#Fun fact if you pay attention they have a little hideaway in the back of the alley!

[mandareeboo]

Ramshackle drabble prompt: Scrap cuddle pile?

The embers of the trash fire were slowly starting to fizzle out as they settled in for the night, Stone and Vinnie idly passing a smoke between each other while Skipp serenaded them with his mandolin.

"We should totally try for two cans of beans tomorrow," Vinnie urged, holding her hands out as if to picture it. "That's double the beans!"

"Gettin' greedy, are we?" Stone huffed out with a dry laugh.

"Hey, it could happen. We have good luck sometimes."

"Hear me out," Skipp says. "What if we got. Three cans of beans? That'd be one for each of us!"

Vinnie waved it off. "Nah. Good luck only comes in even numbers. Everyone knows that."

"Aw."

"Do you even know what even numbers are? It's not like you read."

"Shuddup." The last bit of light left the alley as the flames died out. Vinnie hopped to her feet and stretched. "Whelp, time for bed."

"Sleepover!" Skipp cried, as he was wont to do every night, grabbing and holding open the curtain that blocked their sleeping spot from the rest of the world. Built of tin, barbed wire, and some spit, it mostly kept out the rain and even the wind on occasion.

Stone groaned deep in his throat as Vinnie pulled out their one blanket. It was thin, full of patchwork and holes, an obnoxious brown color that no one could tell if it was dyed or dirt. "Can't we just-"

"Nope," she said, popping the p, as she began to bundle Stone up like a worm. "You need your blankie or you get hypothermia," Vinnie cooed with a shit-eating grin.

"I fuggin' hate you," Stone said blankly.

"Mattresses don't talk," Vinnie reminded him, laying against his bundled side. Skipp eagerly crowded in beside her so they were face to face. "Night, Skipp. Night, mattress."

"G'night," Skipp chirped.

Stone grunted.

They laid quietly in their makeshift pile for a bit, adjusting to the darkness. Ramshackle was never truly pitch black; streetlamps and the glow of all-night shops kept the world lit even as its homeless inhabitants tried to sleep.

"Guys," Skipp whispered. "I just had an idea."

"Go to sleep, Skipp," Stone grumbled.

"Mattresses don't talk," Vinnie repeated, elbowing him for good measure. "What's your idea, Skipp?"

"What if we found.... four cans of beans?"

Vinnie's eyes grew wide. "Oh shit! That'd be an even number!" She rubbed her chin. "What would we even do with four cans of beans?"

"Eat them," Skipp supplied.

"Well, yeah, but that's more beans than we've ever had before! Can we even eat that many?"

"We'd save it," Stone decided. "Have the rest fer breakfast."

"Oh, man, breakfast," Vinnie drew the word out with delight, too enamored to remind him not to speak. "When's the last time we had two meals in a row?"

They went back and forth like that for some time before finally they all began to nod off.

[brighteststar707]

Lollipop 🍭 for Saeyoung (⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)⁠❤

She/her pronouns. Maybe like mc falls for him not expecting much back but then with time realizes that he might have feelings for her too? I think this would be fun to see in the post SE timeline when Saeyoung can take time falling in love. And MC wasn't pushy or invasive in his route, she was understanding! She helped Saeyoung bring Saeran back and kept supporting him any way she could during Saeran's recovery. As she spends more time with Saeyoung she realizes that she has genuine feelings for him and she notices that he might be feeling the same way. This might be a bit too much backstory for a drabble 😅 do feel free to add or change anything you like! I'm excited to read it ♥️♥️ congrats again for 300 followers!🥳💕💕

Lucy! Thank you for your patience!

This request was a lot of fun to write, though it did take me some time to figure out how best to frame it. Don't apologise for the extra backstory, I love hearing about the ideas you have in mind!

The concept of Saeyoung and his MC falling for each other slowly after the events of his route is one I really enjoy. It's probably a lot healthier than what happens in the route. He needs his time to come to terms with everything else before ever considering love.

I took most of your prompt and changed the perspective a bit, so it's Saeyoung realizing his feelings after everything is said and done. I hope you enjoy <3

✧ Lollipop ~ Having a crush

Today’s outing takes a detour to a little coffee shop. After a few hours of walking around the park and exploring different shops, they’d both like a break. It’s an unremarkable building, the kind of place that’s easy to miss if you’re not paying attention but surprisingly, the inside is warm and welcoming, like a little hideaway from the streets outside. Saeyoung likes it from the moment they enter. How she ever found this place, he doesn’t know.

They pick a good variety of pastries from the case to go with their drinks – they’ve never been the type to do half-measures – and then settle into a booth by the window. He sits opposite her, and the table is small enough that his legs risk bumping into hers. He tucks them under his chair instead.

Since the twins' lives had settled into a new sort of normal in the bunker, Saeyoung had found himself with a lot more free time on his hands. Saeran did not need him in the ways he once did (in fact, his independence is key to his recovery). The agency had imploded and his father had finally been served justice. He wasn’t sure what was left for him to do except stare at the walls of his office. He had never had any ambitions beyond the life he had been previously living. They were never allowed.  

She had caught him in the middle of a crisis where he had spent weeks closed up indoors panicking about the openness of his future. She encouraged him to come outside with her, it had been so long since they had last seen each other, after all. They went for a walk around the empty land surrounding where he lived, talked about life, the little things, and then later the big scary things. 

This gesture of hers had awoken in him a feverish desire to catch up on everything at once, the life he had been missing all this time. They immediately started making plans for when to meet up next, where to go and what to do.

No two outings so far have been the same. Sometimes, they just pick random exits off the highway to go exploring. Other times, they went to the cinema or a museum. The RFA joined them sometimes, like the time they managed to convince Jumin to hold a game night at his penthouse (those shiny new consoles were just begging to be used) and the time they all went together to watch Zen perform in his latest show. Saeran even agreed to join once or twice, like when they got ice cream at the park or when they went to go visit an art gallery. A lot of the time, though, it was just the two of them.

They didn't mind it that way. It was no secret that they had always been closer than the others. Even from the beginning, when they were just strangers in a chatroom, they managed to still joke around in ways the others didn’t understand. There was an understanding between them, a product of their personalities and the things they had been through, that would be difficult to replicate with anyone else.

Even now, as they sit in the café sipping their drinks, the silence is comfortable. He can read the expression on her face as she watches the people walk by from the quirk in her eyebrows and the slight smile that curves the corners of her mouth.

She catches him watching her, though, and quickly locks her eyes on his.

She flashes him a cheeky smile and says, “Something catch your eye?” and his stomach does somersaults. Did she always look like that?

Despite all the time they had spent together, both before Mint Eye and after, sometimes it felt like he was still just noticing things about her he probably should have noticed before this. The smell of her shampoo when she got into his car earlier today. Her arm brushing against his when reaching for a book on a shelf next to him. The proximity of their knees under the table.

If he looks visibly flustered, she doesn't let on. She instead replaces her question with another one. She asks him about how life is going in the bunker. How he is coping, how Saeran is coping.

He tells her that he is looking at houses, that he's trying to find the best way to broach the idea of moving to Saeran. How to involve him in the process, so he has a say in where they end up living. He tells her that it's getting easier on most days to talk to each other.

He doesn't give her the half-answers he's used to giving. How could he? She has seen him in his entirety, at his worst as well as his best. It's no use lying to her even if he wanted to; she has been involved with their reuniting and recovery since day one.

She is the reason he survived the whole ordeal at all. When he was falling to pieces at the apartment, she was the one who brought him food, who didn't try to pry. She stubbornly refused to let him punish himself for things that weren't his fault. Then, when it was time for him to go and rescue Saeran, she agreed to go with him without question.

He remembers waking up at the hospital and finding her curled up asleep on a very uncomfortable looking chair. She hadn’t left, even after they got rescued. No, she remained until he was discharged, bringing with her well-wishes from the others and news on Saeran’s recovery. She is the one who broke the news to him about V and who let him air out his frustrations as well as his grief.

When he was finally discharged, she promised him that she was just a call away. He thanked her (he will likely never stop thanking her) but promised himself that he would not burden her with any more of his troubles.

He went on to focus on Saeran’s care. It was worse than he could have imagined, to see his brother in that state. The anger, he could take. He deserved it. But the emptiness, the apathy he saw from the person he once knew to be so joyful scared him like nothing else. He could rescue Saeran from Rika and the drugs she put him under. He could not force him to keep living if he didn't wan to, however.

That’s how he ended up calling her again. From then on, she often accompanied him to hospital visits. She’d wait for him in the waiting room every time he went in, and on days when he couldn’t, she would go in instead. Afterwards, she’d encourage him to talk about the things on his mind. She was the first person to hear about his plan to break Saeran out of the hospital.

He allowed himself to accept help from her and offered her the same support in return. On more than one occasion he stayed on the phone with her till she fell asleep because memories of the basement cell and gunshots and screams were keeping her up. He understood that some things she’d never be able to explain to anyone else.

As he rebuilt his life, she was an essential part of it. He survived because of her friendship and promise that he would never be alone if he didn't want to be.

The time passes quickly as they share pastries and discuss the pros and cons of the different types of houses he is considering. He isn’t sure when their adventures became more about seeing her than doing whatever activity they had planned. When he started calling her just to ask her what she was doing and to hear the sound of her voice on the other side. He is already dreading dropping her off at home later and returning to the bunker by himself. Without her, things feel off-kilter.

There is a small voice telling him that he knows what he's feeling. That he had felt it once before, in a time when she was just a grainy figure on CCTV footage and a voice over the phone. The spark of something that had been stifled by everything that came after.

He leans forward to show her a listing on his phone, and their legs bump under the table. It doesn't look like she notices but he can feel his heart racing. He must say something funny, because she tips her head back to laugh and the sunlight catches on her hair.

And then all the pieces slot together like the world's most obvious puzzle and he is left dumbfounded by his own obliviousness.

Before he can process his realization, before he can try and figure out what it means, the words tumble out of his mouth.

"I love you."

There it was, out on the table with whatever was left of the pastries.

She immediately straightens up and looks at him with wide eyes.

"What did you say?"

Is he imagining things, or does she sound flustered?

"I... love you." He says it slower this time and it sounds almost inadequate.

"Oh."

He's not imagining things. She fiddles with her sleeves and looks down at the table as if it'd be able to hide the smile that's slowly growing on her (definitely blushing) cheeks. Before he can think of something (anything) else to say, she takes a breath and looks at him. She's smiling shyly, it's a look he has never seen on her before.

"That makes me so happy, Saeyoung."

"Does that mean..."

Her smile widens and she nods. "Me too."

"What- why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't want to dump my feelings on you after everything. I thought it would ruin things."

"As if you could ruin anything."

They hold eye contact for a second before they both burst into a fit of giggles out of relief and the absurdity of it all.

He reaches for her hand across the table. Their legs bump and cross under the table, and he doesn't mind how much the contact makes his heart race. In fact, he relishes it. He wonders what it would feel like if she were closer, whether it would simply stop beating all together. He can't remember the last time someone was this close to him.

They have spent the last few months catching up on life he has missed. As he squeezes her hand between both of his and digests the certainty of their confessions, he realises that this is only the beginning.

[ravenadottir]

a rocco route

so much love for rocco on my dash got me thinking... what a rocco route would look like if he stayed in the villa on day 8.

everything up to that point could stay the same. his mistakes, the things he and mc say to each other, all of it. perhaps a tweet that would make him think twice though, like:

"______ made a huge mistake. he should've kept in his pants because the girl he dismissed is amazing. he doesn't know what he's missing out."

or something a little more impactful.

rocco anc mc have a dreaded conversation that somehow was provided by bobby, because he would probably tell marisol that no matter how much she likes him, mc deserves an apology.

they occupy a daybed and have a dreaded conversation where rocco might be incredibly lost for words. he makes a comparison to a similar situation he went through before to going to the villa, and there's probably a fun anecdote where he made a huge discovery about himself.

mc can just forgive him, or she can give him a hard time. if he's supposed to stay and be an li, then he'll realize that just because he had feelings for marisol it didn't mean the ones he had for mc were gone.

he's now feeling guilty about the betrayal and tries to find a way of fixing things, but it might be too late. he could be out here making food, mocktails, offering a massage, acting all distracted to pay attention to anyone else that isn't mc.

at the recoupling, mc has the power to pick him. when she does, he shoots an apologetic look at marisol, and that would make her have resentment towards mc.

they have the opportunity to go to the hideaway, and if that happens, rocco might lose his mind over her, because i believe he associates intimacy with love. he's very confused at this point, but the choice of bedding him is yours.

the next day, operation nope happens, which leads me to believe he would be hearing about it sooner than the others. because bobby will ask marisol and she might comment about it with rocco.

he's now worried, that mc would get revenge, and stay put, quietly watching and hoping she won't. if she does, he's disheartened, but doesn't say anything besides "i made a mistake, you made this solely to hurt me, even after what happened between us last night."

he might go to marisol's arms if mc participates actively in the operation. if she doesn't then he's fucked, because now he's sure those feelings are growing stronger every day.

in the meantime, he might've talked it out with gary and apologized for going behind his back, even though he doesn't know it's possible gary had a couple of kisses with mc while they were coupled up.

when chelsea arrives, that's what concerns me, because i really think he would be charmed and that's just another moment that would make mc doubt his loyalty. enough to say something to him.

"no, i made that mistake once. you should know how i feel before thinking i would trade you for someone new."

"rocco... you traded me for someone who was here... i don't know if i can trust you."

"i understand. but i want you to know, i have been rethinking my decisions and the more i do, the more i know for sure you're the girl i want to share this journey with."

things get heated with the tension of operation, and after the disaster recoupling, i would make gary or bobby choose mc, leaving rocco distressed and upset. he could say something to gary like "i thought we had put the past behind us." or if bobby, "that was the snakiest thing you could've done mate, and that's coming from me!"

it depends on who has a higher 'heart score' with mc, and this is the order i would put them in:

jakub = hope

noah = priya

ibrahim = lottie

gary/bobby = chelsea

gary/bobby = mc

rocco = marisol

he's forced to choose marisol, which increases the angst because now he's gonna share the bed with the girl he liked just a few days ago, and who's eager to be with him again.

before anything else happens, casa amor days come, and i would make rocco have the almost fight with the boy that stole mc, and that boy is the one bringing blake back.

mc would have a discussion with them on the roof terrace, and say "i thought you were my friend, and i expected this from rocco, but a betrayal like this coming from you? i don't know if i can forgive you."

at the bean bags the other boys, noah, ibrahim and rocco, are talking and you have the same dialogue. he asks mc for a moment alone and says the same thing the others say on the paid scene. "i missed you, that's all."

during this playthrough i would love to insert some moments where rocco and marisol share the coping of the pool, or the kitchen space while talking, to get that angst high.

the stick or switch brought blake, but the next recoupling is for mc to save someone, and the ones endangered depend on whether mc brings someone or not. if she did:

chelsea stays coupled up with bobby/gary (her partner that stayed loyal)

lottie saves noah

bobby/gary (who stole mc) saves hope

and everyone else goes home, which would be unfair to rocco.

if he left here, i would make him give a really hurt speech. "i thought i could have a second chance, but i understand why you wouldn't be able to trust me again." he sniffs while putting his things in the bag. "i caused this, and i'm really sorry for hurting you. if anything, i brought this on myself."

but if mc stayed loyal, then these islanders are single:

mc // chelsea's partner (bobby/gary) // rocco // lottie

lottie saves noah

mc saves either jakub/elijah or the boy that stole her

chelsea's partner saves hope

rocco saves chelsea (and cmm would make sense, but i digress)

this would be a turning point to make chelsea tell you about her crush, but she doesn't, and tries to shake it off, not saying anything, like she does in the game.

elisa and jo come in, and i think it would be delightful to see how into jo's stories rocco is. same as mc's partner at this point.

once the next recoupling comes, i think it would be feral (but also amazing) to make marisol talk to mc about rocco, because she thinks she has a chance with him. when asked about graham, she responds "graham is nice and all, but i really think i have a shot with rocco."

to which mc would reply "i want him. it's his decision who he wants to be with. we've been through a lot, but i reckon if he likes you, i don't see why i should stay in the way. but marisol, asking me this, after everything that happened, is really selfish. you have someone that likes you, and i should have a chance to be happy."

rocco picks mc, saying "i'm so relieved because i thought you and bobby/gary were getting along... i didn't wanna lose the chance to be with you. already did that once and i'm not gonna repeat my mistakes."

returning!hannah and lurik come, lurik is all over mc, hannah is all over rocco, saying how much she wished she had a shot back then, and that they always shared so much about their vision of what love is.

another angsty moment except rocco is not giving her the time of day, but that's not clear enough for mc to see. he knows if he fucks up, mc is gonna run towards anyone that would take her, which is a lot of people.

after couple trouble, he says 'i love you', and completes with

"i knew it a while ago, i just didn't say anything because i didn't want to scare you, or to put that pressure on you. i know how intense it can be when someone says 'i love you' too soon, and well..." he laughs. "i wanted to do it right."

i would like to see rocco being eager to participate on the 'baby challenge', because i really believe he loves children and would be comparing notes with noah. plus, i know rocco stans would have their uteruses skipping several beats with the edit of him holding the doll in that... thing that carries the doll on their chest lol

i think from here on it's pretty standard. the last date might contain a very sweet speech, but for a rocco stan it would mean the world, because after the mistakes he made, i think this redemption would be great.

everyone in there made mistakes, and the fact that i don't like him doesn't influence on the fact that he was an interesting character. he just had a really short term in there, but if he had stayed, i think his route would be the most flavorful, given marisol would be trying to be with him, and she's charming as fuck!

anyway, hope you rocco stans like this. a post i saw today got me thinking about it and i needed to put it somewhere.

[incorrectlumityquotes]

FULL REVIEWS: “Lost In Language”

Lost in language and I don't know much. Was I thinking aloud and fell out of touch? But I'm back on my feet and eager to be what you wanted.

Seriously? Nothing? You guys have never heard Air Supply? I mean, they’re old AF but still. It’s a funny pun. Whatever.

Back in the day (like it was so long ago) I didn’t know what to expect from this episode. The only thing I caught from the description was library, but hoo boy, we got so much more!

I love the cold opens to this show. It always reminds me that Luz is a silly ass hyper fangirl who still wants life to play out like it does on TV. 

“Learning about love and life through the eyes of a child.”

Spoken like a true person who have never done any actual babysitting. The Bat Queen gets her own soft intro for another episode, which I’m noticing more and more re-watching this show. She pays Eda to watch her baby in exchange for a butt-ton of money. Eda, in classic Eda fashion, would rather not split the cash with Luz and gives her an errand to run so she doesn’t have to do it. 

I don’t know about you guys, but liked going to the library when I was a kid. It was the only way I could play computer games or go on the internet. Getting online is the easiest thing in the world today, but when I was a kid, it was a luxury my parents couldn’t afford. And dumb-dumb kid me didn’t know that you can borrow movies and comic for free at the library too. That’s how I saw Jaws for the first time.

The library at The Boiling Isles is almost exactly what I expected. Kinda like the Hogwarts library, but with a lot more teeth and eyes everywhere. Luz has a bunch of fun just messing around, until she stumbles upon the cutest goddamn thing ever!

Amity reading to kids at the public library in her free time. My god.

I’m with Luz here. Holy hell, I did not see that coming. I thought Amity was the rival character, the Draco Malfoy of the show, the reluctant ally, the jerk with the heart of gold DEEP in there somewhere. Instead she’s at the Kid’s Corner reading her favorite childhood classic to toddlers. I didn’t know there were angels in the demon realm.

Stop. Stop! You’re already cute.

Seriously this moment made me go “aw” and laugh at the same time. It was weird. Also how does this library have a manga section? Do they import these books from JAPAN in the HUMAN REALM? Is there a publishing company that acts as the middleman? Or are these just the books that the trash slugs ended up barfing on the beach somewhere? I’m thinking too hard about a throwaway joke in the background. Big brain hurt.

AND back to reality...

Luz tries to extend the hand of friendship to Amity and Amity rejects it. I have...thoughts.

First, they this up with another parallel to Azura in the beginning of the episode. I get it. It’s a theme that they are doing, but I would have rather have Luz try to befriend Amity because she wants to, not because Azura did it. It’s not the only reason she does it, but it does kinda bug me a bit. It kinda goes back to Luz wanting life to play out like a story. 

Also, a part of me thinks that this is something Amity likes to do alone. Her way of getting away from everyone else and just do something that she enjoys and makes her feel good. We have no proof that it gives her extra credit, so she could just use that as a way to save face. She seemed so happy to do it too. 

Finally, you know what this else this reminds me of? The Karate Kid and Cobra Kai. There’s a popular fan theory that has been around since the eighties that if you look at The Karate Kid from the rival’s perspective, the protagonist is the bully. I’m more than sure that’s what going on here. From Amity’s perspective, Luz just gets her into trouble. We’ll get more into that later.

Luz walks off dejected and we get the second big surprise to punch me in the face.

Holy hell, why the fuck are you two so goddamn fucking pretty? I mean, holy shit, look at these two. My god. And ERICA LINDBECK as Emira? Jesus Christ, I’m going to be feeling things I shouldn’t be feeling in places I can’t say!

Joking aside, we get one of our first full introductions that didn’t come with a soft intro from a previous episode. Enter Emira and Emira, Amity’s older siblings who in true sibling fashion like to give Amity a hard time.  

“Hey, mittens!”

This seems normal at first. Siblings always rib each other. No big deal.

Amity storms off. The twins introduce themselves proper to Luz (and the audience) and they mess around for a bit. 

In fact, they have so much fun messing around with Luz that they decide to invite her back afterhours to check out The Wailing Star. Luz thinks that this is a great way to get on Amity’s good side by befriending her siblings. Why she would think this I have no idea.

Meanwhile the B-plot continues its adventures in babysitting. I don’t like using the word filler (so I won’t) but this B-plot is really just for two things: setting up Escape of the Palisman and jokes. It does both. No harm, no foul.

Also the twins said for Luz to meet back at midnight and Luz was at The Owl House for like a hot second. There’s like a huge gap of time there. What did she do until midnight? Whatever. If it was important it would have been animated.

Also also, I love all of Luz’s little saying in this episode. She does it a lot but they cranked it up in this episode. Featuring great hits like:

“This sour lemon drop has a hidden sweet center.”

and

“I thought we were as cool as cucumbers but we’re as sour as pickles.”

and my favorite

“Call me a library book because they were checking me out.”

I hope they keep doing that.

Back at the literal Wailing Star (I laughed so hard), The twins and Luz discover that The Wailing Star brings the content of the books to life. Does that work for all books in The Boiling Isles or just the library? Enough. No more big brain. The three proceed to...mess around some more.

The twins discover offscreen (Really? Really.) that if you edit the contents of the book, you change what comes to life. Then the twins reveal their true objectives. Apparently, Amity has been tattling on the twins whenever they cut class or do whatever it is that they want. They’ve decided to look for her secret little hideaway (that they somehow know is in the library), find her diary and post all the pages all over school to teach her a lesson. 

Um, fucking no.

And here we enter the true lesson of this episode and probably the reason why Hecate is draw with two faces. People being more than just what they appear to be at face value. 

Amity appears to be the bully character of the show, and while she did bully Willow, Luz and King, there’s more to her than that. Amity is lonely. As a fellow person who grew up lonely, trust me. I can tell from a mile away. She puts pressure on herself to be the best at whatever she’s doing and to be the best. She hates that she follows the rules but people like her siblings seem to get rewarded for breaking the rules and doing whatever they want free of consequence. She sees the double standard that they live by and it angers her. But at the same time, everyone seems to give the twins a free pass so she can’t do anything about it. 

Even worse, there’s no one for her to confide in. It wouldn’t make it better but it would make it easier for her to just vent and get the bullshit out of her brain. She doesn’t like her friends and the one friend she did like...that’s for another episode. Hence, the diary. Amity is a big ball of frustration and loneliness. I know because I grew up in a very similar way.

When you’re forced to keep your anger inside you, you lash out at any little thing that bothers you just to ease your frustrations. It doesn’t make it okay but it’s the only way to cope sometimes just to get by.

The twins on the other hand seem like everything you’d want in a friend. They’re fun; they like you; they’re attractive; they’re attentive. But in reality, they live in a world where they believe consequences and accountability don’t apply to them. And they’ll do anything to keep it that way. Even humiliate their sister.

Luz seems like a happy-go-lucky, friends to all things kinda person, but she can also be innocently insensitive. She just does things hoping they turn out the way they would for Azura without considering how the people around her would feel about it.

It doesn’t make any of these characters two-faced. We just are different things to different people.

Amity discovers what’s going down and Luz (being the empathic person that she is) decide to try to go talk to her. 

Then I’m reminded that this is a horror-comedy.

My god, you’re ugly.

One climax later (don’t laugh), and Luz and Amity try to make amends with each other. They both have to think about how they’ve been treating the other, earning the title of bully or not. They’re not friends yet but this is...better.

FINAL SCORE: 5 - Loved it.

Damn, The Owl House is one a roll. That’s what? Three 5 scored episodes already? Hot damn. This episode was fun but it really hit hard with the character work on Amity. She quickly became one of the most interesting characters and a fan favorite. And the third act provided a good amount of horror to call this a horror comedy. The B-plot is fine but probably one of the weakest only saved by several funny jokes. This is one of those episodes I kept coming back to and a favorite to watch.

Could you two please not? I’m gonna get in trouble.

[smolthealmighty]

Spinaraki Week Level 2 Day 1: Chase

Give Myself To You

When Spinner had the idea to visit his hometown and show off his old hideaways to Tomura, he thought it would be romantic. He could turn these sad places where he went to cry into secluded havens where he could spend some quality alone time with the love of his life, and do something he's wanted to do since their third date. He was not expecting a neon orange pickup truck to interrupt the date by hurtling towards them at high speed.

In which Spinner's old bullies want to run him over with their truck, Tomura wants to beat the shit out of them for daring to try, and Spinner just wants to pop the question.

~~~~~

This was not how this date was supposed go. Spinner just wanted to show his boyfriend around his hometown, give him a tour of all the isolated spots he would hide away in before he eventually shut himself up inside the Iguchi house. It was gonna be a nice romantic getaway, where the places he associated with some of his worst memories could be re-contextualized as he turned them into secluded little havens where he could woo his boyfriend –and eventually propose to him– in peace.

There they were, sitting together at the edge of the forest that semi-surrounded the town, watching the sun start to set over the hilly meadow that lay below them. Tomura was fully relaxed for once, leaning heavily on his boyfriend as he reminisced about the utter disaster that was the one time they tried to go clubbing, while Spinner was mustering up his courage and fidgeting with the rings in his jacket’s pocket. Just as he turned to face Tomura and was about to start the speech he had been revising in his mind since –admittedly– their third date, he saw the unmistakable neon orange pickup truck that belonged to Spinner’s worst nightmares, Nōtarin, Iyaga, and Rase, speeding in the background. And the truck was gunning straight for them!

“Oh no.”

“Hm, what do you mean ‘oh no’?” asked Tomura, who also uttered an “oh no” once Spinner pointed towards the truck that was now only a hundred meters away. With reflexes that were still etched into his bones after years of dealing with the trio, Spinner clutched his boyfriend close and launched the both of them down the hill in a barrel roll, barely missing the thick tires of the truck as it blew past them.

“What the hell was that shit?” yelled Tomura, as Spinner shot up, grabbed his hand, and lead them towards one of the few trees that dotted the meadow.

“Those are the assholes I told you about, the ones who always went after me. One of them must’ve seen me and recognized me, and now they’re picking back up from where we last left off!”

“You last left off with them trying to turn you into roadkill?!”

As they ducked into the hollow, a chorus of brash voices with heavy country accents boomed across the meadow.

“Shuichi, you purse designer’s wet dream! Why don’t you let us mount your lizard head to the wall like the hunting trophy you are!”

“Nōtarin, I saw someone with him, hey gecko geek, do you mind if we mount your friend too?”

“Damn Iyaga, keep it in your pants. Though to be fair, compared to talon-hands you’d probably be a better fit!”

At this point Tomura was already struggling against Spinner to march out of the hollow and wreak vengeance. “C’mon Spinner, I’ll mount their heads on our base’s wall!”

“Would you just gimme a sec to cool down a bit?!” Tomura relented and stopped squirming, letting Spinner hold him as he tried to stop trembling.

“Ugh, I swear, they always know how to get under my skin. And I really thought I’d be over them by now.”

Tomura turned to face Spinner and squeezed him back, taking his boyfriend’s scaly beak and pressing it into his scarred neck. “You’ll be alright. You’re just a little stuck, I’m right here if you need a push you know.”

Spinner sighed as he nuzzled the curve of Tomura’s shoulder. “I know I’m not the pinnacle of dating material but damn, people can have different tastes.”

Tomura snorted, “Oh please, as if those hillbilly bitches know anything about ‘good taste’. If your loyalty and empathy for empty husks like me aren’t enough to prove ‘em wrong, then you having the muscles to be able to wield a giant ‘fuck you’ sword should’ve done the job. The fact they can’t see any of that just shows that their IQ scores are all in the negatives.”

Looking up and seeing Tomura’s self-assured smile, the smile graced his face whenever he was so sure that he was right, knowing that he truly believed that his boyfriend was really all that, melted Spinner’s heart into a puddle of goo.

“Marry me.”

Maybe melted it a little too much.

“Huh?”

Realizing what just came out of his mouth, Spinner blushed violently and tried to start some damage control. “Uh shoot I mean um-”

“Hey Nōtarin, let’s ram into that tree! I think I hear them over there!”

Hearing that brought Spinner back to his senses, and he dragged Tomura out of the hollow, Nōtarin swerving just enough to only nick one of the headlights off the truck before resuming the chase.

“Son of a bitch, I had it all planned out and I messed it up!”

“Had what planned out?” asked Tomura, still in a whirl from what he was pretty sure he heard Spinner blurt just seconds ago.

“You know what, it’s fine, I’ll just do it on the fly. Follow me!”

They booked it across the meadow, Spinner weaving them around the hidden hills and valleys camouflaged beneath the waist-high grass. The truck kept slowly gaining on them, but the constant bangs and thumps of the truck bouncing against the uneven ground and the arguing between the driver and his passengers betrayed how little the tormentors knew about the terrain.

“Dammit, stay still you lizard-fuck!”

“Nah, let him keep running. Makes the chase more exciting!”

“Maybe if you’d gotten your driver’s license, you’d actually be able to hit him Nōtarin!”

“Fuck off Rase!”

Jumping over a particularly thick mud puddle, Spinner finally began the speech that had been previously interrupted.

“I’m sure you already know that I fell for you pretty fast-”

“Understatement of the year, but I’m not one to talk.”

The neon orange paint was splattered with mud, with the new coat of brown getting bigger as the wheels spun, sluggishly making its way through the puddle.

Spinner laughed breathlessly as he continued, “-yeah, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able put how much the love you gave me in return means to me into words. I couldn’t do it even if the ocean was made of ink and the earth was paper, it just wouldn’t be enough.”

“Shuichi…”

“And, well, since I can’t use words, I thought I’d show my devotion with some kind of gift, but I don’t really have much to give you except myself. Still, I’ll give that to you for the rest of my life if you want it.”

By this point they had stopped just a few feet in front of a moss-covered boulder, one that blended in with the green grass and was in the direct pathway of the truck that continued driving towards them at top speed.

Ignoring the oncoming truck, Spinner took Tomura’s other hand into his own, and softly asked, “Tomura, will you marry me?”

The truck hit the rock, skyrocketing up and over the couple. The screams of the driver and his passengers fell on deaf ears as Tomura gazed into bright, cherry-petal eyes and answered the proposal:

“You’re more than enough for me, you’re more than I could ever dream of asking for. Of course I’ll marry you.”

Not even a moment after he accepted, a loud crash echoed across the meadow as the truck collided with the ground, flipping over as it did so. The bullies were quick to exit the wreck and make their way towards the still lovestruck duo to attack them. It was a farce from the start, the newly established fiancés barely paying them any attention as they began to brawl.

“Look at you all smiley and shit,” said Tomura as he kicked Rase across the field.

“Why wouldn’t I be all smiles? I’m gonna get to marry to the love of my life! You should see your face right now, looks like your smile’s gonna split your face in two with how big it is!” exclaimed Spinner, dodging Nōtarin’s sluggish punches with ease.

“Touché, fiancé. I bet you’ve already got a plan for everything that comes next, you gooey romantic.”

“Well, I was thinking we could have a small ceremony, just us and the league. Nothing too fancy, we’d just do the vows, ring exchange, ‘I do’s’, and sealing it with a kiss, all within fifteen minutes tops. That way we can splurge on the reception, the best music-” Nōtarin screamed as his arm was sliced by Spinner’s hunting knife.

“-the most delicious food and drinks-” Nōtarin gurgled as the knife ran through his neck.

“-and a cake so big that’ll make everyone sick. We’d just have to grab someone to officiate the thing and make it official.”

“We can get Giran to do it, he’s got just enough connections that he could make it happen.” Iyaga howled as his chest caved in.

“And for the honeymoon, I was thinking about taking a joyride on the coastline. We could stock up the van and make stops at all the beaches, and maybe get rid of a few heroes along the way if we’re up for it.”

“That sounds good to me, I’m certainly looking forward to having some fun alone time to ourselves!” Tomura cried happily, as Rase joined Iyaga in the pile of dust that lay at his feet.

~

By the time they came down from the high of the fight, the sun was dipping below the tree line, Tomura and Spinner sprawled out next to each other on the bloodstained earth.

“Ah shit,” said Tomura, “I just realized that there goes my future date idea of murdering your hometown bullies.”

Spinner chuckled at his fiancé’s annoyed tone, “That’s okay, we only murdered a couple of them. Next time we can take down the town leaders who encouraged everything, make a day out of it.”

“Hmm, alright, but I’m planning it. It’s only fair.”

Satisfied, Spinner let out a sigh before suddenly sitting up. “Oh right, I gotcha these,” he said as he pulled the rings out of his pocket.

“It’s just a pair of those plastic rings from the arcade we went to a while back, but I figure we’re not gonna wear these for too long because they’re just engagement rings. We can rob a jewelry store together to pick out the wedding rings.”

“Sounds perfect,” said Tomura, as they each took turns slipping the rings onto each other’s fingers. Taking a second to let the presence of a ring on his finger sink in, Tomura smiled and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever been more grateful that Re-Destro only snapped off my first three fingers.”

“Well, that’s one way to say you’re happy to be engaged,” Spinner joked.

“Hm. Then I’ll say it more romantically, just for you.” This time, it was Tomura who took Spinner’s hands into his own as he spoke his piece:

“Shuichi, you are one thing in this world that I could never hate, and the only person I will ever promise myself to. I’ll do whatever it takes to give you the life you want to live. I love you, and I’ll continue to love you until the stars grow cold, and even after that.”

If that speech hadn’t already swept Spinner off his feet, then the deep kiss Tomura initiated sent his heart skyward with how much it fluttered. When they both came down to earth, they went about flipping the thoroughly beat-up truck right side up, and as the last rays of sunlight disappeared beneath the horizon, the newly engaged couple drove off into the ink and lavender sky.

[etherealwaifgoddess]

Somewhere Only We Know

Main Characters: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: Since joining the Avengers you can’t seem to get any alone time with Bucky. You take matters into your own hands and find a creative solution to get the handsome super soldier back in your arms.

Warnings/ Content: Referenced sex. It’s all off screen and nothing is blatantly stated. 

Dialogue prompt: “Pleeeeaaase, can we just step away for a little bit? I promise I’ll make it worth your while.” 

Word Count: 1.5k

Author’s Note: Hello lovelies! This is my little entry for Lani’s 3rd Mysterious Writing Challenge for the oh-so-talented @propertyofpoeandbucky. She’s amazing ya’ll. If you haven’t read anything by her yet I *highly* recommend you go take a look at her stuff. I hope you enjoy this Lani!! Thank you for hosting such a fun challenge :) 

Somewhere Only We Know

(title from the song by Keane)

It wasn’t often you had time alone with Bucky. If it was up to the universe, you’d have none at all. Since joining the Avengers you found yourself constantly surrounded by various members of the eclectic group. Whether you were on missions or just lounging around the tower on your day off, there was always someone, most times multiple someones, around. It was like living in a college dorm all over again, and that was not an experience you were happy to repeat. Especially while you were trying to flirt with a certain centenarian ex-assassin. 

You’d had one blissful week together when Bucky came to recruit you. He’d found you in a crappy motel outside Philadelphia, hiding out after your powers had manifested on live TV in an almost horrific incident at a NFL game. A bomb had gone off during half time and you managed to get a protective force field around it in time for the bomb to implode inside the bubble without harming anyone. Of course, a girl with purple energy flowing around her who was able to save thousands of lives garnered a lot of attention from both the good guys and the bad ones. You had been on the run for two weeks when Bucky finally caught up with you. 

You were his first recruitment mission and he was determined to bring you in to join the team. You weren’t certain about being an Avenger but you were sure about getting him in bed. The super soldier’s thighs gave you a brand new appreciation of the word thicc. You’d spent the next six days enjoying each other’s company until Steve showed up, thinking he could help Bucky convince you to come back with them. You had never seen someone blush so hard their ears turned red. Steve was blessedly oblivious and you returned with them the next day.

After you returned to the tower with the guys your life had been a blur of training and practice. Bucky and you both agreed to keep what had happened to yourselves, not wanting it to potentially impact your ability to join the Avengers. You sparred with Nat, learned marksmanship from Clint, practiced controlling your powers with Wanda, jogged with Steve and Sam, and picked up a little basic first aid from Bruce. You knew it was important to be learning all that you could, to get yourself ready for the inevitable first mission, but you still missed Bucky. You’d barely get ten minutes alone with him at a time, never quite enough to make good use of it. 

It was a month into your training when you’d hit your limit. Bucky was too shy to slip off to your room at night, he was still sharing an apartment with Steve and his absence would be obvious. You started looking for out of the way places you might be able to slip off to unnoticed together. There were a few regular times that your day intersected with Bucky’s so you strategized when you would be able to make your move. You just hoped Bucky was still interested. Though the way he’d had to excuse himself last week when your shirt rode up while sparring with Nat seemed to indicate he was. 

You were cleaning up the kitchen after lunch, packing away the last of the leftovers, when Bucky walked into the room. He was still sweaty from his workout and the sight of his grey joggers riding low on his hips made your mouth go dry. It was now or never. “Hey Buck.” you greeted him with a welcoming smile. 

“Hey, Y/N. Are there any sandwiches left?” he asked while refilling his water bottle from the tap on the fridge.

“There are, or I could go show you the new wing of the bionics lab they’re building.” 

“What? I thought they’d stopped construction on that until Spring?”

“They did. But you see, it’s all the way up on the twenty second floor and no one ever goes up there.”

“Then why would we… oh.” Bucky’s eyes widened as he realized what you were implying. 

“Oh.” you echoed, nodding your head. “So what are you more hungry for, Barnes? The sandwich, or me?” 

Bucky blinked a moment at your blatant proposition before his brain got on board and you raced to the elevators. 

It became a habit, meeting up in the abandoned construction of what would eventually be an extension of Stark’s bionics lab. It was always frantic, heated, and absolutely amazing. You were dreading Spring’s arrival when you’d lose your hideaway. Hopefully by then your relationship would be able to be public. 

After an agonizingly long mission away, Bucky returned to the tower, tac gear covered in grime and still reeking of smoke. The second you locked eyes on him, you desperately wanted to get him alone. You wanted to help ease the tension in his shoulders and sadness in his eyes, take his mind off of whatever he had endured for a little while. 

Everyone was gathered in the common room while Tony gave a mission report to the rest of the team. It wasn’t ideal but you were undeterred. 

“Hey.” you whispered quietly to Bucky, knowing his super soldier hearing would pick up your words.

“Hiya, doll.” he answered, making sure his voice was just loud enough for you, and you alone, to hear.

“Wanna go up to our spot? They’ll never miss us.” 

“We should hang around ‘til Stark is done.” he whispered with a frown.

“Pleeeeaaase, can we just step away for a little bit? I promise I’ll make it worth your while.” you begged, “We’ll be quick, they won’t even notice we’re gone.” 

Bucky sighed and you could tell he was relenting. 

You were exiting the elevators, ready to slip back into the common room unnoticed barely twenty minutes later. Tony’s debrief meetings were usually an hour, so you should have still had plenty of time. Bucky went first, phantom silent as he slid back to his place along the back wall of the room. You waited a heart beat before making your way back to your spot next to him. It should have been perfect, you had practiced your stealth moves with Nat and were getting pretty damn good. Unfortunately your best laid plans were all taken down by a chip. 

Clint had helped himself to a bag of potato chips from the snack bowl and he crunched into one loudly right as you appeared in the doorway. Everyone’s eyes snapped over to the source of the sound and saw your attempted sneaking in the background. It might not have been too suspicious if it weren’t for the smudge of soot on your neck and your deer in the headlights expression. The fact that you’d buttoned two of your blouse buttons wrong in your hurry was just icing on the cake. Bucky’s eyes widened in silent panic as he realized you were busted and he stayed frozen in place as you laughed nervously, eyes scanning the shocked expressions of your team mates. 

Finally, Tony cleared his throat. “Wow. Robo Cop and our own little Glow Worm.” he shook his head in amused disbelief, “Good job, Glow Worm. Robo Cop, don’t make me give you the shovel talk, capiche? Now, let’s get back to work.” 

Everyone else was too stunned to comment so you just slunk back to your spot next to Bucky. “So much for discrete.” you whispered with an apologetic smile. 

“It was inevitable.” he shrugged.

“At least we won’t have to sneak upstairs to fool around now.” 

“I don’t know, doll. I kinda like having somewhere only we know.” 

“Love birds!” Tony shouted, startling you both. “Do you want to pay attention to the class, or do you want to go back upstairs and keep defiling my almost-lab?” 

The two of you cringed in unison. 

“So much for that.” you chuckle quietly, nudging Bucky in the ribs. “Sorry Tony!” you shout back.

“Wait? What!? Were you really? I was just taking a stab in the dark there. Oh god, my new lab! FRIDAY, get a hazmat crew up to the twenty second floor, stat! And you two. Ohhh you, two. Please, I beg of you. Go make use of one of the many beds we have here at Avengers Tower, preferably your own.” 

Bucky blushed fiercely, his ears adorably on fire.

“I don’t want to see either one of you until noon tomorrow at the earliest. Go on now, shoo.” Tony waved his hands at you dismissively. 

“The boss said so.” you shrugged at Bucky with a flirty smile. 

Bucky grinned wolfishly at you, “Orders are orders.” he said before scooping you up in his arms. 

You let out a little squeak as Bucky carried you off and you could hear Tony resuming his debriefing in the distance. It wasn’t the most ideal way for the team to find out, but somehow you couldn’t seem to mind at all. 

[choicessa]

Longing for your love (M!Kayden x MC)

Pairing: M!Kayden x MC

Book: The Royal Masquerade

Words: ~ 1930

Summary: During the night of the ball when she’s meant to meet her suitor, MC hides from the other guests, craving a moment for herself, a moment to think. That’s when a sudden unexpected companion joins her…

Note: Guess who has found her new obsession, sorry not sorry… I am guilty for loving this book and loving Kayden, so in the events of last chapter, this little idea came to me soooo here you go! I was never the one to say ‘no’ to good old slowburn so join me on the wild ride and don’t say I did’t warn you xD Enjoy! <3

Tags: @maria-soederberg​ , @the-everlasting-dream​, @flowerpowell​, @drakewalkerwhipped​

They told him to look for her.

 Partially he was happy, it was another occasion to run away from the boring small talks and the proud nobles and finally have time for himself. Usually, he would just find a quiet place, somewhere where no one would bother him, but he would still have an eye for everything and everyone, eyeing the crowd, watching Hunter and being ready for anything. But now? It was Rose they were talking about.

This party had one purpose only - she was supposed to meet Lord Percival's husband candidate tonight. How was he feeling about that? He preferred to not think about it at all. He knew the reasons for this marriage, he knew it was all arranged for a greater good, but yet he couldn't stop this strange enviousness, appearing in his heart whenever someone spoke about it yet again. This strange pain in his chest, just at the thought that she was meant for the other, that she couldn't even choose the man for herself. Did he care for her happiness that much? Yes, he did. Did he want her to marry for love, not because she had to? Yes, he did. Did he have ulterior motives in all of this? Probably he did. He took a deep breath and turned into yet another room, this one empty, no sign of Rose. Was she hiding, hoping to prolong the moment of her doom? Or was he kidnapped, hurt like her sister, laying somewhere motionless on the floor? The more time passed, the more nervous he was, worried about her well-being. What else could he do? Where to look for her?

Until he finally saw her, her figure hidden between the curtain and the column, away from the guests, away from the prying eyes. But at least safe and sound.

"Everyone is looking for you, My Lady." He said, approaching her.

Rose flinched at the sound of his voice, visibly startled when she turned around abruptly, her wide-opened eyes looking at him with half surprise, half fear.

"Kayden." She just spoke his name, visibly breathing out with relief.

"I am sorry my Lady, I didn't want to startle you."

"That's okay. I was just lost in thoughts and didn't hear you coming."

"But I still want to apologize. Hunter asked me to look for you, to make sure you're fine. You were nowhere to be found."

"I am. Well, as fine as a girl meant to meet his future husband can be." She couldn't stop bitterness in her voice, before realizing her mistake. She sighed heavily. “I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that…"

"You had every right to. After all, it's your future and someone else is planning it for you."

"Lady Renza taught me to never speak what I truly think, in case someone would want to use it against me." She sighed once again. "But I do trust you, Kayden."

"You can tell me anything, My Lady."

“And how many times do I have to tell you to not call me a Lady?"

"At least this one time."

She smiled to herself, probably the first genuine smile he had seen on her face that evening. They were standing like this in silence for a long moment until Kayden spoke up again.

"We should go."

She didn't answer. Instead, her eyes once again moved across the crowd on the other side of the curtain.

"What do you think, which one is it?" Rose asked suddenly.

"The candidate?"

"Yes."

"How do I know?"

"Guess."

Kayden looked around, until his sight stopped on the slim, tall man, standing not that far away from them, his posture indicating that he was more than proud of himself and his family name, a glass of wine in his hand and him, engulfed in the conversation with another woman.

"What about him?" He suggested.

Rose moved his gaze and shook her head.

"No. He's flirting with that woman he's talking to."

"Well, you're not engaged yet, it's not inappropriate in any way."

"It's not that. He has a wedding ring and yet his still flirting with someone else. He's one of those guys who like to have fun."

"You have a great eye for details," Kayden said, impressed.

"When you spend your whole life in a library, rewriting the same books over and over again you learn to pay attention to something that no else would notice." She answered, corners of her lips lifting in a small smile. "And what about the one talking to Percival?"

"Too young. They need someone with position and reputation so that your marriage will be beneficial."

"Fair enough."

"And the blonde one?" Kayden pointed to the man on the far right side of the room.

"He seems nice..." Rose tilted her head to the side, looking at him.

"And in a similar age."

"Well, then maybe..." She stopped talking when they both noticed a young, pregnant girl, who approached him, with a smile on her face. He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek and Rose shook her head.

"Definitely not this one. And the one next to Theodosia?"

"Too old." Kayden said without hesitation.

"I thought age isn't a problem when it comes to noble marriages." She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well... Yes and no. Usually, it depends on the circumstances. But Hunter wouldn't let you marry someone that old. He wants you to be happy in this marriage as much as it's possible in this situation."

And I do too. He thought to himself but didn't dare to speak those words out loud.

Rose smiled to herself, absentmindedly, her gaze still sweeping over the people gathered in the room. A comfortable silence fell between them until finally, she realized two things. Or even three things. First one - Kayden was standing very close to her, as close as he never did before. The second thing was the fact that their arms were touching, and the third thing she realized, the last thought that made her heart leap in her chest was the fact that they were alone. She blinked, rapidly, suddenly extremely aware of his proximity and before she would lose all of her courage, she moved her hand, reaching out to him. She felt him flinched, when their palms met, her little finger barely, shyly wrapping around his small one, almost like asking for permission to be let in, to be allowed to do something she craved for, for such a long time. For a moment they stayed like this, none of them daring to move, her, being too afraid of rejection and him, startled, unsure what to do and why did she allow herself for such a gesture. Until finally he moved his hand, his fingers brushing the top of her palm, gently, longingly, carefully, before lacing his fingers with hers at last. Rose held her breath, too afraid to move, to even breath, when his warm touch seemed to wake up emotion she wasn't aware of being capable of happening. Her cheeks flushed, her heart beating rapidly in her chest, when she was focusing on his touch, that pleasant feeling of another hand next to hers, the warmth of skin on skin, the butterflies in her stomach just at the single caress of his fingers over the top of her palm. Still holding her breath she slowly turned her head, earrings slowly swaying in her ears, their little dance caused by her sudden movement and her eyes finally met his. His eyes were almost black in the dim light of their hideaway and the intensity of his gaze was taking her breath away. His gaze was locked on her, almost piercing right through her and all she could think of was that look, those eyes, being the only thing she could focus on right now. It was like ocean of emotions he couldn't hide anymore, eyes full of warmth, full of longing, full of adoration and something else, something she couldn't put her finger on. Her lips parted, a ragged breath escaping them against her will when she felt his hand moving, fingers wandering around her wrist, before moving even higher, across her elbow, her arm, her shoulder, stopping for a moment on her neck.

"This is wrong..." Kayden whispered, yet against his own words, his fingers caressed skin on her exposed neck, his eyes drawn to that place, unable to look back.

"Then why does it feel so good?" She breathed out, her words quieter than a whisper.

He didn't reply. Instead, he moved his head, brushing away hair from her shoulders, his fingers tangling into her long curls and his eyes watching her face with a longing he couldn't hide anymore. If she would still be a scribe, if she would still be free to do whatever she wants, to marry a man she could choose... His thumb brushed skin on her cheek and Rose leaned into his touch, the trail of his thoughts stopping abruptly. But she was not. Not anymore. She was a noble now, ready to do what's expected from her, to secure her name, to secure her future and their king's future. She wasn't meant for him and will never be his, so why was he standing here, with her, throwing all of his reason to the wind, thinking only about having her? In every way possible? It was like he was drawn to her, pulled towards her like under a magic spell. Before he realized what he was doing, he already took a step closer, the warmth of her body almost palpable now, when he started to lean down, throwing all the caution to the wind, thinking only about her, his face being closer and closer and closer... Until they heard the shatter of a broken glass and a laugh that followed, from the other side of the curtain and they abruptly parted, taking a few steps back, to keep the safe distance. Rose avoided his eyes and looked down, her right hand reaching to her earring, pretending to be fixing them, when the lack of his hand in hers was too much.

"I should go." She cleared her throat, smoothening non-existing wrinkles on her dress.

"Shall I walk you back?" Words left his lips before he bit his tongue.

He just tried to kiss her, did he was that stupid and naive to suggest something like that? Yet what happened, happened and he could just stay there and wait for her answer. Rose turned around and looked at him, for a moment just eyeing him with her unreadable gaze. Until finally her lips lifted in a smile and she nodded. He came closer to her and offered her his arm, which she willingly accepted. But the moment was gone, the feelings hid away deep inside them, when they went back to being just friends once again, her, a Head of House Everhart and him, the royal guard, promising himself he will be her guard as well. But nothing more. But when they kept on walking, her fingers gently caressing his arm, her palm clenching around his forearm a bit too strong to be just politeness, when she kept on shooting him shy glances, unnoticeable for another person, he let himself hope. He knew that it will probably be the cause of his doom, that this hope will be something that will destroy him eventually, but for now, it was the only thing he wanted to hold on to. This hope. That maybe, after all, they won't have to be just friends...

[too-many-baes]

Support

Pairing: fem!reader x Peter Maximoff

Warning(s): N/A

Word Count: 4.2K

Summary: You are the first person Peter tells about his ability. Distance apart and years later Peter gives you the same comfort you once gave him

                                                    ************

“Hurry up Y/N, I have to show you something important.” You were on your way to your year 10 math class when someone had grabbed your hand and yanked you the opposite direction to your class. It was your friend Peter, and while it wasn’t unusual for him to try and persuade you to abandon class in favour of wreaking havoc somewhere, this time was different. He seemed panicked and worried, completely unlike the carefree and cheeky demeanour he had daily.

“Peter, we can’t skip class. If you get caught again you’ll get suspended.” Peter’s hand was sweaty against yours as he pulled you out of the school building and towards the large area of trees at the back of the school field. This was somewhat of a hideaway for you and Peter, both of you opting to go there during lunches to get away from the masses.

“This is different Y/N, just trust me.” You nodded at him and tried to keep pace with him so he wasn’t dragging you along. You reached the trees and Peter waited until he was sure you both were completely hidden within their cover before releasing your hand.

He didn’t even look at you for what felt like forever, he simply paced back and forth muttering under his breath. Finally his movements halted and he stared at your form, which was now sitting on a log.

“We’re best friends, right Y/N?” His question had perplexed you. Of course you were, you had been for the last several years and never before had either of you felt the need to question your bond.

“Of course we are”, you stated matter-of-factly.

“And that means that nothing leaves us right?” You and Peter shared everything without question. The way he was questioning everything in this moment made you nervous, but you nodded at his question, your eyes as reassuring as you could possibly make them. Peter let out a long breath before frantically checking his surroundings.

“Promise you won’t freak out?” You furrowed your brows at his persistent questions.

“Peter what is going on?”

“Just promise me.” Hiss words were barely a whisper, spoken in such vulnerability that it left you no choice but to simply nod. With another shaky breath he closed his eyes and reopened them, locking eyes with you.

A blink was all it took. In the fraction of a second it took for your eyelids to involuntarily close and open there was a gust of wind and Peter was gone. You gasped out of impulse and shock, having no idea what just happened. Where is your friend, what kind of ridiculous prank is he playing on you and how in the hell is he pulling it off? You call out his name into the now empty space in front of you, and almost instantly your call is responded to.

“Behind you.” It’s only a whisper, but it’s one that is so close to your ear that you yelp and leap out of your seat, whipping around to see the very person who had moments ago disappeared. You have no words to say, but the confusion on your face speaks volumes.

“You don’t get it, huh?” He speaks, the tone of his voice suggesting whatever just happened should be as obvious as the nose on your face. “Okay, pay attention this time.” And just like that and accompanied by more wind he had shifted, this time to your left so that he was still in sight. Peter huffed when he saw no lightbulbs within your eyes so he attempted one more time to demonstrate what he was trying to tell you.

Once more he was gone from in front of you. Suddenly it was like you were in the middle of a hurricane, with wind whipping around you so fast it was hard for you to catch your breath. When it stopped Peter was standing in front of you, in a slightly different spot, and that along with his dishevelled hair was enough to piece everything together. It was the boy you’d befriended that was the cause of the wind.

“What the fuck”, you deadpanned, disbelief not allowing any more emotion to enter your voice.

“I don’t know Y/N, I started to be able to do it a couple of weeks ago and I am freaking out.” He said, nervously pacing back and forth.

“Okay, it’s gonna be alright, everything’s fine”, you say as calmly as you can before continuing, “but just so we’re on the same page, what exactly have you been able to do?” You ask, still really having no idea what you were witnessing.

“I can run fast. Like, insanely fast.” His answers make more sense than your conclusion that he can produce wind but also pop to different spots on command, but only slightly.

You had heard rumours and whispers of people with extraordinary abilities, mutants as they had been called. You’d never dreamed you’d meet one, let alone that your lovable trouble maker Peter Maximoff would turn out to be one. You wanted to freak out, every fibre of you wanted to let out every thought of confusion, fright and excitement, but the look on your friends face let you know you couldn’t. Not right now at least.

“I’m so scared Y/N.” You understood his uneasiness in telling you now. The whispers and rumours about mutants were never positive, always shrouded in fear and distrust, as if they were an alien race landing on earth. He looks at you in a silent debate on whether you were going to stay or run and report him to someone, which broke your heart.

You approach him slowly until you are standing right before him. “Don’t be”, you say with such conviction that his eyes snap to your face, his eyebrows furrow in puzzlement. “You’re amazing. I mean, you were before, but what you can do is incredible.”

“What I can do is going to get me in trouble”, he quips at you. “I already have enough of that.” He bashfully adds.

He was right of course. There was a certain irony to the fact that the boy who radiates trouble was at risk of drawing more his way by no fault of his own. This wouldn’t be the kind that warranted a slap on the wrist and a couple of detentions. No, this was the kind of trouble that had real world consequences. What they might be, neither of you truly knew, which made the totally unexpected scenario unfolding in front of you all the more frightening.

“Listen carefully Maximoff.” Saying his last name like you were his mother caused a flicker of a smile to twitch on his lips. “Nothing is going to happen to you, at all.” You say, emphasising the last two words when you could see he wasn’t believing you. “Not everyone is afraid of… people with abilities”, you continue trying to word things delicately so as not to offend him, “and if they are, screw ‘em.” You say throwing your hands up. “We still have each other greased lightning”, you call him cheekily, “and we always will. We’re going to make sure nothing happens to you.”

You could tell that he knew you meant every word you’d said, and you were glad to see that he looked a little eased of his burden at your passionate speech. “You know, there’s a lot of things that I let you away with”, he starts slowly, “but calling me greased lightning is not going to be one of them.” You laugh at his attempt to brush away dealing with all of the emotions you had laid before him, knowing it was not one of his strong suits.

“Well there’s plenty more nicknames to come Roadrunner.” Peter laughed at the ridiculousness you were projecting at him. “Not my best I know”, you admit before telling him that he better prepare for the masses of names that will be coming his way.

“So… How fast can you actually go?” You tentatively ask, curious about his answer. Something crosses his face that tells you he doesn’t know the answer.

“I’ve been so nervous I haven’t even tested it.” He mutters in utter disbelief at himself. You got your watch at the ready and told him to run to the dairy you frequented blocks away from the school. You looked up to tell him to go when wind flew around and suddenly he had a box of twinkies in his hands. He was about to open it when you yelled at him for stealing. He rolled his eyes at you and then as if they were never there they were gone, him grinning at your disbelief.

To say either of you wanted to go back to class would have been a lie, so neither of you felt any guilt at bunking the entire day. You entertained yourselves at Peter’s apparently boundless speed. He went to the beach, he got you a flower from the town over, and he made your sides split when you had tried to play tag with him.

Eventually though the day had to end, and it did with you walking the same direction home as you usually did. You reiterated, much to his displeasure, that however fun his power was he would have to be careful. He mumbled a ‘whatever mum’ at you, but nodded along regardless.

“Hey Y/N,” he speaks as you are parting ways. You turn your head to look at him finish his sentence. “Thanks… for everything.”

“Of course,” you start. Peter smiles and begins to retreat down the road thinking you were done speaking. “Catch ya later, speedy Gonzales.” You yell at his back, causing his shoulders to shake.

“Not unless I catch you first.”

******

The car is completely silent. Having driven out of radio service long ago the three of you sit listening to the gentle hum of the motor and the occasional tap of your finger against the door handle.

“We’ve heard really good things about this place”, your mum says for what feels like the hundredth time in an attempt to reassure all of you. You’re sure what has become her mantra at this point serves your father and her more than it ever did you, proven by the fact that your father nods along behind the steering wheel.

“It has lots of students enrolled, regular circular classes like any school plus you’ll get to be around other kids”, he pauses struggling to finish his sentence, “like you.” You roll your eyes in the back seat and continue your sporadic tapping while gazing out of the window. You’re not sure exactly where you are. You would have guessed the countryside if it weren’t for the large manors located on grand estates you kept passing. If it weren’t for your current predicament you’re sure you’d never have had occasion to be in such a stately place, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

After what felt like forever, and in reality was not far off, you pull into a gated estate that has a sign reading ‘Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters’ at its entrance. You feel your heart rate quicken at the realisation that what you’d hoped to avoid as long as possible is now laying out before you. As much as you wanted to be hopeful like your parents that this would all work out to be the best thing for you, you had an overwhelming feeling of apprehension about the whole thing.

Your parents care about you, you know they do. As you exit the car with them, the niggling thought that said they were only sending you here so they wouldn’t have to deal with you played in your mind once more like a broken record. You know that it’s not been easy for any of you, your very Christian parents struggling to come to terms with… the new you. They loved you no matter what and they were always wanting the best for you, even though right now it was the last thing you wanted.

“The headmaster is going to meet us to show us around”, says your father as you walk through the giant double doors. You take in your surroundings as you all wait, not quite believing the enormity of the place of what would be your new home.

“Sorry I’m late”, a man says that you had been too preoccupied too notice coming down the stairs, “I’m Professor Xavier.” The headmaster walked the three of you around the school and it’s grounds. He showed you some classes that were already underway while explaining how students here got a normal education while also being taught how to develop and control their powers, your parents making hums and nods of approval the entire time.

“Well if you’re satisfied with everything I can get someone to settle her into her room.” The statement was your parent’s ticket out of the mansion. Now that they had given the place a once over (and seen how many pupils it had) they were in quite the hurry to leave. Your father had your suitcases in the hallway in the blink of an eye, and even quicker they were placing kisses on your head and closing the car doors.

The Professor organised a spare teacher whose name you didn’t catch to escort you to your room. It was a single, even though you had seen plenty of shared quarters. Due to the fact your powers were new and your control of them under developed, it was standard protocol to give you your own room. By the time you were unpacked classes were finished for the day and the teacher found a pupil to buddy up with you, like you were back in kindergarten.

His name was Kurt Wagner, and despite knowing you were entering a school of mutants his blue appearance still caught you off guard. After your initial shock you found him to be quite lovely, if not rather shy. Kurt told you he would escort you down to the common room where he could introduce you to some of the other students.

On your way down the hallway a sudden whoosh of air flew by you faster than you could imagine possible. Whatever it was caused you to wind up on the ground, knocked over by what you thought was the wind but felt like someone had barged into your shoulder.

“Oh lord, are you alright Y/N?” Kurt asked in his thick accent while helping you onto your feet. You shrug it off as nothing and continue down the hallway with him, thinking that you’d have to get used to weird stuff like this happening.

In the commons you are introduced to Jean, Scott, Ozoro and a few others whose names you couldn’t remember in the jumble of it all.

“So what’s your power Y/N?” Scott questions innocently, unaware how uncomfortable it had made you. As if she could sense it, and for all you knew she could, Jean steers the conversation away from your power with simple redirection, something you were infinitely grateful for.

You all engage in small talk for a moment before a huge whoosh of air came through the room again. You look in its direction to see the back of a silver haired boy rummaging through the fridge.

“This is Peter, and he owes you an apology actually”, Kurt says to you before turning his attention to the new addition of the room, “for something in the hallway earlier?” Kurt’s pointed comment doesn’t go unnoticed by the boy as you see his shoulders move in a silent laugh.

“Your fault for not telling new girl to leave a bit of space in the corridor. That should’ve been rule number one.” He says while rummaging through the fridge the entire time. At the sound of his voice the cogs in your mind start to turn. What are the chances of there being two Peter’s that both have super speed? It couldn’t be, you hadn’t seen him in four years.

“Peter.” This time it is Jean that speaks and this is what causes Peter to slowly turn around while speaking.

“Okay, I’m sorry…. Sorry that they chose the wrong person to guide you around.” At the end of his sentence he finishes spinning around, giving Kurt a cheeky grin before it completely falls off his face at seeing you.

“Peter?” You squeak out, excitement otherwise restricting your vocal cords. Neither of you speak out of pure shock, the rest of the room following suit out of curiosity.

“You know each other?” Scott’s question breaks you both out of your stupor.

“Oh my god!” Peter yells, before appearing in front of you and wrapping his arms tightly around you, lifting you off the ground and spinning you around in a circle. You laugh like you haven’t done since you found out about your mutation, full and from deep within your stomach.

“Know each other?” Peter repeats as he sets you down without removing his arms from around you. “This girl is the reason behind every passing grade I got in high school.” You chuckle at his accurate yet concise summary.

“And he’s the reason behind every detention I ended up in”, you add making him laugh. God how you’d missed that sound.

“Someone had to make you live a little.” The others simply watch on at your little reunion.

You spend the next couple of hours catching up on your lives since you had shifted away. Your dad had gotten an unexpected promotion not long after Peter had told you about his mutation that shifted you to the other side of the country with very little warning. You’d both had the best intentions, saying you’d write and keep in touch, but neither of you did. Peter lacked the patience for it and you got too caught up in settling in somewhere new.

Lights out was announced and students began clearing out of the common area. Peter says he’ll walk you to your room and you oblige, wanting to be around him as much as possible.

Tomorrow was Saturday, so as you said goodnight you and Peter made plans for the next day, you say goodnight and as he leaves your door he yells over his shoulder.

“I can’t wait for you to show me your power!” Your heart plummets as you close your door. You knew that was coming, how could he not be curious? You’d been the first one he’d trusted to show you his ability, naturally it should go the same way for you. True, there was no one else you’d rather show than Peter, even after all those absent years. You were still nervous though. Your power was so new to you, you barely know how to control it and sometimes it just happens without you wanting it to. You had scared your family with it, you didn’t want to scare him off too.

Your sleep had passed quickly and you and Peter were out walking the grounds the next day before you knew it. It was huge, bigger than what you had initially thought. You find a large old oak and sit under it while Peter tells you stories of him and a group he called the X-Men.

He was the same Peter, his cheeky attitude and temperament for trouble made it impossible to deny that. He had also matured, something you’d never thought you’d be able to say about him.

“So what’s with the hair Maximoff?” You say, leaning over and mussing it with your hand. “You trying to coin a new nickname with that silver mop or something?” Despite himself he smiles at your teasing.

“No, I don’t need a new nickname, I have a perfectly good one.” He states, puffing his chest out as you wait for him to tell you. “You’re looking at”, he raises his hands and points both his thumbs at his face, “Quiksilver.”

“Quiksilver?” You say incredulously, to which he nods enthusiastically. “C’mon Peter! I could’ve come up with better.” You say making him playfully shove you. It’s actually a pretty cool name, but you can’t let on to him.

You both fall into comfortable silence as you soak in the day. The sun was shining out over the expanse before you and birds overhear chirp their songs loudly to one another.

“So”, he begins, “care to give me a demo yet?” His nonchalant tone doesn’t erase the worrying content of his question.

“I don’t know Peter... I’m not very good at it.” You hope that will be enough to dissuade him, but as he shakes his head you know you’re going to have to give in.

“I was pinging all over the place when I showed you. Think I knew what I was doing?” Although he spoke no words of comfort they still calm you slightly. You take in a deep breath as you place your palms flat against the ground. You’re about to start when you realise how close Peter is. You ask him to take a few steps back just in case, and with him at a safe distance you close your eyes and focus.

You open your eyes and see that your concentration paid off. Roots from the surrounding trees and plants are emerging from the ground. You try to make them twist together to form some kind of shape, but as you’re attempting it Peter starts clapping and yelling in encouragement. Your concentration broken the roots movements halt, leaving them sticking out of the ground like sticks in sand.

You stand while wiping your hands on your jeans and making your way to the still applauding speedster.

“That was amazing”, he exclaims while throwing his arms around you, “I should’ve known sweet wee Y/N’s power would be something like that.” You wriggle out of his arms and look off to the distance, feeling uncomfortable with the praise.

“My parents didn’t think it was too wonderful when roots and branches filled our lounge”, you speak quietly. You look back to Peter to see a soft look in his eyes.

“Y/N look-”

“I’m a freak Peter”, you interrupt, “I got these powers that I don’t know how to use and I can barely control.” You start pacing to air out some of your nervous energy. “It’s not even useful! I can’t make anything grow, I can only manipulate what’s there. When would that ever be useful.”

Peter was in front you before you’d seen him move. He grabbed you by your shoulders to still your movements and looked at you in the eyes. “You are not a freak”, he says with such conviction that you almost believe it.

“My parents dropped me here so they wouldn’t have to deal with me”, you divulge, “they didn’t even know what to do with me when they found out.” You don’t cry. You’re not sad at this information anymore, you’d had time to accept it. You were merely relaying what you considered to be facts.

“Who cares?” His question confuses you and you open your mouth to yell at him as he continues. “Your parents don’t get you because they’re ordinary. You’re special Y/N, just like me. You’re amazing.” He echoes words you had spoken years ago, making it impossible to keep a smile off of your face.

“You remember that huh?”

“You’re the reason I got through it all”, he speaks with a sincerity you’d only heard from him once before. “Think about this, if you didn’t have a mutation then we may have never met again.” His logic was infallible. As much as you had been struggling with everything, connecting with Peter was a blessing you couldn’t ignore. “Plenty of people have been through what you’re going through”, he starts softer this time, “you can do it too.” You smile at him which he gladly returns.

He lets out a loud sigh while moving an arm around your shoulders and turning you to face the oak you had been sitting under earlier. “That’s enough sappiness for one day”, he says earning a playful elbow to his side, “do you know what this tree could do with?” He asks rhetorically to which you roll your eyes as an answer. “A treehouse.” He concludes causing you to laugh out loud at him.

“I can’t make a treehouse Peter, that’s too hard!”

“Well there’s only one way to find out.” You spend the rest of the day testing your powers at Peter’s request. You failed a lot, but your successes were celebrated with whoops and cheers and laps of the grounds from Peter.

You weren’t through the woods yet. You had a long way to go and a rocky path to face. But for the first time in years you had Peter with you, and you’d help each other through whatever came your way. No number of years could change that.

[readbeneaththelines]

The Hideaway Pt. 3

You run a small, off-the-beaten path coffee shop that lets its patrons have a place to Hideaway and find some peace and quiet. One night, The Kwon JiYong visits close to closing. Will this spontaneous encounter grow into something more?

Characters: Kwon JiYong x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, smut later on, a wee bit of angst down the line

Word Count:  4701

cr. to the original owner of the gif

Just as you were leaving, a dark blue car pulled up into view. A tall, well built gentleman stepped out from the driver side door and made his way around to the passenger door. In his hands was a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice and a cream cheese covered bagel. Taking the proffered gifts from his hands, he opened the door for you, allowing you to get buckled before shutting the door. Once he was settled in his seat, you thanked him and sat back in the comfortable seat.

‘Miss, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you. I have not seen Mr. Kwon this relaxed in ages. It is nice to see he has someone he can talk to and be himself around.” You could feel your cheeks heating at the statement and could do nothing smile back. “He really is easy to talk to. I’m happy he feels at ease in my company.” Small talk traversed between you and the driver until you were finally at the cafe. “Please come in and have a cup of the house special, it’s my treat.” The gentleman sat at the counter while you handcrafted a cup just for him. Taking a cautious sip, he thanked you. “I’ll be bringing him back here tonight. What time do you close, so I do not have him here to late?” 

“I close shop at ten o’clock tonight. Tell him to arrive around fifteen after, please.” with a quick nod of his head, he got up and walked with you to the front door. You turned the sign to open and unlocked the door to allow him to exit. Hae walked in just as you were shutting the door, giving you a quizzical look as she took her place behind the counter.

“What has you all happy this morning, and who was that tall drink?” She gazed out the front window as the driver got back in the car and headed off.

“Oh, him? No one really, just a kind man that made sure I got in safely. I thanked him with a fresh cup of coffee. So what are you doing here so early? Shouldn’t you still be snoring away in your bed still?” she laughed heartily at your comment as she set about helping you finish opening. 

“I would be asleep except for the fact that I knew you needed some help this morning.You looked a bit frazzled yesterday when I got here, so I am being the awesome friend that I am and helping you with the morning rush.” 

“You truly are my best friend Hae. What would I do without you?” Just then several customers came in, a long line already forming as the two of you set about taking orders and greeting friendly faces. The rush ended smoothly, both of you plopping down of the couch briefly. Bagel in hand, you scarfed down the remainder and finished it off with the last of the juice. 

“What are you all smiles about? Girl! Who has crept into the mind of yours? Do you by chance have a love interest?” her pitch rose as she tried to pry any fact out of you.

“Hae, honestly, it’s no one. I’m just in a good mood today. You really were a huge help this morning and that’s all.” You didn’t really like telling your best friend a little white lie, but you had made a promise and you planned on keeping it. Before she left, she had written a notice on the blackboard by the front window that you would be closing early tomorrow. It was your night out and she wasn’t going to let it slip away. With a quick hug, she was skipping out the door, leaving you to face the day on your own once again. 

Frequently throughout the day, you would check the time, anxiously awaiting closing time. When the alarm chimed, you jolt up, half running to lock the door and flip the sign to closed. At ten after ten you unlocked the door and started cleaning. The phone ringing in your pocket startled you and you rushed to answer it.

“Hello?” you whispered. As soon as your heard his voice, you felt your heart race. “Hey there. I’m almost there.” 

“The door is unlocked, just come on in when you arrive. I’ll have my newest hot tea steeping for you.” You hung up and started the hot water, placing the tea bag in the small cup to steep as you waited for Jiyong to arrive. Your head sprung up as you heard the doorbell chime as he entered. He was wearing a dark grey sweater matched with a pair of grey ripped jeans. His hair was stylishly messy but uncovered. His usual mask covered his lower face, but those bright smiling eyes were clearly visible. You took the teabag out of the cup, and handed it to him on a saucer as you met him halfway across the floor. He took the saucer and cup, bowing to you in gratitude.

“So, Miss Y/N, what on the agenda for tonight? If I remember correctly, and I do, you are the one to spill your secrets for me.” Cocking your head to the side, you gave a half grin and raised an eyebrow. “Is that so Jiyong? You really want to know my secrets? What if I don’t have any? Then you would just be bored.” Without saying a word, he made his way to his now favorite chaise and stretched out. “Spill it, Y/N. Everyone has a secret, even if it’s just one.” 

Following his lead, you sat on the couch across from him, tucking your legs beneath you. “Well the only secret I have is that an Idol visits my coffee shop late a night to talk to me and keep me company. Other than that, I am a pretty boring person. I work, eat and sleep, finding time when I can to take a shower. So what would you like to know, ask away and I will tell you what I can.” 

Setting the nearly empty cup on the coffee table, he placed his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. If it wasn’t for the occasional smile or raised eyebrow you would have sworn he had fallen asleep. Without warning he sat upright and began talking. “I want to know about what makes you tick. Why you ended up here, running a coffee shop, that is in my opinion, the best one I’ve visited in a very long time. Why it’s just you. I haven’t seen any signs of someone else in your life. Pardon the intrusion if that’s private.” You went somber suddenly, and Jiyong leaned towards you in silence. “Sorry if I brought up a sensitive subject Y/N.”

“No, it’s nothing sensitive. It’s true though. I’m alone, no one special. So, how did I end up here and why. Pay attention Kwon Jiyong, I only share my secrets once.” you gave a sly wink and when he chuckled you relaxed once again. 

Over the next hour you told Jiyong about your life. How your family didn’t support you following your dream of opening this cafe and venturing out on your own. You told him about the boyfriend that told you it was either him or your dream after you had been together for almost three years. Of course, your dream won out and now here you were, following your dream by yourself with a few friends to support you along the way. Jiyong hung on every word, agreeing here and there, repeating what you had said to let you know he truly was listening. “And that is how we have come to this moment in time. I am someone that has not much time for anything other than the rare girls’ night out and no me time unless it is a holiday. In fact I’m closing early tomorrow to have the aforementioned rare night out. My best friend Hae is making me have some fun.”

“It sounds like it is much deserved fun. Why don’t you come by my bowling alley, play a few games on me. You don’t have to tell her how you get in, just come and have fun.” by this point, he face was just a few inches from yours, his gummy smile tugging at your heartstrings. How could you pass up an offer from the one and only Kwon Jiyong?

“Sure, sounds like it would be an awesome time. How about, say, eightish? I will have to go home and shower first. Then grab some dinner. But I will insist on buying my own drinks.” you reiterated by crossing your arms over your chest in mock sternness.

“Deal. So, back to what we were talking about. It sounds like you and I have a lot in common. No time for a social life or relationships. We both have a shared secret. I must admit though, it’s nice having someone to talk to without having to worry that they want something selfishly in return. Thank you for allowing me to have a place to get away and just be myself.” He reached out and patted your head, messing up your hair just a tad. But, you didn’t mind the friendly gesture. You understood exactly what he was talking about. These past few nights have become a respite to you. Having a one on one conversation with someone who had no ulterior motives other than getting to know about you. 

Looking at your phone, the time showed midnight. As much fun as you were having, you knew he needed to get some good rest, as did you. Problem was, you didn’t want to stop talking. Getting to know the personal side of Jiyong was fascinating and intriguing. You were getting the privilege of getting to know the real him, not just the Idol side of him.

“What’s on your mind, Y/N?” your thoughts were cut short by his question. “Oh, sorry, nothing really. I was just thinking that this was nice. Getting to know the real you without all the glitz and glimmer of publicity. I feel very honored to get to have these quiet times with you.” you stood up, placing your hand on his shoulder as you leaned down to grab his empty cup. His hand covered yours as he spoke.

“I am the honored one. You have treated me as a person, a real person, and for that I am thankful. I hope we can continue this.” you nodded then turned to head to the back kitchen. He followed closely behind you, bumping into you when you stopped suddenly. 

“Oooff! I’m sorry! I just had a thought.” you faced him, your head slightly turned up to look at him. “How about this. You are welcomed here any time you want. I’ll give you a key to the back door. That way you can come and go as you please. I’m always here until late and I will here the doorbell when you come in. Even if i am not here, you can come here to get away, have some tea or coffee, whatever you want.” he studied you intently for a moment, mulling over the idea.

“I actually like coming here, but the best part is having you here too. Maybe we can meet up outside of here? I know where you live, and maybe, if we play it right we can hang out at your place, or mine? I don’t want you to think that I am trying to get, ummm, get you into bed. For once I am really having a great time just having someone I can open up to. I know, I know, my persona that is seen to the public makes me out to be a playboy, but i’m really not.”

“Ji, shut up a second please. I know that is not who you really are. I have seen the real you these past few nights. I would never think you were trying to bed me. I would be happy to grow this friendship outside of these cafe walls. But you are right, we would have to play it safe, for your sake. Will you be at the bowling alley tomorrow night? Maybe you can casually come up and welcome us to your place? That way Hae would not have reason to suspect anything. We can go from there.”

You two talked out the detail of the next evening as you locked the doors and exited the back. As it was last night, his driver was waiting for both of you. He greeted you as you got in, and once again you dozed off to the lulling sound of Jiyong singing. Tonight he walked you to the main entrance, kissing your forehead again before turning to leave. 

The next day flew by in a flurry. Hae agreed to meet you at your place around seven, giving you time to shower and get ready. Tonight, for some strange reason, you wanted Jiyong to see a different side of you. Not the one that is always covered in coffee grounds and flour from baking. You wanted to let him see the hidden you. The you that let her curls fall around her face and down her back. The you that could look good cleaned up. You opted for a pair of red skinny jeans that you paired with a black loose fitting top. Your favorite pair of black boots completed the ensemble. You put on just enough makeup to hide the faint dark circles that came with not getting good sleep. Finishing off the look with a quick swipe of tinted gloss, you were ready to head out the door.

“Hey sexy! Don’t you look especially dolled up tonight? So what’s the plan?” Hae looked adorable as always with her hair braided and her dimples showing. She matched you in black pants and a light red sweater. 

“Why don’t we try to get in at Kwon Jiyong’s newest bowling alley. I heard it is amazing and I have been curious about his cafe. If we can’t get in, then we will think of something else.” With the evening settled, you and Hae headed out, a night of fun the only plans.

When you arrived at the bowling alley, the line to get in was nearly wrapped around the entire building. You felt your heart sink at the reality of not getting in. Hae was startled, as were you, when long slender fingers came to rest on both a shoulder each. Looking to your left, you saw that familiar gummy grin. As your eyes trailed down, then back up, your breath caught in your throat. He cleaned up handsomely. Standing between you and Hae, he was dressed in all black, a few silver chains around his wrist and a single necklace delicately encircling his slender neck. His hair had been freshly dyed to a silvery white. His golden skin stood out in contrast against the pale color of his hair. He looked amazing. Hae squealed when she realized who was standing between the two of you.

“Oh my god! It’s really G-Dragon. I-I mean kwon Jiyong!” you shook your head at your friend’s reaction. Of course, that is how practically everyone probably greet him.

“Good evening Mr. Kwon.” you said in your most polite voice. Keeping it soft and kind. You knew what he preferred, the nice easy friendly voice he had come to enjoy listening to. 

“Evening ladies. It’s nice to meet you. Sorry that the wait is so long, but I tell you what, why don’t you follow me and I will make sure you ladies get in.” he wrapped his arms around your’s and Hae’s shoulders and led you both away from the crowd. Girls were screaming and sighing as you passed by, jealous eyes boring holes through you. 

Jiyong led you past the bouncers and directly inside the vastly open space. Music was playing, and lights flashed all around you. You felt Jiyong’s warm breath in your ear as he leaned down to talk. “Why don’t you lovely ladies take those stairs up to the VIP rooms, I’ll tell my men to have one ready for you. First round of drinks are on me.” Hae just simply stared at him while you thanked him for his generosity. He leaned in closer to your ear, his fingers tangling in the curls at the back of your head. “You look beautiful Miss Y/N. I’m glad you were able to make it here tonight. I will check on you two later, have fun now, everything has been taken care of, no arguments.” your chest and face felt as if they were on fire at his compliment. You bowed in gratitude and let a young man lead you and your friend upstairs. Looking back over your shoulder once you reached the top, you could see him still standing there, smiling up at you as he talked half heartedly with someone. Then you were led into the VIP room. 

He had spared no expense. There was a buffet of food, an open bar with your own private bartender and a plush gold and black couch with two matching chairs and a loveseat.

“Eeeekkk! Y/N! Can you believe this? We got a private room from the Kwon Jiyong! Oh my lands that man is gorgeous! The things I bet he could do to me!” You turned to your friend with a flat expression.

“Hae, do you think that maybe, just maybe, he is a human inside too. That he has feelings? That maybe, just maybe, he wants to be treated with respect instead of being seen as a sex object?” you shut your mouth as soon as the words came out. Hae looked back at you with wide eyes and a perplexed look.

“You’re right Y/N. I’m sorry. It’s just that he looks so damn fine and everyone mostly likely sees him as just that, a sex god.” You turned fully to face her. “Well, I don’t see him that way. He was very kind to let two strangers into his establishment and give them special treatment. He was being kind and look how you reacted. Be thankful, not horny. Okay?” Hae walked over to the bar and ordered two drinks. Handing you yours, she spoke up. “You’re right, he didn’t have to do this. It was very kind of him. But you have to admit, he does look really good.” she gave you a side wink and you couldn’t help but smile back. “Yes he does look mighty fine.” You searched him out in the sea of people, your heart dropping when he could not be found.

Jiyong headed for his own private room after dismissing himself from those he was talking to. Stepping up to the blacked out windows he spotted you across the building, standing at your own window looking out over the crowd. He hardly recognized you when you were outside. He had yet to see your hair down, those curls softly framing your face like a downy halo. He had to remind himself, more than once, that the two of you were just friends. A friend that he was thankful for having. But man, did you look good tonight! Those tight jeans accentuated your curves in just the right places. Your beauty was natural, not overly made up and fake. He watched you for a few more minutes before he had to make his way back down. Once he reached the floor, he spotted you and your friends getting a lane. 

“Their games are on the house tonight. Give them lane number eight please.” The woman at the counter bowed and handed you some bowling shoes. “Have a nice evening ladies. Just return your things when you are done.”

“Thank you Mr. Kwon for the hospitality.” you felt your cheeks flush with he smiled down at you. “Please don’t call me Mr. Kwon, it’s Jiyong. You ladies have fun, the room and the lane are covered, so please enjoy yourselves.” and with that he bowed deeply to both of you and walked away.

Hae and you spent your time well into the early morning hours drinking and bowling and eating to your heart’s content. When last call came over the speakers, you gathered your things and headed to the main floor. Jiyong was waiting for you at the bottom of the stairs, just out of sight of your now drunk friend. “Hae im going to turn our things in, why don’t you go get our jackets and work on finding us a ride home?” she gave a quick nod and headed off. At that moment you felt fingers encircle your wrist, pulling you off to the side.

“I hope you enjoyed yourself tonight.” His head was a breadth away from your ear. You looked into his eyes and answered, “thank you for everything tonight Ji. I have a wonderful time, even if you didn’t keep up your end of the agreement and let me pay my part. But yes, I had a wonderful time, thank you again.”

He glanced around, and being pleased that no one was really watching he pulled you close and planted a tender kiss to your forehead. “My driver is waiting for you both out front. He will make sure you get home safely. I am looking forward to our talk again tomorrow night. Get some good sleep Y/N. Goodnight.” he let you go and you stumbled briefly as you gathered your composure. You made your way out, your very drunk friend chatting away with some strange guy.

“Hae let’s go, our ride is here.” Hae gave you a pleading look and you knew what she was asking. “Fine, just call me tomorrow to let me know you are safe. Love you girl, now go have some fun.”

You climbed into the waiting car, Jiyong’s driver greeting you with enthusiasm. “Well Miss Y/N, I guess we are going with plan B after all.”

“Plan B? What exactly is plan B?” you leaned over the front seat pulling his shoulder so he would turn around and look at you. “Mr. Kwon said you were not to go home alone. If you friend was to leave you, that I had to take you either back inside or to his place. He doesn’t want someone following you.” 

Back to his place? Someone following you? Had someone seen the brief interaction between the two of you? “I guess I will go back inside, that is if he insists on me not leaving alone.” you reached for the door handle but the man stopped you. “Oh no, not right here Miss, I’m to take you around to the underground garage. That way you can be safe in case.”

A few moments later and you were being escorted out of the car and into an elevator. Eight stories later, you were being taken to a large suite. Just as you were about to open the door, it swung open to reveal a somewhat irritated Jiyong. “Quick get inside.” you hurriedly stepped in as he shut and  locked the door behind you.

“What is going on Ji? Why wouldn’t you let me leave alone?” you didn’t mean to sound so angry, but you were not akin to being caught off guard.

“Sorry, it’s just that I saw someone watching you a little to closely when you were leaving, and I didn’t feel comfortable. If your friend left that was one thing, but whoever it was had their eyes set on you. So, if you don’t mind hanging out with me tonight, i suggest I show you to your bedroom for the evening. I’ll make up for whatever your cafe loses out on by not being opened early tomorrow. I had one of my people use the key to post a sign that you were going to be at a training seminar and would be back Saturday. Please do not look at me like that, I just want you to be safe.” 

You rolled your eyes at him, shaking your head in disbelief. “Really Jiyong? Don’t you think you are going a bit overboard?” He took your shoulders in his hands, holding you firmly as he spoke slow and clear. “Y/N, people are mean when they think someone the idolize is being ‘taken’ from them. If that person who was watching you happened to see anything happen between us, you would be in danger. I am not going to lose you or our friendship because of someone’s irrational jealousy, do you understand me?”

The reality of what he said sank in. “I understand.” was all you could reply. He set about showing you around, telling you that he would take the couch so you could get some much needed sleep. “I promise that you can sleep in however late you want. In the morning we can have breakfast and talk all you want about anything.”

“I’m not really tired right now. I’m still a bit buzzed. Can we talk some now or are you tired? It can wait if you want to get some sleep. And please, let me take the couch, you need sleep more than I do.”

“Y/N, we can do whatever you want. We can talk, we can watch some television, we can…” his voice trailed off abruptly.

“Jiyong, what is it? What were you going to say? You can tell me anything, you know that,  right?” You took a seat on the stark white sofa in the middle of the sitting area, waiting patiently for his answer.

“Nevermind, it was nothing. I promised to be a good guy and I want to keep it that way. I don’t want you to get a bad impression of me, especially since I’ve had a few drinks myself.” he sat down beside you, his head hanging low as he looked at the ground. You placed your hand on his cheek, turning his head up to face you. The look in his eyes told you more than any words ever could. “Kwon Jiyong, if you want to kiss me right now, I would not stop you. Don’t take it that I am easy and all I want from you is physical, because that’s not it. But I would not say that I haven’t thought about it. Just being honest.” when his cool fingers touched your heated face, your eyes closed at the connection. Slowly, as if time were standing still, he leaned in, barely touching your lips with his. It was barely even a kiss, but it was there. His hands cupped your face and you opened your eyes.So many things were mixed in his gaze. A want, a need, a curiosity. Placing your hands over his, you pulled him close, returning the touch of his lips to yours. It was slow and patient. Like a person experiencing the sunrise for the first time. His hands slid over your jaw, those fingers coming to tangle themselves in the softness of your curls. He held contact long enough for your head to start swimming. Suddenly you were riding bereft of everything. He was holding you at a distance shaking his head.

“Forgive me, Y/N. as much as I wanted that, I don’t want to give you the wrong idea. I love the bond that we have growing with our friendship. Yes, I wanted to kiss you, but if something were to happen that would mess up that friendship. I can’t let that happen.”

“I. I told you that I wanted it too Ji. But I see where you’re coming from. I promise it won’t happen again.” You would never admit that his words stung a little. That he would always have you in the friend zone. What you didn’t know, was that Jiyong could see himself falling for your kind heart and your beauty in no time flat. But for once in his life, he didn’t want to mess this up.

@min-shookga-yoongi @beautifulseoulliar @agustd-suga-yoongii @astronomyturtle @aspaceformyself @dreamyoongi @holy-yoongi @trashkazuya @maxinaptak @micky1518 @rosiemilas @karri570 @seoulsunshineandstories @kwonnansi @xjamlessparkx @berryjam17 @kingsuckjin

[aparticularbandit]

I headcanon Miss Lint as both touch aversive and touch starved - and yes, I know aversive isn’t a word but it’s the word I want so I’m using it.  This headcanon stems not necessarily from general anxiety or even disliking being touched but because Miss Lint has a constant running charge (which is canon and I’m still upset that had huge discussive headcanon brainstorming about that to figure it out because the Terror literally says it BUT that means the show runners were actually paying attention to what it would mean to have a constantly active charge which means why did they cancel The Tick and that’s a whole other level of upset.  anyway).

Basically, Lint’s power stems from static electricity.  When we think of that, we probably think of little tiny shocks, but if you have a large enough build up and a large enough charge - that’s literally what lightning is - it’s a build up of a static charge in clouds that desperately needs to ground itself.  But that’s hard to think of on a big scale, so I want you to think of general tiny static - like when you’ve built it up in your skin from rubbing your stockinged feet on the carpet so much that you know the next person you touch is going to get hit.

That’s the point.

Without the grounding bracelets the Terror made for her, Lint has this constant build up of charge that also constantly wants to be grounded, and it’s not something she appears to be able to control (or at least not very well or not without concentration - she can keep her charge from leaping out all the time to ground herself otherwise she’d be not only constantly charged but also constantly discharged - but this is also complicated by the level of control she appears to have pre-grounding bracelets vs. the level she has post-grounding bracelets - but that’s another headcanon thing).  While Lint may be able to hold the charge in without shocking other people or things, we can see once the bracelets break that when she touches something metal - she shocks it - this happens with the door to Ramses’s car and it happens with Derek’s bike (which was a shock big enough to break it - which I do not think was intended, particularly because when Lint uses her powers, she uses them from her hands - with the exception of the taser, which is she can use it elsewhere but she primarily uses her hands).

Lint, as a character, is not much on touching anyone - and it’s interesting watching how even when she is in a mode to be ... not seductive but the way she’s acting is much more different, in the scene with the Terror in the hideaway under the crypt, after he sends Arthur away - there’s a movement that is close to him but not too close--

Which, basically, is me saying that without the grounding bracelets, if Lint touches someone, she shocks them.  The thing about this is that Lint probably can’t control the scope of the shock - she couldn’t with Derek’s bike and she couldn’t with Ramses’s car - which means that anytime she touches someone, she is at risk of doing them serious harm - because if her static charge can produce lightning with enough build up, it can likely do so without conscious build up as well.

The other thing is this - when you have a build up of static and you discharge, both people get shocked.  Lint appears to be immune to this (re: taser), but it’s possible that she can still feel it but it doesn’t hurt her.  I think this is less likely given that her entire power runs this way and she appears to be more inconvenienced when she can’t prevent the shock than she does actually physically hurt - but it’s something to consider.

Anyway - Lint would have been likely in her late teens or early twenties when the Terror gave her the grounding bracelets - I say that because I assume Lint is mid-late thirties (which is around Yara’s age during filming and because I try to maintain some closeness between the characters’ ages so that Overkill and Dottie don’t have a huge age gap that makes me uncomfortable and also allows for Lint seducing Overkill to not make me uncomfortable either) during the run of the show, and if the Terror killed Arthur’s parents fifteen years before the first season and Lint’s in her mid-thirties, that means she would have been late teens - early twenties.  Overkill - as Straight Shooter - I want to be at least eighteen when she goes seduction on him and I want their ages to be close - so he would have been at least eighteen by that time (maybe nineteen), which means there’s...it depends on how old you want Dottie to be, and since she’s doing med school and isn’t in her residency but is probably in her master’s, she’s probably twenty-six or twenty-seven which means she would’ve maybe been twelve when her dad died?

Anyway - that’s a lot of math - the point is that Lint would have spent eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one years with this constant charge that could potentially electrocute anyone she touched without any way to really control it.  This, I think, is why the black gloves - maybe they were something, like with Elsa, that gave her some sort of mental break or maybe they have something that gives a temporary fix - the Terror mentions that the grounding bracelets don’t shut off her power, and it’s possible that the gloves were a first stage of this - something that shuts her off entirely - doesn’t just ground her but diminishes her power, etc. - and the bracelets built on that tech.  Maybe.  The gloves are an interesting wardrobe choice there.  (This also explains why Lint can’t charge her suit herself in s2 - even with a constant charge, there’s no necessarily consistent rate to the charge and if she overpowers it, she could break it, which she does not want to do.  The suit enhances her power from the inside and trains it - it’s possible she could do those things on her own if she could make her charge consistent, but the point is that she has trouble controlling that on her own.)

As a result, her knee jerk response - anyone’s would be, unless they’re like the Terror who likes to kill people for fun - would likely have been stand back, don’t touch me, I don’t want to hurt you - and this would have been very specific towards anyone she actually liked or wanted to be friends with.  But it’s more likely that Lint just cut herself off - which actually enhances the importance of her relationship with the Terror because here is someone who knows she’s dangerous, knows what she can do, and actually values her for it and wants her for it instead of standing back and wanting nothing to do with her.  The Terror takes the risk, and that means everything to her.

Anyway - touch aversion - is primarily for other people’s protection.  And yes, I do think Lint would protect people from herself naturally because she doesn’t kill Derek, she doesn’t kill Ramses (who she hates), and she doesn’t kill her crew - I think it’s likely that she didn’t intend to hurt the guy she made forget Tuesday as a concept, but that’s another issue.  In point of fact, the crew she had before the ones she took from Ramses’s death (Frank etc.) were more loyal to her than to Ramses, going so far as to not get his eye tattoo - which means that they were actually loyal to Lint - which means she did something that was more important to them than what Ramses could offer them.  And that means something to me.  Even if they got killed by the Tick.  RIP.

But Lint is human.  There’s a lot of research about the importance of touch - and I’m not saying everyone likes to be touched, that is not what I’m saying, please don’t take it that way - but like.  Lint got married.  Do you know how impossible that sort of situation would have been if she didn’t have grounding bracelets?  But she spent all of those years being so afraid of hurting people by touching them that those habits are still ingrained in her, even if she’s not afraid that she’ll hurt them anymore (or even if she’s tried to train herself to not care).

Which is why touch starved.

[jadewing-realms]

“...it can’t get any worse.”

Fictober 2018 - Day 29

Out of the entire population of the known world—or maybe even the unknown—Hoshigaki Kisame is the very last person anyone should be asking to take care of a child.

At least, that’s his opinion. He dislikes kids. Not ‘hate,’ mind you. He doesn’t hate them. Dislikes them. For many reasons. And none of those reasons are why he thinks most would want to keep children as far from him as possible. Sure, they’re needy, emotional, selfish, nosy, stupid and naive, but that has virtually nothing on the fact that he’s the Blue Beast. The terror of 14 prefectures, known by his work in multiple countries, valued at several millions in bounties, with a flawless hit record and a taste for prey that he can play with first.

He’s worked very hard for this reputation, so why the h*** did Shimura Danzo contact him for this job? It makes absolutely no sense.

Not that he can say no, exactly, not with the pay grade he’s offering, but still… He’s barely even been given anything to work with; something about the National Hero Commission trying to keep the lowest of profiles… And he guesses that, as a fugitive of the law himself, he can understand this.

It’s even mildly amusing that the enforcers of the law are now trying to dodge it. Ah, espionage. If he wasn’t in the hired gun business, that’s probably where he’d be. Much more fun than boring old criminal justice.

His knee is just starting to bounce again when he, at long last, hears the train. It’s close now. Took it long enough; it’s twenty minutes late. And thanks to the delay, the platform is filling up more than he’s really comfortable with. Not that it’s a terribly dangerous place for him to be… Laamu is a pretty remote little town. It’s more of a waystation for trains than anything else. Probably why Shimura picked it as the rendezvous point. The likelihood of anybody recognizing him here is fairly low, all things considered… Still. He wore long sleeves and jeans without holes for today. His complexion is rather… distinct.

The train pulls in with the ease of a greased pump, whipping air and fallen leaves off the tracks into the faces of anyone stupid enough to stand too close to the edge. Kisame remains seated where he is, on one of the benches against the wall, as far from the edge of the platform as he can get. He takes his work seriously; no unnecessary risks. He watches the windows on each car get steadily slower until they at last come to a stop, with Car 7 stopping directly in front of him, just as planned.

It’s nice when things go according to plan.

He pulls his phone from the pocket of his hooded jacket and pulls up the specified informant’s photo again. He’s a bit of a plain-looking guy… brown hair, round eyes. Should be easy enough to spot.

Movies always portray secret agents running around in suits all the time. Psh. How ridiculous. No, Kisame will be looking for average street clothes, something that blends into everybody else. The key will be the hair. And the kid.

Now he waits for them to find him.

Only a few people get off at this stop, but they disappear immediately into the crowd waiting to board. Kisame sweeps his gaze over them all, searching for heads fighting the flow. It’s eight in the morning, and anybody with anywhere to be is on their way out. And since nobody in this dinky little town has gone anywhere yet, it’s understandable that nobody’s on their way back yet.

Ah. There they are.

The informant dude is dressed in an outdated band tee and denim jacket (like, actual denim), darker jeans, and Nikes. A weighty backpack is slung over one shoulder, and he lugs a single, small suitcase behind him. Trailing just behind that, a tiny kid dressed in black follows with his head down and hood up, hands stuffed away in his pockets. Black shoes, black jeans, black hoodie, and the sneaking wisps of black hair peeking out from under the black shadows under the hood.

Great. An emo punk.

Kisame doesn’t stand. Not yet. Only waits.

The informant, who matches the photo more the closer he gets, doesn’t look straight at him, and makes sure to take a wandering beeline across the platform before at last, he arrives close to the bench on which Kisame sits, and pauses to pull out his phone. To anyone else, he looks like he’s simply checking messages or perhaps looking up directions. The kid lingers behind him, still not raising his head. He’s probably been told to keep it down until they’re at the appropriate location—in this case, the safehouse thirty minutes outside of town.

Then the informant meets Kisame’s gaze, jerks his head in gesture, and then heads off toward the exit. The kid follows dutifully. Kisame waits exactly twelve seconds, gets up, stretches, and then follows.

Once in the parking lot, the informant wordlessly allows Kisame to overtake them so he can lead them to his Jeep, which is parked a fair distance from the main entrance. He hops in the front seat and starts her up as the informant and the kid climb into the passenger and back seats respectively. Kisame doesn’t bother waiting to hear the click of seatbelts before he’s pulling out and making for the highway.

The little town of Laamu takes no less than five minutes to cross, with zero traffic, zero lights, and only one stop sign at a major intersection. Once the quaint neighborhood streets fall behind them, the open countryside swallows them up in little woods and rice paddies.

Then and only then does the informant speak.

“You know where you’re headed?” he asks, in a voice that’s softer than Kisame expected it would be. Then again, it matches those wide, almost-innocent eyes.

Kisame snorts. “Never been to the area… I took a little drive around before heading to the station. Scoped things out.”

“It’s a nice place,” the informant hums, gazing out the window. “Quiet, unassuming… Nobody gives you any trouble in places like these.”

“Unless your dog gets into your neighbor’s flowers, nope, not at all.” Kisame shifts his gaze from the road briefly to shoot the man a wary glance. He understands the concept of protocol… but he can cut the crap now. No need for double entendres; it’s not like his car is bugged or anything.

He checks. Every day.

“You gonna debrief me or what?” Kisame just goes for it. No use beating around the bush.

The informant sighs a little. “…Yes. I brought a file for you to look over when we get to the safehouse.”

“We have half an hour; anything you can’t just tell me on the way?”

The informant is somewhat hesitant—why, Kisame can’t begin to guess. They’re hiring him for this job, they’d better be good and prepared to give him every detail he asks for. He doesn’t go into jobs half blind. It increases risk, it’s bad for business and frankly, it’s just plain stupid.

Thankfully, the informant does start talking, sparingly. He tells Kisame about a group of vigilante hackers called Heaven’s Eye, which had apparently been a thorn in poor old Shimura Danzo’s side for quite some time, breaking into secure networks, stealing compromising information about Pro-Heroes and releasing it to the public.

Apparently, they got their hands on some pretty shady stuff, including operations of the National Hero Commission itself, matters of national security, and nobody knows what else. The informant says the commission fears for more sensitive information was accessed—like nuclear launch codes and the like.

Between this information and the occasional pause to give Kisame passenger-side directions, it takes the informant the whole trip to get to this point. They turn off the main roads and cross the last stretch of minimum maintenance, which doubles as the cabin’s driveway, until said cabin comes into view. It’s an old, single-story thing with missing shingles and weathered siding, a sagging porch. Small, unassuming… just like Laamu. A perfect hideaway.

As Kisame’s pulling up to the front and shutting off the engine, the informant lowers his voice to finish the backstory.

“I’m not authorized to go into details, but a third party hired someone to put the group’s leader and several officers down for good.” The informant keeps his gaze steady, but Kisame doesn’t miss the twitch of his eyes—like he starts to glance at the rearview mirror and stops himself a split-second in.

Kisame glances back. Frowns. Looks at the informant. “The kid?”

The informant just gets out of the car in response. Kisame looks back again, but the child is following suit of his guardian—or at least, his guardian until the day’s over.

This certainly wasn’t what Kisame expected.

After the other two, he gets out, the Jeep leaping once rid of his bulk, making the kid at the back of the car suck in a breath in surprise as the informant fishes his suitcase out of the trunk. Kisame snickers.

“I take it the rest I have to—” he starts to say as he rounds to the back, ready to receive the briefing file at long last.

He’s not ready for the kid to lower himself into a bow, to him, and speak in a level, eloquent voice that’s not at all the punkish grumble he imagined it would be.

“I’m sorry for my rudeness,” he says, small voice bouncing off the ground on its way to Kisame’s ears. “I was told not to draw attention until we reached our destination, so I refrained from introducing myself. My name is Uchiha Itachi. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

‘Rudeness’? ‘It’s a pleasure’? Kisame stares, flabbergasted. “What the h***, kid… Did they tell you who I am?”

It’s halfway to rhetorical; only halfway. Given this strange cordiality, Kisame has his doubts. Can he even remember the last time somebody claimed it was a pleasure to meet him? Somebody he didn’t proceed to kill in their sleep shortly after?

“Indeed,” the child—child??—replies calmly, rising to fix Kisame with the biggest black eyes he’s ever seen. The kid looks like a doll. All eyelashes and pale round cheeks. “I’m told you’re a very capable mercenary.”

Kisame tears his attention away from the oddity before him just to glare at the informant (who, to his credit, seems unfazed). “Oh, so he gets all the info ahead of time.”

The informant just shrugs and starts rummaging around in his backpack. Before Kisame can say anything further, he speaks without looking up. “Uchiha-kun, why don’t you take your bag inside?”

It’s a patronizing dismissal, pitched in stark contrast to the maturity that had just spewed forth from this tiny pre-teen’s mouth—and he really is tiny. Uchiha Itachi barely surpasses Kisame’s waist.

Despite this treatment, Itachi nods to the informant and gathers up his suitcase. “Yes, sir,” he says, before marching off to do as he’s told.

Kisame watches him go, puzzling over how on earth such a polite little hellion can exist on this planet. Kids are supposed to be terrors… or so he’s gleaned from his experience.

“Is there something wrong with him?” he blurts, the first explanation to come to the forefront of his mind. In hindsight, it’s probably highly unfair and rude of him to assume this, but he’s never claimed to be an upstanding guy. Which is precisely why he’s confused.

The informant shoots him a stink eye before he whips a manila folder out of his bag and holds it out for Kisame to take. It’s stuffed full of neatly stacked papers, thickened with several paper clips in their midst. As Kisame receives it and begins leafing through, the informant gives him his answer.

“No. His family is very conservative. He’s been raised well.” The informant sets his backpack beside the Jeep’s rear wheel. “The only thing that could be considered ‘wrong’ with him is—”

“Hold up, hold up.” Kisame pauses in his skim of the first page—a profile of the kid who just went inside. “This kid’s an agent?”

The informant stutters into an exasperated sigh, but shakes his head. “It was an honorary induction, for the purpose of his assignment—of which he only had one.”

“The hit,” Kisame concludes, eyes darting further down the page in search of answers.

“Yes.”

“It says he—S***, he killed twelve people? Daddy included?? D***.” Kisame taps the page appreciatively. “Shimura doesn’t play around.”

“Officially,” the informant says sternly, “neither the commissioners or the NHC have anything to do with the incident. We’d like to keep it that way.”

“Duh, that’s why you’re saddling him on me.” Kisame waves him off, too busy drowning in new intel to really care. Because if this kid is really only thirteen, as his profile claims, and he really just killed twelve people in cold blood on orders from Above, then— “So he’s either a psychopath or I’m gonna have to deal with some post-traumatic s***?”

The informant doesn’t look pleased with this summary, but both of them know he can’t dispute it. He’s not wrong. “We couldn’t exactly take him to see a professional after the mission was complete. But yes, the latter is very likely. We don’t expect you to be his shrink, but we figured you might have some experience dealing with a maiden kill and its fallout.”

Okay, the informant’s not wrong either.

This really is turning into a bit of a pain… Kisame doesn’t do comfort. He doesn’t do… nurturing, reassurance, that sort of crap. He’s no good at it, and has no interest in becoming good at it. It’s not necessary for his line of work, so why should he? But apparently, it’s being demanded of him now…

Granted, there’s no way they can enforce that will happen. If the kid turns into some mentally screwed up mess because his government used him and then dumped him in a wanted man’s lap, that’s not his problem. As long as he gets his money every month, as promised.

“He’s a good kid,” the informant insists, as if Kisame asked or something. “He’s young. He needs some kind of guidance. Stability, until things can settle down. This is far from ideal, we’re well aware, but we don’t have much going for options at this point. There’s not a lot for childcare in the underworld. You were the closest person we could find who’s done jobs for us before, relatively cooperative, mostly mentally sound, and not officially labeled as a Villain in the books.”

“Yeah,” Kisame snorts, “so you repay my good service by creating a child murderer and depositing his scrawny traumatized a** on me. You and I both know I’m not exactly qualified for this. I’m not a babysitter.”

The informant’s dark eyes narrow. “Don’t forget, we’re paying you good money to handle this.”

“How could I forget? That’s all I get outta this arrangement.”

That seems to be the end of that, because the informant rolls his eyes heavenward and scoops up his deposited backpack. He slings it over his shoulder and starts walking toward the driveway. “Read the file. We expect a regular check-in on the third of every month. Wi-fi password’s clipped to the photograph.”

Had to get the last word in, eh? Kisame heaves a dramatic sigh in accordance with the government’s dramatic antics and just gives the informant a lazy salute. He’ll figure out whatever else he needs to know from the file, he knows that. And what he can’t find there is bound to be within easy reach from the government-issued computer system inside. Shimura Danzo is nothing if not thorough.

Still. Kisame flips to Itachi’s profile again, glancing over the paragraphs of summary info before settling on the photograph of the kid. Instinctively, he looks up to the cabin, only to find that same kid standing on the porch, just outside the door. With his hands clasped in front of him and the morning sun creeping over the surrounding woods and distant mountain peaks… it’s like a shot from a movie.

Kisame groans to himself and snaps the folder shut. “No sweat, Hoshigaki… you’re just stuck alone on a mountain with a ridiculously pretentious teenager who just murdered his father and eleven other people, and you’re being paid a fortune in compensation and hush money to take care of him until he’s old enough to graduate… from the schooling you have to give him, even though you dropped out of high school, all because everybody in the country would recognize his face now.”

He pinches the bridge of his nose, where a headache is beginning to throb. “Right… At least it can’t get any worse.”