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i-will-physically-fight-you · 4 years

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Monsters in the Closet

Title: Monsters in the Closet

Summary: “You’re so much nicer when you’re bigger.”

Roman knows he can’t change the past. He can’t change the way he treated Virgil horribly, driving him to feel the only way he could be accepted was to be the villain of the story. But he can sit there and feel guilty knowing he is not worthy of any of the trust this young Virgil has placed in him.

(Part of the Tiny Virgil verse, takes place after An Itsy Bitsy Nightmare)

Word-Count: 2.7k

Pairing: Brotherly Prinixety

Warnings: Guilt, Panic/Anxiety, Treating Someone Wrongfully in the Past, Deaging, Hurt/Comfort

This part of a very late birthday present for @theeternalspace! I’m so sorry this took so long, please forgive me and I hope you enjoy! :)

Roman lets out a sigh and opens his eyes. Virgil is still snuggled close to his chest, asleep again after waking up what appeared to be a horrible nightmare. Roman can’t find himself to fall back asleep. His mind refuses to settle, refuses to let go of what Virgil said to him moments ago.

“You’re so much nicer when you’re bigger.”

The words rumble in Roman’s mind like that of a great and fearsome thunderstorm. How could it not? All the more confirmation that regardless of the unfounded trust young Virgil placed in him, he’d still expected to inevitably be treated terribly.

And that? The guilt of that stings deeper than any sting of the blade or a bandersnatch’s ferocious bite.

It also makes him wonder what exactly the Ankle-Terror thought was going on. Kids aren’t stupid. Naïve, yes, but that’s different from being stupid. They’re creative and innovative in ways adults couldn’t dream to be. Plus, they tended to love engaging in-depth conversations about Disney.

Sometimes, Roman misses the days when Thomas was a kid. Back when they were free to run around in the backyard and reimagine the swings as a spaceship or the underneath of the trampoline as the lair of an evil sorcerer. Back when they weren’t bound by inane things such as time constraints and the logistics of translating an idea into a real-world possibility.

He could get Thomas and the others roped in a fantastical make-believe for hours. Weeks even of stretching an incredible imaginary world to its limits. The only things that ever stood in their way was the outside forces of school, parents and bedtime.

Nowadays, the reminiscing with a tinge of regret. There always had to be villains to fight, you see. An evil mad scientist. A corrupt king. A greedy dragon. The list goes on and on. He never ever played the villain. He’d always cast himself and Thomas as the heroes. Logan and Patton were the supporting stars. Virgil and the rest? The villains through and through.

Virgil at this age would be used to this treatment. Rather than in his rightful heroic role as Protector, Defender, Watcher of All Perceived Threats--he played roles such as a wicked sorcerer who cast fear and disgrace upon the entire kingdom with his heinous sorcery.

He took to the roles without much grumbling. Oftentimes, he didn’t perform to young Roman’s expectations. Roman would chastise his performances, critiquing every bit. He wasn’t ever scary or evil enough for a Side responsible for making Thomas scared of monsters under his bed.

Virgil would also veto actions such as climbing super high up a tree and using it as a crow’s nest for a pirate ship. Much to Roman’s dismay, the others would side with him. Logan because Thomas could break a bone if he should fall and Patton because their parents wouldn’t approve. Thus making Virgil a major downer at times in Roman’s eyes and all the more deserving of the villain title.

It wasn’t until Thomas was older, closer to middle school, that Virgil started lashing out. He refused to play along, slinking off to sulk in his room. His influence had also grown and suddenly it wasn’t just monsters under the bed anymore--the monsters were everywhere. Homework, Teachers, Friends, Family. Roman worked overtime to help Thomas escape to worlds unfettered by these fears.

Of course, back then, he presumed this was Virgil fully showing his true colors as an antagonist. Thomas himself believed it, wishing vehemently for Virgil to just disappear. It was Roman’s responsibility, nay his purpose, to make Thomas’s dreams and desires come true. He was the Fairy Godmother to Thomas’s Cinderella. So for years and years he’d pursued this dream, desperate to make Thomas happy, proud even.

Now, he knows better. He knows that Virgil is more than just Anxiety, just like Roman and the others are more than what their title implies. He is vigilant, he keeps Thomas safe from external threats. Sometimes he can be overzealous, but he means well. And shutting him out isn’t the answer. It never was.

With all that in mind, he wonders if the Boy Terror thinks this is one of Roman’s elaborate make-believe games. Roman could easily picture a younger him coming up with a make-believe game involving himself and the others being adults. True, Thomas back then liked envisioning himself as a kid defeating the evil dragon like kids his age did in the media he watched.

But all kids at some point wonder what it’d be like to be an adult. They imagined themselves in the most exciting professions that made a real impact on the world. Then they’d grow up and very few of them made it to such professions.

(Except Thomas of course. Roman is incredibly proud of him and his accomplishments as an Ex-Viner turned Youtuber. Yes, they are still far from achieving feats such as Hollywood or Broadway, but still! For a while Thomas had to settle for a real, sensible job such as a chemical engineer. While science interested him, it didn’t drive him the way that creative pursuits such as singing and acting had. Thomas is lucky to be able to have a platform to do what he loves. Roman tries reminding himself of this during incredibly rare moments of insecurity.)

Kid Fright must be ecstatic about this. For possibly the first time in his life Creativity is including him in a game without making him the villain. Adult Virgil doesn’t talk much about the past--the few times Roman has tried to breach the topic it’d been an instant shutdown.

But Virgil has always cared for them, even before they’d all realized this. He must’ve taken any part Roman gave him out of a desperation to be with them and keep them safe. It sickens Roman just thinking about it. He doesn’t know how Virgil stayed strong for so long. Roman doesn’t know if he could’ve lasted a day in Virgil’s place.

He is probably also terrified and waiting for the other shoe to drop. Regardless of his age, Virgil always expects the worst out of any scenario. Even now that’s been a year since he’s been accepted among the core sides that make up Thomas. He can’t help it, it’s in his nature. Roman can’t blame him for it. One year isn’t enough to undo the damages that the other twenty-nine years caused.

One thing is for certain: if he does think this is one of Roman’s make-believe games, he must think Thomas is still a kid. And Roman’s not sure if he should let Virgil know any different. In fact, it might be best to keep Virgil distracted while the others work to find the solution to this strange vexing problem. Because he knows Virgil won’t take it well to finding his host all grown-up. He thinks that none of them would in his place.

So he’ll keep Fall Out Kid safe away in the mindscape and continue being the Prince he deserved. He’ll allow Virgil to be the hero and he’ll play all the other roles. Sidekick, damsel-in-distress, villain--if he must. It’s silly, but he’s almost buzzing with excitement at all the worlds they could explore from within the common area. Cowboys, Spaceship, Space Cowboys. The possibilities are endless!

A small hand tugs at his sleeve, tugging him away from his thoughts altogether. He looks down at the inquisitive eyes slightly shrouded by a mop of dirty blond hair.

“Yes, little prince?” He says, trying to blink away the prickling sensation in his eyes.

He refuses to cry again in front of the Little Shop of Terror. He knows he will have to confront his bubbling guilt and sorrow at some point, but for now he must push it aside. He is used to this. Being a hero means sometimes remaining strong and not showing vulnerability to loved ones.

“M’hungry.” Virgil murmurs into his chest, little arms wrapped around Roman’s neck. It’s almost endearing with how much he resembles a baby possum clinging to their mother. Roman isn’t used to a Virgil so physically affectionate.

Virgil is like a feral cat. You couldn’t hug or pat him on the shoulder without warning. You had to ask and very rarely did he accept, even if it came from Patton. No, the best way is to let him initiate it. Let him lean his head against your shoulder, or his leg overlapping your own during a movie night.

You also don’t acknowledge it and by not acknowledging it, Virgil then inches his way more until it grows into a proper hug. Then he would withdraw and promptly act like nothing happened. Like you were to forget the interaction ever occured in the first place.

Logan has a theory that it’s because Virgil is the Fight-or-Flight instincts and physical affection lowers his guard in a way he isn’t completely comfortable with. Roman now has a theory that it’s a lot more heartbreaking than that.

“You’re hungry?” Roman asks, attempting to steer his mind out of Despairing Drive and into Present Place.

A small growling noise occurs and Jack Smallington ducks his head down, embarrassed.

Roman isn’t entirely surprised considering that it’s been about eight hours since they discovered approximately five-year-old Virgil in the place of grown-up Virgil. Who knows how long he’d been like that, alone in his room, before that. Virgil also rarely eats so the poor kid probably woke up hungry.

Roman feels so stupid. If it’d been Patton or Logan watching him, the first thing they would’ve made sure is if he was hungry. Because kid or not, it isn’t in Virgil’s nature to be self-advocating. That type of stuff freaks him out. Yet another reason Roman is completely unqualified to watch over Virgil.

“Okay,” Roman breaths in, smiling, “thanks for letting me know, big guy. To the kitchen at once!”

With that, he hoists Virgil up, settling him on top of his shoulders. There’s a squawk of surprise and Roman’s almost worried until it turns into a gleeful giggle. When Roman lets out a neigh, pretending he’s a horse, Virgil’s giggles grow louder.

“You’re not a horse,” Virgil says.

“Neigh I am!” Roman says, “I am your trusty steed and we’re embarking on a perilous-but-completely-safe journey to the kitchen!”

He treks towards the kitchen, clicking his tongue in an imitation of a horse clip-clopping along.

“Faster,” Virgil urges, resting his hands on top of Roman’s head.

“Faster?” Roman asks, almost stopping in surprise.

“Yeah!” Virgil insists, “We gotta get there as fast as possible before any monsters come and eat us!”

“Never fear,” Roman says, “For I shall get us there before any monster even thinks of gobbling us up!”

With that Roman quickens his pace, ensuring he had a firm hold onto Virgil to keep him falling off.

“Faster, faster, faster!” Virgil chants in an anxious yet excited tone, “I think I see one!”

“Oh?” Roman turns his head back, “Oh, I see him too! Neigh, we better hurry!”

There isn’t an actual monster there. No sharp fangs or numerous eyes glaring menacingly in their direction. He can’t tell if Virgil is making up a game or if he actually believes there is one there. Either way, Roman is Creativity. If there’s one thing he knows best, it’s how to combat imaginary foes. Such as reaching the threshold of the kitchen.

With one great bound, he makes it onto the black-and-white checkered tiles.

“Aha! Now no monsters can attack us while we feast in the dwelling of this noble kitchen!” Roman grins, setting Virgil atop the kitchen counter before jumping up to sit beside him.

Virgil beams up at him, face wide with utter delight and awe. Roman is left dumbfounded at this. Even as a kid, Virgil had been very closed-off with his emotions. So shy and distrustful of everyone and everything. But here he looks at Roman like he’s some great hero or something.

‘How,’ Roman wonders, ‘how can you look at me like this when I’m the obstinate villain of this story?’

“Princey,” Virgil swings his legs, “won’t Dad be upset if he finds us sitting on the counter?”

Roman blinks. At first he thinks Virgil is referring to Thomas’s father until he remembers Patton also goes by Dad. For the longest time, Pat had even been insistent that was his name. In the way that young children believe their parents’ real names really are Mom and Dad.

“Well,” Roman says, offering a pinky, “I won’t tell if you won’t.”

“Okay.” Virgil hesitates before interlocking his tiny pinky with Roman’s.

“Excellent! Now what would you like to eat?”

“Ummmm, I--I don’t know.” Virgil bites his lips, eyes flickering around the kitchen. Roman’s heart squeezes at this. He should’ve known such an open-ended question would set his anxiety off. They’ve learned recently that it was better giving Virgil the option of clearly-defined choices rather than vague ones.

“Would you like grilled cheese or spaghetti?” He asks kindly instead.

“Grilled cheese? With applesauce?” Virgil doesn’t meet his gaze, as if afraid Roman will condemn his choices.

Roman smiles, “Your wish is my command.”

He could’ve just snapped the food into existence right then and there. A few years back, it would’ve been enough to suffice. But as much as the Sides influence Thomas, the same holds true the other way around. Thomas once saw a fanart of Patton cooking breakfast for the sides and the idea stuck.

Now Roman could still summon fully prepared meals but they weren’t super filling. Roman didn’t mind too much; contrary to popular belief (Logan) cooking could be a very creative endeavor. As Thomas’s creativity he could make up steps to dishes and still have them turn out perfect in the end. He may or may not enjoy it simply because it frustrated Logan to no end.

He hops off the kitchen counter, snapping a finger. Instantly cabinet doors magically open as the ingredients and the materials he needed floated out onto the countertop beside the stove. Okay, so he cheated a bit, but just because the others lacked a little imagination didn’t mean he couldn’t bend reality in a place where reality is inconsequential.

Roman turns to Virgil, unable to hide his smile at Virgil’s gobsmacked expression.

“Here, you can help put butter on the bread,” He tells Virgil, handing him a butter knife.

Grilled cheese sandwiches are a quick and easy meal. Before too long, Roman hands the kid a plate with a plain grilled cheese cut in halves and a cup of prepackaged apple sauce.

“Thank you,” Virgil squeaks out before digging in.

“Of course.” Roman says, resisting the urge to ruffle the Little Terror’s hair. Instead he takes a bite of his own grilled cheese. Admittedly, he went a bit overboard with his own grilled cheese sandwich; three different types of cheese with lettuce, tomato and pickles. He isn’t quite sure if he’s a fan of the pickles but ah well. So it goes when in the pursuit of creativity.

They eat on top of the kitchen counters with relative silence. Roman hums a bit between bites of grilled cheese. Halfway through, he notices Virgil sending him glances when he thinks Roman isn’t looking. The kid squirms a bit in place, his face twisting in apprehension.

“Is there something troubling you, Little Prince?” Roman asks at last.

“Princey, where are the others? A--are they okay?!”

Oh. Oh, of course. Roman’s heart aches knowing how much Virgil worries and cares for everyone, even at such a young age. He’s so quick to reassure him that he doesn’t even pause to think about the phrasing of his words.

“They’re perfectly fine, rest assured. Logan is shut away in his room reading like the insufferable nerd he is and Patton is simply checking up on our dear Thomas--”

“Thomas?” Virgil breathes in, eyes bright with alarm. His shoulders raise to his ears like hackles raising on a frightened cat.

It is at this moment Roman knew that he messed up.

“Virgil, wait--” Roman pleads, attempting to place a placating hand on his shoulder.

Roman is too late. His hand meets air as Virgil disappears in front of him with a loud crackle. All that’s left is a plate of half-eaten grilled cheese clattering to the countertops and a terror that shakes the entirety of the mindscape.

#sanders sides #roman sanders #virgil sanders #brotherly prinixety #kat writes #*slaps roman* this bad boy can fit so much angst and regret #also this more setting up the next fic in the series than anything else #hope you still enjoy it tho

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angstsfordays · 4 years

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No, Mama!

Summary: Steve Rogers faces the toughest challenge in his century’s worth of life presenting in the form of his 3-year-old son. Inspired loosely from the tiktok video on this post. 🥺💖

Pairing: Dad!Steve Rogers x Mom!Reader Warnings: None. Just FLUFF all around. Word count: 5k-ish Notes: Hi! I’m back with another story now that exams are over and I am on holiday! No angst this time just lots of sweetness. Really hope you like it as it’s just cute domestic fluff with 1 out of 2 favourite century old super soldiers!

Have a look at my masterlist of other stories if you’re interested! 🥰

Leave a like, reblog or comment to let me know what you think! Thank you! :)

———————————————————————

The drive back home from the compound was always welcomed by Steve. Even after his many years of fighting, the world still counted on his help every now and then. As the saying goes, evil never rests.

He was starting to grow wearisome of the fighting but he knew that the world still depended on the Avengers. His innate sense of justice could not allow him the selfishness to abandon his duty. Furthermore, he needed to ensure the world was safe to keep his whole world safe.

Steve Rogers counted himself lucky still. He was able to meet someone who understood his line of work and still wanted to be with him till the end. You were a former SHILED agent and Avenger, now retired to take care of your family. As committed as you were to your career, you knew the moment your son was born, you were willing to give everything up to dedicate your life to him.

You exchanged your stealth suit for mom jeans and baggy shirts. Your combat boots with sneakers. You did not regret your decision.

You figured that you didn’t want your son to grow up with two parents who are often absent and risking their lives in the field. You made the choice to take a step back to raise your son with full time commitment.

Perhaps, you might return back to the field when he grows older. But that’s a thought for many years later. For now, it was a daily routine of diapering, feeding, napping, playing and lots of entertaining a spirited toddler.

You left your son, Hugh James Rogers to entertain himself with his wooden blocks and animal toys while you cleaned up after lunch. You just finished with the last set of dishes before washing your hands clean.

The beeping sound of the Stark Technology home lock alerted your senses of someone entering the front door of your home. Recognising the sound of familiar footsteps, you quickly made your way out of your kitchen to welcome the arrival.

The clank of metal on the floor only served to quicken your steps as you threw yourself onto the big mass in your living room.

“Welcome back, Stevie.” Steve chuckled as he took a step back when your welcome caught him by surprise, his hands went to scoop your legs up and around his waist. You pulled away from the crook of his neck when you previously laid your head and gazed lovingly into your husband’s eyes.

Your fingers went to cradle the sides of his face before your thumbs moved along the bags underneath his eyes. Your brows furrowed at how tired he must have been from the mission. He had been away for almost three months and it was the longest he had been away from you and your son.

“I’m fine, doll.” Steve could sense your worry as you observed him silently for a moment. You knew better than to believe him. “I’m calling Tony.”

“Come on, love. There’s no need for that.”

“Don’t you try and stop me. Why does he get to stay home with Morgan and have you go out on such long missions? He’s not the only one with a family.” A pout formed on your face as your husband tried to coax you into leaving things be.

“Tony promised to give me a break after this. I won’t be on call for missions.” Steve reassured you. You raised an eyebrow with slight doubt but you knew Tony was a man of his word.

Steve’s heart soared at how much you looked after his well-being. He felt like the luckiest guy in the world for having someone to take care of him. With you, he could let his guard down and be vulnerable. People were used to viewing Steve with such awe, expecting him to be all strong and unfaltering.

However, he was only a human. He craved to be comforted when he was feeling his lowest. Steve was glad that he found and met you.

“I missed you so much, Stevie.” Steve was almost not ready for the onslaught of kisses that you started to pepper him on his face and lips to show how much you missed him. He relished in your love and care but it was short lived before you had yourself released from his hold.

Disappointment washing over him, he made to pout and whine until he heard your voice perked up.

“Hugh, Daddy’s home!”

The mention of his son’s name had Steve quickly follow you into the living room. As your son tilted his head in response to the sound of your voice, you crouched down beside him to get his attention.

“Look, Hugh! Where’s Daddy?” Your voice squealed in the baby talk as you gestured for Hugh to look towards Steve. Hugh did not move from his spot as his eyes moved to watch Steve who crouched down on his knees to meet his son’s eye level.

“Hey buddy, it’s me.” Stretching his hands out, Steve gestured for Hugh to come straight into his arms. Steve’s face was filled with anticipation for his son’s welcome. However, as seconds passed, dread started to fill Steve when Hugh still remained seating down.

You caught Steve’s crestfallen expression and decided to intervene.

“It must be the beard, babe. The last time he saw you, you were totally clean shaven.” You tried to explain at your son’s unusual behaviour.

“Should I shave it?” The gears in Steve’s mind started shifting at your words. You chuckled at the panic look that Steve showed.

“No, it’s fine. Besides, I love it.” You responded fondly as you moved to caress his full grown beard. Steve’s eyes twinkled at your remark but he still looked sullen at your son’s lack of interests towards him.

“He will come around, Steve.” Indicating for Hugh to let you carry him, he toddled his way into your arms. Making your way towards Steve who now stood up, you hoped that you can help Steve to reacquaint Hugh soon.

If you were a little heartbroken at your son’s apathetic attitude, you were sure it was a thousand times worse for Steve.

“Should I bring the shield in so that he recognises me?” Oh, Steve.

———————————————————————

It had only been three days since Steve returned home from his last mission. He was still relishing in the comfort of his own home and the company of his family. With your help, Hugh starting to warm up to Steve again.

It involved the shield and a lot of re-enactment of himself as what Hugh watched on TV. Steve even called for Bucky to deliver the suit to your home from the compound so that he could get in costume for Hugh to be familiar with him.

However, his happiness was short lived when a call arrived for you. It was 3am when you got the call from the compound. You were called in for a special mission and honestly, both of you were taken aback since you have not been back in the field since you got pregnant with Hugh.

It was a hostage mission involving the child of a very powerful Italian mafia boss. You were specifically requested as you developed a friendship with said boss after saving his life once from your earlier SHIELD days. He did not want other Avengers involved despite their stronger talents. He only trusted you as a friend to get his only child back.

You agreed on account of your friendship and empathy with his plight as a parent. You were honestly worried about returning to the field after such a long hiatus but Steve had confidence in you. He understood the situation and encouraged you to take on the mission.

Your mission will take 48 hours and you had to leave Hugh for the first time in awhile. Aside from worrying about the mission, you also worried if Steve could handle Hugh on his own. He hardly parented on his own as you were always around.

You looked at your watch and saw that it was 8.30am. You were tasked to leave in half an hour. You had woken earlier at 7am when Hugh climbed into your bed. You decided to quickly freshen up and spend some time during breakfast together before you got ready to leave.

With your bag in hand, you left your room and turned to see your son and husband in the living room. The sound of your boots clicking on the wooden floor attracted the attention of the two men in the room.

“Mama!” Hugh called you as he put down his favourite dinosaur toy to walk over to you. Placing your bag down on the floor, your arms stretched out to scoop your baby boy into your arms. His own chubby finger reached out to play with the lapels of your suited jacket.

Steve looked at you from head to toe, admiring how you looked in a full formal black suit with a white silk blouse and combat boots. You reminded him of the first day he had met you when you were introduced to the team.

“It’s been awhile since I saw you in this getup.” You shifted Hugh’s weight in your arms before you responded.

“I thank god it still fits.”

“You look amazing, darling.” You could feel Steve’s eyes raking up and down when you sat down with him on the couch. He leaned over to give you a quick peck on the lips affectionately.

“Are you sure you will be alright?” Call it a woman’s instinct or more so mother’s instincts, you had a nagging feeling about leaving Steve alone with Hugh. No doubt Steve is a loving father, but in all the time of raising Hugh, his presence was staggered with missions, meetings and conferences.

Furthermore, Hugh was still getting to warm up to Steve after his previous long absence.

“I will be alright, Y/N. You raised Hugh so well, I’m sure he will be a good boy while you are away.” Steve reassured you of your worries as he smoothened Hugh’s messy locks. Hugh was in a long-hair phase now.

“Alright, I should go soon. I still need to head down earlier for the pre-mission briefing.” You said before looking over to Hugh.

“Hugh, Mama is going out for awhile. Be good for Daddy, ok?” Hugh’s interest in your attire was suddenly lost as soon as he heard your words.

“Why, Mama?” Hugh was smart and receptive for his age. He had slowly become attuned to the concept of Steve’s frequent and long absences from a young age. You had made sure to remind Hugh of Steve’s presence through video and phone calls nevertheless.

It was one of the ways to make sure Hugh bonded with his father. Sometimes, you were afraid Hugh’s bond with Steve would falter and you knew Steve shared the same worry so you did your best to be the bridge between father and son.

Luckily, you knew Hugh was incredibly fond of his father still as he always needed to have his Captain America plush to sleep.

“Hmm, Mama’s friend needs my help and as soon I am done, I will be back.” You thoughtfully came up with an answer that was easy enough for Hugh to understand.

“Like Dada?” Hugh made a thoughtful expression when he heard your answer.

“Yeah.” You nodded enthusiastically, thinking that Hugh will be understanding as how he would when Steve leaves for missions.

“NOOO! Dada go away long. Mama go away long.” Taken aback by Hugh’s sudden outburst, you looked up to meet Steve’s panicked expression.

“Oh Hugh, it won’t be long. Only two moons and I will be back, baby.” Calming your son down by bouncing him in your arms and patting down back, you hoped Hugh will ease on his crying.

“No, Mama!” Hugh immediately stood on the couch to wrap his whole body around your torso. His crying grew louder by the second. You and Steve were at a loss. Hugh rarely had such emotional outbursts. He had always been an easy-going child with a calm temperament.

“Hugh, Mama will be back really quick. Daddy will be here with you to wait for Mama.” Steve tried chiming in to calm your son down. Hugh seemed to start easing up on his cries and you handed him over to Steve.

“Baby, I promise I will be back real soon! You are a brave boy. Aren’t you, Hugh?” You tried to engage Hugh with encouraging words.

“Yes.” At the mention of the word ‘brave’, Hugh lifted his head off your shoulders to look at you.

“Hugh James Rogers is the best boy I know because he is really brave.” Taking advantage of the moment, you continued to give motivating words to Hugh so that he would feel better.

“Hugh is brave.” Your son responded adorably and you heart clenched at how cute he was. It was also because you almost regretted the decision to take on this mission.

“Yes. Hugh is brave.” You emphasized his words once more before starting to pick up your bag and making your way to the door. Steve followed closely behind you with Hugh in his arms, his nose still sniffling from his previous crying.

“Take care, babe.” Turning to Steve, your hands reached out to bring his face closer and you give him a quick peck.

“I could say the same for you.” You eyed him before continuing. “I can’t be contacted at all for the next 48 hours. I already wrote down what to do for Hugh. His routine and such. I left it on the fridge-”

“I know, I know.” Steve returned with an expression that said he got this.

“You can do it, Daddy.” You stroke your thumb affectionately across Steve’s face. “Bye Hugh.” You made a kissy face, hinting for Hugh to lean down and give you a kiss.

“Bye, Stevie.” Steve leaned down similarly to kiss you once more and a bit longer than the previous ones. As he pulled back, he leaned in to kiss Hugh for another round of affection.

“Bye, boys.” You gave one more goodbye before walking over to the car. As you sat in the seat, you looked out the window to see your boys waving you goodbye.

Let’s do this, Y/N Y/L/N.

———————————————————————

Once you drove out of sight, Steve finally turned back to enter his home. Looking at his son with snot dripping from his nose, Steve went to clean it up. His eyes drifted to the clock hanging on the wall. 9.03 am.

Steve went back to his son whose sitting on the kitchen counter staring back with his wide eyes.

“Hey buddy, what do you think about reading some books?”

“No, Mama.” Steve was surprised at the immediate rejection. He did not expect Hugh to be putting up resistance once you had left.

Steve pondered for a minute on how to respond.

“Hugh buddy, should we play?”

“No, Mama.” The feeling of dejection washed over Steve once more at Hugh’s response to his proposal. How did you do it?

Steve went ahead to carry Hugh off the counter and bring him to his play area into the living room. Setting Hugh down on the baby-proofed flooring, Steve waited to watch what Hugh wanted to do.

Hugh looked back at Steve for a moment before standing up to walk over to the TV. Hugh’s head moved left and right as if he was looking for something. His small hands then skillfully reached to open the drawer and take out the remote.

“Boss-boss.” Hugh repeated. Steve had no clue what he was trying to say.

“What is it, bud?”

“Boss. Baby.” Like the over century old man he was, Steve had no clue what his Son was saying.

Hugh started stomping his feet and repeated the two words. Steve scrunched up his face in confusion at his actions.

“Boss. Baby. TV.” Hugh reiterated like a mini adult. Steve went to switch on the TV and the channel came on. Hugh’s finger went on to press the only white button on the remote, switching the channel to Netflix.

Steve’s eyes widened in amazement at what his son was doing. Hugh went on to click to the profile picture he recognised to be his. You had let him choose it himself.

Steve’s attention went back to the screen and the first thing he saw made him dawn in realization at what his son was trying to tell him along.

“You are indeed the boss baby, Hugh.” Steve spoke as he looked between the character on screen and his son. Steve inwardly chuckled at the slight resemblance. Hugh looked back at his father for a moment before passing the remote back to him.

Letting out the deep sigh, Steve thought that he was in for a long day.

Following an hour and a half of Boss Baby, Steve figured that it was too much television. He wanted his son to play like a normal child back in his days with toys. Steve’s decision was met with opposition as Hugh started throwing a tantrum.

Steve didn’t mean to make him upset but he was firm in his decision. He ended up cajoling Hugh for a good thirty minutes before convincing him to play with his toys.

Steve let out a deep exhale as he made his way to make lunch. He lifted the magnet that held the note you left for him. It explained Hugh’s routine and preferences.

Looking over at Hugh playing in the living room, Steve hoped that he could get lunch right for his son. He already felt defeated barely two hours into your departure. How did you do this for three years of Hugh’s life everyday?

Steve shook his head at his inadequacy as a father and hoped he could make it up to Hugh.

Lunch passed by with no issues, Steve thanked the heavens that he recalled Hugh loves cheese and made a grilled cheese sandwich. Nothing could beat the satisfaction that was brought from Hugh’s enjoyment of his lunch.

“How is it, buddy?” Steve’s question was met with silence but Hugh continued to take bites out of his sandwich. Steve grinned at this sight and considered this a small win.

Little did he know, this was his only win for the day. Nap time took awhile as Steve tried to pat a restless Hugh to sleep. After nap time, Steve had to wake up a grumpy Hugh from his nap and changed his diaper. If looks could kill, Hugh’s sent Steve into a deep hole for waking him up.

Steve tried to please him with milk and cookies. Afterwards, it was playtime before dinner. Dinner became a struggle when Hugh refused to have the porridge that Steve made. Hugh ended up having the leftover soup you had made and then kept in the fridge a day before.

Bath time was a nightmare as Hugh immediately started running off once he heard the word ‘shower’ came out of Steve’s mouth. While Steve was definitely quick to catch his son, Hugh ended up resisting his hold.

Hugh started splashing water from the tub that Steve had prepared which caused Steve to get wet and eventually joining his son.

Surprisingly, Hugh warmed up back to Steve and they had a great time pretend playing during bath time. However, this happiness was short lived once again when Steve announced that bath time was over.

It was another round of struggle for Steve to dry Hugh and dress him. The super soldier’s son ran out of the bath room and around the house stark naked. Steve had to chase him without his clothes as well. It was another twenty-minute chase and round of persuasion before Hugh allowed himself to be dressed.

It was already 10.30 pm and Steve decided it was bed time. Steve carried Hugh to his own bed and prepared to pat him to sleep. With his Captain America plushie in tow, he laid down for a peaceful moment.

Fighting aliens and bad guys could not tire him out as much as today. Steve patted Hugh’s side rhythmically and slowly, hoping for Hugh to fall into a trance. When Hugh started to blink, Steve assumed he was going to sleep soon.

Steve made the move to shift himself off Hugh’s bed but was met with a whine.

“No, Mama.”

“Come on, bud. You have to sleep.”

“No, Mama.” Hugh quickly sat up from his once sleeping position and made grabby hands at Steve. “Mama’s not here-”

Steve caved when he saw the puppy eyes and carried Hugh to his shared room with you. Placing the long bolster on one end of the bed, Steve placed Hugh between himself and the bolster to prevent him from falling off the bed in the middle of the night.

“I want Mama.”

“Me too, buddy. Hey, I know. I have drawings of Mama somewhere-” Steve got off the bed to search for something in his drawers and made a ‘o’ face towards Hugh as he held up several sketchbooks.

“Look what I have here, Hugh.” Steve exclaimed animatedly as he walked over back to his Steve who now sat against several pillows. Steve settled beside his son and began flipping the pages.

“Mama is here!” Hugh quipped excitedly when he spotted a sketch of you. You were leaning your chin on one of your palms, elbow on a table as you watched a video on your phone. You were in between a grin and chuckle as Steve recalled you watching a funny animal video.

It was a significant sketch because while you were doing nothing special and it was just an ordinary day where both of you had the day off, it was in that moment Steve knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you like this.

A simple and happy life with someone he loved and cherished.

Hugh went on to flip more pages and amazed Steve with how quick he was to recognise details in what he drew. You really did a great job raising Hugh. Steve only wished he had done more.

In fact, through today, he realised how he fell short on being a parent as he struggled with managing Hugh. This dawning realization had fell on him like a bomb and he didn’t even have a shield to protect himself.

“Mama again!” Hugh’s call snapped Steve out of his thoughts and his attention went to the random photo of the two of you. You had a love for taking and collecting photos. While photos can be forever kept in phones, there was always something special about one that was printed.

The photo in Hugh’s tiny hands was from your honeymoon. The two of you went to Japan and you were keen to see the cherry blossoms. You had one of the locals take a photo of you and Steve under a blooming cherry blossom tree.

“That’s right, bud. And there’s Daddy!” Steve pointed to himself who wrapped his arms around you close from behind.

The two of you were at peace for once. Away from saving the world, away from the perils of Avenging. It was just the two of you in the comforts of each other.

“Mama!” Steve scoffed jokingly at Hugh’s insistence. That’s why they say boys are always close with their mothers.

“Is Mama pretty?” Hugh turned to look at Steve and nodded fervently. Steve smiled at his son’s adorable act and decided to try his luck.

“Is Daddy pretty?”

“No, Mama!” Hugh huffed in response and even gave Steve a side eye. Oh well, he tried, Steve thought.

———————————————————————

The next 24 hours felt long but Steve got used to the routine. A text came after dinner time and Steve started to cheer inwardly when it came from you.

Your mission was successful but you needed to clear up some back-end work. Your mafia friend also insisted to thank you properly for your help and invited you to stay for a meal.

You initially refused as you wanted to quickly return home. However, you caved in at his persistence to persuade you. You will be back tomorrow before lunch. Steve wanted to share with Hugh the news but held back, once he figured that it might excite Hugh so much that it will disrupt his routine.

He figured he could tell Hugh the next morning closer to your time of return.

Steve ordered for flowers and your favourite takeaway to be sent as he thought of preparing an event for your return. He wanted to celebrate the success of your mission and showed his appreciation of you too.

As it got closer to noon, Steve had set up the living room with streamers and balloons. It was a little over the top but who cared? This was for you, his wife.

As soon as he heard the beeping of the door lock, he knew you had come back home. Steve heard you calling out for him and Hugh. Steve told Hugh to keep quiet and was pleased that his son was actually co-operative.

“Oh, what’s this?” Your voice drew closer as your steps drew closer to the living room, Steve pull the string of the party popper. Confetti in the air, Hugh blew into the party horn.

“Welcome back, Mama!” Steve exclaimed and your reaction was enough to call this event a success. Your jaw dropped at what your husband did and no words could describe how you felt. Multiple emotions came rushing in: surprise, joy, amazement, heartful gratitude.

“What’s this?” You asked once more. You took another gasp when Steve passed Hugh a bouquet of your favourite flowers. Your son took confident steps and presented them to you. You were floored.

“Oh my goodness. You guys-”

“Congrats on a successful first mission back after a break. We’re so proud of you, sweetheart.” Steve came up to embrace you and you were still reeling in from the surprise event he had done.

“Thank you. I’m so touched-” Steve’s lips came to meet yours before you could even finished. What a welcome home indeed. Your bliss was momentarily interrupted when you felt something or someone trying to claw your legs for attention.

You immediately crouched down and put your bouquet aside, leaving your arms open to scoop Hugh into your arms.

“Thank you, Hugh. I miss you so much, baby!” You started peppering kisses over your son to which he responded in squeals and giggles.

“Did you and daddy do all of this?” You asked animatedly.

“Yes, Hugh helped!” Hugh nodded while indicating to himself and you responded with a few more big kisses on his cheek. “Hugh is such a good boy!”

The three of you retreated to the couch where you continued to admire the setup of the living room. Hugh sat between you and Steve as he played with the party horn still. Steve was just quietly appreciating your presence back at home.

You started sharing about the mission while he listened to you intently. You asked Steve about his two days with Hugh and he let out a grunt. Chuckling at his exasperated expression, you knew it must not have been easy.

“The next time someone calls me a hero, I will say they’re wrong. You’re the real hero, Y/N. All mothers are.” An appreciative smile formed on your face at your husband’s words.

“Hugh said he had fun with me.” Steve excitedly told you of his accomplishment. Yesterday during playtime, Steve casually asked Hugh the question. Steve didn’t expect much, knowing that Hugh was still warming up to him.

“Hugh, are you having fun with Dada?” Hugh didn’t give a verbal answer but he nodded in response to Steve’s question. His response got Steve excited and Steve asked once more.

“You like spending time with me, buddy?” Hugh nodded once more and Steve knew that all his struggles were not in vain.

“Oh wow, that’s amazing Steve! You did such a good job.” Steve cooed under your praise as you caress the side of his face and leaned in for another soft kiss.

“Hugh, you had a good time with Daddy?” Hugh nodded wordlessly to your query as he fiddled with the confetti remains stuck on the couch. Steve and you looked at each other with wide satisfied smiles.

“Do you love Daddy?” You asked once more to which Hugh nodded once more. Steve let out a silent ‘YES’ as he held his hands up in victory.

“How much do you love Daddy?” You asked your son once more and Hugh paused his actions for a moment to think. He turned to you and Steve, the two of you waiting curiously for his answer.

“This much!” Hugh extended his arms out wide and horizontally.

You burst out in laughter as Steve clasped his hands together in gratitude towards Hugh’s answer. You could tell he was basking in joy.

“I love you this much too, buddy!” Steve returned with his own exaggerated gesture and Hugh laughed at his father’s silly antics.

“Mama.” Hugh made his way over to your lap and started to tell you how he missed you and if you missed him. Of course, you missed him so much. You made sure you did a good job so you can return to him safe and quick.

You and Hugh started to be in your own loving world as you exchanged sweet words, tender hugs and kisses.Steve, on the other hand, felt that his moment of bliss was short lived as he looked on at the both of you.

“Hey buddy, I want hugs and kisses too.”

“No, I want Mama!” You cooed at your son’s insistent preference for you, even if you feel bad for Steve.

“Hugh, you must thank Daddy for taking care of you. He loves you very much too, you know.” You tried to bring Hugh’s attention back to Steve.

“Thank you, Dada!”

“Nothing can beat a mother’s love.” Steve chimed as he looked at how Hugh was trying to hold your attention fervently. That’s it. He was going to make the call.

“Where are you going?” You asked Steve as he stood up from the couch.

“I’m going to call Tony. I’m taking a sabbatical. I want to spend more time with Hugh from now on.” You beamed at Steve’s words. He was making such a big decision.

“Once I get it approved, I won’t rest until I have what you have with Hugh too.” Steve proclaimed with determination before turning to Hugh.

“Hey Hugh, you and I are going to spend lots of time from now on. Are you excited, bud?” Hugh took a moment to ponder thoughtfully before smiling wide at Steve.

“No, Mama!”

“Oh come on!” Steve let out a grunt before marching out to get his phone asap.

You turned back to Hugh who had a cheeky grin and you jokingly chided him. “Stop teasing your dad, Hugh James Rogers.”

Hugh looked at you with a sparkle of mischief in his eyes and giggled.

“Silly dada!”

———————————————————————

#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x y/n #dad!steve rogers #angstsfordays #marvel fanfiction #marvel fanfic #dad!steve rogers x mom!reader

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hellodahliah · 3 years

Note

8,28,47 for Delphi (I know you posted some of her backstory, but I’m curious to know more)

@1o8percent i’m so happy you’re interested in delphi and her story. this was so fun for me to write and it also made me so excited to share more about her and her life. thank you for the ask, dear 🥺❤️

8. What is their back story?

so delphi is the oldest sibling of two and her family is a mix between normal people and spellcasters. her mother, sybil, came from a very noble spellcaster family. sybil’s parents did not approve of her marriage to her father, jacob. he was not from a wealthy family, and he was not either a spellcaster. they were afraid of what he would do, if he found out about them and their abilities.

for a long time sybil and her family had to hide their abilities and true selves from the world in fear of being hunted down by paranormal hunters. spellcasters, vampires and other occults had struggled with oppression and hunters for a very long time, luckily people aren't that judgmental and afraid of occults anymore that they would want to hunt them down. however, paranormal hunters still exist, and there's always a reason to be careful.

the name spellcaster has with time become more and more used instead of witch. it sounds less wicked and scary.

so jacob had to work hard to gain sybil’s parents approval and trust. still when they figured out he was not a bad person they would remain wary around him, refusing to give their blessing for him to marry her. until one accident where he finally learnt the true nature of her family. it all happened during a fishing trip to granite falls, where they had rented a boat together and jacob, had caught a big fish that was strong enough that made them both fall out the boat. in panic and because of her instincts, sybil used her abilities to stop their fall mid air. the next moment their boat is ashore filled with fish. and jacob is sitting there looking at her with a surprised expression. she tries to erase his memories of everything. but he wouldn't let her, he tells her he wouldn't care less if she is a spellcaster or not.

so with a long meeting between her parents, sybil and jacob are finally given their blessings to marry.

so a little more than a year later delphi is born. sybil gave her the name delphine because she thought she sounded like a dolphin when she cried and her parents' honeymoon was spent in sulani where they swam together with the dolphins.

four years later her brother gideon was born. delphi and gideon couldn't be more different from each other. delphi was more quiet and kept to herself, while gideon loved to spend time with friends and bike around the neighborhood and he always found himself in trouble. but he was not a mean person or a troublemaker, just very active and adventurous. gideon was very interested in magic and he really wanted to become a wizard when he grew old. delphi again was terrified of magic, mostly because she struggled with controlling her powers resulting in scary incidents for her. she made her own bike fly at one time when she was about to fall of from it it. delphi was interested in art, animals and fashion. her dream was to become a fashion designer.

gideon and delphi got along well, and would do things together. she didn't have many friends, because she was more quiet and reserved so he would sometimes invite her to hang out with him or his friends. and they would also do stuff together like going to cinemas etc. but when her powers grew stronger and his never developed he grew more insecure and bitter around her. he spent less time with her and started to shut her out from his life. this caused a rift in their relationship that sadly still has to be fixed.

delphi spent more time at the magic realm with her mom, and she learnt how to control her powers. spending time at the magic realm made her realize that magic is not that scary after all ( if you can control it ). she started to become more interested in fortunetelling and what kind of things was found in the shop in caster's alley. she started to collect tarot cards.

delphi became more and more invested in the skill of fortunetelling, and she would sometimes fortune tell her classmates. or more likely it went like this: they found her sitting around, practicing with her tarot decks, which they found to be super cool, so they bombarded her with questions and then asked her to fortune tell them.

delphi met her husband in high school. he had a lot of friends, and was always surrounded by people. they met each other in art class, he found her style super unique. ( she kind of had her abstract painting period back then ) he had decided ( *cough* felt pressured to *cough* ) pick up art. his parents were art critics and their world revolved around art. he liked art, but he was more interested in tattoos and street art ( which his parents thought was trashy ). but he was even more interested in nature and biology. he loved insects. so that was what delphi and him bonded over. delphi loved butterflies, and he liked all sorts of insects. they spent more time with each other, they became friends and then feelings turned into something more. however none of them dared to confess to the other.

they ended up at different universities, he went to foxbury to study biology and physics as a minor subject while delphi studied art history and business in britechester.as time spent they started to drift apart, finding new friends at university etc. they were both living their lives, doing their own things.

delphi ended up in a not so healthy relationship, which ended horribly. afterwards she struggled a bit with her mental health and she started to listen more to her gut feelings about people. she starts to over analyze everything and everyone and becomes more paranoid.

her husband noticed a difference in her personality, and confronted her about it. he was worried. that’s where he confesses he really loved her and that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her. they doesn’t start to date yet, because it is too soon after the break up... both of them are straight out of broken relationships. they spends a lot more time with each other. and he eventually moves in with her more like him spending so much time at her place that all his things eventually end up there.

they ended up marrying each other and they had two children cosima and roy. these two also have a four year gap between them. delphi worries her children will face similar problems her and gideon had. so she makes sure they get along well with each other. she plans a lot of family activities. sundays are usual called family day, meant to spend with family alone.

delphi starts to think more and more about opening a mystic shop. it is dangerous and risky because she risks outing herself as a spellcaster if she isn’t being careful. however, more and more people are becoming accepting around the occult and finds it super cool instead.

occult sims don’t have that many places/shops that sell things they need to survive like plasma fruits, plasma packs, antidotes towards wolfsbane etc.

when her husband died delphi struggled a lot. her family had a rough year. dealing with the loss of a parent for her children and a loss of a husband. her husband was a very strong and brave person, he was in fact the family's pillar of strength and her biggest cheerleader. he helped her with her business he even supported her when she opened up about wanting to make business with her tarot.

her business life hasn’t been doing that well. she had to close her shop in willow creek due to the hectic year and instead she is welcoming customers to her home. however, when the time is right she’ll consider re-opening the shop again.

28. How do they get out of a difficult situation?

this depends on the situation. she kind of has a tendency to freeze and shut down during stressful situations. her husband was the one who usually leapt in and kept his head cold. now with him gone she has to navigate through the situations herself.

normally delphi always put the needs of her children above her own, so they wouldn't suffer the consequences of the difficult situation. she would ask herself what her husband or someone she knows would do in her place. then her mind usually starts to roll and then she comes to the solution...

47. are they quick to judge?

she isn't judgmental, but she can easily pick up on other people's auras and vibes if they are good people or not or if they are out to get something from her.

#my oc #this was actually super fun to write #answer. 💀💌

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mrslittletall · 4 years

Note

If you accept vague asks for the whump thing, because I don't want to limit you to a character you might find boring, either 6 or 17 for Hollow Knight?

Title: Reflection Fandom: Hollow Knight Characters: Quirrel, Little Ghost Word Count: 1.431 AO3-Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30279333

Summary: Quirrel reflects on his life during his last moments.

(Author's note:

6: Fever 17: Drowning/Hypothermia

Anon! How can you give me Drowning for Hollow Knight and expect me to NOT make it about Quirrel?! Or were you betting on it?

I chose one of the two this time, because the two prompts didn't feel like they could be mashed together very well. Warnings: Suicide and Major Character Death. And drowning, obviously.)

Quirrel had sat and looked at the lake for some time when the little white wanderer appeared. He had encountered them various time in Hallownest, even aided them in their quest which led to him recovering part of his lost memories, and never had they said a single word to him and their face had stayed a stiff mask.

Still, Quirrel couldn't help but feel comfortable in their presence. He assumed for them to maybe stop shortly and listen to him, before moving on, but they did something different.

They approached him, stopped, looked up at him and then sat down next to him, their gaze facing the same direction as his, towards the Blue Lake.

Quirrel didn't look at them and instead, started to speak.

“Again we meet my short friend. Here at last, I feel at peace.”

He made a short pause, thinking about his next words before continuing. After all that had happened, his words didn't seem to come too easily to him anymore. Even his voice felt strained... aged even. All the years that got lost might have caught up to him.

“Twice I've seen this world and though my service may have stripped the first experience from me, I'm thankful I could witness its beauty again.”

It must have been beautiful the first time, and even though large parts of the kingdom laid in ruins during his second time, it was still beautiful. Though, there was one thing that was even more interesting than Hallownest.

“Hallownest is a vast and wondrous thing, but in as many wonders as it holds, I've seen none quite so intriguing as you.”

As usual, the little white wanderer didn't say a word. A little chuckle escaped Quirrel and he spoke further.

“Ha. My flattery returns only silent stoicism. I like that. I like that very much.”

The both of them stayed there, staring at the lake a while longer. Eventually, the little wanderer stood up and continued walking, not looking back at him or saying a single word. It had always been like that with them. It was just they way they acted. Them sitting with him showed him more than enough that they cared. If they hadn't cared, they would have just ignored him. They would have run past him every single time he encountered them, but they always, always had stopped and listened to him.

Quirrel waited until they were out of sight and he couldn't hear their footsteps anymore. Once their footsteps ceased, he rose and picked up his nail.

“I can barely remember having trained in the art of the nail, but I never forgot how to fight.”, he murmured to himself, rolling the nail around in his hands. It had aided him during his journey through Hallownest as well as helped to reach the teacher, Monomon, who he had always called Madam.

For some reason, she seemed to have been always displeased with it, but Quirrel couldn't recall anymore why. His memory was still hazy. The results of the fog of the wastelands, that wiped his memory clean. He could consider himself lucky that he remembered his connection to Monomon.

“I won't need to fight anymore...”, Quirrel murmured further and stuck his nail into the ground, the way the hilt faced, it looked a little like a cross. Then, he looked back at the direction the little wanderer had run off too.

“My friend, please don't cry for me.”, he said, a sad smile ghosting his face. “For I have lived twice the amount of time any bug should have ever lived and I am ready to move on.”

Quirrel stayed on the edge of the lake for a few seconds longer before turning around and walking into the water. It was shallow at first, but soon it would engulf him fully. He was fully aware that his species didn't possess the art of swimming.

Quirrel continued walking until his feet lost the ground under him and he could feel how his body started to sink. While he was content about his own death, with his mind at peace, his body still possessed some instinct. He could feel his arms and legs trash as the water filled his lungs and his strong desire to take a gulp of air, which never happened, because he knew that only water would await him.

His trashing was only from a short duration however, as he felt himself get dizzy and slowly sinking down to the ground, waiting for his awareness to end.

It was then when he saw something flash in front of his inner eye.

Himself, as a little grub, lost, alone, hungry, cold, his parents were nowhere to be seen, only a blanket in his little arms, crying in his desperation, for his parents, for anyone, to find him...

And the form of Monomon in front of him, floating through the fog, a tentacle touching her mask in shock when she saw him, picking him up, talking to him, bringing him to the archives, where she gave him food and warmth and comfort.

That has been how they had first met. How cruel of his memory to make him remember right when he was in the process of ending his own life. Still, Quirrel couldn't help but feel a deep fondness at this memory.

He still hadn't reached the ground and the more he sank down, the more memories surfaced.

Monomon teaching him how to write and read.

Monomon comforting him after he had a nightmare.

Him asking if he could work as her assistant, at the mere age of six. Monomon had agreed and gave him simple tasks, to make him feel special.

Him checking on Monomon after she had pulled an all-nighter. The both of them sharing breakfast together.

Monomon finding the cheesy romance novels he had bought from his salary and teasing him to no end about them. Still, sometimes he found the newest book of his favourite author gently laid upon his pillow.

A time in which he had been obsessed with the tale of the Grimm troupe and styled his mask and even the scarf he wore around his head in their image. Monomon loved to tell this story to complete strangers. How often had he stood there and begged her to stop. Not that it ever worked...

Him waking up with a blanket draped over him when he had fallen asleep over his work.

Monomon always having a pot of coffee ready for both of them when both of them had worked the whole night.

Her giving him the additional seal of protection, her mask, and sending him away once she would lay down to sleep for eternity. Quirrel had accepted, of course, without hesitation, he would do everything for the one who had saved him from starvation when he had been a grub.

“I will fulfil your order as long as I breathe, Ma'am.”, he had said, and Monomon had looked at him and said: “I know you will.”, but at the same time, she had looked so sad.

Finally having reached the ground, Quirrel barely had any awareness left in him anymore, but one last thing went to his mind.

She has always treated me like her son.

For her, he had been more than her assistant, for her, Quirrel had been her precious and beloved son. It didn't matter for her that they didn't share any blood connection, he had become her son once she had picked him up in the canyon.

I never once have called her mom...

How ironic it felt, this thought, right when he was about to snuff out the last flames of his life, after Monomon had already died, after he didn't have a chance to talk to her anymore.

This thought was his one and only regret as his awareness faded and his body stopped moving, laying still on the ground of the Blue Lake.

He entered the archives, passing all the acid tablets and ignoring the Uoma's that Monomon would let hang around there. He had gone this way so many times and he didn't even have to think where to go. He entered Monomon's workshop and there she was, interrupting what she was doing, turning around, a tentacle going to her mask and her body shaking as she chuckled.

“Welcome home, Quirrel.”, she said.

Quirrel came closer until he stood in front of Monomon. “I am back Ma...”, he interrupted himself and then corrected his sentence: “I'm back, mom.” (Author's note: Absolutely love the headcanon that Monomon adopted Quirrel. Also I am a big fan of characters meeting in the afterlife after death and just... vibing with what they always wanted, maybe moving on together. It's pretty obvious, but I am absolutely convinced that Quirrel died at the Blue Lake. I am super fine with everyone lives AUs, but in canon I think Quirrel drowned himself in the lake, because he had grown old and weary and was ready to end his own life, because he felt there wasn't any reason for him to be around anymore. That is why he is so content with his own death here. Obviously, I would have loved for Quirrel to stay alive and find so much more wonders in the world, but he felt like he hadn't any regrets. The one I added, well, that was my headcanon. I know this is a heavy topic and please don't feel bad if you have trouble handling it or couldn't handle it and please, when you yourself think that you might be better off dead, get some help. I promise, there is so much in this world that it's worth to live for. As always, comments are greatly appreciated.)

#fanfiction #hollow knight #quirrel #little ghost #suicide cw #major character death cw #drowning cw #ask answered #thx for the ask #march of the whumps #request fill #Anonymous #littlewritesstuff

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zarathelonewolf · 3 years

Text

Currently writing the first two chapters of my KNY AU... They're about the main OC, Masako, and how she exactly became a Demon Slayer. I'm gonna spoil you something: it wasn't really easy for her, since she was her father's only daughter, and he became more protective of her when he came back from a mission so gravely injured that he had to retire and become a cultivator: she had always trained with him before that moment and listened to his stories, and although he already knew the dangers of the profession his daughter wanted to choose... the dangers of the path he had chosen and that she wanted to follow... he had let her passion for training fester. That was because she was already showing some form of propensione for the Stone Breathing, which her father was expert of.

However, after his injury, even if he did let her train on her own as he occupied himself by training other apprentices as cultivator, he forbid Masako from ever becoming Demon Slayer: she could still train for leasure, or as a hobby, but now that Ryu (her father) had lost both his friends, an arm and a leg in his last mission, he really didn't want her to end up the same way he had.

Just like Hinata, one of Ryu's trainees, had told Masako one night before going to bed, when she asked him why Ryu didn't want to send her to a possible death but was OK doing so for other young promises... Ryu's only crime was loving her too much, and worrying like every parent would have in his shoes.

She rebels, one night, by taking his father's kusarigama while he sleeps and letting her frustrations go in the forest, using the weapon to create a whole opening among the trees. She knew the first forms of Stone Breathing by self-taching and observation of her father, so the devastation was pretty heavy. She was seen by Kaito, the apprentice Ryu was training at the time, and then scolded by her father and never allowed to train anymore... Not even in her free time, or with a staff, like she had done until her rebellion. He did so because he realized that, to keep her truly away from the world of Demon Slayers, he had to use a firmer hand. He ignored her when she started to try and make amends in the days afterwards, and the Masako Ryu had known until then started to fade: she treated him with immense but cold respect, tried busying herself by doing more "feminine" activities and spending more time with her mother instead of her father, didn't ask him for stories or stare at his training with apprentices anymore... she interacted much, much less.

Ryu realized that he had done something wrong: he had lit a fire in his daughter ever since she'd been eight by letting her train with him, and now that he had lost so much and retired and that she had grown up to fourteen years, in his attempts to shield her, he had severed a strong bond and turned her world upside down. He remembers her last words after the forest incident: she had said, utterly devastated, that the embers in her heart would never truly be set ablaze and that they would have never burned anything worthwhile... That all her efforts in the end were for nothing, and that she would have changed nothing through them.

Ryu, at some point, grows tired of the atmosphere and follows Kaito's suggestion: he writes to his old Sensei, his cultivator, Fukunaga. Since Fukunaga's style isn't to text back, he pops out in front of Ryu's house with his eagle to pay him a visit.

Fukunaga listens carefully to his former apprentice, then asks him to see his daughter and allow her to show him what she was truly capable of.

After examining Masako's performance, Fukunaga has a loooong talk with her father. Since he was affectionate towards his students, former and present, but didn't let it cloud his judgment, he concludes that it would be infinitely better for Masako to become a Demon Slayer instead of letting her fade away, and that if Ryu would keep being immovable, Fukunaga would have trained her himself, to ensure the hardships of her life as a Demon Slayer would be lightened by solid experience, training, and validation. He also observed that it would be wiser for him to contact "an old friend of his" to teach her the basics of Wind Breathing: she wasn't totally compatible with Stone Breathing, and the imput of Wind Breathing could allow her to develop a Form that would be perfectly fit for her: it wasn't the first time Fukunaga attempted joint training with another cultivator in tow.

He gives Ryu a week to decide, and then he leaves, after sparing an encouraging look to both father and daughter.

I bet you already know where this is going: Ryu allowed her to follow Fukunaga, and she swore to him that she would have come back after her eventual Selection, and every mission, to reassure him that she was alright.

During her training, which goes on until she's 16, she fuses Stone and Wind Breathing creating Diamond breathing: it uses two swords, one bigger than the other; the bigger one is used to charge the enemy, as shield even, and for the heavier strikes. The lighter one is used for feints, and strikes that require speed and precision. Trust me: it was incredibly wonky when she first developed it, and Fukunaga and Igarashi (her cultivators) had discouraged her idea in the beginning, but as unstable as her first version of the style was, she survived the selection...splendidly,might I add, even getting herself a friend.

She becomes Pillar when she's 18,almost 19,after destroying a draconic demon on her own: a Lower Moon that swam noisily and messily in a river, making it flood often and becoming the doom of the nearby villages. She gained three ugly scars on the left side of her face, maiming her left cheek and her chin,and one on her back, but her smile stayed just as fierce and her eyes never wavered, even if one of them was milky and her smile looked scary as hell because of the wound; she was lucky she didn't loose mobility of that side at all. Her Hashira alias is Diamond Pillar, from her now almost perfected Breathing Style. She makes best friends with the old Stone Hashira and the Shadow Hashira. Shadow Breathing, for those curious, derives from Wind and Water Breathing: his main holder bonds with Masako because their styles both developed by fusing two already known techniques, and the Stone Hashira respects her efforts. Shadow breathing will become lost in the Canon era because of his holder's misterious death; don't worry, he isn't the one that has the demon friend. He dies while on spy duty: he had infiltrated Douma's Cult, and Masako is sent there with his tsuguko as replacement of the Shadow Pillar... The same mission in which her tsuguko will lose his humanity, and immediately rebel Douma's influence out of pure spite and conviction, saving some prisoners and his teacher in the process.

Masako sees the Stone Hashira retire and leave the spot to Gyomei Himejima (19 years old) when she is 23,and gets her own tsuguko when she is 26: her tsuguko, Kai, is extremely bubbly and optimist to a fault, and she has become more serious with age, but they get along nevertheless.

She is 29 and he is 17 when they investigate the Shadow Hashira's disappearance in Douma's cult and Kai becomes a Demon.

When they are far away from Douma's clutches and sure that he isn't interested in the pursue anymore, Masako has to make a tough choice: but even if her tsuguko agrees with her that she has the duty to kill him and offers himself to justice, she chooses to spare him in the end. She tells him to regain his optimism, because his rebellion has shown her that he would be on the Demon Lsayers side no matter what, and he was still fighting his new monstrous instincts as they spoke, so there was still plenty of humanity in his heart.

In her report, she writes that Kai was lost when they evaded Douma's Cult because he covered her escape with the civilians, and that other infiltrations of the Cult were discouraged.

She spends a whole year helping her former tsuguko, hidden in a cave close to her very narrow den, manage his cravings for human flesh with every method immaginable: she fed him wild animals, exercised in meditation, and allowed him to sleep much more once she understood that it would inhibit the stronger fits of hunger. She neglected her duties as a result, worrying her colleagues, especially the very perceptive Gyomei. They were already suspicious because her report had, um, "plot holes" so to speak, but they had dismissed them believing that it was hindered by her recent loss. It was the other reason they gave to her difficulty of going on missions... But they became flabbergasted when, at 30 years old, she disappeared. Like, just, poofed out of existence. She didn't participate to an Hashira meeting, and the now super-worried Himejima charged himself with the duty to check out her den and ensure that she was alright.

When he entered, he immediately felt the stench of human blood, and... and of a Demon. He had touched the walls and the floor, and realized they were caked with blood: there were no plot holes that time, a fight had happened. Her den had been well hidden, but a Demon had clearly managed to get there. He didn't find a corpse anywhere, not even in the area around the narrow house in the mountains, and using his hyper-sensitivity, he had concluded that Masako had likely been killed a week before... and none of them had noticed. Not even finding her crow, he stopped his investigation and called an emergency meeting, explaining his findings.

Little did they know, Masako had realized that she couldn't hide anymore and that they may have found out about Kai's condition, so she had to enact a fake death: she made Kai use some of his Blood Demon Art to give the feel of a demon's attack, and wounded herself on her forearms and her shoulder, not fatally, but she still splashed the blood on the walls, and then ran away with Kai. She also let him destroy some trees and rocks of the place, and part of her house.

Kai would, again, beg her to kill him, because he still somehow saw himself as an hindrance, a burden, that she had to bear and that had led her to abandon her higher responsibilities. It was his fault that they were on the run, and with an unknown future, now.

Masako, though, is adamant: she chose to stay by his side out of her own volition and following the evidence that he was still human deep down and that his demonic instincts wouldn't win anytime soon, so his condition could be managed. She tells him that they can still fight the un repenting demons without necessarily being Slayers, and that they had new options to reconsider: all the while, they would stand by each other.

Kai is finally convinced. He lets out a roar and he finally curses Douma and Muzan by yelling their names, without dying in the process: thus confirming that he has fully severed his connection to the two, and Muzan's Name Curse doesn't bind him anymore. Kai then follows Masako.

So... For those of you that have gotten until this point: congratulations.

This is, at the moment, Masako and Kai's story. Know that they will meet the rebellious demons later during their self exile,and they still slay bad demons on their own as the White Spirits, two vigilantes.

They will meet the Slayers in the Canon age, when Masako is 34 and Kai is... Um... Oh geez.

How old would he be? 25,maybe,but since he is a demon... I dunno, is it really important?

Remember, this is FANON MATERIAL. THE ORIGINAL WORK IS GOTOUGE-SENSEI PROPERTY, KIMETSU NO YAIBA, AND I CLAIM IT IN NO WAY. MY FANFICTION AND FANARTS ARE NON PROFIT, AND I OWE THE INSPIRATION TO THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR.

See ya!

#kny #demon slayer #kny au #kny OCs #kny fanfiction #kny fic #Masako KNY OC #Kai KNY OC #Fukunaga KNY OC #Ryu KNY OC #Hinata KNY OC #Kaito KNY OC #Demon KNY OCs #this is but an AU of kny #which doesn't belong to me #it' gotouge Sensei's work #this is all non profit #do not steal the OCs

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ziracona · 3 years

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claud/jake/dwight anon here! maybe i’ll just go by wisteria since i’ll be popping up in your askbox from time to time :D

shippy hcs would be wonderful! i was referring to them as an established poly relationship post fic; i actually saw the comment where you were talking about how claudette can fit into different relationships and thought that was so fitting (and such a testament to the beauty of her character, but thats another long winded ask to send another day). once again, thanks for putting out ILM into this world. it’s a joy to read, reread, and treasure <3

Alrighty Wisteria!

Also I’m glad because I initially read it that way and was halfway to answering when I was like ‘wait,’ but my instincts were correct haha.

Claudette/Jake/Dwight is an interesting poly ship. It’s funny, because obviously both of them love her and she loves both of them. Just, I don’t think her priority has ever been having a romantic relationship, and neither has theirs. I also think it just kind of...wouldn’t occur to Dwight or Jake that that was a thing. Like, they know about polyamoury, they know it exists. But I feel like straight up there’d like, be an escape anniversary party or something, and she gives them both super heart felt gifts she clearly loved to make, and they’re both touched, give hugs, pass her their own sweetly made things, last little group hug, she’s like “Love you guys” and as she runs off to go give out other gifts to other loved ones, Jake’s super sincerely like “You too,” and Dwight’s like *looks at him, looks at her, smiles* “Yeah. Love you.” and she’s gone, and someone who they were chatting with before (probably Meg, Nea, or Ace) would joke something like “Why didn’t you two just also marry Claudette? You’d be such a happy trio” casually offhand, and they’d be like “Haha yeah! ... ... ... haha...yeah.... ? (O_O);” type thing that would have to happen, because otherwise they just like, wouldn’t think about it.

Once they did, though, I feel like it would definitely be the same event that clued them both in, so they’d both be like “Hmmm” at the same time, and pick up on that, and talk first, and be like “...Yeah, I mean. Maybe? But would she even be comfortable with that? Is it weird?” And Jake, who has the most secure identity in this area, would not really have any issue from the get-go and would mostly be like “Boy am I stupid for this never occurring to me once”. Dwight would need more time to think and talk stuff through and figure himself out, but is a lot more comfortable than he was. Claudette would be the last one. They’d both approach her at some point, and it would be incredibly awkward and kind of a disaster despite the fact they practiced and thought they had a gameplan, and she’s just like, “What? ...What?” and confused, and she’s a very worry-prone person, so she’d be like “Oh no, did I do something? Is this bad? Do they just feel bad for me? Since I’m not dating and they want me to feel included? Is this a bad idea? What do I even actually want?” and since she’s got the least experience dating, she’d take the longest to think things through. Would talk to Meg, and Quentin, and Philip, and her parents, and Ace. And they’d all help, but Meg would be the most help. Because Meg’s simple. She’d just say, “Well, do you want to be dating them both?” and Claudette would be like, “Well. I don’t know. I love them. And it might be nice to have a romantic relationship with someone I love someday. But I don’t know if this is how I want that, or if it would be good, because I have no idea what this would look or feel like,” and Meg would be like, “Well then why don’t you just like, go on a few dates/hangs like you’re dating, and see if it’s fun and good, or uncomfortable and bad, and if you three all feel like it fits and makes life even better, go for it, and if it turns out to be a mistake like that time Jake and I really thought we’d get some hella traction making out, then say ‘Well that was awful lol. Friends it is!’ and Susie and I will take all of you for drunk lazer-tag.”

And that works, because well, it’s more sensible than any amount of introspection without experience, or thinking, or worrying is. So they give it a go for like a week, and it’s awkward as hell for like the first fifteen minutes, but this is a trio of people who’ve known each other so long and been so fundamentally entrenched in each others’ lives for years, and love and trust each other so completely and deeply, it really can’t be that awkawrd, and everyone has prepped best they can, and kind of laugh at themselves, and just like, spend the day at theme park, and get food, and laugh and talk about life like always, but just this time with a kind of romantic shade, and it’s nice. And there’s a lot of days like that--not all so big, more just, at home, hanging out, doing whatever. And it is weird, because none of them has done this before, but. It’s also fun. And none of them have any weird kind of favoritism insecurities, because they were already pretty well and equally entrenched in each others’ lives before, and it’s fun. Jake is strategic because he’s kind of the planning mind behind this, and gets advice from Meg, and they marathon a lot of Leverage with only Jake knowing this is a sneaky ploy to help the other two get more comfortable, because there’s just not a ton of good filmic poly trio rep, but damn if that show hasn’t got a great one.

I think the trial period just kind of hits the end of it’s week and Jake and Dwight are like “So do you want to keep going?” and she’s like “...Yeah. : ) “ and so they do, and it’s like that for a while. They all move at their own paces, and in their own clearly discussed (and, as well as they know each other, usually already mostly known) comfort zones, and it’s fun, and nice. It also helps that everyone else is not just supportive and chill, but most of them are like, goofily into it.

They’ve been dating for like, four months before any of them explicitly calls it that officially. But it’s cute. Jake wants it to be official so he gets people anniversary gifts and then is kind of embarrassed but more pleased with himself, and it’s very cute and goes over well.

Everyone puts in work to figuring out how to keep this healthy and good, since none of them had a lot of preexisting knowledge for being with multiple people. They all do that their own way. Claudette spends hours and hours doing research online and checking for tips from people online, and really works hard to be a good girlfriend, and it’s very sweet. Meg and especially Quentin both have no real idea how to help her, but clock a lot of hours trying and doing pretty good. So secondarily do Nancy and Susie.

I’m pretty sure eventually they’d have another wedding, legally official or not--and not because any of them really feel a need to, but because they think it would be fun and Claudette should get to dress up too, and tbh it would be cute. I feel like Meg, Ace, and Susie are major factors pushing for this.

All of their parents think it’s a little weird, but their kids were missing for like 4 years getting tortured in hell, and they’re all reasonable people; they don’t say shit. Also, they all like all the other parties involved, so they’re like “Rat’s don’t understand these things” (this is a Muppet Christmas Carol inside joke I use all the time even though only like 4 people get it but I hope it makes some sense from context lol), but figure they don’t really have to to be happy their kids are happy and loved and doing well.

Meg is like “Fuck why didn’t we think of this. Why have I been supporting it when I could have nabbed her for me and Susie?” and Quentin doesn’t say shit but he thinks very loudly, “I know, right? Nancy and me are over here like ‘same hat’ fml,” but genuinely they’re very happy for the three of them and with the relationships they have. There’s just a lot of love to go around.

While there’s probably some kind a wedding eventually, definitely about as soon as they start dating, Jake and Dwight start calling her their wife. She’s flustered and like “But I’m note! I’m just your girlfriend.” and Dwight’s like “Yeah, but that makes it sound weirdly unbalanced,” and Jake who looked this up for this moment is like, “Well, by Quebec common law marriage standards, you actually are our wife--we cohabitated for over three years in the realm, so,” and Dwight’s like “whoa for real?” and she’s just like : o But it kinda helps and she accepts it. The downside is Nea hears the story and tells Meg and together they start just fuckin calling all their realm friends their spouses goofily 24/7 when they want shit like “David, my wonderful strong husband, can you pleeeeease get me a sodie from the fridge? : D <3″ and it’s very funny but it’s also pure chaos. Like, so much more than usual.

#Hope you enjoyed! My day was pure chaos so it took a while but here you go #Anonymous #ask #Wisteria #dead by daylight #in living memory #in living memory (fic)#ILM spoilers #ILM potential timeline author HCs

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surveys-at-your-service · 3 years

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Survey #394

“just want one thing / just to play the king / but the castle’s crumbled and you’re left with just a name / where’s your crown, king nothing?”

Do you have your ears pierced more than once? Yeah; I have two in my earlobes and my right tragus pierced. I used to have a cartilage and anti-tragus piercing, but they closed when I had to take them out at the hospital. -_- Do you use an electric toothbrush? Yep. Have you ever seen a queen bee outside its hive? I don't believe so? Have you ever used Duolingo? No. Do you think the number 13 is unlucky? No. Which Clue (or Cluedo) character is your favourite? I always played Scarlet because I thought she was pretty. Do you have any novelty ice cube trays? No. Have you ever had a bad experience meeting a bf’s/gf’s parents? No. Do you get sick of eating turkey during the holidays? I don't eat turkey because I don't like it. I have honey spiral ham instead. Have you ever danced on a table? No. Did you have a lot of fun as a little kid? Yeah. Is there someone you can talk to all day, never running out of stuff to say? Some days. Ham or turkey? Ham. Would you rather eat nothing but fruits or nothing but cheese sandwiches? Fruit. What’s the last song you sung along to? I think Shinedown's "Get Up" while I was in the car. You get to be in any tv series or movie. (old/new) What are you choosing? Let's seeee... maybe Wonderland! Do you meditate? No; it actually stresses me out because I can't completely clear my head. What’s your go-to song when you’re angry? "Headache" by Motionless In White is a good one. What do you think about the most? My weight, honestly. It's at least an itching thought in my head at ALL times. Just being able to feel that I'm overweight and simply glimpsing a fatty part of my body is so, so upsetting. I usually look in the mirror to see if my face is slimmer whenever I pass one, or I'll grasp a part of my body to just feel if I've lost weight there. I could really go on and on about this, but I'd rather not, given it's depressing me talking about it. Have you ever visited any celebrity gravesites? No. How do you feel about archaeology? It's extremely fascinating to me. Any animals whose behaviors you find particularly interesting? ALL animals! Meerkats, however, quite obviously top my list. I love love love social animals, and their behaviors and deep connections remind me of just how human animals really can be, but honestly better half the time. What are your thoughts on gun control? There MUST be reform. I don't think entirely taking away the right to bear arms is the answer, but there needs, needs, NEEDS to be some serious tidying up regarding it. I believe it should be much more difficult to legally obtain a firearm with very extensive background checks and things of the like. I firmly do believe it would help SOME to prevent gun violence. Nothing is ever going to completely stop it unless firearms just cease to exist, but anything that helps reduce it is worth it. Would you have a big cat (like a tiger) for a pet if you could? Absolutely not. Big cats are extremely dangerous with strong hunting instincts, and besides putting my life at risk, I am not forcing a large animal into a small space. Do you like animals better than most humans? Sure as hell do. What simple things in life bring you the most joy? Hearing birds chirping in the morning, crickets and toads at night, starting my soda for the day (rip), watching snow fall, feeling a cool breeze on a nice day with the windows open, my pets wanting to cuddle... just to name a few. I massively appreciate the small things, so I could make this a very long list. What are your favorite smells? Cinnamon rolls, coffee, fresh baked bread, lilac, honeysuckles, etc. Ever found anything cool at a thrift store? What was it? Yeah! I've found some dragon figurines I use for decor, but the absolute coolest has to be this shipwreck lamp that I bought. I love flea markets. How do you find new music to listen to when you want it? YouTube recommendations, usually. Do you like all those dystopian future books/movies? They're all right. If you collect anything, what is your favorite piece of that collection? I collect two types of things: meerkat-oriented and Silent Hill stuff. My favorite part of my meerkat collection is Rebel, my super cute plushy that Jason got me. I slept with it for years and even now that we're done, I still hold the little guy very dear to me. My favorite SH piece I have is a limited edition, Japanese flyer for Silent Hill: Revelation that I won in a giveaway. How did you meet your significant other (if you have one)? N/A How did you meet your best friend? Via YouTube. Your favorite place to be aside from your home? Sara's house. Do you have any favorite books you’d like to have signed by the author? It'd be dooooope if I could have Tim Clutton-Brock sign my copy of Flower's biography. Do you like any board games or card games? I mean yeah. Not a lot, but some. What is your least favorite beverage? Of the things I've tried, probably black coffee. Do you like Breaking Benjamin? I do! What kind of music do you like? Metal, rock, alternative, and indie. Do you like guys with long hair? Yes. Have you ever seen an elephant? Yes. How many people of the opposite sex have you told you loved them? One, if you mean romantically. Do you and your mom get along? Yeah, we're really close. Have you ever had to change your phone number? Twice that I recall. I got a creepy text once, and another with threats. Ever been bitten by a spider? Not to my knowledge. When you were little did you jump in puddles? Oh, absolutely. Bugs: Cool or gross. Even though I'm scared of some of them, they're certainly still cool. Well, most. Do you wear a toe ring? No, I don't find those attractive at all. Have you ever had to babysit before? Twice, even though I didn't want to. Do you actually eat your fortune cookie, if you get one? Yeah, I like 'em. What's your favorite thing about cats? I enjoy how calm and independent they are. Salt, or pepper? I like both, but I prefer to have salt. Think of an ex. What's his favorite color? Jason's were green and purple. Which is better, the taste, or smell of coffee? I only like the smell. What item appears the most in your room? Meerkat stuff. Liquid eyeliner, is good, or totally sucks? My hands are WAY too shaky for that. Has a stray dog ever tried to bite you? No. Do you currently have any bug bites? No. Do you multitask well? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Do you know what an "AMV" is? Yes, because I used to make them and am considering getting back into it. What’s one award show you have to watch every year? None. Who do you like more: the Batman or the Joker? The Joker. Have you ever had a pet rock? I don't recall, actually? I might have as a little kid. Haha, there was one April Fool's Day that Mark sold rocks with his mustached "M" on them, and I SO wanted one. He gave all the earnings to a charity that I can't remember, so that also really made me wanna get one, but yeah, I was NOT asking Mom for even a small amount of money for a rock, haha. She woulda been so fucking confused. Do you know anyone with a lazy eye? Knew, rather. Did your parents let you have pets when you were a kid? Yes. What band was on the last band t-shirt you wore? Ummmm... I'm not sure. Maybe Korn? What’s the last movie you watched at a friend’s house? Elf, I believe? Do you have any tattoos on your arms? Yep. Do you own a teapot? No. Did you have a GI Joe when you were a kid? No. What is the origin of your last name? Irish. Do you ever use the "n"-word? NO. What piercing do you like most on the opposite sex? It would depend on the person, but probably some sort of lip ring(s). What is your salad dressing of choice? Ranch, or the kind from Olive Garden. Have you ever written anything longer than 10 pages? Yes. I wrote a massive essay on toxic masculinity during my last college attempt. I got WAY more into it than I thought I would.

#survey #surveys #random questions #lyrics: ''king nothing'' by metallica

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icarialex · 4 years

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Discord Threads

Who: Zoey Katz and Kassandra West @kassmeifyoucan

When: February 12th

Where: Little Icaria, Beach, then Zoey’s doorstep

What: Zoey takes Kassandra out on a date. Before Robin beats Kassandra up and she shows up to Zoey’s a bloody mess.

Zoey

Once they were seated, Zoey decided to reply to some things Kass said as they were walking. “Amaze you? By shapeshifting? It’s not really something I worked hard to obtain. I was just born with it. Comes with the mom being Demeter thing,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. Zoey was happy to talk about her mother. While the two weren’t close, she had a better relationship than many others on the isle. The blonde understood that being a Goddess and a parent didn’t really blend well. Still, she appreciated that her mother seemed to try and check in on her when she could. Quickly getting tired of the idea of sitting across from Kassandra, the blonde moved to sit on her side of the booth and just quickly maneuvered the table settings to accommodate what she wanted. She’d never understood why it was customary for people to sit that way. Dates were supposed to be an intimate affair. Sitting across made conversation easy, but seriously limited touching. She’d rather just turn her body slightly while talking. “Oh,” she asked playfully as she reached for her glass of water that was just placed at their table. “Is that because only you want to see me naked or are you protecting my honor,” she asked over the rim of the glass before taking a sip to hide her smirk slightly.

Now that they were next to each other again, Zoey reached for Kass’ hand and started absentmindedly playing with her fingers. “Me? No, not really,” she said with a shrug. “I stopped by my parents’ house this week for dinner. Even though we literally live less than eight minutes away from each other, they still think me having my own apartment puts me in a whole new world or something.” The illustrator affectionately rolled her eyes as she talked about her dad and step mother. They were such a silly duo, and anyone that met them could see where Zoey got her quirky and affectionate nature from. “I don’t know if I’d call having a woman wrapped in a bedsheet boring, but hey, if that’s your boring I’d hate to see you having a wild time.” She made sure to keep a smile on her face as she made light of the situation. Although it made something stir in her abdomen, she could deal with it more easily now that the two of them weren’t being so odd anymore.

“Tonight? You seem to give me the lead on most things,” she retorted. Fortunately, she didn’t need to look at the menu really to know what was best on it. She was a big fan of Little Icaria and had been more times than she could count. It was also her dad’s favorite place to take her since it opened. When their waiter returned, she smiled at him as she asked, “Can we get a bottle of the Pinot noir please? Also, I’m going to have the sea bass, and this beautiful woman is going to have the lamb. Lamb medium please, and the sids that they come with is great.” With that put in, she was happy to see him take away their menus. Since she was paying, she didn’t need Kass looking at prices and then getting all unnecessarily self conscious. “I’d order appetizers, but seriously, the plates are such a nice size here that we will not finish our main dishes if I did.”

Kassandra

Kassandra tried not to feel some sort of jealousy at the way Zoey could so easily talk about her Godly parent. Family, really. Not once had Kass ever even mentioned her father to Zoey. Not out of hiding, just out of not really seeing the point. Okay... Maybe a little bit out of hiding. Part of her wanted to say something about her father, give some more common ground to bond over but before she could even say anything, Zoey was doing the unthinkable. The brunette blinked slowly in shock as her friend decided that sitting across from her just wouldn't do. Now she was sitting next to her, their legs touching. As if on instinct, or maybe because she didn't know what to do with it, she moved her right arm so it was laying along the back of the seat. "Hi there." Gods. Who the fuck said that after something as innocent as just sitting closer to someone. Grabbing for her water, she began to drink from it greedily. That is until Zoey asked her if she wanted to see her naked. Kassandra's eyes went wide, almost slamming the cup down as she choked, water going down the wrong pipe for a moment. "The uh... The choice of who sees you naked is uh... Up to you." She managed to squeak out, clearing her throat with a well-timed cough.

It didn't take long for Zoey to do that thing where she got bored and needed to do something with her hands, Kassandra being brought out of her panic to only fly straight into another wall. The blonde had now acquired her hand and was playing with her fingers causing Kass to bite her lower lip. Instead of thinking about how much her heart was pounding or how ridiculous she was being for getting nervous over absolutely nothing, she tried to focus on Zoey talking so freely about her parents. Once again she wanted to say something about her mother or even Kratos but it was just hard to get the words out. None of them seemed right enough. Or happy enough. Once again, Kass wasn't prepared for the mental whiplash as Zoey talked so nonchalantly about the woman that she'd seen in her room a while back. Clearing her throat once more, she shrugged. "She wasn't boring. That was just... Not memorable." Eyes closed in a wince, ducking her head for a moment. "That sounds awful. I just mean... She wasn't meant to be anything more than a.... Nevermind. I'm just digging myself a deeper hole."

Letting out a deep breath that she didn't realize she'd been holding, Kassandra watched with a slightly shocked expression as Zoey ordered for them both. Sure, she'd offered the idea up to her on a silver platter but Zoey didn't even really look at the damned menu. She must take people out to dinner often. Which, of course meant that this wasn't a special occurrence. This was just something that made Zoey... Zoey. "I'm excited to eat the food. I trust your judgement." For a moment she stayed silent, mind wandering off to other things until she tuned back into the woman sitting next to her. "My uh... My dad likes to joke about how he blessed me with my gifts." She inhaled sharply, pushing past the uncomfortable feeling swirling in her gut. "Honestly, the strength is a pretty nice thing to have as a girl. Especially growing up where I did. My mom never really knew how to deal with the fact that I was super strong. She wanted me to hide it so I did. Wasn't allowed to play sports because she didn't want me hurting the other girls. I snuck them though... Until I broke Spencer's leg and then that kind of stopped." Kassandra looked down at the table, focusing on the napkins and the silverware. "Sorry if I'm not good with talking about my parents. Mom isn't uh... Anyway. And my dad is kind of busy. Ya know... Being a God and all. You might have heard of him? Kratos." Somehow, telling Zoey who her father was didn't feel nearly as scary as it did when she had to tell her boss. "He's kinda cool. Kind of a dick too. Guess that's where I get it from."

Zoey

When Kassandra started nearly coughing, blue eyes went wide as she tried to rub her back. Honestly, she should probably feel bad, but she didn’t. Getting a reaction out of the woman who so often tried to play it cool was fun. She also had no other way of learning if any of the confusing feelings she was feeling were returned. Well, unless Kassandra decided to just broach the subject which she doubted. From what she’d learned of the woman so far, that didn’t seem likely. “Mmm — that it is, and me asking you if you would want to be the one who saw me or just want to defend my honor wouldn’t take away that choice,” she agreed with a nod once she was sure her friend was done choking. “But you mentioned how you might feel which has me curious about what’s going through that pretty head of yours.” Complimenting Kass was becoming easier and easier for Zoey. Words of affirmation were always easy for her in regards to anyone she cared about.

People sleeping around for fun was not an unknown concept to Zoey, and she didn’t judge it. Just because it wasn’t something for her didn’t mean that she thought it was wrong. The blonde just knew herself well. Sex wasn’t something she held in a high regard, and she needed to feel something for someone in order to even contemplate going there. Although, her thoughts towards the act were wavering due to the thoughts plaguing her mind lately were changing, and it had everything to do with the person sitting next to her. “You’re not digging yourself into anything with me,” she said gently as she absentmindedly drew patterns on Kass’ palm. “I don’t judge sleeping around. If that’s something you can do, then awesome. If it makes you happy, then who am I to judge? I just know myself to know I can’t because I am not someone who gets sexual unless I have a connection with someone. Doesn’t make my way of seeing things better than yours or worse. We’re just different.” Zoey hoped that explaining the way she thought about it would stop Kass from thinking it was in any way horrible or shady.

The waiter brought out their bottle of wine quickly and poured them each a glass before disappearing again. “My dad brings me here whenever he wants to go out to dinner. It’s why I’ve tried just about everything,” she said with a light laugh. “His philosophy is that he has to try everything once, so that makes tackling menus a game of sorts until we’ve covered it all. I’ve never ordered for someone though, so hopefully I did okay. We can also just pick at each other’s food since the portions are so big to get a bit of everything if you want.” Zoey didn’t really know the protocol for these things, but she was just going off instinct. Even if Kass didn’t tell her if she didn’t like something, she could rely on her observation skills to figure it out and adjust. “You have enhanced strength,” she asked curiously as she learned more about the woman besides her. “I will officially never feel bad about sitting on your lap or jumping on you.” The illustrator taking leaping jumps to greet people she really cared for wasn’t new. At least she knew with Kass that she wouldn’t have to worry about toppling them both to the floor. “I can’t imagine what it was like growing up in a world where you had to be careful with powers since I grew up here. I’m glad you eventually found your way here though so you can just be yourself. That has to be less stressful.” While her shifting had gotten her trapped in the zoo a few times, that was a very mild consequence in comparison to what could happen outside of Icaria. “School covered a ton of theGods, so yes, I’m familiar with your dad,” she answered with a smile. However, it quickly turned into a frown at Kass’ following words. “You’re not that. You’re sweet, a little awkward, and really silly when you want to show that side of yourself. I really like you, and who you are,” she said with a shrug.

Kassandra

Green eyes found blue as Zoey responded to her with such earnest and honest words. And then her brain melted as she realized that the blonde said that she really liked her. Her mouth went dry and all sensible thought left the damned window as she just held her gaze for a moment that probably stretched on far longer than most would deem acceptable among just friends. "I uh... Thanks, Zoey. It means a lot. I just don't really feel comfortable around people. Not anymore. But with you, I don't know... It's different. You're different." Kassandra's eyes went wide, squeezing Zoey's hand for a moment. "I don't mean that in a bad way! I just meant, like, you make me feel like I can be the me that... That I haven't been able to be in a very, very long time. I actually, uh--I kind of forgot she existed for a while." She wasn't even remotely about to go into how that girl had basically been dead in the water for a decade, not really wanting to ruin this date not date that they were on. Date. Her mind drifted back to the earlier bit of the conversation that had kind of gotten broken away from when Zoey asked about how she felt with her being naked due to her shifting. Everything went blank for a moment, not even realizing she'd started speaking until it was too late.

"I'm pretty sure that if I ever saw you naked, I'd short circuit. Have you seen you?" Her brain slowly caught up with her words, thankful that Zoey couldn't see the hand that was resting on the back of the booth as it was now gripping the material tightly. "I definitely now see what you mean by awkward." She wanted to facepalm but one hand was gripping the booth and the other was currently being held by Zoey, trying to not melt with how she was drawing random shapes and patterns against her skin. "I'm glad I found my way here too. The place is growing on me. And, well...." Kassandra trailed off, her other hand that had been trying to maintain a grip on her sanity moved of its own free-will and found itself placed lightly on Zoey's upper back, gentle circles being rubbed. "You kind of were the reason for all of that. So thank you." She smiled gently, far too gently for her liking, and quickly moved her hand back to its previous positioning. Part of her wanted to down the wine that was on the table and the other part of her wanted to actually give her full and undivided attention to Zoey without anything fogging her mind. The wine remained untouched.

Zoey

Kass’ words had an effect on Zoey, and she was trying very hard to keep it under wraps. Acting on those feelings without even fully understanding what they meant wasn’t smart. Plus, if she did and messed up such a feeling of comfort for her friend, she’d feel terrible. Still, her blue eyes couldn’t help themselves as her eyes looked down towards Kassandra’s lips for a millisecond longer than could be passed as innocent before snapping back up. Words still couldn’t leave her lips which only made the air grow thicker because those green eyes weren’t helping. Never someone to get lost in the physical, Zoey felt herself being drawn further into a space she didn’t understand. Luckily, the waiter chose that moment to bring their food down, and she was thankful. She had no idea how that would have gone, and she needed a moment to catch her breath. After thanking him, she turned towards Kass again. “I’m happy I do that for you, but don’t think this is one sided. You make me very happy. My favorite days lately are the ones where I run into you, or when you find some excuse to come by my shop. You’re different to me, and I guess our different goes together.” Zoey couldn’t even explain it. Could she draw it? Probably, but words? Those weren’t always her best friends.

“Why would you short circuit,” she asked quietly as she spread the napkin out on her lap. She needed to understand if it was just because she was beautiful, or because it was her. That was a large distinction. “I know I’m attractive, but you there are attractive women everywhere, and you’re too smooth typically to short circuit. So, why?” Where her courage was coming from, she didn’t know. It wasn’t like she’d even touched her own glass of wine. She was too busy focusing on the company besides her to even think about it.

Regrettably, she released the hand she was toying with and moved to work on her fish. There were many bones that needed to be taken out after all if Kass was going to try some. “I find your awkward endearing, if that helps,” she said with a giggle while working on the task at hand. “You don’t have to thank me. You’ve made this place feel even more like home which I didn’t think was possible, so we’re both happy. Now,” she started as she took a piece of fish with her fork before turning towards Kass. “You have to try this. I can’t believe you’ve been in Greece and haven’t tried our seafood. It’s criminal, Kass.”

Kassandra

Did Zoey just... No. No definitely not. She'd clearly seen things. Licking her lips, she was thankful for the waiter showing up at the perfectly imperfect time to bring them their ordered food. As she stared down at her plate, she felt her cheeks heat up, bringing her hands back to her sides in order to grab at the silverware. Part of her began to panic as she looked at the food that was waiting to be eaten, knowing that Zoey would cackle when she told her why she looked so awkward. Luckily for her, the blonde decided to speak up about--Wait. Oh no. Not luckily. Oh Gods. Her cheeks were blushing a deeper shade of crimson once more, fingers tightening on the silverware so much so that she felt them wince beneath her grip. Placing them down as gently as possible on the table, Kass let her hands go to rest in her lap. Like always whenever she got nervous or antsy, she began to play with her fingers, staring down at her lap in thought. She didn't know why this always happened when she was around Zoey. Granted, if she really allowed herself to truly go there, she'd figure it out quick enough. But something in her wasn't ready to admit it, definitely not out loud and certainly not in her own head. Not yet, anyway. So she smiled warmly at Zoey, the facial expression turning into a cocky smirk as she wrapped her hand around Zoey's and leaned over to take the offered fish meat off of the fork. Logically she knew she could have just reached for the fork and taken it into her own hand but this was much more tempting. Pulling away and chewing the food, she looked at Zoey thoughtfully as she swallowed. "I'm sorry that I'm a horrible human being. I will be sure to turn myself into the police under the crime of not ever having seafood in my life." She held up two fingers in a mock 'scout's honor' knowing full well that wasn't the hand signal.

Leaning back so she wasn't invading Zoey's space as much, she took a hold of her glass of wine and almost downed the entire thing. Hopefully Zoey wouldn't notice the absolutely insane move but given the fact that she could feel the heat of her gaze, it was safe to say she'd seen it all. And to make matters worse, just because she couldn't quite put a finger on how she felt towards the blonde didn't mean that her brain wouldn't fuck her over at every little turn. Which is why she started talking. Again. "I realized I never answered your question from earlier. But to answer it now... You're you, Zoey." Her words came out in a smaller voice than she would have expected it to. "There could be a thousand attractive women around and... And none of them would be you." After a moment where everything felt too real and she realized that everything had just stopped in their little pocket of the restaurant did she offer up an awkward chuckle. "Anybody else who didn't think the same is lying." There. Make it seem like some obvious thing that everyone else thought of. Yeah, that's super believable. She could slap herself. For fucks sake. Instead of doing that she chose to focus back on the food that awaited her, picking up at her utensils once more. Her brow furrowed, nose crinkling cutely as she stared down at the dish. "In other news, I regret to inform you but I grew up for the first half of my life being a vegetarian. So uh--I don't exactly know how to eat this." She quickly held up a fork. "I eat meat now! I just, ya know--its always been like. Oh look a burger. Oh look, chicken nuggies. Things that make sense and don't require previous knowledge other than open mouth and chew."

Zoey

If Zoey’s eyes didn’t become a darker blue due to the woman’s actions, she’d be surprised because she felt everything within her become thicker. Perhaps that wasn’t a word many would use in the situation, but it was the only one that made sense. An overwhelming feeling of desire became like a fog that covered the rest of her senses and mind which made it very hard to focus on anything else. Her eyes wanted to drift again, and once again she wasn’t successful at stopping their trajectory, but she did move them up once again quicker. “You’re a tease,” slipped past her lips before she even realized, but she didn’t regret the words when her ears picked up what she had said. How could the woman not see the effect she was having on the illustrator? The deeper breathing, glances, and comments were going to give her away sooner or later. Not to mention the date that she’d somehow manage to slyly get. “I’m glad you’re experiencing it with me then,” she replied honestly once the lust induced fog cleared a bit. “Although, turning yourself in won’t be necessary. I’ll take responsibility for you and correct this atrocity at once.” Playful was always an easier territory for the two of them. It seemed to lead to less trouble.

Zoey noticed how quickly Kass seemed to drink her wine, but didn’t comment because she went through her own glass a little quickly. She then poured them another. With all the food around them, she knew she wouldn’t feel it too terribly. Thankfully she’d put down the wine bottle before the other woman spoke again because if she hadn’t, she was positive that it would have been dropped. Her food was forgotten for the moment as she shifted her body, so she was almost completely facing Kassandra. “Many people don’t see what you do, and I’m happy they don’t. If they did, what you tried to do would be successful. I’d actually believe your attempt to shrug it off as something less important than it is.” The blonde knew that if she said more, that she would genuinely get emotional or spill her own feelings that she didn’t make sense of herself yet. Zoey almost panicked at the mention of not eating meat until Kass clarified. Then, an endearing smile appeared on her face. “Cut the meat similar to a steak. The big piece that’s like hanging away from the bone is the best. Promise, there isn’t a wrong way to eat it. I won’t even judge if you picked up the bone and ate it like a wing,” she promised with a smile.

Kassandra

"Babe, you haven't experienced the kind of tease I can be." Kassandra muttered under her breath before nodding decisively and looking at the dish. "Alright I'll try. But if I eat it weird... Blame my mother." With a little awkwardness she began to cut the lamb in a slightly horrific manner and grumbled softly to herself. "Damn thing..." Finally after too many painstakingly long seconds, she got a decent size bite and chewed on it thoughtfully. "Well, I have to say that you've really outdone yourself on this whole ordering thing. This is actually really good." For a while she just ate her food in silence, sneaking glances at the other woman. She wasn't too terribly hungry after the day of nerves, trying to get up the gumption to actually talk to Zoey. Of course she'd offered up some of her food for Zoey to take, happy to return the sentiment. Now she was sipping at her water, refusing to go any further down wine lane. She'd just finished pushing the plate away, one hand on her stomach and the other having returned to the back of the booth. She was about to start talking about the rest of their evening when she noticed that Zoey had some wine on her upper lip.

For what wouldn't be the last time that night, Kassandra's body reacted of its own accord. Without even thinking, she turned her body more towards Zoey, her full attention to those lips that she desperately found herself wanting to kiss more and more. The hand that had been resting on her stomach moved toward's the other woman's face. "Hey you uh... You've got..." Kass trailed off, biting her own bottom lip in concentration as she brought the pad of her thumb up to trace along the curve of Zoey's lip, effectively getting the wine. Her breath hitched as she realized what she'd just done, hand frozen just a few inches away from Zoey's face. Someone cleared their throat, snapping her out of her trance. It was the waiter, asking if they wanted anything to go. "O-oh. Uh, yeah that'd be great. Just a second, I can pay for dinner." And just like that, whatever moment had been happening or almost happened was broken as Kass moved away to reach into her back pocket to grab for her wallet, effectively putting space between her and the woman that was causing all reasonable thought to leave her body.

Zoey

At Kass’ words, Zoey felt her body heat up and fill with anticipation all at the same time. “What if I wanted to experience it,” she said in a bit of a challenge. The artist had no idea what was happening, but she wasn’t overthinking it. All she knew was that she wouldn’t regret it since it seemed she wasn’t navigating the confusing waters alone. If she was, Kass would have let her down easily by now. At least, Zoey thought so. As the dinner kept on, she offered up more bits of her fish to the woman beside her. They were comfortable around each other, and it was different. Yes, she and Theo had always been comfortable, but he was more of her best friend. The atmosphere she was in during dinner was one with an undercurrent of wanting which she wasn’t used to and was growing to like. It was exciting, and she liked not feeling bashful as she took in the woman beside her, “I’m glad you like it.”

When Kass touched her lip, Zoey felt her breathing stop for a moment. Actually, she was positive every part of her froze. Without even thinking, her lips puckered slightly to kiss the finger. Noticing that the hand stopped in midair, the illustrator reached for it and was about to tug it towards her to pull Kass forward when they were interrupted. She didn’t know whether to groan or be thankful that they didn’t share a kiss in the middle of Little Icaria, but she took the moment to regather herself for what felt like the millionth time. A smirk did appear on her face when she heard the waiter say the bill had been taken care of. He thanked her by calling her Ms. Katz as he handed her the receipt to sign. “I handed my card to the hostess when we got here,” she said without looking up as she calculated the tip to answer the silent question. “I asked you out, so I pay. That’s how it goes before you argue, and unless you have a creative way to shut me up, I’m quite stubborn.” Flirting was so easy with Kass which was weird. Zoey was sweet, funny, and caring, but smooth was not an adjective she’d use. Yet, there she was.

When their to go boxes were returned to them, Zoey took the brown bag and stood up from the booth. “Are you ready, darling,” she asked as she offered her hand to the woman she was struggling to continue thinking of as a friend.

Kassandra

'What if I wanted to experience it'. Her mind was a wreck. Zoey just kept saying and doing things that were slowly killing her. And what's worse is that she didn't know how to take it. On one hand, Zoey could just be a really easy-going flirt. And on the other? Zoey could actually be feeling whatever tension there was that had filled up this whole damned restaurant. Either way, Kassandra was trying desperately to find some sort of balance. It was barely possible, since just looking at Zoey made her want to throw all rational thought out the mother-fucking window and just kiss her until she was breathless and whimpering her name. Swallowing thickly, Kassandra tuned back into the present, brought back to her senses by Zoey standing up from the booth and offering her hand. Had... Had she just called her darling? The brunette blinked and took the offered hand as she scooted out of the booth. She was sure she'd missed something else that was important from the conversation but honestly, after what she'd said earlier? Everything else was a blissful blur.

As they began the walk towards the Inn, Kassandra kept quiet for as long as she could manage, just giving small squeezes to Zoey's hand to let her know that she was still mentally present enough to acknowledge her. It wasn't that she couldn't talk. She just was afraid of what she might fucking say if she did decide to open her mouth. Everything inside of her was screaming at her to do two very different things. Part of her wanted to invite Zoey to her room and have her way with her for the rest of the evening. The part of her that was definitely winning wanted to just do something as equally dumb--like hold her hand and just talk to her until the wee hours of the morning. Like some kind of fucking sap. No. Whatever was happening, or trying to happen, she couldn't let it continue. Right? She didn't do getting hurt. And whatever was happening would definitely lead to heartbreak. Be it her own or Zoey's. And she honestly didn't know if she could handle hurting the other girl. The problem with that is that's what she always did. She ruined people.

Once they got to the Inn, Kassandra took the leftovers out of Zoey's hands. "I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere." She teased before doing another unthinkable, leaning down and kissing Zoey on the cheek. As she turned around, her eyes widened. Why the fuck are you doing this to yourself, Kassandra. She's probably just flirty with everyone and this doesn't mean anything. Do not even remotely think about fa--nope. No. She wasn't going to even think that word. No way. As she made her way into her room, she put the food into her mini-fridge and checked on her puppy. He was fast asleep and she didn't have the heart to wake him. It had only been about an hour and a half since she'd left so he'd be fine. Her eyes fell on a hard-case, wondering if this was really a good idea. Without thinking too long about it, Kassandra grabbed her car keys off the dresser and then grabbed the case, quickly exiting her room. Going out the back entrance, she loaded her car with the item and closed the trunk before getting inside and driving out to the front to where Zoey was waiting. "Shall we?"

Zoey

“Oh yes, because I’m just going to bolt on you,” she teased. Anything else that she was thinking of replying with fell dead on her lips due to the kiss on her cheek. Kass so far didn’t initiate affection, which didn’t bother Zoey, but then she did something to take her completely off guard. It left her only being able to follow the woman with her eyes as she went to her room, which only gave her something equally as problematic to focus on. The blonde wasn’t the type of girl to focus on someone’s butt, yet, there she was staring. Fortunately, Kassandra didn’t turn around. That would have caused her to blush profusely.

The more time she spent around Kass, the more positive she was of her feelings. Emotionally she knew she was drawn, but the physical aspect was new. Then again, it had been a long time since she’d had a crush on anyone. After her break up, she didn’t really allow herself to go there. Not because she didn’t want to or was hurt, but because she wanted to learn more about herself before trying anything with anyone else. Then, whatever was happening decided to slap her in the face. Fortunately, she was taken out of her inner musings when a car pulled up and Kass got her attention. “And you told me not to go anywhere. You have a get away car and everything,” she teased as she opened the passenger door and slipped in.

“You do know we could have walked,” she teased lightly. Zoey herself didn’t even have a car. The island was so small she never needed one. Her father taught her how to drive since it was apparently a right of passage, but other than practicing every so often, she never used the skill. Since they were heading to the beach, the blonde reached for the bottom of her shirt and lifted it up over her head. She shook her hair out of the braid she had it in and relaxed against the seat. “I have a blanket in my bag. I actually am totally one of those girls that has just about everything in her purse.” It was why she carried what looked more like a satchel or knapsack than a traditional purse.

Kassandra

"I know we could have walked but the idea of you walking back to your place after being in the ocean doesn't really sit right with me. Hence, car." She didn't add the fact that it was much easier to lug around a certain item via a car than on her shoulders. Kass put the car in gear and pulled out of the parking lot, one hand on the gearshift and the other on the steering wheel. She found herself restricting her movement, not allowing herself to reach over and grab the other woman's hand. This was getting far too close into dating territory, or at least a variation of that and well, Kassandra didn't do that anymore.It didn't take long to make it to the beach, after all, they were on a relatively small island. When Kassandra originally thought of Icaria, she had imagined it being much larger. This? This wasn't at all to the scale she'd whipped up in her head. But in all honesty? It was better.

As they pulled up into a parking spot, Kassandra turned off the car and got out to quickly jog over to Zoey's car door, opening it. "It's the least I can do for the girl that wined and dined me. Also... I'm going to get something out of my trunk and you're not gonna look okay? I promise you it'll be worth your while. Just... Stay here..." Kassandra positioned Zoey so she was staring out towards the ocean before going over to the trunk and opening up the case, pulling out the instrument and strapping it to her back. Walking back over to Zoey, Kass gently placed her hands over the blonde's eyes as her torso pressed up against the blonde's back. "So.. While you go out in the ocean and get incredibly wet, I'm going to stay on the sand. Where its dry and isn't an abyss of death." She didn't dare let her mind focus on how exactly she'd started out that sentence.

Removing her hands, she walked around to stand in front of Zoey, curling her finger in a 'come hither' motion. "And don't worry about me getting bored. I've got something to keep me company in the meantime. Besides, I'll start a fire so you'll be nice and warm when you're ready to come out." Kassandra took this time to sling her guitar into view. Green eyes found blue for a moment, a faint blush spreading over her cheeks. "Before you even remotely say something about me being adorable--hush. I learned how to play when I was younger by the principle at my school. Between that and choir, it was pretty much all my mom would let me do." Instead of waiting for Zoey to start towards her, Kassandra reached forward and grabbed onto the blonde's hand. Interlacing their fingers together, she began to walk backwards for a couple steps, pulling Zoey towards her for a moment until she turned to face the ocean.

Zoey

Zoey shook her head playfully as she got out of the car. “If that impresses you, then I need to have a serious talk with the other people who have taken you out on dates,” she said in mock seriousness. What she’d done wasn’t even that big of a deal. Honestly, she was a bit annoyed with her impulsiveness. If she’d thought things through, it could have been better. Although, the two of them always seemed to have fun together, so it didn’t bother her too much. As Kass went to the trunk, Zoey leaned against the hood of the car by holding her wait up against her palms as she gazed at the ocean. She followed orders even though she was very tempted not to.

When she was guided towards Kass and then felt the woman press into her back, she felt her body temperature skyrocket. Instead of letting herself feel frazzled, she instead reached back slightly just to squeeze the woman’s hips slightly and pull even the slightest bit closer. “Abyss of death is a little dramatic,” she teased lightly. “Also, you think very highly of my self control if you think I will be able to resist making you wet too.” If innuendo was the game they were going to play, then she’d have to keep up. It was exciting and frustrating. While she had no idea if she’d make a fool of herself, for some reason she didn’t worry about that much. She knew any teasing that came from Kass would be playful, or apparently aimed at making her flustered.

When the woman finally moved to stand in front of her and beckoned her over, Zoey just smirked and moved to remove her shorts first. When she was left in just her bikini, she finally obliged and moved towards the woman. Although, blue eyes shined as she caught sight of the guitar. That was not at all what she expected. “Adorable wasn’t the word I was going to go with. Hot is more what came to mind,” she said with a shrug. When Kass turned to look at the water, Zoey moved beside her and bumped her hip lightly. “Do you want me to go in the water so you can warm up? That’s the only reason I’d go instead of staying with you right now. I would be perfectly content just laying beside you on the blanket and being with you.” She had the blanket in the bag and their dessert. It would be perfectly relaxing for Zoey, but she understood nerves, so she’d go in the water if needed.

Kassandra

The fact that Zoey was basically naked save for a bikini was enough for Kassandra to keep her gaze completely forward. She really didn't need to look like a complete and utter perv by checking out her friend. "Zo, you said you were gonna go to the beach and if that involves night swimming then don't let me take you away from that. Besides, you can lay down near me once you're ready to get cozy by a fire." Not to mention that would give just some time alone to her thoughts where she could mentally scream at whatever the hell was going on with this evening. Her train of thought led her back to when Zoey had mentioned how she'd have to have a serious talk about others who had taken her on dates. Did she tell her? Or did she just avoid the subject. It would probably be best to avoid it all together.

"I've uh... Never actually been taken out on a date." If Kassandra could look into a camera like she was on the Office, she would. Her mouth and brain were not in communication it seemed. "I've been on dates!" She quickly clarified, sighing deeply. "I was just the one that took her out on the dates." Her. Singular. Fuck. Stop giving away so much of your shitty, painful past tonight, West. "Oh look! A fire pit. That's nice, just means I get to light it and we'll be good to go!" Kass was thankful for the distraction as they neared the shore. Letting go of Zoey's hand, Kassandra looked around for a moment before spotting what she'd need. Setting her guitar down near the fire-pit, she walked a bit away to a rather large piece of driftwood. With ease, she lifted it up and brought it over to the fire-pit, setting it down with a loud thunk.

Kneeling down in the sand, she pulled out a lighter and began the process of lighting the kindling. Within a few moments the fire began to roar in front of her and she dusted off the sand from her hands. "Alright, I'll be here whenever you're ready to come out of the water. If you need me, call me. I hate the water but if you need me, I'll brave it for you." Kassandra said with a smirk. That was easy. Playful banter was so much easier than admitting that there was truthfully something going on. But Gods, was she finding herself more and more wanting to do something about what she felt every time she saw the blonde. But for now? For now she'd just sit by the fire, play her guitar, and throw her lust out the window. Cause that's all it was. Lust. Mmmmmmmmmhmmmmmm.

Zoey

“Kass,” she said teasingly in response before continuing. “That was before I ran into you, and I’d much rather be with you than burning off steam because I wasn’t seeing you.” She almost scolded herself for letting that out, but saying how she felt for those awkward weeks was a relief. She felt like a weight was lifted. “Also, you better know getting cozy next to a fire includes cuddling you when you aren’t playing. Just laying that expedition down now.” Still, she wouldn’t fight her on going into the water. It looked like a really nice night, and that didn’t mean she had to be gone long.

“You hadn’t been taken out on a date,” she corrected lightly. Zoey didn’t know how much more clear she had to be about what her intentions were that evening, but she’d repeat it if necessary. “Whoever she was, obviously was an idiot if she didn’t want to treat you to something special every once in a while. I mean, I’d never taken anyone out on a date before until tonight, but I wanted to because you deserve to be taken care of sometimes too.” Zoey was thankful that she’d said that while Kass was busy setting up the fire because she didn’t know if she’d gotten it all out otherwise. Suddenly, she thought that getting a swim in was a good idea to get her emotions in check. “I could just shift into a water animal, but thanks for your courage,” she teased. “I’ll be back in a little bit.”

As the blonde walked towards the water, she stretched lightly. The temperature was perfect since Khione was no longer angry about her son being taken, and she quickly lost herself in the waves. Her mind was running in circles. Zoey was never the person to initiate things or even have thoughts that could lead to innuendo. She’d never felt the urge to go there. Still, with Kass, she felt like she was practically on fire. There was tension in her lower abdomen, and her mouth, Gods, it just seemed to work on it’s own accord. Before she realized it, she’d swam a good mile away from the shore. Not wanting to be gone too long, she turned around and headed back.

As she walked back towards where Kass was, she couldn’t help but smile as she wrung her hair out over her shoulder. The other woman just looked so beautiful in the glow of the fire out by the water. She’d left her bag with Kass so she could set the blanket up to make herself comfortable. Zoey sat in front of the brunette. The fire was a nice way to dry off. “Are you sure you don’t want to go in? Your bra and underwear is essentially a bikini. Or we could skinny dip instead in a little while. There would be less people out and about,” she said with a shrug. She’d done it late at night and loved it. Although, her getting caught was much less likely when she could just shift into bird or something that made an easy escape. Plus, seeing Kassandra naked was not something she could handle. She’d surely explode from frustration and would not be able to resist touching.

Kassandra

Words escaped her as Zoey spoke to her before taking off into the night to go swim. For several moment she just stared at the flames that licked the air, not sure how to process anything. Had she meant like... A date date? Or like a friend date. She'd been on friend dates before, some of her former friends from academy calling them 'frates'. Biting her lower lip, she looked up from the fire to the water where Zoey was going out rather far. The woman relaxed some at the distance that was between them, worried that Zoey would suddenly develop the ability to read minds. So instead of thinking of that, she picked up her guitar after laying out Zoey's towel for her when she'd get back from her swim. Fingers began to pick gently at strings, chords falling into a rhythm as she leaned back against the drift wood. "I've watched my wild youth disappear in front of my eyes...Moments of magic and wonder, it seems so hard to find...Is it ever coming back again? Is it ever coming back again? Take me back to the feeling when everything was left to find..." Her voice carried out gently into the night, singing to herself. Luckily no one else seemed to be on the beach as she continued. "Cause it comes and goes in waves, it always does... It always does..."

Eventually that song faded out so she began to play another, followed by another and another. After a while, Zoey began to walk back and Kassandra chose to stop her singing. Gentle strumming remained as she took in the sight of the very, very attractive blonde in front of her. Her mouth went dry, trying to form words until she realized that Zoey had said something about skinny dipping. "As uh... Amazing as it sounds getting buck-ass naked and freezing my tits off, I'm good. I'm not really a fan of the ocean. I think going in at night would make it ten thousand times worse. But I'm glad you had fun. Now c'mon and get warm. I laid out the towel for ya." Kass patted the space next to her, giving a warm smile. When Zoey sat down, Kass took her jacket that she had on and wrapped it around the other woman's shoulders. "Before you even think about asking me if I need it, I'm fine. I run hot. And yes, you heard that right." Her grin was cheeky, trying to push past the feelings that bubbled up in her gut every time she flirted with her. For a while she just strummed on her guitar, not really doing any true tune. "We were sixteen," She started, not sure if Zoey would remember the conversation that they'd kind of had before she had gone in the ocean. "When I took her out on our first real date. We went to this abandoned park and I made a picnic for us. I couldn't take us out anywhere because we weren't out yet. Or at least... I wasn't. I paid for everything with my summer job money and it was great. That was the night we..." Kassandra trailed off, clearing her throat.

"After that though... I never went out on another date. Or at least anything that I qualified as a date. I tried in my senior year. This girl that I had kind of a thing for. Took her out to dinner and a movie. And then found out she... Nevermind. Just a bad experience all around. So I haven't really been on one in uh... A decade?" Her head ducked down, biting her lip as chords began to be played once more, a familiar tune drifting into existence. "Until tonight, that is. Do you treat all your friends to dates?" It was mostly a teasing tone but there was a hidden layer of worry that she'd been imagining the charge between them. What she'd do with that information, she didn't know. Either way, she didn't really wait for an answer as she started to sing along to the tune she'd been playing. "Somebody said you got a new friend... Does she love you better than I can?" Green eyes found blue, holding her gaze for a moment as she continued to sing softly. "Big black sky over my town... I know where you're at, I bet she's around... Yeah, I know it's stupid, I just gotta see it for myself..." Her eyes drifted away as she sang the next lyrics unable to look at her anymore out of fear that she'd go breathless. The fire was easy to look at as the shadows danced along her face. "I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, ohhh... I'm right over here, why can't you see me? Ohhh... I'm giving it my all but I'm not the girl you're taking home, ooh..." Kassandra chose this moment to chance a glance up at Zoey, breath hitching slightly as she sang out the last lyric. "I keep dancing on my own..."

Zoey

Without having to think about it, Zoey moved to sit beside Kassandra and stretched her legs in front of her while leaning back on against her palms. She listened as the other woman talked more about her past and tried to imagine what it was like. Her upbringing was so different. The artist knew how lucky she was to grow up in the home she did. Even though her father had zero idea about what he was doing at first, there was never a question about how much he loved or accepted her. “I’ve never had to do the whole coming out thing,” she said with a shrug. “My only relationship was with a guy. Well, Theo,” she said with a roll of her eyes but an affectionate smile was on her lips. “But my father knows that I don’t really care about gender when it comes to attraction or relationships. I go by what I feel. He doesn’t care who I bring home as long as I’m happy. Although, Theo perplexed him. Not because he wasn’t great. We’re actually still best friends. We just — there was no spark there. We love each other but not the way a couple should.” Explaining her and her ex’s relationship was always complicated. So many people had an idea of exs and how they should act, and well, Zoey and Theo could not fall further outside of that idea. “We broke up about a year ago.”

The question was an out if she wanted one, and the blonde knew that. If she wanted to, she could say she treated her friends the same way and be done with all the confusing, all encompassing feelings. Yet, she couldn’t lie. She’d hate herself if she did. Someone needed to take a leap of faith for Kass it seemed, and she’d hate it if she didn’t. “I don’t take people I consider just friends on dates, no,” she started explaining. “I mean, I may go out with friends to dinner, but I won’t call it a date unless I’m interested in something other than friendship.” There, she’d done it. There was absolutely zero grey area left about what she’d said. Kass couldn’t act obtuse about it anymore even if she wanted to. The idea was both thrilling and terrifying.

The lyrics hit her in a way that made her sad. She’d felt them all too much when she’d seen the other women in Kass’ room. Jealousy. It wasn’t a feeling she was used to, but she was starting to say that a lot when it came to the woman singing beside her. When she finished singing, she took in a breath and let it out slowly. “You really have a beautiful voice,” were the first words out of her mouth. “You’re — you’re kind of a goober.” The blonde couldn’t help but chuckle as she said the words because honestly she was in a bit of disbelief. “For someone who doesn’t do this often, you don’t even realize how good you are at charming someone without even trying.”

Kassandra

Her heart pounded in her ears as she felt herself going into an almost out of body experience as Zoey's words floated around like a damned ping-pong ball in her head. She was interested in something other than friendship? The thought made her chest swell and a blush tinge her cheeks. Was this happiness that she was experiencing? It is. Or at least it was. Because as swiftly as the feelings of euphoria had entered her, they just as quickly were replaced with fear. She didn't let people get close for this very reason. What they had, whatever this was... She'd fuck it up. Just like she always did. First with her mom, then Aurora. Everyone else after that had barely been let in until all Kassandra had done was hollow herself out. No longer did she believe in romance or love. No longer had she thought she was worthy of being something to someone. First loves come and go, she knew that. She learned that lesson well. But when your own mother doesn't even want you.. When your own father doesn't even care until he can make use for you... It was all too much. When had her chest gotten this tight? Was Zoey calling her charming? She couldn't tell, everything around her was fuzzy.

Kassandra's breathing came in soft gasps, eyes wide as the guitar was placed down to the side of her. She blinked in surprise at what was happening, never having experienced this sensation before. Why was her chest so tight? She couldn't... She couldn't breathe. Looking up at Zoey in confusion, she opened her mouth to try to say something but all she did was gasp in air. Oh Gods, that made it worse. Beginning to hyperventilate, Kassandra stood up far too quickly than she should have, not even bothering to dust off her pants from all the sand. Her head swam as she stood tall, not knowing where to go. She was on a beach for Zeus' sake. This wasn't really an ideal place for whatever the hell this was. Her right hand flexed open and closed several times, trembling. "I... I can't... I can't breathe." The brunette managed to choke out, eyes wide and terrified. What the fuck was happening to her?

Zoey

The silence was unnerving, but what happened afterwards was even more. At first she let Kass walk away figuring she needed space after being made to feel uncomfortable, but then the more she looked, the more Zoey saw that she didn’t look okay. Without thinking, she jogged towards her, and it didn’t take long for the blonde to realize that Kassandra was having a panic attack. There wasn’t a lot of time to think about how her vulnerability and feelings had caused it. All she could think about was helping. So, she stood in front of Kass, grabbed her hand, and placed it on her chest. “Breathe with me,” she said as blue eyes locked with green. “Feel my chest go up and down and try to mimic it.”

After a few moments, she noticed Kass’s breathing come more easily. When she was sure that the woman was no longer having such a hard time, she took a step back to give her some space. Now that the major problem was out of the way, Zoey couldn’t help but remember what had caused it in the first place. It was the most obvious she’d been about her feelings and intentions which had led to the girl she felt them for having a panic attack. That was far from reassuring, and she’d be lying if she said that she knew where to go from there. “Are you okay?” That was much easier to focus on than her feelings. Focusing on someone else was always what she was better at anyway. “Do you want to head back? We can always hang out again another time if you’re not feeling great.” Giving Kass an excuse to leave was the nice thing to do. It was the only thing Zoey knew how to do. There wasn’t exactly a how to book for the situation lying around anywhere.

Kassandra

A hand reached out for her own and soon Kassandra's palm was resting on Zoey's chest. Nothing about this gesture was sexual however it was very intimate. More intimate than Kassandra was truly ready for but somehow, someway... It was helping. Zoey breathed for the both of them for several moments until finally her chest didn't hurt, her hands didn't tremble, and she could breathe on her own again. She wanted to thank her for helping her with whatever had just happened but the blonde was moving away from her, her heart sinking like a stone. The look in Zoey's eyes was one she never wanted to see, Gods, those eyes. "No!" Kass quickly spoke, realizing it came out more like a loud plea than the soft tone she wished she would have used. So she tried again. "No... Please. Don't go." Licking her lips, she took the small steps forward towards Zoey, hoping to close the distance that the blonde had put between them. "I'm sorry that I... That that happened. I've never had that happen. Not since my--I'd uh.. I'd forgotten what that had felt like." Another deep breath as she steeled her nerves, closing her eyes for a moment. "The truth is I'm terrified." I'm not good, Zoey. That's what she wanted to say. She wanted to tell her that she was poison. But she couldn't.

Fingers shook for a moment until they made purchase on Zoey's cheek, the backs of her knuckles softy trailing down the skin there until she tilted the other woman's chin up gently. "I wasn't looking for anyone." Those words were probably the most honest thing she'd ever said to Zoey, her chest tightening once more but swiftly deciding to push the panic aside for just one fucking minute. "And then I met you." There. That was simple enough. Right? "I don't know what is happening between us. But you... You scare me. And that's--Gods, that's not on you. That's all on me." She closed her eyes tightly, sighing. "Fuck, I'm not wording this right at all." Kassandra took the last few steps closer to Zoey, eliminating any major distance between their torsos. "I don't know what to do about any of this. I'm... I'm scared to do anything about this. About you. But Gods, I want to." Her forehead rested against Zoey's, unable to look at the other woman. "You make me feel like I'm on fire. You make me... Feel." The older woman could feel just how close they were, could tell that by the sensation of her breath puffing against Zoey's lips as her hand remained cupping her jaw. "Zoey... I... I really want to..." The brunette tipped her head closer, lips wanting desperately to search for the other woman's. She could almost taste--RING.

Whatever spell that had taken over her was broken as soon as her phone started ringing from her pocket. "I..." She rasped, voice low. Lower than Zoey had ever heard it. "I think I need to... To take this." Kassandra regrettably pulled away, grabbing her phone from her pocket as she held it up to her ear. Immediately she winced as someone talked sternly to her for several moments. Eventually she hung up, clearing her throat as she looked at Zoey helplessly. "Nugget woke up and is terrorizing the neighbors. I have to get back. Zoey..." She tried, still in close proximity to the other woman, not quite sure what to do.

Zoey

The blonde was so entranced with the words coming out of the woman’s mouth, and her proximity, that she couldn’t say anything. All she could do was wait with baited breath for Kass to kiss her which was what she thought was going to happen until the blasted phone rang. When Kassandra pulled back, Zoey tilted her head back towards the sky and closed her eyes. She needed to focus on her own breathing so she didn’t scream in frustration. When the phone call ended, the artist looked at her date again and gave a small smile. “Mmm, considering the owner of the Inn had to leave the island and left her sister in charge, who you’re currently with, I’d say you’re safe from too much trouble,” she added lightly to hopefully stop some of the worrying. It was something she’d meant to bring up anyway since she’d be at where Kassandra was staying more often. That was just a fun way to bring it up.

Zoey stepped forward so they were close again, looped her index fingers in Kass’s belt loops, and tugged the woman forward slightly. “Let’s head back,” she started before leaning forward on her tippy toes and giving the brunette a kiss on the cheek. She lingered for a few seconds to hopefully quell the need she was feeling before pulling back. “This is always going to be scary. Not because it’s me and you, but it would be with anyone. Vulnerability always is. I’d love to promise I’d never hurt you, but that would just put me on a pedestal that wouldn’t be healthy,” she started as she tried to find the right words to give Kassandra some comfort. “You just have to figure out if I’m worth the risk of getting hurt over, and I don’t want you answering that now. Sleep on it. Take your time to figure this out and fight your demons. If you need help, I’m here.”

With that, she took Kass’ hand, interlaced their fingers, and walked them back to where their belongings were. When they got back to the fire pit, she threw her shirt on again, and worked to get things packed up. “You didn’t ruin anything before you worry,” she said as she worked on folding the blanket. “So don’t let your mind go there.”

Kassandra

"Wait, I'm sorry what?" She was about to press further at the blonde mentioning that she'd be at the Inn more often, mouth feeling like it was full of cotton as she tried to process that. But then Zoey was getting closer again, the brunette feeling a tug on her jeans as she stutter-stepped closer. Her breathing almost stopped as Zoey leaned up on her tippy-toes to kiss her on the cheek. Green eyes fluttered shut from the contact, staying that way for several moments, even after the other woman had pulled back from her. So instead of opening her eyes, she just kept them closed as Zoey talked to her, trying to quell any and all fears from her mind. Whatever was happening between them clearly wasn't one-sided. Kassandra just had to be willing to do something about it. To put whatever this was into words. Fuck. That was a lot to process. Eventually she did open her eyes as a hand slipped into her own, following Zoey back to the firepit. It didn't take long for them to pack up their things, put out the fire and wait for Zoey to get her clothes back on over her beach attire.

The walk back to the car was silent as they walked, fingers still interlaced. Only when she needed to put the guitar up did she finally let go of the blonde's hand, regret filling her instantly. Once she got into the car, she turned on the ignition and took the car out of park, backing up before taking off down the road. The stereo connected to her phone via bluetooth and began to play a song softly through the speakers just in time for Kassandra to get up the guts to do what she hadn't on the ride over; she reached over and interlaced her fingers with Zoey's once more. 'I want you more than I need you and I need you so bad...Are you coming back? Are you coming back? I'm waiting...' Giving a small squeeze to the hand that was in her own, she kept her gaze focused on the road for the remainder of the time it would take for her to get to Zoey's home. When they pulled up, Kass got out of the car again to move around to Zoey's door, opening it up with a small smile. "I believe this is your stop."

Kassandra helped her out of the car despite not needing to, offering her a hand. Sure, it was because she wanted to instigate physical touch, something that she didn't know she craved. Keeping quiet as she walked the short distance to Zoey's doorstep, Kassandra waited until Zoey had reached the step that led into her home. This gave them more of a level-playing height and it honestly was what Kassandra was waiting for. Fingers tugged lightly on Zoey's, getting the girl to turn around to look at her. "You're worth the risk." She breathed out, licking her lips. It was honest and terrifying and she almost shook from the fear of it all. Leaning forward, she pressed a soft kiss to Zoey's forehead, staying there for a moment too long to be considered just a friend. As she pulled back, she gave another smile and began to walk backwards away from Zoey. "And hey," She started, hands quickly being shoved into her jeans pockets. "The next time you see me on your doorstep... I'll finish what I started." Her cheeks were tinged pink at the implication but she gave a small nod despite this, turning around and heading back to her car until eventually she was out of sight.

#zoey ft. kassandra #kassandra #cinnamon roll meets sinnamon roll

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comicgeekscomicgeek · 4 years

Text

Chapter 75: Let’s Get This Show on the Road

Presenting the next installment of my on-going, nextgen, MHA fic! Earlier chapters can be found here

Some are mine, but a decent chunk of the 1-C kids in this chapter were created by tumblr user and number one fic fan on tumblr @uninvited-eon

“Okay everyone, gather ‘round!” Itsuka Tetsutetsu called out to her class. Around the common room, the sixteen students of Class 1-C began to gather, some listlessly, some begrudgingly, but none of them eagerly. Her heart ached for them.

Whereas Aizawa and Super-Ball’s classes had passed their Final Exam… her class had failed.

She felt a strong measure of guilt over that. They were only the second group of students she’d shepherded through U.A. and she could not help but feel like she’d failed them somehow. Had she not trained them well enough? Had she not stressed the need for teamwork and cooperation, of thinking things through? They’d all done well in their Heroics Class and two of them had even made it to the Tournament round of the Sports Festival. And yet, when it had come down to it, victory had slipped from their grasp. Aizawa and Fujii had both told her she wasn’t to blame, as had her husband, but she still felt the sting of failure. She’d already vowed to do better by her kids. She’d already been working on new ideas for the next term.

“Yes, Sensei?” Yoru Kan, tall, buff, and pale, asked from her spot on one of the couches. It was strange to think her old teacher had a daughter the same age as Itsuka’s own child, but such was life sometimes.

“I know you’re all upset about not getting to go to the Training Camp with the other classes,” Itsuka said.

Ichigo Minoru, the lion-like Class Representative, growled. “We should have done better.”

This earned him a glare from the pink-haired Momoko Hohki, who blew a gum-bubble generated by her Quirk, popping it noisily. “You want to say that again, Fuzzball?” The two had never really gotten along. Hohki had… issues with authority.

“I’m just saying we could have done better,” Minoru said. He held up furry hands. She knew he bore the loss heavily as well, taking it quite personally. He was brave and selfless, but he had to be wondering if his leadership skills hadn’t been up to snuff. “That’s all.”

“I think we all know who screwed up,” Kan said gruffly, crossing her arms.

Ayahiko Akiyama pushed his glasses up, the red frames standing out against skin that was even paler than Kan’s. “Well, it sure wasn’t me.” His color-manipulating Quirk had been useful during the exam, unleashing wildly shifting color patterns to disorient some of their foes, but the lack of responsibility was typical too. She and the other teachers hadn’t been able to get him to step up just yet. They were giving it time, but he’d either shape up for ship out.

“Like hell it wasn’t,” Reiki Akamatsu snapped, the green quills along her head bristling. “You and Enoshima both! Throwing up your damn light shows so we couldn’t see!”

Hitomi Enoshima, whose Kaleidoscope Vision Quirk made looking her in the eyes dangerous, took offense with that. “I told you to get out of the way! Not my fault you didn’t listen!”

“Shouting “get out of the way, losers!” doesn��t count as telling people to get out of the way,” Kin Shiji snapped. The parts of his face that weren’t patches of metallic gold were flush with irritation.

“Can we… can we not fight?” Shika Mizuno asked. The antlered girl bowed her head and closed her eyes. She was gentle and soft-spoken, reminding Itsuka very much of her friend and former classmate Komori. Trying to play peacemaker when the more outspoken members of the class fought was common for her.

Unfortunately, Mizuno’s words did little to quell the arguments brewing. Sides were taken, insults shouted, and things started getting loud very quickly.

Employing her Quirk, Itsuka enlarged her hands and brought them together in a singular clap that resonated throughout the room. It left some of the Class holding their ears, especially the lion-like Minoru and the bear-like Tsukiko Kuma. But it did its job and silenced them all for a moment.

“Sorry about that,” she said, reducing the size of her hands back to normal. “But I could tell that was going to get ugly. And fighting amongst yourselves is part of why you failed the exam.” There had been so much arguing, so many strong-willed hot heads in her class determined to do things their own way. They’d gotten in each other’s way during the exam, hadn’t coordinated properly, and ultimately the faux-Villains had gotten away with their target.

“You’ve got potential,” she said. “I believe in you. But there’s a lot we need to work on. Which is why, while the other Hero classes are at their Training Camp, we’re going to be having one here at the USJ. Water Spout, Doc Clock, and I will be putting you through your paces from pretty much sunup to sundown, with a particular focus on teamwork and collaboration.”

She frowned. “Failing your exam is a big deal. But it’s one you can come back from, with hard work. I believe in all of you. Which is why I also arranged for some extra help with your additional training.”

At that, the doors burst open. “Woooo! Who’s ready for some training?!”

Itsuka pinched the bridge of her nose. “Tetsu, I told you to wait outside until I texted you.”

Her husband blushed and smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, ‘suka. Got done dropping Kana off and got bored… figured you’d be ready by now.”

It was going to be a long two weeks.

***

Nearly all of Class 1-A and Class 1-B had already assembled by the time Katsumi arrived. She’d been rather insisted that she and Dad not arrive together. It was going to be enough of a pain having him as one of her teachers, but she could live with that. This was a practical matter of asserting her own independence. And there was some small part of her that wanted to take in everyone’s reactions when they found out about him. Maybe she ought to get her phone ready. Depending on how people reacted, she could get a new ringtone out of it.

Izzy gave her a polite nod as she approached. “It is good to see you, Katsumi,” she said.

“Good to see you too, Iz,” she replied. Thoughts of her dad’s promise to push all of them hard ran though her mind. She’d spent years thinking of Izzy as fragile and in need of protection. Even if the last few months of U.A. had told her otherwise, her first instinct was always going to be to protect her friend. Even if she and Iz weren’t romantically compatible, she loved her still, as the most important person in her life. “All set for roughing it?”

Izzy closed her eyes and nodded. “I believe so,” she said. “My parents were concerned, of course, but ultimately convinced that I would be in good hands.”

Of course they were. Katsumi nearly rolled her eyes. Izzy’s parents were crazy protective sometimes. Nearly all the time, actually. She’d have thought they’d have learned by now. Best not to think about it, it would just make her angry.

“Any idea where they’re taking us?” she asked instead. Even without Villains after the Hero classes, U.A. had stopped publicizing the location of its Training Camps years ago. It was a lot safer that way. Not that she’d been able to get anything out of Dad. He’d cited “tradition” as being the reason he couldn’t tell her. She was also sure getting on her nerves was also one of the reasons.

Izzy shook her head. “I am afraid I have no idea. We shall just have to see.”

Katsumi just laughed. “Ah, well. Worth a shot.”

In the meantime, she could see the Class Representatives making the rounds, with Toshi and Tokyami talking to the members of their class, and Kana and Awase talking to theirs. She could see Aizawa too, off to the side and in consultation with 1-B’s teacher, Super-Ball. She couldn’t hear what was being said, but Aizawa was giving the rubber-bodied Hero a death glare and looking like he wanted to be absolutely anywhere else on the planet. Super-Ball was talking animatedly and occasionally elbowing Aizawa in the side. Given what she’d heard about Super-Ball, her sympathy was entirely with Aizawa.

“Five hundred yen says Aizawa wraps his head up to stop him from talking,” she said to Izzy.

Izzy shook her head again. “What is it you would say? “That’s a sucker’s bet?’”

Katsumi laughed again. “You are listening.” She doubted Izzy had ever seen that small an amount of money in her life anyway.

Around them, most of the class was in its usual friendship groups. She could see Shinso babbling to Haimawari, who was indulging the hyperactive, purple-haired kid, nodding occasionally at whatever he was going on about. Sero, Sato, and Ojiro were talking as always, probably discussing content for their damned web show. The Iida twins and the new girl with the wings, Kocho, were watching the discussion with something somewhere between amusement, fascination, and confusion. Mineta was talking to Koda, while Aoyama and Shoji stood a little bit apart from the rest of the class. One person she did notice was missing though. It wasn’t until she looked around until she noticed…

“Hey, Iz?” Katsumi asked.

“Yes?”

“Why the hell is Kaminari hanging out with Monoma?” Izzy was friends with the electric dumbass. There was a decent chance she’d known what was going on.

“I cannot say,” Izzy told her.

“But you know,” she pressed.

“Chihiro has asked that I not speak of it.”

“…What.”

***

“What?” Chihiro asked, as Monoma slipped the bracelet around her wrist. It had been made in the kumihimo style, she could tell, yellow with just a little bit of black in it, like her hair. She wasn’t sure they were at the gift-giving stage of… whatever it was exactly they were doing. They’d gone out once.

Which had been nice, she actually had to admit. Nothing fancy, just a walk and some ice cream, but he’d turned out to be surprisingly good company. When he wasn’t being a competitive asshole or didn’t have Kirishima-Bakugo around to rile him up, he could actually be a decent guy, and even pretty funny. He was smarter than her, that much was sure, and ridiculously well-read, but he didn’t lord it over her and listened when she talked, especially about music, he actually asked questions and wanted to know more. He’d been more encouraging during that walk that he’d been in the entirety of the time she’d known him before.

More vulnerable too. He’d been damn close to quitting before he’d talked to her. And then there was the way he talked about his classmates and how much potential he saw in all of them…

She was beginning to understand what Mika had seen in the guy. Granted, Mika’s type was “alive,” but she was actually beginning to see why Koda willingly associated with him.

They’d talked on the phone and texted more on top of that. She’d actually found herself looking forward to it. Chihiro was well aware she was no amazon with pneumatic boobs like Mika or Sora Iida, or even a girly fashionista like Ojiro. She was relatively plain, her curves barely there. She was fit, but hardly a paragon of physical fitness, and she was never going to be the smartest person on the planet. Even her Quirk wasn’t that impressive without lots of Support Gear.

Having someone actually interested in her, for who she was, when there were so many other better options available was still a surprise.

“It’s a gift,” Monoma said. “I made it myself.” He smiled, sheepishly. “I watch a lot of tutorials on Viewtube, so I can pick up other skills. You never know when it might come in handy. Besides, it’s more than that. It’s a promise.”

“A promise of what?” Chihiro cast a few nervous glances around. Someone—Ojiro probably—was probably already noticing she’d been talking with Monoma for a while now and speculating wildly. Several of Class 1-B were definitely already looking at her.

She wasn’t exactly as embarrassed by the thought of people finding out she was dating him as she’d have thought, but she’d kind of wanted to control the message. But he’d been so insistent on giving her the bracelet before the busses arrived…

“It’s an apology too, for my earlier behavior, but it is a promise,” Monoma said, “that I won’t kiss you again.” He leaned in close, and his voice dropped to a whisper. “Until you kiss me first.” She was pretty sure she heard Fukidashi gasp.

Well, wasn’t that presumptuous of him? Why was he so pretty when he was being so arrogant? “Don’t,” she breathed, her Cords rising up reflexively, sparks dancing on the tips, “don’t you mean “unless?’”

He gave her one of those all too confident smiles, his eyes practically twinkling. “Giving up on us so soon?”

Chihiro flushed red and couldn’t find the words to respond to that.

***

Toshi looked down at the clipboard he was carrying, nodded, and looked over to Asuka. “That everybody?” he asked.

“It is,” Asuka told him, checking her own clipboard. Frog-Shadow was sitting on her shoulder, looking vaguely bored. “Everyone’s here, everyone’s luggage is accounted for, and the buses should be here in about ten minutes.”

“Good,” he said. Being Class Representative came with a lot of responsibilities, but his classmates made it easy. None of them put him through half has much as their parents’ class had put Uncle Tenya through. The worst he usually had to do was keep Katsumi from killing Mineta when the latter was being particularly aggravating or mediate a conflict between Aoyama and Sero. It helped that he’d known the majority of them for years and understood their eccentricities.

“Okay!” Toshi called out. “Everybody listen up!” It took a moment—Sero was being especially chatty—but eventually, everyone did quiet down, with Kaminari hurriedly joining the group at the end.

“Thank you,” Asuka told them. “Toshi and I both want you to know we expect all of you to be on your best behavior during the Training Camp. Aizawa-Sensei wishes for us to emphasize that there will be severe consequences for misbehavior.”

“He was really scary when he said it!” Frog-Shadow piped in.

“He was,” Toshi agreed, shuddering at the memory. “But I know you’re all mature, responsible individuals who can be counted on not to do anything stupid.”

“How’d you manage to say that right a straight face, Toshi?” Katsumi asked, arms crossed, grinning smugly.

“It wasn’t easy,” he admitted. “Now, any last questions?”

Mineta’s hand went up.

“That aren’t about fraternization during the camp?”

Mineta’s hand went down. Toshi breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned around and looked over to where Aizawa and Super-Ball were. “All set,” he called out. He heard Kana Tetsutetsu do the same.

The two teachers walked over so they were standing in front of the two classes. “Thanks, Class Reps!” Super-Ball said, grinning broadly. He spread his arms in an expansive gesture. “Is everybody ready for a summer of fun?!”

Silence greeted him.

“That’s right!” 1-B’s teacher went on, as though they’d responded. “Well that’s too bad, because Aizawa canceled all the fun. Your friendly neighborhood bouncing ball tried to talk him out of it, but well, you try arguing with that face. C’mon, make the face, Aizawa.”

Aizawa’s expression did not change.

“Yeah,” Super-Ball said. “That’s the one. Seriously, though, you guys are gonna work really hard. But I know you can do it, and you’re gonna be better for it! And we’ve got one extra surprise for you. You want to take this one, Aizawa?”

“Right,” Aizawa said flatly. “In addition to Fujii and myself, your new Heroics teacher will also be accompanying us.”

A dozen plus conversations broke out among the two classes, as they began to speculate who that might be. Toshi had known that with Grandpa Might becoming the new principal, they were looking to fill the slot, but he hadn’t known for sure that anyone had accepted the job. The weird thing was, neither Katsumi nor Shota seemed surprised by the news.

“Who is it?” Rika Bondo, the blue slime girl from 1-B, asked.

“That’s be me.”

“Uncle Kachan?!” Toshi stammered out. Uncle Kachan had appeared almost out of nowhere, no less stealthy for his recent injury. He was dressed comfortable, in civilian clothes, but still looked ready to take on any challenge that might come his way. There was the slightest of limps to his step, but you had to be really looking to notice it.

But never, in a million years, would he have thought he’d be their new teacher!

Someone had let out a girlish shriek. “Oh, man, Monoma!” Anime Fukidashi giggled. “You should have seen the look on your face!”

“Oh no, oh no, oh no, we’re all going to die,” Sero wailed. He’d gone a distinctly paler shade of pink.

“Well,” Toshi heard Izumi say, “this is unexpected.”

“This is… wow…” Haimawari trailed off.

“Guys? Seriously? I think Monoma’s broke. He hasn’t moved for, like, a minute.” Fukidashi’s voice carried over all the others. “Tetsutetsu, maybe you want to smack him?”

“I’m fine, dammit!” Monoma snapped. All eyes were instantly on him. He gulped nervously. “My… apologies, Senseis.”

Uncle Kachan didn’t seem to care and Aizawa was as impassive as ever.

“Breathe, kid,” Super-Ball said. “He’s legally prohibited from killing you.” He winked. “But you’d be surprised what you can live through.”

Uncle Kachan looked over at Aizawa. “Is he always like this?”

Aizawa just sighed. “This is actually one of his more sedate days.”

“And you didn’t think to mention that, you sorry excuse for a hobo?!”

“If I have to suffer, so do you.”

“You two do know I can hear you, right?” Super-Ball asked, though he didn’t sound offended. “And so can they? The impressionable children?”

Uncle Kachan sighed, then turned his attention to them. “I’m not big on speeches. So I’m just letting you all know now, All Might was the good cop. I’m the bad cop. And I’m gonna work you all like you’ve never been worked before!”

Several of the students gasped. Toshi was pretty sure he saw Monoma look faint. Katsumi just grinned that grin she did before she punched someone.

Anything else was cut off as the automated buses arrived, one of which seemed a bit larger than the other, probably to accommodate Kentaro Fukui, the nearly three meters tall member of 1-B. “About time,” Aizawa said. “Get your luggage loaded and then get on the bus. Class 1-A in the first bus, Class 1-B in the second. We leave in ten, with or without you.”

***

It didn’t take long for the buses to get underway. Aizawa was seated in the front of the bus, Uncle Katsuki in the back. The various couples in the class were sitting together, as were the usual friends like Chihiro and Mineta and Isamu and Shota, while Asuka was sitting with their new classmate Kocho. Their odd numbers meant that Shoji was sitting alone, though he didn’t seem bothered by it. And, of course, Izumi was sitting with Katsumi.

Izumi turned to look at her friend. “So,” she said, “I am assuming you knew about this?”

Katsumi smirked at that. “Oh yeah. All Might offered him the job a couple of days after the break started. He thought about it for maybe a day tops before he said yes.”

“Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

That earned her another smirk from Katsumi. “You didn’t ask.”

A smile spread across Izumi’s face and a small giggle escaped her lips. “That is true,” she said. “I did not.”

“Besides,” Katsumi added, “he swore me to secrecy.”

Uncle Katsuki would certainly be a… different teacher than All Might, she was sure. But he was Japan’s Number Four Hero, with numerous Villain captures and cases solved behind him. The media often liked to paint him as a volatile brawler, but she knew there was far more to him than that.

Izumi nodded. “He has a wealth of experience to offer. I am sure he will take to the role readily.” More importantly, Izumi was glad to see that Uncle Katzuki was doing well and getting back to something approximating normal. With traumatic injuries like he had experienced, it took a truly exceptional individual to come back from them. But then again, her father often said that Uncle Katsuki had “more guts than sense.” She was reasonably certain that he had not meant it was a compliment—especially as her mother had swatted him for saying it—but guts were definitely required here.

“Yeah, well…” Katsumi trailed off. Her dear friend rarely allowed herself to be vulnerable, and even here, it was only for the briefest of moments. “Beats having him mope around the house while he’s taking medical leave.”

Medical leave, not retirement. That was potentially promising sounding. “They are hopeful for a more functional prosthetic?” Katsumi had told her that her father’s Quirk made traditional prosthetics unwieldy for long term use, but that Doctor Shield and Mei Hatsume were working on a better one.

Katsumi shrugged. “Nothing yet. They really don’t know if he’ll ever…” Her voice started to crack, but she was fighting it. She so hated to show weakness in front of anyone, even her.

Izumi reached over and gave her friend’s hand a squeeze. Katsumi returned the grip, mindful that Izumi was not as strong as she. No other words needed to be said. As always, they would have each other’s back.

“But yeah,” Katsumi went on, her tone shifting back to something more in line with her usual self, “in the meantime, he’s going to make everybody here’s life hell.” She looked around the bus. “Pretty sure Aoyama and Sero might die. Maybe Monoma too.” That caused her to snicker. “Did you see his face?”

“I did,” Izumi said, her tone carefully neutral. She did not wish to encourage Katsumi’s delight in the misfortunate of others, though that was probably a battle she would not win. But Uncle Katsuki would likely be an unrelenting taskmaster, and she knew she could expect no favors or special treatment due to her friendship with Katsumi or her own limitations.

Limitations she would not have were it not for her grandfather.

No. She could not dwell on that now. She had learned much, but she was still deciding what to do with that information. Izumi had not even mentioned her visit with her grandfather to her parents. Mercifully, Chihiro and Mineta had not pressed her for details, respecting her privacy. Soon, she hoped, when she had time to grapple with the reality of it, she would tell her friends. But for now, she needed to focus on getting stronger. She would need all her wits about her for the camp ahead.

***

“Anxious?” Asuka asked Kocho. Frog-Shadow was dozing on her lap. Long rides always had that effect on her familiar. She knew their new classmate was already friends with Toshi, Haimawari, Sero, Ojiro, and Sato, but as elected Vice-Representative and unofficial “Class Mom”, she too had a duty to reach out to her, so she’d volunteered to sit with her for the bus ride while the others paired off. Frog-Shadow had been upset that she wasn’t going to sit next to Shoji, but her other half had to learn that, even with their increased cooperation, she couldn’t always get what she wanted.

The moth-girl shook her head. “Yes,” she said. “Sorry, did I just contradict myself?” Her wings were folded around her as much as she could make them, taking up the majority of her seat.

“A bit,” Asuka told her. “But understandable. Are you comfortable? I don’t mind pulling up the arm rest.”

“I’m fine,” Kocho said. “Little close, but it doesn’t hurt. This is still nicer than taking the city bus.” She gave Asuka a reassuring smile.

Asuka flipped up the armrest anyway and Kocho let her wings spread out a small amount. “I won’t say your anxiety is unwarranted,” she said. The truth of others experiences and feelings was not open for debate. “But this is very standard for the Hero Courses. They find a few Heroes or a Hero team from outside the school, so that they can bring a fresh perspective to our training, and under our teachers’ guidance, push us to increase the strength and versatility of our Quirks and skills. It will be exhausting… but ultimately rewarding.”

She looked down at the sleeping frog on her lap. Nothing but peace and contentment flowed through their link. Asuka was determined to enjoy it while she could. It wouldn’t last long once Frog-Shadow was awake. “Though what exactly they can do with this little one, I’m not sure.”

Kocho chuckled at that. “Any idea who they got to teach this year’s then? Or is that one of those ‘rational deceptions’ Deku and Shinso were trying to warn me about?”

“They keep it a secret,” Asuka told her. “Though it’s not a rational deception in this case. It’s really more of just a U.A. tradition. They like keeping us on our toes.”

This got a nod. “Makes sense, I guess. Any idea what they were talking about then?”

Asuka could hazard a guess. “You probably don’t have to worry about that,” she said. “If they try to drop us off a cliff, you can fly.”

“You’re, you’re joking about that, right?” Kocho asked, dark eyes going wide. “Tell me you’re joking!”

“Not at all,” she replied. She put a finger to the side of her beak in thought. “I’m told it wasn’t a particularly big cliff, though.”

“I still can’t tell if you’re joking or not,” Kocho replied.

“She doesn’t joke,” Frog-Shadow said sleepily, stirring on her lap. “She’s the most boring person alive! I’m the fun one in this relationship!”

Asuka looked down to glare at her living Quirk. “And here I was enjoying the peace and quiet.” She shook her head. “But I doubt there will be any surprises like that at this Training Camp.”

***

They’d been on the road for about three hours and the anxiety in the bus had practically become a palpable thing. They’d made two stops already for bathroom and snack breaks and Isamu was fairly certain most of his classmates were going to jump out of their skin every time. About the only people who weren’t waiting for the other shoe to drop were Kocho, who didn’t know any better, and Shinso, who didn’t seem to see Aizawa in the same way as everyone else. Between their parents stories of school and their own experiences so far this year (Sending real—albeit reformed—Villains after them? What?), they were all rightfully paranoid.

Granted, his parents had known Aizawa too, even if they hadn’t been his students. They’d said he was gruff, but fair, and had actually been supportive of the work they’d done, despite them being Vigilantes. That somehow didn’t make him any less scary.

Throughout the trip, Shinso had kept up a steady stream of talk about Heroes and recent Hero events. Isamu had nodded along politely to a lot of it, occasionally adding to the conversation, but mostly letting the smaller boy talk. The two of them had gotten into a debate though, over whether Shoto or Gale Force was cooler, when Shinso had brought up a recent team-up the two of them had had.

Shinso had been rather insistent that Shoto was cooler, especially because of the fast way he could take down Villains without anyone being hurt. Isamu, on the other hand, had gone to the mat for Gale Force, liking the Hero’s larger than life personality and All Might level of cheer. It had been a friendly debate, though neither one of them was backing down from their position.

The two of them were sitting more towards the back of the bus. Occasionally, Shinso would look back to where Ground Zero was sitting, his arms crossed, and looking vaguely irritated, occasionally smiling a very familiar smile, as though enjoying some private joke. It was the same one Kirishima-Bakugo made before she punched something. The Number Four Hero was their new Heroics teacher? Ground Zero certainly had a reputation as having a hair trigger temper, but there was no denying that he was also really good at what he did. The look on his face suggested he was going to get far too much enjoyment out of putting them through their paces.

He’d survived Kirishima-Bakugo this long. How much worse could it be?

“Toshi! Toshi!” Shinso piped up. “You’ve gotta settle this! Who’s more awesome? Shoto or Gale Force?”

Midoriya was across the aisle from them, sitting with his girlfriend. Sora Iida was leaning against him, absorbed in some technical manual. Midoriya was definitely making progress. Not that long ago, that much prolonged physical contact would have had him shaking like a leaf.

Isamu was hoping to get some time with his girlfriend as well, this trip. Kana had loved the signed Godzillo statue he’d brought back for her from I-Island (He didn’t tell her he’d lost the first one) and they’d managed to see a marathon of his movies between his return and the leaving for the camp. Hopefully, she wouldn’t be too busy wrangling her class that they couldn’t share a few moments of their limited downtime.

“Oh no,” Midoriya said quickly, “I’m not getting dragged into this. Besides, I’m a Lemillion guy.”

“Not one of the choices,” Isamu told him, chuckling. Leave it to Midoriya not to take sides.

“I stand by my statement,” Midoriya told him.

“Aw,” Shinso said, pouting, “you were supposed to agree with me!”

Midoriya just laughed. “Maybe next time, Shota.”

Before they could continue, the bus came to a stop. Isamu checked the time on his phone. They’d been traveling a while now; it had been a little over an hour since their last stop. They’d left the main roads behind after the second stop, taking back roads, until they’d pulled through a long stretch of wooded areas. He was pretty sure he’d seen more than a few security cameras mostly hidden in the trees.

He could see some kind of big building out the front of the bus window, and what looked like several smaller buildings spread across a well maintained lawn. Beyond them, he could see more woods and maybe a lake.

“Either of you recognize this place?” he asked Midoriya and Shinso. “Is it an Agency?”

“I don’t know,” Shinso admitted. “But it looks pretty cool! Whoever owns this place has to be awesome!”

Midoriya’s eyes widened slightly, his mouth making a small o before a grin broke out across his face. “Oh! So that’s who they got!”

“You’re not going to tell us, are you?” Isamu asked.

“Nope!” Midoriya said. Isamu hadn’t seen that mischievous a look in his eyes before. “Don’t want to spoil the surprise.”

***

Katsumi looked around as the classes and teachers disembarked. It was a big complex for sure. Not exactly roughing it, though the woods around the buildings might hold some surprises, and one of the buildings looked like fairly utilitarian barracks. It all looked vaguely familiar though. She’d never been here, at least, not that she could recall, but she was sure she’d seen it somewhere. Had Toshi shown her pictures? She wouldn’t have put it past him. Despite basically having Hero-stuff as the background radiation for his life, he still ate, drank, and slept it.

There were four Heroes waiting for them. One was a man with spikey, sandy blonde hair, wearing a black bodysuit that left his arms bare, with silver boots, shoulder pads, belt, and bracers. With him, there was a brown-haired woman in a pink costume that looked damn close to a princess dress decorated with darker pink hearts, who was even wearing a tiara. Them, she recognized, Ravenous and Lady Lumious. Ravenous had briefly been one of Papa’s sidekicks. He even looked a bit like Uncle Tetsu, though they weren’t related.

The other man was blond, tall, with a costume in dark blue, with red highlights, boots, and gloves, along with small, gold pipe-like structures on his arms.

Ah. So that’s who they got this year.

“Oh, shit,” she heard Monoma gasp. Katsumi resisted the urge to cackle. He was having a bad day for surprises.

“Why so down, little cousin?” the man in red and blue, the Hero called Boost Rush, Daichi Monoma, asked. He was a tall man, towering over his cousin.

“I am the average height for my age!” Monoma snapped back. “You could have at least told me you were going to be here!”

“And spoil the surprise?” Boost Rush asked. He had the same arrogant, Monoma sneer all of them seemed to master. Katsumi had to fight the urge to laugh again. Monoma’s misfortunes were always funny. On the other hand, he hadn’t actually bothered her in months, no since his failed confession, so she could at least make an effort not to laugh at him when he could hear.

Katsumi’s eyes fell on the last of the four, a woman with light brown hair, who wore a costume in black, green, and orange. There was more than a passing resemblance to Dad’s costume. Her light brown hair was done up in twintails. She had her arms crossed and was smirking. It was an expression very similar to the one Katsumi and her dad often wore.

Katsumi, at the front of the group of students, gave her a smirk right back. “They must be getting pretty desperate to turn to you, Old Lady.”

The woman’s expression instantly shifted to rage. She pointed a finger at Katsumi. “Still got a mouth on you, don’t you, Brat? Well, we’ve got two weeks to beat it out of you.”

“You could try,” Katsumi shot back. “Won’t you have to go to bed too early for that though?”

“Show some respect for your elders!”

“So you admit you’re old?” By now, several of her classmates and 1-B students were staring at her in open surprise. Some, like Sero and Kaminari, had taken several steps back and away from her. Toshi just looked mortified, while Aizawa was burying his head in his hands. Even Lady Luminous and Ravenous looked vaguely puzzled.

“And so it begins,” Dad growled. “Ladies, can we wrap this up?”

“I will when she takes that back.”

Dad just sighed. “Mahoro, you and I both know that’s never going to happen. Can we just get on with it?”

Mahoro Shimano, also known as Vanish Veil, just grinned, but gave Katsumi a look. “This isn’t over, Brat.”

Katsumi smirked right back. “Bring it, Old Lady.”

Aizawa cleared his throat. “If we’re all done?” he asked. He didn’t wait for an answer. “As some of you have figured out, this facility and the surrounding wilderness is a training facility used by the Rookies, a loose configuration of Pro-Heroes and Sidekicks, many of whom attended U.A. together, and of which Water Spout and Doc Clock are also members. They’ve got a varied skillset and are also some of the best trainers in the country; Agencies frequently send their new Sidekicks to them for additional instruction. You will listen to them, you will follow their instruction, and you will not fight with them, no matter your previous or personal relationships with them.” He gave Katsumi and Monoma an extra-long glare.

“Now…” Aizawa went on.

He didn’t get to finish. “U.A. Hero students… think you’re pretty high and mighty, don’t you?” a voice, a girl’s voice, broke in. Whoever it was, they weren’t one of the Rookies. There were five of them, she realized, coming out of the building. Katsumi instantly tensed for a fight, wishing she had the gauntlets from her costume.

The seeming leader of the group took a step forward. She was large, and powerfully built. “We’ll show you all how weak you really are.”

#itsuka kendo #shouta aizawa #toshi midoriya #isamu haimawari #katsumi kirishima-bakugo #izumi todoroki #chihiro kaminari #shiro monoma #fan fiction #fan fic #my hero academia #their hero academia #my writing

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the-hidden-writer · 4 years

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An Odd Family Tree

A series of snippets from the lives of the FitzSimmons family, set post 7x13. Also, the series of events that leads up to the birth of their grandson.

Available to read on AO3 and FF.net.

Comments make my day!

Chapter 17: Apology

Phil Coulson felt like he had seen it all. Norse gods? Ghost fire demons? Evil alien robots? Been there, been killed by that. Time travel was overrated. Seeing space got old. But there was one extremely little-known fact about Phil Coulson that he liked to keep private.

His weakness was young children.

Utterly awed by the little face staring up at him curiously, it was surreal for him to comprehend that the baby in his arms, in some other timeline somewhere, would grow up to be a member of the team he’d been part of so long ago.

His eyes flickered up to the many presents and cards littering the room. With the child in one arm (he’d forgotten what it was like to not be super strong, but even then the baby felt like he was a lot lighter than he should be), he stood up to examine them.

A few of the cards immediately caught his attention. He wasn’t sure if it was his super eyesight or if robots could even have instincts, but he was drawn to them all the same.

He opened the first one. It was homemade and had a picture of a fruit basket on the front. All of the fruit inside it were lemons.

Dear Alya & Owen, FitzSimmons, and Bobbi & Hunter,

CONGRATS!!! I’m so happy for you! I’m sure that little Deke is going to be a handful, but you guys can do anything you set your mind to. Alya and Owen, I know you’ll be amazing parents. FitzSimmons are obviously going to be the best grandparents. Bobbi and Hunter, please try to not blow up your grandson.

P.S. Daniel made the card but the lemons were my idea. I hope you like it :)

Underneath was a paragraph written in noticeably more refined handwriting.

Congratulations on a beautiful baby boy. I wish you all the best going forward as new parents and grandparents. Daisy has not left much room to write here but I know you will do a great job.

Sending you lots of love, Daisy and Daniel <3

Taking a closer look at the front, Coulson noticed that it wasn’t just a picture but an extremely detailed painting. It somehow didn’t surprise him that Daniel Sousa was an expert artist too.

That fanboy side of him really did never disappear.

He moved his attention to the next card that stood out to him. It had a photo of a grinning baby monkey on the front.

Dear Alya, Owen & family

Congrats on having a boy! We are so proud of you both. We hear boys can be tough, and we both have a feeling that this one might be tougher than normal.

I think Deke is a great name. I hope he enjoys his gift when he’s old enough to play with it. Love and miss you all. - Elena.

To Fitz and Jemma- we all knew this day would come eventually. I bought this card years ago, waiting to send it to you. I’m honestly getting emotional writing this. Make sure you tell Deke that his Uncle Mack loves him. You both deserve this. To Bobbi and Hunter- I’m finding it really hard to imagine you guys as grandparents. Deke is one special boy, so I’m setting you the challenge of giving him the world. ~ Mack

From Elena and Mack

Coulson smiled at the little light-up yo-yo sitting next to the card. There were various other cards sent by SHIELD agents that FitzSimmons had met over the years, but his heart twinged at the painfully obvious lack of one.

He missed May.

He sat back down on the bed. “You’ve already got a hoard of fans, don’t you?” He said, offering his finger for the baby to curl his own fingers around.

Deke gargled in response.

Coulson stifled a small laugh and instead took to looking deep into the green eyes of the innocent, unknowing child.

“You took your time, didn’t you?” He asked the baby. He paused before replying to thin air. “No, no you’re right. Fashionably late. Typical you.”

He took a deep breath, knowing he was about to do something that he had already prepared for decades. He had no need for the oxygen, but it helped him to give the moment a sense of finality.

“Listen,” he began to confide in the oblivious baby, “there’s something I never got the chance to tell you. When I first met you, when all of us first met you, none of us trusted you. But in our defense, you were a very untrustworthy person back then. I guess we learned later on that it was our mistake. We should’ve known, from the moment you first offered to go and help Enoch get us home, that you were different. Even after we found out you were FitzSimmons’s grandson, we didn’t change the way we treated you.” He had to stop to bite his lip as baby Deke tapped his arm with his tiny fist, almost comfortingly.

“I feel stupid about that now. I bet you think that’s stupid too. I wonder if we had this conversation in your timeline.” He laughed dryly. “I hope not, that just makes me feel even worse.”

“What I’m trying to say, is I’m sorry. We’re all sorry. We all regret it, even May. She asked me to tell you that if you were ever born. She turned out to be a surprisingly emotional person. Thinking back, I’m starting to think that you were the most emotional person on the team back then. Fancy that, huh? And still… you sacrificed everything for us. We wouldn’t have made it back without you, and I wouldn’t be able to talk to you now without you. You had such a crappy upbringing, pardon my language, and we just took you from your home. By some miracle you almost made a million in like, a year, and I’m not going to pretend to know how on Earth you did that, especially since that was like your first or second ever time on Earth. Seriously dude, everything about you is a miracle.”

“I still don’t understand how you did it. How you were immediately ready to get left behind to let us go home. In a completely screwed up timeline. I mean, it’s probably since it was never your home either. Anyways, I should probably stop putting this off, shouldn’t I?”

“I’m sorry, Deke. We’re sorry. And we can’t thank you enough for what you did. We all led happy lives in our perfect timeline and that’s all on you, buddy. So… thanks.”

Deke hiccuped and began to cry.

FitzSimmons came rushing in immediately, and it pulled at Coulson’s heartstrings to see that they had visibly been crying.

Jemma took Deke from his hands and began to shush him.

Fitz stood awkwardly with his hands in his pockets, not meeting Coulson’s gaze. “Are you done?”

“I’m done.” Coulson replied and watched both Fitz and Jemma’s shoulders sag.

“We’re planning to go for a picnic tomorrow,” Jemma suggested desperately, “we’d love it if you came with us! What do you say?”

He knew what they were trying to do, but Phil wasn’t about to change his mind. He’d waited for so many years to get closure on this one final thing, on one final person, and he’d done everything he possibly could in the meantime. He was ready, and he didn’t want to lose any more of his friends in his abnormally long lifespan.

“I think I’m gonna pass.” He said gently. “But you guys have a great time.”

Jemma sniffed, and Coulson didn’t waste a second to move in to hug her, pulling Fitz closer as he did so. He remembered when the two were both just awkward, genius science students. They’d all come so far since then.

“I’ll miss you.” Jemma sobbed into his shoulder.

Fitz’s voice cracked as he added: “We both will.”

Coulson let them embrace him for a few seconds longer, but soon Deke began to wail again. He took that as his cue to leave.

He was glad that FitzSimmons got their happy ending.

He was relieved that they got their grandson back.

#agents of shield #agents of s.h.i.e.l.d.#aos #fitzsimmons #phil coulson #deke shaw #leo fitz #jemma simmons #baby deke #fanfic #an odd family tree

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forever-your-soldat · 5 years

Text

Baby Girl

Part 1

It's been three days and Natasha quietly watches as Y/n sleeps in their shared bed, still in the form of a child. In any other circumstances, she would have distanced herself from children, but this was her girlfriend.

Tony and Bruce have yet to figure out how to reverse the girl, so Natasha was left in looking after the child, along with Wanda and Vision. Sometimes Steve would come along and play with the little girl, his natural protective instincts making him a mother hen around the girl and Clint, with his father instincts, would constantly dote on her and found it hard to resist when she asked for things.

Well, all of them couldn't say no when she would ask them with those big and innocent eyes of hers. But everything she would ask for was all reasonable except for the late nights and excess candies.

And true to her words, Tony bought every single thing he could think of for the little girl when he wasn't in the lab and needed to take a break. Bruce was also much more calm with Y/n's bubbly little self and he was found smiling more.

But during the past three days, Natasha can't help but find out more about her girlfriend that she didn't even realize before. Y/n was always filled with wonder, asking so many questions that she would normally already know, look out the window from up in the tower, and was always trailing after someone, never finding her alone unless they had asked her, but then they would hear her speaking with FRIDAY.

"Nat?"

The gentle call of her name snaps her out of her daydreaming and she smiles when she pulls Y/n to her chest. "I'm here." She told her as she brushed her hair from her face and kissed the top of her head.

"When will I see my mommy and daddy?"

Another thing. Y/n would always ask about her parents and Natasha figures that her entire self was reduced to when she really was four. She doesn't remember any of them and she'd gotten a bit surprised when Sam and Steve greeted them from their day out.

Y/n was clueless about her parents' deaths. She had no memory of having to constantly move or the time she learned about what happened and set herself to get revenge on the people that killed her parents.

The redhead struggles with it because she doesn't want to lie to Y/n, but if she was able to spare her from that heartache and anger, she was willing to keep quiet and let her live as a normal child for as long as she can.

"Well, they're still busy, honey. We don't know when they'll be back." She stuck with the story she, and the rest of the team, thought of when Y/n first asked.

When it happened, none of them were sure what to say. The only ones who really knew the details that weren’t in her files were Natasha and Fury but they all knew that they couldn’t mention anything about the incident. After a brief pause, Natasha came up with a lie that the little girl easily believed and just went back to play with the Scarlet Witch.

Natasha saw the small frown already forming on her face and it made her frown as well. “Come on, let’s go see what’s for breakfast.” She tried and Y/n nodded though she was obviously not happy that she couldn’t see her parents yet.

“I miss them.” Y/n whispered when she buried her face to the redhead’s neck and Natasha felt her heart twist painfully at the sadness that laced in her voice. She gently rubbed her back then kissed her head. “I know, moya lyubov. But we have to be patient, okay?”

She hated having to do this, feeding her false hope. Often times she thinks she does more harm than good, but to reveal that her parents were, in fact, dead, it would be too much for her to handle. At least like this, the sadness was only temporary.

“Good morning, you two.” Steve greeted them as they entered the kitchen and Wanda smiled at them from her seat, but a frown quickly replaced her smile when she caught on to Y/n’s thoughts before Natasha showed her a sad smile. “Steve is making your favorite, Y/n.”

At the mention of her favorite food, Y/n lifted her head off the redhead’s shoulder and squirmed before she was placed on the floor before she was running toward the super soldier. She quickly grabbed his pant leg and he looked down to meet her big e/c eyes staring up at him.

“Yes, sweetheart?” He chuckled, crouching down so they were at eye level and Y/n pointed to what he was cooking, though unable to see. “Are you really?” She didn’t even have to ask as he grinned and nodded his head.

“I am. Do you want to wait at the table?” But she shook her head and Steve laughed lightly then nodded before he carefully picked her tiny body into his strong arms and placed her on his hip, using one hand to finish making breakfast with Y/n watching in awe, giggling as Steve spoke to her every now and then.

Natasha smiled, relaxing as she saw Y/n finally smiling again. “She asked again?” Wanda made sure to keep her voice down just so Y/n wouldn’t hear them. “She asked as soon as she woke.” Natasha told her with a small shake of her head, arms crossed as she stared at the table.

One thing everyone on the team found out was that Y/n was a very honest and expressive child. It took them a while to get used to it because they’d all gotten so used to her being closed off, only ever expressing her thoughts when she thought it was needed, minus for when she’s with Natasha. Yet there were times that she refused to tell her girlfriend her troubles.

The more they found out about Y/n as a child, the more they saw how it contrasted to her now, and it pained Natasha to know all of that now. It made her feel a bit guilty because she knew that Y/n struggles with her past. She knows that she finds it hard to talk about. So now that she’s experiencing it without Y/n actually intending to do so has her thinking that it just didn’t seem fair.

Y/n was a very happy and innocent child. She was pure and kindhearted. And though she still was kind at heart, she had trouble showing it, she was more guarded that she’s subtle with her affections that it isn’t noticeable most of the time. It was how she and Natasha understood each other better compared to everyone else on the team.

“Y/n is strong. We just have to help her.” Wanda had smiled and Steve finally finished cooking, setting Y/n on a chair next to Natasha before he put a plate in front of her then set the rest on the table for anyone who wanted.

“Can I play with Vision today?” Y/n asked after she swallowed a mouthful of her food. Wanda smiled at her in reply. “I think he’d be happy to do spend time with you.” She answered and Steve glanced at her before nodding.

“He can stay here with you while we all go out.”

Natasha’s stomach dropped and her head snapped over to the blond. “What?” She asked as he looked sheepish. “Sorry, but we’ve been given a mission for today.” He explained carefully and by the looks of it, Y/n seemed upset because they were all leaving.

“What do you mean, all of us? Can’t at least more than one person stay here, with her?” Natasha demanded and Steve sighed in response. “I know you’re worried but Fury gave the order. He said that he needed all of us on board and with the situation, only one person can stay behind.”

“I don’t think it’s wise with just one person.” Wanda sided with Natasha, not at all pleased with leaving her best friend vulnerable. She knew that Vision would be looking after Y/n, but it didn’t ease her worries that something bad might happen while they were all away.

“There’s a very low chance that anyone or anything will come here.” Steve reasoned. “The fact that there is a chance is high enough for me to worry about leaving her with just one person.” Natasha countered heatedly. “HYDRA knows the state she’s in. If they find out that she’s here with only one person to defend her, they will send enough people just so they can get their hands on her.”

“This isn’t my choice, Nat! Fury was clear with his instructions and you know I can’t just ignore that even when I’m just as worried.” Steve said, uneasy with the conversation. He felt bad for having to leave Y/n behind, but he had no choice.

“You don’t have to listen to everything Fury says!” Natasha shot back.

Wanda glanced worriedly between the two. She wasn’t sure what to do, but she needed them to stop because she could see the discomfort on Y/n’s face when they started yelling. She tried to get their attention, but they were too busy trying to reason with each other to bother so Wanda ended up standing and taking the now crying child into her arms and walked out of the room.

She gently wiped her tears away as she made her way to the common room and sat down. “Shh, it’s okay.” She said lightly, carefully running her fingers through her hair as she calmed the girl down. “No more tears, little one. You’re okay.” She cooed and Y/n sniffled as she looked at Wanda.

“I’m sorry.”

Wanda cocked a brow in confusion as she held the girl. “Why are you apologizing, Y/n? You’ve done nothing wrong.” She told her and Vision came into the room, looking for her, then smiling when he saw the pair. But when he saw the tear stains on Y/n’s face, he immediately frowned and made his way over, sitting down beside his girlfriend to examine the little girl.

“Why are you crying, Y/n? Are you hurt?” He asked worriedly but she shook her head in reply. “Nat and Steve are fighting because of me.” She answered both his and Wanda’s questions and the latter smiled before she shook her head. “No, Y/n. They aren’t fighting. They’re both just very worried.” She explained while pulling the girl to her chest. “Don’t worry, okay?”

Y/n nodded quietly, trusting the witch’s words, another thing they noticed. She was very trusting of the people around her yet had troubles trusting people before she was turned into a child.

Vision glanced at the kitchen before he nodded then placed a hand on Y/n’s arm with a smile. “Do you wish to watch cartoons?” He asked and the little girl mumbled a soft yes, so he turned the television on and stopped when Tom and Jerry appeared on the screen, immediately taking away her attention.

“If it would be okay, maybe you should stay with her?” The android suddenly asked and the brunette pursed her lips. “I don’t mind but... I just feel like something bad will happen if there’s only one person guarding her.” She tells him and he ponders for while. “There really is no other option here. We cannot take her with us nor can we have another member be left behind.” He mumbled thoughtfully whilst his girlfriend nodded.

“If someone were to stay, I think the most suitable person is you or Natasha.” He claimed as he glanced at Y/n quietly giggling at the show, making him smile lightly.

Their peace soon ended when Natasha left for her and Y/n’s room, slamming it as she entered. The couple shared a look before they proceeded with keeping Y/n distracted until the others had to leave.

Eventually, Natasha made the decision of staying with Y/n. After her argument with Steve that morning, she didn’t feel like going out and deal with anyone else.

So when it was just her, watching as Y/n went around their room and babbling about the many things she saw, her mind kept going back to all the things she’s learned about her girlfriend and without noticing, a tear had fallen down her cheek. The only time she realized that it happened was when Y/n looked back at her and frowned before she walked over then stood on her tiptoes as she reached for Natasha’s face.

“Don’t cry.” She mumbled softly and Natasha couldn’t fight the smile that crawled up her lips and she held the tiny hands that pressed against her cheeks. “I’m okay.” She whispered back while she stared into her e/c eyes.

They were lighter compared to the one she’s used to, but they were still the same, staring at her with nothing but love, care, and adoration.

“Tasha?” She hummed before seeing the little shy smile on her face. “When I grow up, can I marry you?”

She was caught off guard. It was such an innocent question, but knowing that this was her girlfriend, who had been a child who wasn’t supposed to know her yet at that age, still had the same attraction. Knowing that Y/n’s heart still recognized her, belonged to her, had tears coming out of her eyes again.

“Why do you want to marry me?” She couldn’t help asking and Y/n looked at her oddly before she tilted her head.

“Well, daddy said he married mommy because he loves her a lot. They take care of each other and make each other happy. I already know that I love you and I wanna take care of you and make you happy everyday.” She explained while clumsily wiping away Natasha’s tears.

“Can I?” She tried again after not really receiving an answer and Natasha nodded her head. “Of course you can.” She whispered and a big smile spread across Y/n’s face before she kissed Natasha’s cheek then ran back to their room, returning a few minutes after with a bead ring in her grasp.

“I made this for you yesterday. Will you wear it until I’m old enough to marry you?” She asked shyly and Natasha had to bite her lip from sobbing and pulled Y/n into her arms. “I promise, I’ll wear it everyday.” She told her and Y/n had the biggest smile on her face.

#reader insert #x reader #natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha x reader #natalia alianovna romanova #black widow #black widow x reader #steve rogers #wanda #wanda maximoff #wanda x vision #marvel #avengers x reader #avengers #mcu

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okayoonoh · 5 years

Text

JUNGWOO’S FAMILY

a/n: i honestly can’t believe i’ve gotten this far! i’m so happy that i’ve been keeping up with these and i hope you guys have been liking them so far!

here’s the masterlist to all things nct dad related! go and check it out! i have so many other parts written already :)

KIM JUNGWOO:

he has three kids, all daughters. kim jia is the oldest, 3 years later, kim jieun was born, and 3 years after that, kim jiyoung was born.

(when jiyoung was born, jia was 6 years old while jieun was 3 years old)

KIM JIA: >> as a baby <<

she comes runner up in the position as calmest

she was so freaking chill like?

when jia was born, jungwoo saw his entire universe the second she opened her eyes and looked at her appa

you know how when jungwoo smiles, he looks like the little dumpling ?

yeah

that’s jia

she looks more like the dumpling then jungwoo does lol

jia was also pretty small when she was born

but that didn’t stop her!

when she gained weight, she mostly gained it in her belly and her face

she like was fine proportionally, but her belly was just so big lol

it honestly was the cutest

jungwoo nicknamed her mandu bc she was honestly just the sweetest little dumpling

she wasn’t shy when it came to her smiles

she was a little wary around strangers but that’s okay

jungwoo was honestly a really anxious dad

like he just would think that anything and everything can go wrong and he was just so nervous

but like jia took it easy on him dw

like if you had to leave for something for like a couple days

jungwoo would be so anxious about taking care of jia by himself

but then jia would just give her appa a pretty little reassuring smile

and he knew that he got it

jungwoo is honestly a really good dad

like naturally

he read a couple books and such

but a lot of his skills come naturally

he knew all of the things jia liked

he knew how to calm her down

she was honestly the worst with strangers

like if jungwoo or you had to leave the room

she would cry as if you left her forever

jia slowly learned that you guys still exist even if you leave the room haha

she was just so loving with her parents

>> as a child <<

she’s still just so chill dude

like obvi she’s a kid and when she gets excited, she’ll get excited

but she’s not like the “WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO” kind of kid

she’s more of a “woo”

she’s best friends with jeno’s oldest, lee juwon

juwon is a lot like his dad

he thinks that it’s so cool that jia is so smart

she’s kinda panicky lol

but juwon is just like weird with his humor and stuff

they still vibe together well tho

they both have the greatest smiles

like it’s one of those situations that they don’t have that much in common

but they just vibe so well together

she’s. so. smart.

jia is one of those people that school comes easy to them

like learning is just so easy for her

she was already learning really complex topics for her age

and she just kept wanting to learn more

she’s not super competitive with being top of the class tho

jia will tutor anyone who asks

even tho she’s smart

when she’s with juwon, they don’t make the best decisions

like if you send them to the store to buy more soy sauce or something

they’ll forget the soy sauce

but they’ll buy you like a pan or something

they once clogged the drain and turned the shower into a vertical bath tub

how?

no one knows

it was HE double hockey sticks to drain tho lol

when juwon and jia play, they play hard

like jia is the type of girl to be covered bruises

and she won’t care

she’s a really good sister to all of her siblings

she doesn’t really boss them around

but she will use her older sister powers if one of them steps out of line

like if one of them annoys her while she’s studying or something

she’ll use her older sister voice

she rarely uses it tho lol

>> as a teen/adult <<

she’s so heckin smart dude

honestly, probably the smartest person in the entire group

she decides that she really enjoys helping people when they’re at their worst

and she becomes a orthopedic surgeon

like she achieves to be head of surgery in her hospital

even tho she’s a doctor, she still believes in all the medical myths lol

for example

if it’s really cold outside

and jiyoung is going out for a run

jia will make jiyoung where like 500 layers

jia: “yoU’RE GONNA GET SICK”

jiyoung: “you literally just told me how that was a myth whY -- UNNIE I’LL BE OUT FOR LIKE 30 MINUTES I DON’T NEED TO WEAR MY SNOW COAT AND YOUR’S! IT’S NOT EVEN SNOWING.”

she’s so caring towards her siblings like it’s crazy

she’s proud of everything they do

jia watches every single one of jieun’s blogs

she watches every single one of jiyoung’s soccer games

she’s there for everything

jia doesn’t know what sleep is lol

she’s constantly studying and improving her skills as a surgeon

like even when she’s on vacation

she’s reading her books and stuff

her favorite place to study is qian fen’s cafe

she vibes so well in there

she’s honestly obsessed with her skin

lowkey a dermatologist at this point

jungwoo still occasionally calls her mandu lol

juwon is like one of the only people that knows how to get her to relax lol

she’s honestly a bit of a workaholic

jia can’t help it

she still cares so much about her entire family

she’ll get them in with the good doctors (discounts too)

whenever she’s overworked or overstressed, she goes home

being around family reenergizes her

she relates a lot with her dad

she’s honestly a mini version of jungwoo

if jungwoo can tell that she’s struggling, he’ll do the things he did to her as a baby

like seriously lol

he’ll find her plushy she had when she was a baby

and sing her the same songs

it would make you cry every time because it was so gosh darn cute

KIM JIEUN: >> as a baby <<

also super chill

jieun was honestly so chic

like it would take a lot to make her smile

like if know rohui from return of the superman

like she had the brightest and goofiest smile

but jieun had to keep her chic aesthetic and couldn’t show emotions lol

even when jungwoo and you were jumping up and down making yourselves look ridiculous, she still won’t smile

when, and it was rare, she did smile, it was a big smile

she would give you guys the biggest smiles just so show how happy she is

she wasn’t a super playful baby lol

she was just so chic like idk what else to say lmao

when jieun was around her squad™ she would smile a bit more

but she still maintained her image

she loved to babble

jieun wanted to talk as soon as she could

she would talk even before she knew how lol

like omg imagine

so like you’re with jia for something and jungwoo wants to take a roadtrip with his little princess

she’ll babble the ENTIRE way

none of them are actual words other than “appa” and “eomma”

and jungwoo would respond so well to everything

like he would have actual conversations with her

jungwoo wasn’t as stressed this time around

it’s different with two kids tho

but it’s okay

he still kept those natural dad instincts

jungwoo is so caring towards all of his children it’s just the sweetest

jieun honestly was just a chic baby

>> as a child <<

she’s super feminine

like she loves all things pink

all things frilly and pretty

soft™

her favorite game was all games related to being a princess

she really was your family’s princess tho

jieun was so creative from an early age

and she was so artistic

like she took up drawing, sketching, etc. all from an early age

and she’s super talented with it too

jieun is in the squad of her, jaehyun’s son, jung leon, hendery’s middle son, wong liuwei, and haechan’s middle daughter, lee haeun

jieun is the calmest out of all of them

but they honestly can all be so crazy

generally, jieun is like the one who is trying to calm everyone down

but when she’s in the right mood, she’s right up there with them in crackheadedness

she speaks in tiny

she’s still super girly tho lol

she starts to get interested in makeup in this age

jieun didn’t really like playing with dolls and such

but she did enjoy playing with those makeup sets

she would do her makeup

your makeup

jia’s makeup

jungwoo’s makeup

jiyoung’s makeup

e v e r y o n e

she becomes obsessed with beauty

jieun is one of those girls who you’re like “yeah, she is a GIRL.”

and she loves it!

it’s just her aesthetic :)

>> as a teen/adult <<

she becomes a well known makeup artist

still super duper chic and artistic

she’s known for her colorful and technically perfect style

she does makeup for all of the models and celebrities of the group

like if they want to go for the aesthetic look, they go to her

and she does an amazing job

she’s so talented with all things dealing with beauty

hair, makeup, nails, e v e r y t h i n g

whenever she models for anything, she does her own makeup

her fashion sense is always trendy

jieun has a pristine self image and she tries to maintain it

guys hit on her all of the time lmao

she handles it so well tho

she looks them right in the eyes, as intimidating as possible, and takes a deep breath

she then uses words that don’t match with her image at all

but they’re so scary

like people would think she was a delinquent in her past life with all of the things she says

everyone in her squad find this kinda entertaining

she just gets annoyed because she hates creeps

even tho she cares a lot about her self-image, if someone is being weird around her friends, she’ll do the same thing she’ll do for herself

it usually shocks the dude so much

she can beat them up too lol

jieun is chic and stuff, but being in the squad, she learned how to fight

and she can take care of herself haha

jieun is pretty reliable

like if she makes an engagement, she won’t run from it

she does a really good in keeping up with everything

she gets along well with all of her siblings

jiyoung takes interest in fashion and jieun helps her out

honestly, jieun really is that girl and it’s just so cool

KIM JIYOUNG: >> as a baby <<

she’s been a soccer player from the start

she had such strong legs as a baby

like being pregnant with her was not a fun time

when she kicked, she kicked

even when she was born

her legs were just aching to start running

jiyoung was very similar to jia when she started gaining weight

except her legs were a lot more chubby than jia’s was

jiyoung was an early riser from the start

every day, you would begin by stretching out the little baby

that’s when all of her gigles were

stretching time was jiyoung’s favorite time

out of all of your kids, jiyoung was the most social

jiyoung was fine with strangers

and jiyoung would give you guys way more smiles than jieun did

jiyoung just seemed constantly happy about life

it was a treat to see

in all physical things, she was advanced

literally the second she started walking, she was trying to run

she was just so active and wanted to explore the world

when she was a toddler oh no

you didn’t want to have to get one of those baby backpack leashes, but you had to

she was just too fast

even jungwoo couldn’t keep up with her

she was so excited all of the time haha

nothing seemed to calm her down

she would be full of energy until she collapsed pretty much

jiyoung was such a happy baby tho it was honestly so endearing

>> as a child <<

super duper athletic

she kinda seemed intimidating if you didn’t know her

but she’s chill dw

she put all of her energy into sports and she excelled

jiyoung is so talented in all of her sports

but her favorite is soccer

mainly because her dad was so good at soccer, she loves how she can relate with him

she’s generally happiest when she’s playing sports

she enjoys being the baby of the family tho

jiyoung is pretty independent in most situations

but when she’s around her sisters, she changes lol

like a lot of people think that she’s super cool and independent and no one can hold her down

but the second jieun needs help with something, jiyoung is on her way ASAP

jiyoung wasn’t super needy or high maintenance

she would just appreciate everything you would buy for her

she had really tan skin because she was out in the sun tho

even tho it’s “against the beauty standard” to have tan skin

she embraced it

jieun, the beauty guru of the entire group, said that jiyoung and the best skin

jia is willing to fight ANYONE who makes fun of jiyoung’s skin tone

jiyoung embraced herself and loved herself from such an early age

she’s best friends with yuta’s youngest son, nakamoto itsuki

itsuki is also a soccer prodigy

they relate a lot with soccer

they honestly compliment each other so well

like itsuki is a little goofy and stuff

and so is jiyoung

they both are super tan and athletic too

they just were meant to be from such an early age

jiyoung wasn’t really into things that were super feminine tho

she prefers “dirt over skirts”

jiyoung is such a hard worker

like she works through all of her sore muscles and everything

but she just does such a good job and maintains a positive attitude

>> as a teen/adult <<

a soccer player ™

she goes and plays professionally

she’s just so gosh darn athletic it’s so cool

she just genuinely enjoys playing soccer

jiyoung does have those days where she pushed herself too hard

but she just needs to see her family one more time to get back into the swing of things

whichever team she’s on, she becomes the face of the team

jiyoung honestly has the brightest smile and everyone loves it

when she speaks in any situation that’s not a soccer game, she speaks in tiny

but when she’s out on the field

she’s LOUD

so LOUD

she doesn’t know why she’s so quiet off the field but she just is lol

she starts to take an interest in fashion and such after establishing herself as a professional soccer player

jieun is like “dw jiyoung, i gotchu bb”

jieun knows her sister’s aesthetic and just rolls with it

jiyoung wears everything jieun tells her too

like even tho jiyoung has taken an interest in fashion, she sucks at choosing her own outfits lol

itsuki and jiyoung get together

everyone knew it was gonna happen lol

they were honestly soulmates from the second they met

athletic power couple of the century

if they have a match on the same night, they’ll wear the same color headbands and shoes

they do subtle things

like the even have customized cleats with each other’s names in them

on their biggest game days, they wear those cleats

honestly, it’s the cutest

like ugh

i guess you can say that itsuki and jiyoung are goals *badum tssssss*

jungwoo just wants to be there for all of her matches

jiyoung makes sure that the two of you get season tickets to the best seats in the stadium

jungwoo is so happy whenever he sees all of his daughters happy and together

he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

---

junguwu really out here with the uwuest family of them all :,)

i hope you guys liked it! i was struggling a bit with these three because i knew how they were in my head but i just couldn’t put it to words haha

anyway, lucas’s family is next~

- amy <3

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zontiky · 5 years

Note

Okay but au where they're not all related and five is a mysterious orphan Diego keeps running into at odd hours of the night and then him just being like "fuck it he's like 13 he can't be out alone at night" and then just takes him home like a godamn stray and five is THRIVING under the positive attention he never had I beg of you please feed my soul. Also sorry if this doesn't make sense I've had 2 hours of sleep and like 8 coffees today

i think i’ve read a fic similar to this but FUCK YEAH let’s do this (sorry im so late btw i havent been feeling bullet points lately fksjdfks) ALSO HEY OP PLEASE DON’T DIE I HOPE YOU’RE OK???

so diego is still a cop and he’s patrolling or doing whatever it is that cops do, and then he sees a kid sitting in an alley

obviously he pulls over like “hey kid you okay?” and the kid is like “shut up go away bootlicker” and diego is instantly “okay then come on im taking you to get food”

the kid doesn’t want to go but at the same time diego can tell he knows that there’s really no better options. this child looks hungry

so the kid and diego go to griddy’s and the kid says his name is five when asked

“that’s not a name”

“is too”

diego+fam have a long history of trauma and reginald called them by number which was their birth order or something? idk OH SHIT WAIT YOU SAID NOT ALL RELATED OK OK COOL SO

luther is a mechanic who diego knows because he’s the dude who’s often the one repairing his car, they’re on pretty good terms and go out for coffee sometimes because luther hates alcohol and diego’s body is a temple so he doesn’t drink

diego is diego he’s a cop but he’s highkey broke and i really don’t know how much cops get paid? hm

ok google says from 34.6k - 89.4k a year and numbers mean nothing to me so lets say he’s just a gremlin who lives in a boiler room because it’s efficient

OR he’s still dating eudora and lives with her

you know what that’s probably the better option i’m gonna go with that. they don’t have as much childhood trauma even though none of the “siblings” come from exactly good homes? but none of them were raised by reggie mcfuckface so it’s less like,,, bad even though they’re all fucked up

WAIT DO THEY HAVE THEIR POWERS

HELL YEAH THEY HAVE THEIR POWERS

ok ok so luther is a mechanic who uses his super strength and endurance to just fucking carry cars around his garage and i know NOTHING about mechanics as a profession but but but luther is good at what he does

diego is a cop who lives with eudora and throws knives like a boss. he also throws tennis balls really hard because stabbing people on duty isn’t advised

you know what? i’m gonna say allison ISNT a movie star, shes a smaller actress with minor roles here and there because she’s a mom and spends time with claire. she doesn’t use her rumor as much because honestly she doesn’t see a reason to? like sometimes she’ll go “i heard a rumor you gave me a free shot of coffee” and like,,, that’s it shfskd

her and patrick are still divorced but that’s because they did it the healthy way. they knew they were drifting apart but instead of rumoring him they broke it off mutually and they still meet up for coffee. they’re friends ok. claire loves her parents

klaus! klaus has problems but because im a soft bitch dave is here in 2019. he’s… also a mechanic…. they all know eachother but dave knows luther and diego pretty well. luther via work and diego via luther

yes klaus! so klaus has a history of drugs and addiction, because while he wasn’t shoved into a mausoleum ghosts screaming at you all the fucking time doesn’t help with staying sober

but because he has a support network he can fall back on he’s doing well, he’s a barista in a coffee shop that allison and patrick & diego and luther frequent

shoutout to klaus

five is an orphan he’s 13 and small and kind of a genius? fuck what if as a kid five accidentally time-traveled to 2019 and thaT’S HOW HE BECAME AN ORPHAN

galaxy brain

so five is this kid in the wrong time living on the streets not knowing how things work

i mean he does obviously because he catches on quick and he’s smart but really he doesn’t know how some shit works ok. he’s clueless when it comes to technology and pop culture and shit

ben!! ben is alive!! he’s a part time writer and a full time librarian!! he knows klaus because during his homeless days klaus stuck around the library because free bathrooms and also reading to take his mind off the ghosts. they become really close and ben gets klaus to move in with him and then he’s trying to get sober and then ben’s car crashes and that’s how they meet luther and dave OHHHH

additionally: klaus illustrates some of ben’s books because he knows how to draw yay

vanya! she’s first chair in the orchestra and she’s dating helen cho because i say so

so vanya kicks ass at violin, she’s being gay teaching lessons all that good shit what more is there to say

harold isn’t here because there was never an umbrella academy

hmmm back to the,,, actual plot,,, im sorry sksfhdjsk

SO DIEGO FINDS FIVE RIGHT

AND HE’S LIKE “oh no this child is awakening my paternal instincts oh no i have to take him home with me now”

eudora opening the door to see her husband boyfriend with an angry looking teenager at his side: dear god what did you do this time

eudora instantly bonds with five and i mean INSTANTLY like she lays eyes on him and goes “child?? small?? looks lonely?? must protect” and five looks at her like “badass looking lady she probably knows what shes doing might as well ask for info and stuff” but hes actually thinking “oh dang she looks like she knows what she’s doing RESPECT” and yeah ksdjhsdkf

then five expects them to be mean or just get tired of him and kick him out but?? they dont??? wack

diego is instantly like “kid where do you live”

‘um’

“you live somewhere right???”

‘UM’

they find out he’s legally dead and thats another can of worms entirely

so they register and foster five

diego and eudora are registered foster parents you cannot change my mind alright

then five is introduced to luther and dave, and also ben and klaus because theyre hanging around the shop bc it’s their off day

so five instantly has 4 more people giving him instant love and validation and he’s like “woah”

THEN ALLISON AND PATRICK

claire too,, claire immediately adopts five as her older brother

this entire time five is like “i can’t stay im gonna leave soon you all know this right” and eveybody is “yep ok sure” but they all know hes gonna stay

hhHHHH GAME NIGHTS

five beats everybody at scrabble

diego beats everybody at darts, even though everybody calls him out for cheating

vanya beats everybody at musical chairs. she levitates the chairs so nobody can sit down

luther beats everybody at outdoor games. do not play tag with this man you might not make it out alive

allison is the QUEEN of blurt!

ben is so good at charades it’s unfair

klaus honestly sucks at board games, but he always wins uno and nobody knows how (its the ghosts skfhsdkf)

five is so confused because its obvious all of them are cheating but??? nobody cares?? what

“it’s because it’s fun nobody is actually upset”

whaaaaaaat

so they have to explain to him that they dont play to win they play to have fun and its just a fun thing they do to spend time together and bond

five: mind blown

THEY TAKE HIM TO AN AQUARIUM

BEN JUST CHILLS WITH THE OCTOPI THE ENTIRE TIME

FIVE BONDS WITH CRABS

THEY ALL LOVE SEALS

five gets exposed to modern culture!! klaus and ben teach him memes is what i’m saying

five goes to school!!! he makes friends!!!! they have nice sleepovers and diego and eudora make them cookies :’)

i want to say. okay so.

reginald exists and he had made grace eariler as preparation for the children he was going to adopt, but he died before he could buy any babies

so grace exists! and!! she knows the “siblings”!!!

so five has a grandma because im not going to lie grace is basically all of their’s mom

she lives in the mansion but she can go outside and DO THINGS and she makes them COOKIES and she LOVES HER KIDS and GRANDKIDS and five ADORES her ok

basically five is happy with his pseudo family that’s it thank you for your time

wait no actually he figures out how to time travel safely and he does go back and forth

sometimes he pops in and he’s like “hey we ran out of milk” and then a second later he’s like “for the love of god wait until tomorrow to get milk dont ask why you dont wanna know” and its obvious that he came back from the future and HHHHHH YES

the commission can’t do shit because found family love is simply too strong

hazel and agnes are the nice couple who run griddys and birdwatch

five is fond of them too honestly like he just loves going to griddys because it has so many happy memories for him and its where he met diego (sorta) and also yay hazel and agnes!!

SO YEAH BASICALLY: FIVE IS HAPPY AND THIS AU IS GOD TIER THANK YOU

THIS IS A GOOD ONE I LIKE THIS AU THANK YOU

#asks #tinky-wink #tua #aus #hcs #rambles #stray au #team zero

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cornerverse-fma · 5 years

Text

Monster AU:

Since it’s Halloween, let’s post this son of a bitch that I’ve been holding onto for months!

So, basically, it’s ‘AU where most characters are some sort of Magic Creature’. Because fuck it, you know? The story itself is kinda canon-parallel, but I haven’t thought out everything.

Anyway, first I’m starting off with tidbits on various creatures and stuff instead of straight into the story!

Ed and Al, and Hohenheim – Dragon

Technically Ed and Al are half-Dragon/half-Human, but due to Human Adaptability, Monster/Human Hybrids come out full monster(Monster/Monster Hybrids are rare, but would have abilities from both).

Ed and Al are also bumped up in age, being 18-ish. (so are the rest of the teens but whatever)

First up is the Monster Lore:

Dragon Magic is remains dormant until Awakened(because would you trust the unbridled chaos of a toddler with the ability to set stuff on fire?). It’s designed to be Awakened by another Dragon(usually a parent/guardian) after hitting puberty-age. Ed manages to find a loophole in this.

Dragons have three forms. Full Dragon, Human Disguise, and ‘Midform’(Human with Draconic features like wings, horns, claws, tail, and some scale freckles). Most Dragons feel most comfortable in Midform. While the Midform is still Human-sized, the Full Dragon form gets bigger with age! Ed and Al are young so they’re about the size of a small horse, but Hohenheim is 450-ish and enormous.

While they have the standard Dragon abilities of flight and fire, they also have general spellcasting abilities. Speaking of, another Dragon Ability is to either resist/deflect Magic, or enhance it, depending on if they want it used on them or not. It can even work subconsciously. For example, Ed and Al trust Winry, so her using Magic on them will always work, but they will resist spells from random people. This is another thing that gets stronger with age, as Ed and Al only have high resistance, but it’s difficult to find a spell powerful enough to get through Hohenheim.

Dragon Hoards are also a thing, but not in the usual gold/jewels way. Think of the Unusual Dragon Hoards art. A Dragon picks an item and creates a collection. When the instinct first kicks in, the Dragon will gather up as many items as they can find and just pile it up somewhere and not let anyone in. It calms down after a day or two. Ed’s hoard is actually friends because he’s a dork like that, but it gets difficult when he suddenly has five people in a cuddle pile and gets Very Upset when they try to get up.

Dragon Magic is Unique in it’s Source. Most Magic has an external Source(Fey have Nature, Witches have Spells, Vampires use others’ blood, etc.) A Dragon’s source is their own Life Energy. Using Magic will use up their Life Energy, but it replenishes itself with time, rest, and food. Despite being tied to their Life Energy, it’s very difficult to die from overusing Magic, as the Dragon will likely pass out from exhaustion before it gets unstable.

Very long-lived, but not Immortal. They age at the same rate as Humans until their twenties, and then aging slows dramatically. For example, Hohenheim is 450-ish, but is equal to a 30-ish year old Human.

Also! Colors! The colors of a Dragon’s scales are not genetic. It’s determined by the emotions they feel when their powers are Awakened. Ed is red, a color of passion and love, Al is green for a sense of belonging, and Hohenheim is white for freedom. (Accent colors like on horns and claws and such are still their usual gold)

On to character-specific tidbits:

Ed and Al

A lot of their story mirrors Canon, in that Hohenheim left for reasons unknown, and Trisha ends up dying. They do kinda get on a ‘maybe we can cook up some necromancy?’ idea, but that’s shut down real quick.

Ed still loses his leg somehow, because that’s constant in all my Aus.

Instead of focusing on fixing their shit, the boys are instead trying to figure out what the hell they are. Because, like, no one really knew that Hohenheim was a Dragon. They knew he was more than just a Witch, but they didn’t know what he was. He did tell Trisha, but neither of them told the boys. And since Dragon Magic remains dormant until Awakened, they’ve experienced minimal side effects. None of which are common Monster traits.

So they’re studying different Monsters in a hope to figure out what they are. The plan if they run across Hohenheim is to ask what they are and also punch him(Ed says punch first then ask, Al says ask and maybe punch.)

This does lead them to working for Mustang.

Hohenheim

His story also probably mirrors Canon. I’m not entirely sure what all goes down or how Father functions in this AU(I think I’m doing the ‘evil twin’ thing again, in which case I’m making him a black dragon for contrast!).

Him leaving is definitely still connected to this, though when he’s not actively working on that he uses the whole ‘Dragons can negate most Magic and are rare enough that people don’t have special defenses for them’ thing to help people out. Especially Monsters that get kidnapped for various reasons.

Hohenheim is also less depressed in this AU! Like, obvs he still has some issues. But being 450 years old is a lot more common so he doesn’t have that Angst�� hanging over him. Nor does he have the Angst™ of said Immortality being gained through a bunch of murder, since it’s just his natural lifespan. So we get to see more of his not-depressed side.

Winry – Witch

Monster Lore is short this time. Witches in this Universe are highly debated about whether they are Monsters or not, as they are basically just ‘Humans with the ability to use Magic’. Different people have different opinions on it.

Winry(and her family) consider themselves more on the Monster side, doing doctor stuff for all sorts of creatures.

Of course Automail is still a thing, and of course the Rockbell family is well known for it. Specifically, they make Automail that also hooks into a Monster’s Magic, and will function as they do. For example, Ed’s still missing a leg in this AU. So when he switches between Human, Dragon, and Midform, he needs his leg to change too.

Ling, Greed, and Lust – Vampires.

So, a few character tidbits before the Monster Lore:

Ling:

Despite being a Vampire, he’s still the same age as Ed. He was only Turned a couple years ago. Reasons for that are… not fun. It involves an abusive ex, becoming friends with Greed and Lust to get out of that, and ends in a ‘only way to save his life is to make him a vampire’ situation.

Before that he was just a Witch. Kinda neutral on the ‘are Witches ‘Monster’ or ‘Human’?’ debate, but Monster-friendly.

Greed and Lust

Much like my Groupchat AU, the Sins Crew and Father are mostly not related except for these two, and the Sins did work for Father for a while but they’ve all kinda fucked off. (The Sins crew do mostly stay in contact though).

Used to be Human(maybe Witches?). They were from a noble family about 200 years ago. Greed was Turned thanks to political drama, and was kicked out of the family. Lust willingly went with him.

While they’re around 200, due to Vampires being a bit frozen in time, they’re only a little older than Ed and Ling.

They operate this Universe’s version of the Devil’s Nest, which is a Montser-friendly bar.

Some Vampire Lore applies, some doesn’t.

They don’t have to be ‘invited in’(But they typically stick to societal rules of ‘don’t break in like a jackass’)

Sunlight and Garlic sort of bother them, but not like in some lore. They’re designed to be nocturnal, so being out in the sun is like ‘wtf???’ to their senses. Same with Garlic, which can easily overload their sense of smell(but so can any strong smell)

They can be burned by silver

The no reflection/can’t be photographed thing is sort of true. Old mirrors and cameras used silver. Nowadays mirrors use cheap metals and photo/video is digital, so they show up.

Religious symbols are tricky. It depends on how much the Vampire and the person warding them off believe in said religion.

Vampires have an ‘Enthrall Enchantment’, but it’s not, like, straight up hypnotism. It just kinda makes the person they’re biting feel a bit good and fuzzy and not really in pain. It also helps heal the bite afterward. I’ll discuss this more later.

Vampires need blood, but it doesn’t have to be Human blood. It’s just safest because Monster Blood can have various side effects.

Werewolf blood causes an effect similar to alcohol.

Fae blood causes a different prank each time(minor stuff, like turning your hair purple for a week)

Blood from Monsters related to Religions(like Angels or Demons) are actually poisonous.

Dragon blood causes a large power boost.

This is the Loophole Ed found for Awakening Dragon Magic.

The blood they drink has to be relatively fresh. ‘Straight from the tap’ is best, a vial of blood is good for a few hours

There is the question of ‘do Vampires need blood to live?’.

Technically? They get very weak if they don’t, especially in the Magic Department. But they usually die from said weakness than outright ‘not getting blood’.

Vampires are Immortal as long as they continue to drink blood. even to the point of self-healing if they have enough.

Technically, a Vampire doesn’t need to eat or sleep if they have a decent blood source. However, it is better for them if they do as they can last longer between ‘drinks’.

Much like the other side effects I listed before, different blood lasts longer. Dragon blood would last longer than Human blood, for example.

Mustang – Faerie (Fire-based)

An odd choice for him, but I’m running with it!

Time for Monster Lore:

All Fae love legal loopholes and the bullshit technicalities.

Usually Faeries are somewhat allergic to metal(especially iron). Occasionally there are ones that have no issue it, but it’s super rare.

A Faerie’s Magic Source is some form of nature. Fire-based ones have the ability to sort of create their own source(they can magically light fire to become their source). Think how stuff works in ATLA. Water users need a body of liquid, earth users need earth, but fire users can kinda make it themselves in decent conditions.

They’re still effected by other Elements though. Mustang’s whole ‘useless in the rain’ thing is still a problem. Even more than Canon. Like, he won’t die if put in water(the man has to shower sometimes), but it does make him very low-energy and overall weaker. He does not like swimming.

Also! Faerie Wings!! Gotta have those! The colors resemble a Faerie’s respective Source Element, but aren’t made out of it, so no literal fire wings. They do glow a lot when using powerful Magic. They can also be ‘put away’ to pass as Human(or just for convenience of not knocking shit over in narrow hallways).

Character tidbits

One of the few Fae that don’t have an issue with metals.

Between that, and the fact that the wings are usually ‘put away’, most people assume he’s just a Witch. He doesn’t correct them as it does make him more liked.

He subconsciously feels a connection to Ed and Al due to his Fire Magic nature picking up on their Dragon Fire. It’s one of the reasons why he tolerates their shenanigans(the other reason being that after about ten minutes getting to know them he was like ‘okay you’re my kids now’)

mini things on other characters that I don’t have story for yet:

The rest of the Sins Crew:

Envy is a shapeshifter(of course).

Pride is some sort of shadow monster(again, of course.)

Sloth is one of those Dream Eater Spirit things? You know what I’m talking about. He spends most of his time asleep in the Dream Realm.

Idk about Gluttony or Wrath yet.

Mustang’s Team!

Idk what everyone is yet, but they’re all Monsters of some sort.

Hawkeye is absolutely something with wings tho because HAWKeye!

Not sure what Mei is. Maybe just a Witch, but maybe something more? (obvs on her mom’s side though).

I also want to put Lan Fan in, but I’m not sure where or what she’d be? I think what happens here is that she was friends with Ling, but then his whole ‘bad relationship and becoming a Vampire’ thing happens. She feels guilty for not protecting him from that, and they end up going separate ways for a while, but they’d end up reconnecting at some point.

Story Plot Points!

The whole thing kinda kicks off because Ed and Ling are dating. Yes. Really.

Like, they get to that point in the relationship where Ling invites Ed over and is like “Okay, so I’m not actually Human?”. Because that’s a talk people have to have at somepoint

Ed’s like “cool me neither?”. He further explains the whole thing of how he knows he’s a Monster of some sort but doesn’t know which kind.

He then proceeds to ask a fuckton of questions about Vampires because he hasn’t studied one in-person before, and he noticed Ling goes against the typical rules(can’t go in sunlight, must be invited in, etc.)

As they’re talking on this, Ling mentions that different Monster blood has different effects.

Ed’s thought process is that he could use this to narrow down the search for what kind of monster he is by seeing the effect his blood has on Ling.

Ling’s… hesitant for several reasons.

But Ed insists and makes it very clear that he’s okay with it.

This is where the loopholes kick in!

As Vampire Magic uses the blood they drink, it also counts as the Magic of that creature. So Ling using Ed’s blood qualifies as Dragon Magic, and since the Enthrallment is in effect, that kickstarts Ed’s Magic.

This causes a panic as Ling’s Magic is suddenly a hell of a lot stronger and the Enthrallment is a lot more intense.

There’s also panic because once they stop that part, Ed’s just like ‘Holy FUCK I feel GREAT!’, but Ling knows he shouldn’t feel that good right now and he’s overheating. He’s like ‘Okay, that good feeling is probably you hallucinating or something so let’s go into the bathroom in case you throw up?’

And then Ed just kinda bursts into flames? Luckily they were already in the bathroom so Ling just kinda douses him in the shower.

Next day they head back to Ed’s place (He and Al live with Winry in this AU?). And they explain what happened. They agree that they have a decent lead here, but they need someone more knowledgeable. And, well, Ling knows some people.

Ling takes them down to the Devils’ Nest. As mentioned, Greed and Lust run the place.

They talk to Greed mostly. After explaining everything, he tells Ed to try something. Said thing ends with the boy breathing fire.

Greed’s just like ‘congrats kid you’re a fucking Dragon!’.

Greed and Lust share various tidbits about what they know about Dragons, but admit that there’s probably a lot of stuff they’re forgetting or just straight up don’t know.

They explain the whole ‘dormant Magic only activated by Dragon Magic’, and the probable loophole.

They also explain that once Ed finishes the ‘Awakening’, he’ll be able to ‘Awaken’ Al’s Magic easily. (Though Greed does offer to recreate the loophole(Al is very flustered but currently declines))

Speaking of, they do warn Ed that there’s a bit more to go through. Mostly that he’ll have three forms, but the first time he transforms will be involuntary and painful. Best way to deal with it is ‘when you feel your back start to itch like crazy, take some strong pain meds and lay on your stomach’.

By the time they get back home, Ed’s starting to feel that. So he decides to just go to bed early, and everyone else just kinda tries to sleep too. (like, he says he’s fine and they don’t hear him screaming so he’s probably good?). Ling also stays, but since Ed wants his space for this he stays on the couch.

Next morning, Ed comes down and everyone is fuckin floored. They’re staring but he doesn’t notice at first because he’s very hungry and raiding the fridge for everything.

Basically, since his Magic was supposed to be awakened years ago, his body kinda stopped growing, resulting in him looking a bit ‘stuck at 15’. Now the Magic is making up for lost time, so it’s a somewhat literal ‘puberty hit him like a truck’ situation. (Ling and Winry are both like hearteyesmotherfucker!

Like, you know that picture comparing Ed in the early episodes of fma:b to the later episodes and being all ‘look how much he grew!’? That, but overnight. Ya boi got kinda tall. He’s still shorter than Ling but he’s taller than Winry. (With the potential to grow taller now!)

One of the reasons for the height is that he’s in his midform, aka: Human with Draconic features. This includes his legs being digitigrade, so it’s kinda like he’s constantly standing on his toes. (His Human form is technically shorter because of this).

They also focus on the Dragon-y features more. Like the wings, and the horns, and the tail!! His eyes are the slit-pupil thing, and while his teeth have always been kinda sharp he now has full on fangs. Then they also notice his arms transitioning from skin to scale, starting at the elbow until his hands are claws. (his regular leg also does this from the knee down). His ears are also pointed and scale covered, and he has a few scale freckles on his cheeks.

They have about five minutes of normal before something goes weird. Because suddenly Ed is being ridiculously clingy but is seemingly unaware of how weird that is and cannot seem to explain why.

They’re like ‘why are you hugging me?’ and he’s like ‘Why wouldn’t I be?’. And like, if they try to step away for a minute he gets very Upset™

Somehow they manage to make it back to the Devils’ Nest to ask Greed. The group finds a seat on a couch and at this point Ed’s in full cuddle mode, just hugging the three of them and laying across them and he’s kinda like a cat on catnip.

When Greed gets within five feet, Ed suddenly shoots up and stares at him. He freezes, waiting for Ed to make a move. When Ed nods, he takes a step closer. When he takes a second step, Ed pounces forward and drags him into the cuddle pile.

Greed is mildly confused, but explains to the others that this is just the ‘hoarding instinct’ kicking in, and he’ll be back to normal soon enough.

Since he’s not allowed to leave(Ed is stronger than he looks and also even if Greed could leave Ed’s fucking face is too much), he kinda tells Lust to take over running the bar for the day.

The whole ‘get within five feet and Ed shoots up’ thing happens with her, but Greed calms Ed down by saying ‘it’s okay she’s a friend’.

Of course, when she goes to leave, she finds that while she was out of range of Ed leaning over to grab her, she didn’t notice the tail around her leg.

She gets dragged in, and while Greed tells someone else to take over(from a distance), he also suggests they take this party upstairs.

Al says a thing about ‘can you stop flirting for five seconds?’. Greed responds with a ‘while I would love to invite you to my bed for other reasons, now is not the time’.

Al gets oddly flustered by this

They’re trying to figure out what the connection is between all of them that makes them part of Ed’s Hoard. Lust asks more directly ‘why the fuck did you drag me into this??’. And Ed just points to Greed and says ‘He said you are a friend.’. as if it makes complete sense.

Turns out that Ed’s hoard is friendship. And combined with the fact that(despite his grumpiness) he gets easily attached, it took little for Greed and Lust to be considered friends.

Everyone does have the freedom to leave, and sometimes they do because they need to get up and stretch or use the bathroom or grab a snack. But whenever they do Ed just sits up and stares at the door until they come back.

By the next morning, Ed’s kind of back to normal. Like, he still has the instinct in there and all, but everyone can do their own thing and Ed’s a lot more calm. He’s also very embarrassed about the whole thing.

Of course, Ed and Al remember they were supposed to drop by Mustang’s office a few days ago. Mostly because they get a call like ‘are y’all okay?’.

Ed shifts into the Human Disguise form to head down there, but everyone still notices something is up because he’s suddenly the same height as Hawkeye.

They’re all like ‘okay kid. Drop whatever tall spell you found this time’. Ed just grins maniacally and says ‘it’s no spell! I look like this now!’. Al confirms it, but is realizing how obnoxious Ed’s going to be about the height.

They explain that they figured out what the hell they are, and Ed shows off both the full Dragon form and the Midform.

Obvs the team asks how they figured it out, and Ed explains that Dragon Magic is dormant until another Dragon Awakens it, but they found a loophole.

‘Wait, a loophole? What loophole?’, “Uh… a Vampire using my blood?’, ‘Did you get attacked by a Vampire?!’, ‘No, it’s a friend and I asked him to because different monster blood has different effects’, ‘and you were okay with a guy just getting all up in your personal space and biting your neck like that?’, “Well, he’s the kind of friend where I’d be okay with him‘getting all up in my personal space and biting my neck’ anyway.’. ‘Oh.’

Yeah. They didn’t know Ed was dating anyone, much less a guy. So that’s a conversation.

When asked why it’s just Ed who went through the whole thing while Al’s still ‘normal’, they say that they’re mostly waiting to see what all happens to Ed and how to deal with it.

Although, Ed does point out that if they don’t do it soon it’ll probably happen accidentally since it’s basically a ‘next time he uses Magic on Al situation’.

Then Ed’s like ‘Or, you know, you could always ask Greed to ‘recreate the loophole!’. Al gets very flustered again and is just like ‘willyoushutthefuckuppleaseohmyfuckinggod’

Overall, they’d like some report on what else they find out.

Next plot goes on to ‘testing out powers’. Specifically. The boys want to test out the ‘resist and enhance’ aspect.

They bring in Ling and Greed for this, killing two birds with one stone and also studying the Vampire’s Enthrallment at the same time.

Of the various things they’re testing:

Resisting the spell

‘enhancing’ the spell

differences between the resist/enhance skill of an Awakened Dragon vs. not Awakened

if the Enthrallment Enchantment is different between Vampires(and between who it’s being used on)

Ed and Al also already came up with a ‘payment method’, since they’ll be asking Greed and Ling to use up a bunch of Magical Energy to do this. Said payment is, of course, blood. Ed will ‘pay’ for Ling, while Greed and Al get to ‘recreate the loophole’.

We’re going to jump right into my Al/Greed Rarepair because fuck it it’s my fanfic and I pick the ships!

So their banter has been going back and forth for a bit. Like, at first it was just Greed flirting and Al getting flustered, but once Al gets into the rhythm he can kinda flirt back but neither really realized it was more than banter until now

Al realizes it because of what they figure out about the Enthrallment. Because it effected them differently and the emotions it brought forth wasn't anything unfamiliar. Like, Al found Ling’s Enthrallment to be comfortable, because he’s a friend. But Greed’s made him fluttery and giddy and all that. Meanwhile, Ed felt the opposite.

So when they are alone and he has Greed biting his neck, Al ends up going in for a kiss.

And while the feeling is returned, it leaves Greed somewhat flustered and confused. He manages to distract Al with the ‘you’re probably gonna catch fire in a minute so maybe deal with that first’ thing.

Next time they really see each other is after Al’s turn with the ‘puberty hit him like a truck’ situation, but Greed’s kind of… he’s still a little hesitant and confused about things so he’s giving Al space, but Al doesn’t know that so it’s like ‘is he avoiding me?? Why??’.

Al even wonders if it has something to do with his Midform, and tends to stay in Human Disguise more often around Greed.

Next time they’re alone for a bit they end up talking that out though. And also making out I guess.

Okay! So! A Lot of other plot stuffhappens.

Like, probably things like meeting other characters and also the rest of the Sins Crew, finding out about various fuckery going on. I mean, I did say that while the Sins Crew all kinda left, Father himself is still an Asshole™ and doing some major villain stuff.

So they find out all that and a bunch of other things too. I haven’t thought all that out yet.

Out of the stuff that I have planned out though, the next thing to happen is Ed getting a little kidnapped. Idk exactly ‘why’, other than ‘some assholes are grabbing random monsters’, but who knows what they’re doing with them it’s not important.

Anyway, Ed’s already on his way to break out, when he happens to run into Hohenheim.

Oh boy is that a trip. I mean, first off we have them just being ‘why the fuck are you here? Why am I here? Why are you here?!’ and just generally being that pointing spiderman meme. After the initial shock, Ed’s kinda ready to punch, but then Hohenheim just says things that Ed didn’t expect.

Like, Ed expected Hohenheim to just be some asshole who never cared. But he’s immediately concerned about Ed and seems to, you know, care about him.

The thing that really hits him though is when he says something along the lines of ‘Let’s get you out of here and back home. Your mother’s probably worried about you!’.

He realizes ‘oh god he has no clue’. And then he realizes ‘oh god I’m going to have to tell him’.

And like, I’m not gonna get too into that Angst Fest™, but there is kind of a minor breakdown because how else do you react to that news?

But that whole thing is enough to make Ed stop and think things through and overall give Hohenheim chance.

They then end up going on their own adventures while Ed tries to get back home.

And of course various strange bonding experiences happen along the way

A lot of that bonding is learning about Dragon Tricks. Especially flying because while Ed kinda figured out a little bit he hasn’t had anyone with wings(or at least the same kind of wings) to really teach him.

During one flight Ed suddenly catches a familiar scent

obvs everyone is looking for Ed, and he manages to find Ling, Greed and Lust

Ed does a literal flying tackle at Ling and knocks him over. There’s a minor fight because Ling doesn’t realize he’s not being attacked but you know.

After hugging the fuck out of Ling, Ed tells Greed and Lust to get down there too. Greed’s like ‘hell no I’m not getting on the ground to hug you!’ but he forgets about the tail. Lust gives in.

They ask what the fuck happened and Ed’s like ‘where do I even begin??’

At some point Hohenheim had popped up and is like ‘maybe start with introductions?”

then you get the comedic thing of the Vampires looking up, and then continuing to look up, and then being terrified of the giant fucking dragon.

Ed’s just all causal like ‘so, uh, I found my dad?’.

Walking into the nearest town is fun

Ed’s kinda clinging to Ling because goddamn it he was lonely!

At some point Ling kinda starts to stumble a little and Ed’s concerned. Greed says ‘he’s fine he’s just and idiot’.

Basically Ling hasn’t had any blood since the last time he drank from Ed. Which was a while ago at this point, so he’s kinda getting a little weak. Not dangerously but imagine the feeling of pulling an all nighter without caffeine.

Ed offers, but Ling brushes it off by saying if he took a drink now, then Ed would be the one weak and stumbling so it doesn’t make a difference, it can wait until they get a place to stay for the night.

Not putting up with that shit, Ed transforms into Full Dragon and offers a ride. Ling’s a little bit like ‘really??’

Greed’s kinda jokingly like ‘why don’t I get offered a ride?’. Ed says ‘well, when we get back home you can ask Al.” Greed opens his mouth to make a joke, looks over to Hohenheim, and decides he really should shut up.

Lust is kinda like ‘hey. Why are we walking into town when we have a large Dragon that can carry all of us?’

Hohenheim’s answer is ‘First of all, I am not a taxi service. Furthermore, if people saw a large Dragon land in the middle of town, they would freak the fuck out.

Ling falls asleep on the way back.

They manage to get a hotel room in the next town they come across. Ed and Ling get their own room, of course.

They go to do the whole ‘blood drinking’ thing, but Ling’s still very hesitant.

Ed has noticed this a lot and at first he figured it was the typical ‘I’m new to being a Vampire and hesitant to do something so weird/taboo/etc.’ thing, but now he’s getting the feeling its something else and ends up asking about it.

So, big trigger warning for that whole ‘abusive relationship’ thing I mentioned way back in the beginning. But, like, that’s kind of what’s up. Like, his Ex used to use the effect of the Enchantment to be manipulative. And Ling’s kind of afraid of accidentally doing that to Ed.

Ed just points out that 1. he knows when Ling is using the enchantment and knows how to separate his feelings from it, 2. the enchantment itself doesn’t make him feel all love-y (he brings up the whole ‘testing it with Greed’ thing as proof, since it didn’t spark any romance with Greed.), and 3. Ed is a Dragon. His own Magic can cancel out the Enchantment if he chooses to do so.

The whole thing does get Ling to relax about it. It’ll still take a while for him to get comfortable using it on Ed, but now Ed knows to not try doing anything romantic while under the Enchantment.

Okay! On with that! The group eventually gets back to home base and they meet up with Al and Winry and whoever else is a friend at this point.

Ed fucking tackle hugs them, of course.

After that Al and Winry notice Hohenheim and they can’t even figure out how to process that they just gesture like ‘what the fuck?’

Ed explains what happened and they’re kind of like ‘you know what fine.

Time for more family bonding with Hohenheim talking to Al for a while.

Time for another Rarepair because this is my fic and I choose the ships!

So, like, Mustang meeting Hohenheim.

Mustang’s just like, staring for a bit. And it’s not helped by the fact that Hohenheim has no sense of personal space when he’s investigating other creatures(because he’s a nerd and that’s what he likes to do).

Mustang is flustered to the point that Ed and Al actually notice and are like ‘bruh what is up with you?”

Obviously he lies as tries to say it’s a reaction to a large source of fire magic. Ed and Al are like ‘really? Because you never do that around us.’

Someone (Probably Hughes) eventually calls him out says ‘magic reaction my ass you think the guy’s pretty!’

Ed and Al are confused by this revelation but are kinda chill with it? Mostly they don’t know how to feel so they’re just going to be chill out of confusion.

That’s all I got on the plot so far because fuck it.

#Monster!AU #EdLing #Also some #AlGreed #And a little bit of #Roho #at the end there #happy halloween motherfuckers

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