#Anyways I missed them I heard the audio and thought about it all day at work

[keyslox]

silly childhood jelqduo au animatic

[raw-lesbian-energy]

The Promening

Summary: Prom arrives and everything goes wrong.

Fandom: Murder Drones (The Explorer Drone AU)

Pairing: Sera-V, mild Nuzi

Features: Self-Insert Character

Word Count: 7,058

Warnings: Mild cursing, murder, dismembered body parts, violence, brief cannibalism

A/N: Sentences between “{ }” brackets are in Russian (so whenever Doll is speaking lol)

—————————————————————

It had been three weeks since the incident with the eldritch snake-crab that had been J, and Uzi was still as gloomy as ever. At first, she had just been upset about N, but now prom was coming up, and the teen wanted to do anything but attend it.

She already knew her dad wouldn’t let her skip, even though she had made her hatred for the event clear. She refused to look at any dresses, avoided anyone on the committee, and tuned out any talk of the event. No one was going to ask her to go anyways; Thad would’ve been the only possibility, but he already had a date.

She was drawn from her angsty thoughts as her internal clock reminded her of the time, making her realize she was going to be late for school. As much as she wanted to just stay home, she knew her dad wouldn’t tolerate it, especially since she had missed a lot already from her time at the spire with N. The thought of him made her gaze wander up to the ceiling covered in papers, her eyes focusing on one particular sketch among them. It was a very badly drawn sketch of her and N, but Uzi could still tell effort had gone into it, which made guilt churn in her core. This guilt made itself heard as she let out a long groan, already sure this would be a very long day.

——————

Seraph idly tapped her pen against her cheek, her brows furrowed as she got lost in her own head. A lot of things had occurred over the week since she had talked to V, but what had most of her attention was the fact students had suddenly started going missing.

Of course her first instinct was to ask V, but she could tell the murder drone hadn’t been responsible, and N didn’t seem vicious enough to do it by himself. She decided to turn to the school’s security footage instead, but all cameras at the crime scenes had been scrambled, which left her with nothing to work with.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by a frustrated groan, drawing her gaze over to where Uzi was sitting. The purple-haired drone was crumpling up a piece of paper, tossing it haphazardly at the recycling bin before grabbing for a new piece. Only after a few moments did she crumple that one as well, and Seraph noticed her pile of paper was quickly growing smaller. A frown crossed the teacher’s face at the sight, and she quietly got up from her desk, grabbing some more papers and walking over to her. She reached Uzi’s desk just as she was crumpling her last piece, her shadow drawing her attention up.

[You okay?] The text blipped onto Seraph’s visor, helping to avoid drawing the other student’s attention. Uzi’s scowl only deepened in response, her gaze turning away as she grumbled something the teacher couldn’t hear. Seraph decided not to push further, instead silently setting the papers down and retreating back to her desk. She could feel Uzi watching as she moved, only sparing her one last glance before sitting down and returning to her own work.

After what felt like forever, the final bell rang and the students quickly got up to clear out. Seraph calmly watched them go from her desk, though she kept her focus mostly on Uzi. The purple-haired drone had haphazardly thrown her papers between the pages of her notebook, trudging out of class with her head hanging low. The explorer drone made no movements to follow, instead focusing on cleaning up her own space first before stepping out of the classroom.

“Maybe I should have a talk with Khan about her…” she thought, turning to head back to her unit. As she began the walk, however, a psychotic-sounding laugh suddenly reached her audio receptors and she stopped, turning around to see Uzi pulling the missing persons flyers off the bulletin board down the hall. She promptly skipped away with them, still laughing, abandoning her books and backpack in the middle of the floor as she left.

“…Okay, yeah, that talk needs to happen now.” Seraph determined, quickly moving to grab Uzi’s discarded stuff. A few of the pages came loose as she picked up the teen’s books, revealing them to be covered in the strange symbol Seraph had seen on Uzi’s first project. She had no idea what the symbol meant, but she chose not to dwell on it as she finished packing Uzi’s things and headed for the Doorman unit.

She made a quick stop at her own unit to put away her belongings, but just as she re-emerged, she saw Lizzy and Doll walking away with an annoyed Uzi in tow. The sight alone made her both confused and concerned, and as soon as the three were out of earshot, she promptly went to the Doorman unit for answers.

Knock knock knock!

There was a few seconds of silence before the door slid open, and Seraph was greeted by a cheerful-looking Khan gazing up at her in surprise.

“Seraph!” He exclaimed, his chipper tone matching his expression. “I wasn’t expecting you. What can I do for you?” Seraph’s expression flashed with concern, but she promptly corrected to a more calm face.

“I’m here because I need to return Uzi’s belongings.” She stated, holding out Uzi’s bag. Khan’s eyebrows raised, and after a moment, he took the bag back from the brunette.

“Oh, thank you.” He said, though hesitation flashed across his screen. “Did she, uh, forget it in your class?”

“Actually, she left it out in the hall.” Seraph admitted, her concern showing more clearly now. “She had… abandoned it, to take the missing persons posters off of the bulletin board.” Khan’s brow furrowed at her words, his grip on the bag tightening somewhat. The action caused a stir of guilt in Seraph’s systems, and she let out a small sigh.

“Mr. Doorman,” she started again, “I feel like you and I need to have a talk about Uzi.” Khan met her gaze with a quizzical look, though Seraph could see the underlying worry in it.

“What about her?” He asked.

“Well,” Seraph took a breath, “Her behaviour compared to the other students is… concerning. She’s kept isolated, her classmates don’t treat her well, and if I try to ask, I’m met with very short and cold responses. All in all, I’m worried about her.” Khan blinked, and the same flash of worry passed over his expression, but he kept neutral.

“I see.” He replied. “Well, I did talk to her other teacher, and two of her classmates will be taking her to prom tonight. That should help her be more social!” He gained a hopeful smile as he spoke, while Seraph’s expression gained an edge of disbelief.

“You mean Lizzy and Doll?” She blurted. “They’re the two that bully Uzi the most.” Khan’s smile dropped at her response, and Seraph felt her guilt double almost immediately.

“Mr. Door-… Khan,” she tried, taking a gentler tone, “I want to help Uzi, and I’m sure you do too. But forcing her into things, and worse forcing her with people she does not get along with, is only going to hurt her.” Khan’s expression flickered with regret at her words, but he managed to steel himself, meeting her gaze once again.

“Well, if that’s the case, how about you come help chaperone the dance tonight?” He suggested. “That way we can both keep an eye on Uzi and make sure she has a good time! She honestly could use some better role models too…” his voice wound up trailing at the end, but his words made Seraph’s expression soften a bit.

“Well, I’ve been assigned as a chaperone anyway.” She admitted. “I just need to get my outfit on, but I’ll meet you there.” Khan perked up in response, and the gleam of hope on his screen helped ease Seraph’s guilt a bit.

“Sure, sounds good!” Khan said, sounding more excited. “I’ll see you there, then!” Seraph nodded and waved as she left, heading back to her own unit next door. Her outfit was already laid out on her bed, and she took a moment to look it over before taking her day clothes off to put it on. It slipped on her easily, and as she looked into the mirror to adjust her top hat, she couldn’t help but feel a small tug in her processors.

“I wish V could’ve come…”

Seraph froze, eyes hollow as she stared at her reflection. She quickly shook her head to clear the thought, as well as stop any others like it from forming.

“Come on Seraph, you know better than that.” She muttered. “V can’t come because she would cause a school-wide panic. The students’ safety comes first.” She glanced back at the mirror again, taking a breath to clear the small blush on her screen before fixing her hat one last time. Feeling as ready as she could be, she headed out of her unit, turning down the hall to head back to the school.

——————

Meanwhile, back at the pod, V was growing increasingly annoyed at N. His sulking had reached a whole new level, and it was taking all her willpower not to jump from her chair and chop his head off. But she still had him believing she was chained down, so she kept herself seated.

Her new plan was to have him to free her, and with Seraph having told her about the prom, she saw a perfect opportunity. Given his inability to catch enough to eat, she hoped that he might just be desperate enough to go along with it.

First step was to have him get them nice outfits, which he had done with surprising efficiency. A full black three-piece suit for himself, and a lovely strapless red dress for her. She had to admit, he had an eye for fashion. Now all she had to do was convince him.

“We can’t interact with the workers anymore, V.” N told her. “We’re too dangerous.”

The response made her eye glitch. She had hoped he would’ve been more compliant, but she wasn’t giving up easily.

“Uh, exactly.” She replied. “We show up, fabulous, the sad purple one lets us in- cause she has no friends- we kill everyone and pop her little head off.” She kept a casual and proud tone as she spoke, but N still remained unconvinced.

“I’m not freeing you for prom murder, V!” He argued, growing louder as he spoke. “J went holo-spooky snake crab, and we maybe grew up in a haunted mansion!” He stepped closer, grabbing the back of her chair and getting much too into her personal space for her liking.

“Aren’t you worried we have no idea what we even are?!” He near shouted. She was quick to shove him away, her chair spinning in the process and leaving her with her back facing him. The pod fell silent for a moment, and V felt an expression of worry cross her screen, her gaze shifting to the broken mirror on the wall. She remembered how it shattered when Uzi looked into it, how that cursed symbol had flashed on the worker’s screen and vanished again.

“Promise me you and that purple thing will stop prying into that stuff.” V spoke at last, her voice softer now. N didn’t reply, and through the fragments of the mirror, she could see a concerned look etched on his screen.

“If you free me now,” she tried instead, turning her chair back to face him, “I promise we’ll only kill what we need to survive. Just you and me, N.” N’s gaze flickered over to the key on the console, but he made no move for it, instead looking back at her.

“…What about Uzi?” He asked. V’s expression quickly shifted to annoyance.

“She’s a worker, N.” She replied, her tone growing stern. “We can’t bring her along.”

“And what about Seraph?”

V froze, her eyes turning hollow as a shot of panic rushed through her systems. N was looking right at her, his expression showing nothing but sadness and hurt.

“I heard you two talking the other day.” He spoke again. “Were you planning to leave her here too?” V hesitated, her gaze flicking away for a moment before she steeled herself.

“She doesn’t matter to me.” She lied, folding her arms. N’s saddened look deepened, though it now held an edge of sympathy.

“Are you sure?” He asked. V glared at him coldly.

“Yes, I’m sure.” She spat. Despite her harsh tone, N could see she wasn’t telling the whole truth. It wasn’t the usual anger he saw from her, her shifting gaze and tightly folded arms making her seem almost afraid.

“V…” he hesitated, trying to find his words, “…if you’re hiding something, we can figure it out together.” There was a somewhat hopeful tone in his voice, and V’s stern expression cracked slightly. A brief flicker of panic went across her screen, though N didn’t seem to notice.

“Even if we each only have pieces,” he continued, “please, what do you kno-”

His sentence was cut short as V swung her sword, slicing his head clean from his shoulders. His body stumbled and collapsed against the wall of the pod, and V stood before him, a mix of sadness and guilt on her screen.

“What’s best for you.” She replied. “Even if you hate me for it.” She gave him a quick salute in an attempt of respect, then grabbed the red dress and flew out of the pod hatch to head for the bunker. She knew N would be angry when he woke up, but she couldn’t let him stop her. This had to be done, one way or another.

——————

“Any sign of her yet?”

Khan and Seraph stood by the wall of the gym, looking out into the crowd of drones. Prom was in full swing, with many people chatting and dancing, but neither chaperone had seen Uzi yet.

“Nope, still no sign of her.” Seraph answered Khan, managing to keep her voice steady. Khan frowned, his gaze turning to the clock on the wall to check the time again. Seraph felt a pang of sympathy as she watched him, already having a feeling Uzi was skipping but not having the heart to say so.

“Hey, I’m sure she’s fine.” She tried reassuring him. “Maybe her dress tore and she’s just looking for a way to fix it.” Khan looked up at her, managing a small smile in thanks for her efforts, but all attention was quickly drawn as a spotlight was activated and Lizzy walked out on stage. The sight of her alone made Seraph’s concern for Uzi increase, but she kept quiet as Lizzy stepped up to the mic and grabbed it.

“Okay, listen up, nerds.” She spoke, her voice carrying through the gym speakers. “We’re doing this a little early, but since the entire prom court mysteriously disappeared, your queen by forfeit is, uh… this.” As soon as the words left her mouth, a figure landed behind her on stage, kicking up a small cloud of dust. Their body was obscured in the shadows, but there was no mistaking the haunting glow of their bright yellow LEDs.

Panic swept over the crowd, and Seraph felt time stop. The frantic cries of the students were muffled to her as she stared up at V, in a strapless red dress, poised and ready to kill. She only briefly looked away to see Khan, who also had a terrified expression, his body frozen as he watched the scene onstage.

“Easy, judgy-bots.” Lizzy’s voice cut over the crowd, drawing Seraph’s attention. “V’s my friend. She’s done with the murder or whatever, we’ve been hanging!” As she spoke, a projector screen rolled down from the ceiling, the projector displaying various photos and selfies of V and Lizzy. Seraph looked up at each of them as they flashed by, feeling a storm of emotions flood her processors. She still couldn’t bring herself to move either, watching as V walked up to the front of the stage.

“Yes, best friends.” She said, her voice carrying that same sadistic tone Seraph heard when they first met. “So easily manipulated~” Her psychotic laugh soon echoed through the gym, her claws switching out for guns when she suddenly froze.

“Prom queen?” She blurted. Everyone in the gym fell silent, and Lizzy managed an awkward smile in response. Another girl then stepped on stage with a crown, causing V’s expression to twist with embarrassment. Seraph felt her thoughts and emotions stop short, the realization that V was being crowned prom queen rendering her completely confused. Lizzy, however, was quick to regain composure, taking advantage of the silence.

“So, forgive and forget, or I’ll get my dad to dock your frickin’ grades!” She snapped. “And you can’t sit with us, Rebecca!” The blonde pointed into the crowd, the spotlight falling on another drone with blue hair and purple bangs. She was momentarily stunned by the sudden attention, but her expression soon turned angry.

“Fine, I forgive her!” She snapped back, folding her arms. “Settle.” This response prompted many of the other drones to relax, murmuring their agreements and even applauding for V.

“Clap harder, losers!” Lizzy shouted. The crowd quickly erupted with applause, cheering and chanting for V to give a speech. This was enough to snap Seraph out of her shock, and she soon started to move, weaving through the students to try and get to the stage.

V, who was still recovering from the awkward situation and the crown being placed on her head, was quick to notice Seraph in the crowd. Her core stuttered for a moment at the sight of her, guilt rushing her processors as she saw her expression. She retracted her wings and claws without thinking, a flash of fear for how she looked making her move to the front of the stage.

CRASH!

Everyone froze as the roof of the gym suddenly caved, with N and Uzi landing a few feet behind the crowd of students.

“Unhand them, you fieeee… eend?” Uzi’s bold tone soon turned uncertain as she stared at the crowd. “I’m confused.” Seraph also found herself confused, but in the moment of looking back, she noticed a flash of red out of the corner of her vision. She turned to see Doll standing there with a murderous grin, her hand poised strangely, and the symbol that the teacher had seen on Uzi’s drawings was glowing at her fingertips. Doll pointed her hand right at V, and that was all it took for Seraph to know that something horrible was about to happen.

“On second thought, you’re way hotter than Doll.” Lizzy suddenly blurted, panicking. “Run, idiot!” V hardly had time to process the words before Doll closed her hand into a fist, a wave of energy rushing through the crowd at the disassembler. Metal bars shot out from underneath the stage, two piercing through V’s arms and another through her left leg.

At this, panic ensued.

Drones began screaming and running, scrambling in every direction to escape the new threat. The gym doors locked, trapping everyone inside. V struggled to escape the bars, sounds becoming muffled as panic took hold. Lizzy was tossed like she was nothing. The other drone’s neck was snapped, her body crushed into oil. Everything was happening so fast, and she was helpless to stop it.

“{Hello, V.}”

The voice cut through the fog like a blade, and V’s gaze snapped forward to see the worker responsible. Doll glared at her with nothing but hatred, and before V could speak, a wave of pain overtook her as memories from someone else were forced into her vision. A small droneling hiding in a cabinet, watching as V herself caught and killed two adult drones, laughing maniacally. The memories vanished as quickly as they came, but it was all V needed to realize why this drone was out to kill her.

“{Anyway, you get it.}” Doll said, her right eye glitching from normal back into the symbol. Another metal bar stabbed through V’s stomach, causing her to choke as oil spurt from her lips. Seraph’s eyes hollowed at the sight, and without even thinking, she rushed forward and grabbed at Doll’s arm.

“Doll, that’s enough!” She tried, though her voice was far more panicked than she wanted it to be. “Please, this won’t solve anything!” The symbol disappeared as Doll focused her attention on the taller drone, her expression looking scarily bored.

“{Seraph. The one teacher to actually care.}” She said, her calm voice even scarier. “{This is not something that concerns you. Please, do not interfere.}” Before she could respond, Doll’s hand once again lit up with that symbol, and Seraph felt an invisible force grip around her waist. With shocking strength, the brunette was thrown backwards, slamming into the gym wall with a choked cry. The sound of groaning metal followed, and by the time Seraph could focus again, she had been pinned against the wall by twisted metal beams.

Horror flooded V’s systems at the sight, but it was instantly replaced by rage. With a growl, she wrenched her right arm free, switching her hand for a gun and firing right at Doll. The navy-haired drone hardly blinked. Her eye flickered, the bullets bouncing off a force field. With a flourish of her hand, a large kitchen knife appeared, launching forward and slicing V’s free arm clean off. V gasped in pain as her arm went flying, everyone else watching from the sidelines in horror, including Uzi and N.

“Holy crap, what is she doing?” Uzi blurted, turning to N.

“This isn’t what I expected at all!” N replied frantically. There was a beat of hesitance afterwards, but he spoke again, “I guess we should, uh….” he trailed off, but his intention was easy to read. Uzi let out a groan in response, but didn’t argue. Meanwhile, Doll had used her powers to tear down a ceiling fan, altering the blades to become jagged and sharper. With a flick of her wrist, the fan shot off, flying straight for V’s head.

V felt time slow as she watched the blade rush at her, her gaze turning away for only a second to see a pair of panicked violet eyes on the wall, watching helplessly.

“Seraph…” the name sent a wave of fear through her systems, “…if I die here, what happens to-?”

She couldn’t finish the thought as there was a sudden flash of motion, and N kicked the deadly fan off course. It wound up embedded in the ceiling behind them, and Uzi leapt out from behind V, kicking the knife from earlier right back at Doll. The red-eyed drone deflected it easily, and after a second, the symbol from her eye appeared on the locked gym door. The trapped students were quick to realize and rushed out, shoving Khan along with them as they made their escape. The older drone didn’t run though, instead watching the stage from the hall with a worried expression.

“{Uzi, you would really side with the Murder Drones?}” Doll spoke, a tone of betrayal in her voice. “{I’m not the only one who’s lost family to them.}” This statement caught both N and V by surprise, their focus quickly shifting over to Uzi.

“Bite me!” Uzi shot back. “Whoever started this wants us to fight! I’m not dealing with anything well, but…” she hesitated, her voice softening, “…I’m done dealing with everything alone.” Her gaze turned over to N, a small smile crossing her face as she met his eyes. N returned the smile, still looking mildly concerned, while V’s gaze once again flickered to the blip of purple light in the shadows against the gym wall.

“We move forward together, or not at all.” Uzi’s voice drew V’s attention again, a frown on her face as she looked over at the purple-haired drone. Doll, however, looked unamused.

“{Cute,}” she said, her tone soon turning annoyed, “{but I don’t need help.}” Her eye once again switched back to what Uzi recognized as the Solver symbol, and another metal beam erupted from the stage, stabbing through N’s leg. Using the opportunity, Doll tore two more ceiling fans down, launching them forward at high speeds. In a split second, Uzi was shoved aside, saving her as the blades sliced N and V to pieces.

“NO!” Seraph’s sudden scream was heard over the music, drawing Doll’s attention to her. The two drones made eye contact, and Doll’s cold stare caused Seraph’s core to freeze in pure terror. Doll reached into a back pocket in her dress and pulled out another knife, the older drone unable to look away as she raised it up…

…and was thrown off as a chair raced by her head.

Doll quickly turned her gaze, now glaring at Uzi from across the gym. The red-eyed drone took the opportunity to lock the gym doors again, ultimately locking Khan out of the gym as well. Seraph was hit with a flood of emotions as she looked down on the scene, feeling relief at not dying but concern for Uzi and fear for V. She couldn’t see either of the disassemblers now, just the pipes from earlier and a splatter of oil leading backstage.

Uzi, meanwhile, stood completely open in the centre of the gym, and Doll’s knife was now pointed at her. She had nothing within reach to defend herself, having already thrown the nearest chair, so when the knife was thrown right at her, she reacted on instinct. She held out one hand and winced as the blade pierced it, but was quick to recover, pulling it out and approaching Doll. Doll’s expression briefly flashed with surprise at Uzi’s move, but she didn’t let it stop her, readying her solver to use on Uzi directly.

--// ERROR: absoluteSolver_trn [like object non-interactive]

The note on her screen made Doll freeze, panic appearing on her face before she turned angry and pulled a third knife. She once again threw it at Uzi, but this time, Uzi merely deflected it and kept walking. Doll couldn’t mask her panic anymore, slowly backing away as she realized this fight had just gotten a lot more complicated.

Meanwhile, hidden behind the curtains backstage, N and V were working to piece themselves back together again. A severed arm slowly crawled towards them, prompting N to pick it up and look it over.

“Is this-?”

“Mine!” V snatched it from him before he could finish, holding the arm in her teeth. An angry scowl donned her screen, and N felt a mix of frustration and sympathy.

“Ew.”

Both drones looked up at the sudden voice, seeing Lizzy standing nearby. She was surprisingly unhurt despite having been thrown, and a mildly disgusted look sat on her screen.

“You look like garbage.” She told them.

“You freakin’ traitor!” V spat, her voice muffled by the arm still held in her teeth. Lizzy gave her an annoyed look, snatching the arm from her mouth.

“As if you weren’t using me to try and kill everyone, Ms. Petty.” She retorted, her gaze turning to the severed arm. “Where does this freaking go?” V held an angered glare, while N attempted to be friendly.

“Thank you, Lizzy!” He chirped.

“Shut up, loser.” Lizzy and V replied in sync. N quickly slumped back against the wall, silently hoping Uzi was at least doing okay.

From up on the wall, Seraph watched the fight anxiously, her eyes darting between Doll and Uzi. A stray knife stabbed into the light controls, causing the gym to become lit up in flashing rainbow colours. Doll grabbed the knife with her solver and threw it. Uzi flipped to dodge it. She landed back on stage, stopping the knife with her boot and kicking a microphone stand at Doll. Doll caught it with her solver, holding it before launching it back at Uzi and pinning her down.

“Crap!” Seraph managed to keep herself from shouting this time, but her panic had increased tenfold. Doll was duplicating knives now, and had several of them all pointed at Uzi still stuck to the floor. Seraph struggled hard, but the metal beams refused to budge, so she came up with a desperate plan and tried to copy the hand symbol Doll was doing.

“Maybe it’s an underlying code…” she flicked her hand as much as she could, but there was no glow, and no moving of metal to be heard. She quickly gave up, knowing it was no use, leaving her to watch helplessly as Doll went for the kill. Just as the knives were about to hit, a blur shot in front and the knives ricocheted off of N’s outstretched wing. Seraph’s eyes widened in shock, since the last she saw him Doll had dismembered him.

“Quit saving me!” The brunette could hear Uzi’s shout even from where she was, watching as N helped her to her feet before suddenly twirling her. Their movements quickly became a mix of a dance and an attack, moving together to counter against Doll and blasting her back with an explosion. The force shook the room and Seraph, a cloud of smoke briefly blocking her view as the fight below continued on. She could hear the sound of things being thrown, but it wasn’t until the smoke cleared that she saw Uzi kick Doll square in the face.

Doll was sent sprawling from the hit, the lights finally settling back to normal as Uzi landed and readied for another attack. Doll didn’t stay down long, getting back on her feet and readying her hand, pointing the solver symbol at Uzi once more.

BANG!

The shot echoed through the gym as Doll suddenly staggered, oil spraying from a large crack in her screen. Her eyes flickered before she collapsed, and behind her stood V, her right hand swapped for a gun and a piercing glare on her screen. Uzi, who had flinched from the shot, quickly met V’s gaze with a glare of her own.

“V! We-” Uzi hardly got to speak as V suddenly turned, unfurling her wings and flying up to the side wall. Seraph flinched at V’s sudden approach, eyes wide in surprise as the disassembler swapped her hand for a tool she didn’t recognize.

“Hold still.” Was all V said, and Seraph tensed as a loud hum started from the device and a yellow laser shot out. It sliced through the metal beams like they were nothing, soon falling away and freeing Seraph from their hold. The explorer didn’t even have time to fall as V grabbed her, holding her with a gentleness Seraph did not expect and flying her back down to the gym floor.

“I-I, uh… thanks.” She managed, before letting out a yelp as V smacked her upside the head.

“Don’t ever do something that stupid again.” She scolded. “She could’ve killed you!”

“Wh- me?!” Seraph exclaimed in a mix of surprise and offence. “I thought she had killed you! I saw you and N get sliced to pieces right on stage!”

“Please, I’ve survived worse.” V folded her arms, brushing off Seraph’s concern. “You, on the other hand-”

“A-hem!”

Both drones stopped arguing at the sound, turning to see Uzi and N staring at them. Uzi looked very annoyed while N looked surprised, and the realization that they’d heard everything made both Seraph and V look away.

“As I was saying,” Uzi continued, clearly frustrated, “we needed Doll alive for answers, V!”

“What?” V replied in annoyance. “She’s fine! Ah…” her expression changed as she looked down at Doll, seeing her lying still in a large puddle of oil.

“A little tuckered out…” V muttered, now mildly embarrassed. Seraph couldn’t take her eyes off Doll’s body, a mix of horror and sympathy swirling in her processors.

“V did that on purpose!” N suddenly exclaimed, snapping Seraph from her daze. “She’s hiding mystery stuff and being overdramatic about it!” V’s expression immediately turned angry.

“N, you suck!” She snapped.

“Both of you, shut it!” Uzi shouted, drawing all eyes to her. She glared the disassemblers down before her her gaze turned to an object on the floor. She knelt down to pick it up, finding it was Doll’s bracelet with a strange tag and a unit key attached.

“Lucky for you, we’re not done yet.” She spoke again, standing and holding up the bracelet. Seraph felt her concern rise, glancing over at Doll’s body, but chose to say nothing and merely followed as Uzi, N, and V walked out of the gym. Khan was waiting anxiously on the other side, his face lighting up when Uzi walked through the doors.

“Uzi!” He exclaimed, rushing over. “What happened in there? Are you-”

“I’m fine, dad.” Uzi interrupted him, annoyed. “We handled it.” Khan froze at his daughter’s words, his expression saddening as he stood there, unsure what to say. Seraph felt a wave of sympathy for him, walking over to put a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s good of you to care, Khan.” She told him, giving him a small smile. Khan’s sadness faded slightly at the reassurance, and he gave a small nod in response. His gaze turned back to Uzi after a second, and Seraph looked over to see annoyance, but also a mild twinge of guilt on the teen’s face.

“Uzi, maybe you should go back with your dad.” She suggested. “It’s been a long night-”

“No way.” Uzi cut her off, masking her guilt as she folded her arms. “I’m finding out what the hell was going on at Doll’s place, with or without you.” Seraph gave her a harsh look, but much to her surprise, Khan stepped in between them.

“It’s alright, she can go.” He said. “Just keep an eye on her for me, will you?” Seraph met the older drone’s eyes with worry, but Khan only smiled, giving her a small, sincere nod.

“Alright, if you insist.” Seraph relented at last. “I’ll bring her home myself later, okay?” Khan nodded again, his smile widening slightly as his gaze turned back to Uzi. Her annoyed expression faltered, guilt reappearing as she shifted her gaze away, but neither said anything as Khan turned and started the walk back to his unit. All four drones watched him go, and Uzi felt guilt stirring in her core before she shook her head to refocus.

“Come on, we have a unit to check out.” She said, starting off down another hall. N, V, and Seraph followed silently, with N and Seraph looking wary while V kept a bored expression. Soon enough they reached Doll’s unit, and a strong tar-like smell could be detected seeping out from under the door. Seraph recoiled slightly at it, but said nothing as Uzi used the key from Doll’s bracelet to unlock and open the door. It slid aside with a soft hiss, and the scent increased tenfold as the group stepped into the pitch dark unit. N soon found the light switch and turned it on, and all four drones looked at the kitchen with shock and horror.

The kitchen was covered with worker drone bodies, oil stained all over the floor and appliances. Scattered parts hung from hooks or were thrown in pots, with one arm laid out on a cutting board, and the upper half of one drone could be seen stuffed into a top cabinet. ‘FATAL ERROR’ shone in bold red letters on their visor, and both Seraph and Uzi felt a chill at the sight. The sound of metal clinking made both of them freeze, but their fear quickly vanished as they looked over to see V idly chewing on a dismembered arm.

“Ugh, self respect!” Uzi scolded, pulling the arm out of the murder drones’ mouth. V gave her an annoyed look before licking residual oil from off her hand in a fashion much like a cat would. Seraph watched the murder drone with a mix of concern and confusion, but promptly shook it off and silently headed further into the unit. She chose to check down the hall first, opening the door to the bathroom and finding the blood-filled tub and stack of mirrors leading up to the ceiling vent.

“…Well, that leaves more questions than answers.” She muttered. She looked back over as N pulled a sheet off of something at the dining table, revealing two more drone corpses that had been sat in dining chairs. Each of them had a bullet hole clean through their visor, their bodies posed in fear, and Seraph was quick to notice one of them had hair the exact same colour as Doll.

“I… think we found her folks.” N said quietly. Both V and Seraph walked over to look, though V seemed rather unbothered.

“Literally didn’t even taste that good.” She said casually, picking her teeth with one claw. N’s gaze fell on her, a mix of concern and disgust on his face.

“V, you kinda suck.” He told her. V only laughed, picking up one of the roaches with her claws.

“Yeah, I’m not doing okay.” She replied, eating the robotic insect. Her smile faltered as she felt eyes on her, and glancing over, she saw Seraph looking at her with nothing but worry. A sudden rush of guilt flooded V’s systems and she forced her gaze away, turning instead to watch as N helped Uzi climb over the kitchen counter to join them.

The purple-haired drone warily approached the two bodies, noticing a lanyard around the neck of who she could only assume had been Doll’s mother. With careful hands she lifted the name tag, showing a photo of the same drone when she was alive, accompanied by the number 048 and the name ‘Yeva.’ The bright red eyes in the photo only confirmed that the woman had been Doll’s mother, and Uzi couldn’t help but feel a twinge of empathy for her classmate.

A strange, quiet noise suddenly reached Uzi’s audio receptors, drawing her attention from the name tag. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked up to see Doll at the other end of the table, completely healed, and using her solver to point a bullet right at her.

“{Just in time for dinner.}”

BANG!

The sound of the shot faded, but no collision followed. Instead, the bullet had been caught, by Uzi, with her own solver power. All eyes were focused on Uzi now, each of them displaying fear, but Doll’s expression also showed sympathy.

“{I… I’m sorry for you…}” she managed, a genuine tone of worry in her voice. Uzi hardly heard her, still staring at the bullet frozen in front of her. Her solver soon deactivated and the bullet shot, swerving around her head and piercing through the glass of the window behind her. All eyes had followed it, but soon refocused on Doll, who was giving Uzi a saddened look.

“{If I find what I’m looking for,}” she said, “{I’ll help you too.}”

“What?” Uzi blurted, now even more scared than before. Doll didn’t explain further, her body starting to glitch and fade like she was a hologram.

“{I am sorry.}” She told her.

“Wait! Oh, don’t you dare!” Uzi shouted, but Doll was already disappearing. V leapt into the air and launched a rocket at the navy-haired drone. The explosion clouded the room in smoke, but as it cleared, there was no sign of Doll anywhere. Uzi let out a loud groan of frustration, tossing her head back and her arms up as she shouted.

“I hate it here!”

——————

Meanwhile, outside the bunker, the wind howled as a single worker drone made his way through the city. He scanned up and down the ruined streets, stopping only when he noticed something familiar sticking out of a pile of snow. Kneeling down, he brushed it aside to reveal the object, soon finding a pair of circular-shaped glasses.

“Oh, that’s where I left my excuse to be outside right now.” He said, straightening up and putting on the glasses. His vision became clear with the help of the lenses, and he turned his gaze up just in time to see something hurtling out of the sky right at him. He barely managed to dodge it as it crashed, part of it exploding and sending debris flying. The worker shouted at what he now realized was a landing pod, scrambling to his feet to make a run for it, but a second pod immediately crashed down in front of him and cut him off. He cowered as it exploded too, surrounding him in a ring of fire and debris, the flames roaring and crackling in the harsh wind.

A moment of silence passed after, but as the worker raised his head up, he heard more noise and saw a third pod coming down from the sky. This one didn’t crash, however, instead using its strange legs to slide down the sides of the buildings and land neatly in the street. The door of the pod opened a second later and a figure leapt out, brandishing a sword as they landed, reeled back, and sliced the worker’s head clean off.

His head flew in a high arc, oil trailing behind as it landed and rolled in the snow, his glasses landing on his face a second later. The attacker let the oil drip off of their sword, the light of the fire glinting off of the blade and illuminating them, revealing them to be human. A space helmet obscured their face, but a baseball cap and a bow sat on top, and a name tag was pinned to their suit with the name ‘Tessa’ engraved in it, along with the title ‘Certified Technician.’

“Righty-o, work to do.” Tessa spoke, sheathing her sword. “Eh, J?” At the call of her name, the disassembler emerged from the ship, flying over and hovering next to Tessa. She tossed a set of keys to her that the human caught easily, hitting a button on a remote and locking the pod behind them.

“Maintenance work.”

[cconfusedkat]

Shamura isn't stupid. They're generally more wiser and rational than the average follower. However, they tend to act a little stupid when it comes to their loved ones, often forgetting about their little quirks—forgetting that Lamb can resurrect themself, for instance.

The worst thing in the world is feeling like no one cares about you.

…The worst thing in the world is having too big of a heart for your loved ones, freaking out if you haven't heard from them for days—having to guess if they're dead or if your brain is tricking you again.

Lamb—Allure—sometimes has their moments of spiraling into self-doubt, affecting their abilities to take care of both their cult and their usually alone crusades. They often forget Shamura is relatively easy to upset when it comes to the ones they cherish most. After some time they got together, Allure took a couple days to resurrect themself due to the lack of resources they had while lost within Darkwood, and Shamura panicked for those three days; constantly bleeding ichor (despite now being a mortal) from their head which had been unhealed, scratching at themself, refusing to go to the mortuary in case they see Lamb's dead body and being forced to bury their spouse.

With their head ducked down in shame, feeling as if they were a terrible leader and nobody would miss them if they were gone (since Goat was already co-leader), Shamura was the first person to disrupt their work and immediately run up to Lamb while tears would form in their eyes.

absolute yapfest SORRY i just thought this audio was fitting for them and Allure worrying too much about Shamura vice versa if they ever accidentally die on a crusade and Shamura is left in distress til Allure revives

It's possible to resurrect dead followers, but it's impossible to resurrect The Lamb. They have to do that on their own all by themself. They feel embarrassed as time goes on, taking time to either regenerate or losing the ability to speak

,,anyways to make up for this i am putting the two together like barbie dolls to cope with this fact of allure wanting to die vs shamura having abandonment issues and *not* wanting them to die-

[scarletcomalies]

bigger than the whole sky

Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Word count: 5,438

Warnings: Angst, unspecified legal age gap. This is pretty much about Natasha being mourned over and remembered as she deserves. What better day to post than on her birthday?

On December 3rd, you recalled all the wonderful memories you had created with your partner.

June 18th, 2019

Half of humanity was gone.

Each day, you woke up to a world where the sun shone as brightly as ever, permitting the shadow of loss to darken every corner of the souls of the survivors of the Thanos blip. The familiar warmth faded, replaced by only a deep melancholy at the memory of what everyday life used to be. In the blink of an eye, your loved ones vanished, leaving you with the agony of their absence.

You were lost and desolate. You longed deeply to experience just a glimpse of everything you once took for granted, like calling your mother after a long day, hearing the murmurs of people at the coffee shop, or receiving a funny video from your best friend. Just something...

But nothing.

Word of mouth, you heard about a support group that Steve Rogers was leading. The world had become so vast, that breathing the same air as Captain America, with the Black Widow at your side, was no longer an unthinkable madness that would happen only in the most delusional mind. It was a reality.

There you were, realizing that you also had something in common with heroes of international stature. When they weren't all over the news, fighting right-handed in their intimidating suits, they were simply human beings who also wanted to be heard from time to time. They too had a right to break down.

"I..." you looked up, once it was your turn to speak. All eyes were looking at you expectantly, and Natasha Romanoff's eyes on you made your task more difficult. "Well, the barista at the coffee shop I go to informed me about this, uhm.... I'm (Y/N)."

"Hi, (Y/N)," those present responded in unison. The raspy voice of the woman next to you somehow resonated more in your ears than any other. What a woman. Not for nothing had you become interested in the news, only to see her fight so bravely. You always considered her a beautiful woman, and above all, a powerful one.

The only three friends you had always teased you about your crush on the Black Widow. And this alone made you feel worse. They would have loved to see you all flushed and nervous like you were at that moment.

"I remember hating crowds. People rushing around at all hours, often pushing and shoving," you began, looking down at the ground as you fiddled with your hands. "I hated the voices. Sometimes it was so loud that, between them all, they sounded like a swarm of angry bees," some had the strength to only half-smile at your silly analogy, others were unfazed.

Natasha's resilience turned out to be greater than you imagined, she demonstrated it on multiple occasions, but you experienced it live and in full color when she specifically let out a distinguished laugh. It echoed throughout the room, you could hear it loud and clear.

"I know, it was annoying." you said softly, directing your first words specifically towards the redhead, who by the way had a bit of blonde on the ends of her hair, indicating that the dye was fading. It looked beautiful on her. "Anyway," you redirected your attention to the others again. "I know a lot of people here hated that noise. We'd put on headphones so we didn't have to listen to anyone," you continued, and earned a nod of agreement from everyone present. "Well, now, I put my headphones on and play audio of people talking. I never thought I'd miss this, or that I'd miss being constantly pushed around, the voice of an annoying customer I have to deal with at work. Besides, everything is slowing down, nobody lives in a hurry anymore, and... well, I think you understand," you let out a nervous chuckle. You had no intention of rambling on too much about it, or you were never going to stop.

"Thanks for sharing," Steve said, giving you a small smile, that smile where he pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows.

Once the meeting was over, you let out a small sigh, grabbed your stuff and headed for the exit.

A voice stopped you as you stood on the other side of the door, causing you to turn and meet again those green eyes that looked so much more beautiful in person. Neither magazine pictures nor news cameras could capture that wonderful pair.

"I just wanted to ask you, if it's not too invasive," she spoke, as soon as you turned around. "Do you have anyone to talk to? Outside of this group, I mean."

"Anyone close? No," you answered honestly. It was the truth. Being highly selective had its consequences, as you were unlucky enough to lose your very few close loved ones; your three best friends, your mother, your aunt and your grandfather. Some family members, previous friends and even exes with whom you cut ties tried to reconnect, but the phrase 'better alone than in bad company' never applied better than in this case. "But if you're talking in general terms, even the person in line at the supermarket can be your confidant and support. You can imagine what it's like."

"I know," she agreed, and thought for a moment before adding, "In supermarkets, products expire before anyone buys them, but it's a good thing, it's an excuse to buy more snacks so they don't go to waste."

You let out a laugh. A full, genuine laugh, and wow... it was the first time in the last year that someone had made you laugh like that. It was a silly joke, yes, but in the midst of so much monotony, the spontaneity was a gift she gave you.

December 3rd, 2023

"You were in fact the only person who made me laugh," you barely managed to formulate the last words before you burst into tears for the fifth time.

Natasha would be turning 39. You both knew that aging was anything but a bad thing, yet she enjoyed ironically saying that she was getting old, even if it was far from the truth. She had no childhood, no adolescence. The concept of old age seemed the most comforting to her.

You forced yourself to take a deep breath, and to swallow your tears. You were talking to a piece of marble with her name carved on it, and you knew that meters underneath there wasn't even a body to mourn over, but you had to let it all out one way or another.

"Happy 39th birthday, my love," you whispered, smiling faintly. "I guess your wish came true. You stayed 38 forever."

December 3rd, 2020

"Oh, my wish is to stay 36 forever!" Natasha exclaimed, with a broad smile, and then blew out the candles on the mini cake you had bought her.

You laughed along with her.

Laughing seemed impossible until she showed up a year and a half ago in your life at that support group. Now laughing seemed as easy as breathing.

You wondered if, somehow, you would have met Natasha. She was a very famous woman, unattainable to everyone including you. The possibility of having lived a life without her terrified you, so much so that it was the first time you were actually grateful that the blip had happened, because it made it possible for her to be sitting on the couch next to you, spending her birthday morning with you after making her her favorite breakfast.

"Oh, come on, Nat," you laughed, as you placed the cake on the coffee table, and started pouring the wine. "You age like this fine wine. I imagine how divine you'll look in your 40s, in your 50s... don't take that away from me," you spoke seriously, as if the candles really did have the power to fulfill her wishes.

She laughed loudly, and took the glass of wine you gave her, "38 is the most I'm willing to age. It is my final offer."

You rolled your eyes playfully, and raised your glass, "Very well. To your penultimate year of aging. Cheers!"

The rest of the morning, and part of the afternoon was spent lazying on the couch, marathoning romantic comedies from the 90s and early 2000s.

Until the clock struck 5:00 p.m., it was one hour before Natasha's adoptive parents arrived, and the nervousness was starting to hit you.

"My love, it's time to get off the couch and get ready," you spoke, pausing the Julia Roberts movie 'Eat, Pray, Love'.

"Ughhhh!" She protested, covering herself up to her head with the blanket resting on top of you both. Said blanket was perhaps twice the size of the two of you, and perhaps three times as heavy. It was the best weapon against the December cold.

"Nat, I don't want your parents to find us in penguin pajamas and ugly sweaters," you laughed, shaking her gently. "I want to make a good first impression. Come on!"

"You're overthinking," she replied, resting her head in your lap, under the blanket. "They won't mind your outfit, and believe me, they'll love you."

You sighed lightly.

"I hope so," you replied, scratching her hair with your fingertips. "I'm much younger than you, and I don't want them to think I'm immature, or..."

"Alexei still insists on wearing his superhero costume, even though it looks tiny on him," Natasha interrupted you, before your head wandered. "Maturity is something that doesn't exist in my family, you take it easy."

You laughed a little, and that little anecdote was enough to give you significant relief. If Natasha said you'd be fine, then it was true.

The redhead was somewhat reserved when it came to her family.

You understood that she wanted to be sure that it was going to be something long and meaningful before she let you into that sacred side of her life, so it wasn't a year and a half after you met her that you finally would get to know the famous Melina and Alexei. You felt more than privileged to know that your relationship with her had already reached that point.

She also always mentioned her little sister Yelena, whom she had lost to the blip. You wished you could have met that other brave soul who destroyed Dreykov and his entire twisted organization, saving thousands of girls and women around the world.

"Well..." she said, suddenly getting up from your lap, as she pulled back the blanket. Afterwards, she planted a quick kiss on your lips. "I need a few minutes to mentally prepare myself and get out of here. Get in the shower and then I'll join you."

Within forty-five minutes, both of you were fully dressed and ready to welcome Melina and Alexei to Natasha's apartment.

The table was set with a white tablecloth, four plates with their respective cutlery and glasses. In the middle was the previously started wine and a bottle of soda that was a little wet, as it had just been taken out of the fridge five minutes before. The older woman's parents would bring takeout dinner and cake, so the table was ready just to serve the food and eat.

Punctually, at 6:00 p.m., you heard the doorbell ring.

You took a deep breath, and together with Natasha, you headed for the door.

Naturally, she was the first to greet them and pull them into a heartwarming embrace, which was somewhat clumsy because it was obstaclized by the bags of food in Melina's hands and the box of cake in Alexei's right arm. You stood there, watching the scene feeling both tenderness and nervousness, because your girlfriend's parents were finally standing in front of you.

The redhead took the cake and a bag of food, and with her head pointed in your direction, "This is (Y/N), (Y/N), this is Melina and Alexei."

With a gentle smile, you waved at them, "It's very nice to meet you, Miss Vostokoff, and Mister Shostakov."

"Oh, let's drop the formalities, c'mere!" Alexei exclaimed, and held out his arms to wrap you in a tight embrace.

You let out a giggle, and accepted his offer. He squeezed you and you let out a playful groan of complaint. Melina, laughing as you did, hugged you once the man released you, however, she was gentler and briefer, concluding it with a rub on your back.

"Please call us by our names," she spoke. "Natasha has talked so much about you that you're not even a stranger. So we don't want to be strangers to you either."

You looked at Natasha, and she smiled broadly, having also enjoyed the scene at your first meeting with her parents.

"Very well," you chuckled. "Please, let me help you with this," you offered, pointing to the single bag she was carrying.

"Oh, thank you," she agreed, passing you the bag.

You and Natasha placed the two bags on the table, and the cake on the kitchen counter.

"Beer?" Natasha offered to Alexei.

"Oh, please!" he exclaimed, sitting down on one of the chairs next to Melina. Across from both of them, Natasha and you would sit.

You heard the sound of two bottles being uncorked, and Natasha was the last to join the table, handing one bottle to Alexei and both of them toasting and then taking a big sip.

The dinner went wonderfully.

Natasha was right, her parents were easy-going and funny, each in their own way. Alexei always had a joke on the tip of his tongue, and Melina, though calmer than him, laughed lightly and added to the joke just to make you all laugh. At the end of the evening, when they bid their fond farewells, you completely forgot how nervous you felt a few hours earlier. They were enchanted with you and the feeling was mutual.

A small meow was heard about a minute after Natasha's parents left, and she stepped forward, opening the window to reveal the black cat sitting on the stairs. Liho always wandered around her building, but Natasha's floor was her favorite due to the redhead always giving her food and treats. She was a very easy cat to love, and it didn't take long for her to grow on Natasha, so she was unofficially adopted by her.

"Sorry, Liho," she said, caressing behind her ears. "You were late. There will be no food for the unpunctual."

"Hey, don't be mean," you teased, reaching up to stroke the cat's cheek. She happily bowed her head, receiving your affection.

"I'm kidding," she let out a giggle, and headed for the kitchen. From there, she pulled out one of the cans of cat tuna she always bought for the feline. Once she placed it in a plate on the floor, the cat ran in her direction and didn't hesitate to devour the dish, making you both laugh. "Oh, thank you so much for coming to visit me for my birthday, little one. You're adorable."

You walked in Natasha's direction, and wrapped your arms around her waist. One thing you loved about her was that, no matter by what kind of physical contact you manifested your love for her, the older woman always seemed to melt at your touch.

"Stay another night," she whispered, entwining your hands in hers and then kissing them.

It was the fifth night in a row she had said that to you. No problem, though, it wasn't the first time it had happened, so you prepared yourself beforehand and packed more clothes to stay with her as long as you both wanted.

"Yes, I have another change of clothes..." you replied. "I think at this point, I'll have more clothes here than at home."

She turned to meet your gaze, and glanced at your lips briefly to lean in and kiss you gently. You, likewise, melted at any action of your girlfriend, and the taste of her lips never failed to delight you immensely.

"Move in with me," she was quick to say, resting her forehead against yours. "Let's find a nice house, let's officially adopt Liho, hell, let's adopt a kid when we're ready. I want everything with you."

December 3rd, 2023

"Did you enjoy your time with Grandma Melina?" You asked the little girl walking beside you in the direction of the car.

"Very much! She taught me some fighting techniques, and then we tried them on Grandpa Alexei," she replied, and you laughed at her statement. "He went down like a sack of potatoes."

Alissa Grace Romanoff.

A girl you and Natasha adopted when she was four years old. Now, at six, you were increasingly amazed at how smart, strong and determined she was, showing an interest in being like her mother but also possessing an artistic sensitive side.

"Did you leave my drawing with mom?" She asked, once you placed her in the back seat of the car and buckled her in.

The little girl remembered Natasha fondly, and longed for her with all her heart. Fortunately, she was at an age where she was more likely to remember more, and you would keep her memory alive in her mind.

You and Natasha worked hard to give her the best memories, so that her childhood was something she looked back on with fondness and happiness, unlike your girlfriend, who couldn't do the same and always avoided to think in the slighest about the matter.

"Of course I did, I left her your drawing and the beautiful flowers you suggested," you confirmed, kissing her small forehead and then heading to the driver's seat.

You needed some time alone in the cemetery every time you visited your girlfriend, even more so on this day. On the one visit where you took your daughter, you broke down to such an extent that she ended up crying a lot more than she initially was.

Knowing that holding back wasn't the best way to go, you preferred to go alone and vent properly. It hadn't even been two months since October 16th, so there were still times when you cried to the point where you couldn't get up from the floor. And when you finally did, your eyes were so swollen that you had to go home and wash your face so that they would look better so as not to worry the little girl.

Melina and Alexei insisted that you visit Natasha first, and as always, they were more than happy to spend time with their granddaughter. Since you got up early, knowing that you would take your sweet time, you returned early as well, so that they would also have their space on this day to visit their beloved daughter.

The day passed quietly.

You bought some lunch, and both of you ate while watching 'Tangled' for the thousandth time, but this movie ended up being background noise, as your daughter continued to tell you about how Merlina did her combat technique demonstrations and Alexei was the 'brave volunteer' who would attack her, even if he wasn't volunteering or brave at all.

At 5 p.m., you sat next to Alissa at the coffee table in the living room, and opened her maths book. She had an assignment to complete a page of two-digit addition problems, and although it was due on Friday, she was always allowed to do it on Sunday afternoons.

You preferred her to do it as soon as possible so she could spent the whole weekend freely with no pending homework, but well, the habit of leaving it until last minute stuck with you because Natasha was a little bit of a softie.

October 30th, 2022

You heard the loud sound of falling metal, causing you to startle and wake up in alarm.

Natasha was not in your bed, and that increased your concern. Maybe it was a thief, a spy, an enemy of Natasha's who broke into the house...

But when you ran to see the source of the sound, you found Natasha in the kitchen, and Alissa sitting at the counter. They both looked in your direction, and smiled innocently.

"We didn't mean to wake you, detka," Natasha spoke, and you noticed the silver bowl in the dishwasher, the one that previously fell and woke you up, nearly giving you a heart attack.

"Oh, what's wrong?" You asked, your eyes half open. The clock on the microwave read one in the morning.

"I went to get a glass of water, and mom was reading in the living room," Alissa explained. "I couldn't sleep, and neither could she."

"So we made Halloween-themed cupcakes," Natasha concluded, pointing with her head towards the oven, whose dim light gave you a view of the cupcakes baking inside it.

You laughed at Natasha's solution, and were deeply touched as well. Any other parent would have made their kid a glass of milk, read a story, or accompanied their child until they fell back asleep, but your girlfriend decided to keep her awake and make Halloween cupcakes.

"I suppose you'll write a note saying that Alissa won't be going to school," you deduced, knowing the redhead very well.

She nodded.

Your daughter didn't even have to pretend to be sick to miss school, she just had to say she didn't want to go and Natasha would melt at her puppy eyes and let her stay home. As much as you hated to be the boring one, you had to set certain boundaries, however, your efficient communication with both of them always led to an agreement without making you look like the bad one. So, if Alissa went to school, on the way home you would stop for ice cream or go to the park.

But of course, this was an occasion where there was no choice but to agree to skip school, otherwise Alissa would be sleepy all day.

"All right, let's start working on the toppings, shall we?" You said with a wide smile.

December 3rd, 2023

"These crayons that Aunt Yelena gave me have very good pigmentation," Alissa commented, as she ran the brownish-red crayon over the white sheet of paper.

You laughed at the use of words. Somehow, she always managed to learn new words and use them appropriately. Little things you noticed and loved about your daughter.

"Oh, the 500 color box she brought from her last mission's trip? What are you drawing?" You asked, looking up from your book to pay attention to her. However, she was quick to cover her work with her arms.

"You can see when I'm done," she established.

Whenever she did the tedious math homework, Alissa redirected her attention to her drawings. She always knew that after working hard, she deserved to do something she enjoyed afterwards. No one told her, she just knew it was the right thing to do, and you were going to fight to death with anyone who dared make her believe otherwise.

Yelena could be considered the world-traveling aunt, except for the fact that it wasn't for fun and more for the purposes of freeing brainwashed Black Widows.

And when she was in town, your daughter would always come back with her sugar at 110% because her Aunt Yelena spoiled her with exaggerated doses of sweets, after taking her to the amusement park or the movies. You had difficulty putting her to sleep, because it was 9 p.m. and Alissa kept running around the house even though you begged her in every possible way that it was time to go to sleep.

So, while she was at the coffee table drawing, you were on the couch with Liho lounging in the other single recliner, taking her fifth nap of the day. The little black cat was no exception when it came to missing Natasha, constantly climbing on the bed on the side that used to be where she slept, meowing as if she was wondering where that nice redhead she used to visit in her apartment had gone.

Cats were transcendental beings, and you wondered if during her naps, she really did have astral travels where she could meet your girlfriend without worrying about the planes of existence that she could easily visit with zero effort.

You had your legs covered by the same blanket that once also kept your girlfriend warm on these cold days, and how she used to sneak under it to lie on your lap or to tease you by placing her cold hands under your shirt.

"I'm done," Alissa said after a few minutes. "It's mom."

You took the drawing delicately, as if it were a work that required the touch of cautious hands only, almost as if a very abrupt movement would fade the work captured on paper.

You watched carefully.

It was Natasha, but she did not have her reddish hair with blonde ends as your daughter had known her, but was from years ago, and you wondered if the girl had come across more pictures besides the ones hanging on the wall.

"Ah, here she has long curly hair. You portrayed her beautifully, honey," you complimented her, a nostalgic smile plastered on your face. "There was a time when her hair was like that, actually."

"I know," she admitted. "Mom told me she was just working for S.H.I.E.L.D back then and that's how she met Iron Man, pretending to be Natalie Rushman, a new assistant. That was the start of this whole Avengers adventure."

"Oh, yes..." you let out a chuckle. "Who told you that? Aunt Yelena?"

"No, mom told me."

"Ah, mom told you... when?"

"Last night, last night I dreamed about her," Alissa replied, so casually that it seemed to surprise her no longer. At first, she woke up crying, saying she hated the reality, and wished it wasn't a dream. However, over the days she began to relate it as if it were a regular occurrence. "We were in my room, and she saw my drawing wall. She asked me to draw her this way too, because she misses her long hair," she added. "Oh, and she also told me that birthday candles actually grant wishes. Because she once wished she was 36 forever, but she negotiated with you and it ended up being 38."

You tensed your jaw, and you mewed all the way in while making a superhuman effort not to burst into tears right there.

You had these recurring dreams of Natasha, mostly where she would tell you how proud she was of how you kept going for yourself and your daughter every day. In another, which was the day you met Yelena, the same night, you dreamed she asked you about how you liked her. In all the dreams she told you that she loved you and Alissa, and that sooner or later, she would find a way to get back to you.

"I'll find a way back," she said. "In the meantime, remember that love transcends time and space. We love each other, that's all we need to stay together more than ever."

Your daughter had similar dreams, with the difference being that many of them were just about the two of them spending time together like they used to.

You knew that Natasha healed her inner child through activities with Alissa. She might have looked mature and tough on the outside, but on the inside, she loved spending time with her little girl and at the same time giving the little Natasha living inside her all those experiences she was deprived of.

You thought you were going crazy and delusional, and that these dreams were just your subconscious going to great lengths to offer comfort and protect you and Alissa from pain.

But, it was not possible for Alissa to know that, as it happened long before she was adopted. That little anecdote you never mentioned it to a single soul, and neither did Natasha, otherwise it would have been brought up long before. Besides, your daughter wasn't a liar. And there was no way for her to know this.

There was just no way for her to know.

"You know, mom told me that, as long as we love her, she can transcend space and time, and be here, even if it's not on the physical plane like we are," you spoke finally, your voice failing to sound steady. Still, you didn't try harder. Natasha taught you in that support group when you first met her that even the strongest heroes had a right to break.

"Like she does when she visits me," Alissa concluded, smiling excitedly. "I know it's not my head or my imagination. I know it's her."

March 2nd, 2023

"I know it's you, mom!"

"No, who's your mom? I'm Rapunzel," Natasha said, in a high-pitched voice, far from her raspy tone.

She looked adorable in that blonde wig that came down to her heels, the purple dress and the makeup you did before your daughter arrived at the park where she would be having her very first surprise birthday party. Natasha insisted on dressing up instead of hiring an impersonator, because that way it would be more special and a nicer memory that her daughter would look back on in a few years.

"And I am, Flynn Ryder!" Steve came out from behind a tree, with his hair styled like said character, and a costume that also closely resembled, he even had that cross-body bag around his torso.

"That is you, Uncle Steve," she paused. "Oh, but I don't need a princess when my mom is a hero!" The little girl ran from her seat, and hugged Natasha's legs, who with a pout and teary eyes, lifted her off the floor and hugged her tightly.

That scene caused your eyes to glaze over as well, and as you looked around at everyone present, you realized you weren't the only one.

Steve, Clint, Melina, Alexei... everyone was touched. Everyone close to Natasha knew very well what it meant to her to have been given the opportunity to be a mother despite her past and unavailability to get pregnant, and watching the amazing job she was doing would warm up even the coldest heart.

"Hey! What about me?" Steve exclaimed, feigning offense at Alissa's exclusion.

"You too!" The little girl extended her arm in his direction, inviting him to join in the embrace.

Natasha then extended her free arm in your direction, and you didn't know how or at what point, but suddenly everyone present was enveloped in a group hug. Even Alexei ended up joining despite his previous rivalry with Steve. It was something everyone definitely needed.

"Okay, darling, let's pretend you don't know it's us and let us perform the act we prepared," Natasha spoke, and the little girl laughed at the silly impression of Rapunzel and Flynn Ryder your girlfriend and Steve had prepared for this special ocassion.

December 3rd, 2023

"We will be here when you come back, my love," you whispered with your forehead leaning against Natasha's, after pulling stay from a passionate kiss.

"Don't worry yourself. Clint and I will go to another planet, collect one of the Infinity Stones and be back in literally a minute," was the last sentence Natasha directed towards you, very confident that those words would be the truth.

"Damn you, Natalia!" You exclaimed, throwing your phone towards the floor of your room, so hard that you wouldn't be surprised if it broke.

It wasn't the best idea to end this day looking at old pictures; of your first dates with Natasha, of when you moved in together with Liho, and of the day you adopted Alissa, among thousands of other memories frozen through photograph.

You were drowning in your own tears again like every night, after Alissa was already sound asleep in her room to hear you.

It was a routine where you fell asleep after draining it all away, so you would have the strength to face another day without her.

You missed her caresses, her kisses, hearing her laugh, her jokes and her raspy voice in the mornings.

All physical aspects that ultimately were a form in which her eternal essence manifested itself, but you knew now more than ever that you were only used to her physical form, but that her essence would live on until the end of time.

Until she would return to us again.

[italiansteebie]

They’re sitting in Steve’s living room, squatting as Steve calls it. “What’s your song?” Steve’s eyes flicked over to meet Eddie’s. “C’mon, Steve. We’ve got everyone else’s. What's yours?” They’d been compiling a mixtape of all their Vecna songs. Y’know, the ones that would hopefully save them from a horrific death.  

Steve shrugged, “We’ve got all the important ones.” Deflecting, it’s what he does best. Robin snorts from the other side of the coffee table. “He’s probably embarrassed because it’s like… ABBA or something.”

“Hey! ABBA is iconic! You wouldn't know.” He defended, causing Eddie to let out a boisterous laugh. They moved on, getting the kids' songs burned on there, forgetting about Steve’s missing, unknown song. 

It wasn’t brought up again until later that night. Eddie and Robin were the only ones who remained. Besides Steve, of course, who lives there. They were curled up on the couch, an old movie playing on the TV, audio softly in the background. They’re high, and getting a bit too honest. “If “Master of Puppets” hadn’t saved my life, my song would probably be something by Bruce Springsteen.” Steve scoffed at that, “and you make fun of me for ABBA?” Robin snorted, “He got ya there, leather boy.” Eddie arched an eyebrow, “I'm not even… Wearing leather right now,” He laughed, “Anyways. Bruce is Wayne’s favorite. We listened to him all the time when I first got there.” Steve softened at that, leaning over to give Eddie a peck on the forehead and pull him into a tight hug. “That’s sweet, Eds.”

Eddie smiled before turning to Steve, “You still haven’t told us your song!” He accused. Steve had the nerve to look accosted. Robin nodded along, “Yeah, what is it, Dingus!” She bumped her shoulder against his. Steve sighed, “You guys….” He whined. “You probably won’t even know it!” Eddie rolled his eyes. “Quit being dramatic Steve. Just tell us.” 

“Fine! Fine… It’s Lonely Boy by Andrew Gold. I heard it first when I was 5… The nanny at the time looked at me… and I could just tell she was thinking ‘wow, this is your song, Steve.’ Because that’s what I was… I am…” It felt good, in the end, to get it off his chest, but the way Eddie and Robin were looking at him now is the exact reason he didn’t want to share. 

Eddie looked at him, eyes shining. “Oh, Stevie…” He whispered. “That's why I didn’t want to tell you, I didn’t want to bring the mood down.” He sighed, eyes shifting to Robins who looked just as sad as Eddie.

“Well�� You’re not lonely anymore, right? You’ve got us.” Robin said shyly, a tone that didn’t fit her well. Steve smiled, “Yeah. I’ve got you.” He turned and gave Eddie a soft kiss, whispering “And I’ve got you too.” A warm smile spread across his face, but the moment was quickly over when Robin shouted “EW! Get a room.” Smile returning to her face. Steve rolled his eyes fondly, pushing at her shoulder until she fell over, eventually rolling off the couch. “This is my house!” He laughed. 

Maybe it’s time to figure out a new song. 

----

the lyrics to steve's song:

He was born on a summer day 1951

And with a slap of a hand

He landed as an only son

His mother and father said what a lovely boy

We'll teach him what we learned

Ah yes just what we learned

We'll dress him up warmly and

We'll send him to school

It'll teach him how to fight

To be nobody's fool

Oh, oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

In the summer of '53 his mother

Brought him a sister

And she told him we must attend to her needs

She's so much younger than you

Well he ran down the hall and he cried

Oh how could his parents have lied

When they said he was an only son

He thought he was the only one

Oh, oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Goodbye mama, goodbye to you

Goodbye papa I'm pushing on through

He left home on a winter day 1969

And he hoped to find all the love

He had lost in that earlier time

Well his sister grew up

And she married a man

He gave her a son

Ah yes a lovely son

They dressed him up warmly

They sent him to school

It taught him how to fight

To be nobody's fool

Oh, oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Oh, oh, oh, oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

Oh what a lonely boy

[leiarosie]

The year is about to end and your "I wish this date would be erased!" Or "If nothing happened in this date!" Is there a date you said? I have it.

Well, it won't be easy to explain, but I can do it!

The date I want to delete is February 27. Because I lost the other half of my soul on that date. I miss him so much. I will continue to miss as long as I live. Anyway, while talking about a classic evening, he said he wouldn't sleep because he was on the road all night, I had to sleep for my school tomorrow. I said to him, "Okay, then I'll go to sleep and talk in the morning." Normally, the person who says "good morning, beautiful" or "are you still sleeping, you brat" every morning had not written for the first time.

I thought he was sleeping after the trip because he was tired and went to school. I couldn't see if he texted because our phones were collected at school. I didn't wear much all day. When I took my phone back at the end of school, I sent him an audio recording along the way, but for some reason I couldn't respond to any of them.

When I got home, his sister called me while I was sitting with my sister. I greeted with a smile and said how are you, but instead of answering my question, she started talking in a sad voice. When I first heard it, I couldn't move and react. Because I couldn't imagine a life without him. When I perceived it later, I collapsed screaming where I was standing. With my scream, my sister came to me and tried to realise what was going on. I'm crying non-stop and he just didn't realise it because I was screaming. When she talked to his sister, she couldn't believe it either. I don't remember much after that. I think I fainted.

I couldn't come to myself for a few months. I cried every night looking at him photos and our messages. I missed it more and more every day. Sometimes I think that if I talked to him that night instead of sleeping, maybe these things wouldn't happen. But my friends immediately refute this idea and say it's not my fault. Sometimes I just blame myself. I miss him<3

That was the date I wanted to delete. I wish it could be erased and never happened.

[holllandtrash]

I really have a thing for secret relationships for some reason, so maybe Lewis’s relationship with some pop star or famous actress being outed?

Okay back on my blurb bullshit before i call it a night

this is on par with tonight's met gala butttt you're an actress, you've been dating lewis for almost a year now but you've been keeping busy and working on projects, HOWEVER you're in new york, you're attending the met gala and god damn do you look fucking good

now, you've def been seen at some races before and fans have speculated that you're dating a driver but you and lewis are so private that there's no trace of you two being together anywhere

so anyway you show up the met gala dressed to the fucking nines and who do you run into but danny fucking ricciardo and you know him, of course you know him. the drivers know you're dating lewis its not a secret from them, and there are so many celebs at the met gala its not weird that you would run into a lot that you know (danny being one of them)

so you don't think anything of it when you go up to him and give him a hug and catch up quickly on the carpet and some paparazzi's are like 'y/n!!! danny!! over here! smile!!' and what are you gonna do? say no?? danny's a friend, he's your boyfriends friend too so you pose together

and your first thought is oh god twitter is going to have a field day with these photos. everyone is going to assume you're dating.

and there's been rumours of you dating costars before but as you're smile you're already thinking of ways to put the danny rumours to rest that haven't even started yet, that's where your mind is, you're thinking ahead. you're not in the present.

which means your reaction time wasn't fast enough to stop daniel when he opened his mouth to ask "where's lewis tonight?"

he sees your face, the brief moment of panic and daniel knows he slipped up, he knows he shouldn't have asked that. you obviously don't answer that question because there's about 30 cameras on you, some with mic's and some that undoubtedly picked up on him asking you where the 8 7 time world champion lewis hamilton is.

so you just smile and step away from daniel. the best solution is to just say nothing. daniel nods, fixes his tie and you both go your separate ways.

but oh man does the internet work fast

it's not even two minutes later when your assistant, bless her soul, approaches you hesitantly and whispers in your ear that the specific clip of daniel asking where lewis is is now spreading like wildfire on twitter. and you ask if it's obvious what he's saying and sadly, it is. the audio isn't the best but there's no denying that lewis' name came out of daniel's mouth

this was not how you wanted to go public. in fact, you and lewis never really discussed how it would happen, but daniel ricciardo not thinking before he spoke was certainly never part of the plan.

of course you're panicking, you don't know how lewis is going to react, if he's been told what's going on. he is in miami, it's not like he's somewhere across the world already asleep, there's a chance he too has already seen the clip

when your assistant finds you again before she leaves you for the dinner portion of the evening, she doesn't look stressed, even though you feel stressed.

"what?" you ask, pulling her aside. "have you talked to lewis? is he mad at danny?"

she just shakes her head and opens up instagram. it takes way too long for the content to load but doesn't that always seem to happen in these dire moments where you feel disgustingly sick and have no patience?

finally, she opens up lewis' instagram stories. and right there, the only image he's shared today is one of you taken only minutes ago as you posed on the carpet alone, with what he would say an angelic smile and a devilish stare that could do more harm than good.

and it was impossible to miss the two heart emoji's he added

he heard seen the clip after all and decided to run with it. no sense in hiding the relationship anymore. if anything, lewis was probably thanking his lucky stars that daniel said something because he's been waiting for the perfect opportunity to show you off

the next time someone brings up lewis tonight, you don't shy away from answering

[written-in-the-stars3]

a queen and her knights

fandom: ensemble stars

characters: tsukinaga leo & narukami arashi

words: 1853

“Do you hear it, Naru?”

The question snapped Arashi back into reality, her gaze meeting Leo’s expectant one. “Yes I hear it, Leo-kun. It’s a beautiful song.”

Leo huffed and crawled over to Arashi, inches away from her face where she could smell the faint essence of coffee from him. “No, no! You aren’t listening carefully, Naru!” He huffed and paused the song. “Listen carefully once again. Do you not hear the story?”

A/N: here’s another one from my ao3 that I wrote a while back!

Papers scattered all across the rehearsal room floor, Leo paying no mind as his friends tiptoed over them— the ginger far too absorbed in what was about to be his next masterpiece.

As rehearsal came to an end, the rest of knights said their goodbyes as they dispersed… or at least that is what Leo thought they were doing, he wasn’t really paying attention anyways. It wasn’t until he heard Arashi’s voice wishing him a good night that he finally looked up towards the door;

“Naru, wait! Coulda come look at this for me?”

Arashi looked back as he gestured towards the scattered music sheets. Was she really the best person to ask to look over his work? Ritsu and Izumi would have made the most sense. However, it wasn’t every day that Leo reached out to her about his music so she was a little intrigued.

“I can’t really make sense of it like this, Leo-kun…” Arashi mumbled, taking a seat on the ground as she looked through the sheets with notes scribbled all over them. “Would you have an audio sample for me?”

“Oh! Yeah I do! I forgot you can’t imagine it like I do!” Leo laughed and crawled over towards his laptop, blindly hitting one of the keys to play the new melody he had been working on.

Arashi was well aware of the sleepless nights that Leo had pulled to put together this song and his efforts were evident as the beautiful melody flowed through the wires and into her ears. As expected from our genius composer. There was something comforting about the song— she couldn’t exactly put her finger on it but it was like it reached out to her, grasping her within a warm embrace. As if this song was written solely for her.

The melody had no words, yet it felt like it was speaking to her.

“Do you hear it, Naru?”

The question snapped Arashi back into reality, her gaze meeting Leo’s expectant one. “Yes I hear it, Leo-kun. It’s a beautiful song.”

Leo huffed and crawled over to Arashi, inches away from her face where she could smell the faint essence of coffee from him. “No, no! You aren’t listening carefully, Naru!” He huffed and paused the song. “Listen carefully once again. Do you not hear the story?”

Was she missing something? Had Leo provided them with lyrics that she may have missed? There were no words to the song just yet— she had assumed that he would be working on them with his little sister who was seemingly gifted in that department.

“You never told me the lyrics were done, Leo-kun—”

“No no no! I haven’t gotten to that point. Sheesh, don’t ya know how to use your imagination, Naru? I expected that from Sena but not you— shit, unless you’re getting tainted by him the more you spend time around him! Naru has been infected with Sena disease!”

Okay, now he had totally lost her. Just when Arashi thought she was finally starting to understand the former king, his eccentric ways and outbursts had her feeling more lost than ever.

“I’m not sure what you are talking about, Leo-kun..” Arashi blinked, going to remove the headphones but was stopped by Leo’s hands over her own.

“Try listening again… Close your eyes and I will tell you the story if you can’t imagine it. My imagination is endless.” Green orbs stared back at her, glistening with determination and not even giving her a chance to say no.

Sighing, Arashi nodded in agreement. “I would very much like to know what you’re talking about.”

Clapping his hands, Leo guided Arashi to lay down on the hard floor of the rehearsal room, who did so without any questions. Leo laid down beside her, shoulders just barely touching as he placed his laptop onto his stomach, finger hovering over the play button. “Close your eyes and just listen.” She did as she was told, her eyes fluttering shut and he played the song from the start, setting the device to the side yet again.

The familiar new tune filled her ears yet again— however it was nothing different than the first time she heard it. Without a doubt it was a beautiful song, one that seemed to reach out to her, filled her up with ease… but she couldn’t make out what it was conveying. What story was Leo trying to tell?

“The story takes place in a beautiful kingdom, somewhere far away…” Leo began. “Now the village and kingdom had its fair share of problems, as beautiful as they might appear. It was anything but perfect.”

Arashi kept her eyes closed, focusing on Leo’s words and the music as she tried to envision the kingdom that Leo spoke of.

“The kingdom was ruled by a Queen— not your typical evil Queen from fairy tales or a damsel in distress. No, she was a pretty awesome and strong ruler.”

“If she was as strong and awesome as you are saying, then why was the kingdom having so many issues?” Arashi hummed, only to be shushed by Leo.

“Well she was pretty strong and awesome… but she was still only human. Struck by grief from the loss of a dear comrade, self-doubt. Some may say she had her heart shielded for the longest time and wasn’t at all the kindest person earlier on in her life.”

Arashi paused. This story… What was Leo playing at with this? “I… I thought you said she wasn’t an evil Queen, Leo-kun. Your story already has plot holes.”

Leo chuckled softly. “There’s a difference between being evil and being hurt and closing your heart to protect yourself.” He reasoned as he stretched his limbs out like a little orange cat. “Now, back to the story…just as any person does, she grew from her experiences and slowly bettered herself. She started opening her heart to more friends, some of her closest friends being four knights.”

Her eyes opened as she turned to lay on her side, gazing back at Leo who laid there with his eyes closed and a small smile on his face.

“And then were things better for her and the kingdom after that?”

Opening his eyes, Leo turned to lay on his side so he was facing Arashi— her soft yet fearful eyes on him, pleading for an answer as if she had caught onto his story. “Things aren’t that simple, Naru. Despite the changes in her heart, things were far from perfect. Sometimes she felt like she had no control over anything. Life felt like an endless battle. As if everything she worked so hard for was falling apart.”

A soft silence filled the room, Arashi removing the headphones to set aside. “Then how did she fix things? Was she even able to…?”

“Well if she kept insisting to take everything onto herself, she would only be headed towards self destruction! Whenever any of her friends tried reaching out to her she would just brush it off insisting she was fine and laugh it off!” He exclaimed— he seemed far too into the story but Arashi found herself absorbed into it too. No wonder the song reached out to her… it was about her. No, stop being so conceited. It’s merely a coincidence. Leo-kun’s imagination just runs wild. “Now, her knights were the most frustrated with her behavior. At this rate she was going to drag herself to hell and for what? Not wanting anyone to feel sorry for her? For not wanting to appear weak? Heck, who knew what her motives were! I guess she wanted to seem reliable and strong for everyone. Protect them all so no one would have to go through the pain she endured… I dunno, her motives were confusing even for them.”

“Leo-kun… is this story—” No, she couldn’t bear to hear the answer for that question. Knowing Leo, he might play it off as nothing. But if there was the slightest chance it was about her without even a glimpse of a happy ending… “So what happened to her? Did she drive herself to madness? Or did her knights have to step in to save her?”

The fear in her voice was evident as Leo reached over to clasp her hand between his two. She seemed more intrigued than he could have anticipated. Ah, he definitely managed to strike something within her. “Nope, like I said, she wasn’t a damsel in distress that needed saving! But, that doesn’t mean they didn’t help her.”

Fingers intertwined, a gentle and reassuring smile on Leo’s face as if he were telling Arashi to relax and that everything would be alright. Arashi let out a soft and shaky breath.

“It took many interventions, given the Queen was a very stubborn woman. But, they managed to get through to her— not as her knights who wanted to protect her, but as her friends who wanted to support her, show her that she didn’t need to face the world on her own.”

Arashi squeezed his hand in relief, her lips curling into a small smile. “So it was a happy ending after all?”

“Hmm, I suppose you can say that! The thing with this story is that while it ended, it didn't stop there!” Leo explained. “Sometimes the Queen would find herself falling back into old habits, after all, she is only human. But her friends would always remind her that she was being a dummy. Now, whenever they conquer things together, they are invincible. Sometimes they fuck up too, but it’s something they deal with together if it ever happens.”

Silence followed with the exception of clothes shuffling as Arashi shifted closer to Leo and rested her chin on his shoulder, fingers still intertwined as they refused to part. Her heart pounded against her chest— a sound that caught Leo’s ears which had him squeezing her hand yet again in reassurance.

Taking a deep breath to level herself, Arashi finally spoke up yet again; “That sounds like a wonderful story, Leo-kun… it’s perfect for such a beautiful melody.”

Leo beamed at the praise, fingers unclasping to wrap his arms around Arashi in a tight hug. It was an awkward position, but neither of them paid much mind to it. They remained like that for what felt like minutes but in reality was probably a few seconds— for once the silence felt comforting rather than filling them with dread.

“Hey, Naru?” Of course Leo was first to break the silence, the ginger pulling back so he was facing her yet again. “Do you wanna help me with the lyrics?”

Usually Leo would only entrust Ruka with something like lyric writing. Songwriting was their thing so for Leo to suggest something like that was quite a big deal. With the way the song spoke to Arashi, it was truly an honor to be able to assist Leo with something as important as finding the perfect words for the song.

Once again, her arms wrapped around his shoulders in a tight hug. “I would love that, Leo-kun.”

[daylilifiedsundrewdrops]

Tape Recording #1.

[ CLICK ] Hm... Ah, I didn't know tape recorders were this big... What was that thing they used to say? Testing, testing. 1, 2, 76... ... Good enough! Soo... I should introduce myself, shouldn't I?

[They clear their throat.] So, uh, Hi there, Mr. Tape Recorder! I'm Maricel Mylene V. Rosarinde. Or just Maricel. That should work too. The 'V' stands for Vallenza, in-case you were wondering. I'm a student at Avidenia Willow Institute. Grade-6 specifically. I've always seen my classmates have these like... personal diaries. But! I thought it was way cooler to have an audio diary. Like a podcast or something! Though, I've never actually listened to one, hm.... Anyway, since Tape Recordings can't consent, Let me tell you aaaaa---lllllll about my day and about events at scho- Oh- Shi- [Silence for a couple minutes... Now, it sounds like someone stood up and is now hitting their head onto a pillow.] [Never-mind, they're back on the chair.] ...Haha, sorry, Mr. Tape Recorder. Had a headache for a moment there. Anyway, as I was saying, All about my day and about events at my school. So, to start off! I was late to school today. Again. For the third time this week. But no worries, the teachers could really uh... care less this time around. So, all I got was a slap to the arm and I was good to go. Speaking of being late! I also conveniently forgot one of my journals I used for creative writing while I was rushing for class which suuuccckssss... but it's fine. Whatever. Anyways, so school itself was mostly uneventful. Except for during recess when Nathaniel accidentally spilled juice on Angel's uniform! It was actually funny how Angel got so mad at him. She had to change into the P.E uniform because of it. Luckily, she packed an extra grooming kit in her classroom. She unfortunately could not save her uniform from getting stains, however. [They're laughing through their words.] Anyway, sorry, sorry. So, on another note, the Book Club has organized this year's new readathon for those who wanted to sign up! Guess their campaign's succeeded cause nearly everyone in the school joined. Including me, of course. It started today, and oh-ho, I think all the books in the school library has been hoarded completely. I went there and it was absolutely deserted. Mr. Lauriette was still hangin' by his desk like he always did though. I read only one book today, '' The Second World '' by Sarah Eviernes. Club Leader, Carmelita, announced that the 3 winners of the readathon will have 3 unique, mystery prizes given to them. Neat! I hope it's going to be good like a cat or something. Aside from that, I heard there's a local art contest about to be opened near the school. And I am SO signing up for it once the organizers start looking into our school for volunteers. The theme this time is something 'Magical' and I'm sure I'll ace it completely! I mean, there's like a 5% chance of me actually winning but, ya' know, it's worth a shot just for that small, small chance that I would win! Plus, the prize is a sweet 5,000 PHP, and I want that money. Plus, runner-ups get 700 and people who participated but didn't win still get 100. So, the money's worth it. Now, on another, more... negative note. Another 5 students were reported missing. 2 From our school and 3 from Wilvewood High. It's strange, though. Luis and Andrea were there. They were always cautious and... y'know, stuff like that. So, I don't think they could've gotten kidnapped unless.... Hmmm. Anyway, this is getting waayyyyyyyy too not-so-positive for me! [Sounds of someone wrongly imitating a cough-sound.] Cough, cough... anyways. Let's end the tape recorder off with after-school. I walked home because my parents didn't wanna come get me and it wasn't that far. So, my mom was home early. Guess what! She uh.. cooked dinner for us. Sinigang. But no rice. It tasted salty without the rice, I didn't like it. Though, afterwards, I managed to sneak in my phone up here in my bedroom and of course, this tape-recorder! Which I am currently using right now to record... you know! [Silence.] Gee, I'm- Ow- going to end this off here, I'm having another headache, see ya tomorrow, Mr. Tape Recorder! End recordi- Damnit this is- killing my head- [CLICK]

[rose-grimm-spirit-does-dumb-shit]

https://www.tumblr.com/rose-grimm-spirit-does-dumb-shit/715689037962280960?source=share all of them for alton towers/theme parks in general but I'm especially curious to hear 25

Oh fuck I forgot to respond for almost a year. Warning, a lot of the "god I hate the fandom" moments will mostly be directed at the wider community {e.g. this includes the old toxic nemesis fanboy 40 year old men and such}. The tumblr side of theme parks most of the time have semi-good takes. Anyways uh first on the docket 25: I fucking hate how for some god awful reason there's a consistent hate for the Dockyard Trio at thorpe, I'm talking The Walking Dead: The Ride, Ghost Train, and the late Black Mirror Labyrinth. Like come the fuck on man, give them a chance. They're great, especially if the circumstances align, what you want is a live actor tw day, a dead queue bml run {the high guest throughput is unfortunately what made her seem more shit than she is}, and to just let Ghost Train do her thing as her acting squad are honestly a lovely bunch who wanna give you the best they can.

24: I think right now it's who the world record for fastest accelerration on a rollercoaster is, it rightfully belongs to my bbygirl Stealth of course but if you try to talk about this to Americans, especially Six Flags Americans they will be inherently pissed because it's not Max Force.

23: There is none that I've come around to, but then again there is none I'm inherently against either.

22: The fact that the Marmaliser is it's own sentient being, it's creature but not crreature it's creature inn like how humanns are creature.

21: The 2019 Blair witch scaremaze at Fright Nights, because I'm sorry but it was genuinely dogshit. The finale was a shed that you can't see shit in, and there was supposed to be an actor there.

20: Do I need to bring up Blair Witch 2019, again.

19: I'm a Dead Creek Woods lover, and so many people would shit upon me for that take.

18: LYCANS V AMITY, SO MANY OF YOU ARE SLEEPING ON THAT AND BIRTHDAY BASH TO THE POINT THAT IT'S SAD. THEY'RE AMAZING, SHSUT UP.

17: Can we get Saw/Hyperia actually, they seem incredibly enemies to lovers/besties lesbian. That and general interactions between them in general, like Hyp kept cutting Saw's power over the summer I want people to expand upon that.

16: The idea of Th13teen being a child, like c'mon man just because the adverts had a child and the countdown audio iis a child doesn't mean your oc has to be a child too?

Branch out, be adventureous. Maybe your th13teen is a raceway-membeer who went missing.

15: The Smiler being a silly guy, like silly guy is fun and I admit I commiit to osilly guy too. But the thingi is, Smiler is more than that. Yes Marmal is a silly guy but she alsoo has issues and traumas and witnesses some cracked shit in the moj.

14: See above.

13: S E E A B O V E.

12: Everyone from Thorpe Carnival, especially the Junkyarders. Please they're so cool and fun and the actors who play them are legends, we drew mimes and they thought it was fucking amazing.

If they come back next year, please giive them the world.

11: I have none, tho I did learn that there was a point when we considered General Public as a slur fsr?

10: How whenever you look up Thorpe maps, you wilil be guaranteed to see someone's map mockups where it has planet snoopy and shit like that. The existence of them is annoying bc it clogs up search when you're looking for a specific map only to find 20 fan mockups instead.

9: The Asylum, I am so glad we've moved from that but god... Not the mental institution maze...

8: Holds up the Dockyard Trio, again.

7: I don't think there's anyone.

6: Whenever Stealth or Rita are in a straight ship it fucking irks me out of raw "broooo...", tho I think the only exception is RetrowaveRacer's bc that one doesn't bollock the vibes of Rita.

5: I've only been in 2 ddsicords, both were/are lovely. But I have heard so much bollocks about the others :)

4: Conocerningly, a lot of the time it's either pedophiliia, racisim, or ableism.

3: Gonna name drop this one as ironcially it's someone who was blocked because of the above. ANYONE REMEMBER MTCHIKA'S DOGSHIT THORPE TAKES ABOUT INFERNO "NOT DESERVING TO BE A NEMESIS" AND TWD BEING AND I QUOTE "boring ip boring ride".

2: I don't think about it nor do I have an opinioni on it.

1: Fuckin' Nemesis, entirerly because there are people who forget the fact that she's cannonically a woman.

Happy now?

[drops-of-universe]

Yeah no. Both native English speakers and countries. I think it’s because she doesn’t want to get close then sad due to distance. She had mentioned she wished I lived closer. So much of old messages make me feel she was or is still into me as she keeps coming back..I move on or try to forget her she comes back and feels again. Can’t block because she truly makes me happy just text. Heard voice in audio clip nonetheless. She’s super outgoing and loved to ask questions and answer while I’m more shy. It is what it is. I don’t think I’d meet anyone like her irl. Or meet her at all.

This is tricky, like, i can totally understand her avoiding getting too attached to someone that is too far from her. long distance CAN be hard and painful. and everyone will feel some way about it. like if i met someone i really liked and we had a good connection and shit then i’d probably say fuck all that and date them anyway lol but each person feels some way abt this type of relationship. if you’ve tried everything and she doesn’t want it anyway then let it go. keep the friendship and the care and move on bc as much as it feels like no one else will be as perfect, this is not true. i think talking to someone you trust about it may lighten the weight of it at least a little, or maybe journaling and just getting all your thoughts and feelings out with no self judgement. theres no shame in missing someone, it’s a remnant of love. these aren’t solutions obviously, just soothing balms that may make the days feel a little easier. i know it really feels like it’s going to be this intense forever but that permanence is a genuine illusion. you will learn to come to terms and to compartmentalize this time in your life as the future takes over and begins to hold your attention instead of the past. and it will. sending you a lot of love <3

[starlene]

Titanic: the Artifact Exhibition thoughts:

Let me start by saying that I have some... let's say, ethical qualms about the whole artifact exhibition thing. Obviously, they're not severe enough to prevent me from seeing the touring exhibition (and to be clear, I have seen different iterations of it in four different countries now.) But even so – I just don't think it's super cool that these historical artifacts are owned by a company who thinks Las Vegas is a proper permanent home for them. There is something very sideshow-esque about the whole thing. While it's cool that some of the artifacts tour the world for many people to see, if I got to decide, their permanent home would be in a well-established museum in a location that figures in the story of the RMS Titanic somehow. But I don't get to decide that, so whatever, I guess!

Mostly, the exhibition is both respectful and informative, but there are some little problems. The most notable one is that they haven't updated all their info plaques and their audio guide, so there are issues like two plaques right next to each other having contradictory info (say, how much the tickets cost in today's money.)

I also don't think it's, hmm, super great how you walk by the names of everybody that died – straight into a souvenir shop stand of teddy bears dressed as captains. I mean, sure, they need to make their money somehow, and I did buy a bunch of postcards and stuff myself... but apart from a handful of replica newspapers, cups and such, the shop really has the most tasteless selection of Titanic merch known to man. The only things missing are the "Titanic Swim Team 1912" shirts and the ice cube trays.

To make it clear: I'm not saying you're a horrible person if you wear a Titanic Swim Team tee or whatever (tbh, I would buy a Vasa Swim Team 1628 one in a heartbeat myself) – these days, the sinking of the Titanic is a part of popular culture just as much as it's a historical event, so it's just natural there are joke-y products around. I just think the contrast of a memorial wall for the actual victims and the captain teddies is rather gruesome.

Also, speaking of Titanic in popular culture and the public consciousness, I don't think it's super great how the exhibition strengthens certain Titanic myths that don't really have much truth to them, or are less black-and-white than the usual story goes.

They make a big deal of the Titanic (and the Titanic alone) being "unsinkable", to the point of lifting Captain Smith's "modern shipbuilding" quote¹ out of context, which of course makes guests assume he said that about the Titanic specifically. They also claim Captain Smith was about to retire after the Titanic's maiden voyage, though there isn't really any evidence to prove that. And of course, they keep mentioning how the Titanic was the largest ship ever built – which is technically true, sure, but I think it's worth mentioning that in practice, she and the Olympic were twin sisters.

I even spotted a new piece of nonsense in the exhibition that I've never heard before: they claim that Thomas Andrews was not supposed to be on the maiden voyage at all, but he had to travel in place of Lord Pirrie when he fell ill. I believe Thomas Andrews was always meant to lead the guarantee group, like he had done on previous maiden voyages, and I have never heard anything to the contrary before. But what do I know?

Props to the exhibition for not demonising J. Bruce Ismay, though! On the contrary, they mention he helped passengers board the lifeboats before leaving on the last lifeboat to be properly launched.

Anyway!! I think I have been negative enough here. I may have a lot of nitpicks, but even so, as a whole, I think the exhibition is a good introduction to the story of the Titanic, and it's interesting and touching to nerds like me, too. I like the interactive parts such as the changing soundscapes. I feel the sound design has gotten better since the last time I saw the exhibition, I especially enjoyed the soundscape near the 3rd class cabin reproduction that demostrated how you could hear the engines all the time in those cabins. The touch the iceberg thing is good and very sobering too, it really helps you to understand how hypothermia was only a matter of minutes on a night as cold as April 15th, 1912.

And of course, there are the artifacts themselves! I assume they keep most of the flashier ones in Vegas, but there were some good ones. My favourite was a golden chain with three lucky charms: a clover, a star, and a lucky pig. The lucky pig obviously didn't make it, but I do wish its owner did. I also liked the Extra Moist Cherry Toothpaste jar just because that sounds so silly. There were reproductions of that in the souvenir shop, but I couldn't justify buying one – maybe I would have if it came with some of that moist paste, but nope!

ETA: Something I found interesting was that pretty much every single artifact that was a part of the ship's decor, from dishes to lamp holders, was stamped with the White Star Line logo, even the fancy first class tableware. Was that all about boosting their brand recognition, or were they that worried about things being stolen? Or did they want to show off that everything was custom-made just for them, no off-the-shelf items from any generic manufacturer? Maybe it was a little bit of each?

I also think it's interesting to think about the weird journey the artifacts have made. Someone put them in their luggage to cross the Atlantic, they sunk along with the ship and spent about 80 years in the darkness... and then someone else came along with an underwater robot that has little hands and picked them up. The people who originally owned them could never have imagined the journey their everyday items would go on – or, if they briefly saw a vision of their trousers ending up in a glass case in a Swedish mall with some Finnish nerd staring at them, they probably thought they're just about to lose their mind.

All in all, Titanic: the Artifact Exhibition in Täby, Sweden, was a thought-provoking experience for me in many ways. I'm glad I got the chance to go.

¹ "I cannot imagine any condition which would cause a ship to founder. I cannot conceive of any vital disaster happening to this vessel. Modern shipbuilding has gone beyond that." (Said by Smith after the RMS Adriatic's maiden voyage in 1907)

[detective-piplup]

look at him. not one thought behind those eyes.

anyway that image is the nwos spoilers equivalent of sfw sasuke. the spoilers are all under the cut in case anyone’s avoiding it:

PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE LACK OF 2D CUTSCENES A LOT WHICH. I see why they’re worried but it is too early to be so quick to jump the gun on that. but even if we lack them?? these 3D ones looks GREAT

I spent five minutes rewatching the same damn sequence. look how good this looks. It’s so good. I’m normal im normal im normal

we saw a lot of cotton eye hoe (it’s been a day now, we can slutshame the ghost) in yesterday’s trailer but GODDDDD he looks super good here as well! my bet is currently on eggmuffin having something to do with him, and maybe GKJ over here is a hologram of some sort? It would kinda fit with the progress theme, but I struggle to see why eggmuffin would want to stop progress if he’s such a good inventor, so that’s a very loose theory. I am very curious about the fact that the entire, densely populated area seemed to not notice Joe when we did, but he is at least known about. Shrugs

as always the music is so good. I wonder if anyone’s able to get a full version of the bg track for some of these areas yet. Probably not but a boy can dream. it’s Layton music, it’s going to be good.

And I noticed that there’s no dialouge sprites. Which is sad, very sad really, but it does make me the slightest bit worried. I do love the look of the new dialouge bits though, it looks WAY better than it did in the 2023 vision (see below)

anyway for my last thoughts (aka a crackpot theory as to what’s going on with Luke):

while it’s infinitely funnier to think Luke is genuinely just scared of ghosts (I mean. ik LS didn’t have any actual ghosts but can you blame him after that one), this is NOT what a boy who is scared of ghosts seems like. He was so willing to go to Eggmuffin’s, and then he suddenly wants to back out after seeing Joe? suspicious.

I have NOT forgotten this level-5. what did you mean here. what was Luke running from when he grabbed Layton off the side of the road. And given his general unawareness of Kingslinger over here (shown in the first image below), it can’t have been Joe he was running from. Now, you could say that it was changed later in development from what we saw in the 2023 trailer, but Layton says “Can you now tell me why you called me here?” (second image). implying that Luke didn’t tell him before, therefore yeah that trailer’s probably still accurate

So, unless Luke called Layton here out to investigate a rumour he’d heard with no actual sightings from himself, there’s every chance that Luke called Layton here for a different reason. Nothing is set in stone of course, but my gut tells me that there is SOMETHING going on with Luke. so. keep an eye out, maybe my jokes about Clark being missing will be correct after all.

OVERALL HOLY SHIT IM SO EXCITED. LIKE BEYOND HYPED. say what you will about the 3D cutscenes, they looks STUNNING to me. I love how expressive Luke is with his stupid little bug eyes, it’s so fun. Layton looks a bit sunburnt but it’s okay that happens to British people when we go to different countries. OH AND COINDAR IS MY FAVE THING YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW HAPPY I AM THAT THEY’RE USING THIS OPPORTUNITY TO LEAN INTO LUKE’S EXPERTISE WITH MACHINERY (see coindar and the walker even if people use those more. still). we should let him have machines .

my one big question is if there will be an English audio? I hope there is. please. can we know the English VAs esp for Luke please please :33

look at him. that is my son. this is probably gonna end up as my tumblr icon in the next day. look at him.

amazing news

this lovely channel uploaded gameplay of the demo already

[dailyaudiobiblechronological]

3/21/2023 DAB Chronological Transcription

Deuteronomy 30-31

Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible Chronological, I'm China. Today is the 21st day of March, welcome. So great to be here with you today hoping that you have had a great start to your week. We are in are we in the last week of March? Hold on, let me know. We are not we're in the last whole week of March. Technically next week is like a full ish full enough. Okay, full enough. But over the weekend we had nice weather but it was freezing. I went to the store to get flower packets because I just really want to plant a bunch of flowers. I think it would be so fun just to have flowers growing in the backyard and my daughter Reagan would love that and then just pick them and put them in the house anyways. And so we were going to plant them outside and then we had a freeze warning so it's like, okay, we're not doing that just yet. But anyways, the never ending, changing, crazy weather of middle Tennessee. Here we are, we're in the fall, spring. But actually I missed it. Yesterday was the first official full day of spring. So we are in it. No matter what the weather may say temperature wise, we are in spring and I'm so excited about that because everything has been in bloom. It feels like it came early but gosh, it's so beautiful. I love seeing all the things that were looking dead and brown have color and springing up with new life and it may sound super cheesy, but it just reminds us that reminds me that nothing, no one season lasts forever and eventually things bloom. Eventually things change, seasons switch and in this case, they change without you even really noticing it. But nonetheless thankful for the Lords goodness that carries us and follows us all of our days and all of the seasons. Today we are continuing in the book of Deuteronomy with chapters 30 through 31. Since it's a new week, we are continuing in the New English Translation.

Commentary

So there is this obvious theme today of, this repeated phrase, Be Strong and courageous. And then there is a song that we're going to read tomorrow. It kind of leaves on a cliffhanger right now that we'll read tomorrow that Moses teaches the people. But as we're reading this I am thinking of this song that I heard on this lullaby album that I was listening to when Reagan was a newborn because I just thought like oh, maybe she'll like listening to music as she goes to sleep. And I was trying to find stuff and there is a lot of cheesy things out there but I found something that was just very peaceful and just speaking scriptures over your babies. And there's this one particular song that I just would play over and over again as I was really suffering through postpartum anxiety and it just brought so much peace to me. So rereading this story where we get be strong and courageous from one just immediately feels like comfort, as a Lord is saying, Be strong and courageous. And I mean, in different instances and different sentences. And he's saying it, ultimately, the Lord is with you. And one of the times he says, and I will be with you. And so it's not that we have to do something in our own strength that is impossible. It's through the Lord, because of his presence, that we are able to follow his word and to put these things into play. And so, like I said, we're going to read the song that Moses teaches the people tomorrow. But, man, there's this song that I just feel like would be so appropriate to also play today. So I hope this is as comforting and encouraging as it was as it is to you, as it was for me almost two years ago.

[rommahh]

{Harry in sparkly black….Harry lemme **** *** *** for free}

You hadn’t talked to Harry all day. Not that you were mad at him or anything but your therapy this morning left you feeling a little spacey. There was something about talking about your emotions that left you feeling emotionally drained.

You missed Harry terribly and though it’s only been a short week, you felt very lonely. But on another note, your anxiety wasn’t as bad as it was. You were starting to feel like your normal self again but missing something.

You loved the tight knit life you have with Harry. You like being around him most hours of the day. You two were inseparable. If you were in the shower, he was in the bathroom reading a book from the lounger chair in the corner. If he was writing music on the beach, you were somewhere on the shore collecting shells. If you were going to the grocery store the least he could do was go for the drive with you. You two were close and it was something the both of you were ok with.

Some couples don’t like being so close but it worked for you and Harry. Being away from Harry was a weird experience. It’s only been a week but you feel like it’s been a lifetime. You haven’t minded being on your own but you wanted to be with the person you felt most connected to.

So being you, you purchased a ticket to Chicago. You didn’t know how Harry was going to react but you could only assume it would be a positive reaction. You told Jeff that you were coming so he could get you a hotel key and backstage pass.

As you sat in the airport you felt your back pocket buzz- your music pausing for the call. Your hand slipped into the pocket roughly pulling out the small phone. Harry’s icon, him in a fluffy robe looking as grumpy as ever, met your eyes. You cursed because you were quite obviously in the airport and if he saw you, the surprise would be ruined.

You answered anyways but only for audio. You made sure that your airpods were snug in you ear and there was no chance of them falling out.

“My lover!” Harry greets you a in sing song voice. You could hear his humph as he recognizes that you didn’t answer with the FaceTime video on. “Turn your camera on.”

“Can’t, I’m not feeling good.” You fib nervously. Harry frowned, nervous that he may have done something to upset you.

“Oh, alright. What’s wrong then?” He asks. You chew your lip trying to think of an answer.

“Uh, period.” You stammer.

“Your period doesn’t start for another few day…saw it on the tracker.” Harry may have your period tracker on his phone but it was because he wanted to make sure he was able to comfort you the best way he could when he needed to.

“Must be the meds-“ The sound of your boarding attendant sounded over your head cutting you off. “Hey bubs, I’ve actually got to go but we can’t chat later.”

“Sure, that’s fine I guess. Love you.” He mumbles, confused by the phone call. You hang up leaving Harry a little lost in his thoughts.

Later, Harry sang through his rehearsal carelessly, his head clouded with thoughts. He even sang through TBSL and though he was in the worst of moods, fans waiting at the venue thought he never sounded better.

You on the other hand had just sat through the worst flight of your life. There was a woman in the flight who didn’t want to wear her mask causing commotion before the flight could even take off. You had the worst headache halfway through the flight and because of the lack on supplies, the flight couldn’t give you any ginger ale or accommodations.

You didn’t let any of it get to you though as you directed for the chauffeur Jeff sent for you to go to the venue for show.

Harry sat in the common room backstage with the band and Jeff eating dinner grumpily. His fork was stabbing every little piece of lettuce of his salad, everyone watched worried that he may break his bowl.

“HS3 is trending on Twitter today, pretty exciting.” Jeff says to Harry breaking the silence. Jeff just received a text from you saying that you arrived to the venue and were walking towards Harry’s dressing room.

“Mmm great.” Harry grumbles. Jeff rolled his eyes at the diva.

“Someone’s a little pissy this evening. How about you go fix that mood before you greet your fans with a bad attitude.” Jeff scolds him like a child who just got caught doing something they shouldn’t have. Jeff really didn’t care about Harry’s attitude, used to the moods at this point, but he needed a way for Harry to leave the room and see you in the dressing room.

“Fine, didn’t want to be around anyways.” Harry shrugs.

Back in Harry’s dressing room, you rolled your suitcase into a corner where Harry’s outfit for the night resided on a hanger. You smiled at the sparkly black top that you helped pick out. You walked around his dressing room from the hair and makeup table, past the bathroom/ dressing area, and back around to the couch’s and coffee table where you took a seat. You snagged one of his green juices needing the boost of energy from being on the flight.

You heard the door knob jiggle but stayed planted in you seat sipping on the juice. You never made a peep as Harry barged through the room, scowl covering his face. He stormed past the couch not batting an eye at you. He went to the mini fridge where his juices were before letting an exasperated sigh.

“Who fucking took my juice?” He whines. You quietly giggle in your hand at his tone.

“Im sorry, thought I could have it.” You chuckle. Harry leaps from where he stands letting out a yell. He turns to look at you with wide eyes, hand over his chest as if his heart was going to explode from his chest. You stood from the couch waiting for him to react more but he just stood there in shock. When the realization of you actually being there kicked in he let out another yell before bounding over to you.

Before you knew it, you had two strong arms wrapped tightly around you. Your wrapped around his neck, hands and fingers spread through his hair. His face tucked into your lower neck peppering desperate kisses all over just to feel something.

“What are you doing here?” You hear him cry. You pulled away from him to wipe his eyes of the tears that streamed down his face.

“I needed to see you.” Was all you could muster. He pulled you down on the couch, your body cushioning his larger frame. He laid in between your legs, your back flat in the body of the couch.

“Im so happy your here.” Harry couldn’t even put his excitement into words. He knew you were coming in a week but to have you here earlier than that made him feel things. He sat up from suffocating you into the couch, allowing for you to sit up beside him. “What about your therapy? I hope you’re not jeopardizing your mental health to be here with me cause I would much prefer if you put me on the back burner and took care of yourself.”

You rolled your eyes playfully. “I’m ok. I still will see my therapist virtually, I’ve got all new meds that are working fine, and if all goes to shit I will go back home. It’s ok bubs.” You reassure him.

He grabs your face with both hands pulling your face to his. Your lips meet with need. His lips slotting with yours, moving slowly but with rigor as if he was scared you would slip from his fingers. Your bottom lips fit between his lips leaving for him to suck on it slightly. You moaned at the feeling making Harry pull you in tighter. You sat slightly upon his lap, chest against each other tightly. Your tongues pushed at one another, lips loving in tangent.

You pulled away when you felt his lower presence awaken. He whined at the loss of contact making you giggle.

“If we go any further you’re gonna be late for your show. I’ll give you more back at the hotel, yeah?” You say lowly trying to catch your breathe. He groaned resting his forehead on yours chasing your lips with chaste kisses making you smile.

“Fine, you owe my though. This is level three apology situation that can only be resolved with these things; sloppy blowies, butt stuff, or face masks if you catch my drift.” He chastised. You let out a deep belly laugh pushing yourself away from him. You two still sit facing each other, your legs slightly on top of his.

“You’re so nasty, but I may be able to arrange one of those.” You wink making Harry let out a triumphant laugh.

“Are you staying for the show? I understand if your not.” He questions fiddling with your fingers.

“Think it would be best if I didn’t. I’m really tired and I obviously need a nap if I’m going to be up for your post show antics.” You joke giving his nose a poke. He jokingly pretends to bite your finger in retaliation.

Harry went on stage that night happier than ever. He started plotting proposals from the second he walked you to the car with your suitcase and waved goodbye to you. You went to the hotel room and “accidentally” fell asleep wearing one of your most recent purchases curled up in your tour bus blanket.

Let’s just say that Harry not so accidentally woke you up after that concert ready to love all of his adrenaline off in you.

Part 2👀

[nagdabbit]

soooooooooo in an attempt to motivate myself to write something, anything, here is a messy bit of chapter one of the bookshop au that i stg i will finish because it would be nice to write something sweet instead of cathartic this time

dunno how kayfabe compliant it will be. mildly. eventual mox/bryan.

working title: why use drugs when you can used books

When Jon thought about it, really thought about it, the wide array of human experience for him to pick and choose from, he liked very few things. He liked too-sweet coffee and milk chocolate and potato chips on a sandwich. He liked hiking and biking and running, and he liked those precious few moments when he actually had the time for any of that. He liked dogs, all dogs, literally any dogs within petting distance—and most of the ones outside it, if he was being honest. He liked the quiet when he had time to read, music while he worked, and an audio book if he had to drive further than twenty minutes. 

He didn't like cooking all that much, but he liked that he'd managed to at least get better at it through the years. He didn't like having to talk to people, to place orders and make smalltalk, but he liked the shop. Liked that, even without all his savings and investments, he could be self-sufficient. That he'd managed to make the place successful, somehow. Liked that he could actually easily afford to pay somebody a living wage, if he ever got the balls together to hire somebody.

He didn't like wrestling so much anymore, but he still liked to watch it when he had the time. He hated being recognized, but he kinda liked it when people remembered him, called him up out of the blue. Didn't like thinking about those days anymore, but he liked catching up with the friends he'd made along the way. Liked watching them succeed, every chance he could.

He liked fixing up books with spines that didn't need repaired. And he really liked working without interruption. And, most of the time, he even liked Wheeler Yuta.

Jon was rethinking his stance on that last one.

They'd been having a stand off for about five minutes, ever since he heard knuckles insistently knocking at the door at the front of the shop. Jon stood on one side of the glass door, arms crossed and glowering, while Wheeler grinned at him from the sidewalk.

The kid was nothing but sunshine, Jon would swear it on a stack of bibles. He could be an unrepentant little shit, but he sure thought he was cute about it. All big smiles and boundless energy, a real golden retriever kind of kid.

Usually, Jon liked him.

He unlocked the door, finally, and let Wheeler bounce his way into the shop. "Dunno how many times I gotta tell you, the code for the alley door hasn't changed," he grumbled, giving Wheeler as dark a look as he could manage. He still accepted the warm coffee cup when it was thrust toward him, though.

"Yeah, but that's for employees," Wheeler argued, still grinning that big, stupid grin. Too early for that kinda thing.

"You're right, but only employees show up this fuckin' early." 

Wheeler just kept grinning at him, practically wiggling in place in his goddamn excitement. It was disgusting. "Well, I was in the neighborhood. Figured you'd already be working, like usual."

And he had been, but he wasn't about to give the smug brat the satisfaction. "You were in the neighborhood, huh?"

"Yeah, you know. Kicking around before I gotta head to the next show." He shrugged, like he didn't show up on Jon's doorstep every few weeks, anyway. "Thought I'd make sure you saw daylight this week."

Jon rolled his eyes. "I don't get paid to see daylight."

"With no one on the register, it's a wonder you get paid at all," Wheeler snarked back. It was a familiar script, they ran through it damn near every time he was just in the neighborhood.

"Yeah, well, my best employee up and left," Jon shot back.

"So you're saying you miss me," Wheeler teased. 

Fucker thought he was real cute. Jon rolled his eyes "Don't go fishing for compliments, kid."

"I don't have to, they just seem to find me." He gave another of those big grins. He casually leaned against the counter, trying so hard not to look expectant and excited. "So. Watch anything cool lately?"

Jon, just for the fuck of it, feigned confusion. Made a face, scratched his head, put on a show. "Nah, not really. Frasier reruns, mostly. You know me."

"Really? Nothing exciting?" Wheeler pressed, barely able to contain himself. 

Jon didn't much care to talk about the good old days. Didn't exactly like to reminisce. He'd had his shot, his moment in the sun, and had it ripped right out of his hands. It was still sore.

But he didn't exactly mind when it came to Wheeler. Not really. Kid had stumbled in, same as Jon had all those years ago, looking for any job that would take him. Hadn't been able to hide the flash of recognition, but never once tried to push Jon on it. Hell, it took him showing up for work a month later, a little battered and bruised before, he even admitted he was training at all.

After that, Jon had insisted. Kid grew on him like a dandelion: invasive, hearty, and damn difficult to get rid of. 

Eddie vouching for the kid hadn't hurt, either.

But they had a whole rest of the script to get through, first. They'd talk shop once the shop was closed and Jon could be dragged away from his work.

He held out a moment longer and then gave the kid a grin. "You know I watched, stop fishing." He expected it, had a moment to brace himself, but the kid still damn-near ran him over, like usual. 

"Bryan Danielson!" Wheeler gushed, excitable as a puppy. His voice was bright, and maybe just a hair too loud in Jon's ear. "Can you believe it? Me?!"

Jon kinda wanted to tell the kid to fuck off, just a little bit. Of course him. "You did great, kid."

"Oh, please, I got absolutely murdered. But I got murdered by Bryan Danielson." He said it reverently. Most people did, and with good reason, but it still made Jon roll his eyes.

Kid would be that one day. A name people said with that same respect and admiration. It was only a matter of time, and—were Jon a betting man—a short time, at that. 

He shoved back and gave Wheeler's hair a good ruffle. "Alright, you know the rules. If you're gonna show up unannounced, I'm putting you to work."

"Yeah, yeah. I expect payment in cash." He didn't miss a beat, as if he hadn't been shoved unceremoniously out the door when he started popping up on Jon's TV. 

"I'll buy you lunch."

"And dinner."

"Hey, you're the one with TV money," he shot back.

"Yeah, but I'm a cheap date." He grinned, pinning a name tag to his shirt.

Jon scowled. The shop did more special orders than walk-ins, there had never been a need for a name tag, but the kid insisted. Little shit. He hid it somewhere in the shop each time he left. It haunted Jon.

Wheeler's grin just grew, cheeks all bunched up and dimpled. "I thought you were busy?"

He shot the kid another dark look. "You're lucky I am, or I'd kick your ass."

"Bring it, old man."

"Don't think I won't tell on you. Eddie'll do it for me."

"Hasn't worked out for you before, I doubt he'll start doing your dirty work now." Wheeler swatted at him, already turning to busy himself with the familiar routine of opening the shop up. It was like he'd never even left.  "Go. I've got this."

"That's why you're my favorite, Yoots."

He laughed, loud in the usually quiet place. "You gotta buy me dinner now."

He knew what was coming, script familiar as the rustle of paper and the scent of ink and dust. But he asked, anyway, "Oh yeah? Or what?"

"Or I'll tell Eddie you said that," he said, smugly. 

Jon threw a paperback at his head. Just for good measure.