#HE TRIES TO PIN THE BLAME ON BAD DOGS

[starshine-valley]

Evil Kotaro Mita be like: Fuck Akito Shinonome, I hate him and his stupid ass singing

[junjiie]

해찬  ##  🗯️ ⠀ &THEAFTERPARTY..

sixteen coffee cake. ⠀ wc 2k. ⠀ warnings none.

donghyuck discreetly wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans under the table, and tried not to make eye contact with the boy behind the counter—who had been throwing him looks that were a mixture of pity and vague judgement for the past twenty minutes.

the past twenty minutes he’d been sitting alone, waiting for you. i’ll be at kun’s for two, you’d told him, so for some reason he’d decided to show up half an hour early and suffer through the continuous reassurance to the waiters milling around that yes, he was actually waiting on someone, and yes, he was pretty sure you’d be showing up.

or at least, he hoped so. standing him up seemed like more of a jiung thing to do, but considering the sort-of shaky legs the pair of you were still currently standing on relationship-wise he supposed he wouldn’t blame you for deciding to pull a fast one.

“dude.”

the sudden words made him start a little, and he looked up to find the very boy from behind the counter now at the quiet corner booth he’d tucked himself into, one hand perched on his hip and the other laid flat on the smooth wooden surface of the table. donghyuck opened his mouth to ask what had prompted the impromptu visit, but behind-the-counter-boy beat him to it.

“are you, like, sure whoever you’re waiting on isn’t flaking on you? i almost feel bad, at this point.”

at this point, the pity was enough to make haechan’s eye want to start twitching. he pasted a thin smile onto his face and squinted hard at the nametag pinned to the stranger’s chest before gracing him with a reply.

“i’m sure, thanks. i just got here early, that’s all. thanks, though.. hendery?”

the hendery in question raised his eyebrows in obvious disbelief, but put his hands up in surrender and backed off anyway—and thank god for that. hyuck might’ve gone insane if he was forced to endure any more questions over the possibility of you actually turning up, or if you’d leave him sitting sad, pathetic, and alone in a cramped table shoved in the corner of kun’s while an annoying barista gave him the sort of look you would give to stray dogs out on the street in the rain.

“if you say so, i guess.”

with one last scrutinising look thrown over his shoulder, hendery retreated back to place behind the counter, and donghyuck dug his phone out of his pocket just for something to do. 01:56 PM. surely you’d be here soon. he considered the idea of texting you just to double check, but dismissed the thought as soon as it had arrived. he’d already sounded desperate enough asking you out to talk, he didn’t need to make it any worse. his next move was to open twitter and mindlessly start scrolling, casting sneaky looks up the counter every once in a while just to check hendery wasn’t giving him the evil eye (or rather, the pity eye?).

a post from mark had distracted him for a minute or two, and so once he’d finished supplying him with the appropriate (twitter abuse policy-violating) response he stole another glance upwards—and promptly stopped in his tracks. you were leaning over the counter, chatting away to hendery with a grin on your face that he was returning in full. donghyuck suddenly wanted to run head-on into the oncoming traffic outside. of course you were cosy with the boy who’d just been judging him for the past twenty minutes. hendery was probably laughing about him to you, and telling you he was a massive, pathetic loser, and saying he would be a much better fit for you—not that hyuck wanted to be a fit with you either, that was. it was a hypothetical.

yah, don’t make this a sex thing. your hands linked together, sharing laughter in his bedroom. the memories hit him again like one of the trucks he’d just debated running in front of, but then he shook them off—perhaps a little too violently, leaving him with fuzzy vision for a few moments as a result. vision so fuzzy he couldn’t see hendery pointing you over to his booth, and you walking over before sliding in opposite him. once he felt like he could open his eyes again he almost jumped out of his skin, and watched as a grin broke out on your face at the reaction before you could stop it.

“hey, hyuck.”

your smile softened, your hand raised in a little wave, and you just looked so.. at ease. until he let the moment stretch on too long and you shifted in your seat, eyes sliding sideways and hand falling back to your side when he greeted you with silence. haechan practically tumbled headfirst into replying, tongue feeling something like a lead weight in his mouth.

“hi! god, sorry, i just—i didn’t really expect you to turn up, if i’m being honest. i know it might be a little awkward.”

your eyes widened a touch, and then a guilty look overtook your features for a moment; one hand coming up to tug on one of the small star studs in your ears as you spoke.

“i think it’s me who should be saying sorry, actually.” 

he went to ask why, brow furrowed and an expression to match painted plain to see on his face, but stopped himself from jumping in to let you continue.

“i said we were fine—and we are, really!—but.. i don’t know. i think i’m still acting weird, and i’m sorry for that. i think we need to just, like, start over. no weirdness at all, promise.”

you ended your apology-slash-promise by extending your pinky finger and aiming another smile at him. donghyuck reached forward to take it gladly, agreeing with a vigorous nod and without needing a second to think about it.

“right! no weirdness from either of us. that’s easy.”

a less vigorous but still there nod in response from you, giving your interlocked fingers a singular shake before letting go again.

“let’s just wipe the slate clean. like, completely. pretend it’s like when we first met.”

he knew exactly what you meant, but just to be annoying he crooked an eyebrow and tilted his head in a play-up of confusion anyway. “what, pretend we’re at jaemin’s shitty twenty-second again?”

you rolled your eyes dramatically, and even while hyuck let out a childish shriek when you reached over to whack him on the arm, he couldn’t stop the grin breaking out on his face so wide it threatened to hurt. this. this was what he’d wanted to go back to so badly.

when you sat back in your seat you shuddered, pulling a face as memories of the fated night came back to you. “don’t bring that up ever again. i haven’t been able to drink grape soju since. nothing good came out of that party.”

he knew full well that he shouldn’t, not just barely two minutes after you’d made up, but the words came tumbling out of his mouth anyway, with the pout and sulky tone to match.

“we were pretty good, weren’t we?”

silence reigned over your booth for a few long seconds, and haechan was about to take it back when you just rolled your eyes and scoffed a laugh, another small smile sneaking across your face.

“i’ll let you have that one, hyuckie. but only this once.”

inwardly, he heaved a sigh of relief. outwardly, he only mirrored your grin and held the eye contact with you, only lasting a few seconds before the both of you were bursting into fits of laughter. once it had petered out you stayed staring at one another for a few moments longer, and donghyuck would’ve been content to keep it that way if you hadn’t then looked away and seemingly caught sight of someone else you knew; face breaking out into a grin as your hand raised in a wave.

“ynnie! wow, it feels like i haven’t seen you in forever.”

while hyuck was busy staring at the handsome stranger that had appeared from nowhere (although he assumed he worked here too, what with the flour-covered apron tied around his waist and name tag similar to hendery’s pinned to his chest that read dejun), you were returning his greeting with similar enthusiasm.

“sorry, dejunnie. things have just been—“ he didn’t miss the way your eyes cut to him for a split-second as you paused, before recovering and carrying on just as quickly, hand waving around in a vague motion. “hectic lately, you know?

dejun nodded empathetically, before digging around in the pocket of his apron momentarily and producing a small notepad with a flourish.

“want me to take your order? i'm technically supposed to be in the back, still, but it can be our secret. what are you feeling?”

you accentuated your thought process with the small taps of your fingertips on the tabletop, and eventually came to the decision of a hot chocolate. “i didn’t know how cold it’d be until i left the apartment, junnie, i swear i’m still shivering,” came your justification after the request, and dejun laughed as he reached to rub your shoulder for a moment as if to warm you up. donghyuck suddenly felt a little nauseous, but hurried to plaster a smile onto his face when the waiter turned his eyes in his direction.

“uh. just an americano, for me. thanks.”

he nodded pleasantly and scribbled it down, and then you piped up again.

“that coffee cake looked really good, too, and i think i’m due in for a cheat day, so..” you trailed off to attempt to bat your eyelashes in your friend’s direction, and dejun shook his head but laughed and wrote it down all the same.

“got it. you won’t be waiting too long, promise. i’ll leave you two alone now, though, or kun-ge will be on my ass.. enjoy!”

with that, dejun was gone again, and you waved him off with a smile mirroring his. then you turned to hyuck again, and the smile melted into something softer, something just for him. he couldn’t help but imitate the expression, resolutely trying to ignore how hot his ears felt.

“my bad, i got distracted—where were we again?”

he waved off the apology, and from there the conversation seemed to just.. flow. as easily as it had a year and some months ago—easier, even, now there wasn’t an added layer of tension that came with the knowledge of what the two of you got up to behind closed doors hanging over your heads. you caught each other up on everything you’d missed, shared pictures and stories and only slightly over-exaggerated retells of the craziest events. you laughed and laughed and laughed, barely stopping to breathe even when your drinks were brought over, followed shortly by the slice of coffee cake you’d been tempted by.

donghyuck was a little shocked by how natural it all felt. how simply you’d just clicked right back into place, like nothing had happened at all. but he wasn’t complaining, not in the slightest. it was more like he couldn’t be happier. this was what he’d been wanting for a while now—and now that he finally had it, it was probably in his best interest to make sure he didn’t fuck it up again. renjun would kill him, for one. for another.. well. he finally caught his breath from his latest fit of laughter and stopped to look at where you were still caught in it across the table, and felt a stupid grin rise to his face all over again. losing this again—the effortless conversation, the all-too-easy back-and-forth, the friendship, you—would probably kill him before renjun did anyway. so he made a promise to himself there and then, while watching you try to (unsuccessfully) stifle your lingering snickers into your cup of hot chocolate, that he’d try not to fuck it up again.

although, if he was being honest—from the way his heart was skipping beats a little too fast to be blamed on the laughter, the way his cheeks were a little redder than what he could blame on the warm cosy interior of kun’s place, the way he was slowly coming to the dawning realisation that even if you’d only just started the whole friendship thing up again he didn’t really want to be just friends at all—he’d already failed.

well. now renjun was definitely going to kill him.

(･o･;) 💣 ⠀ previous mlist next

JJ ₊ ⠀can we ignore the fact this is really bad and focus on the fact that i updated.. we're so back !!!!!!!! this fic is my baby for real i am going to see this through 2 the end.. anyway It goes down down baby 리듬에 온��을

taglist ## @wave2love @so2uv @mins-fins @kimgyuuu @wtfhyuck (perm) &&& @deafeningtyrantmilkshake @kosmicbomb @222brainrot @haohyo @dinonuguaegi

[8bitscarlet]

If We Said Goodbye

Summary: You were scared of the future, you always saw it's worst possibilities. Being with Wanda, you began to saw the best possibilities. And the moment you began to plan for the best, that's when the worst had it's chance.

Pairing: Wanda x Reader

Genre/Warnings: Angst (mention of alcohol, consumption of alcohol, blood mention, death of a major character)

Word Count: 5.5k

A/N: Italics is a flashback. No writer's block but all my energy is going to angst, so this is the road we find ourselves in. 😂 Happy Reading everyone! 💕

*please do not repost or translate my material or claim as yours. reblogs, comments and likes are always appreciated!*

_____________________________

The wind blows comfortably across the wooden deck, making the porch wind chimes sing out a quiet tune. The sun is dipping down closer to the evening, coloring the sky with a darkening orange as you run your finger down your sweating drink.

You purse your lips together, thinking back on the conversation you just had. A terse conversation that started out light hearted. 

A chair scrapes out along the wood and you glance up, watching as Bucky sits down across from you. You sigh out, leaning back against the chair and glance around him.

You can see her. Red hair falling out of her bun as she helps pin down Barton to the grass, his kids sprinting from the side of the house with freshly filled water guns. Their laughs are clear as day and you can hear her’s, sending your stomach twisting. 

“It’s nice to see Barton can have a family and still have time to save the world,” you sip from your ice cold drink, clearing your throat.

“Jealous?” Bucky’s tone suggests a rhetorical question but you answer anyway. 

Clenching your brows, you glance away from the dog pile occurring, “Why would I be jealous?”

“Because that’s exactly what you want,”

You narrow your eyes but can’t stop the sigh that leaves your lips, “Uh huh, right. Besides, I’m missing a few key components.”

“Come on,” Bucky stares at you and without spilling a drop, cracks open another beer, “I overheard that conversation you had with her. There’s feelings there, you’re just denying it.”

“There’s nothing to deny. There’s a mission. And I’m focusing on that,” you reach forward and rip the can from his fingers. Sloshing it against the table as he tries to keep grasp on it. 

Grunting as he pushes away from the table, you hear him muttering to himself as he flips open the cooler, “You’re scared. You don’t want to break her heart. Better yet,” the can hisses, “You don’t want her to break yours. Stop blaming it on the mission.”

You look down at the tab of your beer, rocking it back and forth until it snaps off, “She doesn’t deserve to have her heart broken.”

“Nobody does,” Bucky crosses his foot over the other as he leans next to your arm, “but you’re never going to get this, if you don’t grow a pair.”

Rolling your eyes, you knock your hand against his arm as he chokes slightly on the beer, some of it rolling down his nose. You stand, “You just want to say that I copied you by also dating a red head,”

He shrugs, “True. But if you really care about her, then you need to see all of this through her eyes. She’s probably just as scared as you. Look at her,” he points down towards the side of the house. Wanda is fluffing up Fanny’s face as Nat clips the harness on the dog. Fanny needs never ending walks when Yelena is away on mission and Wanda is always happy to take her. Usually you join her, but she didn’t come searching for you this time. 

“You can’t let her slip away.”

You shake your head, “And what if I die?”

Bucky sighs, crossing his arm over as his chin rests on the top of his beer, “You have got to stop thinking about every possible bad thing. What if I cut my finger on your broken tab and get an infection and I die? See? It’s stupid.”

Rolling your eyes, you toss your empty can into the trash, “Now, that’s just ridiculous,”

“You’re being ridiculous!” Bucky calls after you as you descend down the stairs, swinging your keys on your finger. 

The breeze follows you as you drive with the window of your truck down, the smell of evergreen trees growing the longer you drive. And you don’t drive too long, you spend longer sitting in the bed of the truck. Swinging your legs, you catch the sound of branches snapping and a soft voice talking. You chuckle, it sounds more like a therapy session with the occasional barking response of the therapist. 

Fanny makes it through the brush first and sees you. She takes off in a dead sprint, flinging herself straight into the back of the truck and climbing onto your back. You chuckle, 

“Oh, well now look who it is. Going on a walk without me? You traitor!” you laugh as the dog wiggles through any attempt you make at petting them. 

“You know dogs,” Wanda wraps the leash around her fingers, “They can sense bad energy.”

You hum, “As long as she got a proper walk. You know if you actually ran that whole five mile loop, it’s a decent warmup.”

“Oh really?” Wanda runs her hand down Fanny’s back, “And what if that was my cool down?”

“Pretty weak if I’m honest,” you scoot over slightly on the tailgate, “I do the out and back for my cool down.”

Wanda chuckles as she hauls herself up, Fanny keeping the two of you separated, “You’re so irritating,” Her green eyes glow as they reach yours, working down and seeing you’re still dressed in jeans and your button down, “You aren’t going out for your own warmup?”

You swing your legs, angling your boots that aren’t really made for running. She looks at you as you glance back up, watching how her pupils grow and a reddening in her cheeks as you both brush over the same part of Fanny, “What’s wrong?”

With a sigh, you think back on what Bucky said only a few moments ago, “Look. I need to make a few things clear here.”

Wanda’s face falls slightly as she sits ever so slightly rigid. She doesn’t speak a word, just waits for the bomb you’re about to drop on her lap. 

“I don’t like your weird vegan cardboard food that you make me eat once a week. It tastes like dirt, frankly.” you shiver at the thought of the last one she made you, “I don’t like that you’re seemingly right all the time. I don’t like that I need your help when I thought I was fine alone. And I definitely don’t like that you’re making me do this,”

Wanda grins slightly, “Do what exactly?”

Squeezing your fist and stretching out your fingers to attempt to release the energy inside of you, you look up at her, “Tell you that I like you. Just being completely and totally honest. I really like you.”

Her grin grows and her hand that brushed through Fanny’s fur rests on your cheek as her lips press against yours. You smile, her lips the softest things you’ve ever felt and this, the best kiss you’ve had, even with a handful of fur in your mouth.

“I owe someone a beer,” she whispers against your lips,

You groan, “I can’t believe you made a bet about this.”

“Forgive me?” she whispers, her lips pressing against your nose and watching your eyes open with a grin,

“Only if I get one too,”

________________________________

You sigh, staring into your mug of black liquid. It doesn’t steam but has white foam as you attempt to hide what it is to any passing person. Sipping from it, you grimace. Even though it’s not steaming, it isn’t pleasantly cold. Muttering to yourself, you pull your pant legs over your tied shoes and look into the mirror to finish getting dressed. One of the last things you seem capable of it seems. 

Tucking in your shirt tighter, you run your hand down and along your belt. Ensuring the buckle is centered, you work your eyes back up until they rest on themselves. They’re stained red, puffed and glistening more than usual. Pressing your hand against a small box in the breast pocket of the jacket you’ve slung over the chair, you feel a lump in your throat grow. 

Peering outside the window of the room you’re in, the gathering is an unusual energy. Something you’re certainly not used to. Granted, you aren’t really used to being here anyways. You always thought it was hot and stuffy and now, you know you’ll never be back. The beer is hot, you glance back at your mug, and the folk are cold. The time is young but there’s not a single person trying to rile anything up. If anything, they all want the time to end as quickly as possible. 

Buttoning the jacket as you step out of the room, there’s an unsubtle hush that falls over the room. Everyone is dressed up like you, scattered around the gathering area outside of stained glass with chairs that are somehow more uncomfortable than the pews inside. You feel old as you loiter around the area, giving subtle nods to people you pass as your fingers grip tighter to the mug in your hand. You just want to go home and away from this crowd of people. Their eyes on you because they know exactly why you’re here. Who you’re all waiting on.

A silver haired gentleman breaks through the crowd, his presence bringing whispers instead of hushed silence. As he makes his way towards you, he raises a thermos that should be holding coffee. But as he hands you the second one he holds, you grin  and see you’ve both learned the same trick. Beer looks so much like coffee. 

“You prepare anything?”

Sipping on the lukewarm liquid, you still can’t believe you forgot to put the cans in the fridge, “I was never one to write a speech. Besides, I might not have to.”

Pietro hums, “You’re like me than. Wanda could spew out a speech without a thought. That maid of honor one had everyone crying and the only thing she worked on was saying their names in Russian. Totally unfair,”

You never thought you’d have to make a speech in front of people. The plan was always to do it in private, together. The facts in front of you though, changed all your plans. 

“There’s gotta be something you say. Something that comes to mind when you hear her name.”

Your brows raise slightly, there’s a million things that come to your mind. You don’t know if many of them are appropriate for this moment though. They would be much better off staying inside of your brain. 

“Her eyes are like rarest emeralds and her kisses, they’re like rain. They can calm any ounce of nerves in my body,” you skim your thumb against your lip, wiping the spilled beer, “Always once to dance, always has to pull me up onto the dance floor. That’s the only reason I was dancing at your wedding,” you chuckle and every second feels like torture, “So many nights with that radio singing.”

You run your hand down your jacket, pausing over that box again, “And I can’t remember now what song it was when we… Not that it matters anyway.”

“It’ll always matters.”

Grimacing, you swallow the lump in your throat, “I don’t… I’m scared.”

Pietro slowly takes the thermos from your shaking hands, “We’ll walk in together?”

“Is that allowed?” you whisper, staring past the now empty courtyard to the large wooden doors as a bell tolls out. 

“You’re family.” The crack of his voice practically sends you to the ground in a crying heap, you can see it on his face. Everything about this day keeps him from hiding it all inside.

You wipe your face, feeling your trembling lips let out a trembling voice, “Piet. I never-,”

He pulls you in, arms wrapped too tight for you to even attempt to escape, not that you’d wanted to, “I know you would’ve. That’s all that matters to me.”

______________________________

The place you stepped into was dimly lit and packed to the brim with people waiting to get inside. A couple talked to the host, you caught the sight of money sneakily being passed over, trying to get a table. You nervously squeezed through hordes of people and waiters scrambling to their tables. You’d never been to such a fancy establishment and as you tried to rub the wrinkles from your suit, you hoped to never be back in one. 

“Oh man, I’m sorry for being late,” you leaned over and pressed a kiss against her cheek as you whispered, “Again,”

“Honey, you just came from overseas and you’re only a few minutes late,” her hand tightly wrapped around yours beneath the table, trying to find a sense of calm in this hurricane, “I think you’re okay,”

You grinned and looked up finally at the two pairs of eyes that sized up every move you made. You desperately tried to hide the itch in your throat as you tried not to cough, knowing your eyes were beginning to water. 

Wanda’s father reached forward and tore a piece of bread for himself and Wanda’s mother. They both buttered the pieces, carefully as if it was an egg shell. Her father didn’t eat it but instead just rested it back on his plate as he interlocked his fingers. 

“Where’d you come in from?”

You cleared your throat, quickly putting down your glass of water, “I’m not really allowed to talk about.”

“Well wherever it was,” her mother gave a look to Wanda before glancing down at your fingers, “Looks like they had you playing in the mud.”

You glanced down at the dirt trapped beneath your nails and the streaks of mud along your hand that were partially hidden beneath your shirt. You hid them beneath the table, sliding them slowly across your thighs. That itch was back and you tried to push back the image of Nat gasping for air as you finally broke through the collapsed tunnel. You had been digging nonstop, nearly giving up before a flare was shoved through an opening above you, scorching your neck. 

“Mom,” Wanda said through gritted teeth.

You chuckled, trying to make light of the whole situation, “You could say that, yeah. They did,” you voice quiets at the end, “Do we want some wine?”

Her mother hummed as she looked at the menu and Wanda nodded quickly, “Italian?”

You flagged the waiter down and dug deep into the recesses of your mind, pulling out the quick course you were forced to learn before a mission. You tried to speak with confidence as you ordered the Italian wine, closing the menu you glanced across the table. You were expecting impressed looks. But all you got was a continuation of a blank stare from her father and fake enthusiasm from her mother.

“So, you speak Italian, Y/N?”

Before you could speak, Wanda sat upward sharply, “They speak six languages,”

There were some hums, some nods but it was all a ruse for what the two across from you truly wanted to talk about. Wanda’s mother was the first to broach the subject.

“Regarding this, how does it work between you two? I mean with the amount of time you’re gone. Overseas,”

“Do you have any control of your schedule?” Her father was forthright with his questions, his fingers clenched tighter and you swallowed dryly.

Your thumb skimmed along Wanda’s hand, “Uh no, not really. I just get up and go when my team is called. Wherever we’re needed.”

“Following orders,”

There was hostility in his voice. You caught it right away and your brow cocked without a thought, “It is a government agency, sir.”

Wanda breathed in carefully, crossed her leg and rested her foot on your shin. 

“Doesn’t sound like there’s room for a stable home life. Doesn’t seem fair to ask that of a partner. Fear of worrying, of losing you while you’re out where you’re needed.”

You nodded slowly, not finding a lie in his words.

“Okay dad, I think I told you not-,”

You sat up straighter. She wasn’t going to fight your battles. You were here to win over her parents so you could add to the rings on her fingers. The man in front of you would never respect you if Wanda did all the talking.

“Yeah, I do have to go do things that I don’t exactly agree on. But I do it so people I love, like Wanda, don’t have to see what I see over where I’m needed here, at home. I don’t plan on doing this until I’m dead. I want a stable future with your daughter,” you glanced over at her and saw the glistening in her emerald eyes, “Have kids, find a way to help make this world a little bit better. I love Wanda and that’s not going to change.”

Her smile beamed over at you as she leaned and pressed her lips to your chin. You chuckled under your breath for her to hear, you felt good. You felt that the respect would finally come. You put your foot down and let your morals be known. You told them exactly what they wanted to hear. The truth. Wanda grabbed your hand and your grin fell when you saw the way her dad stared at you,

“Well, that’s good to hear, Y/N. Until you come home in a box. What about Wanda then?”

__________________________________

You walk inside the church, your eyes talking in everything around you. The pews are slowly filling up with people as they talk amongst each other. Everbloom roses litter the place, covering over the smell of incense that fills all the way up to the high ceilings above. They’re placed at each end of the pews and you gently touch each one on your way down the aisle. The music softly fills the space and hides the words that people are no doubt sharing with each other. You know what they’re saying. You’re all here for the same reason. Still, it puts a knot in the pit of your stomach. 

And then you see her.

A beautiful and perfect portrait made just for this day. You feel your breath push out from your lungs as your knees begin to tremble. The stinging of tears threatens to escape your eyes as you press a fist against your lips. 

“Hey,” a voice whispers from behind you and you turn, gripping tightly onto their arm, “You’re good.”

“Why am I here,” you clench your face as you move your vice like grip to the edge of a front row pew.

“You know why you’re here. Always is love, isn’t it?”

You scoff, glancing up at the red head with her own ring on her finger, “I messed up, Nat. I really messed up.”

Nat pulls you down with her, trying to get comfortable in the wooden seat, “We all do. No fight could ever end what you two shared.”

You grimace, running both hands down the front of your jacket. One hides a flask and the other that small box. She’s right but you didn’t want her to be right. You could never hate each other, none of your fights ever ended that way. Even though sometimes they did. Sometimes you thought you had really ended things forever, made her hate you beyond words. 

_______________________________

You knocked on the door loudly for the umpteenth time, swaying slightly from the alcohol in your system and slightly from nervousness. You stood there, thinking about what to say. The door whipped open before you could think of a proper greeting. Wanda saw you there and gave you a scolding look when she saw that case of beer next to your feet.

“Y/N,” her voice was tight, the arms that crossed in front of her were even tighter,

“Yeah,”

“I have neighbors. What’re you doing? I thought you were supposed to be hitting the town Bucky,” you could hear the tone as she said his name.

You sigh, “Well, you know. A beer with you sounded better.”

She rolled her eyes and pressed the door closer to her back as she saw your eyes try to peek inside. You sighed, “And I lost my house keys,”

“Oh, you don’t know how to breach a door? Or pick a lock?”

You patted your jeans, trying to muffle the sound of jangling metal, “Uh, can’t get there. Lost my car keys.”

Wanda sighed and stepped further into the threshold, trying to keep you from getting closer to the door, “Uber.”

You were running out excuses, “I misplaced my cellphone.”

Her green eyes glowed ever so slightly, her phone had been ringing and buzzing from the moment you left the bar, picked up this case of beer and until you started to slam on her door. 

She smiled softly, “Y/N, these are lies.”

“Okay, okay. You’re right. You got me, you got me.”

Wanda tilted her head, brows raised, “All right. Then tell me the truth,”

You sighed, “I already did. A beer with you sounds better. And… I’m sorry.”

Her eyes widened slightly. It was all you said. You added no words to try and explain anything. Just a pure apology. A pure understanding that you had messed up and you owned it. A step in the right direction for both of you. Wanda knocked her head against the threshold with a groan and kicked open the door with her foot. You leaned down and picked up the case of beer as she watched you carefully from her lean against the threshold. 

“I’m not sure I’ve ever heard you say that,” she admitted as you stepped past her and listened to the door lock. 

You rolled your eyes as she walked to the kitchen and replaced her ice cold beers with the lukewarm ones you brought her. She shook her head, “You need to remember to get cold beers. I won’t be here forever to remind you,”

You scoffed as you cracked open both cans, “When did you become a mother? That’s what my mother says to me,”

“One step at a time, buckaroo. You still need to learn to take care of yourself,” Wanda snatched the can from your hands, “Besides, I have to learn to relax. You can’t control your schedule.”

You nodded and took a sip with her, “I can control who I see when I’m home though,”

“You both were celebrating being alive and-,”

A hand was placed on her cheek as your lips found hers, “Don’t make excuses for me. I’m home. I’m yours.”

__________________________________

You never lied. You were her’s the moment you stepped off the Quinjet to the moment you stepped back on it. But those steps frequented more on than they did off. Something with the world needing more saving meant that you were working more overtime. Your schedule was creating problems and Wanda’s wasn’t any better. And when she was home, she was arguing with her parents about you while you sat and waited as dinner grew cold and colder. 

Efforts were put into trying to convince the team into putting you two on a mission together. Maybe you could fix your problems by kicking ass together. But that was quickly shot down and as much as you wanted to fight it, you knew it was the right decision. The two of you couldn’t work together. It would compromise the mission. You knew how you were when Wanda was injured. How your blood boiled. You’d lose every sense of duty to the mission if you ever saw Wanda get hurt in front of you. 

And as you remember that feeling, of undying devotion, the trembling in your knees grows once more as you reach out for something to hold on to. You have been able to ignore that trembling, just feeling it in your hands as you pressed them beneath your arms. The voice of the priest was nothing more than mumblings as you glanced over at those emerald eyes every few moments. The grin on her face brings back that knot in your stomach all over again, just like the very first time you saw her. 

As you reach out to keep yourself from stumbling, your hand rests on the perfectly shined box in front of you. Made just for an occasion like this, it was exactly what Wanda had wanted. Everything about today was planned far in advance because she knew, she always had to be the one prepared for the future. You barely could remember to put beer in the fridge. 

You glance over to the side once again, wondering how the brushstrokes captured all of her so perfectly. 

__________________________________

You sat at the bar, finishing the glass of caramel colored beer as another sweating glass is placed next to your hand. You raised the glass to the bartender as you started to walk towards the group. A hand grabbed your shoulder roughly and shook you, your beer slightly foaming out of the glass and spilling across your hand. 

Running your hand across the top, you flick the foam at Steve in retaliation, “Go get your own beer, you geyser!”

Steve laughed, “So, what about Wanda? You talk to her?”

You chuckled, picking at the peeling skin on your fingers, “Yeah, yeah, I talked to her. She’s good, man. She’s just, uh… She’s gotten really good at buying things to add to my ‘Honey Do List’,”

He ran his hand down the scruff on his face, “You’re sounding more and more like Buck over there. Except she traded her name for a band.”

“I heard it’s still Romanoff,”

Bucky rolled his eyes, “Only on mission,”

The table erupted into jeers as they chucked peanuts and pretzels at the escaping man but Steve was still staring at you. You chuckled, “I’m surprised she’s still there, honestly. I don’t know how she does it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Life after this. I mean, hero like her, how do you walk away from all this, you know? Work intelligence and tell us where to go.”

Steve scratches at his forehead, “Yeah but she’s still in the team. She works some ops and then makes you brisket for dinner.”

You grinned but shook your head, “Yeah but that’s it. This… this isn’t just a job. This is a, it’s a life. This is ten times the life most people live.”

“Okay. And you remember that she gave that up for you then. Now, go get us some beers, yeah?

You stood, “Listen man, if I ever lose sight of that… you tell me to go get my eyes checked.”

He smiled, “Let’s do that now, how many fingers am I holding up.” You watched as he held up his hand but they were not how you normally held up numbers. He twisted and contorted his hands, putting up three fingers sideways on one hand and another with only half a finger up. 

“What… what the hell is this? Jenga? Don’t worry, I know what she’s done,” you downed the rest of your beer and gently placed it down on the table, “We’re two people but one beating heart. I’m lucky enough to have that, so I’m gonna give it all of me.”

“Good,” he nodded, “Don’t ever forget that. Just give it all you got and fill up that pitcher, will you?” He flicked you with his empty, glass, droplet of beer dropping onto you, “you’ve been baptized, go get more of that holy liquid. Chop, ch-,”

As his hand smacked against your shoulder, the side of the bar slammed in towards you. The pitcher was ripped from your hand as debris blew up all around you. Through the ringing of your ears, you heard Steve talk to you. He asked if you were okay and as you blinked through the dirt in your eyes, you gathered your surroundings through the smoky haze around you, only seeing with the help of the neon lights. 

You climbed slowly up to your feet, wiping away glass in your arms as you started to help the team triage the people who were inside the bar. Bucky came running through the half caved in entrance and met you there, 

“You good man? It’s chaos out there,”

You glanced around you, “Yeah, yeah. We got a lot of people we need to help right now,”

Screams came from outside as people tried to escape the area and as you looked at the damage inside, you knew there had to be damage on the street. Jogging outside, carts of the street market are thrown all over the road. Food, souvenirs and debris littered the area. People called out for each other and there were others who were trying to stop anyone to help them. You stopped for them. 

Grabbing people form the street and carrying them inside for the team to start working on them. You coughed at the smoke that was inside the bar and the dust you inhaled from the blast, but you kept working. You directed people away from the blast zone, telling them to go to the hospital to find anyone missing. 

A younger yell caught your attention as you whipped around and saw a young boy in the middle of the street. Blood poured down his arm, dirt covered him from head to toe. 

“Aysha!”

You jogged over to him, “Hey, Aysha what? What’s Aysha?”

The little boy held up a burnt pink teddy bear and you eyes widened, “My sister, Aysha!”

“Aysha!” You yelled out and held out your hand for the child to stay there, “Hold on, Aysha!”

You started to head down the street, peering into parked trucks and underneath them. Trying to listen out for anything above the wailing sirens and screams. A few paces down the street and you hear the soft sob of a child. You jogged back to a truck and saw a small child had curled up on the floor of truck. As you opened the door, you kneel down and meet their terrified gaze,

“Aysha?”

They nodded and you quickly grabbed them, running them back to their older brother, “My friend Clint is gonna take you two inside, okay? He’s gonna keep you safe.” Clint had exited the bar quickly and takes the child from your arms, guiding the older one inside for refuge. 

“You good, Y/N?” He asked quickly as you wiped blood from your ears, 

“I’m good, go help Steve. I’m going back out.” 

You glanced down the street, watching people take the last of the limping and injured out and away. You walked behind the last of them, ensuring they made it out of the perimeter and clearing the way for the ambulances that were no doubt on the way. As you threw a destroyed cart out of the way, you froze as you heard a phone begin to ring. 

Beside a parked car, you saw a lone backpack hidden behind the back tires. You barely have time to remember the lecture you had taken about bombers. Always check for secondary devices. 

________________________________

You clear your throat as your thumb strokes along the lid of the box. 

There was one thing Wanda didn’t decide. She left it up to you and you wish she hadn’t. It was something you didn’t want to think about. It made all of this real and you couldn’t escape from it. 

Open casket or closed. 

“I hate all of this…” you whisper, your finger following each grain of the wood, “You knew I would. You took care of everything. You took care of me and I…it went to hell. We had one too many long nights away. The dish broke and I can’t remember whose fault it was. Not that it matters anyway.”

Trying to breath through your clogged nose, you take another glance at that portrait that captures her so perfectly in time. The way her hair fell to frame her face, you even notice the small lines of the scrunch of her nose.

Something you saw nearly every night, after a shared kiss. If you tried hard enough, you could convince yourself that you could still smell her, feel the cold touch of her hand on yours. 

“You left me standing in that driveway dust and cranked your car and drove away. Just some time, Piet told me when you dropped your bags off there. Maybe I should’ve gone there. Maybe I should’ve brought you back home. But I signed up for that damn mission.” your lips tremble, “I nearly died. You picked up that mission. You did die.”

Chuckling, you press your hand against your mouth as it nearly turns into a sob, “Guess you did still love me. Revenge, right? That’s what it was? I was still in surgery when you left. Maybe I could’ve convinced you to stay. You shouldn’t have been there. I can take a bullet, you can’t. And I’ll ask why for the rest of my life. And I’ll never come to understand it, even if this god came in front of me and told me why.”

Hot tears run down your face as you grip the small box through your jacket, “I can’t recall if we said goodbye. But,” you take out the small box and carefully pry open the leather, watching how the ruby reflects the candlelight around it.

Gently, you rest it on top of the lid, “I’ll try to remember the beer. And I’ll say goodbye, now that you’re gone.”

__________________________

[kimbapisnotsushi]

Hello, here to help you through the midterms! I would like to hear about Tsukki if you haven't shared hcs for him a thousand times already and/or Fukunaga :)

my babies!!! i'd be more than happy to, let's get it :))

tsukishima:

avid romance defender. he may be kind of mean when it comes to rejecting confessions and girls and doesn't totally get why he's so popular for it but as a bookworm he's very aware of the issues that the genre in literature (and across other mediums as well) faces and WILL have a whole rant locked and loaded if you ask him

thinks strawberry shortcake needs to stay in its purest form to be any good and absolutely will not accept any variations like "white chocolate strawberry shortcake" or "raspberry strawberry shortcake" or anything that alters plain ol' strawberry shortcake

nerdy enough that he has a map tacked up in his room with pins in all the places he wants to visit someday

does not know how to use emojis or kaomojis or even just the simple :) at all and if anyone gets a message from him with one they can safely assume his phone was stolen by yamaguchi, hinata, noya, or suga

everyone is really surprised when they find out that he and lev actually text quite a lot and tsukki is like "look if i don't help him with hw he is NOT going to pass first year"

during tokyo training camp he tries to sneak into the high school's library LMAAAAO

has the most pretentious-ass music taste you will ever find but DOES like a handful of mainstream pop songs

(personally i think he's a yorushika fan but that's just me)

likes getting hw done at cute coffeeshops/cafes especially when his room feels really overwhelming

fukunaga:

once told tora very seriously that he knew a great trick for freaking people out and then proceeded to whip out a mandarin from seemingly nowhere and bit into the whole thing like an apple and tora's resulting reaction was what made fukunaga think about getting into comedy

he did it to lev too except he used a banana and lev's been scared of him ever since

knows, like, every single classic-52-deck card game in existence for some reason

do NOT play poker with him he has an excellent resting face you WILL lose

also really good at sleight-of-hand and simple magic tricks

probably has the most knowledge/experience in non-japanese cuisines let's be real

also has a bucket hat collection that ranges from "cool and stylish" to "walking shitpost"

he's got one with cat ears attached to the top that he's very fond of

uses the team as trial-and-error for his recipes and once accidentally gave them all food poisoning

(nobody blamed him ofc but he felt really bad and made them all cupcakes after)

likes going to hipster artsy events like open mic nights at coffee shops and bookstores and free gallery viewings and band battles and whatever

has to resist the urge to pat inuoka's and lev's heads like a dog sometimes

[nanistar]

what's a character that you like that you would consider a "problematic fav"?

★ julius was fronting when typing this ★

hmmm that's kind of a hard one because i personally don;t really think any characters are problematic, since they tend to be pretty poorly written and a lot of their personalities, values and issues will change all willy nilly between books for whatever the authors see fit instead of creating a character with set morals, ideals, goals, and an established character arc lol. and also i don't really like a whole lot of characters, i tend to Nothing a lot of them. but, as i've said before, my opinion on characters, ships, scenes ect can usually be swayed by whoever is writing it or talking about it.

that being said, characters that i like that could generally be seen as problematic...

i love tigerclaw. always have. (keeping in mind that i read warriors long before the pinestar novella gave him a specific extra hatred of kittypets and the dark forest stuff was retconned to be in his past instead of only after his death) i have always thought that tigerstar was the best villain that warriors has ever had, and ever will have. he's patient, smart, and he plays the long con. despite fireheart being suspicious of him, which makes the reader suspicious, he puts on a front for almost three books. he's mean, aggressive, sure, but he's loyal to thunderclan* in battle and in daily life and i genuinely believe he started out wanting what was best for the Clan, believing (maybe due to thistleclaw's influence, maybe not) that Bluestar was not good for the Clan/was too soft/ect (like bringing in a kittypet kitten, like sending a party to look for WindClan instead of taking their territory) before the idea of absolute power got to his head.

he's awkwardly respectful around the Medicine cats, he listens to Cinderpelt when she yells at him about silverstream's kits (i think the quote is something like "do you want that kit to die?? shut up and lick it") and he does and even fireheart is surprised. this little scene in particular says a lot about his character to me: he's a ruthless killer but he cares about young life, and he respects the authority of the clan;s healers. he's more than Just evil. he's a person.

he plans things perfectly, his plot to kill bluestar and pin it all on brokentail's gang almost succeeded.

he's exiled and immediately takes control of the gang of brokentail's rogues that he JUST tried to blame the (attempted) murder of a leader on. his ruthlessness and his diplomacy is unparalleled by any other character in WC. he brings this gang of abusive cats back to Shadowclan, where a majority of them were exiled from due to war crimes in the first place, and takes over the Clan. is he bad? absolutely. but he pulls the frazzled, sick and dying ShadowClan back together, nurses them back to health, and plays the straight man again for the next book all the while he's plotting with blackfoot and darkstripe to bring his kids to safety because he's slowly feeding the dogs in TC territory and plotting to kill everyone in a ruthless, indiscriminate slaughter. he's there for it. he's watching the whole time. we know this because, at the end of the chain, he catches fireheart and holds him down for long enough for the dogs to catch up. at this point, he doesn't care about TC, he just wants fireheart dead. plans are foiled once again when bluestar leaps to the rescue.

next he moves to Riverclan, he convinces Leopardstar to combine Clans and join him. the newer books want you to believe that she was pressured into doing it, but truthfully she was equally as ambitious as he was (just less willing to kill indiscriminately for it) and likely saw it as an opportunity to get into a higher position of power, probably planned on dethroning Tigerstar the second she had the chance. obviously this doesn't happen.

he creates this whole narrative about halfclan cats not being loyal to their given clan, using mistyfoot and stonefur (The RiverClan Deputy!!!!) as examples and even riverclan believes him despite the fact that misty and stone have never had a lapse in loyalty for their entire lives, only finding out they were half-clan a few moons ago. (unrelated since it's due to the retcons of later super editions, but silverstream's mom and crookedstar's mate Willowbreeze (AND her sister Graypool) was also a halfclan cat, though her loyalty was never doubted, which while halfclan cats are rare it seems like for the most part theres not tooooo much discrimination of them, leading me to believe that tigerstar did sort of jumpstart this new narrative of them clan-swapping and having no true loyalty.) they even doubted the loyalty of two young apprentices, featherpaw and stormpaw, and kept them all locked in a prison and starved. riverclan may have objected to this, but they couldn't say anything about it and they certainly couldn't have stopped it at all.

then, he gave stonefur the chance to prove his loyalty; prove you're loyal to your clan by killing these two apprentices. of course he knew stonefur would never. stonefur objects, and while leopardstar does seem reluctant, but she agrees with tigerstar. she thinks, maybe due to his heritage, he IS unloyal to riverclan.

what tigerstar does is cruel, violent and horrible. he has a calmness about him, a patience, and an intelligence that makes him incredibly scary. he always has a backup plan. when his plans are foiled he is quick to think of a new one. he;s diplomatic, charismatic (at first), he could convince you to give him the clothes off of your back. he escalates and escalates until he almost has everything.

then he gets unzipped, and starts ALL over again in the dark forest. (i do not care for dark forest tigerstar after TNP. it gets really played out and boring.)

anyway i like him (: *not fireheart

[annkous]

Here we are on lesson 24, also known as: Asmo's Mess.

Solmare's still mean with cliffhangers btw o(-<

Lesson 23 here, where we helped Mammon settle with his Greed and it ended with us seeing Lust/Desire creeping up on Asmo.

We start the lesson with all of them in a RAD classrom with Diavolo announcing they'll be getting a full day of mock classes, taught by... Lucifer. None's happy about it. People get distracted, erasers fly around hitting people and as always, you're caught in the middle of some mess as Asmo passes you a note. Lucifer's not happy, but Asmo's bored out of his mind and just charms Lucifer so he cuts class short.

Not a good sign that he can do that to Lucifer. here's where I wondered if Asmo being able to charm us some lessons prior was due to his growth in power or because we were really weak.

It doesn't end there, though. Asmo immediately puts his charms to work on everyone to do his bidding. He makes Beel stay put as a windshield, he makes Belphie run for drinks, he makes Satan do his homework, Mammon go fetch nailpolish...

You can call him out on what he's doing is wrong, but he's not listening. Asmo tries to use the charm again on Lucifer to make him bark like a dog, but Lucifer being Lucifer, has built up a resistance and is very pissed off at Asmo and the treatment he's giving his brothers.

For some reason I can't comprehend, he's also pissed at the others for not being able to resist Asmo, nor building up a resistance just like he did, and pins the blame on every single soul around.

I think it's a bit of foreshadowing on his own shit coming up, because this makes no sense to me whatsoever. The brothers even call him out on it, but he's not having it. You're all punished with going to take care of Cerberus. That's a gift for me tbh. But goddamn. He's such a dick in this scene. I can think he's worried his brothers are not growing strong enough, but that's not how you do it. He gets no excuse.

Welp, off to go take care of a big dog. You all have to clean and feed him. None wants to be there, not even you, and you can complain about it lol but hey, we're the devilsitter. We have to be with them, even when they're sent to do their punishment.

Down there in the catacombs where Cerberus is, we get the "this menacing growling noise isn't actually Beel's stomach" gag that never gets old to me.

There's some minor complications while doing the Cerberus task, as expected, and Asmo gets fed up. However since it's his fault you're all stuck down there and he's even saying "you should all be grateful to be around me", a full fight ensues where Mammon just snaps at him and says he's not beautiful at all. Asmo immediately goes berserk.

Thankfully, the rest recognize it's the same power/breakdown that had happened to Mammon and try to run, but Asmo charms them all in place. You're the only one who's able to run away, and Asmo's hot on your heels, trying to charm you as well.

Lucifer appears right in the nick of time, just like last time with Mammon, but this time it's not easy for him. Asmo's power is out of control, and not even Lucifer can withstand it this time just like before. He tries to snap Asmo out of it, but it doesn't work.

Lucifer tells you that he won't be able to resist for much longer, and that you should go get Solomon.

You can try and say "no!" to avoid leaving him behind, but knowing how Lucifer thinks, it's better if you just listen to him and go since it's the only way out. If you stay, the time he wins might be for nothing. Look what I'm saying is just say "got it" when he tells you to go to gain some points with him www

Lucifer successfully teleports you away from Asmo and to Cocytus Hall, where Solomon is "cooking" in peace.

PLEASE-

I love Sol to the moon and back but my mc's a disaster gremlin. It was obvious what I was gonna pick. Anyways after almost snapping his neck (deserved /j), he agrees to help, so off you two go back to the House of Lamentation, where things have gotten pretty bad now that Asmo has all the brothers under his charm.

(You can ask about Simeon and Luke for points, and Solomon will tell you that they're at the Demon Lord's Castle, so they're safe. He also texted them to stay the night there for good measure.)

You try reaching out to Asmo, but there's still no change. The brothers, however, do hear you, but they can do nothing. All they do is tell you to run before he gets you, but Asmo hears this and is not happy that, even when they're supposed to be serving him, they're thinking about you.

I loved this confrontation with Asmo. He zeroes on you and the attention the brothers give you. He outright calls you a nuisance, and oh boy, Solomon hears that and immediately springs into action with a smile on his face.

I personally like how unhinged Solomon gets if anyone dares to lay a hand on you. Not even that, this was just an insult. One of my fav changes from the og game to nightbringer. Anyways-

Both go on a full showdown, fighting left and right. Solomon's more weak than usual (as we already know), which is not good considering Asmo's the one with the power boost right now. Solomon tries to subdue Asmo, but it doesn't work, so he decides to do "something I really didn't want to have to do, because know I will get yelled at later."

And he just summons Barbatos, who knows Asmodeus out flat with one hit.

Well, that worked.

After bringing a knocked out Asmo to his room to rest (and ordering everyone else to rest too after being under Asmo's charm) you hear that Barbatos is not happy about being summoned by Solomon, even if it was an emergency, and is making sure Solomon knows about it lmao.

He's also worried his sudden disappearance has scared Luke. You see, it's moments like these that make me think that even if Barbatos is Nightbringer, he's not bad, and I'd trust his reasoning for doing this with my life. He'd still the scolding of a lifetime, though.

Anyways they keep fighting- please stop-

They eventually realize they need Little D. Nº. 5 to help Asmo the same way they've helped Mammon, so off you three go to the Demon's Lord Castle.

Little D. Nº5 is in the Secret Flower Garden, which is not a Fun Place, apparently. But you're willing to go there to save Asmo (yay! points with Asmo AND Solomon ;u; you can tell they care about each other a lot more than they show)

And so we go in with an entourage... made of Barbatos and Solomon. Not a good combo, considering they're in bad terms lmao so off you go again, except it's awkward because they're not talking and we don't seem to like the silence. So we try filling it with talk and then-

THEN-

WE FINALLY GET TO ASK THEM WHY THEY'RE FIGHTING. ONE OF THE BIGGEST NIGHTBRINGER MYSTERIES-

-AAAAAAND HERE ENDS THE LESSON, GIVING US A CLIFFHANGER. I haven't been frustrated with a cliffhanger in this game for a while aaAAAAAAAAAAA UGH. ANYWAYS. We have a video call, but since it's related to a chat you get after finishing hard mode, so I'll put both together at the end.

The extra lesson is right after the charm effects wear off on Lucifer in the class at the beginning of the Lesson. As revenge, he turns Asmo into a frog. I have to admit it was kinda funny, until he turned everyone else into a frog because they were laughing at Asmo.

BITCH WHY?????? WHAT DID I EVEN DO?????? See what I mean when I said he's acting a bit more of an asshole than ususal-

The rest just beg Lucifer to spare you, so he does. But he's not done messing with everyone. He says kissing the frogs is the only way to undo the curse and asks you if you're willing to kiss these frogs to help them...

But the effects wear out on their own, and Lucifer admits he was just joking about needing to kiss them. Satan's the one that looks the most disappointed at the revelation, mind you wwww

The extra scene in hard mode is Simeon with Diavolo, commenting about the Founding Ceremony. Simeon says he can hardly wait, and Diavolo asks about if it would be possible for Michael to attend (!!!) and Simeon answers "he's too lazy to make the trip". I nearly screamed remembering he's been down here already as Raphael just to see Lucifer. I'm gonna cry.

Simeon does think that Michael might come just to see Lucifer. They're really hinting at him attending the Founding Ceremony, so I've got to wonder if he's really gonna show up, or if we're gonna do the Ceremony and THEN he will appear the next season as an exchange student. Simeon also comments that he wasn't the one supposed to come down to the Devildom-Raphael was, but he just begged and begged until he was given permission. He really wanted to see Lucifer so badly ;;

But then they comment on Lucifer and you, and how you two might be really important to the bridge they're trying to form between the Devildom and the Celestial Realm, and just about the Three Realms alltogether.

The scene ends with Luke running at them in a panic because Barbatos has just disappeared on him as they were baking together. Well, we know now at which exact moment this scene takes place lol.

So, the video call that you get at the end of the normal lesson AND the chat you get at the end of the hard mode...

The video call is all the brothers (sans Asmo, because he's conked out) commenting on various things, namely how they're on different rooms in case Asmo wakes up before you manage to grab the Little D. so he can't get to all of them at the same time, how they're worried about you (aw) even if you're with Solomon and Barbatos, and Lucifer with a really soft voice wondering how's Asmo. I'm not biased I swear-uh. Since Asmo's asleep, the brothers joke around about taking revenge about the charm thing, and how painting on his face might do the trick.

Beel, being the voice of reason, (and I'd like to point out he's the voice of reason a lot of times throughout the games, and I don't think it gets addressed enough) tells Lucifer he should stop them...

Incredible.

I enjoyed this call a lot. Every extra voice acting we get is a blessing. I feel like TWST has spoiled me on that regard lol

Then we have the group chat, where the brothers are writing to Asmo for when he wakes up and... well, I'll just show you. I said it was related to the video call, so you can get an idea of what's going on in there. It really made me laugh because I'm always happy to see them act as siblings lol

The chat made everything end in a lighter note for me. You really can't help but love them.

I get that Asmo's problem feels different and more fast-paced because it didn't have the same build-up as Mammon's issue did, but seeing the limited number of lessons we get per season, it's understandable. I'm wondering if they can fit the five remaining brothers' issues and resolutions in the lessons that are left before we reach Lesson 30... They could put Beel and Belphie together to save time, but I feel like Beel deserves a bit more of spotlight so I want him to have his own miniplot here with his Sin.

Looks like we're miles away from the Founding Ceremony still, but we need all the pacts before the date arrives, so I guess it's a good thing lol. Anyways, that's all for the week! And go drink water.

Oh and the new German titles on the normal version cards (which I just put here for the fun of it) are: Bright Elf (Simeon) and Divergent Zwölf (Solomon). Then they go back to Prideful Eins with Lucifer. I kinda wanted to see Raphael, Mephisto and Thirteen, but I guess they don't get any cool German titles yet.

Edit: Lesson 25 is up!!

[seigephoenix]

Hey there! For DADWC, how about "“Admit it- your life would be boring without me.” for M!Warden x Morrigan? Happy writing!

Happy Friday! I love this prompt. Max and Morrigan are absolutely an adorable couple. Max is so sweet and is a great partner to Morrigan (he tries his best). I took some liberties with canon here as we don't know how Kieran grew up with Morrigan and the Warden. But I know Max would be an amazing father and partner. XD

Content Warning: cuteness overload Length: ~800 words

Morrigan flinched as she heard the loud crash coming from the other room.  Followed swiftly by Max’s voice assuring her everything was fine and Kieran’s laughter.  If she had to pin it on something she’d likely pin it on Max’s hound.  “Why did I ever agree to that flea bitten mongrel to live with us?”  Morrigan pinched the bridge of her nose but she knew why.  The blasted dog had wormed his way into her heart and Kieran simply adored the beast.  She knew that if she or Max wasn’t around, that Luxe would protect Kieran with his life.

“Mama.”  Kieran held up the parchment for her inspection.  “I drawed it!”  His cheerful, chubby face looked so proud of the artwork.  Morrigan smiled and accepted it from him.

“It’s, I drew it.”  Kieran nodded and smiled at her.  “It’s lovely Kieran.  Thank you.”  She ruffled his dark hair, so much like her own, but those eyes.  Kieran’s eyes were all his father.  That dark green, as dark as the Brecilian forest.  Morrigan smiled as Kieran babbled about what he did with his father.  Max must have still been cleaning up whatever mess they’d made in the other room.

“I love you Mama!” Morrigan paused at her son’s words.  She wasn’t the best at affection, certainly not motherly.  She never had the greatest example of it, but something had melted the moment she’d held Kieran in her arms.  Her lips turned up in a warm smile as Kieran grasped at her skirt.

“I love you too.”  Morrigan didn’t think she’d ever get tired of seeing how his face lit up at hearing the words.  A pair of hands settled on her shoulders before Max swooped down to kiss her cheek.

“Papa!” Kieran fairly shrieked as he spotted Max behind Morrigan.

“My troublemaker!” Max announced before he scooped Kieran up in his arms.  “Did you tell Mama what happened?” Kieran stuck a finger in his mouth and leaned his head against Max’s shoulder.  “Haha, I don’t blame you.”  He leaned down and spoke in a comically loud whisper.  “We don’t want Mama to be mad.  She might not let us have dessert.”  Kieran straightened in alarm and Max grinned at him.  “But, if you don’t tell the truth you can get in worse trouble.”

Morrigan crossed her arms over her stomach as she regarded the two men in her life.  Kieran grinned at Max who had such a soft look on his face it made Morrigan ache.  From what he shared with her, Max hadn’t had the best childhood growing up.  His mother had practically thrown him into the Circle the moment his magic manifested.  His father had been an apostate, but his mother hadn’t known.  She’d been resentful of a young Max until the day his power showed itself, and that was all the sign she needed to throw away the child.  She saw how Max was doing his best to not let Kieran grow up without the love of his parents.

“What did happen precisely?”  Morrigan asked drawing the attention of the two.  Kieran laid his cheek against Max’s shoulder and gave her those pleading eyes.  She found it hard to resist but she knew that giving in would reinforce bad habits.  “Kieran, please tell me the truth.”

“Papa?” Kieran looked up at Max who simply grinned at Morrigan over his shoulder.

“We got a little too enthusiastic about showing Kieran magic tricks.”  Morrigan simply raised one eyebrow.  “You know I’ve never been that talented with frost magic.”

“No.  Lightning and fire are what calls to you,” she murmured and looked at Max.  “What did you break?”  Max laughed nervously.  “Was it expensive?”  He flinched and she blew out a breath.

“We can fix it.  Probably.” Kieran threw his hands into the air with a cheerful squeal.

“I certainly hope so for your sake Maximillian.”

“Oh no Kieran, she used my full name.”  Kieran gasped at Max’s over exaggerated tone.  Morrigan simply scoffed as Max set Kieran down and he went running off as he heard Luxe bark.

“You two will give me gray hairs.”  Morrigan huffed at Max as he wrapped an arm around her waist.  He leaned down and pressed a kiss against her temple earning a small smile from her.

“Admit Morrigan.  Your life would be absolutely boring without me causing chaos in it.”  Morrigan simply shifted until she could give him a deadpan glance.  Max simply laughed as she huffed at him.

“It certainly wouldn’t be as full of laughter as it is now.”  They both paused as another crash sounded in the other room, followed by Kieran’s squeal of laughter and Luxe’s barking.

“I’ll go fix it.  I promise.” Max hurried into the other room as Morrigan shook her head as she watched him go.  He was right.  Her life would be boring without him.  She wouldn’t have the warmth of his smile, of his steadfast love, or his awkward flirting.  They’d been together for so many years and he still got flustered when she flirted with him.  She smiled as she heard Max chasing Luxe and Kieran around in the other room.  No, she wouldn’t trade this life for anything else.

[thedreamydemon]

pt. 3 (i hate calling these pt.s, whatev)

Ok posting more already. Hillbilly romance

Johnny Knoxville x fem!reader

Johnny followed you out to the shed where you kept your still. It was hot and musty inside, and smelled like yeast and acetone. You squatted to grab a jar from your latest batch. You handed it to Johnny, “try some.”

Johnny unscrewed the lid and took a whiff. His face scrunched up when the potent aroma hit his nostrils. Then he took a sip and his face scrunched up more. “Whoo! Yeah. That’ll get ya lit up quick.”

You laughed and stood up, toe-to-toe with Johnny. The shed was small and it forced the two of you into close proximity. The cicadas were buzzing especially loud. “Lemme have some. I haven’t tried it yet.”

“Careful, sweetheart. Its stronger than the last batch, I think.” Johnny commented and he handed you the jar of clear alcohol. You took a sip and your face scrunched up more than Johnny’s did. The moonshine felt like fire down your throat.

“Ack!” You shook your head as you screwed the lid back on. “You’re right.”

“Thats a good thing though.” Johnny assured. “You know that’s how those hillbillies like it.”

“I know.” You agreed. “You can take that whole crate if you want.”

“Alright.” Johnny picked the crate of moonshine jars off the floor and carried it back to your house. It was too damn hot outside.

You leaned against the wall and watched Johnny set the crate on the kitchen table. Johnny looked up at you with his almost black eyes. Those cicadas were buzzing really loudly today.

“How come Bam doesn’t live with you?” Johnny asked suddenly.

Your face flushed. You would blame that on the heat. “What?” You looked at your feet. “I don’t know. I guess I don’t want someone living with me and trying to change the way I live, and-“ you looked up and Johnny was in front of you. The toes of his shoes touched the toes of your shoes.

“You’re too pretty to live out here by yourself,” Johnny placed a hand on the paneled wall beside your head. You could feel his body heat and smell his scent. His half-lidded eyes bored into you. ��It’s dangerous.”

“Johnny.” You groaned in annoyance, eyes unable to meet his. He’s never commented on your appearance before. “I have my guns and my dog. I’m ok.”

“It’s still too dangerous,” Johnny touched your shoulder with his rough hand which ran down the length of your arm and gripped your wrist. The air was as warm as an oven, but your skin sprouted goosebumps. His other hand grabbed your other wrist, and pinned it to the wall. You let him.

“Johnny,” your tone was more scolding now.

“You’re gonna end up hurt,” Johnny’s head tilted and his lips ghosted along your jawline. Your breath hitched. He wanted to kiss you so fucking bad. “You’re the prettiest girl for miles. And there’s lots of lonely guys around…” his voice trailed off, and he forced his thigh between your legs, purposefully rubbing against your crotch. “I can’t say I haven’t thought about it, sweetheart.”

“Johnny!” You yelled at him this time and pushed him off. “Why are you being so fucking weird?”

Johnny looked offended but not entirely surprised. He backed off. “I’m sorry. I just-.” Now he was the one unable to look at you. The painting of a pond on the other wall was much more interesting for him. “I just worry about you.”

“You don’t need to worry.” You huffed. You stomped over to the couch, and Candy hopped in your lap. “Get outta here, Johnny. Bring me my half when you get it.” You were referring to your half of the money from the moonshine.

Johnny left, taking the crate of moonshine with him. He felt like a dog that had just been swatted on the nose with a rolled up newspaper. His Eldorado engine fired, the sound of it faded as he went up the mountain.

[pupyr0arz]

🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹👹

😨😨😨 ten snips then:

captive!soap x ultrantionalist!reader 1st paragraph The thing is, it’s too hard to stay away from you. You’ve got him locked up in some safehouse first off, but lately he’s finding the conversations a little too sweet to be good for him, and the silence when you’re gone a touch too mind melting. Soap’s a lot of things, but not the type to stay still at all. The first three days he spends here, silent home and silent-er guards are hellish, soft duvet grating on every nerve. He bites at the chain wrapped around his wrist, grinding his teeth into iron for lack of anything better to do because when he tugs at it too insistently one of the scary bastards starts to loom in the doorway. He’d do it anyways, pick a fight just for something to cut his wrists on but the phantom fingers on his collar and soon-to-be quiet approval of Simon keeps him leashed. For now, at least. He’s going to go insane here, white walls, white bed, staring into his own reflection in the metal of his cuff. He stares at his watcher’s black body armor to rest his eyes when he gets desperate, which is more than he’d like to admit.

gazghost (ghoap/gazprice bg)

Ghost is not an animal person. It’s less of a distaste for them than a rational understanding that voluntarily allowing a dependent living being to be dependent on him is at best, a sketchy idea. He’s the last man on earth he’d give that responsibility, the quiet morbid fear of waking up to blood on his hands and another broken body. It eats at him, because they’re almost like children in their innocence and how uncomprehending they are of cruelty. 

Ghost doesn’t want an actual dog, for all that he grudgingly has to admit he likes Riley. Johnny is more than enough in that department, the mangy mutt that he is. And between the two of them, if Ghost snaps at Johnny he can trust the man to circle back and nose at him until he allows him to forgive Ghost. Better yet, he knows Johnny will round on him too, try and sink those scraggly little canines in with all that huffing and puffing. Johnny is a good dog, suited for Ghost, carved just right to slip right into the chinks of his armor and fit, snug and warm. Armed, too. 

ghostbusters!au ghost!soap x price

Price lets himself in from the back. Gaz is up front, coaxing the couple out of the home with sweet words and he doesn’t need fo screw that up. It’s a pretty typical job from that front, idiot newly weds who got a deal on a old, old property. He’s not in the mood to have to explain the equipment he’s lugging to a pair of barely out of college victims, and Gaz, bless him, steps up to bat without missing a beat. He’s too good to Price, really. He’ll keep them clear of the house, playing away any skepticism and soothing any major fears. As long as Price has his time to fix this, they’re in free and clear. They don’t leave any ways of getting back in contact for a reason.

perv!soap

Johnny is a bad, bad bastard. It’s no one’s fault but his own, no blame can be placed for his sweet mother who spotted the rottenness in him and tried to set him straight, or his sisters who fussed after him and tried to teach him manners. It sticks as well as teaching a bear to use a fork. 

He’s got no excuse for any of this, but he can’t think himself out of it either. His world narrows down to it, like he’s working on a bomb and his hands are steady as he pilfers away on quiet feet. He’s the hardest he’s been in a month, for christssake. Bar girls are beautiful, beautiful butterflies he catches and pins to the bed and their screams feed him sweetly, but he’s finding the hunter in the pit of his stomach has grown too ravenous for them

stalker!kyle x influencer!reader

Kyle is sure you’ve dealt with your fair share of stalkers and creepy fans, even before he finds your interviews about them. It’s a given, naturally, with how alluring you are you’re bound to attract fetishists and those dedicated to dragging you down. Men online don’t get as much sexual harassment, which is probably the only thing that keels Kyle from having to buy a new mouse frequently, but naturally you do call unwanted attention to your body. Scum that don’t deserve to lick the bottom of your shoe demanding your time, your affection, your attention, to conform to their standards...it sets a righteous fire of indignation in him, as it should any decent person. He’s not like any of them, after all, the farthest thing removed. Kyle isn’t lonely, even outside of his team. He talks to his neighbors and smiles at the cashier at the coffee shop, and he smiles back. Women don’t dart away from him on the street, he passes wallets back to their owners, he’s not religious but he’s not vehemently spitting at those who do practice. Every grating trait that leads these sorts of people astray is absent.

Priest!price x reader

Price spots you without needing to look. He’s heard the rumors, gossip for all that his fellows like to condemn, flies as fast in the clergy as it does in the town, but he didn’t need the stories of a strange man appearing at the outskirts of town. He knows each member of his flock by heart, by voice, by face, by troubles. Each of them is a light borne to earth by God, and he prides himself on knowing what is necessary to coax them behind the church doors.

apoco!au roachreader

Besides, he’s done nothing but fuck you over for the past, what, eight months now? Ever since you left Zion you keep having close brushes with this guy, you’ve never gotten close enough to talk. Like your own personal bad luck charm, done in ugly neon orange. You’ve never even gotten more than a cursory description from the other survivors. He’s short, likes orange, and is a total maniac that leaves destruction in his wake. Like a complete nut job. Crazier than the cults and bloodthirsty groups that have cropped up cause those guys seem to be working towards an end, not just wandering aimlessly and fucking things up. You’ve titled him as The Guy in your head, for lack of any other monickers and he’s shown up with enough frequency to keep that title. 

roachreader stalker au

Gary’s never actually sat down next to you, but he’s sure you wouldn’t mind. You spare polite smiles for nearly everyone on your walks anyways, it what charms him to you. You retreat to the backs of rooms, quiet, unassuming and always, always polite. You’d understand Gary, he thinks to himself, understand the sort of tepid existence he’s trapped in and find kinship in him too. You wouldn’t mind his silence, wouldn’t mind anything but enjoy his company the way he savors yours.

gazsoap creepy

It’s far less weird for him to do this, really. He’s not practically tearing Soap’s underwear with his teeth, for one, and since Soap is obviously getting off to him, Kyle is only owed something, isn’t he? He’s aroused because someone else is aroused. Finding sexual acts stimulating isn’t rocket science. Soap finds him sexy, and that sets off something in his lizard brain or whatever. Why should he spend his time second guessing his feelings when Soap clearly doesn’t have a brain to spare to anything other than stripping the skin off of his dick?

Uber eats stalker ghost!

He takes the job up to get out of the house more. Butchery is his calling, the song of the knife through flesh as universal as it always has, but some days the grip of it overlays too much over times when he didn’t wear gloves, or he moves too silently and smoothly around the shop. The customers shy away from him and the other helpers eye him with nervous fear in too bright eyes. He doesn’t get along with his coworkers, ushers them back into the shop when he takes his smoke break.

So, food delivery. It gets him out of the shop, feet to pavement, burns away enough energy that he keeps his head in the here, the now, so he can keep his eyes away from planning exfils and counting to-be casualties.

[waitingforwinterwinds]

A Clash of Kings - 18 SANSA II (pages 254-262)

Sansa risks a potential trap for potential freedom, and has an uncomfortable chat with a drunken Sandor on her return trip.

-

The angry purple bruise Ser Meryn had given her had faded to an ugly yellow, but still hurt. His fist had been mailed when he hit her. It was her own fault. She must learn to hide her emotions better so as not to anger Joffrey. When she heard that the Imp had sent Lord Slynt to the Wall, she had forgotten herself and said, "I hope the Others get him." The king had not been pleased.

The people who think Sansa was having a jolly old time in KL after her father's beheading confuse me. How can you read the text and not hurt for her? How can you read it and not understand she's a victim of long term abuse she can't escape, but she's trying, she is doing her best and holding on to hope and she is so filled with anger that sometimes it slips out because no one can be as perfect as she needs to be because there is no perfect enough for abusers like Joffrey. Her survival might not look as "girlboss" as some of the other female characters in this series, but my gosh Sansa is doing amazing and deserved so much better.

If only she had someone to tell her what to do. She missed Septa Mordane, and even more Jeyne Poole, her truest friend. The septa had lost her head with the rest, for the crime of serving House Stark. Sansa did not know what had happened to Jeyne, who had disappeared from her rooms afterward, never to be mentioned again. She tried not to think of them too often, yet sometimes the memories came unbidden, and then it was hard to hold back the tears. Once in a while, Sansa even missed her sister. By now Arya was safe back in Winterfell, dancing and sewing, playing with Bran and baby Rickon, even riding through the winter town if she liked.

I wonder if it would be better or worse for her to know, the fact that she's deliberately not thinking of them says worse. I wonder if part of her suspects Jeyne is not okay, or that Arya hasn't really made it back to Winterfell, if she's convincing herself that Arya's fine because it means one less horror to contend with in her darker headspace moments.

If it is some trap, better that I die than let them hurt me more, she told herself. She hid the blade under her cloak.

Desperate courage, but courage all the same. She did such a good job sneaking all that way.

She makes the sept sound so pretty.

Lady would have liked this place, she thought. ... And what will they do to me? Sansa found herself thinking of Lady again. She could smell out falsehood, she could, but she was dead, father had killed her, on account of Arya.

Sad though it is, I do like that Sansa isn't just forgetting about Lady, that even know the bond and the wolf still mean something to her. Still being angry at Arya because it's easier than being afraid for her, I see. But babe, Arya might have been in the wrong place, but it was Joffrey who chose to escalate, and Cersei who chose to demand a death, come on Sansa, you're too far past knowing what they are to pin all the blame on Arya. (Times you get to say "Yay, team effort" but the outcome was literally The Worst.)

"Think I'm so drunk I'd believe that?" He let go his grip on her arm, swaying slightly as he stood, stripes of light and darkness falling across his terrible burned face. "You look almost a woman... face, teats, and you're taller too, almost... ah, you're still a stupid little bird aren't you? -"

Bad dog *smacks Sandor round the head with a steel chair*

"Fuck your ser, Boros. You're the knight, not me. I'm the king's dog, remember?"

"Fuck" = 🥛

"- The three dogs on our banner are the three that died, in the yellow autumn grass. -"

Ohhh, Clegane sigil lore

"Florian and Jonquil? A fool and his cunt. Spare me. But one day I'll have a song from you, whether you will it or no."

"Cunt" = 🥛 *smacks Sandor with the steel chair again*

[pumpkinpatch-daydreams]

Heist hijinks: he said-she said.

[Start at the beginning]

Length: 6,793

Reading time: 28 minutes

Content warnings: deception, gaslighting, domestic abuse, pinning blame.

Note: no sexual themes or content.

Evelyn reveled in the silence that followed. She could launch them out into space, but that felt too risky. She wasn’t a bad person, she didn’t want to hurt anyone, she just wanted them to learn their lesson and finally stop bothering her with petty nonsense. Planning on letting them bake in their fear for an hour or two, she took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then turned to head back to her room.

There was a figure taking up most of the doorway. Evelyn jumped and squealed like she had just seen a ghost, her face fell when she recognized it was Nullian, Ella’s little pity friend and trained lap dog. Standing up straight she was the perfect height to head butt him in the nose, the only thing stopping her from doing so was the fear this crazy hobo might develop a mean streak. “God! We need to put a bell on you!”

“So I’ve been told.” He gave her an awkward smile like he was the one caught in the middle of something.

“What do you want?” She barked.

“I heard screaming all down the hallway. What’s going on?”

“Nothing, it was just my sister being over dramatic. Don’t worry about it.”

The smile didn’t weaver, but his eyes narrowed and scanned the room. “Where is she then?”

“God don’t look at me like that, it’s creepy.”

He stepped into the room and started making his way over. “I heard Ella screaming, where is she?”

“I don’t know, she stormed off just before you walked in.” She started backing up. This guy was bad news from day one and she knew it.

“Why was she screaming?”

“She’s always screaming and crying for no reason.” She tried to stay firm but she felt a quiver threatening to come out. She felt her backside press against the hard corner of the control panel counter behind her.

“Is that right? I don’t think it is.” A rough edge came into his voice “So why don’t you tell me what was making her scream and where she is now?”

He was inches from her now, she started leaning back to try to put any distance between them. “I don’t know! She’s not here! I don’t know! She just starts freaking out sometimes! It’s not my fault I didn’t do anything.” She was all but laying back on the counter now.

“Lier! I know you were doing something to her again!” He slammed his hands down on the table either side of her.

There was a crunch under the heel of his palm. The screens all blinked red and showed a warning symbol on their screens. Evelin almost had the wind sucked out of her as all the pod doors slammed shut and began air compression in unison. Tammy’s voice calm and collected as ever came on over the speakers “Emergency pod dump sector C activated. Stay clear.”

Nullian looked up at the announcement dumbfounded, then down at the now shattered cover and the still compressed button. “…Oops.”

Evelyn shoved him and he let the force knock him back a few paces. “No! No no no! Oh god no!” She frantically scanned over all the buttons, switches, levers, and screens searching desperately for a hint, a clue, on how to cancel the action. “Make it stop! Make it stop!”

“Oh, uh, how?”

“I don’t know! Do something!”

Her panic was contagious. “I don’t know either! Uh, uh. We should get Oron or Braxten, they can fix this!” At that moment they heard the unmistakable sound of the pods uncoupling from the ship and saw them speed past the windows, ejecting out in all directions. He watched them go with wide unblinking eyes. “It’ll be fine right? Those pods are old and half of them are broken. They won’t be missed, right?”

“You idiot!” Tears started streaming down Evelyn’s face “Ella was in one of those pods! You’ve murdered her!”

“What!? Why in the world would she be in There!?”

Evelyn shoved past him into the hallway crying. He watched her go, then watched the pods shrink until they were nothing more than a dot merging with a galaxy of stars. He stood stock still but his mind was racing. Was Evelyn telling the truth or was she just messing with his feelings again? She must be, right? Why would they be in a pod otherwise? Someone with knowledge of how all this space stuff works would know how to get those pods back, right? They had to, right? Did his carelessness really just kill one of his only friends? She wasn’t really in that pod Evelin was just trying to get a rise out of him… right?

The screens returned to normal, the warning sign blinking back out of existence, Tammy’s voice came over the speaker once more “Emergency pod dump complete. Thank you for aiding in the safety of our ship. Stay safe!”

Evelyn returned with Ignatius of all people in tow. He looked confused and concerned in equal measure as he was pulled into the room, his gaggle of friends lumbering in behind like ducklings after their mother. Jed broke away from the group to investigate the dashboard.

Her face was wet with tears and snot streaking down her cheeks and chin. “He killed her! He finally killed her!” She was wailing.

“I… I didn’t kill anyone.” Nullian stammered, his anger and confidence had melted away the second the pods ejected. He hadn’t killed anyone, right? Killing someone meant crushing their windpipe beneath your hands or slicing their flesh open and spilling out their blood. All he did was press a button.

She shot an accessory finger at him “You launched the pods!”

“I-I. I mean. I guess I did but-“

“He shoved Ella in and launched her into space!” She cried horrified and indignant.

“That’s not what-“

“I tried to stop him! I tried to save her but he was too strong!” She collapsed to the floor, her face in her hands as she melted into sobs. “He shoved me aside and launched her into space!”

“Woah woah woah.” Iggy put his hands up as if he were trying to soothe a startled horse. “Let’s all take, like, 5 steps back here. You, big guy,” he pointed at Nullian “What happened, go.”

He was getting really tired of people pointing at him, but he pushed that gripe down for now. “I heard Ella scream and-“

“He was attacking her!” Evelyn wailed.

“Came to see what happened. Didn’t see Ella anywhere but saw Evelyn. I asked her where Ella was and she was being sketchy about it so I asked firmer.”

“He attacked me for trying to protect my baby sister! Look what he did to my arm!” She raised her arm to show the bruises that had begun to form from where Candace hit her.

“I leaned against the dashboard over there and some glass broke and I guess that made all the pods… fall off?”

“Stop trying to down play what you did! Murderer! Murderer!”

Iggy wasn’t really listening to Evelyn’s interjections, he already got her side of the story on the walk up. “Okay, well, I’m not sure about all that. But what I do know is this pod bay has a distinct lack of pods. Hell that kinda defeats the purpose of a pod bay, don’t it? Our ass are grass if the big boss up in the captains chair found out we lost 6 whole pods. Looks like we are going on a pod hunt. And if we find Ella in one of those pods, well… we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” He spun around with a flourish to face his group. “Alright men! Looks like we’re going on a scavenger hunt! Jed! See if you can pick up trackers and possible trajectories of those bad boys. Birdie! Team up with Jed if any of those pods land anywhere hostile I want to know the fastest way we can get in and get out no mess no fuss. Lee! Secure us a scavenger ship big enough to fit…” he did a quick head count “6 people. Ella can sit in a lap on the way back if we find her. Champ! You’re on snack duty!” He started clapping his hands “Alright people let’s hustle! One of our own might be on one of those pods and I want to see her back here by supper time!”

His group scattered like roaches after the lights come on. Jed making a beeline to the control panel while the rest all but clamored over each other to get out of the room to their assigned tasks.

“Hey!” A young teenage girl piped up “If there’s only going to be 6 seats where am I going to be sitting? You have another thing coming if you think I’m going to sit on your or one of your goon’s laps.”

Iggy twirled on his heel to face her, then bent at the waist to be down at eye level with her. “Easy! You’ll be sitting in your room.”

She stamped her foot and held her fists at her sides stiffly. “Hey! Ella’s my friend! I’m coming too!”

“You’re also a little pipsqueak that keeps messing up my missions! You’re sitting this one out.”

“That’s not fair!”

“Okay how about this, you look to make sure Ella isn’t hiding out on the ship somewhere after all and next time someone gets jettisoned out into space you can come too. Heck if they don’t make it I’ll even let you poke the body. Deal?” He held a hand out.

She crossed her arms. “Okay fine!” She barked as she sulked out of the room, ignoring his hand.

Working like a well oiled machine, It took the group only 20 minutes to get ready to head out. Amy-lee managed to set up a medium sized scavenger ship without anyone raising a brow. It wasn’t particularly hard, there were few people that gave the bays any thought when they were this far off planet side. As long as they didn’t kick up too much of a fuss and were quick they could get the pods back before Oron or Lulian noticed anything amiss.

Chance was able to scrape together about two days worth of rations, mostly taking on the form of peanut butter bars. While he searched he noticed their supplies were running slim. He couldn’t help but wonder how long it would be before they’d have to take on some drastic job to make ends meet again. There were so many mouths they had to feed now, he had noticed that Oron had become more reclusive. He likely had another half baked get rich quick scheme cooking up. He worried what kind of miracle Oron expected the crew to pull off next. He shook his head clear as he shoved the bag of Peanut butter bars into one of the cargo compartments. Now was not the time to worry about all that, Iggy put him on a task and he needed to focus.

Birdie presented Iggy with her notepad. She had a hand drawn map of the surrounding solar system with a tiny doodle of the ship in the center. There were 6 dotted lines going off in all directions with notes and arrows to label different things to keep in mind.

Iggy looked over the doodles. He’d had enough experience deciphering her maps that most would consider him an expert Birdie decoder at this point. “So we’re on the same page.” He lifted a hand to keep count on his fingers. “Pod one’s boosters shat the bed immediately and now it’s fallen into orbit around the B.S. Lucky. Pod two was going out into deep space until it went out of range, Pod three and six hit a meteor when their signals gave out, so those are both probably wrecked, four managed to shoot down erratically before suddenly changing direction and making a beeline to the Nio system, and five managed to get sucked into a planet’s gravity and it’s now sending out a crash report.” when he ran out of fingers he raised the pad a little to gesture the extra number.

“Yup. That about covers it.”

He tucked the notebook into the pocket of her plaid shirt. “Oh we’re so boned.”

Birdie’s mouth trembled. “Do you think Ella really was on one of those pods?”

“I hope not.” He brushed away the thought before it could take root and throw him off his game. “Anyway we’re grabbing the one in orbit first, then checking out the signal coming from planet side.” The thought that there was only a 1 out of three chance that Ella was still alive on one of those pods tried to claw its way into his conscious mind and choke him up. He gave the emotion floating up a mental waffle stomp and went back to the task at hand. “Alright! Let’s head out! We don’t have time to be burning daylight! Nullian you’re coming too.”

Nullian blinked. Up to this point he had leaned against the wall and got lost in his own thoughts as he stared off into the universe beyond the glass dome of the floor. “Wait what? I am? Don’t you think I did this?”

Iggy shrugged. “What better person to point the way then the perpetrator?”

Without waiting for a response, Iggy stood tall as he strode to the other bay with Nullian, Birdie, and Jed keeping pace behind him. Nullian hesitated briefly, weighing what he should do before slinking after the group. Jed kept making an awkward hop step every few paces to try and keep up with his longer legged cohorts. He silently grumbled to himself about how it was unfair for everyone else he knew being so freakishly tall every time he hopped until he took his place in the pilot’s seat. “Alright let’s leave smashing bodies for the bedroom and buckle in everyone.” He announced.

Birdie scrunched her nose “Don’t be gross.”

“Ay,” Amy-Lee grinned “if I want to smash on a potentially dangerous under cover retrieval mission there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

Iggy raised a brow. “Who are you proposing to smash in this scenario? Nullian?”

Nullian was sliding down into a seat at the back of the craft during this exchange. When he heard his name he felt his face get hot and he attempted to hide inside his own shirt.

“Yeah? What if I am?” Amy-Lee crossed her arms in mock offense “You don’t know my life.”

“No thank you…” Nullian all but squeaked from his where he hid inside his own clothing.

“Ooo, shot down. Better luck next time.” Iggy laughed as he sat down and buckled up. “Now sit down and buckle up before I skee ball your ass off his thing.”

“Like you’d have the guts to try.” She retorted as she buckled into the seat.

“Alright. Everyone buckled in?”

There was a chorus of “yes”s from around the craft.

“Good!” He clapped his hands “Okay everyone welcome to the flight, there will be in-fight snacks courtesy of whatever Chance dug up in the kitchen. in case of emergency put your head between your knees and kiss your ass goodbye because there are no emergency exits. Today’s mission is to retrieve as much of the skimmer pods as we can and, maybe, a rescue mission.” He made a point to make obvious eye contact with Nullian, only his gaze was transfixed on his own feet as his hands gripped the straps of his harnesses like a child gripping a backpack. “A couple of these things landed planet side so remember, work together, stick together. I’m looking at you Jed, I know you’re an excitable space boy and all that but that doesn’t mean you can go getting distracted and wandering off somewhere.”

“Hey! I got lost at a station ONE TIME.” Jed protested.

“And you’ll never get lost again under my watch.” Iggy retorted. “Everyone got it? Good. Let’s lift off!” He sat down and buckled in next to Nullian.

“It’s only liftoff when we’re planet side. In space it’s takeoff.”

“We can call it turbo shit for all I care, let’s go!”

Jed shook his head, but he was smiling. He hit the eject button and craft uncoupled from the massive ship with loud ‘cha-dunks’ that vibrated through the craft as it began floating off into space. The porthole they were connected to moments before quickly whizzed away, then back around again, as the main ship spun like a top without them. He tried to ignore the burn marks on the side of the B.S. Lucky’s otherwise white exterior where he got a little trigger happy with the throttle on previous flights. The craft floated away a mile or two before kicking off the engine. Everyone pressed back into their seats as they took off.

The retrieval of the first pod was easy. The craft had a set of claws on the front for situations like this. It was only a matter of getting a good grip and gently guiding it to the ship bay close enough for the magnets to take over the rest in the zero gravity environment. they could see through the windows that, outside of whatever was happening with its engines, the pod was pressurized and intact. However there was a twinge of worry in Iggy’s chest when he saw it was empty. When the pod connected with the B.S. Lucky fully Iggy clapped and congratulated Jed on a job well done briefly before they moved onto the next task. Jed had no idea if Iggy didn’t realize that the act of pod retrieval wasn’t particularly difficult, just a little fiddly, or if he just wanted to be encouraging, but either way he appreciated the recognition for his efforts.

As soon as the pod was secured they took off to the nearest system to check out the one with the distress signal. It was a Terrestrial planet, small, brown, and rocky orbiting a dwarf star. though nowhere near the habitable zone around its star. Hopefully the pod was mostly in one piece or this was going to get tricky.

“So.” Iggy said to Nullian “got an idea which pod she’s in?”

Nullian never moved his gaze from the floor. “No. I didn’t even see her. I just heard a scream and Evelyn was acting weird so I figured something was up. I-I didn’t mean to launch the pods. It kinda just happened.”

“It’s not like there’s a maze in there. You didn’t think to check the pods before going around hitting buttons?”

“No… I didn’t This this would happen.” He didn’t like they kept asking questions like they were trying to trip him up in a web of lies, but he couldn’t help but start to doubt himself, second guess if how he remembered it really happened the way he thought it did. Things seemed to be different from what he remembered more and more often since he joined the crew. He feared his years in captivity may have busted his mind in ways he didn’t anticipate.

“Yeah I wouldn’t plan on a full ejection either. I know the B.S. Lucky is older than everyone here combined and held together with duct tape and thoughts and prayers but they really need a like, “hey are you sure?” Pop-up for these sort of things.”

Nullian nodded solemnly.

“Hey, chin up. We aren’t making funeral arrangements yet. It’s not over until we find her.”

“Or see her splashed across an astroid somewhere.” Amy-Lee piped up.

“Hey! None of that doom shit! Leave that back at the ship we are in a mission here!” Iggy barked.

She rolled her eyes and the crew fell silent once more, everyone’s eyes focused on the brown planet in the distance slowly growing larger.

As everyone’s minds started to wander away at what the destroyed pods meant for the ship as a whole, the possibility of a little girl may very well have suffered a horrible death in one of the busted pods, the likelihood they may find a dead body. As things started to get too deep in their individual mind scapes a sneeze broke the silence.

“Bless you.” Iggy said automatically as he looked around. He couldn’t see who sneezed. “Wait. Who was that?”

Everyone looked at each other, no one fessing up to the sneeze.

“Ah heck, crafts haunted.” Birdie joked.

“You don’t think that was something decompressing, do you?” Chance asked with a grimace of worry.

“Hang on let me check. Everyone sit tight.” Iggy unbuckled himself from the chair, then righted himself with the ships current state of gravity. Due to the direction of the jets currently pointing and the acceleration, “gravity” at the moment made what was previously the back wall into the new floor. The force wasn’t as strong as his home world’s, or even the gravity created by the B.S. Lucky’s centrifuge, but it was enough to be inconvenient at a time like this. It created a feeling of trying to swim in heavy clothing, possible but difficult to float up away from the new floor. He used the seats of his crew members as anchor points to navigate around.

“Watch out, it looks like Iggy might smash on the mission after all.” Amy-Lee jeered playfully.

They joke got a couple of chuckles from Chance and Jed, but not much more.

Iggy ignored her as he checked the storage compartments situated around the outer rim of the cabin. He popped one open and a series of Peanut butter bars slowly fell out towards the back wall like waterlogged leaves sinking to the bottom of a pond. The second one was full of thick plastic bags of water. He closed that one before they could slosh out and become a pain to put back later.

He had to clamored over Chance’s chest to get to the third compartment, apologizing the whole way despite Chance not showing any indication that he minded at all. He popped the compartment open to see Audrey curled up inside, due to poor planning she was currently squished inside the small space having to do a crumpled head stand to stay in he compartment. She tumbled screaming out onto Chance’s chest, Chance screamed from the startling commotion and suddenly having a child on his chest, Iggy screamed in frustration at finding his shitty little cousin on the ship he explicitly told her she wasn’t allowed on, Birdie screamed from startle at all the sudden noise, and Nullian clamped his hands over his ears as he watched on wide eyed.

Jed roared over the commotion “Who the fuck is dying and why!?”

“Audrey‘s about to in a second!” Iggy yelled back.

“Stop screaming and get off me! Your elbow is in my bladder!” Chance protested, smushing his hand into Audrey’s face to try and gently push her off. He didn’t dare raise a fist to the girl or try to shove her off. He was less gentle with Iggy as he grasped his head like a basketball and shoved him off over the side of the seat.

The cousins both tumbled slowly down to the back of the ship as they continued to squabble.

“What are you doing here!?” Iggy demanded.

“Helping look for my friend, duh.”

“You were helping by staying back at the Lucky!”

“That was a horse apples busy baby work job and you know it!”

“Well what do you expect to get done coming along besides be a pain in my butt and getting in the way!?”

Her cheeks puffed like she was underwater and about to run out of air.

“Well!?”

“I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing while my friend is floating out there somewhere lost and scared!”

“So you decided to be a nuisance and compromise my stuff instead!?”

“Hey!” Jed called from up front “Quitcha bull and sit down before we get planet side! I’m not turning around now so it is what it is.”

“Pick a lap, buttercup.” Iggy stated as he climbed back into his own seat.

She looked around at her options. Chance was already annoyed at her, Jed was driving, Nullian creeped her out, she was certain Amy-Lee would use the opportunity to put gum into her hair, and there wasn’t a chance in hell she was going to snuggle up to her jackbutt cousin. She decided her best bet was Birdie and climbed over.

“Oh hello. I guess we’re seat buddies now.” Birdie smiled down at her as she unbuckled herself and refashioned the straps around the both of them.

Amy-Lee looked over the back of her seat, straining as hard as she could to see them. “congratulations on being promoted to airbag.”

“Be nice.” Birdie scoffed.

“Why? She’s a little trouble maker.”

“And? So are you.”

“When I’m causing trouble it’s endearing. Besides I’m normally doing something productive, not crashing a search party.”

“How is doodling big “A”s on walls productive?” Audrey accused.

“It’s the anarchy symbol and it’s a silent rallying cry to the little man to band together to stand up against our oppressors! It inspires people to enact change! I’m making a difference!”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

“I sleep great, thanks.” She turned around and slid back down into her seat.

Things were quiet again as they pulled near the planet. Soon it engulfed their field of vision. Up close they could see how stony it was, with great mountains and canyons breaking up its landscape.

“We’re going in.” Jed alerted “there’s no atmosphere so it should be a smooth landing, but brace yourselves just in case. I don’t want to see anyone getting whiplash because they were leaned forward ogling some rocks when we hit a random gas pocket.”

Nullian did as he was told, leaning back into the seat, head upright, and double checked the straps were secured. It felt like every time he got into one of these smaller ships he learns something new he should be worried about. He didn’t feel particularly secured, so he put his legs up and pressed his feet against the back of Chance’s chair, pressing himself further into the seat. He had no idea if this actually made him any more safe but it made him feel better.

The sense of gravity shifted again as they were pulled into the planet orbit, then through it. Stomachs raised into throats but the ship glided down to a few miles above the surface and began cruising along, occasionally lazily weaving around mountains. Jed turned on a Radar, a little blue disk with a rotating line akin to a submarine sonar came to life and started scanning. There was nothing on it for some time before the dot pinpointing the skimmer pod’s signal appeared at the very edge. As soon as it came on Jed changed course to head for it.

Through the windows they could see the crash site. The pod had touchdown and skidded several miles before coming to a stop, leaving a long streak of gouged stone and parts in its wake. The fact there was enough of a pod left to send a signal at all was a miracle. The bulk of the crash sat half buried under dust and dirt of the planet’s crust. What could be seen of it was battered and dented like it was dragged down the highway behind a truck for an hour.

Nullian looked over the crash. “If Ella’s in there, do you think she could be okay?” He asked the crew.

“Nah.” Jed blurted “the second that thing touched down it would have popped open and lost compression like a shot soda can.”

Birdie grimaced at the bluntness “well, the skimmer pods have live cargo compartments, don’t they? They have their own line of oxygen. If she climed in there before the crash there’s a chance she made it.”

Iggy absently pet his non existent beard as he thought. “There’s no way to physically check without risking her life out here if she’s in there at all. Jed, do you think you could connect a line or a make a seal with the pod?”

“Are you shittin-“

“Hey! There’s a baby here!” Iggy warned

“I’m not a baby I know swear words!” Audrey protested.

“Are you kidding me!?” Jed continued “that thing is toast! I’m shocked it still has power! Even if it wasn’t do you know how hard it is to get a seal when a lip is covered in a light layer of dust? Never mind a metric tone of dirt and rocks!”

Iggy grimaced “alright, alright. Can you at least like, pick it up and tow it back to the lucky’s bay?”

“I can try. This is going to be the shi- shootiest game of claw ever.”

He punched in a command and a set of mechanical claws descended from the bottom of the craft. The screen was taken up by a camera feed showing what the claws were doing.

Slowly manoeuvring the ship closer, he managed to hook one of the claws under the half buried pod and clamp it down to secure it. However he stopped the clamp a second too late and everyone saw the pod buckle slightly under it.

“Eek.” Birdie squeaked in fear as she saw the indent of the claw.

“It’s fine, it’s fine, I got it.” He reassured, hoping that on the slim chance that little girl was still alive in there that he didn’t just dig her grave.

He gently lifted the craft, a large pile of sand, rocks, and debris falling silently from it to the ground below as he did so. There was silent thanks the pods were as small and light weight as they were or else they would need a much bigger craft to pull this off. He managed to secure the pod, but before he left he opened the hatch below and plopped a tracker that was safely nestled in a glob of sticky goo down where the pod once was so they could find this location again if they had to retrieve the other parts.

Things were silent as they towed the pod back to the B.S. Lucky. When they grew close they slowly drifted in the massive ships orbit as a realization hit all of them at once; how would they get permission to drop the pod off without alerting Oron?

“So… what are the chances we call and someone who won’t ask questions picks up?” Iggy asked.

“Er, pretty high I think actually. When I was getting food Oron was in his room.” Chance offered.

“What about Lulian?” Birdie asked.

“Just call them and if we get into trouble, screw them. What are they going to do? Drown us like a bag of puppies?” Amy-Lee offered.

“They could sell us at the next station to cover the cost of the pods…” Nullian stated quietly.

“They… wouldn’t do that… right?” Birdie laughed nervously.

“I don’t see why not.”

“Wasn’t there something about leaving the doomer attitude at the Lucky?” Amy-lee reminded.

“If they decide to get rid of us somehow, we’ll figure something out together. Jed, call them.” Iggy settled.

Jed took a deep breath, and hit the button to open the com lines. It took a few moments before it was answered and a video feed was put up on camera. It took a longer than it should have for everyone to recognize what they were seeing, a plump man with a bushy well groomed beard laying across the captain's chair with the mic resting on his stomach as he curled it’s wire around his finger like a teenage girl on the phone in an old rom com. “Hello! B.S. Lucky, Calric here standing in for Captain Oron, who do I have a pleasure of speaking to this fine day?”

It seemed he couldn’t find the screen with the video feed, or didn’t care to. “Oh, uh, hello Mr. Locke. It’s Jed.”

“Jed? Are you outside the ship? Did you get cramped up inside and go on a space walk?”

Iggy leaned his head over into the walkway to be seen. “There was an emergency, there might have been an accidental jettison in some pods were sent out that may or may not have had someone inside them. We just brought one back, can you open one of the decompression bays and let us put the pod in?”

“That’s so scary! Sure, I don’t know about all that but I’ll put Pax on it asap and send my husband down to check up on any wayward passengers.”

“Thank you so much Mr. Locke I owe you one.”

“No problem! I’m going to go do that now, bu-bye!” He pressed a button on the captains dash. A coffee machine spluttered to life in the background. They watched him get up from the chair and trot out of the room, the coms still on.

“Uh, Mr. Locke? The com line?” Jed tried, but he was already out of ear shot.

“Forget the phone, let’s keep an eye out for a port door.” Iggy suggested.

Jed nodded and everyone watched until a few moments later towards the bottom tip of the ship where the end stopped spinning, and a new light cut though the abyss as the doors opened for them.

Normally this door would be to connect ports with a much larger ship, but the craft they were in and the pod remains they were carrying were both small enough to squeeze through and deposit the wrecked skimmer. Once satisfied that the scrap was securely inside they inched their way back out and clear. Moments later the doors clamped shut and they knew the room it was in was being re-pressurized. Hopefully, if Ella was in there, she would be tended moments later by Dr. Locke and would be fine.

They watched for only a moment, letting it sink in that that pod was their best bet to getting Ella back alive and even that was slim, before Iggy spoke up. “Alright! Off to the next one! Pod four.” He pointed in the direction he best guessed the pod went in with its weird flight pattern “to the Nio system we go!”

“Shouldn’t we drop off Audrey?” Birdie asked.

“It would take too much time to dock and pressurise, it’s not worth it.”

With that they were off again, heading off to the system. It was quite a ways off the beaten path, but the other pods were either flying off with much too much of a head start to even hope to track down or likely won’t have enough left to scoop up without skimming through astroids with a net like they’re trying to clean a swimming pool. When they drew close they saw the Nio was a blue giant system. Audrey’s face was pressed against the window like a kid looking upon the majesty of a candy shop. She loved the giant stars, blue giants were her second favorite. She loved how they glittered like diamonds in the sky. Her love for the blue stars were surpassed only by red supergiants, the potential for the elderly stars threatening to supernova at any moment excited her, but the blue giants were still very pretty to look at as far as star rankings go. Even better than brown dwarfs considering their luminosity.

As they drew closer she spotted one planet orbiting the star in the habitable zone was a strangely shape blue and green planet. It was always a grab bag if planets produced life, normally what was needed was the planet to be in the habitable zone around any given star, and to have a life seed that was hearty enough to survive the harsh conditions of the first few millennia to take root in evolving on said planet. Often times conditions were rather similar for a planet to produce life though some were more harsh than others.

She pointed it out “guys look! A seeded planet! Let’s check it out!”

“Hang on hang on, we have to find the pod first.” Jed shot her down.

“Well if Ella is on the pod then if it landed there she might be alive if it has a good atmosphere.”

“Do you know how hard it is to land on a planet with atmosphere? Even if she did land there she would have crashed.”

“Yeah but if she survived the crash she wouldn’t have to worry so much about decompression.”

“Assuming the atmosphere isn’t toxic. Just admit you want to play space explorer on a seeded, likely dangerous, planet.”

Despite the argument the prospect gave Iggy hope. “We’re going to be looking over all the planets anyway, so we aren’t going out of our way here, so why not start with that one, work our way in towards the star, then hit the others up on the way back?”

“Fiiine.” Jed groaned and Audrey did a celebratory wiggle in her seat that startled Birdie.

They headed down to the planet, their stomachs collectively dropping as they drew near and the gravity began to pull them in. It wasn’t long until Tammy’s voice came over a speaker in the cabin “atmosphere detected. Wings deployed.”

The ship felt like it jumped as the wings unfolded from below and caught air. The steering stick Jed had been using up to this point had arms extend from its stem to create a wheel to keep the aircraft level. Screens lit up showing where the craft was in relation to the planets surface. Jed put in a request to test the atmosphere once they were low enough to get a good read. Tammy’s voice came over again “atmosphere sampled. 30% oxygen, 68% nitrogen, 2% carbon dioxide.”

“Oh neat! oxygen is a little high but it’s safe to breathe.” Birdie determined from the statistics alone.

“We can go exploring!” Audrey declared.

“We’re not exploring, we gotta look for the pod.” Iggy corrected.

“We can do both.”

“Hey, how strong is that scanner?” Birdie inquired.

“Uhhhhh….” Jed looked over the screens “not sure on this model. Why?”

“If it’s strong enough, maybe you can have it scan for titanium deposits. Unless there’s a bunch of titanium sitting around on this planet’s surface we can use that to find the pod.”

Jed grinned “Birdie you’re a genius. Hell, if it works well we might be able to do that to get the two out of the astroid belt.” He dipped closer to the planet, just over the trees. He kept an eye at the surrounding terrain levels as he turned on the scanner. There wasn’t anything right away, but that might’ve meant there wasn’t a lot of metal laying around this world. He wanted to make one pass over the surface before declaring the scanner wasn’t strong enough or the pod simply wasn’t there.

They were almost done with a full lap when a blip appeared on the screen. It was a circular dot that glowed bright blue on the black screen. “We got something. Since it’s breathable do you want to check it out on foot?”

“Mmm…” Iggy pondered “yeah, but just Nullian and I, we don’t need everyone out there. Especially Audrey.”

“What!? Why not!?” Audrey protested.

“Because you’ll get distracted by some alien thing and go running off, never to be seen again!”

“No I won’t! I’ll stick right to your side like glue! Promise!”

“No, we’re just stepping out long enough to check things out, hook up a couple of cables to tow it out, and climbing right back. Nothing interesting.”

She crossed her arms and pouted.

As they grew close they saw a large ripped hole in the canopy like someone shot a cannon through a sheet close to where the titanium deposit was. They used that as their entry point. Large thick leaves slapped against the hull of the craft as they were forcefully shoved out of the way. All at once the pod came into view. Tattered parachutes trailed behind it along the ground and tangled up in the trees. The pod itself looked to be mostly in one piece, it lay on the ground belly up like a dead frog with all its windows smashed out. The surrounding the area glittered with crushed glass.

Iggy turned to Nullian “I hope you got thick shoes.”

——————————————————————-

Path Trajectory:

[Return to follow pod]

[continue to end]

[cenationarmyleader]

Oooh I didn't want to come back on here but I have to rant about NXT Battleground. I have to do a pros and cons about this.

Pros:

The NXT Women's Championship match. Roxanne retaining was a smart move. Even tho I think Jordynne winning would gave it that OMG moment that this PLE needed. It had the right ending that Tatum and Ash interfered which leads up to Tatum being the one to challenge Jordynne and Jordynne could blame Ash for sticking her nose in her business. Solid match. Solid result.

The Triple Threat match. Oba looked and booked as the monster he is. Tossing Wes like a rag dog and Gallius still failed even when they tried. Then Joe ate the pin which protects Wes so we might get our David vs Goliath match between Wes and Oba. Solid match and good results.

Cons:

The Tag Team Championship match. The weakest match on the card. It felt like the OC barely kept up with Nathan and Axiom. And some tag spots was a little off? Wasn't a good cup of tea. Meh match.

The ladder match. Now the ladder match was great. The women division showed they were the stars tonight. I have a problem with the result. Kelani is ok but she was bad choice to win it. Kelani just to me not championship material yet! They had 5 other stronger characteristic women that felt more than ready to carry that title. But who is Kelani? She won over Mia, Sol, Fallon, Lash and Jaida. Great match bad result.

NXT Underground. Hahahaha! Lola beats Shayna? You mean to tell me that Shayna Baszler, the UFC MMA fighter legend that made her name in the Apex Arena LOST to someone who shakes her ass? Then on top of that, Shayna wasn't even KO'ed! This whole thing is so laughable. Then she lost right before her title match at Clash at the Castle. What a joke.

The NXT Championship match. I expected some kind of shocker right here. Honestly, Ethan should had won just for that OMF moment. But no. Then I expected Oro to attack Ethan during the match to cost him his first match. He attacked him last week and yesterday but nowhere to be found? So why they book Ethan to lose CLEANLY? That was a bad move. Trick winning is no problem but his first title match should had been tainted and they have a reason to run it back at Heatwave.

Overall, while they build this up with Jordynne and Ethan, I expected more shock moments but it just didn't hit the mark. This wasn't a Shawn Michaels booking. I felt like Shawn was tired and let someone else booked this because so far this was the weakest PLE they produced in NXT so far.

[80s4life]

Johnny Lawrence With An Egocentric Reader Headcanon

Word Count: 666 (oh shit, we’re summoning a devil)

Status: Requested!

Ask: im sorry that youre going through hard times ;( idk if its easier for you to write headcanons or drabbles but do what makes you feel comfortable. also, didnt ask you if you write for johnny lawrence, but if thats not the im sorry to bother! i wanted to ask you some hc or drabble, its same for me, of johnny x egocentric reader? sorry if there are any grammar mistakes, english is not my native language

@: a cute bilingual anon! (so talented by the way, I have trouble speaking any other language)

Fandom: Karate Kid Series - Cobra Kai

Relationship: Johnny Lawrence x Egocentric!Reader

Warnings: strong language, fluff

Key: All of Johnny’s words are bolded, while Reader’s is left in italics!

Masterlist Karate Kid Masterlist Cobra Kai Masterlist

{gifs are not mine, credits go to @kyrixxx​ & @filmgifs​ & @ewan-mcgregor​}

So hot, I’m frothing at the mouth

Young Johnny Lawrence:

You met at school, well, he saw you at school, you were too busy fighting the girls and their normal antics.

You were playing soccer with others while Johnny was too busy trying to catch the eyes of various other females as he stripped his shirt.

He tried to find every chance to get to you, and it wasn’t until he purposely slammed right into you with the claim of not seeing you while going to catch a football, did he finally accomplish his goal.

Knocking you to the ground, you easily got pissed and to his dismay, called him out on his bullshit:

“You did that on purpose, you Ass!”

“I didn’t do anything! It was a simple mistake, here let me help you up?”

“No, I got it myself, and stay the hell out of my way!”

From that day on, he was hooked. He didn’t know if it was your dominance and strength or your cutting edge demeanor; either way, he wanted you. BAD.

It was his duty to keep up on this game of cat and mouse, and each time, the blame was pinned on him (rightfully so) and turned away.

“Watch where you’re going!”

“Go torture someone else who’s more into you.”

“Leave me alone!”

It didn’t seem to matter what you did, he would always come back with these huge puppy dog eyes and a grin that could cut glass.

Maybe that’s what made you start to give into his charms?

When you finally allow him into your life, take you on dates and such, he often tries to pester you just to get you fired up. He thinks it’s hot, you think it’s utterly annoying and misleading.

“You’re trying too hard, Lawrence.”

“You’re pushing on the line of clingy.”

“Can I take a breather?”

Either way, you guys soon find a dynamic. Although you may seem self-centered and cruel to most, Johnny knows it’s just a perk that comes with the territory.

Whether this behavior was learned at home or by the way the world works, Johnny loves it and basically basks in it. It makes you tough, and like Sensei Kreese taught him, that’s what you need to survive; a skill Johnny has yet to master.

Older Johnny Lawrence:

As Johnny had aged, he learned the skill of having to fend for one’s self before tending to anyone else. This asset had instantly peaked his interest upon meeting you.

You, getting the job rather easily, tended to the children in the Cobra Kai dojo when class was in session, helping to guide and help instruct every motion the senseis provided.

Like younger Johnny, older version of him also found this very endearing and headstrong, allowing him to feel safe and comfortable around you, knowing you could handle yourself in most situations.

Yes, being egocentric is very selfish or self-regarding, but it works in his world. In a world where John Kreese and Terry Silver reside in, hell, even Daniel Larusso.

However, catch Johnny on a bad day, and that’s his favorite topic to target:

“You always so damn full of yourself?”

“Only when it means warding off self-centered pricks like you. You have stereotypes written all over your forehead!”

“You’re one to talk!”

“Like you have much to say in defense?”

In light of the topic, you’re both egocentric but don’t like to admit it (much to our dismay)

Besides your personalities constantly crashing, they also mesh well, having similar attributes that make you work.

ESPECIALLY when it comes to going head-to-head with Kreese and Silver. 

Johnny loves to step back and watch you fire on them, knowing that in the end, you’re seeking comfort for yourself of all things. You don’t let them corrupt you, which keeps making them come back, but Johnny knows where you stand. 

You’re loyal, and he couldn’t ask for anything better than a Bad Bitch like you.

[exocynraku]

mashing some old aus together  warrior cats au were firepaw is yellowfangs (biological) son. he survives his birth alongside brokenkit. because firepaw is now in shadowclan, thunderclan’s fire alone prophecy is different; “only the tiniest claw will save our clan”. also firepaw is named burntkit in this au just to go along with yellowfangs naming of brokenkit yellowfang hands brokenkit and burntkit over to lizardstripe. brokenkit pretty much grows up like normal, but burntkit is a bit more quiet and distant. once they are older, brokenkit -> brokenpaw, training to be a warrior, and burntkit -> burntpaw who decided to ask yellowfang if he could become a med cat too, which she allowed. runningkit also became a med cat apprentice, but only because brokenpaw bullied him out of becoming a warrior.  burntpaw grows up very close to yellowfang, becoming a VERY good med cat. brokenpaw doesnt care about him thought, only striving to becoming stronger, in hopes he can become leader one day. brokenpaw grows up just like he did in the books. they both eventually gain their full names; brokenpaw -> brokentail, burntpaw -> burntbelly. the reason burntpaw got the belly suffix is because brokenpaw and him got into a very bad arguement once, where brokenpaw horribly slashed his belly (think like what scourge did to tigerstar except with less death)  brokentail kills raggedstar and becomes brokenstar. then, he kills mintkit and marigoldkit, pinning the blame on yellowfang, exiling her. burntbelly know’s this isnt true, because he saw brokenstar kill the kits. he tries to shift blame over to the real killer, but it attacked an exiled by brokenstar. burntbelly and yellowfang leave shadowclan behind, wandering over to thunderclan territory. they are greeted by a thunderclan apprentice, who intruduces himself as littlepaw. littlepaw is a small, black tom with one white paw. at first, yellowfang is very hostile to littlepaw, only because she’s afraid he’ll hurt burntbelly, whos still injured after brokenstars attack. littlepaw catches some prey for the two. then, thunderclan’s leader, bluestar catches him.  burntbelly and yellowfang are taken to thunderclan and are held prisoner with littlepaw having to take care of them both, but after thunderclan’s med cat, spottedleafs is brutally murdered, and burntbelly and yellowfang help rescue frostfur’s kits, they are both allowed to become thunderclan’s new med cats!  later on, cinderpaw is seriously injured, but because of burntbelly’s incredible healing skills, he’s able to heal her leg. cinderpaw is now able to train to be a warrior instead of a med cat because her leg only has a slight limp. after this, brokenstar and shadowclan attack the camp. brokenstar and yellowfang get into a battle, and yellowfang blinds brokenstar, who is then held prisoner. burntbelly soon finds out brokenstar is scheming with tigerclaw, so yellowfang & burntbelly kill him with deathberries.

(oh also at some point littlepaw became littlefoot) sometime after that, tigerclaw, thunderclan’s mean deputy tries to kill bluestar, but littlefoot rescues her. tigerclaw is exiled from thunderclan, with littlefoot becoming the next deputy. bluestar is thrown into a horrid mental state because of tigerclaw’s attack, but burntbelly and yellowfang try their best to help her. not long after, brightpaw and swiftpaw, being upset that they havent been made warriors, go out to prove themselves by killing a dog that’s been terrorizing thunderclan. turns out there are more than one dog, and both apprentices are hurt, but are saved by longtail, one of thunderclan’s warriors. when they are brought back to camp, the med cats heal their wounds, but they still gain scars from the attack. one of brightpaw’s eyes was ripped out and swiftpaw had his tail and one ear entirely cut off. bluestar, still not entirely mentally stable, punishes them by renaming brightpaw to lostface and swiftpaw to dogbite. littlefoot, cloudtail and the med cats are outraged by their new names, and do not call them by bluestars names.

a while later, a horrible fire rages through thunderclan, and bramblekit gets lost. yellowfang decides to go and try to find him, but sadly, inhales too much smoke and passes away with littlefoot and burntbelly by her side. (littlefoot did find bramblekit). burntbelly is very upset but cinderleap (cinderpaw) tries her best to cheer him up. littlefoot creates a plan to catch and kill the dogs than harmed brightpaw & swiftpaw, but is stopped when tigerstar pins him down and lets the dogs get to him. bluestar pops out of nowhere and throws herself and the dog attacking littlefoot off the edge of a cliff. littlefoot, mistyfoot and stonefur pull her out of the water, but she passes away. littlefoot gains his leader name, littlestar. he chooses whitestorm as his deputy

tigerstar isn’t done yet. he gathers rouges and hostile loners from around the twolegplace and challenges littlestar to a fight, but before he can, a rouge goes against orders and kills tigerstar. they don’t want to fight the clans, only going along with tigerstar so they could kill him themselves. everyone goes home, lostface and dogbite are renamed to brightheart and swiftpride. (whitestorm and darkstripe dont die btw, whitestorm stays deputy and darkstripe becomes a rouge)

later, longtail is partially blinded by a large rabbit while hunting with swiftpride, but swiftpride is able to pull the rabbit off of him before it can fully blind him. longtail does not become a elder early. brambleclaw also does not become deputy, because that position is filled by whitestorm, he stays a warrior for his life. littlestar takes sandstorm as a mate and they have kits together with one of them, leafkit, becoming burntbelly’s apprentice. burntbelly and littlestar eventually start to see eachother as brothers, helping thunderclan thrive and grow, becoming well known in thunderclan for moons and moons.

oopsie daisy this is super long LMAOO sorry guys ❤️❤️❤️ have fun scrolling through this ❤️❤️❤️

other points:

- squilf never takes on a mate, and leafpool keeps her kits. you might be wondering ray then where do alderheart and sparkpelt come from well uh. um. i dont know actually i havent thought that far.

- silverstream never dies because burntbelly is able to save her. greystripe stays in riverclan and has many more kits with silverstream

- whitestorm becomes leader because he deserves it i love you whitestorm

- if you didnt figure it out littlestar is scourge

[wh6res]

three's a crowd | nomin

synopsis. picking favorites is impossible when you like neither of them.

warning. read at your own risk. abuse, bullying, poly relationship, yandere themes, manipulation, nonconsensual touching, noncon, degradation, smut threesome oop

disclaimer. i do not condone whatever tf i wrote in this nor does it reflect my beliefs or values or morals and such. it is all pure fiction and i also dont think jaemin or jeno would act like this in real life.

note. this was meant to be a new year's gift lmao i obviously got a lil carried away 👀 anyway a late happy new year to you all! we survived 2020, let's start living in 2021, yeah? lmao if covid lets us grr mwah!

the relationship you had with the two of them was a weird one, bordering on taboo, but it wasn't as if you willfully chose to be who they wanted you to be and it took jaemin's unwanted pining and jeno's intimidating demeanor for you to fall right into their arms.

it was a joint effort on their part, you couldn't've possibly stood a chance.

"this many?" the cashier asked. "are you sure?"

stepping back and studying the whole situation, you figured you only had your addiction to caffeine and procrastination to blame. it was a chain reaction you didn't even know will lead up to your inevitable doom.

if you hadn't been slacking off during your first semester of junior year college, you wouldn't be forced to overwork yourself trying to catch up to the looming deadlines, but to be able to 'work yourself to the bone' you need your boost of energy… and that was when you met one of them.

"uhm," you scratch the back of your head sheepishly as you eye the six glass bottles of iced coffee. sure, it looks bad and you kinda appreciate the look of concern the cashier throws your way but it was none of his business.

"yes. now could you, like, you know… hurry up? i'm in a little bit of a time crunch right now."

screw it. although you hardly snap like that with other people on a daily basis, it'll be a whole different conversation if you were under a significant amount of stress and today, unfortunately, is one of those days.

now can he just fucking stop asking questions and give you your six bottles of death drink to keep your fucking brain going so you can pass an eight-page essay tomorrow? thank you very much!

the guy snickered, the beeping sound of a barcode being read sounding a thousand times more annoying than it usually sounds as he keeps his hand busy by punching your items out.

you fail to notice how he studies you through the gaps of his lashes, finding you interesting rather than threatening as you stood before him with your messy hair and oversized hoodie.

"haven't seen you around university grounds 'till today," he tries striking another conversation with you. "you new? i'm jaemin."

this was your first mistake, you shouldn't have been so… downright rude when you met him. if you were granted the miracle of meeting him a 2nd time, you would've acted more nice, throwing yourself at his feet even to blend in with the rest of his fangirls you didn't even know about at the time. you would've done anything to make sure he never gives you a second glance, to never pique his interest.

jaemin is the pep squad captain. flying over colored blue mats and doing tumblings in the air with no ounce of fear. he was the best in his team, that much was evident when your friend dragged you into watching a pep rally practice. his landings were clean, balanced, and executed to the best he can at all times.

no wonder he was popular, his talent is outstanding and his looks are a bonus. his killer combo of a smile and wink after pulling off a tough flip is enough to send them squealing in their seats.

he spotted you that day and since then, he snuck the quickest glances at the bench during practices. recognizing you as the coffee girl he met during his convenience store shift. jaemin tries not to let his disappointment show too much when he doesn't see you, but of course, a pair of cold calculating eyes could see right through him.

"i saw that," his boyfriend said, hand darting forward to hold jaemin's gym bag for him. "you kept looking at the crowd. do you want to see her that much?"

"but she reminds me so much of you, jeno!" he retorts, pouting at the slight grumpy tone the other boy used. "i can't help it. she doesn't seem to give a fuck around me so she's quite interesting. maybe she can even be a great addition to our relationship!"

"well," jeno replies after a beat of silence, plastering a small smirk on his face before slinging an arm around jaemin's shoulder.

"convince me?"

you don't like jaemin's attention. not in the slightest. and it seems that was enough reason for the reign of terror his little fanclub has subjected you too.

it wasn't the petty elementary forms of bullying like pulling at your hair or calling you names. they pale in comparison to the other things they do to you—beating you up, messing with your homework, "accidentally" dumping their food trays on you.

and you weren't stupid.

you knew exactly who was behind it, knew how jaemin spectates the whole thing from afar so that he can swoop in at the end to play your knight in shining armor.

"oh, you poor thing. do you need help?"

the first time you accepted his "help" you ended up in a supply closet near the gym during your free period, cornered and weak as your cries for help drowns under the squeaking of shoes and the booming sounds of rubber balls hitting the floor.

if it weren't for jeno appearing out of thin air and prying the boy off of you, you would've been painted blue and red from the death grip he had on your wrist, neck, and waist.

you can still remember feeling the soreness of your scalp from when he pulled your hair too hard. remembered feeling his teeth gnawing at your lips as if he wanted to tear them off.

that time hadn't been the first time you saw jeno. you've shared a few classes with him and it strikes you how polar opposites they are with one another.

while jaemin likes to bask in his professor and classmates' recognition by confidently reciting his answers, jeno would rather keep to himself. liked sitting at the last row, near the window, so he'd be the first to go once the professor ends their lecture. while jaemin loved the attention of his fangirls, jeno preferred solitude. while jaemin is impulsive and wild, jeno liked to think things through.

it was within these reasons that you decided to do what you did. but your judgement of character has never been more wrong.

you approached jeno one day in the library, tried to make yourself appear as stoic and confident as possible. but your constant slouching and averting eyes was a dead giveaway.

you came to talk to him about what jaemin has been doing, hoping there's one person left in this entire school that isn't under the cheer captain's trance. the one reasonable person that has already saved you once and (hopefully) is willing enough to save you again. the only one that probably has a certain level of control over jaemin, if the supply closet incident is anything to go by.

but you've overestimated lee jeno.

"you should've just given jaemin what he wanted."

"but—but aren't you two lovers? isn't it bothering you?"

you try baiting him, only for an uncomfortable shiver to start crawling down your spine when he chuckled humorlessly, pushing his school materials to the side while pinning you with an unreadable stare.

how can a person make someone feel so small just by a gaze alone? it was nothing like you've felt with jaemin. this is way worse.

"the only thing that's bothering me is why you're not ours yet."

you feel cold fingers creeping their way under your shirt, going higher and higher until it brushes against your bra. and when your eyes meet, the look on his face was unmistakable—what are you going to do about it, huh?

you stood up in lightning speed, the chair you've been sitting on scraping loudly against the floor.

you've never ran out as fast as you did.

and jeno swears it'll be the last.

you tried everything in your power to ignore them for the next following weeks but it soon became useless when the two boys took it upon themselves to give you your space.

although judging by the pinpricks you feel on your back, and the constant weight of a stare you feel on your shoulders, you knew they weren't done with you yet. far from it. and for some reason, you just knew they wanted to lull you into a false sense of security first before striking again.

and while they continued to ogle at you from afar like a hawk circling its prey in a desert, you took it upon yourself to return the favor. not because you were the slightest bit interested in those creeps but maybe, just maybe, if you look hard enough you'll find a way out, a weakness.

but what you realized made your insides churn in great discomfort—although it may seem that jeno holds the reins in the relationship since his reserved nature fits the role, it's actually the other way around.

jaemin might appear too self-centered, too focused on himself to give a fuck about his surroundings but in actuality, he has quite a knack for reading people. even more so than jeno. and it was scary how he used it to his advantage, and paired up with his devoted fangirls? it was hell on earth.

you found it alarming how the two seem to magically appear wherever you are.

although you weren't in the least bit surprised. for some reason, you can't take your eyes away when jaemin's devotees flock around him (and jeno) in a circle.

it almost reminds you of a shoal of piranhas, waiting for their meal to drop into the water before ripping it to shreds with their teeth. only their "meal" isn't actual flesh but the carefully crafted words jaemin says that drive them into a sick frenzy.

one that has them doing everything in their power to satisfy him like the loyal dogs they are.

so this was how he got them to bully you?

"oh, that? don't worry! yangyang just ran into me during cheer rehearsal. no biggie. my cheek stung a little bit, though…" is what he said but really he's telling them "scruff him up a bit for me, why don't ya?"

"of course, i can't be the best all the time. haechan is just too good, maybe even better than me…" is what he said but really he's telling them "can you remind him where his place should be?"

all the while jeno did nothing to hold him back.

no matter how wrong jaemin is, how much of an asshole he is, jeno will stick by his side through and through. so as much as jaemin is a puppeteer that gets a kick for controlling people, jeno is as much at fault for looking the other way.

because in jeno's perspective, why the fuck would he do shit when he can just get off from the entertainment that comes with jaemin's sweet little mind games?

we lost :(

you had been busy sorting through paperwork for one of your professors in the faculty when your friend texted you the results of the intercollegiate cheer dance competition. a frown paints your face, heart feeling heavy at the bad news.

in all honesty, you still supported the pep squad—you just hated the captain and his boyfriend. they've been practicing non-stop for this and prior to the weeks of the competition, jeno looked a lot more tense and jaemin less smiley than usual. you swore you even saw the latter snap at one of his fangirls.

not to mention, they paid less attention to you, too, and it was the best three weeks of your life.

tension starts rising in your shoulders, fingers absentmindedly running through the edge of the papers you had been sorting until you became immersed with your thoughts.

jaemin must be in the worst mood yet.

and jeno too, probably. if anything, that guy gets triggered the most when something bad happens to jaemin or when he catches snippets of people talking shit about his oh so "perfect" boyfriend.

jeno is a lot scarier when jaemin is in one of his mood swings, you noticed. he steps up in the relationship to offer comfort to the other boy and for outsiders? it isn't a great experience to go through—being on the receiving end of jeno's ice cold stare is a position you don't want to find yourself in after that time in the library.

he is still as much a threat to your peaceful life like his lover.

you snap out of it when the blinding headlights of a vehicle seep through the closed blinds. you hear the gentle hum of an engine switching off as the headlights vanished as quick as they had appeared. that must be the cheer squad's bus.

as you look around the empty faculty room, something in your gut tells you to ditch file sorting duty for professor kim tonight and fucking get the hell out of campus grounds as quick as you can.

after haphazardly throwing the unsorted papers back into the cabinet, you groan aloud when the keys to the office drop out of your skirt’s pocket.

the indoor gym where the cheering squad practices is right across the hallway. you sure as hell don't want to bump into jaemin. or jeno, too, if he had decided to ride along the cheer squad's bus on the way home.

you kept looking for the keys underneath the cubicles, cursing aloud when you heard the telltale squeaks of shoes rubbing against linoleum. you almost hit your head against a table when you quickly got back up your feet, darting forward to shut the lights for the faculty room.

they can't know you're here. alone. and if it meant sitting in the dark for a few hours 'till they leave, meant going back home a little later than usual is what you have to do then so be it.

you try not to react so violently when the door you're leaning on jolts when someone from outside slams their back against it.

"it's not like we didn't do our best, right guys? i don't have regrets. it might sound fucking cheesy and although i'm sad myself, atleast we did what we can."

it's jaemin. his voice clear as day.

you try peaking, craning your neck up from your place on the floor. only to see the back of his head leaning against the glass section of the door. someone else joins in on the conversation, followed by coach park himself, and you slowly tune out whatever they're saying as you stealthily start scanning the faculty room.

you curse under your breath. is there no other exit other than this door? jesus christ! even classrooms in this university had two doors—

"what are you doing here?"

the switch flickers on, basking the once dark room with light. only when you hear an echo of your name being called, did you snap out of it and quickly picked yourself up from the floor.

"i said, what are you doing here?"

their coach asks, drilling the question as he looks at you skeptically with his arms crossed. you try not to look at the people behind him.

particularly, not at his cheer captain standing on his right.

particularly, not at jeno, who stands out like a sore thumb with his blue hair, a protective arm snaked around jaemin’s shoulders.

this isn't your lucky day, too, you guess.

"i was…" you cursed yourself for stuttering. "i was, uhm, i was file sorting for prof—professor kim, sir."

coach park looked like he didn't believe you as he narrowed his eyes in scrutiny. your nerves are going haywire and you can feel the sharp pins of their stare with how close they are.

you kept juggling your weight with the balls of your feet, hands fisting and unfisting behind your back. you want to leave. you have to leave.

"file sorting… in the dark?" he asked incredulously.

fuck this.

"uhm, you can ask professor kim himself tomorrow, coach. for now, uh, i'll be going now. i'm sorry you guys lost…"

originally, the exit is on the right side, at the end of the hallway. but no, you are not going to pass by those two while on your way out so you ducked behind a random student standing on the coach's left instead and practically ran away from the scene.

everyone had been too busy. too busy looking at your retreating form to even notice jaemin and jeno exchanging glances, too busy to notice the latter untangling himself from their captain to slip away unnoticed, his hurried steps filled with a burning purpose.

you didn't know why you ran, but you did. your shoes practically booming against the floor as you sped away through darkened hallways. you're sweating profusely, heart hammering in your chest. you can worry about professor kim tomorrow but right now you just had to—

"why are you in such a rush, pet?"

crashing into jeno felt like crashing into a wall. if it hadn't been for his arm quickly wrapping around your waist, then you would've landed on your butt before him.

with the small distance between the two of you, jeno could see as clear as day through your eyes.

jaemin was right.

it was addicting to stare into them.

especially when he can see every single one of your thoughts flying through your pretty little head. but hey, it wasn't their fault you were so easy to read.

jeno barely conceals the wicked smirk on his lips when your hands come up to his chest, trying to push him away but to no avail.

he can see your eyes shifting from shock, to confusion, until it finally settles on fear—to which it's slowly becoming a favorite emotion of his to see on your face.

"you know, jaemin is in a really shitty mood right now. and we were wondering, maybe you can cheer us up?"

no. this can't be happening.

"jeno, please." your dilated eyes and disheveled hair made his blood run south. "let me go. you don't want me. you don't need a third party in your relationship."

you yelp when he lets you go, literally shoving you against a wall—which you found out is actually a door, as it swings open as soon as your body crashes against it.

with jeno looming unforgivingly before you in his full height, the tears stung extra hard but you won't let them fall.

if he wanted to bask in the image of your weakness then it'll be something you'll deprive from him for as long as you can.

"i don't need a stupid bitch like you to tell me what i feel." he scoffs. "don't fucking kid yourself, you little whore—i don't want you. i'm not jaemin."

the echo of the classroom door shutting closed surged through you like a wake up call.

this is really happening.

you've always led a decent life, had done nothing too questionable and you've always thought maybe life will spare you if you lived quietly enough. but the feel of jeno's freezing hands crawling against your skin felt like life itself had spat at you in the eye and left you to rot in a ditch.

"i've always liked how you wore skirts," he comments. playing with the ruffled hem of the soft fabric as he purposely grazed his knuckles against your supple thighs. "gives me easy access, don't you agree?"

you scream when he flips your skirt up to reveal the innocent pink of your cotton panties. it was as if a switch had flipped inside of you and the will to fight started coursing through your veins.

"stop! jeno! i don't want this!"

his brows furrow, grunting as he struggles to push the waistline of your skirt up higher with how much you're thrashing underneath him. you buck your hips, tried curling in on yourself, anything to prolong what he wants to do to you.

with your legs trapped underneath his, you blindly reach forward, relying on your upper body instead to push and scratch whatever your palms and nails reached.

you continue screaming like a banshee until he shoved two fingers into your wet cavern.

"stop fighting me," he sounded strained, as if he's holding himself back. you feel him fisting the fabric of your skirt and you fear he's simply going to rip it apart.

you tried responding to him, only the sound had been muffled, gurgled by the flat of his fingers pushing down against your tongue mercilessly. when you reach forward to push him away, your hands land on the apple of his cheeks, nails digging through skin.

until it slips and—

you lie rigid when red scratch marks in the size of your fingernails slowly appear on jeno's skin, his head turned to the side as he paused. your actions slowly start sinking in to him as he shuts his eyes and bit his lip 'till it looked like it was about to bleed.

oh no.

"jeno—"

the slap he planted on your cheek left your ears ringing. all those hard earned muscles of his put to good use—if the tears hadn't fallen for the last few minutes, then it definitely started falling now.

the hit had been so strong, a few of your hair flew astray, the buzzing feeling of your skin tempting you to reach a hand up to soothe your abused cheek.

until jeno let out a low growl and your hand immediately drops limp against your body, afraid of whatever else he can do to you other than a slap.

"that's more like it," he whispers under his breath. you let out the tiniest of whimpers when his hand darts forward to fist your hair. "do you know what happens to bad girls? they fucking get busted up. do you understand me?"

his patience is nonexistent.

jeno slams your head against the floor when you don't answer because you thought his question had been rhetorical. it felt like your skull had been split in two as you wail in pain.

"are you fucking deaf—i asked you a fucking question!"

the hand that cups your jaw is painful as he squeezed your cheek with his blunt nails. your hand shoots up to wrap around his wrist, silently pleading for him to let up as you sobbed out loud. you started nodding as best as you can despite his firm grip on your face.

your reply was nothing short of pathetic. with lips forcefully pursed and the steady stream of your tears and snot rolling down your face, your response is gargled and hardly incoherent and jeno seemed to thoroughly enjoy your anguish if the condescending curl on his lips is anything to go by.

"look at you," he whispers, his face coming close to yours as he holds you down. there was something in the way jeno stared so intently that it made your skin crawl.

"i think you're prettiest when ruined like this."

with his nose touching yours, he felt too close, bordering on intimate as you felt his hand creep back up your thighs, trailing up with feather-like touches that made goosebumps appear on your skin.

you tried wiggling your legs underneath him but one sharp look from jeno is enough to make you stop.

the hand holding your face moves. coming down from gripping your face to encircling his hand around your neck.

"do you like it when i touch you? freaky bitch."

his hands trail further up, up, up until you felt him slotting a finger underneath your panties.

jeno didn't like how frozen you were underneath him as he pulls at the hem before letting go. the elastic snapping back against your skin.

the action evokes a strong feeling through the young male, promising to have you writhing and screaming and begging because by the end of all this, you'll be so needy and frustrated that you will have no choice but to give in to what your body wanted.

"jeno, didn't i tell you to play nice?"

someone stands by the door, the minimal light from the hallway creating a silhouette with his form but you knew who he was. that deep voice, with the same annoying flippant tone, is a dead giveaway.

you didn't know why you even hoped in the beginning. as if there'll be someone who can save you from these two.

you thought the flash of hurt in your eyes was quick to disappear but jeno noticed it quicker.

in a span of seconds, he pulled you up from your position from the ground and tugged you towards his lap. you haven't even gotten the time to settle on your new position when he already smashed his lips against yours.

it was messy. too much saliva. too much teeth. no tenderness to it at all.

the fabric of his jeans felt rough, not to mention the ice cold belt buckle made you severely uncomfortable as it seeps through the thin fabric of your skirt.

when you attempt to hover over his lap, jeno grunts as he snakes an arm around your waist, pulling you back down without your lips breaking away from each other. you didn't know why he let out a whine, but you understood the moment you fully sat down on his lap and you felt a tent on his jeans hitting your clothed entrance perfectly.

in a normal circumstance, you would've found everything hot and might've actually gotten off from it but not when it's him who’s doing this to you and you didn’t consent to any of this.

you start squirming again. palms lying flat against jeno's chest as you attempt to push him away and jaemin sees this as the opportune moment to slot himself behind you, caging you in between them.

“i want my turn,” he hisses and without an ounce of hesitation, jeno stops to do what he's told.

jaemin doesn't waste any second to grab your face, awkwardly craning your neck up to meet his lips in the same feverish kiss.

while jeno had been all teeth and aggression, practically forcing you to open your mouth and kiss him back, jaemin on the other hand is more soft, more romantic, you daresay. he seemed to like taking his sweet time by clutching your face, kissing you like he actually meant it.

he pulls away slightly, resting his forehead against yours as he murmurs something incoherent under his breath and then he's kissing you again.

you think you heard something along the lines of, "finally."

you've been too distracted by jaemin to notice jeno's nimble fingers quickly fumbling with the buttons of your blouse. it was only when you feel the sensation of his tongue laving against the swell of your breast did you turn away from jaemin, jerking backward in surprise.

"no—!"

your scream is cut off by a hand cupping your mouth. jaemin pulls your back towards his chest, molding your body against his as jeno licked and suckled all he wanted, thankful to have the other boy there to not worry about restraining you and keeping you quiet while he has his fun.

"ah, ah, ah," jaemin teases, going hard over the pleading and teary look you sent his way. it looked pathetic, he wasn't going to lie, but it doesn't mean he didn't love it. "just keep still and appreciate jeno's efforts to take care of you, alright baby?"

you don't like how he talked as if this was all a mutual thing, how he talked slowly like you were some toddler who didn't understand anything.

it's cruel how jaemin giggled and basked in your vulnerable state as he kept his eyes pinned on you while undoing the zipper of your skirt. your muffled cries of his name only serving to egg him on.

the way he stared was similar to jeno, too intently and intrusive, like he wants to burn your image of despair in the back of his head.

you whined involuntarily when jeno got bored of all the licking and thus decided to start biting and nipping at your chest instead. he was hypnotised by how responsive you were, how every little bite and nibble made you shudder.

it was a shame that jaemin had to cover your mouth. he didn't get to hear your pretty mewls but it wasn't as if he'd let the night end without hearing them loud and clear.

jaemin is fast in undressing you, feeling slightly betrayed by how quick your skirt and blouse fell under his hands.

you know what he wants, what he's going to do, and the tears fall harder when you can't dodge away from him. forced to endure and accept whatever they give you.

"you act like you don't like it but look how fucking wet you are," you bit your lip hard when jaemin starts circling the pads of his fingers against your clit, fascinated by how more juices streamed down your thighs.

"jeno, do you see this? fuck."

you can only blink in defeat, staring off to the side as you force down any noise bubbling up your throat, forcing yourself to think of anything else other than what's happening right now.

you try not to think about how they managed to tear all of your clothes off while they're left completely dressed. tried not to think about the fingers lazily drawing up and down your slit to collect your essence.

if they're doing this as a way to further humiliate you, it's working.

"slut," jeno mocked, a wicked curl on his lips when he wraps his fingers around your throat. the moment he dives down to claim your lips again is the same time jaemin pushes two fingers inside you.

"look at how wet you are because of me," jaemin whispers hot against your ear and you feel a sick churn in your stomach when you feel his smile against your skin.

he purposely drives his fingers in and out quicker, settjng a brutal pace, wanting you to hear the lewd squelching sounds. "hear that? do you hear that, darling? that's because of me—"

"don't go talking big now, jaem," jeno retorts, pulling away from your lips to start nibbling on the back of your ear. "i was here first. did you see how she fucking reacted when i sucked on her tits?"

you're quick to catch how jeno particularly loved degrading you. but how he talks about you as if you're literally not in front of him naked made you hit a new all-time low.

you felt… filthy.

his hands find purchase on your butt—only because jaemin has already claimed the front. for now.

you close your eyes tight when he painfully squeezes the flesh of your ass. you swear, his blunt nails will paint your skin black and blue.

"i'm the favorite!"

"i'm the favorite!"

as someone who's part of a varsity team, you already knew a competitive nature runs through jaemin's veins. but never had you thought jeno would share the same sentiment. once again they prove that they're cut from the same cloth.

all of a sudden it wasn't all about claiming you as theirs anymore rather it was all about who can make you moan the loudest, who can make you cum the most, who can make you feel the dirtiest you can be.

you're absolutely terrified for the hours to come.

thankfully, they have yet to ask for your verbal opinion or validation. they let your body do all the talking—every repressed shudder and sharp gasp is enough.

but it's game over once they pop the million dollar question.

"who do you like best?"

you don't want to find out the consequences if you actually answered their question because you didn't know what could be worse.

jaemin's manipulation or jeno's aggression?

but it was all normal. trial and error is inevitable in order to build and mold you into the ideal lover for the both of them.

because adding someone new to the mix has never been easy—after all, three's a crowd.

[butwhyduh]

Hair Bows

Roy Harper x batsis!reader

Summary: a date turned into a play date turned into work. Basically Lian taking over Titans tower. And canon has no home here.

“I’m just about to head out the door,” you said over the phone, still doing your hair. Roy wasn’t the most punctual guy and this was your way of coping. If you were also always late, it didn’t bother you as much.

“Wait,” Roy said and you heard a muffled sound like him running his hand down his face. “I can’t go.”

“Why not?”

“My babysitter punked out at the last minute so I can’t leave Lian. I’m sorry,” he said.

“Oh, uhhh, bring her,” you suggested, hopefully sounding casual. You’d met her a few times but nothing big and your date was just a walk in the park. Nothing a kid couldn’t do. And you were hoping to be a little more seriously dating.

“Seriously?... on a date?” He asked.

“Not if you don’t want to. But I just thought we were going to the park and we can let her run around. You know what? Never mind, if you need to stay home it’s cool. I don’t know anything about kids-“

“Hey, it’s a good idea,” he said stopping your ramble. “I just wasn’t expecting it. Most people don’t want someone else’s kid on their date.”

“Most people shouldn’t date people with kids if they can’t be around them,” you answered, finishing up. “Now am I meeting you both at the park or..”

“Now I know why I’m dating you,” Roy said and you could hear the smile through the phone. “I’ll pick you up. Lian’s not a fan of riding in other people’s car so Uber is out.”

“Can’t blame her. See you soon,” you answered.

——————————

You had changed into a slightly less sexy and more family friendly top and sensible shoes by the time Roy picked you up. Can’t chase a kid in heels.

Roy looked nice in a button down and jeans with no holes in them. Not a trucker hat in sight. And of course, Lian was a doll in a spring themed dress and leather bottomed sandals. The first thing she showed you was an impressively high kick.

“And it’s okay because dad makes me wear shorts under it. For taking out punks,” she said knowingly. You nodded.

“For punks. Good idea.”

“In case they get fresh,” Roy said to you as she ran to a slide.

“Fresh? She’s 5. Maybe Lian should teach me that move. I know this guy that’s always trying to get fresh,” you said as he wrapped an arm around your waist from behind and rested his head on your shoulder.

“Hmmm, should I kick his ass,” Roy said playfully.

“I’d pay to see you kick your own ass,” you said with a laugh.

“Ouch, and I thought you liked me,” he said, sounding dramatically wounded. You laughed again.

“The entertainment value tho. Hard to beat.”

“So many ‘hard to beat’ jokes I would make right now,” he whispered in your ear and you pulled out of his arms. You were rolling your eyes but the grin ruined the disapproving air you were trying to have.

“Not that kinda date,” you reminded him and as if on cue, Lian ran over to Roy and grabbed his hand. She started dragging him to a food truck.

“Can we get a funnel cake? Or ice cream? Or a hotdog?” She asked excitedly.

“Hotdog and then ice cream on top of a funnel cake,” he said in a mock serious tone as he bent down beside her. She grinned widely. “We aren’t animals!” She squealed and dragged him to food truck.

You grinned as you watched them. Roy had fucked up a ton but this was not one of those times. Nope, he was a great dad. He looked back at you confused as why you hadn’t joined them and you jogged over to them.

“Sorry, just lost in thought,” you said as they made your food. Roy had a hand casually around your waist as Lian tried to swing on his other arm.

“Bout what?” He asked.

“How good a dad you are,” you admitted. He gave you a shy crooked smile before kissing your forehead.

“You bats are always in your head too damn much. But thanks,” Roy ended softly. He handed Lian a giant hotdog that she promptly started eating before giving you your food and he his. “Let’s find a spot to sit before you drop that giant hotdog.”

As Lian licked sticky sweet ice cream coated funnel cake pieces off of her arm, Roy’s phone went off. He smiled apologetically before getting up to answer it. A few minutes later he came back to the table looking even more apologetic.

“Titans business. I have to go but...” he started, running a hand through his red hair. “I don’t have a babysitter.”

“I could watch her,” you suggested and Lian looked up at him kinda sad. “I could watch her at the tower. You’d be right there but we’d stay out of the way.”

“You sure? That isn’t too much?” He said unsure, looking between you both.

“Yeah, I’ve watched kids before. And I know the tower really well. We’ll watch movies and fall asleep. Do you want a sleep over?”

“Yeah! Go on dad, I’m fine,” she said waving a hand at him. You both laughed. “Dads,” Lian said rolling her eyes playfully. Yep, she’s Roy’s alright. “Do you have popcorn?”

“Yep!”

“Candy?”

“Yep! And I know where my brother Tim keeps the good imported stuff,” you said and she grinned.

“Not too much. Or staying up too late. Or anything scary or too grown up,” Roy said on the way to the tower. “And if anything happens. Anything. Get to the panic room.”

“I know the procedures,” you said putting a hand on his shoulder. “And I can keep her safe. Don’t worry. We’ll have fun.”

“And I can kick punks!” Lian said proudly.

“And she’ll kick punks! I’m hoping she hits Gar first. Did you know he can turn into any animal? He just chooses to be a punk,” You said and she giggled.

“Wow!”

“Alright. No kicking punks unless it’s really important because-“

“My body is a weapon. I know, dad,” she said, rolling her eyes.

Roy repeated the same sort of things up in the living quarters of the tower before giving you both a kiss. “Stay safe,” he said before going downstairs.

Some of the younger Titan recruits didn’t leave on the mission and were hanging out or training. You walked Lian over to the couch and went to find a movie she might like. You dusted off the dvds they had. Probably hadn’t added any new ones in many years with the extensive funding of Batman giving them every streaming service ever.

“How about this movie,” you asked, holding up a sun bleached dvd case. “Space jam?”

Lian looked at it carefully before nodding. You put it in the player and came back. “What about popcorn? Dad says movies are crap without it.”

“Oh,” you said. “Right. I’ll make some.”

“Popcorn?” Came a voice around the corner before the next you saw was a wind of red. “Hey kiddo,” Bart aka impulse said to Lian before shaking her hand. “Let’s pick a movie. There are some pretty good ones I haven’t seen. I’ve seen 12 movies.”

“Only 12,” she frowned skeptically and you took the opportunity to go in the kitchen and make popcorn.

“Hey, did you let Lian have speedster piggy back rides,” Tim aka Robin said ducking his head in the kitchen.

“No,” you said quickly running in the living area quickly. “Okay, enough of that. I don’t think her dad would be cool with this,” you said pulling her off of him. She pouted a little.

“Why does it smell like fire,” Cassie asked from the hall and you hurried back in the kitchen to see a flaming bag turning in the microwave. Before you could do it say anything, Bart opened the microwave and tossed the bag into the sink where the sponge lit on fire. Lian shrieked and you jumped up turn on the water to put them both out.

“That popcorn smells ewwie,” Lian noted. You sighed and pinched your brow. This is fine.

“I’ll make more and you go pick out a movie. And nothing else,” you emphasized.

“Yes, ma’am,” Bart said with a salute. Tim winced.

“Sorry, he’s a lot.”

“One minor kitchen fire is not too bad. Have you heard from the mission?” You asked as you cooked the popcorn.

“Not yet. But no news is usually good news,” he reminded you and you nodded. That’s what Roy always said. You grabbed the bag and went in the living room to see an entire hot pink tackle box filled with every kind of hair tie and bows and baubles. Bart was sitting on the floor and Lian was currently tying a bright yellow bow in his huge mass of red hair.

“She wanted to do his hair so I got my stuff,” Cassie said.

“She’s a natural. She doesn’t rip out half as much hair as Cassie,” Bart said with a grin. You sat on the couch near them and started the movie as the popcorn passed around.

Halfway through the movie, Tim’s phone goes off. He looks at it and frowns. “Alright guys, we got to suit up.” They grumble but get up. Bart does a quick shake that reminds you of a dog and all the bows vibrated out of his hair. Lian laughed and tried to catch them as they fell out.

“Lian, give me just a minute to talk to Tim,” you told her and she nodded before putting a red barrette in Cassie’s hair. You walked in the kitchen with Tim.

“Is everything okay? Dick? Roy?” You asked quietly.

“I’m not sure. We’re just being called in. I’ll try and let you know more,” he said. You nodded and hugged your baby brother.

“Be safe out there.”

“Always.”

Lian was sitting on the couch as the cartoon played and she had moved on to putting bows on the fuzzy blanket on the couch. She yawned as she put bows in your hair and you looked at the time. It was probably close to bed time for her.

“Lian, do you want to lay down while watching your movie?”

She yawned again and nodded. “Yeah, dad will be home late again, hu? Work?” She was pretty used to his hero duty.

“Yeah, but I’m here.”

“Yeah, you’re here,” she said before laying on you. You froze for a second before feeling your heart warmed. She rubbed her popcorn greasy face into your shirt before getting comfortable. After a short while she was asleep and you pulled out your phone to take her photo.

You wanted to send Roy the photo but didn’t dare disturb him. You kept worrying about him and Dick and now even Tim as they fought. Why had they needed the back up? Were they hurt? In too deep? You had a hard time doing anything but worry.

Lian turned in her sleep and all but pinned you to the couch with her little fists gripping your shirt. You pulled the blanket over her. You tried to stay awake but once it hit 2 am and you were trapped on a couch with no lights on, you fell asleep.

Around 4 am, the team wandered in the tower slowly. They hushed one another as they saw you and Lian on the couch. Roy came in and stopped to look. He took out his phone and took a bunch of pictures of you both with a smile before he hobbled to the medical bay to be cleaned and patched up.

“Hey,” he whispered while gently tapping your shoulder a little while later. You woke up blinking in the light. “I’m going to carry her to the car. Are you coming?”

“Oh, yeah,” you whispered back. Roy carefully pulled the little girl off of you and she clung to his shirt in sleep. He grabbed his bag of gear as you got up with a stretch. You waved bye to everyone before leaving.

Halfway down the road, Roy turned to you. “She really seemed comfortable on you.”

“Yeah, she climbed up herself. I was a little surprised. I guess I didn’t mess up tonight,” you said with a little self deprecating laugh.

“Nah, you did great. I had to hear all about it from the kid heroes on the way back. The hair bows was genius,” he said. The car quietly pulled in his driveway.

“That was Cassie. And when Lian saw all of Bart’s hair her eyes went wide like a cat at a ball of yarn,” you laughed.

“Yeah, she’s a fan of long red hair. Ask me how I know,” he said shaking his hair and you laughed. Lian moved in her sleep.

“So she ripped out your hair so Bart’s could survive,” you said quietly.

“Something like that. Can you get the door,” he said before scooping Lian out of her car seat. You held the door as he carried her to her room and laid her in her toddler bed that currently had a Superboy blanket. She had just about any hero you could image in some product or another.

Roy met you in the kitchen. “Thanks, you know. For watching her today. I appreciate that,” he said. You tossed him a water bottle.

“Yeah, she’s awesome. We had fun,” you said, leaning on the counter with your elbows. Roy came up behind you and rubbed your shoulders.

“Not everyone is cool with dating a dad so thanks,” he said. You turned your head to look at him.

“Well, they are missing out. Got my own DILF,” you teased.

“Oh god, I’m a DILF,” Roy said with a hint of horror in his voice. “Speaking of ILF... I know someone I’d like to ILF,” he said kissing your neck and pressing himself against your back. His hands moved under your shirt and up to your chest. “Wanna take it to my room?”

“Thought you’d never ask.”