing.

“I’m a witch and I was kept in a crystal for five thousand years until Ivo stumbled upon me and brought me home.”

“Oh, I see. You don’t have much experience with men! That’s why you decided to tie the knot with my loser son.”

“Madam, I think you don’t understand. He’s built himself an empire and controls almost every continent from right here in this lair with his Egg Bosses. He’s a literal emperor. He has a base on the moon . The moon!”

“So? What has he ever done for his mother?”

Tilly groaned in frustration. She balled her fists then relaxed. “Do you just not like me because I’m brown-skinned ?”

“What? No, I don’t like you because you’re a hippie! Look at you recycling and cleaning and whatever else it is you do. I bet that ugly garden out back was your idea.”

“Hmm…” Sheptilah mulled this over. She switched gears.

“What?”

“I think you would like something to eat, yes? I make great honey cakes.”

“How good of a cook can you be? You are a string bean.” Sylvia looked her over suspiciously.

Sheptilah summoned a plate of piping hot fried dough and a pot of honey. She drizzled the golden liquid over the cakes and slid it toward Sylvia.

“I am a woman of many talents, Madam.” Sheptilah then summoned gold coins into her hands and turned them into brilliantly cut gemstones. “Your son and I have plans for world domination, we are just busy with other things at the moment.”

Sylvia pushed the plate away. “Parlor tricks. Not very impressive. I’m growing bored with you, girl.”

“Well, what do you want to do?”

“I want to level this whole island to build a poorly designed parking lot with a ton of toll booths, for one. Then I want that stupid hedgehog caught and killed.”

“Are you talking about Sonic?”

“Yes! That pest! Always interfered when I tried to help my son get ahead in life. Do I smell cookies?”

“Yes, right this way.” Tilly escorted her to the dining room. “I made this tea myself.”

“Brew a fresh pot! I don’t know how long this has been sitting out here; and I want more cookies!” She practically inhaled the plate of leftover madeleines. “Don’t get any of your gross hair in them, either.”

“Right away,” Tilly left for the kitchen with the teapot. She washed it out and gathered some ingredients for a different brew.

Lavender, bergamot, catnip and lemon balm were added and boiled to extract flavor. As she poured the strained, boiling tea into two cups she whispered into one.

“ This tea as it passes lips, shall cause exhaustion with each sip. Every flavor strong and steep shall

curse the drinker into sleep. ”

Faint sparkles appeared as she blew across the tea. They disappeared and both cups looked identical again. Sheptilah turned the cursed tea cup so that the handle pointed inward and she could tell the difference.

She used magic to summon new cookies and brought them to the table.

Sheptilah placed the teacups on the table with a click and slid the cursed one to Sylvia.

The woman picked up the warm cup in her hands and inhaled deeply. “Smells awful!”

Sheptilah waited patiently for the woman to sip her tea but Sylvia lingered on her cup. “You’re a witch, right?”

“Yes.”

“Can you read tea leaves? I want you to read my fortune.”

“I can read tea leaves.”

“Well, go get some so you can do that!” Sylvia put her cup down but kept her hands on it.

Sheptilah groaned and got up. She retrieved some tea leaves in a slotted spoon and came back. She tipped the leaves into Sylvia’s cup and set the utensil aside.

“What’s in this junk, anyway?” Sylvia took a sip and yawned. “The aftertaste isn’t bad, at least.”

Sheptilah smirked. “Bergamot, lavender, you know… tea stuff.”

Ivo’s mother rested her elbow on the table and leaned her face against her palm, sloppily swaying the

cup back and forth as if she was aerating wine. She watched the tea leaves spin in the vortex she created.

“Feeling tired?” Tilly asked in a somewhat antagonizing voice. Sheptilah sipped her tea primly.

“Yes, it was a long trip up here.”

“That’s too bad.”

“It is, isn’t it?” Sylvia grinned mischievously and guzzled down the rest of the drink. “You’re too pretty for my son.”

“Hmm?”

“You’re too pretty . You’re outrageously skinny, your hair is too long and you wear nice clothes. You’re too pretty for him.”

“Do you mean to say I’m too feminine?”

“Too fragile in looks but not personality.” She shot a pointed look at Sheptilah, a broad and evil smile drawn across her face. “I figured you’d try to poison me.”

Tilly stiffened up. She felt her chest grow warm and her eyes become heavy.

“I’m immune to all that from years of eating hospital food but I switched the cups just in case .”

Sheptilah’s hands went numb. She dropped the cup and it shattered, spilling its cursed contents on the table. Sylvia stood and walked around toward the prone witch without letting the tea touch her.

“Ivo may be an idiot but he’s my idiot and I know my idiots. I know he’d never settle for anyone who wasn’t as smart and conniving as him; but I’m disappointed with how weak you are. A garden, recycling, being clean and nice? It’s disgusting in all the wrong ways! If you really knew what you were doing you'd have cursed both cups.”

“I eviscerated Katella.” Sheptilah muttered. "I can and will kill you , too."

“But you healed her and look what happened.” Sylvia pointed to the missing finger.

“How do you…”

“I have access to and read the EggNet, sweetheart.”

“How?” She struggled to stay awake.

“My son is predictable and never changed his passwords.” Sylvia gingerly brushed Sheptilah’s hair out of her face. “Are you dying?” The leaves stuck in her teeth made her smile look all the more menacing.

“No… It’s… sleep...”

“Too bad. Don’t worry, I won’t kill you.”

KORin entered the room. “Step away, Sylvia.”

“What the Hell are you supposed to be?” Mama Robotnik rested her hands on her hips. “Some kind of maid bot?”

“I’m the bouncer. It’s time for you to go.” KORin fixed her eyes on the woman.

“Nah, no thanks.” Sylvia walked up to the robot. “Stand down, tin woman.”

“My orders are to protect the family. I am here to protect the empress. Leave.”

“See, that’s the thing. Who is higher up on the rung? The emperor or the emperor’s mother?”

“KORin… it’s okay.” Sheptilah shut her eyes. “It won’t last… long…”

“Are you sure?” The robot stared at the witch.

“Yessss...” She passed out.

“So? What are you waiting for?” Sylvia stomped her foot. “Let’s move the body and get started on world domination!”

An hour into the surgery things were well underway and proceeding fine.

“Doctor Eggman?” Smiley looked up from his work when he saw the human move oddly out of the corner of his eye.

The human swayed on his feet. “Maybe I was not ready to come back…” He sat on the floor away from the operating table and rubbed his temples. “Suddenly I’m exhausted.”

Lourdes jumped down and checked him over. “When did you last eat?”

“Not that long ago.” He answered.

“Stay here for a minute, okay? Until you feel better.” Lourdes went back to monitoring Maw’s vitals.

“This surgery is going to take at least five hours and I need you awake to supervise. Remember, if the cybernetics malfunction we could all get sucked in! That sounds terrible.” Smiley dug around in Maw’s gums.

Eggman shook it off and stood. “I’m fine, I think I just had some kind of blood pressure drop. It only lasted a spell.” He stretched until he heard the joints in his spine pop.

“Neurally mediated hypotension!” Smiley looked up. “You were standing still too long hunched

over and watching us. Walk around the room a bit, you’ll feel better.” The corgi went back to his work.

“Wakey, wakey… your mother in law is ka-ray-zee.” Scourge shook the witch by the shoulders.

Sheptilah snored loudly.

“For God’s sake, lady! What happened?” He lifted her by her hair and slapped her face.

No reaction.

“I wish I could sleep like the dead.” Scourge slapped his own forehead. “The living, I wish I could sleep like the living… Oh, fuck.” He noticed the cursed tea twinkled oddly in his vision.

“Fuck! Fuck. How do you break curses… shit.” Scourge wiggled his fingers in her direction. “Abracadabra!”

Nothing.

“Um... what did she fuckin’ say once?” He muttered to himself. “Hex breaking… it was some stupid bullshit…oh! Cayenne pepper! Anything fuckin’ spicy.”

Scourge floated into the pantry and knocked ingredients over haphazardly. When he found the pepper he grinned. Grabbing it, he tried to fly out of the pantry only to get stuck with the pepper not passing through the door.

“Shit!” He struggled to pull it through, the bottle clanging against the metal. “Come. The. Fuck. On! Why does this work with people but not…”

The plastic bottle pulled through but without the powder inside inside it.

“Pepper. Right… that shit wards off ghosts. There must be no ghosts in fuckin’ Mexico...”

He calmly opened the pantry and tried to scoop up the pepper but it simply passed through his fingers.

“This is so fucking stupid!” He howled.

He angrily floated to the table and picked up Sylvia’s unbroken teacup and poured it out onto the floor. He then went to the pile of pepper and tried to scoop it into the cup with the same fruitless results.

“Fine, we do this the hard way!” He grabbed Sheptilah by the underarms and dragged her to the pile and dropped her face directly into it.

He glowered when he heard Sheptilah snore loudly. After a second the witch sat up sputtering. She clawed at her face, tears streaming from her eyes and mucus from her nose. She vomited up the sparse contents of her stomach.

Scourge calmly walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of milk. He unscrewed the cap and doused Sheptilah over the head.

“What the Hell, Scourge!?” She choked.

“I just saved your ass, Sleeping Beauty. You’re a real idiot for trying to play the evil queen by cursing her tea. You should’ve cursed both cups and not drank from either!”

Sheptilah felt her way to the sink and washed her burning face. “I’m going to become a necromancer just to bring you back to life so I can slap you to death.” She sloshed some water in her mouth before spitting it out.

“The pepper got into my lungs!” She coughed deeply.

“You’ll heal. Listen… your mother in law is nuts! Nuttier than squirrel shit! Kick her out!”

“Scourge, I can’t breathe. I’m tempted to turn my lungs inside out and run them under cold water…”

“Wouldn’t that make you drown?”

“I can give myself gills!” She spat up a huge wad of phlegm straight into the sink and washed it down the drain.

“It’s the only way I was able to break the spell, ya ingrate.” He crossed his transparent arms.

“Thanks.” The burning began to subside. “What’s Sylvia doing?”

“Trashing the place. She’s already bossin’ Orbie and Cubey around and threw around a bunch of furniture; including the sofa.”

“The really big and soft one?”

“Yep.”

“I’ll have her head!” Sheptilah charged off, bumping into things with her eyes red and bleary. “Sylvia!” She called.

“I told you to call me Madam!” The woman shouted back. “I’m in the den, if you could call it that!”

Sheptilah walked in to see Sylvia moving all the heavy furniture around with one hand.

Holy shit, she thought. That woman has the same strength as Ivo!

“So what happened to your kingdom, anyway? If you were a queen we should use this to our advantage.”

“Advantage for what? World domination?” Tilly crossed her arms. Scourge appeared next to her.

Mama Robotnik let the sofa land with a hard thud. It was moved to the other side of the room blocking an exit.

“Giant parasites we sealed in the moon broke out when your son cracked said moon in half with his nonsense. They’re back and trying to kill everything but especially me. They’re causing all those wild earthquakes.”

“That’s your story?” The woman turned to Sheptilah and stared at her with disbelief.

“It’s true.”

“And how exactly has this prevented you two from taking over the world?”

“Well, we can’t take over a planet if something actively trying to destroy it is in our way. Once we get rid of those things we will decide what we want to do with the empire; but I won’t lie. I am considering expanding it.”

“By how much?” Sylvia cocked a brow.

“I want to convert my pyramid into a base and work on getting a large space station going.” Tilly nodded to herself.

“Small potatoes. Think bigger! Hold the sun for ransom!”

“He tried that once and it didn’t quite work out.”

“Moon for ransom?”

“He already tried that, too.”

“What about all the freshwater for ransom?”

“Eh, pretty much did that.”

“The planet for ransom!”

“Yep. He did that. That one almost worked.”

Sylvia flopped onto the sofa with a disgusted sigh. “But the hedgehog got into the way.”

“Among other things.” Sheptilah stuck out her hip. “Ivo is smart but he often does things without thinking. It’s really not that hard to kill Sonic, he just doesn't want to.”

“See, that’s his problem! He has no killer instinct, but you seem to have a semblance of one.” Sylvia sat up and straightened her hat.

“I have personally executed six people.”

“One of which being the child ghost that is making faces behind your back?” Mama Robotnik smirked.

Sheptilah whipped her head around to see Scourge was acting cute and innocent. She squinted at him before turning back to face Sylvia. “I’m not proud of his death. He’s haunting me.”

“Neener neener nee-nee!” Scourge teased. “Nah, the haunting was revoked forever ago. I’m just here for fun now.”

Mama Robotnik stroked her sizable mustache. “Still, why would my son marry you? More importantly, why wouldn’t he tell me? ”

“Because it was supposed to be a secret . We eloped. We’re not going public with the marriage until a later date. Trust me, he’d invite the world to come see his splendid wedding and get himself decked out and all that.”

Sheptilah sighed, tapping her upper arm with her fingers.

“We’re on thin ice with GUN because Shadow the hedgehog is my familiar, as you probably know.”

“Shadow? ” Sylvia thought this over. “ Gerald’s Shadow? I remember when he was this big.” She held her hands apart by about a foot. “He was an ugly baby. He looked like a turd crossed with a raisin.” She grimaced.

Tilly chuckled. “Yes, that Shadow. I guess not everything is on the EggNet.”

“They executed Gerald, his creator, and Shadow works for GUN anyway?” Sylvia grit her teeth and her face turned red with fury.

“Yeah, after they kept him in stasis for fifty years, destroyed his memory and tried to kill him.” Sheptilah shook her head, “I have a feeling he won’t work for them much longer. GUN really, really hates that he’s my familiar but recognizes they can’t do anything about it.”

They stared at each other in silence for a while.

“So who is my son performing surgery on upstairs?”

“Maw the thylacine. He’s one of the Egg Bosses. His jaw is all messed up.”

“Bah, when will he hire more humans? Who needs animals when you have human beings around? Besides you, of course. You barely count as a human; what with your alien magic nonsense and all that.”

Sheptilah rolled her eyes. “Well, it was nice having you for a visit but now you need to leave. We’re getting ready to bug bomb the place once Ivo’s done with the surgery and no living person can be here.”

“Oh, please! This place is spick and span! Clean as a whistle! It’s disgusting, really.”

“Madam... “

“Take my suitcase.” Sylvia threw it at Sheptilah. She barely caught it, the impact knocking the wind out of her. “And get the master bedroom ready. That’s where I’ll be sleeping. You and my moron of a son can sleep outside in your hippy garden.”

“He is not a moron.”

“He married you , didn’t he?”

Tilly adjusted her grip on the suitcase. “Scourge?”

“Yes?” The ghost smirked.

“Take this… and show her to her room.” She handed the spirit the luggage. Scourge understood and grinned at Sylvia.

“Right this way, Your Disgusting-ness!” Scourge bowed in a grand but obviously sarcastic gesture. He grabbed Sylvia with his free hand and dragged her through the walls and out of the lair.

“Don’t let her back in.” Sheptilah instructed MARI. “Please reactivate your and your sister’s bodies.”

“Thank God for you, mom.” MARI chirped.

Scourge came back, very proud of himself.

“Thank you, King Scourge. Fantastic work.”

“I love throwing people out on their asses.” he ‘dusted’ off his hands. “As long as spicy pepper isn’t involved I can do anything I want.”

“You may outgrow that cosmic ‘allergy’ as you get stronger.” Tilly giggled. “But you’ll always be affected by blessed salt.”

“I’m fucked if I ever go into a salt and pepper store.” He gestured like he was hanged with a noose.

“MARI, how’s the wife doing?” Eggman said.

“She and Scourge just kicked your mom out.”

“It’s nice they’re getting along.” A pause, and then: “Wait, what?”

The lair rumbled.

“Jeepers creepers!” Smiley yelped. “Earthquake?”

“No, that would be my mother.” Eggman sighed. “Finish up with him; I’ll be right back.”

He hurried out of the room.

“Sylvia!” The witch howled. “Put down the boulder!” She stood in front of MARI and KORin with her arms out protectively.

The hulking woman held the giant chunk of outcrop she broke over her head with little effort.

“No! You will learn some manners!” She broke the boulder in half simply by pulling it apart like stale bread.

“What kind of Mickey Mouse physics is that!? ” MARI cried.

“Girls, go back inside.” Tilly whispered harshly.

“No way!” MARI refused.

“You can’t do anything, MARI. It’s forbidden for you to hurt his family and unfortunately that’s family!”

“But we can still defend you.” KORin said.

“Do so from inside the lair. Maw’s still in surgery and he needs the protection. That’s an order!” Tilly ran in zig-zags, making it hard for Sylvia to aim the rocks. The robots lingered in the doorway before going inside.

Mama Robotnik threw both stones at the same time, both just barely missing the witch.

Sheptilah looked up at the shadow darkening over her body. It was Mama Robotnik coming in elbow-first with a wrestling slam. Sheptilah, eyes wide, stared up for the split second it took for gravity to pull the massive woman downwards. All at once the air was knocked from Tilly’s lungs and she was seeing stars.

The acrid smell of sweat and cheap perfume was all she could sense. Mama Robotnik stood up and

trotted off to pick another boulder to hurl.

Sheptilah, dazed and unable to focus, was sure she was flattened like a piece of paper. She felt the back of her head, noting her skull was cracked open and chunks of bone floated in brain matter. Warm blood streamed from her nose. She touched her forehead with her fingers, feeling the indent caused by Sylvia’s elbow.

Another shadow descended upon her. She flinched, believing it would be another blow but instead nothing happened.

Small stones fell around her with an almost hollow clatter. She looked up and saw it was her husband who had just punched the boulder to smithereens.

“Mother!” He shouted angrily.

Shadow teleported in with a massive headache. “Ti-ti! Sorry I’m late; I came as soon as I felt something was off.” He didn’t seem to be too shaken by the image of his witch with her brains out and about. She healed just as quickly on her own.

“Hi, Shads!” She said dreamily.

“She was rude!” Sylvia said petulantly. “I had to show her who was boss.”

Ivo’s fist throbbed. “You need to leave, Mother.”

Shadow turned to Eggman. “Do you want me to kill her?” He started toward Sylvia.

“Maybe.” Eggman said. “Open a portal to some place far away, if you please.”

Sylvia protested. Screaming nonsense, she charged at her only son.

Shadow slashed at the air and opened a knot to a mostly deserted beach.

Ivo picked up his mother, held her over his head and unceremoniously tossed her in. He chucked in her suitcase after.

Shadow closed the portal and helped his witch to her feet.

“Where’d you send her?” Ivo asked.

He shook off his headache. “Coney Island, New York.” Shadow smirked.

“This is the second time my brains were on your lawn, Ivo.” Sheptilah frowned.

Ivo looked at his aching fist and saw his glove was torn and bloody. He walked over to his wife and held her tightly. “Why weren’t you fighting back?”

“It’s hard when your brain is trying to reconstruct itself…” She shuddered. “Thank you for… saving my life.” The full horror of what occurred finally hit her and she stumbled.

He caught her and kissed her cheek. “I’m so sorry I had to leave you with her. I should’ve just kicked her out at first sight. I won’t let her come back ever again. I just couldn’t let the two doctors sit with Maw for that long because the bombs are so delicate sometimes.”

“How did the surgery go?” Sheptilah felt ice cold and shivered.

“Hm? Oh, Maw is in recovery but I don’t care about him right now.” He rubbed her shoulders to warm her up.

“Recovery? Oh, his jaw.” Shadow pretended like he forgot. “You did that today? With your mother here?”

“My mother surprised me.” Ivo huffed. “Had to leave my poor wife with her for four hours…” He rocked her back and forth in his arms.

“I’m okay, really. The lair is a mess but I can clean it up… I tried to curse her with sleep but ended up being cursed myself and while I was out she was rearranging things.”

“Just rest, honey. I’ll have the robots do that.” He ran his hand over the back of her head and cringed when he felt chunks of brain matter and bone. She was really hurt if the meninges tore that easily… what the Hell did my mother do? He thought. “Actually, I’m going to have Lourdes look you over.”

“Should I stay?” Shadow asked her.

“Only if you want to, Shads.” She nodded.

“Call me if you need me.” He took a step back and teleported out. A ring of dust was left behind and blew away in the wind.

“I’m so sorry, Tilly.” Ivo hugged her tightly. “I never should have let her stay. I knew something like this would happen.”

“How did you survive your childhood?” Tilly looked up at him.

“I got myself into boarding school and left home at a very young age.”

She buried her face in his chest.

#deleted scene

5 notes · View notes

kamus15 · 3 years

Text

Heartbreak Weather 2021 Review*

Heartbreak Weather sound takes me to pop-rock elements where 1D left off, somehow Niall manages to put his on twist on it rather than sounding repetitive or following a certain formula. He found his own voice and niche in his first album and now with his second release, he explores further into lusting and one night stands with strangers. It shouldn’t be shocking on how we hear about his romantic escapades throughout the album and how much he yearns for company and also explores into self-doubt, vulnerability, and being young. Without further ado, let’s break into the album track-by-track:

1) Heartbreak Weather We start off with the title of the album, in this song, Niall tells us how sad and lost he was before meeting this girl whom he now shares a room in a hotel, we can pretty much tell that the girl is the one that takes initiative into this swift hook up as they undress each other and can’t wait to find each other wrapped in arms, legs and bedsheet. Poor Niall, you were probably coming off from a dry-spell and this is all you needed to breathe new energy into your life. The instruments played throughout this song are chill and have this Caribbean-tinged arrangements that makes the song feel rather relaxed despite Niall pleas of desperation and how lonely he must have felt.

2) Black & White The typical perfect song for a wedding. Oh yes, Niall narrates how he pictures himself growing older with who knows, maybe the girl on track 1? It’d be impossible to keep track of how many girls Niall must have dated since 1D began. It’s somehow cheesy but not enough for the whole song not to turn into a cheesy festival.

3) Dear Patience This is such a heartfelt song, where we see Niall talking to inner (younger) self. In a path to self-discovery, it’s easy to get lost in the process, and find it hard to hear your own voice. It’s very refreshing to hear Niall being so honest with himself and admit that he’s had his setbacks, just like any of us. During the song, he pleads for more understanding, to come to terms with being more *pun intended* patient.

4) Bend The Rules This has a rather interesting question-and-answer section where Niall wonders what his partner has been up to, even though he gives us a vague idea that he suspects of cheating, yet he knows there’s no proof and he might be seeing things. The song itself drags on quite a bit for my liking, however, it’s great to hear the vulnerability in his voice. Mr. Horan once again shows off his cleverness with his songwriting on this track.

5) Small Talk We’re back to the one-night stand, hook-up type of songs! We get it Niall, you like to drop your pants faster than a skyrocket! In this song, we hear how much Niall has been craving it and thinking it about it. With this type of song, in my mind, it would be perfect to play on a sleazy bar where you go to pick up your latest tinder hot date. Nothing new we haven’t seen before. Just shut up and F me

6) Nice To Meet Ya *Dua’s voice* One look at the lyrics it’s all it takes to figure out that this Irish leprechaun is either thinking about getting laid or having a nice Guinness stout in his nearest bar. I do like the fact his voice sounds different in this song, I can’t quite describe it, but it does remind me somehow of what brit-pop sounded in the late nineties. Niall becomes the second member of One Direction to dabble in French (cou, cou!), although I can’t see how taking your hot date to the sea will keep her warm. But, alas, I do see an effort in this song for creativity.

7) Put a little love on me This song screams Disney-ballad to me. It’s very syrupy and Niall’s vocals showcase quite some emotion as well. It sounds like something One direction would have put out during their peak. I do appreciate that Niall pushes his vocal range a bit further here.

8) Arms of a Stranger Unsure how to feel about this track, other than it’s a filler track.

9) Everywhere Niall can’t escape this girl who keeps turning up in every single corner he turns to, is he a victim or a perpetrator? The song sounds a bit bland and generic but works for the album body of work.

10) Cross your mind Ahh! at last, we have hit the summit of the record! This is my favorite track of the album and I’d definitely sing my lungs out on a karaoke night! It’s such a shame this wasn’t chosen as a single, because it’s a very catchy song. Niall tells us in this song he can’t let go of a girl that brings heart ache to him, he knows that she is toxic to him, yet, he doesn’t mind as long as she comes back to him. Leaving me in pieces, but I swear it's worth it every time, very clever Niall !!

11) New Angel 1D - Hey, Angel HS - Only Angel NH - New Angel What’s the obsession behind angels? I wonder who will be next in mentioning an angel in their solo albums. Nice song.

12) No Judgement Niall encourages the listener (or rather his lover du jour) that they don’t have anything to prove to be with him, since they are at a point where he is comfortable with that person. it’s nice to hear that Niall’s personality really comes through in this song, the man is simple, give him a golf cart full of equipment and a pint of beer and you have yourself a happy man! sonically, this sounds something Ed Sheeran would’ve put out (Shape of you says hello!), but it’s refreshing nonetheless that Niall makes this song his own.

13) San Francisco A bittersweet song. Can’t say much other than Niall shows how much hurt and PAYNE his last relationship in California has caused him, during his time in the Golden state.

14) Still The closing track, very interesting and quite intriguing that N. Horan/NHHQ chose to close this album with this particular track. The beginning of the song reminds me in a strange way of H. Styles “Canyon Moon”, notice how also towards the end of the song, Horan tells us everything will be alright.. sounds familiar? Harry on Fine Line’s closing track also conveys the same message, could this mean that in the near future there could be a Horan/Styles collab? Who knows! I’m exited regardless, their future seems very promising for both! Closing Remarks : The album works quite well as a body of work, Niall is very cohesive throughout the album with its themes and lyricism, I definitely hear his personality and drive in this songs. From track 1 to track 14, Niall had a hand in writing all songs, which I do appreciate in today’s music, he’s very relatable, his music gives anyone easy access to anyone without going deep for mixed messages or having the FBI decode hidden meanings, yes I am looking at you Harry Styles.

I give this album a solid 8/10 stars.

Disclosure : I do not own any images, music, lyrics alluded on this post. This is merely my take on one of today’s Pop music superstars latest to-date release.

#niall horan #heartbreak weather album #one direction #solo #albumreview #2021review reblog

1 note · View note

cdelphiki · 5 years

Text

Bruce could tell instantly that Damian’s night had been a rough one.

Aside from the obvious bruising on his arms, an unusual occurrence, despite what one might expect considering his nighttime hobby, his son looked worn down. And the way he just kind of, plopped down on the couch next to Bruce was the real indicator of how rough his night really was.

Because Damian just looked…. defeated. In a way he hadn’t looked in, well, perhaps years.

The worrisome thing, however, was tonight was one of his ‘adventuring’ nights, as Clark called it. His little playdate with the Kent boy, as they tromped around Metropolis and Gotham and found cases to solve.

It was cute, Bruce hated to admit, how Damian and Jon ran around. They were doing good work, solid cases and everything. But something about the two of them, together, while working the cases just brought a smile to Bruce’s face.

His kid was being a kid, he had finally realized, maybe five playdates into his and Clark’s grand scheme to make the boys friends.

And it had worked. Damian and Jon were the best of friends now. At times, they were inseparable. Bruce had even sprung to send Damian to school in another city, just to foster that connection he finally had to another child.

But Damian was supposed to come home from his adventure nights happy. Not defeated.

“What did you do tonight?” Bruce asked, his voice a low rumble, just audible above the crackle coming from the fireplace. The cold night wind howling against the window. He pretended to continue reading his book, while he waited for Damian to answer.

He’d been waiting up for Damian, as he always did when the boy stayed out late, but would never admit that were the case. Damian would likely throw a tantrum about trust and not being a child.

Never was it acceptable to say, ‘but you are a child,’ to him. No matter how Bruce phrased that, Damian never appreciated it. But Bruce was glad Damian was a child, because he’d already missed so much of Damian’s life. He wasn’t about to wish away a single second more of his childhood.

Damian shifted, tilted his head just slightly, before he finally said, “We saved Ms. Lane from a sniper.”

Bruce couldn’t help it. His eyebrows shot right up. He trusted the boys, he did, but that sounded like something they probably should have brought him and Clark in on. Since it involved his wife and all.

“Wow,” he said, after pausing a moment to make sure no anger would come out in his voice, “Who was the sniper? What was the motivation?”

The response Damian gave was not at all what he was expecting. Some gang, maybe. Or a hitman hired by a politician Lois had written a hit piece on. Or, hell, some random villain wanting to hurt Superman.

But no. Because Damian took a deep, shuttering breath, before simply saying, “Mother.”

And Bruce couldn’t help the sharp breath he took at the mention of the woman.

“She was just trying to get my attention,” Damian said, before Bruce could ask. He pulled his feet up onto the couch and sat there, criss cross, right next to Bruce. Staring off into the fire.

Bruce… didn’t really know what to do. What to say. Damian’s relationship with Talia was… complicated. He knew she had been a loving mother to him, at one point. That Damian had adored and loved her, even after he’d come to live with Bruce. But in recent years, really ever since Talia disowned him, he’d become more jaded in his view of his mother.

It was a shame. No boy deserved to have such a difficult relationship with a parent. Especially not his mother.

“She-” Damian started, then paused to clear his throat. His hand twitched, from its spot on his knee. Like he wanted to rub at his face, but stopped himself. Bruce wished Damian felt safer breaking down in front of people.

“She’s still the same. Exactly the same.”

He nodded, to Damian’s confession. Unsure really what to even say. Bruce pulled his leg up on the couch, however, so he could turn towards Damian better. He let his hand brush across Damian’s neck as he placed his arm behind his son’s back, and just sat there. Hoping to covey that he was there for Damian without invading his space too badly. Damian wasn’t always receptive to physical affection, but sometimes, if offered without being blatant about it, Damian would accept.

“I’m just a weapon to her,” Damian whispered bitterly, finally reaching up to wipe at his cheek. Even though Bruce hasn’t seen a single tear escape his eye. “An object,” he added, with a touch more anger, scowling at the fire now.

But Bruce could see it, in the way he pursed his lips. In the slight twitch of his eye, the quiver of his hand. He was grasping onto the anger to stave off the tears.

“Damian,” Bruce started, but then paused. Because he really wasn’t sure what to say. How to fix this, and make Damian not want to cry. ‘You are not a weapon to me,’ he could say, but Damian already knew that. ‘I’m sorry about your mother’ felt insincere. As did any false promises that ‘it will be okay’ or ‘she’ll come around.’ He couldn’t even say ‘She loves you,’ because Bruce wasn’t even sure that was true.

And, God. How could anyone not love this child?

It hurt, sometimes, how much he felt for Damian. Just seeing his son could elicit a jab right in his chest. Because he was just so damn glad to have the privilege of being Damian Wayne’s father.

He wished Talia had felt the same. If only for Damian’s sake.

“Get your coat,” he settled on, startling Damian. Pulling him right out of his war between emotions.

He blinked over at Bruce and asked, “What, Father?”

“Your coat,” Bruce repeated, standing as he placed a bookmark in his book and tossed it at the coffee table, “and meet me at the Tesla.”

“What about shoes,” Damian said dryly, wiggling his socked feet in Bruce’s direction.

Bruce just smiled and turned from his retreat out of the room to say, “Won’t need them.”

“What?” Damian said again, this time even more confused, but Bruce didn’t give him an opportunity to continue his questions. Instead, he went to grab his own coat and start up the Tesla, so it would be nice and warm by the time Damian made his way out.

It would be a little chilly, after all, in just the thin cotton pajamas Damian was wearing. It wasn’t quite winter, but it had started dipping into the upper 30s at night. Far too cold for Bruce’s liking.

They didn’t talk much, once in the car. Damian asked only once, “Where are we going?” but Bruce had refused to answer.

“Trust me,” he had said, so Damian did. At least, he didn’t question Bruce again. Instead, he started fiddling with the radio, flipping through all 19 stations twice until he finally settled on an easy listening channel.

Not what Bruce would have expected from his 13-year-old, but he wasn’t complaining, either. He was pretty sure rap or… or dubstep would have really affected the more somber atmosphere in the car. Was dubstep still a thing? He was pretty sure that’s what Tim was into at 13. Or maybe that was Jason…

When Bruce pulled into the Sonic parking lot, Damian turned and raised an eyebrow at him. “What are we doing?” he asked, as Bruce parked next to one of the order boards.

“Strawberry cheesecake?” Bruce asked instead, smiling a little at the way Damian perked up, just slightly at the mention of his favorite milkshake flavor. He still didn’t look happy, but at least he wasn’t down enough to refuse a treat when offered.

“Yes,” he said, unbuckling his seatbelt and scooting his chair back as far as it would go. Not that he needed the extra space to sit criss cross.

Bruce ordered them both the strawberry shakes, along side a large order of tatertots and mozzarella sticks. Neither of those for any particular reason, just because he enjoyed both fried monstrosities, and if he were going to cheat on his diet he might as well go all the way.

It was for Damian, after all. That’s what he would tell himself.

“There used to be this drive-in,” Bruce said, after he’d finished ordering and swiped his credit card as payment. He’d shut the window back and flicked on his seat warmer, too, just to help warm the car a little more. Make it more comfortable.

Bruce had picked a spot where they could watch the traffic pass by on the road in front of them, and Damian seemed to be appreciating it, because he didn’t take his eyes off the cars to listen to Bruce.

“It was a little closer to the house,” he continued, “Dad would take me there, sometimes. He was a doctor, you know, and worked weird hours. Sometimes, after a particularly rough day, he’d come home and find me still awake, so we’d go to the drive-in in our pajamas and order milkshakes.”

“Hm,” Damian said, looking down at his own pajamas and then back out at the cars ahead.

“It wasn’t usually for me,” Bruce said, following Damian’s gaze out toward the cars, “It was to help reorient himself and refocus on the good in his life. I knew that, even at 6. Just maybe not in those words.”

“And you brought me here because…” Damian said, frowning. Shaking his head, a little.

“Because we’ve both had rough days.”

Damian stiffened and asked, “What happened on patrol tonight, Father? Did I miss something?” And Bruce hated how Damian got anxious, at the drop of the hat.

“Oh, nothing,” he said easily, waving a hand at Damian, as if to dismiss all his concerns, brush away the unnecessary anxiety, “Patrol was fine. A little dull, if anything.

“Tt. Did something happen at work?” he asked, scrunching his eyebrows at Bruce, now, clearly absolutely baffled as to how Bruce could have had a bad day.

“No,” he said patiently, trying to smile reassuringly, “My son came home banged up and upset.”

“I- oh.” Damian blinked. Once. Twice. Then looked down at his lap, as if studying his hands were much more interesting than talking to Bruce. Or, perhaps, less scary.

“I hate seeing you like that,” he offered. Meaning both upset and banged up, and anxious and uncomfortable talking to his own father.

In a too-small voice for the boisterous 13-year-old Bruce knew and loved, Damian said, “I-I didn’t mean to bother you, Father.”

“Damian,” Bruce said, pinching his nose. Because that was absolutely not what he had been thinking.

He was so terrible at this. He always came across as an asshole, to all his children. Some were more prone to point it out than others, but Bruce could see it. And perhaps he was an asshole. If Damian’s first response was to blame himself and apologize for coming to Bruce when he was upset.

God.

“That was not what I meant. I meant-” Bruce sighed, so Damian turned to him and just sat there. Kind of staring. No real emotion registering on his face, but his eyes were so big and bright with the street lights and dash reflecting in them. The brilliant green of his iris flecked with the blue and yellow. Blinking at him, just waiting for whatever he had to say.

“I just meant,” he continued, unable to look away from his son’s eyes, “I hate seeing you hurt. Not because it’s an inconvenience, but because you’re my son…”

Damian broke eye contact first, looking down as his face pinched, ever so slightly. His cheek twitched and his nose wrinkled. Bruce would have recognized what he was trying to prevent, even if he hadn’t looked away to hide the sheen of tears.

“…and I love you,” he finished, his own voice a little wet.

At that, Damian’s face crumpled completely, and he brought a hand up to rest against one side of his face.

His crying was silent, as it always was. Barely there, hardly noticeable unless one was looking directly at his face. Bruce would never know, passing by Damian’s room, if he were crying alone.

It was just another one of the many quirks that made up Damian Wayne. He wished Damian had never learned this skill, never needed to learn it, but he wouldn’t change his son for the world.

Well, actually. If given the opportunity to trade the world for a happy, safe childhood for Damian, he might have a difficult time saying no.

“Your mot-” he started, but then stopped as someone knocked on his window. Bruce scowled for Damian to see, not that he was even looking, then turned around with one of his aloof smiles plastered on his face.

“Thank you,” he said, when the girl handed him a bag, two milkshakes, and his receipt. He placed the milkshakes in the cupholders, and the bag in Damian’s lap. Even though the boy was looking away now, trying to regain his composure, no doubt, before Bruce refocused his attention back on him.

“My pleasure,” the far-too-chipper girl said for 4 in the morning, “Can I get you anything else?”

After answering in the negative and bidding her a good night, Bruce rolled the window back up and turned to face his son.

Damian had smoothed out his expressions again, and was now staring down into the open bag, just looking down at the food inside.

“Where was I?” Bruce mused, reaching over to pull the straws out of the bag and open them both, for the milkshakes, “Oh, yes. Your mother is a bitch.”

That got a startled laugh out of Damian, who quickly clamped his hands over his mouth while he cut his eyes over at Bruce. He lowered his hands, but it seemed he couldn’t keep the tiny little smile off his face, even after Bruce had let the comment settle.

“Look,” he said, sticking a straw in one of the milkshakes, then handing it to Damian, “I don’t know what happened to tonight, or what she said to you, but Damian… you are so much more than her son. You are not a weapon, for starters.”

“I know,” Damian said, nodding as he used his straw to mix the milkshake a little.

“She may have had a hand in creating you, but so did I.”

When all Damian did was frown down at his milkshake, now resting in his lap, Bruce set his own down and turned in his seat so he was fully facing his son. He gently turned Damian’s head so he was looking at Bruce, then placed a hand on either side of his face.

“And, Damian, you are so much more than just something we created,” he said, patting a little, begging his words to penetrate. To bounce around and stick in there. Record themselves and replay, whenever necessary.

“You are so much more than us,” he continued, “You are Damian Wayne, and I cannot put into words how much I admire you or how much I adore you.”

It was no surprise when he felt hot tears on his thumbs, from where Damian failed to keep them in. Because his own eyes were playing the same game, just perhaps not as quickly as Damian’s.

Bruce pulled Damian’s head a little closer as he leaned down, so he could plant a kiss right on his forehead, all while wiping the tears away with his thumbs, “So don’t let whatever it is she said bring you down. You are perfect exactly as you are, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

“Dad-” Damian choked out, fully devolving into sobs. Actual, noisy ones… or noisy for Damian, at least. Bruce let go long enough to take his milkshake and set it back in the cupholder, so Damian could throw his arms around Bruce.

All Bruce did was hug back. Hold his son for as long as he needed. Replay that one little word over and over in his head.

Because Damian was finally letting his hurt out, and there was no way he would cut it short. No matter how cold the mozzarella sticks got or how melted the milkshakes became.

When Damian finally sat up, he scrubbed lazily at his face and smiled, a little lopsided, when Bruce offered a napkin.

“So this is what your dad used to do with you?” he asked, after he’d blown his nose and picked up his milkshake.

“Sure is.” Bruce grabbed the discarded bag and pulled out the box of mozzarella sticks. “Here, try one of these.”

Damian did, but made a face at it when the cheese just broke apart. Not even a hint of stretchy, melty goodness.

“They’re better warm. We’ll heat them up at home, and I’ll show you.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” Damian said, dropping his half eaten cheese stick in the box with the others, “The milkshake is good, though.”

“Isn’t it? You have a good taste in favorites.”

And with that, Damian smiled fully, and took another long slurp of his milkshake, his smile not fading for the rest of their visit.

The conversation shifted from topic to topic from there, straying between other ice cream flavors to school to upcoming plans. They didn’t talk about Damian’s night again, and Damian didn’t seem to even be thinking about it, anymore.

As they drove home, and Damian dozed off in the seat next to him, he started thinking that maybe they’d have to start a new tradition. Clearly his dad was on to something, with the midnight drives to get milkshakes.

It was, indeed, the perfect cure for a rough night.

1K notes · View notes

allhailshadamy · 4 years

Text

[A/N

Okay so I may of have fucked this up. So I will be changing the first chapter all over again. Please if you're keeping up with this story go back and read chapter one! Thank you so much for reading my story btw!:) ]

Ding ding

Amy kept ringing the small bell that was on the reception desk. Flashbacks coming back to her, all she saw was a blue hedgehog rapidly and impatiently ringing it. Her flashback being cut short by Jane who walked over to her with a frown.

"Please don't do that Amy." She said in a soft monotone voice as she started to access some files from the computer that sat on the reception desk. Amy spoke up as she looked around, "I remember this place..." she said as Jane's eyebrows lifted up, she smiled at Amy. "Were you a patient here?" She asked as Amy nodded. Jane kept smiling, "Do you remember Zooey? She ran this clinic with Tails before me." She mentioned as Amy nodded, "Yes, we helped build the clinic." Amy said as Jane then lowered one of her lifted eyebrows.

"Who's we?" She asked but before she could get a reply Sonic made his way into the reception, scratching the back of his head with a nervous look.

"I tried to help chameleon but I think I just made him more ner-" he stopped talking when he saw Amy standing infront of the reception desk. He eyebrows furrowed as his eyes started to get a bit red, he looked at Jane who looked back at him.

"Why do I know you?" Asked the pink hedgehog as she furrowed her eyebrows trying to identify the blue hedgehog. Sonic slowly started to make his way to Amy, who he reached out to caress her cheek. She flinched, "What are you doing?" She asked making Sonic immediately backed away.

"What's going on?" Asked Sonic as he turned to look at Jane. She raised an eyebrow, "You know her?" She asked, Sonic's ears twitched, shivers going down his spiky back when he heard Amy call out his name. "Sonic?" She asked, Sonic shaking his head. "Who are you?" He asked, Amy's confusion growing as she looked at Sonic. "I'm Amy..." she replied, Jane falling into the same confusion. "I don't understand, what is it?" Asked Jane as she looked at Amy then at Sonic hoping anyone would reply to her question. Luckily she got a response from the blue hedgehog, "She can't be Amy." He replied, Amy immediately responding. "I'm Amy Rose."

"Amy's dead!" He frustratedly said as he looked over back at Jane. Jane gave him a small confused smile. "Alright well I just took this hedgehog's pulse and she is very much alive." She said as Sonic began to shake his head, he then took out a folded picture out of his scarf and unfolding it revealing a happy Amy, wearing a straw hat and a blue dress, her smile beaming.

[A/N: I forgot to add the straw hat sorry ]

Sonic showed Jane the picture, "See this? This is Amy." Jane looked at the picture then back at Amy, "She looks like her." Amy began to walk closer to them, Sonic continued talking. "Amy died three years ago." He informed Jane as Amy took the picture from Sonic and looked at it. "Let me see." She said as more flashbacks began to appear in her mind. The flashbacks revealing Sonic holding the camera and taking a lot of pictures of Amy who was just there laughing. In her flashback Amy remembered, after Sonic took the pictures, he began to kiss her and they quickly fell into the ground becoming one with one another. Amy looked up at Sonic who stood there observing her. "You took this... this is when we went 'sight seeing'.." she said Sonic getting closer to her, trying the hardest to hold his tears back. "W-who told you?" He asked, Amy not responding his question slowly walked towards him. "We're dating..." she replied as she kept walking to him, Sonic began to back away slowly as his voice began to crack and a few tears beating him and falling down his cheeks. "N-no..." he said as Amy kept walking towards him. "Sonic? What happened?" She asked as Sonic began to cry more both in frustration and desperation. He was not able to comprehend what was going on. Jane quickly looked up Amy's name and soon a death certificate appeared. "Amy Rose, October thirteenth Hedgehog village's Clinic. Blood loss due to severe cut on abdomen." She read, Amy looked at Jane.

"Why are you saying that?" She asked Jane looked back at Amy, "It's what says on this file." She replied Sonic quickly joining in after he had recuperated. "I was there when you passed away." He said as Amy looked back at him. "But I'm here!" She argued back as Sonic shook his head frowning. "Then you're not her." He declared, Amy shook her head, a scoff coming out of her. "This is ridiculous." She muttered under breath, Sonic offered his hand towards her. "Come with me. I want to show you something." Amy furrowed her eyebrows a bit hesitant but slowly taking his hand. "Where are you taking me?" She asked as he began to walk out the clinic.

"Hey hold up, what about the others?" Asked Jane, Sonic simply waving her off. "I don't know. Take some tests, take their pulse." He said, as soon as he was outside he carried Amy and started to run towards the graveyard they were just in. As soon as they got there Sonic put her down and began to walk to Amy's grave, it had been dugged through and the decorations left there has been scattered all over. Sonic startled looked around as Amy read the headstone.

AMY ROSE

BELOVED HERO AND FRIEND

I will always love you Amy, Sonic.

Amy began to start sobbing, muttering a thousands no's as she kept her gaze on her headstone. Sonic began to hug her from behind but she started to resist.

"Amy, sorry, I shouldn't have brought you here." He said as Amy soon broke lose and began to ran away. Sonic was about to run after her but was interrupted by Knuckles' voice. "Sonic!" He called out, Sonic turned around to face him. "Tails said he tried contacting you but couldn't reach you, so I began to look for you." He said as he looked at the destroyed tomb. There wasn't any light for him to see who's tombstone it was, all he saw was that it had been messed with. "Did you do this?" He asked, Sonic immediately denying it. "Of course not!"

"So who was it then?" He questioned, Sonic shrugged. "Maybe some locals?" He suggested, Knuckles nodded, "Well you should call Tails, he's looking for you." He replied as Sonic nodded after he let out a sigh. Knuckles soon made his way out along with Sonic. As soon as they parted ways, Sonic turned to his communicator. "Jane is Amy with you?" He asked, Jane immediately responding. "No?"

"Her grave was empty. There is a bunch of open graves."

"What are you saying Sonic? They're all dead?" She asked, Sonic who could be heard running replied with an order, "Just keep everyone calm, contact me if Amy turns up." Jane turned to look around at the people she had gathered in the living space of the clinic and saw as the racoon held up a book then muttered something.

"Marine..." she whispered then quickly turned to look at Jane. "My name's Marine." She said smiling, Jane returning the smile began to ask her more questions. "Marine? That's great, do you remember anything else Marine?" She replied as Marine's eyes started to sadden. She shook her head and Jane sighed.

Knuckles arrived at Tails' workshop, Knuckles giving all the information about what he had discovered to Tails.

"Yeah he was in the graveyard, the tomb he was in had been interfered with, he said some locals might've done it."

"Amy was buried in that cemetary..." replied Tails with a sad look in his eyes. "I'll try to contact him again." He said as he quickly pressed one of the buttons on his communicator. Sonic yet again not picking up. Knuckles looked up at Tails, "Want me to go look for him again?" He asked, Tails shook his head. "No, it's fine, plus its late. Our expirements can wait for tomorrow."

Sonic had been running through the entire town looking for Amy, he finally decided to go to the cliff where Amy and him would often go "sight seeing" at. He was relieved when he found her there laying down looking up at the beautiful night sky. When she heard him she sat up and looked up at him.

"Hi."

"Hey."

"Sorry I ran." She apologized, Sonic admitting his mistake as well.

"It's fine... I shouldn't have taken you there." Amy softly smiled.

"We used to come here didn't we?" She asked, Sonic simply nodding as he took a sit next to her.

"Yeah..." he said in a soft voice.

"I remember....and I remember being in a coma.... I was so scared. I couldn't keep fighting... I fucked up and I lost the fight. I should've kept fighting..." she blamed herself as a few tears started to roll down her cheeks.

"You did fight Ames... I couldn't do anything to help you..." he replied with a sigh at the end as he then laid down besides her.

"You were so good to me Sonic..." she said as she looked at him and smiled.

"We should probably get you back to Jane and to the clinic..." he suggested, Amy shook her head.

"Let's just stay here for a while." She said laying back down and looking into the sky. She smiled as she got closer to Sonic.

"What did you say in order to get me to come here with you anywhere Ames?"

"Let's go sight seeing, Sonic..." she said as Sonic smile widen. They stood there in complete silence as they watched the stars together.

"Why am I here?" Amy asked as she kept her eyes at the night sky.

"I don't know Amy, but I'm here now, and I'm going to protect you." He said as he pressed his head against hers.

#sonic the hedgehog #sth #amy rose #sonamy #sonic boom #glitchxsonicuni #gxs2

11 notes · View notes