#AND the whole speech between he and jane never sat right with me.

[a-shadowedvales]

so… in the additional media of stranger things (specifically the comics i’m mentioning), it was initially brenner’s idea/plan to kill off the other test subjects because they weren’t performing as well as eleven was. it was his best solution because that way, all the resources, time, and money could instead be placed only to her. and i just…. sure henry is a fine character and the massacre makes a lot of sense to me, but i think i am once again gonna change up my canon to actually fit this potential narrative instead.

i genuinely think the comic canon of the lab and brenner is far more intriguing than the show. everything with 9/9.5, ricky, and francine. eleven being the only one who grew up completely in the lab. those other kids were either volunteers, well into their teens, or had some semblance of a home life. eleven was the only one practically moulded from the womb. and they all had such a range of interesting powers. i firmly stand with the idea that jane is the only one who can contact the void.

brenner’s entire point of view on the lab subjects changed the second he found out terry was pregnant. he discovered he could steal this baby and make her his own. there would be no convincing the child because it’s all she would have ever known. because of this, i would not put it past a man like brenner to kill the other subjects for the sake of the “greater good” in this case, eleven.

eleven’s gifts just continue thriving beyond his wildest expectations. brenner would never dare assume that having moulded her from the womb, she would still be able to grow into her own person, her own mind, and one day be able to see him for exactly who he was.

back before season four aired, it was obvious there were other test subjects because jane was 011. so there were at least ten kids before her. but i always liked the idea/assumed that she was the last experiment because she was the most successful. that they didn’t need anyone after her because she was fulfilling everything they set out for her to do. with flying colours.

i just think the whole rainbow room idea, pitting the kids against each other thing… been there, done that. boring and predictable. i think at this point my portrayal of her time in hawkins lab really stems from the complete isolation she endured. where having the rainbow room, although eleven was obviously the most isolated out of the kids, brings that sense of community and sister/brotherhood. albeit extremely warped and toxic. knowing that she wasn’t alone in that experience just. doesn’t sit well with me. i think it’s important to note that she was alone, physically and mentally. which is why kali is also so important to her growth. i thought a lot of the flashbacks of her time in the lab during season four was really boring, repetitive, and just very predictable. although peter becoming vecna was a surprise to me, and was a nice little twist, the idea of her having an ally on the inside was really interesting.

maybe they did get as far as they do in canon, peter ballad was telling the truth about everything, about some of the workers there being prisoners like him, and he really wanted to get her out and to safety. but before they can escape through the pipes, they’re caught. peter is shot on the spot, and eleven is put into the isolation room for a few days as punishment. in this timeline, henry would be vecna, but henry would not be peter ballad.

when eleven turned seven, and was already showing extreme promise, where the other children were average at best, brenner had the eight children killed. kali had already escaped. this was the main cause for peter to gain eleven’s trust and try to get her out. because if brenner could murder his “children” in cold blood, there’s no way eleven was safe even in spite of her power.

when eleven is allowed out of the isolation room, her testing becomes more rigorous in attempt to distance and make her forget about what she attempted to do with peter. brenner begins gaslighting her, saying that there was never a peter, that she must have been dreaming. eleven does ask “papa” about “mama”, given peter told her of the day terry broke in the lab, but brenner is convincing enough to make eleven believe it was all in her head. say she is around eight years old, meaning the same timeline of season fours canon flashbacks.

i still do wanna keep the henry creel canon, and keep him as 001. brenner didn’t have him killed alongside the other test subjects, because who knows, one day he could become an even better asset than 011. brenner definitely wants to be able to control henry, but keeps the chip in him because, for the moment, doesn’t know how. killing him would be too big of a loss.

when eleven is ten years old, henry’s concealed powers break free and he manages to get the chip out himself, and unleashes hell onto hawkins lab. he almost kills brenner by snapping his bones, but eleven manages to stop him. her extreme abilities are unleashed, and she sends henry to the upside down. she does fall into a coma due to the extremity of the situation, but she does not forget what happened. brenner believes she’s the perfect weapon as she stepped in to save him without a second thought, was able to defeat henry, and opened a door to something he never thought possible. eleven is rewarded for her efforts. although she remembers the entire battle / confrontation, her memories regarding the portal are very hazy.

brenner decides not to focus on the portal straight away, instead gets her training harder and harder to see what else she can accomplish. also loved the idea of brenner sending her into the void to “look for him” so that will definitely be kept.

by the time she escapes and season one begins, her knowledge of the upside down is basically what we see in canon. because she passed out the moment after she sent henry away, she was once again gaslighted into believing she merely threw him through the glass and killed him. for two years she believed this, until making contact with the demogorgan, and those memories return completely.

due to her saving brenner’s life, (it was pure instinct. she happened to be there. saw her “papa” hurt and knew she had to make him better.) brenner constantly thanks her. but in a very condescending way. tells her: “you saved me so i can continue saving you.” aka, harness your abilities and see what else i can achieve from you. despite the fact that she saved his life, these words and phrases make her feel indebted to him. that she owes him something further.

i don't realistically see her thriving with her speech improvement until she's well into her twenties at least. her slowed development, sensory and social deprivation causes a serious delay in language. surrounded by other children she would have overheard conversations, some would have spoken to her. her conveniently forgetting her upbringing pre the battle with henry just isn't good enough for me anymore. it makes more sense for her to have been raised alone.

it also helps indicate why she gravitated towards the boys when they found her in the woods. they would have been the first people her age she ever remembered seeing. as far as she knew, during the lab there was no one like her. everyone was much older, they were adults-- although she stayed with benny, i'm not sure if she would have stuck around very long. where she followed the boys home without thought.

also it's important to note that after time, jane does understand that peter ballad was a real person, and was truly the first person (aside from terry) who wanted the best for her. when she remembers him, knows that brenner was lying, she deals with immense guilt regarding his death. he was shot right in front of her eyes, because he was trying to help her. this is another catalyst as to why after season two, jane never refers to brenner as papa. she does not give him that sort of credit.

[t0o-m4ny-f4nd0ms]

Okay some it’s been twenty-four hours officially since I’ve seen the power of the doctor. Here are my thoughts;

GOOD;

• GODDAMN THAT SHIT WAS GOOD - from a plot perspective, a lot of callbacks to classic era, honestly made me wanna get britbox and watch classic who like the hype I felt seeing the past doctors - if I had actually watched their eras I would’ve shat myself even more

• SACHA FUCKING DHAWAN - someone give this man a fucking Oscar HOLY SHIT. He stole the show - he really did !!

• The VISUALS WILL AHHEIEHRIEJE ISTG NO OTHER ERA WILL HAVE BETTER SFX than this era! I will DIE ON THAT HILL

• YAZ - EVERYTHING ABOUT YAZ 😍 this is why she is top tier companion material my friends. BRIDAL CARRIES THE DOCTOR, SAVES THE FUCKING DAY, TAKES NO CREDIT FOR IT, FLYS THE TARDIS WITH HER NOTES, CAN READ GALLIFREYAN (apparently), STANDS UP TO THE MASTER, BECOMES THE DOCTOR IN HER OWN RIGHT, and is SO BRAVE when saying goodbye

• the actual regeneration - her little speech, her last sunrise, “tag, youre it” FUCK ME THATS SUCH A THIRTEEN THING TO SAY 😭 she was just so at peace with her fate, she knew it was time and she just accepted it

• THE companion support group situation at the end, and how they left a seat for Sarah Jane. That was beautiful

BAD;

• Idk if it was just me but it didn’t seem like Jodies doctor was given a lot to do? Like she gets taken away, gets forced into regeneration, degenerates into herself, gets rid of the daleks and the cybermen with her team, gets shot by a laser and then actually regenerates ?

• Obviously we already know how I feel about Jodie regenerating into David and the “what, what, what” - didn’t love it at all but it is what it is, moving on

• I don’t really understand what the point of having Vinder back was ? Kinda just felt like they wanted to bring Jacob back bc they like him? Same with Graham - like nice to see him, but him and Yaz barely acknowledged each other? Same with him and the doctor?

CONFLICTED;

• Companion endings - Dan leaving? Made sense but felt out of place and sort of rushed?

• The thasmin of it all - LOOK, I could make a WHOLE other post about this. One the one hand, we got quite a lot, like seeing that they’re equals, them always having each other’s back and wanting the other safe, soft touches, actions of love, acts of service, “[the Doctor] is loved”, “my doctor”, and “I’ve loved being with you Yaz”. That was their version of I love you and it was beautiful.

Their goodbye scene was HEARTBREAKING. Genuinely I’ve never heard more beautiful words said between two people who love each other and know it’s time to let each other go. The doctor saying “you know what this means right?” Shows that they’ve already talked about this, this conversation has been had off screen and we weren’t meant to be a part of it: it was something between them. Their plan was one last trip to end on a good note and idk I just, loved it. I will forever tear up watching that scene.

There could’ve been much more done, it felt VERY RUSHED towards the end. One the one hand, I’m not feeling that optimistic hopeful approach that was setup to be felt for Yaz’s ending. She’s jusy back on earth, and will probably work for UNIT and continue to save the earth. ONE THE OTHER HAND, it’s such a full circle moment bc when she started, she had just met someone who lost the love of their life but decided that the best way to grieve was find comfort in others. That’s exactly what she’s doing. She’s just lost the doctor and now, she’s found a group of people who have gone through exactly what she has gone through, and they’re getting through it together.

The lack of a kiss again I feel conflicted. I was convinced they were going to and was kinda mad they didn’t but then I sat and thought about it and I’m almost glad that they didn’t. It would’ve hurt them both too much, “it felt cruel, to be shown something I couldn’t have anymore. It felt like I’d rather not have know” pretty much sums that up I think. ALSO they did share a cheek kiss, bc Yaz kisses the doctor on the cheek when she bridal carries her 😌

Yaz being alive means that there’s a high possibility of her coming back, and I hope they definitely bring Jodie back as well in future.

————

That’s not even all of it but that’s all my brain can do right now, what did everyone else think?

[lovieebby]

White Winged Girl (Pt 2)

Part One

Sugar daddy!Henry Cavill x F!Reader (she/her)

Summary: While Henry’s away, the poor girl doesn’t know if he’s truly good for her or not. Mistakes could be made but are they really mistakes?

WC: 927

Warnings: Nothing yet! Just some hints of anxiety

Note: Here's part two of this Sugar daddy drabbles!! I hope you guys like it!

The days passed slowly while Henry was away. The days seemed to pass quickly but the nights dragged on agonizingly slow like molasses, even when the moon was set high and the critters chriped loudly. Her apartment was set on the outstretched side of town, an older townhouse that was turned into one bedroom apartments. The green vines stretched high onto the lip of her balcony, making her toes tickle when she rocked herself in her patio chair.

But she loved it nonetheless. Henry bought it only a few months ago and she enjoyed her space even when he pressed for her to move into his castle of a house. He hadn’t liked it when she said no, glaring and judging her decision. He had purposely made her feel dumb and small, saying it wasn’t right to leave her alone and she just wouldn’t know what to do all by herself. So she made a compromise and told her daddy to pick her own place.

And he was pleased, still upset but calmed when she turned hot and begged him not to be mad.

“Daddy, please don’t be mad! It’s— This is all just going so fast, I don’t want to overstep is all…” She said with a small pout as she gently sat upon his lap.

Henry had made her wear a dress again, though this one was by far his favorite. Never mind the silky and laced dresses that cost a grand for a few layers of thin fabric, but unlike those, the cotton floral design that she wore made his hands clench with his mouth watering. It flared around her hips and didn’t hide the soft belly she has, adding in the lower neck line that made her chest perfectly accessible to him.

Henry bit his lip with a small smirk, his hands trailing up her legs and into her soft dress. “You could never over step my girl. But if you’d like your own space… I’ll gladly pick it.”

She bounced with a relieved cheer, planting a quick kiss on his stubbled cheek. His reassuring smile made her worries dissipate away with a matched smile. But sent red flags as his hands squeezed tighter on her hips when she breathlessly thanked him.

While she rocked in her chair, with the breeze flowing smoothly through the summer air, a little tear gathered. She was frustrated that she missed her big man, when she was alone without him she could see all the warning signs to stay away. His teasing was mean and manipulative, along with his possessiveness from what she wore to who she talked to. She squeezed her wine glass, legs kicking before she grumbled a cry.

The relationship between the two had only been official for a short six months, yes he paid for everything and he gave her every need that could be met, but the godlike man was pushy and hard. She forced the red wine down before she dialed Henry’s number. Screw his work or his out of town trips, she was ending it and giving everything back.

She had prepared a long, detailed speech, bringing facts and truth together with a straightened back, however, when he picked up all was lost.

“Sweet girl?” His voice grumbled from sleep. His face probably pressed firmly in a hotel pillow.

“I don’t want this anymore.” The poor girl stumbled, and before Henry could question she furthered into her crying fit rage, “I don’t want you anymore! Yo-You’re mean, and-and you don’t like when people talk to me and you make fun of-of everything I do! And I don’t want it anymore.”

She cried loudly as her words stumbled with hiccups. Her palms shook, her lip sore from nibbling on the chapped skin. And her breath caught roughly when the line was cut.

Surely he would have said something… no? Henry wasn't one of those men that got bored easily, and he liked to keep her company… right?

Her tears seemed to quicken, producing rapidly and fastly falling. She overall thought he had thought of her as replaceable, and he didn’t even ask about what he’d bought for her; she hadn’t even thought about that. As her tears fogged her vision, she made her way into the open balcony door, into her bedroom and fell face first into the pampered pillows. Her body felt drained and her mind was running a million miles a second, every moment of that she was beating herself up.

Just because he was a dick didn’t mean to throw away the whole paycheck. Just because he was a little rude here and there, didn’t mean end the relationship. She knew nothing of this kind of exchange and she should have done some type of research, yet she couldn’t even bother with that.

She hadn’t known how long she’d been curled up in bed, typing paragraphs of confused hatred about the man to her friends but a pounding came from her door, an angered fueled pound. In her fragile mindset, she quickly made way to the door, ready to pee herself from fear, yet hoping deep down it was the man she wanted to end things with. While her loose white tee clung to her freed breasts, she tucked her arms under them as she stood on her toes and peered through the peephole.

“H-Hello?” She sniffled after seeing no one through the glass hole.

“Open this door little girl.”

Henry’s voice shocked her into a loud gasp, the mucus clogged in her nostrils making her cough before she choked pitifully on air. And when she didn’t move fast enough, her small and lovely apartment door unlocked from the older man’s keys.

Tag list

@hell1129-blog @snowbellexx @summersong69 @kaizet @omgkatinka @hinata7346 @thethirstyarchive @mary-ann84 @agniavateira @shaybabbby @oddsnendsfanfics @cavillshmavill @fun-with-jane @radaofrivia @iloveyouyen @jessevans @thatglimmerofhope @ollyoxenfrees @woofgocows @captaingothgirl1996 @honeychicana @viking-raider @seb-owns-these-tatas @laufeysodinson @msblkfire84

If you want to be added/removed lemme know! Feedback is always welcomed, love you lots and be nice to yourself my bbies ;))

[extremelyblackandwhite]

handmaid - 23

PAIRING: mob!sebastian stan x ingenue!reader

WARNINGS: age gap

A/N: i wrote half this chapter listening to taylor swift’s enchanted which i dubbed a christmas song despite it not being a christmas song. i hope you enjoy xx

NEXT CHAPTER

The music was loud, too loud and Y/N could barely hear herself thinking. Between people congratulating Gwen and the overwhelming loud popular music, all Y/N wanted was to spend her birthday locked in her own bedroom reading Jane Austen but whenever she managed to dodge someone, a drunk associate would pat her on the back also congratulating her for her birthday. Darned drunk Daniel and his ‘it’s her birthday too’ sentence. Out of all 365 days in the year, she just had to be born on the same day as the heiress which she initially thought would make her invisible but suddenly everyone wanted to congratulate her too.

Dodging another one of her friend’s father’s drunk associates ready with a hiccupped speech, Y/N quickly climbed up the stairs, happily sighing when she finally got to some sense of quietness where she could read. Opening the red leathered book, Y/N let herself delve into the world of Jane Austen and the swooning love scenarios that came along with it.

With her nose stuck in the book, she started to pave around the floor, dancing around as she imagined the beautiful dance scenes in English regency balls. She could only imagine dancing with your loved one, with the shyness of the sun laying over winter snow, wandering eyes and slow, soft and comfortable dancing. She continued on her mindless dancing which was interrupted by her hitting something. 

     - Oop ... - Y/N looked up from a book into a pair of the most beautiful light blue eyes she had ever seen in her whole entire life. - I’m so sorry.

    - No, I wasn’t watching where I was going. My fault entirely. 

    - No, I wasn’t paying attention. 

��   - What are you reading there? - he pointed at her book which she had closed over her finger as to not to lose the place of reading. - Jane Austen? A favourite?

     - I prefer Emma but Pride and Prejudice is a classic. Are you a fan?

    - I’m more of a Charlotte Brontë kind of guy myself. - he gave her that sort of smile that only old Hollywood stars could pull off. The type of smile morphing into a smirk that pulled you in with its sense of effortless coolness and mystique. A dangerous smile if she knew better. - That is if we’re speaking of English writers. My father has a very long personal collection.

    - Well, the Forrests aren’t the reading type from what I’ve gathered. 

    - Say, I’ve never seen you around before. Whose family do you belong to?

    - Oh, I ...

    - There you are. - a much older man, probably in his early 60s but very dapperly dressed with his hair pushed back and the same blue eyes the unknown man standing in front of her. She guessed they were somehow related by their matching features. - I thought we had discussed being late to meetings before.

   - I got distracted, father. - the much younger man shrugged. Y/N stood there, playing with her fingers, fully aware that the atmosphere had shifted into something more awkward than what she preferred. It became even more uncomfortable once the much older man made eye contact with her, making her feel much more smaller than before, head snapping back to her feet. - You sure have a particularly familiar set of eyes there. Have we met before?

   - No, I don’t think so. - she played with the ends of her hair, hoping the Earth would open and swallow her. 

   - What family do you belong to? I’m sure I’ve seen those eyes before. 

   - BIRDIE! - Y/N turned around to see Dan power walking towards her. - Gwen is waiting for you to cut the cake. Say goodbye, c’mon. 

Y/N just stood there, not entirely sure of what to reply to Mr. Williams’ remarks about her. She wasn’t a mistress and she surely wasn’t aiming to be one on the women she had grown accustomed to see coming in and out of the house during her childhood. Sure, she was having some sort of ... affair, if it could be called that, with Sebastian but she wasn’t his mistress. No, she would never be his mistress for that to happen he would have to want to be with her and following last events, he really wasn’t. Besides, she wasn’t like him and she would never be like him. 

   - I understand your struggle, miss. It must be really hard to see the man you care for not care for you.

   - With all due respect, Mr. Williams, I really don’t enjoy your assumptions about me or Mr. Stan. It’s incredibly disrespectful. 

   - He’s not gonna call you, birdie. I see you checking your phone but trust me. He might not be like his father where it matters but when it comes to women, they’re the same man.

   - Don’t call me birdie. - she mumbled, the affectionate nickname given to her by Dan when she was younger losing its innocence as it came out of the associate’s mouth. - I really would like it if you left.

   - Don’t be so upset. In this world you have to play dirty to get ahead and you’re surely get to get dirty to get ahead ... You’ll surely have enough money to do whatever you want if you keep going. 

   - I don’t want any money but I don’t wanna be part of this conversation. - she cleaned her hands against her apron, walking off the kitchen with a decisive step. Ignoring most questioning looks from those at the table, she climbed the stairs back to her bedroom, locking the door behind her. 

She was no mistress and she definitely did not want Sebastian’s money and the mere speculation that that was all she cared about made her sick to her stomach. If she were to care about money she would’ve gotten it very much early on. With sadness and heaviness in her heart accompanied by shame of being seen as nothing more than a passing fancy, Y/N sat down against her bed frame, hand moving to grab one of her bedside table books. 

Out of all the books she blindly had to pick, out of all novels she had spent her teenage and early adulthood reading, the one she had picked was a particularly old one with a red leather binding and golden title letters. Her fingers softly moved across the cover, feeling the bumps and tears of time over the leather. It used to be her favourite during her early young adulthood years and Y/N was sure she had read it over a thousand times. As she opened the book, it fell onto a slightly crinkly page. She furrowed her brows, not remembering when she had crinkled the page until a polaroid fell onto her legs, photo front down. 

Curiously, Y/N closed her book, setting it next to her in the bed before grabbing the polaroid on her legs. She swiftly turned it around, noticing her handwriting on the border ‘18th’. She smiled nostalgically noticing her young face in the sea of people, wearing an oversized babydoll dress which most likely belonged to Gwen, Mary Jane style shoes with the very same necklace nestled between her collarbones and a polite smile. However, what called up for Y/N’s attention was right in the middle of the photo, standing next to Mr. Forrest, was a man probably in his mid to late 20s wearing a dark burgundy suit which made her blink twice, making her pull the photo closer for inspection. His hair was a bit longer and shaggier and his face a bit fuller due to younger age but she could recognise those eyes everywhere. Dan was right, Sebastian had been at Gwen’s 18th and for all that was safe and holy she just couldn’t remember it. 

Looking around as if she were afraid of being caught, she jumped off her bed, grabbing her book to stick the polaroid back inside and both of the objects inside one of her suitcase’s pockets, covering by various fabric items. Something told her that she had to question him about that particular event whenever she got the chance. Afterwards, she took her phone from her pocket to check if he had maybe tried to call her back or message her but nothing, only the clock and her lock screen. Two minutes past midnight, Christmas day. It was Christmas and that gave Y/N the excuse to give him another call. As expected by the darkest most negative part of her brain, all she heard was “The number you have dialled is unavailable, leave your message at the end of the tone”.

  - Hey Sebastian, it’s Y/N ... you probably know, you have called ID ... - she was rambling and could hear her heart thumping on her throat as if they’d never spoken before. - I just wanted to say ... Merry Christmas. 

  - Hey Birdie. - Dan opened the door of her bedroom, making her drop her phone onto the floor by surprise. He furrowed his eyebrows at that behaviour. Y/N certainly didn’t use to be this easy to fright. - We’re opening presents, c’mon.

  - Yeah, I’m going. - she forced a smile, grabbing her phone to finish the call before following him down the stairs.

Thirty minutes away from the place was she was spending Christmas, back in the Upper East Side, Sebastian was standing inside his office, brandy filled glass as he watched the sights from the large windows and how the snow fell disregarding and uncaring of any other circumstances. 

He was much too lost watching various people come out of their houses to celebrate the snow, lost in his own thoughts until the beep of his answering machine removed him from his mind. He shot a look towards the rather old school device as a very familiar voice came through “Hey Sebastian, it’s Y/N ... you probably know, you have called ID ... I just wanted to say ... Merry Christmas.” He placed the glass on this desk, getting closer to the device, finger pressing the rewind button causing the melodic voice to return which wishes of happy holidays. The mob boss smiled at her rambling, how she would go on and on before stopping herself and how sweet she sounded at the end. 

   - Sir ... - a light knock on his door following by the creaking of the door made him remove his finger from the rewind button. - I’m leaving for tonight. Is there anything you require?

   - No Amelia, thank you. 

Back at the Forrests, Y/N was cuddled and wrapped with a red blanket, a cup of peppermint tea in hand as she watched Gwen open the large majority of the presents with a child-like enthusiasm along with Dan’s daughter Sophie. With a very soft and absent minded smile, she couldn’t help but get lost in her own fantasies as she watched Sophie’s eyes light up as she showed her father the stuffed bunny she had just unwrapped. All she could see was the Christmas tree back in the penthouse surrounded with various presents wrapped in shades of red and gold as a child showed Sebastian their own presents. Yet, she knew it was only in her mind and that she probably would see that but the child would be Gwen’s.

   - Now it’s Y/N’s turn. - Mr. Forrest handed her a card sized present. - Merry Christmas, Y/N. 

   - Thank you. - she placed her tea cup on the table, carefully opening the present which led to another little box. Removing the lid, it showed a golden key with a matching gold bird keychain all surrounded by white cushioned fabric. - Oh ... thank you. Is it a necklace?

   - No. - Dan chuckled. - It’s a house key.

   - But I already have the key to this house.

   - Well, dad and I have been discussing it and after Mr. Stan and Gwen get married, we thought you might want to start your own life. - Dan had that grin that seemed to appear whenever he was truly proud of himself. - So, we got you an apartment in Paris, like you always wanted. View to the Tower Eiffel and all. 

   - Oh ... - once again Y/N questioned her full on lack of happiness. She had a place to start her life where she always wanted, she had a house, one she didn’t have to pay for. Forcing a smile, she nodded her head. - Thank you so much, Dan, it’s lovely.

  - I can help you make your arrangements after the wedding. - he added and started to ramble on how he knew a great interior designer while Gwen kept questioning her father how come she didn’t have an apartment in France, probably forgetting she had an apartment on almost every single European capital including London, Madrid and so on. She nodded, not really listening to his rambling until her phone vibrated on her jeans’ pocket. Looking down, she noticed a text from her phone company warning her that she had a message in her voicemail box.

  - Can you excuse me? - she asked the people surrounding the living room, getting up from her comfortable position. All but one, Mr. Williams, nodded. He instead watched her with hawk like eyes as she removed herself from the living room and paced onto the kitchen, closing the door behind her.

She could feel her body shake, her breathing getting irregular as she dialled the number that led to her voicemail messages. As quick as a second, the voicemail started to play but instead of listening to anyone speaking all she could hear was low breathing mixed with the non existent sound of silence. Her heart sank, this was probably a butt dial. As she was about to turn off her phone a familiar roughed yet laced with sweetness and nervousness came from the speaker.

   - Merry Christmas, my angel.

tag list: @lilya-petrichor @xoxohannahlee @irespostthingsiwanttoseelater @nikkipea @madisonpillstrom @cevans98 @thelostallycat @sideeffectsofyou @anxiousdreamersworld @captainchrisstan @lookiamtrying @sarge-barnes-sir @stuffforreferences @thebadassbitchqueen @sebastianstansqueen @nsfwsebbie​

[descendantofthesparrow]

commission work  - two part- Harry Hook x Reader - Happily Ever After - p1

@musicarose​

=

You woke to cries from the other room, your eyes snapping open. you sat up quickly, blearily looking to the clock on your nightstand, the red lights glowing brightly.

3:15 am

You sniffed, before noticing the cries had stopped, your husband stepping through the bedroom door moments later with your daughter in his arms.

“hey” he whispered hoarsely, the eyeliner smudged around his eyes, making him look even more tired than he was “did she wake yeh?” you hummed and held out your arms, making harry laugh as he walked over to your side of the bed and carefully placed Arella into your arms.

He leaned a little farther and pressed his lips to yours, smiling as he did so “love you lass” he whispered, leaning back and walking around to his side, pulling back his sheets and laying down next to you, laying his head on your lap and cooing up at Arella.

“love you too Harry” you whispered back, kissing Arella’s forehead and leaning back on your pillows with her on your chest, harry staying on your thighs as he stared up at you and Arella with pure love in his eyes.

He still couldn’t believe that he had this, a happily ever after like he was so often told he would never have, because villains didn’t get them.

He was happy, truly happy, he had a beautiful wife and child, with plans for another in about a year, and a big house by the sea, with his own ship (which was a wedding gift from Ben that was more a boat than a ship).

He was nothing like his father, and it was his proudest achievement.

He still remembered the day he met you

--

He felt his heartbeat loudly as he stared at the (h/c) girl standing next to the brown-haired girl. He swallowed harshly as he heard her voice, it sounded like music to his ears.

What was going on with him?!? He had never felt this way before. Gil looked at him confused as he stared at the girl.

“oh! Aww Ha-“ Harry smacked Gil's shoulder quickly.

“shut the hell up Gil” he muttered darkly, feeling heat creep up his cheeks as he forced his eyes away from her.

He needed to focus.

--

“hi!” Harry jumped slightly as someone spoke up behind him, he spun around, jaw-dropping slightly as he locked eyes with you “Harry right? We met during the whole…..Audrey fiasco”

You held out your hand, smiling brightly at him, he nervously took your hand, feeling heat creep up his cheeks again. “aye that would be me, and I heard jane call yeh…(y/n)?”

“yep that’s me!” you released his hand, tilting your head adorably, making him mentally scream from it. “I was wondering if you would like to dance?”

“u-um yes!” he squeaked, smiling nervously as you took his once more outstretched hand and dragged him onto the dance floor.

Was this what all those princes and princesses were talking about?

--

And that set off a whirlwind of events that set his life on the right track, to this day he still got butterflies when he looked into your eyes. And now there was another little light to his life.

His amazing little Arella, who had his eyes and her mother's face and hair. The little girl turned in her mother's arms, her ocean blue eyes staring into his matching ones.

“Hello little love” he cooed, leaning up and kissing her cheek, little happy gurgles coming from her. “yeh just wanted some love didn’t yeh?” you chuckled, knowing as soon as harry had picked her up she had stopped crying.

“go grab some barriers” harry pouted not wanting to leave but obeyed, sitting up and going to the closest, grabbing some baby bed barriers so Arella wouldn’t roll off the bed.

You watched as harry popped the barriers in place, smirking as the light from the moon illuminated his back and arm muscles.

“yer staring~” he teased, smirking at you from over his shoulder. You pouted and rolled your eyes.

“what? I cant stare at my husband?” you teased back, still loving the fact you could call him that.

You looked down at your left hand, giggling as Arella started to try to take the red ruby ring off your finger, you gently pried her hands off, kissing her fingers lightly as you admired the rings.

Your engagement ring was Harrys mother’s, while your wedding ring was a carved golden band with some protection engravings from uma.

Your eyes drifted off, locking on your wedding photo, harry lifting you in a high princess hold, looking up at you as if you were his world, while you looked down at him, pure love and happiness in your eyes.

And then 9 months later arella was born.

…yeah you and harry got pretty busy after the wedding. But anyway back to the main story.

Harry cracked his neck as he stood and walked back over to his side of the bed, laying down properly next to you, quickly kissing your cheek and blowing a raspberry on Arellas cheek.

She let out a loud giggle and reached out for him, you set her between his shoulder and chest and shuffled down to lay next to them, hiking your leg over Harry's hips.

“yeh know, chad told me I would hate a clingy girl but honestly im livin’ meh best life” harry joked, his free hand stroking your leg.

“remind me to kick his butt tomorrow” you sleepily muttered, smiling as Arella yawned and clutched onto your finger.

“yes, ma’am” Harry chuckled, kissing Arella's forehead and closing his eyes.

=

“Reports have come in about the jolly roger, it is said that captain hook has returned to wreak havoc on neverland and by extension Auradon, we suggest you keep all doors and windows locked until we find him” harry sighed, fingers twitching nervously as he thought of his father running around loose in auradon.

He feared for his wife and child. He sighed, sipping at his water and numbly looking back at the screen.

soon the news switched, to the anniversary of the joining of the isle and Auradon.

Ben was one screen, Mal behind him on his left while Uma stood a couple of feet back on his right, Evie next to her.

“on this day 4 years ago, we finally let down the isle border and reunited our people. And I am proud to say that we have lived well together, the people of the isle finally living without starvation and poverty, and the people of Auradon finally overlooking our prejudice-“

Harry zoned out at that moment, hearing your footsteps from behind him, small wining noises along with your soft speech.

He turned, smiling as he caught sight of you holding Arella, the little babe snuggled into your shoulder, fist in her mouth.

“morning love” he hummed, leaning up for a kiss from you.

“morning” you chirped, handing Arella to Harry and grabbing her breakfast. “so are we still planning on going to the party tonight”

“aye, CJ offered to watch Arella n stuff so we should be good ta go” harry crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out, Arella bursting out in laughter and making grabby hands at him.

“aww…I love yeh my little princess” he hummed, kissing her forehead and holding her close.

You smiled to yourself as you heard him talk to your little girl, god, you were so lucky meeting and marrying this handsome pirate.

=

You invited the rest of the vks to chill in your house for a small bit. Uma, Gil, Mal, Ben, Evie, Jay, Carlos, and dude following you inside.

As you walked up the steps, you felt a cold chill run down your spine.

The front door window was smashed open. You looked to harry for a split second before rushing to the door, it was unlocked, you slammed it open calling for CJ.

“CJ?!” you heard slightly whimpers coming from upstairs, you heard harry gasp, looking to the wall, you saw one carved long line leading up the stairs.

Someone had run a blade on the wall as they stalked upstairs.

“CJ WHERES ARELLA!” you screamed, running upstairs, almost tripping over multiple pictures that had been tossed on the ground.

“CJ-“ you looked up, CJ was laying on the ground, a couple of feet away from Arellas room, a large cut on her face.

“CJ!” you kneeled next to her, sighing in slight relief as she only had some bruises on top of her cut.

“wheres-what happened” you stressed, helping her sit up.

“da….da he broke in and-and Arella was screaming an-“ CJs voice broke, glassy eyes looking to the broken door of Arellas room.

You let out a choked sob, standing quickly and joining harry in Arellas room, falling to your knees as she was nowhere in sight, her pillow and bed ripped up, her precious octopus plushie torn to pieces.

“NO!” you screamed, sobbing into your hands, hearing harry fall to his knees next to your and tugging you into his chest, his own tears falling into your hair.

“NO!”

Harry grit his teeth, his old isle rage coming back full force.

His father wouldn’t survive this.

He would make sure of that.

--end of part 1--

Permtaglist

@queer-cosette​

@sephiralorange​

@lunanight2012​

@daughter-of-the-stars11​

@random-thoughts-003​

@amorathegamingkitsune​

[charmed-henry]

Consequences | The Order

The Order responds to Henry and Rose’s attempt at a mission

Date: Mid July

TW: Light references to death, violence, physical abuse (nothing graphic)

@prince--thomas @knightley--phillip @captain--john​ @thehuntress-rose​

HENRY

It made more sense not to have this conversation at the hospital, and yet Henry was grateful for that small mercy. He knew it was because talking about the Order in public was confusing at best and dangerous at worst, but Henry was personally very embarrassed about this whole thing and he really, really didn’t want Eric (or anyone else) to see him have to grovel. The fact that Rose was here was bad enough.

He sat down on the couch and looked around the room, from Rose to Tom to John to Phil, then sighed. Everyone stayed in stony silence. Henry had to say something. He sighed.

“Erm… right then,” Henry started, a little anxiously. “I reckon you will all want to say something about what my punishment will be and before we get into that, I just want to say that this really isn’t any of Rose’s fault. I know you will probably think that because of the way our last conversation went, but I didn’t tell her anything about Eric until last night, and this whole thing has been my idea. I… thought I could get Eric to come back to the Order on his own and I took some very stupid risks to do that, and… I’m very sorry that Rose got caught up in all of it.”

He glanced at Rose again, then back at the others. “Anyway, I wanted to get that out of the way. But… go ahead, let’s get on with it.”

THOMAS: Tom was fuming. He rarely got properly mad. This wasn’t just pissed off with annoyance, like he was at his mates every now and then. No, this was hands curled into fists, blood pounding, he wanted to hit something (preferably Henry’s face) mad.

He had been silent when he’d left the hospital with Rose and Henry in tow with a promise to see Grim and Eric in the morning. Now, he leaned against a wall of the living room, his arms crossed, expression stormy. He knew that he should keep control of his temper. They were young and stupid and he’d been young and stupid once. But, in their line of work, young and stupid meant you got people hurt or killed. Tom had already seen his fair share of death. So much of it. Even with Eric still alive, it hardly tipped the scales back. He was sick of it and he was angry.

So, Henry’s words only stirred a fire in him.

“Rose is responsible for her own actions,” Tom bit out. There that was civil enough…except that he kept going.

“If she didn’t want to be involved she would have called us or tried to stop you. So, she is just as at fault as you for your stupid, reckless behavior. You almost got someone killed! Probably more than one! You’re lucky you escaped alive. This isn’t a game! It’s not a training simulation. It’s fucking real and people’s lives! You two are playing with them as if none of that matters to you. It was irresponsible and dangerous and you should both be ashamed of yourselves. Not to mention all the lying and the secrecy. Does the code mean nothing to you? Does honor mean nothing? Eric is my family!” Tom’s voice boomed across the living room, and then cracked, like thunder. “I should’ve known he was alive!”

PHILLIP: Phillip reached a hand to Tom’s shoulder. He knew it was very likely that Tom would brush him off, but hell, if Tom was getting mad it was definitely a situation. He felt his own annoyance wrinkle in his chest, slowly tugging towards anger. He wasn’t as outraged as Thomas was (and that was justified — because, bloody hell Eric was alive), but he felt… well, betrayed really.

Disappointed.

That felt weird. Honestly, at this point, he’d rather be angry, rather curl his lip and rage.

But he glanced from Tom to Henry now and all he could think was that he was so damn happy they were alive.

“This was incredibly stupid and risky of you,” said Phillip, instead. He stood up, letting his hand drop from Thomas’s shoulder. “Especially after we told you all the risks — you could’ve put more civilians in danger. Did that ever occur to you? Did you even account for that, carrying on this plan in such a public place? What would have happened if it had been someone else who got injured and not Eric? If someone else died because of you lot.”

For all intents and purposes, his voice was rather calm, but he grit his teeth, some of that annoyance now mutating into bitter frustration.

“And,” he said, and this was the thing he did have the most issue with, and now his voice was cold. “You should’ve told Tom that his bloody cousin was alive.”

ROSE:

Rose was no stranger to scolding. The Huntsclan was a lot more barbaric in their tactics of taking a hunter down a peg. She went to the place in her mind that she usually did when she shut down. A place where she didn’t feel scared of whoever was in front of her. A place where her emotions didn’t control her. Rose heard the yelling, the anger in Tom’s voice, and felt Phil’s coldness.

He reminded her of her father.

Avoiding their eyes, she spoke up, “I didn’t know he was your cousin. I’m sorry, Tom.” Looking up to catch those ocean blues, “but you don’t have to grieve him anymore. You’re lucky.” Rose could only hope the people that had died in her time were secretly alive somewhere. She could see her mother walking down picturesque cobblestone roads with her hair down and not a care in the world. It was only a fantasy though, Rose had seen the open casket. There was proof of the impossibility of her return.

“Henry, you don’t have to defend me. We were in over our heads. I just didn’t want to admit I was,” she sighed. Eating crow wasn’t something Rose enjoyed, but to appease the men that had the power to further her fall from grace… she had to do something. If anyone in New York heard about this Rose would never gain back her good reputation.

JOHN

John was silent. His eyes spoke for him, the icy cold expression of contempt and disappointment aimed itself directly at the two responsible for this mess. “You deliberately disobeyed everything that you were told at the meeting when you first brought this business up. You lied directly to Thomas and Phillip.” He hadn’t been at the meeting, too busy with Office Hours he couldn’t leave from to go discuss a possible threat. He didn’t want to seem suspicious by lying to Jane once again to get out of it so he got updates from Tom and Phil throughout.

This was all a huge mess. A mess that weighed on his shoulders. Because although he was not appointed as some kind of higher position, the Order had always viewed him as the point of contact, the ring leader for all of this, he communicated with them and now he would have to either cover this up, or report to them what was going on. It put him in a position he very much didn’t want to be in.

“How is it that you two could be so impossibly daft?” His voice was cold, biting. Honestly, it was as if he was doing the most spot on impression of his father which frightened him a bit if he was being honest. “You’ve betrayed our trust. You’ve most certainly betrayed Tom’s and kept vital information from him. I cannot believe you lot, honestly. I’m in utter fucking disbelief. And now we’ve got a situation that we have to explain ourselves out of which draws further suspicion and more eyes towards us, jeopardizing everything we’ve bloody been working for.”

He would show some sort of reassurance or affection towards Thomas in his moment of crisis, but all he could do was lock his arms up, crossed over himself because he worried what he might do otherwise with them. No object not bolted down was safe. So he stood there, rigid, staring down the two that were the source of his ire.  

HENRY

Henry had braced himself for this. He knew it was coming. For all the ways Henry had messed up during training, not fast enough or strong enough or focused enough, he had never landed himself in this kind of trouble before. There was a difference between a failure of strength and a moral failure. For someone who had always prided himself on his convictions, the latter hurt more.

He wanted to curl up in a ball, to crawl out of his skin, to completely disappear, but Henry knew that would only make him look weaker than he already did. So he gritted his teeth and listened, making eye contact with Tom, then Phil, then John, each one’s speech feeling like another punch to the gut. And by the time John was done, Henry could feel something rising in his throat, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes.

They were all right. Henry had lied. He had been cocky and selfish, believing he could bring Eric back to the Order all by himself and that everyone would be so bloody thankful they would overlook the way Henry had lied to them. He had betrayed the men who had trusted him and treated him kindly despite his family’s reputation, and he had dragged Rose into it, who should never have even been involved to begin with. Henry’s honor and his morals had always been so important to him, and now he didn’t even have that.

“I understand,” Henry said through gritted teeth, determined not to show any emotion. He didn’t want to risk saying too much more and looking like even more of the pathetic fool he felt like. “You’re all right. There’s no excuse. I thought I was doing right by Eric, but in reality…” Henry cut himself off and swallowed hard. “That’s all I’ve really got to say. I’m sorry. I… don’t deserve to call myself a Prince right now.”

That hurt even more to admit out loud. Henry needed to get out of here before he really let that sink in. He looked between the others, waiting for someone to speak. “...So what’s going to happen to us?”

THOMAS: Nothing Rose or Henry said made him feel any better about this. Their apologies meant little to him and Rose’s argument also meant little. Of course Tom was relieved to have Eric back. He had lost more people than he could count at this point. To have any of them back was a bloody miracle. But, that did not fix the damage that had been done. Not only to Tom’s heart, but to his trust in either of them. (Though, he did not know how much or for how long Rose had known.) Henry, though, knew better. He knew better and he had done it anyway.

Had lied to them as a Prince. Going off behind their backs to put himself and others in danger, trying to play the hero. Tom understood the urge, but you had to be smart about these things. You couldn’t just throw yourself into a mess without a plan. By lying, he knew that he shouldn’t have done it in the first place.

And he had lied to Tom as a friend, as family. Sure, Henry and Tom did not share blood, but they shared family nonetheless. His sister was Tom’s sister’s in-law. They shared an aunt.

His jaw grit as he listened to Henry’s speech and still felt nothing but burning anger. If it was the two of them, and just the two of them, Tom would’ve already punched him and been done with it. But, he had a feeling that it needed more than a fight to get the bad blood out from between them.

Still, he just glanced towards John, knowing he knew the severity of this crime--and the severity of the punishment that must follow. Tom had a feeling if he was the one who doled it out, it would not be taken as seriously, considering the vengeance that it would be.

PHILLIP:

“You’ll be put on probation,” said Phillip, before John could speak. He knew that John would be harsher with his words than he probably intended (or maybe, he’d intend them to be that harsh — either way, harsher than was necessary for the situation). Phillip could deliver the punishment without going overboard, he felt, because while he certainly was pissed off, he didn’t have as much personal stake in the matter (and also, well, he’d felt a little annoyed at the concept of the Order lately, if only because of his forced engagement).

“Well, Henry will anyway. Rose, I’m sure it’ll be up to your superiors, but I reckon the fate will be similar: you’ll still be stationed in Swynlake, but you won’t be assigned on any missions. We can call on your assistance if we need, but it’ll likely be menial work: helping John with the paperwork, cleaning weapons, all that jazz. The probationary period usually lasts for a few months, after which, your status will be evaluated.” He sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. “Should you break your probation, then you’ll be stripped of your Prince status and if you ever want to take it back, you’ll need to undergo the required training and examinations once again.”

He flicked his gaze from Henry to Rose.

“Once again, not sure what the protocol will be for you, Rose, should you violate that probation.” He folded his hands together. “Got all that?”

ROSE: (tw: abuse mention) Great.

John was yelling, which she hadn’t seen before, but she’d never seen him happy with her either. Tom was just stoically standing there, brooding. Rose had seen this more than enough times. Phil, however, was the one speaking calmly, rationally. Well, he was pretty calm most times. But it seemed as if he had stepped up to dole out reprimands.

Rose supposed she should appreciate it. Considering that hearing it from anyone else would most likely be a lot harsher. John probably thought she was the worst person to transfer over from the Huntsclan, but Tom knew exactly why. She wasn’t ‘stationed’ here, she was exiled. The Huntress chose to come here, yes, but it was never really her own choice. Her punishment was being here, she was never going to be sent back to New York for bad behavior.

She sighed, really absorbing the mess she’d gotten herself into. It was bad for her, but worse for Henry. If he stepped out of line, they said he’d lose his position? He wouldn’t handle that well at all. Rose knew the Order was all about, well, order… but she’d much rather just take a quick slap or a bloody nose over a demotion. The hellion huntress had already worked her way down the ladder of punishments so there was not much further to fall.

“Fine,” she muttered under her breath, but still loud enough to hear. Rose looked up from her feet, to acknowledge only Phil, “Can we go now?”

THOMAS: In Tom’s opinion, Henry deserved to have his title stripped. Here and now. Of course, it was not that easy. The Golden Trio they might be, but it was the kings of the Order who decided such things. He would absolutely recommend it. John and Phil had already managed to talk him down from that, but it didn’t change his mind.

It had been so bloody reckless. It had been so bloody deceitful. Tom couldn’t decide what he was more pissed about: the fact they had gone against their direct orders and almost gotten someone killed or that Henry had been lying to his face for…a year? More?

Tom’s heart felt like it was tearing itself apart and he resented it. He resented all of it. The Order and all it’s stupid rules. The Order and how it put them in these positions. Made them make these decisions—about life and death. He resented how it made him lose his family and then lose them again. All of the sudden, it was as if the clouds had parted onto a calm sea after days and nights of a storm raging. Years of a storm raging.

And he could see clearly how all these things came back to one thing: the Order. It had taken his father and his brother in law, his cousins. How miserable it was. But, as soon as he tried to navigate a path away, all he saw was his sisters. Was Phil and John. And he couldn’t—would never—leave them behind.

“Yes, go,” Tom bit out. “And I hope in the future you take the lives of those you care about much more seriously. Life is not guaranteed, death is.”

[edgydepressedchoicesthot]

Act of Courage (Noah/MC, Lucas/MC)

Summary: It shouldn’t feel like this, after all this time. We won, didn’t we?

No, Josh realized. We didn’t.

In which a survivor contemplates what was, what is, and what could have been.

ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24061654

@ladyseaheart1668, @marmolady, @it-lives-in-westchester

A/N: Between work, college, and my f*cked up head, finishing this up took a lot longer than it should have. I'm trying to make writing into my coping mechanism, so that I'll do it more, lol ;D

I have one more fic I promised on tumblr, an AME one I'm gonna work on. I'm also gonna try to go back to my ES novelization, so stay tuned for that for its continuation.

————————

The two of them were at Josh’s place, waiting for Ava, Andy, Dan, and Lucas. Lily was sick in bed and Stacy was visiting her grandma out of town, leaving Noah and Josh waiting for the four others while they drew figures in the dirt in the yard with sticks and talking about anything their minds jumped to.

“Hey, Noah?”

The boy turned towards his friend.

“Yeah?”

For a moment, Josh, who was as lively as ever seconds ago, was being uncharacteristically quiet.

“Do you…like anyone?”

“‘Like’,” Noah repeated. “Like I like you and Jane and the others? Or you mean like-like?”

“Um, yeah” Josh nodded, blushing. “Like-like.”

“Then no,” the other boy shrugged. “Stacy, Lily, and Ava are fun to hang around, but I don’t like-like anyone.”

“What about,” Josh began hurriedly, but slowed down. “What about boys…?”

“Huh?”

“Do you like-like any boys?”

Josh was beet red. Noah was just confused.

“No,” he shrugged. “I’m a boy. It’d be weird if I liked-liked a boy. That’s what my mom says though.”

“Right…” Josh looked hurt. “Right, forget it.”

Noah wanted to ask why his friend looked so sad.

He hated it when Josh got upset. Unlike Jane, who’d get mad, Josh would be quiet, pouty, and would go off by himself, refusing to ever acknowledge what made him upset in the first place.

But before Noah can say anything, the doorbell rang and their friends poured inside.

Noah forgot that Josh even asked him any question about who he liked.

It was something they’d both forget in the years to come, a memory of the conversation fading into a small feeling.

————————

After reading Lucas’s texts, Josh shoved his phone into his pocket. His smile started to fade as he continued down the road, focusing on his surroundings.

It really is a beautiful day, Josh mused.

And he hated it.

The sun shone through the trees in a way that reminded him of an image you’d find on a tourist pamphlet.

It made Josh think about how the only thing this town is good for is being fake.

Like how the town somehow fooled themselves into thinking everything was just a freak animal attack.

But the more he thought about it, Josh guessed he couldn’t blame the town for that. Having to deal with the truth might actually be more of a clusterfuck than it all happening.

It was all a question of why.

Why did this all happen to them? Why was he the one who had to find Redfield’s shack?

All he had to do was keep his goddamn mouth shut about some stupid fucking rock floating all those years ago…

It’s my fault.

Josh scoffed.

Like that’s big news.

And when it was time to pay the piper, Josh was too much of a coward to do anything…

Shoving his hands into his pockets, Josh forced himself to think about something, anything else.

His mind wandered from the date Lucas promised they’d have before he went back to his university, to that new video game Lily’s been raving about, Stacy’s latest Pictagram post about celebrating another perfect score on an exam, Ava’s latest binge on occult books in the library, Andy whining about how he just wants to be free of high school already, Dan’s updates on his new art blog…

…Noah crying, apologizing…

Josh wiped tears from his eyes as he kept walking.

————————

Noah always envied Josh.

He was a charismatic go-getter where Noah was shy and bookish. Josh always got stickers that came with having a perfect score on spelling tests, ones that Noah just passed by never more than five points. Josh was brave enough to make the first move in befriending him and Jane, and began their circle of friends the same way.

Noah not only hated how he was too wimpy to ever say any of this out loud, but also that he held this kind of resentment towards one of the best friends he’s ever had.

Noah hated how nervous he feels around Josh too. How he can’t help but constantly compare himself to him.

Josh was like the sun; radiant and bright and impossible to miss, and Noah had felt like the grimy earth beneath it.

But everything changed after Jane died.

Their whole group of friends changed. They started to see each other less and less, and eventually, they never saw each other outside of school.

Having different classes in middle school widened the gap between them, leaving silent nods as the last bit of interaction they had.

Soon, even those were gone.

Even after they all fell apart, Noah couldn’t help but notice Josh.

Before, Noah had always seen Josh happily chatting with at least one person.

Now, Noah never saw him hang out with anyone ever again. He was like the dusty remains of a star that went out.

There were times Noah wanted to reach out, to see if they could be friends again, to hang out, laugh together, be together-

-and Noah would stop himself when he came short of any reason Josh would want to talk to him.

————————

“You look like shit.”

“Hello to you too, Ava.”

Josh was semi-thankful that his shift at one of the town’s few fast food places started early in the morning. Only a handful of people stepped in here for breakfast, and none of them were impossible to deal with. So, for a few hours, Josh could enjoy a bit of peace before the lunch rush.

And it was always good to see a friendly face.

“Alright, fuck the pleasantries then.”

Usually.

Ava stretched her hand at Josh and waved it dramatically.

“In the name of the Dread Goddess Hekate, get me my usual.”

Josh punched in the register an order for an apple pie and a milkshake.

“That’ll be $2.78.”

Wordlessly, Ava hands him money and Josh went in the back to get her order.

“Talked to Tom today,” Ava said. “He looked really interested in the stuff I found in Cora’s shack. Maybe he can be my apprentice or some shit.”

“A witch’s apprentice?”

“Turned him down. Teaching is a rock bottom I’ll never hit.”

“Cuz the teacher’s at school we sooo great.”

“You get it.”

Josh finished up, pie in a paper bag and milk in hand.

“So, you talk to people,” she asked before he held out her order. “You’re social like that. Everyone’s gonna be at the memorial tonight, right?”

“Yup,” Josh nodded. “All seven of-”

Josh stops himself, remembering what happened to the seventh.

Ava’s face went steely, and for a moment it looked like she had a lot to say.

“Hand me my order,” she sighed. Josh obliged.

Before Ava walked out, she stopped and did a half turn. Josh sees several shifts to and from anger and sympathy.

“Tale care,” she said before leaving.

————————

Noah couldn’t remember the last time he and Josh talked.

So, when Josh sat next to him at the pep rally, he hoped his quietness came off as indifference, and hid his anxiety about the whole situation.

Josh didn’t seem to mind, since he started talking semi-comfortably. He was mellower and less gloomy than he used to be, and Noah felt the familiar jealously that was always the third companion amongst the two.

The pep rally ended after the blackout, Josh called everyone to meet after school, and four of them were stocking up on makeshift weapons.

When Josh told Noah that he won’t leave him again, he let himself believe it.

Noah halfheartedly thanked Josh, and for a second was afraid his sort-of-friend would take offense.

But instead, Josh smiled at him, and Noah felt like he was looking at sunshine.

A warm feeling bloomed in Noah’s chest, and it stuck around even when they were done talking and gone back to looking for weapons.

Noah remembered the warm feeling later on, when he noticed how Josh’s face was red when he was close enough to Lucas, how he stammered a bit more when the two were talking.

Noah wasn’t as dumb as he was as a kid. He knew that Josh liked Lucas. He also didn’t want to believe he was feeling jealousy, because of what it implied.

It wasn’t until during Britney’s party that Noah started to ask himself where these feelings for Josh came from. Was it sometime after everyone drifted apart, and their absence leaving an ache in his heart? Or was it before, when they were younger, innocent, and still friends?

After the party and after Josh revived his hope for the future (something he’d been doing well the past few days), his own personal devil reared its shadowy head, and signaled the end.

In the near future, while they were all forced to play the game again, Noah would wonder if anything could have happened to keep this whole mess from happening.

If he just told Redfield to fuck off, or just ignored him (no, her).

————————

“In school,” Andy said with a mouth full of pizza. “You froze up every time you had to present something. And up there, you didn’t break a sweat.”

Josh was taken by surprise when Stacy’s mom called him up to say a few words (he didn’t even think the town’s mayor even remembered his name). Surprisingly, where there was usually quick breath and sweating, there was just emptiness.

His mind flashed to Cora when he was up, about how she risked her life to help them and went to warn them while she was injured and dying.

And then it went to Noah.

He kept his part about Noah as brief as possible, and stepped down the second he gave his last “thank you”.

Josh would like to say that Lucas’s hug and quick kiss after the memorial made him feel better, but after talking about Noah, he couldn’t shake the feeling like he was betraying him.

“I get a lot of speech practice when dealing with customers from hell,” Josh finally answered, shrugging.

“You mean Ava?” Andy snarked.

“Andy, don’t be mean,” Lily scolded

“You think I take offense to that?” Ava grinned evilly. “I go there on the weekends.”

Josh finished his Graveyard, and turned to Lucas, right next to him.

“Bartender, one more.”

“One for me too,” Stacy smirked, wiggling her empty cup.

“I think you’ve both had enough,” Lucas said in mock seriousness.

“How can you stand to drink those?” Tom asked. “I almost hurled taking a sip!”

“That’s it, you’re dead to me,” Stacy pouted theatrically.

“Aw, come on,” Lily nudged Stacy with her shoulder. “We all just pledged our eternal devotion to each other five minutes ago!”

And just managed to avoid talking about Noah…

Noah could be here. Right now.

Maybe not here though. The others might still hate him, maybe not, but at least he’d be alive. Maybe everyone would even slowly come to stop hating him.

He could find a way to pay for culinary school. He could open up the diner he talked about…

And I wish I could just stop thinking about those last moments…

Josh has vague memories of blushing and being embarrassed around Noah when they were younger, but he didn’t think it had meant anything.

Every time Josh started thinking about his...crush, if he could call it that, he’d just start thinking of Lucas, and guilt of betrayal would stab at his gut.

Josh’s eyes drift over to Dan, who’s been silent the whole time, aside from giving halfhearted laughs and accepting Graveyard refills…

…along with bringing up the one who’s been on Josh’s mind for a while.

“Well…not the whole group.”

Josh remembered that this night would end, and that everyone would go back to dealing with their trauma.

Not alone. Please for the love of god not alone.

He felt like some kind of traitor again, for feeling this awful around people with whom he should be happy.

It shouldn’t feel like this, after all this time. We won, didn’t we?

He remembered the panic attack he talked Lily through by phone after Britney called him, begging for help. He remembered Ava’s blank face as the signs of a flashback started to show. He remembered the bags under Stacy’s eyes as she drank more coffee than was healthy. He remembered the late night texts from Andy faking small talk when he couldn’t sleep and needed some anchor to reality. He remembered the way Dan finally admitted with tears that he wasn’t fine, was anything but fine.

And he remembered seeing the thing that used to be Noah in the ruins, looking back at him with those white eyes before vanishing.

No, Josh realized. We didn’t.

————————

Seconds ago, Josh had gotten Noah out of Redfield’s (no, Jane’s) control as he was seconds away from being stabbed.

He goaded and taunted the monster they all feared since childhood, and fended it off with a whistle.

So this should be easy, right?

Taking Jane’s place so she could finally be free of the hell she spent nearly a decade in.

“I’m sorry, Josh,” Noah sobbed. “Please…please tell my mom-”

“Wait!” Josh said shakily. “It doesn’t have to be you!”

“Josh, please, it had to be me,” Noah begged. “Let me do this. Let me fix my mistakes.”

“NO!” he screamed. “Don’t you dare! Let me do this! Let me take her place instead!”

Except…

Josh didn’t say any of that.

He wanted to stop Noah, he wanted to so much, but no matter what, his throat wouldn’t obey.

When it mattered the most, all he could give is silence.

If the two of them were any closer, their faces would touch. Unfallen tears pooled in Noah’s eyes, filled with regret

Josh didn’t know what to do. He wanted to scream at Noah. He wanted to hug him and never let go. He wanted to punch him.

But Noah acted before Josh could.

His lips weren’t soft, but warm and gentle, and soon turn salty when tears hit their lips. Neither of them knew whose.

“I’m sorry,” Josh lost count of the number of times Noah’s apologized today. “I just…I needed to do that. Just once…”

Those are the last words Noah ever said as a human.

————————

The night ended with everyone promising to see each other tomorrow, and soon after that.

And so, here were Josh and Lucas, waiting together on a bench on the sidewalk for Josh’s mom to come pick them up and give Lucas a ride to his house.

Despite everyone parting with the unspoken promise of this goodbye isn’t for good, Josh couldn’t help that irrational fear that the opposite would be true, and they’d all fall apart over again.

“You good?” Lucas pulled Josh out of his thoughts.

“Huh?” he mumbled dumbly.

“You’re squeezing my hand pretty hard there,” Lucas shakes his hand holding Josh’s, and he finds out he’s right; Josh is squeezing Lucas’s hand like some kind of lifeline.

“Sorry,” Josh says sheepishly as he eases his grip, but Lucas gives a gentle squeeze, keeping him from pulling away.

“Hey, you’re alright,” Lucas says before Josh can apologize any more.

Josh smiled at him, not trusting himself to speak right now. Unfortunately, it just gave way to an awkward silence.

“Josh?”

“Yeah?”

“You know you can tell me anything, right?” Lucas asks.

“What…” do you mean, Josh wanted to say, but he just didn’t have the heart to lie to his boyfriend’s face.

“I know,” Josh sighed.

And he did. But that was a different story than being able to do it.

“I’m here for you. So is everyone else. And if something’s been on your mind, we’d all listen if you wanted to talk.”

Josh wanted to.

He probably needed to.

Josh remembered Dan, how he desperately needed someone to talk to, how he needed help, and what happened after he didn’t get it (it wasn’t his fault, it was mine).

But what could he possibly say?

Is it okay for me to have lingering feelings for someone else? Someone who betrayed us and led us to a monster? Someone who’s a monster now himself? Someone almost all of you understandably hate?

There’s no way he can bring that up. Not to his friends, not to his boyfriend.

“I don’t wanna talk,” Josh sighs. “Could we just…be here…? If that makes any sense?”

“It doesn’t,” Lucas jokes. “But it’s a good thing I’m a mind reader.”

Lucas put an arm around Josh, pulling him closer.

Josh rested his head on Lucas’s shoulder and closed his eyes, enjoying his boyfriend’s presence.

In the future, when Josh finally found it in him to talk, he’d be able to go back to the cabin. Against all advice, he’d look for Noah in the shadowy figure that haunted the woods. And he’d find him. And soon after, Josh would be able to help more people who were forced into a world of monsters like he and his friends were.

[like-rain-or-confetti]

Halloween: Monsters part 2. (requested)

"Stefan, I think we should reconsider this." Vladimir eyed his friend and companion who was a few feet ahead of him. There was a forest fire ahead but he wasn't concerned about that. Vladimir was more concerned that they were trailing the border of Italy. The Volturi would be out in a hunt for sure. "This way is faster. We've been through forest fires before and the Volturi won't come if we're quick about it." 

Finally, Vladimir accepted the route and continued after Stefan. It was only a matter of seconds in inhumane speed that they came face to face with the fire. Vladimir looked at Stefan who sighed. "Come on. We can handle it." "It's not the fire I'm concerned about." Vladimir mumbled. They maneuvered through the flames until surrounded. He heard a twig snap close by. He quickly scanned the area, a heartbeat and other odd noises becoming heard. "Did you hear that?" "It'll be an animal." Stefan quickly responded and Vladimir scoffed. "When did you ever hear any animal make a noise that sounds like both croaking and choking?" "Vladimir, come on. We're the most dangerous species in existence. Stop worrying and let's go." Stefan didn't want to admit he wasn't convinced himself. Something was off about the noise. Regardless, his statement still rang true and he wanted to continue. Vladimir turned to have another glance around him before he reeled back in shock. A large, lanky grey creature with long limbs rushed by the trees on all fours and out of his site. With that a high pitched scream was heard only seconds later. That was no animal. He didn't know what he had just saw but it gave him no reason to stay. 

Alec couldn't forget his encounter, how you mimicked his voice and his sister fell for it. It was seared into his mind and he couldn't stop thinking about it. Regardless of this, Alec had to put on a sickeningly sweet smile as the tourists lined up ready for a tour. He leaned against the entrance door, holding it open for the tourists who in return gushed over how nice the young man was before returning to mindless chatter. Alec bit his tongue as he always did. He really didn’t like to be around humans. It was rare that he found a human he actually liked. Not to mention, the annoying brown contact lenses he wore. They itched and these humans were not worth this amount of effort. Alec kept an eye out for Heidi who was luring in the last number if tourists for this meal with the notion of it being ‘free’ as well as many other things. Humans appeared very vulnerable to the trick. They can’t help themselves. Their whole existence being about nothing but greed. There was a sea of humans outside the castle surrounding the fountain -as they always do. Heidi nowhere in sight. Alec locked eyes with a girl, blue eyes, brown hair. She was staring directly at him. Alec stared back. He didn’t mind making humans uncomfortable. As a matter of fact, he enjoyed it. Any amount of suffering to humans was satisfying at the time but never enough. Though the girl didn’t seem swayed, she looked more lost than anything. 

“Alec!” Heidi smiled sweetly, gaining his attention. “Are we ready to go?” Alec nodded. “Yes.” “Great! Let’s begin everyone!” Heidi had to change her speech for every tour to keep up with modern eras. Alec found it comical. As though Heidi would ever use the word 'great’. Heidi moved past Alec taking lead of the tourists. Alec sighed, straightening to close the door -he did a double take at the fountain. The crowd had cleared significantly but what was more shocking. Heidi had just returned and walked away with the humans…so how was Heidi also standing by the fountain, motionless, and smiling at him? Hurriedly, Alec closed the doors making sure to lock it up tight. He didn’t want to believe it. So he didn’t and rushed away to get fed. 

Barely an hour later Afton entered the throne room, having left his post at the door of the tower in a uneasy manner. “Master,” He began looking over at Caius directly. “Your wife, she’s asking for you. It’s urgent, she is rather distressed.” Caius’ immediately got up and hurried to the tower with Caius. He nodded to both Chelsea and Reneta before entering the from. 

Sulpicia sat on her red, plus satin seat as always, looking at a book. Sulpicia didn’t often read, instead she actually skims it to such an extent she isn’t really sure what she was actually reading. “Ah, Caius, there you are. Would you tell Athenodora to stop overreacting? She’s worried over nothing.” Caius’ ignored Sulpicia who didn’t seem to notice. She always was rather self-absorbed. Perhaps that’s why Aro chose her. He could be gone for days and Sulpicia wouldn’t notice. She held more love for her things than him. It was mind-numbing to Caius just how materialistic she was. Caius put his hands on Athenodora’s shoulders. “My love, what is it?” Athenodora didn’t tear her eyes from the window. “It’s…it’s wrong. It’s not right.” “What isn’t, my dear?” “Look at it…” Caius followed his mates gaze. Just beyond the castles premises was a forest. That was unusual. However there was a wolf, staring up at them. It was black and large for a wolf.  “You have no need to fear, my love.”  “Is it -”  “A child of the Moon? No. They’re long gone, you know that.” Caius reassured her before pulling her away. “Come away from the window. Don’t fret, my love. It’ll move on.”  “I can’t understand it. Something about it just seems...strange.”  “You’re overthinking it and worrying yourself so. “ 

The receptionist was deep in thought, her daily duties overtook her mind. She jumped to see a small girl in a light pink dress, peeking up at her. She leaned over her desk to get a better look at the girl. Light pink dress, white tights and white sandals. Though the receptionist couldn’t help but notice a small detail out of place. The girl had long legs, longer than she’d have thought was average, though she couldn’t be sure. Not to mention this girl looked no older than six and has been left alone. Then a dreadful thought hit the receptionist. She smiled slightly at the girl in attempt not to scare her before picking up the phone. After dialling, she looked back over at the girl only to find she was gone. The receptionist looked around before being startled again. The girl was hunched over, bent at the knee under the desk, continuing to stare up at her. 

Heidi was clearly aggravated as Demetri walked by her side. “I brought them all! There’s no way i missed one!”  “Who knows, Heidi? Maybe the girl was hiding?” They had just been alerted that there was a young girl at reception. Before they could arrive, the receptionist passed them with a blank expression.  “Did you leave that child?” Demetri’s eyes narrowed on her. He got no response and she continued walking.  “Do not ignore us!” Heidi called after her in anger, still nothing. The receptionist turned to the right and into the elevator.  “Idiot.” Demetri muttered.  “Excuse me!?” Heidi glared.  “Not you! Where would she run in an elevator?” Heidi caught on before the two quickly caught the elevator before it closed, only to find it empty.  The two looked up to see the ceiling panel of the elevator slightly out of place. 

Afton was sent to check the dungeons after some commotion. The prisoners spent their time curled up in the darkest corners of each cell. The dungeon was lit with only a few torches, the floor and walls made of stone. It was the shape of a ‘C’ so it was made difficult to see much of the dungeon without moving in to it completely. So Afton had to walk the aisles to check nothing was amiss. The prisoners were clearly afraid but none would speak up as to why. 

He never really understood what he saw at the end of the third aisle, in the corner. He didn’t see the full body. Only a very, very, long leg. Whatever this was must have been very tall, towering over Felix easily. It moved and Afton ran, the prisoners roared to life, begging to be freed and calling Afton a coward. 

Aro looked up from Afton’s hand in alarm. He immediately sent him back to the dungeon, accompanied by Jane. He had no words for Afton. What really could he have seen? There was no doubt Afton saw something out of the ordinary but it wasn’t so clear whether Afton was just seeing things. 

Afton refused to go back in, even telling Jane not to, but she did. She opened the arch door to the dungeon, taking in the sight of terrified prisoners. She continued down each aisle, finding nothing including the back aisle. She briskly headed back towards the door before a male called out from the cell in the corner. “Stupid girl!” “Excuse me?” Jane spun on her heel. “You left the door open! It was waiting for you behind the door! You just let it out!” It was one of the remaining members of the Romanian coven. The one Vladimir and Stefan don’t know about. Jane turned to the open door. Surely she hadn’t just let something out? 

 As soon as you were out, the hunt was on. Though it was noted how difficult this would be. You weren’t going to let yourself known, that’s when Demetri would come in. Furthermore, you could be anyone at any time. 

Santiago was the one to find you. You were in one of the upstairs lounges. The leaders had moved to the tower with their mates for safety. Santiago and the guard had to ensure you’d never reach the tower. You struck fear in him, yet a hint of nostalgia. Santiago came from a superstitious as well as religious family. His grandmother had told him of many beasts and seeing you, a skin walker, before his very eyes threw him off. He never wanted to believe in such things. He refused to, despite his few simple practices which said otherwise. Whilst he didn’t believe, it would be foolish not to take precaution with the unknown. Santiago was caught between fight or flight and it wasn’t long before Alec rushed into the room. Alec had never seen your real form. 

You had very long limbs, skinny so much so that every bone was protruding. You’re eyes were black and very large but your nose was average size. Your mouth was bigger than expected with thin lips that were the same shade of grey as your skin. They only seemed to be visible by a faint outline that can be seen only with his enhanced vision. A human could never see that. Not to mention you were frighteningly tall, even as hunched over as you were. 

He was so absorbed with your appearance that he had no idea what made Santiago lunge but he couldn’t stop him. You let out a loud shriek swiping at Santiago with a clawed hand. Your hit connected and Alec’s mouth fell open. Everything happened in slow motion. Santiago’s head was completely knocked from his shoulders and being driven by the force of your hand. Your hand disconnected from his head which landed in the fireplace. In the time Alec took as he turned back you were sinking your claws into Santiago’s torso as though rapidly digging for something. Though such a thought changed when the movements were frantic but had no structure. You were just ripping his body apart until you got to other side of him. Suddenly, you locked eyes with him and slowly shrank. Alec blinked was suddenly watching himself hover over Santiago’s remains. He watched himself in horror whilst his counterpart gave him a wry smile. Immediately, you darted out of the room and Alec chased after you. 

He found you in Didyme’s room, tearing it apart seemingly searching for something. You scratched and dug your claws into every piece of furniture. Alec heard something fall to the ground and you did so too. It was one of Didyme’s necklaces. Marcus kept it after all this time. It was one of her prized possessions she’d every gotten from him. Now that she was gone, it was all Marcus had left of her jewelry. You snatched it and once again looked at Alec. You stared one another down as you gave him a sinister smile whilst your eyes were completely empty. You almost dared him to move whilst he wasn’t sure what to do. Before he could register it, Alec was suddenly thrown to the ground, his counterpart hunched over him before taking off running just as he heard footsteps approaching. 

Felix and Demetri were certain they stood in your way. To their surprise it was Alec. He stared the two down before slowly moving closer. Felix called out to him but got no response. It was only when another Alec peeked around the door looking horrified. They caught up pretty quickly, only one was wearing the Volturi crest and that was the Alec at the door. Even as you charged at them full speed they were certain you wouldn’t be past them. 

At the very last second you jumped, digging your fingers into the plaster of the wall, leaving holes as you climbed the wall and up to the ceiling, passing the two. “What the-!?” Felix and Demetri spun around only to see Jane blocking you this time. “Pain.” Your face scrunched up. It was hard to see her brother in pain that she was causing but the guttural, shrieks and moans reminded her this wasn’t her brother. 

You shook your head frantically and pounced landing on an unsuspecting Jane. You snarled, leaning close to Jane’s face. “No! Jane!” She heard her twin call out from down the hall. Your claws on one hand squeezed at her neck tightly, digging in to her skin as though attempting to pierce through her neck. She heard a quiet but familiar voice as you continued to push, pain and fear had then begun to set in. “You can’t…hurt me.” Her eyes widened at you. It was her brothers voice, though it wasn’t perfect. A very compelling imitation that even she’d fall for. Your grin grew impossibly wide as though sensing her fear and enjoying it. It became more encouragement to continue. 

“Wait!” Alec’s voice cried out from a distance. “Don’t do it! Don’t hurt her!” Alec had never sounded so distressed. “We’ll do it! We’ll let you go if you stop!” You turned to Alec. Felix and Demetri in shock at the exchange. Gradually, Alec was faced with his counterpart which had his sister pinned. A sickening smile plastered on your face once again. The same smile he’d never forget. You seemed pleased, sending him another stare. In that moment he knew what you were telling him. He’d see you again. 

Jane watched as her brothers face faded into her own, grinning down at her. In one motion, you were off your knees and onto your feet before taking off running again. Alec immediately rushed to bring Jane into his arms.

The Volturi’s permanent guard along with the leaders and the wives were sat in silence. Caius was the first to speak in three hours. “Aro, what was it? What could such a monster ever want?” “I believe that to be a question we may never get the answer to.” Aro said, hands clasped whilst he was deep in thought. “It’s alarming. We have spent all these centuries believing we were what was to be feared, the top of the food chain. We cannot say the same now. Not after what happened here. Not after our dear Santiago.” “We eradicated all threats. The children of the moon for example! What makes this any different!?” Caius argued. “We understood them. Until now, we were what humans could never understand about the world but this, this proves we are nothing in comparison to what could be out there. We can only hope to understand that creature and if it’s out there, I doubt it’s alone.” Aro’s expression was grim and were the last of the conversation, leaving the Volturi wondering what kind of world they’d be spending eternity in.

[a-shadowedvales]

So… in the additional media of Stranger Things (specifically the comics I’m mentioning), it was initially Brenner’s idea/plan to kill off the other test subjects because they weren’t performing as well as Eleven was. It was his best solution because that way, all the resources, time, and money could instead be placed only to her. And I just…. sure Henry is a fine character and the massacre makes a lot of sense to me, but I think I am once again gonna change up my canon to actually fit this potential narrative instead.

I genuinely think the comic canon of the lab and Brenner is far more intriguing than the show. Everything with 9/9.5, Ricky, and Francine. Eleven being the only one who grew up completely in the lab. Those other kids were either volunteers, well into their teens, or had some semblance of a home life. Eleven was the only one practically moulded from the womb. And they all had such a range of interesting powers. I firmly stand with the idea that Jane is the only one who can contact The Void.

Brenner’s entire point of view on the lab subjects changed the second he found out Terry was pregnant. He discovered he could steal this baby and make her his own. There would be no convincing the child because it’s all she would have ever known. Because of this, I would not put it past a man like Brenner to kill the other subjects for the sake of the “greater good” aka Eleven. Eleven’s gifts just continue thriving beyond his wildest expectations. Brenner would never dare assume that having moulded her from the womb, she would still be able to grow into her own person, her own mind, and one day be able to see him for exactly who he was.

Back before season four aired, it was obvious there were other test subjects because Jane was 011. So there were at least ten kids before her. But I always liked the idea/assumed that she was the last experiment because she was the most successful. That they didn’t need anyone after her because she was fulfilling everything they set out for her to do. With flying colours.

I just think the whole Rainbow Room idea, pitting the kids against each other thing… been there, done that. Boring and predictable. I think at this point my portrayal of her time in Hawkins Lab really stems from the complete isolation she endured. Where having the Rainbow Room, although Eleven was obviously the most isolated out of the kids, brings that sense of community and sister/brotherhood. Albeit extremely warped and toxic. Knowing that she wasn’t alone in that experience just. Doesn’t sit well with me. I think it’s important to note that she was alone, physically and mentally. Which is why Kali is also so important to her growth. I thought a lot of the flashbacks of her time in the lab during season four was really boring, repetitive, and just very predictable. Although Peter becoming Vecna was a surprise to me, and was a nice little twist, the idea of her having an ally on the inside was really interesting.

Maybe they did get as far as they do in canon, Peter Ballad was telling the truth about everything, about some of the workers there being prisoners like him, and he really wanted to get her out and to safety. But before they can escape through the pipes, they’re caught. Peter is shot on the spot, and Eleven is put into the isolation room for a few days as punishment. In this timeline, Henry would be Vecna, but Henry would not be Peter Ballad.

When Eleven turned seven, and was already showing extreme promise, where the other children were average at best, Brenner had the eight children killed. Kali had already escaped. This was the main cause for Peter to gain Eleven’s trust and try to get her out. Because if Brenner could murder his “children” in cold blood, there’s no way Eleven was safe even in spite of her power.

When Eleven is allowed out of the isolation room, her testing becomes more rigorous in attempt to distance and make her forget about what she attempted to do with Peter. Brenner begins gaslighting her, saying that there was never a Peter, that she must have been dreaming. Eleven does ask “papa” about “mama”, given Peter told her of the day Terry broke in the lab, but Brenner is convincing enough to make Eleven believe it was all in her head. Say she is around eight years old, meaning the same timeline of season fours canon flashbacks.

I still do wanna keep the Henry Creel canon, and keep him as 001. Brenner didn’t have him killed alongside the other test subjects, because who knows, one day he could become an even better asset than 011. Brenner definitely wants to be able to control Henry, but keeps the chip in him because, for the moment, doesn’t know how. Killing him would be too big of a loss.

When Eleven is ten years old, Henry’s concealed powers break free and he manages to get the chip out himself, and unleashes hell onto Hawkins Lab. He almost kills Brenner by snapping his bones, but Eleven manages to stop him. Her extreme abilities are unleashed, and she sends Henry to the Upside Down. She does fall into a coma due to the extremity of the situation, but she does not forget what happened. Brenner believes she’s the perfect weapon as she stepped in to save him without a second thought, was able to defeat Henry, and opened a door to something he never thought possible. Eleven is rewarded for her efforts. Although she remembers the entire battle / confrontation, her memories regarding the portal are very hazy.

Brenner decides not to focus on the portal straight away, instead gets her training harder and harder to see what else she can accomplish. Also loved the idea of Brenner sending her into The Void to “look for him” so that will definitely be kept.

By the time she escapes and season one begins, her knowledge of the Upside Down is basically what we see in canon. Because she passed out the moment after she sent Henry away, she was once again gaslighted into believing she merely threw him through the glass and killed him. For two years she believed this, until making contact with the Demogorgan, and those memories return completely.

Due to her saving Brenner’s life, (it was pure instinct. She happened to be there. Saw her “papa” hurt and knew she had to make him better.) Brenner constantly thanks her. But in a very condescending way. Tells her: “you saved me so I can continue saving you.” Aka, harness your abilities and see what else I can achieve from you. Despite the fact that she saved his life, these words and phrases make her feel indebted to him. That she owes him something further.

I don't realistically see her thriving with her speech improvement until she's well into her twenties at least. Her slowed development, sensory and social deprivation causes a serious delay in language. Surrounded by other children she would have overheard conversations, some would have spoken to her. Her conveniently forgetting her upbringing pre the battle with Henry just isn't good enough for me anymore. It makes more sense for her to have been raised alone.

It also helps indicate why she gravitated towards the boys when they found her in the woods. They would have been the first people her age she ever remembered seeing. As far as she knew, during the lab there was no one like her. Everyone was much older, they were adults-- although she stayed with Benny, I'm not sure if she would have stuck around very long. Where she followed the boys home without thought.

Also it's important to note that after time, Jane does understand that Peter Ballad was a real person, and was truly the first person (aside from Terry) who wanted the best for her. When she remembers him, knows that Brenner was lying, she deals with immense guilt regarding his death. He was shot right in front of her eyes, because he was trying to help her. This is another catalyst as to why after season two, Jane never refers to Brenner as papa. She does not give him that sort of credit.

[themoonandotherslikeit]

The Hand That Reaches for God- Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty-Six

“I’ve come here with no expectations, only to profess, now that I am at liberty to do so, that my heart is, and always will be, yours.” – Jane Austen

-106 Days After-

  “I used to think that love was complicated.” 

  The aisle was sprinkled with fallen leaves, lined by the candles from inside that burned brightly, the wax bleeding and melting into the crimson blades of grass. 

  Pheli looked at Sam like he was the only other person in the world, because, to her, he was. 

  “I didn’t think it was real . I always thought it was playing pretend. It was just another game, another mask that people put on to seem like their life is worth somethin’. I thought love was just a word.”

  Sam smiled back at her, stroking the back of her fingers with his own. His cheeks were pink, and his long hair caught the breeze, sweeping across his forehead. 

  “But I was wrong. Love is a person. Love is everything.”

-104 Days After-

  Sometimes all it took was a single look to know all that is needed to know about another person. The week that Ophelia had been staying in Emerson’s bed had resulted in Dean and Emerson communicating only by looks. There was a tension building up between them that could be cut with a knife, and she was dying to cut into it. 

  The girls were going into town; they had the Jeep packed for the day and their guns loaded. There hadn’t been an incident since before they arrived. The town appeared to be abandoned, so the brother’s weren’t as worried as they usually were for the girls to be alone. Emerson was leaning against the drivers-side door as her sister and Sam sucked face in her peripheral vision. 

  Dean walked to her with his hands in his pockets, he looked at her sheepishly. “Need something, Winchester?” Emerson asked with pursed lips, trying to hide a growing smirk.

  “Yeah, I do,” he said, putting his hands on her hips. 

  “How can I help you?” 

  “Be safe,” Dean whispered, closing the space between them with a kiss. 

  It was weird, how things had changed. Emerson’s eyes flickered up to Deans, her eyelids heavy from the kiss.  The world felt as if it was full of possibilities, and her heart squeezed at the implications. There were so many imperfect moments that lead up to the moment they were in, where they stood together, but none of them mattered. The only thing that mattered was Dean. 

  “I will be.”

  He pressed his forehead to hers and exhaled a sharp laugh through his nose. “Better be. Can’t lose you, Em. I won’t do it.” His rough fingers tickled the back of her arms and down into her palms as he laced their fingers together. 

  “Nothing’s going to happen to me, Dean.”

  It hung in the air between them, a shared thought that neither of them could say out loud.

  Something already has happened. 

  “Yeah,” he agreed tightly. 

  Saying goodbye was the worst part. The thing that none of them had considered was that, even before the explosion changed everything, life was already uncertain. Dean almost died at war. He did die that day in the hospital. Life wasn’t a guarantee. It never was.  

  “Hey,” she whispered, placing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “Soon we will be a part of a really lame wedding. We will have to get all dressed up and probably dance. I’m not going to die, but I may wish I had while that’s going on.” Emerson smiled at him, wrinkling her nose.

  “Sounds awful.”

  “It will be.”

  “I’ll try to make it better.”

  “You make everything better,” Emerson whispered back, kissing him one last time. It was a pressure against his mouth, his lips were warm and soft against hers. She could feel him sigh against her kiss, letting his worries melt into her. She would be damned if she let fear ruin another thing in her life. She’d spent every day of her life letting fear rule her, and she was fucking done. 

  -4 Years Before-

  Emerson didn’t know it, but Dean was there. 

  It was her high school graduation. He was able to swing some leave before he shipped off to his first real assignment. He was wearing civilian clothes, his favorite t-shirt that now fit just a little too tightly around his newly strengthened biceps. 

  He went to see Sammy graduate, but there, next to his mother, sat his father with a possessive hand curled around her wrist. He would fuck everything up, so he stood in the background. 

  His eyes scanned the program, and he felt this big stupid grin grow on his face. Commencement Speech by Emerson Maklen. He was so damn proud of her. They walked two by two up the row to their seats, and even in the rows of identical black, boxy robes his eyes locked on her. He could pick her out of a line up blindfolded. She’d been catching his attention her whole life, after all. 

  She looked bright and happy, the sun catching the gold in her hair. Hers was the face he thought about on the worst nights of basic training, when all he wanted was to go AWOL and hide in the fucking mountains. It was her smile, her annoyance that lived in her bottom lip, and the judgmental quirk of her eyebrow. 

  They announced her, and she walked up to the stage, adjusting her cap. Emerson wasn’t like Ophelia, she wasn’t effortless and perfect, but for Dean, that was a lot of her charm. She took the stairs one by one as to not trip, and when she reached the podium she gripped the edges with white knuckles. 

  You’ve got this, Em.

  “Good afternoon.” The microphone hissed with feedback and she adjusted accordingly. “I was asked to speak today… scratch that. I was forced to speak today. If any of you know me, you know that I’m a twin. My sister Ophelia is a force . When she wants you to do something you say yes. No if ands or buts about it. So when she said she thought I should speak… well, here I am.” She laughed breathlessly into the microphone. 

  “The truth of the matter is that when you love someone, no doesn’t even come to mind. No matter what she asks me, I’ll do it, because that’s what you do for your family. Love isn’t a word, love is other people. Love is your teacher staying late to explain the concept, love is your mom cutting off the crust to your sandwich, love is laughing until your sides ache,” Emerson said, her voice trailing off as her eyes scanned down to the podium. She had this smile, it was the smallest smile that, if Dean hadn’t been watching her for most of his life, he wouldn’t have noticed. But he had been, so he did notice. “Love is someone who will sit up on the roof and talk about your fears with you. Someone who believes the stars are in your eyes.”

  It was like having all of the breath knocked out of his body. His mouth went dry, and his hands began to tremble. Is she saying what I think she’s saying? He didn’t think she could possibly know the effect that she had on him, how the world seemed to be brighter when she was in it. He wanted to believe her, to drink her in. He wanted to run up on that stage, rip the cap off her head, and kiss her. She was graduating alright, they both were. 

  She looked back out to the crowd. “We have spent the last four years growing, changing, and looking to the future. So, class, the only advice I have for you moving forward is to not spend all of your time staring ahead of you, because the moments that we live in are leaving us just as they begin. So be cautious, because in my own pursuit of love and passion for the future, I missed the love that was already here in the present. I missed the joy that the last four years have brought, and no matter what you do, you can’t turn back time. You can’t undo or rewind, you can just make sure to not miss the next opportunity. So let these years ahead of us be the best yet. Take those opportunities as they come, and enjoy them, because, trust me, you’ll miss them when they’re over.”

  It was only a fantasy. He couldn’t run up onto the stage and kiss her, because she just talked about wanting to live in the moment. He wasn’t a part of her present, he was her past. 

  He knew that she was right, though, love was a person. Love was Emerson.

  -104 Days After- 

  “Ew, gross,” Ophelia commented, pulling Emerson out of the bubble that she and Dean were in. “Can you guys quit sucking face for five minutes so we can go shopping?”

  Emerson smiled up at Dean with rosy, embarrassed cheeks. “I’ll see you later.”

  “See you,” Dean agreed, his hands falling to his sides.

  Emerson let her gaze linger on him for just a second more before hoisting herself into the Jeep. She adjusted the gun that was strapped to her thigh and started the Jeep. She glanced at Dean in her rear view mirror and watched him throw up a small wave. 

  “You two seem to be getting along,” Pheli said in an accusing tease.

  Emerson snorted, rolling her eyes. She put the Jeep in gear and pressed her foot on the gas. “Yeah, so?”

  “So? So?! You’re infuriating, you know that?”

  She glanced at Pheli with a raised eyebrow. “You’re really bothered by this.”

  “Yeah, I fucking am!”

  If Pheli was in a cartoon, smoke would be pouring out of her ears. 

  “Why?”

  “Watching you two fight it is exhausting. It’s like watching the longest slow burn of all time. Why don’t you just be together? What are you waiting for?”

  “What do you mean?” Em asked, shifting her weight uncomfortably. “We are…”

  “ Together? Are you really? I’ve never heard you say that you love him or called him a pet name…” 

  “Just because we don’t look like you and Sam, doesn’t mean what we have isn’t real.”

  “I know that,” Pheli murmured softly, her face turning toward her lap. 

  Emerson focused on the road in front of her. The asphalt was covered in fallen leaves. It would be cold soon, winter was coming and it was something that was frequently on Emerson’s mind. She never let herself focus on relationships and more than anything, she felt as if there were bigger things to worry about. “I know how I feel about Dean,” she admitted quietly. “I know you think I’m fighting it, but I guess I just think that we have what we have. What am I supposed to do- marry him, have babies?”

  “Well… yeah.” 

  “Doesn’t that feel just a little… pointless? Look at the world Pheli! It’s so fucked up. You can’t seriously think that some flowers and a white dress will change anything.”

  “I do,” Pheli snapped, turning toward her sister in her seat. “Pull the fucking Jeep over now.” 

  Emerson glanced at her sister in surprise and did what she was told. She put the Jeep in park and turned toward Pheli. “What, Ophelia?”

  “I know you think I’m being shallow, okay. I know you’ve always thought I was shallow. Sweet little Ophelia is too soft to be involved in anything real, if you put her out in the rain she’ll melt. I have news for you Emerson. I know that the world is fucked up. I have two eyes. So, do I think that a wedding will help? Yeah, okay, I do. I think if I’m going to tell Sam how much I love him, I should do it before something horrible happens and I lose him. If I can find an hour, a minute, a second of joy in this goddamn horrible place that we are in, then I’m going to take it. So call me shallow or stupid, or pointless if you have to. I get it, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth something.” 

  For the first time in her life, Emerson realized that she misunderstood her sister completely. She spent her whole life trying to be tough, wearing her suit of armor while Ophelia wore her crown of flowers and played the role of the princess. She always thought that their roles were determined by what they could handle, but it turned out that they each shouldered something. Pheli was the joy. Without sugar a cake would be bitter and horrible, and although they wouldn't still be standing without Emerson’s strength, they wouldn’t have hope without Ophelia. She’d been wrong. The whole time she’d been wrong. 

  “I’m so sorry,” she gasped out, covering her mouth. It was like everything inside of her was crumbling. She didn’t have to be the strong one. The two girls came together, their arms tangling in a desperate, rib crushing hug. 

  “Em, it’s okay,” Phel whispered. 

  For once, she was inclined to believe her sister. She didn’t mean to sob into her hair, snot and all, but once it started she wasn’t able to turn off the faucet. She had twenty-three years of pain bleeding out of her. 

  They sat there for what felt like a lifetime, and Pheli let her sister cry it out until there was nothing left. Em felt drained, like the life had been sucked out of her body through a crazy straw. She turned her face and buried it deeper against the crook of her sisters neck. She didn’t have it in her. She had nothing left but a single breath of strength that she was saving. It was her last straw, and she couldn’t use it yet. She knew she would need it and like a proper hoarder she kept it there, hidden behind her ribs right next to her heart. “I’m good,” she said through a shaking, pained exhale. 

  “You sure?” Pheli pushed her hair out of her face and wiped her tears from her cheeks. 

  “Yeah, I think so.” Her throat was aching from the sobs, and she knew that her eyes were swollen. “Let’s go get ready for this wedding. You’re right, we deserve some joy.” She took the Jeep out of park and took her sisters hand in hers, squeezing it tightly. 

  Pheli scooted closer and rested her head on Emerson’s shoulder as they drove into town. 

  As long as they’d been at the cabin, no one had seen another person in the town. It seemed to have been evacuated months previously. There weren’t a lot of supplies left, but the rest of the town was mostly intact. “Where did you want to look?”

  “I think there’s a bridal boutique downtown.”

  It was an old town. The streets were brick, and the buildings were all old, most of them seemed to be the original structures in the town. Emerson pulled the Jeep over and parked in front of the boutique. It was small and locally owned, but it appeared to have survived the looting. The front door looked normal. “I don’t suppose its unlocked?” Emerson questioned, not asking anyone in particular. She tugged on the handle. It was locked. She glanced around before crouching down and grabbing a piece of brick on the ground. With all of the force that she had she slammed the brick into the glass. It fell away easily, and she stuck her arm through the new opening, unlocking the door from the inside. “Bingo.” 

  “I hate when you guys do that,” Pheli complained, grabbing her sisters arm. She examined it closely, and when she determined that no damage had been done, she released her grip. 

  “A necessary evil.” 

  The girls walked through the front door. The shop looked untouched by time and pain, and Emerson understood more than ever why the wedding was a great idea. She walked to a mannequin and ran her fingers along the white satin fabric, her callouses catching on the fabric. She never thought that she’d be the girl that would obsess over a dress, flowers, or the right guy. She didn’t see herself spilling over bridal magazines or trying to find the perfect curtains to match her couch in suburbia. She wasn’t that simple. But there was something about what Pheli said that dug into her, burying itself deep within her. It wasn’t about the dress, or the flowers. It wasn’t about the house or the curtains. It wasn’t so vapid and pointless. It was an outward description of the way that she felt, and if the aching in her chest was any indication, than she should be wearing a princess gown adorned with jewels. 

  “Em?” 

  “Huh?”

  “Look,” Pheli said. Her voice was soft as she held a dress to her chest. “It’s everything.” 

  “Try it on,” Em suggested with a warm smile. 

  She wasn’t adorned with jewels. She was hiding behind a veil of darkness and fear, because even after every moment that brought her to the right answer, she still ended up growing into a girl that she never thought she would be. She was worse than vapid, she was broken. For the first time in her life she wished that she could be the simple girl who wanted the wedding dress and the floor length curtains. She wanted anything other than what she had. She wanted to be brave enough to let Dean love her, because even though he said that he would, she knew that he couldn’t wait around forever. 

  Pheli bit her bottom lip. “You think?” 

  “Come on, why not? That’s why we’re here.” 

  “Yeah, but… I don’t know this seems stupid.” Pheli exhaled in a single huff, and Emerson would’ve thought she was itching for a compliment if it weren’t for the tears lining her bottom lashes. 

  “What’s going on, Phel?”

  “It’s just… I know that we’ve always known that she wasn’t going to make it, but I still wish Mom was here.” 

  It was something so normal, that it hadn’t even occurred to her, and the weight in Emerson’s chest pressed down harder, taking her breath away. “Me too.” 

  She wished a lot of things.

  “I always thought she would walk me down the aisle, and I guess it’s stupid since it isn’t even real…”

  “Hey,” Em said, stopping her. “It isn’t stupid, and it’s real. I’ll walk you down the aisle.”

  Pheli sucked in her nose, sniffling a bit. “Thank you,” she whispered. It was like she needed her sister’s permission to be happy. 

  “Now go try it on before the Rogues come here and fuck up our fun!” 

  “Right, right,” Pheli said sarcastically, with a wide smile. “I’m going.”

  As Pheli disappeared behind the curtain in the dressing room, Emerson wandered. “I’ll be right back!”

  She opened the front door and stood outside, taking in deep breaths of crisp fall air. There was an antique shop across the street that she wanted to check out. She crossed the street, a little more languidly than usual. It was the peace of the town, the way the cool breeze pushed the leaves, and the way that no sound seemed to penetrate the bubble that they were in. She felt safe, even though she should’ve been on her guard. 

  The door to the antique shop had already been busted, so she pushed in, her boots crunching on the stray pieces of glass from the broken door. Leaves had blown into the hole in the door, entire shelves had fallen, or been pushed over. The store was a mess, to put it simply, but Emerson was looking for something specific. 

  She stepped over fallen toys. Wooden horse heads on sticks, dolls with missing eyes, and a lonely tricycle. She climbed over a stray chair and overturned desk. She spotted what she was looking for midway into the shop, and she was going for it, taking the quickest route. There was a glass case toward the back of the store. She placed her palms on the top of the glass and shifted her weight so she could hoist herself over behind the counter. The keys were still in the lock. She turned the key and slid the backing of the case away and looked in through the back. It was dark in the shop from the overcast autumn day, but she was still able to pull each item out and examine it. 

  There was a set of old pearls that were coated in dust. She pulled her shirt out and wiped them clean, squinting to try to see if they were worth pocketing. She dug around some more and found an aged crystal brooch, a small beaded bag, and a crystal hairpin. Bingo. She blew the dust off the hairpin, exposing a beautiful aquamarine crystal. “Something blue,” Emerson murmured. 

  There was a crash deeper in the store, something fell over, and it pulled Emerson out of her quiet moment alone. She shoved the pin and necklace in her pocket and unclipped her gun from her thigh holster. Her fingers were trembling as she pointed the gun toward the noise. Her finger hovered over the trigger, as her thumb clicked the safety off. She wanted to shout out, but if it was a Rogue, that spelled trouble. She preferred not to use the gun at all. The less noise the better. 

She didn’t hear anything else coming from that area. Nothing else had toppled over and there was no groaning. She ran her tongue over her bottom lip and slowly hoisted her leg over an overturned chair to get out from behind the counter. She glanced behind her, realizing that if she got into a chase that she would be royally screwed. There was no quick escape route through all of the random items that had been toppled during an earlier raid. 

  Emerson swallowed hard and moved forward, stepping over fallen items, keeping her hands as steady as she could on her weapon. She pushed a fallen rack of fabric out of the way with her gun, causing dust to invade the air. She coughed a few times, covering her mouth with her bicep. When the air cleared she found herself staring at the back well, the door to the alleyway out back was ajar, but other than that she was completely alone. 

  She frowned and squatted down finding an old model car that looked like it may have recently fell. It’s spot on the shelf had an empty space where the area around it was covered in a thick layer of dust. She stood up, and her eyes caught a smear on the edge of the door, like a hand had been pulled across the edge, disturbing the settled dust. She walked towards it and placed her own fingers over the smudge. It was easily a size and a half larger than her own hand. Her fingers curled in on themselves, and she put her gun back in her thigh holster before heading back toward the front of the store. 

  “Em? Emerson!?” 

  She heard Pheli calling her name from outside of the shop, and her heart picked up in her chest. She picked up speed, jumping over pieces of furniture. She pushed through the front door. “Phel?” 

  Ophelia stood in the middle of the street looking frantic, her dark eyes wide. “Where the fuck were you?” She asked, running to Emerson. She threw her arms around her sisters neck, squeezing her tightly. “I thought you were toast.” 

  “No,” Emerson whispered, hugging her sister back. “I’m okay. I’m all good.” 

  She pulled back from the huge and took in Pheli’s appearance. 

  She was wearing a long, champagne lace dress, that had a v-neckline, and capped sleeves. It fit her like a glove. Seeing her in it made Emersons chest squeeze. She didn’t have to be one of those girls, but Pheli deserved it. She deserved to be the princess that she spent her entire life pretending to be. “Phel.” 

  “What?”

  “You look so beautiful.” 

  “What?” 

  “The dress,” Emerson whispered with a smile. “Spin around.” 

  Pheli looked down, as if it occurred to her for the very first time that she was wearing a wedding dress. She spun slowly, and Emerson grabbed the zipper, pulling it all the way up. “You can’t do that again,” Phel said quietly. 

  “Do what?” 

  “Disappear.” 

  When the zipper was in place Pheli turned back around  and stood face to face with her sister. “I’m sorry,” Emerson said quietly, but smiled. “I was just getting you something.” She dug in her pocket and held out the two items that she stole from the antique shop. “Something old and something blue.” 

  Pheli ran the pearls around her fingers and held the pin up to the light. She sucked in her breath through her nose and smiled. “Thank you.” 

  “You’re welcome.” Emerson met her sisters smile, but there was still a hint of something else, something that she couldn’t quite name. It was the thing that raised the hairs on the back of her neck. It was a pair of eyes watching her from the darkness. It was fingers swiping through dust. It was the knowledge that everything was always going to end up the way that it did, and there wasn’t a goddamn thing that she could do about it. “Now lets get home and get you married.” 

  “Not until I get you an outfit, Emerson Mae. It will be a big night for you, too.” 

  As she laced her fingers with her sisters and walked back into the bridal shop, she knew, deep down in her soul, that Ophelia was right. It would be astronomical.     

—————

Authors Note: Hey y’all! Thank you so much for reading! I just wanted to give you a little update. I have one more chapter planned out for this fic. I do plan on doing a part two, that I hope to begin in about a month. October is really busy for me, and I have a lot of projects, so I’m giving myself a beat to get the next section in order and write a few chapters ahead so I can get back on a regular posting schedule. So stay tuned! I’ll have more official details at the end of the next chapter. <3 Thank you again for all of your constant support, it truly makes this all worthwhile! 

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Get caught up!

Support my writing!

Tag List:

@purpleskiesandcherrypies @hanaissupergirl @deans-baby-momma @tftumblin @squirrelnotsam @formulafun @thatgirl1456 @wildfirekitten @ain-t-bovvered @ceisbill @cpag7

Let me know if you’d like to be tagged!

[livesbeneath]

the end of all things.

pairing: noah x female mc (harley blanco)

summary: it’s three am, and her laugh is in his head. it almost makes him want to live.

word count: 2.8k.

author’s note: i decided to try and revert back to my old epic poem-esque style for this work, and i have to say, i am extremely excited about how it turned out!  this piece has been a labor of love for me, and i really hope you all enjoy a brief journey across canon with a little added perspective from noah and mc.  i wrote this fic mainly while listening to  the end of all things  by panic! at the disco, hence the name. i highly recommend giving the song a listen since it’s gorgeous - and really helps set the mood. i apologize for any grammar / sentence structure issues, as i tried to proofread the best i could, and thank anyone who takes the time to read!  feedback in any form is deeply appreciated!  (and a big thanks to @gayvathewitch for being my first set of eyes <3)

disclaimer: i do not own these characters / some of the dialogue present. creative liberty has been taken to make this story unique, and i do not intend to use it for profit in any way.

whether near or far, i am always yours. any change in  time, we are young again. so lay us down. we’re in love.

i. bravery

She asserted herself as the bravest in the group at age seven. She picked up worms after rainstorms, rode her bike without a helmet, and tried a new vegetable every month. She jumped into the public pool without holding her nose and didn’t wear swim goggles.

Despite being a pup, Harley led the pack. She was destined to grow into her claws.

ii. cowardice

He always looked slightly anxious. He was cautious, moody, protective. He often hid under his covers at night when he heard the wind blow through his window. It was broken, and refused to close all the way.

Noah wasn’t a wolfish young boy. He was more the shadow that hung behind the sun.

iii. third

He decides eight o’clock in the morning is too early to be awake. Noah suppresses a yawn, eyelids drooping. His mom says that he’ll be able to walk to school after he turns twelve. Until then, he’s stuck on the bus.

“Where’s Jane?” Harley asks quizzically, her Monsters Inc. lunchbox sat on her lap. The two girls always sat together. Noah usually took the seat across the aisle from them - but today it had been claimed by Grant Warner, and he was a fifth grader.

“She has a fever.” He frowns as he stares at the empty space beside her. “Can I sit?”

“I don’t know-” she grins, pulling on one of her own pigtails. “Can you? Do you know how to sit, Noah?”

“Shut up.” he grumbles as he plops down. She knows he doesn’t mean it, and that only makes her giggle harder. The sound makes him want to shove her lunch onto the floor. That is, until he hears his mother’s voice in the back of his head.

You know, boys only pick on girls if they like them, Noah.

Frowning to himself, he sinks lower into the seat, not bothering to shrug his backpack off his shoulders. Her voice was too loud for such an early morning.

“Are you nervous?” she answers before he can even take a breath. “I’m not nervous. I can’t wait to tell Jane all about it!”

“Third grade is gonna be just like second grade, y’know.”

Her spirit is seemingly indomitable, as she simply cheers in response. Her second grade year was a blast - and his was filled with butterflies. Annoying butterflies.

Butterflies he’d like to squish.

iv. sleepover

Mrs. Marshall had packed her children a travel-sized bag of cheesyfish, their own separate flavored toothpastes, and mismatched pairs of socks. She didn’t stop at the front door of Harley’s house to see her children off. Her migraines were getting worse - and a quiet night free of her kids was just what the doctor ordered.

Noah was shocked when Harley’s father answered the door. He didn’t see her parents much. In fact, he was pretty sure they were supposed to be in Boston on business in a week.

Immediately, the twins were whisked to the backyard where the rest of their friends were waiting. Andy was ripping clumps of grass out of the ground and throwing them at Lucas, which was highly amusing to the other children.

“Harley!” Jane says from beside him, a sly smile on her face. “Tell Noah to stop being such a big baby about Mr. Red.”

Harley’s mouth forms an o-shape, her eyebrows raising. “You don’t want to go play with Mr. Red tonight?”

“I’m not a baby! I just think - what if your parents see we aren’t here?”

“That’s why we have a tent, silly! And blankets and pillows to make props! We know Mr. Red can’t really play with us in the light.”

He bites his lip. “It’s gonna be really dark.”

“We can bring flashlights!” Harley smiles. “Or, we can stay here. I want to go to help protect everyone, but you remember the playtime rule, don’t you?”

A few feet away, Jane breaks a twig in half with a clean snap!

“Everyone plays together!”

v. whispers

Her first mistake was not making it to the gym early. If she had, maybe she could have snagged a seat at the top of the bleachers, somewhere high up, a corner against the wall where no one would bother her.

She’s all too aware of his lazy eyes. Tired as they may be, they burn into her back as she stands there like an idiot, contemplating a daring escape out the closest exit.

“Hey, Harley! Sit your stupid ass down unless you wanna watch from the garbage can!”

To her chagrin, Noah makes no move to assist her as she stands there. She doesn’t expect him to, but it would have been the most efficient way to make Cody shut his mouth.

“Hello? You’re blocking our view, and there’s a spot right there!” Jocelyn blurts, waving a hand towards the only seat left open in the whole place.

She exhales before turning at a snail’s pace to meet Noah’s eyes. He sits there expectantly, and Harley assumes that he already knows his answer to her question before she’s even asked it. Swallowing her pride, she offers him a reluctant smile. “Hey, Noah. Do you mind if I…?”

Can you? Do you know how to sit, Harley?

“Knock yourself out.”

He takes his time scooting to the side. Harley shoots Cody and Jocelyn one last glare before stepping up and squeezing beside Noah, crossing her arms across her chest as she plants her feet firmly on the platform below. Any attempts at small talk will be futile, and yet-

“So… what’s been up with you? We haven’t really talked since…”

His voice is a flatline. He shifts uncomfortably in his spot. “Yeah, I know.”

Harley shakes her head slightly as she glances around, her eyes not exactly focusing in on anything, not even Lucas as he approaches center floor to begin the assembly. The gymnasium rumbles around them as the students welcome their class president. Both stay still, letting the vibrations from over a hundred feet stomping madly drown out the rumbles of awkwardness situated in their stomachs.

They fall into a steeled, not-quite conversation. Occasional jabs at Lucas’ discovery of hair gel and Stacy’s cheermates inch them closer and closer to dismissal. After the bell, they’ll hopefully never have to do this again.

“Why do people like her so much?” Harley huffs offhandedly, eyeing Britney in the sea of pom poms before them. “They’ve got to know how horrible she is.”

“And?” Noah begins. “She’s hot and she can do flips. We can’t compete with that.”

She turns to look at him, a curious half-smile on her face as he shrugs. It’s somewhat comforting to know that they remain similar despite the ten years of radio silence between them.

It isn’t the same with everyone else, though. Some of them are still stuck in the gutter of the social pyramid, some of them seemingly free from it, parading around the gym like they own it.

“Huh. Andy actually made the team this year.”

Harley can’t help but grin at that. “Good for him! I can’t wait to see him play.”

Noah yawns as the basketball team captain takes the podium, his speech a carbon copy of every other student-written rallying cry, right down to the obnoxious Westchester Wolves howl.

However, one element manages to catch them both off guard: the flickering of the gymnasium lights.

Then, a plea from Lucas to stay seated. A microphone full of feedback. A broken stereo system.

With a loud BANG!, the doors of the gym fly open, and the lights flicker back on.

She feels a hand clamp around her arm. A shiver up her spine.

“God! What are you-”

He speaks with a frightening concern. “Shut up! Do you hear that!?”

“Hear what?”

“Ssssshhhh!”

The music sputters and dies as the lights shut off completely. A voice, completely alien and horribly familiar.

A whisper.

“Everyone… plays… together.”

vi. resurgence

They all started spending time together, but only out of obligation. It wasn’t as if cops could just arrest Redfield.

She understands Noah’s anger, but it doesn’t make the sight of his face twisted in rage any easier to see. It’s a constant reminder that maybe they could have spared themselves years of loneliness if one of them had been tough enough to speak up.

Harley wasn’t going to stand back anymore. Not after the assembly. Not after finding Dan. Not after what he had told her in the hardware store.

“Mom blames me, y’know. For Jane… and for dad leaving right after.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

“It is. She’s said it to my face. Regularly, actually.”

It’s moments like that, like him looking so paralyzed when a monster charges at him, which spark up remembrance in her. They not only make her realize how much she’s missed him, but how much she’s always wanted to be there for him. To protect him. Something about him ignites the hero in her.

She finds where he sits at lunch and plops down.

He wonders why she didn’t ask before doing so.

vii. effortless

The cobblestone around Britney’s pool proved to be terribly unkind to any kind of shoe that required balance to walk in. Decked out in gold and heels, an ensemble that was a giant leap from her normal bomber jacket, it almost made Harley wish that she hadn’t agreed to take a walk with him.

Almost.

Jocelyn’s laugh and the rest of the party fades out behind them as they reach the edge of the backyard, the gentle lapping of the pool water calming Harley’s nerves.

She feels the urge to reach down her throat and rip her heart from her chest in an attempt to silence it. From the moment she had seen him in his natural habitat, gracelessly tossing potato chips into the pool, her heartbeat had been on the fritz.

Nevertheless, she appears just as collected as ever, even as the two of them share a grin. She takes note of how much lighter he looks when he does so.

“So I gotta ask-” she begins. “Why’d you decide to come tonight.”

He looks her over subtly. His hands begin to sweat. “It’s dumb.”

“I bet it’s not! What if I tell you something dumb?”

“Depends on what you got.”

She runs through multiple replies in her mind. There’s “I think you look nice with your hair long”, along with “I felt my stomach lurch when you laughed earlier”. There’s also-

“I got points off my language arts homework because I misspelled orange.”

His lips turn upward, and he doesn’t work to suppress a chuckle. “You mean the most phonetically sound word in the English language?”

“See? Now that was dumb.” she watches him shake his head, taking a breath.

“I came because…”

Because you would be here. Because she made things a bit easier to bear. “Well, being with your friends in a place you hate is still better than being alone, right?”

He drifts from her in that moment, the grill a few feet away giving him something more stable to think about. She approaches - relentless as always - a smile on her face. He wishes he could be so easygoing.

She speaks so easily, and he doesn’t think she realizes the impact of the stuff she says. Noah doesn’t know what it is about her that makes her so much easier to talk to. So easy to snap at, and then confide in seconds later. He knows she deserves better than his polar opposites. She would have a much better time playing spin the bottle with Stacy’s brother.

And yet, she doesn’t go. Not when he digs up skeletons from his past, not when he mentions his wishes for the future. He barely realizes he’s talking about Baby Jane’s, something that he’s never mentioned away from pen and paper, until the words leave his mouth. Until she happily asks “Will you let me be a waitress at Baby Jane’s someday?”

Something about it is so effortless. Something about them is so…

“Now, what do you say we go back to the party? See if Britney has any hot dogs?”

He shakes his head as music begins to blare from the house. “You go ahead. I like how quiet it is over here.”

Harley’s face practically glows as she recognizes the song playing, and she turns back to him, enthusiastically sticking her arm out. “Are you sure? Come on, come dance with me!”

“Hey, I bet Andy would dance with you.” he can’t help but smile, pointedly trying to ignore the adorable way she bobs along to the bass.

Instead of replying, Harley decides to kick off her heels, one of them landing in the pool as she goes. She shakes out her hair, brunette tresses falling over her shoulders and down her back, moving from side to side as she begins to groove along with the sound.

Laughing, she extends both her arms, making grabby hands at him and calling out. “But it’s fun! And it’s Franz Ferdinand! You know Take Me Out, right?”

He doesn’t bother to recall if he knows the song or not, and smiles as he playfully waves her away, standing only to go and fish her shoe out of the water.

Sticking out her tongue, hips swaying, she turns and dances off to where Andy is sitting.

He watches her go, a blush spreading across his cheeks as he marvels at just how plucky she is.

Some things never change.

viii. reverse

He made a bold move of his own a few days later, bell ringing overhead as he showed up unannounced, joining her for all things coffee and Redfield related. She had initially been alone, probably for a reason, as it jostled him to see her so worked up.

After a particularly tense session of rehashing the past, the sound of her pencil furiously scribbling away in her notebook dedicated to Mr. Red is the only thing between them. He shuffles his feet as he sees her violently wipe tears of frustration from her eyes. A sickness pools into his chest as he realizes how much of this she’s taking on by herself  -  and in that, he sees his own reflection.

“I don’t know what to do.” she huffs, dropping her pencil to tug on her hair.

Unwilling to hash out the future in its entirety, his hand grazes hers before pulling away. Instead of something to hold, he gives her a small smile.

“If all else fails, you can always wait tables. Baby Jane’s is gonna need staff members.”

It’s a nice thought.

ix. sidestep

The night was young as the teens celebrated their victory. After spending what seemed like years fearing every shadow that fell beside them, the strobe lights at homecoming seemed almost too good to be true.

Noah drifts off to the side as a slow song begins, feeling his stomach begin to churn as the clock keeps ticking. No matter how he tries, he can’t will the hands to move any faster.

Harley also feels sick, but mainly because she’s just polished off her fourth cup of punch in fifteen minutes. That, and the fact that they’re the only two who haven’t found someone to dance with.

Neither of them work up the courage to make a move.

Maybe he could have if he didn’t know what was coming.

x. betrayal

What was coming could only be better than what had gone.

He tells himself this as he watches her, dress ruined, drenched in Cora Pritchard’s blood and riddled with tears, leave the dogs to deal with the horde closing in on the ruins. This is what they - what he - had to do.

This only makes him sicker as he leads her inside. No amount of hope will ever dull the knife in his pocket. The way he feels about her only makes it sharper, only makes it more painful as she grapples with it against her throat. He thinks it remarkable how valiantly she fights. She thinks it horrific how this is when he finally decides to grow some balls.

Her survival instincts briefly overtake her heart. “Noah, you traitor! Let go of me! If Redfield has hurt any of our friends, I swear-”

The venom in her voice shatters him inside, but he keeps his focus on his sister, on how sweet it will be to finally free her.

He thinks of how when he dies, he won’t ever feel the pain of hurting those he loves again.

xi. together

But as always, she has a plan of her own.

When there is no one left but the two of them, both staring confoundedly at the puff of smoke that was once Redfield, her mind begins to race.

Harley watches his feet drag across the floor as he approaches her, his appearance that of a boy dissolved by his own actions. Noah wants nothing more than to dissipate. He wants nothing more than to make things right. To be brave for once.

Unfortunately, bravery is all she has left.

xi. bravery

So, she sacrifices herself.

xii. cowardice

And as for him?

He runs.

in these coming years, many things will change. but the way  i feel will remain the same. so lay us down. we’re in love.

[cchellacat]

Not a Monster

Love All The Marvel Ships Challenge 

Day Nineteen ~ Patching Each Other Up

“Hold Still.”

She dipped the cotton in the hot salted water and continued cleaning the wound.  It hadn’t been easy, picking the bullet out of his shoulder, but she had done it anyway.  There was no other choice.

“Sorry, Doll.”

Darcy rests her head on the back of his neck and kisses the skin there softly. She’s on edge, but can he blame her?  They had been running for five days. They had no easy way of contacting their friends, not without alerting whoever had infiltrated the compound, and with no money, no ID’s and the possibility of any agency they looked to for help bringing Hydra with them, they’d opted to stay off grid and make for one of Natasha’s safe houses in Virginia. The further away from camera’s and facial recognition the better.

“How does it feel, did I get it all out?”  She pokes the small bowel with the bullet fragments and he glances down shortly and nods.

“Yeah, you got it all. It feels better already, it’ll be mostly healed by morning and I’ll find us another car to get us the last of the way…. I’m sorry for dragging you into this Darcy.”

She grabs the suture kit and threads the needle, ready to start stitching it closed, at least somewhat. She hates needles, but needs must and she can’t leave him with a gaping wound in his shoulder. He tenses under her touch again and she concentrates on what he’d said before as she forces the tip through his skin, wincing internally at the sensation of passing it through living human tissue.  

“You didn’t drag me into anything.  It was meant to be a short getaway, it’s my fault if it’s anyone's, I was the one who wanted us to get some time alone.  I should have taken up Tony on his offer and we could have been at the beach in Malibu right now.”

Bucky turns his head a little, placing a hand on hers to stop her for a moment.

“No, this isn’t on you. We did need the time away, we’ve been cooped up for the last year.  I was the one who made out travel plans and accommodations….”

“Okay, I get it.  It’s Hydra’s fault.”  

She cuts him off, and he lets her get back to stitching up his shoulder.

“You know this is just like old times.”  He mentions to her with a teasing grin.

“Old times?  What are we, sixty?”

“You know what I mean.”

Darcy can’t help but grin back at him.  He always knows how to make her feel better.  In the beginning it had always seemed like one or the other of them were hurt and in need of a little clean up.

“You remember the time Jane’s portal dumped me out on the roof?”

“And you fell off right into my waiting arms?”  

“Shut up, you were not waiting.  You didn’t even know I was there, I nearly flattened you.”

“You hardly weigh a thing Doll.”

“To you, maybe.”

“Why, you hankerin after some other fella these days?”

She shook her head and bumped him with her hip, then carefully covered the stitching with a gauze pad and taped the edges.

“You know you ruined me for other men, who am I gonna run off with, Steve?”

She’d spoken without thinking it through.  The air between them went from warm to cold in a half a second.

Things between Bucky and Steve had been tense for months and neither one of them would tell her why, just assured her it would work itself out eventually.  She gathers up the used cotton and gauze and the water and takes it back to the bathroom to get rid of the evidence and clean up the blood.  He follows her through, leaning in the door jam, watching as she dumps stuff in the bin and washes out the bowl before washing her hands.

“You ever think about it?” He asks her suddenly.

Darcy looks up at him, confusion plain on her face.  

“Think about what?”

“You and Steve?”

Darcy did not see this coming, like at all.  Her and Steve?  There was no her and Steve.  He was her boyfriend’s best friend.  And yeah, okay, she had known Steve first, technically, seeing as how she had been living at Stark Tower when the Avengers had first formed but….  They had hardly ever had much to do with each other.  She’d been friendly as always, had helped him out a little getting used to the twenty-first century, but there had been absolutely nothing between them.

“Babe…. Where is this coming from?  There is no me and Steve, there never was.  What got this started?”

Bucky scrubs a hand over his face and pushes off the door, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms round her middle, gazing at her in the mirror.  She still can’t wipe the unsettled look of hurt and consternation in her face.

“It’s nothing, ignore me, I’m just being stupid.”

Darcy wraps her arms over his and tightens them around her, his chin falling to rest on her shoulder.

“I love you, you know that. I am never going to change my mind about that…..  Bucky, I’ve been in love with you since I was old enough to know who you were.  I know it sounds weird, but I took one look at the pictures of you in my high school history text book and fell utterly in love with a man I thought was dead.”

“Why me?  Why not him?”

She turned sharply in his arms.  This was getting ridiculous.

“What is going on?   Don’t fob me off with excuses.  Where is all this coming from?”

Bucky let her go and headed back into the bedroom

She followed him, knowing if she let him shut her down now, if he withdrew into himself this would be hanging over them for a while.  

He sat back on the bed, against the headboard and she quickly climbed up, straddling his legs and bringing them flush against each other.  It was a dirty trick, but it usually worked to keep him focused on her.

“Doll…”

“Oh no, you’re not Dolling me tonight.  Spill. Is this why you and Steve fell out? Do you think I’m secretly lusting after your best friend?”

He took her hands in his, refusing to look at her.  She squeezed them impatiently.  Wanting him to answer her so she knew where she stood here.

“Steve…  he said some things at Jane’s wedding.  We both got a little drunk on the mead Thor brought.  He thinks I’m putting you in danger, being with me when the Soldier’s still hanging in the back of my mind.”

“That’s stupid, he’s never hurt me, he never would.  Six times, he’s come forward while we’ve been together and all he’s done each time is defend me, saved my life.  I love him too, just as much as I love you, he’s a part of you.  Steve had no right sticking his nose in Bucky.”

“He said he liked you, before we met, that he’d been working up the courage to ask you out.”

Darcy freezes in shock. That was not what she had been expecting.  Steve, carrying some sort of secret crush had been the last thing she would have expected. He was always so serious with her, he was reserved and kind but, there had never been a moment where she thought there was anything other than friendship between them.

“What else.”  Her tone had turned hard.  She could almost imagine what Steve might have said to Bucky in the middle of an argument if that’s what had caused it.

Bucky looked up then, their eyes meeting.  The pain there robbed her of speech.  

“I guess the gist was that I wasn’t putting you first, that if I really loved you I would rather have you alive than in my bed.”

She’s going to murder him. She’s going to murder Captain America.

“He apologised the next day. Said he was outta line.  I guess it just sort of stuck with me.”

“Well it shouldn’t.  He’s wrong.  I know you would never put me in danger Bucky.”

“I’m a monster.”

“No, you’re not.  Not to me.  You are a good man James Barnes.  Steve was being petty and stupid, and I bet he regretted it the moment he said it.  You are everything to me.”

“I’m not worth it, Doll. He was right, look at what’s happening right now.  You’re hurt, in danger because of me.”

“You’re worth it to me. And no, he’s not right.  I’m always in danger.  I’m friends with all the Avengers, there’s always going to be some bad guy out there gunning for you or them.  I knew when I signed up with Jane after New Mexico that the danger was high, that I could be collateral damage.”

He kept his eyes in hers, searching for some truth that seemed to be escaping him.  Darcy brushed her fingers up through his hair, smoothing it back from his forehead.  The way he lent into the movement nearly broke her heart.  He’d been carrying this inside him for weeks. 

“Promise me, if I ever hurt you, even if I didn’t mean to, promise me you won’t stay, I couldn’t stand it if I hurt you.  You’re the one good thing in my life Darce.  the only thing that isn’t tainted by my past.”

She shook her head in denial.  She would never make any such promise.  Not because she didn’t believe he wouldn’t ever hurt her, stranger things had happened.  But because she knew who he was.  Knew that if he did hurt her, the way he meant, it would be because of what Hydra had done, not because he had chosen to.

“I will never abandon you, never leave you, not for something you can’t control.  Don’t you get it?  I have waited my whole life for you.  You are it for me.  There will never be anyone else I love the way I love you.  It’s not possible.  Please don’t push me way....  Doing that?  That is what would hurt me more than anything, more than Hydra, more than the Winter Soldier suddenly coming after me.”

Even the thought of losing him hurt her.  They had both worked so hard to be where they were now. They had built a good relationship, they talked, this was the first time he had ever been so silent with her over anything.  She didn’t want all that effort to go to waste, not now.  Not when she suspected what she did. But she wouldn’t force him to stay if he didn’t want to.  She could never do that to him, he had to make this choice himself.

Darcy climbed of the bed and gathered up a t-shirt to sleep in before facing him.  He was watching her closely.

“I’m going to sleep in  the other room tonight.  Give you some time to think.  I won’t force you to stay with me.  We haven’t made any promises yet.  None that can’t be undone at least.....  I’ve said my piece, you know where I stand.  But I’m going to make one thing absolutely clear.  I like Steve, I do, he’s always been a decent friend to me.  He’s been a better friend to you though.  I don’t know why he said what he did, I really don’t.  He didn’t have any prior claim on me.  I never saw him that way.  I never will.  if you hadn’t have come back, if you had stayed gone and I had never met you, I still wouldn’t be with Steve.  He never stood a chance because he was never in the running.”

She turned to go, making her way to the door when he called out to her.

“Baby-doll...  I love you.”

“I know....  but that’s not the question here.  It’s do you love me enough to stay?”

NEXT

@captain-rogers-beard

[rhysie-cakes314]

Day 5- Amulet

Amora eyed the matching medallions dubiously, each dangling from a thin chain necklace.. “You’re certain these are the real deal?”

The old woman’s smile was missing several teeth, and Amora wasn’t certain how the woman seemed to stare right at her when her eyes were the milky white of the Midgardian blind, but she was confident in her response. “Not many mortals are left who would recognize the Amulets of Damballah. You needn’t worry about knock-off replicas. These are suitable for your needs.”

Amora searched the priestess’ body language for signs of deception, but found none. She would know, being a master of deceit herself. “I met Damballah myself, once. I thought his specialty was death, that he only worked with necromancers. How will a tool meant for the undead help me when the man is alive?” Madame whatever-her-name-was (Amora didn’t care) may be the expert in human Voodoo here, but Amora knew her gods.

The priestess threw her head back, cackling. “I have my own abilities, Enchantress. Those amulets will work on the dead and living all the same, now.”

Amora allowed herself to grin. It was time she finally got what she wanted.

…  

Natasha was perched on the edge of the kitchen counter beside the coffee machine. “I like your new necklace,” she commented as Thor entered the room. Natasha always took a keen interest in Thor’s fashion, so she noticed any tiny changes in his everyday appearance. One of her favourite pastimes was playing dress up and makeover with Thor, partially because he was the only one who let her, and partially because it was just so entertaining. His massive demigod body managed to look good in everything from speedo to ballgown. It was also no secret that his hair was the most luscious of the group, which allowed for a myriad of experimentation for style.

Steve was off on his morning run, Phil was out of town for a mission, and Clint and Bruce were still in bed, so Tony was the only one else in the room. He lifted his head off his arms to see who she was talking to and quirked an eyebrow. “I didn’t know you liked jewelry. This opens a whole new world of possibilities for Christmas gifts.”

Thor grinned proudly. He headed for the poptart cupboard. “My beautiful lady, Jane Foster gave it to me. She said it was a symbol of our undying love, and she has a matching one. I will cherish it with all of my being.”

Now that he was closer, Natasha could see the details. The medallion matched the shade of gold that draped around Thor’s neck, and a snake was the only decoration. “Is Dr. Foster into snakes?”

Thor looked thoughtful for a moment. “She has never mentioned them, but I suppose she must! I thought maybe the snake was a Midgardian symbol of companionship I was unaware of.”

Tony’s head had dropped back down to his arms already, but he shook with laughter. Natasha threw a butter knife at his head. “Ow! No throwing my own silverware at me. I will terminate your lease. Don’t you test me.”

She didn’t look worried. “You never gave us leases. Don’t make fun of Thor if you don’t want punished.”

Tony rubbed at his head. Thor laughed his booming laugh. The sound always felt too loud in the enclosed kitchen, or indoors in general, really. Tony tried to hide the fact that it startled him by jumping up for more coffee. “I believe he was laughing with me.”

Natasha shrugged. “I think that was very sweet of Jane. How is she lately?” The astrophysicist sometimes came to live with them for months at a time, but it had been awhile. It was as sporadic a living arrangement as Thor, who whisked off to Asgard or landed in the roof without warning.

“She fairs well. She is giving a speech at an important conference next month.” Natasha sometimes tried to imagine what the relationship was like between a scientist and a god. The idea just seemed so alien. The two seemed to both be obsessed with other worlds or realms, so she supposed that could be what they shared most. But can a human really understand a centuries old warrior-king?

“I’ll have to see if I’m going to that, I’m sure Pepper will know. Maybe I can get you an invitation, buddy,” Tony pat Thor’s bicep. “I’m off to the lab now, seeya later, probably,” he shouted over his shoulder. It was that time of year again. The Avengers all knew by now that seeing Tony at all was a rare occurrence in October. The man practically worked non-stop for a month straight.

Steve returned with a light sheen of sweat. Natasha noticed he always seemed to run harder October mornings. He also exercised more in general. Her theory was that Steve needed to let off extra steam and distract himself more constantly to ward off feeling lonely while Tony was squirreled away in his lab. The supersoldier usually had unfettered access to Tony’s domain and spent hours just watching the genius work or sketching him, but not in October. Tony had forbid him because his ‘ass was too distracting.’

“Captain!” Thor welcomed. “We should spar today, it has been too long.”

Steve chuckled. “We just sparred last week! But sure, lord knows I’ve got time. Meet down there in an hour? I need some calories.” He was already raiding the refrigerator, pulling out an egg carton, bacon, and orange juice.

“A week can be an eternity when excitement is missing from your life,” Thor said mysteriously. He passed Bruce on the way out.

Bruce waved his greetings, heading straight for the tea. The group sat in companionable silence while Steve made his feast. Bruce liked to read the newspaper in the mornings. Tony kept trying to explain that a physical paper was a waste and called printing presses obsolete, but Bruce liked the feel of it. He could control the pace with which he absorbed the news instead of feel overwhelmed by the fast talking reporters on TV. Plus he liked the crosswords.

When Steve went down to the gym, Thor was already there. Steve looked at him from the doorway, curious. He looked like he was meditating. His body was still, his eyes closed. It was odd; Steve didn’t think Thor could be still. He was always so energetic. His eyes snapped open, and Steve felt the blush at being caught staring. Thor didn’t mention it though, just hopped to his feet excitedly. “Come, let us battle!”

Steve shook his head fondly. Thor brought enthusiasm to everything he did. “Only if you think you can take me,” he joked.

“I’ll go easy,” Thor boasted. “We wouldn’t want anyone to get injured.”

Thor was decidedly not going easy. The serum meant that Steve could hold up against Thor better than the others, minus Hulk, but Thor was fighting with more ferocity than usual. Steve narrowly dodged another blow, thankful they were fighting bare-handed. Even with the shield, Steve was sure Thor could hurt him with Mjolnir if he wasn’t careful. He managed a kick to Thor’s side before rolling away again. His best strategy with the god was always to stay out of reach.

“I thought,” pant, “we were just,” pant, parry, “sparring.”

Thor backed off a little, slowing his movements while they spoke. “We are.”

Steve danced around him, trying to find an opening. “You seem like you’re going harder than usual,” he was concocting a strategy. Thor always turned right to spin if you got behind him. If Steve could get him to go for the turn and manage to roll and pop up in front of his left, Thor would be wide open. He’d have to be very fast. Speed was his friend against a bigger opponent.

It had to be Steve’s imagination, but Thor seemed to sneer at him. Thor didn’t sneer. “I play to win.”

Suddenly wary that something was wrong with his teammate, Steve decided it was time to be done with this. He had a feeling Thor wouldn’t just let him bow out either. He leapt behind the god, and took action when Thor started to turn. He popped up to see Thor face to face with him. He had seen through the ploy.

Thor took advantage of Steve’s surprise and landed a solid gut punch. Steve actually left the ground momentarily before slamming into the mirror behind him. Some of the glass trickled away around him as he tried to regain the breath knocked out of him. Thor drew closer, but instead of kneeling to apologize or ask if he was okay, Thor smacked his head back against the wall. The world went dark.

…

The silence was deafening and sudden after the blasting metal from a moment ago. Tony looked around in confusion. “Sir, Steve has been injured in the gym while sparring with Thor,” JARVIS informed him.

Tony didn’t ask questions. If JARVIS felt the need to alert him, it wasn’t just a minor injury. The elevator was fast enough to throw him off balance but he remained upright. When he arrived, Natasha and Clint weren’t far behind. The scene in front of him didn’t make sense. Steve was sitting against the mirror, chin against his chest, clearly unconscious. Behind him, Tony could make out the blood smeared on the wall from his head.

Tony didn’t even notice Thor, too busy sprinting to his boyfriend’s side. Thor waited patiently off to the side, until Tony was on his knees trying to wake Steve. Natasha and Clint were too far away to stop the god.

“Tony, watch out!” Clint cried.

Tony whipped around just in time to get suckerpunched. He felt his nose break and was lying on the ground. The room spun. What was happening? He tried to lift his head, but something was in the way. He was choking. Tony blinked hard and Thor came into focus above him. But it couldn’t be Thor. His supposed friend was expressionless as he waited for Tony to stop fighting.

“It has to be an imposter, JARVIS! Scan him, who is it!?” Natasha shouted as she managed to tackle Thor away from Tony’s prone form. Tony coughed and sputtered, thankfully not dead.

“According to my scans, it is Thor. I have no explanation,” JARVIS sounded as afraid as a program could.

Clint cursed, “Shit.” He had Thor/not-Thor in a full nelson, but he was too strong to be immobilized. Natasha hit him in the head with a weight to no effect. “Where the fuck is the Hulk!? He can actually do something against this guy!”

“Dr. Banner is not waking at my prompts, and is in his bed. His vitals indicate he may have been drugged.” JARVIS explained.

Thor threw the humans off with little effort with a shout of triumph. “You will all die! Then I can return to my beloved Amora!” he thundered.

It hit Natasha like a ton of bricks. The Enchantress. The necklace had to be controlling their friend somehow. Thor had told her about the Asgardian woman who was obsessed with Thor. She had tried many times to make him fall in love with her. They had to get the damn thing off!

A gun shot rang out, and everyone spun to see the new arrival. Phil was standing in the doorway to the gym, eyes wide and gun pointing at Thor. His bags were beside him on the floor, indicating he had just arrived. The bullet bounced uselessly off of Thor’s skin, leaving only a shallow mark. “Hit the chain around his neck!” Natasha shouted, praying he’d hit it. Phil was a good shot, but he was no Clint and it was a small target.Thor screamed in rage but the next shot hit the chain and the medallion hit the floor with a loud clang.

The effect was immediate. Thor went still, looked around like he had just woken up. They watched him slowly take in his surroundings, the horrified look solidifying on his face. “What-” he choked off. “What have I done?” His voice was quiet but echoed through the silent gym. He dropped to his knees, a sob ripping through him.

Natasha wished there was time to comfort her traumatized friend, “Coulson, Bruce’s room! Clint, Tony! I’ve got Steve. JARVIS, can SHIELD pick them up at the landing pad?” No one argued, just snapped to.

JARVIS, bless him, was ahead of her. “Med evac team will land in approximately 3 minutes and are aware of the number of patients.”

Natasha allowed herself to look back at Thor as she threw Steve over her shoulder. His face was wet with tears, but he was glaring right through the medallion he now held in his hand. Everyone was going to be okay, medical was already almost there. Mjolnir landed in his hand, hard from somewhere else in the tower. Thor met her eyes for a moment before he was crashing through the window. She couldn’t blame him, but she desperately hoped he’d return after taking care of the Enchantress. He needed to know that none of them blamed him. He needed to know not to blame himself.   

[a-walk-in-silence]

We Can Be Beautiful (Pt. 5)

Pairing: Peter Parker x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 6.3k

Summary: Heathers AU. You were used to the quiet life in Sherwood, Ohio. Albeit, you were bullied, but it was nothing compared to the shit storm that was about to happen when one boy showed up with an air of mystery around him.

Warnings: Cursing, mentions of date rape (n o t h i n g happens, I promise), underage drinking, implications of sexual activities (again, n o t h i n g happened), name calling, bullying, homophobia, manipulation, character death, gun-related violence, self flagellation

Prompt: “You’re the one I choose”

A/N: And here is Part 5 of WCBB! Woohoo! Halfway point! Yes! This is for @gab-spidey‘s 2k writing challenge! Honestly, I just wanna thank everyone for coming along for this ride and, again, thank you all so much! Here’s to the next few parts getting finished eventually! Once again, I’m reblogging suicide hotlines after this goes up. If you guys ever need to talk about something, my inbox and messages are open to the public and I will gladly talk to anyone who needs a shoulder to lean on. Thanks for reading! Also, just as a PS, the warnings are getting longer and longer and, hopefully, they’ll chill out for a bit in the next part (one can hope).

Masterlist | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9

Key:

Y/N - Your Name

L/N - Last Name

Y/N/N - Your Nickname

Italics - Writing in Your Diary

Bold Italics - Speech of Deceased

Song Inspiration(s):

Blue - Heathers Cast Recording

Blue (Reprise) - Heathers Cast Show Clip (turn up the volume on this one, it’s a clip recording and not the best audio wise but the song is important)

Our Love Is God - Heathers Cast Recording

You fingers silently drummed across your knee as you sat between people sobbing uncontrollably into their handkerchiefs. Try as you might, you couldn’t bring yourself to look up at the open casket sitting at the front of the room, which, inside, contained the dead body of Natasha Romanoff. You couldn’t quite kick away the nagging voice in the back of your head, telling you that this was all your fault. And yeah, okay, it was.

You did kill her, after all.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the service came to an end. You quickly jumped to your feet and left the building, being one of the first to leave. However, unbeknownst to you, Peter had followed right behind you and grabbed your arm before you could get far.

“Hey, Y/N,” he said, pulling your body towards him. You glanced up at him, trying to not lose your shit while standing in the middle of the small grass area in front of the church. “Where have you been? I haven’t seen in since school let out on Friday.” He brushed a piece of your hair that had fallen out of place behind your ear. “Everything good?”

“Yeah, of course,” you replied, offering him the best smile you could muster at the moment. “It’s just been weird, ya know? My parents have been hovering over me for the past week over the whole suicide thing.” You got onto your tiptoes and pressed a firm kiss into his lips. “I promise I haven’t been avoiding you. Just dealing with issues with Nat’s death, ya know?”

He opened his mouth to talk when a voice interrupted you. “Y/N!” your mother called, coming to your side. “Darling, how are you doing?”

“Hey, ‘Mora, come on. The girl just lost her best friend. I’m sure she’s doing great,” said your father, a sarcastic tone taking over, before smiling. “Say, who’s the fella?”

You shifted awkwardly on your feet before offering them a smile. “Mom, Dad, this is Peter Parker. He’s-”

“We’re kind of dating at the moment,” Peter said over you, quickly cutting you off before you could register what he even said. “It’s a little early on but it’s nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. L/N.” He held out a hand to the two of them, maintaining the worlds most purest smile.

Your mother raised an eyebrow at the both of you before cautiously taking his hand in a handshake. “Well, I’m Y/N’s mother.”

Your dad, meanwhile, gave the worlds most toothiest grin before grabbing Peter’s hand. “You’re a Peter? I’m a Peter! That’s really interesting that my daughter would go after a Peter, don’t ya think so, ‘Mora?”

“Peter Jason,” your mother said, clearly exasperated. “We’ll just head out, leave you two to... talk. I hope you can join us for dinner one night, Mr. Parker.”

With that, your parents left, allowing you a moment to catch your breath. With that, Peter turned towards you and offered his arm. “Come on, let’s ditch this place and go to my house. We can watch some TV, maybe unwind a little. Afterwards, I can take you home. I’m sure you need a moment to think.”

You gave him a thoughtful smile before grabbing his arm, wrapping it around your shoulders firmly. “Sounds good to me, anything to get me away from my parents for a little while.”

He chuckled softly. “Ya, they sound a little overbearing. And you dad is... very eccentric.”

“Mmm... That’s Peter Jason L/N for you,” you replied. “He’s always been a big joker and doing things just to confuse everyone around him. Recently, he picked up reading spy novels even though he hates him. He finds it funny. As for my mom, she had a rough childhood, so I suppose it’s understandable why she’s overbearing. Terrible stepdad and all that.”

Peter gave you a confused look, his eyebrow raised in question. “What happened with your mom’s side of the family?”

You sighed, leaning into his side as the two of you walked over to where Peter’s motorcycle was parked. “Her dad passed away while she was really young. Murder, never solved. Then her stepdad showed up, married her mom. And then she died a month later. My mom was left in his care with a crap ton of step-siblings, like my Aunt Neb. They all fought for his attention. She never really explained much outside of the sibling rivalry.” You shrugged nonchalantly. “Nobody’s life is ever perfect, and my mom’s is definitely not an exception.”

Peter plopped down onto his couch and you joined him, curled up into his side. He smiled down at you sweetly, wrapping an arm around you securely. “What should we do, darling?”

“Mmmm.... There’s always television. Maybe we can count how many news channels Sharon Carter went to, crying about Nat.” The two of you laughed for a moment, peaceful in your domesticated bliss.

Finally, Peter grabbed the TV remote and turned on the small box that sat in front of the couch. The two of you flipped idly through several channels, tallying how many were talking about Nat compared to how many had a sobbing Sharon.

Apparently, Sharon Carter had made it to no less than 10 news stations, one of which was a Spanish broadcasting station, where the only discernible words being Nat’s name and Corn Nuts.

“Alright, alright. Turn it off,” you laughed, pulling the remote from his hands. He pouted at you, acting wounded that you would ruin his fun, but didn’t fight you when you turned off the TV. “God, she has no shame,” you said, shaking your head in utter disbelief. 

“Hey dad, just got back from Nat’s funeral and I brought home my girl,” said the voice of Tony Stark, walking over to the two of you as you lounged on the couch. You quickly sat up, trying to hide the fact that you were clearly flustered to see him once again.

“Didn’t hear you come in, son,” Peter stated, wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you back into his side despite your obvious discomfort.

His dad only chuckled to himself. “Yeah, sorry about that, pa. How was work today?” He took only a beat of pause before going into a rant about his work. “I was working on a new invention today when some of those damn protesters showed up, complaining about how my weapons and such are not ‘environmentally friendly’. Those damn hippies act so damn entitled sometimes, it’s infuriating. This isn’t the damn 60′s anymore!”

“You mean those old broads that camped outside of the house last week?” Peter questioned, clearly not happy with the “old broads”.

“The same.” Tony snorted before sitting down on the arm of the couch, throwing a look in your direction. “Say dad, can my girl stay over for dinner tonight? I’m sure she’d have fun.” Both of them turned their attention towards you, waiting for your answer.

“O-Oh,” you said, trying to fill the silence. “My mom’s already got dinner plans. She’s, uh... making my favorite meal. Ya know, spaghetti. Lots of oregano. Tastes great.”

You wanted to slap yourself. Why did you make up such a stupid lie? Sure, okay, Peter and his dad had a weird bond with one another. And boy would it make life awkward. But you definitely didn’t have to lie like this.

Peter gave you a semi-forced smile, pulling you into his arms. “Really? That’s your favorite dinner? Remind me to make it for you one night. Sounds like something mom would have enjoyed, but last time I saw her, she was waving out a window in the lab from Texas. Isn’t that right, Dad?”

Tony gave Peter the worst look possible, mixed between a glare and a smile, and the look nearly made your heart stop. Several seconds of tense silence passed before Tony responded. “Right.”

“I-I should go.” Your interruption turned both of their gazes towards you. “My parents are probably worried sick and all so... ya know. I should head home.”

“No, of course. I’ll drive you home.” Peter hopped up off the couch and held a hand out to you. “I’ll be home whenever, dad.”

Tony only grunted in response. As Peter dragged you away, you couldn’t help the thought from creeping into your head. If you ever married this boy, you would most certainly not let his father talk at your wedding.

“Y/N! Phone for you!” your mother called from downstairs. You groaned, sitting up, not realizing that you had passed out shortly after Peter brought you home. You grumbled incoherently as you made your way downstairs to answer the phone.

“Hello?” you asked, rubbing sleep out of your eyes.

“Y/N? Is that you?” Jane asked, clearly upset.

Hearing how upset your friend, well, ex-friend, was, caused you to wake up. “Jane? What’s wrong? What happened?” You didn’t even realize you were rambling until she started talking again.

“Y/N, please shut up and just come down to the cemetery, please. It’s an emergency, and you’re the only one who can help us. Please...”

You pursed your lips together, throwing a glance at the clock that sat on the wall. 9:45 pm. Surely your parents would understand since it was an emergency. “Yeah, okay. I’ll be there soon, just sit tight, alright?”

A reassured sigh came from Jane’s side of the phone. “Thank you, Y/N. You’re a lifesaver. We’re by Heathers grave and we’re in Thor’s car. Please hurry.” With that, her end of the line went dead.

You placed the phone back on the receiver before turning to your mother, who was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed over her chest, a displeased look settled on her face. “You’re heading out? Again?”

“Mom, it’s an emergency. Something might have happened. I’ll be back before you know I’m gone, I promise.” Her lips pursed, clearly not impressed with your attempts to reassure her. “Mom, she could be in trouble. I swear, I wouldn’t go if it wasn’t an emergency.”

Finally, she sighed, motioning for you to wake past her. “Fine, go.” You gave her a smile and started to leave, but she stopped you with a hand on your shoulder. “Hey, Y/N/N,” she said, her voice softening. “You know I worry about you, right?”

“I know, mom, and I’m grateful. Truly, I am.” You pecked her on the cheek to prove it. “I’ll be back home before you and dad even know I’m gone. I promise.”

She smiled, a soft, barely noticeable smile, but it was still there nonetheless. “You’re a great kid. Go on, hurry back home, do I make myself clear?”

You nodded and gave her a final kiss on the cheek before leaving the house, running towards the cemetery that was, thankful, just two blocks down the street.

“Y/N!” Jane said, waving to you, her hand sticking out of the driver-side window of Thor’s cherry red sports car sitting in the grass of the cemetery. You approached the scene in front of you, slowly drinking it all in.

On the ground was Thor, face-down in the ground, looking as dead as a rock. There were a few rustles in a bush just about 30 yards away, but you quickly blocked it out, choosing to ask the obvious question. “Is... is Thor-”

“Yeah! He’s fine!” Jane quickly said, rolling down the window a bit so that she could look at you. “He’s passed out. So like, I came here with Thor and Bruce and Shar to pour a bottle of Thunderbird over Nat’s grave, kinda like a goodbye from her friends, ya know?” Her eyes glanced to Thor, passed out just a few feet in front of the bumper of the car. “Well, Thor and Bruce drank it all and... they’ve been really grabby. Shar went to try and get Bruce to calm down but-”

“Wait, wait, wait. Why did you call me then? After everything that happened at Bruce’s party, I figured-”

Awkwardly, Jane leaned back from the window, her fingers fiddling together. “W-Well... Thor promised to leave me alone if, ya know... I called you here. So I panicked and I called! I’m sorry!”

Your mouth dropped open in pure shock from her answer. “Wha- Jane! You... avoided date rape... by offering me up for date rape?”

She grimaced to herself, her fingers still fiddling together. “Well, when you put it that way it just sounds ugly,” she mumbled, clearly trying to make it to where she didn’t feel guilty about the situation.

“I’m leaving,” you muttered to yourself, turning to leave. However, Thor, who had previously been on the ground, was now on the hood of the car, smiling sweetly at you. “Heyyyyyyy Y/N,” he said, his words slurring together. “I waited for youuu cutie. 10 whole beers.” To further his point, he held up both of his hands, wiggling all 10 of his fingers towards you.

“Enough! I said I was fucking done, Bruce!” came a shout from the same bushes that you had heard rustling from earlier. Turning, you watched as Sharon emerged, brushing off her skirt as she stormed away, followed by a stumbling Bruce.

“But baby-” Bruce whined before spotting you. Quickly, a huge smile spread over his features. “Hey, lookie, it’s Y/N! Maybe she can help me find release.”

You physically grimaced, taking a step away from the two drunk jocks. “You both have left hands, can’t you use those instead?” you said, trying to bargain with the two of them.

“But I want youuuu,” Bruce slurred, leaning heavily on the hood of the car while Thor, meanwhile, gathered his wits and started to swagger over to you. “Come on, don’t hurt their feelings.”

“Their?” you questioned, taking another step away from the two as they tried to close in again.

“My balls!” Thor piped up, motioning to his pants where, unfortunately, a small tent was starting to appear. “They need relief from a pretty girl! Even a nerdy girl like you!”

“Yeah!” Bruce added, coming to stand a few feet from Thor, trying to corner you between the two of them. “They’re so blue for you, Y/N. My hands are rubbing like a cheese grater, it’s sooo uncomfortable. Please?”

Once again, you found a sour look sprawled over your face. “Shar, Jane, please let me into the car,” you shouted, even if you were being cornered in the opposite direction of the car. Maybe you could make a run for it. They were pretty drunk...

“Sorry!” Sharon shouted from the car. “The car’s staying locked while they can still get in!”

You looked around desperately for an escape before your eyes caught onto a glass bottle, half full of liquid and sitting haphazardly in the dirt, but the contents were very clearly booze. You managed to get past the two of them and retrieve the bottle, holding it up like an offering. “Look here, Thor and Bruce! Booze!”

The two of their faces broke out into huge, sloppy, shit-eating grins as they eyed up the bottle. “Thank you so much, Y/N!” Bruce shouted, practically running you over to grab the bottle.

“You’re so welcome!” you shouted, stepping away from the two as they fought over the liquid remaining in the amber bottle. Finding the situation perfect, you finally slipped away, up the hill that lead back to the main road.

As if a saving grace, a familiar figure was leaning against a black motorcycle. You sighed happily before letting his arms envelope you. “You look like hell,” Peter murmured, brushing a hand through your hair.

“How’d you know I was here?” you asked, snuggling your head into his black-clad chest. “I didn’t tell you-”

“Your mom told me. I called, asking for you, and she told me you went to the cemetery to save Jane from an emergency,” Peter replied, twirling a piece of his hair around his finger. “Figured it sounded fishy so I came to investigate to see you escaping from the cemetery.”

You shake your head, leaning into him. “I just want to go home, Pete. Can you drive me?”

His lips pressed against the top of your head. “Of course, beautiful. Just make sure you tell me what happened tomorrow at school, got it?”

A laugh escaped your throat as you looked up at him. “Yeah, okay. I promise.”

Dear Diary,

You could call last night a close call. Yeah, close call. Definitely would have ended differently if my mom hadn’t told Peter where I was or if I hadn’t of found that bottle just sitting there. I can’t help but think that Nat was the only person keeping Thor and Bruce in check, and now she’s dead. So now the school is defenseless to their libido.

“Having second thoughts, bitch?” asked a voice that caused you to tense. Following the voice was a fit of coughing. “You know, I blame you and your beau for the fact that I’ll be coughing up Drano for all of eternity. Do you feel guilty yet, Y/N/N?”

You grimaced to yourself before finally allowing yourself to look up from your journal. You could practically see Nat standing there, wearing her silk red robe that she died in. Her body was littered with cuts from the glass that she landed in, and her eyes were completely white.

Choosing to ignore the phantom now standing over you, watching you, you turned your attention back towards you diary.

I know I didn’t technically kill her, but I can’t help but feel like I did. I feel bad for it... but not as bad as I should. And that’s what scares me. Maybe that’s why I feel like she’s standing over me, dictating everything I do.

You glanced up from your journal again to find Sharon and Jane digging through Nat’s locker, clearing everything out into a box. Your hands balled up into fists as you slammed your diary shut and stalked over to them. “Hey, I hope you guys are planning on apologizing for acting like Grade A Bitches last night.”

“Hey,” Sharon said, turning around to point a finger into your chest. “We’re cleaning out Nat’s shit right now. Show a little respect, why don’t you?”

“Y/N, tell her to get her little slutty hands off of my crap,” said dead Nat, now standing right behind Sharon as she dug through her locker. “Y/N? Y/N/N, make her stop it now!”

“Shut up!” you shouted, clearly distressed from the voices filling your head.

A pair of hands shoved you roughly, dragging you back to Earth. You glared at Sharon who was practically seething in your direction. “No! I won’t shut up! Never again!” Her hands fumbled in her blonde hair, dragging out her bow and replacing it with Nat’s red scrunchie.

Jane grabbed Sharon’s arm, trying to stop her. “Shar, that’s Nat’s-”

An animal-like snarl came from Sharon, causing Jane to flinch away. “Shut up, Jane! Nat’s gone, and someone needs to replace her! And it’s going to be me so shut the fuck up!”

Your mouth dropped open in shock, staring at Sharon like she was crazy. Replace Nat? How could anyone want to ever replace her? “Shar, please don’t do this,” you mumbled.

A scoff came from the blonde as she turned her back towards you and pulled more crap from Nat’s locker. “Whatever. You should worry less about me and more about your reputation, bitch. Didn’t you hear? Thor and Bruce were talking about your little three-way last night.”

“Three-way?” asked the voice of Peter from right behind you, causing you to jump. You turned to look at him, and you couldn’t help but nearly cry from the look of pure pain that had etched it’s way across his face.

“No, Peter, please... There was no three-way! Nothing happened last night, I promise!”

“Really?” Sharon asked, slamming Nat’s locker shut, causing you to flinch once more. “I remember it differently.”

As if on cue, Thor and Bruce came walking down the hall with a boy, who you could briefly remember being named Clint, following them. “A sword fight? In her mouth?” Clint asked, his jaw completely slack at the idea.

“Oh yeah,” Thor said, smiling. “A big sword fight in her mouth! It was crazy crowded!”

“Yeah, but then, after the sword fight, we bent her over backwards like origami!” Bruce added.

Peter’s hands clutched into fists as he grabbed onto the back of Bruce’s jacket at his comment. You reached out to grab him, despite the tears threatening to spill over, but he was well out of your grasp. “Don’t talk about Y/N like that!”

Thor pushed Peter’s hands away, standing next to Bruce in a protective way. “Don’t complain when you’re girls a fucking slut-”

Peter’s fist connected with Thor’s face, causing him to fall back to the ground. However, before he could react, Clint was suddenly holding Peter’s arms behind his back, which left him open to be attacked by both Bruce and Thor.

“No! Stop!” you shouted, trying to push through the crowd that was starting to gather, but Sharon grabbed you forcefully, throwing a wicked smile towards you. You fought against her, but she had a death grip on both of your shoulders now.

“Stop this nonsense right now!” shouted the voice of Principal Fury as he pushed through the crowd. “Odinson, Banner, Barton, my office, now!”

The crowd dispersed just as quickly as it had formed. Meanwhile, Fury had to fight to remove Bruce from Peter while two other male teachers had to help in hauling off both Clint and Thor.

You went to walk over to Peter who laid prone on the ground, tears burning your eyes, when a hand suddenly grabbed you. You turned quickly to see Bruce smiling, a horrible glint in his eyes. “Whore,” he whispered before being dragged away.

Being called a whore was the final blow, and it made you finally break down in tears as you dropped to your knees in front of Peter, helping him sit up. “P-Pete?” you mumbled, brushing his brown curls from his face to take it all in. His lip was split in more than one place, and a bruise was already starting to form on his cheekbone. You were sure there were more bruises if one looked at his arms and chest, but you weren’t about to look right now. “A-Are you okay?”

His arms wrapped around you tightly, and you could feel him shaking. “Y/N...” he mumbled, breathing into your hair. “How are you?” he asked, clearly ignoring your question.

“I-I’m okay,” you mumbled. “I... I’ve been called worse a-and... y-ya know, everything’s awesome.” You broke down in full sobs in the middle of the deserted hallway. For some reason, all of the teachers were long gone, and you and Peter were long forgotten. “I-I’m sorry for crying...” you mumbled, trying to bring yourself back together and failing miserably.

His hands brushed through your now messy hair, trying to soothe you. “You don’t deserve to cry,” he muttered, holding you tightly. “I swear, I will end this all. All of it, tonight. You...” He pushed you away until you were at arms length, looking into his brown eyes as he gave you the best smile he could muster. “You’re the only thing that’s right about this broken world.” His hand brushed a piece of hair behind your ear before cupping you face. “So cry, it’s okay. But come tomorrow morning... all of this will be long behind us, okay? Do you wanna know why?”

You slowly nodded, rubbing away the tears that were making trails down your face. “Y-Yes,” you mumbled, giving him a verbal confirmation to continue on.

“Because, Y/N, love like we have doesn’t come around often. Our love is special. Our love is God, and our love will fix all of this, okay?”

A small smile tugged at the corners of your lips. “O-Okay,” you mumbled, allowing yourself to revel in the thought. Maybe he was right. Maybe your love was strong enough to stop it all, make all of the pain and misery just... go away.

Suddenly, a thought dawned on you. He never answered your question earlier. “P-Pete?” you asked, crawling back over to him and curling up in his arms. “You never answered me... are... are you okay?”

You glanced up to see him smiling down at you. “I always thought I would be alone, like... Like I was a frozen lake. No one would ever be dumb enough to try and go crack the ice, but... now I’m realizing that I’m not. I can feel myself getting better, and it’s because of you. Now... now I know that I’m not alone, never again. I won’t be alone because I’ll have you.”

“Yeah... we’ll never be alone,” you smiled softly, running your hands through his hair.

“Y/N...” he mumbled sweetly before pressing a kiss into your forehead. “I want to see you tonight. I’ll sneak over to your place, okay? Say around 8-ish?” A nod was all you could do to answer him, and he continued on. “Until then, we should probably get to class, yeah?”

And so, that’s what the two of you did after a quick stop by the nurse so that way you two had a valid reason for showing up late to class.

“So what’s the plan to get back at Bruce and Thor?” you asked, leaning closer to Peter as he sat on your bed.

He smiled before pulling out several items from a brown paper bag. “We’re going to fake their suicides,” he replied simply. “I’ve got our Stud Puppie magazine, a Joan Crawford postcard, mascara... Ah, and the piece de resistance, mineral water.”

You giggled, staring at him as he put the items back in the bag. “Yeah, so, what? Do you need a forged suicide note then?”

“And for you to make a call to the boys to go behind the school so that we can set up the joke,” he responded, grabbing your bedside phone and setting on your bed.

“But why are we going to such great lengths? I mean, how are we going to make it look like they’re dead?” You grabbed the receiver, ready to make the call once he explained it all to you.

He watched you for a moment before grabbing two guns from... somewhere. You physically flinched at the sight of the weapons. “Peter, I thought our Bonnie and Clyde adventures were done. I don’t-”

He placed a finger to your lips to silence you. “Relax, we’ll fill them with Ich Luge bullets.” At your confused look, he smiled. “They’re tranquilizer bullets. My granddad scored a shit ton back in World War II. The Nazis used them to fake their own suicides when the Russians invaded Berlin. The darts should knock Thor and Bruce out long enough to make it look like a suicide. Once they come to, they’ll be the laughing stock of the whole school.”

Still confused by the whole concept of Ich Luge bullets, you forced yourself to nod along with what he was saying. “Yeah, okay, makes sense,” you said, more to assure yourself than anyone else. “So, we need a suicide note.”

Peter nodded, grabbing your notepad so that you could write. “Just make it sound really sappy. Remember, it needs to sound believable. And you can pick whichever of the two you want to write for.”

Nodding, you turned your focus on your diary as you scribbled out a suicide note in Thor’s handwriting.

Bruce and I realized the moment that we could not share our forbidden love that we would have to die instead. Though we will miss the joy of being in each others arms, we cannot continue to live in a world where we have to act like beer-guzzling jackasses. Thus, we have chosen to die rather than live in a disapproving world.

“Look good?” You asked, showing the note to Peter.

He instantly broke out into a huge smile, carefully tearing the paper out of your journal. “Perfect,” he replied, folding it in half and adding it to the bag of goodies that sat on the edge of your bed. “Now we just need you to call Thor. Tell him to meet behind the school at dawn.”

Nodding, you quickly dialed the number to Thor’s house, crossing your fingers that he would be the one to pick up.

After a few rings, there was finally an answer. “Yeah-lo?” came the voice of Thor, and you had to fight the urge to sigh in relief at the fact that he was the one to answer.

“Hey, Thor?” you asked, twirling a piece of your hair around your index finger. “It’s Y/N. So... I was wondering... How did you and Bruce know it was always a fantasy of mine to take two guys at once?”

“Dude, dude!” said the muffled voice of Thor, clearly trying to get Bruce’s attention. “It’s Y/N!” You tapped your fingers against your knee, waiting for them to decide to talk. “So, uhhh, I guess it was a lucky guess?” Thor said, finally sounding clearer.

“Well...” you drawled out, throwing a look at Peter to see him laughing. You threw a pillow at him before continuing the conversation. “If you want it to come true... Meet me behind the school with Bruce. At dawn.”

There was a choking sound from the other end of the line before Thor started talking. “Yeah, uh-huh, sounds good.” Before you could hang up, you heard him practically shouting to Bruce. “Bro! Free pussy! And we don’t even have to buy it a pizza! Punch it in!”

You cringed to yourself before hanging up the phone. “They’ll be there,” you said, placing your phone back on your nightstand. “That was hell.”

Peter laughed, drawing you into him as he pressed a firm kiss to your lips before pulling away to smile down at you. “Y/N... our love is a powerful thing. We can start and finish wars.”

Resting your head on his shoulder, you couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, our love is what killed the dinosaurs. The world needed room for us.”

“You bet your ass it did,” he mumbled, pressing a kiss into the top of your head. “Hey, gorgeous.” You glanced up at him to see him staring at you seriously, yet his eyes were also filled with so much adoration. “I worship you, and everything that you are. I’d trade my life for yours if it was necessary to see you alive and happy...”

You pulled him into a kiss, silencing his words. He hummed in response, which was one of the few sounds made between the two of you for the rest of the night as you both eagerly awaited morning to put your plan into motion.

“So why did we steal your dad’s car again?” you asked as you both pulled into the school parking lot, just before dawn broke.

“The motorcycle’s great and all, but the car’s better for if we need to hide after our plan has been enacted.” You raised an eyebrow at him, not necessarily aware of why you’d need to hide if the bullets were just going to knock them out. Still, you didn’t question him and, instead, followed him out of the car and to the meeting spot.

You handed the bag of goodies off to Peter before grabbing the gun from him. “Just remember,” he said softly, brushing a piece of hair behind your ear, “I’m just behind that tree right there. When we shoot, you try and shoot Thor and I’ll get Bruce, got it?” Accepting your tiny nod as an answer, he kissed the top of your head. “Alright, they should be here any minute now so I’m going to go hide.”

With that, you were left alone in the small little clearing just a few feet from the main road. You decided to make a circle that surrounded you in the dirt, pretending it was your safe zone that Bruce and Thor couldn’t cross if they wanted to.

The sound of approaching footsteps made you lift your head up from your feet to see the two jocks coming down the small slope, practically tripping over one another to make it to where you were.

“Hey, Y/N,” Bruce said, a bright smile filling his features. “How’re you doin’?”

“Bro, cut the small talk,” Thor said, slapping Bruce with the back of his hand. “Do we just whip out our dicks or what?”

You fought every impulse to shudder or cringe at Thor’s blunt words. You forced a playful smile onto your features, meeting his muddy brown eyes. “Take it slow, Thor. I want the two of you to strip for me.”

They both laughed, clearly excited by the prospect of stripping for you. Thor started to tear of his own clothes before remembering that you said to take it slowly. He looked physically pained by the notion of strip-teasing for you, but he still slowed his movements down.

Bruce, however, looked a little more confused. “What ‘bout you, Y/N?” he asked, slowly removing his jacket.

“Well...” you said, voice barely audible to the two of them, “I was hoping you could rip my clothes off me... sport.”

Sport? Sport? Was that really the best word you could come up with in the moment?

Despite the fact that you felt like a complete idiot by calling them sport, they still nodded along and stripped faster until they both stood in front of you in their underwear.

“On the count of three, you both can come at me and take off my clothes. Ready?” They nodded eagerly and you forced a smile. “One... Two...”

“Three,” said the voice of Peter, coming from behind the tree, gun raised. You grabbed your own gun and aimed at Thor, firing one of the Ich Luge bullets into his shoulder. Meanwhile, Peter hit Bruce right in between the eyes.

Thor screamed at being shot and tried to run away, but Peter fired another shot into his back, causing him to fall face-first into the ground.

You found yourself staring at Bruce, as blood pooled around him in the forest ground and you suddenly felt sick. You fell to your knees, cupping Bruce’s face. “Bruce? Bruce? Oh my god. Peter-”

Hands hauled you off the ground, pulling you away from the scene. “We have to go, come on,” he muttered in your eye, practically dragging you all the way back to the school. Practically frozen, you let him do so.

You just killed two more of your classmates. 

Once back in the car, you finally released all of your feelings all at once. “God! I’m so stupid!” you shouted as Peter started the car so that music was playing in the background. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw him grab a cigarette from his dads glove compartment.

Absentmindedly, you grabbed the lighter from the car, staring at the orange metal. Before you were even aware of what you were doing, the lighter was pressed into the palm of your hand, and you were screaming from the pain.

Peter quickly yanked the lighter away from your burning flesh before placing the end of his cigarette against your palm. You whimpered as he leaned back, his cigarette burning through the car.

“Fucking Ich Luge bullets? Why am I so stupid? Why would I ever believe such a stupid lie?” you mumbled, more to yourself than anybody else. You held your hand close to your body, trying to ignore the mind numbing pain that originated from your burnt hand.

“Maybe because you wanted them dead,” Peter said, earning him a glare from you. “Oh come on! Ich Luge bulelts? If something sounds too good to be true, usually it is! Don’t play so naive, Y/N! Your mind wanted to believe the bullets were tranquilizer bullets because your thoughts are too icky and impure. You wanted them dead just as much as I did.” With the end of his statement, he tossed his half-gone cigarette out the car window before turning his attention back to you.

“No I didn’t!” you shouted, clearly exasperated by his remarks. “No one deserves to die, Peter!”

“Yes you did! Don’t lie to me! They made you cry! Besides, they’re just a bunch of-”

You covered your ears with your hands, despite the pain it caused you, and started making random noises to block out his talking. He groaned in response and tried to talk louder, but you only matched him in volume until you both were practically screaming at one another.

“Enough!” Peter shouted, removing your hands from your ears and silencing you with a kiss. You pushed against him slightly, trying to fight the kiss before finally relenting to his lips and the sweet feeling of being enveloped in his strong arms. In fact, you even found yourself kissing him back despite the anger you felt boiling beneath the surface.

Once deeming you calm enough, his lips left yours, brushing the hair out of your face. “Come on,” he mumbled, lips a few inches from your own. “It’s already done, okay? So let’s just go somewhere. I’m sure they’re going to cancel class today anyway.”

You nodded slowly before you relaxed into the passenger seat of his dad’s car. Your mind whirled with thoughts, primarily ones centered around Bruce and Thor. Once again, someone was dead, and you helped cause it. You killed two people today, and now you had to pay the price.

“Peter?” you asked quietly as the two of you drove through the practically empty roads of the town. “Can we go and grab ice for my hand?”

“Of course,” he responded, looking visibly more relaxed and less on edge. “I’m sorry about your hand, by the way.”

Tags:

@gab-spidey @daringbanshee @genzbitch @youreafangirl-harry @thedaydreamingwriter @starksparker

[4everinsane]

Harry Styles - “How to Love” - Chapter Seventeen

This is it, this is the end! Hope you enjoyed and let me know what you thought of the ending or just the series in general! 

Masterlist

It hadn’t been fun over the last few years to be in a negative place with Harry but sitting here on the other side of the open space the band and crew was having breakfast from her own boyfriend just straight up hurt.

When Lana walked in, her eyes skimmed over the large space, skipping over crew members until finally she saw Harry sat at the end of one table completely alone. He looked up at her briefly but shook his head and turned back to his food, hanging his head low. That was answer enough for Lana to realize he still didn’t want her around so she found a spot on the other side of the room next to Liam and Louis. Niall was off taking Jane to the bathroom outside of the hotel before joining them.

“Alrigh’, wha’s goin’ on with you and Harry?” Louis questioned after a few moments of silence. Lana sighed, biting at the inside of her cheek as she tried to come up with an answer that was vague enough to answer the question and get them off her back but also to not reveal everything going on between them. She felt right now this should be kept between them until it was solved. For now they would keep it just at Niall knowing.

“Just having some trouble but we’re fine, promise.” She answers, giving them both a smile. They exchange glances but then both give a sigh, knowing her well enough to know that if she didn’t want to open up about the subject she wouldn’t.

Harry distancing himself from Lana continued on for the entire morning. The band went off to do an interview and Lana decided to stay back at the hotel until joining them at the venue for soundcheck.

She spent her time cuddling Jane, watching crappy romantic comedies she found on TV and thinking. Her thoughts were running wild. She had never thought about marriage with Harry. Was she ready for it? Maybe it wasn’t that they weren’t in that place yet, maybe it was her that wasn’t. But what if she was?

As he had said the night before, she also knew that Harry was who she wanted to be with forever. She had known that all of those years ago but had ignored it for so long, masking it with anger and dislike in hopes of those thoughts going away. So if she knew he was her forever than why was she so afraid of the idea of marrying him?

The commitment. Sure, she had already committed herself to the man but making it truly official, and permanent basically, like that scared her. It was such a big deal and she thought she would have more time to open up to the idea. Of course even if it was what she wanted, it wasn’t like they would be engaged now. She knew Harry well enough to know that he would want to plan some romantic proposal. Right now he had just wanted to know that she too saw herself walking down that aisle towards him one day.

Once she let the thought of it sink in she couldn’t take her mind off of it. She could see it. Him in some kind of wild suit, custom made just for him, her in a long white dress, exchanging vows and I love you’s. She could see it and suddenly it just didn’t feel as scary or impossible.

She thought then how she would let him know her change of heart. She wanted to respect his wish to distance himself from her for a bit to collect his thoughts and calm down but she was also aching to tell him. She wanted to marry him, she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him - as his wife.

When she got to sound check, Harry wasn’t around. She found the other guys but not him.

“Where’s Harry?” She questioned Niall. “I need to talk to him - now.” Niall frowned, giving a sigh.

“I don’t think he’s ready-”

“I don’t care, Niall, where is he?” Lana interrupts getting a slightly shocked look from the blonde.

“Stage, I think.” He pointed in the direction of the hallway and Lana turned without another word and followed the signs towards the stage.

There he was.

He was standing in the middle of the stage, his eyes closed. The lighting technician was adjusting the lights and Lana watched the colors dance across Harry’s face and body. She knew the stage was where he found his peace, where he felt more whole and things just started to make a bit more sense to him so she knew that was why he had escaped here even if it wasn’t time for him to be there yet. She hated to interrupt him but she couldn’t help it.

“Harry,” She grabs his attention, causing him to jump a little bit, not having expected her interruption. “Can we talk?” She bit at her lower lip, coming to a stop in front of him. He says nothing, instead watching her with a glazed over look. She stares up at him, getting lost in his gorgeous green eyes. Suddenly she completely forgot all of what she had planned on saying. “I had this whole speech outlined but suddenly have forgotten every single thing.” Harry couldn’t help himself as he gave a short laugh.

“Sorry for ignoring you.” He says, his smile falling. She watches that crease form between his brows and gives a frown. “Jus’ needed space and time to think.”

“I’ve done a lot of thinking as well,” Lana starts. She takes a deep breath and lets it out in a sigh. “Harry,” She reaches out, taking his large ringed hand in hers. She tangles their fingers together, gripping at him as if her life depended on it. “I do want to spend forever with you, you’re my forever too.” Her eyes actually began welling up with tears then and the crease deepened on his forehead. “I’ve known what it’s like to be without you and I don’t want to do that again. I just.. I got scared. Marriage is a big deal but... there’s no one else I can see myself marrying..” He was silent for a few moments before he was gripping her hand back just as tightly as she was his.

“Are you saying...” He trails off, his voice breathless and astounded.

“I want to marry you, Harry. I want to be yours forever, legally.” She smiles then, waiting for his response. She watches his face light up then and there it was, that large grin of his, complete with dimples and all.

“You have no idea how good it is to hear ya say tha’, love.” He leans forward then, his free hand tangling in the hairs on the back of her neck as he pulls their lips towards one another. “Gotta plan be a proposal then,” He jokes when they pull back. “Jus’ kiddin’, we got some time until then. It’s jus’ really good to hear you say tha’s wha’ you wan’ too.”

“It’s definitely what I want. I think I could handle spending forever with you. In fact.. wouldn’t wanna spend it any other way.” Harry grins, his lips finding hers once more as his arms slide around her, holding her close against him.

“Me best friends made up!” Niall exclaims once the couple find their way back to the dressing room where everyone else was at. “The world is righ’ again!”

“Shut up, Niall.” Lana jokes, shoving Niall playfully.

“So are you two gettin’ married then or wha’?” He questions and Lana watches the shock ripple across Louis and Liam’s faces, causing her and Harry to laugh.

“Not righ’ now but one day... yes, she will be my wife sometime in the future.” Harry answers, wrapping an arm around Lana’s waist. She smiles up at him, leaning in to his side. He leans down, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

“No cuter couple. We all better be part of the wedding though.” Louis comments, coming over to pull the couple into a group hug. Niall and Liam join in then and Lana finds herself squished between four men who are much taller and bigger than she is but she can’t help but laugh and grin, knowing that this was exactly the life she wanted to live, with exactly who she was meant to and she couldn’t imagine it any other way.

[marveliciousfanfics]

Walk With Me Part 1

This is my entry for @dinnafashsoldat POC Writing Challenge.

Prompts: “You’re not taking me to bed. Ever.” “Who said it had to be the bed?” and “I wasn’t lying when I said I loved you.” Mexican!OC

A/N: I am a Mexican girl so when I saw this writing challenge I had to get on board. It is going to be about a 5-6 mini series. I love Thor. He’s my favorite! Even over Bucky and Steve because he’s just so...perfect and needs to be protected.

How does one ask a God to pretend to be your boyfriend? I asked myself as I nearly stared down Thor from across the room. He was reading a book dressed in Midgard clothing. His feet were on the coffee table, the book in one hand and the other spread across the head of the couch. I sat on the island counter in the kitchen with a cup of coffee pretending to read the news on my tablet.

My brother’s engagement party was in two days and I may have led my family to believe that I was dating the God of Thunder. Obviously, no one believed me, but I may have been secretly sending pictures of Thor doing normal things pretending we were doing it together. I had taken a picture of him in the kitchen making himself something and saying he was making me something. Then I took a picture of him at the gym saying we were training together. My cousins got a kick out of those ones male and female. Pathetic? Maybe. Desperate? Oh hell yes.

When my mother demanded I bring Thor to my brother’s engagement I knew I was in deep shit. But I didn’t want to admit I was single. Otherwise my parents were going to throw someone at me. Probably the son of the family’s friend. I didn’t want any of that. I also didn’t want them to know I was a big liar.

So for the past week I had been trying to work up the courage to ask him. Thor and I are friendly to each other. He was single, but I knew his focus wasn’t on getting into another relationship especially with another Midgardian.

I looked down to the news and went over the speech in my head. I moved my finger up and down the screen not really reading the news. Then there was a shadow over me. I turned around and all I saw was a chest covered in a white cotton shirt. My eyes drifted upwards and was met with one of his goofy smiles.

“You’ve been stalking me for a week now,” his smile hardly faltered. “What do you want to ask me?”

All courage left me so I laughed nervously and turned back around. “I-I do-don’t know what you’re talking about.” He moved to my right and leaned on the island counter with his right arm.

He raised an eyebrow clearly not believing me. But I honestly couldn’t ask him this. It wasn’t his problem and he had a lot of problems already. I didn’t need to add anymore.

“She wants to ask you to go with her to a family party,” Wanda’s voice came from the fridge. I whirled my head at her with wide eyes.

“The fuck, Wanda?” I growled.

She shrugged. “You would have never asked.” She got a bottle of water and walked away.

“Is she right?,” he asked his eyes had never left me.

“I mean…I guess. I may have led my family to believe we were dating so they could get off my back about being single for nearly six years,” I shrugged a shoulder still avoiding his gaze.

“Dulce,” he said my name and it made me turned to him and meet his eyes.

“It’s not like we would have to kiss or…do stuff, just hold hands and hug each other,” I turned my body towards him. “And it’s just for two days. I haven’t seen my family in a long time and basically everyone thinks we’re a thing.”

“I’ll do it,” he smiled.

“Oh…okay…just like that?” I questioned.

“I have never seen you so flustered. It’s cute,” he winked and I was sure my face was priceless. Did the God of Thunder just say I was cute? I told myself not to read too much into it.

“Okay, what would you like in return?” I offered. I didn’t want him to think that I was being selfish.

“Let’s just say you owe me,” he stood up straight. “When do we leave?”

“Friday,” it was Wednesday so I knew this was going to spread around like wild fire at the compound. Tony was probably going to mock me. “Our plane leaves at eleven in the morning.”

Thor’s eyes twinkled. “Did you assume I would agree?”

“I hoped,” I smiled at him. “Thank you, Thor. My family is very…” how could I word it without freaking him out, “close and we basically tell each other everything—for the most part.”

“Well, you have two days to catch me up. How long have we been together? And how did we get together?” he walked over to the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water. He placed one right in front of me. “Drink. All you’ve had is coffee.”

I chuckled. I always did forget to drink water and somehow he was always around to remind me. So I opened the bottle. My head felt lighter now that the hard part was over. Well, the hard part was going to see how my dad was going to take to me bringing Thor home. I knew he had hoped I would get with the son of his best friend. So did everyone in my family. They all thought Bruno and I were supposed to get together and have the perfect family.

“Okay, so we’ve been dating nine months and we got closer during training at the gym, doing missions and me teaching you about my culture—which I have to do in two days,” I slapped my forehead.

“Ah, yes,” he took the seat next to me and since he was so damn big his knees touched mine. There was hardly any space between us. “Your parents are from Me-he-co,” he grinned widely proud of his pronunciation.

I had corrected Tony once during a mission and I guess it stuck with Thor.

“Yes, they immigrated when they were young. But they had all their children here so my siblings and I are first generation,” I said proudly. “A lot of my parents’ family is in California, which is where we are going. Southern California to be exact. I have a bunch of uncles, aunts and cousins—oh! I have an album in my room. I’ll go get it so I can go through it.”

I twirled in the stool until it let me out of Thor’s knees and I jumped off. I jogged to my room and went to my closet and pulled out the big photo album my mom made me bring with me. I went back to the kitchen and he was exactly where I left him. I got back to my spot, but faced the counter so I could place the album between us.

I opened it and the first thing was a photo of my parents’ wedding. My mom had those puffy shoulders and lots of ruffles dress and my father had his ‘mariachi’ suit on since that’s how they met. My mom had been a waitress at a Mexican restaurant where my father played with the mariachi band. He had been the singer. I told Thor and he said it was adorable. Then the next page were the pictures of the oldest sibling—my brother who was getting married.

“His name is Alfredo Junior—named after our dad, so we just call him Junior,” I explained to Thor who was looking at the pictures with great concentration. I moved on to the next one. “This is my sister Camila—she’s a wife and has two kids, a boy and a girl named Charles and Elizabeth—my sister is a big Jane Austen fan. My parents hated the names at first, but they’ve learned to live with it. Charlie is eight and Eliza is five.”

He nodded his head. I went on to the next page.

“This is Beatriz—or Betty and she’s getting her Master’s in teaching. She’s the smart one in the family. Now, what I’m about to show you doesn’t leave this…kitchen,” I laughed and he did too. I turned the page and revealed my baby pictures.

“Oh, my! Look at little Dulce!” he all but yelled.

“SHHHH!” I looked around to make sure no one was around. 

“You were such a cute child. Look! you dressed up as a witch!”

“I was very into witchy stuff when I was younger,” and then attempted to turn the page, but he grabbed my hand to stop me. He either released some electricity with his hands or I felt a connection. I pulled my hand away, but he didn’t seem to notice or feel it because he went on to stare at my pictures.

I held my hands and tried to shake off from that and since it had been clearly one sided I had to pretend nothing happened. He finally let me go on. I had a lot of family so it took about two hours to go through the album. There were some photos I removed because they were too painful to look at. At the end Thor asked if he could keep it so he could study it. For some reason I agreed to let it happen. Maybe this was going to be a huge mistake.

The next day I was woken up by the sound of my cellphone going off. I reached for it at the night stand and saw that it was my sister Camila. I groaned. I answered because we couldn’t ignore a family call—not ever again.

“Yes?” I answered with a dry throat.

“You’re really going to bring Thor to the party?” her tone told me she still didn’t believe me and if I was her, I wouldn’t believe me either.

“Uh, duh. I told you so,” I scoffed but felt bad for lying to my whole family. But for so long they were pushing and pushing me to get with Bruno, but I knew what he wanted. He wanted a trophy wife and after New York I couldn’t stand by and do nothing. So I decided to join SHIELD—which had fallen, but then I was recruited by Tony to work for the Avengers so I took the offer even though I was going to have to live across the country from my family.

Not a lot of my family moved out of states. Sure we had family in Mexico, but the ones we did have stayed close, except me.

“How did you snatch a snack like that?”

“Because I’m an incredible catch, you bitch,” I sat up on my bed and across my room was my dresser where I could see my disheveled hair. I was not a fucking catch at all. “There were sparks and voila, he asked me out. I said yes.”

There was a giggle in the background and I knew it was Beatriz.

“Does he have a big dick?” Betty couldn’t contain her laugh.

I couldn’t hide mine either. “The biggest I’ve ever had.” I leaned back on my headboard. “And does he use his fingers so well.”

“Goddamn stop it!” Junior yelled.

“Am I on speaker?!” I growled.

“Relax it’s just us,” Betty continued to laugh. “Ma went to set up the backyard and Pa went to get his mariachi suit from the cleaners.”

“Is he putting his band back together?” I rubbed my face in frustration.

“Better warn the God of Thunder that Pa is going to grill him for dating his ‘innocente princesa’,” Camila mocked calling me an innocent princess.

“Have you warned Bruno?” the concern in Betty’s voice told me she still had a huge crush on him. I didn’t know why dad didn’t push them together since Betty really liked him.

“Should I?” I didn’t really think about that.

“Hello, you are literally bringing a God.”

“Bruno is good looking too!” Betty defended.

“Yes, we get it. You have the hots for him, Betty, but he only has eyes for Dulce.”

“It has been years. I’m sure he’s moved on. He’s had girlfriends so…he’s moved on,” I wasn’t so sure of that because those relationships didn’t last that long.

“Suuuuure,” Junior and Camila said at the same time.

“Okay, bye, putas, I gotta go shower and teach Thor how to dance la becadrita.”

“Is he bringing the Stormbrea—“

I ended the call before Junior finished. I groaned at how I was ever going to teach Thor to dance. I didn’t know how they danced at Asgard. Did he have to left feet? Would he be okay just learning the basics? Just so when we danced we didn’t look like complete idiots.

A/N: to me this is how I picture Dulce. She’s a Mexican actress and her name is actually ‘Dulce Maria’. Rebelde was a mexican soap opera that happened to be my guilty pleasure.