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cera-writes · 6 months ago

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First Impressions - A Kurt Wagner x gn!reader one-shot

Summary: You first met Kurt at the Herr Getmann's Traveling Menagerie. The first time you laid eyes on the blue elf, you were smitten. Fast forward to the 90s and you and Kurt meet again under much different circumstances. tags: fluff, coming of age, mutual pining

The Bavarian sun, a pale orb veiled by a dusty scrim, cast a sickly yellow glow upon Herr Getmann's Traveling Menagerie. The peeling paint on the rickety wooden sign promised wonders, but the air itself held a different story. It reeked of damp straw and the acrid tang of manure, a far cry from the anticipated scent of popcorn and sugared treats. Disappointment gnawed at you, a shadow settling over your heart despite your parents' enthusiastic promises.

Your parents had dragged you along on this trip. It was your summer vacation and apparently you were there to also stay with distant relatives. But you knew your parents were in it just for the free stay and a vacation away from the States. Out of all the touristy things your parents could have picked for you to do, they chose a musty, worn down circus. Honestly, you were ready to be back in America with your friends at the arcade or skating rink. This wasn't how you imagined you'd spend your summer at all.

"C'mon darling. The show is about to start!" Your mother ushered you inside the tent as the ticket master tore your ticket stubs in half as your father followed close behind.

Inside, the spectacle was every bit as underwhelming as the exterior. The big cats, once proud denizens of the savanna, paced restlessly in cramped cages, their magnificent coats dull with neglect. Their amber eyes, once fierce and watchful, were now clouded with resignation. The stench of their confinement hung heavy in the air, a stark counterpoint to the vibrant posters plastered precariously on the weathered orange and red canvas walls. You took a seat in the rafters for the best view, if you even could call it that.

Suddenly, the loudspeaker crackled to life, the announcer's voice a tired rasp battling with static. "Presenting," he declared, his voice tinged with a hint of forced excitement, "our opening act of the night, the Mystifying Nightcrawler!" A spotlight pierced the gloom, bathing the center ring in a harsh white light. From the shadows emerged a figure unlike any you had ever seen. Your eyes widened. Was he- was he really a mutant? You had never seen one in person. He was absolutely beautiful.

"It's him..." you mother sneered. Your parents however, held gazes of contempt and disgust towards Nightcrawler, and any other mutant for that matter. You tuned out their nasty whispers and just focused on the boy standing at the platform.

He was clad in a costume that shimmered with an otherworldly sheen, a deep cobalt blue that seemed to drink in the stark light. A mask, sculpted from some unknown material, obscured his face, but a shock of blue black hair, as vibrant as a summer sky after a downpour, peeked out from beneath it. It was a stark contrast to the peeling paint and sun-bleached canvas that surrounded him.

Then, he moved. There was an effortless grace to his every action, as if defying the earth's very pull. He launched himself from a platform hidden in the shadows, his form a blur of blue and black against the harsh white backdrop. He wasn't just swinging; he was dancing, his body twisting and turning with an impossible fluidity. Every leap, every flip spoke volumes of preternatural strength and agility. He was a silent symphony in motion, an enigma wrapped in cobalt and shadow.

But it was more than just his skill that captivated you. There was an aura about him, an undeniable magnetism that drew you in like a moth to a flame. It was a mystery that whispered promises of adventure and a world hidden just beyond the confines of the dusty circus tent. With each breathtaking leap, with every impossible maneuver, a spark ignited within you, a yearning for something more, something extraordinary.

For a fleeting moment, his gaze seemed to find yours through the harsh glare of the spotlight. A jolt of electricity shot through you, a connection forged in that shared glance. Then, with a flourish that echoed the fading magic of the moment, he vanished back into the shadows, leaving behind a trail of shimmering blue and the lingering echo of wonder in your heart.

The rest of the night was a blur. The other acts faded into oblivion, their performances mere afterimages compared to the spectacle you had just witnessed. Your mind replayed the image of the Nightcrawler, his impossible agility, and the enigmatic smile hidden beneath the mask. The program, clutched tightly in your hand, became a talisman against the fading magic, a tangible reminder of the night that had stolen your breath and ignited a latent flame deep within your very core.

As the applause dwindled and the spotlight dimmed, you felt a frantic energy surge through you. You couldn't just let this incredible encounter end. You had to meet the Mystifying Nightcrawler, to thank him for his amazing performance. It totally didn't have anything to do with your newfound crush. Nope.

Despite your parents' apathy towards mutants, their dismissal fueled a rebellious spark. Seeing the way they interacted with the worn-out animals solidified your resolve. This wasn't a place of wonder, but a place where the extraordinary was exploited. But Nightcrawler, he was different. He brought a touch of magic to the dreary spectacle.

"Come on," your mother called, her voice laced with impatience, "Let's get some overpriced cotton candy and get out of here."

You mumbled an excuse, your heart hammering in your chest. Scanning the emptying stands, you spotted him – a flash of blue disappearing behind a faded red curtain. With a last furtive glance at your parents, now deep in conversation with a vendor, you sprinted towards the backstage area.

The worn canvas walls billowed in the evening breeze, and the air thrummed with a low murmur of voices. You navigated the maze of caravans, each one a peeling testament to the circus's nomadic life. Just as you were about to give up, a figure emerged from one of the larger caravans.

It was him. The Nightcrawler. But instead of his vibrant costume, he was clad in worn jeans and a simple white shirt. He held a red rose in his hand, its vibrant color stark against his stark blue fur. His mask was off, revealing kind golden eyes and a mischievous grin.

Your stomach did a nervous flip-flop. This wasn't the enigmatic performer you'd admired from afar. He had to have been around the same age as you. His vulnerability made him even more captivating. You hesitated, unsure of how to approach him.

Sensing your presence, he turned, his yellow eyes widening in surprise. Then, a smile spread across his face, as warm and genuine as the setting sun.

"“Hallo Schöne”," he said, his voice a melodic baritone. "Seems the Mystifying Nightcrawler has a little fan."

You stammered, cheeks burning. "I, uh… I just wanted to thank you. Your performance… it was incredible. Um, you're also the first mutant I've ever seen. Sorry, I'm not from around here. I'm from America." You played with the hem of your shirt, fidgeting nervously around him.

He chuckled, a rich, rumbling sound. "Thank you, frau. You make a kind audience. I hope I did not frighten you. I know I look a bit... ungewöhnlich."

He held out the rose. "Would you care for this?"

You hesitated for a moment, then reached out to take the flower, its soft petals cool against your fingertips. "It's beautiful," you breathed.

His gaze held yours, an unspoken question lingering in his eyes. "So," he said, his voice dropping a touch, "what's a junge Dame like you doing backstage at a traveling circus?"

You inhaled deeply, the scent of hay and diesel fuel filling your lungs. As you spoke, a strange tingling sensation crawled up your arm, making the hairs stand on end. It felt... electric, like a current running just beneath the surface of your skin. You flinched, dropping your gaze from Kurt's captivating golden eyes to the rose in your hand.

"I…" you started, your voice catching in your throat. The tingling intensified, spreading across your body in a wave. Panic surged through you, a primal fear of the unknown. Before you could apologize or explain the sudden tremor, your vision blurred at the edges. The world seemed to distort around you, the vibrant red rose in your hand pulsing with an otherworldly glow.

Kurt's demeanor shifted instantly. His playful smile vanished, replaced by a mask of concern. He reached out, his hand hovering a safe distance from yours. "Are you alright, Freund ?" he asked, his voice laced with worry.

You struggled to speak, your tongue thick and heavy. The strange energy within you crackled, yearning to be released. This wasn't the first time your body reacted this way. You feared the worst. You were starting to believe you were a mutant too. But you could never reveal that to your parents.

They'd disown you in a heartbeat. All those scholarships they made you apply for would never matter if they found out you were different. You knew you needed to get away, to disappear before you lost control and revealed your secret in front of the mysterious Nightcrawler.

"I… I don't feel well," you managed to force out, your voice shaky. Shame burned in your stomach for the abrupt change. "I should get back to my parents."

Kurt's eyes flickered with understanding. He nodded, a hint of sadness in his gaze. "Of course," he said gently. "Let me take you to them."

He moved with his trademark agility, guiding you through the maze of caravans with an ease that left you breathless. You stumbled slightly, your legs shaky under the weight of the unknown power coursing through you. Kurt offered you his arm for support, but before you could reach for it, your parents' voices cut through the air.

"There you are!" your mother exclaimed, her voice laced with annoyance. "We've been looking everywhere for you!"

You turned to see them approaching, their faces etched with concern. When they spotted Kurt hovering beside you, their expressions hardened.

"Don't touch our child, freak!" your father barked, his voice thick with disgust.

Shame washed over you, hot and suffocating. Kurt's hand recoiled as if struck. His shoulders slumped, the joy that had previously emanated from him extinguished.

"I was just helping, Herr," he said, his voice mild yet firm. "They seemed unwell."

Your mother scoffed. "Don't need any help from your kind." She grabbed your arm possessively, dragging you away before you could even look back at Kurt.

"Wait!" you cried, struggling against her grip. But your voice was lost in the bustle of the crowd. You stole a final glance over your shoulder, only to see Kurt standing alone, with one hand rubbing subconsciously over his other right bicep.

His yellow eyes, once filled with warmth, now held a flicker of sadness as they looked off in the distance. He was the first of his kind that you had met and you finally felt like you resonated with him. But it was all too short lived. All you were left of him was the single red rose he'd given you as a memory of your encounter.

With a heavy heart, you were whisked away from the circus, your first encounter with the Mystifying Nightcrawler ending abruptly, leaving a bittersweet aftertaste and a burning question: would you ever see him again?

The 90s were a whirlwind of discovering and finally, somewhat, honing your mutant abilities. Mutants, now looked down upon more than ever, made you even more of an advocate for your kind. You got that scholarship but at the expense of your parents actually disowning you after a fight at the dinner table ended up with your mother's smashed fine China on the floor at the expense of your powers.

For some reason, they'd brought up Nightcrawler again and it sickened you to the point that you'd had enough. When they found out you were just another "freak" that was the last straw and they kicked you out and you never heard from them again. Good riddance you'd said.

The only thing that sucked about them kicking you out was that you had to quickly find a job and a place to live or you'd end up just another homeless mutant on the streets. All that trust fund money had long gone down the drain when they cut you off completely.

You were residing in New York now. You found a dingy little apartment to live in while you finished up your degree in Advanced Physics. You were finally set to graduate this month and after that, who knows.

You wanted to find a job and finally move out of the crappy little apartment you'd called home for a few years now. At least your neighbor next door, Peter Parker, was usually quiet and it gave you room to study without having to complain with a knock at his door, even if he did come and go at odd times of the night.

One particular day, you were sitting at your favorite little corner coffee shop, studying for your final exam, when all hell broke loose on the street. A piece of large shrapnel flew through the glass of the shop, eliciting screams and terrified shouts from pedestrians as people flew to take cover.

You dove for cover under the overturned coffee table, your heart a frantic drum against your ribs. The tremor that had rattled the windows had morphed into a full-blown city-rattling rampage. But it wasn't an earthquake. The tremors moved, a monstrous crimson figure stomping through the city streets, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

Juggernaut. You recognized him from news reports – a mutant powerhouse the X-Men struggled to contain. And here he was, rampaging through your city like a bull in a china shop.

Panic threatened to consume you, but amidst the chaos, a voice in your head rose above the fear. You were no longer the scared kid, afraid of their powers, who watched Nightcrawler perform at the circus.

If this new era taught you anything, it was discovering your mutant abilities, the escalating anti-mutant sentiment, and the brutal fight with your parents that ended with disownment and shattered family heirlooms. The memory of them calling you a "freak" like Nightcrawler still stung, but it also ignited a fire within you. You wouldn't be another victim.

Squinting past the overturned table, you saw the X-Men, their familiar blue and gold uniforms standing resolute against the crimson giant. And there he was, Nightcrawler – older, even more handsome than you'd remembered, but with the same twinkle in his eyes. He fought with a desperate grace, teleporting in and out, trying to flank Juggernaut. But the red behemoth seemed unstoppable.

It was now or never. Taking a deep breath, you channeled the theoretical knowledge from years of studying advanced physics. The raw energy of the city pulsed around you, a live wire waiting to be tapped into. It felt almost like an extension of yourself, hungry for release. You stood, running from your sense of security, and joined the chaos outside.

With a surge of will, you unleashed it. A concentrated beam of pure energy, hotter than a thousand suns, erupted from your outstretched palms. It slammed into Juggernaut's side, the red giant staggering with a surprised grunt. The X-Men seized their chance, a flurry of attacks momentarily halting the crimson tide. Cyclops blasted an optic beam, Storm unleashed a swirling vortex of wind, and Wolverine harried Juggernaut with his adamantium claws.

Kurt, finally free from the relentless onslaught, materialized beside you, his yellow familiar eyes widening in disbelief. It was as if he'd seen a ghost. "It's you," he rasped, his voice barely audible over the din of the battle.

You offered a small smile, a mixture of exhilaration and exhaustion. "Helping hand, remember?" Your voice was hoarse, but it held a newfound strength. With another surge of energy, you deflected a stray blow from Juggernaut, allowing Storm to unleash another torrent of wind.

The X-Men, rejuvenated by your unexpected intervention, pressed their attack. Professor Xavier's telepathic voice boomed, urging Juggernaut to stand down. The fight raged on, but your power tip, the concentrated beam of pure energy, proved to be the turning point. Juggernaut, overwhelmed by the combined forces of the X-Men and your unique ability, faltered. His helmet had crumbled, rendering him vulnerable.

Finally, with a roar of frustration, Juggernaut surrendered, taken away by the NYPD as they forced his hefty frame into the back of a mutant prisoner containment vehicle. Exhausted but victorious, the X-Men regrouped. Kurt materialized beside you once more, his gaze still filled with awe and disbelief. "Freund," he repeated, his voice thick with emotion. "Is it really you?"

You met his gaze, no longer the scared kid from the dusty circus tent. The years of hardship and self-discovery had forged you into a new person. With a defiant smile, you nodded, ready to tell your story and finally find your place amongst the X-Men.

You wanted more than anything to catch up with the infamous Nightcrawler. But Professor Xavier was making his way over to you, clearly wanting a word. The look on his face was nothing short of astonishment. Kurt, sensing this, gave you a reassuring nod as he turned to join the others once more.

"Are you alright, young one?" he inquired, his voice warm and calming.

You nodded, finding your voice a little hoarse. "Yes, Professor. Just a bit… surprised, I guess." You couldn't believe you were talking to the Professor X.

"Surprised?" he echoed, raising an eyebrow. "I imagine so. But you were quite… extraordinary out there."

The compliment brought a shy smile to your face. You explained how you'd been studying advanced physics, how the energy in the city resonated with you, and how you'd finally been able to control it. You confessed your situation too, about the fight with your parents and being disowned. Shame burned in your stomach, but you held Professor Xavier's gaze.

"It seems you have much to learn, young one," he said, his voice filled with understanding. "But you also have much to teach. We've been looking for someone to help our young mutants hone their abilities, someone who understands the science behind them." His eyes twinkled. "Would you be interested in a position at the X-Mansion, once you graduate of course?"

A wave of emotions washed over you – relief, hope, and a flicker of something more. The X-Mansion. A place where you could belong, where you could use your abilities without fear. You looked at Kurt, who stood a few feet away, a wide grin plastered on his face. His saffron eyes held a spark of excitement, mirroring your own.

"I… I'd be honored sir," you stammered, a genuine smile blooming on your face.

Professor Xavier chuckled. "Excellent. Now, how about we get you cleaned up and settled in? The X-Mansion can be your home. In the meantime, we can work on your new alias." He chuckled lightly.

The mansion, a sprawling structure that seemed to rise organically from the wooded landscape, took your breath away. It was a world away from your cramped apartment, a sanctuary for those who were different. You settled in quickly, the warmth of the X-Men a stark contrast to the cold rejection you'd faced at home.

One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the lake behind the mansion in hues of orange and pink, you found yourself drawn to its peaceful serenity. As you sat on the edge of the dock, a sudden bamf! sound reverberated next to you as a scent of brimstone hung in the air. It was Nightcrawler.

Suddenly, you felt very conscious and shy all over gain. It was really him. There was no mistaking that sheen of blue fur that lined his skin.

"Quite the entrance you made today," he said, a playful glint in his eyes.

You laughed, a nervous flutter in your chest. "I figured you could use some help."

Silence settled between you, punctuated only by the gentle lapping of the water. You took a deep breath, finally ready to share your story.

"Remember what you said at the circus? About me being a kind audience?"

Kurt nodded, a flicker of curiosity crossing his features.

"Well," you continued, your voice dropping to a whisper, "I wasn't just kind. I was… smitten. You were the first mutant I ever saw, and it was like watching magic. The thought that for one second, I wasn't alone. That there was another similar to me."

You explained how your parents' reaction had fueled your fear, how you'd kept the rose all these years. You confessed how they'd called you a "freak" just like you'd mentioned, and how you'd ended up alone after they disowned you.

Kurt listened intently, his expression a mix of sympathy and something else you couldn't quite decipher. When you finished, he reached out, taking your hand gently in his. His blue fur felt surprisingly warm against your skin.

"My Freund," he said, his voice soft yet firm, "You are no freak. You are extraordinary. And your parents… well, they were wrong. Trust me, I've lived all my life thinking I was an abomination."

You felt a twist of pain at his words. He was so kind and sweet. Even just so as the night when you'd met him the first time back at that old, sketchy Bavarian circus.

He squeezed your hand, and a spark shot through you. You looked into his eyes, seeing a reflection of your own feelings there.

"The truth is," Kurt confessed, a hint of a blush creeping up his neck, "you've never left my mind either. There was something about you that day, a spark I couldn't ignore."

Your heart was hammering inside your chest. The thought of him feeling the same way all those years sent a warmth throughout your body. The thought that you'd somehow made an impression on him sent butterflies wildly dancing in your stomach.

The truth hung heavy in the air, a silent confession echoed in Kurt's blushing cheeks and your own hammering heart. The twilight sky, ablaze in fiery hues, seemed to witness the unspoken yearning that crackled between you.

His touch, a gentle pressure on your hand, sent a jolt of electricity through your body. You leaned in, drawn by a force stronger than gravity. The kiss, when it came, was a revelation – tentative at first, then deepening with a passion that mirrored the vibrant tapestry of the setting sun.

His lips were warm and surprisingly soft against yours, the sweet taste of berries lingering on his tongue. Your hand reached up, tracing the contours of his face, the velvety texture of his blue fur sending shivers down your spine. He reciprocated, his touch delicate yet firm, as if afraid to break the spell.

The kiss deepened, a silent conversation flowing through the press of your lips. He tasted of adventure, of something innocent but also skilled in the ways of romance. A gentle breeze rustled the nearby leaves, momentarily pulling you apart.

"It's Kurt... my name is Kurt Wagner," he'd finally told you his name.

You gazed into Kurt's eyes, a newfound understanding blooming there. The dam holding back your emotions seemed to break.

"Kurt," you whispered, your voice thick with a desire you could no longer deny.

He responded with a low rumble in his chest, his blue fur darkening with a blush. Without a word, he scooped you up in his arms, teleporting you both to a deserted corner of the mansion's rooftop.

The cool night air whipped around you, carrying with it the distant sound of laughter and music from the common room. The city lights twinkled in the distance, a glittering backdrop for the nascent intimacy unfolding between you.

His touch became bolder, exploring the exposed skin of your arms, sending shivers down your spine. Your fingers trailed down his back, tracing the ridges of his spine and the surprising strength hidden beneath his lithe frame. Clothes became an unwelcome barrier, discarded in a tangle of limbs and whispered promises.

The moonlight, a silent witness to your blossoming love, bathed your entwined forms in an ethereal glow. Passion flared like wildfire, fueled by the years of unspoken attraction and the shared trauma that had bound you together.

The night unfolded in a symphony of whispered endearments and stolen breaths. With each touch, each lingering kiss, the anxieties of your past faded, replaced by the promise of a future brighter than the city lights on the horizon. You'd found each other, and this time nothing would take Kurt away from you.

#xmen #x men 97 #cera writes #kurt wagner x you #kurt wagner x reader #kurt wagner fic #nightcrawler x reader #nightcrawler

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iwant-fuitgummi · 3 months ago

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my headcanons for genshin characters' full names (plus some canon ones lol) ^-^

Travelers:

Aether Sirius Viator

Lumine Spica Viator

Paimon Alycone Merope

Mondstadt:

Albedo Erich Kreideprinz

Amber Ida Hasenkamp-Xia

Astrologist Mona Magdalena Megistus

Barbara “Barbie” Liselotte Pegg

Bennett Anselm Mallory

Dahlia Bram Batz

Diluc Bastian Ragnvindr

Diona Dafni Kätzlein

Eula Babette Lawrence

Fischl von Luftschloss Narfidort

Jeanette “Jean” Elke Gunnhildr

Kaeya Rivaan Alberich / Ragnvindr

Klee Käthe Kessler

Lisa Fiorella Minci

Michael “Mika” Clemens Schmidt

Noelle Petra Desroche

Razor Rolf Minci

Rosaria Karoline Nacht

Vanda “Sucrose” Anneliese Hertz

Varka Johann Bahl

Venti Detlef Daiber / Barbatos

Liyue:

Bai Chongyun

Cai Yanfei

Dai Yaoyao

Ding Xiao

Fei Xingqiu

Hu Tao

Huang Zhongli / Morax / Rex Lapis / Deus Auri

Lei Beidou

Lu Xinyan

Luo Ganyu

Luo Shenhe

Luo Xianyun

Mao Xiangling

Xue Baizhu

Xue Qiqi

Yan Yelan

Yao Ningguang

Yip Gaming

Yun Jin

Zhuang Keqing

Inazuma:

Arataki Itto

Kaedehara Kazuha

Kamisato Ayaka

Kamisato Ayato

Koizumi Chiori

Kujou Sara

Kuki Shinobu

Naganohara Yoimiya

Nekoba Kirara

Raiden Ei / Beelzebul

Raiden Shogun

Sangonomiya Kokomi

Shikanoin Heizou

Shikanoin Sayu

Takeishi Gorou

Thomas Oskar Rothschild / Akatsuki Thoma

Yae Miko

Sumeru:

Al-Haitham ibn Jamir ibn Zaid Sader

Candace bint Hamza ibn Ahmar Asim

Collei bint Tighnari ibn Zayd Habib

Cyno Cyrus Bamoun El-Hafez

Dehya bint Kusayla ibn Malek Hashim

Dori Yildiz / “Dori Sangemah Bay”

Faruzan Azimi

Imai Kunimitsu (Wanderer)

Kaveh Roshan

Layla Yildiz

Nahida Ijaz / Lesser Lord Kusanali / Buer

Nilou Golshan

Sethos Cyrus Bamoun El-Abdelfatteh

Tighnari ibn Zayd ibn Kyree Jubran

Fontaine:

Charlotte Benoîte LaFramboise

Chevreuse Cosette Caideux

Clorinde Maëlle Archambault

Emilie Rose Lavande

Freminet Corentin Snezhevich

Furina Regine Babineaux / “Furina de Fontaine”

Lynette Veronique Alarie-Snezhevna

Lyney Valentin Alarie-Snezhevich

Marion Devereaux Neuvillette

Navia Reine Caspar

Sigewinne Elyna Arquette

Warren Gaultier Wriothesley

Natlan:

Chasca Rivas

Citlali Xahuentitla

Iansan Kẹyinde

Kachina Nanatzcayan

Kinich Canek

Mavuika Whakatāne / Haborym

Mualani Ka’aukai

Oluwatoke Kọlade

Xilonen Nocelotl

Fatui (pretty much all of these will change as the game progresses):

Ajax Klimentovich Melnik / Tartaglia

Ceylse Aurelia Valerian / Columbina

Cosette Margot Bourreau / Sandrone

Crepus Arnfried Ragnvindr / Brighella

Jin Chaoxing / Pantalone

Peruere Genevieve Snezhevna / Arlecchino

Raiden Kunikuzushi / Scaramouche

Rosalyne-Kruzchka Lohefalter / La Signora

Rurik Vadimovich Vorobyev / Pulcinella

Ulrik Agnar Ingolf / Pierro

Tatiana Snezhevna Agapov / the Tsaritsa

Tlacelel Itzcuintlan / Il Captiano

Zandik Nazeri / Il Dottore

Hexenzirkel (again, will change):

Alice Thekla Kessler / "A"

Anya M. Andersdotter / "M"

Astromancer Barbeloth Oda Trismegistus / "B"

Inessa Ivanova Nikulina / "J"

Nicole Reeyn-Ragnvindr / "N"

Octavia Campana / "O"

Idun “Gold” Rhinedottir / "R"

NPCS!!!

(I HAVE A CLEAR FAVORITE NATION)

Mondstadt NPCs:

Adelinde Nett

Adelram Kreideprinz / Durin

Anna and Anthony Heilbrunn

Charles Schenck

Callirhoe Dupuis

Chloris and Flora Diefenbach

Cyrus Laukkanen

Donna Fenimore

Draff Kätzlein

Edith Rayne / Dr. Edith

Ella Musk

Ellin Sheridan

Elzer Boivin

Eury and Nimrod Poirot

Glory Taggart

Godwin Cross

Grace Kappel

Herrik Huffman

Hertha Bonamy

Maeve Livingstone / Dr. Livingstone

Margaret Winfrey

Marjorie Brightwen

Mellan König / Decarabian

Neven Gale / Dvalin

Patchi Driscoll

Patton Schüttmann

Sara Küchler

Siegfria Knochenmus

Timaeus Kloet

Vennessa Aguilar

Victoria Strohkirch

Vile Gagnon

Wagner McGowan

Liyue NPCs:

Gao Haixia / Beisht

Gao Shui / Osial

Huichen Guizhong / Haagentus

Mao Chaoxiang / Chef Mao

Mao Guoba / Marchosius / God of the Stove

Qui Tianlong / Azhdaha

Yi Nuo / Havria

Inazuma NPCs:

Arataki Takuya

Hinoyama Enjou

Raiden Makoto / Baal

Sumeru NPCs:

Amun Al-Ahmar / Deshret

Lilavati Trygve Alberich (post-marriage)'/ Lilavati Kartik Mishra (pre-marriage) / Kaeya's Mom

Nabu Malikata

Parisa Rukkhadevata

Fontaine NPCs:

Alouette Désirée Dupont / Egeria

Elynas Arsène Auclair

Fanchone Océane de Fontaine / Focalors

Remus Berceuse Adagio

all melusines (aside from sigewinne) have the surname "Auclair"

Snezhnaya NPCs:

Aleksander Klimentovich Melnik

Andronika Klimentevna Melnik

Anton Klimentovich Melnik

Teucer Klimentovich Melnik

Theodor Klimentovich Melnik

Tonia Klimentevna Melnik

Khaenri'ah NPCs:

Anfortas Asgeir Alberich

Caribert Alvar Alberich

Chlothar Flosi Alberich

Dainsleif Olan Asketill

Halfdan Munin Lien

Trygve Einar Alberich / Kaeya's Dad

Vedrfolnir Asketill / "the Sinner"

#genshin impact #genshin #genshin headcanons #i cannot possibly tag all of them

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amethystarachnid · 1 month ago

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THE SERAPHIM

⤷ KURT WAGNER

ᯓ★ Pairing: Kurt Wagner x male!reader

ᯓ★ Genre: thriller, tiny bit of romance, mostly action

ᯓ★ Request from: MARVEL Multiverse

ᯓ★ Story type: one shot

ᯓ★ Word count: 6k

ᯓ★ Summary: In the dim-lit alleys of a city that doesn’t sleep, Detective Kurt Wagner and a private investigator find themselves unwilling partners in a case that goes deeper than either of them expect. But once the case is solved y/n understands that he wants to see Kurt again.

ᯓ★ TW(s): kidnapping, mentions of human trafficking and experimenting on humans, violence and emotional distress

ᯓ★ AU: noir detective

ᯓ★ Request: Noir detective au with Nightcrawler perchance? I never get enough of that sorta au :333 especially with a male or ftm reader I think it would be so cute and silly to see Kurt as a detective solving your case X3 (@scrimpswrites )

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ᯓ★ MARVEL Multiverse - choose an AU, pair it with your favorite character and make a request!

ᯓ★ Songs & Superheroes tales - The Game (to make a request, follow the rules on the link!)

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ᯓ★ English isn’t my first language

The smell of rain-soaked asphalt greets you as you walk down the narrow alley, your coat pulled tight against the chill of the night. The city’s constant drizzle clings to you like the fog in your head, clouding your thoughts as you scan the dimly lit street. Another job, another night on your feet with only the city’s twisted arteries for company. But then, that’s what you signed up for the day you decided to call yourself a private investigator.

Tonight, you’re tailing a lead on a case that’s twisted its way into the darkest corners of the city—a string of disappearances, all connected to one seemingly harmless nightclub, The Seraphim. Rumor has it that people enter with money in their pockets and hope in their eyes, only to vanish as if the city’s belly swallowed them whole.

Just as you turn the corner, you see him. You’ve been hearing rumors about Detective Kurt Wagner for months now—blue-skinned, yellow-eyed, and sharper than a snake’s tooth. You’re not sure if you believed all the talk about his “demonic” look until this very moment, when he steps into the glow of the streetlight. He’s impossible to miss, standing there in a trench coat with the collar popped up.

Kurt’s face is cast in shadow, but there’s no missing the flicker of his amber eyes as he catches sight of you. His eyes narrow, and it’s clear he’s not thrilled to see you. The feeling is mutual.

“You,” he says, his voice thick with a German accent. It’s soft, but there’s an edge to it that tells you he’s not interested in small talk.

“Wagner,” you reply, letting his name roll off your tongue in a way that makes it clear you’re not impressed. You’ve had too many brushes with cops like him—the kind who think they’re the only ones who get to solve the city’s mysteries.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, crossing his arms. The movement makes his trench coat pull tighter around him, emphasizing his lean, wiry frame. His skin catches the glow of the streetlight in a way that’s almost surreal, like he’s cut from the night itself.

“Same thing as you, I imagine,” you reply, giving him a pointed look. “Following a lead on those disappearances. I’d say it’s none of your business, but we both know you’re gonna make it your business.”

Kurt’s lips twitch, not quite a smirk. “Is that so? And you think you’re equipped for something like this?” He takes a step forward, the heel of his boots clacking softly against the pavement.

“I’ve managed just fine so far,” you say, standing your ground. You know his type—cocky, confident, and probably a little too sure of his own abilities. You can see why he might be suspicious of a PI like you nosing around his case. But if he thinks he’s going to scare you off, he’s got another thing coming.

“So far,” he repeats, his tone dripping with condescension. “But so far only gets you so close to the truth in this city, mein Freund.”

Your jaw clenches at the familiar, almost mocking endearment. “Look, Wagner, I’m not here to get in your way. Just doing my job.”

“That makes two of us.” He tips his hat, casting his face in shadow again, a knowing look in his eyes. He glances toward the end of the alleyway, where The Seraphim’s faint neon glow pulses like a heartbeat.

The Seraphim. You both know it’s your next stop, whether you like it or not.

“Seems we’re headed in the same direction,” he says with an exaggerated sigh, like it’s the worst thing that could happen to him.

“Seems so,” you reply. There’s a mutual pause as you size each other up, two predators circling the same prey. Kurt’s gaze doesn’t waver; his tail flicks behind him with restless, measured sways.

When he starts walking, you fall into step beside him. Silence stretches between you like a taut wire, each step a begrudging rhythm in the rain. The tension between you is palpable, a static hum that thrums beneath the night’s cold veneer.

“What’s your take on the club?” you ask, breaking the silence. “Think it’s more than just a front?”

His eyes dart toward you, a flicker of curiosity and skepticism mingling. “A man with your reputation should already know the answer to that.”

You bite back a retort, realizing he’s baiting you. “My ‘reputation,’ huh? Funny, I heard you’ve got one too. Rumors about a cop who doesn’t quite… fit the mold.”

You expect him to get defensive, maybe give you a piece of his mind, but he just shrugs. “Ah, so you’ve been doing your homework on me?”

A grudging respect begins to form, though you hate to admit it. Kurt Wagner is sharper than he lets on, and his reputation—earned or not—might not tell the whole story. But there’s still something about him that sets your teeth on edge.

When you reach the club’s entrance, Kurt pushes the door open without a word, casting a casual look over his shoulder as if to say, After you, if you dare. You follow, straightening your collar as you walk into the heavy bass and strobe lights that bathe the smoky room.

The Seraphim’s interior is all red velvet and shadow, a perfect hunting ground for whoever’s been making people disappear. You can feel Kurt’s eyes on you as you scan the room, looking for any faces that stand out.

“See anything?” he murmurs, leaning closer than he needs to. His voice is low, and you catch a hint of something under the sharpness of his tone—a sort of challenge, as if he’s daring you to prove yourself here.

You smirk, stepping forward and catching sight of a man near the bar with shifty eyes and a nervous tic. “That guy. Looks like he’s one bad poker hand away from giving something up.”

Kurt glances at the man, his lips curling in approval. “Not bad, Liebling,” he says, the word slipping out smooth and teasing.

You tense, hating the way the endearment sounds almost affectionate in his mouth. You shoot him a glare. “Keep your pet names to yourself, Wagner.”

Kurt raises his hands in mock surrender, a devilish grin playing at his lips. “Apologies. You seemed like you could use a little levity.”

He sidles up to the bar, his manner shifting seamlessly from abrasive detective to casual patron. You stay close enough to hear his conversation with the bartender, noting the way he plays his part with smooth ease.

“Whiskey, neat,” he says, sliding a bill across the counter. He nods toward the nervous man you pointed out. “My friend here—looks like he needs a drink on me.”

The bartender raises an eyebrow but doesn’t question it, pouring two drinks and sliding them over. Kurt waits until the man takes a sip before leaning in, voice barely audible over the music. “Rough night?”

The man’s gaze shifts, landing on Kurt with a wary look. “That obvious, huh?”

Kurt shrugs, taking a casual sip of his whiskey. “Could say I’ve been there a few times myself. This city… it wears on you.”

You stay close, letting Kurt work his angle. The man’s shoulders relax just a fraction, and he nods, sipping his drink as his eyes scan the room nervously.

“You don’t know the half of it,” he mutters, almost to himself. “This place—thought I’d make a little money, but all I got was nightmares.”

“What kind of nightmares?” Kurt asks, his tone shifting slightly, a subtle edge creeping in.

The man blinks, suddenly aware of the interest in Kurt’s tone, but he’s too far gone to stop himself. He leans closer, voice dropping even lower. “People… they go back there, to the back rooms. They don’t come back out.”

Kurt shoots you a glance, his eyes sharp with the thrill of discovery, even as he keeps his expression cool and detached. “That so?”

The man nods, hands shaking around his glass. “I don’t know what goes on back there, but they don’t come out right, if they come out at all.”

Kurt’s attention is rapt, the intensity of his gaze pinning the man in place. You can see why people talk about his reputation—not just for his looks, but for the way he can bore straight to the truth.

But as he continues to question the man, you can’t help but feel a flicker of something else, something you don’t want to acknowledge. Admiration. Despite the chip on your shoulder and his infuriating smugness, he’s good at this—better than you expected.

As the man trails off, muttering about his regrets, Kurt leans back, his expression unreadable. He catches your gaze, his eyes gleaming with something that’s not quite arrogance, but close enough to make you grit your teeth.

“Well, looks like we have a little investigating to do, mein Freund,” he says, his tone full of challenge. “Think you can keep up?”

It’s a question, but not one you intend to dignify with a response. Instead, you move ahead of him, cutting through the club’s patrons toward the back rooms the man mentioned. You don’t need him to tell you what to do, and you’re going to make damn sure he knows it.

But as you stalk down the narrow hallway, you’re acutely aware of him at your side—close enough that the scent of leather and some faint cologne lingers between you, filling the tight space with a tension that’s both frustrating and electric. You don’t like the way it makes your pulse jump, and you like it even less that he’s probably noticed.

He keeps glancing at you, like he’s trying to read your thoughts, figure out what makes you tick. And maybe that’s the worst part of all—that for all your bravado, part of you wants him to look at you, to see you for more than just another rival on his case.

The back room is ahead, the door marked by a single, faded sticker in the shape of a devil’s tail. Kurt reaches for the handle, pausing to glance at you with a smirk that’s as infuriating as it is enticing.

“After you,” he says, with just a hint of mockery.

You bite back a retort, stepping through the doorway and into the darkness beyond, your senses on high alert. But as you enter, you can’t shake the feeling that maybe this partnership of yours is about to get a whole lot more complicated than you bargained for.

The room is dimly lit, a small, bare bulb dangling from the ceiling casting a sickly yellow light over cracked tiles and crumbling plaster. It smells damp, like mildew and something metallic. You scan the space quickly, eyes adjusting to the shadows, and feel Kurt’s presence beside you, close enough that you can almost hear the steady rhythm of his breathing.

There’s nothing here at first glance, just another dingy storage room that probably sees more rats than people. But there’s something off about it, a kind of stillness that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up.

“You feel that?” you murmur, almost forgetting yourself. You’re used to working alone, not bouncing thoughts off a partner. Still, Kurt’s intuition seems to have led him to the same conclusion as you—there’s something here worth finding.

He nods, his gaze flicking to the floor and back to you. “It’s too clean in here,” he whispers, his yellow eyes gleaming. He glances at a portion of the wall, fingers brushing over it as he looks for something specific.

“You’d be surprised what I can see,” he adds, almost to himself.

You raise an eyebrow, intrigued despite yourself. You’re tempted to ask what he means, but before you can, his gaze sharpens, and he points to the corner, just where the wall meets the floor. A thin trail of something dark winds along the cracked tile—a faded stain, the color of dried blood.

Kurt gives you a meaningful look. “Think someone just cut themselves and forgot to wipe it up?”

“Not a chance,” you mutter, feeling your stomach tighten. Whoever owns this place clearly has something to hide. “This… doesn’t look fresh. It’s dried, but they didn’t try to clean it. Like they didn’t think anyone would come snooping around back here.”

Kurt nods, his gaze intense. “People come and go, but someone’s making sure they don’t leave traces.” He hesitates, frowning as he examines the walls more closely, his fingertips tracing a barely visible seam along the wall’s edge.

You follow his line of sight, piecing together what he’s looking for. “A false wall?”

A look of approval flickers in his eyes, but it’s gone almost as soon as it appears, replaced by that same mask of calm control. “It wouldn’t be the first time,” he says quietly, pressing along the seam until he finds a spot that gives way under his fingers. There’s a soft click, and the section of wall pops open to reveal a narrow passageway, leading deeper into the building.

The air from inside the passage is colder, heavier somehow, and it’s clear that whatever secrets The Seraphim is hiding, they lie down that corridor.

You shoot him a glance. “What’s the play here? We go in quiet, or you wanna kick the door down and announce ourselves?”

His tail flicks thoughtfully behind him as he considers. “Normally, I’d say quiet is best. But with you around… maybe making a little noise wouldn’t be the worst thing.”

“Careful, Wagner,” you say, a smirk tugging at the corner of your mouth. “Don’t let my charm distract you.”

He snorts softly, but you catch the glimmer of something amused—something almost warm—in his eyes. “Trust me, charm isn’t the word I’d use.”

The space is tight, forcing you to walk shoulder-to-shoulder down the narrow corridor, and it doesn’t take long before you reach another door. This one is thick, reinforced with heavy steel, clearly meant to keep intruders—or maybe victims—out.

You look at Kurt. He just raises an eyebrow, as if to say, After you, fearless leader. You roll your eyes and press your ear against the door, listening for any sounds on the other side. There’s nothing but a faint, rhythmic hum, like machinery.

Without waiting for his input, you reach for the door’s handle, glancing over to see him tensing beside you, muscles coiled like he’s ready to spring. He’s watching you, his face set in a look of focused determination that sends a shiver down your spine. For a moment, you forget the tension between you, forget the hostility that marked your first encounter. Here, in this cold, empty corridor, you’re just two men, working together to find the truth.

With a quick nod, you turn the handle, and the door creaks open. The room beyond is larger than you expected, filled with strange, humming machines that emit a dull, greenish glow. And then, in the far corner, you see something that makes your blood run cold.

It’s a row of chairs, all bolted to the floor, each one equipped with heavy leather straps. The leather is worn and stained dark, and there’s no mistaking the purpose of those restraints. This isn’t just a club; it’s some kind of holding area, a place where people have been brought against their will.

Kurt’s eyes narrow, his jaw clenched tightly as he takes in the room. His tail lashes behind him in agitation, and you can tell he’s holding back a storm of anger. “They’ve been… keeping people here.”

You nod, feeling the weight of his words settle over you. The case has just taken a darker turn, and you can see it in Kurt’s expression. This isn’t just another assignment for him—he takes it personally, with a kind of righteous fury that resonates with you.

“We need to get out of here,” you say quietly. “Take what we know to someone who can help us shut this place down for good.”

Kurt nods, but he doesn’t move, his gaze fixed on the restraints. “If we leave, we might not get another chance. Whoever’s behind this could disappear, just like these poor souls…”

He’s right, but there’s something else in his tone, something that makes you pause. It’s a vulnerability, an unspoken understanding that resonates between you. For the first time, you see past the sharp edges and cold stares. You realize that Kurt isn’t just driven by duty—he cares, deeply, more than he’d ever let on.

You put a hand on his shoulder, surprising even yourself. “We’ll find them. All of them.” The words sound hollow, but you mean them, and Kurt seems to sense that. His gaze softens, just a fraction, and he nods.

Together, you make your way out of the room, retracing your steps down the narrow passageway. The club is still pulsing with music when you reemerge, the oblivious patrons drinking and laughing, unaware of the horror hidden just beneath their feet. Kurt glances around, his shoulders tense as he scans the crowd, like he’s memorizing faces, looking for someone who doesn’t belong.

Standing here, side by side in the heart of the city’s darkness, you realize that maybe there’s more to Kurt Wagner than you ever would have guessed.

As you turn to leave, Kurt places a hand on your arm, stopping you. You look up, meeting his intense, amber gaze. “If we’re going to work together,” he says quietly, his voice barely audible over the music, “then maybe it’s time we started trusting each other.”

The words hang between you, a silent challenge, an invitation. And in that moment, you know you’re both thinking the same thing: This partnership—this strange, uneasy alliance—is about to get a whole lot more complicated.

“Trust, huh?” you reply, smirking. “I think you’ll have to earn it, Wagner.”

Kurt’s lips curl into a slow, knowing smile, his eyes gleaming in the dim light. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The case twists around both of you like a snake, its secrets tightening with each revelation. As you and Kurt dig deeper into The Seraphim’s hidden horrors, the animosity between you shifts, replaced by something strange and unexpected: respect, maybe, or something that sits heavy in your chest, a feeling that lingers long after you part ways each night.

Days pass with late nights and long hours, as the two of you comb through leads, chasing down every dead end and half-truth until your leads point back to the club’s enigmatic owner, a man by the name of Isaiah Blackwood. Blackwood is as elusive as he is dangerous, with connections snaking through the city’s underworld like arteries to a rotten heart. Every question you ask about him leads to silence or threats.

It’s another long, damp night when you and Kurt find yourselves at the dockside warehouse Blackwood supposedly owns. The place is vast and empty, abandoned but for the scent of salt and mold, and the muffled thud of waves against the pier. Your breath mists in the cool air as you scan the room, senses on high alert. The place is silent, save for the creaks and groans of the old building, and the steady beat of Kurt’s footsteps as he follows you into the shadowed space.

“According to the records, Blackwood rented this place months ago,” Kurt says, his voice low but carrying across the silence. “Supposedly for storage. But the man’s too paranoid to store anything in plain sight. He’s hiding something here.”

You give him a sidelong glance. “You don’t say. Glad to know you’re not just a pretty face, Wagner.”

He snorts, amused. “I’ll remember that next time you accuse me of slowing you down.”

“Never said you were slow,” you mutter, and you don’t mean for your voice to soften, but it does. Kurt catches it, looking at you with a glint of something you can’t quite place.

The two of you move further into the warehouse, picking your way through abandoned crates and rusted machinery. The air grows thicker, charged, and the weight of what you’re here to find hangs between you like an unspoken promise. There’s a tension in the way he walks beside you, his movements measured and careful, and it hits you that somewhere between all the late nights and close calls, he’s stopped being just your competition.

When he pulls a flashlight from his pocket, casting a thin beam over the walls, you catch a glimpse of his profile in the dim light. The angle of his jaw, the concentration furrowing his brow. You don’t know when you started noticing these things about him, but it’s too late to deny it now.

He pauses, studying something on the ground—a faint set of footprints leading to the back of the warehouse. He looks up, catching your eye, and gestures for you to follow him down a narrow staircase that winds into darkness. As you descend, the walls grow damp, the smell of salt heavier as the narrow stairwell opens up into a series of underground rooms.

You scan the walls, thick and covered with peeling paint, and hear Kurt murmur under his breath, “This city has too many secrets buried beneath it.”

“Just the ones men like Blackwood want kept quiet,” you reply, your voice low.

Kurt’s eyes flick to yours, his expression softened, just for a moment. “And men like us are the ones who dig them up.”

In the silence that follows, you realize he’s not just talking about the case. He’s talking about you, about the unspoken understanding that’s settled between you, the way each of you can anticipate the other’s movements, read each other’s thoughts with nothing but a glance. It’s a partnership, but it’s something else too—something you’re not ready to name.

You both move forward, passing through another room with an odd metallic table in the center. There’s a file on it, filled with photographs—gruesome shots of the missing people, bound to the very chairs you’d seen in the club. Kurt’s jaw tightens as he scans them, and his fingers graze the photos, lingering over each one as if he’s taking in every detail, memorizing their faces. He doesn’t say a word, but his anger is palpable, a barely contained storm that hangs around him like the scent of ozone before lightning strikes.

“Blackwood’s not just making them disappear,” Kurt mutters, voice low and fierce. “He’s…” He swallows, his anger clear. “It’s not enough to kill them. He wants to make them suffer.”

You nod, your voice a whisper. “He’s a monster, Kurt.”

Kurt meets your gaze, and for a moment, the anger fades, replaced by something raw and painful. “That’s why we can’t stop until he’s caught.” His voice is tight with determination, his gaze hard. “I won’t let him slip through my fingers.”

You find yourself stepping closer, reaching out without thinking. Your hand lands on his shoulder, and you feel the tension coiled in his muscles. You give him a reassuring squeeze. “We won’t let him get away with it, Wagner. Not this time.”

Kurt’s gaze softens, the fury easing as he looks at you, and a faint, reluctant smile tugs at his lips. “I don’t know how you manage to make sense half the time,” he says, his voice gentler than usual, and it catches you off guard. “But I’m glad you’re here.”

The words hit you harder than they should. You let your hand drop, a sudden warmth spreading in your chest, and turn your attention back to the task at hand, reminding yourself that there’s still work to do.

Together, you press on, passing through the labyrinth of rooms until you reach the last door. It’s heavy and marked with a familiar symbol, the same devil’s tail you saw at The Seraphim. Kurt hesitates, a flicker of unease crossing his face, and you know he’s thinking the same thing you are—that whatever’s behind this door, it’s likely the heart of Blackwood’s operation.

With a single glance, you both know it’s time.

You reach out, grabbing the handle, and Kurt moves to your side, close enough that his shoulder brushes yours. You exchange a nod, a silent vow that whatever you find in there, you’ll face it together. Then you push open the door, stepping into the room beyond.

The sight that greets you is as dark as you expected—rows of folders, files, photographs, the faces of missing people staring back at you in faded snapshots pinned to a corkboard on the wall. In the center of the room stands a massive, mahogany desk, littered with papers and what looks like medical instruments, glinting coldly under the dim light.

A slow anger burns in your gut as you take it all in, the twisted evidence of Blackwood’s crimes laid out before you like a grotesque trophy display.

Kurt swallows, his face taut with barely contained rage. “This… this is more than a club,” he whispers. “He’s been experimenting on them. Treating them like…” He chokes on the words, and you see the strain on his face, the pain in his eyes.

Without thinking, you step forward, placing a hand on his arm. “Hey. We’re putting an end to this. Together.”

He meets your gaze, a flicker of relief passing over his face. And in that moment, standing together in the midst of Blackwood’s horrors, you feel a connection between you, something forged in shared purpose and understanding.

“We’ve got him,” you say, your voice steady. “He can’t hide from this.”

Kurt nods, a fire in his eyes. “No. He won’t.”

And when the night finally ends, when Blackwood is in custody and the survivors found, when the precinct is silent and Kurt stands with you on the station’s steps, the city sprawled before you like some dark and endless dream, he looks at you with a new kind of warmth.

“Danke,” he murmurs, the German word slipping out, soft and heartfelt. “For having my back.”

You give him a small, exhausted smile, one that feels more real than any you’ve given in years. “Anytime, Wagner.”

And as he lingers there, his fingers brushing yours in a way that speaks of possibility, you realize that somewhere in the shadowed maze of this case, you found something else—a partnership you never thought you’d want, and the beginnings of something even deeper.

The satisfaction of solving the case lingers like the final chord of a song, resonating through you as Kurt steps forward, handcuffs glinting in his hand, to arrest Isaiah Blackwood. You watch Kurt, a silent intensity radiating from his every movement, his gaze locked on the man who has haunted your investigation since the beginning. Blackwood’s hands are trembling as he backs away, cornered, stripped of his power and facade.

“Isaiah Blackwood, you’re under arrest for kidnapping, human trafficking, and conspiracy,” Kurt says, his voice steady, each word dropping like the final nails in a coffin. He approaches Blackwood with calm, controlled steps, his amber eyes hard and unyielding, as if any shred of mercy he might once have felt has been burnt away by the horrors he’s uncovered.

Blackwood’s face contorts with fury and fear, his eyes darting around the room for a way out that doesn’t exist. “This isn’t over!” he spits, venom in every syllable. “People like me don’t just go away! You think you’re safe, that anyone is safe? I’ll—”

Kurt snaps the cuffs onto Blackwood’s wrists, cutting off his rant. “You’ll rot in a cell,” he says, voice low and final. “Where you belong.”

You step up beside him, arms crossed, adding a level gaze of your own. Blackwood’s protests fade, the finality settling over him as two uniformed officers enter the room to take him into custody. As the officers escort him out, you feel the tension in your shoulders loosen, a quiet relief unfurling as you finally let yourself breathe.

In the silence that follows, Kurt stands beside you, shoulders squared, eyes cast down as if in silent thought. You realize he hasn’t moved, and the handcuffs dangle from his fingers, a faint reminder of what you both had to endure to get to this point.

“You all right?” you ask, nudging him gently with your elbow.

Kurt looks up at you, his face softened, though his voice is still strained. “Yes,” he murmurs, nodding. “It’s… strange. Cases like this, they take a part of you. I’m just glad it’s over.”

“Me too,” you reply quietly, the words carrying more meaning than you intend. For a moment, you simply stand there, side by side in the dim room, the weight of everything you’ve been through resting between you like an invisible tether. You think about the moments when your lives might’ve ended down here, in these rooms, when a slip or a wrong turn could’ve meant never walking out of that warehouse. You can’t shake the feeling that it’s time to take another risk—one that has nothing to do with the case and everything to do with what’s been building between you.

A warmth rises in your chest, and you look over at Kurt, your pulse quickening. The soft light from the flickering overhead bulbs highlights the planes of his face, making his amber eyes appear almost golden, softer, brighter. There’s something about the way he’s looking at you—tentative, almost uncertain—that makes you want to say what’s been on your mind. But as you open your mouth, the words catch, and you feel a new kind of tension settle over you.

“So…” you begin, forcing a casual tone that feels out of place even as it leaves your mouth. “We did good, huh?”

Kurt blinks, surprised, but then a smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “We did.” There’s a warmth to his voice that wasn’t there before, something closer, something unguarded. “Turns out I might have underestimated you after all.”

“Oh, so that’s what this was? You underestimated me?” You smirk, raising an eyebrow. “Guess I’ll have to prove you wrong again sometime.”

He laughs, soft and real, and the sound sends a flutter through your chest. His eyes meet yours, and for a brief moment, the space between you seems to disappear, everything else fading away. The officers’ footsteps echo down the corridor, fading as they take Blackwood away, and you realize that you’re alone with him for the first time in days.

It would be so easy to ask him now, to invite him out, to see if whatever this is between you might mean something. But as you meet his gaze, a flicker of doubt catches you off guard. You don’t know if Kurt… well, if he’s interested in men, in you, in any of this. The thought sends an unexpected wave of anxiety through you, one that settles uncomfortably in your chest, and you’re not sure how to begin.

“So… what now?” you ask, trying to keep your voice steady. “Now that this case is over?”

He hesitates, his fingers brushing over the worn cuffs in his hands. “We go home,” he says softly. “And wait for the next storm to roll in, I suppose.”

Something in his voice stops you—something that sounds less like duty and more like loneliness, like the weight of this case and cases before it have been more than he’s willing to admit. It takes you by surprise, and for a moment, you wonder if he feels the same about you, if he might want more than this—than just cases and cold nights spent alone.

“Kurt,” you say, barely aware of how your voice trembles. You clear your throat. “I, uh… I was thinking. Maybe once we’ve wrapped all this up, you’d like to… grab a drink or something?”

His eyes widen, and he stares at you, caught off guard. You can see the faint blush spreading along his cheekbones, a rare hint of vulnerability. “With me?” he asks, almost like he can’t quite believe it.

You give him a small, reassuring smile, even though your heart’s pounding in your chest. “Yeah, with you. I figured we’ve been through a lot together. Thought maybe you’d like to unwind. With company.”

Kurt’s tail flicks slightly, an unconscious twitch that betrays his nerves, and he looks down, biting his lip. “I—well,” he stammers, his voice softening as he hesitates. “I… I’d like that. It’s just…” He swallows, his voice lowering, suddenly shy. “I don’t… I mean, I’m not sure…”

You realize then what’s holding him back. He’s unsure, not just because of you, but because he doesn’t know if the world you’re inviting him into is one he’s allowed to be part of, one where he can be himself.

The anxiety in your chest gives way to something warmer, something braver. You step closer, close enough that the faint warmth of his skin reaches you. “Kurt, I’m asking because I want you to be there with me. Just you. No one else.”

His gaze meets yours, and you see a flash of something vulnerable in his eyes, something raw and uncertain. For a moment, he’s silent, as if he’s processing your words, trying to believe them. Then, his shoulders relax, and he nods, a faint, grateful smile breaking through the hesitation.

“I’d… I’d like that very much,” he murmurs, his voice barely above a whisper. “More than you know.”

The warmth in his eyes is answer enough, and your heart feels light as he holds your gaze. You realize, standing there with him, that the case may be over, but something new is beginning—something that feels more certain, more real, than any case or victory you’ve ever known.

The night of the date, you find yourself outside a cozy, dimly lit bar on the city’s edge, nerves swirling as you wait for Kurt. When he arrives, his usually sharp look softened by a rare, hesitant smile, you can’t help but smile back.

The evening is easy, surprisingly so. You talk about the case, laugh about the close calls, and somewhere between the drinks and the shared glances, the air shifts. Kurt’s warmth, his quiet laugh, the way his eyes catch the light—it’s all familiar but new, something you can’t help but want more of.

As the night stretches on, the conversation drifts from cases and work to lives and memories. He tells you about his childhood, his love for travel, his complicated past. In return, you share stories of your own, finding a strange comfort in the openness between you.

Eventually, the bar grows quiet, the night wrapping around you both like a blanket as you step outside together. The streetlights cast a soft glow over the pavement, illuminating the quiet look on Kurt’s face as he turns to you, his expression open, vulnerable.

“You know,” he says quietly, his voice steady, “I never thought… well, I never thought I’d be doing something like this.”

You smile, your hand finding his in a way that feels almost instinctual, and his fingers tighten around yours. “Neither did I. But I’m glad you’re here.”

He hesitates, but his eyes are soft, warm as he looks at you. And then, in a quiet, tentative movement, he steps closer, closing the space between you until he’s so near you can feel the warmth of his breath. He looks at you, searching, waiting for a sign that this is okay—that he’s allowed to want this.

And so you give it to him, leaning in until your lips meet his in a gentle, unhurried kiss, one that feels like a promise and an invitation, something real that neither of you can deny. His hand slips to your shoulder, pulling you closer as his lips press to yours, a soft, careful exploration that grows more certain with every second.

When you finally pull away, his face is flushed, his eyes shining with a happiness you hadn’t dared to hope for. He doesn’t say anything, but his smile speaks volumes, and in the quiet that follows, you realize that whatever happens, whatever cases or storms might come, this—this is the beginning of something worth holding onto.

kurt my baby <3 if you liked the story drop a like a reblog and a follow if you want to read more!

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instantezra · 30 days ago

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Pumpkin, Pumpkin

Pairing: Danny Wagner x gn!Reader (tried to keep it gender neutral!)

Summary: PUMPKIN PATCH DATE WITH DANIEL WAGNER aka the dream

Content Warnings: this is just fluffy fluff but does contain some adult language (like, maybe one f word), use of y/n, possible grammatical errors cuz im lazy

Word Count: just under 3k

Author's Note: happy halloween bbs!! some of this is based on actual events i have experienced at a pumpkin patch and we all know the tiktok of fall danny so i hope you enjoy this mishmash of autumnal activities 🍂🎃 i can't come up w titles either so this is just cuz i have the song by the regrettes stuck in my head

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The county road had quickly turned from sunbleached pavement to gravel. Danny’s car jostled on the loose rocks, but you could barely even tell. It felt like your body was shaking from sheer excitement. A worn wooden sign with a big red arrow appeared at the bottom of the hill, indicating where the pumpkin patch entrance was.

Danny knew how much you loved fall; it was one of his favorite seasons, too. Both of you were adorned in your coziest fall sweaters. You had stopped at a gas station on the way to the rural attraction, and the heat from the cheap coffee in your hands added to the comfy vibe. You downed the rest of the drink as your boyfriend pulled into a parking spot in the large open lot.

The pumpkin patch was surprisingly slow that morning, but you weren’t complaining. The small family-owned farm felt like a hidden gem, and it had become sort of a tradition for you and Danny. You’d find a free weekend that worked for both of you, choose each other’s sweaters, make the hour-long trek to the pumpkin patch, and spend all day together outdoors.

The pumpkin patch sat on acres and acres of land, with multiple patches to walk through, along with a quaint little barn full of goodies. There were lawn games, a couple slides, a hay bale maze, and your favorite - the corn maze.

As soon as you hopped out of the car, you made a beeline towards the central barn. Danny laughed, jogging after you and snatching your hand up in his. You beamed up at him.

“So, what’s the game plan?” he asked, swinging your arms back and forth between you. “Get some snacks at the barn, maybe some hot apple cider?”

“Duh. Then I was thinking we should start with the corn maze.”

Inside the barn, you had to control Daniel’s urge to buy you everything you wanted. There were popcorn balls, bricks of homemade fudge, gallons of apple cider, and more flavors of honey sticks than you thought possible. He gravitated towards the fudge, graciously taking every sample the employee would offer. You joined him, deciding you’d have to buy some on your way out. Before tackling the corn maze, however, you needed some fuel.

“Two apple ciders, please.” Danny ordered drinks for the two of you as you perused the honey sticks. There was no going wrong with classic clover honey, so you grabbed a few of those. It was always fun to try the different fruits, so you grabbed a raspberry and orange. There were more unique flavors as well, like chocolate brownie and even a cinnamon Fireball. You ended up grabbing a few of the Fireball flavors - the Kiszka’s would probably want to try those later.

Danny struggled a few times to get his honey stick open. With your coaching and reminding him to put it between his molars, you knew he got it when a wide smile showed on his face. He ate a clover stick in one quick pull of his fingers. You bit down on a raspberry flavored stick and decided to savor it. Danny handed you your hot cider, and you followed him out of the barn.

“Where to next, sweets? Corn maze?” He peered at you through his amber sunglasses, taking a careful sip of the piping hot drink in his hand.

“Yes! Corn maze! Follow me!” You overtook his stride and started leading. The entrance to the maze had an adorable wooden standee of a scarecrow pointing towards where the corn parted. You weaved through the beginning, where it was much easier. Danny grabbed your hand and squeezed it gently, just happy to tag along.

The maze changed every year, but you still had a pretty good intuition. It helped that there was a pretty well trodden path to follow. After quite a few twists and turns, you stopped at your first dead end. Danny took the opportunity (and privacy) to wrap his arms around you from behind, stopping you from turning around. It was innocent, but you felt heat rise to your cheeks as he placed a gentle kiss to the back of your head. Before you could turn around to face him, you heard a piercing meow come from the dense corn field in front of you.

“What was that?” Danny asked, letting you out of the embrace.

“It sounded like a meow. But a pretty distressed one,” you guessed, looking around frantically. The meow came again, this time sounding a bit closer. “I think there’s a kitten stuck in the maze. He got lost like us! Come here, little guy…” You bent down, trying to peer into the thicket of corn. Danny parted the dead end and tried to step in between the stalks, you closely following him.

A little ways in and you could see a flash of black dart between towering stalks. The poor thing couldn’t have been older than 8 weeks old, trying its best to hide but getting frightened. Danny stopped and lowered himself down to a squat.

“C’mere little guy. It’s okay…” His voice was soft and sweet. You joined in, kneeling next to him and putting your hand out slowly. With a gentle “pspsps” from both of you, the kitten stopped its frantic movement and let out a smaller, more normal mewl. “We aren’t gonna hurt you.” Danny reached his hand out as well, moving slowly to not scare the little creature more than it already was.

The kitten crept slowly towards you, coming up to your boyfriend’s hand and giving it a hesitant sniff. After a few smells and an agonizing time spent being still as a statue, there seemed to be a truce. Danny slowly reached out with his large hands and scooped the kitten up. You stood from your crouched position, watching him hold it with such care.

“Oh my god. We have to take it home, Dan, please? Pretty please?”

“Y/N…” he quirked an eyebrow up at you, cradling the kitten up into his chest. “I don’t think we can do a kitten right now. Besides, I think it’s more important to get this little guy outta here.” The kitten settled into Danny’s soft sweater, tucking its little pink nose into his chest. “What do you think, bud?”

“Wait… don’t move.” Without any sudden movements, you sneakily took your phone from your pocket. “This might be the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.” Opening your camera app, you took an obscene amount of photos of your boyfriend holding the kitten. It turned into an impromptu photo session, the kitten getting more and more comfortable with Danny. He held it up against his cheek. Loud purrs were emanating from the kitty’s tiny fuzzy body. Danny gave a toothy grin to the camera, and you could feel your heart melting from the cuteness.

Danny handed you the kitten, snapping some photos with his phone of you absolutely losing it over its adorableness. You refused to give the kitten back, so Danny simply took your other hand and led you away from the corn maze’s dead end.

After a few more twists and turns, you found a well worn path in the dirt again. The kitten didn’t seem to mind being held anymore. If anything, it was probably grateful to have warmth and an easy way out of the maze. Danny pointed ahead at an opening, one that seemed to lead to the rest of the pumpkin patch. Going through the stalks of corn, you found the official exit.

With the kitten still in tow, the three of you made your way back to the central barn. Part of you wanted to hide the kitten in your shirt, keeping him as a stowaway. Daniel found an employee and asked about the kitten, explaining your whole adventure finding it.

“Oh we have a whole litter! Poor thing, he must have strayed a little too far from the barn! Thank you for finding him, they usually just play in the back there,” she explained, pointing towards a gate that closed off part of the barn from the public. In the back, you saw the rest of the litter. The kitten you found seemed to be the only black cat, as there were orange, calico, and gray kittens tumbling around on the concrete floor. Seeing his siblings, the kitten started wriggling in your arms.

“I think he wants to go play, Y/N.” Danny put one hand on your shoulder and scratched the kittens ears with his other. Begrudgingly, you planted a sweet kiss on it’s tiny forehead and set it gently on the ground. The kitten bounded through the bars of the gate, running for his littermates and tackling an orange kitten to the ground. Your heart swelled at the idea of having pets of your own with Danny. It was easy to imagine curling up together on the couch, a cat of your own padding its way across the couch to join the cuddling.

You had to turn away from the kittens in case your impulse control failed you, lest you become a cat-napper.

Danny took your hand and led you out of the barn to explore the pumpkin patch more. Near the barn were a few slides made of giant old plastic pipes. They seemed child-sized, but that still didn’t stop your giant boyfriend from trying one of them. You stood at the end of the slide, immediately pulling your phone out to record him. He yelled from the top, giving you a wave and a loud “whoop” and entered the tube. In an anticlimactic end, you heard him scooching himself down. You tried your best to keep the recording stable, but it was difficult with laughs wracking your entire body.

“Okay. Maybe I’m too big for these now. Not much of a slide.” His large frame was tucked in on itself as he tried to exit the bottom. You reached out a hand to help him up, but he gave it a kiss before hoisting himself onto his feet.

“So maybe the slides aren’t our speed. How about the hay bale maze?” You asked, walking towards the large round bales. They were configured in a labyrinthian shape, much simpler than the corn maze.

“Ohh fuck yes,” Danny said under his breath. He gave your hand a squeeze, let go of it, and immediately ran towards the start. Before you could follow him into the maze, he launched himself onto the hay bale itself. Ignoring all of the children staring, he clambered onto the top and stood proudly, flinging his arms out to the side. “Come join me, Y/N!”

Your eyes darted around, seeing if any employees were going to yell at him for climbing the bales instead of doing the maze as it was intended. A lone teen with a pumpkin patch vest on looked at Danny, looked at you, and shrugged, turning his attention back to raking leaves. That felt like some sort of permission, so you started to scale the hay bale.

Danny reached a hand down to help hoist you up. The hay bales were pretty big, over 5 feet tall and luckily firm enough to support two grown adults. You were grateful for wearing a comfortable pair of boots, because as soon as you were up and on your feet, Danny laughed and darted away. He jumped across the path to another haybale, clearing at least a gap of at least 4 feet. He held a hand out to you again, inviting you to make the jump.

Getting across the gap was slightly nervewracking, but you made it across and landed into Danny’s arms. He gave you a small squeeze then went back to jumping across the hay. You couldn’t help but giggle at him. As you and Danny played on the hay, the children that had been completing the labyrinth joined in. Soon, there were more people on top of the hay playing than there were doing the maze as intended. A young girl no more than 5 started chasing Danny, and he was more than happy to join in the game. You sat down, swinging your legs off the edge and watched the fun.

Seeing him let his inner child go free, jumping and giggling alongside the kids, made you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It was nice to watch him bloom and grow on stage and as a musician, but moments like these reminded you why you truly loved him. He was himself, whoever that was – it was perfect for you.

After jumping on nearly every haybale and completing the maze from above, you sat down on top of one and plopped down onto your back. Danny bounded over to you, joining you in laying down and looking at the wide open sky. For being a crisp fall day, the warming sun was a welcome addition. A few wispy clouds rolled by here or there, but it was lovely just to lay together and simply exist for a bit. Your lover’s arms pulled you over onto his chest, rubbing small circles into your back as you cuddled on the hay.

You weren’t sure how much time had passed up there, but the sky darkened quickly with incoming clouds. Most of the children that had been playing with Danny had left to do other activities around the farm. With the clouds covering the sun, a chill settled in and your cute yet slightly-too-thin flannel wasn’t cutting it. You sat up and slid off the hay bale. Danny followed your cue, sliding off behind you and wrapping his arms around you.

“Ready to go home? It’s getting a little chilly,” he asked. While it was getting colder, you still hadn’t gotten any pumpkins - the sole point of a pumpkin patch!

“Let’s pick some pumpkins first, I wanna carve some with you tonight.”

“Of course, sweets. Let me get us a wheelbarrow.”

Danny came back moments later with the wheelbarrow. You turned on your heel towards the U-Pick patch, but Dan had a different plan. All of a sudden your feet left the ground, and you squealed. He picked you up and cradled you briefly before setting you in the empty wheelbarrow. Your legs barely fit, but bringing your knees up to your chest allowed you to sit semi-comfortably inside.

“Ready to go?”

“Daniel, how are we going to fit pumpkins if I’m in here?” you asked as he wheeled you into the patch.

“I’ll just put them on you, pumpkin.” You smiled and rolled your eyes at the silly pet name as he gave you a goofy grin. As he pushed you around, you scanned the remaining gourds on the ground. Some of them had already been ravaged by hungry birds and squirrels, while other were from the early season and already rotting. Row after row, there were mostly duds. You became discouraged that none of them would be the perfect pumpkin.

Danny stopped the wheelbarrow at the end of one of the rows, surveying the remainder of the field that you hadn’t looked at. As Danny walked up and down the path once again, just in case, you looked at the last row not yet explored. In the middle of the patch, a glimpse of orange caught your eye. You leaned up out of the wheelbarrow a bit, flinging your arm out and pointing.

“Danny! Over there!” He jogged back to you, grabbing onto the handles and moving you both towards a tangle of vines. Under the vines and leaves, there were two little pumpkins, almost the size of a basketball but just barely. He snagged them from their prickly stems. They were small enough that he could palm them with each hand, but they were free of any holes or mold or rot. Albeit a bit small, they were your perfect pumpkins.

With the pumpkins in your lap, Danny rolled you back to the barn. You hopped out of the wheelbarrow with his help and took your pumpkins inside. Danny chatted with the cashier as they priced the pumpkins. After briefly sneaking off, you came back with arms full of various flavors of fudge, popcorn balls, and plenty of snacks for the drive home. The cashier and Danny both laughed as you dumped your haul onto the counter proudly. Near the checkout, there were the small decorative pumpkins and gourds for sale, and you made sure to add some of those to the pile as well.

After Danny paid the cashier, he grabbed the sweets-filled paper bags under his arms as you toted the pumpkins out of the barn. Your boyfriend opened the trunk of his car, loading it with the pumpkins and food that you hadn’t designated for the drive home. Before he could close the door, you stopped him.

“Wait! I want to take a picture of our haul. Here, hold these.” At your request, Danny turned around to sit on the edge of the trunk. He proudly held the mini pumpkins and gave a gentle smile at the camera. You snapped a few pictures, grinning at how adorable he looked. Putting your phone back in your pocket, you leaned forward and your lips met Danny’s. He returned the kiss, standing from the trunk and backing you away so he could close it. It had been the perfect pumpkin patch day.

“Let’s get this stuff home and get to carving, hm? I’m thinking we light some candles, put on a movie…”

“That sounds perfect, Danny.”

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yippee! thank you for reading!! and as always my ask box is open and

#maddy writes #greta van fic #danny gvf #danny wagner x reader #gvf fluff #happy halloween bbs

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door-insurance · 5 months ago

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Lis+Chasemarsh sketchdump 4

"can you remember the raaaaaain?"

the concerned faces of Kate marsh+That apology did not go well

chloe discovers that Kate f#!ks+ they have no idea what theyre doing either + chaseprice + my girl steph

very sketchy kiss + rachel + victoria says goodbye to her posse after the storm

#life is strange #kate marsh #victoria chase #max caulfield #chloe price #steph gingrich #taylor christensen #courtney wagner #taylor x courtney #chasemarsh #Rachel Amber

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lifeisstrange-incorrectquotes · 17 days ago

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Courtney: I think the main problem with my friend group is I have to pay to be in it.

Rachel: You have to pay to be in your friend group?

Courtney: Yeah, it's like a service. I was in the second tier, but then I was annoying at a party so now I'm paying the most possible.

Rachel: What did you do?

Courtney: I thought it would be funny to be, like, a wild woman in the pool.

Rachel: What do you mean?

Courtney: I was fighting everybody in the pool and trying to splash water in their mouths. So now I pay more.

#submission #source: I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson #ah this explains why she was off by herself at the vortex club party #she was being annoying in the pool and forgot to pay her increased dues #thanks for the submission!!!#courtney wagner #rachel amber #life is memes #life is strange #life is strange before the storm #incorrect quotes

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jake-whatthefisgoingon-kiszka · 5 months ago

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Ok to those of you that I promised a 5.2 I got carried away again… So how about a whole ass part 6 instead!

Pairings: Jake Kiszka X Danny Wagner ***slash

Warnings and tags: 18+ ONLY!! minors skedaddle, adult themes including: mentions of infidelity, references to previous partner death, talk about complicated relationships, some drinking, smut including: hand jobs, grinding, oral… Danny being the sweetest most patient and caring guy ever, dad Jake AU, uncle Danny AU

Word count: 5.3k

Jake aggressively punched the security pin into his front door, waiting impatiently as the mechanism unlocked and allowed them entrance. The entire time Danny was at his back, smoothing his hair over to one side and pressing kisses along his shoulder. The second they got inside, Danny turned them around and pushed Jake up against the door, attacking his lips in a needy kiss.

The rain had started to let up a little on the ride back, but that didn’t mean they weren’t still soaked to the bone. Danny broke the kiss to peel off his dripping hoodie, grabbing the tattered hem of his t-shirt to keep it from coming off as well. Then he returned to Jake, this time swiping his tongue across his bottom lip, asking for entrance which Jake easily allowed.

Danny’s hands roamed Jake’s body as he had him pinned against the hardwood, smoothing up his chest then slipping underneath the collar of his jacket and pushing it off his shoulders until Jake was shrugging his arms out of it and the damp fabric was falling to the floor. Jake brought his hands up next, cupping Danny’s face as he tilted his head and pushed deeper into the kiss, making Danny respond by leaning further into Jake and licking hungrily into his mouth.

Things were heating up quickly as Danny’s hands kept exploring, drifting lower until the tips of his fingers were brushing underneath Jake’s shirt.

Without thought, Jake’s first physical reaction was to recoil. Danny’s eyes snapped open, afraid he’d done something wrong.

Taking a deep breath to reground himself, Jake leaned his forehead against Danny’s, letting his thumbs brush slowly against his jawline. “Sorry… did you want a drink?”

The only thing Danny wanted right now was to get out of these wet clothes, his jeans growing tighter by the second, but he realized Jake was probably trying to pace things out a bit. “Yeah, I do” he agreed, his hands coming to rest on Jake’s hips as he waited for him to make the first move towards the kitchen.

Unfamiliar with his new surroundings, Danny followed closely behind Jake. He took the opportunity to look around the house, now that he wasn’t preoccupied with other things. It was a bit smaller than his sister’s but still very nice, maybe one of the older homes in the neighborhood considering its arched entryways and warm wooden accents. Somehow the atmosphere fit Jake perfectly, sturdy and structured but still soft around the edges.

Once in the kitchen Jake opened a cupboard and pulled out a pair of tumblers, walked over to the fridge to fill them with ice, then stopped dead in his tracks. Usually when company came over he got the good whiskey down before they arrived, but he hadn’t thought that far ahead this time.

He reached for the cupboard above the stove next. “I keep all the alcohol bottles up there so Luna won’t get into them” he mentioned as he tried to figure out how he was going to reach them now. Last thing he wanted was to be pulling out his step ladder, that would look real mature. Instead he braced one hand on the counter and stretched as high as he could, his other fingers just barely pawing at the glass.

“Here, let me help” Danny chuckled and reached above Jake, successfully grabbing the bottle and setting it on the counter.

Jake tried to hide his embarrassment as he focused on pouring the amber liquid, handing Danny his first then bringing his own to his lips.

“This is good” Danny commented as the liquor smoothed down his throat. He finished his glass in two long pulls, but Jake only sipped his, eyes trained on Danny like he was considering just what to do with him.

Silently, Jake picked up the whiskey bottle and started walking back further into the house. Again Danny followed, stopping momentarily as he peeked into what looked like a study with a little area designed to be a home office. This looked like the most Jake room of the house he’d seen so far. Floor to ceiling trimmed built-ins filled with books and records, and fitted into the space between the shelves was a large framed painting of what looked like a 16th century ship out at sea. He wanted to wander further into the room, flip through the pages of the books Jake had put on his desk to see what he was reading last. Skim through his record collection and hear the way the space filled with the sweet sound of music.

Jake on the other had had different plans, pulling Danny’s attention back to him as he spoke. “The bedroom is this way”.

Danny tore his curious eyes from the intriguing room and back towards the actual man who inspired such interest in exploring. They turned the corner and suddenly they were entering an area even more intimate.

The room was large, but held nothing besides a single walnut dresser which stretched nearly the entire expanse of the wall just underneath a mounted TV. Across and situated in the center was the bed with a matching wooden frame, simple and modern yet somehow it still gave the feeling of timelessness. Only one side, which Danny assumed was the one Jake preferred to sleep on, had a bedside table, though a pair of sconces cast a frame of soft warm glow across the silk pillows.

Jake went to the table and set both of the bottle of whiskey and his glass down, but not before he tossed back the rest. Then slowly he made his way back to where Danny had planted himself a comfortable distance away from the bed, not wanting to intrude too far until he knew for certain he was welcome.

Innocently, and without intention other than to just touch him, Jake reached out and brushed his fingertips against Danny’s arm, tracing the lines of black ink permanently etched into the the skin. Danny returned the affection by reaching over and cupping Jake’s face in his large hands and leaned down.

The kiss now wasn’t hurried or frantic, but it was still hungry nonetheless. Jake sighed and melted into it, his hands smoothing up Danny’s back and pulling him closer. After a moment Danny stepped back and lifted his shirt off. Jake stared for a moment. He'd been right before when he thought he saw a navel piercing, a silver and black piece of jewelry topping a trail of dark hair.

“Can I?” Danny asked, his voice muted as the thumping in Jake’s ears grew louder. Was Danny’s heart still pounding the way it had earlier? Because Jake felt like he was growing light headed from how fast his blood was pumping, but Danny seemed calm as ever as he nodded and let him lift his shirt. His hands immediately found purchase on Jake’s hips, digging his fingers into the plushness there and connecting their lips again.

Danny’s hands roamed lower, rounding behind and grabbing two large handfuls of Jake’s ass making him squeak. He hadn’t been handled that way before so it came as a slight surprise, but when in return the force also caused his front to grind against Danny’s thigh he let out the first moan of the night.

When Jake rocked his hips again in search for more friction Danny helped him by slipping his knee between his legs and squeezing hard again. Jake groaned, and if you’d told him his first experience with Danny was dry humping in damp jeans in front of his bed he would have called you a liar. Here he was though, at least until the friction started to be too much and not enough at the same time.

The urgency had returned as he started to unbutton Danny’s pants and push them down. He wanted to get in the bed soon, but they weren’t going to do that in dirty clothes.

“Jake” Danny breathed out against his cheek, trying to gain the strength to pull away again. Very reluctantly he did, because he could tell that Jake’s hands were shaking. “We don’t have to do anything tonight. I’m more than happy to just hold you”.

“No, I want this” Jake assured him, his voice sounding confident despite his trembling.

“Okay” his own voice faltered a little as he started to take over with peeling the jeans that clung to his body off while Jake followed suit with his own. Okay, he thought to himself this is really happening. Jake and I are going to be intimate and I’m not going to fuck this up.

Clad in just their underwear, Jake pulled the covers all the way back and they crawled into the expansive bed together. If Danny wasn’t already so preoccupied with maintaining his composure he might’ve stopped to question what someone so little needed with such a large bed, but in the moment he was appreciative of the playing ground.

Jake laid down in the middle of his navy sheets, his delicate frame surrounded by waves of silk. Danny descended on him gently, careful not to lay his body anywhere that may be uncomfortable or crush the smaller man beneath him. His head swam in Jake’s kiss, their core temperatures rising as their bodies slotted together and began to rock against the tides of lust that slowly threatened to consume them.

“Can I touch you?” Danny asked, only waiting mere seconds after Jake nodded to press his palm against his chest and began to explore the panes of warm smooth skin. It felt nice to touch him and he had to keep reminding himself that this was real, not some fever dream his mind was playing on him after getting caught out in the rain. In his reminder, he realized that despite that salacious moan moments ago he hadn’t heard Jake’s voice.

Danny pulled back, his head rising from the storm clouds that had followed them from the rest stop into this quiet bedroom, and saw Jake laying there stiff and unfocused.

“What’s wrong?” Danny asked, removing his hand and sliding over to give him some space.

Jake’s brows furrowed as he fought to seem unbothered, gripping at Danny’s shoulders and trying to pull him close again. “Nothing, nothing at all”.

Danny sat up, worry starting to prevent him from being comfortable with continuing until he pressed the matter. “Jake, please I’m afraid I’m hurting you”.

Jake’s face turned pained, not from anything Danny had done, but because he couldn’t turn off his thoughts. He wanted to enjoy this, get lost in the feeling of having someone else touch him again, only there was a criticizing voice in his head that prevented him from doing just that.

He sighed, meeting the look in Danny’s eye and knowing he wouldn’t touch him again until he’d been reassured that it was okay. “It’s just, I haven’t been with anybody since…” he couldn’t finish his sentence, but Danny still understood what he meant to say.

“Oh” Danny replied, his nerves suddenly skyrocketing at the idea of being Jake’s first. It meant Jake trusted him enough to share this experience with him of all people, and he felt the pressure to provide safety and tenderness during this fragile time. “If it helps, I haven’t been with anyone in a while either”.

“You haven’t?” Jake sounded a little hopeful. The way Danny was so forthcoming and confident had given the impression he was a little more well seasoned than he was currently admitting.

Danny smiled, trying to show Jake that it was okay to talk about this and he wouldn’t get upset or annoyed. “No, I haven’t. I’m not the type to sleep with just anybody. I have to feel a connection to a person, be comfortable with them, get to know them a little first”.

Jake offered a shy smile in return. So Danny felt a connection with him? He felt it too, the consistent draw to the other, the fluttering in his chest when they were near, the smolder in the pit of his stomach when they kissed. He hadn’t felt this in such a long time and he’d almost forgotten how intoxicating it was, how much he craved the company of another in his bed.

“Do you mind if we put some music on?” He asked, knowing it wasn’t everyone’s preference to have background noise. “It will help me relax”.

“Of course” Danny reached over and re-established their physical connection with a simple touch to his knee. “I want you to be comfortable”.

Jake stood from the bed and found his phone, discarded on the floor with his clothes and pulled it from his pants pocket. He opened up his music app and selected a gentle instrumental playlist he liked to listen to at work and made sure the volume was low enough to just barely cut through the silence before he placed the device onto his bedside table next to his empty glass.

Danny welcomed him back into the bed with open arms, easing him down again into his spot on his back as he placed butterfly light kisses on his forehead and cheeks. “Tell me if you get overwhelmed and we’ll stop”.

“I want this” Jake repeated in the same assuring tone as earlier, and he wrapped his arms around Danny’s shoulders to pull him down against him again.

“It feels good to be alone with you” Danny muttered as he trailed his kisses to Jake’s neck, deepening them as he began to suck gently on the skin behind his ear.

Jake’s mind was a hurricane of want and desire, grabbing Danny’s hand and bringing it back to his chest, placing it against his sternum just as Danny had done outside. Danny lifted his head, his eyes growing darker and murkier as he felt the thundering of Jake’s heart.

“Keep touching me” Jake requested, his breath shuddering when Danny happily obliged.

He continued his mapping of Jake’s torso, stopping to give special attention to Jake’s nipples which made him gasp and press upwards as they hardened into tiny sensitive nubs. With the intensity of Jake’s reaction Danny grew bolder, his hand traveling downwards until he was cupping Jake’s hardened length over his underwear. Despite how badly he wanted to tug that thin layer of fabric down and see him, feel him, taste him, he let Jake acclimate by familiarizing himself with him just like this first.

Jake reached down and dug his fingertips into Danny’s forearm, biting his lip so hard he feared he’d be drawing blood soon if he didn’t get some more relief. He hadn’t been this turned on in such a long time and they’d hardly done anything. It was kind of embarrassing.

“I’m gonna take these off now?” Danny phrased his sentence in a question diving his fingers beneath the waistband but waiting until Jake gave his permission to continue.

“Please Danny”.

His voice sounded like a song against the accompaniment of musical instruments bleeding around them, a siren's call Danny couldn’t deny. Jake lifted his hips and Danny drug his last piece of clothing off, tossing them onto the floor to be forgotten with the rest.

“Fuck Jake,” he felt his mouth water at the sight. Jake was fucking gorgeous, so pink and flushed, his tip angry and swollen from lack of stimulation but already dribbling precum. “You look like you’re already about to pop”.

“Shut up” Jake groaned, trying to reach down and cover himself, but Danny took his hand and laced their fingers together as he shifted onto his knees between Jake’s thighs.

He felt Jake tense up around him, obviously not used to being in this position often, so he used his other hand to massage his inner thigh, admiring the way he twitched every time he got closer. Then he brought that hand to his mouth, ungracefully spitting into his palm and using that slight lubricant to begin to stroke Jake slowly.

Another beautiful moan crawled its way out of Jake’s chest and his back arched off the mattress, overwhelmed by the sensation but too needy to ask him to stop. Not that he wanted him to, he was already at the precipice of release when he untangled his hand from Danny’s and raked those grasping fingers through his hair.

With both his hands freed now, Danny pushed his own underwear down and started stroking himself as well. It’s a good thing he was good with his hands, not that he minded getting himself off while Jake was too lost in his pleasure, so long as he could hear those sweet delicious moans.

With nothing more than a cry of his name and a mix of expletives, Jake was cumming. Danny worked him through it, but as soon as Jake was caught up on breath he leaned down and began to kiss him deeply. With the closeness this brought, he could feel his own aching cock pressed against the crease of Jake’s thigh and he began to rock his hips, gliding through Jake’s hot release like smooth butter.

Jake whimpered into his mouth, it was so hot that Danny was grinding himself on him, but he was worn out and sensitive.

“Hold on for me Jake, I’m so close” Danny pleaded, feeling his stomach knot until he was tumbling over the edge as well, his cum mixing with Jake’s while he slowly eased to a stop.

“Fuck” he shivered at the feeling of being completely spent and satisfied, giving Jake one more swift kiss to his plush heart shaped lips before sitting back up.

“That was…” Jake began as he glanced down at the mess they’d made, and if he hadn’t cum so hard already he could’ve gotten turned on again by the look of it.

“It was what?” Danny chuckled. On one hand he was confident in his work, but on the other still slightly worried it hadn’t all been a little too much for once.

“Not what I expected” Jake continued, though he didn’t seem upset.

Danny’s brows furrowed. Had he not lived up to Jake’s expectations? Had he fucked it up after all? “Then what did you expect?”

“I don’t know” Jake shifted his eyes away. He wished he hadn’t said that, but now it was out in the open and he needed to explain himself before Danny left feeling like he was inadequate- which he certainly was not. “Pain maybe? Being lost?”

Danny’s brain started to catch up with Jake’s intention, realizing he was referring to the other logistics of gay sex. The ones that involved penetration. Though he was delighted to hear that Jake really had intended on going all the way with him tonight, he wasn’t even sure if they had all the right things he needed to make sure he was ready.

“Come here” Danny moved to lean up against the headboard and pulled Jake into his arms. “I wouldn’t hurt you unless you wanted me to”.

“Seriously?” Jake slapped at his chest but curled into his broad frame. “What kind of guy do you take me for?”

“You never know” Danny laughed lightly, “give it a few times and you’d be surprised”.

“Okay” Jake replied, just before he felt his eyelids growing heavy with exhaustion. “I will”.

After only about 20 minutes of drifting off Jake woke again. Danny was still awake, mindlessly stroking Jake’s back with the pads of his fingers and listening to the music Jake had forgotten to turn off. He had nestled his head onto Danny’s chest, so now he had a good view of the body beneath him. Matching the same delicate motion Danny used on him, Jake ran his hand across his abdomen. Danny’s chest rumbled with his chuckle when he applied a little more pressure once he reached his happy trail.

“What’s the deal with this?” Jake questioned, grazing over the silver and black piece at his navel.

“What about it?” Danny questioned back, humming his contentment when Jake continued to play with his spot of hair.

“It’s hot” Jake confessed. He’d never seen a man with a belly button piercing before, but damn did Danny pull it off effortlessly.

“I’m glad you think so, my ex didn’t” Danny revealed, wrapping his arms tightly around Jake’s shoulders and giving him the squeeze he’d been refraining from while he was letting Jake get his rest.

Jake broke free by planting his hands on Danny’s chest and pushing up so that he could face him. “Why not?” He frowned, not understanding how someone could not like anything about Danny.

He shrugged, letting his arms tuck behind his head. “Don’t know, she just wasn’t into that kind of stuff I guess. That’s the reason we broke up”.

Jake waited silently for Danny to tell him more. This was the first he was ever hearing about any of Danny’s past relationships, and since Jake’s history was clearly out in the open he wanted to know whatever he could in return.

“We dated all through high school. My parents loved her, wanted us to get married after college like my sister. That kind of went out the door when I dropped out. We started getting into fights all the time about it, and when I showed up with this I guess it was the icing on the cake. She lost it and dumped me”.

“Do you regret it then?”

Danny sucked in a breath as he thought about his response and how it might make him look, but ultimately he decided being transparent with Jake was always going to be the best option. “No, I think I got it because I knew that’s how she would react. I was ready to break up for a long time before then, but she was my last connection to my old life and my parents. I think I was just too afraid to let go myself”.

“So if you’ve changed so much since then, and you're happier” Jake tried to piece everything together himself, but there was still one question he’d always had but didn’t want to ask, at least until now. “Why did you come back?”

“I really shouldn’t be telling you this” he started, only making Jake more curious. “My sister and her husband are having some problems. She doesn’t want to tell our parents about it because we already know what they’re going to say, so she came to me for help”.

“Problems?” Jake repeated, reflecting back on all the times he’d thought their attitude when around each other was odd.

“Yeah, he’s been having an affair for about three months now. Or at least that’s all she’s gotten him to confess to. When she told me that I said she needed to divorce him, kick his cheating ass to the curb, but she’s worried about Emma. I was already looking for a new place since the lease where I was staying was up and my roommate was moving in with his girlfriend, so I told her I would come stay with them and help take care of Emma while they try and figure this out”.

“Jesus, so all the times that they’ve been late at the office?”

“They don’t want anyone to know, but they’ve been going to marriage counseling”.

“So what are they going to do then?” Jake couldn’t believe the family he’d grown so close to over the past couple of years was falling apart at the seams. He had never been cheated on before by any of his few past relationships so he wasn’t sure exactly how he would handle the situation, but being a single parent he still sympathized with their struggle.

“Don’t know. She hardly talks to me about it anymore, and when Emma and I are around they pretend like nothing is the matter. It’s frustrating because I know what it’s like to pretend and shut off your feelings. I never wanted that for my sister”.

Jake moved his hand from Danny’s chest to his jaw, tilting his head up slightly so he could look him in the eye. “You’re a good brother, and a great uncle. She will open up to you again”.

“Thanks” Danny exhaled, his eyes closing for a moment as he reveled in Jake’s delicate touch. “It’s good to hear that”.

“And you’d better believe it” Jake kissed him once then stood up from the bed. “I’m gonna go wash up real quick”.

Danny stood too, stretching his long limbs and moving to find his clothes.

Jake paused his walk to the bathroom when he heard the rustle and turned around, “are you staying?”

“If I’m welcome?” Danny replied, fishing into the pocket of his jeans instead of putting them on. He retrieved a half empty pack of cigarettes, the same one Jake had seen on his dresser just a couple of days ago, but the rain had seeped through his pants and gotten what was left wet. “Well, I’m supposed to be quitting anyways”.

“Stay, and I’ll make us something to eat.” Jake offered instead “I’m starving”.

The next day Jake slept in later than he had in a long time. Partly because he needed the extra sleep, but mostly because he and Danny had stayed up late into the early morning hours talking and joking casually as they shared a glass and nearly finished off the open bottle of whisky, and then making out until Jake fell right back asleep into Danny’s arms.

It was warm when he came to, the curtains he hadn’t bothered to draw closed last night allowing the late afternoon sunshine in.

Jake panicked for a moment when he opened his eyes, expecting to see the same glorious view as he had the evening prior, but instead he was utterly alone again. He glanced around the room, looking for any signs of Danny and where he’d gone. Surely he didn’t leave without saying goodbye?

Stepping out of bed, Jake opened the bedroom door but immediately stopped in his tracks when he heard the faintest sound of music coming from the other side of the house. Though he hadn’t heard it in years, Jake recognized the sound of his wife’s piano being played softly and slowly. He made his way through to the foyer where the grand piano sat untouched, only now a beautiful golden man sat at its bench and the keys he thought had long grown out of tune chimed the simple melody he played.

“Sorry, did I wake you? I know I’m pretty bad” Danny retracted his hands from the instrument, suddenly feeling like he’d crossed some unspoken boundary.

“No, keep playing” Jake moved to stand next to him, watching intently as his fingers went back to work gliding across the white and black. “I forgot how graceful it sounds”.

“You don’t play?” Danny questioned, trying to keep his focus on remembering one of the few songs he knew by heart.

“No, this was June’s”.

Danny quickly pulled his hands away again, if he’d known that then he wouldn’t have helped himself. He just wanted to let Jake sleep in so he left the room, and when he saw the opportunity to play something he did.

“Don’t worry about it” Jake chuckled, thinking the shocked look on Danny’s face was cute. “It’s the only thing of hers I kept out. Can’t really pack this up in a box and put it in the attic. I’ll probably end up selling it with the house one day”.

“You’re planning on moving?” Of course he’d only said ‘one day’ but Danny still sounded upset at the idea Jake might leave somewhere far away.

“Who knows?” He leaned against the lid of the piano, still feeling tired but not wanting to go back to bed by himself. “I’m starting to feel normal again. Makes me question what I’ve settled for and if it’s what I really want”.

“Normal?” Danny heartily scoffed, “who wants to be normal? I for one think you’re extraordinary Jake. I don’t know how you do it all, work, home, parenting”.

“Luna is an angel, that helps”. Jake’s heart ached at the thought of her. He missed his little already even if he was thoroughly enjoying his time here at home with Danny.

“Only because her father is a saint”.

Jake rolled his eyes, but he pushed off the lid and leaned over to give Danny a kiss. It came so naturally between them now, neither feeling the need to ask permission before capturing the others lips in their own.

Danny had only expected a swift and sweet good morning, or well good afternoon kiss, but when Jake asked for entrance by swiping his tongue across Danny groaned and wrapped his arm around his waist. Jake reacted by weaving his fingers through Danny��s hair, something last night he realized he enjoyed because it made Danny go feral.

He got the exact reaction he wanted when Danny abruptly stood, the bench he was sitting at falling back against the floor in a loud clatter that echoed through the empty house. Danny lifted Jake right off the floor, Jake expecting to be carried off, but instead he was deposited right onto the lid of the piano behind them.

The keys sounded in a mismatched cord as Danny leaned over and continued to devour Jake, both men groaning and grabbing at each other for more. Last night could hold him over for longer but Danny wanted to have Jake again, especially when he didn’t know when the next time they’d have this time together would be. Jake seemed to feel the same way as he propped himself up with one hand behind him and one hand still grounded in Danny’s curls as he trailed his kisses down Jake’s chest.

Stopping at the waistband of the sleep pants he’d put on after his shower last night, Danny pulled them off and brought Jake’s legs to rest on his shoulders. He peered up from between Jake’s thighs, making eye contact for a moment as he kissed and nipped at his peach fuzzed skin.

“You ready?” Danny asked, his position being pretty obvious for what he intended to do.

Jake bit his lip and nodded eagerly, his bed head a tousled mess but it only made him look hotter in Danny’s eyes. He didn’t waste a moment taking Jake into his mouth, the saliva that had pooled inside once the thought sprang into his mind helping ease him in.

“Fuck Danny” Jake tossed his head back, trying to focus on lasting longer than he did last night, though that might be an impossible feat considering how good it felt already.

Danny hummed around him, swirling his tongue over him and tasting all he could before bobbing his head down and hollowing out his cheeks. Jake moaned and shuddered, the feeling of wet and warmth so overwhelming yet so intoxicating he felt like he was getting drunk on it.

“I’m gonna cum” Jake warned this time, his voice sounding absolutely dazed and fucked out making Danny only more eager to get him there.

He squeezed his leg, his silent approval to go ahead and let go. Jake twitched wildly against his tongue and then his mouth flooded. Danny swallowed around him, trying to keep from making a mess like they had before.

When Jake calmed, Danny helped him down, retrieving his pants for him. He watched with a smug smile on his face while Jake made himself decent again.

“Don’t look at me like that, I’m a little out of practice”.

“Oh? I thought it was because I was just that good” Danny jested capturing Jake in his arms again and pulling him against his chest, pressing his front against him so Jake could feel just how hard he was just from going down on him.

Jake wouldn’t say it aloud, but Danny really was good. It was so good he feared he wouldn’t get enough. Some carnal beast had been awakened in him and he welcomed the challenge to prove to Danny he could withstand much more. “Do you want to go back to bed?”

“You keep asking me like I’m going to say no” Danny chuckled, letting go and following Jake back to their sea of thirst, and desire, and lust.

Tags: @lipstickitty @gracev0609 @lyndz2names @sanguinebats @kultavalo

[A/N: yes that was another reference to Hozier]

#Greta van fic #Greta van smut #gvf #danny wagner #jake kiszka #janny gvf

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dalekofchaos · 9 months ago

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Life Is Strange fancast(new)

Already did a LIS fancast before, but since some of them were too old, I think it's time to do a new one

my other LIS fancasts

LIS BTS fancast

LIS 2 fancast

LIS TC Fancast

Thomasin McKenzie as Max Caulfield

Sophie Thatcher as Chloe Price

Kristine Froseth as Rachel Amber

Elle Fanning as Kate Marsh

Wyatt Oleff as Warren Graham

Reneé Rap as Victoria Chase

Austin Abrams as Nathan Prescott

Aaron Eckhart as William Price

Robin Wright as Joyce Price

Ving Rhames as Principal Raymond Wells

Yvette Nicole Brown as Michelle Grant

Douglas M. Griffin as Samuel Taylor

David Harbour as David Madsen

Norman Reedus as Frank Bowers

Bryan Cranston as Sean Prescott

Dewon Sawa as Mark Jefferson

Barbie Ferreira as Alyssa Anderson

Brianne Tju as Brooke Scott

Jacob Batalon as Daniel DeCosta

Ryan Potter as Evan Harris

Jenna Ortega as Stella Hill

Jolie Vanier as Dana Ward

Kelli Berglund as Juliet Watson

Ross Lynch as Luke Parker

Charlie Rowe as Justin Williams

Noah Centineo as Trevor Yard

Stefanie Scott as Taylor Christensen

Tiffany Espensen as Courtney Wagner

Mason Gooding as Hayden Jones

Justin Prentice as Zachary Riggs

Because of tumblr's new layout with the 30 picture limit, I cannot add more pictures, so here's the rest.

Dylan Minnette as Logan Robertson

Angourie Rice as Samantha Myers

Mischa Collins as Skip Matthews

Mark Hamill as Travis Keaton

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cdyssey · 7 months ago

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Elsbeth (1.06) Thoughts:

someone on Elsbeth sure thinks that “thanks, boomer” is current fkwoowowksjsjs

HELLO LESBIANISM!!!!!!!!! HELLO?!!!!!!

NILES FROM THE NANNY?????????

JAYCUB

I love the way that the show uses a lot of classical music. “Lacrimosa” for the murder is excellent.

Vanessa is absolutely serving.

The little nod Kaya and Elsbeth give each other!!

Elsbeth calling Vanessa stunning + all the compliments she gave to Jane Krakowski’s character. I know what you are, ma’am!!!

“Not gut feelings from women who wear polka dots over the age of fifteen.” FOUL FJSNDNS.

Elsbeth hastily shutting the laptop and then ensuing beat with Kaya… Kaya’s got her number.

God, I love that Elsbeth is nice, but that’s not the same thing as kind. When it comes to people underestimating or dismissing her—like the detective on this case—she’s willing to be cutting when she needs or wants to.

KAYA ON THE TABLE.

YOU CONSTRUCT INTIMATE RITUALS TO TOUCH THE SKIN OF OTHER WOMEN!!

FLEKFJJDDJ, the sequence of Elsbeth fidgeting in the waiting room. She is so endearing

“VIVA LA VIDA” ORCHESTRA!!

Vanessa’s wife is so pretty. Carolyn??

Their first date being a Coldplay concert lmao

Elsbeth’s ensemble in this sequence is stunning. The black jacket and the golden accents. The amber shirt with that bow. I’m so envious of her wardrobe

Holy SHIT, this consultation scene… Vanessa touching Elsbeth’s face… Elsbeth touching her spleen and leaning close to Vanessa. And then Vanessa touching her face again!!! That’s some chemistry right there.

It’s notable that Kaya doesn’t sell Elsbeth out to Wagner.

Niles from The Nanny again! I love him. I love his voice.

Lmao, elsbeth climbing through the Alice statue. That’s exactly what this character would do, and I love that Carrie + the writers know that.

Oooogh, Wagner possibly covering up sweatshops + Kaya following Elsbeth to the park.

Awwww, Elsbeth sneaking up behind Kaya was adorable.

Elsbeth trying to corner Wagner… and Wagner subtly threatening her… I’m really interested to see where this plot takes us in the future. I presume it’ll all come to head around finale time.

Lmao, I love how Coldplay is figuring into this plot

Elsbeth bodily moving Detective Edwards out of the way AKAKAKJSN

Vanessa and Elsbeth trying to power play with their teacups!!! This episode has made it clear 2 me that Elsbeth needs a recurring rival whom she has homoerotic tension w/

“She even took out the recycling, which she never, ever does.” Fkwkdjjwnsjs

“But they’re custom.” STONE COLD. AGHHHSHSHSA, I LOVE HER SM

Elsbeth immediately going to hug Carolyn is the kind of touch that makes her a stellar character.

KAYA AND ELSBETH MODGEPODGING TOGETHER!!!

OMG, KAYA CONFRONTING ELSBETH AND TELLING HER THE TRUTH. Elsbeth worried about Kaya being subpoenaed

“But I’m coming to you… my friend… instead.” 😭😭😭😭😭😭

Kaya is so visibly shaken by the revelation. The entire foundation on which she’s built her career might be a lie.

ELSBETH REACHING OUT FOR KAYA’S HAND!!!!!!!

Oh god, this is my favorite episode so far

#elsbeth #s: elsbeth #maggie blogs #wow that was excellent #I’m having so much fun #only half of this post is coherent #the rest is just me screaming about women - sorry

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stardustbarbarians · 6 months ago

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Feet First, Don't Fall

A Daniel Wagner / Samuel Kiszka fic

Summary: Before a set, Danny and Sam blow off some steam.

Tags: fluff, younger Sam and Danny, shenanigans

Trigger Warnings: drug use (weed)

Words: 9.3 k

Author's Note: Heyyyyyyyyyyyy I'm back. So, this one has been in the works for about half a year and I'm super proud of it. If y'all remember back in like 2022, Shadow said that he was told to keep an extra close eye on Danny and Sam because they have a tendency of trying to run away, this fic was inspired by that. Another note: Sam and Danny are, like, 19ish in this. As usual, this fic is dedicated to @ofthecaravel because she was my biggest cheerleader for this fic <3. Title taken from Halsey's Roman Holiday. As always, please enjoy! <3

+++

Sam was fucking tired. Not physically, of course; the three espresso shots flowing through his veins made sure of that. But, this was the fifteenth show they had played in the past month. Mentally and emotionally, he was trucking along on E, and even the fumes he was running on were starting to get stale. There were only so many times he could play Highway Tune before he wanted to bite through the strings of his bass.

Currently, the four of them were lazing about in the makeshift green room of the festival they were about to play. It was a white tent with clear plastic cut-outs to mock the sanctity of a window. The tarp did not breathe at all and there was only so much that the small opening at the front could do. Sam could feel the hair at the back of his neck sticking to him, making him want to scrape all of his skin off his bones and throw it into the wash. He was trying his best to stay his heat stroke with a crude fan he folded out of a printed out drink menu, laying bonelessly across three folding chairs.

He felt rather than saw when Daniel came up to him, kneeling down next to him. Sam wasn’t exactly sure why, but he was always finely tuned to be aware of Danny whenever they were in proximity of one another. It was like his own personal, internal Danny-Radar.

“Hey,” Danny leaned over to Sam, his brushed out curls tickling the skin of Sam’s arm.

Sam wasn’t at all startled by the intrusion on his dramatized suffering. The bassist just lazily opened his eyes to find that Danny was leaning over him, a glimmer of mischief flickering in those rich amber eyes. Sammy glanced down momentarily to see there was a smirk playing across Danny’s lips. Sam knew that look, it meant he was scheming.

“What are you planning, Wagner?” He hadn’t meant for his voice to sound so starstruck. Though, if he was being honest, he wasn’t surprised by his tone much.

Danny didn’t respond. Verbally, anyway. All Daniel had to do was look over at the opening of the tent and back at Sam. That smirk on his lips grew just a tad bigger, making something shift in Sam’s stomach.

Immediately, Sam felt his lips break out into a smile once he put it together. It was as if Daniel had read Sam’s mind; it was exactly what Sam needed. They had hours before their set, might as well blow off some steam.

“How are we gonna get past security? They’re on high alert after last time,” Sam whispered, trying his best to make it seem like they weren’t scheming.

“Last time” had consisted of the two of them slipping away under the not-so watchful eye of security and setting off a shit-ton of fireworks in the parking lot of the hotel they were staying at. There wasn’t any damage done, however the rest of the guests weren’t appreciative of their free tickets to a fireworks show at three in the morning.

“You doubt me, Francis?” Daniel had a playful look in his eye that made his smirk grow into a full smile. That strange feeling was back in Sam’s gut.

“These are the professionals, Robert. Lou was practically child’s play compared to these guys.” Sam motioned over to the very professional security guard that was standing sentry at the door. Even if he wasn’t wearing that tight shirt with “security” printed across his chest, you’d be able to tell what this guy’s profession was. He even wore those ridiculous wrap around sunglasses.

“Just follow my lead.” And before Sam could question him, Daniel was off.

With a sigh of resignation, Sam peeled himself off the chairs he rested on to follow after Danny. He disparagingly departed with the fan he folded. Something told Sam he would need both hands for whatever their future held.

When it seemed that Danny thought he was going too slow, he grabbed Sam’s wrist that was hanging at his side and started dragging him along faster. And, yeah, maybe he was dragging his feet a little, but he really didn’t want to go out in the ninety degree heat again.

Daniel ducked out of the tent opening, Sam mimicking him when the flap nearly smacked him in the face. The evening sun was still blinding as Sam made the mistake of looking directly at it, blinking dumbly as he tried to clear the dark spot burned into his vision. He relied solely on Daniel’s guidance to weave through the crowds of other musicians and various press people.

They only made it a few steps before they were caught. And just when Sam thought Danny’s “just go for it” approach was going to work.

“Hey! Where do you two think you’re going?” The voice was loud, projecting over all the other din around them. It was gruff, too. Another point towards Sam’s argument that this guy was really just a walking cliche. If he turned around and this man had either a sucker or a toothpick hanging out of his mouth-

“Sam isn’t feeling good. I was taking him to the medic’s tent,” Daniel smoothly lied, tugging his friend in close to his side. Normally, the extra body heat would make Sam want to hiss and pull away, but being pressed into Danny’s side didn’t bother him at all, it seemed.

Picking up on the clue Daniel dropped, Sam schooled his features to how he imagined he looked when he was sick. He pulled his brows together, pinching his eyes slightly and pursing his lips. His final touch was when he brought his hand up to his forehead. He hoped he looked pathetic enough to garner sympathy but not so bad as to make it seem like he couldn’t perform later on. When he finally looked up at the guard, there was a fucking toothpick hanging from his lips. Sam had to suppress the urge to scoff out a laugh, biting his cheek hard enough to sting.

Forcing himself to look away from the toothpick, Sam looked over the man’s body language. He noticed a very small but noticeable shift in the guard’s gait as Sam looked at him through his lashes. Sam had known how effective his puppy-eyes were… had used them more than once to manipulate his way into getting what he wanted. Or in a few rare instances, getting out of trouble. So, what good were they if he didn’t break them out for this instance.

Sam wasn’t sure if it was his stellar acting or the pleading eyes that made the guy break, but Sam was just glad it worked at all.

“Alright, go ahead. But make sure you’re back in time for your set,” the guard dismissed. Sam could hear Danny let out a sigh of relief next to him. Guess he really was just winging it.

“Will do,” the drummer quickly responded, using the hold he still had on Sam’s wrist to swiftly tug Sam away from the guard before he changed his mind or saw through their ruse. They disappeared into the crowd, Daniel making sure to be swept up in the hustle and bustle of the festival happenings.

After he was sure they were out of sight, Sam began giggling, the thrill of getting away with something they shouldn't be bubbling beneath his skin. Sam couldn’t help but jump at the excitement mounting in his veins, a bright and brilliant smile making his cheeks hurt with the force of it. Daniel was matching his level of elation, albeit a little more subdued.

“Now that you’ve gotten us out here, what’s our next move, boss?”

“Great question, Sam. Truly, one that deserves a good pondering in order to answer-”

“You’re making this up as you go, aren’t you?” Sam cut off with a laugh, feeling his smile growing so wide that he flashed his bottom teeth.

Daniel looked over his shoulder at his best friend, a dazzling smile of his own spread across his lips. Time seemed to slow. And Sam, if he weren’t being pulled along by Daniel, would’ve stopped dead in his tracks. The bassist felt as if his heart was about to burst out of his chest as he took in the sight of that vibrant smile that made the skin around Danny’s eyes crinkle and his nose scrunch. Though it was brief, Sam could see his eyes twinkle with the light of the sun that beat down on them all, yet he seemed to somehow tame within his beautiful irises. Perhaps it was because the sun found a kinship in Daniel that it was willing to spend a moment captured within his soul. Sam’s breath caught in his throat, frozen alongside the rest of time. This always seemed to happen, that pause between seconds, when Daniel flashed that smile at Sam. And every time, Sammy wasn’t entirely certain he would survive.

“Yep! But it’s gotten us this far, hasn’t it?”

That was what finally broke Sam out of that trance. That, and Daniel directed his head away from Sam so that he could see where he was walking. And while Sam adored Daniel’s smile, he was glad he wasn’t directing it at Sam anymore. It always did strange things to his heart that Sam wasn’t equipped with the ability of parsing out the meaning of. Although, it was equally as likely that it was those 3 espresso shots he’d drunk too.

“By the skin of our teeth,” Sam shot back, attempting an annoyed tone. He was betrayed by his own voice, the words coming off as lighthearted.

“Oh, c’mon, Sammy,” Daniel had stopped short, leaning into Sam’s ear as he spoke, so fucking close to Sam’s neck and cheek that he had to fight off a shiver shooting down his spine, “since when are you afraid of getting into a little trouble?”

Danny pulled away to give Sam a challenging smirk, something dark yet playful gleaming in Danny’s eye. He had used a deep tone, keeping his volume low when he murmured into Sammy’s ear. Sam’s face felt like it was scorching, blaming the burning sun that had been overly warm all day long.

“You’re losing your nerve, Kiszka.”

Sam sputtered at Daniel’s challenge, taking major offense at the remark. Lost his nerve…

“Excuse you, sir, who out of the two of us has been booked?” That only made Danny’s mischievous smile grow, much to Sam’s chagrin.

“Yeah, and that scared the hell out of you. The Sam I know would already have us busted out of this joint,” Daniel goaded, hardly able to keep his grin out of his tone. And, listen, Sam knew he was being played. He knew that Danny was just saying shit to rile him up. But…

“That so, Wagner?”

Sam ripped his wrist out of Danny’s hand, completely forgetting they were still connected until that moment. He felt strangely cold at the loss of contact, frankly baffled that that was even possible considering the baking sun.

He forced those thoughts away from his mind, rapidly scanning his surroundings for a way to escape the hustle and bustle of the festival. And that was when his eyes landed on the golf cart stationed next to a tent filled with snacks and water. Sam felt a grin of his own spread across his lips, an idea popping in his head like a lightbulb going off.

“Follow my lead,” Sam quoted, a mocking of Daniel from earlier, leaning into Danny’s personal space to whisper the words under his breath. And Sam swore to himself that he saw Danny shudder, but… that made no sense. They were both sweating their asses off in this heat wave, why would Danny be cold?

He filed that away for later and nudged Danny’s shoulder with his own, walking past him towards the snack tent. He briefly glanced over his shoulder towards Daniel to quickly bounce his eyebrows at Danny with a playful smile pulling at his lips. That snapped Danny out of whatever spell he was under as he shook his head and hurried after Sam.

As Sam walked into the food tent, he realized he should have a plan. But, hell, Danny didn’t have a plan and he was able to get both of them past security. So, Sam just decided to wing it and pretend like he had a plan. To look cool. Not because he was trying to impress Danny. That was ridiculous and childish. No, he was a rockstar and rockstars always look cool so he should act like one.

And so Sam decided to walk up to the man who looked like the supervisor and the one who would have the keys to the golf cart and… and flirt with him, he guessed. He really had no fucking clue what he was doing, he just hoped he looked like he did.

“Man, I heard the snack selection here was good, but they never said you would be on the menu.” Sam flashed his most devastatingly charming smile he could, raking his eyes up and down the, frankly, average looking white man looking for the keys to the golf cart under the guise of checking him out.

The man, halting mid bite of an apple to look over at Sam, only for his eyes to go wide in panic as he hurriedly finished his bite. Juice from the fruit was dripping down his chin, which Sam caught a glimpse of before the guy turned around and wiped it with his sleeve. Sam felt his face curl up in distaste, catching Danny’s eye from where he was stationed at the entrance of the tent, confusion pinching his face.

What are you doing?! Danny mouthed, his hands raising in question as he gestured to the supervisor.

Go stand by the cart! Sam mouthed back, flapping his hand quickly and emphatically at the aforementioned golf cart. He quickly had to plaster on that charming smile again as the guy turned to face Sam, the juice from the apple gone and the fruit also missing.

“Y-You’re Sam Kiszka,” the guy stuttered out, his eyes still wide as he looked at Sam. So he’s a fan… Sam could definitely work with that.

“Sure am, sugar. And who do I have the pleasure of talking to right now?” Sam purred, internally cringing at the tone he employed. But, he had a job to do and he wanted to impress Da- himself. He wanted to impress himself. Nobody else.

“Uhhh…” the man seemed to freeze as Sam took a step closer to him, running a hand down the man’s shoulder to his chest, pinching the lanyard around his neck that held a set of keys on them. The man’s eyes glanced down at Sam’s hand, his face changing color.

As he was distracted, Sam chanced a glance over at Daniel, checking to see if he was where Sam had told him to be. And there he was, stationed by the golf cart with his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face- wait. Why was he scowling? There was no reason for him to be so upset-

“Luke. My name’s Luke,” the guy, Luke, finally answered, a nervous laugh following the words. Sam had to suppress the urge to make a face as Luke’s breath wafted over his face. It didn’t smell bad or anything, it just unsettled Sam that he was so close.

“Ooooh, like Luke Skywalker? That’s such a cool name, I’ve always loved the name Luke and I always thought it was super sexy,” Sam flirted, really laying on his accent thick. He was certain he was starting to sound like one of those Valley Girls as he pitched his voice up just a bit, complete with twirling his hair with the hand not still touching Luke’s lanyard. He even went so far as to giggle after he spoke, knowing he was really putting it on.

“Oh, really? Because… that’s who I’m named after!”

Liar

“Oh my god!” Sam giggled again, leaning in closer to Luke, “you’re soooo funny!!”

“Yeah,” Luke breathed out, his confidence swelling due to Sam fluffing up his ego, “I’ve been told that a time or two.”

“I bet all the ladies fall over themselves just to get a piece of you.” Sam was lying through his teeth at this point. Luke was about the most mediocre white guy you could picture. It was as if someone had gone into the sims and attempted to make the most generic white adult male possible and they ended up with Luke.

“W-Well… I wouldn’t say that…” Luke scratched the back of his neck nervously, sending a shy smile Sam’s way. And while Sam had no attraction to this man whatsoever, he had to admit, that smile was kinda cute. In like an endearing way.

“Well, they’re just missing out.” Sam leaned in just a bit closer, his nose nearly brushing Lukes. His heart was pounding in his chest, the beat sounding like thunder in his ears. He knew what he had to do to get those keys; Luke wasn’t so easily distracted that he was about to be ok with Sam stealing from him without a very good distraction.

And that was when he screwed his courage to the sticking place and closed the distance between them. Luke made a surprised noise as their lips connected, Sam having to suppress one of his own. He’d never kissed someone with facial hair before and it was a surprising sensation. It only lasted for a few seconds; seven, to be exact. Just long enough for Sam to slide his hands to the back of Luke’s neck, unhook his lanyard, and toss the keys in Daniel’s direction. It was… a strange kiss. Sam decided he didn’t like it. Not because it was a man he was kissing, but because he kept trying to push his tongue into Sam’s mouth and Sam really wasn’t having it.

Sam pulled away, pushing down the powerful urge to shove the guy for trying to take it too far. And, well, Sam guessed he kinda had himself to blame for that one since he was the one who initiated all of this and was heavily flirting. And then he heard the golf cart turning on, which he knew Luke didn’t hear judging off the dazed look he was shooting Sam.

“What was that?” Luke breathed, his tone incredulous as he stumbled a step towards Sam. Sammy ripped his gaze away from the stunned man, seeing Daniel aggressively waving his hands at his best friend to get his ass over there.

“A distraction,” Sam answered, sending a wink towards Luke as he ripped himself away from his touch and bolted towards Danny.

He laughed rancorously as he jumped into the passenger seat and told Danny to step on it, gravel crunching as the wheels spun on the ground before jolting forward. Sam, forever a little shit, turned in his seat and waved at Luke with a smile on his face. Sam couldn’t help but laugh at the stunned and distressed look on the man’s face as he watched two rockstars set to perform in two hours speed off with his golf cart.

“That was some stunt you pulled, Sam,” Danny complimented, though there was this strange undertone to it that Sam couldn’t quite place. But it was… well, Sam didn’t want to say “dark”, but that was the only thing coming to his mind.

However, he was too high off the adrenaline of successfully pulling off a stunt that he improvised on the fly to care. He hollered and whooped as they sped off towards the exit, throwing his hands in the air.

“How’s that for nerve, Danny boy!” Sam grinned, knowing he went above and beyond Danny’s little taunt.

“Gotta admit, I didn’t think you had it in you, Sam. Color me impressed,” Daniel admitted, a smile on his face that matched his words. And that totally did not make Sam’s heart do a flip inside his chest. Because he was not trying to impress Danny. Sam wants to make that blatantly clear. He’s not.

“Remember this the next time you doubt me,” Sam chirped, settling his hands behind his head in an act of cockiness.

Daniel just laughed at Sam’s theatrics, his head tipping back with the force of it. Sam’s smile faltered at the way his heart tumbled inside his chest at the noise, how it felt as though the organ was jumping for joy at the sound. See, that was a major motivator for Sam, getting Daniel to laugh like that. Despite the fact that it made Sam’s heart just about explode inside his chest, he’d do just about anything to get Danny to laugh as boisterously as he just did.

“Yeah, yeah, lap it up, Sam,” Daniel dismissed, that laugh still intertwined with his words and leaving a bright smile on his lips. Sam watched raptly as Daniel’s hands deftly navigated the wheel of the cart, his lithe fingers he knew were littered with calluses sliding and wrapping around the textured black plastic. He had to forcibly remove his gaze away from Danny’s hands in fear that he would be caught staring, feeling his cheeks heat at the realization that that was absolutely what he was doing.

“So-” Sam cleared his throat, the tone coming out high-pitched, “So, what now?”

Daniel quickly glanced over at Sam, a whisper of the devious grin slipping back onto his features. Maybe Sam ought to lay off the caffeine… that had to be why his heart kept skipping a beat inside his chest.

“I heard there’s a spot not far from here that has a killer view of the sunset… and, who knows? Maybe you can use your star-power to get a few of these people around here to give us some free weed.” Once again, the words Danny spoke were light-hearted as usual, but that dark undertone from earlier was back beneath them.

Once again, Sam decided not to look too deep into it in favor of preening at the implication that Sam had “star-powers”. “Just point me at the right person and I’ll charm the pants off them.”

Sam had laughed at that.

Daniel didn’t.

+++

“I’m still baffled at how you were able to rob that man blind of his entire stash of pre-rolls,” Daniel coughed, handing the joint off to Sam, bringing his free hand up to bring his shirt over his mouth to catch all of his hacking. He kinda wished Sam had used his flirting powers to con some water from someone; his throat was burning.

“Never underestimate the power of batting your eyelashes, Daniel,” Sam flippantly responded, patting Danny on his back before taking the joint from him.

Daniel thought back to what Sam meant by “batting his eyelashes”, the exact look Sam gave that guy burned into the back of his eyelids. He wasn’t exactly positive why that doe-eyed, pleading look from Sammy as he did, in fact, bat his lashes as he begged silently for the guy to hand over his pre-rolls stuck with him. There was just… just something about the way he looked up through his lashes, making his already large eyes even bigger as he pouted his lip just barely and knit his brow. It had awoken something deep inside Daniel that now refused to be quieted or satiated despite Danny’s best efforts to silence it. It manifested in a whisper in the back of his mind that seemed to simply point out the obvious. Like, currently, that voice was murmuring in his ear how beautiful Sam’s eyes looked in the burning light of the setting sun, how the pinks and reds of the clouds reflected onto his skin and made it seem as if he were blushing. Or, how his glittering smile was the crowning jewel of the moment, outshining even the grace of Mother Nature in that moment. And, frankly, Danny was at a point where he wasn’t sure if it was the weed that was making him dizzy anymore.

Daniel returned Sam’s smile, weak and brief. He felt his heart flutter within his ribs, absently placing his hand atop his chest where it resided. He skirted his gaze away from Sam, opting to burn his eyes with the sun rather than with Sam; it was less painful. However, as his mind drifted back to a half an hour ago, Daniel realized his heart was going to lurch inside his chest regardless.

“Hey, man, nice flag,” Sam complimented, his voice low and sultry. Daniel, who was sitting in the driver’s seat of the cart, felt his hand involuntarily clench around the wheel at the tone Sam employed. His mouth went dry, his tongue feeling too big for his mouth.

The guy with the aforementioned flag turned on his heel, his eyes lighting up as he took in the visage of Sam. The flag that he had tied around his shoulders like a superhero cape was of the American flag with one minor tweak: a gigantic pot leaf slapped right in the middle of the red and white stripes. Sam, who was currently setting his features to look more sensual, had taken to draping himself against the bar that supported the roof of the golf cart. Daniel could only see the back of him, but the way Sam leaned his forearm onto the metal beam and let the rest of his body go liquid gave him away.

This was certainly a new development, Sam using his wiles to get what he wanted. Well, Danny shouldn’t say “new”. Sam had always gotten what he wanted through whatever means necessary. But, using his good looks and sex appeal to get what he wants? That was brand new. Like, he just started that today brand new. And, frankly, Daniel wasn’t all too thrilled to be there to witness this new development first-hand.

“Wanna c’mere and see it up close and personal?” Flag Guy asked, his eyes raking over Sam and all his long, lean lines appreciatively. There was no misinterpreting his tone, nor the smirk that gave him a shark-ish look. It made Daniel’s skin crawl, his lip curling up in disgust on its own accord.

Sam, going along with the plan of getting free shit, giggled. And, god help him, started using those long, beautiful fingers that were adept at playing bass and keys, to play with a lock of his silky hair. Daniel wanted to slam his head into the steering wheel hard enough to crack his skull. He couldn’t believe Sam was essentially whoring himself out all in the name of getting free drugs.

“You come over here, cowboy,” Sam ordered playfully, a bubbly laugh intertwined with his command. He lifted his free hand up to beckon the stranger over with a sly curl of his finger, a smile to match probably pulling up the corner of those pretty lips- Hold on. When did Daniel start calling Sam’s lips pretty?

The stranger obliged without qualm, practically kicking up a dust trail behind him with how fast he was high-tailing it. Danny watched him adjust the stars and stripes cowboy hat on his dirty-blonde mess of curls before he “turned on the charm” and leaned into the golf cart with a hand resting on the roof. That shark-like grin was back on his lips, and so was Danny’s sneer.

“Well, you’ve got me here now, pretty darlin’, what did you want with me?” the stranger drawled, a southern accent that Daniel had not heard the man utilize until now dripping off his words. Lust was gleaming in his dark eyes as he towered over Sam, hiding absolutely nothing of what he was thinking. It made Danny want to rear back and punch the guy’s teeth in so hard that he was shitting them for weeks.

To Daniel’s absolute horror, he watched Sam’s hand reach up to curl its fingers around the knot in the flag around the man’s shoulders. When it was in place, Sam yanked him down so that his face was just a few inches away from Sam’s. And that was when Daniel was able to see Sam’s face for the first time since he started this whole disturbing charade. His lips were pulled back in a sultry smirk, one so searing they were certain to leave a mark. His eyes were hooded, the lids only open at half mast as they gazed lustfully at the stranger’s lips. It simultaneously made Daniel’s blood simmer with a heat he didn’t quite understand and make his stomach drop to the ground as his skin went cold. It was worsened by the fact that, when he looked over at the stranger, he was giving that look right back to Sam.

“This,” Sam answered, his voice low and husky, before he used his hold on the man’s flag-cape thing to tug him forwards enough to close the distance between them.

If Daniel had a nickel for every time he watched Sam kiss a man in front of him and it caused a confusing amount of rage to flood his system… Well, he’d only have two nickels. But it was infuriating that it happened twice… within the hour. And when the stranger’s free hand went to tangle into Sam’s hair, Daniel had to force himself to look away. The rage that had flooded his system turned white-hot, his blood boiling beneath his skin. He felt his jaw clenching so hard it made his teeth gnash and squeak as he ground them, his grip on the steering wheel so hard that he felt his nails nearly break the skin of his palm.

“Holy shit,” the stranger breathed under his breath, signaling to Danny that they had finally broken away from one another. Danny still couldn’t look at them. Instead, he elected to look dead-set out the windshield.

Sam giggled again, making Danny’s jaw clench even tighter.

“Yeah?” Sam asked, his tone light and airy.

“I mean…” the stranger let out a whistle that made Daniel want to slam his head into the side of the cart and run him over. How fucking dare this guy.

Sam - really setting out to test Daniel’s patience, it seemed - giggled once more. “Can I ask a favor of you?”

“After that? Anything.” He had dropped the fake southern drawl.

“You wouldn’t be willing to give me any of your weed, would you?”

Sam’s tone made Daniel turn his head towards him. And he regretted it immediately. Sam had taken to looking up at the guy through his lashes, a pleading flavor to the knit in his brow. Once again, it made something stir deep within Daniel’s gut that he didn’t quite understand; it was equal parts lust and jealousy.

Jealousy??

And when Sam had started to bat them, Daniel couldn’t stop the low growl that slipped out of his lips.

That was when the stranger turned to look at Daniel for the first time, seemingly just now realizing that Danny even existed. And, well, to be fair to the guy, if Sam was coming on that strong to Danny, he’d block out the rest of the world, too.

…..He would??

“Is… Is he ok?” the stranger asked, flicking his eyes over at Danny to indicate to Sam who he was talking about.

Sam looked over at Danny for the first time since Sam had begun this flirtation and… Danny couldn’t help the breath that got caught in his throat as he trained those puppy eyes onto Daniel. Truly, they were every person’s kryptonite.

When Sam turned his head back to face the stranger, his fingers still wrapped around that stupid flag, Daniel felt as if he could breathe again.

“My driver? He’s fine,” Sam waved away, quickly putting that pleading mask back onto his face. He took his bottom lip between his two teeth, further batting his eyes at the stranger. “Now, back to what I asked?”

With a deep chuckle that made Daniel’s rage grow, the stranger reached into his back pocket and pulled out three cardboard boxes about the size of Danny’s finger. His eyes never left Sam’s as he handed them over, but jerked them away when Sam went to grab them.

“It’s gonna cost ya,” he muttered, his forehead practically touching Sam’s. Daniel was not plotting the best way to locate this guy after their set and break all of his bones for taking advantage of Sam like that. He really wasn’t. He also wasn’t thinking of how to convince the twins to distract Sam for him while also giving him an alibi while he disposed of the body.

But, before Danny could even open his mouth to tell him that that comment would cost this scuzzy man his life, Sam once again planted those soft and full lips onto the undeserving man’s lips. Make that three nickels.

At least this one didn’t last as long as the last one. Within a second or two, Sam was disengaging with the man’s lips, to Danny’s relief. Though, it only slightly quieted the fiery rage boiling his blood.

“Now, that’s something I can get used to,” the stranger purred, making Danny’s restraint snap.

He hadn’t even realized that he had enacted a plan to save Sam as he reached across the vacant seat that his best friend once occupied, grabbed him by the back of the shirt, and yanked him back down into the golf cart. Sam squeaked in both surprise and protest as he was forcefully sat down onto the plush vinyl seat.

“No, you fucking won’t,” Daniel growled, all but baring his teeth as his grip tighten around the red patterned shirt Sam wore. It was a nice shirt on Sam, the color red always lovely on him. And the way he wore it, nearly completely unbuttoned and loosely draped around his frame, complimented him. Daniel had to will himself not to get distracted by the expanse of tan skin across Sam’s collar bones that reflected the golden hour sunlight.

Sam, as he glanced over at Daniel, seemed both bewildered and… and turned on? Was that lust that Daniel saw simmering in Sam’s eyes? But, when Danny blinked, it was gone. So… maybe he didn’t see it.

“Daniel?” Sam asked, gentle and soft. It made Daniel’s skin tingle.

“We’ve got what we need, let’s go,” Danny whispered to Sam, trying his absolute best to keep his… his jealousy (might as well admit it at this point) out of his voice.

When he knew Sam was safe inside the cart, Daniel floored the accelerator and sped away from that creep as far as he could. He could hear the man’s protests as they took off, but they were soon drowned out by Sam’s giggling.

“Daniel?”

Danny was ripped out of his thoughts, his eyelids batting rapidly to help clear his head of the memory. Looking over to see Sam’s soft, teasing smile certainly helped jumpstart his heart; the poor organ just about lurched up into his throat at the sight. And, of course, the wind decided that just that moment was the perfect time to pick up. Sam’s satin locks billowed around him in a halo, some of it getting caught in his lips. And because of that, Sam giggled in between sputters to rid his mouth of the foreign substance. He finally reached up his free hand and pulled the hair from its temporary prison, full on laughing at the ridiculousness of it; the weed probably aiding Sam’s giggly mood.

Daniel was certain he was going to have a heart attack at this rate. It could not be good for the poor thing to be beating so hard and fast for so long.

“Hello?”

Danny’s attention finally snapped to Sam rather than on him, the drummer forcing himself to pay attention and not get distracted by Sam’s artistry.

…Come to think of it, he had to do that a lot, actually. Like, this was far from a new development. Damn, how did it take him this long to realize-

“What, Sammy?”

“I asked you what you were thinking about!” The bassist ashed the joint, his feet kicking out under him. Danny, after racing away from the weed creep and flying past the entrance security before they could be stopped, found this gorgeous clearing that overlooked the waves of the local lake that burned with the colors of the vibrant sunset. Sam was the one to climb onto the roof of the golf cart first, calling Danny a pussy in no unclear terms for having reservations about doing that himself. As always, Sam was easily able to goad Danny into doing whatever he wanted. At this point, Daniel was certain he was unable to say no to Sam.

Jesus, he had it bad.

Daniel, panicking just a bit at the question Sam posed, hastily searched his surroundings for an answer that wasn’t the truth. Because telling Sammy that he was stewing in jealousy over watching his best friend kiss someone else was pretty fucking damning.

“Swimming,” Danny blurted out, his face heating up in embarrassment under the expectant look Sam was giving him. He darted his eyes between the bassist and the waves lapping at the shoreline about ten feet below them. As soon as the word left his tongue, Daniel had wanted to dive right into the water and swim away. It was so obviously a lie that even he knew it.

“Hmm,” was all Sam said in response, his eyes finally leaving Danny. Finally, the drummer felt like he could breathe again. He knew Sam didn’t believe him, but he was letting Danny get away with the lie.

It fell silent between them, the void of voices only awkward on one side of the conversation. Wordlessly, Sam passed the joint back to Danny. Their fingers brushed and Daniel felt utterly ridiculous for how his breath caught in his throat at the touch, his cheeks burning once more. He quickly busied himself with bringing the filter to his lips, the skin of his fingers buzzing with warmth and fervor. He should’ve been concerned that that humming spread to his lips as he touched them, but he was trying his absolute best just to shove it from his mind; just like how Sam had kissed two people today. And we’re back at square one.

Daniel held the smoke in his lungs for longer than what was probably healthy, exhaling through his nose in order to get that extra bump. At this point, anything was worth getting that nervous and jealous seething from his blood. Danny figured that if he got high enough, that thrumming would be replaced by the hum of the weed. And maybe, just maybe, he’d be able to keep Sam from his thoughts for a moment. He knew it was a fool’s errand and that getting as high as he was would bite him in the ass later. Because, let’s face it. There was no forgetting Sam Kiszka.

“Sam?” Daniel was sure he had drawn his name out, the syllable being pulled from his dry tongue like taffy. Danny had to suppress his giggle at that analogy, forcing himself to stay focused.

“Yes, Daniel Dearest?” How was he able to always be so smooth and calm??

“What… What’s it like, y’know… kissing a guy?” The drummer’s heart was pounding so hard in his chest he felt the vibration of it throughout his entire body. He was just proud of himself for keeping his voice steady.

Out of the corner of his eye, Daniel saw Sam turn his head to look at his best friend. He wasn’t brave enough to return the look. Instead, Danny brought the joint back up to his lips and pointedly kept his eyes trained on the fading pinks of the sun on the horizon.

With a soft giggle that did nothing to slow Danny’s thundering heart, Sam adjusted his posture so that he was leaning back on his hands, his head lolling to the side as he rested it on his shoulder.

“It’s not all that different from kissing a girl, really,” Sammy answered, that easy-going attitude slipping into his tone. Truly, Daniel envied Sam’s ability of nonchalance. What he would give to have even a fraction of that right now.

“No?” Danny prompted, stealing a glance towards the bassist for long enough to notice the wind had taken to playing with his hair once more.

“Nah, not really. I mean, there’s stubble and facial hair that you’ve gotta live with, but it’s not uncomfortable. And, I mean, that last guy was in some desperate need of chapstick.” Sammy had swiveled his head to fully look at Danny again, a blindingly charming flash of his teeth as he nudged Danny with his shoulder. That was another thing driving Daniel absolutely mad: the two of them were close enough to be constantly brushing one another, but left just enough space to have deniability.

Danny knew Sam was going for comedy, but all he managed to do was reignite that resentment inside Danny.

“Yeah, I bet.” Daniel really did not mean for his voice to come out so flat and toneless, but he supposed it was better than the alternative.

Once again, it fell quiet. This time, Daniel felt that awkwardness radiating off both of them. Without so much as a glance, the drummer passed the dwindling joint back to his bandmate with a set in his jaw. And when their fingers touched again, Danny held his breath until the feeling passed and willed himself to ignore it.

Despite the calming lull of birdsong, crashing of waves, and the warm fingers of the summertime breeze tracing along their exposed skin and nuzzling their hair, the drummer was far from soothed. His plan of getting completely stoned to feel numb was failing. As he felt his irritation rise to a level that was far from acceptable, Daniel forced himself to take some deep breaths and focus on all those placating things he listed earlier. He allowed his jealousy to leak out of his every breath to be carried away by the wind, to drift away into the fading sunlight and disappear along with the sun as it dipped its sleepy head below the horizon.

Sam had puffed out a breath of his own, the intoxicating smoke billowing from his plush lips before he tossed what was left of their glowing roach of a joint into the trash bin off to the side of the clearing. His surprised laugh at making the bin rang out against the sky, similar to the calls of the gulls screeching above their heads; though, Sammy’s was more melodic and joyous.

“Why do you ask?” Sam suddenly asked.

“What?” Danny turned to face his best friend, confusion swirling with the smoke in his head.

It must’ve shown on his face because Sammy broke out into another fit of giggles after looking at Danny. What he didn’t know was that Sam had to laugh. If he didn’t he’d do something ridiculously stupid like tell Daniel how much he loved him. And that simply wouldn’t do. So, instead he laughed.

“My god, you can’t focus today!” Sam kept laughing, hiding his smile with his fingers. A shame, Daniel thought to himself.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. What do you want my excuse to be? The heat, the weed, or the dehydration?” It was Daniel’s turn to nudge Sam with his shoulder, feeling his nose scrunching up with the force of his laugh.

“All three are acceptable,” Sam decreed, running his hand through his hair as he spoke, “But, seriously. Why did you want to know what it feels like to kiss a guy?”

Suddenly, Danny didn’t feel like laughing anymore.

“Oh, I was just… curious…” To Danny, the most interesting thing in the world was his wringing hands. He simply could look nowhere else but at his calloused hands as they danced with one another.

Despite the fact that Danny was not looking at him, Sam knew those downturned, amber eyes had their attention trained onto him. He could feel them.

“Daniel… have you never kissed a guy before?”

Danny swore that his heart ceased beating inside his chest for a full second. Honestly, he was expecting this question to surface as soon as he, rather dumbly, asked after the feeling of kissing someone of his same gender. He guessed he finally truly understood the meaning of “curiosity killed the cat” as the silence between the two of them stretched on and on as Daniel failed to find his words. And perhaps he hadn’t perished, but it felt as if he was about to the way his heart was erratically fluttering under his ribs.

The drummer spared a glance in Sam’s direction, immediately regretting it as he met Sam’s expectant eyes. He darted his gaze away in record time, swallowing harshly at the way his blood ran cold.

“You and I both know the answer to that, Sam.”

He still couldn’t look at Sam, feeling like he’d much rather be run over with the golf cart they were perched on instead of having this conversation. Because, even though he wanted to know, he knew what this line of questioning implied: that he wanted to know for himself what it was like.

“......That was my first time kissing a guy myself.”

Daniel couldn’t help stealing a glance over at Sam once more. He wasn’t sure why that little tidbit of information was so shocking to him. Of course that was Sam’s first time kissing a man. They lived in rural Michigan where everyone knew everyone’s business; if someone so much as thought a gay thought, the whole goddamn town knew. Even barring that, Daniel knew everything about Sam. It shouldn’t have been a surprise… So why was it?

“Great. Glad you got that experience.” Danny’s tone was clipped to his own ears. He felt his brow knit as he forced his eyes downward, watching the breeze tickle the long blades of grass under his dangling feet. He was certain he was glaring at it so intensely that the poor foliage was about to catch fire.

“Yeah… It was pretty nice…” There was a dreamy, far-off quality to Sam’s voice. It only added fuel to the pyre of Daniel’s jealousy.

The conversation died out there, Daniel just allowing it to fizzle out instead of acting on his impulse to lash out at Sam. He knew this anger was misplaced and was bred from a place of envy, which was an entire can of worms that he didn’t want to open yet.

“Why?”

Daniel didn’t even look over at Sam.

“‘Why’ what?”

“Why do you want to know what kissing a guy is like?”

And there it fucking was. The question that Danny was praying Sam wouldn’t ask. The one that had an unspoken answer that Sammy likely already knew the answer to. So, out of spite and embarrassment, Daniel elected to ignore it. He even elected to ignore the way Sam’s stare was boring into the side of Danny’s head. Daniel even ignored the way his ears started to burn as his antagonism was melting away while his embarrassment increased.

“Danny…?”

Daniel finally broke, the heat of humiliation now scorching his cheeks as well. He locked eyes with his best friend, being greeted with a playful yet knowing smile. It was the most dangerous look that Daniel had ever seen on Sam.

Daniel wasn’t particularly a religious man. But, he was now praying that Sam would find it within himself to spare Daniel and let this moment go.

“Why do you wanna know?” Sam repeated, that wicked grin spreading to his eyes, causing them to sparkle with mischief.

Even if Danny had wanted to answer that, he was fairly certain he was incapable of finding the words to. Because truly, how do you tell the person that you’re in love with for years the truth?

Well, shit. Guess we’re fishing with worms tonight, boys.

After a beat of Danny opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water, Sam was the one to finally speak again. He started off with that stoner giggle of his, which was never a good thing for Danny.

“Well… would you like to know?”

Immediately, panic set in. This was a joke… right? It had to be. No way in hell was Samuel fucking Kiszka, Daniel’s stupid crush of five years, asking Danny what he thought he was. Danny had never been that lucky in his life. Why would he be so fortunate now?

Before he even realized it, Daniel was shaking his head, wide-eyed and frozen like a startled horse. The weed was not helping things, either, only aiding in amplifying his panic. A million thoughts raced through his head like a maelstrom of anxiety; all of them relating to how Daniel had just fucked up his entire life and relationship with Sam with one stupid question.

Sam, seemingly totally oblivious to the soul-crushing dismay Daniel was experiencing, just smiled even wider at Danny. If anything, that mischief in the bassist’s eyes only doubled.

“Well, that’s just too damn bad, Wagner. Because you’re gonna learn today.”

And before Danny could even say anything, let alone process what Sam had said to him, he felt hands intertwining with his curls at the back of his head. Within the blink of an eye, Sam had his lips pressed against Danny’s. Their noses were smushed into one another’s cheeks, Sam using too much force in his haste. Sam’s exhale from his nose was uncomfortably warm, practically scorching against Daniels’ sensitive skin.

Despite all of that, Daniel felt as though he achieved nirvana. Truly, there was nothing in the world that he would trade for this moment. Once he had managed to get over his petrifying panic, Daniel all but melted into the kiss. He wanted so badly to wrap his arms around Sam and pull him tight against him. The urge was so strong that Danny felt his hands lurch forth onto Sam’s waist on their own accord, startling himself and Sam as they both let out a yelp.

That was when the panic set in. Suddenly, Daniel realized what was happening. That he was sitting atop a golf cart with his best friend, kissing one another as if it was something they did all the time. And they were both high as hell. They didn’t know what they were doing.

I should stop this

Daniel, a little reluctantly, attempted to pull away from Sammy. But each time Danny tried, Sam would tighten his grip on his curls and pull him back against his lips.

It was ridiculous. It was sloppy. It was intoxicating. And before long, all of the fight was sapped right out of Daniel’s spirit by the hands of Samuel’s astonishingly soft lips.

Once Sam realized that Daniel was done resisting him, that was when he slowly guided the drummer forward. Danny was so swept up in the disbelief of the moment that he failed to realize what Sam was doing. It wasn’t until he managed to finally break away to catch his breath that Danny noticed that Sam was on his back beneath him.

He wanted to ask “what are we doing” or “how did we get here”, but as Sam gazed up at Daniel with large, pleading eyes, all the words dried up in his throat. He couldn’t help but drink in the sight of Sam, taking in every detail of him and committing it to memory so that he might have a comfort for his darkest hours. His eyes flitted from one detail to the next, taking inventory of all the little things someone less in love might call “frivolous”. But to Daniel, he was nothing but a mere unworthy devotee luckily blessed with the opportunity to worship something so precious as the pink of his lips, or the flutter of his lashes.

Daniel was caught staring for too long, watching as Sam’s eyebrows drew upwards in confusion.

“What? Why are you staring at me like that?”

You’re gorgeous you’re wonderful you’re amazing you’re stunning you’re perfect I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I-

“Nothing,” Danny laughed off, “no reason at all.”

Sam joined in on Danny’s giggling, that brilliant smile spreading across his lips as the sweet melody of his laugh danced through Danny’s ears. Daniel couldn’t help it. He just leaned down and captured Sam’s lips with his own again.

There weren’t any fireworks or any crazy light show that went off as they kissed. It just felt… right. As if they were always meant to be doing this; like how it feels when you drink water when you didn’t even realize you were thirsty. And as they continued, the kiss gradually escalating, Daniel couldn’t help but picture them doing this all the time; whenever they wanted to.

Daniel did have to put a stop to their escapade when he felt the bassist’s deft fingers attempt to slip beneath his waistband, snapping him out of the fog that had clouded his mind.

“Woah, baby, slow down,” the drummer rushed, huffing in air as he tried to catch his breath.

Sam just responded with a pout on his kiss-swollen lips and a pleading look in his eyes. Danny couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the absurdity of it.

“Sam, we’re in a public space on top of a golf cart. We can’t be doing that.”

“But I want to,” Sam whined, cocking his head as he spoke. He even went so far as batting his lashes at the drummer.

Heaving a huge sigh, Daniel knew at that moment that no matter what, he truly would never be able to say no to Sam. He glanced around at the surrounding area darkened by the lack of sun, smiling at himself as he watched a firefly blink its light right next to his head.

“Tell you what,” Danny leaned back from his position of caging Sam in with his arms, extending a hand to Sam to help him upright, “how’s about we head back and try and find a more private place.”

Sam’s pout was replaced by a slow-growing sly grin. With a nod of his head, he leaned in close to Danny’s ear to whisper “I’d love that.”

Daniel returned his grin, fighting off a shiver as Sammy’s warm breath ghosted across his neck. But beneath the warm excitement buzzing in Danny’s veins was a nagging feeling that he just couldn’t ignore.

“But, I feel like there was somewhere else we were supposed to be tonight…”

As Daniel trailed off, they both heard the roar of thousands of festival goers as the strum of a power chord sailed across the expanse of miles. Suddenly, the pair of them tensed in place as they were reminded of their previous obligation.

“Oh my GOD. We have to be on stage,” Sam yelled as panic took hold of them both.

They scrambled off the roof of the golf cart, breaking down into a fit of giggles as they glanced at one another. When their eyes met, there was an unspoken agreement that they would pick up where they left off as soon as they could. And while Daniel floored the accelerator, Sam nestled himself against his best friend’s side while Danny wrapped his arm around him.

They would figure this out, and they would be incredible together. But first, they had to be rockstars.

+++

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