#// with fangs bared I write - Darcy

[song-gosni]

// Closed starter - @spellcrossed​ (Darcy)

Daylight rings were a necessity in Young’s opinion and who better to ask than the resident witch. Warlocks could make them shouldn’t she be able to. There were a few here from what he had found out. So it wasn’t as if he had any shortage of options. Even if all the vampires here had them it was always best to have spares. He never knew who may turn up and in need of one. He had also heard the one of the resident newborns was lacking one and potentially doesn’t even know of their existence. Young had an interesting relationship with witches. Since he had been cursed to become the first vampire his initial opinion was very negative. As the years turned into decades, into centuries he started seeing the curse as a benefit. When he managed to befriend a witch that created the daylight ring for him his relationship with them had been mended for the better. Though he was always aware of their potential. He waited patiently for the witch to open the door, if she did. There was always a chance she wasn’t a fan of Vampires. He would find out soon enough. As she opened the door he smiled. She was cute. ❝Hey, I have a few requests of you and I was hoping you would hear them out,❞ he greeted. ❝I’ll pay well,❞ he added. Money was usually a good motivator.

[r3volutionary-queen]

Ignition Chapter 30 Sneak Peek (Unedited)

There was a charred scent in the air.  Darcy blinked blindly, the gray smoke obscuring her vision and stinging her eyes.  She lay flat on her back in a patch of burnt grass, dazed and shaking all over.  The world was spinning and everything hurt; her heart was throbbing almost painfully in her chest.  It was not meant to keep up with this level of panic, with the amount of terror she had been in.

The screaming didn’t help either.  All around her was screaming; screams of pain, screams of rage, screams of death.

War.

And somehow, she was lying flat on her back, staring up at the sky while a galaxy-sized battle raged.

Maybe they think I’m dead, she thought.  And then—

Maybe I am dead.

She had certainly thought she was going to die, had been sure of it.  Especially when Steve—

Darcy gasped, jolting like she had touched a live wire.  She pushed her elbows and then the heels of her palms into the ground, shoving her body to sitting.  Wild-eyed, she twisted around to the spot where she had last seen him, crying out in pain as Thanos swung his sword down over and over and over.  The Steve-shaped concave in the ground was empty and that should have given her some measure of relief, but it didn’t.  It didn’t because she was alone and there were endless potential graves in this place.  She needed to see him with her own two eyes to know that he was okay.  

Wind whipped her dark hair across her face and she swept her arm over her eyes, trying to clear her vision.  An explosion sounded from somewhere to her right and her whole body jumped.  She didn’t know what to do, where to go.  She couldn’t just stay here forever like a sitting du—

A hand latched onto her shoulder and Darcy screamed, whirling around.

Bucky flinched back, his metal hand releasing her immediately, eyes wide and wary.  “Woah, hey it’s okay,” he was panting heavily, a bead of sweat slid down his temple.  “Easy, Darce,” Bucky crouched next to her, his voice low and steady, like he was trying to calm a spooked horse.  “It’s just me.”

She stared at him for the longest time, uncomprehending.  Bucky ran his tongue over his lips, brows pulling together in worry. And then the dam broke—

“Bucky?” Darcy breathed, her voice shaking terribly.  Her heart wrenched, piercing straight through her.  The edges of her vision went blurry; hot tears welled, threatening to tip over the edge and make the jump down her cheek.

Her chin wobbled.

“Yeah Sunshine,” the nickname fell from his lips thickly and Bucky’s throat bobbed before he could speak again.  Everything about the man turned soft.  “It’s me. Are you okay?  Did he hurt you?”

She didn’t register his gentle questions, couldn’t get past the fact that he was here, in front of her.  After everything.

“Bucky!” Darcy screeched, her voice reedy and bleeding all over the place.  The first tear made the jump, plopping down onto her chest and the rest followed.  Watching her, his face twisted, like he was in pain, and then she was saying his name louder—“BUCKY!”

An insane fervor seized her and she scrambled to her knees clumsily, reaching for his hand, the only thing she could touch in this burning, awful world, and as if he knew, as if he knew her (and he did), Bucky shifted forward on his toes and met her right where she was.  Warm metal cupped the side of her face and Darcy latched onto his wrist and forearm with both hands, desperate and greedy, nails digging into the metal ridges and it was a good thing, she thought, that it wasn’t flesh, because it meant she could hold onto him in a place beyond pain.  

And now that she was holding onto him, Darcy wasn’t sure she could ever let go. 

The last time she let go, she ended up on Thanos’ ship and—

“I’m sorry,” Darcy bawled, the words heaving out of her chest, tears pouring down her face.  Her shoulders shook and for the life of her she couldn’t look away from Bucky because if she did—“I’m so sorry.  It’s my fault, all of it is my fault.  I—I—I shouldn’t have answered that fucking door, I knew—”

“Shh,” Bucky was shaking his head looking wrecked despite his steady voice.  Blunt fingertips brushed her hair from her face, gently tucking it behind her ear.  “Shh, Darce.  Not now. I’ve got you,” he ducked his head, purposefully holding her gaze and lifted both brows.  “I found you, didn’t I?  I’m here.  Breathe for me, honey.”

Darcy didn’t realize she had been hyperventilating until Bucky pointed it out. She tried to sniff but her nose was blocked, instead, Darcy sucked air through parted lips.  He nodded encouragingly, thumb brushing down the apple of her cheek.

It was strange, this moment, in the middle of a war.

There was another explosion to her right, closer this time, and Bucky stiffened, glancing over his shoulder.  His right arm lifted reflexively and that’s when Darcy noticed the shield.  

Steve’s shield.

Steve.

Twisting around, she kept her grip on Bucky’s arm realizing that much of the fighting had shifted away from them—as if they were all chasing something.  She couldn’t see what but she also couldn’t see Steve and that did nothing to help her panic.

Next to her there was a soft crackling sound, a sizzling, like meat over a grill, and she knew by the smell alone what it was.  She remembered now what happened after she was released from Thanos’ hold—after she fell to the ground, how someone had wrenched a handful of her hair, baring her throat, ready to slice it open.

They never got the chance.

Darcy had lost count of how many had died as a result of Loki’s spell, but she knew that she owed the god her life.  But the spell wasn’t what freed her from Thanos.

Her fingers tightened on Bucky’s arm.

It got his attention and he turned to her at the same moment she glanced at the pile of bloody intestines and minced meat.  She wanted to throw up.

“No, don’t look,” Bucky wrenched his arm from her grasp and it hurt Darcy like her own limb had been torn off.  Her hands snapped out, reaching for him again, refusing to let go even as he covered her eyes, shielding her from the spell’s gore.  “Don’t look.”

She looked at him instead, those eyes that reminded her of the sky before a storm would break.  Bucky’s gaze darted all over her face, like he was working up the courage to say something when—

A burst of movement behind her.

Bucky’s eyes snapped up, pupils shrinking to pinpoints, his nostrils flaring.  He was on his feet, gun firing off twice in quick succession before Darcy could even react.

Heart pounding, her hands clapped over her ears as she made herself as small as possible. Bucky stepped over her, steadily shooting—

Pop! Pop-pop-pop!

Lifting her head, ears ringing, Darcy saw the body of a beast straight out of her nightmares fall to the ground not three feet from them.  There were six bloody bullet holes in its chest.  Bucky walked towards it calmly, nudging it with the toe of his boot until it rolled onto its back.  The creature’s arm flopped, a last exhale weaving out between its blood-soaked fangs.  

It was the first time Darcy had seen one up close.

Its skin was mottled, varying shades of red and black, like it had emerged from a great fire.  There was a strange sort of slime covering its body; glassy eyes bulged, jaw unhinged in a scream that would forever lay trapped inside its chest.

“Up.”

The command hit her like a blast of cold air.  

Darcy’s eyes flashed up and she actually shook because, for the briefest of seconds, it was as if she was staring up at someone else entirely.  She had never seen this look in Bucky’s eyes, not even when they had been escaping the Compound.  

Swallowing, she obeyed, shakily rising to her feet all the while keeping her gaze locked with his.    

“Stay close to me,” Bucky instructed her next and that was her only warning before he turned and ran into the haze of smoke.

———

Someone stop me. I love writing the Soldier so much. He’s my murder kitten 😻

[p-artsypants]

Arcadia or Bust (13)- Heartstone

FF.net | Ao3

It’s…been a minute huh?

I finally saw 3 Below! Hence, this new chapter! I’m not going to do too much with Aja and Krel, because I don’t know if they’re canonically in Arcadia at the same time. So if you haven’t seen it yet, no worries.

And I’ve been watching Trollhunters from the beginning, and I realize that with the children out of the Darklands, it is very true that the changelings shouldn’t be able to shift into human forms. But for the purpose of this fic, I’m saying that it’s just a lot riskier for them to co-exist, since they’d be identical. Please forgive my grievous error.

And…I don’t know how I feel about this chapter, but I came up with an actual plot for this story, and I have to set it up. And, I’m trying to get back in the groove of writing Jim and Claire. (Toby is so easy to write, lol)

—

“So technically,” Steve stated, “I’m still the strongest human in school.”

“Yeah, sure dude. Whatever.”

Jim stood on unsteady legs. Steve was still a few feet away, flexing in a show of dominance.

The sun was low, at golden hour, and as the wind blew, his hood jostled.

Jim let out a sharp yelp of pain, covering his skin and shuffling into the shade.

Everyone who had been watching him noticed the reaction.

“You okay?” Claire asked.

“The mask had been protecting my face from the sun. I just...wasn’t prepared.”

“Whoa,” Steve stated, coming closer. “You’re just like them, huh? Can’t be in sunlight?”

Now that he was in the shade, he removed his hood completely. His pointy ears felt warm as students continued to stare and whisper.

Jim self-consciously patted down his hair and scruff as he backed further into the shade.

“Hey,” Claire tried to pacify. “It’s okay…it’s okay…”

Toby noticed Jim’s chest rising and falling rapidly, and stepped in. “Hey come on, Jimbo! Who wants to spend more time at school than they have to, huh?”

“…yeah…”

Darci walked quickly to join them. “Is it still okay for me to tag along?”

“And me!” Cried Eli. “I wanna know more about Troll Jim!”

“If anyone gets to know more about this, it’s me!” Steve demanded, strutting up to them. “I deserve it.”

Claire chuckled, and then pulled out a little umbrella from her backpack. “How about it?”

Jim swallowed shakily, and nodded.

—

And that’s how six teens crammed into Jim’s truck and scooted off on their way to Trollmarket. The girls and Jim were in the front, while the other boys were in the back.

“Do you really think it’s okay for them to see Trollmarket?” Claire asked, in a whisper.

“I guess? Look, the sooner we give them a tour, the better. It’s in ruins now, and there’s no one there. Best to indulge the curiosity now, right?”

“Uh, Jim?” Eli piped up in the back. “We’ve already been to Trollmarket.”

The wheels screeched to a halt as Jim swiveled around to glare at Toby. “You took them to Trollmarket?!”

“Technically...Arrrgh and I both did.”

“You took them to Trollmarket!”

“Toby!” Claire joined in the accusations.

“What! The place was empty! Everyone wanted to know what happened! I didn’t know it was going to inhabited again!”

A car honked from behind them, and Jim begrudgingly continued the drive.

Down under the bridge, he parked, and urged everyone out. But he stood right in front of Toby, arms crossed. “Explain.”

“Dude, chill, it’s not that big of a deal. You were about to take us all in right now anyways, right?”

“That’s different!” He snarled, baring his fangs.

“Jim!” Claire reprimanded. “Let him explain. You know he had a good reason.”

Jim took a massive sigh, collecting himself. “Okay Tobes, I’m listening.”

“Okay, so...not too long after you guys left, people were asking me all sorts of questions about the invasion. Especially Claire’s mom. You guys gave her a good synopsis, but she just had some final details she wanted to nail down, before giving a press conference.”

“And that was...about a Tornado, right?”

“That’s what they published in the papers and on the news, anyway.” Darci added, helpfully. “She urged anyone that had questions to talk to the police or...resident supernatural and mysterious phenomena expert, Toby Domzalski.” She gestured at him with jazz hands.

“Really?” Jim said flatly.

“I mean, you and Blinky are the experts, but I’m something of a wiz. And you were all gone. So neh.”

“Okay. I’m following so far,” Jim said, his composure still intact. “Go on.”

“So, first, I only thought it was fair that Darcy be let in on the secret, so I talked to Arrrgh, and he said it would be okay if I took her in.”

Darci continued, “and when I asked my dad if I could go, he asked if he could come too, being a ranking police officer.”

Jim nodded along, his brows furrowing.

“So, along with Arrrgh, we all went down to Trollmarket...to find the Gruesome.”

“There was another gruesome?” Asked Claire, eyes wide.

“Yep, and he was a BIG BOY.” Toby emphasized with his hands. “Lot of...debris to clean up, if you know what I mean.”

“And I do.” Agreed Jim.

“So, Darci and I were talking about what we were going to do about it, and Steve and Eli happened to overhear us.”

“You were talking about this in public?!”

“What! It’s not like Trolls are a secret anymore. Besides, we were on an ice cream date.”

Jim groaned. “No, Trolls aren’t a secret anymore, but the phrase ‘Gruesome on the lose’ would scare a lot of people. Especially if they didn’t know what a gruesome was.”

“...I see your point now.”

Jim rolled his eyes. “Okay, so they overheard you talking.”

Steve stepped in. “And I totally remembered that slug-slime thing from the museum, and how we totally busted it’s ass—“

“Wait wait wait—you saw the gruesome at the museum?”

“And totally busted its ass.”

“My mom didn’t actually throw our baby away. Flip gave his life for mankind.” Eli croaked.

“So, we all armed ourselves with flour sacks, and went back to Trollmarket. But by then, he was gone.”

“Did you check everywhere?”

“In Trollmarket.”

“And then?”

“When we didn’t find him, we asked Dictatious. He suggested we check the sewers and the dump, where any other Troll remains would be.”

Jim’s eyes widened. “What about the forge? He didn’t eat any other the Trollhunter’s remains, did he?” He couldn’t recall seeing any missing, but he hadn’t really looked.

“Nope. I think the forge was either sealed, or he couldn’t reach them. Either way, Draal made sure they were all accounted for.”

Jim was quiet a moment, lost in thought. He didn’t know what the proper protocol was for Troll burials. Should they have stayed after the final battle to bury them properly? Or was this the best for them?

“So...we checked the sewers,” Toby continued, bringing Jim out of his thoughts. “And sure enough, we found it, bloated and napping. But before we threw flour on it, Arrrgh stopped us and just talked to it.”

This was puzzling. “He just talked to it?”

“Yeah, in Troll speak. After, he had us all push it.”

“Push it? Where?”

“Well, remember when you were punished for going in the dark lands? And dropped in that pit?”

“Uh...yeah? The one that was supposed to be impossible to get out of?”

“Yep. The Gruesome wanted a dark, quiet place to hibernate, so we pushed him down there.”

“That’s...interesting.”

“We took care of him, just as Trollhunters do.”

Jim smiled, “alright, I’m sorry for yelling. You did good Tobes, just like I asked. I knew you could handle it.”

Eli spoke up. “Are you going to tell him about the paid tours too?”

“Eli!”

“THE WHAT?!”

It took another fifteen minutes to get Jim to calm down again, and when he finally did, he headed toward the truck.

“Wait, where are you going, Jimbo?” Asked Toby.

“Well, if everyone has gone through Trollmarket before, no reason to go back, hmm?”

The teens all started talking over each other.

“I didn’t really get to see it—!”

“It’s so cool—!”

“Just one more time—!”

Claire laughed, seeing exactly how he had played them all.

Jim feigned innocent though. “Alright, I suppose I can show you around again.”

—

Jim didn’t know why he even bothered. It seemed like Steve, Eli, and Darcy had been to Trollmarket a few more times than he had been led to believe. In fact, every time he began to point out a place, one of them would finish it.

“And this is Bagdwella’s store—“

“And that’s the tunnel where Jimmy fought Gnome Chompski!” Eli finished.

Jim rolled his eyes and continued on the tour. Though ‘tour’ was a loose term. It was more like herding cats.

It wasn’t long before they came across another living being. The best one, in fact.

“Arrrgh!” The teens cried with joy.

“Steve! Eli! Darci!” He grabbed the three of them up in a hug. “Back again!”

“Where’s Blinky?” Asked Jim, once the reunion came to a close.

“In Heartstone. Reading books. Boring.”

“Blinky?” Asked Steve, snickering.

“My mentor, and the leader of our tribe. I should probably let him know you guys are here. Who know’s how he’ll take it…”

“Humans! In Trollmarket!” Blinky’s voice echoed over the cavern.

“Probably like that…”

“Master Jim,” Blinky reprimanded, storming over. “Just because no other Trolls are here yet, does not give you the right to invite ragamuffins in off the street!”

Toby threw himself at his feet. “It was me! It was all my fault! I did it! Blame me!”

The act startled Blinky for a moment, before he glanced up to Jim again. “Care to explain?”

“Sure, this is Darci, Toby’s girlfriend.” He gestured.

“Hi…” She waved shyly. “And this is Steve and Eli. They have been working very hard to protect Arcadia, even without my knowledge. And they helped everyone evacuate from the market when Gunmar took control. And according to Toby, they helped take care of the Gruesome that popped up here while we were gone.”

Blinky was thoughtful for a moment, but didn’t respond.

“I felt like I owed it to them to let them in on the secret. I just figured it would be best to do it now, when there would be less panic.”

Toby sent him a grateful look, not wanting to be reprimanded again.

“I suppose you are correct, Master Jim. It would be unfair to try to cover this all up again. Can I count on you three to continue to protect man and troll kind in Arcadia?”

“Are you kidding? Do you know who you’re talking to?” Steve asked.

“We’re the Creep Slayerz, with a ‘Z’.” Eli announced, throwing up their little hand-sign.

“I don’t follow.”

“They’re fine, Blink.” Jim laughed.

Eli’s eyes brightened. “Did you say you were at the Heartstone?”

“Um, why yes, I was.” Blinky answered. “Just looking through Vendel’s, the elder before me, his works that survived. Why?”

“Can we please see it?” Eli begged, his hands folding in front of his face.

“The written works of Vendel? Why, they’re all in Trollish! Ancient Trollish at that—“

“Not the ding dang dumb papers!” Steve interrupted, only to be promptly elbowed by Jim.

“I think they want to see the Heartstone.”

“Ah, well, Jim that really is your area, so…go on, I suppose. But don’t touch anything in Heartstone Hall!” And off he went, mumbling about something all the while.

“What did he mean that this is your area?” Darci asked.

“Well…” he paused, not really wanting to give away their plans for the future. “Claire and I have some magic in us that will help the Heartstone grow to what it once was.” He beckoned them along, passing through the deserted town that was slowly coming back to life. “I’m turning the old heartstone into a home.”

Darci gasped. “Like! A little love nest!?”

The boys sang, “Oooh!!”

Jim blushed, “Well…sorta…don’t make it weird.”

“I think it’s cute, Jim.” Darci stated proudly. “A man building a home with his two hands, that’s romance.”

Toby narrowed his eyes in thought, but said nothing.

“I don’t see why you’re putting so much work into building a house. You have a truck, just put an air mattress in the bed.”

Jim blushed harder. “I think you have the wrong idea, Steve…”

Eli whisper-shouted, “Jim’s making a home for them to live in when they get married!”

“Oh, you should have just said that. You made it sound like you were fancying up the place for some private tango lessons, y’knowwhaddamean?”

Claire spoke between snickers. “Steve, shut up.”

Still purple, Jim led his friends down the ramp to the Heartstone. At the base, Jim pressed the release for the door. Inside was Heartstone Hall, where Vendel had spend most of his time, and where Trolls came to heal. The room was a mess, which made sense given that Gunmar and Morgana had both ransacked it. The debris of fallen trolls and crumbled Heartstone had been cleared, and now the mess just consisted of tools and books. The stone table in the middle of the room was stacked high with books and sheets of paper.

“So this is Heartstone Hall, where Blinky’s been working since we came back.” He beckoned them on, through a curtain in the corner. “You used to not be able to go inside the Crystal, but…Morgana blasted the whole thing open.”

Within the first room, the wall, ceiling and floor were gray crystal. The ceiling and walls were organically shaped, and tilted in odd directions, but the floor was flat and level. The walls were lined with dark wood cabinets and granite countertops. There was even a sink, and a place for a fridge and a stove. On the left was a little nook in the crystal, where a table and chairs sat.

“So this is the kitchen. Draal and I refinished the cabinets and I cut the granite myself.” He patted the counter fondly.

“Dang son,” said Steve, “you’ve been back for, what, a week? And you have this all done? Do you ever sleep?”

Jim shrugged. “Not really, no. I don’t need to.”

“Must be convenient…”

He led them down a set of crystal steps that went around a curve. The inner side of the steps was open, and showed a well that went all the way up to the top of the cavern, and several floors down.

“Whoa…” commented Claire, looking over the edge.

“This is going to be a chimney, I think.” Jim explained, following her gaze. “It leads down to the chamber where Morgana was held, and burst through. There’s a perfect cylinder all the way up.”

The next floor wasn’t as finished as the kitchen had been, but the room was clean, and the floor itself almost looked polished, though most of it was obscured by an antique ornate rug. Some of the Crystals that stuck out had been converted to shelves and tables. “So this is the living room. I talked to the guys at Thrifty Furnishings, and they’re going to let me work off a sectional and a really nice recliner by doing some 3rd shift stocking. Plus some other stuff as I go.”

Toby noticed a standing lamp in the corner. “Wait, do you have electricity down here?”

“Oh yeah!” Jim flicked it on, the light shimmering over the crystal walls and sending sparkles everywhere. “I mean, all of Trollmarket has electricity, though they don’t really use enough to be noticeable by the electric company. There’s an underground power line that someone connected us into.” He stepped over to a curtain, pulling it back to reveal a small closet, but also a fusebox. “I got electrocuted a few times, but since I’m a troll, it only hurt a lot instead of killing me.”

Claire warily looked at the box. “Um…shouldn’t we have a professional look at that before we try to use it?”

Jim considered it with a nod, “yeah…probably…” Then he clapped his hands with excitement. “Oh!” He walked across the room, over to a door, and opened it to reveal a small room with a hole in the floor. “This is going to be the bathroom, though I’ll need a lot of work to get the running water up. I have to set up all faucets and pipes before I try to run any water, since it all comes from the same source. But we have a clean well down here, so I won’t be stealing city water.” He grinned.

“And you can do that all by yourself?”

“Yep! It’s amazing how much stuff you can learn on Youtube.” He grinned. “Except I haven’t bought the hot water heater yet, so even if I wanted to hook the water up, it’d only be cold.”

“You’ve really got this figured out, don’t you?” Toby stated, impressed.

“Kinda.” He shrugged, “I just kinda got in the habit of being a homemaker. And since my dad…” he trailed off. “It’s a distraction, I guess?” There was a lot of uncertainty in his voice, but only Toby and Claire picked up on it. They looked at each other, sharing a look of concern. “I basically lived on my own, since mom was always at work. So I learned how to be resourceful and fix things…” He shrugged again, feeling self-conscious. A sixteen year old shouldn’t know how to build a house on his own. He certainly shouldn’t know how to hook up one to plumbing and electricity.

Though, they shouldn’t have horns either.

Claire rescued him. “So, where did you put the new Heartstone?”

He sighed slightly in relief and beckoned them all down one more floor. Like the living room, the floor was polished, and another rug went down. However, the floor was made of dark hexagonal rock, and not crystal.

A big cardboard box laid in the middle of the floor. “Oh hey, my new mattress is here!” He noted, pushing the box into the corner. “Draal must have brought it from my mom’s house.”

The new heartstone sat in the opposite corner, next to the stairs. The Crystals touching it were beginning to glow a warm orange.

As Claire glanced around the cavern, she noticed a spattering of little glowing spots on the walls and ceiling.

“So this is technically the master bedroom.” Jim said with a flourish.

Darci noticed a blanket and pillow against the wall by the stone. “Are you sleeping here now?”

“Uh, yeah. I have since I got back.”

“On the stone floor?”

“It’s really not as bad as it sounds. I…I got hurt in the final battle, and sleeping by the stone helps me heal.” He absently touched his side, where it still hurt. “Vendel once told me that humans cut gems to unlock their beauty, while trolls unlock gems to unlock their power. And then, he trained me to do so. These heartstones are like trees. The old one, diseased and devoid of its fruit. And this little one is a branch grafted onto it. Finding the right matching facets, the energy in this gem will slowly melt into the old one.

It appeared the Steve had zoned out a while ago, as he just stared blankly at the ceiling, but the others looked interested enough.

“I didn’t realize crystals could be grafted onto each other.” Claire noted.

“You…can’t. Not exactly. Not naturally. But the energy within has to follow the atomic structure of the crystal to move over, so…imagine creating a channel for water to travel. You have to make sure they connect properly, or the water won’t go on.”

“So, it’s working?” Asked Toby, lost in Jim’s explanation.

“Slowly, but surely.” Jim pointed out a vein of orange within the stone. “It’s only been a week though, so who knows how long it’ll take.”

“And we’ll have to give up the energy we took, too.” Claire said.

“Yeah…I’m not sure about that part yet. This is all just based on what Blinky told me.”

Steve spoke up. “This is cool and all, but can we go to the Forge now? I want to see some action!”

Jim rolled his eyes. He didn’t blame Steve for getting bored. This was the kind of stuff that bored him when he first started as a Trollhunter. But, responsibilities change a person.

—

Later that night, after he had taken everyone home, he went back home. Despite all the work he was putting into the Heartstone, his home was still with his mother.

And there was a war on.

Jim stood in front of the door, about to walk in, when he heard James’ voice yelling. It seemed like Merlin’s spell had worn off.

“How the hell do you expect me to make any money if you won’t let me sell?!”

“Oh I don’t know, get a job! Like a normal human being!”

“I can’t Babs! I have to lay low!”

“And I’m sure selling that shit is exactly how you’re going to do that! Honestly, James! I can’t believe you have that with you!”

“What were you expecting!? You want me to throw it in the river?!”

“I would love for you to do that! And you can jump in after it, if you’d be so kind!!”

Jim didn’t want to get involved, but he heard the sound of a slap, and the door banged open on its own.

Barbara gasped. “Oh! Jim…you’re home.” She offered a smile to him, but held her cheek.

Jim’s eyes were wide with rage as he tensed like a spring.

A little dribble of blood came from Barbara’s nose, and the spring was released.

Jim ran at full speed at James, head butting him with his horns and sending him into the wall. Barbara shrieked. Grabbing him by the collar, Jim yanked him up to look in his eyes. “If you ever, ever lay a hand on my mother again, those goons who are out for your blood will be the least of your concerns!”  

Barbara touched his shoulder, “Jim, put him down.”

He did so, but with force.

Trembling, James hobbled into the kitchen without a word.

“Honey, you can’t do that to him.”

“He hit you!”

“Yes, he did. But you don’t need to do anything about it. You don’t need to protect me.”

“Obviously I do!”

“Babs…?” James called from the kitchen. “I’m really sorry…but I think I need to go to the hospital.”

Jim scoffed and stormed out of the house. He had only been back for five minutes, but that was long enough. “Fine, I guess I’ve done enough damage.” He stormed out of the house, slamming the door shut behind him.

Back to Trollmarket it was, then. Though, when he got down to the canal, he parked his truck, and scaled the bridge to sit on the railing. He groaned, grabbing his horns in agitation.

The day had been exhausting, and he couldn’t help but feel on edge.

He was just so angry.

He must have sat there for at least an hour, just trying to catch his breath. But the sound of a bike approaching brought him back into the moment.

“There you are!” Claire breathed. “Your mom said you had a fight, and asked me to find you.”  

“I’m fine.” He said, harshly.

“Barbara doesn’t think so.”

“Well she thinks it’s okay for him to hit her, so what does she know!?” He shouted at her, an animalistic growl in the back of his throat.

Claire stared at him with wide eyes.

He withdrew into himself, crossing his arms. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to yell.”

“It’s okay.”

“No it’s not!” He shouted again. Then in frustration, he banged his fists on the railing, denting it. “Goddamnit!”

“Jim…?”

He didn’t respond, gripping his horns again.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.”

“…do you want me to leave?”

“…no…”

Gently, ever so gently, Claire rested a hand on his back, right between his shoulder blades. Her voice was soft, and soothing. “You’ve been so angry…”

“Not at you…never at you…” he insisted, almost pleading.

“I know Strickler taught you to use your anger…but you don’t have to anymore.”

He moaned. “I know…I just…”

“Is the part of the transformation?”

Still, he didn’t respond, but his brows creased deeply as a painful frown pulled at his lips, making his teeth poke his cheeks. He looked about to cry. “I’m so overwhelmed…”

“With what? You know you don’t have to put that much work into the house, we have time…”

“No, I like working on the house…I mean…” He shook his head, angry again. “This isn’t my body!”

“Jim…”

“I feel like I’m wearing a suit! I…I can see so much more, smell things, my sense of taste is shot, and…my natural instinct is to just…roar at everything I don’t like! And more often than not, I’m roaring at myself! Even my voice is different!”

Claire smiled in understanding, “Mi amor…no one expecting you to be completely adjusted to this. And I understand that you’re angry...anything I can do to help?”

He glanced at her. “You sure you still love me?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“I haven’t been myself in a while. It must be awful to have to deal with me…”

“I don’t know if I’ve really been myself for a while either.” She stated, her hand running over his arm. “That final battle changed both of us...but that’s why I can’t see myself with anyone else but you. My Romeo.”

He chuckled once. “Then...how about we revisit those old days? Just for tonight?”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Come with me.”

He led her down to his truck, and put her bike in the back. Then they drove off.

As he drove, he kept glancing at her, a little grin on his face.

“What are you up to, Jim Lake Jr.?”

He never answered, but in due time, they arrived at their destination. The peak that looked over the town.

The sky was clear of clouds, and sparkled with stars, just as the city lights spread over the valley.

Claire smiled as a familiar guitar strum filled the air, shortly accompanied by soft Spanish vocals.

Today I woke up wanting to kiss you

I have a thirst to caress you

Entangle myself with you and not let you go

You're so intoxicating

It's you

Jim approached her, a stroll in his step to the beat of the music. A look in his eyes of true adoration. She matched his steps, just as slowly. He circled her, resting a hand on her back, and then…took her hand.  

I want to gaze at you without counting the minutes

Draw you with just my memories

In my mind accentuate your lips, your kisses

You're here once again

It's you

He sang along with the chorus, being that his Spanish was still a little weak. But his arms encircled her, just for a moment, before taking her hand to twirl her. While her back was to him, he slipped his arms around her shoulders, hugging her gently as they danced. He twirled her again, talking her into his arms to waltz with her properly. Though, it wasn’t really a waltz, more like…a dance with no rules, only right. Only them.

I love seeing you, having you, embracing you

When I'm at your side

All the goodness in me

Blossoms, it's you

“What’s this then?” She laughed.

He pouted. “You don’t remember our dance after Spring Fling?”

Her smile reflected in her voice. “Of course I remember. I was just teasing you.”

“Rude,” he giggled back, spinning her around.

That magnet of beautiful energy

It's your soul that sends

Signals to my body

Because it keeps on asking for that smell of you

That invites me lying in wait

It's you

“I’m still a bad dancer,” he admitted.

“I think you’re a wonderful dancer.” She looked into his eyes, falling in love with him over and over again. He was so tall now. This time was different, but the look was the same. The comfort, and wonder. He bent to meet her sultry gaze.

We have different plans

But you're always on my mind

Since my veins so subtly

Enjoy loving you so much

It's you, it's you

The kiss was powerful. Under the scent of her shampoo and detergent, he inhaled her real fragrance, her pheromones, the very emotion she had at that very moment.

Bliss.

It's you

—

The song is 'Eres Tú' by Carla Morrison, the same song used in the Episode 'A Night to Remember' I wrote the English Lyrics because I thought it was more powerful to know what was being said.

[ragwitch]

Hi! I just saw your Halloween Prompts. May I ask for ShieldShock for 22. 'Why does our apartment look like a dungeon?’'Bad dungeon or like…sexy dungeon?’29. ‘You’re the cutest person at this party, but you look like you’re freezing. Want to borrow my cape?’31. 'Holy crap. Best Halloween ever!’ ? I am comfortable with any rating you're inspired to write for them. ShieldShock is my OTP and I LOVE Halloween. So, any ShieldShock treats you can create would be loved and adored. :)

ABSOSMURFLY. This is for #22 cause I am saving #31 for the last day of the month cause of REASONS. (smutty reasons) Yay! Thank you for these prompts

22.’Why does our apartment look like a dungeon?’‘Bad dungeon or like…sexy dungeon?’

Pairing: Darcy/Steve

Rating: T for intent *winks lewdly*

Steve stopped at the end of the hall before walking into the living room. He took one long look around the space, at the crumbling gray stone facade lining the walls, to the massive velvet curtains (color of dried blood) that hung in front of his floor to ceiling view of New York City, to the paper thin white cobwebs stretching across corners of the room, and then looked back behind him at the nice, normal entry hall.

“Darcy?” He called, trying to see past the bone chandelier hanging over their dining table and the rubber amputated hand holding a pile of candy in it’s palm on the coffee table by the couch.

“Hey, good looking!”

Darcy popped out from the kitchen wearing a black apron with the words ‘Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble’ in purple and orange glitter letters across the chest.

“Why does our apartment look like a dungeon?” Steve asked, sliding his training shield off his back to rest against the wall. But he thought better of it. It might get infected by the general ghoulishness that had spread across the decor since the morning.

“Bad dungeon or like…sexy dungeon?” Darcy asked, nibbling into her bottom lip. Her hair was pulled up and back and as she turned to look around them room he saw the bright plastic pumpkins at the top of her ponytail.

“I didn’t realize there were levels,” Steve said.

The impish expression she’d been wearing wilted as she looked between him and the ghostly, gothic decorations covering every surface.

“That’s true,” she said and Steve considered swinging the shield up to brain himself with it at the way her voice had shrunk. “It’s just…dollar store Halloween stuff. I got carried away, we can take it down. It’s just…October!” She said the last word with false brightness and skittered back into the kitchen.

He rubbed his hand over his face, the rough grip of his gloves scraping his skin as he grimaced. He’d done this to Tony the year before at the start of December, trampling over a month of holiday cheer with a little bit of poorly timed skepticism. Steve retreated to the bedroom to tear out of his uniform so he could make up his ‘crotchety old grandpa attitude’ up to Darcy before she tore down all her hard work from the day.

The bedroom had also seen the treatment although in this case Steve could more clearly see the argument for ‘sexy dungeon.’ There was more velvet, and black candlesticks, and dried flowers, and she’d rigged up a canopy around their bed that Steve did not mind the idea of hanging onto when he imagined finding Darcy laying in bed behind the curtains. For now though there was just a black paper bag with orange and green striped tissue pepper sticking out of it. He grinned when he pulled out a pair of silky men’s pajamas patterned to look like a black and white tuxedo. A thin slippery black cape was next, and a pair of fuzzy black slippers with bats on the toes. At the bottom of the bag were white plastic fangs that just barely fit onto Steve’s teeth.

He stripped out of his tac-suit, changed into the pajamas (which fit surprisingly well aside from being a little tight around the shoulders and thighs) and the rest of his gift, and put his uniform away where it wouldn’t interrupt the scene Darcy had set. He paused and stared at the prop shackles that stretched across their pillows and then grabbed those too as he padded out of the room and over to the kitchen.

Darcy was transferring sugar cookies off a pan and onto a pumpkin plate and Steve’s heart ached at the way the corners of her mouth curved down. He swooped in, arms stretched out to make the cape billow, and wrapped his arms around her back as she squeaked in surprise.

“Now I m’ever thaw Noferathu,” Steve lisped through plastic fangs, grinning and trying to keep them in his mouth as Darcy giggled in his arms. “But I fink iths thupposeth to go thomethink like thith.” He nuzzled against her neck, hands slipping under the apron to squeeze at her hips and pull them back against his. With a little bit of effort, and nearly swallowing the fangs, he managed to get a long, gentle bite into the side of her neck.

The gasp and excited squirm that followed were both a surprise and absolutely fascinating to Steve.

“You’re a dork!” Darcy giggled, but she rolled her hips back into his and her breath hiccuped as he growled and bit down harder in response.

He pulled back and let the fangs clatter to the floor. “You’re a dork,” he said, somewhat unimpressively. “And I love it. Sorry I came in like a grump. I feel like I have a lot of October appreciation to catch up on, huh?”

She relaxed in his arms as he pecked at her cheek, and then her neck as she stretched it for him.

“You’ll have a good teacher,” she said. “It’s my favorite month.”

“Oh yeah?” he asked. “Does my teacher want to explain to me what I’m supposed to do with these?”

He let the shackles roll out from where he’d held them in his elbow and lifted them to dangle in front of Darcy’s face. Her cheeks pinked but she didn’t shy away.

“You’re supposed to wear them,” Darcy said, eyebrows lifting. “So I can ravish you.”

Steve grinned. “Darcy I could break this chain in half a second.”

Her lips pursed and her eyes narrowed and it was an expression he was both familiar with and extremely fond of.

“But you won’t,” she said, twisting in his arms and cupping his face in her hands so she could rise up on her toes and kiss his chastely. “Not if you’re being very, very good for me.”

Steve blinked and Darcy grinned.

“I’m beginning to find this dungeon very sexy,” Steve said and then bent down to bite at the white skin of her neck as she threw her head back to laugh, and then to moan.

[storieswhispered]

Updates

Hi guys!

So life has been generally weird for the last year, this is actually the first time I've been on my laptop for anything other than paying bills. Tumblr wasn't even logged on and I had to remember my password like peasant.

Anyway! Hi guys, I've been on mobile, so some of you are getting really really late replies, my bad. But I am alive! And you know generally adding things to my queue whenever I'm on the mobile.

Also I have barely written anything at all this past year and want to get back into it! So I will be doing something called A Game of Tropes, where I will taking prompts from any fandom/ship/etc. and hopefully writing a some sort of tropey story (soulmates/coffee shop/time travel.) I'd like to challenge myself a bit. So if you think of something you want me to write please send it to me! More of that under the cut! Also some look at the treats I've been making!

So I already wrote the first A/B/O fic! And that was great fun and honestly a good challenge since I'm not great with smut. 10/10 would like to try that again, mostly because I cannot with pure smut, there must be backstory and plot. Anyway it was a Loki/Darcy story, not my usual ship and fandom but once again it's all about getting out there. Here's a little manip I made for it.

Heathens and Heat by StoriesWhispered

Please ya'll send me ships, tropes, prompts, fandoms to tackle, I need to get my writing muscle working again!

Preview of my SethKate Soulmate AU - the tropiest of tropes.

She hadn’t realized that her life could get worse until the moment blood-sucking vampires suddenly became real.

Having your felon soulmate abduct you and family seems almost manageable in comparison.

Of course, surviving the first wave of attack takes priority over suddenly accepting Seth Gecko as her soulmate. Acceptance, did she go over the five stages of grief in the course of a few hours and vampire attacks?

She takes a swing quickly dodging a pair of fangs as she goes deeper into the back of the bar. The fact that there are tunnels leading into an ancient maze of halls doesn’t faze her as she runs for her life.

_____

So yeah! Send me stuff and sorry about my late replies!

And look at some the baked treats I've been making.