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littlejuicebox · 1 year ago

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Chasing birds to get high, chasing birds to get by

(Astarion x Original F!Character)

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Chapter number: One Themes: BG3, slow burn, original female character x astarion, dialogue heavy, mostly canon behavior Masterlist: Click here. Song: “Chasing Birds” – Foo Fighters Notes: I used to write a lot, for sheer enjoyment and as a creative outlet, but I haven't in years. This character, inspired by my own Tav, and the storyline of BG3, have really inspired me. It's been nice to get a creative spark back! Even if this goes nowhere, or only one person sees it... I hope you enjoy. :)

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Wren holds the book up in her callused hand, littered in scratches from today's earlier run-in with the owlbear. She eyes the thick, heavy tome with a grotesque, leather cover that appears to be adorned with a face… purple, glowing eyes of amethyst and a wide gaping mouth shaped into a scream. Her gut churns for a moment as she wonders if the cover is really made from the face of some poor, unfortunate, creature… or just a clever design.

The half-elf turns the prize over to examine it further, dusting off the cover in the process, thick clouds of detritus wafting through the air. It’s clear this magic item has been in this basement, untouched, for a while. Wren may not be the most versed in magic, like some of her traveling companions, but she can still feel the power radiating off of it, the hairs of her arm standing on edge, pulled by the object's magnetic force.

“Curious…. why don’t you take a closer look? I’ll observe from back here.” Shadowheart muses, playfully.

The pale elf to Shadowheart’s right chuckles lightly, but otherwise says nothing, which strikes Wren as a bit odd. Astarion loves the sound of his own voice... but he's seemed a little off today, ever since last night's events, when she awoke to his fangs clasped around her neck. Her body gives a slight, involuntarily shudder at the memory, not in disgust, but Wren would be loath to admit it was from excitement and perhaps a drop of… was that arousal?

‘Gods, no. What is wrong with you Wren?’

She hadn’t spent much time amongst humanoids out in the wilds; her friends had been the trees and the whisper of the wind. And the one night she made it back to Baldur’s Gate, after a year away, she had to go and get herself snatched up by a mindflayer. Though, it was unlikely she would have jumped at the chance, had a man or woman attracted her attention that one night. Grief still cloaked her other emotions, covering even the happiest moments in a blanket of sadness.

Her mind wanders to the events of last evening, a throb in the side of her neck, where still new-fang marks join a smattering of freckles.

'"Can you trust me a little further?" He questioned, his head tilted just-so, as she confronted the handsome, pale devil standing before her, revealing his vampiric nature. Arms crossed, she’d eyed him, appraising his intentions. She was irritated, and violated, sure. But the look in his eyes and the desperation in his voice reminded her of the scared rabbits and feral cats out in the wild… all of whom she befriended with a bit of effort and a heavy dose of speak with animals spellcasting.

And for some reason that she couldn't explain, even now, perhaps save the fact that somewhere in her subconscious she associated that vampire with any number of wild things in need of love, she’d relented and given him access to her neck. He’d almost gotten carried away and nearly drained her dry, but she’d shoved him off in time, and well…

Well, that’s that, secret is out. And, for the most part, the group had been accepting of the revelation... as long as they weren't the ones he sunk his teeth into, of course.'

The side of her neck throbs, and she absently brushes her hand against her new neck wounds, partially covered by her chocolate locks.

‘Focus, Wren.'

Snapped back to the present, Wren turns to look at the raven-haired cleric, rolling her eyes in the process. “Always concerned for my safety, aren’t you, Shadowheart?”

Her female companion laughs, “Well, if something does go wrong with what is CLEARLY an evil book, I need to maintain my distance so I can be sure to heal you… or revive you.”

Wren scoffs in response, too prideful to admit that Shadowheart’s logic is sound. After a failed attempt to open the book, which feels as if it’s practically glued shut, Wren turns to the duo, a befuddled expression on her face. After making a second attempt, the ranger hisses through her teeth, voice full of strain and effort, “The damn thing is stuck shut.”

She gives up, exhales a defeated sigh, and brushes a few wayward strands of hair from her face. “Well then, you two, we should probably head back to camp. It's been a long day. Maybe Gale will have a better idea about how to open the book; perhaps it’s locked with some sort of magic that he's read about before.”

“That looks awfully heavy, darling, why don’t you let me carry it for you?” Astarion asks, extending his hand out as if to grab it from her.

“Oh, that’s okay, it isn’t far.” Wren mumbles absently, shoving the thick tome into her pack. Why is he offering to do something kind for her? Has his attitude toward her changed, now that she's done him a favor? Seems unlikely.

Shadowheart cackles, shaking her head as she rolls her eyes up at the ceiling in the dingy, abandoned cellar. "Don't tell me you've become our knight in shining armor, Astarion, and that all it took was a little bit of Wren’s blood to turn you into a brand-new man."

Astarion fakes a gasp, hand planted on his hip, "You wound me, my dear. I'm nothing, if not a gentleman."

----

'Gale? She wants to ask Gale? What, so he can eat the bloody thing?'

Astarion bristles, flipping rapidly through the pages of his book (though not the book he wished to be reading), trying to control his underlying frustration as he watched their little gang leader talk to that pompous wizard.

He was merely pretending to read the book in his hands -- some dreadfully boring story about Baron von Baron they'd found several days back, in the Dank Crypt not far off from the nautiloid ship -- while his keen ears actually zoned in on the conversation playing across the camp, his peripheral vision just able to make out Gale as he placed a hand on Wren's shoulder.

"Unfortunately, I don't have any knowledge on how to open this book, Wren..." the wizard starts, "But by the looks of it, that thing probably contains evil magic, perhaps it's best if we destroy it. If you'd like..."

'Destroy it? He can't be serious. He really does just want to consume what is obviously a valuable and very powerful bit of magic!'

"Hey soldier!"

'Blast it.'

"I just want to warn you, don't get any bright ideas about biting my neck tonight. Unless you like third degree burns." Karlach appears in his periphery, and Astarion turns, forced to acknowledge the hulking woman's giant, good-natured grin on her face.

‘Gods, what horrible timing she has.'

"I'll keep the warning in mind, darling. Though, to be truthful, I do enjoy a bit of pain with my pleasure now and then, you know." The response is automatic, laced with innuendo and his signature vocal gravel, every bit of the retort designed to deflect from the fact that the vampire was still struggling with the idea that the entire camp knew his secret and he’d exposed himself with his impulsivity.

‘You need to be more careful than that, you fool.'

Karlach howls a laugh and shakes her head, walking off towards her own tent, taking a bite out of an apple along the way.

Suddenly, Wren is making her way towards him, tome in hand. Red eyes flicker briefly to the violet-clad man she left behind, Gale's face the picture of disappointment.

"Here," she says, matter-of-factly, as she extends the ugly thing toward him, "It's yours to keep."

Astarion reaches out his hand slowly, eyebrow lifted in such a way that clearly asks, 'Why?'

Wren shrugs, "Gale can't open it. And anyway, you helped me disarm the traps to get to it in the first place. Finder's keepers."

"You aren't interested in it?" The vampire asks, grasping the tome by the spine and staring into the honeyed eyes of the half-elf woman, trying to hide his incredulity.

"Not really," Wren responds, "You clearly are more interested in it. And anyway, even if we could open the damn thing--"

She stops abruptly, thumb moving to rub the vertical scar slashed just across the left side of her mouth. Her eyes flicker, for the smallest moment, with embarrassment.

Astarion looks at her mouth, her finger touching her dainty scar, and feels his mouth water. It almost feels as if undead heart thrums for just a moment thud, thud, THUD. Gods, he must be hungry, he needed to hunt... the owlbear took a lot out of them.

A small shuddering sigh from his companion catches his attention, and the next sentence comes out so hushed that, without his enhanced hearing (thanks to her generous gift last night), he might not have been able to understand it. "Even if we could open the damn thing, it's not like I would be able to read it."

The silence between them stretched just a hair too long. He was truly caught off guard. What could she mean? His tone was slow, measured, but clearly confused. "You... wouldn't be able to read it?"

Wren pinched the bridge of her nose, slamming her eyes shut, just at the tips of her ears began to flush. "I mean... Gods! I can read, okay. I'm not an idiot. I just... I have a condition. My father had the same one. Reading is difficult for me. The letters flip on the pages, sometimes the words move around, and the more complex the material... the more difficult it becomes to read it. The humans call it word blindness... And, I just -- well, it's clear whatever is in here is awfully complex and the thought of trying to sift through it all is already tiring me out." She ends in a flustered huff.

For a moment, Astarion thinks she is playing a joke. But he can tell by the rosiness of her ears and the quickening of her pulse that she is not.

"Oh. Well... thank you, darling. Your little secret is safe with me." He offers her a coy smile and a wink, trying to find a way to smooth the moment over, "And, not that I think you're an idiot, because clearly you are quite capable in many ways, but who needs brains with a face like yours, my dear?"

Wren laughs at his cheesy line, despite the pit of embarrassment sitting in her chest. "Well, now you know one of my deepest secrets. Seems it's only fair... since I know one of yours.”

“Just a moment, darling.” Astarion calls, book in hand, as the little ranger makes a move toward her tent. She pauses, warm orbs of amber focused on his scarlet ones. “I just— I didn’t get a moment to thank you, for last night. That was a gift, you know, and I won’t soon forget it.”

Astarion couldn't help but let his eyes flicker to the fang marks he left on her neck the night prior, hidden among a smattering of freckles that lined her neck and formed a trail down her collar bone, the rest of that speckled constellation hidden by the bust of her blouse. He'd never noticed all her freckles before, nor really paid any mind to the scar that dashed across her lip. Perhaps the blood of thinking creatures had made him more observant than he already was before.

‘Gods I would love another taste of that delicious neck.’

Wren threw a cautious smile in his direction, another beat of silence passing between the two, both of them thrown by his genuine moment of authenticity. “Yes, well… like we discussed. No more drinking without consent, and only attacking enemies and animals from now on. Though, truth be told, I think I might rather you go after evil humans than my poor little squirrel friends.” She smirked at the last bit, eyes flashing with humor. “Good night, Astarion. And good luck opening that vile thing.”

"Of course, darling, I’ll be a good boy. Cross my undead heart. Good night, little bird." He called after her, tome in hand as he turned and walked to his tent, smirking at the bit of luck he just happened upon as he placed the book amongst his belongings before meandering towards the forest. Perhaps whatever information that magical novel contained would give him the power to save himself. As for how to open it? Well, that was a problem for another day. For now, he needed to hunt, and catch more than just a little bird.

#baulders gate astarion #baulders gate 3 #baulders gate tav #astarion fic #fanfic #bg3 #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 fanfic idea #astarion fanfic #astarion x tav #astarion x original female character #astarion smut #slow burn

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igotanidea · 2 years ago

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Growing up : Jason Todd x fem!reader

A/N: the reader vigilante name is Ego (messing with people heads, but not like a metahuman, she just has natural psychological talents). Previously named Cheshire (I realised that there already was a character named like that a bit too late and had to fix it - Ego is the story about it)

Other parts of this verse: Cheshire cat, That damn gala, Five years later, Tired, Benched (not necesarilly in that order, but Five years later is previous to Tired)

***

I was so, so, soooo tired my eyes were simply closing themselves without any involvement from my part.

I haven’t been sleeping well lately. Guess it had something to do with my broken and casted right leg. According to the doctor it's been healnng perfectly and the aching and itching that prevented my night rest was the first example of it. Maybe, but I still hated it. Over six weeks ago I had an accident during patrolling. Silly, rookie mistake got me falling down and before I was able to regain my balance I found myself lower.

Three floors lower.

It was a miracle I only ended up with broken leg. I mean, a little bit more impact and I would end up with damaged spinal cord, paralyzed for life, unable to move a single muscle from the neck down. However, at the moment everyone who were fighting besides me held their breaths.

6 weeks ago

“EGO!” I heard Oracle yell through the comm. Honestly, her voice would bring the dead from behind the grave.

“Damn it!” Dick hissed and without any hesitation ditched his opponent and rushed to check up on me, doubling on my pain and guilt. I screwed up and now, the team was paying the price. Nonetheless he did not seem to care when he landed next to me in his swiftly, acrobat-like way.

“Stop showing off” I rolled my eyes, grabbing the leg “It’s not that kind of circus.”

“One thing for sure, your tongue wasn’t damaged during the fall. Where does it hurt?”

“Knee.”

“Show me.”

“It’s not that bad….” I tried to move away from his hands and it made me squeal in pain.

“Y/N.”

“Red card, Nightwing. You broke the “no real names” rule of Batman. You’re off the field.”

“Stop it.” He said, so calmly that it really did make me hold back my words. “Let me help you.”

“Ok.” I muttered looking down, letting him check on my limb.

“I don’t think it’s broken, but anyway, I need to get you out of here. It’s dangerous for you to stay any more than necessary. Anyone could get to you in this weakened state.”

“That’s the sentence I haven’t heard …. ever I think. Up till now, it was hazardous for criminals to meet me, not the other way round.”

“There’s a first time for anything, I guess” he shrugged. Oh, how I hoped Oracle got that on her record. I was so going to use his own words against him in the future “can you try to help me lift you up?”

“Sure. I think” I leaned onto the left, unharmed leg, that was supposed to bear my weight, but the second Dick held his hands towards me to support my efforts, we both heard a loud snap and I couldn’t hold back a cry of pain. If it wasn’t for Dick I would fall again and as an addition to the leg injury would also get some bruises and cuts on the face. “FUCK! I think it’s broken now.”

“Both of you are getting home. Immediately. You better get her here without any more bodily harm or we will have to deal not only with disappointed Bruce, but also with enraged Jason.”

***

“I’m sorry Dick. I really am.” Half an hour later I was sitting on the examination couch, my leg splayed in front of me, while Babs was scanning it and using all of her cutting-edge tech to assess the injury.

“Could you just stop it? WE missed a chance, not the first time and definitely not the last one. This guy we were chasing tonight were not even that important and we will get to him this week, I’m sure of it. You just made a mistake, which frankly speaking wasn’t even yours.”

“What?” I shifted a bit to face him and the change in angle made me gasp in sudden piercing pain.

“Don’t move!” Babs hissed and I smiled apologetically, my eyes still on Dick.

“What do you mean it wasn’t my mistake?”

“I had it all calculated, you know. He was going for that punch, you were in perfect distance so you could get to him, but when I took a swing he used this as a leverage to turn and push you with right hand, not the left I was aiming at.”

“Thanks for the clarification, Dick. But I still take a bit of the blame. After all I was the one who slipped a bit. Damn those shoes need fixing.”

“You won’t be needing them for a while, Y/N” Babs muttered “you have a disjointed kneecap and a fracture in your shinbone.”

“Shit.” I rubbed my forehead in frustration. “How long?”

“Tim has better experience in the medical field, but …..”

“I can’t believe you just said that out loud, Babs” Dick couldn’t help but let out a laugh and met with our angered gaze “Sorry girls, but this is funny…. Isn’t it….? Ok, all right! Stop giving me this murderous look of yours! I surrender!”

“I think you’ll be excluded for something around 6 weeks.”

“6 weeks?! Can I get a second opinion?”

“From Tim?”

“Will do. Hope he, Damian and Bruce had more effective patrol in their part of Gotham. ….. Wait, you didn’t tell them what happened, did you?”

“Of course not.” Barbara scoffed and fixed the strand of hair that was falling in her eyes. “But I’m pretty sure they already know.”

“How?”

“Um….”

“Babs!?”

“I might have used the open channel while talking to you…..”

“So, everyone knows?” Dick jumped from his chair and came closer to us “like… the entire family ?”

“ I’m afraid so.”

“You know what guys? It makes me feel so much better that you two make rookie mistakes as well.” For the first time this night I grinned happily.

***

“It was a simple task. In and out. No obstacles. No complications. No intruders.” Bruce with his most stern expression was haranguing us, like we were some newbies in the vigilante business. Like he never did anything wrong while fighting. I mean, I’m sorry, let me recall this statement. Of course, he never made any mistake. He was the Batman. “Could you tell me, what went down there, that now one of you is about to be put in the cast and the other is pacing around my cave?”

“Sorry, Bruce, I’m just overly excited because of the fact Y/N won’t be able to run away from my surprise hugs for a while” Dick grinned and his statement made me curse under my nose.

“What happened there? And focus on the facts.” Bruce sighed and his face dropped a bit.

“I’m not really sure.” I tapped my chin “What do you think, Dick? What happened there?”

“I thought you hurt your leg, not your brain?”

“Side effect, I suppose.”

“That’s a shame.”

“I’m just giving you the opportunity to come up with a reliable story before Jay gets here and tear the batcave down in his fit of anger.”

“Fair point.” Dick nodded “how about this: a ninja came out of nowhere…..”

“A ninja?” both me and Bruce asked in unison, his voice desperate, mine incredulous of his idea.

“What? I hate ninjas.” Dick shrugged

“We know.” we both retorted together once again.

“I’ll just tell him I ditched you on the field and tripped while returning to the manor. I like this rebellious strike this story gives me. You know, that whole I don’t give a fuck attitude.” I chimed in before Dick could develop his idea further.

“Oh, he will never believe that you left me alone.”

“And why exactly not?”

“’Cause everyone knows you have a soft spot for me, Y/n. You wouldn’t endanger my health and life this way. It’s simply improbable.” His smile was so ridiculously confident it made me question my sanity.

“In your dreams, Grayson. “

***

With some help I was transported to my room, while I had to wait for the family doctor, Jonah Hill to come and put me in the cast. The thought of being benched for so long made me feel like vomiting. Up to that I was still wondering why the hell all the Waynes, including Cass and Steph were now back from the patrol and the person I needed most was out of reach. It made me worried and spinning into belief something might have happened to him. Luckily, Tim was there to keep me company.

“How are you doing, Ego?”

“I’m about to be crippled, can you imagine?” I rolled my eyes and Tim pursed his lips “Sorry, Tim, I didn’t mean to be harsh. I need to switch the mode from the one tuned onto your older brothers to the one tuned on you.”

“How is that different?” he asked sitting on the edge of the bed.

“With Dick, it sometimes feels like he see the little girl in me and I have to prove that I’m a grown up, capable of handling myself. With Jason, you know, we tease each other, we bicker and spite but it’s just a common sense of dark humor we both understand and that brings us closer. With you, I can be more sensitive, withdraw for a while without thinking I’m losing, drop all the pretenses. I think out of everyone in this family you are the most insightful and I really, really like that, Tim. You might be the only one that brings some sense of peace to the Waynes. ” I smiled

“Thank you y/n/n.”

“You see, that’s consciously used nickname. I haven’t heard it in a while.”

“Just had a feeling it might lift your spirit.” He squeezed my hand lightly and I reciprocated.

“It did. Thank you too.”

“Y/n. Tim.” a male voice reverberated from the entrance.

“Morning, doctor.” Tim nodded in acknowledgement.

“Hi, Jonah” I smiled. He might have been an esteemed doctor etc., but he was dealing with this family for way too long to use his title. He has seen many, many injuries of Dick, Jason and mine, some more embarrassing then others, never knowing the real stories behind getting them. I mean, of course, no one ever told him we were Gotham’s vigilantes. Besides, he was at the same age as Dick, so I treated him like a friend, rather than someone who I should keep distance from. Even if he wanted more and was very clear about it in the past. Before me and Jay got together.

“What happened this time?” Jonah smirked

“Not much. Just casual broken leg.”

“Out of everyone I met in my practice you are excelling when it comes to self-distance. And you are a Wayne.”

“I was never legally adopted.” I pointed out.

“But you were raised by Wayne. With all the respect he’s not the one to joke about himself.”

“Can’t blame him for that” Tim muttered obviously referring to the part of our life Jonah had no idea about. “I’ll leave you two to it. I believe you are in good hands Y/n and …..”

“Can’t you be my emotional support here, Timmy?” I whined eyeing him with doe eyes. Maybe, subconsciously I didn’t want to be alone with Jonah. He still had that unintelligible tendency to flirt with me. Directly. Even if he knew I was with Jay. (speaking of the devil, I was still wondering what the hell was with him.) “Please?” this sounded more desperate than intended but it was hard to give the air to the handsome doctor who I was not interested in but with who I had to keep good relationship. For the sake of the family and our health of course.

“Y/N?” Before Tim was able to answer Damian peeked through the half-open door. This little demon. Ever since he arrived at the Wayne Manor he had learn so much about people, emotions and relationships. Thanks to his natural intelligence he quickly figured out why I was acting strange around some family friends and felt the need to keep me safe from any intrusion. Much to Jay’s annoyance since the red bat felt like his brother was stealing his job from him. What was even better about Damian was that he developed the ability to switch between his assassin, cold, sneaky self and the charming, innocent, youngest member of the family. And now, using his softest voice he was asking permission to come in and accompany me in the medical procedure. He looked almost sweet. Only Tim and I noticed the murderous glint in his eyes. He wanted to watch over me, rather than expand his knowledge.

“Come on in, Damian. I bet dr. Hill has nothing against your presence here, isn’t it right, Jonah?”

“Um… I…..” the MD stuttered and that gave away the fact that he was in fact going to flirt with me again and Damian just got in the way.

“See, Dami. Told you. “ I smiled and patted a spot next to me on the bed “You can even take a place here if you’d like.”

“Mhm. I think I’d like that.” He smiled, but this time it was more predatory then before “I could observe carefully.” And with those words, he jumped on the bed.

I really loved this silent connection with Damian. We never needed any words to communicate. It was extremely hard to get to him at the beggining, but unlike everyone else, who was approaching him with caution and gentleness I never did it. He was an assasin. He was dangerous, sometimes. He was harsh and extremely direct in his opinions. But that was what I liked about him. And while everyone focused on showing him the meaning of friendship and family, introducing Dami to the other part of life, he never knew about, I was rather concentrated on proving to him that all the traits he possesed that people assumed were bad could actually be used for his benefit. I think that was why in time we developed pretty strong bond.

***

“I think that would be it….” a while later Jonah finished his work and started gathering utensils, almost shaking under Damian’s predatory gaze. He did not have enough time to get used to the little Wayne.

“You can ease up, now.” I whispered when the doctor turned around “I think you scared him enough. And besides, he’s leaving now.”

“Whatever.” Dami shrugged but eased up his glare. A bit.

“I guess I’ll see you in two weeks, Y/N. Just to make sure everything goes in the right direction with healing.”

“Sure. You know I appreciate your care Jonah. We all do, right Dami?”

“Sure.” the boy crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes

“I… um… I’m gonna go now. I know the way, no need to see me out and …..”

“Where is she?!” of course Jason chose this moment to burst through the door and immediately collided with the other man “What the hell are you doing here?!”

“Dr. Hill came to provide medical attention, Jason. Which I desperately needed.” I explained in the low voice, accenting some parts of the sentence just to spite my boyfriend further.

“I was just leaving.” Jonah stuttered. Guess he still remembered his last confrontation with my jealous boyfriend. To tell the truth, I remembered it too - the aftermath were quite pleasurable, Jay made sure of that.

“Good for you” Jason hissed “farewell, doctor. Now, off you go too, demon. I need Y/N for myself.”

“Are you sure she wants it?” Damian stood up in front of Jay, the height and posture difference being so comical I couldn’t help a single laugh.

“Pretty positive.”

“Why don’t we ask her then? Y/N, do you want Todd to stay?”

“Hm. I’m not sure…..” I tapped my chin thoughtfully

“WHAT?! How can you not be….?!”

“You are late, Jay. How does the saying goes? You snooze you lose?” Damian smirked upon my words.

“Y/N!” Jason exclaimed.

“Oh, and now you are yelling at me.” I pouted “And I’m severely injured. And in extreme pain. This is just so… so…. “ I sobbed in a phony matter “… unfair….”

“Oh, come on….” he gasped and threw hands in the air in desperation “this is way too dramatic for you.”

“Yeah, you’re right” I dropped the theatrics immediately. It was no fun pretending when he already knew I was doing it. “I’ll be fine, Dami. You can go. Thanks for staying though, it was funny observing Jonah so intimidated.”

“If you need anything......”

“Don’t worry, demon. I got her covered.” Jace practically pushed Damian out the door and closed it tightly. “He’s a menace.”

“He’s… intense. But we both know he is a good boy, Jace.”

“Yeah, whatever you say.” He shrugged standing in place. Oh, the war of nerves he was waging against me. Of course, he was not going to show any care. At least not in the beginning. But I wasn’t going to relent. If he wanted teasing, teasing he would get.

“Guess I’ll be benched for a while.” I pointed towards my leg “and that means Jonah will be coming here to check on me. I wonder if he’s going to be as friendly as usually when he gets me alone.”

“Stop saying his name!” he hissed and fell onto the bed next to me, cupping my cheek. Unlike his harsh voice, the touch was so gentle caring and loving. “Stop talking about him. I hate that guy. He almost stole you from me.” He moved closer, leaning his forehead on mine and then he realized “You did this on purpose didn’t you, my girl?”

“Of course. But I love how it turned out.” I stretched my arms and locked them around his neck pulling him closer. “Hi, Jace.”

“Hi, baby.” He pecked my lips chastely and rubbed my sides carefully “How are you feeling?”

“I’ll survive. If anything I would die out of boredom in the next weeks.”

“We’ll figure something to keep you entertained.”

“Like helping Babs in her woman in the chair position?”

“For starters. You will get to see me in action on the big screen, how does that sound?”

“I’ll make a crack video.” I laughed at him and he frowned “Hey, don’t be mad, Jay.” I laid my head on his shoulder and he exhaled deeply, playing with the strand of my hair.

“I could never be mad at you.”

“Is that a challenge?” I sneaked a peek at him.

“Ok, stop it now. I’m trying to be thoughtful and caring here. You’re ruining the moment.”

“Sorry. Guess I have tendency to push the point.” I sighed and felt his arms wrap tighter around me. It must have been hard and uncomfortable to hold me like this, with my leg outstretched but he did not complain. “What took you so long? Are you all right, Jaybird?”

“I’m good. Sorry I couldn’t get here sooner, baby, I played a vital part in the ambush for the …..”

“ I know. I knew the plan we were executing. I was just worried and the crazy thoughts kept creeping in and ..... ”

“Hey. Stop spiraling. It's about you, not me.” he pulled away “look at me” I followed and once again our gazes met, making me melt. Jason was stubborn like a mule, ironic, impenetrable, acting like an edgelord towards everyone and keeping his distance. But when someone (like me) was persistent enough to get through, all the good things inside him were enough to cover up for the worse ones. Now, he was looking at me with so much love, attention and care it was indescribable ”I love you.” he whispered slowly, eyes never leaving mine and tears started falling down my cheeks. Guess we both sucked when it came to good emotions.

“I love you too Jason. So freaking much. Please, don’t leave me now.”

“I’m not going anywhere, baby. But you need rest. Your body needs rest. Let it have it. I’ll keep you safe.”

“From who?” I laughed and he followed.

“Anyone.” Jason answered kissing the top of my head. “You do realize you will have to stay in the manor until you heal, right?”

“Look who’s ruining the moment now.”

***

Third person POV

10 hours later.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Dick hissed when he saw Y/N walking around in the batcave “You are injured!”

“It’s not an excuse for being lazy.”

“I swear you are getting worse than Tim. You need rest!”’

“Mhm, sure, someone told me that before. I think I got enough sleep for a lifetime. And now….”

“Do you want me to call upon Damian?”

“I don’t think he respects you enough to come upon a call. He wouldn’t listen. Besides, what would he do?”

“Do you want me to call Jason?”

“Getting desperate here, Dickie?”

“Y/N.”

“What? I just… I want to help you guys. It’s 9 p.m., normally I would be preparing for patrolling and my body just falls into this pattern, adrenaline kicking in. I won’t be able to stay here doing nothing.”

“We’ll be fine.”

“Sure. Remember what happened last time you said it?”

“Care to remind me?”

“You got shot!”

“Minor inconvenience. And it healed fast.”

“I swear everyone in this family is insane.” She turned around to the extend her cast allowed her and threw hands in the air dramatically.

“You included?”

“Of course me included. It comes with even standing close to you or Bruce. You are like a disease.”

“You’re my favorite too, Y/N. Now go. The hell. Upstairs.

***

She swore she won’t be able to fall asleep, but her organism knew better. Or rather Jason knew better. When he saw her limping up the stairs, he just breezily, yet mindful of the leg picked her up and tucked in the bed.

“I hate it!” she pouted trying to get out again.

“Don’t even think about it” Jason warned.

“I’m not thinking, I’m simply doing.” she threw the blanket away but Jason was quick to take action.

“The hell you are.” taking her by surprise he laid in the bed next to her, putting an arm around her, nailing her to the mattress. “I’m not letting you out.”

“So what, now I’m a prisoner?” she shifted only to lay on the side and face him.

“Am I a punishment for you? Is that what you are saying?”

“No” she sighed “this shit on my leg is.”

“I should really kick the ass of the one responsible for letting it happen.”

“That would be me, Jay.” She pointed out “Are you really ready to fight me?”

“We’ll spar after you get back to full health.”

“I’ll hold you to this word.” she smiled lightly “You know, I like it when you’re here, next to me…. Maybe I should not let you go.” Her hand travelled up his muscled arm and then down, tracing all the scars and cuts, relishing in his presence and this little moment of peace and open vulnerability. “Not that I hold such power over you, of course.”

“Sure not. You’re getting a bit too cocky here, sweetheart.”

“Hm.” She muttered “Can I at least keep you until it’s time to go?”

“I think I can manage that. But since we got only like an hour left, how about I compensate for it by bringing you closer to me?”

“I think I can manage that” she whispered and hummed softly when his hands found her waist pulling her in and shifting positions so that he was lying on his back and her head landed on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. The fact that they didn’t need any words to fill in the silence was the perfect indicator of how they felt about each other. Much to her displeasure she slowly started drifting off, lulled by Jason’s touch and gentling, his warmth and safety she felt with him. “Come back to me in one piece….” She muttered before the sleep enveloped her fully.

***

It was so damn hard to leave her and Jason’s heart ached at the simple thought of being forced to wriggle out of her embrace. Said hour later, Y/N was deeply asleep next to him, her warm, soft body being the sweetest weight he could imagine. Only now he realized he would have to go through the entire night without being able to hear her bickering through the comms and it made him shiver. She was probably the only one to understand his wicked sense of humor and help him keep his cool and remnants of level – headedness without falling back into the killing and violence with which he acted right after the pit. He loved her. He would give her everything and yet, she would settle for anything from him. She always claimed that his protectiveness was welcomed but not necessary. She didn't need his action, she needed him, his presence, time and soul. It was hard to comprehend at the begginig, but he was slowly learning how to love and be loved fully.

Jason closed his eyes, feeling her breathe calmly next to him. She was right, it’s been a while since they have been this peaceful and this close together and he hated the thought of being forced to break it. But she would understand. After all, she was a vigilante as well, familiar with the night patrols. And she would never ask him to stay back just for her whim.

Involuntarily, reluctantly, he started moving, the coldness of the air immediately replacing the softness and happiness he felt with her. Y/N whined quietly and adjusted her sleeping position to his absence, her hair falling straight onto her face due to the movement. Jason smiled, tucking them over her ear and caressing her cheek, which made the girl lean into the touch.

“Enough.” He had to bring himself upright. One more touch or kiss and he would forget about Gotham, patrols, missions and his entire family and lie down next to her again. She thought being benched would be hard for her, and yet never realized how much he would struggle through it.

***

“Babs…..” Y/N limped into the cave, dressed in Jay's hoodie and rubbing her eyes.

“Rough night?” the red haired girl turned from the computer, facing her younger friend.

“Something like that. I had a nightmare.”

“About? If you want to talk about it of course.“

“Nothing explicit” Y/N shrugged and perched on the edge of the desk “mission going wrong, people getting hurt…. the usual stuff.”

“You need something to keep your mind busy?”

“Yes, please. What do I do?”

“You have some tech skills, so you can be the one to walk boys through the patrol tonight” Babs smirked

“You want me to take your place?”

“Not fully. I’m not quitting my job just yet. But you can be the support. From what I see Red Hood has been unusually violent today and someone needs to pacify this one.”

“I’m not sure if it’s good idea for me to do it.” Y/N hesitated, picking her fingernails.

“And why exactly not?” Barbara frowned and eyed Y/N carefully “you’re working together on a daily basis. You are a couple. You know how to get to him.”

“I…. I don’t want to, Babs.”

“Why?”

“Cause he’s out there and I’m here. If anything happened I won’t be able to rush for help and…..”

“You’re worried.” Babs stated

“Maybe. But please, don’t tell anyone.”

“I won’t. I promise. And believe me, I get it. When I was forced to hang the mantle of batgirl and Dick was out on the streets, I felt the exact same thing. But it’s just something you learn it time in relationship. You learn to let go of your own fear for the benefit of the other person. You have to learn it or it will consume you and eventually lead to fights and misunderstandings.”

“Can you help me with it, Babs? I… I really don’t want to mess up what I have with Jay.”

“Sure y/n. I’ll help you. And I’ll make sure Dick have the same conversation with your boy.”

“I don’t…..”

“Hey, relax. It would be just brotherly talk. Jace is a prick but he loves you. But love needs to be mature. And he’s not there yet, sometimes he acts too emotional for the sake of both of you. I only do it because I care about you.”

“Thank you, Babs.”

"What are friends for?" Barbara nodded and would probably add something more if it wasn’t for the voice coming out of the speakers.

“Oracle, are you there? Why aren’t you responding?”

“I’ve just had important conversation with Ego, Nightwing.”

“About what?”

“Emotions. And you won’t like what I will ask you to do after you get back from patrol."

"Given our history together I think nothing can surprise me anymore."

"I'm sorry, is anyone working there? I need some intel!"

"Polite as usual, Red." Babs hissed "And in fact...." she glanced at me "I'm taking a night off."

"Whatever. I'll just handle myself then."

"Ego will guide you tonight." Babs smirked and I mentally facepalmed. She was so much like Dick at times.

"I hate you" I muttered but took her place in front of the screen "Hello Hood. Guess I won again. You are condemned to my advice."

"I think this is going to be an interesting night then, Ego."

"Oracle! Get Ego and Hood off the line now." Bruce hissed through the comms. "I swear I am working with immature kids."

"We're working on growing up, Bruce. We really do." Babs smiled, with zero intention of listening to his orders. Guess I was in charge after all and in fact, I started getting the feeling it would be quite enjoyable.

@pinksirensong

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fogwitchoftheevermore · 9 months ago

Text

Assigning Every Fall Out Boy Song to The Life Series

because i'm a normal person with normal person feelings about fall out boy's discography and the life series. trust me.

“every” is a strong word here because fall out boy's discography is Literally Like 150+ Songs so i’m only doing the songs off their main 8 albums in this post. if enough people ask (which i seriously doubt will happen), i’ll do the eps+remixes as well.

sorry if there is an overabundance of certain characters/a lack of certain characters. i tried to include people are frequently as possible but a: i am inherently biased (though some of my faves are pretty underrepresented), b: not everyone has the same amount of content to draw from because they haven't all been in every season and c: some of these guys are simply not fall out boy characters to me. it's just how it is.

so, under the cut will be, in release order, every fall out boy song assigned to a life series character/event+the lyric that i think best represents why i assigned it.

TAKE THIS TO YOUR GRAVE

Tell That Mick He Just Made My List of Things to Do Today: DL!Pearl

To my favorite liar, to my favorite scar (to my favorite scar!)/I could have died with you/I hope you choke on those words that kiss that bottle/Confess (so bury me in memory)

Dead on Arrival: SL!Gem and Pearl (Gem POV)

This is side one, flip me over/I know I'm not your favorite record/The songs you grow to like never stick at first/So I'm writing you a chorus, and here is your verse/No, it's not the last time, 'cause I'd never say no to you/This conversation's still dead on arrival/And there's no way to talk to you/When you're dead on

Grand Theft Autumn / Where Is Your Boy: DL!Etho (JUST TRUST ME. AND ALSO GO WATCH THE BIT WHERE FINDS OUT BDUBS+IMPULSE ARE SOULMATES)

When I wake up/I'm willing to take my chances on/The hope I'd forget that you hate him more than you notice/I wrote this for you (for you, so…)/You need him, I could be him/I could be an accident, but I'm still trying/And that's more than I can say for him/Where is your boy tonight?/I hope he is a gentleman

Saturday: SL!Gem

Pete and I attacked the laws of Astoria with promise and precision/And mess of youthful innocence/And I read about the afterlife, but I never really lived/More than an hour (More than an hour)/When I say/Two more weeks, my foot is in the door, yeah/I can't sleep, in the wake of Saturday

Homesick at Space Camp: Post 3L!Skizz

Tonight is all about "We miss you" now/These friends are, new friends are golden

Sending Postcards From a Plane Crash (Wish You Were Here): Post DL!Joel

Every friend we ever had in common/I will sever the tie, sever the tie with you/You can thank your lucky stars/Everything I wish for will never come true/When you go, I will forget everything about you

Chicago Is So Two Years Ago: LimL!Martyn

You want apologies, girl, you might hold your breath/Until your breathing stops forever, forever/The only thing you'll get is this curse on your lips/I hope they taste of me forever

The Pros and Cons of Breathing: DL!Pearl

Woah, I want to hate you half as much as I hate myself/You know that I could crush you with my voice/Stood on my roof and tried to see you/Forgetting about me/Hide the details/I don't want to know a thing

Grenade Jumper: The Heart Foundation

They'll say it's not worth it, so we'll leave this town in ruin/Living like life's going out of style, and you came to watch us play/Like a "big shot talent", but at the end of the day you know/Woah, those busted lips we take back home

Calm Before The Storm: DL!Ren

You said/Between your smiles and regrets/"Don't say it's over"/Dead and gone, dead and gone, yeah

Reinventing the Wheel to Run Myself Over: DL!Jimmy and Tango

I can't wake up to these reminders of who I am/A failure at everything, 18 going on extinct/I know my place, it's nowhere you should roam

The Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes: SL!Jimmy

I'm all ears and I'm all scars/To hear you tell me, "Boys like you, you try too hard/To look not quite as desperate," I'm hanging on/But I still know the way to make your makeup run/So, and when it all goes to Hell, will you be able to tell/Me "sorry" with a straight face?

FROM UNDER THE CORK TREE

Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn’t Get Sued: 3L!Impulse

We're only liars but we're the best (We're the best)/We're only good for the latest trends/We're only good 'cause you can have almost famous friends/Besides, we've got such good fashion sense

Of All The Gin Joints In All The World: 3L!Ren and Martyn

You only hold me up like this/'Cause you don't know who I really am/Sometimes I just want to know what it's like to be you

Dance, Dance: DL!Bigb and Ren (Ren perspective, also this is specifically applicable most antagonistic moments of their relationship we get, to be clear. This is not the usual approach I take to them.)

You always fold just before you're found out/Drink up it's last call/Last resort, but only the first mistake, and I/I'm two quarters and a heart down/And I don't want to forget how your voice sounds/These words are all I have so I'll write them/So you need them just to get by/Why don't you show me a little bit of spine/You've been saving for his mattress, love

Sugar, We’re Goin Down: Martyn

We're going down, down in an earlier round (Take aim at myself)/And sugar, we're going down swingin' (Take back what you said)/I'll be your number one with a bullet (Take aim at myself)/A loaded God complex, cock it and pull it

Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner: LL!Cleo

I keep my jealousy close/'Cause it's all mine/And if you say this makes you happy, then I'm not the only one/Lyin'

I’ve Got A Dark Alley And A Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Songs): Joel

Joke me something awful just like kisses on the necks of "best friends"/We're the kids who feel like dead ends/And I want to be known for my hits, not just my misses/I took a shot and didn't even come close

7 Minutes In Heaven (Atavan Halen): LimL!Grian

Sitting out dances on the wall/Trying to forget everything that isn't you/I'm not going home alone/'Cause I don't do too well on my own

Sophomore Slump Or Comeback Of The Year: SL!Skizz

We're the therapists pumping through your speakers/Delivering just what you need/We're well-read and poised/We're the best boys/We're the chemists who've found the formula/To make your heart swell and burst/No matter what they say/Don't believe a word

Champagne For My Real Friends, Real Pain For My Sham Friends: DL!Joel and Etho

Strike us like matches, 'cause everyone deserves the flames/We only do it for the scars and stories, not the fame/At least everyone is trying, everyone is shining/Everyone deserves the flames but it's such a shame, such a shame

I Slept With Someone In Fall Out Boy And All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me: Scott

I'm the first kid to write of hearts, lies, and friends/And I am sorry my conscience called in sick again/And I've got arrogance down to a science/Oh, and I'm the first kid to write of hearts, lies, and friends, now

A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More “Touch Me”: LL!BigB

I confess, I messed up/Dropping "I'm sorry" like you're still around/And I know you dressed up/"Hey, kid, you'll never live this down"/And you're just the girl all the boys wanna dance with/And I'm just the boy who's had too many chances/I'm sleepin' on your folks' porch again, dreamin'/She said, she said, she said, "Why don't you just drop dead?"

Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part To Save The Scene And Stop Going To Shows): DL!Grian and Scar (Scar POV)

I know this hurts, it was meant to (it was meant to)/Your secret's out and the best part is it isn't even a good one/And it's mind over you don't, don't matter

XO: LL!Mumbo (Look, this is a stretch, I'll be real, but this song was giving me so much fucking trouble. Let me live.)

To the "love," I left my conscience/Pressed between the pages of/The Bible in the drawer, "What did it ever do for me"/I say/It never calls me when I'm down/Love never wanted me, but I took it anyway/Put your ear to the speaker and choose love or sympathy/But never both, love never wanted me

Snitches and Talkers Get Stitches And Walkers: SL!Tango

Here's a picture with a note, "No, don't turn out like me"/It's only for your own good/No-oh, oh, oh/And haven't you heard, the word on the street is/"I lost it, called it quits," get out into the sun

The Music Or The Misery: LL!Bdubs and Etho (Etho perspective)

I got your love letters, corrected the grammar and sent them back/It's true, romance is dead, I shot it in the chest then in the head/And if you wanna go down in history then I'm your friend/Because they've got me in a band where I've never seen a heart I couldn't break

INFINITY ON HIGH

Thriller: SL!Scar

Last summer, we took threes across the board/But by fall, we were a cover story, "Now in stores"/Make us poster boys for your scene/But we are not making an acceptance speech

“The Take Over, The Breaks Over”: LimL!Cleo

Wouldn't you rather be a widow than a divorcee?/Style your wake for fashion magazines, oh-oh-oh/Widow or a divorcee?/Don't pretend, d-d-d-don't pretend/We do it in the dark with smiles on our faces/We're trapped and well concealed in secret places/We don't fight fair

This Ain’t A Scene. It’s An Arms Race: SL!Scar

I am an arms dealer/Fitting you with weapons in the form of words/And don't really care which side wins/Long as the room keeps singing/That's just the business I'm in

I’m Like A Lawyer With The Way I’m Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You): SL!Jimmy and Martyn

We're the new face of failure/Prettier and younger, but not any better off/Bulletproof loneliness/At best, at best

Hum Hallelujah: LL!Cleo

I thought I loved you, it was just how you looked in the light/A teenage vow in a parking lot/'Til tonight do us part/I sing the blues and you swallow them too/My words are my faith, to hell with our good name

Golden: Joel (LimL especially, but also just in general)

How cruel is the golden rule/When the lives we lived are only golden-plated?/And I knew that the lights of the city were too heavy for me/Though I carried carats for everyone to see/And I saw God cry in the reflection of my enemies/And all the lovers with no time for me/And all of the mothers raise their babies/To stay away from me

Thnks fr th Mmrs: LimL!BigB and Pearl

Been looking forward to the future/But my eyesight is going bad/And this crystal ball…/It's always cloudy except for (Except for…)/When you look into the past (Look into the past…)/One night stand…/One night stand off!

Don’t You Know Who I Think I Am?: LimL!Skizz

They say quitters never win/But we walk the plank on a sinking ship/There's a world outside of my front door/That gets off on being down/Oh-oh, oh-oh/I could learn to pity fools as I'm the worst of all/And I can't stop feeling sorry for myself, whoa-oh

The (After) Life Of The Party: Scar, again. I don't know what to tell you, this is a very Scar album.

I'm a stitch away from making it/And a scar away from falling apart, apart/Blood cells pixelate and eyes dilate/And the full moon pills got me out on the street at night

The Carpal Tunnel Of Love: LL!Mumbo and Jimmy

Tired yawns for fawns on hunter's lawns/We're the has-beens of husbands/Sharpening the knives of young wives/Take two years and call me when you're better

Bang The Doldrums: DL+LimL!Jimmy and Tango

The tombstones were waiting, they were half-engraved/They knew it was over, they just didn't know the date…/And I cast a spell over the west to make you think of me/The same way I think of you/This is a love song in my own way/Happily ever after below the waist/Best friends, ex-friends 'til the end/Better off as lovers

Fame > Infamy: LL!Joel

I am God's gift, but why would he bless me with/Such wit without a conscience equipped/I'm addicted to the way I feel when I think of you, whoa/There's too much green to feel blue

You’re Crashing, But You’re No Wave: This is far from the only FOB song about a sensitive topic but it's one of the like... two that I don't feel comfortable assigning to something.

I’ve Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers: DL!BigB

You're a canary, I'm a coal mine/'Cause sorrow is just all the rage/Take one for the team/You all know what I mean/And I'm so sorry but not really/Tell the boys where to find my body

G.I.N.A.S.F.S.: DL!Impulse and Bdubs

Trade baby blues for wide eyed browns/I sleep with your old shirts and walk through this house in your shoes/You know, it's strange/It's a strange way of saying that I know I'm supposed to love you/I'm supposed to love you/I've already given up on myself twice/Third time is the charm, third time is the charm/Threw caution to the wind, but I've got a/Lousy arm

It’s Hard To Say “I Do”, When I Don’t: Am I allowed to say this is a Watchers song? I don't care I'm saying it.

I speak fast and I'm not gonna repeat myself, no/So listen carefully to every word I say/I'm the only one who's gonna get away/With making excuses today/You're appealing to emotions that I simply do not have

FOLIE A DEUX

Disloyal Order Of Water Buffaloes: Impulse

Oh, I'm a loose bolt of a complete machine/What a match, I'm half-doomed, and you're semi-sweet/So boycott love, detox just to retox/And I'd promise you anything for another shot at life

I Don’t Care: LL!Fairy Fort

Let the leaves fall off in the summer/And let December glow in flames (In flames; oh)/Erase myself and let go/Start it over again in Mexico/These friends, they don't love you/They just love the hotel suites now

She’s My Winona: SL!Martyn

We didn't come to compete, this is a demonstration/Even the young ones become irrelevant/They always bring up how you've changed

America’s Suitehearts: SL!Gem

Let's hear it for America's suitehearts, but I must confess/I'm in love with my own sins/You can bow and pretend that/You don't, don't know you're a legend, oh/Time, time, time hasn't told anyone else yet

Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet: LimL+SL!Cleo, Bdubs, and Etho

Does your husband know the way that/The sunshine gleams from your wedding band?/Does he know the way, does he know the way/Of the crickets that would convince me to call it a night?/But I will never end up like him/Behind my back, I already am

The (Shipped) Gold Standard: LimL!Bdubs

All the yes-men said "No comment"/My mouth got going/The wrong way, and all the calls started snowing/The time my dad caught me a horseshoe crab/And I asked him if throwing it back into the sea would bring our luck back/I wanna scream "I love you" from the top of my lungs/But I'm afraid that someone else will hear me

(Coffee’s For Closers): LL!BigB

Though change will come, oh, change will come/I will never believe in anything again/We will never believe again/Kick drum beating in my chest again/No, we will never believe again/Preach electric to a microphone stand, oh

What A Catch, Donnie: This song is a compilation of different vocalists from bands associated with the band, a compilation of previous songs of theirs, and one of the only FOB ballads. I can't pull a specific lyric, but this one could be solidly used for a compilation/retrospective of every season so far.

27: This is the other one I don't feel comfortable assigning to anything. Moving on.

Tiffany Blews: SL!Lizzie

I'm not a crybaby/I'm the crybaby/A caterpillar that got stuck/Mr. Moth, come quick with any luck/A long walk to a dark house/A Roman candle heart, keep us far apart/I'm cocktail party doin' alright, hate me baby/Maybe I'm a piece of art/Oh, my friends all lie and say/They only want the best wishes for me

w. a. m. s.: LL!Mumbo

I'm a young one stuck in the thoughts/Of an old one's head/When all the others were just stirrin' awake/I'm tryin' to trick myself to fall asleep again, whoa

20 Dollar Nose Bleed: Dogwarts

When I look at the man who would be king, the man who would be king/Goes to the desert, the same war his dad rehearsed/Came back with flags on coffins and said, "We won, oh, we won"/Permanent jet lag, please take me back (Please take me back)/Please take me back, (ooh, ooh)/I'm a stray dog sick, please let me in

West Coast Smoker: SL!Joel

Wishes bounce me weightless/The infrared scope on pointlessness/The bulls are sedated/And this fight's fixed

Pavlove: SL!Tango

Something make my chest stir/Something make my head blur/Oh, oh, I'm not ready for a handshake with death, no/Oh, oh, I'm just such a happy mess, whoa

SAVE ROCK AND ROLL

The Phoenix: Team TIES

Bring home the boys in scraps, scrap metal the tanks/Get hitched, make a career out of robbing banks/Because the world is just a teller and we are wearing black masks/"You broke our spirit," says the note we pass

My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up): LL!Cleo

I've got the scars from tomorrow and I wish you could see/That you're the antidote to everything except for me/Through a constellation of tears on your lashes/Burn everything you love then burn the ashes

Alone Together: The Roomies (Cleo, Etho, and Grian)

I don't know where you're going/But do you got room for one more troubled soul?/I don't know where I'm going/But I don't think I'm coming home/And I said, "I'll check in tomorrow if I don't wake up dead"/This is the road to ruin and we're starting at the end

Where Did The Party Go: LL!Tango

I'm here to collect your hearts/It's the only reason that I sing/I don't believe a word you say/But I can't stop listening

Just One Yesterday: LL!Bdubs and Etho

If heaven's grief brings hell's rain/Then I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday/(I know I'm bad news)/For just one yesterday/(I saved it all for you)

The Mighty Fall: DL!Divorce Quartet

Your crooked love is just a pyramid scheme and I'm dizzy on dreams/(And I'm dizzy on dreams)/But if you ask me two's a whole lot lonelier than one/Baby, we should have left our love in the gutter where we found it/(Gutter where we found it)/'Cause you think, you think your only crime is that you got caught

Miss Missing You: Impulse and Bdubs (Impulse POV)

Baby, you were my picket fence, I miss missing you now and then/Chlorine kissed summer skin, I miss missing you now and then/Sometimes before it gets better, the darkness gets bigger/The person that you'd take a bullet for is behind the trigger/Oh, we're fading fast, I miss missing you now and then

Death Valley: This is the soundtrack to the LL Battle Royale Finale

We're going to die, it's just a matter of time/Hard times come, good times go/I'm either gone in an instant/Or here 'til the bitter end, I never know

Young Volcanoes: The Heart Foundation

C'mon, make it easy, say I never mattered/Run it up the flag pole/We will teach you how to make boys next door/Out of assholes (Hahaha!)/Tonight, the foxes hunt the hounds/It's all over now

Rat A Tat: LL!Grian and Mumbo (mostly Grian POV)

But I'll take your heart served up two ways/I sing a bitter song/I'm the lonelier version of you/I just don't know where it went wrong

Save Rock And Roll: DL!Pearl

I cried tears you'll never see/So fuck you, you can go cry me an ocean, and leave me be/You are what you love, not who loves you/In a world full of the word 'yes', I'm here to scream/No, no (No, no)/Wherever I go, go (go, go)/Trouble seems to follow

AMERICAN BEAUTY/AMERICAN PSYCHO

Irresistible: SL!Gem and Pearl (Gem POV)

Count me in unannounced, drag my nails on the tile/I just follow your scent/You can't just follow my smile/All of your flaws are aligned with this mood of mine/Cutting me to the bone/Nothing left to leave behind/You ought to keep me concealed just like I was a weapon/I didn't come for a fight but I will fight till the end/This might be your battle, might not turn out okay/You know you look so Seattle, but you feel so LA

American Beauty/American Psycho: LL!Scott

I think I fell in love again/Maybe I just took too much cough medicine/I'm the best worst thing that hasn't happened to you yet/The best worst thing/You take the full, full truth, then you pour some out/You take the full, full truth, then you pour some out/And you can kill me, kill me or let God sort ‘em out

Centuries: LimL!Martyn

And I can't stop 'til the whole world knows my name/Cause I was only born inside my dreams/Until you die for me, as long as there's a light, my shadow's over you/Cause I am the opposite of amnesia

The Kids Aren’t Alright: The Mounders

It twists my head just a bit to think/All those people in those old photographs I've seen are dead/And in the end/I'd do it all again/I think you're my best friend

Uma Thurman: 3L!Cleo

You'll find your way/And may death find you alive/Take me down the line/In Gem City, we turn the tide

Jet Pack Blues: Impulse and Bdubs

Honey, don't you leave/Don't you remember how we used to split a drink?/It never mattered what it was, I think/Our heads were just that close/The sweetness never lasts, you know

Novocaine: Guess what, it's Joel again. I'm not even a Joel main why is this happening.

In the truly gruesome do we trust/I will always land on you like a sucker punch/Singing I am your worst, I am your worst nightmare

Fourth Of July: LL!Lizzie and Cleo (Lizzie POV)

I said I'd never miss you/But I guess you never know/May the bridges I have burned/Light my way back home on the fourth of July/I wish I'd known how much you loved me/I wish I cared enough to know

Favorite Record: Post DL!Jimmy

You were the song stuck in my head/Every song that I've ever loved/Play it again and again and again/And you can get what you want but it's never enough

Immortals: 3L!Grian and Scar

I am the sand in the bottom half of the hourglass, glass (Glass)/(Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)/Oh, I try to picture me without you, but I can’t/'Cause we could be immortals/Immortals/Just not for long, for long/And live with me forever now/Mmm, pull the blackout curtains down/Just not for long, for long

Twin Skeleton’s (Hotel In NYC): SL!Martyn and Jimmy

I just need enough of you to dull the pain/Just to get me through the night 'till we're twins again/'Til we're stripped down to our skeletons again/'Til we're saints just swimming in our sins again/And there's a jet black crow droning on and on and on/Up above our heads droning on and on and on/Keep making trouble 'til you find what you love/I need a new partner in crime and you, you shrug that

MANIA

Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea: 3L!Ren

I'm 'bout to go Tonya Harding on the whole world's knee/And I'm stuck, night vision, so stuck, night vision/But I come to life, come to life/Some princes don't become kings/Even at the best of times, I'm out of my mind/You only get what you grieve

The Last Of The Real Ones: Bdubs

My head is stripped, just like a screw that's been tightened too many times/When I think of you, when I think of you/I will shield you from the waves if they find you/I will protect you, I will protect you/Just tell me, tell me, tell me I, I am the only one/Even if it's not true, even if it's not true, yeah

HOLD ME TIGHT OR DON’T: DL+LimL!Etho and Joel

I got too high again, realized I can't not be with you/Or be just your friend, I love you to death, but I just can't/I just can't pretend, we weren't lovers first/Confidants but never friends, were we ever friends?/But when your stitch comes loose, I wanna sleep on/Every piece of fuzz and stuffing that comes out of you/You, I took too many hits off this memory/I need to come down/An-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-nother day goes by/So hold me tight, hold me tight, or don't/Oh n-n-no, no, this isn't how our story ends

Wilson (Expensive Mistakes): LL!Bdubs

There's nothing more cruel than to be loved by everybody but you (but you)/Than to be loved by everybody but you, (but you) but you/If I could get my shit together/I'm gonna run away and never see any of you again/Never see any of you again/I hope the roof flies off and we get blown out into space/I-I always make such expensive mistakes

Church: SL!Lizzie

I love the world/But I just don't love the way it makes me feel/Got a few more fake friends/And it's getting hard to know what's real/And if death is the last appointment/Then we're all just sitting in the waiting room (Mr. Stump?)/I am just a human trying to avoid my certain doom

Heaven’s Gate: LimL!Skizz (right at the end)

I got dreams of my own, but I want to make yours come true/So please come through, honey please, please come through/Oh, go out in the world, start over again and again/As many times as you can

Champion: SL!Pearl

I got rage every day, on the inside/The only thing I do is sit around and kill the time/I'm trying to blow out the pilot light/I'm trying to blow out the light/I'm just young enough to still believe, still believe/But young enough not to know what to believe in/Young enough not to know what to believe/If I can live through this, if I can live through this/If I can live through this, I can do anything

Sunshine Riptide: LL!Scott

The world tried to burn all the mercy outta me/But you know I wouldn't let it/It tried to teach me the hard way, I can't forget it

Young And Menace: LimL!Martyn

We've gone way too fast for way too long/And we were never supposed to make it half this far/And I lived so much life, lived so much life/I think that God is gonna have to kill me twice

Bishops Knife Trick: Bad Boys

I got a feeling inside that I can't domesticate/It doesn't wanna live in a cage, a feeling that I can't housebreak/And I'm yours 'til the earth starts to crumble and the heavens roll/Away, I'm struggling to exist with you and without you, yeah

SO MUCH (FOR) STARDUST

Love From The Other Side: SL!Etho

I'd never go, I just want to be invited, oh, got to give up/Get the feeling, get the feeling, don't fight it, fight it/Sending my love from the other side of the apocalypse/And I just about snapped, don't look back/Every lover's got a little dagger in their hand

Heartbreak Feels So Good: 3L!Grian

Is there a word for bad miracle?/Nobody said the road was endless/Nobody said the climb was friendless/But could we please pretend this won't end?

Hold Me Like A Grudge: DL!Pearl

(You put the "fun" into dysfunction)/Hold me, hold me like a grudge/The world is always spinning, and I can't keep up, woah/Faster and faster, can't do it on my own/Part-time soulmate, full-time problem, yeah/So hold me like a grudge

Fake Out: SL!Lizzie

But I didn't take the love when I had the chance/But I swear I'm not sad anymore/So make no plans and none can be broken/No plans and none can be broken/Do you laugh about me whenever I leave?/Or do I still need more therapy?

Heaven, Iowa: 3L!Scar

And they don't know how much they’ll miss/At least until you're gone like this/Talking to the mirror, say, "Save your breath/Half your life you've been hooked on death"

So Good Right Now: DL!Bdubs

And I know, I know I've made mistakes, yeah/And I know, I know, but at least they were mine to make/They were mine to make/And all of our wildest dreams, they just end up with a-you and me/So, let's drive until the engine just gives out

The Pink Seashell: Ok, I cannot pull a lyric for this because it is the world’s most specific monologue, but the general message of it (“Life is a lottery and bad shit happens all the time, so might as well find happiness in the good things, even the small things.”) feels like it could be Skizz. Just trust me. This one is so fucking difficult.

I Am My Own Muse: LimL!Jimmy

Here I am, not sure you should take a chance/I like playin' dumb, lettin' you figure me out/But I was faded, in my own defense/So, drop a bomb on all the things we dreamed about

Flu Game: SL!Joel

Last night I dreamt I still knew you/You/I carved out a place in this world for two/But it's empty without you/I got all this love I've got to keep to myself/All this effort to make it look effortless

Baby Annihilation: Scott

The first time I took the mask off, just had another one on underneath

The Kintsugi Kid (Ten Years): LimL+ SL!Martyn (but mostly LimL)

Passed my old street, the house I grew up in/It breaks your heart, but four of the Ramones are dead/I felt you at the beginning, but needed you at the end/We're goin' low, low, low, low

What A Time To Be Alive: SL!Bigb

When, when, when I said, "Leave me alone", this isn't quite what I meant/I got the quarantine blues, bad news, what's left?/So, it seems the vulture's gettin' too full to fly, oh/What a time to be alive

So Much (For) Stardust: Ren

I'm in a winter mood, dreamin' of spring now/Burnin' myself down, burnin' myself down, burnin'/I feel like something that's been stretched out over and over again/Until I'm creased, and I'm about to break down the middle/Split me right down the middle, right, right down the middle, yeah

#trafficshipping #trafficblr #life series #third life smp #last life smp #double life smp #limited life smp #secret life smp #fall out boy #ok youre getting all the series tags but not all the member tags. your welcome #anyways ITS DOOOOOOOONE #i love this post. this was so fun. and also took so fucking long #please look my work. and be so niceys to me about it. thank you #save tag

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natrogersfics · 9 months ago

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Article created by @teamromanoff for this 'verse years back! Read on AO3 Steve knows that there are not many things in this world that can leave Tony Stark and Pepper Potts slack-jawed. In terms of all things ridiculous, the couple has seen it all – Tony for being, well, Tony, and Pepper by having to put up with Tony for all these years. And yet, as he and Natasha stand behind the bar after informing them of the truth about their relationship, they find the usually eloquent pair rendered speechless.

The discussion of whether to let them in on their lie had not been a short one. On one hand, the smaller the circle of people who know, the less chance of a slip up there is – not that he and Natasha think that Tony or Pepper would go babbling to the press. They trust them implicitly, and if there’s ever a pair who understood the importance of concealing details about their lives to the press, it’s them. But if things go South, they don’t want to risk implicating their friends. Ultimately, though, the fact that they are some of their oldest friends trumped all the other reasons that had come about. They’re already keeping his actual family in the dark; the family they had chosen did not have to be subjected to the same treatment.

“Let me get this straight,” Tony says, shifting in his bar stool. “You’re telling us that this” – he gestures between them both – “isn’t real? Like, at all?”

His eyes widen at the volume at which Tony says the words, and despite there being an hour left before opening, like a reflex, he and Natasha let their eyes roam around the room to check for any unwanted attention the man may have garnered.

“Will you keep your voice down?” Natasha hisses at Tony. “We have employees in the back.” She gives their surroundings another once-over, and satisfied that no one had heard Tony’s outburst, she looks back at both him and Pepper. “And you two saw us just last week. We weren’t even together, much less engaged. How could you think this was real?”

“I don’t know,” Tony says, his expression twisting as if he’s only now considering the idea. “You two are always joined at the hip. We assumed that at one point the bulb would just go on.” He shrugs. “I never would have put money on you two playing 90 Day Fiancè- ow!”

“What Tony means,” Pepper says, looking at both of them as Tony winces next to her, “is that you two were very convincing. When Sarah announced your engagement, we didn’t have any reason to believe it wasn’t true.”

“Right,” Tony says, pulling out his phone. “Were we really supposed to think this was all fake?”

Steve looks at the picture on screen of him and Natasha on stage with his family before rolling his eyes. “For the hundredth time, yes.”

“What about this?” Tony says, swiping to show the picture of them kissing at the lobby of Cipriani’s on the front page of the NY Star. “And this?” Tony swipes again, moving to the picture of Natasha’s head on his shoulder at the Knicks game they attended with Thor and his wife, Jane. “And this?” The final image is of him and Natasha as they grabbed coffee on their way to do inventory this morning, and if he hadn’t already been jaded by how ruthless photographers could be when it comes to disregarding people’s privacy, he might have rolled his eyes at how quickly they’d gotten their picture circulating on the Internet.

He sighs. “All an act, Tony.”

“Well, shit,” Tony says before zooming in on the picture of Natasha’s engagement ring. “I mean, this looks really real. And expensive.” With a swipe of his finger, the screen shifts back to a gallery of their pictures on the NY Star website. “And these all look really real.”

“Tony, if you believe half the things they print in tabloids, then you’d have married half of Manhattan by now,” Natasha says.

Pepper smirks. “This is true.”

As Tony and Natasha continue to trade jabs, Steve stares back at the phone Tony is still holding out. There’s a part of him that has to admit that their friend isn’t wrong. He and Natasha do look like a couple, and truth be told, ever since the night they had taken their ruse public, every time they’ve had to act has just become easier and easier. But that’s the benefit of having been friends with someone for so long, he reminds himself. Their familiarity with one another has made it so that their learning curve in this has been practically nonexistent, and that’s precisely why Natasha’s the perfect partner in this ruse.

“So how long do you two plan on keeping this up?” Pepper questions, and if he’s honest, it’s the first sensible inquiry they’ve gotten since they revealed the truth.

He turns to Natasha for confirmation before looking back at Pepper. “Just until the deal closes with the Odinsons.”

“Then I look forward to your next performance as Mr. and Mrs. Rogers at the Odinson charity event tomorrow,” Tony says, whose smirk is wiped clean by the glare Pepper shoots his way.

“Well, if our reactions are anything to go by, obviously you two are playing this exceptionally well,” Pepper says. “But just be careful, all right? There are a lot of vultures out there.”

Steve sighs. “Don’t worry, we’re keeping an eye out for the media.”

“Among other things,” Pepper notes, reaching to take a sip of her water. “Anyway, and now for the other reason we wanted to come see you two.” She steals a glance at Tony before smiling. “We have some news.”

It’s slow for a Wednesday night, and with only a handful of patrons finishing up their drinks, Steve makes his way over to where Wanda is standing, her attention on the tablet resting on the surface of the bar. “Not to sound like a grandpa here, but… reading under these lights will do a number on your eyesight.”

Wanda looks up, her expression sheepish. “Sorry,” she says, flipping the cover over the screen. “It’s just with finals-”

“Wanda,” he interrupts with a chuckle before she can continue. “I was just kidding. Well, maybe not entirely about the eyesight thing.” He shrugs as Wanda rolls her eyes playfully at him. “You should take off. Study in proper lighting.”

“Thank you, Steve,” Wanda says, shaking her head. “But no. You and Nat have already been so understanding lately. I couldn’t do that.”

“We weren’t asking,” Natasha says, a smirk on her face as she comes to stand next to him. “It’s the middle of the week. I doubt any more people are coming in. Go.” She cranes her neck towards the direction of the sink at the end before calling out, “You too, Pete!”

“Thanks, guys!” Peter calls out.

“Be safe, kid,” he says, smiling as Peter gives them a thumbs up, before turning his attention back to Wanda. “See, leaving is that easy.”

Wanda looks at him and then at Natasha, who crosses her arms over her chest, before letting out a sigh. “Okay, fine,” she says, her smile full of gratitude. “You two are the best. Thank you.”

Natasha smiles. “Go.”

“I’m going, I’m going,” Wanda says, placing her hands up.

He and Natasha wave to Wanda as she exits, and as soon as the door closes behind their bartender, Natasha makes her way towards the end where Peter had left a batch of freshly washed crystal tumblers. As she takes one in her hand and a dish cloth in the other, he moves to stand next to her. “Do you think we have to let them know too?”

“I thought about it,” Natasha admits with a sigh. “I hate the idea of keeping things from Wanda and Peter, but at the same time, I don’t want to involve them if they don’t have to be.”

“I guess you’re right,” he says before adding, “I doubt they read the tabloids and society pages anyway.”

“No one below the Upper East Side does,” she confers. “Plus, it’d be nice to have a space where we don’t have to pretend, don’t you think?”

“Yeah,” he says, the corners of his lips lifting in a smile. “I think that’s a great idea.” As far as safe havens go, the Soldier & Spy is very much it for them both. It’s taken their blood, sweat, and tears to get their business to where it is today, but it’s the one place they’ve both found happiness in after a long list of unfulfilling careers. “So…” he begins after a beat. “Tony Stark, a father.”

Natasha smirks, but does not take her eyes away from the glass she’s working on. “I honestly thought I’d be more surprised,” she says. “But now that I’ve had some time to think about it, it’s not all that shocking.”

“Yeah?” he prods, turning to look her way.

“Yeah,” she confirms. “If you only knew Tony from what you read about him, then yeah, I guess you’d be floored.” She shrugs. “But we don’t, and we know that underneath all the snide comments and witty comebacks” – she pauses as they share a laugh – “he cares fiercely for the people he loves.” She turns to look at him, a little smile playing on her lips. “I think he’ll make an excellent father.”

“The best,” he says, mirroring her smile. “He and Pepper are one hell of a duo. That baby is going to be so lucky.”

“Speaking of babies, though,” she says, setting the towel on the counter before nodding towards the booth in the corner. “You might want to break that up before those two start making one on our freshly cleaned upholstery.”

He looks to where a young couple is practically draped over each other before chuckling. “Ah, to be young…”

“And out for some action,” she finishes, eliciting a laugh from him.

“Is that why you’re leaving early and making me serve as human contraception?” he asks, watching as she puts the towel down and smirking when she narrows his eyes at him. “What? It’s nothing to be ashamed of, Nat.”

“First of all, I’m not ashamed,” she says. “And second, do you really think I’d do that while” – she gestures between the two of them – “this is going on?”

“I wouldn’t either, by the way,” he interjects.

She rolls her eyes, as if that’s the most obvious fact in the world. “Besides…” she says after a beat. “Even if I did go out looking, it’s been too long since…” She cocks her head towards the booth once more before chuckling. “Anyway, I probably don’t even remember what to do.” Maybe it’s the blank stare he gives her or the silence that lingers between them for a millisecond too long, but either way, she scoffs. “You look surprised.”

“No,” he says quickly, even though that’s not completely the truth. “I mean, I obviously wouldn’t have dragged you into, you know… if I thought that you… But at the same time, I didn’t want to assume-”

“I’m here all the time,” she says almost incredulously, the corners of her lips quirking. “Where could I have possibly found the time to-”

“I don’t know!” he says, amusement thick in his voice as he scratches the back of his head. “Plus, it’s hardly any of my business.” He shrugs. “But hey, for what it’s worth, I heard it’s just like riding a bike.”

“You heard or you know?” she challenges, raising a brow.

This time, he’s the one that scoffs. “I’m here all the time!”

She just shrugs, earning yet another scoff from him. “Wait,” she says, a glint in her eye as she steps closer to him, leaning in as if to let him in on some dirty little secret. “So, you and Peggy… you two aren’t…”

“Natasha,” he says exasperatedly. “For Christ’s sake, not you, too.”

She puts her hands up in the air. “It’s hardly any of my business.”

He rolls his eyes. “No, okay,” he says, shaking his head. “No, it’s not like that with Peggy. It never has been. Okay?”

“Okay,” she says in concession, letting a moment pass before letting out a sigh. “So I guess we’re just a couple of lame bar owners, huh?”

“The lamest,” he agrees, tipping his chin upward.

She smiles. “Anyway, I should get going.”

“Since we’re in a sharing mood,” he says, watching as she picks up her purse and slings it over her shoulder. “Where are you going?”

“Haven’t you heard?” she asks, causing his brows to rise in intrigue. “We have to leave some mystery in the relationship to keep it hot and spicy.”

He scoffs for the nth time as she giggles and leans in to press a kiss to his cheek. “Get out of here,” he says, shaking his head when she only looks back to stick her tongue out at him. Masterlist

#Romanogers #Never Be the Same #Fake Engagement AU #And I'd Choose You

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bowsellie · 10 months ago

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Number One Fan

Chapter One

The Tipsy Bison was the most crowded you've ever seen it, and the makeshift stage taking up several feet of the room did not help the crammed feel. The lights were dim, and chatter was hushed as people checked their watches and prepared for the show they were promised. The first of its kind, Maria had said, with live music from one of the newer residents.

You were heading towards the bar, making a path through the crowd using your long stride and a string of "excuse me's". Just one shot, you promised yourself, for the nerves.

Approaching the already sticky counter, you set your elbows down and waved to catch the attention of the middle-aged bartender. "Hey, Seth, can I get a shot of fireball and a bottle of water?" He nodded, and you scrambled through the tiny purse on your arm to find the drink cards you were praying weren't already lost.

Not the first time, it seemed like your prayers were unanswered. "Shit, sorry man, I can't find the cards," you apologized, half to Seth and half to the shot sitting enticingly in front of you.

"Hey, don't worry. I've got an extra here," a husky, female voice said from beside you. You looked over to find someone you vaguely recognized--you'd done an assignment or two together, but had only heard her referred to as "Joel's girl".

"Oh, you really don't have to--" you began, but Seth was already taking the two salmon colored cards the girl had laid out.

"Old fashioned for you, Ellie?" She nodded, not meeting his gaze. Instead, the girl--Ellie--looked at you.

"It's no problem, I try not to drink too much," she said, sipping the Old Fashioned in front of her.

"What brings you to the bar, then? Doesn't seem like your kind of place," you asked. Trying to be polite, you attempted eye contact, but quickly looked away from the depth of her dark green eyes.

"Heard there was a show tonight, first chance to experience live music...ever. I was curious."

"Yeah?" you asked. "What kind of music do you usually listen to?"

"Whatever I can find, mostly. I have no idea what the person performing is doing, though. Hopefully it's good."

Your lips pursed in a coy smile, but before you could find something witty to say the lights in the bar brightened and dimmed again. "Better go find a good spot," you said. "Thanks for the drink." With that, you stood up and made your way through the crowd to the side of the stage. Mia and Jayden were ready, holding their guitar and bass as you grabbed the mic and flicked the "on" switch. With that, the three of you were on stage.

"Hey everybody!" you said, smiling into the crowd against the lights and waving as if you could see them. "I'll be singing for you tonight, some original songs and some I've heard around. On guitar we've got Mia," you said, pointing your body towards her as she played a lick that drew cheers, "and on bass we've got Jayden." The smaller boy slapped and plucked a quick baseline, drawing his own applause. "We're the Floaters!"

Mia and Jayden began the first song exactly in the way you rehearsed, giving you a few bars to breathe and prepare before launching into the first verse. As you sang, your shoulders dropped and your breathing regulated as you remembered that this is it--this is what you've always done. Who cares if it's a new crowd, new town, new people? The music is always the same.

As the set went on, your eyes began to adjust to the crowd. Scanning, making eye contact, smiling at audience members to make them feel the connection you loved creating. Nowhere, though, was the auburned hair girl from before. Maybe this isn't her scene you thought, back turned to bar between songs. Maybe she was hoping for something else.

It wasn't until your eye was drawn to the bar that you saw her. In the same place, in the same position, sipping the same Old Fashioned with her intense stare on you. This time, you held it back. For far longer than was appropriate, you sang the song at Ellie, locked in a game of staring chicken that she seemed reluctant to lose. It wasn't until the end of the song, and the end of a set as a whole, that you were able to look back towards the rest of the group to bow with your bandmates.

When you looked back to the bar, hoping to catch her eye again, Ellie was gone.

#Ellie williams #Ellie x reader #Ellie williams fanfiction #Ellie fanfiction #the last of us #tlou #Jackson!ellie #rockstar!reader #reader insert

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bluestar22x · 7 months ago

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Never Forgotten

Summary: Light pink carnations represent love and gratitude, appreciation of a mother, and never forgetting someone. That's why Marcus gifts them to both his wives on Mother's Day.

Pairing: Marcus Moreno x OFC!Elena (Current Wife), Marcus Moreno x OFC!Reina (Past Wife)

Rating: 18+ Series

Word Count: 2,800(ish)

Warnings: Romance, sexual tension, flashbacks, pregnancy, family life, mentions of cancer, sickness, death, mourning, angst, love, joy - it's a rollercoaster

Author’s Note: This takes place in my Second Chances verse, but you do not need to read the series to enjoy this! This was created for the Moth and Birdie's Mother's Day Fic Challenge by @mothandpidgeon and @ezrasbirdie. Went with something both sweet and angsty, but true to Mother's Day.

xxx

"Mommy, mommy get up!"

An excited young voice drew you from a peaceful night's sleep, leaving you drowsy and a bit mopey about not being able to wake up on your own terms that morning. It was rare you had a day off where you could do so. You had thought on Mother's Day you'd have a better chance.

Still, you smiled when your three and a half year old son (almost four, he insisted) ran into your view, looking as lively as ever.

"Morning, Teo," you mumbled at him.

"Morning, mommy," he greeted you back, beaming. "We have a present for you!"

"Oh? You do?" You and your husband Marcus had decided last year that outside of Christmas presents weren't really going to be a part of your holidays anymore, so you were curious what was in store for you.

Teo nodded at you enthusiastically. "Yeah! Daddy sent me up here to get you!"

"Well," you said as you sat up in bed and rubbed your eyes, "Tell daddy I'll be down in a minute. I've got to brush my teeth first."

And use the bathroom, but that was a given.

"Okay!" And just like that the young boy with wild curls left your room, flying off like superman, whose image was printed many times over on his cotton pajamas.

You made your way after him as soon as you could, having smelled your "present" before you even made it out of the master bedroom.

Marcus was making breakfast, and the kids were helping out, you could only assume. Knowing them, Teo probably came up with the idea, and Missy probably insisted Marcus not do it on his own. She knew very well how easily distracted he could get sometimes.

"Smells like burnt eggs," you joked as you strolled into the kitchen, stopping to pet Ginger, your Chihuahua, who was laying on her side on the bare floor, basking in the warmth of the morning sun.

"Not on my watch," Missy told you from her position by the stove, alongside Marcus.

"Hey," he protested. "I can and have cooked eggs just fine on my own!"

"So long as the TV's not on," you added, grinning. "So this is my present? Breakfast?"

"Brunch," Marcus corrected you as he shut off the stove top burner he'd been using. "It's ten-thirty, honey."

"I slept that long?" You gaped. "Why didn't you wake me earlier?"

"Part of your gift," Missy said, nodding towards the table. "We're also going out for supper. You're not allowed to cook today."

"Sounds good to me," you told her, going to sit at the kitchen table with Teo, who was already chowing down on a syrup covered pancake. "Can I steal a piece?"

"Of course mommy," he answered, pushing his plate towards you more willingly than you'd expected. The kid loved his food. "It's your special day."

"Just testing you," you declared, winking as you plopped a fresh pancake from the stack in the middle of the table onto the plate in front of you. "I can take my own."

Marcus and Missy placed more food on the table, eggs and bacon and breakfast potatoes as you poured a ton of syrup on yours, more than even Teo liked. You preferred your pancakes drowned in it.

As they both sat down with you and Teo, you took a moment to sniff the large bouquet of light pink carnations that were in a thin dark green vase in front of your spot at the table. "Mmm, these smell lovely."

Marcus smiled. "I'm glad you like them. Happy Mother's Day, Elena."

You covered his hand with yours and grinned back. "Thanks for all of this. Though the flowers could technically be considered a gift."

"I get some for Reina every year," he reminded you. "Didn't feel right not to give some to you too when you're not getting anything else."

"Are you visiting her this afternoon?" you asked him quietly.

"On the way to the restaurant, after we visit mom," he confirmed, squeezing your fingers with his.

Reina had been Marcus' first wife. The original Mrs. Moreno. She had passed away years before you'd even met Missy in the school library. You'd encouraged Marcus to keep up the tradition he had of visiting her grave around Christmas, her birthday, and Mother's Day, along with Missy, even when things got hectic.

Sometimes you hung back, giving them their privacy, other times you joined them in solemn silence.

You didn't know Reina outside pictures, stories Missy retold of her mother, mentions Marcus made of her, but you felt a kind of connection to her through them. A comradery of sorts, having both shared your lives with them.

There had never been a time where you'd even considered being jealous of her ghost. You knew Marcus loved you both, equally and differently at the same time, neither able to replace the other. And you were grateful to her even, after all, you wouldn't have Missy in your life if she'd never given birth to her. You couldn't imagine what the last five years or so of your life would've looked like if Reina had never existed.

A coworker had once asked you if you could bring Reina back if you would do it, and you'd said of course without hesitation. Even though it was a loaded question, the answer was easy because you knew how much Marcus and Missy still mourned her, and you'd have loved to meet her. You wouldn't let fear or insecurity make you selfish. You refused to have them, and you loved your family too much for that.

"Dig in before the eggs get cold," Missy warned, snapping you out of your thoughts.

You nodded and reached for the pan of scrambled eggs that was thoroughly mixed with herbs which made them look more tempting than ever. "They look perfect, Missy."

She shrugged. "I've gotten a lot of practice in college."

Though Missy was currently living in a dorm most days, she got cooking experience through the cafeteria job she'd picked up on campus at the tail end of the previous semester.

You took a good share of the eggs, though you made sure to leave enough for the rest of your family and shoved a mouthful into your mouth with your fork.

You closed your eyes and hummed at the delectable taste of them. "Holy...cow Missy. These are amazing! That's not standard for a college campus."

"I mix it up when they let me."

"I'll try not to take offense that you've never said that when I cook," Marcus teased.

"You have plenty of other talents," you assured him.

Some of which would be very inappropriate to mention here, you thought.

The way he grinned at you after, you were certain his mind had gone there too.

Later. Definitely later. Once you had privacy and the kids weren't likely to interrupt.

For now you were going to enjoy the family you both had cultivated together.

Visiting Reina's grave never really got easier for Marcus, but this visit was one of the hardest in a long time, even with Missy by his side and you and Teo waiting in the car.

This particular Mother's Day marked ten years of the holiday without Reina's presence. It meant Missy was well into having spent most of her life without her mother around.

That thought pained Marcus deeply as he set the flowers in his hands, ones identical to the batch he'd given you earlier, up against her headstone.

When he backed away a couple feet Missy stepped forward and kissed a couple of her fingers before pressing them against the top of the gray granite. "Miss you, mom."

Marcus felt his heart plummet at her soft, solemn words. For the first time in years tears threatened to surface.

No words were able to form on his lips, none he could think of seemed appropriate, so he thought about Reina instead.

He'd been training in the Heroics gym shirtless when they first met. She walked in all professional in a pencil skirt and white blouse, long dark hair pulled back in the tightest possible ponytail, not even batting an eye at the sight of his young sweaty form pounding on the punching bag before him.

"Mrs. Moreno wants to see you," she'd stated plainly.

"Hey," he'd greeted her, halting his activities and wiping the sweat off his forehead with a nearby towel. "Are you the new secretary?"

"Yeah, I am," she replied, pausing, "Sorry, it was rude of me not to introduce myself first. I'm Reina."

Marcus stuck out his right hand and she shook it. "Nice to meet you, Reina. I'm Marcus."

"I know," she said, "Your reputation proceeds you. Top of your Heroics class and your mother told me you're aiming for leadership someday."

He frowned. "She did now, huh?" His mother had been suggesting he take her place from the start of his training to be a Heroic. She claimed he would be a great leader, but he still wasn't convinced after a decade of hearing it.

Reina must have heard the change of tone in his voice. "Is it not true?"

"It's an option," he told her. "I'm just not sure I'd be good at it. If I even want to be the leader."

She nodded. "It's not an easy choice."

"Speaking from experience?"

She shook her head yes. "My father's a lawyer. He was expecting me to lead his legal team someday. Instead I moved away from the countryside, to the city to be a little ol' secretary."

"You like the job?" Marcus asked.

She smiled, and it suddenly occurred to him that it just might be the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen. "Yeah. Your mother is nice to work for. Honest, brutally sometimes, but not mean. And I like the idea of helping you Heroics do your job, since I don't have powers myself."

"You don't need to be powered to be a Heroic," Marcus informed her. "Yes, the team's all powered at the moment, but there are no rules against non-powered people from joining."

"I'm more of a behind the scenes person," she said.

"I can respect that. We need people like you. You and the other secretaries are the backbone of this team."

She looked surprised. "You really think so?"

"We couldn't do our job without you," he added.

She smiled again, and he felt something akin to his stomach flipping witnessing it. "Thanks, Marcus. It's nice to hear. Can I tell Mrs. Moreno you're on your way?"

"Yeah," he said. "Is it an emergency, or can I shower first?"

"No emergency," Reina answered. "I'll tell her you'll be up in ten."

Marcus nodded. "Yeah, I'll be ready by then."

"Perfect," she said with a nod before spinning away on her six inch heels.

He watched her go, fully realizing he was interested in her, beyond pure physical attraction, but having no idea if they'd have a shot together.

Her looking back at him just as she opened the door to leave the gym space gave him hope.

"How was today?" Marcus inquired as he walked over to Reina, who was standing on their apartment balcony, apparently waiting for him to come home from work.

He banded his arms around her from behind and leaned down to press a light kiss to her jaw as his hands found the underneath of the expansive mound at her waist.

"Your daughter has been moving almost constantly all day," she told him, splaying a hand over his, the same one that bore the rings he'd given her the previous year. "And she insists on kicking my ribs at the worst possible times," she added with a hint of exasperation.

"Be nice to your mama, baby," he said sternly to his unborn child as she shifted under his palms.

Or he tried to at least.

Reina chuckled. "Guess I'll be the one disciplining her. Not that I'm surprised."

"You calling me soft?" Marcus asked with mock upset.

She turned in his arms to face him. "You are going to be like putty with her."

"Now, that's going too far."

She grinned at him, brown eyes bright and lively, and curled her arms around his neck so she could guide his head down to her lips for a warm kiss.

"I haven't been wrong about you so far," she whispered after, lips quirking upward.

He couldn't argue with that.

She looked as beautiful as ever, skating alongside little seven-year-old Missy, holding her hand gently and giggling as they both tried to keep themselves from falling over on the rough surface of the frozen lake.

Her hair hadn't grown back in well, so she was wearing a wig but it looked normal enough, she looked normal enough that Marcus could enjoy the moment, soak in the sight of Reina enjoying the sunny winter day with her daughter, despite it being as bitter cold as it was.

Watching her, watching them that day, Marcus had a hard time comprehending that his wife was dying right in front of him and he couldn't do anything to stop it.

For months he'd been at her side, every step of the way, holding her hand, her hair, as she suffered through radiation and chemo and a mastectomy, all in hope that it would cure her illness.

All of it had been for naught, her doctor having told her last month that they had no more options, that the cancer had spread to a whole slew of different places in her body, including her brain.

She could've continued chemo to prolong her life a little longer, but Reina had decided to choose quality over quantity. She hadn't wanted to live out her final days feeling as sick as chemo made her, so she stopped going to get treatments.

Marcus could only respect her wishes. He knew he would want the same put in her position, and a day like this was worth a lot more than a hundred of her lying in bed hardly able to move or clinging to the toilet bowl.

She caught him watching and they shared beaming smiles, hers natural, his a bit more forced, but it was still wonderful.

Going to the mountain lake for one last family trip had been her idea, and as per usual she'd been right.

They'd all needed it, and that was the memory Marcus had clung to most the week, the month, the year after her death.

That last truly good memory always made him smile through the tears.

And as he often did, he made a silent promise never to forget it that particular Mother's Day. To never forget her, as she was meant to be.

It was ten minutes before Marcus and Missy joined you and Teo in the car again, as usual more subdued than when they'd left it.

Missy buckled herself back into the seat next to Teo's as you rested a hand on Marcus' cheek, rubbing a thumb over it comfortingly. You could still see the lingering grief in his eyes, freshened by the visit to Reina's grave.

"You okay?"

He grabbed your hand and kissed the top of it, his love for you surging. "With you, always."

He slowly let go of your hand so you could rest it on your lap and you smiled softly. You had no doubt of how important you were to him, but it was still the best feeling to hear it.

He poured it into an intimate kiss you shared later on, after you got back home and the kids raced into the house together, anxious to rewatch a movie they both enjoyed together in Missy's old bedroom.

"You are the best wife I could've ever asked for," he told you, his mouth hovering just over yours, his hands on your hips. "Certainly the best mother."

"Just like Reina," you said, without a tinge of insecurity to it.

"I've been so damn lucky," he murmured, bumping his nose against yours, the edges of your glasses also hitting. "I got to share some of my life with her, and now I get to spend the rest of it with you. Two amazing women who gave me two wonderful kids. I'm beyond grateful."

"How much so?" you inquired, a playfulness to your words. Your hands traveled from his shoulders to his soft stomach, just above the waistline of his pants, fingers grazing the top of his belt buckle.

He hummed with peaking interest as he observed their new, tantalizing placement. "Way beyond."

You grinned widely at him. "Wanna take a shower with me?"

"Have I ever said no?"

You chuckled at that and guided him anxiously into the house to sneak past Missy's bedroom.

The sun may have set, but as far as you were concerned, your Mother's Day celebration was hardly near its end.

And you had a feeling it would be one of those nights not to be forgotten.

xxx

Tagged: @harriedandharassed

xxx

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist

#We Can Be Heroes #MothandBirdMothersDayChallenge #Marcus Moreno Fanfic (Mine)#WCBH Fanfic #Pedro Pascal Character Fanfic #OC Fanfic #Fanfiction #Mine #Second Chances Series #Queue Me

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vaifcla · 1 year ago

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𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐩 𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐟-𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝

it was always them against the world. sure, their camp counselors always told them about the existance of other pantheons and their followers but they always made it seem like it wasn't a big deal. none were ever as great as them. not even camp jupiter could compare to the greatness that was the greek gods. yet, if you were that great, wouldn't you be able to stop your children from disappearing before they get the chance to enter camp grounds? wouldn't you be able to stop the destruction of the very same communities created to help protect your own? wouldn't you have the answers as to WHAT was causing such madness? instead, they have to sit in the grand amphitheater as it's explained that camp half-blood has been compromised and now they'll have to find refuge with the shesh.

𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐥𝐲𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞

for centuries, milleniums even, they existed as urban legends within the community of pantheons and their demigod children. very few knew of them and fewer have ever met one. after all, the shesh never existed for them. no, the shesh existed as the sole protectors of humanity against those who decided their "god given" power was better used for chaos than for keeping the balance in the world. yet, what happens when the individuals meant to protect humanity are being killed off far more rapidly than before? when sheshs disappear at the dead of night and nobody knows where they have gone? not even the goddess nut can spot where these precious warriors go. are the shesh nomes around the world compromised? is it really a good idea to be divided in this moment? well, while rumors get spread, certain sheshs receive new orders from the Chief Lector themselves to report back to their roots to help welcome new guests.

𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐒 !

after milleniums of being at odds ( or just not knowing of the other's existance ), the sheshs and the demigods will finally unite at Heliopolis, an underground city that was created after the fall of Egypt due to the conquest of the Romans. Here they will learn to co-exist together and see what they can learn from the other as they try to navigate this turmoilous period for both communities. Will they be able to set aside their differences for the sake of a greater good? What is the greater evil in question? Is it an outside force or is it something far more closer?

want more info? go ahead and check out this carrd !

𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐒 is a 21+ pjo / chronicles of kane au discord base roleplay for original characters set in today's society, 10 years after the various rick riordan book series. this is going to be a closed group verse, invite only from members. if you're interested in joining, go ahead and give this a like and send me a dm so i know who you are lol!

#discord rp #pjo rp #indie rp #rpt #rpc

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goldenworldsabound · 2 months ago

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🧵🔥🌧??

Game here! Thanks Rattie!!! Log Horizon SI because I am obsessed now

🧵Thread: What would you/your self-insert wear in the source your f/o is from? It can be multiple outfits or just one! Bonus: Do you have a weapon? If so, describe it or show it!

I have my primary outfit but it does seem like everyone has casual outfits too! Probably like a big loose hoodie and some colorful jeans for that I think! Comfy but fashionable uwu

I do have a weapon! Technically my class is Sorcerer but the thing about the Fox Tail race is that it has a random chance to learn a different skill from another class or race than what you're supposed to be getting...so my weapon should be a staff but I'm debating the idea that my SI actually has the ability to wield a one handed sword because of this. So they would wield a sword as a normal weapon but then also use it to cast their magic skills (like it was a staff). I have no idea if that's plausible in verse but I'm chewing on it. It would be a cool, top tier staff or sword too since my SI was a veteran player before getting isekai'd.

🔥Flame: Do you/your self-insert have an enemy? If so, who is it and why are they so hated? What was a particularly heated moment between you two?

Hm. I'm pretty sure I will but I'm not done catching up on the series so XD I don't think there's anyone specific yet! I'm sure there will be though, there's some nasty characters.

🌧️Rain: What was the saddest moment in your lore for you/your self-insert? Who in canon knows about it?

Getting isekai'd was rough for everyone, but in my case, it's especially tough because all of my friends and in fact the area I'm familiar with was in the NA server. Log Horizon's "servers" are the continents, and the map is a half model scale of the world. I was on vacation in Japan when I logged on and got isekai'd so I'm separated from all the people I already know. :') I do make new friends of course and Shiroe and all but it's this extra layer of like. Angst to deal with. Friends are HERE but an ocean away and there isn't a means to travel that...yet. There might be one day - I don't know what happens.

The adults in Log Horzion (the guild, not the show) are aware - Shiroe, Akatsuki, Naotsugu, and Nyanta. A few others might be as well. It's not really a secret but I think it's just only these few who actually ever get to talk to me about it and my feelings you know?

#void x shiroe #log horizon si #love defies strategy

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midnight---express · 2 months ago

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A look back at the family in ashes.

MHA has the distinct issue with the fact it's one guy writing it with a few editors chipping in, I think a lot of Manga and Anime could avoid some of their issues with just not expanding and using concepts.

Like there is so much in MHA that could have more done with it, there are more characters then there is time, there are 20 Students in the class, but I don't think we even know the reason they wanted to become heroes, what are the motivations for half of them?

Heroism has become this sort of sport in a way, competitive and there are so many of them, they have a ranking system, from memory, No Other Series Has a Ranking System For Heroes, because they don't need them, all other series have your Listers, A, B, C, D, there is no numerical title, and what the fuck does it mean to be No.1.

See that's what I want to see, why the fuck does being No.1 matter? And who better to ask that question in verse by Shoto, a victim of this sport, him and his brothers breed like Pokémon for their fathers selfish ambition to a title that in the long terms is really meaningless, a target really, what is being No.1 if anything but a status symbol, a don't fuck with me sign, the get out of jail free card. Like seriously did anyone ever explain what the fuck being number one even meant?

Why the fuck do Katsuki and Izuku even want that title, they just want it to be the best?

What I would have loved to see but I am so disappointed that we didn't get was MHA's version of Young Justice's Disordered, a final reflection and dissection's of the characters, the Todoroki's are their worlds version of the Wayne family.

Show me why Shoto is the better version of Endeavour, not just in power but who he is as a person, someone better, he wouldn't want anyone to endeavor what he and his family went through, he is MHA's Dick Grayson so desperate to become nothing like his father, taking the best parts of him making himself better, stable not one to create his own legacy through a child. He doesn't want another him, another Natsou, Fuyumi or Touya, he doesn't want another Endeavour as that name isn't a symbol of Enji's desire to become No.1 to Endeavor through everything that life throws, but no.

Endeavor isn't his title, it is badge of shame, it's not his. Endeavor is the title of the family, to hold out against him, Rei was endeavoring so much pain from seeing her family burn around her, eldest burning.

Fuyumi was holding out for the hope of a normal life, one she could enjoy and share with her family.

Natsou was holding out for the day he could leave to become his own person as far away from his family as he could.

Shoto Endeavored to even become himself he lost his childhood, but you can't lose something you never had.

And Touya, that poor boy so wide eyed and simply wanting his fathers love, his father to save him, but he burned his father frozen watching him, only to be saved by a demon who walked out of the flame.

This is MHA's Batfamily, and Touya has so much in common with Jason it hurts, they both just wanted their Father to save them, but they burned, Bruce tried to save Jason but he couldn't Enji froze, the two were brought back by demons, and had no qualms about murder, to kill to get that attention after they lost a portion of their lives.

But they never explore that, Horikoshi has had several chances to ask, how does it feel to die and be revived, to lose that time, but he never has.

If he had a few other writers to conifer with, you'd get something truly interesting, MHA needed more time in the oven, it has the hallmarks of a truly interesting story, but really didn't get the time to develop, so much was left unanswered, unwritten and unresolved, the status at the end of the series is the same, yeah it gets slightly better, but does it.

We still have people wanting to become heroes, we still have the rankings we still have people gunning for first, and what's that going to do?

Create another Todoroki family, and with Quirk Singularity that oversight of Hubris is going to start festering again, it may not be from the demon in the shadows, but rather the man in the mirror repeating the same mistakes that one man driven by the selfish desire for first made.

And this time they won't be facing Touya with an equal, but they might be facing Magneto with no answer.

#my hero academia #mha rambling #todoroki family #What could have been #not getting rid of the rankings is going to bite them in the ass #touya todoroki #fuyumi todoroki #natsou todoroki #shoto todoroki #rei todoroki #enji todoroki #anti enji todoroki

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ailendolin · 1 year ago

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Hello 😘 Can I ask for Rain for Disstari? 💙

Of course you can, dear! You know I love writing for these two 💙

This little ficlet is set in my Second Chances verse where Voltari and Dissectus joined the Elders' fight against Cuddly Dick and are now slowly acclimating to a life free of oppression.

List of prompts is here. Filled prompts are here, here, here and here on AO3.

Prompts are closed.

————

In The Rain

“Have you ever done this?”

Dissectus looked up from the book he was reading. “Done what?”

“Played in the rain,” Voltari said softly and nodded towards the Youngers outside.

Dissectus regarded him quietly for a moment before he put his book down and joined him by the window. A gentle summer rain was falling outside and in the middle of it were the Youngers, smiling and laughing and looking like they were having the time of their lives. A half-smile tugged at Dissectus’s lips. “Can’t say I have.”

Voltari heaved a heavy sigh and turned away from the window. “We’ve missed out on so much, haven’t we?”

He looked lost as he stood there with his thin arms wrapped around himself and his gaze far away in the past. Dissectus had heard Voltari allude to his childhood often enough over the years to know it had been a lonely one. Most Overlord childhoods were but Voltari’s father had been especially strict and ruthless, going so far as to keep his son separated from his peers until Voltari was old enough to join the Academy. The isolation had left deep scars – some of which, Dissectus feared, not even time would be able to heal.

“No one’s stopping you from doing any of those things now,” he pointed out gently.

Voltari raised one elegant eyebrow at him. “I am not a child anymore.”

Dissectus scoffed.

“Do you honestly believe that matters? After everything we’ve been through?” When Voltari looked away, he crossed the distance between them and cupped Voltari’s face between his hands. Looking him deep in the eyes, he said, “Stop overthinking everything. If you want to play in the rain with the Youngers, we’ll go outside and play in the rain. It’s as easy as that.”

“We?” Voltari whispered.

Dissectus’s face softened. “Yes, we. Or do you think I’m letting you have all the fun on your own?”

With that, he reached for Voltari’s hand and pulled him out of the library. The sound of the Youngers’ laughter greeted them when they stepped out into the garden, and it was only when young Irk spotted them that Dissectus subtly released his hold.

“Have you come to play with us?” Irk ask excitedly. Behind him, the other Youngers stopped their playing to look at them with curious and hopeful eyes.

Dissectus turned to Voltari. “I don’t know – are we, Tari?”

Voltari huffed out a faint laugh. “I suppose we are.”

The Youngers didn’t notice the nervous tremor in Voltari’s hand or the uneasy way the muscles twitched around his damaged eye. They only saw a new playmate and exchanged thrilled grins with each other before running over and grabbing Voltari’s hands.

“We’re going to have so much fun!” Alvin exclaimed and pulled at Voltari’s hand until he finally followed him out onto the wet grass and into the rain. “We’ve been puddle jumping just now! It’s when you jump into a puddle and try to get everyone as wet and muddy as possible!”

Voltari’s shoulders relaxed a little as Alvin and Sepal dragged him over to the nearest puddle and proceeded to show him how it’s done. “Now it’s your turn!”

With one last look over his shoulder at Dissectus, Voltari took a deep breath and jumped into the puddle. Water and mud splashed everywhere, making the Youngers shriek with laughter, and after a second of stunned silence, Voltari started laughing too. A heavy weight seemed to fall off him as he stood there with rain running down his face and not a worry in the world, and for a moment, Dissectus was struck by how beautiful he looked.

Then young Daisy and Barry tugged at his hand and pulled him forward, and he forgot all about his wildly beating heart he joined Voltari and the Youngers in the rain.

#voltari #dissectus #disstari #yonderland #yonderland fic #my fic #ask game prompt ficlet #birthday prompts 2023

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joyfuladorable · 1 year ago

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Oh gods not me waking up at 3AM and not being able to go back to sleep cuz my brain keeps thinking about the aftermath of Turtles Forever…

Cuz, y’all… the 03 fam had another home Destroyed. And it’s likely a very bitter thing cuz they never really got a chance to settle? What, with being kidnapped by the Ninja Tribunal and being gone for months, then being zapped to the future and being gone for a Year, then finally making their way back and upgrading it all in a frenzy to spend Months searching for pieces of Splinter and probably not having even a year after the Wedding before the 87 turtles showed up…

How far did that Unmaking get? It probably started in New York and Kept Going even after the turtles teleportaled to the 87 verse. The turtles are probably gonna have to answer a LOT of questions after this, lol

Ugh, uhh, here, a snippet from my brain of a fic I may or may not write:

The messages and calls come in almost as soon as they return to their universe.

There’s the obvious relief and congratulations from April and Casey. A lighthearted text from Angel that reads “what did u guys DO this time???” followed by a string of emojis that Don doesn’t have the brainpower to translate. Mikey’s Justice Force communicator goes off, and he gives a very confusing account of the past few hours and promises to visit soon to spill more details cuz - no - he hasn’t forgotten his next shift as the Turtle Titan is fast approaching (he’d Never forget that even in the midst of a multi-universal apocalypse).

At some point, Karai has a conversation off to the side with Leo and Master Splinter. She bows deep, regrets on regrets weighing her shoulders down and a firm promise that she will aid them by any means necessary to make up for her “error in judgement.” A nice sentiment, for sure. It leaves a sour taste on Donnie’s tongue as he watches this exchange while half-listening to the Professor’s ramble over his shell cell once he’s given a cursory explanation of events. He hangs up not long after, not their friend’s fault, just the fault of this whole situation. The headache that had been simmering since the start of this mess has bloomed into a migraine.

The last call they get is from Leatherhead, confused and concerned. Their crocodilian friend experienced the… Unmaking… alone and had rushed to their lair only to find it trashed and - oh Gods - that’s another big BIG thing to deal with and Donnie just wants to take a Nap.

Mikey interrupts with a shriek, sending Don reeling a bit as his brother snatches his cell to ask Leatherhead if he’s seen Klunk. And oh, yeah, understandable. The cat had gone out hunting at some point today and probably came back to a concerning amount of rubble with no turtles to comfort him.

It’s then that Karai departs, offering better communication in the days to come, and help in… relocating. Raph cuts in that there’s no way they’re trusting her with the location of their potential new home. “Not now. Maybe not Ever.” A statement that Don silently agrees with. She takes the admission with grace and vanishes.

Home. Gone and given then taken and destroyed thrice over at this point. Donnie sighs as he massages his head and closes his eyes. Lucky them. He already has a few places in mind, but - yeah no - they all need sleep and food and some semblance of safety before they can consider any of that.

Thankfully, Leatherhead offers his abode, having found Klunk and willing to meet with the turtles there after grabbing what essentials he can from their (now former) Lair. Mikey, bless his chipper heart, starts planning a slumber party of sorts, hugging Don’s cell between his head and shoulder while rapidly texting April and Casey for supplies. Raph snatches His cell from him to ask for actual useful things that aren’t just junk food. Leo hesitantly joins in, saying he could text Angel to swing by with pizza, which Mikey enthusiastically agrees to.

Donnie huffs at that, glad at the very least, to know they’re all okay. They can bounce back from this, like they always do. He feels a furry palm on his arm, steadying the sway in his stance he hadn’t known he’d gained. Master Splinter smiles at him, an assurance and a promise that only their dad can exude to make them feel better.

Yeah, they’ll be okay.

#tmnt #tmnt 2003 #tmnt 2k3 #turtles forever #should I tag my rambles #uhhh #sea rambles #sure that works #my writing #too #oh gods #can you tell I typed this all on my phone in one go #writing brain it is almost 5AM let me SLEEP

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unpredictable-probabilities · 2 years ago

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Granting Favors 13 - An Honest Shot

Summary:

Amidst rising tensions among the VDC group, Jamil has decided to take a real shot at Azul. Unknown to him, Azul is also planning to make a move, enlisting the help of an unlikely friend.

Word Count: 5,521

— —

Azul somehow felt lighter as he made his way back to Octavinelle. He and Jamil had talked about possible ideas for their project and scheduled when they could meet up to work on it, then the breaktime ended and Jamil had to get back to rehearsals. So Azul had decided to get back to work himself and calculate Mostro Lounge's profits considering their early closing time. Fortunately, Floyd didn't force him to stay at the Pomefiore ballroom.

The atmosphere was perfectly comfortable while he talked with Jamil about their schedules, despite the fact that Jamil had acknowledged that they almost kissed at the masquerade ball. Azul hadn't been able to respond to it; he was afraid of saying the wrong thing so he just redirected the conversation to their project. At the very least, he had managed to secure a lunch with Jamil tomorrow.

But what next? Was he expected to do something now that their almost-kiss had been acknowledged? Was there even anything that he wanted to do?

Azul sighed. For the first time since he had enrolled in NRC, he was at a loss about what his next step should be. It might be an option to just let whatever dynamic he had with Jamil to develop naturally, they didn't have to talk about the masquerade again, and whatever happens, happens.

But he was never one to leave anything to chance. He even practiced for hours on how to throw dice in a certain way to get the numbers he wanted; Idia had called him insane but now he was able to beat most of the Board Game Club members in any game involving dice.

He couldn't just do nothing about this new development with Jamil. Inaction could be just as bad as making a wrong decision, and he certainly didn't want to mess up so badly that he would end up losing Jamil from his life. He had to make a plan.

However, he had no idea where to start. He couldn't ask Jade or Floyd for help like he often did for his other plans. As much as he hated to admit it, this was a problem that required knowledge on how to deal with emotions, and he'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in this place who had any significant amount of emotional intelligence, himself and the twins included.

It was something that he never thought he would have to tackle, because what good were emotions when it came to business? Unexpectedly, he now had to make a plan where he had to untangle and articulate his emotions, and nobody in NRC was well-versed enough about such things to be helpful.

He stopped in his tracks as realization dawned on him.

Nobody in NRC...

He took out his phone and typed in a quick text.

I may be in need of your assistance. Call me as soon as you are able.

* * *

Jamil double-checked his stuff to make sure he didn't forget anything before leaving the ballroom.

"I still can’t do it," Kalim's voice complained from across the room.

"You'll get there, Kalim!" Epel said. "You just gotta shift your weight properly, like this."

"Jamil? Can you help us with this one?" Deuce called him over hesitantly.

Jamil took his backpack and walked over to them. "What is it?"

Kalim averted his eyes, shifting on his feet. Jamil had been hoping to avoid this; his dynamic with Kalim had been awkward ever since his Overblot, and it only seemed to get worse when VDC rehearsals started.

Jamil knew that Kalim wanted to make amends, but years of pent-up resentment couldn’t be fixed by a handful of half-baked attempts at conversation. Aside from handing Kalim packed lunches, they barely interacted these days.

"Kalim's feet keep getting tangled on the turns," Epel scratched his head.

"We've been trying to teach him the steps on the second verse, but I guess we're not very good teachers," Deuce said.

"Show me the move," Jamil told them.

They sidestepped and slid diagonally backwards, then stepped to the left before crossing their ankles and turning counterclockwise, but Kalim tripped over his own feet and bumped hard into Epel. Luckily Deuce caught them both before they could topple over.

Jamil sighed. Vil would be livid if that happened in rehearsal.

"The problem is you're going overboard," he told Kalim. "Enthusiasm is all well and good in a dance performance, but you have to have enough precision. Don't lean too hard on the turns, and be aware of the distance between the other dancers."

He spent 10 minutes helping Epel and Deuce teach Kalim how to look less like a bumbling duckling and more like a proper dancer belonging in Vil's team. They practiced the turns with just Jamil's counting, then they tried it with music, and then they sang while doing the entire routine to make sure that Kalim could transition smoothly between the steps before and after the turns.

"That's much better!" Epel grinned at Kalim after they finished the entire song.

"Thanks a lot for the help, Jamil!" Deuce wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Yeah, thanks, Jamil," Kalim said with a small smile. “Are you gonna head back to Ramshackle now? We could go together.”

Here it was again. It seemed like somehow Kalim thought that if they spent enough time together, things were gonna get back to normal.

“Sure,” Jamil said indifferently. To Kalim’s credit, he actually got all his things quickly so Jamil didn’t have to wait for long.

“I see that you and Azul are becoming friends now,” Kalim started a conversation again on their way to Ramshackle. “It’s nice of him to visit us during practice.”

“He said Floyd dragged him there to keep him from overworking,” Jamil said evasively.

He wasn’t exactly sure what he and Azul were; ‘friends’ didn’t seem like a strong enough term. Whatever the correct term was, he wasn’t in the mood to discuss it with Kalim.

“That’s surprisingly considerate of Floyd,” Kalim laughed. “Azul needs to take more breaks. Ooh, why don’t you invite him over to Ramshackle sometime?”

“I did,” Jamil’s mouth almost turned up in a smile. “We’re partnered up for a project in Defensive Magic, and we’ll be working on it in Ramshackle from time to time.”

“Oh that’s great!” Kalim beamed. “I’d say let’s have a small party but Vil won’t allow it. Maybe we can all just play videogames or something if we’re not too busy with rehearsals. Ace and Deuce know several good ones.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Jamil realized that he didn’t know whether Azul liked videogames, but he was curious to find out.

Kalim didn’t say anything else, and they spent the rest of the walk in relatively comfortable silence.

* * *

Azul had thrown himself into the work of calculating Mostro Lounge's profits that he had almost forgotten he had asked to be called until his phone rang and he saw the name on the screen.

"Hello," he answered and leaned back in his seat.

He chose to do his work in his bedroom today, knowing that his phone might ring at any moment. This was a conversation he wanted to have in private, and there were too many students at the dorm's lounge.

"Azul," Rielle said on the other line. "I was admittedly surprised when I read your message. What's wrong?"

"Before anything else, I would like to hear your solemn promise that you would not breathe a word of this conversation to anyone else." It wasn't nearly as secure as a signed contract, but it would have to do.

"Of course," Rielle said sincerely. "Not a word."

Azul took a moment before he continued. He had prepared the words, but they were still difficult to say. "After much deliberation, it appears that I do... have feelings for Jamil."

Rielle audibly gasped. "That's wonderful to hear! You finally admitted it to yourself!"

Azul shifted in his seat. "Is it really alright to discuss this with you? I wasn't sure if it would be rude or insensitive given that..."

"It’s perfectly alright!" Rielle assured him. "Like I said, whatever admiration I have for you is not nearly as strong as how you and Jamil feel about each other. I have made my peace with that after our previous conversation.”

"How could you say that so casually?" Azul sighed. "I suppose that is why I need your help. You're far more comfortable about these sentimental things than anyone else here."

Rielle chuckled. "I shall do what I can. What do you need help with?"

Azul twirled his pen between his fingers. "Hypothetically, if Jamil does feel the same way about me... What would be the right thing to do?"

"Oh, well, that depends on what you want to achieve," Rielle replied. "What's your goal?"

Azul thought about it. What did he want out of all this? "I don't want to drive him away. I want things to relatively stay the way they are, but I'm not quite certain about what I have to do to ensure it."

"Hmm," Rielle hummed thoughtfully. "Have you considered just telling him how you feel?"

"That's a terrible idea," Azul immediately said. "He might feel backed into a corner if I did that, I don't want him to think that I'm expecting him to reciprocate."

"Doesn't he already reciprocate?" Rielle asked pointedly. "Haven't you noticed anything that might hint at how he feels about you? You don't need to tell me, just be aware of it for yourself."

Azul's mind went back to the masquerade, Jamil's hand on the back of his neck, Jamil leaning in for a kiss...

"Regardless," Azul said forcefully to fling the memory away. "I don't want to scare him off. I need an approach that is not so direct, yet at the same time won't make him think that I dislike him in any way."

"You can always just show him."

Azul furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"If you aren’t comfortable in verbalizing your sentiments, just show them," Rielle clarified. "If you want to spend time with him, then go ahead and do so."

"That's it?" Azul asked doubtfully; it seemed too simple.

Rielle laughed good-naturedly. "This isn't some business strategy that needs an entire folder's worth of planning, Azul. If he does things for you that make you happy, try doing the same for him. To let him know that you don't dislike him."

Things that Jamil did that made him happy... Immediately Jamil's unexpected honesty came to mind, though the idea of reciprocating that same blatant honesty daunted him.

"Alright, I shall keep that in mind." Azul sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Suddenly it didn't seem so simple. "I do appreciate the advice. I know that my message came out of nowhere."

"See? Expressing your feelings isn't that hard, right?" Rielle said playfully. "But really, it's not a problem at all. Feel free to message whenever you wish to talk about it again."

With how unfamiliar this new territory is, Azul was almost certain that he would need more help in the future. He would have to start figuring out how to repay such a favor.

"Thank you, Rielle. I owe you one."

“Anytime.”

He ended the call and went back to work.

* * *

Jamil sighed as he stared at the flavorless chicken and rice that he had just unpacked on the cafeteria table. Following Vil's diet plan was especially difficult since he had grown up eating food with a lot of spices. He never thought he'd miss cooking his own food so much.

"Hello," Azul slid into the seat across from him with a plate of chicken cacciatore from the buffet.

"Wow, you're really gonna flaunt that here?" Jamil said, nodding at Azul's plate.

Azul noticed Jamil's comparatively bland lunch and chuckled. "Should I leave, then?"

Jamil rolled his eyes. "Just finish that obscenely flavorful chicken before I eat it myself."

"Are you really not allowed to eat anything apart from what Vil provides?"

"Mostly. It's part of the training," Jamil said. "If we wanna eat something else, he has to approve of it first."

"Ah, well, to take your mind off it, I have an idea for our project for Defensive Magic," Azul said as he took a bite of his food.

"Oh, what is it?" Jamil started to eat as well.

"Since the instructions are to create an item that would make a person impervious to danger for any given duration, I thought we could make a shield of some sort," Azul said. "A small handheld device that would turn into a shield at the press of a button. The item itself would be magic, so it's usable even for mages who are conserving their powers, or people who don't have magic at all."

"Okay. But...?" Jamil noticed that Azul didn't look too satisfied with his own idea.

Azul sighed. "But it's lacking something. Originality would account for 35% of our grade; any fool could make a shield. How can we make ours more innovative?"

Jamil thought for a second. "We can make the shield like a bubble, so the person is protected on all sides, even from the ground."

Azul's eyes lit up and he got a small notebook from his pocket. "Yes, we could do that. And the bubble could float away up to a certain distance to carry the person farther from danger." He scribbled in his notebook.

"I'll look up potions that we can use as fuel for something that floats," Jamil said.

"And I'll see if I can borrow some tools from Idia at the Board Game Club meeting later." Azul closed his notebook and pocketed it again.

"Yeah," Jamil agreed. It might be a little challenging to pull off but he was looking forward to working on it. "Let's schedule when we could start."

He took out his phone and checked the file of Azul's calendar; then frowned when he saw today's date.

"It says here that right now you're supposed to be printing out flyers for the Lounge's booth," Jamil said. "Did you forget...?" It wasn't like Azul at all to forget his schedules.

Azul's fork stopped midway to his mouth; he looked surprised for a split second before he blinked it away. He set his fork back down on his plate and cleared his throat. "I moved the printing to tomorrow, I must have forgotten to update the calendar. I shall do so now."

Azul took out his phone and started typing.

"Why did you move it?' Jamil asked.

"So we could have lunch together," Azul replied while still looking down at his phone.

Jamil's eyebrows rose in surprise, and he saw the online calendar update on his own phone screen; it now said LUNCH for this time.

"But... why would you do that?" Jamil frowned. "You even skip meals sometimes just to keep working. And now you adjusted your work schedule for lunch?"

Azul pocketed his phone again. "You invited me to lunch, I accepted. It isn't really a puzzle, Jamil."

But I invited you to lunch because I wanna spend more time with you, Jamil thought, remembering Rook's advice. I don't know what your reason is for adjusting--

Suddenly he remembered what Azul had asked him three nights ago in his dimly lit bedroom.

"Couldn't we have done the things we did for the same reasons?"

His face warmed, and he almost brought up their project again just to have something else to talk about, but he reminded himself that he was taking a real shot at Azul now, and he couldn't keep running away.

He made himself look at Azul and smiled playfully. "Oh, you really prioritized spending time with me instead of working?"

Azul looked taken aback, and a shade of red colored his face.

Great Seven, if Azul would react like that every time, then Jamil might make more of those remarks.

Azul recovered and turned up the corner of his lips. "So what if I am? Is that a problem, Viper?"

Jamil chuckled nervously, caught off-guard by Azul's gaze. "Not at all, Ashengrotto."

* * *

Azul took a seat in the Board Game Club classroom and sent a text before starting on his tasks.

Hello, Yuu. Would it be alright if I were to pay a visit to Ramshackle after your dinner tonight? Jamil and I need to work on a project together. He would be asking Vil for permission as well.

A small crate dropped on the table in front of him with a loud clatter.

Idia sat across from him and started tinkering with a small tablet and screwdriver that he got from the crate.

"Shouldn't you be preparing for your presentation?" Azul asked.

"Nah, I got that covered." Idia removed the backing of the tablet and laid it facedown on the table.

Azul raised an eyebrow. "Scouts from different universities would be watching, right? I would have thought that you'd be spending more time working on it."

"It doesn't matter," Idia grumbled, using tweezers to insert various chips in the back of the tablet. "I'll just have to reject any offers from those scouts anyway."

Azul wondered if that meant that Idia had already been accepted into a university and didn't want any other offers. It was possible, considering that Idia was practically a genius with technomancy.

Before he could ask, his phone lit up with a message from Yuu.

Hi Azul! Ofc u can come over later, I brought it up to Vil too, and he's cool with it. I'd invite u to dinner but it's all diet foods in Ramshackle these days haha. You're welcome to come over anytime! <3

Azul put his phone down and turned to Idia. "Could I take a look at the box of spare parts that we won't be using for the booth? Jamil and I are working on a project for Defensive Magic and some of our tools here might be useful."

"You're working with Jamil again?" Idia sounded surprised. "Back then you guys only worked together in Alchemy. But now he's taught you flying lessons and you're paired up for another class again."

"So?" Azul didn't understand what the big deal was.

"So," Idia emphasized as he attached the back of the tablet again. "What's going on with you two?"

"What?" Azul heard the defensiveness in his voice. "What do you mean?"

"Come on. Back then you were complaining that he never wanted to work with you, and now you're working together for three classes," Idia pointed out.

"I wasn't complaining," Azul said, regretting his casual remarks to Idia back then about Jamil.

"Oh!" Idia seemed to remember something. "And he has your phone number! Two years of being in a club together and even I don't have that."

"Did you ever need it?"

"But Jamil needs it?" Idia shot back.

Azul glared at him. "Just because we're working together more often now doesn't necessarily indicate anything in particular."

Idia wasn't really wrong; Azul's recent interactions with Jamil indicated something indeed, but it was all so new that he didn't want anyone else meddling and possibly ruining it.

"You're saying nothing's changed between you two?" Idia asked skeptically.

"Of course," Azul blatantly lied.

"Hmm," Idia hummed as he took out a pair of VR goggles from the crate. "So if Jamil dates someone else, you'll be okay with it?"

Azul couldn't stop the scowl that formed on his face at the very thought of it.

"Hah! I knew it," Idia snickered. "If otome games have taught me anything, it’s that jealousy is such a tell-tale sign of developing feelings. You got it bad, dude."

"Just focus on those goggles," Azul snapped at him, feeling his face warm.

Whether or not he did have it bad was none of Idia's business.

* * *

"Good evening, Prefect," Azul smiled, greeting Yuu with the endearment that most of the students use to refer to them.

"Hey Azul! Come in," Yuu stepped aside and opened the door of Ramshackle wider. "You're in a good mood."

"Ah, I'm simply looking forward to bringing life to our project idea," Azul said as he stepped through the doorway.

"You can use that table over there," Yuu pointed to a rectangular table near the wall with a few chairs surrounding it. "I'll let Jamil know you're here."

Azul walked over to the table and took a seat, taking out his notes and the small bag of tools he had borrowed from Idia.

Vil appeared from the dining room, and Azul prepared to justify his presence, but Vil's attention was on the First Years that had followed him to the lounge area.

"It has been more than a week into rehearsals and your movements are still substandard," Vil scolded his resident. "You do remember that it is Neige LeBlanche that we are trying to defeat?"

"I remember," Epel said meekly, standing between Ace and Deuce.

"Then why be so lackluster in your performance?"

Vil's tone was severe, sharper than Azul had heard him speak before. He wondered if something else was bothering the Pomefiore Prefect; even though he was known to be competitive, it was unlike him to behave so inelegantly over a desire to win.

"Epel's doing his best, we all are," Deuce said defensively.

"And the VDC is still weeks away," Ace added. "We have a lot more time to improve."

"Your best had better improve drastically in the next few days," Vil glowered at them. "Neige has been performing ever since we were children, and mere weeks are barely enough time for you spudlings to catch up."

"Why are you so hung up on this Neige guy, anyway?" Ace complained. "What'd he do to you?"

Vil's expression darkened, and for a moment Azul was afraid that he had walked straight into a crossfire, but footsteps swiftly came down the stairs and in an instant Rook was beside Vil.

"My dear Vil, I think it's time for their nightly skincare routine, yes?" Rook said gently. "And you need to rest as well, especially given how hard you've worked today."

Vil momentarily closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Fine. But tomorrow I expect significant improvement on everyone's progress. Including you, Rook."

He turned away from them and stormed up the stairs, not sparing Azul a glance.

"Monsieur de l'Effort !" Rook greeted him pleasantly. "Welcome to our humble abode."

"Oh hey, Azul," Ace said wearily, slumping down on the couch. "Yeah, welcome to Ramshackle. Where after dinner we get scolding for dessert."

"Why don't we watch a movie after we do the skincare routine?" Deuce tried to sound upbeat. "It's still pretty early, we can watch a short one before bedtime."

There was half-hearted agreement from Ace and Epel, then they all went up to their rooms.

Jamil came down the stairs shortly after Rook had also excused himself. "Hey. Just finished the skincare thing that Vil told us to do. I hope you didn't wait too long."

"Not at all, I just arrived," Azul replied as Jamil took a seat across from him.

"I could hear Vil being angry all the way upstairs," Jamil said. "He's been like that lately."

"Yes, that was rather odd," Azul furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't think I've seen him with such a temper before."

"The VDC is really stressing him out." Jamil opened his notebook and pointed to a page. "Anyway, I compiled a list of potions that we can use. Let's look through them and see what would be most practical."

They worked at it for a while, narrowing down Jamil's list to three potions that would be the easiest to brew and the least time-consuming. The movie that the First Years were watching was a little loud at first, but Jamil asked them to turn the volume down, and it was easier to concentrate on their work.

After almost an hour of assessing which tools they had available and sketching ideas, they had made what was essentially a rough blueprint of their project. Both of them were visibly tired, and Jamil offered to make tea so they could take a short break.

Azul busied himself with compiling the sketches they made while Jamil was in the kitchen. Their designs looked better than he would have expected for first drafts, and he started to feel a little more hopeful for their project.

"Hi, Azul!"

He looked up from the table to see Kalim smiling at him, carrying small bottles in his hands.

"I left some of my skincare stuff in the living room," he explained, placing the bottles down on the table. "Usually Jamil reminds me of these things but... we don't really talk much these days."

Azul noticed that Kalim's smile fell a little, and he remembered weeks ago how Kalim insisted that Jamil was his friend even after they were flung across the desert. It wasn't surprising that their dynamic would be strained recently, and he wondered how Jamil felt about it.

"Anyway, I'm glad that you and Jamil are good friends now," Kalim said genuinely. "How is he doing?"

"He seems to be doing fine, though we don't really talk about much aside from school projects and occasionally the VDC." And their Overblots, but Azul decided not to bring that up. "How about you? Ramshackle must be quite the adjustment from your usual amenities."

"Yeah, it was a little hard at first to get used to the creaky floorboards and the showers that randomly stop working, but I think I'm pretty well-adjusted now!"

Jamil appeared carrying two teacups; he set them down on the table and turned to Kalim with a frown. "Do you need something?"

"Oh, no, I was just talking to Azul. But I was heading to my room already." Kalim picked up his bottles. "Good night, you guys!"

Azul took a sip of his tea and waited for Kalim's footsteps to recede before looking cautiously at Jamil seated across from him.

"I take it that you're still not on good terms with Kalim?"

Jamil tensed up, and Azul could tell that it was something he didn't want to talk about. "We're on good enough terms that I still make sure he doesn't get killed, and he lessens my workload by taking care of himself more. Why, you think I should be friends with him after everything?"

Jamil's voice was laced with resentment, and Azul considered just letting it go, but he remembered that he should be reciprocating the honesty that Jamil was giving him. Besides, it might add more to Jamil's distress if the subject kept being swept under the rug.

"If it would make you feel better," Azul replied.

"What?" Jamil frowned.

Azul pursed his lips and took a breath, choosing his words carefully. "Harboring negative feelings towards Kalim is clearly making you unhappy. Perhaps a more amiable relationship with him would be preferable for you, instead of his presence ruining your mood every time he enters the room."

"I can handle it," Jamil reflexively said, his jaw still tense.

"Jamil..." Azul glanced over at the First Years to be sure that all of them were still focused on the movie, then he looked back at Jamil. "Suppressing these resentments was a significant factor in our Overblots."

The scowl on Jamil's face turned into an expression of surprise and realization, and it gave Azul the bit of courage he needed to continue being honest.

"I'm worried about you," he said quietly, willing himself to not avert his eyes.

Jamil's face turned red, and he looked down at his notebook. "I wouldn't even know how to begin being friends with him."

"You managed it with me," Azul tried for a smile. "Back then you barely tolerated my presence, and now you've made me tea that I assume isn't poisoned."

That got a small chuckle out of Jamil and he lifted his eyes again. "If I wanted to poison you, you'd be dead by now."

"Is this really the time for flirting?" Azul feigned a scolding tone. "We're working on a project."

Jamil's face became a brighter red, and he placed a well-aimed kick to Azul's shin under the table.

"Ow!" Azul flinched, more in surprise than pain.

The movie's background music grew loud, and the First Years were reacting even louder to what seemed like a high-speed chase. Jamil's attempts to call their attention went unheeded.

Jamil shook his head in resignation. "You wanna just go to my room? It's much quieter there."

"YEAH! TAKE THAT!" Ace jumped up on the couch and pointed to the TV screen.

"Alright," Azul nodded, gathering their things while Jamil got a small tray to carry their teacups with.

* * *

The desk in Jamil's room was too small, so they worked on his bed, their designs scattered while they attempted to pick apart each one and decide on what features to keep or modify. They emptied their teacups and managed a decent amount of work for thirty more minutes before they couldn't hold back their yawns anymore.

Azul leaned back on the pillow against the headboard, taking off his glasses and massaging the spot between his eyebrows. His coat had been beside him on the bed, but at some point it had slid off to the floor; he didn't seem to notice.

Jamil's sleepy mind recalled a conversation he had with Kalim back at his dorm room in Scarabia, when Kalim mistook his Mostro Lounge uniform for Azul's clothes.

"Why would Azul's clothes be on my bedroom floor?"

"Um," Kalim blushed. "Well..."

"Kalim," Jamil said with a warning edge to his voice. "What are you implying?"

"Nothing!" Kalim's voice rose in pitch.

Jamil rubbed his eyes and shook his head lightly. Tiredness really made his mind wander sometimes. "Should we call it a night?"

"We've almost figured out the final design," Azul said with his eyes closed, still leaning against the pillow. "I'll just rest my eyes for a few minutes, and let's see if we can make a final sketch."

Jamil opened his mouth to agree but a yawn came out instead. A day of rigorous rehearsals followed by a night of brainstorming was taking a lot out of him. And Azul definitely looked like he needed to rest, too.

"Just twenty more minutes of working for tonight?" he asked Azul. "It's almost 10 PM, anyway, and I can't afford to look sleep-deprived again in front of Vil tomorrow."

Only Azul's even breathing answered him, his chest slowly rising and falling, one hand loosely holding his glasses beside him.

Jamil smiled in amusement. Despite Azul’s insistence on continuing their sketches, he got knocked out first.

He tidied up their things, and neatly placed all of Azul's stuff back in his bag. He carefully took Azul's glasses from his hand and put them on the nightstand.

A resting Azul was such a rare thing that Jamil decided not to wake him up; surely Vil and Yuu wouldn't mind if he stayed over for the night.

He stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, wondering if he should lie down beside Azul on the bed or get the extra mattress in the closet and sleep on the floor. It seemed a little weird to sleep on the floor in his own room, and he and Azul had already shared a bed once, anyway. Though that time they had fallen asleep by accident.

A spider decided for him. When he saw the tiny black thing casually crawling across the floor, he immediately climbed in next to Azul and pulled the blanket over his legs. There was no way he was sleeping on the floor where any amount of bugs could crawl all over him.

He turned to his right side, facing away from Azul, and turned off the lamp on the nightstand.

* * *

Jamil could see the daylight through his closed eyelids, but he didn't want to fully wake up just yet, so he burrowed his face deeper into the pillow that he was hugging. His alarm hadn't sounded yet, and he was hoping that there was still time to get some more sleep.

He sighed contentedly, breathing in a comforting scent that he couldn't quite place.

Then his mind started to recognize it, and all of a sudden he was wide awake, extremely aware of his surroundings despite keeping his eyes closed. He was frozen, not daring to even breathe.

It wasn't a pillow he was hugging.

It was Azul.

He was spooning Azul and he had his face nuzzled in Azul's hair.

Azul was still sleeping, and Jamil was terrified that if he moved in any way, Azul would wake up and he would have a hell of an explaining to do.

His face was burning, and his heart was hammering so wildly in his chest that he was afraid Azul might feel it and get woken up.

What the hell was he supposed to do now?

— —

<-- Chapter 12

Chapter 14 -->

(Masterlist)

23 notes · View notes

just-a-normal-regretter · 6 months ago

Note

Dagnabit now I wanna write magical Odd shenanigans. But. I have so much to write.

So a few things that would happen. Probably.

The reason Odd takes Kiwi with him to Kadic is because it hurts to be without him. Literally. Being too far away from your magical animal companion would hurt. Minor aches at first but with a slow escalation. (I. I just like angst sometimes. But Odd gets pretty far away from Kiwi at times. So... Connection with issues involving distance.)

Odd can only transform with Kiwi. Luckily Xana doesn't know shit about magic otherwise the zombie thing would have been. So much worse.

Jim's companion isn't dead. He never had one. He had a different kind of magic thing. He can't transform anymore because his prerequisite broke. This didn't hurt him. Odd is jealous. Jim refuses to talk about it because I refuse to clarify. I don't know and neither will anybody else. (Little does Odd know that Kiwi will live. So long. Kiwi will only die when Odd does because I don't like angst that much.)

The Lyoko gang finding out is like. Worst case scenario to Odd. It means things got bad enough that Xana finding out is a minor concern. Once Xana is gone Odd will tell them but until then better hope it never comes up.

Odd has no idea what he's supposed to use his powers for, or even what all they are. All he knows is that he sees the future sometimes. (It felt wrong in Lyoko. It wasn't set up right. It shouldn't freeze him in place. Jermie did him a favour getting rid of it in this verse.)

Jim figures out Odd has magic, because he literally feels like so much of the stuff (Odd can feel the remnants on him too but has no clue other. All Odd knows is that this is the adult he trusts most ever). He mentors Odd while explaning nothing. (He might remember the returns he might not. He refuses to talk about it. Because of course he does.) Odd questions why Jim is teaching him all these cool flips and balance tricks that can double as self defence. Odd gets no answers.

Odd does have a magic weapon. It is literally a gun attatched to his wrist. He is thrilled when he figures it out.

Odd's magic kind has a downside. If he doesn't transform often enough he gets stuck as a cat for a while. A stray cat is frequently seen roaming the school grounds. A friendly thing that Jim refuses to try to get rid of. He brings people he likes (and Kiwi) mice sometimes. Sissi got a live one once (it was cute and clean, and she got it a nice new home because mice are cute. This one was friendly).

(I'm gonna send another ask in soon, I just don't wanna lose this. Also hi I am both the original anon and the magical Jim one. I am just shy.)

Howdy anon, I'm sorry that it took a bit to get back to this. Life has been a rollercoaster of emotions and my computer is not very cooperative with its keyboard so it's been annoying trying to type on it when it likes to either double input or eat my keyboard inputs in general haha

I'm marking this with a 'read more' just to quote the second half of the asks so I don't do a back-to-back answer yeah

I am also hoping this works and it doesn't just eat an ask again (cause I'm pretty sure it did to another ask a while back lol)

Magical Odd from the shy Anon part 2: electric boogaloo.

I think, depending on how the Lyoko group finds out (and when in the timeline) things will go differently and reactions will range several different directions. I haven't decided how and when that will go down. But if they find out the hard way with a bunch of stress involved there will likely be hard feelings. All I know is if Xana finds out Xana will use the cat instincts against Odd. Xana refuses to fuck with actual magic that has a chance of breaking the computer.

Odd does not know if magic messes with machines, and so long as Aelita is tied to the computer he refuses to find out. No accidental fucking up Aelita for him. (He worries about this a lot less when they find out she is a girl that got trapped and not actually an AI.)

In this, Odd would probably be magic to fight something horrific. The sheer terror is how he finds out he can temporarily turn his friends into Lyoko form. He can only do it one at a time (some focus required, and more than one is super hard. Technically possible, but by golly does he hate it to the point of refusal) and it makes the Magic Lyoko form really frilly. Jermie refuses.

Odd's powers have no rhyme or reason. He doesn't know why. Jim has no clue either. (The reason is because I like the anime trope of pulling out new powers as required. Odd's unique magic power is literally adaptability. He can't repeat half the magic tricks he pulls off and it drives everyone nuts. Xana would extra avoid messing with this bullshit, specifically because of the uncontrolled adaptability.)

Odd's parents know. Odd's family sends Kiwi's food frequently. Jim turns a blind eye.

The reason one of Odd's unchanging powers is seeing the future is because if you predict an event you can adapt better.

Once Odd starts facing his threat the entire school politely pretends not to notice. The one power Odd did not get was the ability to be unrecognized. They all work together to gaslight gatekeep girlboss the world away from his identity. Eventually Jermie and Aelita hack magic just enough to get him a mask and everybody breathes a sigh of relief. (Magic allowed it because it really likes these two.)

Ironically. Jermie would be the easiest one to magical backup. Odd would easily be able to get another backup if he got Jermie first.

Maybe Xana and Franz's shenanigans messed up reality enough to let some demons into their world or something. All the supercomputer stuff Jermie and Aelita pulled (ironically) starts to repair the rift. Something like that. I haven't decided yet IDK.

Anyway. I bet Sissi is like. Odd's biggest fan but only in costume.

The Lyoko gang has no idea the entire school knows. Jermie has suspicions. Odd is thinking he has the perfect disguise. Odd's clothes don't even change besides to accommodate the tail and limb changes. (Cat legs cat legs cat legs. Idk why just. Cat legs seems like a fun concept to have baby Odd adapt too.)

I will immediately put out there that juggling stories is rough so I feel you anon. It's fun to try to tack on more concepts to the ideas that come into your brain but when it comes to trying to write them all out it gets messy haha

The Kiwi attachment is pretty neat, as well as the general cat transformation as a con for not using the powers. I do wonder if Odd can find ways to use his powers in secret without worrying about revealing himself on accident to people who don't know

The ambiguity of Jim in general is hilarious and it feels pretty in character. He's willing to help but only so much when it may reveal pieces of his past that he doesn't want to recall/explain.

Sissi getting a pet out of this mess is also cute ;-;

The magic being constant adaptability but not really helping Odd (beyond Future Flash) is so chaotic it's great. He gets to whip out the 'necessary power of the day' to defeat the monster of the week and it doesn't really register to him that 'oh my power isn't really hiding me is it'.

I like to think the gaslight-gatekeep-girlboss shenanigans happening post-reveal is just the Warriors taking it upon themselves not to really tell Odd that he's not being subtle anymore and it's getting out of hand. The rest of the school joining in to help piece by piece is also p funny (and sorta lines up with what I wanted to do in 'Trio are AI' so I'm always going to be down for the school to support one way or another) and Jeremie being the only sane one re: 'oh other people are realizing this too' -> convincing Aelita to help him figure out magic so they can help Odd is so good.

Thank you for the asks anon and I'm sorry it's been too long with replying n all

I'm slowly trying to get stuff figured out and in the meantime inspiration is always iffy given my hyperfixation is like, never consistent enough haha

Still down to take asks/answer some speculations behind my mentioned AUs (given I've seen people still liking the other ones in the meantime lmaoo)

#code lyoko #answered ask moment #anon ask #atp i should just make this particular anon #magical girl anon #or something like that lol

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