#(excluding that one day where i went on a trip home JUST to join my brother's bday dinner)

[airenyah]

once again it's time to filter last twilight since i'm not gonna have time to watch it until right before i go to sleep rip

[khorren]

have 1, 4, 5, and 8 from the gw2 human asks for whoever you want! :) @kerra-and-company

Thank you for the ask. Smooch. <3

Counted my humans (excluding Nat, Cosima, and Xunlai) at 11 and did a RNG number picker based off my character page and got 6. So that's….. Ruby! Haha oh god she's lived for yaknow, 300ish years so we've got a lot to unpack here!

1) How do they feel about charr? Big Feelings (tm) to say the least. So Ruby was involved in the GW1 storyline. She grew up in the middle of nowhere off in the Tarnished Coast with her witchy mama and her sister, Kiz. When the White Mantle were poking around looking for Bloodstones Ruby and Kiz went off to Lion's Arch to look for people to come help chase off the Mantle, only to run into the Ascalonian group. Realising they're half-related (same dad) the sisters joined the cause. Knowing their step-family were chased out of their homes by Charr they took a strong dislike to the beasts. Once the events of Prophecies was over, Kiz along with one of the Ascalonian lot, Cea, went back to Ascalon to help getting more people out of Ascalon and safely into the settlements in Kryta. Except the pair of them died to charr attacks. Ruby found out and was just absolutely devestated. Years passed and she still had a lot of hatred for the charr, even when the Ebonhawke Treaty was signed (which her daughter played a part in) she will not trust them and is very uneasy around them. There's about 4 charr in the whole world that she will be near / listen to and even then she is very very suspicious of them and cagey around them. She'd much rather they be rugs on her floors.

2) do they have any strong ties with their heritage? Her mother was into the Aggression and Denial schools of magic. So magic heritage is more her thing than cultural/family. While magic isn't considered these ways anymore, that's a lot of what Ruby picked up on, so her magic isn't strictly "Necromancer". Pressure, punishment, snaring, and shutdown she learned from her mother and prefers that over things like creating minions. The Ascalonian kids have much more of a connection to their heritage, but since Ruby was sort of just this weird jungle kid during her youth she didn't know much outside of her mother. Which is amusing as she became the de facto Fae Family genealogy expert, keeping track of hundreds of blood relatives after GW1 timeline stuff.

5) describe their childhood. So Ruby, Kiz and their mama lived in the Tarnished Coast keeping very much to themselves for the most part. An annual trip to Lion's Arch for seeds, grains, other stuff to grow, then back to the jungle. Their lives were simple and it was mostly magic training, survival training that sort of thing. Mama knew she'd be sending their kids off an adventure one day so she wanted to train them well. They knew from an early age who their father was and they met him once or twice, purely by luck, when he was passing through Lion's Arch (he was a traveling merchant and would dock in every port IYKWIM wink). Kiz thinks she met Zoe once, but she may have just been lying about that. But still, it helped the Tarnished Coast kids connect to the Ascalonian kids.

8) do you have an in-game location for their “home?” Yes! Ruby has two places and they're both in Divinity's Reach. She has a big fancy house in Rurikton, where she puts on the graces of a noble. I think it was this house, though it has a much more impressive front door (this house seriously has like one side door to it. wtf lol).

People generally think she's just some fancy noble with a lot of knowledge about human history and an interest in the Flameseeker Prophecies. A lot of people claim to have ancestors who were the heroes, but Ruby was yaknow, actually there. Still, she'll humour them and smile and go "Oh me too…."

Then she has a place in the East Commons where she actually keeps all her shit from the past 300 or so years.

Quiet little place, the nearby NPC "Alleyway lurker" is one of her people who just watches over the place and reports any suspicious activity. But on the inside it's a cozy little place, if a little run down. The hidden basement is just full of stuff about the family and human history. She'll make a copy of something and give it to the Priory once in a while to keep them sweet. But there's a lot of stuff down there relating to Ascalon, Kryta, Orr, Tarnished Coast, also a lot of information about the Charr, the legions, the Khan-Ur. Know your enemy and all that jazz.

[diaryofanangrybitch]

ARGH

July 2024

hello it’s me again. i’m back in melbourne and settled into my usual routine again. going away was fun and cool and all that but it was also terrifying. the night before my flight, i was SOBBING. my anxiety levels were so high, i disconnected from my surroundings and sat on my glasses. there was no way i was getting on that plane. but i did (im so brave).

the first few days in amsterdam were hell. not because i didn’t want to be there or wasn’t enjoying myself, but because everything was different. i didn’t know where i was, i couldn’t eat any of the food and i didn’t have any of my usual comforts with me. i started to question why i’d come in the first place. i didn’t have to go to europe. my life at home is perfectly fine. but, i persevered and things soon started to settle.

then, the trauma hit. i didn’t realise how badly this place impacted me until we were driving through my old neighbourhood, stopping by the places that created my desire for camouflage.

every culture has certain social norms and values and in every culture, there’s pressure to fit into those norms. in the netherlands, this pressure is extreme. my time there is underpinned by a crippling fear of being mocked and rejected. there is a certain mould every person needs to fit into. It dictates what they wear, what they talk about, what their interested in, and just about everything else about their life. if you fall outside that mould, you aren’t just excluded from the pack, you’re actively targeted. and alone. there’s no group of outcasts you can join. there are no haves and have-note. there’s just haves and you.

everyone experiences some level of pressure to fit in, but this pressure was something else entirely. it was a beast you simply could not fight.

that pressure set a horrific precedent. by the time i moved back to australia, that pressure was so deeply rooted, it took years to undo. i wasn’t used to being able to have my own interests, without being mocked. i wasn’t used to being able to express myself. i wasn’t used to it being okay to be different.

i’d grown so used to being forced down a certain path, that i didn’t know it was okay for me to chose a different one.

it made me vulnerable. all these men had to do was tell me it was normal, and i wouldn’t protest. all i had to fear was shame.

the true extent of those years in that environment was unclear to me until i returned there. i felt it straight away — that unbearable pressure. walking through melbourne, there’s hundreds of people all showing off different looks and different styles. in the netherlands, theres an occasional outlier, but the variation is minimal. same makeup, same hairdo, same bags, same coats. there’s a particular style there that is so widespread, it’d rare to find another. i used to think my view of this was just exaggerated, but being back there made me realise that it wasn’t. that mould is still there, and just as strong as it was when i lived there. they know it’s there, too. i don’t keep my opinions a secret. those i spoke to said the same — the social expectations there are extensive and unreasonable.

my psychosomatic symptoms went through the roof. by the end of my trip, both my thighs were covered in bruises. that’s bad. usually, it’s just the outside of one of my legs. this time it was like two graffitied tree trunks. very uncool.

but at the end of the day, it was worth it. this was the whole reason i wanted to go back there to begin with. i wanted to remember what it was like. i wanted to see the things i’d forgotten and feel the things i’d suppressed. these reflections were exactly what i was after. they gave me more pieces of the puzzle i didn’t know i was missing.

and now, there isn’t a person on earth who could influence me into doing something i don’t want to, and there isn’t a person on earth who could convince me to sacrifice my own happiness for the comfort of others.

[waitimcomingtoo]

Dummy

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Synopsis: Peter is the only one of the Avengers who doesn’t tease you for being a little slow 

Masterlist

Now you weren’t exactly dumb.

You were just a little slow.

When you joined the Avengers last year, the team learned pretty quickly that your mind moved at a different pace than everyone else. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing and it didn’t keep you from doing your job, it just meant you were the butt of most of the jokes. Every time one of your blunders happened, your intelligence would be mocked in some way. You knew it was all in good fun, but it hurt to it feelings every now and then. The only person who never poked fun at you was Peter. And for that reason, he was your favorite on the team.

“How are there 23 minutes left in this movie and I still don’t know any of the characters names?” Steve wondered as you all sat in the couch in Stark Towers, watching a movie on a particularly rainy afternoon.

“I think the main kids name is Phoenix. That’s all I got though.” Sam shook his head, just as confused as Steve.

“The dogs name is Benson.” Bucky mumbled quietly.

“Who names their kid Phoenix?” Peter wondered out loud as he shoveled popcorn into his mouth. The two of you were tucked into the corner of the couch, sharing a blanket and bowl of popcorn. You looked at him like he was crazy when you heard his question.

“Ummm, Joaquin Phoenix’s parents.” You scoffed and rolled your eyes. You turned your attention back to the movie as a silence settled in the room. You felt everyone’s eyes on you after a minute and looked around to see everyone staring at you with a dumbfounded expression.

“What?” You asked shyly, shrinking down a little in your seat in discomfort.

“That’s his last name.” Sam stated, chuckling a little under his breath. You realized your mistake and felt your face heat up.

“Oh.” You mumbled, your voice getting drowned out as the rest of the Avengers laughed at your expense.

“Did she really just say that?” Nat looked at the group with a playful smile. Everyone, excluding Peter, nodded as their laughter died down.

“Oh my God.” Steve chuckled. “That’s so stupid.”

There was that word again.

He didn’t mean it maliciously. Steve was the kinda of guy who ushered spiders into a magazine so he could let them outside. And yet, it still stung when he said that word.

Stupid.

You smiled sheepishly and tried to focus on the movie, snuggling closer to Peters side until it ended. You were fully aware that he was the only one who didn’t laugh, and you loved him that.

And maybe you loved him for a few other reasons too.

~

“Alright. Who has money for the subway?” Sam asked the group as he patted his empty pockets. You were on another late night trip to get cookies from a specific shop in Times Square, leaving without Tony’s knowledge. Everyones hands went to their pockets and collectively made a face.

“Not me.” Rhodey shrugged.

“I don’t have any.” Bruce added.

“I don’t even have pockets.” Nat realized.

“I have gum.” Peter proudly produced a silver wrapper from his pocket. “Oh wait, it’s just a wrapper.”

“You’re telling me we’re earth’s mightiest heroes and we’re broke?” Sam shook his head is disdain.

“I gave my last dollar to a guy in the subway for playing music.” Peter defended himself.

“What was he playing?” You asked him as you tiredly leaned against his arm.

“A mandolin.” Peter answered, making your face scrunch up.

“That’s a language.” You laughed at him slightly, feeling empowered by having the upper hand. Everyone looked at you and a few of them snorted.

“Mandarin is a language.” Bruce said gently, not wanting to embarrass you further. “Not mandolin.” 

“What?” You blinked in confusion and looked to Peter for answers.

“A mandolin is an instrument, dummy.” Sam chortled. You smiled tightly as the group laughed at your mistake, looking down to hide your blush.

“Oh. Sorry. My bad.” You laughed shyly as you tucked your hair behind your ear and pretending to read a nearby sign.

“That’s okay.” Peter spoke up in your defense. “They sound really similar. Plus like, French, French Horn. Who knows what’s going on?”

“Yeah.” Bucky said softly. “Or like, bra’s aren’t pointy anymore.”

Bruce nodded like it made perfect sense and Sam just shook his head as he texted.

“What?” You whispered to Peter, not knowing what he meant.

“He’s from the 1920s. He’s still adjusting.” Peter whispered to you out of the corner of his mouth before looking at Bucky. “That’s the spirit. Kind of.”

“FRIDAY is sending a car.” Sam informed the group. “This is never happening again. The cookies aren’t that good.”

“They’re pretty good.” Rhodey shrugged, but wanting the late Nate tradition to end. Sam looked at him for a moment before breaking into a smile.

“Hell yeah they are. Let’s do this again tomorrow.”

~

Bruce found you in the lab the next day with a pin between your teeth and a pencil behind your ear. Papers with drawings of suits were scattered around the table as you measured a piece of black fabric.

“What are you doing?” Bruce wondered as he took a seat across from you. You glanced up at him before marking a dot on the fabric.

“Mr. Stark asked me to help him with the new suits. I’m trying to make a fabric template for Nat’s gloves.” You told him as you smoothed the fabric out.

“Is it hard?” He asked, watching you intently as you worked.

“Not really.” You shrugged and took a step back to examine your work. “Okay. How many holes do we need? 1,2,3,4,5.” You counted your fingers. “Okay. Five holes.”

You sat back down and put five dots where her fingers would be to mark where you had to cut. You heard a slight chuckle from Bruce and looked up at him curiously.

“Did you just count your fingers?” He asked slowly, wanting to make sure he saw what he thought he had. “To know how many fingers Nat has?”

Your face burned when you realized how dumb you looked, in front of a scientific genius no less.

“Oh, Uh, yeah.” You stammered, feeling very insecure with him watching you now. You moved slower than before and second guessed moves you’d already made a hundred times. Bruce sensed your discomfort and got out of his seat, tapping the table twice as he thought.

“Have you ever heard the expression “the lights are on but nobody’s home’?” He asked you and you were grateful he changed the subject.

“Yeah, I think I have.” You smiled, proud of yourself for knowing something.

“It reminds me of you.” Bruce said so politely that you didn’t realize it was an insult at first. He left the lab to find Tony, leaving you feeling embarrassed and a little hurt. Everyone knew Bruce could hurt you ten times worse with his words than the Hulk could with his fists, you’d just never been his target before. You slumped down in your seat and continued making the gloves, your mood significantly dampened from before he came in the room.

~

You walked into the kitchen the next morning, sleepily rubbing your eyes. You pressed a chaste kiss on Peters shoulder as you passed him, also more affectionate to your best friend when you were half asleep. You smiled at Rhodey, who was seated at the bar and skimming through a newspaper.

“Did you eat yet?” You asked him through a yawn as you got out yogurt and fruit for yourself.

“No. I needed my coffee first.” He smiled sleepily at you and held up his mug.

“Oh, you mean your sugar with a spoonful of coffee?” You teased him. “Yeah, it’s good you got that out of the way.”

“I prefer it this way. The sugar wakes me up.” Peter defended his drink as he took a sip.

“That’s what the caffeine is supposed to do, mi amor.” You laughed as you ruffled his bed head ridden hair. He was about to make a comeback when his stomach rumbles loudly.

“Someone’s hungry.” You remarked. “Do you want eggs?”

“No thanks.” Peter shook his head. “I can’t eat eggs alone.”

“Well I’m here. And Rhodey’s right there, so you’re not alone.” You told him. “And I can grab Steve and Bucky. They’re just in the other room.”

Rhodey looked up from his newspaper with raised eyebrows and looked at Peter. Peter set his mug down and made a face at Rhodey that told him not to say anything. You looked between the two of them in confusion as you wondered what was going on.

“I meant alone as in without toast, sweetness.” Peter said gently, not wanting you to feel dumb for misunderstanding. “But I am glad you’re here.”

“Oh.” You faked a smile and shrugged like it was no big deal. Peter had handled the situation with ease and you didn’t feel as embarrassed as you normally would. That is until…

“You know, Y/n, it’s a good thing you’re pretty.” Rhodey nodded before going back to his newspaper. You froze with your spoonful of yogurt midway to your mouth and looked at him. He didn’t actually call you dumb, but it was implied. You looked at Peter to see if he was thinking the same thing, but his face had nothing but kindness on it.

“You are pretty.” He agreed with Rhodey. “But you’re a lot of other things too.”

You cracked a smile and rubbed his back for a moment in appreciation.

“Thanks Peter.” You said softly and went back to your breakfast. Not wanting to worry him, you ignored the way Rhodey’s comment made you feel and tried to push it from your mind. But no hard you tried to focus on other things, you had one thought prodding at the back of your head.

You were dumb.

~

A week went by without anyone poking fun at your intelligence. You had a sneaking suspicion Peter had something to do with the lack of comments, but you said nothing. It was nice to have a break from all the teasing and it made hanging out with the team more enjoyable. You all lingered around the kitchen one day, eating all different kinds of lunch when Tony came in the room.

“Eat up, funky bunch.” He clapped his hands. “We have a mission in Alaska to train for and I need all hands on deck. Cap, do you think you can teach Peter that spinny thingy you do?”

“I can try.” Steve looked at Peter and nodded.

“Great. I’m getting a manicure. I’ll be back around noon.” Tony informed you all.

“Wait, I thought you said all hands on deck.” You tilted your head at him.

“I did. Which I why I have to make sure my hands look the best.” Tony waved flirtatiously, wiggling his fingers around like a teenage girl. He smirked as his action was met with some eye rolls and a few chuckles before leaving the room.

“I can’t believe we’re going to Alaska.” Peter nudged you excitedly and you smiled with glee.

“Is Alaska the same as the North Pole? Or am I thinking of Antarctica?” Sam wondered out loud.

“No. The North Pole is all the way at the top. Alaska is below California. Like by Texas.” You said confidently, proud that you knew information that someone else didn’t. Your pride quickly dissipated when you saw the teams faces twist in amusement.

“Wait a minute.” Steve looked at you like you were joking. You shrugged, letting him know you weren’t. Sam burst out laughing and clapped his hands as the rest of the team began to laugh.

“Absolutely not.” Sam grinned as he wiped a tear from his eye.

“Yes it is.” You insisted. “Look at any US map. It’s on the bottom by Hawaii.”

You were getting angry now. You knew you were right this time and they were still teasing you.

“No.” Bucky shook his head is dismissal. “No.”

“Alaska is below California on every map I’ve ever seen. You’re telling me I’m wrong?” You our your hand on your hip and stared at them.

“100%. I am 100% telling you you’re wrong.” Sam said between his laughter. Peter came to your side and showed you a picture of a map on his phone.

“Alaska is US territory but it’s not connected to the rest of the states. They just put it below California on maps to show it’s a part of the US. Thats not actually where it’s located.” He said quietly. You looked at the map for a few seconds before you realized he was right. And if he was right…

You were wrong.

“Oh.” You smiled apologetically and averted your eyes. “Oops.”

You turned around and pretending to clean up the kitchen to hide your searing blush. Your fingers clenched around your sponge when you heard the teasing laughter from behind you.

“Sometimes I wonder how you made it out of high school.” Steve joked as he threw out the crusts of his sandwich. The comment stung you and you began to scrub the counter faster so you could leave the room sooner. Peter could see your shoulders tense and put a reassuring hand on your back. You gave him a tight lipped smiled before putting your dish in the sink.

“I’m still wondering how she made it out of first grade.” Nat teased you and she poked your side.

“I can’t believe she made it out of the womb in the first place with nobody telling her where to go.” Sam said, making everyone laugh loudly. You abruptly threw a dish in the sink, making everyone go silent. You tuned around slowly and faked a smile.

“Haha. Yeah.” You forced a laugh. “I’ll catch you guys later.”

You swiftly left the room before anyone could catch your tears. You felt stupid for even getting upset over it, but their words hurt. Feeling like you were always the dumbest person in the room was taking a toll on you, especially when you weren’t the only one who felt that way. Peter watched you leave with sympathetic eyes, feeling his own frustration bubble at the sound of the team laughing at you. He thought they had listened the first time he told them to stop making fun of you, but they clearly hadn’t. After seeing the pained look on your face, Peter made a decision.

It was never going to happen again.

~

“Ugh. I’m never gonna get this right.” Peter groaned as he messed up the move Steve was trying to teach him once again.

“You’re getting too much inside your head. Just let it happen naturally.” Steve instructed as he resumed his stance. Peter tried the move again, wiping out and landing on his side with a thud. You watched him out of the corner of your eye as you spared with Nat.

“I can’t.” Peter got up and rubbed his arm. “I can’t do it.”

Steve nodded, like he was accepting Peters defeat. You stopped sparing and looked at Peter.

“Yes you can. Come on, Peter.” You encouraged him. “Everyone told Van Gogh that he couldn’t be an artist because he only had one ear but he did it anyway.”

The room feel silent, as it often did when you spoke, and everyone looked down.

“Oh dear Lord.” Rhodey sighed and hung his head and he snickered. You could see everyone else fighting back laughter or cracking a smile, yet saying nothing.

“What?” You crossed your arms in annoyance, looming to Peter for help.

“He chopped his ear off after becoming an artist.” Peter said kindly. “He wasn’t born without one.”

You opened your mouth to speak, but Tony beat you to it.

“Speaking of ears, do you think of you shone a light in one of Y/n’s ears, it would come out the other ear?” Tony quipped, making everyone laugh. The tips of your ears burned as that feeling of stupidity sunk in again. You undid the Velcro on your boxing gloves and pretended to wipe sweat from your face as you rushed to the bin where the gloves went. You kept your back to the group and pretending to be putting your gloves away when you were really concealing your pained expression.

“Yes.” Nat jeered. “Yes I do.”

Your shoulders slumped with exhaustion as you turned around, making every effort to keep your face neutral. Your face didn’t give away any signs of sadness, but your knuckles turning white from how hard you were gripping the bin gave your true feelings away. Peter noticed this and felt his jaw clench. If you weren’t gonna tell them to stop, he was.

“Leave her alone, guys.” He commanded the crowd before looking at you. “Thanks for the encouragement, Y/n. I’m gonna keep trying.”

“It’s fine.” You nodded curtly. “I’m gonna hit the showers. I’ll see you guys at dinner.”

You walked out of the gym, pausing in place when you heard Sams voice.

“Hit the showers?” He laughed. “We just started.”

“Shhh. Don’t confuse the poor girl any further.” Bruce joked back. You looked back at the gym with your eyebrows knit together, taking a quiet step closer to hear what they were saying about you without you there.

“She’s probably like, ‘whats this magic closet that makes rain?’” Rhodey imitated your voice, making you sound as dense as possible.

“Knock it off guys. It’s not funny.” Peter snapped, but the teasing continued.

“Or like, ‘this shampoo says it adds volume, but I used it and I can’t hear any louder than before’.” Tony mocked you, skipping around a little like a child. Your face contorted in misery as they made fun of you. You knew who they really were, and they were good people. They didn’t intend to hurt your feelings, they were only joking around like they did with everyone. Steve was teased all the time for his old fashioned dialect and no one lets Tony live down the kimono incident. Still, all their insults and mockery cut you like a knife.

“Ahh, I love that girl.” Nat shook her head with a smile. “She’s so dumb.”

“She may be slow, but she’s entertaining as hell.” Sam nodded in agreement.

“I said knock it off.” Peter repeated, getting a reaction this time.

“Aw. Peters mad because we’re teasing his girlfriend.” Nat pouted and pinched Peters cheek. She quickly realized how wholesome she was being and punched Bucky in the face to maintain her lethal assassin persona.

“She’s not my girlfriend.” Peter grumbled. Now that you were out of the room, he was the next target.

“He’s right. Hey, maybe that’s why you guys haven’t gotten together yet.” Rhodey shrugged. “She’s too stupid to realize you’re in love with her.”

That was all you had to hear. You ran towards your with tears running down your face. Thanks to Peters advanced heating, he heard every heavy footstep.

“Okay. Maybe she is a little slow.” Peter shook his head in disdain at the team. “But you guys are idiots.”

~

You were quiet the entire way to Alaska, keeping to yourself and silently looking out the window. Peter attempted to talk to you once or twice, but he could tell you wanted to be alone. The Avengers completed the mission within a few hours with minor damage to the area. Peter focused on his job but found himself looking for you every now and then, being as you usually stayed together during missions. He didn’t see you anywhere and assumed you were doing your own thing on the other side of the field. He heart rest assured when he saw you boarding the jet, still looking reserved and aloof from the rest of the team. You took a seat by the window and rested your chin on your hand, looking out at the bleak landscape in front of you as the jet took off. Peter didn’t engage in small talk with the rest of the team and wistfully stared at you instead, silently willing you to cheer up.

“I think that went pretty well.” Rhodey nodded and the team agreed. “But where were you the whole time, Y/n? Picking daisies?”

Peter held his breath as you slowly turned around. You gave Rhodey a frigid smile and shook your head.

“We came during a blizzard so I used my powers to create a heated force field around the area we were in to prevent frostbite and give you guys and easier time seeing in the snow. We were also at a higher altitude than any of us are used to so I kept the air pressure to sea level standard.” You said simply. “And I assumed there would be smoke from the battle so I rounded up the nearby animals and made a separate for field around them to protect their lungs.”

The room went silent, something you were used to at this point. But instead of everyone falling silent because they were laughing at you, they were impressed.

“Oh.” Rhodey blinked in surprise, not expecting the answer he was given.

“I also picked this flower.” You smiled proudly as you produced a Forget Me Not from your lap. Peter couldn’t keep the grin from breaking through on his face. You were the center of attention once again, but in a good way this time. Everyone was pleasantly surprised with what you had done and it showed.

“I didn’t think about the altitude.” Nat realized.

“I had no idea there was a blizzard.” Steve added, looking dumbfounded.

“Because I kept you from knowing.” You shrugged. “I wanted you guys to focus on the mission.”

“I mean, I knew. I just didn’t tell you guys because I was so distracted by my buffed and polished nails.” Tony twiddled his fingers again, showing off his freshly manicured nails. You all laughed, breaking the tension in the jet.

“Well look at that.” Sam looked impressed. “Y/n knew something we didn’t.”

It was almost a compliment, but it still made you feel insecure. You didn’t want it to be this mind boggling every time you did something useful.

“Thanks, Y/n. That was really smart.” Peter said softly as he patted your knee. You put your hand over his and squeezed it. It was the first time someone called your smart, and it made you feel good.

“It was really smart.” Sam said skeptically. He stared at you for a moment before poking your side.

“What are you doing?” You swatted his hand away.

“Just making sure you’re still in there.” He eyed you suspiciously. Peter could sense the attention was making you uncomfortable and changed the subject.

“Are we almost home?” He asked Tony before peering out the window. The flight was a little over 7 hours on a normal plane, but the Stark jet was much quicker. The flight would only take a few hours, but Peter was not known for being patient.

“Yes, Peter. We are almost back at the tower. You can get your diaper changed and your bottle as soon as we get back.” Tony sassed him, making him shrink in his seat. Your body language had completely changed and your were now sitting straight, facing the group. Peter was glad you were feeling better and didn’t even mind Tony’s comment.

“Guys, let’s be civil. We’re all tired. We all want to get home.” You said calmly. “Let’s just focus on how pretty the sky looks tonight. Isn’t is pretty, Peter?”

He gazed at your profile as you looked out the window at the stars, admiring how pretty you looked from the side.

“Yeah. It’s beautiful.” He conceded without ever taking his eyes off you. You shot him a smile before looking straight ahead at the dashboard.

“Wow, the moon is huge!” You pointed time a large yellow crescent that could be seen through the window.

“That’s literally the reflection of my banana on the windshield.” Tony deadpanned. He may have been right, but it still looked pretty.

“Should we make a wish?” You asked Peter, ignoring Tony’s comment.

“On the banana?” He asked.

“Yes.” You nodded. “On the banana.”

“Why?” Rhodey asked. “It’s not like people wish on the moon.”

“It feels like we should.” You said with confidence.

“Yep. She’s still in there.” Sam chuckled. And just like that, your confidence receded.

“I hate it here.” Bucky sighed heavily and tuned out of the conversation.

“It must be so peaceful being you, Y/n.” Tony remarked.

“Why do you say that?” You wondered.

“Because instead of thinking about your problems and mistrials, you simply don’t think at all.” Tony said suavely. In only a better for minutes, you’d gone from being the hero to the laughing stock of the group. The sly comments and taunting laughter made you feel like you should stop opening your mouth entirely. You faked a smile and turned back towards the window, tuning out the rest of the way home. Peter chewed his lip as he stared at you, feeling useless to helping you out. The team just wouldn’t let up, no matter how many times he told them to stop. Knowing you weren’t in the mood to talk, he scooted closer to you and put a comforting hand on your back. You smiled warmly at him and rested your head on his shoulder, listening to him point out the constellations the whole way home.

~

The next day, you and Peter were sitting in the balcony, working on some new gadgets for Mr. Stark when Peter made a startling discovery.

“Where’s my right web shooter?” Peter stood up in a panic when he realized it was missing. “I left it right here.”

“Maybe a bird carried it off.” You shrugged as you twisted a tiny screw into Peters left web shooter.

“I’m being serious, Y/n.” Peter stated. “Mr. Stark is going to kill me and turn me into a decorative rug if I lost it.”

“I’m being serious too. We live in New York and I see birds around here all the time.” You told him as you continued your work. “And you know the pigeons here are feral. A bird probably stole it to pay for his child support.”

Peter usually entertained your antics and joined in with his own batch of sarcasm, but he wasn’t in the mood. His web shooter was missing and their were actual stakes involved. Without his web shooter, he couldn’t be Spiderman. And without Spider-Man, he couldn’t be an Avenger.

“Can you be serious for once?“ Peter whined, picking up everything on the table to look under it.

“I’m just saying it’s possible, Peter. You never know.” You insisted as you put your screw driver down to help him look. You began looking in the flower pots on the windowsill that you and Peter had planted. Peter stopped his search for a moment, growing angry with you for wasting time. He didn’t know if you were joking around or genuine believed his web shooter was in the flower pots, but it made him frustrated nonetheless. A combination of his lack of sleep and stress over losing the webshooter manifested into a moment of unchecked rage.

“No, it’s not possible.” He snapped. “A bird didn’t steal my web shooter. God, do you have to be so stupid?” 

 The word hung in the air for a moment, settling in to the both of you. Peters eyes immediately softened, feeling instant regret for what he had said. You stopped trifling through the plants and slowly turned around.

“What?” You asked quietly. Peter tightened his lips into a line and tried to justify what he had said.

“I try to defend you but you make it so hard. Can you help me out a little here and not be so…” He trailed off when he realized he had only made it worse. Your face hardened and you looked disappointed in Peter, which killed him. He would have preferred anger or even sadness, but the disappointment killed him.

“So what?” You shrugged. “Finish your sentence Peter.”

“I didn’t mean that.”

“No, really, go ahead.” You stated coldly. “You got this far. So what, Peter?”

He looked at you for a moment, getting that feeling of wishing you could turn back time just a few seconds to fix a mistake.

“So dumb all the time.” He finished his sentence with an unsteady voice. Your face scrunched up in a pained expression as you sucked in and let out a shaky breath.

“You were the only one who never called me that.” You whimpered before moving past him and going inside. Peter watched you through the open balcony doors as you disappeared into the hallway with a heavy heart. His mouth was open to apologize, but you were long gone. He’d seen you being ridiculed so many times already, and now he was the one doing it. All that talk about it never happening again, only for him to be the reason it happened. Peter couldn’t live with himself for another minute without you knowing how sorry he was. He took a step towards the doorway until he heard a pigeon land on the table. He watched it curiously for a moment as it pecked at the screwdriver you had been using before picking it up with its beak. It flew over to the edge and began to walk along the railing, still keeping the screwdriver in his mouth. Peter followed the pigeon, walking all the way down the balcony to find a large nest in the corner. He watched as it dropped the screwdriver into its nest, right next to his web shooter.

“Holy shit. A bird stole my web shooter.” Peter said in disbelief. Peter watched as baby pigeons poked out from inside the web shooter to greet the other pigeon.

“Holy shit. A bird stole my web shooter for his kids.” Peters eyes widened even more than they already were. Realized struck him and his shoulders slumped.

“She was right.” He mumbled, angry at himself more than ever. “I yelled at her and she was right.”

Peter wasted no time in rescuing his web shooter from the birds, offering them a nice biodegradable coffee cup in its place, and ran to the kitchen to make you a peace offering. He knocked softly on your door and didn’t wait for an answer before going in.

“I made you this cup of tea as an apology.” Peter stiffly held out a mug with an awkward smile on his face. You looked at Peter from your bed, eyes puffy like you had been crying. You stared at each other for a long time, you with a death glare and Peter with his awkward smile. Neither of you said a word as Peter continued to hold out the mug. After two full minute of silence, a bead of sweat ran down Peters face as he looked around nervously, never breaking his smile. You let out an angry sigh and decided to throw him a bone, crossing the room to accept his mug. You looked into the cup for a moment before looking back at Peter.

“This is empty.” You deadpanned.

“I don’t know how to make tea.” Peter whispered, never breaking eye contact.

“I’ve seen you make it.” You snapped.

“I forgot how to do it.” Peters eyes shifted nervously to the side.

“Bucky was in the kitchen, wasn’t he?”

“I know he hates me.” Peter talked over you as you groaned. “I know he does.”

“Just go away.” You tried to close the door but he kept it open.

“No.” Peter said firmly. “I came in here to apologize.”

“You see this?” You held up the mug for a Peter to see. “It’s my cup of care. And look at that” ,you dumped the cup over, “it’s empty.”

Peter stared at your demonstration with raised eyebrows, surprised that you were still able to be sarcastic when he hurt you. Peter took the mug from your hands and set it on the ground before slowly looking up at your face.

“You’re not stupid.” He said softly with all the sincerity his heart could give. You scoffed and folded your arms, looking to the side when you felt tears sting your eyes.

“Yes I am.” You said like you fully believed it, which was Peters worse fear. “Everyone says so. Even you.”

It hit Peter like a sheet of glass when you looked at him like that.

Like he was someone you didn’t want around.

“I didn’t mean to say that.” Peter apologized. “That is not how I feel. At all.”

“Don’t act like you’ve never thought about saying that before.” You laughed sadly. “Everyone on the team calls me dumb. It was only a matter of time before you did it too.”

“I didn’t mean it.” Peter repeated. “I don’t think you’re stupid.”

“Bullshit.” You snapped. “You’re so full of bullshit.”

“I’m not full of bullshit.” He whined like a child and gave you puppy dog eyes. “I’m full of regret.”

You chewed the inside of your cheek as he gave you his best pout, willing you to forgive him. Finally, you caved and cracked a smile.

“I hate you.” You stamped your foot and hung your head, frustrated with yourself for not being able to stay mad at him. Peter opened his arms and you walked into them, arms still folded angrily. You bumped your forehead against his shoulder before moving to rest your chin on it as he wrapped his arms around you. Peter nestled against your hair and sighed, happy that you had forgiven him but still saddened that he had hurt you in the first place. He could see the pile of used tissues on your bed and it killed him to know he made you cry.

“I didn’t mean to call you that. I really didn’t.” He said softly. “I’m the one who’s been trying to stop people from saying that.”

“But they still do it.” You sniffled. “Everyday I get called dumb or stupid or scalene.”

“I think it’s obtuse, not scalene.” Peter reluctantly corrected you. You pulled away and little and let Peter wipe the tears from your face.

“Maybe they’re right.” You shrugged and looked Peter in the eyes. “Maybe I am dumb.”

Peter kept your face between his hands, staring at you for a moment before sighing.

“I once sneezed so many times in a row that I peed my pants.” Peter deadpanned. “I was 17.”

“What?” You chuckled as you wiped your nose.

“I saw Bucky try to take a piece of toast out of the toaster with his metal arm and electrocute himself.” He continued. “And I constantly see Tony bumping into glass doors.”

“I don’t understand.” You squinted your eyes, but sure what point he was trying to make.

“Steve still picks up the phone and asks for the operator. Nat leaves her curling iron plugged in all the time. I do not think Sam knows the address of where we live and I’m pretty sure Rhodey can’t do laundry. He gets all his stuff dry cleaned, even his socks.”

“Why are you telling me all of this?” You asked.

“Because were all dumb.” Peter concluded. “We all do and say dumb things. You don’t know where Alaska is and no one in this tower can read analog clocks. If we’re all dumb, then maybe none of us are dumb. Or we all are. Who cares?” Peter shrugged, making you laugh. “And you were right. A bird did carry off my web shooter. So no, you’re no dumb. Or stupid. Or obtuse. You’re, uh, you- you…” Peter looked down at he fumbled over his words.

“I’m what?” You raised an eyebrow. You could finish his sentence last time, but this time you were lost.

“You’re…” Peter tampered off again, staring at your confused expression for a moment before pulling you into a kiss. Your hands clenched into a fist and slowly uncurled as you relaxed into the kiss. Peter pulled away too soon and let his eyes flutter open. They met yours and you shared a moment of hesitation, not knowing what happened rest next.

“I’m gonna be honest lovey, I didn’t really have an ending to that sentence.” Peter chris joes softly, his breath fanning your face. “That was mainly improv.”

“You’re pretty good at improv, Parker.” You cracked a smile and wrapped your arms around his neck.

“I did a little bit of theater in high school.” He shrugged smugly, making you giggle.

“Mmm. I severely don’t want to hear about that.” You teased before kissing him again.

“Oh, I think you do.” Peter remarked. “Because I once went to the bathroom during intermission with my mic still on and the entire audience heard me peeing.”

“Oh my God.” You laughed. “You’re so stupid.”

Tag List 🏷

@maybemona @foreverxholland @damnyoudameron @lavender-writer @captainmandeestudent17 @whatareyouhidingpeter @takenbyheartstrings @ultrunning @imyourliquor-youremypoison @theolwebshooter @andreasworlsboring101 @guksmyfav @waiting-to-be-myself @letsloveimagines @peterparkoure @a-villain-vying-for-attention @justcallmehitgirl @averyfosterthoughts @jackiehollanderr @tiny-friggin-human @celestial-skylines @mara-twins @iamaunicorn4704 @spideygirl2003 @the-crazy-fanfictionist @maryjanee23  @geeksareunique @emmamarshmellow @jillanaholland @unbelievableholland @rebekkah4766 @flixndchill @sovereignparker @wendaiii @thisisthebiplace @spideydobrik @every-marveler-ever @undiadeestos @caelestii-e @eridanuswave @itscaminow @fiantomartell @solarxmoonchild @where-art-thau-romeo @canyouevencauseicant @illwritetomorrow @thehappygrungelife @saysomethingspiderman @parkerboop @smilexcaptainx @hes-amarillo @quaksonhehe @kelieah @silteplaittais-toi @kickingn-ames @purefluff @seasidecrowbar @lovelessdagger @love-sick-blues @electraheart-3174 @lou-la-lou @unbelievableholland @yourtypicalhotmess @ohnothezombies @spideyanakin @horanxholland @thesuitelifeofafangirl​ @anapocalypseinmymind @quacksonfics @marshxx @heyheycharlatte​ @nooneinvitedfascistbarbie @tomshufflepuff @buckybigbutt @cookiemonstermusic258 @awesomebooklover17

[legoshi-plz]

How about birthday prompts (Like how they celebrate your birthday and how you celebrate theirs)?

Warning: NSFW-ish themes (Riz and Bill’s part),

All Characters are adults, around mid-20s here. So basically a couple years after college. Except for Gouhin, Oguma, and Gosha who are their canon ages.

Reader is Gender Neutral

Louis:

Your Birthday:

- Mr. MoneyBags here is going to go all out as far as expenses go.

- Fancy Dinner at an elegant restaurant, picks you up in his ridiculous sports car which you’ve rode in a million times but it’s still exciting. (Also, Louis drives extremely fast. He’s a good driver but if he’s not going at least 30 miles over the speed limit, he feels like he might as well be parked in the street. Also has a bad habit of running red lights and stop signs just because he can.)

- Buys you a brand new outfit just to wear to dinner and has it delivered to you in the morning in a red velvet box with a silk bow. You’re a little uncomfortable with the whole high society scene but you go along with it anyway for Louis’ sake.

- At dinner, he orders for you. He has a bad habit of doing that, even though you’ve told him multiple times you’re capable of making your own decisions. At least he usually orders you something you end up liking.

- Night concludes back at his place, he pulls out another velvet box similar to one from this morning except this box is much smaller which only meant one thing: jewelry.

- “Louis... Are there diamonds in this?”

- “....”

-“Louis...”

-“.... Maybe...”

- You refuse to accept the overly expensive gift, refuse to even look at it. You give it back to him and you could see he’s a little hurt but you assure him you know he means well but everything was just a little too much and you felt out of place.

- He accepts your criticism gracefully even if he is a little frustrated you wouldn’t accept his gift he spent so much time picking out. He promises to tone it down next year.

His Birthday:

- You actually really hate Louis’ birthday because he almost never spends it with you.

- He always works on his birthday, not seeing it as important enough to halt business.

- You’ve tried everything from bribing his assistant to haggling his bodyguards but nobody can get Louis out of his office in his birthday.

- You’ve learned to let it go, and usually surprise him by doing something special the week before.

Legoshi:

Your Birthday:

- All about being sweet. Values time and effort over anything and hopes that you see it that way too.

- Makes you breakfast in bed, he’s a pretty good cook all things considering (it’s a skill he picked up while being a waiter.)

- Takes you out for lunch, the two of you spend the day doing pretty regular couple stuff but you’re just happy to be there with him.

- Your present is something that’s both useful and to your taste, like along the lines of a sweater or cardigan in your favorite color. He makes sure it’s oversized because he knows how much you love to wear his sweaters and he even has your name embroidered in small cursive letters above the heart.

- You love your gift and how the two of you spent the day.

His Birthday:

- You two spend it almost identically, just with he roles reversed.

-Legoshi is still a little uncomfortable with extra attention so if you want to incorporate his friends into anything then you’ll have to be really stealthy about it.

- No surprise parties please, he literally would melt into the floor with embarrassment. Best to take him somewhere and his friends slowly join in organically (or at least, you hoped it came off as organic but it really didn’t)

- “Hey Legoshi, fancy seeing you two here at this restaurant in this reserved section. Mind if I join ya?” By the tenth time that exact excuse was used, the cat was well out of the bag.

- Legoshi appreciates your efforts though, even if he’s not one for attention. He sort of clings to you the entire night, whether it be holding your hand, gripping your thigh, encircling your waist, etc. as long as he’s touching you, he feels calmer and it helps tone down his anxiety.

- Overall, Legoshi’s the type to be fine with almost any birthday celebration (or even none at all) as long as he can be with you.

Juno:

Your Birthday:

- Makes you do something spontaneous for once, even if you’re hesitant.

- Takes you somewhere like Skydiving, or Paragliding, or Bungee Jumping. If you’re adamant about making it to your next birthday not risking your life then she will settle for something a little more mild like Scuba Diving.

- Can not stop gushing about how hot you look in your wetsuit and flusters you in front of the Scuba instructor (he’s an older Walrus and finds it cute to see young animals in love).

- The two of you end up having a blast and you’re happy you went along with Juno’s plan, even if it tired you out completely.

- Once the two of you get home and shower, you collapse onto the bed and fall asleep almost immediately, the exhaustion from the deep diving really taking it’s toll.

- Juno enters the bedroom holding a cake with lit candles and wearing brand new sexy lingerie she purchased just for you to rip off of her. She’s a little disappointed to find you unconscious but she figures it is your birthday and you can sleep if you want to.

- She blows out the candles for you and puts the cake in the kitchen, then she throws on a robe and snuggles up next your slumbering figure.

Her Birthday:

- She wants to travel for her birthday and she can’t think of anyone she’d rather take a trip with more than you.

- You two go somewhere hot and tropical, probably somewhere near a beach (she loves any excuse to wear a bikini and sunbathe)

- You two probably find a bar near the beach and get drunk, her moreso then you because you start to sober up as the night goes on so you’re able to take care of her.

- You take her back to the hotel and tuck her in after helping her get ready for bed. She a giggling, flirty drunk mess the entire time but it still makes your heart soar because you know she had fun.

- Before she falls asleep, she whispers to you that this was her favorite birthday yet.

Riz:

Your Birthday:

- He’s waking you up with morning head, no way around it. You wake up to him kissing your neck, then your collarbone, down your stomach and he just keeps going down until he has you whimpering and falling apart beneath him.

- Then the two of you take a shower together and he’s making you cum for him in a totally different way.

- But once you finally pry his humongous paws off of you, you think you’ll be able to relax but he has other plans.

- He sends you off to the Spa. He’s not going in with you because he wouldn’t be caught dead in one but buys you the best top of the line experience . You enjoy the peace and relaxation but you’re kind of lonely and just want to be with him.

- When you get home, he presents your gift to you which is probably something big and wooden that he made himself because he’s great with his hands and actually an amazing craftsman. Probably something like a intricate Wooden Gazebo outside so you could sit and enjoy your garden.

- “Riz, how the hell did you get this back here without me knowing?” You ask, your arms still wrapped around his neck from where you squealed in excitement, lavishing him with kisses.

- “Built it off site, just needed a few hours to install it,” Riz winked, cupping your ass with both hands and lifting you up so your legs could wrap around his waist.

- “So that’s why you made me spend my birthday alone?” You pouted.

- “Yeah, m’sorry about that, baby. But I can make it up to you...” Riz growled, carrying you inside to the bedroom.

“Wait, I wasn’t done looking at my gift,” you giggled as he began nipping at the fur at the base of your neck.

“Trust me, it’s not going anywhere,”

His Birthday:

- Riz loves nature and outside in general. So for his birthday you plan a camping trip deep in the forest.

- You don’t tell him anything about it, you just make him request two days off of work, no questions asked.

- You two leave early in the morning, drive deep into the forest and then you spring it on him. You also let him know that if he doesn’t like the idea, theres still time to turn back and spend his birthday in the city.

- Not a chance if that happening though, this man LOVES the outdoors. He’s already halfway out the car before you could even put it in park.

- The two of you have a blast setting up the tent, making the campfire, cooking dinner over said campfire, and communing with nature.

- “There’s a river that runs north of here, it’s about a 15 minute walk from here, I figured we could go fishing there tomorrow morning,” You tell him as you sit in his lap, admiring the fire.

- However, the two of you don’t make it there until we’ll into the afternoon and it was a miracle you made it there at all. Riz had fucked you senseless last night, the atmosphere of nature giving him a newfound surge of energy. It’s a good thing no one was around because the two of you were almost embarrassingly loud.

- Anyways, Riz thoroughly enjoys his weekend of wilderness and fucking you like a wild animal all throughout the forest. You enjoy it as well despite the fact he has you almost limping by the end of the trip.

Bill:

Your Birthday:

- Honestly, he forgets. If you wait on him to remember or ‘surprise you’, then you’ll only end up ruining your own birthday.

- If you remind him on the day of, he takes you out to eat at a nice restaurant but it’s still very last minute.

- If you remind him the day before, he’ll at least get you a gift but it’s last minute.

- Overall, if you want to actually enjoy your birthday with him, you better plan it yourself

His Birthday:

- Plans an entire house party himself and invites everyone, it seems, but you. He wasn’t exactly aiming to exclude you, he just thought it’d be a given that you would be there. However, if you didn’t show up, he wouldn’t really notice either way.

- It’s wild and crazy. A ridiculously huge amount of people show up and there’s alcohol coming from every direction, and Bill is soaking up every ounce of the attention.

- Once you finally had enough of being ignored, you go home. You doubt that Bill will even notice you’ve left.

- You’re at home, showered, and about to head to bed when your phone starts ringing. It’s an unknown number so you let it ring out. But then they call back again, and again, and again. Disturbed, you accept it on the fourth call just in case it’s an emergency.

- “Finally they picked up! Y/N? You there?” It was one of Bill’s friends. Apparently in his drunken state, he went into a rage when he couldn’t find you and had been crying for you to come back for almost an hour. He was inconsolable and his friends knew there was only a matter of time before he started a fight at his own party. You were irritated but you still allowed them to drop him off at your place.

- The second you answered your front door, the giant tiger in question was all over you, squeezing you right and asking why you left him. You helped him inside and laid him in your bed.

- He cuddled with you for maybe 10 minutes tops before he was out like a light. You end up falling asleep next to him, finally enjoying a little peace for once tonight.

- That peace doesn’t last long though, Bill wakes up the next morning horny. Like extremely horny. You wake up to him grinding against your thighs, whimpering and begging to let him fuck you. You give in to the belated birthday boy and he proceeds to give you the sloppiest, most sensual, earth-shattering morning strokes of your life. You’re so mind blown by how good he fucked you, you forget about how angry you were with him.

- After a well needed shower, he takes you out for breakfast to apologize for how much of an ass he was on his birthday. You accept but tell him if he ever pulls something like that again, he can look for a new lover.

Collot:

Your Birthday:

- Surprisingly wants to spoil you on your birthday but unlike Riz, he actually minds being apart from you (he’s hella clingy, he just hates to admit it) so whatever activities he has planned, the two of you are doing it together.

- Takes you to a fancy resort, somewhere in the mountains where it’s cold and there’s snow on the ground even during the summer months.

- The two of you attempt skiing but you’re terrible at it and he ends up laughing at you falling majority of it.

- You two also enjoy the giant jacuzzi the lounge has to offer but Collot can not keep his hands off of you and eventually you two have to run back to your room for a midday quickie.

- His birthday gift to you is something simple, like a necklace with your birthstone in it. You love it and allow him to put it on you.

- The rest of the evening, it’s just you and your man, walking along the Snow filled grounds, sipping warm apple cider, and enjoying the break from the rest of the world.

Gouhin:

His Birthday:

- This man wants REST. No need to go all out, his life is crazy enough the other 365 days of the year. Just give him some peace and relaxation and he’s good to go.

- He also loves your cooking and wouldn’t be opposed to you cooking him a huge meal.

- Also loves your body and wouldn’t be opposed to you doing that thing that he really likes in bed ;)

- Your gift to him would be something he can use but also is a little unnecessary. Something like a ridiculously fancy, golden calligraphy pen for his office or a brand new crossbow with genuine leather straps. He’s pretty hard to shop for so it’s always best to go with something he already has, just a newer model.

- Honestly just wants to spend his birthday with his baby (you) as if it’s any other day.

Gosha:

Your Birthday:

- Gosha is so lovable, he’s probably more excited it’s your birthday than you are.

- He’s picked up quite a few skills over the years and baking is one of them. Bakes you a giant birthday cake in your favorite flavor. You’re grateful he was so thoughtful and made such an extravagant cake but there’s no way you’re going to finish this entire thing.

- You end up inviting over friends just to get rid of some of the cake, which they’re more than happy to do since it’s absolutely delicious.

- A few of your friends bring group dishes and fancy wine and soon it’s a whole party underway. The small gathering is actually a blast and you can’t think of a better way to spend your birthday other than surrounded by the people you love.

Oguma:

Your Birthday:

- Mr. Moneybags 2.0

- Gets you a crazy expensive gift like a brand new car and calls it a day.

- Not really much for spending time or celebrating traditionally. But to compensate, he’ll buy you the world (even after you’ve repeatedly told him you don’t need all that.)

- Probably won’t even see you on your birthday because his schedule is so overbooked but sends you plenty of gifts to remind you that he loves you.

- It stings not seeing him on your birthday but at this point in the relationship, you don’t really expect anything else from him.

[k0ra-kumori]

Killer Frost, Caitlin Snow (DC Super Hero Girls 2019)

#PolarDemons

It was an ordinary day at the Metropolis school, I was getting ready to go to class, and maybe my mind was still a little tormented by what happened to Casey Krinsky, I was thinking about it too much in the last few days, and I don't know why , maybe it was because every time I met her at school I felt a sense of guilt and wanted to apologize to her? No ... I already tried that, and it didn't work.

- Zee! Are you okay? You're already standing there for about 5 minutes! Let's be late, and mr.Chapin promise that if we were late again he would kick us out! (Babs)

- Sorry Babs, I'm coming after you.

I was startled when Barbara called me, but I needed to get out of that trance, maybe the class distracted me a little about Casey.

(Time Skip)

It was time to go, and studying only made my mind worse, I needed a break, Mr. Chapin was unbearable today.

"Where are my friends?" I thought, we usually all leave the class together, I went looking for them and while I was walking down the main hall I saw a crowd, and my friends were there too! I went to them as soon as possible.

- Girls! What are you doing? I looked for you everywhere.

- Hey, duh! We told you in the class that we were going to come here, but it looks like you were too distracted to pay attention to us. (Kara)

- i-I'm sorry is that I ... What are you looking at?

- The new girl, her name is Caitlin Snow, she makes magnificent ice sculptures, it looks like she was transferred

from the old school because her parents moved to metropolis.(Karen)

- I heard she was the most popular girl in the school she came from, it looks like you're going to have competition Zee haha. (Kara)

Kara slaps my arm as part of the joke and I have a very weak laugh, I was happy to have another student at school, and it looks like I wouldn't be the only popular girl here now, you might think it's envy or something, but something about this girl tells me that she’s not welcome here, there’s something wrong with her ...

- Aren't you Zee zatara? I heard a lot about you. (Caitlin)

I didn't notice Caitlin approaching, I was distracted again.

- A-ah hi, yes it is me, very pleased.

I reach out to her for a friendly handshake, but she doesn't fight back ...

- My name is Caitlin Snow, you don't feel threatened by me or anything, do you (Caitlin)

- T-threatened ?! excuse me?

- It's just that I was the most popular girl in my school before I left, and you are the most popular girl here, so ... (Caitlin)

- Oh, of course, I’m very calm about it.

- If that's what you say ... (Caitlin)

Caitlin walks towards the exit of the school door, but in the middle of the way she stops in front of the photographs of all the proms that the Metropolis school has had, and by chance, I was the queen of all these proms, she looks calmly all the pictures one by one, when Caitlin then takes one of my prom queen pictures in her hand and suddenly ... she throws it in the trash.

- I was the most popular girl in my school, and believe me Zee zatara, I don't like to share anything with anyone, especially titles, and in fact, you should feel threatened by me. This school is already mine, bye bye. (Caitlin)

I couldn't believe it, she threatened me?! I didn't feel threatened by her in any way, but now ... I felt very threatened, and it wasn't because of my title.

- You saw that-- GIRLS!

- Ah it was bad zee, we were seeing the ice statue, it moves can you believe it ?! This is very cool! (Kara)

- Were you going to say something, Zee? (Jess)

- No, I don't think so. Let's go home?

(Time skip)

After a long and tiring trip home I had time to relax a little, I was thinking more clearly now.

- Caitlin Snow is not it? Let's see what you do for a living.

I search for Caitlin's name on instagram, and luckily I found her profile, she was in first place in searches.

- but what is so impressive about you ...

I keep looking for something suspicious in Caitlin's profile, I know you think I'm jealous, but believe me, it's not jealous, I'm suspicious of this girl. Well, I look around for a while and I can't find anything, all I found out was that Caitlin makes a video of make-up, ice sculptures, and that her family has their own business, she and her mother give presentations on magical ice sculptures. and skating in a theater ... familiar isn't it? Maybe I would even be jealous of her? After all, she was beautiful, intelligent and had her own business. I was already accepting that I was getting jealous of the girl with white hair, when I decide to click on any video on her Instagram just to end it all, the video was starting, Caitlin talked about makeup, how to make a perfect contour and these things, I watched the video for about 2 minutes, until something caught my attention... I realized that every time the mirror appeared, the image would lock up, looking like those films from the 1950s, you know? I thought it was strange, but I didn't want to watch the rest of the video with the image of a film from my father's time! so I used my magic to make the video stop locking... it was a mistake, because as soon as I cast the spell on the video, I looked in the mirror, and believe me, it was the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life, there was something with ... horns in the mirror! This confirmed my suspicions, there was something wrong with that girl and I intended to find out what.

- Zee, it's time to sleep.

- Okay daddy, good night.

I turn off the light and fall asleep, but I still thinking about it for a bit before falling asleep.

(Time skip)

I was already at school, and last night I decided that in addition to discovering what is strange about this girl, I was going to keep everyone away from her, if there was something more sinister behind it, it was better to let everyone away so that no one would get hurt, so I decided to give a magic show at school today, so no one would be around Caitlin.

- Ladies and gentlemen, witness the unique, incredible and fabulous, Zee zatara!

I was waiting for people's cheers, but nobody said anything, maybe everyone was on a different side of the school? Well, I take my bench and my special effects and look for a place with a lot of people at school, and walking through the halls I saw her... it was too late, everyone was surrounding Caitlin and watching her ice skating show, there was always an ice rink here? How come I never noticed ?!

- Sister! You arrived at the right time, we watching the new girl skating on the ice, join us! (Diana)

Diana pulls my arm to take me to Caitlin's show, but I release my arm from Diana's grip.

- Everything is fine? Don't you want to see the show? (Diana)

- I-i want, but ...

I sigh.

- Diana, there is something wrong with this girl, I don't know what it is but, there is something wrong with her.

- Something wrong? What you mean? (Diana)

- Yesterday I was watching a video about her on instagram, and in the reflection of the mirror something with horns appeared, look!

I had taken a screenshot of the video if it was useful, so I showed it to Diana.

- something with horns? where? (Diana)

- Right there in the mirror!

- Zee, has nothing there. (Diana)

- b-but, you don't see it?

- ... Look zee, you must be feeling threatened by Caitlin's presence I know, but remember what I said to Barbara Minerva when she said she was the cheetah? I said "One person’s success doesn’t exclude another person’s success" you don’t have to be jealous of her, Zee.(Diana)

- No, no, no, Diana please believe me I’m not jealous of her, don’t you see the horned creature in the mirror ?!

- Sorry zee, you will need more than a blank mirror to prove that Caitlin is a monster. (Diana)

Diana is gone, she went to see the show like everyone else...

- Diana... the monster... I don't believe it, am I going crazy?

I was questioning my sanity now, she is not here at school for 3 days and is already driving me crazy, is it me who is to blame? Was my magic playing with my mind? I didn't know anything else at this point, if the diana who was born in a home full of magic and monsters didn't believe me, who else would believe it? Maybe Casey Krinsky was messing with my mind right now, I better go wash my face to ease the tension.

(In the bathroom)

- control yourself Zee, you're going crazy, keep calm! My god what is happening to me...

My makeup was totally messy now, maybe redoing it would help me, so as soon as I look in the mirror I see the horned demon's reflection, from the chest down he was just bones, his outside ribs gave him a touch ghastly.

- Do you talk to yourself? (Caitlin)

- C-ca...Caitlin ?!

I look in the mirror again, and the reflection was normal now, it was just Caitlin's reflection.

- Weren't you at your skating show?

- I was, but I had to come here to touch up my makeup, by the way, today is crazy day and nobody told me? Hahahaha (Caitlin)

She snorts out of the bathroom. In just 2 days she dropped my food, made me stumble, and ruined my school work, I was sick of her being mean to me.

- Why you hate me?

- I do not hate you Zatara, you are cool, the only problem I have with you is that you are in this school with me, I remember saying that I do not like to share, and that the title of popular girl was mine, 80% of this title already belongs to me, but if you don’t leave the game I’ll never have the rest. (Caitlin)

- I'm not leaving this school, especially since I know you're hiding something scary from the rest of the people.

- Girl, you're crazy. (Caitlin)

- I'm not crazy, what is it then?!

I show the mirror photo to Caitlin, and she smiles arrogantly.

- it's good to know that you have magic.

- W-what are you talking about?

- Find out for yourself, Zatanna.

Caitlin comes out of the bathroom, leaving me with doubts and alone there.

(Time skip)

It's been 5 days, and Caitlin is officially the most popular girl in school, my friends just talked about her and about the ice skating shows, that didn't help at all, so I decided to stay a few days alone.

- Should we go over there and talk to Zee? I'm already getting worried. (Jess)

- I tried to talk to her a couple of days ago, but she insists that Caitlin is a villain, I think we better let her have some time. (Diana)

I watched my friends from afar, I was missing them so much, but I couldn't go back without discovering the horrible thing that Caitlin was, I couldn't solve this case on an empty stomach, so I went to get a snack in the cafeteria, I got one a little bit of spaghetti and I went towards my table, but suddenly Caitlin puts her foot in front of me and I fall to the floo ... face to face with the spaghetti, the whole school laughed at me.

- I do not believe that! (Kara)

- G-guys, calm down, it could have been an accident. (Karen)

- Accident will be my fist landing on the face of that pale white girl! (Kara)

I get up, I had noodles all over my hair and face, I was already irritated by all that and I wanted to hit Caitlin, but I couldn't, Jess taught me that anger is not always the way. I was annoyed, but I tried to stay calm.

- Caitlin, can I talk to you outside for a minute?

- Of course my dear, I'll be back girls.

(Out of school)

- about what you want to talk?

- "About what you want to talk?" Really?! What was that?!

- It was an accident.

- Accident ... ACCIDENT ?! ARGH.

I got annoyed, Jess would be disappointed in me, but I couldn't take any more teasing, I ended up not even caring if she was going to know that I have magic, so I hit her with a spell of magic, and of course, I regret doing that.

- Oh my god, I'm so sorry Caitlin, I'm really sorry!

Caitlin didn't move, I was worried, and as soon as I was going to call the ambulance she started to move... But it wasn't just that, I don't know if I hit my head too hard on the food tray a few minutes ago or something like that, but, I was watching Caitlin increase in size, that's right, she was growing and her shape and clothes were changing, the sky was getting cloudy and for some reason it started to snow ... it was summer! Why was it snowing?!

- I'm already tired of you Zee zatara ... (Killer Frost)

- C-Caitlin?

I was getting farther and farther away, it was getting really weird, as Caitlin moved her shape seemed bigger, she leaned on some bricks of the destroyed wall in order to get up, and as soon as she stands, I get scared, Caitlin was super tall! She had to bend down to go through the door, she are so big.

- I will kill you, Zee zatara! (Killer Frost)

I had no more doubts, Caitlin had super powers and was ready to transform into one of her ice sculptures, I wasted no time and soon changed too, and as soon as I was going to run away, she took me by the cape.

- You're in so much trouble. (Killer Frost)

- I don't want to fight with you, please let's talk!

- I have nothing to talk to you about! (Killer Frost)

Caitlin threw me so far and so high, that I ended up on the 7th floor wall of a building. My body was hurting a lot, but I had to defeat it, but as soon as I got up, Caitlin landed on my body and tried to hang me.

- By the way, you can call me Killer Frost instead of Caitlin in the next life, Zee Zatara! (Killer Frost)

- I'm not afraid of snow!

I teleport to the opposite side of Killer Frost, I needed to defeat it somehow, so I create a loop to be able to hold it, I throw the loop at Frost, but it freezes it and turns the shards into sharp pieces of ice, then throw them at me, I teleport again and try to hit her with my magic, but she creates an ice shield to protect herself from my attacks.

- Frost, let's talk! I do not want to hurt you!

- BUT I WANT TO HURT YOU! I JUST WANTED ATTENTION, YOU ALREADY HAVE TOO MUCH ATTENTION! (Killer Frost)

The earth begins to tremble, and in the midst of so much snow a giant snake made of ice chases me, I run, but the snake captures me.

- You always had everything you wanted Zatanna, attention, love, friends, and now it's my turn to have it all!

I wanted to say something, but then I start to feel my body getting cold, I look at my legs and see that I'm starting to freeze, would this be the end of me? No ... I couldn't die like that, I needed help, and luckily, I see a shiny golden lasso looping the tail of the giant snake that held me, the snake melted, and behind it revealed five super heroines, Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Supergirl, Green Lantern and Bumblebee.

- Are you okay? (Wonder Woman)

Wonder woman said, she took my hand and saw that I had a low body temperature.

- stay out of this fight, you could end up hurting yourself even more. (Wonder Woman)

[miraculousmarifan]

Felinette Month 2020 - Day 27: In Between

Here’s the beginning of the last set of late @felinettenovember works! Enjoy a little competition between Adrien and Felix that ends with an altogether different winner.

Around 2300 words

Marinette loved fashion design. She loved seeing the clothes, learning what went into making them, and figuring out how to make them look the best on people. What she didn’t enjoy was going to stuck up parties where most people were trying to trip up others. She thought this one would be easier as it was only a company-wide Christmas party and she already had at least two good friends attending, outside of the coworkers she had a good relationship with. What she didn’t bargain on was that both her friends would compete to be her companion for the entire night.

Upon arriving and checking in at the front, she found her good friend Adrien at her elbow. He immediately asked about taking her jacket, which she allowed, inquiring about the coat room and readjusting the bag she would keep throughout the night. Then he began to try bringing her into the main room, encouraging her to hold his arm for steadiness, and offered to find her a refreshment right away. Instead they were faced with Felix holding two glasses partway down the hallway, asking Marinette which she would prefer. She thanked him for considering her favorite and accepted the glass.

Marinette hadn’t thought ahead when she told both men about her excitement to attend and see other designers she didn’t get to see often. She and Adrien had been friends since school, her even holding a crush for a few years before moving on. She had gone on some dates after and had decided she didn’t enjoy their company enough for it to cut into her designing time, especially as she worked tirelessly to expand her portfolio for university and beyond. The two had remained good friends, meeting once every few weeks with their friend group except during busy seasons at work when one or the other couldn’t make it. 

She and Felix had connected in university, finding that they were doing complementary classes and that by collaborating, the two had excelled in their coursework far beyond their classmates. Learning that they both intended to work at the same company had resulted in weekly lunches and occasionally Felix “reminding” Marinette that she needed to go home and rest when she had been working later for too many days in a row. She needed the escort out of the building to ensure she didn’t go right back to working.

Unfortunately the two cousins had not gotten along well in the past five or so years, though the two had never elaborated on what happened to drive a wedge between them. The hostility between the two was tangible though, a whisper among their coworkers about how the two would specifically avoid meetings that the other was meant to be in or take their lunches at very select times, in areas of the building the other wasn’t likely to go to. Marinette hadn’t realized it was actually bad enough for the two to glare at each other the way they were, thinking the rumors played up this tension.

From further into the entryway, Claude waved an arm and rushed forward towards Marinette, breaking the staring contests between her friends. His dark green suit and bright red tie contrasted to really emphasize the occasion.

“Hello Claude. How are you tonight?” she greeted lightly, slightly uncertain of what to expect without as many work restrictions. He greeted her with a half hug, kissing near both her cheeks. Felix and Adrien had both turned to watch him intensely.

“Marinette! I’m so glad you’re finally here! Your dress is magnificent! Did you bring a date for tonight?” he gushed, gently holding her arm near the elbow. He was beaming, grin reaching his ears, and only glanced at the two men near her as he asked about the date.

“Not tonight. I didn’t particularly feel like finding one when we were starting to design for the spring line already. Especially since Christmas is already next week, and many of my friends are planning to spend time with their families in preparation,” Marinette casually answered, successfully hiding her wariness at his line of questioning. He had asked her out to dinner once when she first started but he quickly moved on to other targets after she had gently rejected.

“I can escort you, if you’d like! A pretty woman like you is bound to be surrounded otherwise! Plus if I remember correctly, this is the first year you’ve managed to make it so you don’t know where to find all the best food and I can help with that,” he exclaimed with what he probably thought was a charming smile, ending with a wink. Marinette hoped he got distracted soon instead.

“That’s alright Claude! I’m sure I’ll be alright without a date, and if I decide I need to find the best food, I’ll find you,” Marinette tried to dismiss his offer in a polite, but firm manner. With no comeback or ready suggestion to combat it, Claude smiled a little less brightly and informed them he would be returning to the action, reminding Marinette to find him later. With a small wave, he was gone and Marinette sighed.

After rolling her shoulders and head, she strode forward towards the main party. Both Adrien and Felix rushed to match her stride. Adrien asked if she and that man were close; Felix, if Claude bothered her at work. Both assured her that they would take care of her if she needed. She laughed a little, assuring them that Claude was not harassing her at work and she had the situation under control. They didn’t seem convinced, so Marinette made note to herself that she should follow up on this issue.

Walking through the main doors, Marinette paused to scan the room for specific people she hoped to see. She quickly decided that she should just start at one side of the room and work her way around it. She approached a pair chatting that she had worked with on a few occasions.

“Good evening! How have you been? Is your wife here tonight?” She managed to slide into the conversation easily, the pair exchanging small talk quickly before asking her opinion about one aspect of their winter line and her thoughts. She explained what she personally thought were a few pros and cons before a voice behind her chimed in his opinion. Marinette had jumped slightly as he spoke, not realizing that Felix had followed her over. She turned, trying to widen the group so Felix was within the semi-circle rather than behind her. Adrien stood right next to him, causing Marinette to jump again. The original pair looked curiously at the blonds and Marinette tried to casually laugh the interaction off.

“I didn’t see you two join us! Excuse my excluding you from the conversation!” her voice came out nervous, blood rushing to her cheeks. She wished they had said something sooner. Then she proceeded to ask if they had all met and introduced Felix when one man didn't know him. A minute or two of uncomfortable small talk followed before silence. When Marinette excused herself to talk to a woman that had recently returned from maternity leave, Felix and Adrien trailing behind her, one man speculated about her relationship with the two men that were meant to run Gabriel one day. The two agreed that if she was getting special attention, it was likely due to her talent. Gabriel must have asked them to keep an eye on her.

Marinette continued chatting, moving from person to person and, learning quickly from her first experience, immediately introducing people to the heirs of Gabriel by only their given names, as casually as they might any other random coworker or friend. Many noted to themselves or others nearby that those men seemed very attentive. One older designer chuckled quietly when Marinette made a passing statement about wanting to try some hors d'oeuvres before they were gone and both Felix and Adrien slipped away, only to return nearly simultaneously with plates piled much higher than would be deemed appropriate normally, offering them to Marinette. The young woman tried to laugh at them and asked her if she wanted to try any of their offerings. Each of them took one small item from each plate and turned away anything further. Each looked smugly at the other when Marinette took her choice from his plate.

As the night moved on and the live music started, many people moved towards the dance floor with their dates. Most songs were upbeat and catchy and Marinette had made herself at home with another young woman from another department. Felix and Adrien had been pulled away by some executives, discussing this and that, each trying to gain a small amount of favor for their futures. Keen observers may have noted the young men sneaking glances towards a young designer, laughing with another woman.

Soon a young man invited Marinette’s companion to dance. With an excited smile over her shoulder, she accepted. Marinette gave a small wave in acknowledgement and found her drink. It took very little time for the two men to approach her. Felix and Adrien reached her at the same moment. Both asked for a dance in that moment. Marinette’s eyes opened wide in her initial surprise and the swift beeline those men made to get to her had attracted more than a few watching eyes.

“Are the two of you planning on ignoring the rest of the guests here the entire night, when I’m content to stay on my own? Here you ask me to choose between my two very good friends while other young women wait to be invited to dance?” Marinette mockingly replied to the two, eyebrows raised slightly. The men flushed, but Felix took a step forward, leaning slightly towards her. Adrien quickly moved to follow step

“I would only be content to stay by your side, and I’m sure the other women wouldn’t be content in my company either. You look too beautiful for any other to keep my eyes on her,” Felix spoke in a husky whisper, just loud enough for the trio to hear. Marinette looked into his eyes and felt the impact of his words stirring her heart. She knew a blush had to be creeping up as well.

“I can’t imagine wanting to dance with another girl when I know you’re here! You enchant me!” Adrien’s exclamations were much less subtle and held an undertone of pleading. Unfortunately this attracted more eyes nearby and Marinette felt uncomfortable under the weight of their stares.

“Adrien, would you mind not loudly saying things like that? People will get the wrong idea about our relationship,” she replied in a hushed tone, her eyes flicking across the nearby faces watching them with all but outright stares. Adrien didn’t seem to read her mood.

“What do you mean? I care for you unbelievably! I would ask for a date if our careers didn’t make us too busy,” Adrien proceeded, only speaking slightly quieter. The nearest people switched from watching to fish-eyed stares. Felix put a hand on his shoulder.

“Offering her your heart does not mean you have hers. You do not yet have the kind of relationship to boldly declare your feelings for her in front of others, dear cousin,” Felix chided quietly. Marinette’s eyes were drawn to him again.

“I can’t help if I want to shout my affections, my love, from the rooftops! I don’t mind others knowing that I have feelings for her, even if she hasn’t returned them yet!” Adrien justified to Felix, no longer speaking boisterously but still well above a whisper. Felix shook his head slightly.

Marinette couldn’t help but think about the differences between the two as she watched this interaction. Felix asked nothing of her future, of commitment beyond this dance. He put in the effort to be with her in the moment, making time to see her at work often without letting himself become a true disruption. His eyes conveyed a longing for her, a desire to have her close, but he did not presume upon her heart. His words were private, personal and left their relationship as a private matter. He was giving her the option to choose how much she wanted from him and how much others could know. Adrien asked only of a dance here, in a very different way though. He was proclaiming to others that he intended to pursue her when he felt the time was right and that their relationship held something more than friendship, even if it was truly one-sided. He chose to wait, put off his pursuit until it was his sole focus, causing him to miss out on her life in the everyday mundane. This embodied one large difference between the pair: Felix tended to be reserved and only show his thoughts and feelings to those he chose and Adrien tended to be open and show his thoughts and feelings to all.

“Adrien, I work with these people and personally would prefer they recognize I got here on my own merits. There are some that would infer that I am only succeeded due to your influence and any defense you tried to pose would only make them more convinced. Also, I recommend both of you grab yourself a drink because I’m not having my first dance of the night with either of you. I’ve got my eye on someone for that already,” Marinette stated firmly before walking across the room.

The men watched as she approached an older gentleman and gently asked him to dance. He took her hand and the two proceeded to the dance floor where they did a slow sway. She laughed and smiled as the gentleman spoke. The young men looked at each other and Felix extended a hand. Adrien took it silently, the two agreeing to bide their time for Marinette’s decision. In the night after the Christmas party had ended, Felix learned of Marinette’s decision and rejoiced in his opportunity to see her more.

[obeymeaskme]

Obey Me!: Human and Demon Hearts!

A/N: Just a reminder to check out my pinned post to see all the chapters!

Chapter Four: The Incident (1/2)

Word count: 1,604

Rating: 18+

By the time Tuesday morning had arrived, Satan had already bragged to the whole household about how he 'found a cure for Noelle's pesky ailment'. This was the reason everyone was sitting at the table waiting. After all it was the first time most of the brothers saw Noelle since Sunday morning, excluding Asmo who tried to charm her a second time at school, and Levi who was forced to be near her due to being her guide. Thankfully the relations between the others in the house hadn't gotten any worse than before.

The explanation was simple. She has to learn to control, her own magic.

"Someone has to teach her magic." Satan said with a blissful smile. The others groaned against it. Most of them. Asmodeus seemed to want to take that responsibility in a heartbeat.

"Oh! I can do it! After all I'm one of the few who won't try and tear her to shreds~"

Noelle and Bella shared a concerned look at his request. Neither fully confident his intentions were pure. Thankfully, Lucifer was on the same page as they were.

"You will do no such thing Asmodeus. We will let Leviathan handle it."

"WHAT!?"

Everyone turned their heads towards the serpent demon and his outburst. He hadn't been paying full attention to the conversation. So the news of him being forced to teach the 'Normie' shocked him.

"Why me! That's so unfair!"

Lucifer gave his final retort.

"You're the only one who hasn't spent nearly as much time as the others. Perhaps if you weren't lost in your anime fantasies and actually tried to get along with Noelle, you could have gone under my radar…"

The conversation seemed to end there, and so did the meeting. Everyone had gone off on their own ways, eager to continue their activities. Everyone but Levi, and Noelle.

Even under Lucifer's instructions Leviathan had managed to keep her at a distance. He had her follow him to the library, and tossed her a book. It was a book on beginners' magic. His grand plan was for her to learn on her own while he played games on his hand held device. No matter how hard Noelle tried, she couldn't gather the courage to ask him questions when they occurred.

The rest of the day went by slowly, and Noelle and Bella finally had a chance to catch up with each other. Both of them burrowing themselves under Bella's mountain of stuffed animals. Her being the first to speak.

"So… You and Levi huh?"

Noelle sighed and nodded in response, letting her friend do the talking.

"I'm sorry if it's not going well for you. Look at the bright side! You get to learn magic. That's pretty cool."

Noelle gave another nod, this time adding a forced smile, and verbally interacting.

"Yeah. I asked Satan for help but when he starts, he doesn't seem to slow down. We both figured I'd be better off on my own."

"What about Lord Diavolo? He's such a big shot, why doesn't he get you a tutor?"

Noelle shrugged.

"I tried that. A tutor is too much use of the school's resources, and Lord D is really keen on the brothers being our guide…"

"That sucks…"

Night came around which it gave Noelle a chance to rest before tomorrow. The only hope of her gaining Levi's companionship was just a sunset away.

Morning came with it's usual dark and hazy atmosphere. Bella had stretched her way out of bed, trying not to trip over the passed out Belphegor who made his nest on her floor. They had watched a movie the night before, both falling asleep halfway through.

On her way going downstairs she came across Noelle, who was just now coming out of her room. They exchanged a quick hello, and gathered their school supplies. Noelle took a deep breath and followed her out the door. On the way to school a group of lower level demons had been slouching around the gates of the entryway. These were the same group of demons that have been bugging both girls throughout the week prior. But most of their pranks were pretty plain, and nothing to be concerned about, especially when Beel was hanging around them. At least, up until today.

"Hey Human Meatballs! Where do you think you're going?"

The girls did their best to ignore them. But sometimes ignoring someone in hopes they go away doesn't work. Especially with demons. In one quick motion one of the demons had snagged Bella by the hoodie, pulling her back into their grasps. Noelle had panicked and followed them, trying to grab onto Bella as much as possible. Anger in her voice.

"HEY! Let go of her, you dumb asses!"

The demon's mocking tones was their only response. Thinking quickly on her feet she unzipped Bella's sweater, giving her friend a makeshift get away. Noelle on the other hand felt a sharp pain in her arm, as the others grabbed and pulled on her. Then all at once, they stopped. Hands frozen in place.

The air surrounding them grew thick and heavy. Out of Noelle's eyesight, a familiar growl was heard. Without warning all three demons turned on their heels and ran off. Noelle had turned around to see what made them flee, her heart beating in her chest. She calmed down quickly seeing the familiar blue eyes of Satan as he rushed to her side.

"I saw everything. How's your arm?"

"My arm-"

As soon as she moved her limb, a shot of pain rippled through it. Satan had pulled the sleeve back, even against Noelle's howls of protest. The skin was cut deeply and it was bleeding. Satan rubbed his hand over it and growled, dragging her along to sit on a bench.

"I have to go get Lucifer. He's the only one who can help-"

"NO!"

Satan looked at her in shock. His head tilted in confusion.

"It's… not that bad. Please, promise me you won't tell him. If he figures out I got into a fight, let alone one that got me hurt, he'll send me back to the human world! He'll force me to leave Bella by herself!"

Satan took a deep, unsure breath and agreed to keep it a secret. For now he patched her up to the best of his abilities, and they went through school like nothing happened.

Neither of them saw the demon bullies for the rest of the day.

The school day itself went along well. Assignments had been finished in most of the girl's classes so they found themselves wandering the hallways multiple times. Noelle had checked up on her, and returned her sweater during a study hall. Both of them trying to find ways to patch up the holes that were left behind.

Satan had joined them on the way back to the House, along with Beel and Belphegor who both apologized for not being around during the earlier encounter. But that didn't matter. They were back home where it was safe.

Noelle had just barely flopped on her bed when a knock was heard on the door. Once back up on her feet, she found a small package sitting outside of her room. Her excitement grew knowing exactly what it was. She all but slammed the door and sat at her crafting table, taking out a sharp knife to open the package.

Sitting inside was the Ruri-chan figurine she'd been waiting for. She'd never really won anything with raffles, especially not with something so wide-scaled. Immediately she took Ruri-chan out of the cluttered shipping paper and ran to Levi's room, knocking on it.

"What's the password?"

Noelle giggles to herself, not knowing the password but knowing how to get his attention.

"Does the sound of a Ruri-chan special edition Soda Brand Figurine count?"

Almost instantly she was met with Orange eyes, and swept hair. Her high energy quickly faded the longer he glared at the box in her hands.

"How did you get that?"

Noelle shrunk back as black hot ashes flaked off from Levi's body.

"I heard about the figurine contest and decided to give it a try?"

They locked eyes, and Levi gave an airy hiss, backing her up across the hallway, demon form unleashed.

"So what? You came here to rub it in my face? Mock me for being an Otaku or something? That's pretty stupid, not to mention low-"

Noelle began to squeeze her eyes shut, not being able to look at him out of fear. She didn't even see him grab her injured arm until it was too late. Even when she was brought to her knees he still persisted.

"And all you ever do is mock me behind my back right? That's why you're so chummy with my brothers too, right? You think I'm so below you, even if you're just a Normie-"

"LET GO!"

Noelle had quickly tossed the box at him, hitting him in the face. He released her, ignoring her silent sobs as she gripped her arm. It took him a few minutes to process the blood on his hand wasn't from his face. Looking down at her, he slowly pieced together the two things that had just happened.

A 'Normie' had wanted to help him win something he wasn't going to get on his own, and how aggressive he was towards her. Concerned that he broke her arm, he pulled her up and ran with her to the bathroom. His heart beat finally steadied as he saw bleeding scratch marks, and nothing to indicate he broke any bones.

[just-a-light-among-the-stars]

Just Like A Cherry Blossom (Belphegor x Fem!MC)

Word Count: 4572

Pages: 10

When she told Lucifer that she would make her year in the Devildom a year to remember, she certainly didn’t expect it to become this much of a memorable experience. Thousand-year family drama, multiple encounters with danger, six solid demon pacts and...an actual death experience. Out of all the memories she had made throughout the year, the last one still haunted her.

Her and Belphegor had gotten considerably close ever since she found him locked up in the attic and more often than not, she would even skip classes to spend time with him and talk about her day or all the things she was doing during her stay at the Devildom. She knew of his story from Beelzebub and had resolved to gather all the pacts to set him free, but in the meantime, she did not want him to feel excluded. She genuinely believed him when he said he wanted to talk things out with Lucifer and find some common ground, and she worked on his favor to make it happen.

But she was naive.

She had underestimated how much hatred the Avatar of Sloth stored deep inside him. She had underestimated how much Lilith meant to him; enough for his resentment and animosity to keep burning for thousands of years. And because she underestimated a demon, she found herself at the receiving end of that outrage. Time to time, she would still have nightmares about that night. The feeling of losing the air out of her lungs, the feeling of the light fading away from her eyes as his evil smile was the last thing she saw; they all tormented her to this very day.

Yet, things seemed to have wondrously gone back to normal once she was revealed to be Lilith’s descendant; at least on the surface. Belphegor was far clingier than before and he would often call her up in the attic just to talk, like they used to. And she hated how she was agreeing to it so naturally. Even though she was still hurt about how she was tricked like that, even though she felt like his feelings weren’t genuine, her own feelings were. She had come to love everything about him, both his beautiful and his ugly side. She had come to love him as a person, as a man and as a demon. She loved every single part of him. And even though she knew he probably didn’t feel the same way, she was determined to fix their relationship properly. She was determined to fix him. Because she loved him.

“Please, Lucifer, just for one day. I’m begging you.”

“No means no, MC.”

As one would have expected, the path to fixing Belphegor wasn’t easy; especially when grand obstacles like the Avatar of Pride stood in her way. And yet, she wasn’t about to give up now. She was determined to give it her all for the one she loved. That was just how she was.

“It will only be one day, and you will be there too.” she kept trying to reason with the eldest of the demon brothers. “Please, let’s all go for a picnic in the human world. It’s Hanami period up there right now and it’s the perfect weather for an outing like this. I told you time after time how much I miss my world, and… how I wanted to show it to him. I wanted to show Belphie how beautiful the human world is during spring.”

“You of all people should understand why I don’t want him to go up to the human world.” Lucifer argued. “After you poked your nose into our business and created all that mess, it is a miracle you are still alive and Belphie is allowed to roam freely. Don’t test your luck anymore than you already have, MC.”

“You’re right...” she sighed. “You’re probably right, but Belphie is...!”

“Hm? What about Belphie?”

She was so focused on getting Lucifer to agree with her that she didn’t even notice the presence of another demon in the room. Beelzebub was, as always, carrying a mountain of food to his and Belphegor’s room, but he stopped once he heard his twin’s name. He entered Lucifer’s study without a second thought, eager to join the conversation upon seeing her there as well.

“Oh, Beel!” she greeted him, hoping she could make him her ally on this. “Listen, I...I wanted us all to go up to the human world tomorrow. It’s flower viewing season in Japan, where I’m from, and I wanted to show you guys. I wanted to show Belphie how beautiful it is. But Lucifer won’t let us go.”

“...Why?” Beelzebub asked, munching on one of his snacks.

“Because Belphie is not ready to go to the human world yet.” Lucifer was still unshakeable in his opinion. “If he got too emotional remembering Lilith and he went on a rampage, Diavolo would lose face. And...Belphie would have to face punishment again. I cannot allow either of those.”

“You have to show some more faith in him, Lucifer!” she wouldn’t back down either, even if the one she had to go against was the Avatar of Pride himself. “Beel, you and Belphie share feelings and you always know how each other thinks or feels, right? How do you think he would feel about going to the human world? How is he feeling right now? Does he still hold any kind of resentment towards humans?”

“I don’t know the details, but...I know Belphie always feels very happy whenever he’s around you. Even if some of his dark feelings still linger, they disappear during the time you spend together.” the glutton smiled gently. “I think we should go to the human world too. I want to see Belphie talk about how much he loves it...and smile like he used to. Let’s go, Lucifer.”

That must have been the umpteenth time Lucifer had sighed today. The human female alone was a pain to deal with, but now that Beelzebub had joined her in her crusade, this seemed like an impossible quest. Especially if the rest of the brothers heard about this and started pestering him about it as well. He knew that, at this point, there was only one way out of this. And he took it without further hesitation.

“...Fine. I will let Diavolo know.”

The glee both her and Beelzebub shared as they looked at each other after he agreed couldn’t be described with words. And yet, she managed to string up some, wanting him to know how grateful she was to him for taking her feelings into consideration.

“Lucifer, thank you so much-”

“However.” the Avatar of Pride added, before she could finish her sentence. “If, even a minor inconvenience occurs, we are returning back to the Devildom immediately. And you are the one who will be held accountable, MC. Am I clear?”

“Yes! Thank you so much!”

At this point, Lucifer’s threat didn’t even register in her mind. All she could think about was how she would be able to show Belphegor the human world once again. How there was the slightest hope that she could see his smile for the first time; his true smile. All she could think about was how she wanted to set him free. And now, she had earned the chance to do it.

“Sorry, Beel, can you let the rest know?” she spoke excitedly as she skipped towards the door. “I am going to tell Belphie!”

Before she could get a reply out of him, she had already stormed off Lucifer’s study excitedly, in an attempt to find the demon she was looking for. Belphegor could literally fall asleep anywhere, but there were just three spots within the House of Lamentation that one could often find him at. One was his and Beelzebub’s room, but when she went there, she found it empty. And so, she headed for the next possible destination she knew she’d probably find him at; the planetarium. The two of them had spent lots of time there together ever since he was freed; talking, cuddling, sleeping...she had many good memories from that place. But, once again, he wasn’t there. As she probably had expected from the beginning, Belphie always came back to the one place that everything started.

The attic.

And certainly enough, she found him there. He was sprawled all over his pillow fortress, hugging his favourite cow-pattern pillow as he slept peacefully among his stack of blankets. He looked so placid and tranquil in his sleep, that the hand that she had extended to shake him awake stopped midway. She knew she had to tell him they were leaving tomorrow and that he should pack up, but she had already given in to the temptation. She just sat there, watching him sleep for a while longer, observing each and every expression he made.

She knew it wasn’t right. She knew he probably wouldn’t like that, but she couldn’t stop. She just loved every little thing about him. The way his bangs covered the right side of his face, even in his sleep, the way his lips parted as he breathed in and out, snoring ever so slightly and barely audibly. The way his hands would grip onto some of his pillows whenever he was dreaming about something, the way he hardly ever tossed and turned but somehow always ended up out of his covers. She loved everything there was to love about him.

“...MC?”

“Ah...!”

She let out a sudden gasp once Belphie’s sleepy voice brought her out of her daydream, and she cleared her throat awkwardly, desperately trying to come up with an excuse to explain her rude and borderline-creepy actions just now.

“B-Belphie, you’re awake!” she chuckled stiffly. “I’m...sorry. I came to tell you something, but I did not want to wake you up-”

“...It’s fine.” he muttered, rubbing the sleepiness off of his eyes, before smiling at her. “What did you want to tell me?”

“Um...”

She felt weird. Not too long ago, she was so eager to tell him what they were doing tomorrow, but now that she actually got the chance to, the words just wouldn’t come out. Lucifer’s words kept spinning inside her head, warning her that she was making a mistake; telling her that their trip to the human world was more likely to hurt Belphegor rather than help him. But, even so, she had to do it. If she wanted to be his salvation, she had to be brave enough to take the next step.

“So, I...I asked Lucifer for a favor today, and he said yes.”

“Lucifer?” Belphegor’s interest was now piqued. “What kind of favor was it?”

“Well...” she trailed off again. “I asked him if we could visit the human world for a picnic tomorrow morning. It’s Hanami season in my home country, so I thought it would be nice if we all went to see the cherry blossoms together. And, I...I also wanted you to see it.”

The moment those words left her mouth, she instantly regretted it. Belphegor’s expression was completely blank, and she couldn’t help but imagine all the worst possible scenarios that could possibly occur from this. She thought that, perhaps, she should have listened to Lucifer, after all. Perhaps, she shouldn’t have roped Beel into this, hoping they could do something for Belphegor. Perhaps, she shouldn’t have been so overconfident.

“Okay...” he eventually replied. “I’ll go.”

Before she could reply back, however, he had already gone back to sleep. She just stood there, staring at his sleeping form for another couple of minutes, before standing up with a frown and exiting the attic room, her mind a mess of jumbled thoughts and insecurities alike. She didn’t know how tomorrow would go, but she at least hoped it wouldn’t end in disaster.

_________________________________________

“Wooooah! So, this is how Japan looks in 3D! We should start by visiting Akihabara and then...!”

The next day came excruciatingly fast, and before they knew it, MC and the brothers had all passed through the gate that teleported them straight to Tokyo, her hometown. Even though they wanted to be there in the morning, however, when they arrived, it was already afternoon. Still, that didn’t stop them from going along with their plan.

It was needless to say that Leviathan was the most excited of them all, taking photos left and right like a foreign European tourist, rambling about how each and every place reminded him of his favorite anime. Lucifer threatened to take them back many times after Levi was getting lost into anime stores and Mammon went around wanting to buy everything, but eventually, they settled as they arrived at the park they would be doing their flower viewing.

MC thought she would be happy to see her home after so many months in the Devildom, but at that moment, she couldn’t think of anything like that. Her nostalgic feelings were overwhelmed by her anxiety as she repeatedly stole glances at Belphegor, who still looked as expressionless as ever as he walked through the beautiful sakura-filled streets. The flower petals swept by the wind caressed his hair like spontaneous flutters, and his eyes reflected the clear blue sky of spring as he looked around, and MC could have sworn she had seen nothing more beautiful in her entire life so far. But even though he painted such a gorgeous image, why...why did he look like that?

“We will set up the picnic in this spot.”

Lucifer’s words pulled her out of her trance, and she looked at the free spot under a large cherry tree that the demon had found. Nobody else was around, because it was at the foot of a small hill that had a rather uneven angle. Yet, that wasn’t much of a bother to the demons; or to her for the matter.

“Let’s get the blanket set first.” Satan proposed as he took out the picnic supplies they all brought with them.

“Yosh! I’m gonna bring out the booze!” Mammon eagerly looked through the basket.

“Ah, the food-” Beelzebub was also approaching said basket, drooling over the smell of the fresh sandwiches.

“Beel, don’t touch the food until we are all seated.” Lucifer was barking warnings at his brothers. “Levi, Asmo...you two help with the preparation before you start taking pictures of yourselves.”

“Eh? No way!” Asmodeus whined. “Are you saying I can’t capture the true beauty of those cherry blossoms and myself while the light is still good? That would be blasphemy! Right now, I look like a flower among flowers, don’t you think~?”

“ROFLMAO! You don’t get it, Asmo!” Levi laughed out loud, furiously taking selfies and typing on his phone. “This is Hanami season! The only beauty that should be appreciated is of the cherry blossoms themselves! #humanworld #hanami #withMCandtheBros.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at their antics as she took out more blankets and pillows, which she had packed especially for Belphegor in case he wanted to sleep under the sakura trees. And yet, once she raised her head to ask him if he needed anything, he was nowhere to be found. Her whole being was alarmed instantly, remembering Lucifer’s words over and over again, until she glanced towards him almost terrified, revealing what everyone else had failed to notice so far.

“Um...” she trailed off hesitantly. “Has anyone seen Belphie?”

All procedures immediately stopped. Lucifer’s eyes narrowed when he realized his younger brother was missing, and was about to say something before Beelzebub interjected.

“Ah-” he interjected. “I saw him go up the hill. He probably went to sleep under that large tree up there...”

“Hah...” Lucifer sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration. “MC, go bring him back. Don’t be late.”

“Y-Yes...”

Following Lucifer’s command, she started climbing up the hill, looking left and right for a familiar silhouette or anything else that would pinpoint Belphegor’s location, but she didn’t have to look any further when she reached the top. He was the first thing she noticed as she took in the view in front of her. There he was, leaning his back against the trunk of a pink tree, stray flower petals falling on top of his head, and others surrounding him as the view from below the hill became visible. The city of Tokyo looked majestic in the evening, its tall buildings bathing in the moonlight and reflecting it back, creating a stunning sparkle effect that would please anyone’s eyes.

Yet, she couldn’t see any of that. For she was already watching someone who sparkled more than the sun itself. Rather than the buildings, she admired the way the light was reflecting his narrow purple eyes. Rather than the sakura trees, she admired his curious gaze as he held a flower petal in his open palm and examined him. Rather than viewing flowers, she would very much prefer to view him. And she would have loved to keep that up for eternity, if only Lucifer had not given her the order to bring him back.

Sighing in disappointment, she took a few steps forward to get his attention and stood beside him, supporting herself with one hand against the tree trunk.

“Belphie...Lucifer said-”

“Oh, MC!” he interrupted her, smiling as he patted the spot next to him. “I’ve been waiting for you. Come sit here.”

“But, Lucifer-”

“He can wait. Now, come here.”

She was confused. He had been looking disinterested and impassive since yesterday. His mood did not change when they arrived in Tokyo either. But now that they were alone, he was suddenly smiling again, inviting her to cuddle with him like he did all the other times. Like he wasn’t being weird before. Like he nothing had ever happened. And that’s how it had always been since those two met. Belphegor’s personality, his attitude...it had no in-between. It was either zenith or nadir with him. And that was something she just couldn’t wrap her head around.

“Okay then...”

She eventually gave in and sat next to him, fixing her gaze on the scenery in front of her. The two sat there in silence for a little while, before the demon leaned his head on her shoulder and spoke up, rubbing the sleepiness away from his eyes.

“So this is where you grew up...” he trailed off, smiling up at her. “I’ve always wanted to see that.”

“...The place I grew up?” she replied reluctantly, looking away in an attempt to hide her blushing cheeks.

“Yes.” Belphegor confirmed. “There are...many things I want to know about you. That was one of them.”

Badump

Badump

Her heart was beating so loud that she figured he must have certainly heard it by now. She could still not understand his attitude or why he was so hot-and-cold, but since she was given this one chance now, she knew she had to take it. If she wanted to understand him, if she wanted to help him, she had to dance to his own rhythm.

“There are...many things I want to know about you too.” she confessed. “Sometimes, I’m having a very hard time understanding you.”

“...Oh?” Belphie raised an eyebrow as he leaned away from her shoulder and turned to properly look her in the eye. “Why is that?”

“I...” she trailed off, taking a deep breath before continuing with her explanation. “Belphie, are you happy to be here today? Did I overstep my boundaries by inviting you to the human world?”

His eyes narrowed and a lopsided grin adorned his features as he turned his attention back to the landscape.

“You didn’t.” he admitted. “I’ve just been thinking of something for a while.”

“...What is it?”

That question was followed by a long silence. Belphegor’s eyes never left the scenery, but her eyes were on him all the time, watching his expression morph from a grin to a more serious one, a frown replacing his previous cheekiness as he finally spoke up again.

“MC...why did you forgive me?”

Another long silence, but this time, from her side. She couldn’t fully process the question at first. Belphie was blunt, but he had never talked to her so openly before. He never let it show that this was bothering him. He was always clinging to her like nothing bad ever happened between them, smiling and cuddling as if they have liked each other all along. That was why she couldn’t wrap her head around it. She couldn’t understand where this wistful expression was coming from.

“That’s...” she paused. “That’s because I understood. I understood where your resentment was coming from. And I understood that I was just the outlet of it. You didn’t hate me, personally. You hated the humans as a whole, right? And you hated them for a justifiable reason.”

“...A justifiable reason?” he blinked at her.

“I know how important Beel and Lilith were to you. I know about the irreplaceable bond you three shared. And I can understand why you would get upset at the human who broke that bond.” she continued. “It hurt so much because you felt betrayed, right? The humans that you used to love so much took something even more dear away from you. And even if it wasn’t the entire human race but just one human’s fault, your pain was so intense that it couldn’t be contained. Because I knew all that, I genuinely wanted to help you. I wanted to save you.”

“...”

“I wanted you to make amends with Lucifer and explain your point of view to him, I wanted you to reunite with Beelzebub and talk everything out, and I wanted you to see the rest of your brothers too. Your family was so important to you and you all had been through so much, that I wanted to help you make things right.” she concluded. “But, more importantly, I wanted to see you smile for real. While you were in the attic, even though you smiled at me all the time, it never felt real. But the times you were reminiscing about Lilith and your time as an angel...you had such a warm smile. It made me want to see it again and again, so I fought, and I’m still fighting to get it back. I just really want...to see you happy, Belphie. That’s why I brought you here today. But seeing you look like this...I started doubting my decision. I didn’t know if it was okay...bringing you up to the human world after all this time.”

A sudden gust of wind blew her hair on her face, bringing stray cherry blossom petals along with it that got tangled all over her locks. She tried to use her hands to swipe the hair away, but it was another hand that got to it instead. Belphegor gently tucked the loose strands behind her ear, and caressed her cheek, tracing his fingers down her jawline slowly, causing her to look up at him in surprise.

However, once she did, her breath was instantly taken away.

The vigorous gales had turned into a soothing spring breeze, bringing along cherry blossom petals that were moving along the trail of the wind, dancing around him like little cheerful flutters. In the center of it was a smile as sweet as honey, his eyes teary due to the wind, looking as if they were dripping nectar from their tear ducts, narrowing lovingly as they met her own gaze. His hair flickered in the flow of the dancing cherry blossom petals as he used his other hand to pull them away from his blushing face, that looked radiant under the moonlight; enough to paint the perfect picture.

“As I thought...I really like you, MC.”

She didn’t know what it was that made her do it. It could be the fact that she was back in her hometown, her world, and she was oozing with confidence because of that. It could be the stars and the moonlight that adorned the evening Tokyo sky like tiny little jewels. Or it could just be the way he looked tonight. He always looked handsome, but tonight he was breathtaking. Everything about him was so dreamy, that she had leaned in close to take in every inch of his image without realizing.

And then she kissed him.

Her lips lingered on his, softly and ever so slightly, moving along with the sway of the soft spring breeze. Steadily and excruciatingly slow, she was savoring every bit of his taste. Every second, every breath. His eyelashes fluttered, eyes closing gently in response, as he became more and more intimate, responding to her actions lovingly, allowing the tip of his tongue to part her lips tenderly, seeking for her own eagerly between rugged breathing and soft, delicate moans that were rolling out of his mouth like velvet. His hand that was previously caressing her cheek had now found its way to the back of her head, pulling her further and further in, not allowing her a single breath as he relished the flavor of her cherry lip balm mixed with the odors of spring and the sounds of the night.

Eventually, and regrettably so, he pulled back to grant her some air, immersing all of his senses into the sight of her flustered state, taking in every inch of her beauty. She looked dazzling under the stars, as if time had stopped around them. Her features were illuminated by the moonlight, each and every inch of her face sparkling with love as it blushed velvet red, looking away as if to hide from view. It just made the moment...all the more magical.

“I didn’t mean to do this-” she stuttered through her awkwardness and discomposure. “I’m sorry, I just couldn’t...!”

He chuckled at her words. Because it definitely didn’t seem like it to him. And that was why he didn’t let her finish that sentence. With one swift move, he toppled her over, pinning her hands on the grassy ground, hovering over her, staring at her petite form. She looked so small under him, so fragile. And at that moment, he was reminded of how transient human life was. Fleeting and ephemeral, just like the cherry blossoms dancing around them. Even though they are meant to wither, they bloom over and over again, every spring, without fail. They never remained buds, even though they knew they would fall eventually. They would blossom, more and more beautiful each time. Their petals disappeared in the wind, but their memory remained eternally, to remind them of the fragility and the beauty of life.

It was at that moment that he was reminded; why he loved humans so much. Today they were a flower, tomorrow they were scattered in the wind. But their fragrance became an everlasting memory that kept them alive until the end of time. It kept them alive in their memories, their mind and their heart. It made them immortal.

“Just like a cherry blossom...” he smiled softly, leaning down to press his forehead against hers.

“Be...Belphie?”

“You made me fall in love with someone so ephemeral...” he whispered, one breath away from her lips. “Take responsibility, MC. Create memories with me. Enough to last me for all eternity, even when you’re gone.”

[the-blind-assassin-12]

Let’s Face the Music & Dance

Part One: There May be Trouble Ahead 

A/N: Alright. Here. We. Go. Got your dancin’ shoes? John is makin’ moves. (Quote in bold taken from Much Ado About Nothing) 

*read the intro here*

Warning: um... narrowly avoided vehicular manslaughter? 

Word Count: 3,492

The air rushed past his face chilling the skin of his cheeks beneath the leather trimmed goggles that he wore as he sped down the open country roads. His carefully slicked back hair had blown free only a few kilometers into the trip, loose strands trailing down and back over his ears. I can’t believe that… He tightened his grasp on the handles, pushing the limit on the speed as he pushed the thought from his mind. The truth was that he could believe, he did believe that his mother thought so little of him. She’d made it quite clear where she placed blame and where she placed expectations. And the former far outweighs the latter, so… He sniffed, his nose red from the cold air and from the way Veronica’s cold comments stung at his eyes. So this is how it has to be. 

He hadn’t planned to make the trip down to Oxford all in one go, nor had he planned to leave home that day. But I couldn’t stay, not after… Trees blurred into countryside, rolling hills and pastures full of sheep flying by as John left everything he knew behind him in hopes that he could make something new of himself; something successful and worthy of rehabilitating the Whittaker name. Worthy of showing everyone that they were wrong about me. He tucked away as much of the hurt that his mother’s words and decisions had caused him as he could, stuffing it into the emptiness that the dissolution of his marriage had left him feeling. It won’t do any good to dwell...to continue to...to wallow. 

After Larita and his father absconded from the estate in a flurry of shattered statuary and broken hearts, John hadn’t come down from his room for nearly a week. He’d quickly realized that while he did love her, and he was sure that she had loved him- at least while we were together in Monaco- the two were about as unlikely to last as ice cream on an August afternoon. There were too many differences, too many areas of their lives that were complete and utter mismatches. But still, the fact that he’d taken her hand and taken the leap only to end up on the ground alone was… lonely, I felt...I felt alone. He’d thought that being married, having a wife, being her husband, would mean that he’d never have to feel that way, and certainly not so soon after taking that leap did he expect to crash. It wasn’t that he missed Larita. It was that he felt as though he had failed himself by grabbing the wrong hand. 

But shortly after he’d realized that it wasn’t her absence that was causing the ache in his chest but the connotations of that absence, John started to come back to himself. His mother, it seemed, had already gotten past the pain of her own crash, likely before she’d even hit the ground, and he was hurt all over again by the fact that he was alone in feeling alone. The truth, as he’d learned, was that not only had Veronica made peace with the fact that her marriage hadn’t been what it once was for a very long time, she’d also made peace with selling even more of their property to a banker named Harold Roberts, and marrying Hilda off to his son Walter. It was an attempt to keep what little they had left, but it was an attempt that excluded John completely. While Marion seemed content to be overlooked, believing, as Veronica had always said, that marriage would never be the route that she went down, John on the other hand, felt as though the rug had been pulled from beneath him. 

It was no use fighting with his mother once she made her calculating mind up, though, and so he chose to go on with his plan regardless of the other that was hatching. Phillip Hurst, in his own attempt to try to make something meaningful of his life, had decided to attend Oxford University, and John had decided to join him. He wasn’t quite sure what he’d study, or where it might take him, but he knew that it was a much better plan than waiting around to make another dangerous leap. He spent the rest of the trip from Nottinghamshire ruminating on what courses he might take, on what knowledge he might gain. Phillip had chosen to study Literature, which to John made sense, as his friend had always had a flair for the dramatics, but sitting still and reading for hours on end was not something that John could see for himself. Still, Phillip had been supportive of John’s choice to enroll in University, quoting Shakespeare in a telegram that John supposed was meant to be comforting. “Everyone can master grief but he that has it… so leave it behind and join me!” 

Four hours since leaving the home he wasn’t sure he’d ever get to call his again, John Whittaker arrived in Oxford, England. He pushed the goggles up onto his forehead to get a better view of the city and of the buildings that constituted the University. Feeling better, if only for the moment, he took a deep breath and allowed himself to feel hope for the first time since he watched his wife and father exit his life. This is… I’m really… 

But before he could fully enjoy the feeling or the moment, a young woman was shouting as she leapt out of the way of his bike. Taking his eyes off the road to appreciate his new situation had caused him to veer slightly off course, sending him careening towards the walkways. Oh! Quickly turning the handles, he narrowly avoided crashing into the woman, though he hadn’t avoided the bush right beside her, ending up halfway into the greenery before he could stop. Right. Well. I’m here. 

“Would you watch where you are going? You nearly knocked me over there with your carelessness! Who even…” You’d dropped your books when you’d had to jump from his path, your skirt twisting around and your top askew. 

What? I...Oh, I… “I’m sorry, I’m so…” He pulled the motorbike out of the bush and bent down to pick up one of your dropped texts, handing it back to you as a page fluttered out onto the ground. “Are you alri-” You snatched it back from him with one hand, the other pulling at your clothing to fix it back into place. 

“No, I am not alright! As I said, sir-” 

“It’s John, actually, John Whittaker, and I’m very-” 

“As I said, John, you nearly knocked me over with your,” you gestured at his motorbike with the book, “your ridiculous cycle here, and I-” 

“But you aren’t hurt, are you?” He asked as he stepped towards you, the sincerity in his eyes clearer than the embarrassment. He looked you over quickly scanning your elbows, your face, the small amount of skin that was visible beneath the hem of your skirt. She’s not bleeding, I don’t see any-

You blew out a breath in a huff and shook your head. “No, I’m not hurt, but you should… You need to be more cautious.” 

Nodding profusely, he agreed. “You’re right, I should be more careful, it was foolish of me not to pay more attention.” You seemed to be expecting him to disagree and were caught off guard by the lack of fight he put up, your sharp eyes softening the smallest amount. “Can I… do you need any help or… can I walk you to wherever it is you were going?” The soft look vanished as one eyebrow shot up, but before you could open your mouth to protest his forwardness, he continued. “I don’t mean to be forward, I only want to make sure that you’re truly not hurt. It seems the least that I can do after, well after,” he tilted his head towards the motorbike, a broken branch of leaves sticking in the spokes of the front wheel. “After I almost ran you down, Miss..?” 

You narrowed your eyes at him as you tried to decide what his intentions might be. I only want to make sure that I don’t leave my mark on your life like I do everywhere I go. Blowing out another breath through your nose as you fixed your sleeve, you told him your name, which he repeated in his mind immediately, not ignoring the fact that he liked the way it sounded. No, don’t start that now, that’s not why you’re here. “Um… no, I, er…” you nodded curtly. “I’m alright, John, and I need to be going now or I’ll be late to my study group. Just...just be more careful, and keep your tires on the road, will you?” With that, you turned and kept walking down the path you’d been on before he’d disrupted your day. 

“Excellent first impression on Oxford, Whittaker!” Phillip’s voice called from across the street, and John turned to see his friend ambling towards him with a laugh lifting his cheeks and lighting his face. “If you’re done running down students, why don’t you pull that heap of rubbish out of that bush and follow me, I’ll show you to the dormitories. 

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  

A few days after moving into the dormitory hall, John decided to use the last remaining days before formal instruction began to familiarize himself with his new surroundings, striding out into the early autumn sunshine and strolling the paths. Not two minutes into his walk, he found you, walking the same path he’d run his vehicle up onto the day before. What are the odds? Wanting to ensure that you were still alright after what had happened, he crossed the road, waving one arm as he called your name. 

You turned, an unsure look on your face as your name hit your ear that vanished the second you saw him, replaced with a slightly exasperated expression. “Oh, it’s you, the motorbike man.” 

The motorbike man? He shook his head. Not important. “H-how are you? Are you still...are you alright?” He blinked as he looked you over, suddenly aware of the way that you were looking at him. Oh, she’s… 

“Yes, I’m alright.” You raised one hand towards the road. “No one has tried to run me down yet today, and since you’re here and your cycle is not, I presume that I’m safe. For now.” You nodded. “Now, If you’ll excuse me, I do have an appointment with my advisor and so-”

Oh! She’s a student? She- “So you… you study here then? You’re a student?” John’s eyes flicked from your face to the imposing structure that you were walking towards, its chimneys looming above the brick building. 

“Well aren’t you brilliant?” Your teasing answer came from the corner of your lips as you continued to walk along as though John wasn’t trying to have a conversation with you. 

Brilliant? That’s the last- “Brilliant? Oh, no, I think that-”  

“No?” Turning to face him, you brushed your hair back behind your ear, and John couldn’t help but notice the way that the skin at the corner of your eye scrunched as you looked over at him.  “You aren’t brilliant then?” 

Not if you ask- “Well, not if you ask-”   

Cutting him off, you adjusted the small stack of books that you were carrying. “I’m asking you, Jack, is it?” 

“It’s,” he gestured to himself. “It’s John, actually.” 

“Yes,” you winked at him. “That’s right. John. John Whittaker.” Yes, that’s me, she remem- “John Whittaker, the man who nearly knocked me off my feet with his motorbike just the other day.” You’d stopped walking, pausing at the corner to wait for a baker’s delivery truck to trundle slowly through the intersection. 

The smell of still warm, freshly baked loaves wafted through the air, reminding John that it had been nearly a full day since he’d eaten anything. His empty stomach rumbled loudly to confirm that, par for the course, nothing since he’d left home the previous day had gone as he had hoped it might. The echo of his mother’s words tumbled in his ear, but he shook his head to empty it, returning his attention to you. “That was...well it was…” The truck passed through the intersection, turning a corner, and you promptly began crossing the road. He stepped off of the curb, crossing just behind you. A cool breeze swept some leaves about your feet and ruffled the hem of your skirt, adding to the clipped click of your heels on the hard road. The image of you sprawled across the street, books strewn about and your elbows scraped flashed quickly through his mind, but he blinked it away. That’s not what happened, only what could have happened. A small frown pulled his lips downward as he thought about the trouble he’d almost caused with his carelessness. Catching up to you, he stepped onto the sidewalk at the same instant that you did, speaking your name with such earnest apology in his tone that you actually faced him with a hint of sympathy in your eyes. “I’m sorry. What happened yesterday was boorish of me and, well, well I only wanted to say that I’m glad that you weren’t hurt. And if there’s anything that-” 

“John.” You pressed your rouged lips together before letting them slide into a slight smile. It wasn’t a joyous expression, or one of surprised excitement, but it changed the light in your eyes, softened the hard outer shell that he suspected was necessary as a female student at Oxford. He wasn’t prepared, though, for the way that it felt to hear you speak his name and know that after it had left your lips, they curved into that small smile. A small breath escaped his lungs, and suddenly he felt much warmer than the autumn temperature should allow. “I was only teasing you. I know you didn’t mean to barrel through that crosswalk on that...thing of yours.” A short burst of air from your nose served as an amused little laugh and you shook your head, John watching as your lips curved upwards a little more. “You have nothing to apologize for.” You held up one finger, shifting your books in your arms. “Yet.” The smile turned smirkish as you turned and continued walking.

Instantly, the phantom guilt from what almost happened dissipated, and where he first felt uncertainty about where he stood with you, he was invigorated with new hope. For what? I’m not… I didn’t come all this way just to… It was even hard to think it, but he forced himself to, if for no other reason than that he deserved to give himself a fair chance at this endeavor, and not allow himself to fall quickly into something that would derail that chance. I didn’t come all this way just to replace Lari. Having passed, the thought that seemed difficult proved itself to be unnecessary as he realized that even though he’d not known you more than a collective twenty minutes, you were nothing like his ex-wife. “Well, I hope to continue that streak of having no need for apologies then.” 

“Is that so?” He nodded. “To what end?” 

“To what..? To what end? Well, to the end of…” Think, Whittaker, and fast. “Well perhaps to the end of studying together some time.” It sounded like a suggestion or a line and he knew it thought it truly wasn’t, but luckily your temporary suspension of teasing remained in place. 

“You want to study with me, John?” You raised an eyebrow as you began walking again. 

“Well, yes. I mean, that is to say, if you don’t-” 

“Do you even have any idea what courses I am here to study?” The smirk still hadn’t left your face and he was beginning to forget the way your tight frown looked in favor of this more relaxed demeanor. “Do you even have any idea of what courses you’re here to study?” 

“Well, of course I know what I’m here to study,” he answered quickly without actually answering. He confidently imagined you seated at a piano, and could almost hear the comments you would make on The Mona Lisa. Yes, Arts & Music, I’m almost certain. “And if I were to guess, I’d say that you are enrolled in the-”   

“Philosophy, actually,” you tossed your correction of his assumption over your shoulder, where it bounced with your curls and hit him smack in the face. His eyes grew even wider, mouth dropping open as yours scrunched to the side in a failed attempt to contain your burst of laughter. “Not at all what you were expecting, I presume.”  

John quickly shook his head, closing his gaping mouth and hurrying toward the sign post, grabbing onto it and swinging himself around so that he was next to you once more. “Not, not what I was expecting.” He pushed the loose strands of hair that had fallen in front of his face back over the crown of his head. “It's only that,” letting go of the sign post, he stuck both hands in his pockets and focused on keeping stride with you down the sidewalk. Since I can’t seem to keep stride with the conversation. 

You turned, raising one eyebrow and tilting your chin. “It’s only that?” Pausing long enough to make him sweat but not long enough to let him answer, you continued. “It’s only that women don’t-”  What? No, I… “It’s only that we should only be allowed to study certain-“ 

Once again, John scrambled ahead of you, his head shaking furiously from side to side. “No.” He gestured with his hands, crossing them in front of his body before sweeping them out to his sides, and while you had let out an exasperated breath, your eyes rolling as you did, he was glad to see the hint of a smile pulling at your lips again. That’s a relief. Come now, don’t mess it all up, John. “It’s only that Philosophy… well it sounds so,” Your smile turned slightly more amused as it climbed up into your cheeks as you started walking again. John followed closely at your heels. “Well It’s only that Philosophy sounds so dull.” He could tell that it was the wrong thing to say, yet nonetheless there the words hung in the crisp air.  

But before he could worry that he’d offended you yet again, you laughed, the sound light and clear. “Dull?” You asked, “tell me, sir,” it’s John, you know my name is J- “What is dull about learning how to think intelligently about the world in which we live?” 

I hadn’t thought of it that way. “I only meant-“ that you aren’t dull...you aren’t dull at all and-

“You only meant that-“ 

“I only meant,” John stepped around in front of you again, standing directly in your path. “That you don’t seem to be the type of person who likes to be told how to think.” 

You regarded him for a few seconds longer than you had yet to, and he could feel your eyes weighing his. “That is the first correct assumption that you’ve made about me so far, John Whittaker, and it is precisely why I choose to study the classics, the great thinkers.” John cocked his head to the side, brow wrinkling questioningly, not quite following your reasoning. “I want to know how others have looked at the world, so that I can look and form my own opinions. I want to…” You blew out a breath, shaking your head and finally breaking eye contact to stare at the buckle of your shoe as you scuffed the sole across the cobbled walkway. 

“You want to...what?” He dipped his chin to find your eyes again, bringing them back up with his own. 

“I,” But the rest of your sentence was drowned out by the tolling of enormous bells, announcing the hour. You gave a startled gasp, eyes widening. “I have to go, John or I’ll be late to meet with my advisor.” Chewing your lip, you hesitated before spinning away from him. “If you…” If I? You inhaled quickly and finished the rest with that breath. “If you’d really like to study together, meet me in the library tomorrow at two o’clock.” John felt his whole face lift as he nodded. “And John?” You started walking backwards, still looking at him but heading towards the building that he presumed your meeting was in. 

“Yes?” 

“Don’t be late.” With that, you shook your head and laughed quietly, turning and picking up your pace, steps widening and quickening almost into a run. He stood on the cobbled pathway, students and other pedestrians milling about that he hadn’t noticed before, and watched as you disappeared through the brick archway. I won’t be. 

.

.

.

Please let me know if you would like to be added or removed from the taglist for this story, and as always, THANK YOU for reading! 

@something-tofightfor​ @its-my-little-dumpster-fire​ @malionnes​ @gollyderek​ @suchatinyinfinity​ @fific7​ @alraedesigns​ @pheedraws​ @valkblue​ @commanderlola​ @thesumofmychoices​

[dirthavarens]

Mirani Lavellan Bio;;

I have an entire history for this beautiful darling and haven’t had such an in-depth story for a character in a very long while.

As a child, Mirani Lavellan was a rambunctious sort, playing and tumbling as all young Dalish do. She learned the way of the bow by her mother’s teachings, while her father drowned her in lore and stories of the Dales. The legends fascinated her beyond measure. Young, wide-eyed, and captivated, the child knew she had to discover everything there was to know, even the stories that were forgotten. That was until, of course, she began to show great potential as a mage at the age of nine.

The Keeper had talked to the family years before, when the babe had been born, telling them that he sensed magic within her and if it came to fruition there would hardly be room for her in the Clan. Her father, Hairen, swore to the Keeper that she would pose no threat. Mirani’s mother, Asalai, however, wished to err on the side of caution, and asked if the Keeper would take to training the young girl enough to help contain her magic.

There was already a Keeper and a First of the age of twenty; with no room for a third mage in the Clan, she could possibly prove dangerous. It was the First to the Keeper, Athara, who proposed an alternative. She approached both the Keeper and Mirani’s parents and promised to take her on as her own apprentice. Destruction was not the only use of magic, as the Dalish well knew, and it was often the burden on mages to hold sacred the knowledge of the People. 

With an agreement met, Mirani began her training, much to the disapproval of the rest of the clan. The Old Ways were being ignored. Of course, this meant great strides had to be made by the First. 

Athara quelled the disquiet of the Clan by appealing to their Dalish pride. The Elvhen were of the first mages and their ties to the Fade were stronger than any other. It was Mirani’s right to be a part of the Clan, to hold dear the ancient truth that thrummed in the heart of every Dalish elf. She was safer among her own than left to the fate of the shem Circles and their templars. 

Clan Lavellan tolerated her magical abilities due to her conviction in controlling them, despite her aptitude to find benevolent spirits in the Fade. Demons often sought her out in her youth, coming time and again in her dreams to tempt and taunt and try to possess. Athara taught her how to avoid demons and how to denounce them, even in the Fade. 

With her training, Mirani never surrendered to these troubling entities, but often found herself running in her dreams. It was a truth she withheld from all but Athara. She was not a dreamer, but something similar to it, tied infinitely to the Beyond. This led her to several places in the Fade unfamiliar to even the Keeper of their clan. No matter where they ventured, which was far and often, Mirani made new discoveries in the fade and picked up more of the Elven language than most. 

At the age of fifteen, only six years into her training, she decided to devote her efforts in both the waking and dreaming worlds studying her people’s history. The real history, and began taking little faith in the Dalish legends. Naturally, Hairen protested vehemently in the way she went about it. After all that she had learned in the Beyond, it was hard to take legends entirely on faith alone. Mortal men make mistakes in recounts of the truth over time, but echoes of spirits and memories long forgotten could hardly lie. 

The Creators became more of cautionary tales to her rather than true Gods and the only ones she came to genuinely care for were Mythal and June. When it came time for her vallaslin, her keeper thought it best to exclude someone as noteworthy and powerful as Mythal. Instead, she received June’s mark, as she was a crafter in her own right. While she did not fashion bows or teach her people to hunt, she used what knowledge she gained to help her clan forge new devices from ancient information; new wards from old magic.

Only years later, when her research led her to explore the nebulous Fen’Harel, did her clan truly fear for her. The Dread Wolf who locked away the gods and kept them from ever reaching their people was to be feared and chased away at every turn. Never mention his name unless to curse another, was the philosophy held by the Lavellan. Mirani turned her back on such mythos, choosing instead to dive into whatever trace of the legend she could find. Mostly, her research led to dead ends and more questions than answers. Why lock away the gods both good and bad? Why only let himself roam free when nothing changed except the Elvhen? Why want all of that power and do nothing with it? 

Unless there was more to the tale.

Her research often led her from the Clan, putting her in direct contact with humans and other hostile creatures. It was an acceptable tradeoff in the Clan’s eyes. With the third mage gone and Mirani left to her studies, both could peacefully exist. It was in nature and seclusion that she managed to fine-tune her magic, calling on whatever aid she could, often from spirits and the elements themselves.

On occasion, Athara and one of the Clan’s younger hunters, Terhavel, would join her, if only to keep her safe. But Clan duties would always call them back. Mirani held little against them. She would thank them for their companionship, but ultimately be relieved when they parted ways.

She found peace in the forests, taking days, if not weeks, to laze in the trees and befriend the benign wildlife. She would dive into untouched ruins and try to make sense of them. Oftentimes, they were of the Imperium, but that hardly stopped her from exploring. 

However, exploring ruins did not come without a price. Ancient wards and traps were often still active and she was not impervious to them.  At the age of twenty-four, a flame ward had been tripped and the entirety of her back was scorched. Luckily, she had not been far from camp and managed the walk back home if only thanks to the elemental magic she applied to her back.

The Keeper took the time to caution her of the path she wandered down, telling her that no good would come of it. If she continued on, she would find what she was looking for, for good or ill and he feared that it would not turn in her favor. 

Even Athara found it impossible to fully sympathize with Mirani’s cause. Forging a path to such a dangerous destination could only result in tragedy. Asalai entreated her daughter to abandon the hunt and return to the Clan for good. She could trade books and such in the shem world, find rare gems if she could. 

For a time, Mirani agreed, if only to appease those she cared for. The wound on her back kept her from leaving the Clan’s camp for what felt like ages, anyway. It was at that time she began to commit everything she learned to paper. Notes and drawings were scattered within her tent. The hunter, who had joined her, Terhavel, had become more and more of a friend as the days passed. Before long, the two went against tradition and found that they were physically compatible. Neither was in love with the other and thus complications remained at the wayside. There was no secret romance to hide, no awkward family discussion, no approval from the Keeper, just sex and studies. 

When he showed interest in another of the Clan months later, Mirani actively encouraged him to pursue her and neither spoke of what happened between them. Within the year, Terhavel and his heart’s desire were bonded. 

In her dreams, she tried to search for the spirits that had aided her for years, but found an eerie silence. It felt as though someone had intentionally thickened the Veil around her, beating on a wall where a door had once been. She felt drained most days, her magic weaker than before. The injury had long since healed, and yet she was still fatigued.

That was when she noticed the Keeper acting strangely as well. A quiet night at the fire with her father telling another Dalish folktale to the children brought about a great change in Mirani’s perspective. She caught sight of the Keeper looking lethargic and pulled him discreetly from the fire. When she inquired what was wrong, he insisted nothing, that it had been an especially trying year for all of Clan Lavellan. 

The following night, Mirani slipped away from camp, choosing instead to sleep away from her fellow Dalish and found her magic and vitality restored. A suspicion that hadn’t crossed her mind had not only crept in but had been confirmed. 

Then, Athara appeared from the underbrush.

Now twenty-five and old enough to know what trouble looked like as it approached; Athara looked like trouble.

“I fought against the decision to dispel you,” she professed before Mirani could offer a greeting. The night was warm and the breeze gentle from where the younger mage sat perched among a tangle of branches. Yet the words of her mentor wrapped around her like ice. “I even tried to override his spell, but he threatened to remove me as the First.”

“If this is your attempt at an apology, I would start over,” Mirani replied flatly. Her heart sat squarely in the pit of her stomach. How could the one person she trusted above all not tell her? “Why?”

“He feared you would leave again, that you would be possessed or killed. Deshanna wants only for you to be safe. He saw no other option that led to you remaining among us, da’len,” Athara explained as she took her place at the base of the tree. 

Mirani gave a sigh and rubbed at her temples. They were Dalish, the so-called last of the Elvhen, yet she was caged at every turn. Caged for being a mage, caged for being a researcher, caged for exploring and leaving the camp. No wonder Circle mages were growing restless. They had to remain in the same building their entire lives; her tower at least had fresh air. 

“Then maybe it’s time I take my leave. For good, this time.” Perhaps it was the only way. 

“Lethallan, you would consider surrendering to the Keeper’s whims instead of finding another way? There are many in the Clan who admire you for what you do. They would never voice their support so actively, but you are not without friends among your clansfolk. Keeper Deshanna Istimaethoriel may be as stubborn as halla with a thorn in her hoof, but he is not without reason. Speak to him. You are a voice among our people, he must listen.”

Mirani looked out into the forest surrounding them and watched as the creatures of the night scurried about. Reasoning with the Keeper was hardly an easy task, even harder for her, given the rampant disapproval of her work. She knew she could survive on her own, but where would she go otherwise? The life of a roaming apostate would not be easy, especially in the Free Marches. With the proximity for Kirkwall and the rumors pouring from other Clans and the shems they encountered, there was a chance she would be caught and forced into Kirkwall’s Circle. 

In order to make the Keeper see reason, she had to find it for herself first. Athara was always damnably talented at helping her do so.

“Alright. I’ll speak with him. If I can at least have my shackles removed, I’ll be content enough for now. I had no intentions of leaving permanently until this, Athara. If the Keeper cannot be made to see reason, then I won’t make promises to stay for it is one I cannot keep,” she declared, her defeated words an echo of the ache she felt deep into her soul. 

“Should I tell the Keeper you will return in the morning, then?” asked her former mentor. “He will come looking for you if nothing is said and I’d rather avoid conflict if possible.”

“Tell him what you want. I need tonight to think.”

Athara turned to leave.

“And Athara?” Mirani called down to her. “Thank you for coming to talk to me.”

She smiled. “Anything for you, da’len. I just wish it was under better circumstances. I sometimes miss our old adventures.” 

Mirani said nothing in return, only nodded her agreement.

The following morning brought the debate, Mirani now with a level-head spoke to her Keeper. Deshanna was displeased with Athara, but there was nothing to be done about it. He had been found out and his reasons were selfish ones. 

“I see now, da’len, how my intentions could be misconstrued,” Deshanna surrendered. “You are no immediate danger to our Clan, but there are other dangers that could arise from your endless hunt.”

“So rendering me too weak to use my powers would accomplish that? Would you strip a curious hunter of her bow when she found a decent hunting ground?” Her return was level, but fueled by the betrayal she felt. “Keeper, I devoted my life to serving this Clan as a researcher and historian. I am not a teller of tales as my father. Nor am I a hunter of my mother’s skill. I am simply a mage caught in an old fear of a gift granted to us simply by our Elven blood. I would never harm the Clan or abandon it simply to fuel my own ego. This is our history I’m looking into. I just want to get the story straight. I fail to see how my magic interferes with the truth.”

“You’ve made your case, Mirani. I am not here to doubt your commitment to Clan Lavellan. There was another mage, the first to her clan, who resorted to blood magic to find answers about the people. I did not want to see you share her fate.”

She knew of whom the Keeper spoke. A member of the Mahariel clan had left her people to restore a corrupted eluvian. There were even rumors that she bargained with a demon to do so. It seemed blood magic and demons often went hand-in-hand. But demons posed a threat to any mage.

It was Athara who spoke from Mirani’s side.

“She would not resort to such desperate measures, Keeper. In the years I have traveled with her into whatever ruins she found, never had it even crossed her mind. I taught her the dangers of such practices early on in her training. She knows the horrors it brings.”

“I do not believe I was speaking to you, Athara. She was not to know the ward on her was present,” Deshanna snapped back. It was the first time he raised his voice. 

“It should not have been placed upon her in the first place. I tried to tell you before that she wo--”

“It’s alright, Athara. You don’t need to speak for me. Ma melava halani. And for that you have my sincerest gratitude,” Mirani placed a hand on Athara’s shoulder in thanks before returning her attention to the Keeper. “To you, I make this promise, if any of my research proves too dangerous I will withdraw. If it leads me to something that may bring harm to the Clan, I will not return.”

“I do not want it to come to that, da’len, but I fear there is no changing your mind,” the Keeper relented with dissatisfaction. He took a moment’s pause then with a great breath and a few Elvhen words, lifted the hex. “It brings me sorrow to see the path you wander, but I know I cannot halt your footsteps any further.” 

The next three years were spent as they had been before, this time with Mirani having at least one hunter with her at all times when she left the camp. The Keeper said it was for protection, but she was certain it was to supervise her like a child. She limited her expeditions to a week at the longest and did not plunge as deeply into caverns and ruins as she wished. 

Then came the news from the shem world. The Conclave between mages and templars was something of great interest to all living people, from elves to qunari. There was little argument from Mirani when the Keeper tasked her with finding out what exactly was going on. This would be the farthest she traveled from Clan Lavellan, a chance to truly stretch her legs and get a sight of the outside world beyond trade and occasional run-ins. 

She said her goodbyes to her parents and a few others of the Dalish wished her safe travels and offered items for her to take on the journey. Her final goodbye was to the woman who mentored her. Athara knew the farewell was permanent, that Mirani would not be returning to the Clan. If there was news to be had of the Conclave, it would come in the form of a letter and perhaps a package useful to the people. 

They kept their goodbye short, not wanting to keep the other from her duties, but not so short that Athara could not offer her a necklace with a small carved halla head and a statuette of a wolf. 

“I know you have your doubts in the Creators, but may Ghilan’nain guide you and Fen’Harel never find you.” Athara’s words were laden with the tears that could not fall from her eyes as she placed the necklace upon her. She wrapped her arms around Mirani and held her tightly in an embrace. “You are as graceful and as beautiful as the halla and as valiant and strong as the wolf. May your journey be a blessed one, da’len. Dareth shiral.”

“Ma serannas, Athara. Keep the Clan safe. I will try to send good news,” Mirani promised as she tucked the wolf into her pack.

The journey from the Free Marches to Ferelden was made with both excitement and caution. The humans she dealt with looked down upon her for being both an elf and Dalish. She was even more looked down upon when she revealed her magic in a moment of defense. One of the sailors tried to get too close whilst drunk and ended up with burn marks along his hands and chest. The rest debated throwing her overboard, but she remained well-hidden for the remainder of the voyage. 

tl;dr? she’s not the first to her keeper and she’s basically a fade nerd who likes to nap and find new magics to test out as well as learn elvhen history. i stan, thank you.

[bucky-s-girl-n-stuff]

Everything that could happen in a week part.7

summary: you’re invited to the Thrombey’s Halloween party, by your friend Meg. Between old man being too handsy while drunk and the others having heated political arguments borderline racist, you manage to survive for a week thanks to a new acquaintance you make.

pairing: Ransom Drysdale x reader

warning: mention of a sexual assault, swearing.

->part 1 -> part 2 -> part 3 -> part 4 ->part 5 ->part 6

I was sitting in a cafe, waiting for Ransom to arrive. I was a little bit anxious but at the same time excited that he felt the same way as I did. The fact that he was trying to make things work between us, comforted me. We decided to meet at 3 p.m. in a little cafe that I went to often. It was never too crowded. I chose a table a bit excluded from the rest, to give us intimacy. After 15 minutes of waiting for him, I started to worry. Should I text him? Maybe he's held up by something and will be late. I decided to send him a  message, asking him if everything was okay. Maybe he had changed his mind and didn't want me anymore...

After waiting for an hour, I decided to leave. Why didn't I have seen this coming? He was obviously playing with me. I couldn't even be angry at him as sadness filled my thoughts. 

Once back home I shrugged off my jacket and kicked off my shoes. Then, I went straight to my bedroom and fell face-first on my bed. I felt so stupid. Why would he be saying things like that and then not come? Was it just a game for him?

I decided to change myself and have a lazy day instead. I went to my bathroom to remove my makeup and then change for a cosy pair of sweatpants and a white crop top. As I was getting comfortable on my sofa and going through the channels, I heard a knock on my door. I frowned at the unfamiliar sound and got up to open it. 

"Hey," said Ransom breathless as if he had just been running. I didn't respond, looking at him expectantly. 

"I'm so sorry for not coming earlier I was tied up with something..." he continued.

"So tied up that you couldn't even text me? I waited there for an hour Ransom..." I replied. 

"I know, I should have texted you or called you I'm sorry, please believe me..."

I sighed, knowing fully well that I 'll always end up forgiving him no matter what he would do to me. I took a step back, inviting him into my home. He smiled at me, muttering a thank you and then proceeded to kiss my cheek. I blushed at the action but he didn't dwell on it, far too excited to see the interior of my little apartment. He went directly into the living room and turned around to face me, a wide smile adorning his face. I felt completely exposed as I had never invited someone over before. My apartment was my "safe place". Somewhere I felt free and myself, with no need to hide. 

"How did you get my address?" I asked.

"Sweetheart, I'm a Drysdale!" he said, smirking, a little statuette my father got me from one of his many trips, in his hands.

"Don't touch that..." I said, taking the object from him and placing it back to where it belonged. "Or anything else for that matter." I continued already annoyed at him invading my space. 

"Sorry" he whispered, looking around then settling his eyes on me. His eyes held so much intensity that I had to look away. 

"Do you want some tea or coffee?" I asked, walking towards the open kitchen so I could have a reason for avoiding his gaze. 

"huh sure, I'll have some tea please." He said, sitting down on the couch.

I joined him a little after with our two mugs and sat next to him.  I put our mugs down on the coffee table in front of the couch and faced him.

"Why are you here Ransom?"

"Well, I'm here to apologize and spend some time with-"

"No. Why are you here? You are not someone who settles for anyone. You always want something from people and I feel like you're just playing with me." I spoke truthfully.

"Because you know me? We've met two weeks ago and spent half of it together because you were fucking reckless and almost got raped. So don't pretend like you know me or my intentions."

Ouch. I stood up, getting as far away from him as I could. How could he say that? I've worked so hard to forget what had happened and persuading myself that it was not my fault. He said it was not my fault... Was it? Was it all a lie from the start, everything he said? I needed to think and therefore he needed to leave. I was so engulfed in my mind that I hadn't seen him getting closer to me. 

"y/n, I'm sorry I didn't mean what I said. I... I just wish you could trust me. I really like you. God, I'm so stupid... Please say something. I know I can be immature and cold and really fucking stupid at times but please never doubt that I care about you and please, please remember it was not your fault ... I'm just a dumbass who speaks before he thinks okay?"

I hated my brain for making me lean into him while he spoke. I hated being attracted to him, feeling sympathy for him when I should be yelling and throwing things at him. I didn't want to feel that but there I was, in his arms, hugging him for dear life and him doing the same. As if one of us would disappear in the air. 

"I'm sorry" he kept saying, repeatedly and I believed him.

"Okay," I started, slipping from his arms. "enough with the drama. Let's watch something on TV and forget all about it okay?" I continued.

"Okay" He replied, smiling a little but still angry at himself. 

The rest of the day went smoothly. After watching a movie that consisted more of Ransom commenting every action going on, we decided to order Chinese food. We ate in front of another movie quickly forgotten as we shared stories. I think it was the first time someone had made me laugh this hard. We had a great time and the incident from earlier was just a vague memory. 

It was starting to get late and I was growing pretty tired. Ransom must have noticed because he got up and started doing the dishes.

"You don't have to do that Ransom, I can do them later," I said, smiling at the domesticity of the situation. 

"No I want to do it, it's the least I can do," he replied, but I helped him anyway. 

After the dishes were done, we could feel that neither of us wanted to leave each other but I was not about to offer him to stay the night. I wanted to take my time with Ransom and I had a feeling he wanted to take it slow too. I accompanied him to the front door and opened it. He got on the other side facing me for a last goodbye.

"Good night y/n, I had a great time today. Thank you for having me and... giving me another chance."

"Goodnight Ransom" I replied, smiling. 

I got on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek softly. This time he was the one to blush. Ransom passed a hand through his hair and clear his throat before leaving throwing little glances back at me all the way down the corridor until I couldn't see him. 

[kaitycole]

Tiptoeing with Temptation

Summary: Jackson is still reminiscing; Constantine goes to Portavira, Bianca heads back to Texas while Jackson and Eleanor find themselves alone at Valtoria.

Word Count: 3216

Pairings: Constantine x Eleanor, Eleanor x Jackson, Jackson x Bianca

Warnings: Mentions of divorce, mentions of s*x, mention of adultery

A/N: i just want to thank everyone who reads this series and any of my writings. You guys bring such joy into my life and I can never fully repay that. Sorry for the sappiness, I’m a tad emotional right now. 

Song Choice: Gravity by Sara Bareilles

Part 14 of WP. To catch up, read here.

Tag List: @fromthedeskofpaisleybleakmore @kingliam2019  @texaskitten30 @glaimtruelovealways @bobasheebaby  @bascmve01  @burnsoslow  @the-everlasting-dream  @ao719  @sirbeepsalot  @janezillow  @i-bloody-love-drake-walker  @kimmiedoo5  @choices97 @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @lodberg  @edgiestwinter  @marshmallowsandfire @hopefulmoonobject @iaminlovewithtrr  @cordonianroyalty  @rafasgirl23415  

The thing about summer is it’s full of heat and passion, but fall always follows and brings cooler weather. And just as sudden as the heat of the royal couple appeared, the coolness fall brings crept in almost as fast.

It had begun as a tiny misunderstanding. Wires got crossed and Constantine misheard Eleanor’s request. The small incident was amplified when Constantine made plans to break the peace treaty between Cordonia and Auvernal due to talks of a coup. While it had been years since she has even stepped foot on Auvernese soil, it was still her home country. A place she assumed he knew was off-limits. She took it personally and decided to hit back.

When Constantine asked for support of a new trade route, which excluded Auvernal, she blocked it. The same when he tried to entertain political engagements for both of the Rys princes. Up until now, the couple had been able to separate business from pleasure, but as the days progressed it started seeping into their personal lives.

“I’m planning on taking the boys with me for the trade summit in Portavira, okay?”

“Are you asking or telling?” She refuses to look at him, keeping her focus on removing her jewelry. The two have been at somewhat of a stalemate for the last three days. He didn’t talk much about his political dealings with her anymore and she found no reason to involve him in hers. Constantine continues to try to mend things, but Eleanor refuses to hear it.

He pinches the bridge of his nose as he tries to calm down, she really knew exactly how to get on his last nerve. “I’m trying to see if you would like to join us.”

“No.” She gets up and brushes passed him, walking into the bathroom.

“It would look extremely rude for most of the royal family to go and the queen remains at home. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“But I’m not staying at the palace, so it will simply look as though our plans overlapped. You will send my regards, won’t you?”

Constantine stares at the wall in front of him, truly contemplating bashing his head into it. Or at least finishing the conversation with it, since it just be more talkative than his wife. He hears her turn the shower on and leans against the door frame. “And where pray tell are you going to be?”

Eleanor finishes undressing before she slides the glass door open. She steps in and before sliding it closed answers him, “Valtoria.”

Taking yet another deep breath, he wonders if his father Edgar or his grandfather Augustus ever had moments like this. Arguing with their wives in the bathroom instead of any other room in the whole damn palace. “And why are you going there, my love?”

“I can’t hear you. You’ll have to get in if you wanna talk or you can wait until I’m done.”

Shaking his head, he walks away from the bathroom door and sits on their bed. He couldn’t believe this, he was king of an entire damn country yet he couldn’t get his own wife to just hear him out. He knew that she knew exactly what she was doing, that he’d cave. He always caved for her which was why when she got upset over talk of breaking their peace treaty with Auvernal, he ended the discussion. He did all that for her, but she refused to even hear him out anymore.

Several moments pass before Constantine pushes himself off the bed and storms into the bathroom.

“Why are you going to Valtoria?”

“I told you join me or wait.”

He slams his hand on the sink counter. Losing his cool for the first time in months. He hates that he’s like this again, his anger getting the best of him, “Dammit, Eleanor, could you act like an adult!”

The water immediately cuts off, she opens the door wide enough to pull in her towel before she walks out, fully wrapped in the towel. “Happy?”

“Overjoyed. Please answer my question.”

She sighs as if he’s the one that’s being stubborn, “I’m looking into the budgets of surrounding duchies, seeing if and where I can make cuts.”

“You can’t just reschedule that? Or ask the maids?”

“That’s the cop out way. As queen, I should go.” She brushes out her hair before walking out into their room. “I have already made arrangements, it’d be rude to cancel.”

He knows he isn’t going to win. Her mind is already made up and all he can do is go along with it. “Okay. Have you decided on the guards that will accompany you?”

Her head snaps over to him. That had been the last thing on her mind, typically she always went places with Constantine so she didn’t have to plan such things. She plunks a night gown from her dresser and gets dressed ignoring her husband.

“I’ll take that as a no. I’ll assign a few to your trip.” He walks by her, stopping to kiss her on the cheek. Eleanor watches as he leaves, knowing he’ll just end up sleeping on the couch in his study.

*          *

“Are you sure about this?” Jackson looks at Bianca with an uneasy feeling.

“Yes. Tonya needs me, she’s going through a divorce.”

He runs his hand through his hair and down his neck before sighing, “I understand that, but taking the kids?”

“I think they will be good for her. She’s never even met Savannah, so she’d love to spoil them.” She stops packing and looks at him, “Plus, it’d be good for kids to get away from here for a bit.” Bianca has never told him outright, but he knew that she’d been uneasy about his position since the ball and the rumor. She felt that their children would be better away from court life and rumors, no matter how much Drake and Liam enjoyed being friends.

“At least let me go with you. Both kids on a plane won’t be easy.”

“You just took two weeks off not too long ago. We will be fine; I’m used to handling them alone anyways.” She shrugs, Jackson picks up on her subtle jab.

Before he could protest any further, his phone starts ringing. It was a private number, so he knew it was coming from a secured line at the palace.

“I have to take this.” Bianca makes a face before shaking her head, “It’s work.”

“Officer Walker speaking.”

“Could you come in? You have a new assignment.” Bastien asks.

“On my way.” He walks over to his wife and kisses her on the forehead, “I shouldn’t be long.”

*          *

“I apologize for the late-night call.” Constantine says as Jackson walks into the study. Bastien and Timothy are already there.

“It’s no trouble at all, sir.” He looks at Timothy who gives him a quick shrug, clearly no one knew why they were called in.

“It appears the queen has decided not to travel to the Portavira summit and instead traveling to Valtoria.”

The three guards share a brief look, it was extremely rare for the royal family to make different trips at the same time. Typically, at least one monarch would stay at the palace to protect the throne; leaving it open was a risk.

“I know it’s untraditional, but the trip is important to her and I was hoping that since Officer Lykel will be accompanying me and the princes, that either Officer Walker or Officer Monroe would travel with Queen Eleanor?”

Neither say anything, the whole situation feels off. Neither wants to get in the middle of whatever was going on between the king and queen.

“I’ll go.” Jackson finally speaks up.    

“What about Bianca and the kids?” Timothy says, side eying Jackson.

“She’s taking the children to Texas for a while, so the timing all works out.”

“Would you like a guard sent with them? I don’t mind sending someone.” Constantine asks.

“Thank you for the offer, but I have to decline. Bianca would lose her mind having someone following her.” Jackson gives the king a small smile.

“Officer Lykel. Officer Monroe, you are both dismissed. I need to discuss details with Officer Walker.”

Bastien and Timothy bow and take their leave. Constantine motions for Jackson to take a seat.

“Scotch?” Jackson nods, accepting the second glass that the king pours before Constantine takes his seat again. “I’m actually glad you offered, I know my wife’s safety is important to you.”

For a minute Jackson starts to panic, wondering if the king ended up hearing about Barthelemy’s actual rumor. However, he was quickly reminded of the ‘story’ they told Constantine about why they were alone in her study.

“Of course, your majesty.”

“Let’s talk shop, shall we?”

*          *

After talking with Eleanor, Constantine made sure the trip to Valtoria would begin once Bianca got in touch with Jackson saying she made it safely. The entire ride was awkward for both Jackson and Eleanor, the pair hasn’t spoken to each other in weeks.

Typically, whichever guard was on duty would drive, however Constantine assigned a driver as well which meant Eleanor and Jackson sat one seat apart in the back of the town car. Eleanor flips through her planner, making notes while Jackson scrolls on his phone. The silence is broken when it begins to ring, his face turning red.

“It’s Bianca.”

Eleanor looks up and nods before he answers it.

“Hello? Oh, hey Drake, how are you buddy?”

Eleanor’s attention drifts from her planner to Jackson’s conversation. She smiles listening to how he speaks to Drake and how happy he sounds talking to him.

“I know Aunt Tonya can be a lot, but she means well.” Jackson laughs, “Yes, she does talk very loud.”

Jackson turns to Eleanor and mouths ‘I’m sorry’ but she waves him off. She really didn’t mind; she enjoys seeing this side of Jackson, she’s missed it.

“I know you like Bear, but we aren’t getting a dog. When you turn eighteen I’ll get you one. I love you too. Tell your Mom I’ll call back later.”

Eleanor is looking at him when he hangs up, but she doesn’t say anything.

“Bianca’s friend is getting a divorce from my friend. She went there to be supportive.”

Eleanor simply raises her eyebrows before engulfing herself back into her planner. Jackson leans his head back and tries to ignore the weird tension filling the car as they get closer and closer to their destination.

*          *

Their first day in Valtoria is awkward. Neither of them speaks to the other, Jackson remains posted outside of whichever room she’s in which was mostly the study where she was reviewing the books. Even though Valtoria didn’t have a duke or duchess in charge, the royal counsel still kept tabs on it. Meaning tomorrow the member of counsel in charge of it would arrive and that was none other than Barthelemy Beaumont.

The second day was more eventful, but still awkward. Jackson stood posted outside the grand hall which was were Eleanor and Barthelemy were chatting about the books. To his and Eleanor’s surprise, he was extremely civil, only making one snide comment: “I should’ve guessed he’d be the guard to accompany you.” Other than that, when he first arrived, he was on his best behavior and while Eleanor didn’t like most of the choices he made with the budget, his reasoning behind them were justified in her eyes. Though he wasn’t pleased when she told him that the Crown would be taking over Valtoria, so he would no longer have access to the duchy.

The next day started off just as icy as the last two, but by dinner warmth crept in. They both ate their meals alone: he ate breakfast before her since he woke first, lunch came after her and dinner wasn’t eaten until she retired for the night. But that night, she grew lonesome and told him that if he was already there, he could just eat with her now. She apologized for her cold shoulder and he acted as though it didn’t bother him. By the end of the meal, the two were buddy buddy again, just as they were during the time they spent each Friday night together.

But on the fourth day, something happened that changes everything. Eleanor is standing on the balcony, looking at the waterfall in the distance when she hears footsteps behind her. A smile spreads across her face as she looks to her side and sees Jackson standing there.

Her chest begins to flutter, feeling something, she hasn’t felt before. When it came to Constantine, she did love him, but she wasn’t in love with him. Even though they had been on better terms lately, she could never see him more than someone she married to have an heir. Constantine gave her the feeling of security, but with Jackson there was more of an adventurous feeling.

Jackson takes Eleanor in, she’s not in her traditional attire. She didn’t have any meetings or any visitors today, so she was wearing straight legged jeans with an oversized V-neck sweater, truly channeling her inner Princess Diana. He likes this version of Eleanor, this laid back and comfortable side of her that he’d give anything to see more of. Tomorrow the two of them will be heading back to the palace, back to queen and guardsman and back to pretending they didn’t feel anything when they looked at each other.

“I’m not ready for tomorrow to come. To go back to our assigned roles.” She says, breaking the silence and turning to look at him. Since they didn’t have anything formal at the duchy, she practically demanded he dressed down for the day. So here he was in a plain white tee, slim-fitting jeans with cowboy boots: a look she didn’t think she’d be into, but couldn’t look away from.

Jackson places a hand on her cheek, caressing it with a callused thumb. He has no comforting words for her, nothing to say to sooth the pain of what tomorrow will bring. Hell, he isn’t sure how he’s going to be able to go back, how he’s supposed to let the woman he loves go.

“If we had somehow met in a different way…a different place. Do you think all of this…could’ve been different…between us?”

Tears begin to form, she tries looking anywhere but at him, “Everything would’ve been different.”

With his hand still on her cheek, he steps closer to her, filling the gap between them. He tilts her head upwards as she leans in, her baby blues pleading with him. Their lips meet instantly, the space between them vanishes as his hand slides to her neck, pulling her completely into him.

Lips part, tongues dance and twirl together as the kiss deepens. It’s not their first kiss, that was back in her boutique and had a sense of urgency to it. That kiss was the first time they made it a point to stand so close to the line that divided them. This kiss is a plea trying to hold on to something that feels fleeting. Breathlessly they part, long enough for her to jump into him; arms and legs wrapping around him as he staggers back against the wall.

His hands tightly grip the bottoms of her thighs, supporting her weight as her lips trail down his neck. A small groan leaves his lips as she softly bites up his neck. He can feel the smile on her lips as he walks them both towards her bed before she untangles herself from him. Piece by piece, clothing is shed, hands fumble together as they eagerly drop the fabric to the floor. She slides herself to the middle of the bed, Jackson lays beside her; their lips meeting once more. Goosebumps cover her skin as Jackson’s fingers lightly trail up and down her side, stopping only briefly to rake his nails against her hip bone. His lips and tongue leave a fiery trail as they explore down her body, exploring every inch of her. A gasp leaves her lips as he kisses the inside of her thigh before he tastes her. His tongue gently explores her folds each flick of his tongue teasing her more.

He takes his time as he slowly works his way back up her body, his fingers gently tease her wet core as he pushes a finger into her before adding a second. Her back slightly arches off the bed and his lips crash into hers. She drags her hand down his torso until her hand is wrapped around his length; her thumb pressing against its head, pulling a moan from his lips. They share a look, one mixed with longing and consent before Jackson roughly grabs her hips. He sinks into her. A mixture of moans and expletives fill the room as they start to move together. Her nails dig into his back, trying to ground herself as his thrusts increase. She buries her face into the curve of his neck as her body trembles beneath him.

Jackson feels Eleanor begin to tighten around him. He pulls her up, wrapping his arms around her to hold her up as he sinks deeper into her. Her head falls backwards as his name leaves her lips over and over, getting closer to the edge. He pushes into her once more before he feels her fall over the edge, her body constricting against his as her body is flooded by pleasure. Watching her come undone brings Jackson to his own orgasm, spilling his seed into her before they both fall back onto the bed. He lays on his back, chest caving in as he breathes heavily while she weakly drapes her arm over his chest; laying close to his side. There are no words spoken between them, there’s no need for them. Steady breaths and heavy eyes take over and they both fall asleep.

*          *

Eleanor wakes up, the clock next to her bed tells her it’s around 2AM. She smiles as she sees Jackson sleeping, the two still intertwined together covered by just the thin top sheet. Carefully she slips out of his arms; she walks back out onto the balcony wrapped in her robe. Leaning against the railing, she lets herself get lost in thought.

Not too much time passes before Jackson wakes, feeling the emptiness beside him. He looks around before seeing her standing outside, deep in thought. Quietly, he steps into his boxers before leaning against the doorframe watching her. He’s truly in awe of the woman in front of him, no one has captivated his heart as she has. She smiles when she feels his arms wrap around her, his chin resting on her shoulder. She doesn’t want to leave; her life could be perfect just staying here with Jackson.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

She lets out a soft sigh, “Just thinking about tomorrow and how I’m not going to be able to act like that didn’t happen.”

“Then don’t,” she turns around, his arms still around her. “I don’t want to pretend. I don’t want to go back to our stations.”

“Jackson…”

“I mean it, I love you, El.”

[narnie3313]

Let Me Burn-Chapter 3

Genre: Angst, Fluff, Romance, Eventual Smut

Warnings: Language, Violence, Explicit,etc….

Summary: The moment you saw those piercing eyes in the corner of the club, you knew you were hooked. There was never a question about it…You knew this man would burn you, yet you embraced the flames.

Pairing: Dabi x reader

Chapter 1  |  Chapter 2  |  Chapter 3

Grabbing your wrist and pulling you from the chair, he leads you into the large kitchen.  

“What do you want to eat?” He asks, standing you on the other side of the kitchen island as he walked around to the stove and began pulling pots out of the cupboard beside him.

“Um…I don’t know? I eat kind of everything but I’m not hungry.”

“You have to eat. I didn’t see you eat at the club and that was over 6 hours ago now so I’m sure you’re hungry but just got distracted by the ……events…of tonight.”

6 hours? Shit, what time is it? You turn around to look out the floor to ceiling windows lining the apartment. The faintest break of light on the horizon signalling that he was indeed right and it was dawn. In under 12 hours your whole world had been flipped…but…had it really? He said you could go home, back to your normal day to day. But you didn’t really want that did you? You liked the excitement, the fear of the unknown. It was like a drug. You knew you should turn around, say thank you and bye to the man behind you, but you just….couldn’t. What would going back do? You’d continue your life of work, eat, sleep, drink and repeat while knowing that there was a whole other world around you that could offer you excitement. Could you pretend not to know about it? Could you pretend like this guy wasn’t going to be in your mind constantly? You barely knew anything about him but you couldn’t walk away from him. Why? What was it about him?  

“Did your mother teach you to cook?” You ask, turning back to lean on the bench, watching Dabi expertly flipping vegetables in a wok.

“No. My mother wasn’t really that kind of person. She tried to be but my father kind of broke her.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” You notice that his expression doesn’t falter at all except a slight twitch of…anger?...when he mentions his father.

“Why? Were you around influencing those situations?”

“Well no but I’m sure that those kinds of situations aren’t easy on kids.”

“They weren’t but I survived. I came out the other side of my father with a new purpose. A new outlook. One that not a lot of people share. That’s why I joined the group I did. A lot of them share the same views.”

“And what view is that?” You ask curiously.

“That, dollface, is a question for another day.” He says turning around and emptying the wok into 2 bowls. He slides one and a pair of chopsticks to you and you thank him, taking a seat and beginning to eat. “What about you? What do you do?”

“I’m a personal assistant. Nothing exciting but it pays the bills.”

“Who to?”

“Hmm?” You hum questioningly, pushing the food around with the chopsticks.

“Who’s personal assistant are you?” He asks, placing food between his bi-coloured lips.

“Yori Kondo. He’s the CEO of Kondo electronics. I’m the senior PA but I also have a relief PA who does the job for me when I take time off or have my days off, like tomorrow. Well,” gesturing to the dawn light streaming through the windows, “I guess today.”

“So you don’t work today?”

“No. I have Saturday and Tuesdays off most weeks unless someone is sick and needs me.”

“Sounds like a good job.” He says as he finishes his food. Turning his head, he cocks a brow at you, noticing you’ve barely eaten. “You really should eat.”

“Oh…yeah.” You say and start eating and resume talking between mouthfuls. “It’s not a bad job. The boss does have a bit of a temper but I guess that’s normal in a high stress position.”

Dabi washes his bowl and puts his hand out to collect yours when he notices you’re finished.

“Ok. So, what now?” You ask nervously.

“Well I don’t know about you but I’m tired so I plan on going to sleep. You know where the tv is and the kitchen and bathroom. Feel free to explore…or leave. It’s up to you really.” He speaks as he moves from across the counter to walk behind you, stopping and placing an absurdly warm hand on your hip. He leans down and kisses your neck and you can’t stop the moan that leaves your lips and you close your eyes as a reflex as his lips graze your skin up to your earlobe and feel his tongue flick at your ear. “Or you could come to bed with me, princess.”

Oh the things you wanted this man to do to you. The shivers that were sent through your body at the nickname that just rolled off his tongue and the heat of his breath joined by the cold of his piercings. This guy will be the death of me for sure.  

Turning around and sliding off the chair with your hand on his chest, you lean up and kiss his neck. Two can play this game. “As tempting as that is, the answer is no.” You say and begin walking to the lounge room to turn on the tv. You don’t dare turn around to see the look on his face as you sit down on the couch and flick the tv on. You hear his slow steps as he saunters off into the bedroom pushing the door closed. Sighhh. It’s been so long and he’s so damn alluring….Giving yourself a pat on the back for your restraint, you flick through channels until you land on a news outlet reporting on the club.  

“Reports say that at around 5am this morning, a passerby noticed the charred insides of this prestigious nightclub through the destroyed door. No one knows exactly what happened but it seems that the fire that was inside burned at temperatures in excess of 1500 degrees Celsius. It is presumed to be the work of a notorious villain gang, the name of which is still unknown but fits the M.O. More information to come.”

You switch the tv off and sit there hugging your knees to your chest. Why can’t you bring yourself to go? You know you should. He’s dangerous. He’s almost definitely killed people. There’s no way he hasn’t if he’s in a villain gang. He didn’t even know you and yet he excluded you from the attack. No matter what he says, he could be crazy. He could be keeping you as a plaything. He could be keeping you to hostage you or torture you. None of this makes sense. Why was he so magnetic to you? It was like something had changed your perception of him, but how? Why? That’s not his quirk so it couldn’t have been him. But why would he even go to lengths like that for someone he didn’t know at all? Was he feeling the same thing? Sure he flirted with you and given the chance, you’re positive he would plow you into the nearest surface, but was he feeling the same pull to you as you are to him? Or did he just want to keep you around to dick you down?  

Shaking your head to clear your thoughts you stand and walk to the kitchen. Searching every cupboard until you find a glass, you fill it with water and drink. Thinking about this is hurting my head. You rinse the glass and place it on the white bench top and walk towards the window facing the bright city. You can spot a few signs that you recognize meaning you would be able to find your way to them and then find your way home since you’re sure since this part of town is so empty, there’s a slim to none chance there’s any taxis around. Even if you cant bring yourself to leave him, you need some stuff from your apartment…like your own clothes. You grab your bag and head towards the door. I’ll be back before he even wakes up. I’m sure he won’t mind me leaving the door unlocked so I can get back in. You click the ground floor button as you enter the elevator and wait out the dings of every other floor before coming to a stop as the doors open. You walk out the same side door you’d come in and head out to the street. Turning around to take note of the address, what the building looked like and how to get back to here, you begin walking in the direction of the city. You had somewhat mapped out the neighbouring blocks from Dabis place so you could find your way.  

***

Opening the door to your apartment felt…odd. Less than 12 hours you’d been at Dabis and it already had you feeling like nowhere else was home anymore. This is fucking crazy. What the hell is happening to you? You try to ignore the web of thoughts in your brain and head to your bedroom to pack a bag of clothes, get changed and pack your toiletries. Once that was done, you went to the kitchen to grab your medications and your expensive teas. Just one of your little guilty pleasures. Like hell I’m leaving them. Shoving them in the packed duffle bag, you head back out to the street and call a taxi to take you back to Dabi. Dabis apartment….not the man…just the apartment.  

***

Walking back into Dabis apartment, you gently placed your duffle bag on the ground near the door and walked into the kitchen to find Dabi sitting at the breakfast bench with his head in his hands. The trip to your place had taken a little longer than planned and it was now just after 10am. When he heard your footsteps round the corner, his head shot up, eyes wide as he drank in the sight of you like he hadn’t seen you in years. He begins to speak, his tone different than you’d heard just hours before.  

“I thought you must have left.”

Has he been sitting here since I left? Did the elevator wake him…?

You suddenly feel self conscious and cross one arm across your body and hold your elbow. “I did. I went to my place to get some clothes and stuff.”

“….I didn’t think you’d come back.”

You take a few silent steps towards him. “Why?”

“Why what?” He says, standing up, not taking his eyes off you.

Taking a few more steps towards him, “Why did you think I wouldn’t come back?”

He closes the distance between you with 2 large steps and stands as close to you as humanly possible without touching you and looks down at you. “Because you know who I am. Most people would have ran to the cops.”

Looking up to those same entrancing eyes, “Well I didn’t.”

“That’s what makes you so intriguing.” He leans down and places his lips on your hairline, then, all too soon, walks off behind you and back into the bedroom, pushing the door almost closed behind him.

What the hell just happened….? Was he…scared? …..What…. For the hundredth time in the last few hours, you’re confused yet again.

Author Note: Well...that’s chapter 3! I hope you enjoyed! I’m working on Chapter 4 now and should have it done in a few days! 

[unproduciblesmackdown]

even more prompts catchup

April 5th: What was school like for you, or what is it currently like for you if you are still in school? Elementary, high school, post-secondary?

i Hate/d school lmfao......like i do Like To Learn and Know Shit, and of course Sometimes / on some occasions it was like, hey i'm having a good to pretty great time at school, but those were usually Special occasions or teachers going out of their way to give us you know, fun projects / go beyond the Standardized Testing curriculum, which natch they couldn't always do / did require sort of going Above & Beyond, rather than being the constant, guaranteed experience of like hooray for school......it's like, oh hooray re: the Play Scenes my fourth grade english class did that was like, an Extra thing, where we got to audition and i just had a great time like oh right, clearly Theatre in retrospect, or hooray re: the field trips, or projects we did In Class, since i hated homework.......i was always that accursed (i mean, not accursed for Me, but) combination of "really a terrible student but also gets great grades" lmao i forever do things Last Minute but like, when i was At school, in class, i'd just power through whatever work there was then & there usually, and in middle school would sometimes do hw on the bus, as i was the last on the bus route to be picked up in the morning or dropped off in the afternoon, but as soon as i got home i was in Home Mode and yknow. didn't just sit down and continue School Stuff asap. also hardly ever Studying unless it's the night / morning before a test lmfao but i had a great memory for that stuff, so studying that last minute was like "yep, i Do remember this from going over it 2 seconds ago" so yknow, despite hating school / no good Study Habits(tm) or anything, i did fine. i also read a ton, at home or at school and at any other point. so i was also like, quiet and generally ~well behaved~ or whatever lol (the like "how are kids (or anyone) supposed to stay focused and on task for 7+ hours a day..." thing), segue into next paragraph

i also remember like, 3 day a week preschool being the first time i was, you know, in some sort of School and also around other kids that much, i did have this sense that like, somehow there were Rules that i wasn't following, not re: Classroom Rules or something, but wrt socializing with peers, like that everyone else had something going on in how they interacted which i wasn't gonna get right, & i had this sense of like, not really being Allowed to interact lmao, even being 4 years old i have a few distinct memories re: this of like, a) choosing to play by myself in the classroom or when outside, and b) my "best friend" being the one person who just like, chose to hang out with me lmfao, but i was like oh cool Having A Friend lmao, like i didn't Not want to have friends, i was just already aware of like, i don't feel like i can just up and interact w/these people and i don't feel like they want me to, and c) re: that being aware of whatever Rules Of Interaction existing and that i wouldn't meet them / abide by them and thus there'd be some kind of repercussion for not meeting those rules, and not being allowed, i remember that like. there was this other indoor playspace in the lower level and there were toys i wanted to play with but Refrained from, and it was like, why did 4 yr old me get the idea i Wasn't Really Allowed, and most of what i can theorize is that it was like, well other kids might want to play with that, and the Normal / Better kids should get priority lmao, and/or being nervous that it just might otherwise lead to some sort of Interaction i wouldn't feel ready for.....and d) sitting at a table with like whatever 4 or 5 other kids or something and amongst ourselves someone was like "oh put your foot in the middle if you're [x]" and i tried to join in on a technicality lmfao and also just in, you know, active efforts to be Participating with these other kids on their terms, and it did not pay off, something that repeated uhhhhh, forever i guess lol. insert that post like can allistic people be normal for 5 seconds.....

like in elementary school i wasn't really making friends either, incredibly, i was Amicably Tolerated by many people then & like, again also at any point after at least lmao (and it helps that i was generally in teachers' good graces, not that i narced on anyone ever, but i had like, my Niche as the Academically Successful One, and also i was the kid who draws, another shoutout to some post and tweet about how being The Drawing Kid was like, some measure of respect but also disdain lmfao...) and sometimes people would again like. choose to interact with me repeatedly, and i'd sort of be nonplussed at best b/c it's like, okay thanks but in this situation i didn't Choose this any more than i choose [Trying to be in the group but being rejected/excluded], so it's kinda weird, i was friends with someone for a few years in elementary school but we just were Coincidentally in the same class for those years, when we were in different classes in 3rd or 4th grade and just weren't seeing each other it fizzled out, in middle school i made another couple friends where we were all being Funny lmao, but i didn't go to high school, so once again we weren't seeing each other, and [At School] was where i always had most Interactions with people, didn't see people much outside of school even if we were hanging out / being friends During school, for [a whole tangent] reasons, so. guess the good news is i'm still in touch / friendly acquaintances with some people from school from college, but even then, there was Some more social success or whatever, but not all That much, and i was still unhappy like, not having many friends, often being like "i'm going to the cafe a block away b/c i have no social occasions here and i want to get out of the dorm / be around people," that if i was with more than one other person i could end up the third wheel friend lmao or nobody is paying attention when you talk or oh no i put myself out there hanging with a friend group but maybe people thought you were a joke or something, thanks. smh

and that like, speaking of college, i went early but this was, for my part, truly primarily driven like "well i hate school so if i can Not go to high school, okay" and like, while i got in and everything it was still like "tf is college, i've never known what i Want To Do so i wonder if i'll figure this out, but i'm not expecting to last past the first semester / year b/c this is college and i'm a terrible student actually lol" but then turns out i kept doing well enough like A's & B's like oh woops i guess i'm still here, then, hope i can figure out what tf "credit hours" means (finally did lol).....then sophomore year was a bunch of just Agonizing over "what tf do i major in," something i never figured out, wherein i might bring something up & it got parentally shot down like "never heard you talk about that" like what tf Did you hear me talk about? are you thinking i had my life figured out by age 9, b/c i didn't think that, i'm only 15/16 even Now, even being the Regular college age it's like, nobody's figuring their life out then. also i didn't tell my parents things, so. and then i settle on something that sure, Might've been of interest, but also it was like, a) a program that barely existed and req'd taking classes at a like 30 min away campus and also the head of department had Just retired and the most heinous teacher in the related fields was now in charge, brilliant and b) the sort of thing you'd just wanna start taking prerequisites for like as soon as you set foot on campus, like, great. and c) i was like, hardly feeling all the Academic Ambition anyway b/c i never had, b/c i hate/d school, and b/c i still didn't Know what i wanted to major in, and i was stressed n depressed and also realizing oh right, i'm not cishet, and oh right, i'm never going to get along with my family b/c [long tangent] reasons and that's kind of concerning, here i am impending Being 18 and like, how do i get out of this b/c it's becoming clearer that i'm not just gonna start getting along with the 'rents now that i'm not an elementary schooler and also now that i'm realizing the Reasons being at home sucks. guess i learned stuff in college lol but also it was like, the experience of getting to be Away From Home and existing every day without parents literally / figuratively over my shoulder at some point every day, and getting to do shit on my own and figure things out while Not At Home.....i also had a lot of fun taking a couple classes from this one music prof lol. he was this weird really enthusiastic and really knowledgeable guy lmao like great, these evening classes where we go over to the arts building and he plays things on the piano off the cuff and tells a lot of tangential stories while we're learning about like, beethoven technically, or folk music. didn't need those classes but they were great, i've had these teachers who were totally into whatever they were teaching and had a great time with that

also acknowledgment to the fact i was a No Extracurriculars person all through school, k thru 6 and college alike really, although i took dance class for that k thru 6 period, just that was separate from school actually (and another fun "being away from home" thing and Theatresque performance thing i enjoyed) but besides that it was like, how do i figure out what i want to do without committing to joining this whole thing, i don't know How to sign up for stuff really either, and it'd probably entail "asking for stuff" and needing to coordinate more rides and etc and that's just a hassle, and i wanna go home from school asap anyways, and then like, when it came to college, i was again at first thinking like "well idk what i'm doing and i hate homework so i'll probably mess it up in this first year anyways" and figured that doing anything Extra outside classes was just gonna be too much, and also, it's like, i've never been in these kinds of groups before and why am i gonna start in college, where there'll probably be all these people who Have done this stuff before, and are also 18? e.g. even though it was like "hey you're away from home and don't have to ask/tell anyone else anything to do this club stuff or whatever!" supposed ideal environment for trying stuff out, it was like, maybe i'm theoretically interested in auditioning for the fall theatre production, but the last acting experience i had was like, "2 month drama class in middle school" or "that 4th grade [section of a] play" so like, not really Any education or experience or Training re: any of that stuff, and a bunch of 18 yr olds who might've, or [age peers] who were theatre people who had already done stuff so they weren't getting Lead Roles or anything but they were getting cast / taking classes / joining an a capella group while i'm like right on, i'm over here with some sort of Grade Honor Society (??) saying my gpa qualifies me to join and be able to experience some further academic rigor/requirements lmfao and i'm like absolutely not. get away lol. anyways so bit of a chaotique Post K12 Zone Education Experience there lmfao, all kinds of things i'd Like to Learn and even take classes on, but didn't like, right i love learning languages but never took classes, love math and shit but only got to a certain level of calc and even then seemed to miss some Lore, never did anything re: theatre, etc and so on. so you wonder if some advantages re: high school would be like, more chances for those extracurriculars (or regular curriculars) but, as though i wouldn't have the same qualms about getting in on any of it, and as if i wouldn't've still hated school but also still been at home, F. and i think people can be a lot more normal to each other when it's college and you're Not stuck in one building together 8 hours a day lmao, got some gentle "occasional Bullying style attention" in middle school, but had juuust enough like, [that Niche of good grades / kid who draws] and people who Were friendlier to me that it was you know, unpleasant, but didn't have to be that huge a deal, and then i was outta there soon enough. also, in college many people are 18 or older, as opposed to 11 to 13. anyways the rest of my school story was that in the end the problems were "i don't know what i want to major in and also now's a worse time than ever b/c i've realized my existence At Home is untenable, and naturally i am quite depressed & stressed about things, and i gotta say absolutely virtually every adult presence was either totally unhelpful to Counterproductive here lmao, like, not much anyone could do really but it's helpful when someone is like, i'll treat you like a person vs simply just going 'uh why are you not doing the academic stuff good enough'" lmfao like. the whole time Not having friends i'd wanna talk to through class and happening to get good grades in part b/c i somehow Could as easily as i did and also i was afraid of getting C's or worse b/c "tfw i wasn't even yet in a grade that gave you A thru F grades yet but my older sister caught shit for getting a C

like :/" and etc means adults are like My Student Is Fine, and also, what are you gonna do even if they aren't, i guess. i just had to figure out completely for myself Why and How i really wasn't Fine and that was quite difficult and also took a long time. then there was a mutual prank of "i drop out of college at the tail end of things" and "now i have to be at home with parent/s more resentful of your obvious Waywardness (insert: not being cishet, and the fact it occurs to me that my being autistic was always causing 'problem' behavior i was getting shit for like, the whole time lmfao, even if nobody knew / labeled it like oh this is for ND reasons, or if it was both true i tried to come out (smh, thought i Had to b/c that was part of Not Being Cishet) and it was simply ignored / unaddressed and yet it sure fueled further specific resentment of my not Performing Gender properly, or "worse," so that went well, in that i eventually abruptly left and did not maintain contact, in the interest of "the levels to which i was thriving was like, that if i bailed and like died 50 hrs later it'd still be what i want to do," true to that i did not / don't regret it. and what do you know, i was first able to bail to a relatively nearby friend from college's home, whose family also liked me lmao. shoutout to school still being where i made Any friends, except a friend i made who was a coworker of several years. and Online Friends, which, another school connection, that like, i can more readily Connect w/people via talking about interests, something that happened Sometimes at school in person lmao but not much, but also that i Talk About Interests in a way through Drawing, which, well shoutout to doodling in the margins of papers throughout school lmfao, it didn't hurt! that's my saga.

oh and that footnote, i also really enjoyed the "in middle school you either take language classes or 4 Electives you rotate through each year" and those electives sure featured some more varied and hands on activities i had a great time with. shoutout to like, cooking, and to shop class, my Car Designs were great apparently, idk how. shoutout to my Intuition re: engineering or something lmaoo.....very fun to just end the schoolday in that big garage space where you could actually open that garage door right to where all the buses were, beautiful. Oh, and that's another footnote, when my last class of the day in 8th grade was english, i'd sometimes finish work early and my teacher would let me go to our spacious library, with the v nice librarian who'd recommend books to me she thought should be checked out more often b/c she knew i liked to read that much, and also just generally had teachers / other adult staff kinda wandering in at the end of the day, talk about "i don't really relate to other ppl my age" where i did generally prefer to be around adults, so that was fun. oh and also shoutout to hating school lmao wherein during like, middle school when the schoolday started at like 7:30am or smthing disgusting and i just learned to like, view whatever time it was in a "at least it's almost [x]" like well okay, first period is math and that kinda sucks but at least once it's over this hardest part of the day will be over, then next class is kinda more chill at least, and then it'll be the last period before lunch, etc etc etc where i could sort of keep up that stamina like telling myself at any point it was Almost [a more encouraging time of day] lmao like. kinda fucked up to have to be dragging yourself through the weekdays like that, but

Oh! goddamn and i didn't even get into that if i ever got in ~trouble~ in elementary school it was stuff like Not Paying Attention, but where half the time that might be some other kid beside me messing around lmfao and i'm not gonna be like "uhhh follow the rules!!!" (and that even when i was In Trouble like go sit in the chair where you have to be quiet there for like 10 min i might say something to some other kid in that zone and they'd be like "um it's the quiet chair you have to be quiet!!" or "uh we're getting into the next lesson and you have to put that book back asap" like wow these other kids are dweebs about Rules lmfao) and there'd just be times like, it's 1st grade and i know how to read pretty well already but we're going over the alphabet like stoppp i know the Phonics already........or the ways ND people can kind of Intuit some stuff more successfully, like in third grade learning multiplication i neverrrrr studied but just broke it down like, okay i remember the Fives b/c of telling time, i know the 2x table and stuff, i know the commutative property, if we're all the way at the 8x and i haven't Memorized stuff, i can still like, break it down to say, [5 x 8] + [8 x 2] or something when i see 8 x 7, even if it takes a second lmfao.......and stuff like the tragedy of when i Did make a friend in like, 2nd grade, who i think we didn't even talk to each other ever?? i was playing legos or smthing by myself once during Indoor Recess and she just started playing agreeably along with me, aka someone socializing on My Terms apparently as our Introduction, and we just were friends past that but one time, not even during a Lesson Session, we were messing around quietly making each other laugh as the incredibly important process of "put papers in your folders" was going on, and since we were Not Paying Attention for some reason the teacher made a whole example of it where i had to carry my desk across the classroom for the Shaming Element of it and also so that i had to permanently sit way further from that friend, so that was kind of discouragement re: interacting at all. thank you to that teacher, who'd later once Gesticulate to me from across the gym that i should put my arms down at my sides rather than being crossed (we were rehearsing some class performance) & i had no idea what she was trying to convey, so afterwards she told me i had to have Reduced Recess Time or some shit because of Ignoring her instead of putting my arms down lmfao. and i was irritated at having been misinterpreted / my Intentions dictated to me and punished like that, but i was also used to it from adults lmfao and did not bother explaining myself lol like yeah god forbid i left my arms crossed on purpose and now i have to read some more during recess. tl;dr school has so much nonsense & i def had some Times re: being autistic & also just being someone who hated school forever lmao, think it was Also 2nd grade where one arbitrary sunday night i just cried out of frustration at having to go back for another normal school week. classic. oh and that also, while i wasn't like "oooo booksmart people who hate not having a Definitive Correct Answer to things &/or ohhh autistic ppl So Good at math, in a way everyone hates and disrespects, but they suck at Literature/Arts which requires you to reflect on humanity and shit," like, not only was i the drawing kid but i was also apparently ahead of the curve as it were at like, Literary Analysis lmfao where there was a few times in elementary school i'd be the kid providing the Interpretation like "what's this poem about / what's the theme or Symbolism in this story," but from elementary school to college it's like, for god's sake don't ask me to come up with a story / work with some really open ended prompt, i don't Invent in that way, and when i try to draw on Inspiration i'll get stuck on some specific source and be unable to do anything but just rip it off really lmao. but then again i was prolific in "it's 1st grade and you write and illustrate a little short story or smthing in these booklets

that we then have a simple little binding process for" like ohhh fancy, i got a tootsie roll lollipop at Awards Time for writing a shit ton of those lol. but that's like, when you're too young to have that much of a Creative Process anyways lmao. but then, my older sister, whose Thing was writing, has an incredible 2 Volume like, noir mystery saga from those elementary school times, it's a classic lmao. anyways once again so much to say about School lol closing the door after meandering on that one for this long lol

April 6th: Are you able to drive? If so, was it difficult to learn? What was difficult about it? If not, do you use any alternatives?

i did learn to drive, tbh just universally it's like, at any point you're driving there's A Lot to pay attention to at once, even if you think you're Good At That or whatever, which i sure don't think i always am lol, and it's pretty wild we just, you know, let everyone go around as fast as they want in machines that can kill you or someone else, and this is also Unnecessary b/c like, let's have accessible & reliable public transit so that everyone can travel without Needing to have a car / someone else who will drive them. i didn't think i had too much trouble learning to drive, but it had to help that i just took it very seriously from the start lmao like, well, i'm quite aware i could kill someone with this. the driving classes i took were alright, i remember the instructor being pretty chill and friendly lol. rip to the fact i could be tense when driving with parent/s, when driving a manual i'd always like screech the tires when accelerating out of a Stop, until all at once it was like "and i'm driving that manual car alone on a road trip & wouldn't you know it, only literally once did i have that issue of not getting out of a stop smoothly enough" lmao like the Anxiety......really like yeah i had an alright time learning and think i'm solid enough at driving / like doing it, theoretically, but Driving Is Wild just in general and let's have that public transit

April 7th: How are you with sarcasm and/or metaphors/figures of speech? Do you interpret things very literally?

i think i Usually get what people mean with these Devices but i can't really say lol, but anytime you know, someone is being more Implicit in what they say, plenty of times i can infer one implication and only later realize they probably meant a different one, or yknow, i make whatever initial inference i make and can be stuck like "???" and have to like, mentally run diagrams about the interaction lol......meanwhile i'm not always remembering that like, if i'm shifting context mentally that's necessarily able to be inferred by whoever i'm talking to lol, whether it's about getting into some adjacent topic or like, i don't think it tends to be very clear even in person when i've started being sarcastic lmao, like i know that can be true for anyone but it's like well, guess i gotta make it clearer i'm doing a bit......flipside of that or something lmao that people are more Obvious than they think they are sometimes about like, idk, when someone is sort of making some sarcastic remark to you but the sarcasm is also sort of only to themself, aka just like okay i know you mean this more dismissively / disparagingly than re: what you're saying just at face value lol like. just always fun >:/

[thebitchiestnerdtowalktheearth]

Home

Platonic!Billy Batson X Reader X Platonic!Freddy Freeman

Warning: Nothing I can think of? Negative thoughts, small talk of bad foster homes

Word Count: +6,500

A/N: Hey y'all, this is the first fanfic I've ever posted on Tumblr so, I hope you like it! I got the inspiration for this story from @stxn-the-mxn 's story "Runaway". I got permission to write this story, and I urge you to go read their work! Hopefully if it does well I will write a second part! And now, on with the story!

~~~

"So, Ms. L/N, you're last foster home not working out too well for you?" Your social worker asked.

You rolled your eyes. "Sure, you could say that."

She sighed as she looked down at her desk before leaning forward towards you. "And what exactly was wrong with this one?"

You stared down at her desk, folding your arms over your chest. Your last home wasn't the worst you have seen, but anyone could tell it wasn't going to work out. The kids all acted as though you were some kind of vermin infesting their home, going quiet whenever you walked into a room, and making sure to exclude you from almost everything. The parents hadn't noticed, always too busy at work or with their real children.

It had only been a few days before you had decided to take anything of yours, and theirs that you knew wouldn't be missed, and leave. You lasted about two days before the police caught you sleeping against a heater outside someone's house. This house was the final straw. You couldn't take going to another foster family.

"Ms. L/N, you have run from five families in the past three months. I'm sorry to say that we are almost out of options," she sighed, leaning back in her chair.

"That's okay. I'd rather no family than a fake one," you muttered.

"Y/N, I want you to know that I care about you getting into a good home. The last thing I would want would be for you to live out on the streets." Her voice sounded sincere.

You looked up at her, her eyes pleasing for you to listen. You turned your gaze back down to her desk. She's just saying that to try to get you to stay in a home, she doesn't really care.

"I can't go to another foster family," You told her, repeatingly kicking the foot of the desk lightly.

"That's fine," You glanced at her, surprised by her agreement. "I set up for you to go to a group home."

You sat up straight, "Wait, what!?"

You had just run away from a house filled with attention hogging kids and busy parents and now you're getting thrown right back into it? Great, now I know for sure this place isn't gonna work.

"They are just down the hall, waiting to meet you. They're a lovely couple, Rosa and Victor, and have had many kids similar to you in their care," your social worker smiled at you. 

You scoffed, collapsing back into my chair.

"Y/N," she called your name quietly, something in the back of your mind forced you to glance up at her, "Please give these people a shot, you don't know how it will go until you try it."

She stood up from her chair and walked around her desk, stopping in front of you. For the first time since you came into her office, you looked her in the eye.

"I know this is hard, but if you feel this home really isn't the best, or right, or you don't wish to stay for any reason, please call me. I will get you out at any time, if you want. Just, don't leave for the streets." She held out her card. You stared at it for a moment before grabbing it.

She smiled before walking towards the door.

"Let's go meet them!" She opened the door for you.

~

You sat silently, watching the lights of the city pass by through the window of their van. It smelt slightly of peppermint and bubblegum. Better than any other van you've been in, having usually smelled like booze or cigarettes.

"We're almost there, Y/N!" Rosa sent you a smile from the passenger's seat.

"Okay," you mumbled, not turning away from the window.

Sure enough, you soon pulled up to a two-story house alive with light. You stared up at it, worry filling your gut as you thought back on one of your previous foster homes. They had four kids who loved to use their foster siblings to benefit themselves. The eldest had threatened to break an expensive lamp in the living room and blame it on you if you didn't do all of their chores for them. You ran away the next morning.

Victor opened your door for you and held his hand out for you to take. You grabbed your backpack and dropped it into his open hand before snatching your duffel bag off the floor and hopping out of the van. You offered a small smile as a thank you before you took your backpack back, quickly pulling it on.

You caught the small glance Rosa sent Victor before he walked around the side of the van towards her. You slowly trailed behind him as you stared up at the house. Only about a ten foot drop from the second floor. You noticed most of the windows had their lights on which meant there were either a lot of people in the house or these guys really liked to leave their lights on.

"Y/N?" A voice called. You turned and saw Victor and Rosa already on the porch.

"Right. Sorry," You muttered, gripping the handles of your duffel tighter as you quickly made your way towards them.

"So, we know it's a little overwhelming at first, coming to a new home, but we promise everyone is nice and happy to welcome you!" Rosa promised, wrapping her arm comfortingly around your shoulders as Victor opened the door, leading you in.

Your attention quickly went to the large pile of winter clothes and shoes near the stairs. Yup, definitely a lot of people. You looked around the house but didn't spot anyone.

"Kids! We're home!" Victor called out into the seemingly empty house.

Before you knew it, the house jumped alive as people slipped down the stairs and through the rooms.

"Jesus!" You muttered when the group of people finally stopped growing. You counted about six or seven people, not including Victor and Rosa.

"Guys! This is Y/N! Y/N, this is the gang!" Victor introduced you.

You gave a small wave before the smallest one broke out of the group, bringing you into a hug.

"Hi, Y/N! I'm so glad you're here! I'm Darla!" She introduced herself.

You laughed awkwardly, your free arm patting her on the back, not comfortable enough to give her a real hug.

Once she finally pulled away, the tallest in the group stepped forward.

"I'm Mary! Nice to meet you," she held out her hand, which you carefully took.

She pointed out the smallest boy, who gave a small wave, "That's Eugene- '' after hearing her say his name he walked off to the next room, pressing unpause on his hand-held game.  Mary pointed out another boy, who looked a bit older than you, "-and that's Pedro!" After being introduced, he quickly made his way back upstairs, similar to what Eugene did.

Mary turned to Rosa and Victor and quickly engaged them into a separate conversation.

"I'm Freddy," a voice pulled your attention from the two women, and Victor, to the guy who stood in front of you. "That's Billy," He stated, pointing to the other guy who stood near the stair.

You held out your hand for him, "Nice to meet you." You offered a quick smile. 

You glanced down at his hand as you let it go, noticing his opposite arm in a crutch that helped him stand. You quickly looked away, not wanting him to think you were staring.

You turned to the other boy, Billy, and held out your hand just as you had done for Freddy. "Nice to meet you," You gave the same small, fake smile.

"Same here, welcome to the family. You're gonna love it here." He smiled.

You nodded, holding back the stupid remark that nearly came out. "So, any idea where I can put my bags?" You asked.

Freddy smiled, "Yeah, we'll show you! The only rooms left were with Darla or Mary, so we just assumed you'd rather have Mary as a roommate."

You nodded in understanding as you followed the two boys up the stairs.

"Watch out for the trip step!" Billy warned as we went up, you quickly stepped over it.

Freddy and Billy started down the hallway towards Mary's room. You were about to follow them but something in the room across from the stairs caught your attention. You glanced at the boys, who were busy talking, and quickly went in the room, dropping your duffel outside the door before going in.

The room had a computer at the desk, bunk beds, and way too many Superman mementos. On the wall hung at least three framed newspaper articles about Superman. You felt a smile creep onto your face at the sight. These guys were complete nerds! You thought.

As you turned to look at a different article, something flashed in your eye. You quickly turned and saw a batarang sitting on top of the dresser. 

"Holy shit!" You whispered, reaching out to touch it.

"There you are!" You heard someone say at the doorway.

You stepped away from his dresser. "Sorry! I didn't take anything, I swear." You promised, not wanting him to get the wrong idea.

Freddy made his way towards you, Billy close behind. "It's all good. That's actually just a replica but it looks and feels real!" He told me, pointing at the batarang.

"It's really cool," you smiled at him.

"Personally, I think Batman is a little over rated. Now, Superman? He's a real hero!" Freddy told you, pointing out the newspapers on his wall.

You laugh, "Yeah, I can tell. Both are pretty good, but I think we all know the real superhero is Wonder Woman." I told him.

Billy quickly interjected, "Come on, Batman is obviously better than both of your over glorified heroes!”

"She is literally a goddess, that plus her perfect track record equals the best hero." You smiled at him. "Besides, didn't Batman kill Superman just for being from a different planet? Sounds pretty racist to me." You said the last part in a sing-song voice.

"Yeah! Plus, Batman has had a million sidekicks, who he forced to all share the same name, for some reason, while Wonder Woman and Superman don't need any sidekicks!" Freddy joined in on my bashing of Batman.

"You know what? Superman sucks!" Billy yelled.

Before Freddy could yell back, Mary interrupted from the doorway. 

"Boys! Have you shown her to her room yet or were you just bickering the entire time?" She asked. The two scrambled to answer only for it to come out as jumbled yelling.

Mary sighed before turning to you. "Come on, I'll show you to our room."

You nodded, side stepping the two boys who looked ready to start their yelling match all over again. Mary picked your duffel bag off of the floor on your way out and started down the hallway to the last door.

Mary walked across the room to the empty bed with the desk at the foot of it. She placed your bag on the bed before turning to you with a smile.

"This one is your bed, feel free to unpack," Mary pointed out the dresser next to the desk, "The drawers on the right are all open for you. I'm going back downstairs, but if you need anything just ask."

You nodded and gave a quick thanks before she slipped out of the room. Frowning at your roommate's quick departure, you began looking around your new room. Two beds, one dresser, and a desk fit surprisingly snugly in the average sized space. Must be the paint color, you thought.

Before sitting on the bed, you pulled your duffel bag onto the floor and your backpack off of your back. You rested your backpack into your lap before zipping it open and digging out an old, beaten up notebook. You flipped to the next page before quickly snatching a pen out of a purple mug that sat on the desk at the end of the bed.

You sat down back down on your bed, placing your backpack next to your feet on the floor, before I started to scribble out the basics about your new home.

     House #16- Group Home #1

*Dad- Victor Vasquez

*Mom- Rosa Vasquez

*Child 1- Mary

*Child 2- Pedro

*Child 3- Freddy

*Child 4- Billy

*Child 5- Eugene

*Child 6- Darla

You made sure to leave plenty of lines between each name for when you found out more about then, and put the date at the top of the page with a dash for the date when you leave.

You clicked the pen closed and quickly shut the notebook, throwing them both into your backpack before kicking it under the bed.

"Dinner!" You heard Victor call from downstairs.

When you got to the dining room, everyone was already in their seats, waiting patiently as they talked amongst themselves. When you walked in, all conversation stopped, making you suddenly feel very self conscious as you walked to your seat.

"Sorry," You muttered as you quickly sat down in the only empty chair, which sat between Freddy and Eugene. It was a tight squeeze, obvious that they had forced the chair to fit uncomfortably with the rest at the table.

"It's all good," Victor smiled as you finally settled into the chair. "Now that we are all here, all hands on deck!"

Everyone placed their hand in the middle of the table, piled on top of each other. You glanced at everyone, unsure if you had to too, but quickly had your question answered when Victor started speaking.

"Thank you for this family, thank you for this day, thank you for this food and the new family member who we hope will stay." Victor said before everyone pulled their hand away and quickly started grabbing food.

You felt like sinking down into your chair. Did they all think I was going to try to leave on the first day? He wouldn't say it if he didn't think so, would he?  Now if I decide to leave, I might feel obliged to stay. If I do want to stay, will they just think of me as a flight risk?

Once everyone looked close to being done piling food onto their plates, you started taking small portions of everything, wanting everyone to get what they wanted before you got any.

"Y/N, would you like some more? You barely grabbed anything." Rosa offered, holding out the bowl of green beans.

You quickly pulled on a smile and shook your head. "No, thank you. I'm alright, just not that hungry!" You reassured her.

She hummed, not looking completely satisfied. You watched as she shot Victor a quick look as she took a drink from her glass.

You looked back to your plate, feeling your appetite slip away. You instead listened to the others' conversation about their days, school, and work.

Mary was talking to Victor about college, Billy and Freddy discussed some new game that had just come out, which quickly caught Eugene's attention, and Darla was talking Rosa's ear off. Pedro sat quietly as he ate, but he seemed like the type to keep to himself.

Once each conversation began to bore you, you turned back to the little bit of food left on your plate. You were busy pushing a lone green bean around your plate before you felt someone nudge you. You turned in Freddy's direction only for him to nod to Rosa.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" You asked.

"I was just wondering if you had any hobbies?"

"Oh uh-no, not particularly. Uh, I like going out for walks and reading." You told her.

"That's great! There is actually a park close by, if you'd ever want to go. And Mary has a whole collection of books I'm sure she'd be glad to let you go through." Rosa offered. You gave a fake smile.

"That sounds nice!" You nodded, suddenly feeling the urge to eat, just to escape the conversation and go back to listening instead. You began eating again, thankful for Darla recapturing Rosa's attention.

It wasn't long before everyone started cleaning up the table and putting everything in the kitchen before heading into what you assumed was the living room.

After clearing off your plate, you planned to head straight to your room but stopped at the entrance of the living room when you saw the way everyone sat together in front of the TV.

They looked like most of the families you'd been with, only, they looked happy to be together as they watched the mindless program. The boys all sat on a long couch that hung near the wall, Darla and Mary sharing a smaller couch on the other side, and Victor and Rosa in the smallest chair directly across the room from the tv.

You watched them for a moment as they all enjoyed each other's company. Now, how in the world would you ever fit into this little world? They all were so different and yet got along so well. Even if you tried, you'd have no idea how to fit into this life and you definitely didn't want to change this for them.

Just before you could turn to leave, the tv switched to a breaking news report of a runaway train in downtown. Everyone gasped at the sight of a high speed train, racing down its tracks. The kids all glanced at each other and gave a small nod.

They all stood up and started towards the exit, you quickly stood close to the wall, acting interested in the tv. Now, where in the-

"Where are you guys all going?" Victor asked them, practically reading your mind.

"Water!"

"Bathroom!"

"Pajamas!"

They all yelled out different excuses. You, Rosa, and Victor watched as they all rushed upstairs.

"Oh, Y/N!" Victor noticed you in the doorway, "Would you like to join us? We're just watching a Christmas movie."

"Thank you, but I think I'm gonna just go up to Mary's room and... unpack," You quickly thought of an excuse.

"Oh, okay. Feel free to join us when you're done," Rosa said with a small smile.

"Yeah, of course," You nodded before turning and rushing up the stairs after the group.

All of the lights were off except the small sliver that managed to slip under Billy and Freddy's door. You heard multiple voices, assuming everyone was in there together. A strong voice in your head screamed to knock on the door and ask to join them but a different, stronger voice told you they wouldn't want you to. 

They all were so kind earlier, I doubt they would mind if I joined them. Besides, what could they possibly be doing or talking about that they would mind you being there for? After you quickly battled your brain, you finally came to a decision. 

Knock, knock, knock!

The room became dead silent. You waited patiently for any form of response, knots beginning to tie in your stomach.

After what felt like hours, a reply finally came. "Who is it?"

"Hey guys, it's me," you answered, grimacing at the sound of your own nervous voice, "I was just wondering if I could hang out with you guys! I didn't really feel like unpacking so I-"

Eugene's voice quickly interrupted me."Sorry, no! We're busy!"

You nearly took a step backwards at the quick rejection. The knots in your stomach suddenly morphed into humiliation, confusion, and disappointment.

"Oh-uh... yeah, okay. No problem!" You quickly faked a cheerful voice. "Sorry for bothering you!"

Your face suddenly started to feel hot as you hurried down the hall to Mary's room. After shutting the door behind you, you slapped your hand against your forehead.

Jeez, that could not have gone worse! What happened? I thought I was getting along with everyone well... or was it just me? Maybe everyone was pretending to get along with me because I'm new to the house. Maybe they don't really like me.

Your mind ran wild as you tried to come up with reasons why they were suddenly too busy to even come to the door and give a proper explanation of why you couldn't join them.

Overthinking is definitely not what you wanted to be doing right now. Maybe they really just were busy. Christmas is in like two weeks, maybe they were just working on a present for Rosa and Victor. Yeah, that's it. It probably has nothing to do with you at all!

You decided to just calm down, go downstairs for a drink of water, and watch the movie with the rest of the house. With one last deep breath, you left the room, climbed down the stairs, and headed straight to the kitchen.

Now, just get your water and watch the movie with everyone! the voice in your head encouraged. A smile unknowingly rested on your lips as you grabbed a cup from the cupboard and quickly filled it in the sink.

"You guys came back at just the right time, commercials just ended." You heard Victor say from the living room.

Your legs carried you to the doorway of the living room, only to stop you at the doorway. Most of the space on the couches were taken up by the kids who you, until now, believed to still be in Billy and Freddy's room.

"Where is Billy? He's going to miss it," Rosa asked, looking at the now empty spot on the couch.

Mary and Pedro exchanged worried glances and Darla quickly avoided all eye contact and stared at the tv.

"Oh, uh..." Freddy started but nothing came out.

"Darla?" Victor asked, knowing she would give the truth.

"Um, I-!" she started, but I quickly cut her off.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure he went to take a shower. I heard the water running on my way back downstairs," I quickly explained, giving her a smile.

Rosa smiled when she noticed me standing in the hall, "Oh, okay. Thank you, Y/N. Were you gonna join us?"

You looked around the living room. Everyone diverted their eyes from you, sending looks between each other. Maybe they really do don't like me.

"I still have some unpacking to do, I just came down to get some water," You held your cup up to show her, giving a weak smile.

"Alright, mi amor, feel free to join us when you finish!" She called after me as you quickly left and headed back to Mary's room.

~~~

"What are you doing?"

You turned to find Mary at the door. She rushed over to you and quickly closed the window.

"What?" You asked, confused by her sudden rush to close the window.

"Look, I can't stop you from leaving but, just so you know, that's a much bigger drop than you think it is," Mary warned you.

You lifted an eyebrow. "Really? You think I'm that big of a flight risk? Look, if I wanted to leave, I would walk out the front door, not risk breaking a leg by jumping out a damn window." You told her, plopping down onto your bed.

"Then, what were you doing?" She asked.

"Looking at the view, enjoying the night air, seeing if you have any flower bushes in the ground that I can enjoy during the spring," You list off.

Mary watched you carefully, looking for a lie. She nodded and turned away once she felt satisfied.

You laid down on the bed fully, not minding your shoes resting on the comforter. At least now you have some time to decide if you want to stay for a little while of leave and give your social worker a call.

If you did want to leave, you would have to leave then find a phone booth to call her from, just to ensure not having to see Rosa and Victor's disappointed faces when they are told I didn't want to live with them. You didn't really care about making everyone else disappointed, well, besides Darla.

Though, this has been the kindest place to live in a long time. Maybe a pros and cons list would help?

Pros: good food, nice guardians, okay children, warm place to sleep, people who possibly care for you, best home you have been to in years, would have a nice place to spend Christmas for once

Cons: crowded, kids possibly don't like you, little privacy, and there were no flower bushes outside

This place was much better than a lot of places you've been forced to live in, but that doesn't mean it is the right fit. If you did leave, maybe your social worker could get you into another group home, just with less kids.

If you did leave, you doubted they would be disappointed for long. Besides, it's a group home, kids must come and go all the time. And you'd think the other kids would be glad to have one less person in the house. If you did stay, they could come to like you… or not.

I guess my decision has been made then.

~~~

You looked over Mary's bookshelf, grabbing one or two books that peaked your interest. It's always good to keep a memento from each house you stay in. You quickly stuff them into your backpack before zipping it closed and pulling it on. You grabbed your duffel before sliding the window all the way open and dropping it down to the ground. You pulled the window closed, not wanting Mary's room to get too cold.

Now, you just needed to sneak out the back door, grab the duffel, find a pay phone and get a hold of your social worker. Simple. There must be one outside a gas station somewhere, if not, you could just ask the gas station attendant if you could "call your parents". Easy.

You tiptoed down the stairs, making sure to miss the creaky step. As you snuck past the living room, you saw everyone was happily watching the tv which looked to be playing It's a Wonderful Life. You rolled your eyes before continuing towards the kitchen.

"Billy?" Someone called out from the living room.

You froze in front of the back door, waiting to hear the sound of them turning back to the tv.

"Must be hearing things," Victor said.

You sighed in relief before slowly twisting the lock, stopping whenever you made any sort of noise and listening for the living room. Once the door was unlocked, you opened the door as quietly as you could, knowing they most likely would be too wrapped up in their movie.

Once outside, you closed the door quickly and ran along the side of the house towards your duffel bag. You smiled at the sight of your Wonder Woman duffel lying peacefully in the snow. The lock on the gate put a small damper on your night, climbing the gate definitely wasn't on the agenda.

You grumbled to yourself as you dropped your bag on the other side of the gate before stepping on the post and carefully jumped over. Thank god it was winter and the snow broke your fall, or your butt would be in a lot more pain that it was in right now.

You quickly grabbed your duffel and took one last look up at the house. Maybe in another life, you thought, before starting down the street with a rough idea where the last gas station you saw was.

~~~

Billy landed just outside his window before yelling "Shazam!" and transforming back into his usual self.

He sighed as he opened the window and carefully climbed through. Billy pulled off his jacket and beanie before starting to change into his sweats and sleep shirt. Before he could pull on his shirt, Freddy burst into the room.

"Billy!" He yelled.

Billy screeched, covering his chest with his shirt. "Dude!"

"Sorry, it's just-" Freddy was interrupted.

Darla ran into the room. "Y/N is gone!" She cried out, tears starting to form in her eyes.

"Yeah, she said she was going to her room to unpack but when Mary went to go check on her, she was gone." Freddy told him.

"Jeez, do Victor and Rosa know?" Billy asked, running his hands through his hair.

 "No, we were hoping to be able to convince her to come back before they find out." He tilted his head slightly.

"Uh, okay. Freddy, you and me will go find her while everyone else makes sure they don't know we're gone," Billy ordered. "Got that Darla?"

"Okay!" She sniffled before giving him a smile and running to tell her siblings of Billy's plan.

"Alright, let's go find her,"  Freddy nodded.

~~~

"Shit!" You yelled, hitting the phone booth with the base of your palm.

About ten blocks from the house, you found a gas station with a pay phone just outside. But, of course, with your luck, it was out of order and the gas station was closed.

You looked around the gas station for some kind of map, finding the last one in its slot. After unfolding it and getting your bearings, you spotted the park Rosa told you about. Only two blocks away. Perfect.

You refolded the map and replaced it in the slot, hoping someone else can find good use from it. Gripping tightly onto your duffel's shoulder strap, you start the trek to the park. 

It only took about ten minutes to get to the park, but you swore it felt longer. As you crossed the street, a car came speeding toward you. You ran to the sidewalk, narrowly dodging the car as it came to a screeching stop.

"Hey, watch it!" You yelled, kicking their tires before turning back and entering the park.

You glanced around at the empty park, glad to see no one else. You hurried to the closest bench and dusted off any snow or water before sitting down and opening your duffel. You pushed aside your hair brush and quickly pulled out your extra sweater and pulled it over your head. 

With one more look around the park, you put the duffel on the end of the bench and laid your head on it like a pillow. Allowing yourself to relax a little. Before you knew it, you were in a light sleep. Maybe you let yourself relax a little too much.

"I found her," a man in your dream stated.

Another man turned to you. "Cool, she has a Wonder Woman duffel bag!" He said.

"Dude, really?" The first one sighed.

You slowly opened your eyes, fully expecting to see police officers, or even hobos, but the last thing you experienced were two grown men in spandex next to you.

You screamed in shock, sitting up.

"Nice one, you woke her up!" The one in Blue punched the one in Red.

"Holy shit," you muttered, slowly grabbing your duffel bag.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. We're here to help!" The red one held his hands up in defense.

Wait, aren't these the heroes who used to have people pay to take pictures with them? What was his name again? Captain Marvel or something? You quickly went for your backpack, grabbing whatever cash you had and held it out for them.

"Here, it's all I got," you tried to hand it to the one in Red.

"What? No, that's not why-" he tried to turn it down.

"Don't you have people pay you or whatever? Just take it and leave me alone," you tried to hand it to him again but he pushed your hand away.

"We don't want your money. We're here to take you home," Captain Marvel told you.

You stared at him as you put your money in your pocket. "Okay, yeah, I'm gonna go," you told them, grabbing your duffel, standing up, and quickly started walking away from the bench you had previously been sleeping on.

"Wait!" Freddy yelled, grabbing your arm. You pulled your arm away from him and backed away quickly.

"Stay away from me!" You yelled.

"Hold on, Y/N, just wait!" Billy tried, holding his hands up again.

You stopped, staring at the two heroes before you. "Do I... know you guys or something?" They felt oddly familiar.

Billy glanced back at his brother. "No, you don't. We were, uh, sent…by your family to come find you."

"Okay, now I know you guys are lying cause I don't have a family. See yah!" You waved, turning to leave yet again.

The two heroes quickly joined you, one on each of your sides.

"Listen, Y/N, the group home you are staying at has people in it who care what happens to you." Freddy tried to meet your eye.

"Yeah, that's why I left the way I did," you muttered, the gears turning in your head as you tried to figure out why these heroes are doing house calls. "Wait, did they call you or something to come find me? How in the hell do they have your number?" 

Billy stood unsure of what to say, looking to Freddy for support, only to find him to have the same reaction.

"Whatever, doesn't matter," you muttered, continuing down the street.

Freddy quickly snapped out of his trance and joined you again. "What did you mean by that's why you're leaving?"

You sighed, "Look, they're a great family, don't get me wrong. It's just that there are eight people in one house, always in each others spaces- I mean, I barely could fit at the table with the rest of them. And I just think if I were to stay I would just be invading their home and what little space they have left."

Billy let out a small laugh, "You know things can be changed around to accommodate everyone."

"I don't want them to change for me. They are one perfect unit and I don't want them to have to change that." You looked around the street for another pay phone or gas station. "Not to mention they gave up their 'welcome' act pretty quickly."

"The 'welcome' act?" Billy proded, feeling like Freddy and him were getting closer to a point where they can soon convince you to come home.

"Yeah, you know, the 'we-don't-really-feel-comfortable-with-you-here-but-we-have-to-be-nice-and-welcoming' act. You should have seen them when I came downstairs for a drink of water and Rosa asked if I wanted to join them. They all got super uncomfortable, glancing at each other, and looking everywhere but me. Trust me, I can tell when I'm not wanted," You glared down at the sidewalk, getting kind of tired of explaining yourself to two weirdos in tights.

"So what's your plan?" Freddy asked. "Live on the street instead of a nice home with a good family? I seriously doubt that they don't want you there."

"Look man, if I called every place I lived at my family or home, the meaning would be lost pretty fast," You tried to walk faster away from the two, who you were now questioning to even be real heros at all, "And no, I wasn't planning to live on the street. I was going to call my social worker. I didn't call her at the house because I didn't want to see Rosa and Victor's disappointed faces and make me feel guilty."

"Ugh, I hated my social worker," Freddy muttered without thinking.

Billy shot him a look, "Dude, shut up!"

You stopped, turning on your heels to look at the two grown men. They sound so familiar but you just couldn't put a finger on it. They both had basic, dark brown hair, although the one in blue's hair was a but more curly. They had no memorable features, only their personalities. They argued just like-

"Do I know you guys?" You asked carefully. "You feel so familiar."

"N-no! Of course not, we're just two adult men here to take you home!" The red one said hesitantly. "B-but not in a creepy way!"

"Alright, one question. Who's your favorite superhero?"

"Superman." Freddy answered on reflex.

Both heroes' eyes grew.

"Dude!" Billy yelled.

Freddy flinched. "Sorry! It's a reflex!" 

You took a small step backwards. Your small test had worked but now you have no clue what to do.

"Freddy? Is-is that you?" You asked quietly.

Billy shook his head, "N-no, you're mistaken! He-"

You gasped, "Billy?!"

The two boys groaned, unsure what to do now that the secret was out.

"Oh my god! How the hell-? What-? Do the others know?!" You stammered out.

"They're kind of superheroes too," Freddy told you, rubbing the back of his neck.

You felt as if the air was knocked out of you. Everyone in the house is a superhero, besides Rosa and Victor. You were living with heros for the past 5 hours. Wait... they all rushed upstairs after they saw the runaway train on tv. They were doing hero stuff, not excluding you on purpose.

You felt yourself begin to laugh. So many emotions were running around in your head, you had a difficult time sorting through it. You laughed harder as you tried to think about the situation you were in.

"Y/N?" One of the boys called to you.

Cold tears started to run down your cheeks. You laughed a bit more as you took a seat on the snow covered sidewalk, trying to calm down.

"Are you alright?" Billy asked, kneeling down next to you.

"Y-yeah," you giggled before you finally stopped laughing, "I just found out that the two men who have been following me around, asking all these questions are two of the guys in my group home! Trust me, I feel a lot better knowing it is you guys and not just two creeps!"

You looked the two up and down, now seeing Billy and Freddy through the two grown men in spandex.

"Can you change back or are you stuck like that?" You asked, crossing your legs and resting your head in your hand.

"Oh, yeah, uh- one second!" Freddy smiled at you.

"Shazam!" They yelled, lightning flashing through the sky and hitting them.

You let out a scream, covering your head. After a few seconds, you slowly lifted your head and saw Billy and Freddy as their normal selves, Freddy using Billy as his crutch.

"Holy shit!" You muttered.

"So, are you gonna come home or not?" Freddy finally asked after a moment of silence.

Did you really want to go back? Most of the problems you had were just explained and the only problems left were not worth leaving over. Victor and Rosa have been welcoming all day, everyone else was just trying to keep their Super secret, Freddy and Billy had come looking for you, which no one has ever done before, and even told you their secret, and... you really didn't want to leave. Not now, not then, and definitely not in any future.

"Yeah..." you said, barely above a whisper. You pushed yourself off the ground, smiling as you stood next to the two boys. "Let's go home."

~~~

Thanks for reading! I really hope you enjoyed and if you did, check out my Fandom Blog where I keep all my other fanfics!