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#Aaron x Lydia
overnightheartbeats · 3 months
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📷 - aaron <3
send 📷 for my muse to post the “ this is her / him / them ” photo of your muse. — meaning ; the go-to photo that one’s significant other pulls up when asked about their partner. // @cursivebloodlines
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Aaron is either the worst photographer ever, or he has a mission to catch Lydia off guard. He definitely has a full album of pictures where she's caught off guard or she moved as he took the picture. The first picture was an earlier date of theirs, and looking back on the picture, he sent it to his mom and said, this is my girl. The second picture he sent to his siblings when they asked about her. Aaron still hasn't told her he shared that picture, but his siblings will mention it when they meet her!
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cupidelocke · 2 months
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i was listening to mitski all afternoon and decided to do this ૮₍ ˃ ⤙ ˂ ₎ა i'm going to do it more often with other bands that i like hehehe (?) ૮ ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶ ა
mitski - francis forever
mitski - your best american girl
mitski - once more to see you
mitski - i bet on losing dogs
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multimagicbabe · 2 years
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masterlist of masterlists
i do post things that is considered mature content, rating will be posted in the description of the stories and smut is allowed to be requested. please do not forget i am a human being and these do take time. 
there will be more added later, but for now this is it:)
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criminal minds masterlist
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stranger things masterlist
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that 70′s show masterlist
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supernatural masterlist
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teen wolf masterlist
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detroit: become human masterlist
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taiturner · 2 years
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No, no, no, no, no! We can't just leave him out there! — THE WALKING DEAD 11x23 “Family”
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cursivebloodlines · 8 months
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011. in the dining room building a home: a gingerbread home! decorate the home and make it one fit for a little gingerbread man. - lydia!
🌙 * ― 𝐒𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒: 𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 ( a collection of various settings for drabbles or prompts, or both!) | @overnightheartbeats
011. in the dining room building a home: a gingerbread home! decorate the home and make it one fit for a little gingerbread man.
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The first – and last – time Lydia attempted to build a gingerbread house, it had been a catastrophe. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong: the house itself crumbling, pieces not staying together, icing smudged the whole thing and the candy pieces of decoration fell off. Honestly? It had looked like the wolf from the Three Little Pigs story huffed and puffed and blew the silly, little gingerbread house down. It was all so completely unlike Lydia, someone notorious for her perfectionistic ways and meticulous precision. The hours she spent dedicated to it and nothing to show for it. A complete waste of time. And so, she vowed she would never ever waste her time trying to make one again. Never. Ever.
That was… until Aaron suggested trying to build one. Lydia’s face must have said it all, her nose scrunched up, eyebrows furrowed. “Why on earth would I want to waste time doing that when you can buy one that already looks nice enough from the store?” she questioned, a not-so-subtle ploy of trying to wriggle her way out of it. Aaron had gave her a look that said, really? She wondered what else was running through his mind. Maybe something along the lines of, since when does Lydia turn down a challenge? In that moment, she knew there was no way she was escaping it. Even a small smile threatened to worm its way on to her lips. Besides, what’s the worst that could happen? He’d said. She looked at him blankly, eyes going distant as she spoke, deadpanned, “The worst thing that can happen?” A dramatic pause. “I’ll show you.” With that, she cleared her throat, picked up her phone and scrolled through until she found the photo from a good few years ago. Without saying anything else, she passed her phone to Aaron, feeling quite triumphant with herself about being determined, not going through that ordeal ever again. Her gaze fixated on him as she watched his reaction, watched as his expression swiftly changed from being puzzled, to curious and morphed into amusement. Brows arched, Lydia mirrored his face, her hands on her hips as she demanded, “What’s so funny?” Trying to conceal the laughter in her voice as she quickly cleared her throat. But she couldn’t keep a straight face for long. The sound of his laugh was contagious, his smile so wonderful and infectious. Even if she had a severe case of Resting Bitch Face, she couldn’t stop herself from cracking. So, now they were both just laughing. 
In the end, he managed to persuade her to take another shot at building a gingerbread house. “The way I see it…it can only go up from here.” Or something along those lines. Some variations of it can���t get any worse. Earning a playful roll of her eyes, but in the end, she conceded. She’d already lost some of her pride and dignity the moment she showed him her poor first attempt. But at least if this one sucked, then they would suck together. But weren’t two heads supposed to be better than one? If it had been with anyone else, she may have disagreed. Having someone under her feet whilst she was trying to concentrate on achieving perfection? Lydia would’ve ushered them away and not-so-politely told them to go away. But nope, he was persistent. They were definitely doing this.
A quick trip to the store to get everything they need, and more just because they may as well since they’re there… and there they were, diving straight into it. Lydia read out the instructions from the recipe she found on Pinterest after tons and tons of scrolling, and they took it in turns to do all that was needed to do. Getting the things out as and when they needed, she was surprised how comfortable and easy it was to adjust, shuffling around each other. It was amazing how he fit in perfectly with her. No awkwardness, no Lydia getting frustrated because something was out of place or not done to her standards - a shocker. It was all very new to her but it didn’t feel new. It was like they’d been doing this forever. Shuffling around, arms occasionally brushing against each other, smiles on their faces all around. Christmas songs faintly played from the stereo, humming along as they made the dough; humming turned into singing as they waited for the gingerbread to break, happily setting up the dining room ready for decorating. She playfully swatted Aaron’s hand when she realised he was slipping the candies meant for decorating their work-in-progress gingerbread house in for a little treat. “Enough of that, we won’t have any for the -” Until he was the one plopping a gumdrop into her mouth - she wasn’t complaining then. Another laugh tumbled from her lips as she chewed it, leaning in to kiss his cheek gently before the timer on her phone beeped. They were ready!
“Now… now is make or break,” Lydia declared when the gingerbread finally cooled. Everything already set out, ready for them to dive straight in. First, to assemble the house. Her mind cast back to her first attempt, how disastrous the whole thing went. It will be better this time. Had to be. The aroma of cinnamon and ginger filled the cosy, festive-filled atmosphere, every inhale made it all the more tempting to just give it all up and dive right in to gobbling it all up. It was like she was waiting with bated breath, any moment it could crumble and fall apart. But Aaron’s extra pair of hands made it all worthwhile. He would help her assemble the little house piece by piece, holding things in place as she brought the next part out. So far, so good. It was like they had all the time in the world, every piece fitting together felt like a gigantic milestone worth celebrating. And at some stage, Lydia definitely cracked out the bottle of wine as incentive to keep them going.
In the end, it was all worth it. She hated to admit defeat but Aaron was right; it did only go up from there. Though, the bar was pretty low to begin with. And sure, maybe it wasn’t her ideal version of perfection but the time spent with him absolutely was. Lydia placed the final piece, the marshmallow snowman outside the newly built gingerbread house before leaning back against him with a content sigh. “We did it. I can’t believe we actually did it.” A beaming smile on her face as she tilted her head to look at him adoringly, before looking right back at their little creation before them. The walls of the house were slightly uneven, a few cracks in the icing revealed glimpses of golden-brown gingerbread underneath, gumdrop windows a little askew, and licorice shingles overlapped on the roof. These imperfections which, any other time would have had Lydia fuming and threatening to smash the whole thing over the kitchen counter, were the magic and beauty of it. Perfectly imperfect. It was magical because it was theirs. It was something they built together, and it was what they had to show for it. A funky yet whimsical-looking gingerbread house. Feeling him nudge her with his elbow, a grin curved Aaron’s face as he passed her something, a brief flicker of confusion etched on to her face as she lowered her gaze to her hands, a laugh leaving her as her fingers traced the ridges of the gingerbread man - or should she say woman? - before her. “Is this supposed to be me? Wow. Impressive. And, that’s funny, actually, because…” Biting her lip to conceal a laugh or give away the reveal. She couldn’t get her head around the fact they had both been doing the same thing without the other knowing. Putting her gingerbread persona to the side, she picked up the version of Aaron she’d secretly made, laughter finally escaping as she passed it to him. “I swear I didn’t steal your idea! We just…clearly have great minds that think alike.” 
In that moment it was inevitable: this was going down as one of the best Christmases Lydia had in a long, long time.
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celandeline · 5 months
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I'm thinking about Carl being insecure about his eye. y/n found a way to comfort him. Imagine what comic Lydia did, LOL. But just write whatever you like
i got a little carried away with this one, so it's going to be a two-parter (sorry)
also- comic Lydia sticking her tongue in his eye socket haunts me like the plague because i can't decide if it's disgusting, or i too, would do that given the opportunity
Believe Me
Carl Grimes X Reader [part two]
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You always make a point to see Aaron off when he’s about to leave to go recruiting. You know that he can handle himself, that he’s done this a million times before, that Daryl would never leave him behind, even if things got sticky - but you never know. Coming back alive is never guaranteed. 
You hold his bag for him while he fumbles with the car keys until it unlocks. “You’re sure you don’t want to take anything else? Another water bottle? More protein bars?”
He turns around to take his pack from you with a smile. “We’re only going to be gone for two days, I think I’ll be alright with just this.”
The rumble of Daryls bike announces his presence before he rolls up beside the car, stopping. “Y’ready?” He gruffs. 
“Almost.” He tosses his bag into the passenger seat before turning to back to you with open arms. “Give me a hug.”
You squish yourself into his chest, and squeeze him as tight as you can. “Bye Dad. Be safe.” 
You feel him swallow, and hold you a little tighter. Calling him Dad is still a little new, and it makes him tear up a little more often than not. He’s not your biological father - no, your biological parents died years ago at this point - but he has become a father to you, ever since you started living with him and Eric. 
“You too.” He says, pulling back to look you in the eye. “And make sure Eric doesn’t try the stairs alone again please. He’s not as good at maneuvering in that boot as he thinks he is.”
You grin, and jokingly salute. “Yes sir.”
He slips into the driver's seat, and then he and Daryl are pulling away, heading towards the gates. You watch them go until they round the corner, and try to put your nerves to rest. The sound of plastic wheels on the sidewalk is a welcome distraction, and you turn around to see Carl pushing Judith along in the stroller.
He smiles when you turn around, and you return the gesture. “They’re going out again?” He asks, nodding in the direction your dad and Daryl went. 
“Yeah.” You say. “Only for a couple days this time, but you know.” You never really know when you’re coming back. If you’re coming back. 
He nods, and Judith gurgles happily in her stroller, reaching for the hem of your shirt. “You wanna join?” He asks. “M’ just taking her around the cul de sac before I bring her home for her nap.”
“Sure.” You say, welcoming the distraction from worrying about if this is the time that Aaron doesn’t come back. You fall into step beside Carl as he pushes the stroller along, following the sidewalk, passing by the houses of friends and neighbors. It’s quiet, the middle of the day with most of the adults at work - whatever that may be. It almost feels like you, Carl, and Judith are the only people in this whole town. 
“You think you’re gonna do that?” Carl asks. “Go recruiting with Aaron when they decide we’re old enough for real jobs?”
“I don’t know.” You say, honestly. “I mean, I guess I wouldn’t worry so much if I was with him, but then Eric would worry twice as much. And I don’t have a whole lot of experience out there - I was only on my own for a couple of months before Aaron found me and brought me here. You’d be good though,” You glance over at him. “I mean, you’ve got loads of experience out in the real world.”
He shakes his head. “Nah- I mean, yeah I’m experienced, but I don’t think they want the kid with the mangled face being the one to go make first impressions on new people.” He grins, halfheartedly joking, “Don’t want to scare ‘em off.”
“Huh?” You laugh, looking over at him. “What’re you talking about?”
He rolls his eye. “C’mon.” He says. “I know what I look like. Sending the ugly guy out there to try and recruit people probably isn’t the best image for our group.”
“Carl.” You say, brow furrowing. “Do you know what you look like?” You’re so confused - sure, he’s missing an eye, but he’s still the prettiest boy you’ve ever seen. The eye that he still has is the kind of blue that makes you think of the sky on a sunny day, and you’d kill for hair like his - long and silky and a dark brown that makes his blue eye stand out even more. He looks like a fairy tale prince. 
He glances at you. “You’re looking at me like I’m stupid.”
You laugh. “I mean how could you not be, when-” 
“Wow, thanks.” He snarks, cutting you off. 
“Shut up.” You say, knocking your shoulder into his. “I was trying to say that you’re the prettiest boy I’ve ever seen, before you interrupted me.”
You words hang in the air, and he looks steadfastly ahead. The only sounds are the plastic stroller wheels rolling on the sidewalk, and Judith’s occasional little noises. You can see a blush rising to his cheeks, and bite your lip to stop yourself from smiling, lest he think you’re making fun of him. 
“You’re just saying that ‘cause we’re friends, and you’re trying to be nice.” He says. 
“‘M not.” You insist. “It’s true - you’re really pretty, Carl.”
He still won’t look at you. “Half my face is just a hole.”
“Which just makes you look cool and badass.” You say, trying to peer around his curtain of hair to get him to look at you. He still won’t look at you, and the redness on his face has only gotten worse. “You still don’t believe me.”
He shakes his head, slowing as you reach the steps up to the porch of his house. He walks around to the front of the stroller to unbuckle Judith and lift her out of the seat. She slumps against his shoulder, obviously ready for her nap. “Um.” Carl looks down at the stroller. “Could you-?”
“Gotcha.” You say, folding up the stroller and carrying it up the porch steps after Carl. He opens the door and you follow him inside, gently kicking it shut behind you. “Where-?”
“Uh, we usually just leave it by the door.” He says over his shoulder as he starts up the stairs. “Let me just put her down-” He disappears around the bend in the landing, and you prop the folded stroller against the wall next to the door. You loiter at the bottom of the stairs until Carl appears at the top again, still a little pink. 
He comes down the steps and leads the way into the living room, towards the couch. You plop down onto the sofa, turned to face him next to you. “So-”
“Can we talk about something else?”
“No.” You grin. “Not until you believe me.”
He rolls his eye. “Fine. I believe you.”
“I mean really believe me.” You say. “What’s it going to take?”
“I don’t know.”
“Fine.” You say. “Where’s the nearest mirror?”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes.”
He pauses for a moment before responding. “I have one in my room.”
You get up from the couch and creep upstairs, careful to keep quiet so as to not wake Judith, Carl a reluctant half step behind you. He points you in the direction of his room, and you slip inside, holding the door open for him before shutting it quietly. The mirror isn’t anything special, just a rectangle of glass hanging above the dresser, but you grin at the sight of it anyway. 
Grabbing him by the shoulders, you steer him in front of the mirror, watching over his shoulder. “See?”
“Yup.” He says, unenthused. “I see this every day, actually.”
“Apparently not.” You say, moving a hand from his shoulder to gently play with his hair. “I mean, look at this.” You hold the lock up in front of his gaze. “Your hair is gorgeous. And-” You drop his hair in favor of softly holding his jaw, turning his head so that his jawline is more prominent. “This.” You run a finger along the line of his jaw. “This too.” You turn his head again so that you can sweep your touch over the bridge of his nose. “And of course,” You thumb over his cheek, tapping each of his freckles. Your hand still on his cheek, you grin at him in the mirror. “You’re blushing.”
“What are you doing?” He asks, soft. 
“Showing you.” You say. 
“Why?”
“Because you should know.” You say. “And it’s personally offensive when you say you’re ugly, because that means you think the guy I’ve been flirting with is a total dud.”
It takes him a minute to process it, and you can see it in his eye when he puts it together. “You’ve been flirting with me?”
“Maybe you are stupid.” You muse. 
You didn’t think it was possible, but he turns even more red. “I don’t- really? Me? Why?”
“Jesus Christ Carl, how far am I going to have to go before you believe that I like you.” You laugh. 
He makes eye contact with you through the mirror. “As far as you want.”
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close to home | chapter seventy two
close to home | chapter seventy two
plot: winter passes and the reader hits her ninth month of pregnancy
series masterlist
Pairing: Eventual Daryl Dixon x f!reader Word Count: 3,736 Warnings: violence, blood, typical twd, childbirth A/N: thank you for reading lovelies. Any guesses on baby Dixon's name?
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The blizzard kept you and twenty other people inside Aaron’s house for two nights. You made Judith and RJ pile into one sleeping bag, and then you slept beside them both nights—which the baby spent kicking you. You took it as a sign that she didn’t care for the cold weather either. 
You woke up the second morning to the sun shining through the windows and the digital clock on. You nearly wept at the sight of it, and the first thing you did was go out the front door. 
There was at least three feet of snow. But the sun was shining bright, and it was a bit warmer. And other members of the community were out, and already at work. 
The people you were with joined in soon, and streets were being shoveled while the kids were out to play. You, Rosita, and Gabriel walked along the community for any damage from the storm, but thankfully there wasn’t any. 
It was nearing lunch when you got word that the Kingdom escort party was close. So you gathered up Judith and RJ and walked with them to wait at the gate. 
Finally, they pulled open, and you couldn’t stop running toward Daryl when you saw him. His cheeks were rosy from the cold, and his shawl was speckled in snow. 
“I missed you,” You smiled as you wrapped your arms around his neck. “I was so worried about you.” 
“Nothin’ we couldn’ handle, baby girl.” Daryl said, kissing your forehead. “How was everythin’ here? Baby okay?”
“She’s good,” You said before kissing him. When you stepped back, he set his hands on your belly. 
“Kickin’ up a storm.” He said with a smile. 
You glanced behind him as you saw Carol approaching. You hadn’t seen her in months, not since the fair and everything after. Despite how broken she looked, she smiled when she saw you. 
“Daryl said you were getting big. I just didn’t expect this,” She said as she gave you a hug. 
You closed your eyes at her familiarness for a moment. “I didn’t expect you. I’m so happy to see you here.” You saw Lydia hesitating behind you, and you swallowed the lump in your throat. “How was the trip?”
“I’ll tell ya ‘bout it later,” Daryl wrapped an arm around you, and you looked back at Michonne, who nodded. You were sure you’d hear from her as well. 
***
Carol took the room across from RJ’s, and you gave Lydia your old one. She seemed distraught and nervous and wouldn’t look you in the eye. You weren’t sure what to say to the girl either, so you told her where to find you and that she was welcome to anything in the house. Then you let her be. 
Michonne was with the kids in the living room when you walked downstairs, and you could hear Daryl in the kitchen. The fireplace was going, and you smiled at the warmth. 
“I am so glad I’m off babysitting duty,” You carefully sat down on the chair and then wrapped your hands around your stomach. “Those little brats kept me busy the whole time you were away.” 
Both Judith and RJ told Michonne relentlessly that they were very well-behaved while she was gone, and you smiled as you watched Michonne tease them. Your heart aches in a beautiful way. 
You heard a freak in the floorboard and looked up at Lydia, who was standing on the steps. 
“You can come down. It’s warm by the fire.” You told her. She hesitated again but came down and sat in the other chair. 
After that, Daryl walked into the room and sat down on the arm of the chair you were in, handing you a peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich. Your stomach grumbled just at the sight of it, and you quickly took a bite. 
“How bad was the Kingdom?” You asked through your food. 
“Bad,” Michonne propped her feet up on the coffee table. “Fire burnt through a lot of the buildings. But the people are good. They’ll be happy in Hilltop. And Hilltop could use the extra help.” 
You nodded slowly. It broke your heart you’d never see it again. If you’d known the last time you were there would be the last time, you would’ve stayed a bit longer. 
“Any letters from Maggie?” You asked. 
“Nothing.”
You shook your head. You sent a few letters in the beginning, ones she responded to. But you stopped when she stopped responding, and anger toward your cousin was a flame that didn’t settle. No matter how many years had passed. 
“I didn’t think so.” You finished the last bit of your sandwich as Judith and Michonne talked. You tugged on Daryl’s arm, and he looked back at you, running his hand on the back of your head. “I’m still hungry.” 
He snorted. “‘aight darlin’, I’ll make ya more.” 
***
Dog was whining for your attention as you stared out the window. It must be close to midnight, and the community was asleep. The full moon reflected off the snow, and you could see everything. It was a beautiful winter wonderland, and you sighed with content at the sight of it. 
You could see the footprints from the children playing earlier and the mostly shoveled streets. It looked so lived in. So safe. 
Dog nudged the underside of your belly, and you smiled as you petted his ears. After another moment passed, you turned to the bed and sat down. You were waiting for Daryl, who needed to get something before you could sleep. After a week without him next to you, you were more than ready to pass out in his arms. 
“Finally,” You muttered when the door opened and your husband entered. “What’s that?”
“It was supposed to be a birthday present, but I wasn’ able to get to Hilltop to get it,” Daryl said.
“My birthday was months ago,” You smiled at the cloth-wrapped item in his hands. “And you didn’t let me get you anything. That’s not very fair.”
“Ya did give me somethin’ if I remember correctly.” Daryl sat next to you, and you blushed as you remembered the morning of his birthday earlier this year. How you had woken him up. 
“That doesn’t count.”
Daryl ignored you and put the gift in your lap. You eyed him suspiciously before you unwrapped it. “Oh my God,” You mumbled under your breath as you pulled out the bow. 
It was heavy in your hand, and the metal glistened from the lamp. The grip handle was a sleek dark wood, while the upper and lower limbs were metal. They ended in sharp, serrated tips. Weapons built into a weapon. 
“This is beautiful…” You said, carefully spinning it in your hands. Still lying on the cloth was a black leather arrow quiver with thin pockets that held blades. You recognized the arrows immediately. They were made by Daryl. “How did you… who made this?”
“I owe Alden and Earl a few favors,” Daryl said, cheeks a bit red. “I know ya lost ya old one, and I know for a fact nothin’ is gonna keep ya behind these walls forever. Wanted ya to have somethin’ that’ll help ya get back home.”
You looked back down at the bow and shook your head. “You are a wonder, Dixon. You know that?”
“Ain’ nothin’, really.” 
You leaned over to him to shut him up with a quick but tender kiss. “It’s everything.”
The bed dipped as you stood up and tested the bow's weight. You were definitely going to need to train with it. The wooden one you were used to was much lighter, and you would need to get used to the blades at the ends of it. You’d have to have Michonne help you wield it like her katana. You brought the bow up and pulled the string, testing its strength. 
“Ya look real good with it.”
You laughed and lowered the weapon. “You think I look good with anything.”
“Or nothin’.”
You laughed again and carefully set the bow on the dresser. “I love it. I really, really love it.” You crawled over the bed to sit down on his lap. “I’m gonna have to figure out what to get you now since you got me something so amazing.”
Daryl shook his head and set a hand on your belly. “Ya givin’ me more than enough.”
You smiled and kissed his nose. “You say that now, but when there’s a screaming baby here in three months, and we haven’t slept in days, you might feel differently.” You lightly joked and leaned your forehead against his mouth. You closed your eyes as he pressed a few kisses against your skin and then leaned back to look at him. 
“I can’t believe how far we’ve come,” You said. “The prison feels so far away. A whole other life. I wish I could go back, just for a day. I miss them. So much.”
Daryl pushed your hair behind your ear. “I know, baby girl, me too.”
“Who would’ve thought we’d end up here.” You smiled sadly. 
“Ya happy ya didn’ kill me then?”
That made you laugh away the sadness that had crept into your heart, and you set your hands on either side of Daryl’s face. “Nah. I shoulda taken the shot.” 
Daryl gave you a look before tickling your sides, and your body jerked away from him. “Stop, stop! She’s on my bladder. You’re gonna make me pee.” You laughed loudly. 
“Kinky.”
You rolled your eyes and grabbed his wrists to keep him from further assaulting you. “You’re so funny, old man.” You set your hand against his cheek, fingers running over the bumps and facial hair. “You’ve changed so much since we first met.”
“So have ya,”
“Yeah, but you really have. You’ve become a man I admire so much. You’re beautiful, Daryl. Truly.”
He kissed the palm of your hand. “I think ya sleep deprived.”
You smiled and kissed his nose again before lying next to him. “Maybe. Doesn’t mean what I said isn’t true.”
***
By month nine of your pregnancy, you were on overdrive. Daryl couldn’t keep up with your emotions. One moment, you were crying; the other, you were yelling at him because he wore his boots inside the bedroom, and then you were crying again and telling him you were sorry. And then you asked why he wasn’t sorry, and it started all over again. 
Every emotion made his head spin.
And that didn’t include how you made your problems, Daryl problems. If you were uncomfortable, it was his fault. If you were too hot, it was his fault. Everything was his fault because he got you pregnant and wasn’t carrying around a baby. And that was when the hormones kicked in and you begged him not to be mad at you, and it circled around again. 
He just kept telling himself one more month. One more month, and then the baby would be here, and you’d be normal again. At least, that was what he hoped. 
Still, he wouldn’t change anything. He didn’t care if he had to wake up at four in the morning to help you out of bed so you could use the bathroom, or if you needed water or food, or if your feet hurt and your ankles were swollen. He didn’t care about any of it. Because it was you, and he loved you. And he wanted to be there for you in every single way. 
What he didn’t care for was the nesting. You’d made him and Aaron rearrange the baby’s room six times. You folded and refolded cloth diapers and clothes donated by everyone in the community. And when Rosita was over, forget about it. The two of you were dangerous together. Nothing stays the same if you and Rosita share an opinion about where a damn baby book should go. 
Michonne reassured Daryl every day that this was normal. That you were processing the emotions, and your body was getting ready to deliver. So he held on to that. Even if the eighth time you asked him to move the crib made him want to pull out all his hair. 
She’s carrying my baby, she’s carrying my baby. He repeated it like a mantra to get him through the days. 
And then it was your estimated due date. And he hung around all day with you, doing any and everything you asked for, no matter how big or small it was. But then the day passed, and then the next, and a few more. 
He was getting nervous despite the morning ultrasounds that told him that the baby was fine and that she was taking her time. Just like her damn mother, Daryl had thought. He knew he was getting impatient. But each day made him more and more worried. 
“That’s it. Your pacing is driving me crazy.” You said one morning, a week past your due date. “Go hang out with Aaron for a few hours. I need some peace and quiet.” 
“Ya a week late,” Daryl said with a bit of anger in his voice. “‘M gettin’ worried. What if ya need a c-section?”
“Then Siddiq and Dante will handle it. Please, honey, I just need to be alone for a little while.”
Daryl rubbed his chin and sighed. “Okay, okay.” He walked over to you and kissed your forehead. 
“I love you. Just relax and have some fun, okay? I’m just gonna take a nap.” 
“Ya need anythin’ before I go?”
“No, no. Get out. Before I skin you. alive” 
Daryl shook his head with a slight smile and finally left you to have some peace and quiet. And he needed a break from worrying about you every second, too. So he walked to Aaron’s house, appreciating the mild late March weather. 
When Aaron opened the door, he laughed. “She kick you out again?”
***
Daryl was finally relaxed when he heard Dog barking down the street. Both he and Aaron were immediately on their feet and flying out the door. Dog was on the porch, barking and running back and forth, and Daryl took the steps two at a time. 
“My water broke,” He heard your voice as he rounded the corner, where a very pregnant Rosita was trying to help you off the chair. “The chair is fucking ruined.” 
Rosita looked up with a thankful look on her face as Daryl approached, helping you stand. “Ya okay?”
“She’s coming,” You said, wincing as you tried to take a step. 
Aaron came around to your other side and helped you. “We gotta get to the infirmary.”
You groaned in pain, and Daryl felt your weight shift. “Oh my God, she’s coming.”
Daryl and Aaron shared a look before helping you out of the house. Dog was barking like crazy, and in the distance, he could see Michonne running down the street toward you guys. 
“Is it time?” She rushed out when she caught up. 
“Yeah, it’s time,” You nearly screamed. 
Getting to the infirmary took more time than Daryl wanted, but soon, Siddiq and Dante rushed out the doors and yelled where to put you. 
“This is her second labor, and her water broke,” He heard Siddiq say quietly to Dante. “The baby is going to come quickly. Are you ready for this?” He asked the newcomer. 
Daryl felt like he was going to be sick. 
“Daryl, get over here now!” Rosita yelled. 
Her voice snapped him into action, and he walked over to you on the bed. “Hey pretty girl, ya doin’ okay?”
You shook your head and reached for his hand. “The contractions are fast. They came out of nowhere. Oh my--.” You yelled in pain, squeezing his hand hard. 
“Siddiq, get over here now!” Rosita yelled. Daryl watched as she moved quickly, pulling off your sweatpants and putting a blanket over your bare legs. He felt like he couldn’t keep up. Everything around him was happening so quickly, and he felt frozen. 
Daryl wasn’t sure how word spread so quickly that you were in labor because soon, your family started showing up. First, it was Eugene, then Gabriel, and Carol. Judith brought RJ, and he barely had time to think about how the word reached the school. The room got crowded within minutes, all while Daryl had no voice. 
“Okay, okay,” Siddiq yelled. “There are too many people in this room. (Y/N), you gotta tell me who you want in here.”
“I want Daryl to deliver the baby.” 
Your words snapped him into reality, and he realized where he was and why. 
“What?” Daryl asked you. “I don’... I can’...”
“Listen to me, Daryl Dixon,” You yelled, fisting his shirt in your hand. “You did this to me, you son of a bitch, now you’re gonna deliver our daughter. Siddiq will be there with you, but I want you down there. Now. And I don’t wanna hear any of your shit.”
Daryl breathed out in panic and walked over to Siddiq, who instructed him to wash his hands. While doing so, he heard you ask Rosita and Michonne to stay, and Dante had everyone else wait outside the room. 
“Alright, this baby is coming quickly. From the morning ultrasound, everything should be fine for a clean birth. We’ll check and see how dilated she is and if she can push.” Siddiq explained to Daryl. He had the archer sit down in a chair as he helped you prop up your legs and fold the blanket back. 
“Why is she bleedin’?” Daryl asked. 
“It’s normal. I’ve been reading everything I can about childbirth.” Siddiq said. 
Daryl looked up at you. You had Rosita and Michonne’s hands, and they encouraged you. His stomach dropped at the look of pain on your face, the sweat that had your hair damp. His hands started shaking, and he felt like he was going to be sick. 
“Okay, it’s almost time to start pushing. Jesus, she’s coming fast.”
***
“It hurts,” You cried, staring up at Michonne. 
“I know, I know.” Your friend soothed you. “It’s going to hurt. It will hurt so bad, but you’re doing so well. You’re doing so good, honey.”
You sobbed as another contraction hit you. It wasn’t just like period cramps anymore. These were full-body contractions that had you sweating and shaking. 
“Is it time?” Rosita yelled over your cries. 
“Almost.”
“I can’t do this,” You cried. “I can’t do this, it’s been two hours.”
“You can and you will,” Rosita said, turning back to you. “Don’t you whimp out on me now, bitch.” 
You nodded and glanced at Daryl, who listened to everything Siddiq said. His face was probably paler than yours, and you could see the anxiety coming out of his ears like steam. Your eyes met, and he looked at you momentarily before placing his hand over his heart. 
You sobbed, your head hitting the pillow as another contraction hit. “I have to push. I have to push.”
“Not yet (Y/N), you’re going to tire yourself out,” Siddiq said. “She’s about nine centimeters. You’re almost there.”
“Oh, just kill me now,” You cried.
Michonne and Rosita gripped your hands tightly as you shifted, trying to get more comfortable. You weren’t sure how many more contractions passed until you heard Siddiq yell out, “I can see her head. Okay, (Y/N), you need to start pushing. Daryl, you’re going to need to…” His words were lost on you.
You grimaced, squeezed Rosita and Michonne’s hand, and took a deep breath. “I can do this. I can do this.”
“Come on, babe,” Rosita said. 
The sound of your screams bounced off the walls as you pushed as hard as you could. Everything was on fire, and your legs were numb. But you pushed and fought the pain harder than you ever did with anything else. Each swipe of a blade, bullet, and stab wound was nothing compared to this. It was nothing compared to how hard you fought right now. 
“Keep the head up, just like that, I got the shoulders.”
Rosita cursed under her breath when you squeezed her hand especially hard. 
“Daryl, as soon as the shoulders are out you’re gonna pull the baby gently, okay? Alright and… pull.”
You screamed in pain, and your vision blurred. But then you heard the sound of a baby crying, and something inside you stirred. 
“My baby,” You said weakly. “Let me hold her, give me my baby…” You could hear how weak your voice was. 
“Hold on, baby girl,” Daryl said, cradling the baby. 
“Here dad, you get to clip the cord.” Dante said, handing your husband a pair of surgery scissors. 
Your heart melted as you watched Daryl do so, and then he walked over with the crying baby. Your cheeks were soaked, and your body was in a pain you’d never experienced before without an epidural. 
But when your husband passed you your crying baby, and you held her in your arms, everything was perfect. 
“My baby…” You breathed out, holding her against your skin. You didn’t care your blood was all over her or that she was covered in gunk from the womb. She was here. Safe. Alive. 
Daryl knelt beside you, and you looked at him, smiling through your tears. “We did it.” You cried. 
“I’m so proud of ya,” Daryl choked out, his eyes bouncing back and forth. 
You looked back at your baby and her red face. She was screaming her head off so loud you thought you’d go deaf. But it was music to your ears. She was alive. 
“She’s perfect,” You said to Daryl. He pressed a kiss on your shoulder. 
You gently kissed the baby’s head as Daryl’s hand covered yours under the baby’s back. 
“(Y/N), we gotta get the afterbirth delivered sooner than later. Dante’s gonna take her and get her cleaned up, okay?” 
You looked at the man and then at Daryl. “Go with her,” You said. You gently passed the baby to your husband and got ready to finish the delivery. 
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royaldaycare · 20 days
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WELCOME TO MY BLOG!
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Hello !! I'm Logan (or Johnny!) and welcome to my daycare! you can call me Logan, Lo, Johnny, big brother or dada! I also occasionally go by saint or my OC's callsign, Sparrow!
A little about me ! :
I use he/they/it pronouns as well as some neo's and xeno's too!
I'm trans, gay and asexual! I'm also questioning whether I am poly or not!
I am an age regressor and a caregiver! (my agere blog is @gh0stlyb34r !)
I'm 19 and my birthday is June 3rd!
I'm from the uk!
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my anons! ;
💚 ,
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I am a 100% sfw caregiver! any nsfw accounts will be blocked!
This blog is a safe space for regressors and caregivers alike! anyone that makes this blog an unsafe place will be blocked immediately
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My rules!
dni ; nsfw, edsh, zionist, racist, homophobic, against Palestine, transphobic, ableist, trump supporters, anti agere, ddlg/abdl accounts, anti petre
boundaries ; keep all terms used for me either masc or gender neutral, do not flirt with me (even if it is as a joke or friendly), please keep all asks sfw.
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My interests!
games ; call of duty, overwatch, resident evil 4, forza horizon, roblox (royale high, dress to impress, obby's and tycoons!), fnaf, poppy playtime, indigo park, red dead redemption 2, animal crossing new horizons, good pizza great pizza, hogwarts legacy, valorant, a little to the left, unpacking, mario kart 8, mario kart wii, just dance, the last of us
movies/shows ; deadpool & wolverine, deadpool, x-men, harry potter, fantastic beasts, atsv/itsv, marvel, star wars, the umbrella academy, stranger things, the batman, titains, heartstopper, young royals, criminal minds, fnaf, arcane, ghostbusters, barbie, oppenheimer, nimona, christopher robin
musicals ; les miserables, hamilton, waitress, the greatest showman, la la land, hairspray, dear even hansen, heathers, high school musical, lemonaid mouth, annie, descendants, beetlejuice, mama mia, tick tick boom, into the woods, mean girls, in the heights, little shop of horrors
youtubers ; pezzy, elasticdroid, puffer, grizzy, smii7y, gtlive, game theory, warn, frogger, aspen, beaplays, dawko, ethan nestor, blarg, thedooo, coleydoesthings, film cooper, dechart games, hthaze, james marriott
musicians ; james marriott, taylor swift, mcr, twenty one pilots, billie eilish, hozier, noah kahan, sleeping at last, the smiths, laufey, chappell roan, bruno major, paramore, novo amor, depeche mode, p!atd, daughter, djo, feels like july, florence the machine, frank sinatra, gerard way, ghost, lady gaga, lemon demon, lily allen, maya hawke, 1d, 5sos, mitski, micheal jackson, sleep token, taylor austen dye
misc ; books, dolls (monster high, lol, rh), pop figures, lego, posters, flowers, pin badges, jewellery, halloween, fall/autumn, deco pacis, colouring
DISCLAIMER ; I hold all of my faves accountable! I do not support jkr, noah schnapp ect!
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My faves !
celebs/authors ; pedro pascal, hugh jackman, ryan reynolds, ali hazelwood, kit connor, oscar isaac, hayden christensen, ewan mcgregor, tom hiddleston, andrew garfield, tom holland, aiden gallagher, eddie redmane, aaron tveit, erik j brown, david tennant, josh hutcherson, david harbour, wynina ryder, natalia dyer, maya hawke, matthew gray gubler, thomas gibson, aj cook, barry sloane, neli ellice
characters ; John 'Soap' MacTavish, Simon 'Ghost' Riley, Captain John Price, Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick, Robin Buckley, Spencer Reid, Aaron Hotchner, Penelope Garcia, James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Loki, Logan Howlett, Scott Summers, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, Ben Hargreeves, Luther Hargreeves, Newt Scamander, Din Djarin, Deadpool, Steven Grant, Marc Spector, Danny Zuko, Jean Valjean, Ben Florian, Flynn Rider, Aziraphale, Crowley, Nick Nelson, Charlie Spring, Diego Hargreeves
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dividers and Lydia banner by @kodaswrld <3 bj banner
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theteasetwrites · 2 years
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The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning
Chapter 100: Happy Ending
❧ Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Female Reader ❧ Era: Season 11 ❧ Pronouns: she/her ❧ Warnings: SMUT—gentle sex, missionary, just very basic stuff really, and I don't think there's really anything else! ❧ Word Count: 7.8k
❧ In This Chapter: A year after the events at the Commonwealth, things are falling into place, and Alexandria is back on its feet. Daryl returns home from diplomatic duties at the Commonwealth, but he has an idea to run past you, and it involves a new journey.
❧ A/N: We made it. This is the last chapter of the series. It's been a wild ride. For the last chapter, I had to throw in a little smut, as a treat (and also @normanplusdaryl would've murdered me if I didn't have them have sex again before the end <3). I also wanted to tie a few loose ends, like the character I introduced in 11A (Billy—who was initially intended to be a love interest for Lydia, but then Elijah and Lydia got together and I wanted to follow that from the canon because they were so cute) and Robin's bunny. I will probably make a separate post talking about what this series means to me and how happy I am that I've completed it and that so many people have enjoyed it. For now, though, I'll just say thank you. <3 Hope this final chapter is adequate.
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You felt a tiny tug on your corduroy skirt. It startled you for a moment, but then you remembered Westley’s little habit.
One year old and he was already crawling all over the library, touching everything he could get his little hands on. As you looked up from your cataloging, you met the boy’s impossibly round, silvery blue eyes. “Westley Owen Dixon, what on earth are you doing?”
He smiled up at you, in his hand a glob of dirt. His face, too, was smudged with the stuff. You quickly lifted him in your arms, removing the dirt on his cheek with your sleeve. “Where did you get this, huh?”
The child was fond of dirt. He hated being cooped up, you were quickly realizing. Being outdoors was his favorite pastime, but he was much too young to play outside on his own, like Robin. 
“Billy?” 
“Yeah?” The young man looked up from his book. He knew the routine well now, but you had to make sure to let him know. After all, it was what you always did. A year of library training under your tutelage had worked wonders. You were glad he’d decided to join Alexandria, after he’d helped you and Lydia what seemed like yesterday. 
“I’m going to take him out for some fresh air,” you said, as you usually did. “Watch the desk for me? Make sure no one steals any books?” You eyed Mr. Gibson playfully. The old man had a habit of forgetting to check out the books he borrowed, though he always brought them back. 
“Sure.”
Outside, you were greeted by a gaggle of children running past, including Gracie and Robin. When Robin turned on her heel, running back to you, you laughed in confusion at her sudden approach, but she was reaching her hand out, and you knew what that meant.
“Tag! You’re it!” she giggled, looking up at you and the baby with a wide grin. 
You scoffed, looking back at the other children as they giggled. “I most certainly am not!” you said, leaning down to ever so slightly hit Robin’s shoulder. “You’re it!”
It caught the child off guard, who didn’t think you’d be quick enough to tag her. “Hey!”
As you scurried off, Westley let out a series of burps and giggles in your arms. 
“(Y/N)!” 
You stopped in your tracks to see Aaron, calling out to you from the garden. Nearby, some of the other children were swinging wooden swords, while a horse-drawn carriage wheeled through town, carrying the latest harvest for trade. In the busy Alexandria square, people moved to and fro, some hard at work, others just chatting. It didn’t really matter, though. All the work would get done. 
“Hey, there, boss man,” you said. He scoffed, always rejecting that nickname. He wasn’t the boss, really. No one was. Still, he was a leader of Alexandria, like Gabriel, like Daryl, and, you supposed, like you. In your own little ways, you ran this place, too. 
“Told you to stop calling me that.”
“Since when do I listen to you?”
“That’s a good point…” Aaron’s attention quite quickly turned to his nephew, the baby in your arms. His baby voice was always vastly entertaining. “Well, hello there, wiggles.” On account of Westley’s… bouncy nature, Aaron had bestowed upon him that nickname not too long ago. There was no telling where such a little child could get all that energy from, but he had it in spades. Aaron took the child in his arms, lifting him up and down as he held Wes by his underarms. “Whoa!” he said, watching the child laugh and coo at the movement. 
“Be careful with him!” you said. “Don’t break him.”
You watched in amusement at Aaron’s silly faces, how he stuck his tongue out and crossed his eyes for the baby’s enjoyment. “Aw, he likes me.”
“Yes, you’re his favorite uncle.”
“I better be.”
Outside the walls, you heard the faint hum of a motor. Not just any motor, of course. There were very few motors left in the world, besides Daryl’s.
“My dad’s here!” you heard Robin exclaim to the other children. 
The girl ran between you and Aaron, and you watched as she sprinted towards the gate. The motor had stopped a little while after she’d gone out of sight, but you did hear his voice very faintly, speaking to Robin in that soft voice of his. 
As soon as he saw you, he waved with one hand, the other resting upon Robin’s shoulder as they came forward. Beside him was Carol, and behind him was Lydia and Elijah, with Judith and RJ following along. You breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He was home again, and everyone was safe, for now.
He took Wes in his arms, bestowing a kiss upon his head. Soon after, his arm snaked around your waist, pulling you close. Over his shoulder, you watched as Robin greeted Judith, the two girls rocking each other back and forth in their hug. They hadn’t seen each other in a while now. Daryl made monthly trips to the Commonwealth and Hilltop, helping to supervise his trades, but the children rarely came along. One day, you knew Robin would beg to come along, too. And then Wes, and then you wouldn’t know what to do with yourself.
“How are ya?” he asked. As he bounced Wes, you concentrated on fixing his windswept hair. 
His thumb drew absentminded circles over your lower back, just at the junction of your skirt and your tucked-in blouse. You missed your clothes getting wrinkled by his touch, as much as you tried to look as neat as possible. When he was gone, there was an unmistakable absence of his very particular touch. It was sloppy, but tender. Somehow, he simultaneously put no effort into his movements, and all the effort in the world.
When your fingers finished meticulously sorting out his hair, you let out a refreshed sigh, breathing in the crisp April afternoon. You could practically taste the newly harvested strawberries, finally in season after a long winter. A year ago today, this field you stood in now was barren, dry. Now, it was so green, and even better than it had been before. Lush tangles of vines and leafy greens were lovingly planted in rows upon rows of wooden planters. Alexandria had never been so alive, literally and figuratively. 
“I’m fine,” you said happily. As usual, your eyes began to wander his body, examining the new holes in his clothes you would have to patch up. At least he was clean. He must’ve caught a shower at the Commonwealth, where he’d picked up Carol and the kids. She was a leader there now, helping Ezekiel and Mercer run the place. “How was the event?”
The memorial day, the anniversary of the end of the Commonwealth as it once was. No longer a police state run by greedy politicians, it was still the biggest settlement you knew of, but not the best. That was, and always would be, Alexandria, as far as you were concerned. 
“All right,” he said with a shrug. The movement made Wes giggle as he found fascination with the piece of Daryl’s chestnut colored hair that he held between his little fingers. “What’cha doin’, scout?” he asked, bouncing Westley until he giggled some more. “Already one year old…”
You leaned close to get the child’s attention. “Look, Daddy’s back,” you cooed, pinching his rosy little cheeks. They felt like dough in your fingers, so soft and warm. “Can you say ‘hello, Daddy?’” He’d only turned a year old last week, but you were eager to hear him eventually speak his first words. If you could gently coax them out of him, you would. “Say, ‘hi, Dad!’ Or just say, ‘Dada?’”
He only stared blankly at you, blinking his wide eyes as a droplet of drool began to slide down his chin. “Da,” he mumbled.
Close enough. 
When the sun had set and the day’s activities had come to an end, you found refuge in your living room, watching Robin sit cross-legged on the living room floor, holding a white puff of fur in her arms. Daryl sat beside her, holding Wes, who stared in infatuation at the creature. 
“Say ‘Daisy,’” Robin instructed him, holding the rabbit closer. “C’mon, Wes! Say ‘bunny,’ pleeease. This is a bunny. This is Daisy, my bunny.”
The only person who wanted Westley to speak more than you was Robin, who was so eager to have a little brother to talk to. He only blinked, wriggling slightly in Daryl’s arms. He reached out, patting Daisy between her long ears. 
“Gentle,” said Daryl, who guided Westley’s little hand. “Nice and gentle… Look at ‘er little nose, Wes. Ain’t that funny how it wiggles?”
Dog, whose nose was resting upon your thigh as you sat petting him on the couch (so he wouldn’t get jealous, as Daryl said), lifted his head up with alert ears. He still didn’t trust the rabbit entirely, but he was learning, just as Westley was, to be gentle. 
“No, Dog,” you said in a low tone. “You just stay right here.” The dog whined as he looked up at you, his tail wagging so much it made a noise against the couch cushion. “Oh, really?” you replied. “Well, I’m sorry, but you’re not going anywhere near that bunny until―
“Mommy,” interjected Robin, “can’t we let Dog come close to Daisy? He won’t hurt ‘er.”
After all, it had been several months since the rabbit joined the family. There just wasn’t any end to Robin’s pleas after the baby rabbit had been born. Ezekiel wasn’t helping matters, either. He insisted upon Robin taking the only pure white rabbit in the litter. Still, you had terrifying visions of Dog tearing apart the poor defenseless creature right in front of Robin and Wes, scarring them for life. Dog did have a bad habit of bringing home small, fluffy creatures, though they were always mangled and bloody when he left them on your doorstep. Daryl had only cooked two of them, and that was a miracle in itself. He would’ve cooked up all of them if you had let him. 
You looked between Daryl and the dog, whose big brown eyes seemed to glimmer with the light from the fireplace. He whined again. “Oh, all right,” you said. “But don’t let go of her.”
You loosened your grip on the dog, letting him cautiously leap off the couch. His ears perked up, he slowly sniffed towards Robin and the rabbit. 
“Come ‘ere, boy,” instructed Robin. “Come see Daisy.”
Your heart seemed to stop for a moment when the dog got so close that he pressed his nose against the bunny’s, just for a moment. At the same time, Wes reached out his hand to pat Dog. 
“Daw…” the boy cooed. 
Your eyes lit up, so did Daryl’s. “What did you say, sweetie?” you asked.
Daryl gently bounced the boy, as if trying to shake the word out of him. 
“D—dog.”
“Dog?!” you exclaimed, excitedly climbing off the couch to crawl over to Daryl and the baby. “Oh, Daryl, his first word!”
Robin grimaced as she pet Daisy, who was also the object of Dog’s attention as he sniffed her small puff of a tail. “I wanted him to say bunny.”
“Maybe he’ll learn that next, sweet pea. Can you say it again, Wes? What is this?” You pointed demonstratively towards Dog. “This is a…”
Daryl smiled widely, amused by the boy’s confusion. “Hey, buddy. Good job, why don’t ya say somethin’ else…” He pointed towards you, his eyes gazing over you affectionately. “Who’s that, huh? That’s Mama. Say ‘mama.’”
“Blah bluh.” The baby’s nonsensical sounds erupted from his mouth with a small bubble of spit. 
You all broke out into uproarious laughter. “Aw, that’s close enough,” you said, your voice faltering a little. It could’ve been worse. When Robin said her first word, “Dada,” you were overwhelmed with happy tears. This time, you were a little more composed. 
“Look, Mommy!” exclaimed Robin. “Dog likes Daisy, see.”
You averted your attention from the baby to see Dog’s nose gently nudging the rabbit’s body. He seemed to recognize that the creature was a friend, not food. You’d seen the dog’s reactions to rabbits and squirrels and the like before, but he’d never seemed so calm and collected. Perhaps he was smart enough to know that Robin loved her bunny, and that any friend of Robin’s was a friend of Dog’s.
“What a good dog,” you said, patting his back. “Everyone’s reaching a milestone today, huh?”
Not long after that, Aaron came knocking on the front door. He was on his usual Friday evening business—picking up Robin to spend the night. Tonight was special, as Judith and RJ were visiting, too. It was more like a slumber party at Gracie’s house, with Aaron dutifully volunteering to take care of all the children that night. 
The best part for you, of course, was getting to be alone with Daryl. 
The man didn’t let go of Westley until the child was falling asleep in his arms. He’d been gone only three days, but when a child grows so fast, it feels as though just one day is a whole year. As he put the infant to bed upstairs, you tended to the fire, dropping in another log with a flurry of bright orange and red sparks. You quickly used the poker to maneuver the logs. Two hands held tight to your hips as you bent over, squeezing your waist.
“Baby asleep?” you asked.
He turned you around shortly after you stood up to replace the poker. Upon his face was a lopsided smile, the kind that was infectious. Your own grin carved itself into your cheeks, lifting them high until your eyes began to squint. 
When his arms wrapped tight around your back, pulling you close against his chest, he craned his head to find your neck, where his lips latched onto your exposed skin. Eyes closed, you nuzzled into his neck, too, where you caught faint notes of pine and soil, and a hint of cigarette smoke.
“Daryl,” you sighed, your hands finding themselves feverishly clawing at his strong, broad shoulders. “I’m so glad you’re home.”
His mouth zig zagged up your neck, dotting kisses along your jaw, then finally settling happily on your lips, where they seemed to fit so perfectly. “Me too, angel… Wes is sleepin’ like a rock. Dog’s all tuckered out by his crib.”
“Precious,” you spoke against his lips. “I can’t wait for him to learn how to walk. Remember Robin? She was following you all around the house.”
“Knowin’ Wes, he’ll be chasin’ me. Little terror’s already got so much damn energy with the crawling.” With a laugh, you imagined the idea as you lowered yourself to the ground, tugging Daryl down with you. “Perfectly good couch right there, woman.”
“I want to enjoy the fire,” you said, leaning your back against his chest. He knew the position well, spreading his legs as he leaned against the side of the armchair. You shimmied yourself until you were slotted between his legs, while his hands settled upon your stomach to pull you in even tighter. “Mm, perfect.”
He seemed infatuated with your neck tonight. Perhaps it was your new homemade perfume, scented with apple blossom and honey. Indeed, he seemed to be practically devouring you with his lips. 
“You smell good,” he mumbled between kisses. “Good enough to eat.”
With a teasing grimace, you turned your neck to face him. Though his words and the languid movements of his hands as they pawed at your silky nightgown were tempting, you were more determined to hear about his travels for the time being.
“Any news from the Commonwealth?”
“Jus’ the usual. Carol’s got some plan to talk to Aaron ‘bout gettin’ the railroads workin’ again. They already got a lot of people ready to work on it, just gotta make a plan, and Eugene is comin’ up with ideas for fuel… I dunno, he told me all ‘bout it but it went right through my head.”
“How’s Rosie?” Eugene’s daughter was born just a few months ago. You were still hoping to meet her soon. 
“She’s fine. Looks nothin’ like Eugene, maybe that’s a good thing.”
You shook your head at his joke. “Well, not everyone can be as handsome as you, my love. And the books, did you pick up the books?”
Daryl had a new job added to his long list of responsibilities. In fact, you considered him to be his own position at your library: the official interlibrary loan delivery man. 
“I did,” he said with a nod. “Got ‘em in my bag, ready for ya to… do whatever you do with ‘em. And I dropped off the books they asked for. How you gonna keep track of all these books comin’ and goin’? Ain’t it difficult? Don’t want you stressin’ yourself out with this… interlibrary thing.”
If Daryl had it his way, you wouldn’t have to lift a finger or do anything at all, but you wanted to run the library. After all, he built that library for you. It meant the entire world. 
“It’s not stressful, honey. It’s important. Making sure everyone has access to the information they need, or the stories they want to read to keep their minds off things, that’s all important. When Maggie gets the time to start thinking about a library at Hilltop, we’re going to start an interlibrary loan program there, too. Lydia told me she’d like to run that library… It’s going to be wonderful.”
No matter how many times you told him your dreams, your plans, your hopes for the future, he would always look at you like you’d just shown him the biggest, brightest star in the sky. That’s why he built that library, why he did everything he did to keep Alexandria and the other communities together. Though he thought his actions were small, what he did, he did so you could be happy. There wasn’t anything you could want that he wouldn’t give to you. Just to hear that swell in your voice, and to see that flash of radiance in your eyes. 
When you spoke of your dreams, you were the most beautiful thing in the world to him. 
“Jus’ as long as you’re happy. Ya know, I’m real proud of you, sweetheart.”
“Oh? What for?”
“Everything.”
“Everything?”
His forehead leaned against yours, his hand cupping your jaw with the utmost tenderness. “Yeah. You’re doin’ everything you wanted to do, bein’ everything you wanted to be. And ya make this place feel like home. Alexandria ain’t nothin’ without you.”
“Stop,” you laughed. “I’m just a librarian.”
“Nah,” he said. “You’re much more than that to me. I mean, you are a librarian. That ain’t all you are. You’re changin’ the world, in your own ways.”
“Well, I… couldn’t have done anything without you, Daryl. You gave me everything I wanted, and more. You made me feel like I was strong.”
“You are strong,” he corrected. To punctuate his statement, he placed a firm kiss upon your lips. “My strong, beautiful woman.”
A sudden burst of laughter erupted from you as he used his body to pin you to the floor. With your body now underneath him, you wrapped your legs around his waist, keeping him pressed to you. 
“You’re such a charmer,” you said, lips brushing against his ear. His tongue spread warm saliva over the expanse of your neck. Between slow, drawn-out licks, his lips pursed to kiss you, his hand wrapped up in your hair. Your lips desperately searched for his in the dimly lit room, with only the warm glow of the fire to guide you. Raising your hand to palm at his face, you clasped his chin to pull him down until your lips met. 
It was an unspoken chain of events now—words weren’t necessary. Tonight, you’d make love together, with no chance of Robin hearing or walking in on you, and little Wes was just a baby, all snuggled up in his crib upstairs. Dog wouldn’t know what the two of you were doing, he was just a dog. Still, Daryl always shooed the canine away if he happened to try to climb into bed during your more intimate moments. 
But tonight, he didn’t seem to care about privacy from the dog, as he clawed at your nightgown, trying to pull it off on the living room floor. 
“Daryl, we could go to the bedroom if you want. Wes won’t wake up.”
“No, right here. Want you right here.” You didn’t mind. 
As he sat upright, he stripped himself of his black button-up shirt, the buttons on which were already stretching beyond their ability on account of his broad, stocky build. Your nightgown peeled off easily over your head before you tossed it somewhere behind you, into the warm darkness of the increasingly balmy room. 
With a frustrated grunt, he stood to begin undoing his belt. Beneath your now naked body, you felt the high pile of the plush rug underneath you. It wasn’t as soft as your bed, but it was enough. Still, an equally as naked Daryl crossed over to the couch, grabbing one of the throw pillows. 
“Here.” He leaned down to tuck the pillow underneath your head. You bit your lip as you watched him maneuver himself until he was atop you again, breathing deep, heavy breaths. “You comfortable?”
“I love you,” you answered, in a complete haze. “Come here.”
Your lips clasped together again, this time kissing with open mouths and lustful tongues. As his body began to move against yours, you both felt the heat of the nearby fire begin to just barely sting your skin. It was a good sting, though. It reminded you that you were alive, after all this time. You were still alive, together. 
“I love you,” he repeated. The phrase was bookended by more kisses, each more sloppy and impatient than the last as the heat and arousal rose up in him. “I love you... I’d die for you.”
Between your bodies, his erection twitched against you, tucked somewhere between your thighs. It all felt so warm. 
“You don’t have to,” you said, heaving and panting as your body rocked up against his. “I’d much rather you live for me.”
You could feel him smile against your cheek, his hand planted firmly beside you as he lifted his body enough to see yours. His other hand traveled south to feel you, to insert his fingers inside you. 
“Oh…” His knees dug into the carpet as he steadied himself, focusing on pleasuring you. His thumb tickled your most sensitive spot mercilessly, causing you to squirm and writhe underneath him, just the way he liked. “Daryl…”
When you said his name, a fire of some otherworldly kind ignited within him. It was wild and demanding and took complete control over him. He could no longer keep himself away from you, so he buried himself inside, letting out a drawn out sigh as your arms reached up to envelope him. 
“Oh, yes, Daryl… Please.” Your begging only emboldened him. 
He bestowed another kiss, then dragged his lips down over your neck, finally grazing over your aching breast. His warm, sweet breath soothed your nipple, where your teething baby was slowly but surely being weaned from breast milk. 
“They still hurt, angel?” he panted, almost whimpering. You felt so good around him, he could hardly stand it. Your body was made for him, having been filled by him after all these years, but every experience was slightly different, with new pleasures for him to reap from you, and to give you. 
“They’re… a little tender.”
Without sucking, he licked the slightly swollen flesh, tracing gentle circles with his tongue. He eyed you, but your head was thrown back, with only a breathy sigh to signal your approval. The softness of his tongue was so soothing, combined with the steady rhythm of his body as he pumped himself inside you. While one hand kneaded the tender flesh of your other breast, his other hand stroked your clit, matching the slow, loving movements of his hips.
“I’ll make ‘em feel better,” he said, moving his lips to the other breast. 
His open mouth drenched your sensitive nipple in his saliva, then his tongue swirled it around in slow, languid circles. Only Daryl could make love to you with such sweetness and gentleness, but with such great desperation and need. It took all his willpower not to suddenly increase his pace, but he knew that what you needed now was his sweet, slow love. Besides, in this room, in this moment, you had all the time in the world. Everything else outside of the junction of your bodies didn’t matter, for the time being. 
Your back arched, you jolted upwards as a sudden shock of pleasure ran through you. Daryl’s touches were getting you more and more aroused, closer to orgasm. Meanwhile, he buried himself deeper inside of you, twitching with each involuntary movement of your body. The wetness that pooled where your bodies met was dripping down your bottom, surely being absorbed by the carpet. You made a mental note to wash it tomorrow. 
With only yours and his soft pants, grunts, and sighs mingling with the crackling of the fire, the house was quiet, peaceful. The sound of skin on skin became more prominent as Daryl’s speed increased inevitably—your passageway was so slick now, he slid in and out of you with ease. 
Though his head was now buried between your breasts, you reached down to lift him up until his arms stretched out to hold him up, hovering over you. In your throes of passion, your ultimate peak of pleasure incoming, you needed to look at him, to see his face as he watched you fall apart. 
“You’re beautiful,” he huffed. And you were. Your skin was drenched in sweat, probably from the immense heat of your bodies and the nearby fire. Beads of sweat and saliva that speckled your breasts were glimmering with the sparkle from the light. Your arms were flailed above your head, though not for long, as you reached up to pull his hair back, giving you a better look at his face. He was sweating, too, panting with agape lips that were made puffy from your kissing. He always had deep-set eyes, but they looked so dark now, filled with lust and the utmost desire for you to feel the pleasure you so deserved. 
As you squirmed underneath him, you managed to smile at his compliment. No one had ever made you feel as beautiful as him, and he really made you believe it. “I feel beautiful,” you panted. “I’m so close…”
He straightened his back a bit, digging into you from a slightly more extreme angle. It caused you to let out a gasp of surprise at the change in feeling, the new stimulation his tip was creating as it hit into you. “Oh, oh!” 
With such an incredible feeling came the need to cry out, so you covered your own mouth with your hand, trying not to wake the sleeping baby upstairs. Though your hand muffled your moans, the sensation was so strong that your other hand dug into the skin of his shoulder, making him grunt in return.
It wasn’t a bad feeling, though. He’d let you use his body in whatever way you needed to. In fact, he liked it much more than he should’ve. When you were rough with him, even though it was unintentional, it awakened a wildness in him that he often thought he’d grown out of, but it was always within him, you just had a way of bringing it back out.
The newfound confidence he gained made him move faster now, yet still with the gentleness he started out with. He breathed out a huff, then a few words. “You like this?” he panted. “You like what I’m doin’ to ya?”
“You know I do,” you mumbled against your palm. 
“I feel ya about to come,” he said. “Feel ya squeezin’ me.”
Another jolt of pleasure, another tightness throughout your core. His movements didn’t give you a chance to recover—you arched your back and gasped as the string inside you broke. Your legs spread further apart by instinct as your hips writhed and gyrated with every pulse. 
Even in the dim light, he swore he could see your entrance twitching and tightening around him where his body met yours. He certainly could feel it, that enticing pressure that commanded him to stay in you, begging him to let himself go. 
Well, the last time he did that, you ended up with a surprise bundle of joy. 
With your body still squirming and moaning underneath him, he pulled himself out, tugging with his hand as he watched you enjoy the last moments of your bliss.
You opened your legs up even more, reaching your hand down to stroke your slit, just to give him something to look at. It was quite amusing to watch him, too, how his hair hung loose over his face as he hung his head down to watch your movements. He finally reached his peak, his other hand catching his spend.
With that, his energy left him. He allowed himself to fall back down onto you, then roll himself over with you in his arms, until you were snuggled against his side. 
It didn’t last long, though, because you were cold, so you fetched the quilt draped over the edge of the couch, along with another throw pillow for Daryl. He’d insisted he didn’t need one, and that you should have both, of course. You ignored him.
The fire was low now, almost embers, but it was still bright enough to bring light to your faces. You traced the curves of his features for a while, tickling his nose any chance you got. It occupied you as you thought of new worries.
“You’re going to the Hilltop tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah, then Commonwealth, then back home. Like I usually do.”
You knew the routine well—the trade route always involved several stops at the three settlements, and the whole circuit took about a week to complete, but one week out of the month without him was still the one thing you wished to change in your life. Granted, you were quite spoiled if the only problem in your life was not getting your husband to yourself twenty-four seven. Maybe you were just clingy, but Daryl always liked that about you, and, anyway, he was clingy, too. Possibly even more than you.
“Hm…” You tightened your arm around his waist, nuzzling your head further against his chest, as if to never let him leave. “Well, say hi to Maggie and Hershel for me. Oh, and Robin has another little letter for him she wants you to deliver. It’s on her desk, I’ll get it in the morning before you leave.” The two children had become pen pals ever since Maggie returned to Hilltop. You found their new friendship to be quite sweet, knowing that Glenn would’ve loved to see all the children getting along. 
“Guess I’m a glorified mailman now, huh?” he said with a huff, which you knew to be his form of laughter. “Well, uh…”
His voice trailed off and his small smirk faded as he began to think. He didn’t look worried or upset, but nervous, almost. It was strange, he’d hardly ever looked nervous around you anymore.
“What is it?” 
“Nothin’, just… There’s somethin’ I been thinkin’ ‘bout for a while. Been meanin’ to ask ya.”
There was a strange quality to his voice, almost like he was… excited? Nervous, and excited. It made you shake your head in slight bewilderment. He seemed so youthful, with the subtle, flickering glow of the nearby embers accentuating the angles of his high cheekbones. 
“Go ahead.” Whatever was making Daryl so excited, it was bound to make you excited, too. 
“Well, I was thinkin’… Maybe tomorrow you could come with me on the rest of the trip.”
That wasn’t all he was thinking, but it was the first step. Luckily, the first step went over well. You immediately beamed at the thought. In fact, you’d wanted to ask, but you feared that Daryl might grow irritated at your desire to be with him when he was doing his “job.” The fact that he asked you was a relief. 
“Oh, that’s a great idea! I’d love to go, honey. I really want to see Maggie, and I’d love to meet Rosie. I’m sure Ezekiel would like to hear about Daisy. Aaron could take care of the kids, and I know Gabriel would help, too.”
“But, uh, that ain’t all I was thinkin’.”
“Oh?”
He cleared his throat. “Ya know… Ya know how, a while back, I said I’d take you on a vacation?”
The thought amused you as it came back to mind. Indeed, it was almost exactly a year ago, down in the sewers underneath Alexandria. It was a dark time, but in the midst of that darkness were moments like that. 
“Yes, I remember. You said something about… riding off into the sunset on your motorcycle,” you laughed. “Well, that’s how I interpreted it, anyway. Why?”
He shrugged, though he knew why he was asking. “Guess I was jus’ wonderin’ if maybe we could do that soon, that’s all. Maybe when we get back from the trade, we can just… be gone for a little while. Few weeks. I dunno.”
As your fingers absentmindedly traced shapes through the wiry hairs sprouting from his chest, you thought of the logistics of such a plan. You knew that Aaron wouldn’t mind taking care of the kids, and Gabriel did owe you a few favors after you’d taken care of Coco. Lydia and Elijah lived in Alexandria, too, and would surely keep an eye out for the children that Lydia came to know as her family. Some of the other neighbors would be fine with helping out, too. They all loved Robin, and many of them had offered to babysit Wes whenever you needed it. Dog was already eating off everyone’s porch, and Robin was now an expert at caring for her rabbit. 
“Where will we go?” you finally asked. 
“Jus’... anywhere.”
And so, the next morning, you were off. 
At the Hilltop, Maggie expressed interest in your “vacation.” She said it would be a good opportunity to find new people, and to find leads for new resources for the communities. Of course, before you’d leave, you’d stop again back at home to say goodbye. 
It wasn’t an easy goodbye, not in the slightest. You held onto Wes for some time that morning, while Daryl went through extra care to go over the “security protocols” with Robin. You weren’t entirely sure what that included, but it had something to do with operating the complicated lock on your front door. 
Outside the gates, Aaron met you to see you off, with Lydia holding baby Westley. Beside his bike, Daryl held Robin’s cheeks in his fingerless-gloved hands, kneeling down to the girl’s height. He squinted his eyes as he examined her face, clenched somewhere between forced strength and the strength she was born with. There seemed to be a glimmer in her eye, where a tear threatened to fall. 
“We won’t be gone long,” he said, brushing the tear from her cheek with his thumb. “Few weeks, month at the most.”
“But it’ll feel a lot longer,” she said weakly. Still, she allowed her lips to curl into a half-smile. “Can you bring me back a new Barbie? A veterinarian one?”
Ever since you began telling her about Hershel, Maggie’s father and her friend’s namesake, she dreamed of becoming a veterinarian, taking care of all the animals in Alexandria. It was a dream that you hoped would come true for her. 
“Yeah, I’ll look for it… And I promise we’ll be back ‘fore your birthday.” She beamed at that. She was turning eight in a month. Time was going so fast. 
He took her in for a hug, and with his chin resting upon her shoulder, he quietly said, “Keep an eye on your brother, all right? And take care of Dog. Make sure he don’t eat that bunny.”
She laughed before placing a small kiss on his cheek. “Okay, Daddy. I promise.”
“And be good for your uncle. Listen to him…” He trailed off, knowing he didn’t really have to waste those words on such a well-behaved child. Now, Westley was another story, but alas, he couldn’t quite understand anything Daryl would say to him. “I dunno why I’m tellin’ ya, birdie. You’ll be just fine.”
As he rose to his feet, you came towards them, Wes on your hip as he chewed on his teething ring. His little feet wiggled in his tiny cowboy boots (the ones Daryl brought home because they reminded him of a certain police officer he used to know) as you handed him to his father, who held the restless child up in the air as he made a wide-eyed face to entertain him. “Hey, scout, now you’re the one I’m worried ‘bout.” 
You felt Robin’s arms wrap around your waist, and her cheek leaning against your upper arm. As you looked down, you freed your arm to squeeze her close. Your hand settled in her hair, brushing back the silky, pale brown waves. “Will you be all right, sweet pea?”
“Yeah, just…” She looked up with glassy eyes and slightly quivering lips. “I’ll be worried, s’all. There’s climbers out there.”
That was the newest threat. A new… adaptation. Some walkers were climbing, even picking up objects. Not many, but enough to warrant new protocols. That was part of what you were interested in exploring. Maybe someone, somewhere, knew something about these new walkers. Or at least, maybe you’d get some leads. It couldn’t hurt to look.
“Mm, well, I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but… I’m pretty good out there.” You pulled your ice axe from its loop on your belt, flashing the thin silver blade. “And nothing’s going to stop me and Daddy from coming back home to you and your brother, you know.”
“I know.” You took her in for a full hug, squeezing her so tight she squealed a little. “I’ll miss your hugs.”
“Me too…” You sighed as you pulled away to look at her. She looked so much like Daryl, as she always did, but for the first time, you noticed a quality in her face that resembled… you. It was a brief resemblance that seemed to only show itself in certain angles and lights, but it really showed now. Maybe she was growing up, not anywhere near a young woman yet, but you could see it in her. It was coming, and it brought a tear to your eye. You didn’t want to miss a second of it, but this would be good for you, for Robin, for everyone. 
“I think this might be the longest I’ll have ever been away from you, chipmunk. Your daddy’s been away for months before, but…” 
Robin’s kiss distracted you from your imminent tears. “It’s okay, Mommy. We’ll be okay. Everything will be okay. Maybe when you get back, Wes will know some more words.”
You felt Daryl’s warm presence beside you, and you heard Wes’s babbling. The little boy just looked so happy, smiling wide with the few tiny baby teeth he’d been growing. As you brushed back his wispy brown hairs, Daryl pressed a kiss to his cheek before handing him back to Lydia. 
“You sure you’re okay with taking care of him?” you asked. “You can always ask Gabe and Aaron for help, too. They’ve babysat him before.”
The young woman extended her metal arm for a hug. You sighed against her shoulder, knowing you were going to miss her, too. “We’ll all take care of them both,” she said. “It takes a village, right?”
“Thank you… It means a lot to me.”
Aaron was the last one you had to say goodbye to. It took a lot of willpower to end that hug, but wherever you were going, you had a long way to go. 
“Be careful out there,” he said. “And don’t worry about everything here. Just… just be careful, okay?”
There was no mistaking that look in his eye, and that slight frown on his face that aged him a few years. You much preferred his smile, but you knew he was a lot like you, and that it was hard to smile when there was so much to worry about. “I will. I promise. I’ll be back before you know it.”
He nodded with a strained smile. “I know.” With a sigh, he pulled you in for another hug. If you didn’t know any better, you’d say he had a bad feeling. 
“Aaron,” you said, “stop worrying. I told you I’ll be careful. You know, I lived out on the road for a while, unlike some people.”
His smile seemed natural now, more warm and relaxed. “You’re my baby sister,” he said. “I’m always going to worry about you. Dad used to say I had to watch out for you, make sure the other kids didn’t pick on you.” 
And yet they still did, but he tried his best. 
“And you always did watch out for me. Now I can watch out for myself.”
“I know, (Y/N). Still, be careful.”
When you pulled yourself away, Daryl stepped in to hug Aaron. It was a far cry from the first day the two met, you thought. You rather clearly recalled Daryl’s first words to Aaron being, “No one gives a shit.” If you’d been asked to imagine the two men sharing a hug back then, you weren’t sure you could do it. 
“Take care of my sister,” he said, quietly enough so that you couldn’t hear as you strapped your bag to Daryl’s bike. Light packing wasn’t your strong suit, but somehow you managed to fit everything you needed into one knapsack. 
Daryl chewed his bottom lip as he nodded. Aaron had spoken in a stern voice, but underlying that was a clear understanding between brothers, not just friends. “I will.”
As he climbed onto the bike, he turned the key into the ignition, bringing the engine to life. When you settled behind him, grasping at his shoulders to steady yourself, you were alerted to Westley’s cries, no doubt spurred on by the loud engine, though you were a little gutted inside, thinking maybe, just maybe, he knew you were leaving. 
“Bye!” you called out over the roar of the bike. Robin, Lydia, and Aaron matched your wave, and soon Westley’s cries calmed down. Maybe it was the sound of your voice. 
Daryl flashed a smile towards them, then turned his head to speak over his shoulder to you. “Ready?”
With a deep breath, you wrapped your arms tight around his waist, but not before adjusting his poncho slightly. “Ready.”
It was a beautiful April day, with fluffy clouds rolling slowly in the pale blue sky. Beyond the nearby hills, you could just see the sliver of the moon begin to dip below the horizon. Darkness was far away now, and for a moment, you thought back to the beginning of a different journey, one that started in darkness, but ended in the light. 
Well, it didn’t end. Nothing ever really ends. 
With a kick of the stand, the wheels were rolling, and Daryl stepped hard on the gas, jolting you to grip onto him tighter. Your chin dug into his shoulder, just the way he liked. That way, he knew you were really holding on, and that you were there with him. It was what he needed. In his heart, he knew one thing—he’d never be able to leave home again without you. 
The road went on straight for a while, and every chance you got, you looked back to see those three figures getting smaller and smaller, but Robin’s little arm was still waving. You let go of Daryl for a moment to wave back, even though you were sure she couldn’t see you.
I love you all. 
Soon the road bent, turning into a grove of trees that finally separated you from your home, the place you fought for, and the people that made it worth fighting for. 
But then, there was still Daryl, and that was more than enough to remind you of every beautiful thing you had in this world. In fact, it all started with him. It started that day the bolt from his crossbow tunneled through a walker’s skull, the walker that very well would’ve killed you if it weren’t for him. 
If it weren’t for him, you’d have never known love at all. That was what you believed to be true. There was no love like his before him, but whatever love you did have, it wasn’t his. His was what you’d been waiting for all your life, what you were put on Earth to feel. 
Today wasn’t unlike that day you met him, you supposed. It was a time when everything was changing, and as one world was ending, another was beginning. Though this time, you didn’t feel anything was ending, only that today was the start of some great journey. You couldn’t explain it, you just felt it. 
However the world would change next, you found yourself repeating that old mantra: Don’t ever be afraid.
You were so lost in your thoughts for a while that you didn’t even notice the great speed at which you were going. As you pinched his side, signaling for him to slow, you shouted above the sound of the engine, “Slow down!”
He shook his head as he let out a laugh. “Thought you’d never notice.” His foot eased up on the gas pedal, and now you could more clearly watch the trees go by, one by one. 
You weaved through a small group of walkers stumbling on the road, but their mindless groans were easy to ignore. In fact, you didn’t really notice them at all. Nothing could spoil this moment, this beautiful world that you’d come to know and love, despite everything that threatened to take it away from you. 
No, nothing could take this away from you. Nothing could take away this bright light of love that seemed to move at the speed of sound down the old dirt road. It was unstoppable, and wherever the two of you went, you’d take it with you, and never let it go. 
Now, you just had to figure out where you were going, but something told you that the light of love would guide the way. 
~
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Series Masterlist
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nocturnalstarlet · 6 months
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— 𝑾𝑯𝑶 𝑰 𝑾𝑹𝑰𝑻𝑬 𝑭𝑶𝑹 🪐
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— 𝑨 𝑪𝑶𝑼𝑹𝑻 𝑶𝑭 𝑻𝑯𝑹𝑶𝑵𝑬𝑺 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑹𝑶𝑺𝑬𝑺
🪐 ››       cassian, azriel, nesta archeron, elain archeron, feyre archeron, lucien vanserra, eris vanserra.
ships i'd write for: cassian x nesta , elain x azriel , gwyn x azriel , and elain x lucien.
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— 𝑩𝑩𝑪 𝑴𝑼𝑺𝑲𝑬𝑻𝑬𝑬𝑹𝑺
🪐 ››       aramis, porthos.
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— 𝑩𝑹𝑰𝑫𝑮𝑬𝑹𝑻𝑶𝑵
🪐 ››       anthony bridgerton, daphne bridgerton, benedict bridgerton, colin bridgerton, king george iii.
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— 𝑪𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑽𝑨𝑳 / 𝑶𝑵𝑪𝑬 𝑼𝑷𝑶𝑵 𝑨 𝑩𝑹𝑶𝑲𝑬𝑵 𝑯𝑬𝑨𝑹𝑻
🪐 ››       legend, julien santos, scarlett dragna, donatella dragna, jacks/prince of hearts.
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— 𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑴𝑬𝑫
🪐 ››       phoebe halliwell, paige matthews, wyatt halliwell, chris halliwell.
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— 𝑫𝑨𝑰𝑺𝒀 𝑱𝑶𝑵𝑬𝑺 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑺𝑰𝑿
🪐 ››       warren rojas, eddie roundtree, graham dunne, camila alvarez, karen sirko, daisy jones, simone jackson.
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— 𝑭𝑨𝑺𝑻 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑭𝑼𝑹𝑰𝑶𝑼𝑺
🪐 ››       dominic toretto, brian o'conner, letty ortiz, mia toretto, roman pearce, deckard shaw, tej parker, han lue.
ships i'd write for: dom x letty.
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— 𝑮𝑨𝑴𝑬 𝑶𝑭 𝑻𝑯𝑹𝑶𝑵𝑬𝑺 / 𝑯𝑶𝑼𝑺𝑬 𝑶𝑭 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑫𝑹𝑨𝑮𝑶𝑵
🪐 ››       tormund giantsbane, podrick payne, sansa stark, robb stark, jorah mormont, theon greyjoy, sandor clegane, samwell tarly, rhaegar targaryen, daenerys targaryen.
🪐 ››       aemond targaryen, jacaerys velaryon, alicent hightower, daemon targaryen.
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— 𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑹𝒀 𝑷𝑶𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹
🪐 ››       ron weasley, hermione granger, dean thomas, blaise zabini, luna lovegood, neville longbottom, cedric diggory, viktor krum.
🪐 ››       james potter, lily evans, narcissa black, regulus black, andromeda black, sirius black, remus lupin, frank longbottom, peter pettigrew, lucius malfoy, pandora lovegood, alice fortescue, marlene mckinnon, mary macdonald, emmeline vance, dorcas meadows.
🪐 ››       theseus scammander
🪐 ››       teddy lupin
🪐 ››       godrick gryffindor, rowena ravenclaw, helga hufflepuff, salazar slytherin
**a very big fuck you to jkr. this account is HEAVILY anti jkr and always will be. **while some of the fics for these characters may occur during their time at hogwarts, the characters will be assumed to be 18+ regardless of fic type.
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— 𝑰𝑻
🪐 ››       richie tozier, stanley uris, ben hascom, mike hanlon.
**none of my writing for these characters will take place in the first film. i may instead do college!fics for this. everything else will come from when they're adults.
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— 𝑴𝑨𝑹𝑽𝑬𝑳 / 𝑿-𝑴𝑬𝑵
🪐 ››       steve rogers, james buchanan "bucky" barnes, natasha romanoff, yelena belova, wanda maximoff, pietro maximoff, thor odinson, loki laufeyson, bruce banner, druig.
🪐 ››       john allerdyce (pyro), bobby drake (iceman), peter rasputin (colossus), scott summers (cyclops), alex summers (havoc), anna marie lebeau (rogue), logan howlett (wolverine), ororo munroe (storm), peter maximoff (quicksilver), charles xavier, erik lehnsherr.
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— 𝑶𝑼𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑩𝑨𝑵𝑲𝑺
🪐 ››       pope heyward, sarah cameron, kiara carrera, jj maybank, john b routledge, rafe cameron, topper thornton.
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— 𝑷𝑬𝑨𝑲𝒀 𝑩𝑳𝑰𝑵𝑫𝑬𝑹𝑺
🪐 ››       thomas shelby, arthur shelby, john shelby, michael gray, finn shelby.
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— 𝑺𝑨𝑳𝑻𝑩𝑼𝑹𝑵
🪐 ››       felix catton, venetia catton, farleigh start.
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— 𝑺𝑪𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑴
🪐 ››       tara carpenter, sam carpenter, chad meeks-martin, mindy meeks-martin, ethan landry.
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— 𝑺𝑯𝑨𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑴𝑬
🪐 ››       aaron warner, kenji kishimoto, juliette ferrars.
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— 𝑻𝑬𝑬𝑵 𝑾𝑶𝑳𝑭
🪐 ››       derek hale, peter hale, stiles stilinski, isaac lahey, lydia martin, scott mccall.
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— 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑯𝑼𝑵𝑮𝑬𝑹 𝑮𝑨𝑴𝑬𝑺
🪐 ››       finnick odair, haymitch abernathy.
ships i'd write for: finnick x annie
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— 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑽𝑨𝑴𝑷𝑰𝑹𝑬 𝑫𝑰𝑨𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑺 𝑼𝑵𝑰𝑽𝑬𝑹𝑺𝑬
🪐 ››       elijah mikaelson, marcel gerard, klaus mikaelson, kol mikaelson, rebekah mikaelson, bonnie bennett, enzo st. john, stefan salvatore, damon salvatore, jeremy gilbert, caroline forbes, elena gilbert.
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— 𝑻𝑹𝑼𝑬 𝑩𝑳𝑶𝑶𝑫
🪐 ››       eric northman, jason stackhouse, alcide herveaux , jessica hamby.
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— 𝑻𝑾𝑰𝑳𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻
🪐 ››       charlie swan, carlisle cullen, emmett cullen, rosalie hale, alice cullen, sam uley, paul lahote, jared cameron.
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— 𝑾𝑬𝑫𝑵𝑬𝑺𝑫𝑨𝒀 / 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑨𝑫𝑫𝑨𝑴𝑺 𝑭𝑨𝑴𝑰𝑳𝒀
🪐 ››       morticia frump, gomez addams, wednesday addams, enid sinclair, bianca barclay.
ships i'd write for: morticia x gomez.
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— 𝑴𝑰𝑺𝑪𝑬𝑳𝑳𝑨𝑵𝑬𝑶𝑼𝑺
🪐 ››       ransom drysdale (knives out), andy barber (defending jacob), killian jones (ounce upon a time).
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don't see what you're looking for? feel free to ask if i know a fandom/ship/character and if am willing to write what you're looking for!!
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seriesxwriting · 1 year
Note
I wanted to make a request for Negan. I have an idea for the plot of the request. Idk if you do just x reader or you put names to the main character but the idea is- Negan will reunite with my oc or the reader in the apocalypse after not seeing each other in years the last time they saw each other was when he found out Lucille had cancer. They we best friend my oc or the reader age would be in her early to mid twenty before the apocalypse making her in her mid to late 30s.
Thank you for the request!! I love negan this was so fun to write <3
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you and I against this world
W negan (twd)
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Series- twd (the walking dead)
Summary- request 🤍
Warnings- swearing, use of guns.
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“Daryl” negan yelled from across hill top. He turned around on his motorcycle Looking for who called his name. Negan walked over to him “are you going to that house now?” He questioned after getting closer. “What’s it to you?” Daryl darkened his eyes replying bluntly. “I wanna come” he shrugged “we’re trying to welcome new recruits not scare them away”.
“Look everyone here is giving me the stink eye” “that ain’t my problem your not coming”. Negan let out a little laugh looking at his feet. “Fine, who knows what I’ll get up to with you and Maggie gone”. Darryl stood up angrily. “Is that a threat?”.
Negan smirked looking around hill top with a shrug before Daryl’s hand shot out wrapping round his neck. “Get in the truck, I wanna keep an eye on you” he spat throwing negan backward. He stumbled but never lost his grin. “Wise choice” he winked as he began walking to maggie’s truck. “Get in the back” she growled eyeing him evilly, clearly not happy he was coming.
Negan raised his eyebrows and threw himself into the truck grunting because of the rough landing. Maggie had already began driving off following Daryl on his bike in front.
———
“Y/n A car and a bike just pulled up outside” “I heard, is the snipper ready?” I questioned standing up from my desk chair. “Yes boss, will is upstairs” “perfect, go and greet our guests sam” I smiled dangerously snatching up a knife sliding it into my belt and doing the same on the other side before eyeing the window. “Let’s show them how we greet trespassers”.
“Hello? We know there’s people living in there- we’re not here to attack”
“That’s what they all say” my eyes rolled sarcastically making Sam laugh under her breath. I followed Samantha out into the dinning room where I took a seat and watched her walk to the door. She opened it holding out her gun to Aaron, Daryl who were standing at the bottom of the steps. Not that it had many bullets, only two. That was all we had left for the hand guns. The sniper had a few more rounds but not many.
“Woah- Woah- we don’t wanna hurt you, my names Aaron and this is Daryl”. The man with the cross bow nodded at her without a smile. Arron then pointed to the truck “that’s Maggie and Lydia” he explained with a smile.
“You wanna talk?” Sam asked raising an eyebrow “you the leader?” Daryl questioned gently “your on my land, I’m doing the talking I said do you want to talk?” Sam repeated before cocking the gun. “Yes! We want to talk we have an offer” Aaron put his hands up in defence. “Good start, now if you want to talk to the boss your going to have to leave your weapons there” she ordered pointing the gun at the ground.
Daryl was first to remove his cross bow before putting it on the ground. Aaron put a knife down and Daryl put two down. Maggie threw her knives out the window. In that moment negan popped his head out the back. “You missed one” she pointed the gun at negan. “He’s irrelevant and not coming in” Daryl commented before he began climbing the stairs. “Does he have weapons?” She asked moving the gun to Daryl.
He looked across from her being on the same level now. “No” he stated before Aaron reached them. He gave a small smile suggesting he was ready to go in. Sam stood to the side letting the men in the house. She pointed to the next room where I locked eyes with them. “Take a seat” I put my hand down. “Your- in charge?” Aaron questioned raising an eyebrow. “Got something to say spit it out?” I smiled sarcastically.
“No, we’ve met lots of different people and lots of different leaders- none that looked like you, but that’s a good thing” Aaron shrugged taking a seat at the table. “Isn’t that arm classed as a weapon” I eyed the spiked ball swinging in the air. “It’s a bitch to take off” he half smiled. The other guy Daryl didn’t seem like much of a talker. He kept a straight face sitting opposite me.
Sam brought over Aaron’s bag to me laying it on the table before standing by the wall. “Most people that come in here, they don’t get back out” “we have no intention of fighting, we’re on a recruiting mission actually” Aaron nodded at his bag. “In there are some good samples and there’s even some photos of the communities we live in”. My brows knitted together “your here to get us to come back with you? So what you can imprison us- you want our stuff from here?”
“What stuff would we want? We have everything we want we’re here to give you everything you want” Daryl piped up making my attention turn to him. “Oh he talks” I half laughed siting back in my chair. “I haven’t heard such mockery since somebody said the dead are coming back to life”. My head shook and my arms folded across my chest in disbelief. I didn’t trust them and I didn’t want them in my house.
“Mockery?” Aaron questioned throwing me an innocent look. “You think we can’t survive here? That we’re too weak or don’t know what we’re doing?” “No that’s not- why we came I-.” Aaron started but he wasn’t going to cut in, not in my house. “You didn’t think you could just waltz in here and expect me to trust you after shoving you fancy apple sauce and carrots in my face did you?” I chuckled pulling the items out the bag.
“Why don’t you tell me how you found us” “we found you because your bad at covering your tracks, if we could find you that means others can too- now we have had enough experience to know that you don’t want people knocking at your doors” Daryl began looking me dead in the eyes. All of a sudden a loud gunshot went off from outside. “Was that you?” Aaron’s eyes widened he jumped up to move to the window.
“Sam” I nodded at the door for her to check it out. “I had snipers on your people the whole time, if they shot they had a reason to” I shrugged my shoulders. “Stop right there!” Sam yelled pointing her gun at whoever was trying to get in. “I just want to come and say hello because I’m sure these two would be fucking it up”.
Sam stepped out into the porch before dragging a man in with a gun pointed at his head and an arm wrapped round his neck. “Do you want another one or should I put him in his place boss” Sam hissed against the man’s face. But I hardly heard her. I was too busy studying the man’s face.
“Negan?” I blinked in disbelief
His smirked dropped as he squinted his eyes at me. “Y/n?” He whispered, he took a second before he started struggling against Samantha. “Stand down sam” I shook my head standing up. Negan didn’t move a muscle from the shock he was going through. I took about three leaps which forced me to almost do the splits. My arms wrapped around Negan’s neck as he copied me holding my head into his neck. “I can’t belive you made it” I whispered to him blinking at the wall.
“Oh I knew if anyone would you would” he chuckled under his breath. “You two know each other?” Daryl asked from the other room. “From before the fall” I nodded stepping back taking him in once again. “I tried looking for you but…” “I know- I know” I shook my head not wanting him to say the words. “I’m super glad you guys are reunited but at the end of the day we’re here for one thing” Daryl spoke again, getting straight down to the point.
I looked at the two men in my dining room and then looked at negan. “Can i trust them?” I quizzed pressing my lips together. His eyes flicked from me to them. “Yes” negan replied. I could always tell when he was lying, now wasn’t one of those times. “Do you trust them” “yes”. Now he was lying. “Why don’t you trust them negan?” Exhaling I put my hands on my hips. He smiled at me knowingly before say saying “Because I did some shit y/n and I have no clue if or when they’re going to try taking me out”.
I blinked at him and then at them. “You want us to just leave- join your group? Live there- work there fight there?” “All of the above” Aaron nodded his head vigorously. “I understand your weary, Daryl was too when I first came to him” he flashed a friendly smiled at me. I inhaled before looking at Sam. “What do you think?”, she didn’t hesitate to tell me her answer “if you trust this guy then this is a great opportunity- though the five of us have been fine for a long time we don’t know when trouble will come”
“Plus we are running out of bullets and your the only one who can fight hand to hand, we can learn new things and find safety in numbers” Sam shrugged looking at the group. I knew she was right deep down, but I just needed more time to think it through. “We will check it out, if we don’t like the look of it then we’re coming here, if we think your community is the future we will stay and help you build it”.
With that I collected the rest of my group and explained what was going to happen. Still in shock that I’d found my best friend again. Negan was hovering round the front of the door while the rest of the Group met the new people and got into the truck. I was last out, worried that I’d never return to this place again. “Have you been here since the beginning?” Negan questioned softly, realising I was struggling to leave it behind.
“No we moved around a lot but we were here the longest” I told him as I closed the door. “I can’t believe how close we were and we didn’t even know it” he chuckled loosely. “Makes you think doesn’t it, who else is out there” I sighed looking towards the trees. “From our life before?” “Exactly! Brandon, Izzy- Janine”. Negans face hardened at the last name.
“Guys- we’re making a move” Lydia called over with a sweet smile. Negan threw an arm over my shoulders as we made a way to the back of the truck that Maggie was driving. “Is she…” “she’s gone” negan said lowly helping me in. “What happened, did she get bitten or- was it the-” I shook my head sadly. “Neither, she did it herself- I lost her- I took too long, but I avenged her” he said jumping in next to me.
I could tell how much it pained him to talk about it even with the amount of time that passed. “It’s changed you huh” “all this changed everyone” negan replied correctly. “We all had to do things to survive negan, whatever you’ve done you did to stay alive and because your hurting because your mad at the world” “don’t excuse me y/n- eveyones mad at the world everyone’s hurting and trying to stay alive, why am I any different”
“Because You’ve survived, you lived” I smiled putting my head on his shoulder. “It’s good to have you back y/n, I couldn’t bare my last memories with you being sad” “I’m gutted that’s my last memory of her, but I’m sure you two had some good ones after the fall” I looked up at him all smily even though my eyes had heavy tears trying to spill over. “Yeah, we did” he smiled to himself just as we reached the gates of the community called hilltop. “This is just one of three communities” Daryl pointed as he came over to help me out the truck.
He gave negan an Evil eye before proceeding to walk me through the gates. They showed us round the community so we could see the goods they produced, the building materials they made and all the other jobs people did. I was amazed though I did a good job at hiding it. I also found myself looking for negan while I was walking around realising how isolated he was from the rest of society.
It broke my heart seeing me him standing on his own, moving around making it seem like he was doing something, anything.
“Earth to y/n!” Will yelled laughing a bit, “what do you think?” “I want to stay” I blurted out not even thinking how a leader would at this point. I wanted to stay so I could be with my best friend. That may be selfish but the community looked safe enough for the rest of my group. Though to my surprise they all grew smiles on their faces. “I want to stay too” Sam nodded looking around hill top. “It’ll be a new start and a step closer to how things were” will nodded agreeing.
The other two other nodded feeling happy with the agreement. “So your staying?” I heard from behind me. I spun around on my heels “hey- yeah I think we are” I nodded looking up at negan. I saw his eyes light up even though he tried his best to pretend he wasn’t jumping with joy inside. “You look like you need a friend anyway, always was me and you against the world”, he let out a laugh and threw an arm round my shoulder.
“It’s you and i against this new world now”.
————
For more like this visit my Masterlist
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overnightheartbeats · 9 months
Text
Called you for the first time yesterday Finally found the missing part of me Felt so close but you were far away Left me without anything to say
Now I'm speechless Over the edge, I'm just breathless I never thought that I'd catch this lovebug again Hopeless, head over heels in the moment I never thought that I'd get hit by this lovebug again
I can't get your smile out of my mind I think about your eyes all the time You're beautiful, but you don't even try
@cursivebloodlines
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Text
Interventions Part One
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Season Two Episode Six
Dr. Spencer Reid x Reader (Aaron Hotchner’s Sister)
Words: 6275
Series Masterlist
Summary: Y/N spirals out of control. Spencer and Aaron recruit the whole team to help. 
Notes: This one is going to be crazy long, but I’m really excited to dive into each relationship the reader has with everyone on the team. I was really planning on making this one part to keep the season nine episodes, but I thought, fuck it. There’s so much to go over in this. I was going to do more with JJ, but since she wouldn’t actually be there, I shortened it, but I think it still conveys the importance of their friendship. Obviously, both of these parts are going to jump scenes a lot, but I hope it’s still clear. 
Warnings: Alcoholism, suicidal thoughts/actions, depression, PTSD, etc. (both of these are going to be pretty intense, so ye have been warned)
-
He carried it with him. The envelope, though thin, it weighed in his pocket every day like a stone pressed against his heart. It was too painfully familiar, the sweeping letters of his name. The note left by Jason Gideon haunted yours, the sting of abandonment fogging Spencer’s mind with more emotions than he knew how to handle. 
It’d been three days since everyone got back from Los Vegas. Three days since he saw you, or even heard from you. The worry was making it hard to work. He had no idea where you were or if you were okay. He didn’t even have it in him to be angry. He just wanted you to come home. 
Of course, the team noticed the youngest member’s change in behavior, but everyone assumed he was still recovering from the case with his father. Only Hotch suspected something else was wrong. 
He hadn’t heard from you either. 
The whole morning, everyone worked in a tense silence, like they were all waiting for a bomb to go off, but they didn’t know when. Emily darted back and forth between her desk and Hotch’s. She feigned a series of questions about cases, but really she was just checking to make sure he was okay. She’d noticed he’d seemed more stressed than usual lately and figured it was because of worrying about you. Of course, everyone was worried about you. Morgan had asked about you more than usual and Emily hadn’t quite figured out why. 
It was around one, right after everyone got back from lunch- whoever decided to leave- that the said bomb hit. 
“Guys,” Prentiss said, eyes glued to the news playing on the television. 
“Pine River Psychiatric Hospital outside Oregon City, Oregon has released a statement today announcing the death of mass murderer, Lydia Y/L/N, the woman responsible for what the press called ‘The Birthday Cake Killings,’” the anchor announced.
 The room went silent. Reid was frozen in his chair and his hands started to shake. Hotch came out of his office and watched with them.
 “Lydia Y/L/N killed six teenage girls at her daughter’s birthday party in the spring of 1998. She pleaded insanity and was sentenced to life in psychiatric care. Y/L/N leaves behind her daughter, the only victim to have survived the murders-”
Hotch muted the television. 
“Oh my god,” Prentiss exclaimed. “Does Y/N know?” 
Hotch nodded. “They would have called her first. She’s Lydia’s only next of kin.” He turned to Reid who hadn’t stopped staring at the TV. “Reid, did you see her this morning? Did she seem-”
“She left me,” Reid said, almost to himself, but loud enough for Morgan to hear. 
“What?” Morgan boomed. “What do you mean, she left you?” 
Reid spoke quietly like a broken man trying to find the pieces. “The night we got back from…” he took a deep breath and finally turned around to find everyone’s anxious gazes burning into him. “From Las Vegas, I found this on her desk.” He pulled the note out of his jacket pocket, looking down at his name in your beautiful handwriting. 
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Morgan asked. 
“I didn’t think I needed to announce the condition of my love life, and frankly, I wasn’t ready to talk about it,” he fired back. “I figured she would’ve told you,” he added, looking up at Hotch. 
“She didn’t,” Hotch said. A thick, heavy feeling of dread filled his chest like molten metal. 
“Damnit!” Morgan yelled, kicking his chair back. It hit the floor with a deafening crash. 
Rossi came out of his office. “What’s going on?” 
“Y/N’s mom died,” Prentiss answered, still shocked by her partner’s outburst.
“Is Y/N okay? Does she know?” He asked.  
“You don’t understand,” Morgan sighed. He took a moment to calm himself down and let his gaze dart between Hotch and Reid. “Y/N’s drinking again.” 
A tense heaviness sank into everyone in the room. In a blink, Reid had crossed to Morgan, his hands gripping the other agent’s shirt. 
“How long have you known and not told anyone?” Reid snapped. 
Morgan was taken aback. He’d never seen the kid like this before. Reid had never been violent with someone else on the team before, but the fierce anger on his face told Morgan just how serious he was. 
He put his hands on his shoulders slowly, trying to urge his hands away from him. “I only found out when I called her to come to Vegas, okay? I was trying to give her the chance to tell you herself, but I think it’s been going on for a while.” 
“Do you have any idea what this means for her?” Reid said, the anger cracking to reveal his panic. “Do you know how much pain she must be in? And now, her mom is…”
“Reid,” Hotch said sharply. 
Reid let go, but Morgan kept his hands on his arms. 
“We’ll find her.”
The two men looked at each other, a shared guilt between them. Morgan knew, if he’d just told Hotch and Reid about you, they could have stopped you from leaving. 
Spencer berated himself for not noticing the signs. He should have seen it. He should have helped you. 
And now you were gone. 
It was like Fairfax all over again, except now, the only villain they would be facing was the one inside of your head. The demons you’d never shared. 
-
JJ
You didn’t know why you answered the phone. You’d been ignoring calls all day and almost turned it off altogether, but the name that came up stopped you. Maybe you thought it was somehow poetic. 
“Hey JJ.”
“Y/N, hi. I-um-I just heard and I want to see how you’re doing.” 
“You know, I didn’t think Aaron would stoop as low as to use the new mother to babysit.” Your words swam in your head as much as they stumbled out of your mouth. 
“I’m not calling for your brother. I want to make sure you’re doing okay.”
“Oh, I’m doing great. I’m curled up, watching stupid Christmas movies about stupid families with stupid mothers who make stupid dinners for their perfectly stupid kids. I’m having a great morning. You?” 
She paused. “Sweetie, how much have you had to drink?” 
“I don’t know why you guys are making a big deal about this,” you huffed. “It’s not like you were there the first time. You don’t know. Maybe I’ve changed. I’m not the woman you met and trusted into your family. Killing someone does that.” You didn’t mean for the last part to slip out, but the liquor loosened your lips. 
“You’re right. We weren’t there,” she said. “But we’re here now. You have people who care about you, Y/N. We just want to help you.” 
You stared at the tv, absentmindedly watching a mother and daughter decorate Christmas cookies. You imagined them licking the frosting off of the spoons and collapsing in a seizing, gasping heap. Just like you and your mom used to. 
“I need you to do something for me, JJ.” You finally said. 
“Of course. Anything.” 
“You’re the front man. Hell, you’re the first person I met that day. You were so sweet and smiley and wonderful.”
 Your words held no bitterness, but a kind of melancholy. Like you were mourning for a life lost. The life where the two of you were friends, where Spencer smiled at being made godfather of her son, and you could look on with something other than total despair in your chest. You could resume pretending that you were a part of their family. 
“You’re the one that looks through everything and decides what cases to present, right?” 
Her tone tinted with confusion. “Yeah.”
“Tell them I’m not one of your cases.” 
“Y/N, wait-”
You hung up the phone. 
-
“Okay. Thanks JJ,” Reid sighed. He leaned his head back against the hallway wall, taking a break from his pacing. He tried calling you again, but no answer. 
JJ said you didn’t sound good. He felt bad for bringing her into this- she should be relaxing at home with Henry and Will, but he knew that she would have driven to the BAU and yelled at him for not keeping her in the loop. 
He knew JJ saw you as more of a sister than just a friend. She was worried. Everybody was. 
“Was that JJ?” Prentiss asked. “What’d she say?” 
“That Y/N is drinking and she’s afraid it’s going to get worse,” he said. “Y/N told her that she’s changed. She doesn’t think she deserves to be a part of us anymore.” He paused and ran his hand down his face. “Because she killed Sarah Cunningham.” 
“She thinks she’s becoming her mother,” Prentiss nodded mournfully. “And now, she’ll never get the closure of coming to terms with it because her mother died.” 
“Morgan should have said something,” Reid snapped. “He knew. He could have- I don’t know- maybe if we’d known we could have stopped her from leaving.” 
Prentiss crossed her arms. “Come on, Reid. You aren’t really mad at him and you know it. This is about something else.” 
He stared at her for a moment, shoulders sinking, and started pacing again. “I should have seen it. I knew something was off, but I didn’t do anything and now-”
“Woah woah woah,” she said, holding a hand out to stop him. “This is not your fault, okay? Y/N would have been careful. She understands behavior just as well as we do. She would know exactly what to hide from you, from Hotch, from everybody.” 
“But I should have seen through it,” he shook his head, voice cracking from the pressure building in his chest. “I didn’t even go after her. She left me that letter and I assumed it was because of Vegas. I thought I’d become too much for her and she left just like-” 
He stopped himself. He didn’t even know who he meant at this point. So many people had left him already. The thought of losing you… it piled on with the rest until he couldn’t see anything else anymore. 
Prenitss’ face softened. “Spencer…” 
“I don’t know what to do,” he cried. “When I almost lost her before, we had a villain, something to go after. Now,” His hands floundered helplessly at his sides. He needed to do something. “She doesn’t want to be found.” 
Emily took the younger agent in her arms and hid her own heartbroken expression in his shoulder. It felt like the team had lost one of their own and, in a way, she thought maybe they had. But she refused to accept that. 
Emily Prentiss, of all people, knew what it was like to protect the people you love from your past. And as her mind started running with the connections, she let Reid go, keeping a hand on his shoulder. 
“We’re going to find her,” she said. “She’s going to be okay. Y/N’s one tough woman, even if she doesn’t see that right now. We have to help her find herself.” 
He nodded and returned to his pacing while Prentiss formed a plan. 
-
Dave- Six years ago
Your arm hung limply in the sling across your chest and the soreness of every motion only made the red tint of embarrassment on your cheeks grow. 
The man sat across from you in a chair in the corner. He flipped absently through a magazine, gazing up every once in a while. 
“I remember you, you know,” you finally said after the silence became unbearable. “You were at my high school graduation reception. You only stayed, like, two minutes, but I saw you there. You’re David Rossi. I’ve read your books.” 
“I would hope you remembered me,” he scoffed, putting the magazine aside. “Who do you think that generous gift came from?” The man smirked and crossed his arms, eyeing you in a way that reminded you of your brother every time you snuck out. “So… wanna talk about how you got here?” 
“Where’s Aaron?” You asked, avoiding his question. 
“Being processed.” 
You nodded, only snippets of the past few hours recovered in your memory. “Right.” You shifted back against the hospital bed pillow and winced. Hangovers and broken bones definitely didn’t mix. You blew out a breath. “That was stupid.” 
“I’ll say,” Former Agent Rossi said. 
You rolled your eyes. “I meant Aaron. He could get fired for something like that, right?” 
“I doubt he will be. Professor Douche isn’t pressing charges so he can keep this all under wraps. Besides, most people in the bureau would have done the same thing,” he glowered. “I know I would have.” 
“Brian isn’t a bad man. He’s brilliant and he’s helped me through-”
“He’s writing a book, Y/N,” Dave blurted. 
You looked away, the reason you drank pouring back into your memory. You’d found the pages on his desk and downed a few glasses of wine, finished a bottle of vodka, and half a bottle of absinthe, by the time he came back to his house. You screamed at him until you fell down a flight of stairs. 
Dave’s face softened with sympathy. “He was using you for content, sweetheart.” 
“That’s not…” You still couldn’t lift your gaze. “That’s not why I did it.” 
He took a seat on the edge of the bed and for some reason, you welcomed his presence. In your years of building up distrust for everyone, this man- basically a stranger- already felt so familiar. 
“I know,” he said. 
“My uncle drowned himself in a bottle of Jack. I haven’t seen him since I graduated, but it’s still, I don’t know. When you don’t have much family, every member counts, right?” You finally looked up at him and found he was listening intently. “That’s why I went over to Brian- Dr. Calvin’s house. I have a key so I let myself in and found the manuscript on his desk.” You didn’t know why you were telling him all this. Maybe you knew, if Aaron trusted him, then you could too. 
He didn’t say anything for a while, only nodded in understanding. After a while, he finally spoke. “You know, I’ve been through a lot with your brother in the years we worked together.” He paused, making sure you understood the importance of what he was about to say. “When he called me tonight, I'd never heard him so scared. Believe me. The broken nose was deserved.” 
You laughed humorlessly, hating the fact that he was right. When you were loaded into the ambulance, you remembered Brian worrying about how he’d look. He screamed at you for bringing him into your problems. He wasn’t anything like the person you’d fallen in love with. Your brother had just seen that all along. 
“You’re a legend in profiling, right?” You said. 
He raised a brow. “I don’t know if ‘legend’ is the word I would use.” He chuckled. “Why?” 
You turned your head to the window. Your lip quivered as the pieces and fractures of memory kept coming back to you. 
“Why do I do it?” When you looked back at him, tears filled your vision. “I mean, I saw what it did to Uncle Robbie. I’ve seen it since I was a kid and I let it happen to me anyway. I welcomed it. Why?” 
“There’s a lot of reasons people turn to alcohol and drugs, especially after going through something like you did,” he said. “It makes sense that maybe you saw a kind of relief your uncle got from it so you tried to find it for yourself.” 
“Is there something wrong with me, Mr. Rossi?” You cried. “For the past four years, I’ve been trying to figure it out. I tried to drink it away, but it just made things worse. I don’t know what to do.”
He put a hand on top of yours. “There’s nothing wrong with you, Y/N. You survived something nobody should ever have to go through. Your entire life changed. Hell, you found out there was another half to your family you didn’t even know about. And you still graduated top of your class. You’ve pushed yourself so hard to prove to yourself that you aren’t that girl anymore that you split yourself in two.” 
You closed your eyes, the tears finally spilling out. You never realized it before. All this time, you’ve spent studying to figure out why your mom did what she did that you never thought to turn what you’d learned on yourself. You were overcompensating in one side of your life and crashing in the other. 
Dave held your hand a little tighter. “It’s time to become whole again.”
-
Although he didn’t show it, Aaron felt sick. The panic had knotted his insides and clouded his head with images of his little sister lying on a motel floor somewhere, choking on your own bile or with a gun in your hand. 
He hated himself for not realizing sooner. He knew the signs. He’d spent two years with you getting through your addiction. The overcompensating and avoidance made sense now. You knew, of all of the people in this office, he’d see through it and he failed. 
“She’ll be okay,” Rossi said from his seat in the corner. “She was before. She’ll find a way back.” 
Hotch shook his head. “This time is different. When Robbie died, she lost a connection to her past self. She mourned the person she used to be, but she came out of it. Now, she lost any amount of closure she could have gotten,” he sighed. “She never went and saw her, you know. Not since the trial. She said she always meant to, to understand, but she could never bring herself to do it. Now, she can’t.” 
“And with what happened in Fairfax…” Rossi blew out a breath. “She thinks there’s nothing now to stop her from becoming like Lydia.” 
“Without her mother as a tether, she thinks there’s nothing stopping her from losing herself entirely. It’s why she left Reid, why she’s been avoiding me,” Hotch said, a tone of helplessness making his voice darken. “She’s protecting us from what she thinks she’s inevitably becoming.” 
Rossi nodded and stood. He walked to the Unit Chief’s desk and put a hand on the edge. “It’s up to us to remind her that’s not what she is. And then we’ll bring her home.” 
A quiet knock at the door interrupted their thoughts. Morgan stood, tension evident in the stiff way he held his shoulders. Like the springs inside of him were waiting to break. Hotch dismissed Rossi with a nod. 
The older agent left and closed the door behind him. 
Morgan shifted uncomfortably. “Garcia tried tracking Y/N’s phone, but she’s got it blocked off somehow.”
“I helped her do that,” Hotch sighed, running a hand down his face. “I didn’t want her to have to worry about fans or copycats trying to get to her. You know what the press was like.”
“Arnold Owens was a real piece of work,” Morgan nodded. “I can’t imagine what that was like for her.” 
“It wasn’t easy, but she was always a tough kid.” The other agent made for the door, but Hotch stopped him. “Have a seat.” 
Morgan clenched his jaw, took a deep breath, and took the chair across from Hotch, the deep sense of dread now mixing with his guilt. 
Hotch centered his gaze on Morgan, the seriousness of his expression softened by the sincerity in his eyes. 
“I don’t blame you for what happened in Fairfax,” Hotch said. 
Of the things Derek was expecting, that was not on the list. He just sat there, blinking for a moment. “I didn’t think that you…” There wasn’t any point in lying, so his voice trailed off. 
“I don’t blame you, Morgan. Owens was the more pressing threat. You couldn't have known the Cunninghams were waiting for her. It wasn’t your fault. Nobody thinks that, including Y/N. I know how you’ve carried it with you. I know you think that’s the reason I’ve been so hard on you and I need you to know, now, that it isn’t.” 
Morgan looked at his hands, clasped in his lap. “I know I should have said something about her drinking, and I’m sorry I didn’t.”
“She asked you not to and you trusted that she would make the decision on her own to seek help. And she might have, had her mother not passed away. That isn’t your fault either.” Hotch leaned forward on his desk. 
The average person may not have noticed the change in his face, the slight hint to just how worried he really was, but Morgan did.
 “I’m telling you this because I need you to have a clear head for all of this,” Hotch said. “I’m afraid you and Prentiss are the only ones who can. You saw what it’s already doing to Reid and I…” He swallowed. “I’ve seen what she’s been through before and I’m afraid this time is only going to be worse. If we all close in on her, I don’t know what she’ll do.” 
Morgan stood with new determination. “I’ll have Garcia work a new angle.” 
“I’ll be right out,” Hotch said. “I need to call Haley in case Y/N said anything to her.” 
“Wherever Y/N is, Hotch, I’m not gonna rest until I bring her back and get her help.” Morgan opened the door and stepped back out to the bullpen, finding Reid still pacing in the hall and Prentiss’ chair empty.
-
Emily
The Christmas movies continued as you downed another glass. You fell back on the bed, staring at the ceiling while your hand reached for underneath the pillow. You stopped halfway, rolling your head to the side and switching your focus to the fabric on the chair. 
Somehow, your legs managed to bring you to the chair and your fingers latch onto the scarf. The soft, purple material made you feel more than you want it to. The guilt. The loneliness. The wish to have him here now like nothing happened. But that was selfish. 
Your mind traveled back to what laid underneath your pillow. 
A soft knock at the door brought you back. 
You groaned quietly and sat back down on the bed, hoping they’d just go away. The manager had checked up on you a couple of times just to make sure you paid, so it was probably just him again, even though you’d paid out for the next few days. 
“Y/N, it’s me.” 
Emily? 
“Crap,” you muttered, but the word itself hardly formed on your lips. Maybe if you were quiet enough, she’d go away. 
“Come on, I know it’s you. Open the door,” Emily boomed. She knocked again, this time louder. It made your head pound. 
“Okay, okay, I’m coming,” you winced. You made your way to the door, tripping slightly on the chair leg. You kept the chain locked and cracked the door open. “Hey Emily.”
She grimaced and put a hand down her nose. “God, you look like hell.” 
“What’re you doing here?” You slurred through the words and swayed on your feet. 
“Can I come in?” 
“I don’t think that’s-” The turning in your stomach cut you off. You slammed the door shut and unlatched the chain. 
“Okay, this is how we’re doing this,” Emily sighed, hurrying after you, hearing the sounds of you vomiting in the bathroom. 
She sat beside you and held your hair as if you were college girls at a party. The hand on your back soothed your sickness until you were able to sit up again. 
“I never had a big sister,” you muttered through your haze. 
Emily didn’t say anything. It broke her heart to see the strong woman she’d come to know reduced to a scared girl on the floor of a sleazy motel bathroom. She could see in your eyes, behind the drunken trance, the despair you were trying to forget. Wrapped around your hand, a long purple scarf was carefully kept off of the floor and in your lap. Even intoxicated, you seemed to protect it. 
“Isn’t it stupid?” You said, noticing her eyes on the scarf. “I stole it. His favorite scarf. I just wanted something I could hold, you know? He’s probably looking for it. Will you give it back to him?” You held it out to her with sad eyes and pouting lips. 
She lifted you off the floor. “No.”
“Why not?” 
“Because you are going to give it to him yourself,” she said. “After we sober you up, so come on.” 
“But I don’t want-”
She pushed you into the shower and turned on the stream of freezing water, ignoring your squeals of protest, only now taking the scarf from your hand. You stood in the spray of icy cold and could feel. 
You got out of the shower and were sick again. After that, Emily decided you seemed conscious enough and took you back into the room, helping you change out of your soaked clothes and forcing a glass of water down your throat. The water was followed by coffee and you switched back and forth between the two. It must have been an hour of just that. No questions. No words. Just water and coffee. 
“Why are you here?” You finally asked, pulling the blanket around your shoulders tighter.
“You’ve got a lot of worried people back home. You know that.” Emily thought back to Reid’s trance over the past few days, his terror as he paced. She handed you the scarf. 
You sniffed. “He hates me now, doesn’t he?” You abandoned him with nothing more than a note- just like his dad, just like Gideon. You didn’t even have the decency to say goodbye. At the time, you just hoped he’d never have to see you again. 
“He misses you.” 
You closed your eyes, rubbing the fabric back and forth in your hands, as if you could conjure his comfort. When you opened them again, you were still just in the motel room, sitting across from Emily’s pitying eyes. 
You blew out a long breath. “How did you even know how to find me?” 
Her expression darkened and she looked down for a moment before returning to your gaze. “Because I’d do the same thing.” This was the part she was afraid of, but she swallowed and kept a straight face. “Now… where is it?” 
You froze, fingers tightening around the scarf. You could deny it. You could say you didn’t know what she meant. But what was the point? 
Emily held out her hand. You leaned back, reached underneath the pillow, and pulled out the gun. She took it slowly, as if reaching too fast would scare you into shooting it. With one hand, she tucked it into her waistband behind her, and with the other she reached for yours. 
“I need to know- I’m not going to be upset with you- but,” she sighed, “did you come here to use this?” Her voice was filled with such sincerity, such concern, you knew you couldn’t lie. 
“I don’t know,” your words were surprisingly steady. “I just wanted to protect everyone.”
She nodded, understanding. “From you?” 
You didn’t say anything. You just turned your head to the window. She continued. 
“Y/N, I know what it’s like to be afraid of becoming just like your parents. Hell, half of the people in your life know what that’s like.” 
You scoffed. “It’s not the same thing.” 
“You’re right, it isn’t,” she said. “But I also know what it’s like to be so terrified of a part of yourself that you’d do anything to keep it hidden. You’d do anything to protect the people you love from the ugly, brokenness you feel.” She squeezed your hand a little tighter. “But all you’re going to do is hurt them.” 
Her words sunk into you like teeth, but the wall around your heart wouldn’t let them completely in. There was still that fear, the sense of inevitability that even her honest eyes couldn’t chase away. But it did make you realize something. You may not have had the strength, but you still needed a failsafe. Just in case she was wrong. 
You wiped the corner of your lip with the back of your hand. 
“I need you to call someone for me.” 
-
The office was buzzing with effort in trying to locate you. Everyone was working even harder since Prentiss just up and disappeared. 
“We know she must have gone to Fairfax,” Reid exclaimed. “Why can’t we just go find her?”
“This is all about protecting us from who she thinks she has become,” Hotch sighed. “If we charge after her, I’m afraid what measures she’d take to keep from ‘hurting’ us.” 
Reid stopped his furious scribbling on the map of the city. He turned to Hotch, wide eyed and terrified. “You don’t think she’d…”
“I think, if she’s pushed herself this close to the edge, then she’ll do anything if she believes it means not dragging us down with her.” 
Spencer let the marker fall to his side and leaned hopelessly back against the table. Statistics unmercifully filled his head. Connections between PTSD and suicide, alcholism and every other dark thought his stupid logical brain could conjure. He should have seen the signs if you had gotten this bad.
“She’s spent her whole life learning how to mask herself, Reid,” Hotch said, as if reading his mind. The older agent was thinking the same thing. He should have known you were avoiding him for a reason. 
“Guys,” Morgan rushed through the doorway, phone in his hand. “Prentiss found her.” He put the phone back to his ear and listened, expression contorting with confusion. “What are you talking about? Just bring her back.” 
Reid opened his mouth, but Morgan held up a hand to stop him. 
“Alright, alright. Text me the place and I’ll meet you there.” 
The shift in his tone made Reid and Hotch stop breathing. Hotch was the first to speak. 
“What’s wrong?” 
Morgan’s head tilted, bewildered. “Prentiss found her. Sobered her up as best she could. But she wants me to pick her up.” 
“What are we waiting for?” Reid exclaimed. “Let’s go.”
“Just me,” Morgan said. “Y/N said it’s important.” He shrugged and looked to Hotch for approval. 
Hotch nodded. “Go.”
Reid whipped his head around. “We aren’t going with him?” 
“If that’s what brings her back,” he sighed. “Yes.” 
Derek
He spent the entire drive trying to wrap his head around it. Why him? Did you still think he was the only one who knew about the drinking? Why wouldn’t you want to see your brother? Or Reid, for that matter? Sure, there was a reason you left him, but of everyone in the BAU, why would you need him to come and get you. 
Derek pulled into the parking lot of the motel Prentiss sent him and spotted both of your cars in front of the room. Prentiss stood outside the door with a duffle bag and a grave expression. 
“Hey,” he greeted, getting out of his car. “What the hell is going on?” 
Prentiss shrugged. “She told me she wanted you to take her back so she could talk to you about something. She wouldn’t tell me what.” She turned to the office where you were checking out. “I’m just relieved she agreed to come back at all.” 
He blew out a long breath. “That bad, huh?” 
“I counted four empty bottles in that room,” she nodded. “And I found this.” Prentiss glanced around before pulling the gun out from her waistband. 
Derek looked down. 
“Do you think she was going to do it?” 
“Honestly…” She sighed. “I don’t think she’d see it as enough. She thinks she deserves this. Deserves being alone and miserable. She’s convinced herself that there isn’t a way out.” 
“Then why did she agree to come back at all?” He mused. 
You finished paying and walked back to where the two agents waited for you, Derek’s hard, worried face staring you down. You straightened your shoulders, determined. He was the only one that could do it. 
“Are we ready?” You asked, picking your duffle bag off of the ground. 
“I guess I’ll just meet you guys back in Quantico.” Emily said, gaze darting between the two of you. 
“Quantico?” You crossed your arms over your chest. “Why would I be going to Quantico?” 
“Because you called me to take you back and that’s where we’re going,” Derek said. 
You made no further argument and got in the car. 
The drive started in tense silence. You didn’t say a word, partially because every motion of the vehicle was making your head sway. You should have taken Emily up on her aspirin offer. 
“So are we gonna spend the next forty minutes in silence, or what?” He chided. 
“Why are you talking so loud?” You groaned, leaning your head against the cool window. 
“God, you’re really out of it still, aren’t you?” 
“I’m fine.” 
“Sweetheart, you just spent the last four days on a bender, scaring the hell out of everyone, and breaking Reid’s heart in the process, so fine is not exactly the word I would choose.” 
“This was a bad idea,” you muttered to yourself. Your head’s pounding increased. 
“You wanted me, you’ve got me, but I’m not gonna just drive you back so you can disappear again.” 
You put a hand to your forehead. “Please stop talking.”
“Why did you need me anyway? Do you have any idea what this has been doing to Reid-”
“Pull over.” 
“What?”
“Pull over, damnit.” The ferocity of your tone was all he needed and he quickly got to the side of the road in time for you to be sick again. 
Derek stopped the car and got out, walking around to the other side where you were crouched by the passenger door, hands on your knees to hold yourself up. 
“Great,” he exhaled, crossing his arms. 
“Yeah, well, alcohol poisoning’s a bitch, Derek. I would know.” You stood back up, almost laughing at the ridiculousness of it. Here you were, standing on the side of the road in a puddle of sick, with Derek Morgan’s famous big-brother-protective, but frustrated, gaze locked on you. 
The two of you stood there for a long time. It was just like the police station. His tough-love approach was familiar, almost comforting. It had to be him. 
He seemed to understand the shift in your gaze. “Why did you call me, Y/N?” He stepped towards you. 
“Because they love me too much,” you sighed, coming away from the car and the now soaked earth. 
“What?” 
“You’re the only one who will do it,” you said. “Because they love me too much.” 
 His eyes narrowed, trying to figure out what you meant. They widened again when he understood. “No.” 
“You’re the only one-”
“You can’t actually be serious,” he scoffed. 
“If I… change. If I do something to hurt them. I need you to-”
“That’s not how this works, Y/N. You know that. You’ve spent the last ten years studying it. You aren’t just going to wake up one day and turn into Lydia Y/L/N.” 
“I killed, Derek,” you cried. “I’m a killer. I’m already her.”
“Your mother suffered a severe psychotic break due to undiagnosed PTSD from your father’s abuse,” he said slowly. “Why are you so convinced that that’s who you are?”
“Because everything I touch dies!” 
Your hand hit his chest before you really knew what you were doing. You pushed again. 
“Arrest me.” 
“I’m not gonna do that.” 
You hit him again, this time harder. “Derek, arrest me. Stop me. Do something! Arrest me, damnit!”
“Y/N, stop.” 
“I can’t go back. You have to end it. I can’t- please- I can’t do it alone. Derek, please.”  
He caught you before you fell, holding you up against his chest as your arms fell defeated to your sides. Sobs muffled against him and tears stained his dark shirt. You kept muttering the same things over and over again until they didn’t make sense to you anymore. Derek lowered his voice to a persistent, caring whisper. 
“Y/N, running away isn’t going to save us. You can’t protect anyone by destroying yourself,” he sighed, keeping his arms locked around your shaking frame. “Or asking me to.”  
“You don’t- you don’t know that.” 
“I know you. And I know how crazy Reid and your brother are going right now worrying about you,” he said, still holding on. “They aren’t afraid of you, sweetheart. They’re afraid of losing you.” He pulled back, tucking a finger under your chin to lift your head. “If I don’t bring you back, that kid is going to lose his mind, you hear me?” He smiled slightly. “I know the fight you’ve got in your head isn’t one that I can just pull you out of, even though I want to. But that’s the thing, Y/N. You have to keep fighting.”
You closed your eyes, more tears cascading down your cheeks. He kissed your forehead. “Let’s take you home, okay? I talked to Garcia and she said we can use her office and you can tell me everything. Or you can say nothing. It’ll be up to you.” 
With a deep breath, you nodded, opened the car door and climbed inside. 
-
(I know I forgot to post last week, I'm sorry!)
The In-Betweens series: @amywright; shesoperfectt;  hereforsmutbcicantgetenough;  violetbossler;  hyper-half-blood;  i-bitch-you-bitch; xcastawayherosx; preciousbabypeter; @jori21; @sol-48;  @murdermornings ; @ staygoldsquatchling02; @ ara-a-bird
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taiturner · 2 years
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Everything good with you [and Elijah]? Something happen?  There was a moment. It brought back memories of Henry. I, uh... I-I don't think I can again. You know?
THE WALKING DEAD 11x19 | “Variant”
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cursivebloodlines · 1 year
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@overnightheartbeats because a dare is a dare. continued from here. enjoy :)
Lydia had vowed to herself that she would never go down this road with anyone ever again. She had wasted years of her life, her heart had belonged to a man that didn't deserve her. A man she never truly knew and had portrayed himself as an idea of someone he pretended to be: an illusion. In the end, the mask was yanked off, leaving her with nothing but a broken heart. It was too painful to go down that route with anyone. Years of her life wasted, years she couldn't and would never get back.. And then...then there was Aaron. A man who completely took her by surprise in every way. She actually managed to drag herself from work so she could get there before him - had actually wanted to for a change. And wow, where had the hours gone? Just...talking. Which Lydia could do a lot of if given the chance anyway but, often she never had that chance. And so much laughter, genuine laughter from one thing to another and... to see that smile on his face. It terrified her, even. It had been a long time and starting over like this was daunting to say the least. Could she handle it? Could he handle her?
"I am... considering it, yes. Well, I...suppose you could say that." She offered him a smile in response, hands wrapped around her now empty mug, looking down into it for a moment as she contemplated her next answer. His next words had her lifting her gaze back to him. She looked over at him - really looked at him. "How can you be sure?" she asked softly. "Sometimes, you can break someone's heart without really meaning to. Sometimes, it's unavoidable. How do you know you won't?" Was she actually considering it? Aaron had also been on the receiving end of heartbreak... that meant he understood. That meant they both knew. They understood each other in that regard. Was it wrong to ask more about it? Considering where their topic of conversation led them to here, this point. Lydia knew she would answer any questions he had. It was terrifying, for her though. To do it first. Maybe another time...right now they were focused on...well, them. Each other. "Would it make me a coward if I said I was...scared?" She asked, eliciting a quiet laugh like it would alleviate the sudden nerves tightening in the pit of her stomach. Another smile as he spoke. "It is a big task, a lot of responsibility riding on your shoulders. An even bigger task to try and bring a heart back to life that possibly didn't exist to begin with." The number of times she'd had someone call her heartless for not putting up with someone's bullshit. For being too brutally honest, always too much of something. She had begun to wonder if she had a heart after all. "Are you sure you're up for the challenge?"
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herebecritters · 3 months
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Are the characters without an x on them going to have significant role in any of the stories ?
YEAH!
Well Bullet (the red guy in the bottom left corner) isn’t so much actively in Be Brave but he’s still technically canon to it. He’s a big part of the Flippy backstory that @ickyguts has written and im pretty much in love with it so it’s canon to me ^w^
Kyle the Mononykus and Splash (the lil mint colored Dino and the purple plesiosaur) are part of the overall Be Brave story but they are only alive during the Dino-Sore Days timeline. I mean…mass extinctions are pretty rough. But they were very close pals to Cro during those days and have had their own run ins with the trio before the meteor hit. You may see them in the main timeline but they will be fossils hehe
Nergal has a particular dislike for Kyle since he’s the one who gave Nergal his lip scar. ;)
Abigail, Lydia, and Aaron (the lil kid rat at the top, the blue girl rat and the yellow goat at the bottom right) are also significant to the story but they are only really around for the 300 year Colony. They did not survive past it. Lydia is John’s sister and Abigail’s mother. Aaron is Abigail’s father and Lydia’s husband. They were all important and active parts of John’s family.
There are other ocs too that are a part of this universe. We are always fleshing out the entire world and history and it’s constantly growing and taking shape, I’ll have to do an update on it soon. It’s become a HUGE thing and writing it in dms with your friends is one thing but making easily digestible content to present publicly is a whole ‘nother beast entirely. Slowly but surely <3
The interest and interactions that y’all show up here really does help give me that gas I need to work on it more so thank you! Even if I’m kinda garbage at responding in a timely manner…But it really does mean the world to me.
I’ll rethrow these up here for good measure!
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Of course new characters and stories have been written and added since these were made but they still hold up.
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