#(along with arguments of what chapter to couple it with if that is the ultimate answer)

[landinrris]

I decided to do a bit of a social media chapter following the next chapter in On Our Terms to bridge a time gap. There's about 2.5k of words I have written, but they're all in the form of tweets and reddit posts. So, I am posing this question to you all:

[delirious-donna]

Second Chances Are Not Promised [Part Nine]

story summary: Your best friend lets you crash at her place over the spring break since you have nowhere else to go. Little did you know that it isn't actually her place. Instead, it belongs to a tall (grumpy) hot guy who finds you in his apartment–her brother.

chapter summary: A few days have passed since you chose to run from Kento rather than face a reality where he rejected your advances. You hate to admit that you miss him, but does he feel the same way and would you ever find out even if he did?

pairing: Nanami Kento x female reader

warnings: angst, emotionally charged argument, NSFW throughout, I don't want to spoil the story too much and I don't think there is any triggering content but the NSFW is there for a reason

Part Eight | Series Masterlist | Part Ten

The past few days had been some of your worst. Torn between annoyance at being this emotionally distraught at the actions of a stupid, coward of a man and the genuine hurt that penetrated your heart at the thought of him. Leaving had been a necessity, and although it meant some strategic couch surfing until you were finally able to return to your cozy little student apartment, it was the lesser of two evils.  

The idea of remaining in Kento’s apartment after his rejection turned your stomach. To be faced with him knowing that there was an attraction between you, that it wasn’t all some torrid fantasy in your head, and still he chose to turn away from it, would be too damaging. The beginning of tears blurred your vision whilst you thought about it, of those restless hours trapped inside the room which smelled like him resurfaced the agonies that had not yet begun to heal. 

Over and over, you chastised yourself for allowing another person to whittle you down to your very core components, and with what you considered to be clearly little compassion for the results, but the blame should not fall upon your shoulders. Nanami Kento was a man of logic and reasoning, you had come to learn this and that had ultimately been the downfall. He allowed the fear of things not working out for the best to ruin any chance of ever finding out. It was his fault, that much was true. 

Stupid man… 

It would be easier if you could hate him. If you could shield your heart with the burn of fury and hatred. No matter how hard you tried to convince yourself, softer memories invaded your mind to override the unpleasant ones. The Chinese takeout and Kento’s rigid posture before he succumbed to your invitation to join you. The visit to the bar and the conversation that flowed as easily as the drinks. The museum trip and the adorable couple that had given unsolicited advice in such a cute way you couldn’t be mad. The movie night… the faint dream-like memory of a kiss against your forehead and distantly murmured words that left you with a dopey smile and a fluttering in your chest. 

You still caught whiffs of his scent despite having washed all the clothing from your stay as soon as you could. The lingering smell of expensive coffee beans that you could never afford, wafts of leather and earthy notes that you couldn’t give a name to, had a way of invading your nose even in the dead of night when your body begged for sleep, but your brain refused the respite. Along with how you could perfectly recall the taste of him when his tongue swept into your mouth, it was torture—a torture of your own making. 

Another night, another failed attempt at sleeping more than in short fits and starts. None of it was restful either, dreams assailing you from the mundane to the wildly vivid. You grabbed up your phone and groaned at several messages and a missed call on the screen. Since your return, you hadn’t spoken to Karin and because she wasn’t due to return to school until the day after next, you weren’t even sure if she knew you were home. Would Kento have called her? Did he care enough to let her know you’d ran? 

Pulling the covers over your head, you sighed and dropped your phone onto the mattress. There was no desire to reply to the messages, none of which had come from Karin, which made you assume that Kento hadn’t informed her of what transpired. Your eyelids drooped low, the pull of sleep tugging at you like the dark tendrils of water trying to drag a poor victim to their lair to remain eternally. You put up no resistance, letting yourself be submerged until only darkness filled your mind. 

~ 

The noise of muted conversations, tinkling laughter that sounded far from genuine and the constant drone of air conditioning drowned out Kento’s thoughts. It was amazing to think that not long ago he longed to be here, to return to the luxury of his corner office and the accounts he knew like the back of his hand. Now, he hated it.  

There was no comfort to be found in the continuous noise of the printers, the clipped footsteps of assistants in the most uncomfortable looking high heeled shoes he had ever seen and the forced conversation he had to endure from his colleagues. In truth, Kento had no interest in playing the games he was accustomed to. Office politics no longer felt compelling or exciting.

He felt… done. Done with the routine, the faked smiles and the forced conversations. “How’s the wife and kids? Did you get up to much over the weekend? When are you going to settle down, Kento? Surely, you’ve got a different girl in your bed every night that you could choose from.” He hated it and it was your fault.

Kento had lost count of the times his phone found its way into his palm, his sister’s contact info blaring like a beacon on the screen with his thumb poised over the call button. Where were you? Were you okay? Those questions plagued him day in day out, and only his pig-headed stubbornness kept the answers from his grasp. Abruptly, he slammed his pen atop the desk. It bounced from the force of the impact and shot off the edge to roll beneath a cabinet, a reprieve from his anger.

Once more, the memory of your petal soft lips assailed him. The taste of you manifested in his mouth and he let his eyes slide shut as he slumped back in his chair. His cock throbbed behind the tight hold of his trousers, and no amount of adjusting and readjusting would alleviate the gut-wrenching ache that resided within him. He remembered how your fingers felt moving closer to the hairs at his neck and how he…

The memory couldn’t remain pleasant, though he longed for it to take a different path. He wanted to know what it would feel like to have your nails scratch against his scalp. He wanted to find out if you would tug his hair or play with it gently. What might it be like if his hold of your waist had not been so timid, if he had caressed your sides and kneaded at your hips how he really wanted to. Would you have let him lead you to his bed to tumble amongst the sheets? Would you cry out his name when he tasted you for the first time? Kento was panting like a dog cruelly trapped in a car on a summer day.

A knock on the glass wall of his office shook him from his twisted fantasies. He jolted upright to see the nefarious grin of a rival colleague who clearly assumed he was napping on the job, not aware of how close Kento had been to taking his dick out behind the cover of his desk and fisting himself furiously to endure a painful orgasm that would not sate the yearning he was at the mercy of. Instead, he scowled at the man with hot, seething hatred written across his face. The man paled and quickly walked away.

“That’s right. Run back to your office. Email your little cohorts and begin my assassination,” he hissed, fury bubbling under his skin and making him want to scratch at his arms until they bled.

The door slammed behind him as he made for the exit, head bowed over his phone until he raised it to his ear whilst taking the stairs two at a time to reach the parking lot. Each shrill ring cut his nerves to the quick until at last, she answered, and he could finally breathe again.

“Karin? Don’t talk just listen…”

~

A knock sounded at your front door, quiet and innocuous, it wasn’t enough for you to warrant moving from the couch. Your movie was more important even though you weren’t paying it the slightest bit of attention either. A moment passed in which you assumed your visitor, whoever they were, had gone away, but no. Once more a knock sounded, and this time it was firmer. The person’s knuckles rapping loudly against the cheap wood veneer.

Annoyed, you grabbed up the remote control and increased the volume in what you hoped was an obvious sign that you didn’t wish to be disturbed. There were only a few people it possibly could be and none of them needed to see you in your current state of moping.

However, the knocking continued and this time it was positively furious. The entire frame of the door vibrated from the pounding fist hammering against it. Now you were curious, or perhaps it was fear that had you turning to glance at the door which shook with yet another blow.

Maybe it was the landlord or the police, but wouldn’t they have called out to announce themselves? Fuck, what if it was someone hurt or in need of help and you were wilfully ignoring them. The Good Samaritan in you would be silenced for only so long. It only took a few hurried steps to reach the trembling wood, your hands reaching out to brace against the wall so you could glance through the peephole, and what you saw made the air in your lungs seize completely.

Kento.

It was Kento pounding on your door and looking as determined as you had ever seen him. On the other side of the door, he too froze in place, and you clapped a hand over your traitorous mouth. He had heard your gasp of alarm. Your heart physically ached from how violently it thrashed inside your chest, knees wobbly from working to keep you on your feet.

“I know you’re in there, I heard you gasp. Can you let me in? I’d like to… talk. Please?”

Hot tears trickled down your cheeks and you angrily swiped them away. The sound of your name from his lips, so soft and tentative, only worsened the angry twist of your heart and stomach. You weren’t sure how long passed, but clearly, it was enough to have him call out again, a resigned sigh evident in his intonation.

“I’d really rather have this conversation more privately,” he muttered, stepping as close to the door as he could. “If… shit… if you’re worried about being alone with—”

Kento jumped back as the door swung wide open, his alarm at the suddenness made him blink and when he found composure… there you were. The corners of his lips twitched with the desire to beam at you. His shoulders lost a little of the tension he had been carrying all this time, and he let out an exhale that lightened his load just the tiniest bit. Your expression was one of fury but even that couldn’t dissuade the hit of dopamine that coursed through his blood at seeing you after these days apart.

“Get in here,” you yelled, stepping aside to allow him access to your apartment before slamming the door shut with a rattling echo shaking the whole room. “You think I’m afraid? Seems like you’re still an idiot.”

You might harbour the desire to wring this man’s neck, but not once had you ever felt afraid of him, not for a single second. Not even when he had burst in on you in his bath, naked and vulnerable. The mortification on his face had dissolved any concern for your safety in an instant. Wow. That moment felt so long ago now, but in reality, not that much time had passed.

Kento shrugged, unknowing what else to do and at last you took him in.

So, this was him suited and booted. He looked good, annoyingly handsome, and you could kick yourself for thinking that. This was the outer shell of the man you had met on that first fateful day; his shirt was crisply pressed and a surprising navy blue with neat tan trousers showing sharp creases down the legs, his expensive timepiece adorned his wrist and the brown polished Oxfords on his feet managed to shine in the dinghy low light of your living room. There was no jacket in sight, though you knew instinctively that one should reside over the width of his broad shoulders, and then you noticed it. A garish yellow splattered tie decorated the length of his sternum. It should have thrown his entire image, but somehow it didn’t.

Your nose wrinkled at the strange tie, head canting to the side and if you didn’t know any better, you might have said that this was the real Kento shining through the gloom of the mundane. There, at the heart of him, resided a man who didn’t want to fully abide by the standards laid out for all to adhere to. A small spark of a rebellious spirit weathered by cupped hands against the cruel winds of corporate culture. It would’ve made you laugh if you weren’t certain sobs were more likely to emerge than laughter.

“Aren’t you going to ask how I found you?”

It was your turn to shrug, already knowing the only possible answer. “Karin,” you answered bluntly. “I thought you were the one that disliked pointless questions.”

He winced at your cool tone, eyes falling from your less than impressed expression to bore holes through the floor. He deserved your ire—your anger and vexations—what he couldn’t stand was your indifference. The impact hit far harder, ice settling over his heart when he hesitantly gazed at the woman, he so ruthlessly scorned.

To Kento, you seemed tired. Dark circles underlined your dull eyes, not a single sparkle, of which he knew resided within them, remained. This was his doing… Despite that being the case, he felt the brush of butterfly wings in his stomach, soft and heartfelt. You were beautiful. So beautiful, and he knew this would be the last chance he’d ever get to make this right. To prove that he knew of the mistakes he had made and promise never to be so stupid ever again.

“I came to apologise,” he offered, slowly stepping closer only to see you take the same step back, much to dismay.

“I don’t accept. You can leave now.”

He ran a hand through his hair, and you followed the bounce of the front strands that refused to return to their original position. He was ruffled and hating every second of it. You were glad of his discomfort, at least he now felt an ounce of what you did.

Kento sighed. “I won’t stay if you really wish me to leave, but I’d prefer if you’d hear me out at least.”

“What could you possibly have to say? You rejected me, Kento. You fucking kissed me then shoved me away. There is nothing more to add.” You shot your reply like the bullets of a machine gun, fast and deadly.

“I was trying to protect—”

You interjected before he could finish, pacing back and forth like a caged predator who belonged in the wild, not on display like this. “Don’t you dare say it was to protect me. Don’t you dare assume that you know what is best for me! I make my own decisions in life, and no man is going to step in and change that.”

He raised his hands in surrender, eyes fixed into the depths of the floor and the passage of your feet.

“Protect us both… maybe more so me than you. I-I hate myself for only considered the implications that affected me,” he admitted quietly, shame burning in his gut. “We’re so different but also alike. I can see myself in you at that age and remember the dreams I had, and how they all revolved around success and money. I was driven just like you are, but you’re better than me. So much better and I don’t think you even realise it.”

Your pacing slowed as you listened, the pounding in your ears still very much present but growing quiet so you could hear the words being said and the unspoken ones too—for there were many.

“I admire your strength and determination, how you refuse to let anything, or anyone stand in the way of your happiness. You don’t let expectations change who you are. You were right when you called me jaded, because I am—or I was. Happiness was never a primary focus and it’s only now that I’m understanding what a fundamental mistake that was.”

“You sound like the male lead in those lovey-dovey romcoms you hate so much.”

His face split wide with his first smile in days. You watched in alarm when he bent over to clutch his stomach, until laughter poured from him, and the unabashed honesty of the noise made you glance away before you too were caught up in it. You weren’t ready to show him that side of you again.

“I guess I do, and I told you that I don’t hate them all.” He paused to slowly raise his arm, fingertips daring to brush against the back of your arm and when you didn’t pull away, down to your knuckles. “I’ve missed you.”

The shield around your heart was straining against the emotional onslaught. He sounded so genuine, and you reminded yourself that not once had he said anything that he didn’t mean, even when those things hurt. You took your hand back and hugged your arms around your middle.

“Shouldn’t you be at work?” You asked, pointedly ignoring his last remark and how badly you wanted to reiterate it back to him. “You’re certainly dressed for the office, except for that tie. Not sure if I love or loathe it.”

“I should be at work, but I walked out.” Kento shrugged as if that was the most obvious and rational thing he could say. “As for the tie…” He smiled down fondly, picking up the yellow material and letting it fall back against his chest. “I’ve always liked it. Makes me stand out against the other suits in the room.”

You couldn’t deny that.

Uncertain how else to further the conversation, or if you should try at all, you shuffled your feet against the floor before finally resigning to the wants of your heart. “You want a coffee?”

“Does that mean you’re not kicking me out?”

“It means… do you want a coffee?”

“I’d love a coffee.”

He followed you into the small kitchen, eyes taking in his surroundings for the first time and what he saw was a modest student apartment, much like the one he had lived in, but you had imprinted all over it. There were pieces of art hanging on the walls, leafy green plants on nearly every windowsill, cushions and blankets draped haphazardly over the cheap looking couch and little photos and mementos stuck to the fridge door and some cupboards.

Your face stood out in the ones that caught his eye, bright smiles that radiated joy and he even spied Karin in a few. The two of you were almost worlds apart but clearly cared for one another. He hoped that his intrusion into your life wouldn’t spoil that friendship. Although he was getting ahead of himself. One cup of coffee did not mean you were willing to give him another chance, and he hadn’t even asked yet.

“I’ve only got instant, didn’t know I’d be visited by a coffee connoisseur today,” you grumbled whilst finding two mismatched mugs.

He had to fight not wrinkle his nose and it did not go unnoticed, your eyebrow rising in a challenge to either put up or shut up. Wisely, he chose the latter, only shrugging in acceptance and gratefully taking the steaming mug when offered.

“You know, I’ve made your morning coffee every day since you left. It didn’t feel right only pouring one cup.”

What was this man doing to you? He was killing you with these heartfelt admissions in such quick succession, that’s what he was doing to you. The urge to cry tightened your throat, because for all your seething over what had happened, you had missed him. It was his voice you heard in the dead of night, his scent that tormented you when you least expected it, and his hazel eyes with warm caramel flecks that crinkled happily when you were lost in thought.

“Mm.” You didn’t know what else you could say, and you weren’t ready to admit that you felt the same way. Leaning back against the kitchen counter, you took a small sip of the cheap instant coffee and masked your grimace behind the rim of the mug before setting it down.

Kento took the few steps to put himself directly in front of you and you were frozen, staring right ahead into the centre of his chest. You didn’t dare to lift your gaze from the ridiculous yellow splattered tie, you couldn’t. He was so close that you could feel the heat from his body, it radiated outwards and teased at you like wandering tendrils. Your heart was thundering, so much so that you missed his arm moving as you worked to control yourself. His fingers gently lodged beneath your chin, slowly bringing your face upwards to meet his eyes, and it was a mistake.

Those intelligent eyes were sorrowful, and it thickened the lump lodged in your throat. It felt like time was suspended whilst he grazed his fingertips along your jaw and over your cheek until he was cupping your face so gently that you nearly wept on the spot. You let him explore the soft apple of your cheek, allowed him to run his thumb beneath your eye and felt the moisture of tears you weren’t aware you had shed stain the swirling thumbprint. He was so close and yet not close enough.

Caught between the urge to shove him away and drag him close, instead, you did nothing. You refused to put yourself in another vulnerable situation with him, if he wanted something then he would lead the charge and take what he sought. You wouldn’t be made a fool of again. You wouldn’t—

His lips found yours—tentative and slow. Lost in your thoughts you hadn’t noticed when he leant in to close that final gap. Your gasp was swallowed whole, washed away by the sweetest kisses that were nothing like the one you shared in his apartment. Angry passion fuelled that kiss, but not this one. It was a kiss reserved for deeper emotions, dare you say, the first budding blooms of love. There was an apology at its roots, and you accepted with your reciprocation.

It was like coming home, nothing else felt like this, and before you knew it, your arms were around his neck. This time, when you moved to delve your fingers through his lush head of hair, he didn’t stop you. Kento groaned against your mouth at the sensation, your nails gently scratching along his scalp in answer to a question he had long wanted to ask. You melted against his body; chest tightly pressed to his whilst you sobbed through a moment of clarity.

You were the one to pull back this time, a hand leveraged against his shoulder, but it was different to when he stopped you. Your finger sunk into the stiff material of his shirt, your way of not letting him escape, because this wasn’t over. “Kento… I need to know.”

“I want you. I have wanted you for longer than I realised. I hate that I hurt you to understand any of that. It will never happen again. I’m sorry… I will repeat that as many times as you need to hear it, but I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive myself.”

The words poured from him like a fountain. It was the most candidly you had heard him speak, and the gravity of that wasn’t lost on you. Kento was opening the door for you. He was welcoming you into his inner sanctum and hiding nothing from you. There were no veils in place to hide shadowy recesses, only pure light that defeated every phantom doubt there could possibly be. It made you smile, watery from unshed tears but you didn’t cry, you laughed.

Kento was a statue as he waited for your answer, for something to tell him if he had won his second and final chance. He was too scared to move, every muscle locked into place and when you laughed, he knew. Those beautiful eyes turned up to him with fresh tears sparkling but happy. The sparkle was back, and he could drown in their depths if you’d only let him. He let out the breath he’d been holding, and his head bowed forward until his forehead rested against the gentle slope of your shoulder. The sound of laughter seemed to turn up the colours in his world, everything seemed far brighter, and he crushed you to him.

“Words are pretty and all, but if you really want me like you claim…” you mused whilst your arms weaved beneath his so your hands could trail the length of his spine with deliberate slowness. “… show me.”

He huffed a laugh whilst your unique scent tickled his nose. You were always challenging him, whether in small inconspicuous ways or in monumental ways that forced him to look inwardly and reassess his priorities. This was nothing new, and for the first time, he wanted nothing more than to rise to this particular challenge.

“With pleasure.” Kento turned his head, planting a series of wet kisses to your neck and savouring the stutter of your breathing. Your fingers stilled from where they were teasing near the space occupied by his belt, and he seized the chance to let his lips curl away from teeth. He licked a strip over your frantic pulse before sinking his teeth into you.

Your body shuddered, held up only by the support of the counter and Kento’s grip on you. The pain was short-lived as it gave way to pleasure, careful lips kissed away the lingering hurt and you were fast developing a second heartbeat between your legs. He was acting on instinct, that was the only explanation, and you wondered how far those instincts would take him. You wanted him to drive this, to do as requested and show you how much he wanted you, but that didn’t mean you were going to be some shrinking violet. Pulling him into a bruising kiss, you smiled into the depths of his mouth at the answering grunt from his chest.

~

A trail of clothes led from the kitchen to your bedroom, the door kicked shut by a polished shoe right before it was yanked off and left in a heap with socks and trousers. Your nimble fingers worked free the buttons of his shirt, loosened his tie enough to tug it over head just as he stripped you out of the sweatshirt that hung far too loosely on your body. Instead of discarding the yellow tie, you looped it over your head and let it hang between your breasts. Framed by lace and sensitive skin that was singing from his hurried touch, you silently thanked all that would listen for the decision to wear a bra at all, let alone the expensive one that was usually reserved for intimate encounters. How serendipitous of you…

Kento stopped in his tracks, completely overcome with the sight of you. Perfect skin yet unmarked by his touch, soft curves and his tie around your throat. This was better than any wet dream, far more hedonistic than the lewd thoughts that crept into his brain when he fisted himself in the lonely hours of the night. This was reality, and what could be better than that?

“You’re so beautiful. You’ve no idea how many times I wondered what this might be like… and nothing compares to this,” he enthused, taking your hand and leading it to the obvious bulge tenting his underwear.

He groaned when you curled your fingers around his erection through the fabric, hips bucking forward involuntarily. Grinning like the cat who got the cream, you moved higher to hook those same fingers into the waistband and tugged him close so you could feel his cock twitch against you.

Tumbling onto messy sheets followed easily, amidst breathless kisses and explorative hands. Everything was new and exciting, there seemed to be no inch of your exposed skin left untouched and that only left what was still covered. Kento’s breath fanned hot and heavy over the lace of bra, enough to tighten your nipples. Your spine arched from the bed when he licked over the cup and wet you with his saliva, his hand slipping to the small of your back to keep you there so that when his teeth nipped at you, you could only squirm.

He repeated the action on the other side, leaving you panting and desperate for friction. The palm at your spine wandered to the clasp of your bra and he paused, offering you eyes full of sincerity. “May I?”

Your heart seized in your chest. Where had you found this man? You’d never know a man to get you into bed and down to your underwear and still ask for permission to proceed. Any lingering thought that this might be a one off to scratch the itch that had buried deep beneath your skin disintegrated in an instant. There wasn’t a future you envisaged where you would give him up, not without a fight.

Cupping his face in both hands, you kissed him and whispered. “Touch me like nobody else does.”

A wet path trailed from your clavicle to right below your belly button, little bruises blooming in places and the indentation of fingertips in others. Kento looked like a God from his position between your thighs, his chin shiny from the arousal he coaxed from you using his surprisingly silver tongue. Blond tousled hair and ruddy cheeks, swollen lips and brown irises almost completely swallowed by midnight pupils. Sweat dripped from your temples whilst you floated back down to Earth, your fingers tangled in his hair once more and you felt him lean into the touch before crawling over you.

“Sweeter than honey…”

Your skin flushed hotter—not a feat you thought possible—at his words, followed by the taste of yourself on his tender lips. His tongue pushed deeper and deposited the tantalising tang directly onto your tastebuds. Your body cradled him; legs wound tight around his hips to indulge in his guttural groans when his cock moved through your swollen folds.

Precum and the mess he’d made of you hastened his movements, hips rutting downwards whilst he captured your hands and entwined your fingers at either side of your head. The velvet glide of his cock through your sex stole the air from your lungs, the tip teasingly torturing your already abused clit. His jaw was set in firm determination, and you huffed at the expression. There was no way this was ending without him fucking you, whether he realised or not.

“Kento… please.”

His eyes flew skyward, barely held restraint fraying with each subsequent mewl of want. He squeezed your fingers when you rocked your hips and shifted the position in an attempt to nudge him towards your entrance. Hearing you speak his name would always be his undoing, it had been like that since the very first time you addressed him as Kento. It had never sounded better than from your lips, and he shuddered at the inflection, at the desire written openly across your features. You didn’t hide from him, didn’t obscure your true feelings behind a mask. He wanted to return that, and whilst he might be new to be using so open, there was no better time to start.

“I’m scared,” he admitted.

You paused, blinking your eyes open to watch him above you. “Of what?”

“That… that if I cross this final line, I’ll never let you go. You deserve everything, and what if I can’t give you that?”

“Keep me forever, Kento. You don’t need to cross this line for me to know that I want to be by your side whilst you figure your life from here out. I want to be a part of it. Let me look after your heart and you’ll have given me everything I could ever ask for.”

He loved you. He knew it in the very centre of his soul, but there would be time for that declaration. Right now, wasn’t the time. “Now who sounds like they’re in a lovey-dovey romcom?” He teased, nudging your nose with his whilst his heart felt lighter than it had in forever.

You bit at his bottom lip, feigning a growl of annoyance whilst your eyes narrowed on him and the brilliant smile he gave you. Without warning, he moved and all at once he was exactly where he needed to be. Inch by slow inch, he eased into your body. You swore through the exquisite stretch, only silenced by his mouth which descended upon you hungrily.

It had been a while since you last had someone in bed with you, and despite being worked open by skilful fingers and tongue, it was still a snug fit. When he bottomed out, the coarse golden hairs at his pelvis rubbed at you with that delicious friction and stimulation, and you sighed in contentment. The fullness was welcome, and he fit you like a glove, like he was meant to have found his home here by now.

“O-okay?” He asked with a shake in his voice, and you nodded enthusiastically. The pace he set was slow, bone deep and so heartfelt that it seemed like your body merged with his. Kento spread your thighs further apart with his knees. He made every thrust count, hips angled to massage the sweet spot he’d discovered earlier.

You were clenched around him so hard that he swore he’d cum in record time, in fact, he was still astonished not to have spilled in his shorts when your first orgasm had wet his face. It was a moment he was likely to never forget and would be subject to many a dirty thought in years to come. He continued to be amazed at how expressive you were, and seemingly that didn’t end in the bedroom. It was refreshing. No one was like you, but that was okay because he had found you and even though he messed up, you were better than he ever could be. So sweet and joyful. You accepted him, flaws and all, and only offered him a helping hand.

Kento was lost in the sensation of being joined with you. His heart beat in time with yours, chests flush together whilst he took you higher and higher to completion. The orgasm approaching felt different to any before, it spread throughout his body like warm honey, and he glanced down at you in panic that he would find his end before you did.

“Fuck… there. Right there! Don’t stop… oh god, I’m gonna—Ken!”

His stomach dropped into his toes, the strength in his arms near failing him when you broke apart to milk him with sweet sucking pulls that he had never experienced before. The incessant pulsing was too much to deny, and he pulled out with a fierce growl that forced your eyes to snap wide. Kento sat back on his haunches, hand ready to wrap around his aching dick to pump the final few times and spill his seed, but he hadn’t counted on you leaning up on an elbow to reach him first. Your hot touch jolted electricity down his spine and the wet glide of his foreskin had barely reached down to the base before he was shooting his load across your quivering belly and thighs.

He moaned unabashedly and the sound thrilled you right down to your already overstimulated core. Both your eyes and his fixed on the sticky pool he was creating on your skin. His cheeks turned a burning red at the continuing spurts of cum that seemed to never want to end, until at last he was drained completely.

A moment of silence fell, only disturbed by your combined heavy breathing. Kento couldn’t find it in him to look you in the eye, a sense of embarrassment settling on his shoulders at the sheer mess he’d made. Clearly, he didn’t understand that you adored the painting he’d created. He was the paint, and you were the canvas. You scooped your finger through the creamy paint, tracing designs with his essence.

“I… I don’t know what to say now,” he said softly.

Your head canted, humming quietly whilst beckoning him to you with two grabby hands and not relenting until he flopped beside you. His face buried into the crook of your neck, forcing you to dig it out with laughter bubbling in your throat. Suddenly he was shy… adorable.

“Why say anything at all? We have all the time in the world for words. Let’s just enjoy the moment.”

He kissed your bare shoulder, reaching over you to his discarded shirt and using that to clean your stomach so he could cuddle you into his arms comfortably. You were right, there wasn’t much needed to be said right now, except he did have one question… “Did I show you?”

Throwing a leg over his hips and nuzzling his nose with yours, you smiled and gave a nod. “More than I expected. Although… next time, finish inside.”

Kento nearly choked on his saliva which only made you laugh more. His neck and ears burned white-hot, and you pretended not to notice whilst he looked everywhere but at you. “I’ll—uh—I’ll bear that in mind.”

“Mm, good because we have a lot of time to make up for and I intend to keep you in this bed until your legs give out.”

“You always have to have the last word, don’t you?” he teased with a bark of laughter.

“Yep. So, I suggest you get used to it, love.”

[17-noodlebird]

World One = The Amazing Digital Circus Grounds

🎪🤡🤹🎡🎩🎢🎠🎈🪀

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Jewel: Crystal

Power: Energy

Color: Silver

Theme: The Circus & Childhood Wonder

~~~~

Objective:

Get to the first location of the road trip without experiencing too much road rage.

~~~~

Chapter I: The Amazing Digital Road Trip Begins!

~~~~

The first episode — or chapter — pays homage to the Unikitty episode “Roadtrip Ruckus”, Teen Titan Go’s “Road Trip”, and the basic comedic road trip tropes we see in movies.

The episode begins with the Amazing Digital Circus members, or as I'll be calling them from here on out, Team Circus, taking a 15-hour drive to their very first destination, after packing their belongings and installing the first jewel into the secret door, after a brief discussion of what they'll be doing during the trip. Just as they depart The Grounds, all eight members of Team Circus receive a notification for their first objective on their communicator bracelets. Poor Caine thought it'd be a piece of cake…

At first, it's about what you'd expect it to be; road trip games (Jax’s favorite being punch buggy, giving him the perfect opportunity to pick on Gangle), some funny stories to share, Kinger talking about how the Bee Movie is such an underrated classic of the 2000’s, Ragatha reading a book in the car (and ultimately getting carsick as a result), and of course, road trip songs. The diplomats from the other dimension are acting as the surrogate audience, helping them out along the way via their Velcro communicator bracelets that Team Circus is also wearing on their wrists.

Unfortunately, things start to get out of hand really quickly, as Caine soon begins to develop road rage as a result of the antics of the other six members, something that has never happened before. Eventually, the Magical Digital Van gets a flat tire, so they have to stop at a gas station for repairs. While at the gas station, Jax and Pomni bond for a bit as they laugh at off-brand snacks, Ragatha and Gangle try to have a heart-to-heart with one another, Kinger and Zooble fix the van while discovering the mechanic is a shady scammer, and Caine is just freaking out over his newfound emotions as Bubble tries to calm him down.

Afterwards, when the Van is seemingly fixed after Kinger, Zooble, and the mechanic make a compromise, Team Circus causes even more of a ruckus, much to Caine's annoyance and Bubble's concern, all before the Van breaks down in the middle of the road (as well as earning a second flat tire), and Caine is not happy about this, throwing in some colorful (albeit censored with old timey car noises) vocabulary all the while. As the other members try to figure out what the heck just happened, Zooble reveals that they and Kinger had a bit of a squabble with the mechanic, making them immediately come to the conclusion that they have both been tricked by the con artist of a mechanic, who removed some of the parts of the engine to sell on eBay. “Thanks a lot, you two.” were the words said by Jax, as the others watched the mechanic scammer drive off with the missing parts, hollering back, “Yeah, thanks a lot, you two! Hahahahahahaaaa!!!!”

Uh oh.

This was all within Caine's earshot, who now wants payback. A car chase ensues, all to the tune of Lynyrd Skynyrd's “Free Bird”, as Caine tries to catch the fake mechanic and retrieve back the stolen parts for the engine, Zooble and Kinger having looks of guilt all the while. After Team Circus catches up to the fake mechanic (the Van falling apart by the seams from exhaustion in the process), Caine demands that he give back the parts. Naturally, a heated argument ensues, until Pomni discovers that they weren't the only victims of stolen car parts. This is where she puts two and two together and informs the rest of Team Circus of her findings.

It turns out that when The Magical Digital Van got a flat tire as result of a rusty nail being placed in the middle of the road, conveniently a couple of yards from the mechanic shop and local gas station, something the fake mechanic did on purpose. And he had been doing this to the other vehicles too; apparently, this was all part of a conniving scheme to sell used car parts on the black market to unsuspecting customers in order to gain some money.

As the fake mechanic attempts to run away, knowing damn well he had been caught, Ragatha apprehends him and forces him to give them back the stolen car parts, as well as the ones stolen prior to the encounter. He complies, defeated.

Pomni is congratulated by the diplomats and Team Circus for her cleverness, while the fake mechanic fixes The Magical Digital Van for real as he replaces both flattened tires and puts back the stolen parts. Some NPC police officers arrest the fake mechanic shortly after, with Pomni having called the authorities in the meantime.

Of course, Zooble and Kinger aren't let off the hook completely; Caine scolds the both of them for not being street smart about the matter (tho Bubble asks him to go easy on them this time, as no one could have foreseen this outcome). So all's well that ends well, and after several more hours of casual hijinks, they finally reach their first destination. The episode ends here.

~~~~

Current Status:

0 Jewels have been collected

26 remain

🎪🤡🤹🎡🎩🎢🎠🎈🪀

~~~~

• OG Cast:

Lizzie Freeman as Pomni

Amanda Hufford as Ragatha

Michael Kovach as Jax

Sean Chiplock as Kinger

Marissa Lenti as Gangle

Ashley Nichols as Zooble

Gooseworx as Bubble

Alex Rochon as Caine

~~~~

• Audience Surrogate Cast/Diplomats

Hynden Walch as Valerie

Susan Egan as Pamela

Amy Winfrey as Garcia

Mandy Moore as Lulu

Nevaeh Hamilton (me) as Bethany

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• Background Diplomats

Andrea Libman as Winona

Cristina Vee as Patricia

E.G. Daily as Rionna

Stephanie Sheh as Olivia

Debi Derryberry as Yolanda

Cree Summer as Gemma

Ashleigh Ball as Cécelia

Erica Luttrell as Belle

Ashly Burch as Imera

Kimberly Brooks as Bailey

~~~~

• Episode’s Antagonists

Danny DeVito as Otto Partz the Fake Mechanic

~~~~

• Secondary Characters Introduced

Edward Bosco as Gene Virgo the Convenience Store Owner

~~~~

[mermaidgirl30]

Look for the Light

Chapter 22

- Summary: Aly finds herself trying to escape the Boston QZ. What Aly doesn’t know is Tess is pairing her up with Joel to go on a dangerous mission to find Tommy. Will Aly survive the brooding, moody Joel or will she find herself falling hard for him?

You spent the next two days trekking from Colorado to Utah. The snow following you all the way. Not any snow storms, just light snow that fell and pulled away every once in a while. Towering mountains didn’t slow down either. Every which way you turned was a mountain covered in glistening white snow. The views were breathtaking, nature showing its real beauty.

The temperature was slightly higher than it was in Colorado, so the trip wasn’t awful. Your winter jacket and Joel were all you needed to stay warm. The two of you had stopped along the way at a couple of run down, abandoned houses to sleep during the cold nights. You had no run-ins with any raiders or infected which was odd, but it calmed you to know it was peaceful. So far at least.

You were so close to Salt Lake City, just right on the outskirts of the city. You were almost there and still didn’t know exactly what happened with Tommy and Joel. You’d put off asking him the past week, so you guessed it was about time to get some answers.

You carefully brought up the subject, trying not to set him off. “So, you and Tommy. What exactly happened between the two of you?”

Joel sat up straighter, his muscles tightening around you. You could feel him get fidgety as your arms were wrapped around his waist, his abs stiffening. You heard him breathe out a sigh before he answered you.

“Me and Tommy…we had different views. After the virus spread things got rough between us. We…we hurt people to stay alive. We took what we had to, to live. It ultimately got too much for the both of us.” He adjusted his position on the saddle, his grip holding the reins growing tighter and then loosening. His hands were fidgeting along with his leg that was bouncing up and down unsteadily.

You could see this conversation was bothering him, so you took a more gentle approach. “You alright?” you asked slowly as you placed a hand on his thigh, his leg instantly becoming still underneath your touch.

“I’m fine,” he said with a deep southern drawl.

You took that as the okay to ask him another question. “So, what happened next?”

He took a minute to answer you, but he was calm about it. “We started fighting more, having more arguments. It wasn’t pretty. The fireflies started getting into Tommy’s head, saying they could fix the world. No matter how fucked up it already was. They swore to him they’d fix it. And they filled him with hope. I didn’t believe a damn word out of their mouths. But Marlene, the leader of the fireflies, convinced him to join them. I tried to talk him out of it, but she convinced him otherwise. And before I knew it they were heading out west. Last I heard they were going to Salt Lake City. And so that’s where I decided he’d be. And I hope that son of a bitch is still there. It’s been a long time..He said he never wanted to see my face again when he left with the fireflies..”

His voice trailed off, and he looked lost in thought. “Hey, we’ll find him. Don’t worry. We’re so close. I’m sure he didn’t mean all those things he said. He’s your brother. I’m sure once he sees you again it’ll be like nothing ever happened,” you encouraged him, keeping your hand on his thigh.

He gently placed his hand over yours and gave it a tight squeeze. “I appreciate the kind words, but we’ll see. I just thought I’d at least try. Ya know?”

“I’m glad you’re trying. How long has it been now? Since the last time you saw him.” You looked over his shoulder and gazed at his face, his forehead creased in thought.

“Too long. More than a decade. Shit.” He slowly laughed and shook his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe it took me this long to go and look for my brother again. I’ll be damned if he even recognizes me anymore.”

You placed your head on Joel’s shoulder and looked up at him. “He’ll recognize you. Of course he will. And I’ll be there by your side when that happens.”

He gazed down at you with those pretty honey eyes of his and gave you a small smile while he reached up and grazed his hand under your chin in an affectionate way. “Thanks for believing in me.”

You nodded in his direction, and he turned his sights back to the road. You sat in silence for a few minutes. His muscles going from tense to relaxed as you put your arms back around his waist. You were enjoying this. The fresh air while you were wrapped around Joel. It was somehow soothing.

A couple of minutes later Joel pulled on the reins, making Shimmer stop abruptly. “Whoa, girl,” Joel said quickly as he slid off the saddle.

You looked up to try to see what made Joel stop. He was standing by the side of a small hill. You jumped down off Shimmer’s back and walked over to where he stood. Before you could ask what he was looking at, you looked down and saw for yourself. Your eyes widened when you saw just what he was looking at. Infected.

Ten runners stood just a few feet from where you stood, the hillside separating you from being level with them. You could hear their angry screams, the way they cried out as if they were trying to draw their next victim in. Some moved slow, others were fast as they twisted and contorted their bodies into repulsive shapes. Their dead eyes wandered mindless as they looked around at nothing in particular. Just dead bodies that were aimlessly searching for life.

“There’s so many of them,” you said as you stared at all of them, your eyes looking from one infected to the next.

Joel shifted his weight and looked over at you, a question in his eyes. You looked over and gave him your best guessing face, trying to figure out why he was looking at you like that.

“Hmmm,” he started. You cocked your head to the side and continued to give him a questioning glance. “Wanna put that bow of yours to the test? Get a little practice in.”

You shifted the strap over your back, feeling the cool leather material run through your hands. The arrows slightly shifted from the movement. “Alright, yeah. I could use a little more practice,” you said as you reached to get the bow out of the bag, along with grabbing an arrow out. “But wait. I bet I could shoot more runners than you.” Your nerves tingled from what you just suggested. Of course he’d beat you. What were you thinking?

He took a step closer, raising an eyebrow as he looked you in the eyes. “Are you challenging me?”

No, because you knew he’d win. You brushed off the thought and put your A game face on. “Looks like it,” you said with confidence, resting your hand on your hip as you narrowed your eyes slightly.

“Think you can beat me?” he said with a playful smile.

“Yes, as a matter of fact I do.”

“We’ll see about then, won’t we? And the winner. What does the winner get?”

Huh? You hadn’t thought of any prizes. You were ultimately just joking, but it turned into a real game quick. “Whatever they want,” you answered with a flirtatious flutter of your eyelashes.

“Hmmm. Whatever they want…” His eyes lowered to your lips and hovered slowly back up to your eyes. His eyes darkened and a smirk formed on his mouth. That was enough to bring you to your knees. The way he just looked at you. It was…dangerous, tempting, hot.

You gulped in response, quickly picking yourself back up from the pieces he just shattered you in. “Anything,” you whispered back.

He stole one more glance at your lips and nodded. “Alright. Challenge accepted. Whoever shoots the most infected with the bow wins. Ladies first,” he said as he bowed and held out his hand towards the direction of the infected.

You gave him a quick nod and walked towards the ledge, your feet stopping before you could tumble down the small hill. You looked across the land, examining every infected that you saw. Slowly scanning which one would be your first target. You decided on a slow one with a ripped up hoodie and black baggy jeans.

You took a slow breath and placed the arrow in the center of the bow, bringing it up to your eye level. You steadied yourself and got into position, your feet parallel to one another, your body angled just slightly.

You focused on your target, watching its every move. You closed your right eye, leaving your left open to aim at your target. One more deep breath and you were pulling the string back, the arrow flying into the sky. It hit your target perfectly in the head, its body falling hard to the ground as blood spilled out the side of its punctured skull.

“That’s one,” you said in celebration, your voice giddy with excitement.

“Nice shot. Now do it again,” Joel demanded.

You stole a glance at him before you focused back on the open land, a small smile creeping up to your face. You got another arrow out and placed it in the bow carefully. You eyed a faster runner, taking your chances with your spotty aim.

You got in position and shot the arrow through the air. The runner was almost too fast, but the arrow landed in the far side of its head. It went down without a fight. “Yes!” you whispered to yourself.

“Again,” he commanded.

You set your sights on a runner that was headed your way. You shot at the right time, the arrow taking it down fast. You were getting good at this. You were amazed, really. You didn’t think you’d catch on this quick.

“Good. Almost too good…” he said with a deep voice as he circled you like a vulture, watching your every move.

You watched him circle you, your heart racing at the sight. “You should know why. You’re the one who taught me,” you replied, your cheeks blushing at the thought.

“That’s right, now go again.” The last word dripped off his tongue like honey, his voice dream-like. As he passed you he stretched his arm out and brushed the side of your hip. His touch burned through your clothes, you could feel his marks left against the chill of your skin.

He walked past you and dropped his hand. Your breath hitched at the contact. Focus. But you couldn’t. All your thoughts were trained on the man who left your skin on fire. You took another arrow and set it up, getting ready to play out your next move.

One of the slower runners was hobbling up to the hill, their dead eyes unmoving as it moved uncannily. That was the one. You focused your sight and positioned yourself angling to the left. You took a deep breath and slowly started to pull back the string.

Before you could move your arm anymore, Joel came up silently behind you, his hot breath breathing down your neck. “Careful. Eyes up just a little higher. You don’t want to miss.” He was standing so close, his hand barely touching the side of your thigh.

You gasped from the way his words slid right through you, his breath hitting your neck in just the right spot. He took a step back, but all you could think about was how good it felt to have his warmth breathing down your neck. As you brought the string all the way back, your grasp slipped and the arrow went sailing in the air. Except it didn’t hit its mark. It completely missed.

“Shit,” you said annoyed. Joel was the reason why you had missed. Damn it, Joel.

You heard a small laugh escape his lips behind you as you turned to glare at him. “You almost had it,” he said sarcastically.

“You distracted me! I would’ve had that if it wasn’t for you. Cheater,” you said as you walked up and stopped in front of him, crossing your arms. “You don’t play fair.”

“Hey, I didn’t cheat. I was only trying to help. It’s not my fault you got distracted.” He smirked at you, the smile meeting his eyes.

“Well, you didn’t help.” You stood your ground and placed a hand on your hip, playfully narrowing your eyes at him.

“Sorry to hear that. Now gimme. My turn.” He held out his hand and waited for you to give him the bow.

“Fine. Let’s see what you got.” You defeatedly gave him the wooden bow and took off your bag strapped around you that was full of black arrows, dropping it next to him.

He winked at you and walked up to the edge of the hill. You watched him carefully, studying his actions. He positioned the bow with an arrow ready to aim. He quickly found the runner you tried to take down and aimed for its head. He pulled back the string with a strong arm and shot, it went perfectly through its head, the runner now dead. You rolled your eyes at how precise his aim was.

He did it again with the next runner and the next. Making every shot crisp and swift. His aim was flawless, never missing a beat. It didn’t matter how fast the runners were going, he’d take them down one by one. He never missed a shot. Every single arrow landing through their tainted skulls.

He was on the last runner now. It was coming straight for Joel, just feet away. He took it out with no effort at all. He was just too good, too skilled in the craft. You wanted to tell him you were no match compared to him, but you held back. You knew he’d win. His abilities were exceptional.

“So that’s three to seven. Looks like I won,” he smirked as he turned to you, still holding the bow.

You shook your head and laughed. “I would’ve done better if it wasn’t for a certain someone.” You crossed your arms and gave him a knowing look.

“Hey now, you did fine. We can always practice more,” he reassured you.

“Right. Next time I’ll show you up,” you promised. “Anyways, you won. So what do you want?”

“What do I want?” he asked with a questioning gaze, his eyes trained on you. “I think you know.” He took a step closer to you, his eyes hounding you.

Oh. Your breathing sped up as he followed you. When you took a step back, he took a step forward. It’s like you were in a dance, never too far away from the other. His eyes darkened and his smirk returned to his face. He was prowling towards you like a tiger ready to devour its prey.

He backed you up against a tree and put his arms up around each side of you, pinning you to the spot. To him. His warm eyes were puddles of dark chocolate, growing darker with every second that passed. His warm breath blew in your face, warming all your senses.

You gulped, your breath catching in your throat. Joel leaned down and cupped your chin in his hand, gently raising you up to where his mouth was inches away from yours. You slowly ran your tongue across your bottom lip, wetting it in anticipation of his lips on yours. His eyes were almost black now as he watched you intensely. His nostrils flaring as he took deep breaths. He was focusing hard on you, waiting to devour you. And that made you shiver in anticipation.

“This is what you wanted right? Me?” you asked seductively, your hand reaching up to rest on his chest, his plaid shirt warm beneath your touch.

“That’s right. You,” he whispered as he leaned against your ear, the words breathing down your neck as heat climbed its way through you. His warmth felt so inviting, so enticing.

“Then what are you waiting for?” you whispered back to him, your breath coming out in waves.

“Your permission.” He stared into your eyes, focused and waiting for your approval.

He was asking for your permission? That was so…hot. After everything that had happened, he now wanted permission to touch you. What a complete gentleman. And you’d give him permission because this is what you wanted. No, needed. His touch, his lips on yours. You wanted it all. Needed it. Craved it.

You grabbed his shirt and pulled him in closer to you, his nose meeting yours, his lips hanging just above yours. Your eyes were at the same level, those dark brown eyes burning into yours. That alone almost sent you to your knees. His eyes begging you to sink into them.

“Yes. You have my complete permission.”

A devilish smirk formed on his lips as he stared at you for a couple more seconds. Before you could register his next move his mouth landed on yours. It was warm and delicate, but it quickly turned into a yearning kiss. The kiss deepening as it grew into a hungry, desperate action.

His hands found your hips as he slowly moved the ends of your shirt up, running his rough fingers across your smooth skin. Electricity pulsed through your body, sending shock waves to your system.

He lifted you up and wrapped your legs around him, pressing your back against the tree. His tongue found yours as he explored your mouth, the taste of coffee igniting your senses. His lips felt so good around your mouth, so right. He pressed you deeper into the tree, his mouth ravaging yours.

He took his hand and moved your long locks behind your left ear, his fingertips grazing the side of your face as he took his lips off yours. Before you could respond he took his tongue and ran it up the side of your neck. Oh, God. And then he was sucking, finding your most sensitive spots.

You could smell the mahogany dripping off him, and it made you dizzy. The hint of cinnamon and the outdoors entwining together, feeding off your desires. He continued exploring your neck, no skin left untouched. You ran your hands through his messy hair, and he groaned in response. The sound alone made you shutter.

He trailed soft kisses up to your ear and whispered seductively, his deep voice leaving you breathless. “Alyson…” he purred in your ear. The sweet sounding melody clouding all your thoughts. Fuck. The way your name dripped off his tongue made you want to come undone.

He trailed his nose down the side of your neck and sunk his lips down on the most sensitive spot of your neck. You moaned loudly into his ear as the sensation ran through you, your grip tightening on his shirt.

“Ahh right there. Right at this spot. I’ll remember that,” he said as he dropped his lips back down to the same place, his mouth devouring you. You moaned again, this time not holding back.

You could feel the inside of your legs growing hot, a warm sensation building inside you. Wet pulsing desire consumed you with every touch he gave you. You squeezed your legs tighter around him, trying to lessen the growing sensation. You wanted him to touch you. You wanted to feel him sink his lips down on every inch of your body. You wanted his mouth in between your legs. Your legs tightened around him just thinking about it.

He slowly teased at the waist band of your jeans, his fingertips almost dipping down beneath the denim material. Your breath hitched at the thought, your vision becoming slightly blurry from the dizziness you felt in your head.

Suddenly he untangled your legs and sat your feet back on the ground, leaving you with one more lasting kiss on your lips. That’s when he broke away, breaking your skin to skin contact. Why did he stop? Why did he fucking stop?

“Why…why did you stop?” you asked breathless, your voice coming out shallow and ragged.

He looked at you then, his eyes still black pits as he ran a hand through his messy locks. “We need to keep going. We’re almost there. Now let’s go gather the arrows up.” His voice was just as breathless as yours. He was just as affected as you were.

“That doesn’t answer my question,” you said as you reached for his arm, grabbing his soft sleeve between your fingers.

He gazed at your hand and looked back up at you, carefully. His eyes finding yours. They were still dark, the blackness fighting to take control again. “Later,” he said in a quiet, deep voice. It shook your insides like a crash of thunder. “Now, let’s go.”

You pushed him playfully against his shoulder. “Joel Miller, you’re such a tease!”

He gazed up at you with a smirk on his mouth. He knew what he was doing. He enjoyed it too. Enjoyed seeing how he affected you. How his touch made you melt just like that. He liked it. No, he revelled in it. But you liked it just as much as he did. You wanted to see just how far he’d take it. How far he’d indulge you, tease you…

“Come on,” he said as he took your arm and led you down the small hill to retrieve the arrows. As you walked by his side, he knelt down slightly and put his lips to your ear. “That was only the beginning. The things I could teach you…” His voice trailed off as he broke contact with your arm, stepping away to grab the first arrow he saw.

Your cheeks flushed at the words that just escaped his mouth, leaving your throat dry. You gulped at the thoughts that swam around in your head. You and Joel tangling in the sheets together, getting lost in each other’s ecstasy…

“Aly.” Joel brought you out of your trance as he called your name. You looked up and he was signaling for you to follow him.

“Yeah, I’m coming,” you said in response. You quickly got a move on and followed after him. You both started going to every fallen runner and retrieved the arrows one by one, quickly working your way to the last one. You picked up the last one from a runner that was splayed flat on its stomach on the ground in a pool of blood. You put the arrow back in your bag, along with the bow and was ready to leave the area.

You and Joel got back on Shimmer and traveled a couple more miles until you came upon a white post sign that said Salt Lake City in big red letters. Underneath it was the fireflies symbol. In black spray paint was a firefly that was splayed across the post where anyone could see it.

“I think we made it,” Joel said as he slowed Shimmer’s pace as she walked past the sign.

“Where is everyone?” you asked as you looked around the desolate area.

“Around here somewhere,” he said as he looked around cautiously. “Let’s go on foot, see if we can find which building they’re hiding in.”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.”

Joel jumped down from Shimmer and you followed behind him. Your pistol and knife secured in your pocket, along with the bow strapped around you. Joel’s rifle swayed against his back with each step he took. He was on edge and so were you.

You quietly made your way through the empty city. Vacant buildings surrounded you. Some had windows busted out with broken glass surrounding the ground, others had locks on the front of them. You watched your step, careful not to step on anything sharp.

As you came around the corner, a large hospital sat in the center of the city. It was huge, looking almost like a skyscraper. The glass windows surrounded its entirety, and the name Saint Mary’s sat at the top of the building in bold letters that were quickly fading. The hospital looked to be about six floors high. A covered parking garage sat next to it.

“Joel…” you whispered as you saw the words spray painted on the side of the hospital. “When you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light” was spelled out in bold letters. The fireflies symbol sat underneath the words. It looked ominous, threatening. You didn’t trust the fireflies and never would.

His grip tightened on the strap of his gun as he took in the sight of the hospital and the message that was blaring through the city. “They’re in there,” he said gravely as he looked over his shoulder at you.

“You think Tommy’s in there?”

“I sure as hell hope so. Otherwise I don’t know what we’re walking into,” he said nervously.

“Do you think they take kindly to strangers?” you asked nervously.

“I don’t think they take kindly to anyone,” he scowled and looked back towards the hospital, to the unknown that lay waiting for you to explore.

“What do you think they’re up to in there?” you asked as you scanned the hospital building. The message from the fireflies catching your vision again.

“There’s no telling. Guess we’ll find out.”

You heard a loud crunch behind you, and you froze in place. Joel noticed it also because he looked over at you and raised a brow, questioning what the noise was and who made it.

Another crunching noise was heard just a few paces behind you. Before you could snap your head around to see who was there, you felt something heavy crash down on your head. You felt the sting of pain run through your head before you hit the ground. Your vision went black and so did the sky as you faded into the darkness.

Joel’s POV

You awoke with a pounding headache, your head feeling like it was about to split in two. You brought your hand up to the back of your head and rubbed the area that was throbbing. You slowly opened your eyes, squinting from the harsh lights in the room.

You were laying on the cold linoleum floor trying to figure out how you got here, your body fighting you to get off the floor. You groaned and rolled over, trying to get to a sitting position slowly.

When you finally got to a sitting position, you looked up and saw what was shifting in the room. Four men with shiny, black combat boots and navy colored uniforms stood before you, and they all held rifles in their hands. The firefly symbol patched on the sides of their sleeves.

You froze as you looked over each of them, studying their features. You shifted your weight just the slightest, and they all brought their guns up to attention, pointing the rifles directly at you. “Don’t move,” one of the men spat out with demand.

You narrowed your eyes at them but followed their orders. Fucking fireflies. You braced your jaw and drew your forehead into hard lines, making it known you weren’t happy.

You looked around the room. It was pretty bare. It was a small room with tainted white walls. There was nothing in here except for you and some fireflies. Aly was nowhere in sight. Where the fuck did they take her?

“Where’s the girl?” you growled as you stared up harshly to the men.

“She’s not your concern,” one of the men yelled back.

“The hell she is!” you yelled back even louder.

The firefly raised his gun and took a few steps closer to you. His combat boot collided into the side of your stomach as a sharp kick hit your gut. You braced your hands on the floor and bent over, trying to catch your breath again as the kick sent sharp pulses through you.

The firefly backed up and got back into position with the other men. As soon as the pain started subsiding, you raised your head and glared daggers at the firefly, your eyes squinting into hard lines. You were pissed.

Before you could say something to ignite the anger more, a door slammed open in the corner of the room and in walked a woman. She was fairly tall, had dark skin and raven hair. She was muscular and was wearing a tan tank top, camo pants and boots. Except it wasn’t just any woman, it was Marlene.

“Marlene?!” It came off more like shock than a question as your voice echoed through the room loudly.

“Joel?” she asked in surprise. “What are you doing here?” Shock registered on her face like she wasn’t expecting to see you.

“I could ask you the same thing,” you said with gritted teeth.

“Boys, put down your guns. I know this man. It’s Tommy’s brother,” she said as she held out a hand to them, signaling them to put their weapons down.

The fireflies brought their guns down slowly, but the one who had kicked you was hesitant. You looked up at him again and glared, letting him know you didn’t trust him at all.

You looked back over at Marlene as she moved closer. “Where is she?” you pressed.

“Which one?” she asked hesitantly.

“What do you mean which one? The one your men knocked out cold who was with me!” you barked.

“Oh, right. That one…” Her voice trailed off like you had meant another girl. What the fuck was that about?

“Where..Is..She?” you said as you clenched your teeth. Did you have to spell it out?

“She’s fine. She’s in the other room resting,” she assured you.

“I swear to God, Marlene, if any of your men laid a hand on her…”

“Calm down, Joel! She’s okay,” she said as she held out a hand, trying to halt you from lashing out.

“Take me to her. Now!” you demanded forcefully.

“Get up then. Come on,” she said as she turned for the door, stopping to wait for you.

You pushed yourself off the floor with a grunt. You still had a headache, but that was the least of your worries right now. You had business to get to. You noticed the men followed you out the room and stayed on your trail, right at your heels.

“Marlene, can you get your men to back off just a little?” you barked at her.

“Guys, cool it. Go back outside and keep searching. She’s got to be around here somewhere.” They obeyed and turned the other way. The man that kicked you giving you a once over before he turned on his heel and went the opposite way.

“Fucker,” you whispered under your breath at the firefly, annoyed you were even in this mess.

“You haven’t changed a bit since the last time I saw you. Still the same old angry Joel I knew back then. Always in some kind of mood,” she laughed casually.

“I wouldn’t be in a mood if your men wouldn’t have knocked us out and took our weapons,” you spat back, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Relax. They were only doing their job. And your weapons are waiting for you. You’ll get them back before you leave,” she reassured you. “But first we had to make sure you weren’t a threat.”

You huffed in response. Marlene took you down the rundown hall. The wallpaper was in tatters, and the floor was stained from old water leaks. You noticed a surgery room from the corner of your eye. There was a small metal table next to a hospital bed with scalpels, scissors and other equipment you’d use for surgery. What the fuck were they doing in here?

You were about to ask until Marlene turned the corner and came to a brown hollow door, placing her hand on the rusty doorknob and turning it as it squeaked open. Over her shoulder you could see a medical table, and Aly was sitting up on the edge of it holding her head. You pushed past Marlene and rushed over to her.

“Aly! Are you okay? Are you hurt?” you asked hurriedly as you checked her over for any new injuries. You didn’t see any visible ones which was good for the fireflies.

“My head hurts a little, but other than that I think I’m okay. I’m better now that you’re here,” she said quietly as she reached for your arm.

“Where does it hurt?”

“Right back here.” She pointed to a spot on the back of her head and moved the hand off that was holding her head, letting you take a look. You couldn’t see any visible swelling or marks, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a slight concussion.

You placed your hand gently on the spot she pointed to and slowly rubbed it, making small circles with your fingers. She groaned slightly, but she leaned into your touch. “Any better now?” you asked.

She nodded up at you, her diamond eyes finding yours. “Better.”

You took your hand and placed it on her thigh affectionately before turning back to Marlene. “If she has a concussion I swear I’ll…”

Marlene interrupted you before you could finish your hateful thought. “That’s enough, Joel. She doesn’t have a concussion. Calm down,” she warned.

“You know her?” Aly questioned you. You looked over to her, and her eyes were full of endless questions.

“This is Marlene. The one I told you about,” you said with bitterness in your voice.

“Oh, I see. What a way to be introduced to one another,” she said with sarcasm in her voice.

Marlene walked up to you and Aly with a huff in her voice. “Guess Joel’s already told you about me. Hopefully nothing bad, right Joel?” she said as she glared up at you, her eyebrows rising in question. You rolled your eyes in response.

“Well anyways, I’m Marlene, leader of the fireflies. I’m sorry we had to meet on such shitty terms. And you are?” she asked as she looked at Aly, waiting for a response.

“I’m Aly. Nice to meet you, I guess,” she said hesitantly.

“Likewise.” She eyed Aly’s wrapping on her left arm, curiously observing it. “What happened to your arm?”

Aly looked down at the wrapping and eyed it for a few seconds, her grip on the table deepening as she clenched her fingers against the worn out blue material. “I was stabbed,” she said faintly, barely audible as she looked back up.

“Mind if I take a look?” she asked carefully. She started to reach out her arm, but you caught her wrist before she could lay her hands on Aly. You gave her a hard glare as your nostrils flared.

“Joel, for God’s sake let me look at her arm! I’m trained in the medical field, I can help so let me,” she said as she raised her voice and yanked her arm out of your grasp.

“Joel, it’s okay. Just let her,” Aly said as she glanced at you with pleading eyes.

“Alright, fine. But be careful with her,” you warned Marlene as you stepped back to make room for her. You crossed your arms over your chest and stood back to watch. You clenched your jaw and fought back words you’d like to say to Marlene.

She brought a bright light over to Aly and put it in place to shine down on the injured arm. She walked over to her left side and slowly started to undo the wrapping and bandages of the wound, making sure not to pull on the skin.

“You know I’ve never seen Joel this protective over anyone not since…” She looked over at your broken watch, and you knew what she was about to say. You gave her a deep scowl and glared at her, mouthing the word don’t as a warning. You dared her to say something about Sarah. The next thing would be your fist in her face.

She got the hint and turned back towards Aly. Aly lifted her eyebrow in question, but she didn’t linger on it. “He must care about you,” she said as she finished getting the bandages off.

“Yeah, I guess he must,” she said as she gazed up at you, a shy smile on her face as her blue eyes lit up. The corner of your mouth rose in response, a smile forming just for her.

Marlene then examined the stitches, looking closely at your work. “I’m guessing that you stitched her up?” she asked as she looked back at you.

“I did,” you answered back.

“Not too shabby. Could’ve done a little better, but overall not bad. You also kept it clean I see. There’s no redness or signs of infection. You saved her arm. Good work.” She saluted you as she ran her hands over the stitches. Aly jumped a little at the touch, but she eased up. “How long have these been in?” she asked you.

“A little over a week.”

“Time to take them out then. Do you mind? It’ll be quick and easy,” she said as she looked at Aly.

“Yeah. That’d actually be great. Thanks,” she said in approval.

Marlene got up and walked over to a small metal table and grabbed a pair of clean scissors and tweezers. She came back over and pulled up a leather stool to sit on as she worked. She quickly got to work with opening each stitch, cutting and pulling them free of the skin. Aly winced a couple of times, but overall she was doing pretty good.

“So how did you and Joel meet?” she asked Aly as she pulled out another stitch.

“We met back at the Boston QZ,” she said as she watched Marlene work on her arm, another stitch being pulled apart.

“And what, you just decided to team up and leave Boston? Can’t imagine Joel was easy to get along with,” Marlene laughed and casually made a knowing face at you.

You huffed out a response, annoyed. “It was actually Tess who introduced us. Aly wanted to get out of the Boston QZ, so I got her out.”

“He said no at first, but he changed his mind pretty fast. In the same night actually. But no, I can’t say that we got along well at first,” Aly quietly laughed as she looked at Marlene, shifting her weight on the table just slightly.

“How is Tess?” Marlene asked casually, looking over her shoulder at you.

“She’s fine.” You said it with a hard edge, not wanting to drag on about the topic.

“So tell me, what was your motivation for leaving? There had to be money, a trade, something that you gained. I know you were a smuggler. So which was it?”

“It was none of that,” you snapped at her, your teeth showing like you had fangs that were ready to bite.

“What was it then? I don’t see you helping out anyone unless there’s something in it for you.”

That comment made you angry, heat rising in your body like you were about to explode into flames. “Marlene, stop,” you warned her. She narrowed her eyes the tiniest bit, enough to see she wanted to say something else, but she didn’t. She let you continue uninterrupted.

“I left because I wanted to go find my brother, and I needed someone to travel with me. Aly wanted out, and that’s what she got. So we both benefited from the other,” you explained, your body struggling to relax as you tensed your muscles.

“Oh, I see. So that’s why you’re here. You’re looking for Tommy,” she sighed.

“Where is he?” you asked with an edge to your voice as you took one step closer so you could get a good look at Marlene’s face.

“He’s not here,” she replied with a blank face.

“What the fuck do you mean he’s not here?” you growled, your jaw tensing as you struggled not to lose your temper.

“He didn’t stay with us long, Joel. He’s been gone for a good while now. He said it didn’t feel right anymore, that this wasn’t what he wanted. He didn’t think our views aligned with his anymore, so he left,” she said as she shrugged her shoulders and looked up at you from the leather stool she sat in.

“Then where did he go?” you demanded, your voice raised.

“Last I heard he was settling down in Jackson, Wyoming. I haven’t talked to him in a few years. He seemed pretty adamant about staying there though. Think that’s where you’ll find him,” she said as she turned back to Aly, continuing to take out the stitches carefully.

“Jesus Christ,” you seethed as you ran a hand through your disheveled hair. You paced the room as your patience was wearing thin.

“It’s only about a day and a half to two days ride from here on horseback. Piece of cake,” Marlene replied as you continued to pace.

“Do you know how long it’s taken us to even get this far? All the shit we had to deal with? What Aly had to go through!” You were so angry, your voice blasting through the small room as it echoed across the walls. You could see some fireflies look in through the glass window and shift their guns, in case they needed to take action.

Aly tensed up at the last part, her hand grabbing the side of her dark jeans as she slowly looked up at you. Her eyes were heavy as she looked like she was sucked back into the past. She didn’t say anything though, she just focused on breathing. You watched as her chest gently expanded and pulled back in, her breaths shallow. You turned your scowl into a look of concern as you looked back at her.

“Whoa, Joel. Just calm down. Let’s talk this out without yelling, alright? You’re gonna have my men come barreling through that door if you’re not careful with your temper,” Marlene said as she turned and faced you with calm brown eyes.

You scowled again, but quickly relaxed your face and sighed. You walked back over to where Marlene and Aly sat and leaned up against the peeling wall, crossing your arms as you bit your tongue.

“Have you and Tommy kept in contact at all over the years?” she asked as she stared up at you.

“No. I haven’t heard from him since he left with your group,” you huffed out as you stared at the ground, the faded linoleum floor looking back at you. It had been so long since you last saw him, the details of him fading slightly from your memory.

“Damn. You two must’ve had a bad falling out then.”

You tensed at the thought, but shook it off nonchalantly. “You could say that. Thought it was finally time to try to tie loose ends and let the past be the past,” you responded as you looked back up at her as she worked on Aly’s arm. She was almost finished. So far so good.

“I think if you went and found him he’d welcome you back with open arms. Good on you for trying. That’s not something the old Joel I knew would do.”

“Well, I’m not the same person I used to be,” you said accusingly.

“Apparently not,” she barked back. She undid the last stitch and slowly took it out of Aly’s arm. “And there you go. Let me clean the area and put something over it, and you’ll be good to go,” she said as she got up and grabbed more supplies.

“Thanks, Marlene. Really,” Aly said with thankful eyes and a small smile registering on her lips.

“It was nothing, don’t mention it.” She came back to the table and started washing off the area and then patting it dry with a clean towel. The wound looked like it was healing nicely. It wasn’t raised anymore, it was more just a dull looking cut. You had been very thorough to clean it every night before she went to bed. That must’ve sped up the healing process because how it looked that first night was terrifying.

Marlene placed a loose bandage across it and gave Aly a small pat on the shoulder. “All done. Try not to soak it for 48 hours. After that you should be all good to keep it uncovered. Just be careful to not damage it anymore than it already is, got it?” She looked at Aly with a concentrated gaze, making sure she got the message.

“I got it. Thanks,” Aly responded as she slid off the table and walked over to you, stopping at your side. You let your fingers graze her arm, tracing the violet material of her flannel. You saw Marlene watching you with careful eyes, one eyebrow rising with curiosity. Guess she never expected you to genuinely care about anyone but yourself. You couldn’t blame her. You didn’t know you’d be in this position either, but here you were. Drawn to Aly like she was your saving grace.

She looked like she was about to comment on the way your hand was glued to Aly, but she decided not to. Instead she said something else. “There’s some fresh soup and cornbread down in the cafe. You both look famished. Why don’t you stay and have a bite to eat before you go back out in the cold? It’s the least I could offer you.”

You looked to Aly, wanting her opinion first. “That’d be great. We’ll take you up on that offer,” Aly said as she looked to Marlene.

“Excellent. Then come on, I’ll take you down to the cafe. The elevator is out of commission so we’ll have to take the stairs. Just follow me,” she said as she led you and Aly out of the small med room.

You were back out in the hall, making your way down the narrow corridor that was filled with old hospital beds left outside the rooms and small vines that were making their way through cracks in the splitting walls. Your footsteps could be heard throughout the hallway, echoing to the unknown.

The further down the hall you walked, the more equipment you started seeing. Empty rooms turned into fully stocked rooms that were filled with medical equipment, working machines, cameras, and boxes full to the brim with latex gloves. You saw doctors and nurses move frantically from room to room, keeping their conversations low. What the hell was all this?

“Marlene, what the fuck is going on here?” you hissed, getting ready to start yelling.

“I’ll fill you in once we sit down. A lot has been going on lately. Guess I can’t hide it. You’re already here, might as well tell you,” she sighed as she ran a hand through her hair, pulling her low ponytail tighter against her skull.

You looked over at your side and Aly was gone. “Aly?” you called out. You turned and saw her standing at the entrance of a room, focused intently on what was going on. You walked up behind her, standing just an inch from her as you looked over her shoulder at what she was looking so intently at.

There was a large, clear cased fridge with bottles of blood and other unknown things in vials. Scans of brains were sprawled out all over the musty walls. Charts of all sorts were scattered around the white counter that filled the length of the wall. Lastly there was a large microscope with slides underneath it. It looked like some kind of huge science experiment was underway. You had a feeling this had to do with the virus. What the hell were they up to?

Marlene pushed you and Aly out of the way and slammed the door shut. “You weren’t supposed to see that,” she said sharply, her voice low.

“Well we did,” you spit back.

Marlene sighed. Aly looked conflicted. She was lost in thought, her wheels grinding in her head. Something clicked as she looked up at Marlene, her blue eyes gazing intently at her.

“You’re trying to make a cure, aren’t you?” she asked. It wasn’t much of a question though, it was an accusation.

“Yes. We’ve been working on one for a while now. We have some of the best doctors here right now. They work day and night, putting all their efforts into finding a cure.” Marlene looked proud, almost like she believed it could be found.

Aly shook her head in disbelief. “No, they’ve already tried vaccine trials. None of them worked.”

“That’s because they didn’t have a secret weapon,” Marlene said as she winked at Aly.

“What secret weapon?” she asked quietly, not willing to believe anything else Marlene said.

“I’ll tell you downstairs, when you’re sitting down. Alright?” she asked as she looked at Aly, then at you. She was waiting on you to answer.

“Fine. Take us downstairs then. But then it’s fair game. You tell us everything we want to know. Got it?” you demanded with a glare.

“Fine by me,” she said as she turned and headed for the door that would lead downstairs. You and Aly quickly followed after her, right on her heels.

The stairwell was damp and cold, no heat coming in. There were cracks in the cement walls where you could feel the brisk wind come through. Your footsteps echoed through the stairwell the further you went down. Tension hung in the air the longer you stood in silence.

You finally made it to the first floor as you followed Marlene out the door. She turned the corner and came to a large, open cafe. The glass windows shined the light in as it reflected off the stained linoleum floor. A couple of fake plants were scattered around the cafe, and empty long tables sat in the middle of the room.

“Sit down, I’ll go grab some bowls. I’ll be right back,” Marlene said as she disappeared behind some old, squeaky double doors.

You could hear low sounds of conversation being had behind the doors as you and Aly made your way to a single white off shade table and sat down. She sat right next to you, the side of her knee touching yours.

“I’ve got a weird feeling about this place. The experiments they’re doing. I don’t know, I just have a bad feeling,” Aly said quietly as her voice barely scratched the surface.

You placed a hand on her knee softly and drew tiny circles as you imprinted your thumb mark on her denim jeans. “You’re not alone. This place definitely has weird vibes. I may know Marlene, but there’s some things she’s not telling us,” you said quietly as you looked around, making sure no one was listening in on you.

“After we eat we should leave. I don’t like it here,” she said with a shaky breath.

“Right after we get all our weapons and our bags back, we will.” You gave her knee a gentle squeeze as Marlene and a firefly came out of the kitchen, carrying bowls of soup and cornbread. The firefly quickly set the bowls down and headed straight back into the kitchen.

“And here you go, fresh potato soup and cornbread. Some of the best eating for when it’s cold out,” Marlene said as she sat down on the opposite side of the table.

You slowly picked up the spoon and dipped it in the soup, scooping out a big piece of cornbread along with it. You brought the spoon up to your mouth and tasted the creamy potato soup and fresh cornbread as it slid down your throat. It was hot and delicious, you couldn’t deny that. Aly seemed to be enjoying hers as well.

Before you took another bite, you decided to get down to business. “Alright spill it, what were you gonna say upstairs?” you asked as you set your eyes on Marlene as she downed a bite of soup.

She sighed before she spoke, getting prepared for whatever she was going to tell you. “We’ve been working on a cure for awhile now. So far no luck, but we recently got something new. Something that will help us find a cure.”

She strummed her fingers on the table, contemplating whether to tell you or not. “Spit it out,” you said as you put some edge to your tone.

“There’s a girl. She was bit by an infected, but she’s immune. She never turned…” She glanced up slowly as she studied yours and Aly’s faces.

Aly about choked on her bite of food as she coughed for air. “Immune? How? That doesn’t seem possible.” She was stunned, her eyes wide as she stared at Marlene. She dropped her spoon on the table, and the sound rang through the cafe.

“Marlene? Is this true?” you asked with disbelief. Your eyes were probably as large as an owl’s in the nighttime.

“Believe it or not, but it’s true. She’s as real as a 14 year old can be,” she said proudly.

“How…how did you find this girl?” Aly asked with a shocked expression on her face, her blue eyes focused.

“I took her in when her mom died. Although she hasn’t been with me much. She grew up in a FEDRA military school. I kept my eyes on her, until I got notified that she snuck off one night. Found her later the next night and she had been bitten, so I brought her back with me to keep an eye on. I thought she would’ve turned that night, but she never did. So I brought her here. She’s going to cure the entire world, Joel. Can you believe it?” she asked with excitement in her voice, a big smile forming across her mouth.

“Hold on. How do you know it would even work?” Aly asked with a concerned glare.

“The doctors are working hard to get the cure ready. After the operation, I think they’ll have it,” she said confidently.

“What operation?” you daunted, your eyes narrowing.

“The surgery. They’re going to open up her brain and dissect it. The cordyceps fungal infection grows on the brain. Well they did some scans, and hers wasn’t growing any. It’s just staying dormant in her brain. So they’re going to take it out and study it.”

“That would kill her,” Aly said accusingly.

“Unfortunately, it might,” Marlene said knowingly. “This is an opportunity to get somewhere with a cure though.”

“Does she know what she’s signing up for?” You rested your elbows on the table and leaned forward, getting a better look at Marlene.

“She knows she has a chance to help society, that’s all she needs to know. I didn’t want to scare her out of the surgery, but unfortunately we have a problem. She ran off yesterday, right before she was supposed to get prepped for surgery. Some of the men are out there right now looking for her. So far nothing,” she said as she sighed and shook her head.

“Jesus Christ,” you answered, running a hand across your jaw. “It sounds like she didn’t want to go through with it.”

“We’ll find her. She has to be found. We need to get a cure,” she said with a concrete voice.

“What’d you do to her?” Aly asked in disgust.

“What do you mean?” Marlene asked with a raised eyebrow.

“You said you’ve been running tests. I saw all those vials of blood. What have you been doing with those? And don’t try to cover it up. Just tell the truth,” Aly said roughly as she glared at Marlene. That’s my girl.

“We’ve been taking her blood, trying different vaccine trials with it. A lot of volunteers have gladly donated themselves to the cause. We’ve had many different patients here take the vaccine trials.”

“And? What happened to those guinea pigs?”

Marlene was silent as she looked down at the ground, shaking her head slowly. “They all died…”

“Holy shit,” Aly answered as she gasped. “How many patients did you have?”

“Over 50…”

“Jesus,” she answered in shock. “And you expect this surgery to work? And how the hell would one little girl treat an entire population? It’s impossible. No, it’s actually insane,” she said as she pushed back her chair and stood up.

You stood up after her and kicked the chair in. “I think we’ve had enough for today, Marlene. Now if you’d be so kind as to get our bags and weapons, we’ll see ourselves out.” You folded your arms across your chest and frowned at her, showing her just how done you were.

“Joel…Aly…I’m just trying to do what’s best here. You’ve got to believe me,” she pleaded with heavy eyes.

“Look you can do whatever the fuck you want to do, but we’ll have no part in this. Got it? We’re just gonna go on our way and leave you and the rest of the fireflies to do what you need to do. But don’t ask us for a damn thing. We won’t help,” you glowered.

She sighed and nodded her head. “Fair enough. Your bags and weapons are just outside of here. I’ll have one of my men grab your horse. Kenny!” she yelled in the direction of the kitchen. An older man with a blonde buzz cut and combat attire came out of the swinging door at attention. “Be a dear and go get their horse for me. Just bring it up to the front. We’ll be right outside.” The man nodded and hurried off in the opposite direction.

“Are you sure I can’t convince you two to stay just one night? Get some rest. There’s plenty of empty beds here.”

“No.” It came out hard as you put your foot down. “We’re leaving, now.”

“Suit yourself. Follow me, I’ll show you where your things are.” She led you out the side exit door from the cafe, and it led you outside near the front.

The air was crisp and chilly. You pulled your jacket a little tighter and saw Aly pull her white jacket back on. You turned the corner and saw a small pile of your backpacks and weapons.

“Your men didn’t steal anything from us did they?” you asked suspiciously.

“No, I made sure of it. It’s all there,” she said with a promising look.

“Good.” Your face was tense from flexing your jaw. This whole place gave you the creeps. You needed to get the hell out of here.

Kenny brought Shimmer around the front, hauling her by the reins. Shimmer neighed happily when she saw you and Aly. Her shiny coat glistened in the sun, and she looked like she was well rested.

“Hey, Shimmer. I missed you,” Aly said as she walked up to her and stroked her back. Shimmer leaned into her touch, and Aly laughed with joy filling her voice. You smiled at the view, Aly’s smile becoming one of your favorite things.

You quickly loaded up the bags on Shimmer and situated the rifle around your back, tucking the knife and handgun into your pockets. Aly did the same except this time she took the shotgun and strapped it around her back. Look at her, taking on the bigger gun. Atta girl.

You were about to hop up on Shimmer, but a pair of hands stopped you, pulling you back. “Joel, gonna have to ask you for a favor. If you somehow find her on your way to Jackson, bring her back. Please. She’s wearing a purple jacket and Converse shoes. She has a bite mark on her inner right lower arm, short brown hair and green eyes. Her name is Ellie.” Marlene stared at you with dark brown eyes, her gaze weighing in on you.

“I’m not going to be a part of this, Marlene. I’m not with the fireflies,” you said back harshly.

“Joel, I’m not asking. Bring her back.” She was glaring at you with crossed arms.

“Is that a threat?”

“Could be. Don’t think you want to find out.”

Your jaw tightened as your eyes narrowed into tiny slits. “Have your own men do your dirty work. I’m not a smuggler anymore and I sure as hell am not going to be getting involved in this.” Your voice raised, the veins in your neck bulging.

Marlene scowled as she looked at you with hatred swaying in her eyes. “Watch your back, Joel Miller. You don’t want to be on the wrong side when shit hits the fan.”

You gave her one more hard glare before you turned on your heel and jumped up on Shimmer’s back. Before Aly could take your hand, Marlene put a hand on her shoulder and turned her around to face her.

“You be careful with this one. I wouldn’t trust him if I were you,” she warned Aly as she flicked her eyes up to you and then back down to Aly. Blood boiled in your body, you wanted to snap her in half for what she just said. Trying to get Aly to turn on you. Fucking bitch.

Aly tore Marlene’s hand off her shoulder as she backed up to Shimmer. “I trust him with my whole life, thanks though. You’re not gonna tear me away from this one,” she spat at Marlene as she put her hand in yours, and you pulled her up on Shimmer.

“Joel,” Marlene tried again with more urgency.

“Goodbye, Marlene,” you said sternly as you pulled on the reins, making Shimmer make a dash for it. You slashed the reins again, and Shimmer moved like lightning. Aly grabbed on to you tight, her arms squeezing your abs forcefully as Shimmer’s hooves stomped the ground.

The wind blew through your hair as the high pitched whistle of the breeze sounded through your ears. You needed to get away from the hospital as fast as possible before you did something you’d regret. Your anger always got the best of you, now you needed to control yourself.

You looked back behind you as the hospital and city started disappearing, getting smaller and smaller the further Shimmer carried you. As soon as you crossed into a sea of trees you slowed Shimmer down, almost to a complete stop as she slowly trotted ahead.

Aly loosened her grip on you and sighed. “So that was Marlene.” It was more a statement than a question as it left her mouth.

“A ray of sunshine isn’t she?” you asked sarcastically.

You felt the quiet shake in her chest as she let out a small laugh and then her voice went serious. “Can you believe it? A girl that’s immune to the virus?”

You went quiet, thinking about everything that Marlene said. “I don’t really know what to think of it,” you said honestly. It was a lot to process.

“Why do you think she ran away?”

“Apparently she didn’t want to be studied like a lab rat anymore,” you said as you looked around the area. You grabbed the map out of your pocket and studied it, deciding which way you’d go. Wyoming was just north east of here, so you were on the right track. You folded up the fading map and placed it back in your pocket. “We should be there in a day or two, depending on how much ground we cover today,” you said as Aly looked over your shoulder.

“What if we find Ellie?” she asked quietly, questions brewing inside her.

“We won’t,” you said with a hard edge to your voice.

“But what if we did. What would you do?” There was a burning question hanging on her lips. She wanted to know what you would do. You hadn’t thought about it because it wasn’t going to be your business. You weren’t going to take in or help a little girl period. You had no desire to get involved with this. You owed Marlene nothing, and you sure as hell didn’t want to see her face again or have her hunt you down.

“Absolutely nothing. I’m not getting involved. And besides, we ain’t gonna find her,” you said with finality in your voice.

Aly sighed behind you. You could feel her wanting to say something, holding whatever it was inside. You rolled your eyes and asked. “What? Go ahead and say whatever it is you want to.”

“I just…if she ran away she must be so scared. Out here all alone. I just feel bad, that’s all. Who knows what all they did to her back at the hospital. I just hope she’s okay.”

You looked out of the corner of your eye and saw that worried look she had in her gaze. Those blue eyes were staring out into the unknown, her eyebrows furrowed, the gears in her head grinding. She looked distressed, conflicted.

“Look, I don’t necessarily agree with what they were doing back there either, but it’s out of our hands.”

“Guess so…” Her voice trailed off as it carried through the wind. She was upset. You ran your hand through your tousled hair as the wind blew it back and sighed. There was nothing you could say about the situation to put her at ease, so you just stopped talking about it.

The rest of the ride was silent, tense as the day dragged on. You didn’t really feel like getting into a heavy conversation, so you just kept quiet. Aly was clearly upset with everything that had happened earlier, and you wish you never would’ve ran into the fireflies now.

The silence was killing you, so you turned around and looked straight into her diamond eyes as you sat a hand on her thigh. She responded by putting her hand on top of yours. It was warm, comforting. A feeling you invited, craved.

“You alright?” you asked as you studied her eyes, watching the way her chest rose and fell in waves with every breath she took. Watching the way her long eyelashes fluttered every time she blinked.

“I’m okay, promise,” she said with a smile that crept up to the sides of her lips. Those rosy, lush lips. Lips you wanted to sink into. You took your gaze off her lips and followed the trail back up to her eyes.

You knew deep down something was still bothering her, but you didn’t want to push your luck. So you just nodded your head and gave her one last squeeze as you took your hand off her thigh and turned back around.

After a few seconds she leaned into you and wrapped her arms around your waist. You breathed out a sigh of relief as you took one of your hands and stroked hers in return, your fingertips sliding over her smooth skin as the breeze picked up.

“Let’s just find Tommy and hope we can finally rest somewhere in peace,” she breathed against your back.

“We’ll find him, don’t worry.” You hoped you were right. Tommy was the last stop, and you needed it to be a safe space. For you and Aly’s sake.

-

Evening rolled around fast as the day faded away, the sunset high in the sky. It was about to be dark and you still hadn’t found shelter for the night. As the day turned into dusk, the cold air became more bitter. Snow still stuck to the ground with no sign of it going away anytime soon.

“Joel, how much longer? I’m so tired,” Aly slurred into your ear, her body hanging against you as she leaned all her weight into you.

“Not much longer, baby. Just let me scope out an area that’s at least covered. That wind is too cold to be out in the open. Just hold on,” you said assuring her as you ran your thumb across the back of her hand.

She hummed in acknowledgment as she took in your gentle graze across her hand. “Mkay,” she lulled.

You looked left and right, looking for just the right place to stop for the night. There were no houses to be seen anywhere, just endless trees, mountains and forests. There had to be something around here. You wouldn’t give up.

You went about another mile until you heard a slight noise to your left, ahead of you. It sounded like someone was crying or whimpering. You couldn’t tell which it was.

You slowed Shimmer’s trot down to a slow walk, wanting to sneak up on whoever was around the corner. Aly must’ve heard it too cause she was now sitting up straight and was on guard.

“Did you hear that too?” you asked her as you turned to look at her face.

“What was that?” she asked quietly.

“I don’t know, but we’re about to find out.”

Shimmer slowly walked up to where the sound was heard, neighing softly as her footsteps were light in the snow. She took a few more steps, and Aly gasped. “Joel, stop!” She grabbed the reins and halted Shimmer. “Look!”

You turned to the left to see what she was looking at, and the moment you did your breath caught. You couldn’t tell if your mind was playing tricks on you or not, but what stood behind a large sequoia tree shocked the hell out of you. A girl with a purple jacket, baggy blue jeans and Converse stood peeking out from behind the trunk of the tree. Green eyes gazed back at you nervously. She had short brown hair and freckles scattered lightly across her nose. She looked both timid and anxious like she could either pounce or run away at any second.

It was the girl Marlene had told you about. Ellie. “Holy shit,” you breathed as you stared at her, unable to move. Not knowing what the hell to do.

Without even comprehending what was happening you felt Aly’s weight shift behind you, then she was jumping down off Shimmer. “Aly, don’t!” you hissed at her trying to stop her, but it was too late. She was slowly inching her way over to where Ellie was.

Goddamn it.

Chapter 23

Series Masterlist

[winterspiderlover2704]

Immortal Dilemmas

Chapter 22

It was as if the warm atmosphere that was created by the immortal couple had become as cold as ice when Damon had stalked his way in. Stefan had to motion the hybrids to stand down, it wouldn't do much good to make a scene. They would have been completely fine ignoring Damon and going along in their evening; as long as Damon didn't try anything, there wasn't much use in getting worked up over his presence. That thought made Stefan lose up a bit, but he ended up tensing immediately after inwardly, he had to hold back a snarl. What made the Ripper in Stefan snarl was that once Damon was aware of their presence, he had an unwavering glare on Hailey. Stefan wanted to lash out and ask Damon what the hell his problem was, but he bit it back after seeing Damon's eyes flicker to him and ultimately turned his gaze to the bar. Good, at least Damon had enough sense while unhinged not to start something right now. He felt his hand squeezed and turned his gaze to his wife. Finally, his hard glare softened when he saw her look of concern for him. He didn't want to push himself today; it was supposed to be a day to relax, not another day to worry about his demented brother. He squeezed back in assurance, raised his eyebrow, and nodded to the door; she nodded, agreeing it was better to go than to stay and potentially clash with Damon. She knew that both of them were already in a very unstable emotional state; how they interacted before would be like a puppy and kitten tugging at the same toy compared to whatever brawl or argument could happen right now. They left money on the table including a generous tip, ignored the scoff they heard from Damon, and headed out with the hybrids in tow. They knew the only reason they couldn't feel a heated glare on their backs was that the hybrids acted as a buffer.

Damon could only fume as he heard the door slam shut behind his brother and his puppy possie. The more he thought about recent events, the more he wanted to lash out and paint the town red with whoever was misfortunate enough to cross his path in his rampage. He had spent over a hundred years trying to get Katherine back with the sole ideology that once she had seen how useful he was and how loyal he was to stay to her, she would finally choose him over Stefan, proving to him that his brother wasn't his superior. But all that time and effort was wasted and spat back in his face when she wasn't even in the crypt, he had nearly done Elena in just because she had the same face as the woman who would never return his feelings. Unfortunately, he realized afterward that Katherine had never loved him or his brother. She had just wanted to own them. Like some loyal dogs that would be at her beck and call and with whom she could play whenever the need arose. But his vampire couldn't accept it, the whole reason for him becoming a vampire and what drove him to stay alive as one was Katherine, his obsession and only she could be the one to give value to his being. Now she's gone, what was he supposed to do now? Elena could never be Katherine; she would just be some poor imitation no matter how much he would mold her. He can't get revenge on the freaky little witch that Stefan is so keen on playing house with, if she could make Katherine like that there would be no telling what nightmare she would have in store for him. He couldn't act without a plan, and it was driving him up a wall, he was always the impulsive one, but he could only be so rash, the odds of him surviving any interaction after he tried to get revenge were so slim that they were practically transparent. He hadn't noticed two blondes sitting at a booth diagonal towards him. If he had he would have noticed the male pointing one of those freaky sticks that the Potters frequently had on their persons straight at him. He felt something faintly brush against his back before finally noticing them. He didn't know what was happening anymore, but suddenly, he was walking towards them at a sedated pace. Everything feels like he's in a big fog, lost with no way of knowing where he is going and no idea what he could be doing. He could faintly hear what was being ordered of him.

Lucious didn't even bother to turn toward the vampire he had just cast the imperious curse on. "Listen well, vampire. You are to follow your brother and that witch; I can see the anger in your eyes towards them. You cared for that female vampire, didn't you? Well, now, isn't it just unfair that your brother walks happily with that girl while yours is barely a living husk? Don't you want to let your anger out, don't you want them to know pain? Go to them, but do make sure that the witch at least lives, she still has a purpose of being useful to me.", once the order was given, he and Esther got up from the booth to leave Damon on his own. When Damon had snapped out of his daze, he looked around him, trying to remember what he was doing, until an image of Katherine popped into his mind, and then, like a tidal wave, anger slammed into him. His vampire face came out full force he turned towards the door and quickly picked up the scent of his brother. It was time to get even.

He and Hailey were both a little tense, and both decided it was time to go home, their date had gone great but with Damon near it just made the both of them nervous. Damon was impulsive but most of the time he wasn't stupid, but he wasn't going to chance it, when it came to Damon's anger no one knew it better than Stefan. Just as they reached the parking lot, Stefan's ears picked up the sound of someone speeding towards them. By the tensing he noticed in the hybrids, he concluded they picked it up, too. Just as he turned towards the sound, he suddenly flew back and crashed into his car door. He heard Hailey shout his name before he heard a sickening crack, he quickly reoriented himself to see the hybrids in front of Hailey trying to fend Damon off, the crack he heard had come from Damon breaking one of their necks as he noticed one of them downed on the rough granite of the parking lot. In all the chaos, they couldn't tell with Damon's vampire face on that his usual eyes were clouded over. Stefan tried to will his healing to speed up to fix his fractured spine as Damon was quickly snapping the remaining hybrids' necks. Odd Damon was usually one to finish an enemy off with no chance of recovering, but he couldn't focus on that right now! His brother was snarling over Hailey, panting like some rabid animal. He had nearly finished healing when he finally heard his brother speak.

He sneered at her and finally exploded, “What makes you so great?! What makes you so special that my dimwitted little brother is willing to throw everything away for you?! Katherine wasn’t perfect but she was beautiful, smart, and strong!”, he stopped pacing. He looked at her with a murderous smile. “And what do you have? Your freaky witchy powers?! The only thing you’re good for is being a bed warmer...and maybe to be a decent meal. And now that I think about it, I’m hungry.” he sped towards her, uncaring about what consequences may come, and sunk his fangs into her shoulder…to only then be blown back into the wall…hard. His spine was definitely broken, he used his forearms to pick his upper body up and looked to see his brother staring down at him with an emotionless face.

As if possessed, Stefan had stalked towards his brother, lifted him up by his shoulder, and planted his hand into Damon's chest. Damon let out a painful wheeze, feeling his brother's hand around his heart and his nails digging into the organ. Hailey had finally recovered enough to sit up and witness her husband have his hand in Damon's chest. Normally, she would have felt satisfaction at seeing Damon helpless at the hands of her beloved but something was off, her magic was shifting as if trying to send her some signal, seeing as how her husband had the situation handled she allowed her magic to venture and it led her to see a disturbance around Damon, it made her investigate his appearance, his vampire face was gone, and as she landed on his eyes she was pulled into a flashback of the Triwizard Tournament when Viktor had the same eyes as him when he was under the Imperious Curse. She groaned inwardly but was also slightly panicked; someone had put Damon under the Imperious Curse, Mystic Falls was compromised, and an enemy had found her home. She hated to admit it, but she needed to stop Stefan; she would need Damon alive to get information.

"Love, please come back to me, I need you more than I need to see your brother in pain.", she whispered to him but knew he could hear her all the same. He growled and slowly pulled out his hand from his brother's chest cavity, but to ensure that he wouldn't move to attack his wife again, he broke both of Damon's legs, his right leg sluggishly bleeding as a bone had pierced out. He waited for his wife to approach him and felt some of the tension in his body bleed out when she put her hand on his nape, skin contact with his wife had become a quick way to ground him. He tensed again when his wife moved away from him and walked towards Damon, who looked and sounded like a wounded animal. When Damon tried to lunge at her, she was quick enough to throw a red spell from her hand at his face, leaving Damon knocked out cold. This was ideal, while she was never up to Snape's standards in Occlumency, she had refined herself well enough to probe through minds without leaving the person a jumbled mess, she ignored the hiss that came out of Stefan when she had to put her hands on Damon's head to open his eyes, she starred into them and dived into his memories. She started easy and came to his most recent memory in the Mystic Grill just minutes ago. She looked around and stopped cold at what she saw but wasn't too surprised. It, however, did not quell her bubbling rage. Lucious Malfoy seemed to have made a friend, but she'd need to show this memory to others to see if anyone knew her. Why couldn't this man leave her alone and find some other way to save his reputation and failing household, she swears that Tom's obsession with her must have transferred to his death munchers after his death. She pulled away and came back to reality, the hybrids were groaning and cracking their necks into place while Stefan was silently whimpering at her because her wound had yet to heal. It stung, but after surviving Crucios and basilisk venom, almost nothing phased her anymore. She asked two of the hybrids if they could take Damon back to the mansion and inform everyone that the town had been compromised and that there would need to be a meeting as soon as they all got home. She had to make the hybrids promise not to let anyone kill Damon once they explained the situation of why Stefan had nearly killed him. There was grumbling but they promised. She turned to Stefan and nearly shrieked when he bit his wrist, but her worrying was halted when it was offered to her, she tends to forget that vampires can heal others with their blood.

She cringed a bit at the taste, blood no longer was appetizing to her since the twins had been born. She could feel her body healing the wound and saw that there was now a faint scar where the bite marks had once been. She allowed him to carry her bridal style back to the mansion, with the hybrids tailing them. As soon as they had reached the front lawn, the door slammed open, and the immortal couple was smothered in fretting family members and could barely answer any of the questions thrown at them. It soon became overwhelming, and Stefan bared his fangs at his siblings silently to tell them to back off and wait a bit. Hailey glared at them so that everyone could eventually calm down. She saw from the corner of her eye that the hybrids had put Damon in the dungeons, Remus scrunched his nose a bit at that, as the dungeon had been his to transform every month. He mumbled about it needing a deep cleaning after Damon was gone to remove his scent. His wolf had grown accustomed to the others but Moony tended to howl and growl all night if he picked up the scent of an enemy nearby.

The magicals were very tense once the hybrids showed up with a bloody Damon and told them that Mystic Falls was compromised. They asked hurriedly where Hailey and Stefan were and calmed a bit at hearing that they were already on the way home. A huge sigh of relief when not ten seconds later the couple had arrived. They wanted to know everything immediately, but once Stefan had bared his fangs, the Mickaelsons knew that their brother was on the edge of going feral again. They stepped off with the magicals following soon after, they smelled blood and Moony looked close to coming out when he recognized that it was Hailey's blood. "Everyone shut it and please listen." from how tense Hailey was, everyone was quick to fall in line. "We've been compromised. I don't know how, but a very unsavory bloke from back home seems to have followed us to Mystic Falls. I don't know how much he knows, but he likely knows about Stefan being my mate and about the boys since we hadn't felt the need to hide it. To make matters worse, he seems to be using Unforgivables on the muggles in town, or at least he's been using the supernatural as some pawns. Today, while we were out, we had a run-in with Damon, but he seemed content to sulk at the bar and glare at us; once we left the building, he must have followed us as soon as we were in the parking lot. Damon had started snapping necks. He bit me, and of course, Stefan retaliated. But my magic had been stirring, so I let it feel around, and it led me to look at Damon, he had been put under Imperio, the spell that takes away your free will and forces you to be a mere puppet to the caster, I had to check his memories to be sure, but it seemed Lucious Malfoy was planning to get rid of Stefan somehow and get me under his boot. But that's not all. It seems dear Lucy has made friends, he was with a blonde woman I did not recognize. I'd thought to share the memory with the rest of you to see if anyone could identify her."

She tapped her temple with her hand and used her left hand to conjure a vial with wandless magic to place the silver wisp into it. She asked Ron to go and fetch the pensieve. Everyone who didn't have magic was confused about what was a pensieve and how it would help see a memory. Ron came back levitating a very large basin on a pedestal that was silver decorated with gold etchings, he placed it in the middle of the drawing room. Hailey came up to it and poured the vial into the basin. She beckoned everyone forward, and soon, they were all enveloped and dragged into the basin. It seemed as if they were there in person at the Grill just a few hours ago, they appeared behind Damon, who was nursing a bottle of bourbon and was scowling at the door as Stefan and Hailey had walked out with their guards. They expected him to rush after them in anger, but he just sat and continued to drink then they heard the door opening. It seemed Damon noticed as well but didn't acknowledge the new people. But the others turned to see who they were, and the Mickealsons froze. It wasn't possible; Nik had killed her over a thousand years ago, and Finn turned over a new leaf and decided not to be their mother's pawn and not resurrect her. How was she walking around Mystic Falls? After noticing that they had recognized the woman, Hailey soon pulled them all out of the memory.

She looked at the Originals with a questioning look as they gathered themselves again. She looked to Stefan, but he seemed as befuddled as the rest of them about who that lady was. However, when he noticed her gaze on him, he stepped closer to her and held her hand, needing some skin-to-skin contact to help relax a bit. They smiled tentatively at each other a silent 'sorry' for the night ending on such a sour note.

They were startled out of their little world when Elijah cleared his throat to bring attention to himself. " It seems that the threat has just become larger by multiple times, that woman was our mother, the Original Witch, the same witch that created the vampire race.", he spoke in a very grim tone. Finn spoke up next. He knew what his mother's endgame was, it would be disastrous if she were able to accomplish it.

''From what she used to rave and preach in the afterlife was how we were abominations, her creations that deserved to die as recompense to once again stabilize nature. However, she had found out how to give waste to our entire species. She found that once an Original was slain, every vampire from our sire line would also die, killing an infection at the root, as she used to call it." the silence that followed his statement was deafening, and thousands would be lost. They wouldn't allow it, a fire was rekindled in the hearts of the wand users, which had dwindled down at the war's end. They refuse just to lay down and play dead, they took down one genocidal maniac before what was one more?

"Well, I don't know about you lot, but I think we should put your mom back into her dirt nap. Leave it to some bitter witch to believe nature requires mortals to help balance itself, listen, I refuse to allow some delusional Bint to be the end to our new family. Get packing people, we need to relocate. We are officially no longer safe to continue residing here. Tonks, go to MACUSA and see if they can provide emergency lodging, Remus go with her and report Lucius, if he's here who knows who followed him to get to me, Hermione, Ron, I need you guys to start packing everything up and remove our presence from the house. Klaus, I need you and everyone else to pack up everything important to them and come back here as soon as possible. Stefan, get the boys and prepare a bag for them. There should be a big brown leather duffel bag under our bed. Grab it and put whatever you think we need from our room. It has an extension charm, so it'll fit a lot. I'll get the thestral herd and get them packed and ready.", by that she meant she would get a large briefcase and charm it to be massively extended on the inside, and probably would have to transfigure the dresser and bedpost into a platform to set up a stable and barn in it, as well as move the very large freezer into it and charm it to self-distribute to feed the herd on time, thestrals need their raw meat. Everyone moved, quickly apparating and speeding away. She could feel in the wards that Ron and Hermione were in the library, and she couldn't hold back a snort at that.

She and Stefan made their way upstairs where the hybrids in charge of them for an hour handed the boys to their parents. She quickly got to work on dismantling their bed and transfiguring it, as well as finding the briefcase that she had stashed away in the closet. She never noticed Stefan, while doing his task, seemed very distracted and his eyes were constantly shifting between her and the boys. When she was about to step out of their room, Stefan had latched onto her waist. It startled her but then she realized that Stefan had not said anything the entire time they were packing up. “Stefan?” she asked with trepidation. He had been very quiet on the way back home, and she was beginning to worry. “Are you okay, love?”, she relaxed into him and put her arms around his waist, mindful of the fact that the twins were sleeping. He tried to relax into her as well but at the last moment, he remained stiff. He looked over her, especially over the shoulder his brother had harmed. He healed her, and there wasn’t a scar left to the naked eye, but to a vampire's vision, there was a faint marking of fangs…it made his blood boil. Stefan was still running on instincts when he answered her.

“No…I’m the only one allowed to bite you…to leave my mark. Please just…let me fix what my brother tainted.”, it was driving him crazy. Blood was sacred to vampires it was their life source. For Damon to drink from his mate is beyond sacrilege. He had wanted to wait a bit before taking the next step in their relationship but with Damon having Hailey's blood in his system it just made his vampire extremely uneasy. They had drunk each other's blood before but never in the proper way of creating the bond. For mates 'blood sharing' was intense, it is said to be the final ritual to have between mates and causes them to be bound forever to each other, it was a ritual of pure love to deepen their understanding of each other's feelings. It symbolizes trust and care between individuals. He had heard from Nik that there was once a pair that had completed the bond and could have known what the other was thinking or going to say without even looking at each other. But with something always coming up and trying to be there for every single moment of the boys' lives, it always seemed like a bad time to bring it up. He tried to explain to his wife what he meant by 'fixing' and hoped she could understand.

In all honesty since Damon had bit her, she felt off. It was like she was in dire need of a deep cleansing charm on herself, and she had no clue why. But with Stefan’s answer, it started to make sense, she felt tainted, and the only way to get ‘cleansed’ was to have Stefan fix it. She nodded to him and let him lead her to their mattress on the floor. She sat down on it and waited as Stefan had nuzzled the boys and put them to sleep in their crib. She got the gist of what they had to do for the ritual. She felt her heartbeat so loudly in her ears and she knew Stefan could hear it just as well, especially if the smirk he was wearing said anything. He pulled her into a hug in which she finally felt him relax. He pulled them up against the wall, with his back on the wall and hers on his chest. They sat there sedated by each other's presence when she started to feel Stefan move her hair away from her neck and kiss her pulse point. She shivered from the contact but did not move away, she felt him pull something out of his pocket and into her hand. It was her dagger that she used for rituals. He looked into her eyes and wordlessly offered up his wrist. She unsheathed the blade and cut his arm, he never once winced or looked away from her. As she grabbed his wrist and brought it towards her, he did the same with hers. She barely winced once he sunk his teeth in and then proceeded to drink from her husband. In a near instant, she felt everything he felt and thought everything he was thinking. The desperate need to protect his family, his never-ending love for their sons, his love for her, the fragile hope in his brother, and the hidden need to make amends with Damon. And in return, he felt all of her. Her love for him, for their family, the strong protective feelings she has for everyone special to her, and her fear of losing everything she fought so hard to protect. After finishing they just sat silently with each other until the boys started crying and Hailey went to grab them. When she came back and sat with Stefan, they simply looked at each other no longer needing words to express anything just each other. They must have been staring at each other longer than they thought because they started to receive texts from everyone saying they were ready to go. They scrambled up as fast as they could with the boys suspiciously giggling at them the entire time. Stefan had started speeding around the room and Hailey had taken the boys with her while levitating the suitcase behind her downstairs.

She stopped at the bottom as everyone was there and looked shocked that she wasn't ready. She was getting some knowing looks from her in-laws but she ignored them in favor of giving them the boys and running off to herd the thestrals into her suitcase. Thankfully she had already put everything else in and she just needed her herd. They seemed to pick up that they were leaving and met her at the opening and waited for her to put the suitcase down. "Alright everyone, single file please, and no pushing we gotta go!" she watched them impatiently, but they were making good progress all things considered. Once the last thestral was in she closed up and was about to head inside when she heard a distinct bird screech. She looked up and saw an eagle landing on a wooden post near the door and putting its leg out to her. She took it and looked it over; it was from Remus, and he was using a MACUSA owl to let her know that they all needed to head towards the official building as it seemed the Ministry of Magic had pulled out an ancient law that she must abide by. No doubt a last-ditch effort to buy time to find something to refute the abolishment of the laws her family had been able to do and is almost done with. In order to finally get rid of the law that prohibits the existence of her children she would need to be there in person as the Lady of her houses. She scowled but she had a determined look in her eye as she marched back into the house to tell everyone the news.

While Hailey and Stefan were busy trying to scamper everything together a certain Original had gone down in the dungeon to check on Damon. Damon was barely waking up when he saw a pair of legs walk up to him. "I believe its time we've had a chat Mr. Salvatore"

[acourtofthought]

Hiiiiii I asked the question earlier about the Azriel centric book, mentioning my more casual reader friends and their lack of feeling or interest in E/riel, etc etc. Thank you for the response 🥰

In HOFAS, so many things happened and I’m still trying to let it all sink in so I don’t remember it exactly but when Nesta Bryce and Az were talking about Bryce’s (and the Asteri’s) light, they debated if it was starlight or light or maybe even DAYlight. My Elucien ears perked up! Were the bonus chapters and HOFAS not as Az heavy as it was relative to the other characters and SJM bringing him up more than Elain in interviews lately, I would be 💯 convinced that Elucien is next. But I still have my hesitations, I guess we’ll find out! I so badly want it to be Eluciens!!

I feel like whichever couple is featured in the sixth (last?) book, they will not get as much page time or attention where we can really dig deep because SJM will be tying up a lot of things. So if I had to choose, I’d rather get Elucien in ACOTAR5 and not the sixth book so they get proper page time and exploration and explanation. I adore Gwynriel! But idk man, we’ve been with Elain and Lucien for way longer and that mating bond was revealed to us way earlier. Ultimately, in my ideal world, SJM will write a full book for both ships and write a 7th book to wrap it all up with all of our MCs POVs (including Feyre and Rhys!) and that would make for a wonderful full circle book! But the chances of that happening are way way slimmer. It sounds like after ACOTAR5, she’s gonna turn her attention elsewhere so who knows when we’ll get ACOTAR6 or even the possibility of ACOTAR7!

Again, thanks for answering, you’re awesome xx

Thank you for the follow-up, it's always fun to get a response to the first anon!!

I am pretty curious if Helion / Lucien will end up being tied to descendants of the first Starborn with the light they have and if so, will that play any important role to the plot as it did for Bryce's story as Theia's heir.

I think it's understandable to be going back and forth on the next book.

You're right, Az has gotten a lot of attention in the last two releases (SF and HOFAS) and if SJM is marketing the next book the way she did Nessian's than it would be valid to assume he's next.

But if she's marketing the next book the same way she did ACOMAF, where she was super quiet on Rhys's future role and what he would become to Feyre or the ending of CC2, where she kept it a secret from everyone than that could indicate "less is more" and Elucien is next.

There's precedence for both scenarios which is why I think the arguments on both sides are valid.

But with her saying that she's focusing on the next ACOTAR book then looking forward to a different project after that it makes me wonder if we are going to see some sort of major resolution to the Koschei / Beron / Spring / Vassa plots.

She wanted to move directly into CC3 after writing CC2 so if the next ACOTAR book sets up for the "final" spin-off, where the big bad is finally defeated, then wouldn't it make sense for her to continue on with the ACOTAR series rather than something else?

That is also something that makes me lean towards Elucien being next. Along the lines of what you said, if the next book deals with the Illyrians / Valkyrie / Time Travel (really big storylines) and that's then going to connect to Koschei / Beron / Spring / Vassa /the treaty, it seems like a lot for the final book.

But if she were to break those down into individual plots / series, it's less ground to cover.

If Elucien was next and they only dealt with Koschei / Beron / Spring / Vassa / and the treaty and their book did not need to bring in Time Travel / the Illyrians and the Valkyrie (because why would the Valkyrie / Illyrians be connected to Koschei in the next book then suddenly be meaningless in the final one?) that wraps up the arcs that were introduced in ACOWAR.

Then, SJM goes on to work on her new mystery project, then CC4 or hops back to the ACOTAR world. But at that point she calls it a new series that deals with the Valkyrie / Time Travel / the Illyrians and that will connect to the future crossover stories. And maybe that new series will not consist of only traditional romance standalone dual POVs. Maybe it will shift POVs between ACOTAR characters and even characters from other series but because it would then be labeled a "new series" it could standalone from Feyre's trilogy and the two books following her sisters.

There's a lot of different and valid ways to look at what SJM has planned and honestly, any single one could be right because we just don't know. She seems to be spinning a bunch of plates at the same time and we're all just trying to get inside her brain and think like her but she's managed to surprise us all time and again!

Thank you again for your new anon, I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I'm about to go try an aerial class, here's to hoping I'm still in one piece at the end of it, haha.

[ikaros-yuzuriha]

𝕎𝕙𝕪 𝕀 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕗𝕖𝕣 𝕊𝕠𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕒 𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕀𝕜𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕤 𝕒𝕤 𝕋𝕠𝕞𝕠𝕜𝕚𝕤 𝕨𝕚𝕗𝕖

This post contains manga spoilers. In this article I would like to explain why I prefer Sohara Mitsuki over Ikaros as a couple partner for Tomoki Sakurai. I'm going to talk about the manga Heavens lost Property (Sora no Otoshimono aka Angeloid. If you don't want to be spoiled, you shouldn't read this article. And you're welcome to have a different opinion about shipping, but please express it in a friendly manner and respectfully. Thank you very much. ~*~ Argumentatively, the first thing that comes to the fore is the relationship between Tomoki and Sohara. The two have been friends since childhood. As a child, Sohara was very seriously ill. Ultimately she died of this and woke up as Daedalus in the synapse.

It was really emotional, because little Tomoki cried for her and is holding her doll, who has a ponytail now. In order not to be forgotten by Tomoki and to be able to be with him at least indirectly, Dädalus created a replica of herself. She was also the one who sent Ikaros to Tomoki. Hoping he would take care of her. Sohara very clearly has feelings for Tomoki, even when she was a child. But she never dared to confess this to him. When she did, however, he was distracted with some breasts. There were many situations in the anime and manga where both would blush because of the other depending on the situation. But what really caught me were Tomoki's parents. Tomoyo, the mother, is very similar in appearance and personality to her son. Tsutsumi, Tomoki's father, on the other hand, is quite similar to Sohara in appearance and personality. Both Sohara and Tsutsumi use a karate chop.

But the strongest argument in favor of Sohara as Tomoki's future wife is the conversation with her father. In this he tells her sutilly that she doesn't need to worry about her love rivals. Tomoki would choose her.

I view the relationship between Tomoki and Ikaros less romantic. It is noticeable that Ikaros is the only female person who is not groped by Tomoki. Apart from Mikako, who would certainly have killed him for that. So I'm assuming he has no sexual interest. In the manga, the Angeloids are seen as chibis along with the names Tomoki gave them. Ikaros was named as a pet. And that's the feeling I get, when I look at her relationship with Tomoki. Throughout the series, Tomoki takes care of Ikaros, as if she were a child who still needs to learn to walk. Ikaros's alienation from the world and her inability to show emotions such as joy contribute to this image of the relationship., When a female person kisses Tomoki, he barely reacts. Neither with Hiyori nor with Ikaros. And Ikaros kissed him twice. An exception would be the scene in which all love rivals are dressed as brides and he has to choose one. However, this scene seems to be filler, because I didn't see it in the manga. In "Eternal my Master", it was not Ikaros who was on a date with Tomoki, but a copy of her, who is called Ikaros Melan.

When Ikaros confesses her love to him, he doesn't react and calls her an idiot. Even if certain wikis claim otherwise. Even after everyone was alive again and the world was restored, Tomoki did not comment on Ikaros's confession of love. I don't remember which chapter it was, but Tomoki mentioned that he would have liked to marry all the women. So Ikaros as well as Sohara and the other Angeloids. ~*~ Personally, I find Tomoki's relationship with Sohara more equal and natural than the one with Ikaros. Especially since Tomoki's parents see that they could work really well as a couple.

[dailyaudiobiblechronological]

11/24/2023 DAB Chronological Transcription

Galatians 1-3

Today's the 24th day of November. Welcome to Daily Audio Bible Chronological. I'm Jill. So honored to be here with you today to read the word of God to us and with all of you. It's a privilege and an honor and I'm grateful to God and to each one of you to be able to be here. We're reading a brand new book of the Bible today in the New Testament, the book of Galatians. And we'll be reading chapters 1, 2 and 3 and just a couple days left in the New Living translation before we change translations. 

Commentary:

We begin the book of Galatians today. Let's orient ourselves by grabbing and reading The God of Your Story. This brilliant (I think) a little guide to go along with our reading written by my brilliant husband Brian. Today we began a revered letter from the Apostle Paul the letter to the Galatians in Paul's time. Galatia was a province of the Roman Empire but the area is now contained within the modern-day country of Turkey. In previous eras the Galatians were known as Galls or Celts. We know of five different churches in Galatia established during Paul's first missionary journey. These were the churches in Pasadena, Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derby. Since Paul addressed the letter to the churches in Galatia we can safely assume Paul wrote to these communities. We will soon see why this is such an important document in New Testament theology, but we will also notice that the issues Paul was dealing with in Second Corinthians were also issues in Galatia. People had visited these churches after Paul and caught what Paul considered another gospel, specifically the Galatians, were being told that they must obey Jewish customs and practices in order to follow Jesus including male circumcision and adherence to the Mosaic law something Paul stood staunchly against because in Paul's view, Jesus had filled the law and New Covenant had been initiated. Paul used his letter to the Galatians as a way to passionately dispel the inaccuracies. We are not clear whether Paul wrote Galatians before the Jerusalem Council or after. Some hold the view that Paul wrote this letter before the council. If this is the case, visitors to the Galatian churches were undermining Paul's message in an attempt to align the teaching of Paul with those of the Jerusalem Church before they had wrestled with the issue. Paul was not happy about it. This would make Galatians one of the very earliest Christian writings and it may be Paul's first letter to any church if Paul wrote Galatians after the Jerusalem Council then Paul was using this letter to forcefully reiterate what the council had decided, that non-jewish believers or Gentiles did not need to convert to Judaism in order to be saved. Logically it would seem that Paul would use the document issued from Jerusalem and preserved later in the book of Acts to support his argument if this were the case, but there has been much debate over the centuries the argument Paul lays out in Galatians and the underlying issues that prompted it were very weighty issues at that time for several reasons. Whereas Judaism was an exclusive religion for Jews allowing faith in Jesus without the cover of Judaism opened up salvation through Jesus Christ to everyone in the world. Once this decision was made it clearly separated what we now know as Christianity from Judaism which ultimately brought persecution from the Jews and Romans alike. The content and Galatians has become foundational and New Testament theology the gospel of freedom grace and justification through faith are all outlined in this little letter. So there's a little orientation of the book of Galatians and I think so much theology and denominational differences come from these just little letters- little letters that can be debated for centuries by theologians and scholars alike will continue on in the book of Galatians tomorrow. 

Prayer:

Jesus thank you for being with us here today and every day. Thank you that you never leave us- you never forsake us whether we get the theology right. You love us in our questions- big questions, small questions. You love us when our...especially despite our differences. Let us remember that you said they will know that we are yours by the love that we show for one another. May we show our love for one another and I pray this now in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Announcements:

Daily Audio Bible That's home base. Check it out if you've not. Take a look around, download the app, maybe share it with a friend and just ask them, have you ever read the Bible through in a year? And vow to do it with them so that you can keep each other accountable that you can run each other's thoughts and ideas and insights off of one another and just beyond this common journey together through the Bible. Can't think of a better journey to be on than that. If you would like to partner with the ministry of the Daily Audio Bible we thank you so much for your partnership. If you're giving by mail DAB PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174 or if you're giving electronically hit the give icon up at the top right hand corner of that mobile app lastly look for the gift icon on the website. If you need prayer, if you'd like to pray for someone that's previously called in, there are several different ways for you to do so 800-583-2164 and then of course if you are utilizing your electronic device again you can hit the red circle button up at the top right hand corner of your thing. Please listen to the message prior to recording there are really good basic guidelines and instructions there for you to follow. You have two minutes on the prayer line and then once you have recorded hit submit, turn the little wheel over to chronological and it will get to the right place. That's going to do it for me today. We will continue our journey through the Bible chronologically tomorrow and continue in the book of Galatians. I'm Jill, until then love one another.

Community Prayer Line:

Father marriage is a sacred thing. Lord God as I went through a difficult time in my marriage father, so I know look how exactly what it feels like Lord. But father I'm asking Lord God you just to touch the situation just look up, just have your way father. I really don't know what else to say father all I can say is it's difficult when that marriage starts to fall apart. But father I am a living testimony Lord God and I know that you can draw them back Lord God, back Lord God. Loving and caring father and Lord God you just intercede Lord God just in the middle God. Just bring that triangle together and I'm just trusting and believing father in the mighty name of Jesus Lord God. This is my prayer to you. Amen. 

Good morning DABC Chronological. This is Cynthia in Upstate New York and today is the 19th of November. I would love to pray for Tanya in Ohio and I'd like to pray for Jill and her family. Heavenly Father we say thank you for today and thank you for all that you give us. We could not be here and we could not do the things we do without you and we do say thank you for that. I come to you asking for prayer for Tanya and her family she has a boyfriend that she cares a great deal about but she has seen some red flags and doesn't quite know what to do with it but you do Lord. I ask that you and your perfect will be done in her life to see and know so that she can make good decisions for her family. Lord she loves you and that's evident that she's come to you even asking for prayer for him and I also pray for him that your will be done in his life as well as in hers to help make the choices. And I pray for Jill and her family. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for sending such a beautiful platform to this world and helping us to know who you are by bringing us all around this Global Campfire. What a wonderful and amazing gift of technology you've brought into this world. So I thank you Jill and I thank your whole family for bringing so many of us together. I had eye surgery in January and probably would have never found this place if not due to the direction of a friend. So Lord Jesus I thank you and your great providence for direction and guidance and I just say a prayer for everyone today. If you do not know the Lord Jesus, please bring him into your life. It's the best decision you'll ever make. Thank you Jesus. Amen. 

Good morning DABC, this is Tonya calling from Suffolk. I wanted to lift up Tanya from Ohio in prayer in regards to her boyfriend possibly abusing prescription drugs. I also want to pray for her relationship and pray for her children as well. Dear heavenly father I lift up God Tanya to you father. I lift up her boyfriend to her relationship, her children, can you Lord God just intervene Lord God on their behalf? Heavenly father I'm asking God you to move in and everything father if it is not of you father. Tanya's boyfriend, dear Lord you know what he's dealing with. Father you know what he's going through. Father so I'm asking Lord God that you just be that pillow of comfort for him. Lord God allow him to surrender to you wholeheartedly father so he will no longer have to surrender to the narcotics father that is not need to be open Lord God and to open up any door father that can be of help Lord God- that can be a deliverance. Allow her to not lean on her own understanding Lord God... wholeheartedly. Lord God cuz father you said you would never leave us nor forsake us Lord God. She's reaching out to you Lord God. She's needing you. She's asking Lord God for your help Lord God. I'm just believing right now in the mighty name of Jesus. Father continue...

[not-alien-girl-v]

Vampires Will Never Hurt You (Harry Styles)

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:*⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

"What do you think you're gonna get, girls?" Charlie had his head buried in his menu, sitting across from Donna and me in a small booth at IHOP.

"Not pancakes," Donna added nonchalantly. I turned my neck and gave her a look.

"You're going to the International House of Pancakes, and you're not getting pancakes?" Charlie put his menu down for this conversation.

"They have other things on the menu for a reason," Donna and Charlie continued to bicker on like that about why they should or shouldn't get pancakes, and I couldn't help but let my mind wander.

I spotted a man wearing a bright orange and blue shirt and was sent back into my memories.

It was June, 1978, back when Donna was still new to the coven, having arrived a mere 9 years before, and her, Charlie, and I were walking along a beach in California.

"No, no, no! You're wrong, just accept it!" Charlie bickered with Donna. Only 9 years ago they had met, and since that day they've been bickering like an old married couple. They're practically soulmates.

"Look Charlie, cats can see IN THE DARK. If they can see in the dark, werecats in a human form wouldn't need glasses! It's part of their whole supernatural thing! Shut your mouth!" Donna argued.

I was about to chime into the argument with my opinion when I saw a strange man staring at me across the sand. This guy was a textbook vampire. Sure, he didn't dress like an 18th-century governor, but he was crazy pale and strangely charming.

The more I thought about it, the more the idea of vampires intrigued me. What would I do if I met one?

That was the very first day that vampires consumed my every thought. If only 40 year old me could see me now.

"Faye, what do you think?" Charlie pulled me out of my daydream, and I suddenly realized my friend and my brother were now staring at me expectantly.

"Um, I think I'm going to get pancakes, sorry Donna." My best friend simply rolled her eyes and picked up her phone.

"Do you guys remember my accent?" I asked out of nowhere.

"Yeah, I do, why?" Donna replied while scrolling through Tumblr.

"I just miss it. It's weird to think I sound American, but then again, I don't sound remotely the same way I did a two hundred years ago," I looked out the window with a solemn gaze.

"Not so loudly Faye, we only moved here 20 years ago, I'm not ready to get the locals suspicious," Charlie warned with a pointed look.

"It's Los Angeles, this isn't even close to the weirdest conversation I've heard. Also, what do you mean by locals? We haven't had a stable neighbor for more than a year."

"Well, perhaps that's more us problem than a them problem. Remember the cotton incident of '06? Or the socks in the bathtub mishap of 2014?" Charlie said.

I shivered at the memory. A bathtub filled with socks is fun, but let's just say throwing up 3 pounds of cotton is not.

"Anyways, I'm gonna go out for a smoke. Don't order me anything," I excused myself from the table and walked outside.

I lit my cigarette and opened my phone, scrolling through my Instagram feed.

Suddenly, a post caught my attention. Harry Styles posted for the first time in a few months, with a selfie with his bandmate Louis, and the location was Los Angeles.

Maybe I'll run into him, a very old, very dangerous, yet hopeful part of my brain thought.

No. I thought we agreed to not listen to head-voice Faye. Remember the time that we-, shut up Donna! No, she wasn't telepathically communicating with me, I've just known her for long enough that her little voice comes into my head whenever I'm about to make a bad decision. That's how I know the decision is terrible, when I can immediately imagine Donna scolding me, but sometimes I just don't listen to it.

On that note, I put out my cigarette and walked back to the entrance, but was stopped by a now hiring sign.

I decided to walk inside and ask the man at the counter if I could get an interview, and ultimately got myself scheduled for two days from then.

I peered through the restaurant to see Charlie and Donna once again, in a lighthearted argument, and I decided to stay outside until they were finished.

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:*⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

After I got back to the table, Donna and Charlie managed to behave themselves for the rest of the night. All the way through dinner, which was when Charlie gave us a stern talking to about using the new spell, to when he dropped us off at our shared house and went home.

"Did you end up getting an interview while we were there?" Donna had asked me while cleaning the dishes.

"I did yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm going to get a job there. By the looks of it, they were understaffed, I don't think the bar is very high at the moment," I replied and suddenly got the idea to perfect the spell now that I had some brotherly advice on it:

"That's good," Donna finished up with the dishes, "I'm gonna go to bed, goodnight, Faye." She walked off to her room.

"Night," I mumbled and pretended to be invested in my phone but once I made sure she was in her room, I scrambled to grab my grimoire.

I followed Charlie's not so specific instructions, and figured which item I'd link the spell to, which I decided would be an old dagger I found in the garage, and then got to work on my sigil.

I studied the base sigil I wanted to use and drew it in my own grimoire, then added in some jazz to make it my own.

I carefully tiptoed to my room and slid open my closet door to find a suitable outfit. I pushed aside several old dresses and jackets, and once my hand pushed aside one jacket in particular, an old Polaroid fell out of the broken pocket.

I got that heavy feeling in my heart, you know, the kind you get when you're about to remember something you're trying to forget.

I reluctantly bent down and grabbed the Polaroid, inspecting the outlines of my face 40 years ago placed beside none other than Jesse Kellerman himself.

Like always, I was sent into a flashback.

"Wait, so does that mean that you do magic and shit?" Jesse asked me with an ecstatic grin on his face as he sat at the foot of my bed.

"Yeah, I guess it does," I played with a small ring I had on my finger.

"Turn me into a frog!" He shouted, and I snorted at him. "What?"

"Why do you want to be a frog?" I asked him through my laughter.

"It's not about wanting to be a frog, it's about wanting to see you turn me into a frog," he explained and he scooted closer to me.

"I don't think I know a frog spell. Believe it or not, us witches, we try to focus our magic on more serious topics," I attempted to explain to him. Keyword attempted.

"Well then just make one up, you can do that, right?" He looked like an excited puppy, and I couldn't just say no to him.

"Fine, I'll see what I can do."

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:*⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

About half an hour later, I had found a spell for amphibians, so there was a chance he could turn into a frog, but he could also be a toad or a salamander or even a newt.

In the end, he turned into a toad, which was close enough to a frog, and it wasn't like he could tell the difference; he was a toad.

After a solid 10 minutes of me laughing my ass of and him making toad sounds (A/N I looked it up turns out toads make different sounds than frogs) I whipped out my Polaroid camera and took a picture of him. Once it came out I shook it, then wrote down 'Faye + Toad Jesse 1978'

I assumed that one day in the future we'd look back at the picture and I'd tell him how the spell didn't work quite right, but I never got the chance to.

As soon as I snapped out of my daydream, I shoved the picture into the other pocket of the jacket as fast as it fell out.

I quickly yanked on a jacket and walked back out to the living room where my grimoire resided.

From what Charlie told me, the spell can't be completed until it's tested, so I needed to find my test subject.

I decided that it could wait until I found a worthy creature to be the world's first vampire. It's a big role, I can't just hand it out to any old guy!

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:*⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

[multi-fandomfuckboy]

Stranger Than Fiction 

Part 15: Strong

Billy Hargrove x Reader (Slow Burn)

Part 1, ...(Masterlist)…Part 16

A/N: Long time coming for this one. Don't worry though I will have the next part up a lot faster, it's already half way typed I just split it up because I didn't want to post it all as one chapter.

Word Count: 2,653

Warnings: Swearing

After taking a couple of minutes to compose yourselves, your group sets off into the night. To eliminate the possibility of losing anyone you move in a close clump, Steve in the front and you bringing up the rear. You also make sure that everyone stays on high alert, not knowing if the monsters will return. 

None of you know exactly what your next move is. As you walk you all try to piece together the mess in front of you, hoping it will lead you to a potential solution. 

“You're positive that was Dart?” Lucas asks during the recounting of tonight's events. 

“Yes. He had the exact same yellow pattern on his butt.” Dustin confirms.

“He was tiny two days ago.” Max inserts.

“Well, he’s molted three times already.” Dustin explains, continuing forward.

“Malted?” Steve asks, looking over his shoulder at you.

“Molted.” You clarify. 

“He shed his skin to make room for growth, like hornworms.” Dustin elaborates.

“When’s he going to molt again?” Max asks.

“It’s gotta be soon. And when he does he’ll be fully grown, or close to it, and so will his friends.” Dustin goes on dejectedly. 

“Yea, and he’s gunna eat a lot more than just cats.” Steve comments offhandedly. 

“Wait!” Lucas exclaims, grabbing Dustin's arm, stopping him. “A cat? Dart ate a cat?” He asks, angrily. 

“What? No?” Dustin stammers, avoiding his friends' eyes. Steve stops as well, turning to look at them raising a brow.

“What are you talking about?” He questions Dustin. “He ate mews.” 

“Who’s mews?” Max asks, standing next to him. 

“It’s Dustin’s cat.” Steve explains calmly. 

“Steve!” Dustin shouts, clearly not wanting the whole truth to be revealed. You move forward to stand next to Steve as the argument begins to blosum. 

“I knew it! You kept him!” Lucas accuses, poking Dustin in the chest harshly. Dustin stammers, trying to deny it but ultimately fesses up, throwing the three pre-teens into a full blown argument. 

Steve’s eyes cut to you, panicked. 

“How do you normally stop this?” He asks, gesturing to the boys screaming at each other. You shrug in response. 

“Normally, I don’t.” you inform him. “Sometimes friends need to fight. It’s how we learn to communicate better.” you explain. “I only really step in if things go too far.” Steve looks at you bewildered and is about to respond when a sound catches both of your attention. Moving slightly off the tracks in the direction of the sounds, Steve tries to get the kids attention. 

“Guys!” He calls back to them. He goes unheeded, the kids continuing to argue. 

“Hey!” You yell, using your best mom voice, getting their attention. “Straighten up!” You instruct, effectively silencing them. The night is quiet around you, but in the distance you can hear the familiar shrill screeching, along with something else… gunshots. You look at Steve and nod, both of you silently agreeing that you need to investigate. He moves forward into the woods, Dustin and Lucas quickly following after him. Max is the only one who hesitates. 

“Why are you heading towards the sound?” She calls after him. You wait beside the tracks looking back at her. She tosses her arms up in frustration, glancing around at the dark forest surrounding her. 

“It’s okay to be scared Max.” you say, calmly. “But there are two types of people in the world. Those that run from the darkness and those that face it fully. “ You pause and watch as she makes up her mind, begrudgingly stepping towards you. 

“I’m only coming cause it’s better than getting lost in the woods alone.” She grumbles. You chuckle, following after her. 

“Fair enough.” you conceded. 

The five of you find your way to a clearing, looking around in the night, you can't see much. You can still hear the shrill cries of the monsters, but the gunshots have died down. 

“I don’t see him.” Dustin comments. Lucas looks through his binoculars, hoping to make out something in the darkness. 

“It’s the lab.” He says, a look of realisation falling over his face. “They were going home.” He says. 

You can't fight the feeling drawing you towards the lab. It’s almost instinctual. Something about it makes your skin crawl. After discussing it with the group, you all agree that you need to see what is going on at the lab, hoping it might shed further light on the situation. You travel through the woods in single file, Steve in the front and you in the back keeping the kids between you. As you draw closer to the lab, the low buzz picks up in the back of your mind. Feeling your hair stand on end again, you draw your pistol from the waistband of your jeans. Max catches sight of this and slows next to you. 

“Do you think we will run into them?” She asks, keeping her voice low. You can make out part of her face in the dim light of the moon. She looks so young and she looks terrified. You do your best to sound brave. 

“Better safe than sorry.” you say, gesturing to the pistol. “I think they have bigger things to worry about than us though.” You say in your best attempt to comfort her without downplaying the danger of the situation. She nods and you continue to walk. You notice that she stays close to your side. 

Drawing closer to the lab you hear a voice calling out in the darkness. 

“Who’s there?” They yell as your group stumbles out of the woods. You think you recognize the voice, you squint into the darkness and make out two shapes. As the light of your flashlights fall on them, you’re shocked to see Nancy and Jonathan standing at the gates of Hawkins Lab. 

Your two groups collide in a myriad of confusion. 

“What are you doing here?” Nancy asks, looking between you and Steve. 

“What are you doing here?” Steve asks in return, looking between her and Jonathan. 

“We're looking for Mike and Will.” She explains. Your stomach drops at her words. 

“They’re not in there, are they?” Dustin asks the question on all of your minds, gesturing to the dark building in front of you. 

“We’re not sure.” Nancy says, her brows drawn together in confusion.

“Why?” Jonathan asks. 

Before anyone can respond, a haunting screech cuts through the night. Your gut twists in knots as you all turn towards the dark silhouette of the lab.

“We have a lot to catch up on.” you mumble. Nancy’s eyes dart to you, wide with fear and panic. 

“What the hell is going on?” She asks.

The next few moments are filled with confused questions and half-formed answers. Everyone is trying to piece together the whole story with what little bits of information you each possess. In the middle of the chaos, Nancy breaks away, taking a step towards the gate.

“The power is back on.” She says, drawing everyone's attention to the now illuminated building. Jonathan rushes to the gate house, pressing the button to open the gate. Dustin follows after him. You all pace in front of the gate, waiting for it to open. 

After what feels like an eternity, the gate finally springs to life, sliding open. 

“We’ll go up and see what’s going on in the car.” Nancy suggests, already moving to the car, Jonathan following after her. 

“Good idea.” You say, ignoring Steve’s look, knowing he wants to protest. “Steve and I will stay here with the kids while you guys see what’s going on.” you say as Nancy climbs into the passenger seat. “If you’re not back in 20 min. We are coming up after you.” you explain, locking eyes with Nancy. There is a lot between the two of you that needs to be said, you can feel it. But, both of you know that now is not the time or the place for it. So instead she nods in agreement, and closes the door.

You watch the car speed away, steadily climbing the hill towards the lab. Steve is the first to break the tense silence. 

“What is with you and wanting to split up?” He asks, moving to stand next to you, crossing his arms over his chest. You roll your eyes, taking a step away to lean against the guard house. 

“I’m just thinking logically.” You say, crossing your arms as well.

“No, it sounds like you’re thinking like an episode of Scooby Doo.” he replies smugly, moving to lean next to you. You scoff, narrowing your eyes at him.

“You would know. That’s probably all you watch.” You bite back, seeing the small smile pull at Steve’s lips. 

“Are you guys, like… dating?” Max’s voice startles you. Both of you shift away from each other, looking at the redhead, shocked. 

“What?” you both say in unison.

“No”

“I mean- yea- no” You both stammer talking over each other.

“He’s dating-well he was dating-” 

“Nancy! And- and she’s-” Steve stammers on.

“No-they’re kind of…” You try to explain as well. 

“Alright!” Max exclaims, throwing her hands up. “I get it… it’s complicated.” She concludes, rolling her eyes. “Forget I asked.” she grumbles, shaking her head. You and Steve glance at each other, shifting even further apart. It’s stupid but your face feels hot after the interaction. 

You wait in silence after that, listening for any sign of trouble up at the lab. Suddenly the sound of screeching tires makes you jump. Pushing yourself off the guard house, you take a step towards the road. In the darkness you can see two sets of headlights barreling down the hill, full speed.  

“Get back!” you hear Max yell as Steve firmly grabs your arm, pulling you away from the road as the first car, Jonathan's, flys by. The next car skids to a halt in front of you.

“Get in!” Hopper’s gruff voice yells from the cab of his police car. 

“Hop!?” you exclaim, shocked to see him. Steve rushes forward, opening the door and quickly loading all the kids into the back. Hopping in himself, he grabs your arm roughly, pulling you into the cab onto his lap, before slamming the door and yelling for Hopper to drive. 

Recovering from your initial shock, you turn to look at Hopper fully.

“What are you doing here?!” you both yell at the same time. You can’t stop yourself from smiling as relief washes over you. Without thinking, you fling your arms around his shoulders, hugging him as best you can from the passenger seat. 

“I’m so happy to see you!” You exclaim. 

“Hey!” Hopper yells, swerving slightly but recovering quickly. You expect him to shove you off, but instead you hear him chuckle harshly.

“I’m glad to see you too,kid.” He mumbles, craning his neck to kiss the top of your head. “Now sit back before we end up in a ditch.” he instructs frimley. You do as he says, sitting back into the passenger seat, half in Steve’s lap as you share the seat. The relief you initially felt seeing Hopper is short lived as he explains the circumstances of his being at Hawkins lab. 

He runs through what happened with the rotting crops and the tunnels, then Will. You were stunned to hear about the trap he had set for the soldiers at the lab. Hopper told you about fighting their way out of the monster infested lab and ultimately about how Bob Newbie had been killed helping them escape. You and Steve tried to explain your end, but it was mostly Dustin talking from the back. 

By the time you arrive at the Byer’s you are all left with more questions than answers. You all pile out of the car and head to the house. You pause, seeing Jonathan carrying Will’s limp body. You watch him from a distance, but something feels wrong to you. You can’t quite put your finger on it but he looks… wrong. Like where there is a shadow clinging to him. Even when he is laid in the warm glow of the living room lights, you can still see it. Well, not quite see, but feel the shadows dancing around him. 

Your heart drumms in your chest as you walk closer, chills crawl over your skin. The cold washes over you feeling like icy fingers raking down your spine. You can feel something in him… something familiar. 

Jonathan kneels beside his brother, his head bowed, unshed tears clinging to his lashes. You keep your distance, something inside you warning you to stay away. Nancy stands over Jonathan, a comforting hand on his shoulder. Something about the gesture feels intimate to you. Out of the corner of your eye you see Steve also observing the interaction. You see the hurt in his eyes and know that he has seen the same intimacy between Nancy and Jonathan that you have.  

He turns away, walking into the kitchen. You follow after him, half listening to Hopper scream angrily into the phone. Steve stands at the sink, looking out the window into the night. You don’t say anything as you stand next to him, glancing at him out of the corner of your eyes you can see his chin quiver slightly. You look away, the only thing you can think to do is place a hand over his that rests on the counter. 

He moves his hand and for a moment you think he will shake you off. But, he turns his palm upwards, wrapping his fingers around yours, squeezing it tightly. You return the squeeze. You know that he loves Nancy. And that despite the world ending around you, it hurts. So, you stay next to him for a moment, holding his hand, because that’s the only comfort you can offer. 

The two of you break apart at the sound of Hopper yelling at Mike.

“We stay here and wait for help!”  He says firmly, ending the argument. He turns to leave and you follow after him.

“Wait, Hopper.” you say lowering your voice, grabbing his arm to stop him. “We can’t just sit around. Mike is right. Those things are out there and could kill-” you try to persuade him. He turns to look at you, placing both of his hands on your shoulders. 

“I know you want to do something, kid. But, I’m telling you. Right now, we don't stand a chance.” He speaks quietly, holding your gaze. You don’t know why but you feel a lump forming in your throat. 

“There has to be something.” You whisper past the tightening in your throat. All of a sudden you feel the weight of it all around you. You can feel the unwanted tears prick at your eyes. Hopper’s eyes are filled with sympathy and he squeezes your shoulders.

“Hey, listen to me. There is something you can do.” he says, doing his best to keep his voice light. “We have a group of scared kids in there that are looking to us to tell them it’s going to be okay.” he explains, a small smile pulling at his lips. “I know that you’re scared, and that’s okay. But, you need to be strong for them, right now.” he says firmly. “Can you do that for me?” He asks, searching your face.

You think about Max, Lucas, Dustin, and Mike in the next room. They were too young for all this. It is too late to stop it from happening but you can at least put on a brave face, for them. You nod, sniffling slightly and whipping at your face.

“That’s what I thought.” Hopper says, pulling you into a hug. You wrap your arms around him, burying your face in his chest. “It’s gunna be okay, kid.” He mumbles into the top of your hair. And in that moment, enveloped in his arms, you believe him.

Part 1, ...(Masterlist)…Part 16

A/N: Hope you guys liked this! Let me know what you think! Leave a like of a comment! More is coming soon!

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[nikethestatue]

I’m apologizing in advance because this a long one, but once I get going sometimes I just don’t know how to stop 😅

I’m a new follower of yours and for awhile was just a casual ACOTAR reader. After a recent re-read I decided to jump into the online fandom and *wowzers* was I surprised to discover the massive shipwars happening. Being a casual reader like many, (and not having seen nor even possessing the knowledge of the Azriel bonus chapter) I was always under the impression the next couple to be was Elriel. After seeing all the hullabaloo and noise regarding Gwynriel, I was confused and sought out the BC. Here is what I would like to contribute to the conversation after reading it…

First let me explain what I do for a living and how it applies to my thought process. I produce unscripted television episodes - my official title is Story Producer. I work in post production and am responsible for assembling and tracking the story for my designated episodes. Now, obviously television and books are wildly different mediums, however, the art of storytelling is universal and as a professional storyteller I’m banking all my chips on Elriel. Their ship has been seeded many times throughout the earlier books and I do not believe that the addition of the Gwyn character is going to change that rather than merely shake things up. I see a lot of Gwynriel supporters screaming why would SJM even have the interaction with Gwyn and Az if it wasn’t important… I think the answer to that is simple - It’s classic misdirection. Even though it’s a chapter that clearly not everyone is even aware of and takes place middle of the book’s timeline, I believe it’s ultimately meant to be treated as a cliffhanger. And what storytelling device is often used in cliffhangers??… misdirection. A tactic we employ often in the shows I work on. Even the wording surrounding the dancing shadows and the glowing necklace image seems very deliberately misleading and can be interpreted in multiple ways - which we have already seen from all of the ship camps (I myself am a supporter of the Gwyn lightsinger theory).

Given the types of meetings I experience at my job discussing character arcs, relationships, likability, audience perception, etc., I think it’s possible that similar conversations happened with SJM and her editing/publishing teams regarding Elain’s book. (Yes! I, too, believe her book is next!!!) And based on what I’ve seen to be a large portion of the fandom’s negative and grossly misogynistic attitude towards Elain, it’s possible they felt the need to drum up more interest for sales. Personally, I don’t think you need more interest than having Rhys outright command Az to stay away. I know what non-Elriels are squawking about enemies to lovers reigning supreme or whatever, but to me a forbidden romance (along with a broken or rejected mate bond) sounds soooo deliciously refreshing… but maybe the publishers were worried it might not have been enough to convince Elain nay-sayers to tune in next time, cue the Gwyn/Az cliffhanger.

I am by no means stating that everyone should listen to me because my profession dictates that I am 100% right in this (I’m just a storyteller of a different kind waiting on pins and needles for Sep 8th just like everyone else!!). I’m merely chiming in on the discussion from my perspective. And despite some very vocal Gwynriels deeming Elriel a “sinking ship”, I truly don’t believe SJM seeded said ship for three books only to change her mind before it even comes to fruition. That would be some very strange and bad storytelling. And no - Tamlin, Chaol, etc. isn’t the same thing. Those weren’t just multiple books of only build up, so that is a useless argument. And I definitely don’t believe she set up Azriel to “only want sex from Elain” after all this time. That obviously wouldn’t make him very likable and I highly doubt that is the goal for one of her beloved batboy creations, especially after making us wait all these years for insight into his character.

I have several other thoughts about the delusion of Elucians and Elain “not looking good in black” theories, but I’ll stop here haha. Sorry for rattling your ear off 😂 I’m just such a fan of your blog and wanted to share my two cents while we all eagerly await the *hopefully* upcoming news!!!

No, rant away, because this is actually perfect!

Because that's what we've been saying for years! It IS misdirection and somewhat of a lame attempt at an additional conflict and a cliffhanger.

Because if SJM wants to make this book spicier in terms of 'choice' it's nice to have people wonder, since a choice between just between 3 people isnt always all that interesting. But if there is another figure seemingly in the mix, it would seem like something else is going on.

It's kind of like Rhys expressing shock in ACOTAR and just disappearing. I don't think this is at the same level obviously, but it also makes people pause and wonder.

And no, she will not have an unresolved romance which she'd been building up for years just not happen. That's ridiculous.

it's the same thing as with Elrocan in TOG. They were built up over a course of many books. They were the background love affair, and they didn't consummate until the final book. Now imagine, when suddenly.........nothing happened. Elide met someone else and walked away from Lorcan. How would people feel about that?

[ripleycano]

streps! I'm gonna have to ask you to go off about why hajime is easily the most entertaining protag bc i wholeheartedly agree with you and i would love to hear your hot take

OKAY OKAY OKAY! i've been WAITING for this one here we go

there's a couple of reasons why i enjoyed hajime more than any other protagonist i'll list them

1. makoto is a lovable main character, komaru is top tier, shuichi is wonderful but you know what's so funny about hajime? he brings a sense of realism to the game that feels so bizarre in the wacky world of danganronpa

putting aside all the izuru kamukura shenanigans (which makes him a really unique protagonist btw), hajime is just... such an honest reflection of the average player yk

nothing will beat one of the characters acting like wildly exaggerated versions of real life personalities and hajime just going "??? why are you like this????" and usually being the only voice of reason

realistic doesn't mean boring at all though!! there's like 80% of hajime's character that i never see people talking about, it's always 'yeah he's kind of a tsundere' lmaosa 

like. have you seen this man? have you seen his ass reciting poetry into the night sky at the start of the game because he was feeling a little emo? are we forgetting that his first reaction to the killing game was to bury his face in his bed and scream until he passed out? answer me this, danganronpa community: when will we discuss the way hajime never fails to pose like a wronged vampire in his closing arguments?

he is so dramatic... he puts gundham to shame sometimes

on top of all that, he’s not as much of a jerk as the fandom makes him out to be? i honestly don’t know where that came from other than his pessimistic tendencies because he’s actually rly sweet

in the official manga / anthology comics / 4 panel comics too! he gave nagito another hope’s peak ring after nagito got panicky about losing the first one he received, politely offered to help him with cleaning the old building in chapter 1, playfully went along with gundham’s dark demon overlord act and introduced himself as the god of the cow folk or something shkjsd

and i could name so many more times where he tolerated the sdr2 cast way better than a normal person would

other than all that he’s just had some great moments in game that brought me a lot of joy

-”shUT UP!!111! LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!11″ punk protag hajime walked so emo protag shuichi could run - the fact that he just... walks out on confusing conversations??? like he just announced he was leaving at the end of nagito’s ftes because he simply felt like it and just... turned around and left???? -johnny yong bosch did such a phenomal job as his va -some descriptions of hajime we got from the cast: akane said he was warmer than anyone she’d met, fuyuhiko said he had a ‘harmless-looking face’, both nagito and fuyuhiko suspected his talent to be things like ‘ultimate counselor’ and ‘ultimate serenity’ :,) and uh hiyoko is hiyoko lol

also hajime completely rejected toxic masculinity on multiple occasions.. king

anyways i have like 5000 screenshots of my favorite fte dialogue moments with him lemme know if you ever want them lol

i love hajime and i could talk about him anytime😌 this is just the tip of the iceberg hahsdkja

2. he’s hot

[djarrex]

Countermeasures || 6

Conspiracy

Fives x ofc!reader

<- previous chapter | next chapter ->

| main masterlist | series masterlist | read on ao3 |

Rating: 18+ only

Word Count: 6.4k

Warnings: unprotected piv, oral (fem receiving), fluff, mention of stress-induced throwing up, aftercare, angst, feelings

chapter summary: You and Fives head to Coruscant to meet with the Chancellor in order to find some answers, but things don’t go exactly as planned.

note: tbh this chapter if half filth. Sorry posting it took longer than the others and if some things look weird - I got tired of rereading this - I hope it’s okay BUT I am already in the process of jotting things down for the next chapter. I’ll let y’all in on a lil somethin’.... I’m planning on making chapter 7 completely from Fives’ POV.

***

From where you were able to watch the dark nothingness littered with glowing stars outside of the tiny viewport, you saw the planet you’d come to call home slowly approach as the ship exited hyperspace. The white clouds swirled over most of the surface as seen from space, yet the distinctive glow of major cities and routes shined brighter than any nearby stars; the bright lights connected each spherical pattern by distinct lines of light, marking the major highways and transport lanes.

Coruscant.

You were home, though you were not arriving in a way you could have ever imagined.

You were to accompany Nala Se, Master Shaak Ti, and Fives to the Senate Complex to meet with Chancellor Palpatine - and hopefully get some answers. Who in the hells would have ever thought you’d be meeting the Chancellor? If only your parents could see you now. They’d be... proud? Under such strange circumstances, you weren’t even sure what you were feeling about it all. 

Accomplishment? Was that what you were feeling? Certainly not success, nor defeat, since this wasn’t over yet. 

Perhaps accomplishment was an appropriate feeling, solely for the fact that you and Fives had gotten through to somebody - now you were to meet with the fucking Supreme Chancellor.

Fives was knocked out during the journey - given a sedative as a precautionary measure - against your wishes, and was kept isolated. Maybe it was because Fives had a blaster trained on an unarmed Kaminoan… still, it upset you. He wasn’t going to actually harm Nala Se. You’d only known Fives for a week, but you know he would never hurt someone unarmed and innocent - though you both wouldn't exactly consider Nala Se as innocent after what took place back on Kamino.

The journey was extremely long - 120 hours, to be almost exact. At least you were finally able to catch up on some sleep, even if it was on the hard bunks within the small ship’s sleeping quarters. Though you were upset Fives wasn’t conscious during the journey, you were somewhat glad he was getting rest, forced by sedative or otherwise.

You were eager to be with Fives again; you were still in shock - he had kissed you. Twice. The things you were feeling brought you back to the giddiness of having a crush on another boy from your settlement when he gave peck on the cheek; you were no older than ten, as was he. You can’t remember the last time you felt these things for another. Surely you didn’t feel this way for that boy when you were both only ten years-old; maybe you’d never felt this way for someone - this was all new to you.

What was to happen now - would you and Fives... be together? It sounded so silly to play those words even in the privacy of your own mind; the thought of being with a clone was something you’d never imagine even in your wildest dreams, but as you mentioned to Fives back on Kamino, he’d changed your views on the clones entirely. Fives was so full of compassion, emotion, ferocity when necessary. He was intelligent and cunning, caring and funny. The way he was with you, so careful and sincere - you’d completely fallen for that man; it was no longer a simple crush nor rush of lust. 

The thought of “being together” in a traditional sense sounded... nice. It seemed to be impossible; you knew better than most that the clones were designed to keep the mission in the forefront of their minds and everything else would be clouded out, but your time working with Fives gave you new insight that the clones were capable of a lot more than anyone - especially the masters of their creation - would’ve ever thought. Maybe it was possible. 

The transport that had come up to bring you to the surface touched down at the hangar and you hurried to exit, eager to be reunited with Fives after the boring journey. Walking down the ramp and looking around at the other transport, there was no sign of Fives. You did see the conniving long-neck speaking with a couple troopers with painted red armor, nodding to her words before heading off and away from the ships. Deciding to confront her, you stepped cautiously towards Nala Se, keeping yourself aware of your surroundings while scanning the area in hopes to catch a glimpse of the man you’d fallen hard for. 

Nala Se turned to face you, not so much as a smile made its way to her stoic face.     

“Where is he, where’s Fives?” You stepped closer, your head tilting back and meeting her eyes from below. Trying to keep your cool was difficult; your accusatory tone towards her made her imaginary brows raise.

“He is still sedated. I had him escorted to the Chancellor’s office.” Her tone was calm, unfazed, nonchalant - obviously not too worried about entertaining your worry for Fives. 

“Alright. So, I’ll follow you then?” You looked around towards where the troopers from before were heading, but to your dismay, the long-neck shook her head.

“Chancellor Palpatine did not request for you, Miss Renna. He only wishes to speak with trooper Fives.”

...what the fuck?

To seven hells with keeping your cool. This was totally not was discussed back on Kamino. A mixture of anger and confusion soared through you; tears threatened to form at the corners of your eyes. No way are you crying out of frustration in front of Dr. Nala Se.

“But I thought-” She held up her three fingers in front of you, halting your impending argument. 

“I am afraid that was the Chancellor’s request.”

Without another word or opportunity for you to argue, Nala Se turned on her heels and left you alone and on the brink of a fucking meltdown.  

There was no arguing with her and especially not with the Chancellor, but it was still strange. Where was Master Shaak Ti? She’d be able to help you out, right? Why would the Chancellor not want to meet with you - you, the one who was by Fives’ side throughout the entire investigation, the one who has actual medical knowledge and training? You had a bad feeling about it all. 

What were you supposed to do now? You obviously couldn’t arrive unannounced at the Senate building, let alone the Chancellor’s office. 

What of Fives? He’d probably freak out when he wakes up and you’re not there by his side. The last thing he knew before being put under was that you’d be going with him to meet the Chancellor. So, what? He’s going to wake up and point another fucking blaster at someone? You wouldn’t doubt it - this entire situation has got him completely on edge. Fives was hurt, confused, and felt betrayed, to say the least. He trusted the Jedi - that was something engrained in him from before he’d ever held a blaster - and was literally engineered to serve under them in this Maker forsaken war. 

Something didn’t sit right with you, though, and that’s not including how you weren’t requested to be present in front of the Chancellor. What doesn’t sit right with you is that you were still... employed (in a sense) and weren’t dismissed when Nala Se had confronted you in the Embryo Room. Instead, you were allowed to come back to Coruscant along with your employer, and not as a consequence of dismissal.

You didn’t want to go back to Kamino, though. Maybe it would be best to go back to the academy and explain the situation to your advisors, though you weren’t entirely sure how to even begin to explain this mess to anyone who wasn’t already aware of what was going on. 

If you didn’t return to Kamino, would that mean you were quitting? What if you spoke to your academic advisors first, asking for a transfer of internship? What if Nala is planning on dismissing you, just waiting until this was over with, does that mean you’d fail at the academy and not be placed any where else to finish up your training? 

After what you’ve seen and what you’ve actually uncovered, you knew going back to Kamino was an absolute fuck no. If that meant you never becoming a doctor, then so be it. 

Everything happens for a reason.

All there was to do was wait it out - see what happens with Fives’ meeting with the Chancellor. 

Ultimately deciding to wait outside for him after his meeting, you started the trek to the complex in the footsteps of the troopers and Nala Se. When you got there, it was quiet; you expected the hustle and bustle of tourists or political figures, but there was no one - save for the expected Coruscant guards walking the perimeter with blasters in hand. It was just you, sitting alone and filled with worry on a long and wide staircase that led up to the grand entrance of the Senate Building.

***

Hours.

It had been hours since you’d first parked your ass outside the Senate Building. The sun was starting to set behind the enormous structure; the sky resembled fire with the stripes of yellows and oranges blending together, the flecks of purples and pinks littered the sky complementarily while the lines of speeders zooming along off in the distance became silhouettes. 

You hadn’t seen a Coruscant sunset in over six months - it was what you missed the most while away on that stormy planet, where you'd never seen not one sunset.  

You’d never forget your first night on Coruscant, a week before your first days at the medical academy. You were nervous and afraid, unsure of the crowded streets and the trillions of others walking or hovering among them - your first time surrounded by extremely unfamiliar faces and unaccompanied by your family. You came from such a small and poor settlement, where everyone knew each other and their ancestors - where you were comfortable, yet longed for more. 

You’d bumped into what seemed like hundreds of passersby while navigating to your new apartment, located in a high rise just off the academy’s perimeter. The inside was complete with furnishings and decor that quite honestly wasn’t your taste, but the kitchen was huge and came with appliances you never thought you’d ever use in your lifetime - a stark contrast to the communal fire pit and dwindling supply of pots and pans from where you grew up.

Speaking of kitchen - you were starving.

Hungry and worried - the two most prominent feelings of late.

***

Back at your apartment you cooked dinner, sitting on the balcony while attempting to sooth your frustration and worry while spooning mouthfuls of your mother’s recipe for your favorite soup. It was getting late. You had no way to contact Fives, no way to contact anyone other than Nala Se. 

She wasn’t the best option of contact, though she would be able to inform you of how the meeting went - lying about details or not, you just wanted to know if Fives was okay, even if the Chancellor didn’t take his side about the chips.

Those fucking inhibitor chips.

You hadn’t forgotten how Nala Se tried to cover it all up, rather than just explaining what they were from the get-go. If it really was something as simple as “making them less aggressive because their original donor was a crazy aggressive bounty hunter” then there should be no reason why you wouldn’t even know about the chips, or why you never saw anything about the chips in any files. 

It appeared that you and Fives had unknowingly uncovered a conspiracy - a conspiracy that needed to stay undiscovered so badly that the Kaminoan in charge of the clones’ design was ready to recondition then kill any one clone that caught of whiff of anything remotely close to it. 

Fives. Fives caught a whiff of something extremely close to it. 

There had to be a reason why you weren’t welcome at that meeting. 

Surely Nala Se could have been lying right to your face, as she’s done before, but what if the Chancellor really didn’t want or need to speak with you, or hear what you had to say about the chips in a medical sense? 

Why was Nala Se so fucking adamant about sending all data on the chip - including the chips themselves and the clones it came from - straight to the Chancellor, protesting any mention of detours along the way? Why would it matter if Tup or his chip made a pitstop at the Jedi Temple for the Jedi to do their... Jedi stuff on him before reaching Nala Se’s voiced desired destination? 

Weird. All of it... just fucking weird. 

Now your stomach was turning; soup came up in your throat faster than you could register what was happening. It burned on the way out; hot soup spewed from your mouth with such force that the wall across from you was consequently covered in the contents of your stomach. Something you hadn’t done in a long time - vomiting out of pure anxiety and stress - happened quicker than you had time to realize how fucking bad the negative emotions stemming from the situation were affecting you. 

You could just feel it - Fives was in danger. Though you didn’t know exactly what kind of danger or who at the hands of, that feeling was screaming at you. 

Scared. Worried. Stressed. Angry. Upset and sobbing, because you’d just spewed fucking soup all over your wall. 

Take a shower. Put on clean clothes. Get some fucking sleep. Check in with everything in the morning.

You repeated your own instructions both silently in your head and out loud to yourself as you finished cleaning up your disgusting stress-induced habit. 

***

Knock knock knock.

You shot up from from the couch, already awake because you were just not able to shut your damn eyes. 

“F- Fives?” His name croaked out of your sore throat; the possibility that Fives was at your door was just slim to none. Though, who else would it be? 

“Renna...” Your name came from the other side of the door; the familiar voice sent... something shooting from your ears and straight to your toes. 

Fives.

You don’t recall making the short journey to your door from the couch, but in a flash you were there, opening the door to be greeted by the man you’d just indirectly vomited because of.

He just stood there right outside your door; the dim light filtering in from the halls casted him as a silhouette, but you were able to make out how was still in that armor he had commandeered (well, just plain stole) back on Kamino and how he had a dark and dazed look in his golden eyes. It was difficult to read his face; normally Fives was quite expressive, but at that moment, there was nothing.

He slowly stepped forward, making you retreat a few steps. His unreadable expression changed as the light hit his face - it was one you’d never seen on him before.

Anger - that’s what you were feeling - along with worry, exhaustion, confusion - all towards this entire fucked up situation and being directed right at Fives before you could stop it.

“Where the fuck have you been-”

“I need you,” he growled, right before slamming his lips onto yours.

Not able to hold in the simultaneous gasp and moan that escaped your throat, Fives shut the door as you allowed him to push you back further into your apartment all while his lips remained locked with yours - hungry and wanting. Fives was devouring you, to put in plainly; he kissed you like it would be his last opportunity to. You didn’t realize Fives had been backing you up and up until your back slammed into a wall with a load thud, but he didn’t let up the kiss, no - in fact, the kiss deepened since you no longer had any more room to back up, firmly pressed against a hard surface while being caged in completely by Fives’ sturdy body. Desperate hands roamed your form, grabbing the meatier parts of you and offering a gentle squeeze.

You brain was jelly... what were you mad about again, among other things? Oh right... everything. 

“F- Fives!” You snapped your head to the side, effectively breaking the kiss. “You wanna tell me what the fuck is going on? Maker, I was worried sick!” Literally sick. Like, literally.

“I- please... need you first. Please, Ren. I need you.” He tugged at your top with pleading and hungry eyes, silently asking for permission to take it off. You bit your lip, contemplating if this is how you wanted things to finally happen between the two of you. Fuck it. You wanted him - needed him.

Staring up at him under long lashes with your bottom lip caught in your teeth, you nodded. “Okay.” With no time wasted, your top was pulled off and thrown somewhere out of sight. His lips returned to yours, messy and warm. As your tongues swirled one another, Fives’ hands continued to grab at the newly exposed skin, palming your breasts underneath your sorry excuse for a bra, sending you into a frenzy. This was the most Fives’ had ever touched you - and it brought you back to those first couple of nights upon meeting him for the first time, when you imagined what his touch would feel like as you pleasured yourself. Coming back to the present, the warmth you felt in your face traveled further down, settling in your lower stomach. Your head tilted to the side and Fives broke from your lips to move south, kissing and sucking down your chin to your neck to your collarbone.

“F- fuck.” You nearly melted into a puddle when Fives’ hands found the clasp of your bra, tearing it off and tossing it to the side without his lips breaking contact from your skin. 

Fives definitely wasn’t new to these activities.

“You smell so good, Ren,” He breathed against the curve of your shoulder just above your collarbone, nipping the skin there with a groan. All you could do was stand there like a noodle, whimpering while letting his strong arms hold you upright as he mouthed at your skin, the warmth coming from his nose and mouth sending shockwaves to the more sensitive parts of your body. Fives ventured back up to your mouth, placing sloppy and wet kisses along your bottom lip.

That thing that drives you absolutely crazy was done unknowingly by Fives again, causing you to moan loudly into his mouth - the vibrations making your shudder.

“That’s the second time you’ve done that when I do this,” Fives repeated the motion, chuckling against your lips when you let out another moan. “I guess you like it when I do that, huh beautiful?” Your eyes were clamped shut as you nodded to the best of your ability. Fives brought his hands up to grab your face, holding you steady in his large palms. “I need you, Renna.” Fives repeated himself, going back in for another hungry kiss. You broke away this time, placing your hands over his while still holding your face.

“Have me, Fives.”

He made a grunt akin to a growl before hoisting you up; strong hands grabbed your ass from underneath and your legs quickly wrapped around his waist as he smashed his lips back onto yours. You couldn’t help the whimpers that came from your throat as his stiffening cock rubbed against your aching core. Fives’ grip on your ass became rougher as he kneaded the plush skin through your sleep bottoms. You allowed your hands to roam around his shoulders and head, enjoying the feeling of the freshly buzzed hair as it pricked your fingers.

Desperate kisses and touches - that’s what it all was, and for a few minutes before your mouths detached, staring into each others eyes while catching your breaths.

“I’ve wanted this for so long...” Fives admission made you blush, and he definitely noticed. Tucking loose hair behind your ear, he smiled. “You are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, Renna. I’ve been to countless systems, moons, planets - nothing and no one on or within any of them could ever compare to you.”

You couldn’t stop the tear falling from your eye before Fives caught it, gently wiping it away with his thumb. 

“No, sweet girl. I don’t want you crying over things I say,” He placed a quick kiss on your cheek where the tear fell, “I want you crying over how good I’m gonna make you feel when I finally fuck you.” You didn’t have time to react before Fives swung around and quickly moved to your bed, throwing you down on top of it. He stood at the edge of the bed, extremely intimidating at the angle you were looking at him from as he donned a full set of armor, sans helmet.

You squirmed underneath his gaze, feeling all too exposed with your top half completely bare while he stood there fully clothed and the some. As if he could read your mind, Fives started peeling off the armor, unclasping the pieces one by one while keeping his eyes locked with yours. Your body was completely on fire. 

This was finally happening.

“Ren?” Fives was just taking off the last of the plastoid and tossing the vambraces to the side, looking at you with a hungry smirk. You nodded to him with a quizzical brow raised. “Tell me how long you’ve wanted this.” 

He was teasing you.

“Fives...”

“Tell me, pretty thing.”

Shit, okay.

“Ever since I first saw you, Fives. When you first arrived on Kamino, in your armor.” The way he was questioning you with such... authority - you started to feel just how wet you were getting as you rubbed your thighs together in an attempt to stimulate yourself in some way.

The way he was in that moment... yeah, you told him the truth.

Fives hummed in approval with a cocky grin stretched on his face as he ran a warm palm up and down your trembling thigh. “You liked seeing me in my armor?” 

“Stars. Yes... It was my first day outside the archives yet I don’t even remember that fucking conversation because I was too distracted by you.” 

What is he, a fucking wizard? He was pulling confessions from you with very little effort - your brain was fried; all that was on your mind was getting Fives to touch you where you needed him to.

“It’s a shame I won’t have an opportunity to put that armor back on again. I would have loved to fuck you while I wore it.” Both his hands trailed up your calves to your thighs to the waistband of your bottoms, threatening to take them off as he yanked at the elastic band. 

The commanding and intimidating ARC trooper was the Fives you never had the pleasure of personally dealing with... until now.

“Fives, please.” You wiggled underneath his hands, hoping he knew what you wanted through your half-ass begging.

“I really want to take my time with you, but I don’t think we have the luxury of time right now... I may not be able to control myself, Ren. I need you so fucking bad, baby.” His fingers finally clamped around your waistband, yanking the material down your legs in a one rough motion. As soon as your pants were off, his fingers were rubbing against the dampening spot seeping into the thin material of your underwear. Your focus was completely on controlling how loud you were panting that you didn’t even register that the lacy torn-up material between his fingers was your fucking underwear that he’d just ripped clean off your hips.

“Fuck... did you... just-”

“I warned you, Ren.” As soon as those last words flew out of his mouth, his face was instantly buried between your legs, tongue circling your folds in a very messy fashion. Strong hands grabbed at your thighs, yanking them up and over his broad shoulders as his mouth attacked your burning cunt. The embarrassing moans coming from your throat burned your ears as he went back and forth between flicking your clit with his tongue and licking up and down your slit. You nearly choked on your own spit as a broken cry made its way from your throat when he grabbed your hips and angled you so that his tongue sunk straight into your hole. 

“H- oh m- fu- fuck.” You were nearly sobbing at the way he was tongue-fucking your clenching hole; his grip on your hips was bruising and the lewd slurping sounds coming from him sucking at every inch of your pussy all led up to an insane climax. The heat in your lower stomach was unbearable and you cried out as he insert two thick fingers inside you to replace his tongue. All it took was a few thrusts of his curled digits and were coming undone; Fives worked you through your high, keeping a brutal pace with his fingers and flicking of his tongue in sync with their attack. 

He pulled back to look at you, lips swollen and eyes still dark with lingering want. He looked like a fucking dream - truly, a vision. Of all the times you’d imagined Fives touching and feeling you, having him devour you the way he was at the moment was nothing you could have ever dreamt of. 

“You look so beautiful.” Fives stood up from his crouching position, softly positioning your quivering legs back on the bed. You doubted that you looked at all attractive with the way you were panting like you’d just ran a marathon, loose strands of hair sticking to your face from sweat. Shaking your head with unfocused eyes, you reached your hand out to him and he took it, allowing you to pull him on top of you. His lips attacked yours once again, but more delicately this time. Feeling the hard bulge straining in his black pants rubbing against your oversensitive cunt made you moan; Fives swallowing it and volleying back with his own. He lifted his head and broke the kiss, staring right into your heavy eyes.

“I want this... so badly,” he confessed, seeming just a little too shy for the way he just made you see the fucking Maker with his fingers and tongue. You couldn’t contain the giggle that made it past your lips as you reached down to palm at his clothed member.

“Take these off,” you cooed, attempting to wiggle his pants off his hips with just one hand. 

Once Fives was completely bare, he leaned back over you, resting on his forearms that sat on either side of your head. You lifted your head slightly for another kiss as he grabbed himself to line up with your burning entrance. Your head fell right back down once the bulbous head of his perfect cock breached you; a mumbled curse fell from your lips as he slowly rolled his hips against yours. 

“You’re so beautiful, Ren... so tight, so warm.” Your eyes nearly rolled into your skull as he inched all the way inside of you, pausing for a moment so as to get adjusted to one another. Your eyes locked with Fives’ as he started moving; the roll of his hips slow and deliberate as he hit the deepest part inside you over and over again. The eye contact made it just all the more intimate; watching one another’s reaction to the exquisite feeling of being this close to each other was pure bliss. You watched his brows crease in concentration as that dark look in his golden eyes grew all the more prominent, and you knew he was watching the way your mouth looked as broken curses tumbled off your tongue. Your hands flew up to rest against his buzzed head, rubbing soothing circles into his scalp as he tilted his head back down to suck at your collarbone. 

This was the most intimate you’d ever been with somebody, but something within you was telling you that Fives was holding back for some reason - not giving you his all - that he was capable of more.

“Fives,” you breathed out, steadily rocking against the mattress from each deep thrust, “don’t hold back, baby. Give me you.” His eyes widened, quickly followed by a grunt of approval. Only a moment later he was nearly pulled all the way out of you just to slam himself right back in, making you shriek. Gasps made it made it past your devilish smile as he picked up the pace.

“Like that?” He snapped his hip so fucking hard and deep. “You want me to fuck you hard, Ren?” Unable to form a coherent response, you mumbled something akin to a confirmation; his quick and hard thrusts sent you scooting up higher on the bed with every smack of his hips against the underside of your thighs with the slight nodding of your head. Your eyes were squeezed shut and your arm was draped over your face, stifling the moans that erupted from deep within.  

Fives grabbed your arm and threw it away from your face and breathed out between grunts, “Look at me, beautiful girl. R-remember what I said before? I want to s-see you cry from how good I’m making you feel.” Not knowing it was even possible, his hips slapped against you at an even quicker pace as he leaned on one arm to grab your hip with the other. The angle he was thrusting into at made him hit deep inside - hitting the spot that had you seeing the fucking Maker themselves again.

He continued to pound you into the mattress, beads of sweat forming on his brow framing his hungry eyes. Those perfect lips were parted, allowing the deepest of grunts and groans to filter through. Between the shared noises of pleasure, the quick smacking of skin meeting skin, and the squelching coming from his cock entering and exiting your throbbing pussy - your ears were on fire and the heat burning deep within you exploded into an intense climax. With a squealed out cry, your hands flew up to his back, pressing your nails deep into his thick skin, making him groan. Tears stemming from insane pleasure formed in your eyes, dripping down past your temples and onto the sheets beneath you.

“I feel you, beautiful. Cum for me - cum all over my c- gah-” The clenching of your spasming pussy that accompanied your orgasm made Fives break off his command as he dropped his head to rest on your collarbone, his cock pulsating within you. With just another few hard but lazy thrusts, liquid warmth spurted inside you as he held himself deep within your throbbing cunt.

He was no longer holding himself up - his full weight fell right on top of you, pretty much squeezing any remaining oxygen out of your lungs but you didn’t care at that moment. The both of you stayed still for a few minutes, letting your breaths return to normal and relishing each other’s post-sex scent. 

When he finally lifted himself and pulled out of you, you didn’t even register that you were still crying until he wiped away the tears with the same fingers he had inside you, still sticky with your juices. You were crying because of two things: one, Fives made you feel more pleasure than anyone had ever, and two, there was something screaming at you from the back of your mind that though this was your first time with Fives - it may be your last. You didn’t want to think about that, but the memory of Fives being inexplicably missing that entire day after a meeting you had no idea what went on in, it was the only thing you could think about. 

No. Now was not the time to think about that.

Fives rested beside you, pulling you into his arms, mimicking that first time you’d shared the bed with one another. “They’re after me,” he mumbled flatly after a minute of silence, his chin jutting against the top of your head as he spoke. 

“Because of the chips.” It meant to come out as a question, but you already knew the answer; this whole fucking thing was about those damn chips. Fives didn’t respond right away, instead squeezing your spent body just a little bit tighter in his arms, pressing you further into him. He inhaled deeply, letting the air softly escape from his nostrils. 

“Because... I attacked the Chancellor.”

...wh- what?

“You did what?” You attempted to break out of his arms so you could look him in the eyes - to see if he was kidding, but your weak struggling was no match for his enhanced strength. Sighing in defeat, your tone softened, “What happened at that meeting, Fives?”

“Renna... I want to tell you, I just-” A beat. “I would be putting you in danger.” 

Rolling your eyes even though he couldn’t see your face, you scoffed, “More so than I already am? Fives, I was part of the shit that went down on Kamino. I’m in on this.”

“But you don’t know the extent of just how high up this conspiracy goes, Ren, and it needs to stay that way.” His arms tightened. He was just being protective, you decided, but it wasn’t fair. 

“Fives,” you pleaded, grasping onto his thick forearms. You murmured into the air towards the wall beside the bed, “Please tell me. I want to help you. Please.”

“I... have to go soon, Ren.” He sounded unsure - apologetic. Regretful. Nervous. 

“...but I don’t think we have the luxury of time right now...”

Fives’ words replayed in your head. You didn’t think anything of it at the time, since he was just about to give you the most intense and intimate pleasure you’d ever known in your life, but it hit you. Tears started forming in your eyes again as the thoughts you had buried deep in the back of your mind made their way to the front at full force. He must’ve heard your quiet sobs as you attempted to muffle them, because in only a moment you were released then flipped to lay on your other side - facing Fives. The feeling of him wiping your tears was all too familiar - a feeling that shouldn’t be familiar, in a perfect galaxy. Would the galaxy ever be perfect?

“Wh-where will you go?” Where will he go? “You’re... a fugitive, Fives.”

“Yeah, I know,” he huffed. “They even got the Corrie Guard after me. I need to find Rex, or- or General Skywalker.”

“Find them... and then what?”

“Explain myself, if they’ll let me. I at least need to try.”

“Fives, what in Maker’s name-”

“Please, trust me. I’ll... be okay.” He broke away from your eyes, staring off at the wall behind you.

That was flat out lie, and you both knew it. You attempted to study his blank expression for a moment before his eyes flickered back to yours.

“When I find Rex I’ll tell him about your involvement. He should be able to keep you safe. I’ll- I’ll come find you after I speak with him, okay?”

“Keep me safe...” You mumbled the words under your breath in pure disbelief; Fives simply nodded in confirmation, a crease resting in between his brows as his gaze bore into yours.

“If Rex hears me out, then he’ll understand. He’s a good man... always willing to do the right thing.” It sounded as though Fives was saying that to himself rather than to you - as a reminder. 

You decided to leave it at that, not having enough energy to press his stubborn self any more on the subject. Nuzzling your face into his bare chest, you inhaled deeply - a way to keep his scent in your mind for after he leaves. Fives was warm, both his physical form and his overall energy. Safe. His arms wrapped around your back, pulling you further into his comforting warmth. You were on the edge of sleep, eyelids becoming heavy and breathing deepening. You wanted to stay awake, though, to make the most of your time with Fives. 

You just weren’t sure if you’d see him again after he goes.

“Just promise me-” He paused, sucking in a clump of air, “Just stay aware of your surroundings, okay? I’m not sure where you’re at with returning to Kamino... but I don’t think you should.” 

“Okay,” your voice was barely audible, coming out as a faint mumble muffled against his skin. 

That settled it. You would not return to Kamino. 

What would you do, though? Are you quitting? What will you do if Fives-

“After I find Rex and the General... there’s no telling what’ll happen. No matter the outcome... I’m not sure what the next steps are. For once, I don’t have a plan, Ren. I’m gonna need your help, but we can talk about that when I come back to you, yeah?” He started to rub smoothing circles on your back, digging deep into your muscles while placing a kiss atop your head and squeezing you tighter. “I’m just... glad you weren’t at that meeting with the Chancellor.”

“Apparently my presence wasn’t requested by the Chancellor,” you mumbled in annoyance, that similar feeling of anger towards the long-neck bubbling up within you. Fives let out a quiet huff in reply, seemingly trying to dodge giving an appropriate response towards your resentful statement. You didn’t expect him to respond; however, you’d just realized that Fives somehow managed to find your apartment during the night, with no explicit directions given to him from you. “How... did you find me? I never told you where I lived.” 

He replied with a light chuckle, “Do you not know me by now?” Offering a half-smile he pushed you away from his chest so you could meet his eyes, placing a quick kiss on your damp forehead. “I’ll always find you, Renna.”

***

tags: @deewithani @chromia7567 @threevie @letitrainathousandflames @latenightsthoughtsnstuff @thefact0rygirl @justanothersadperson93 @ohtobeamoth @bvcketfvcker​ @salty-sith-bitch​ @iwannaclonetrooper​ @cyaniderainfall

[seeingteacupsindragons]

So, Liam.

LiamLiamLiamLiam, the best boy, the goodest boy, the saddest, most depressed boy.

(who, uh, is 27 now and not really a boy anymore, is he? But we’ll talk about that!).

He did little in this chapter and said even less, so talking about him now is a game of assumptions and triangulations which I’m not entirely keen on, but I’ve been asked to play it, so let’s see what I can parse out.

This was the most direction question I got about him this chapter, so let’s start here.

Am…I the only one who thought Liam was willing to consider living by this point here?

This is after he admitted defeat to Sherlock, and just before he launches into his “A world where I live and atone might have been possible, but fate won’t forgive me,” thing. He does say after this that he only wants Sherlock to live and return, but at this point, I don’t think William actually sees a way to survive this mess, and definitely not one where he lives with Sherlock.

It is, after all, intensely unlikely that they’d survive this fall, and they only did because Billy fished them out of the river and got them immediate medical attention. He wasn’t wrong.

So I think he was willing to consider living, but not at risk of Sherlock’s life.

Fortunately, YuuMori has at this point spared us a long coma dream for Liam about how he needed to deal with his demons before waking up. I think Sherlock’s argument, and more importantly, Sherlock’s determination, made enough of an impression on Liam for Liam to live. Sherlock won, and Sherlock wanted him to live.

So he’ll live. That part didn’t really surprise me.

Beyond that, I have a couple questions I really want answers to, and without them it’s very difficult figure things out:

Why did Sherlock and Liam separate with Sherlock having no apparent intention to return?

Where is Liam now, and what is Liam doing now?

For the first, Sherlock and Liam can’t have gotten into a fight. Sherlock is too happy and Liam knew where he was, and Sherlock was too willing to drop everything to go help Liam out for them to be fighting. And I also can’t quite conceive of them being like, “oh, okay, we had enough time together, bye forever.” So what gives?

I don’t know. But I suspect it ties into the other questions.

Meanwhile, I can’t imagine he just decided to dump everything on Sherlock. First off, that’s the weirdest atonement story ever, and secondly, William has always had a problem refusing to delegate and trying to do too much on his own.

Which is really one of the most important things we’ve learned about him this chapter: William is willing to ask for help now. He’s willing to work as someone’s partner, and did so for years.

He has never, ever done this before. He almost never asks for anything. He orders his subordinates and his brothers around sometimes, but mostly only when he absolutely has to. Anything he can do himself, he does himself.

(It’s very annoying, honestly, and part of the reason Louis is a better boss than Mr. Overly Involved In Your Job)

But he went and asked Sherlock for help. Sherlock, minimally, really isn’t working for the US government anymore, and Liam might well not be either, but he still goes to Sherlock for help when he needs it. Sherlock is still his partner.

He’s asked Sherlock for help before twice: finding Bill (which was an exchange for his advice, sort of), and when he asked Sherlock to give the story of Sherlock Holmes’s nemesis and ending.

The first of those was largely meaningless. The second was the most selfish he’d ever been up to that point, but it was also heavily tied to his ultimate goal of saving the country (or at least, he made the two things related). So he wasn’t just asking for himself (or at least he could probably tell himself that).

But asking Sherlock to go talk to his brother to deal with Moran? Liam sent him in to go deal with the people he loves most in the world. People who meant everything to him. William is trusting Sherlock with more than his life here. More, even, than trusting him with the new world he attempted to give Sherlock. He’s trusting Sherlock with his brother (who has never gotten along with Sherlock, and has never liked or trusted Sherlock).

He still sent Sherlock there, without a word of his own to reassure Louis. He could’ve sent a telegram in care of Sherlock for Louis, if he wanted to. But he put all his faith in Sherlock to deal with the situation.

So that’s pretty huge for William. And it means, whatever he’s doing, he’s grown up, just as Sherlock has. And he’s realized what a mess he left behind him in Britain and is working, somehow, to fix it.

[artmunstudios]

What's 2 similarities & 2 differences U have noticed between Ozpin & Oscar?

Aaahh I was wondering if you were going to ask me! I’ve been seeing you around asking this question and the answers have all been interesting! So I’ll take on a response that people aren’t taking on then, yes? This will be a long post, so if anyone is interested in reading past the first analysis just click the ‘read more’!

Their Origins

Ozpin is at the core based off of two characters. One of those characters, Oscar is also connected to. There are obviously more characters and whatnot they reference, but for the sake of simplicity, I will only be addressing their clear initial inspiration. Ozpin is based off of The Wizard of Oz, also known as Professor Oz primarily in the Oz Book Series; but his full name is Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs, which he abbreviated to Ozpin Head. (Thank you @immortal-green-snom for this tidbit!!!) In the book series, after he had left in the air balloon in an attempt to help Dorothy get home, Professor Oz was revealed to have done a lot of slimy and heinous things to keep the throne of the Emerald City, and by extension, the Land of Oz itself. While he does get better in the latter books he reappears in, he was portrayed as being manipulative, a bit pathetic, but extremely intelligent and a master of illusions. I wouldn't be surprised if the writers of RWBY were trying to get that across in Ozpin's traits, but to be quite honest, they kinda failed at making him even a morally grey character, as a lot (not all, he isn't guitless, but again, a lot) of the arguments used in-show, and the FNDM itself, are all about things that were either not in his control, or something that was painted as being his fault/harmful, but was actually the opposite of the situation. The biggest example of this is Raven trying to trick Yang and Weiss into believing Ozpin had forced her and Qrow to become birds/have the ability to do so. In a lot of ways, Ozpin and Professor Oz are actually opposites of one another in terms of personalities, which may have in actuality been the overall intention CRWBY had, but we can only speculate. Professor Oz is extremely selfish, while Ozpin is selfless, even to a point where it actually becomes harmful to others. Professor Oz would have done anything to be in power, while Ozpin has done everything to relinquish himself of a position of power, which I find very interesting. This may be due to him even trying to somehow relinquish the burden the God of Light has placed on Oz as a whole, but is ultimately unable to give up that specific task. Even though, truthfully, he needed to relinquish that particular stronghold all along. Professor Oz is clearly a leader, and despite his negative traits, is actually a very good one. Ozpin...as much as I love him as a character, is not the greatest leader. He is, however, an excellent advisor/second-in-command. Professor Oz is only a mere mortal man pretending to be something more, while Ozpin is something bigger than a mortal man, but is pretending to be nothing but a man. Expanding upon this, they also are desperate to be the opposite of what they are. Professor Oz wants to be what he portrayed himself as, and for Ozpin, it's very much the same situation. There is a lot more I could say, but let's move on to Oscar!

Oscar Pine, like Ozpin, is based off of two characters at the core. Again, it is likely that he represents more than two, but for the sake of simplicity, let's discuss only the two. From the moment I saw Oscar, I knew right away that he was based off of my favorite character from the Oz Book Series...Tip. Tip, short for Tippetarius, was too a farmboy who longed for much more, who knew that there was more out there, despite being notably content in their lifestyle. The only difference was that Tip was a slave to an evil witch, but he escapes her in the second chapter with a companion. He is described as being just like any boy; rugged, mischievous, playful, and a lover of all things fun while still being quite shrewd. Unlike Ozpin and Professor Oz, Tip and Oscar are, in fact, extremely alike. Even down to their colors and appearance. Despite how Tip is colored, he actually has light brown skin (though considering the time period, we all know why this fact was dismissed), and black hair. And his treasured beanie cap was green and orange. His clothes also had a primary color scheme of brown, and were dirty due to the work he had done on the farm. Oscar and Tip have the exact same personalities, which was what affirmed to me that Oscar was meant to be his primary parallel. What got me the most was their sarcasm. Tip is still the most sarcastic and genuinely street-smart protagonists in the Oz Books. Not to say there were no other protags like that, but there was something to be said about how Tip was one of the few protagonists to actually act as a leader in the traveling group. Just like Oscar, Tip is also quite emotional, and they both have a sharp temper that they express not in loud outbursts, but by quips that you know could be quite hurtful if they wanted them to be. However, between the two, Tip is the loudest, should you put them in the same room. However, I suspect that as time goes on, Oscar might start becoming quite vocal when he doesn't like something, as I've noticed that the more he develops, the more he acts like Tip. Their behaviors are similar as well; when something personal is going on between two parties who clearly knew each other before him, both Oscar and Tip have a tendency to hang back and simply let the moment play out. They both start out as being sort of bystanders, just going with the flow while occassionally giving very good advice/strategies, but they start to become more of a leader as time goes on. In fact, leadership seems to be in their blood. There is actually a reason for this.

Ozma of Oz

There is a single thread that connects both Oscar and Ozpin, and that is the second primary character they represent. That character is the infamous Princess/Queen Ozma of Oz. Ozma, in many ways, is a lot like both Ozpin and Oscar; and may be the kind of person they become once the merging is complete. She is shrewd, but gentle. Sarcastic and blunt, but very elegant and fun-loving. They have a particular grace in how they handle their politics, but she admittedly gets into more trouble than rulers of kingdoms should. She is, ultimately, the perfect archetype of a ruler. And had completely reformed The Emerald City to be an environment that is very much like Vale's open-mindedness, with the advanced technology and efficiency of Atlas. Ozma, in the books, was actually revealed to be Tip; or rather, Tip was Ozma. After being transformed into a boy as a baby by a witch under Professor Oz's command, they were whisked away by said witch, and had been working under that witch until they had escaped as a young boy. Many speculate that Ozma was meant to represent the transgender community, and I know many transgenders see Ozma as an icon. Frank Baum was the type of guy that wrote things that were ahead of his time, and seen as very controversial by the few who could actually read the metaphors planned out. It was even implied in the later books that Ozma and Dorothy get married, and there were many illustrations made from the original novel illustrators of Ozma and Dorothy looking like a couple. What's even greater is that despite the change of gender from Tip to Ozma, she still very much contains her boyish traits despite the frills and queenly garb. As stated in one of the last lines in the second Oz Book;

"I hope none of you will care for me less than you did before. I am still the same Tip you know..."

When I realized Oscar was Tip, I knew Ozma was going to be put into the equation. I just,,,, wasn't expecting..... t h a t.

Oscar and Ozpin

Time to actually answer the question I was asked JSDJFDKDFKFK--

Oscar and Ozpin are different in one particular way: Trust. Ozpin trusts nobody. Truthfully, he doesn't even trust himself, I don't think, and that is likely why he didn't have much of a plan these days. He doesn't trust himself to be competent enough to complete the task assigned to him, he doesn't trust humanity to pass, hell, I don't think he even trusts the Gods to be capable of taking care of humanity considering the shit job they did in the past, and how poorly they have handled Ozma and Salem. In simple terms, Ozpin trusts too little. Oscar, on the other hand, trusts...a little too much. There, I said it. And I'm willing to say it again. Oscar trusts too much. Whether or not that will change after the end of V7 and what happened in V8 is left for debate. Oscar seems almost incapable of seeing the downside in some situations, like, for example, confronting a General who has completely gone off the deep end, unarmed and alone. And he trusted a man who needlessly beat the shit out of him for something that nobody, not even Salem, were truly at fault for. And while that trust paid off, unlike how it did in the past, it is a bit of an alarming trait that I genuinely think will simmer down either after all that happened in V8, or it will eventually when that trust truly bites him in the ass.

Another polarization between Oscar and Ozpin: faith. This ties in a little bit with the trust theme, but there is enough to talk about on its own. While Ozpin does believe that humanity is overall good, I think he has lost faith in their capability to work together long enough for there to be any sort of permanent peace. And, admittedly, he isn't wrong to think that. I think you would have to be very foolish if you genuinely think there will ever be a point where humanity will stop fighting amongst themselves; in other words, Ozpin is fully aware that the God of Light's task is genuinely impossible. And honestly? I think the GoL knows it is, too. Oscar has faith as well, but he views the dire circumstance in a different way that may be the key to solve the seemingly unending puzzle of Salem and their task. He gets faith in humanity not through the overall picture, but in the smallest things. Oscar likely believes that it doesn't matter if all of humanity is united, because he too knows that will never happen. But, he is certain that there is a lot more power in the smallest of unions and actions; a racist woman reforming and helping to comfort a faunaus child. A woman who helped a group of people tear down a kingdom realize the fault of their actions, and try to save another kingdom's people. A man who, while being genuinely wise, was so blinded by rage that he could not see past his own nose, change in order to save what little good has sprouted from something so terrible that he helped sow. The little things matter so much more, and unlike Ozpin, he doesn't think that they need to grow any further than that.

So, what makes them similar? Two distinct things. They both are very personal. Even if it is in different forms of expressing, Oscar and Ozpin are quite personal, especially when it comes to their advice. But they also really feel for the person they are talking to. And while Ozpin felt Hazel was too far gone, he felt for him and understood and even agreed with his anger. Their empathy is truly something else; and it is also their weakest point. Not to say that having empathy is bad, but their empathy leads into another trait that they have in common... They let people walk all over them. All. The. Time. To a point where it is actually very frustrating, and it even hinders their development as characters. Ozpin let Ironwood walk all over him, and never spoke in defense for himself. Ozpin let the council walk all over him, and never defended himself. Ozpin allowed for so much of the blame to be placed on his own shoulders, that it is extremely unhealthy, and something I wish the show would address, but have come to accept that it won't. Especially when this trait is reflected in Oscar as well. He blamed himself for failing to convince Ironwood, he allowed for Jaune to verbally and physically attack him, and outright refused to let Jaune apologize. They both brush off their wellbeing so often, that watching Oscar do the same only confirms to me the suspicions I had as to why everyone was genuinely so blind to figure out what was going on in their heads and when they were struggling. Because both Oscar and Ozpin refuse to acknowledge their own struggles and shortcomings.

But, to be frank, that is more of a writing issue than a character reflection, in my personal opinion. And I'll continue to see it that way until the show actively acknowledges that unhealthy behavior.

There ya go! My very very long analysis of Oscar and Ozpin; I hope I brought something unique among the batch of this question!

[thefallennightmare]

Vas Prizrak-Four

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Words: 1370

Warnings: swearing, some smut, fluff, lots of angst.

Summary:  Bucky and Reader’s life in Wakanda had been everything they ever wanted. But when they are told about the fight that was on it’s way to them, they fear that life would be dusted away for good.

A/N: I’m hoping to get a few more chapters out today but who knows! Don’t forget, tags are open for this story still!

The sheets were cold, warmth fleeting a long time ago, and I cuddled the pillow closer to my chest as I tried to think it was something else. 

Someone else. 

Tears had stained the pillowcase multiple times and no matter how many times it was washed, the tears remained. The soft, quiet sobs that I tried to keep to myself, hoping I wouldn’t wake the others. But I knew that no matter how quiet I was, there was always one person there to help dry the tears. 

The first few nights were the roughest, crying out his name in my dreams. Nightmares. I couldn’t sleep because I would always see his face, his ghost haunting me. I refused to leave the room because I didn’t want to see anyone. Nat had tried bringing me something to eat a couple of times but when she came back hours later to the untouched plate still in the same spot outside the door, she gave up. 

We were all grieving, I knew that, but they didn’t know that I was grieving something extra. No one understood the pain I had gone through. 

No one. 

I knew that they were all busy looking for Thanos to undo the snap but they were all idiots. We barely made it out alive and now they want to go after him again? With less numbers? Half of the world had vanished in the snap, it was a ghost town out there. 

Again, idiots. 

Rolling over to the other side of the bed, my broken eyes glanced up to the adjacent bathroom in the room. The body stood in front of the mirror, contemplation clear on his face. He looked from the mirror to the object in his hand. His muscles tensed underneath his tank top as he leaned closer to the mirror, making his decision. 

Once finished, he looked towards my reflection in the mirror. His sad eyes raked over my body, a sigh leaving his lips. He knew that trying to get me out of bed to eat something or even take a shower was a pointless argument. I only did things on my terms, when I wanted. 

But with the broken state of myself in front of him, he knew that he couldn’t allow me to continue on like this. 

The shower had turned on with a start causing my body to jump at the noise. 

Silence was still tangled between us as he gently pulled me to my feet. I tried to fight against him but after weeks of fighting, I was tired. 

“Steve,” I muttered. 

“Don’t!” He demanded. 

Without another word, he placed his hands on my shoulders and led me towards the bathroom. He motioned towards the shower with a quick nod. 

“I’ll give you five minutes. When you’re finished, we’re going to the common room to eat something.” 

Once alone, I reluctantly stripped out of my clothes, letting the warm water cascade down over my body. The warm water had instantly relaxed the ache in my muscles and I silently cursed myself for not trying this earlier. 

Steve was the one who had helped me through the hell the last few weeks had become. I tried to sleep alone the first few nights but after the third night of screams for Bucky, Steve had brought me to his room. He refused to let me deal with this loss alone. 

We were never intimate. We did share a bed but that was it. He wouldn’t allow whatever lingering feelings he had left for me get in the way of me trying to heal. 

If it wasn’t for Steve, I would have put a bullet in my brain 21 days ago; the night Bucky disappeared. 

“Y/N?” 

I quickly wrapped a towel around myself and shut off the water, letting Steve know that he was good to come inside. 

“Natasha bought you some more clothes,” Steve mentioned while setting another bag of clothes next to the other six bags. 

The only clothes I had chosen to wear were Bucky’s shirts, hoping that the scent would be enough to make me think he was actually here. 

It didn’t. 

I nodded to Steve while sitting on the edge of the bed, eyes immediately connecting to the picture frame on the end table. 

Bucky and I in Romania, all those years ago. My fingers played with the necklace he had bought for my birthday. I never took it off. 

“I’ll let you get dressed.” 

Steve went to walk away but stopped when I reached for his hand. 

“You can stay. I’ll get dressed in the bathroom,” I stated. 

He nodded and I could feel his eyes on my back as I hesitantly grabbed some clothes from the bags that Natasha had bought. 

Once I had completely dressed, I mentioned to Steve that he could uncover his eyes. He had walked into the bathroom, leaning against the door frame to watch me. 

I stood in front of the mirror, grimacing at my broken state. The circles under my eyes had darken and my hair was starting to dry in a knotted mess. Running a brush through it, I peaked at Steve through the mirror. 

“Thank you.” 

All he did was nod in response. 

“Are you hungry?” He questioned. 

I shook my head. “I don’t want to see anyone.” 

“They’re worried about you, Y/N.” Steve said. “They haven’t seen you since we came back to the compound.” 

“I know, Steve.” I sighed, turning myself to face him. 

I leaned against the sink and crossed my arms over my chest. “I can’t look any of them in the eye. I understand that they’ve also lost people they loved but knowing what I lost.” 

My words trailed off, unable to finish the sentence. 

Steve knew, however, and pulled me into his embrace. “You don’t have to tell them.” 

“It’s not fair, Steve.” I looked into his eyes, the bare skin of his face smelling like fresh aftershave. “The only piece I had left of Bucky disappeared along with him.” 

He gently placed a hand over my stomach, ghosting over the place where mine and Bucky’s unborn baby used to grow. His lips parted to speak but closed when the tower began to shake, almost as if an earthquake was happening. 

Before I could argue, Steve was pulling me along with him towards the main common hall of the Avengers Compound. 

I watched as Tony lay in one of the hospital beds in the med bay of the compound, Pepper stuck to his side like glue. 

He had been floating in space for the last twenty three days but was saved by a new friend, Carol Danvers. 

Or Captain Marvel as she called herself. 

Tony said that he had fought Thanos on his home planet, ultimately losing in the end, just like we had. 

“This is stupid,” I muttered to the remaining members of our team. “We went after him with double the army and we still lost!” 

Steve sighed. “We have to try, Y/N.” 

“To what, kill him?” I scoffed. “We tried that!” 

“You didn’t have me last time.” 

My eyes snapped over towards the new blood of the room. 

“Do you even know where he is?” I asked Carol. 

“I know some people who might,” she stated. 

“Don’t bother, I know exactly where he is.” 

The other new blood, a robot named Nebula, spoke this time. From the brief introductions, I gathered that she was the daughter of Thanos. If it wasn’t for Steve stopping me, she would have been burnt to ash the second those words came from her. 

“So he’s retired to a planet?” Rhodey asked. 

“He used the stones again,” Nat said, astonished. 

I couldn’t believe that we were even discussing this and I couldn’t believe that I had ultimately agreed to it. Even if there was a slight chance that I would be able to bring Bucky back, along with everyone else that had vanished, I owed it to him to at least try. He wouldn’t want me to sit on my ass anymore; I needed to fight.

“Let’s go get this son of a bitch,” I cursed while leaving them all behind.