#I didn’t finish them so I gave my leftover wings to the friend | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

dustofbrokenheart · 4 years ago

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The Covenant: Top Anon

Pogue Parry x Reader

Word Count: 2,288

Summary: You have a loyal follower who comments on every post under your food blog. Just who is your favorite follower and why is the new grocery boy kinda cute too?

It was a new year and the start of a new you. Well, that is, a you who was trying new things.

In the past, you always made resolutions, but that spirit ran out before the month of January was even done. But after the particularly rough time of the past year, you swore that this time would be different, that you would make a serious effort to do something new.

It was that determination that led your current situation—your kitchen countertops were covered with ingredients and cooking utensils, your cell phone resting on a near by tripod for filming purposes.

The goal for this year was to try running a blog, and since you were a bit of a foodie, it made a lot of sense to center the blog around cooking and food. The idea came to you quickly; the hard part was deciding on a name, which took a while.

Eventually, you settled on The Foodiest. Naming was not one of your strong suits, but it was enough to get the point clearly across to potential viewers.

Choosing the layout design was on the same level of easy as deciding and didn’t take more than a day or two to implement on your site. Thank goodness for the existence of pre-made layout templates that saved you the effort of having to code everything yourself.

With of the work on that end finished, the day had finally come for you to actually cook something to post about. Seeing as how January was a cold, winter month, you chose to make mashed sweet potatoes. Not only was it one of your favorite winter side dishes, it wasn’t hard to make either, giving you the confidence that even if your writing was lackluster, at least the food would look good.

Most of the blogs you were familiar with used a combination of text and photos for readers to follow along with, but you were going to try video in place of images. You sometimes struggled to copy based on what was shown in the photo, especially when you first started cooking, so you hoped video would make it easier on budding chefs who came across your content.

Luckily, the video would be sped up and lapsed for the final post to spare people from having to watch the monotonous parts in full length.

Hands on your hips, you surveyed everything one last time to make sure it was all ready. With a satisfied nod you reached forward to tap the large, red record button on the phone.

You debated whether or not to talk while filming but decided against it. You were nervous enough posting to the blog without having the added stress of talking.

Everything happened in its regular order: you started by peeling and chopping the potatoes, a basic step, but you took your time doing it, paranoid as ever that you would cut yourself with the knife. Next you boiled the bright orange chunks in a pot of water; then put them in a mixing bowl once they were cooked. And finally used an electric mixer to blend it all nice and smooth, adding in milk, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

Swiping your pointer finger through the finished product, you hummed with delight at the delicious, sweet taste. You pulled out a presentable bowl from the cupboard and spooned some orange fluff into it for the final reveal. Reaching blindly towards the far end of the counter you grabbed a bag of pecans to top off the mashed sweet potatoes. You scrutinized it and added more pecans for good measure.

Doing something in front of a camera was very different than doing the same thing on a normal day. Tension leeched out of your shoulders and you exhaled loudly with your head leaned back. A sense of pride warmed your chest, especially as you returned your gaze to the picturesque bowl. It looked great and tasted even better.

There was a large portion of leftovers because the recipes you used were collected from family and meant to feed small armies of people. You did your best to eat what you could and made plans sharing the rest with friends and coworkers later.

A few days after you published the post, you decided to check the stats on your account dashboard to see what the public response to it was, if there was any at all. Google analytics was useful for counting the total number of views it received while the blog site itself tracked the likes and… a comment?

Initial shock gave way to a bolt of excitement that had your fingers tingling with energy. You clicked to read it, wondering what it may say. Fingers crossed it was something good, whether it came in the form of a compliment or some constructive criticism.

Anonymous: wow good job

The chair creaked as you sat back slowly. You didn’t know how to read that, there wasn’t a whole lot to go on. Wow good job, said sarcastically? Wow good job, said excitedly? It didn’t help that the commenter didn’t believe in using punctuation either. And since it was submitted anonymously, there was no easy way to track down who sent it.

But maybe you were being too paranoid about it. You decided to take it as a compliment and cracked your fingers before firing off a response.

Foodiest: Thanks anon! I had a lot of fun with this dish. Hope you tune in for the next one :)

Anonymous never followed up with that particular exchange but they commented on every post without fail for the next two months.

Anonymous: nevr had white chili before it was good

Anonymous: the stuffed pepper were good

Anonymous: good call with the shrimp

Of course, all of the messages were sent as anonymous, so there was no 100% guarantee that it was the same person, but your gut feeling told you that it was. Who else had no respect for grammar rules and religiously used ‘good’ as their only descriptor?

You grew to expect, and enjoy, the weekly comment left by anon and made sure to leave a nice response in return. It was hard not to feel a connection to someone who took the time to try your recipes and leave a nice message. If only you could figure out who it was or at least have a name for them besides anonymous.

Foodiest: I’m glad you liked the recipe! My gramma swore by mayo when making grilled cheese. Thanks for always liking my stuff, if you ever want to talk more feel free to message me!

There. Maybe that would make them feel comfortable to give you their name you thought as you powered down your laptop for the night.

You spent the next couple of days leading up to the new post planning on what recipe to cook. Yep. Definitely not hoping for more information about anon.

For this newest post you decided to make some Indian curry, one of your favorites. Even long after you finished cooking, taping, and cleaning, the potent scent of spices was still heavy in the air, like aromatic nirvana that had your mouth watering even with a full stomach.

You tried your best not to refresh the post every few minutes to see if anon commented but it was tough. It turned out that you didn’t have to wait long as they left a comment within twenty minutes.

Anonymous: havent cooked this yet but looks good. Never really had indian before so have to go buy the stufff first – po

Anon finally gave up a name! You let out a happy noise and read it again. Po… short and to the point, just like all of the previous responses had led you to think about them. There was no time to waste, you hurried to write back, initial typos all over the place as the words out-paced your fingers.

Foodiest: Hi Po! It’s nice to have a name to put with your words. I would recommend going to an Asian Market for the spices, they’re more likely to carry them. Let me know how it goes for you :)

Since that conversation, Po and you chatted frequently about the weekly recipe choice, whether or not it looked good and if Po had plans to make it themselves, which they often did. Po seemed to like all types of food; vegetarian, meats, drinks, desserts, even ethnic dishes from places as far off as Bolivia and Morocco.

And the longer you two talked, the more frequent the messaging became. Whereas in the beginning Po would only submit a compliment that you would follow up with a ‘thank you’, it had turned into lengthy back and forths that took up a majority of the comment section for each post. More followers joined as the months went by and you hoped that they weren’t intimidated by your blatant favoritism but it was just so easy to talk with Po. If you were being honest with yourself though, it wasn’t only that it was easy… you genuinely liked talking to them.

Every time you made a new post it was difficult to not refresh the page every few minutes to see if they had left a message. And when they did, it was like a shot of electricity straight into the system where your heart would jolt and your face would flood with heat. You were hesitant to say it was a crush given that you didn’t know what they actually looked like and the computer screen barrier made it so you were content to define it as friendship.

Pushing those thoughts aside, you grabbed your wallet and keys while putting on shoes so you could make a quick run to the store. You had big plans to make some buffalo chicken wings for the blog this week and you needed to stop by the store to pick up some ingredients that you didn’t have, namely Frank’s Original Red for the buffalo sauce and blue cheese for the dip. Being an adult and responsible for your own grocery shopping was a chore at times.

Luckily, Winter had thawed out into Spring so there was no need for you to warm up or car or scrape your windows. You just hopped in and drove the four blocks it took to get to the store. The plan was to cross the stuff for the wings off of your list first and then browse around for some good snacks to tide you over for the next week or so. Things were going according to plan until you saw him.

A tall boy wearing an employee apron stood in front of the cracker section, his jaw line and soft looking long hair catching your eye. Then he reached up to the tallest shelf to restock some boxes his arms flexing slightly to show off his heavy biceps and his shirt rode up, exposing deep cut ridges in his lower abdomen. To put it simply, you were starstruck.

He finished with the boxes he had in-hand and went to grab more from the cart at his side when you noticed your blatant ogling. Rather than confront you about it he merely smiled and moved out of the way so that you could get to the brand that you wanted. Choking from embarrassment, you kept your head down and threw a box of Goldfish into your shopping cart, speeding to get out of the aisle and his presence.

The store was a small local business and you frequented enough to know most of the workers there but you didn’t recognize this one, meaning that he must be new. What a way to make a first impression on him. Clearly your constitution was no match for his rugged, good looks. Then he was polite enough not to comment on you objectifying him which somehow made you feel even worse about it.

You decided to end the shopping trip almost immediately knowing that you were too spooked to continue shopping lest you run into him again.

You rolled the shopping cart into an open check-out lane and started putting your things on the conveyor for the cashier to scan. It just so happened that you knew the cashier—she was a middle-aged lady who’d been at the store for nearly two years. “Hi, Y/N. Find everything you needed?”

“Hey, Eva. Yes, I did.” You tried to steady yourself. Eva had a notoriously sharp eye and wouldn’t hesitate to question you if you looked off.

She left you alone today, engaging in normal chit chat, until she had trouble scanning the bottle of Frank’s hot sauce. Eva frowned when it didn’t want to scan and tried again but the bottle slipped from her hands and the neck of it shattered. Eva cursed and huffed, hurrying to throw the bottle into the trash before more leaked onto the register.

“I am so sorry, hun! I’ll get you another.”

“It was an accident,” you assured. “I can get it myself—"

“Not a problem,” she assured you with a wink. She pulled a walkie from her hip and spoke into it. “Hey, bring me a bottle of Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce. Quick.”

You barely had time to don your awkward smile as she talked about how her neighbor’s dog kept pooping in her yard when the guy from the cracker aisle walked up behind Eva and handed a bottle of hot sauce to her. She took it and patted his back to get him to move forward.

“Thanks, hun. Y/N this is the new grocery boy—”

“Pogue,” he interrupted. “My name is Pogue.”

_______________

Another fic where they know each other but don’t know that they do. This time featuring Pogue and his fandom accepted interest in food. I picture him to have bad messaging skills — his fingers struggle with those tiny phone buttons.

#the covenant #pogue parry #pogue parry x reader #imagines

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wonderlustlucas · 4 years ago

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jack pot ; part 2 - hwang hyunjin

⇢ prompt You know it’s bad when you’re high as a kite and he’s still on your mind. ⇢ pairing hwang hyunjin x female reader, bang chan x female reader ⇢ word count 7.5k ⇢ genre fluff, angst (not heavy, just in a slow burn kind of way), smut ⇢ warnings (18+) drug & alcohol use, explicit sexual content (fingering & thigh riding) ⇢ summary College is a matter of working hard and playing hard. It’s an opportunity to start fresh, to grow as an individual and to blossom with those you befriend. People come and people go, leaving their mark on your life and showing you all the parts of becoming an adult. Some, however, do more than leave their mark. Some take just as much as they give. Things become complicated once they take the entirety of your love because you outright offered it to them.—college!au ; stoner!au ; friends to lovers!au ⇢ a/n don’t kill me </3

⇠ part 1

three.

Student Mentor Program dinners aren’t the same without Maddie.

While she’s off in like, Panama, or something, studying treefrogs and whatnot for the semester, you get to spend almost two hours every other Wednesday night at the same restaurant, with the same people, eating the same food. You don’t even know half the kids who signed up this year, and with Maddie away and Seungmin deciding to just not show up anymore, you are beginning to think maybe you’re not cut out for the whole teamwork-planning-collaboration thing. Free Italian food is nice, but even the chicken parm is mediocre. How do you fuck up chicken parmigiana?

This is the last time you will ever bother making yourself look so formal, you tell yourself when you stop halfway up the stairs to take your heels off. Maybe it will be the last time you even bother going to the meeting, especially when fucking Dan likes to plop his ass down next to you and talk your ear off about his Mom’s dating life back at home.

When you enter your apartment, the silence is startling. Jisung is usually sprawled out on the sofa when you get home on Wednesday’s. Maybe he’s still hanging out on campus; he’s recently become a goblin for the new pho bar they built in the alumni cafeteria.

Throwing your shoes haphazardly toward the closet, you make a beeline to the kitchen, mouth watering for the pink lemonade Jisung has been so keen on making since the day you moved in. After drinking nothing but water for the past two hours, you have never been so grateful for his newfound addiction, grabbing a glass and filling it, chugging that, filling it again, and then taking steady sips. Speaking of Jisung, you jump when you hear a burst of laughter from his room. And he definitely isn’t alone.

Slowly making your way over, you hesitate before knocking on the door. “Jisung, I’m home.”

“YN!” Someone shouts. You’re not certain who.

“Come in! How was it?” This time, it’s definitely Jisung, and you suck in a deep breath before cautiously cracking open his door considering you have no idea who or what is with him.

“It was,” you stall, brows furrowing in confusion when you find him, Hyunjin, and Jeongin all huddled around his laptop, “terrible. What the hell are you guys doing?”

“Nothing,” Jisung snickers, lowering the hood of the laptop, “why was it terrible?” You pretend you don’t see Hyunjin looking terribly cute with his head tilted as he regards you.

“Food sucks. I miss Maddie and Seungmin. I don’t like people,” you grumble. Then, with a hand on your belly, “Did you get dinner?”

“My leftover wings are in the fridge. You can have them,” Jeongin offers with a smile. “Did I ever tell you you’re my favorite? I love you, thank you,” you gasp, excited at the prospect of actual good chicken. Before racing back to the kitchen, you make sure to blow him a kiss.

You don’t know why Jeongin hangs out with these nerds you call friends. As an incoming freshman, he first met Hyunjin at some soccer club recruitment event, and before you knew it, he was part of the group. You can’t understand why, considering they treat him like their slave (especially Seungmin); always asking him to do this, do that. But Jeongin is too much of an angel to argue. He’ll give a snarky reply, but then do whatever his friends ask him to. So, you try to shower him with genuine affection whenever he’s around since the others show it in peculiar ways.

You have just opened the styrofoam container when Jisung’s door opens and closes. And of course, none other than Hwang Hyunjin makes his way into the kitchen.

Hyunjin and his girlfriend broke up in August, a few days before classes started. Better yet, she broke up with him. And you have yet to know why. Since then, though, you have substantially grown closer. Against your better judgment, of course. You were hurt, yes, but summer gave you time to forget all that happened; at home, spending time with your family and friends from town, you didn’t have to worry about Hyunjin and your feelings. Changbin, maybe, but he’s studying abroad, too, and the whole friends-with-benefits thing was fun while it lasted. It’s all behind you now, and with November approaching at an alarmingly fast rate, part of you is convinced that what happened that night was just an impulsive show of hormones and weed. It’s better this way—you have your feelings better under control, and even if being around Hyunjin every day makes your heart hurt at times, you wouldn’t trade your friendship and his constant need to be close for the world.

“If you’re here to steal some wings, go away,” you grumble at him, glaring as he steps closer. He frowns. “Just one?”

“No!” You snap, smacking his hand when he reaches for one. “You try wasting two hours at one of those meetings and you would understand.”

“Maybe I will,” Hyunjin challenges, crossing his arms over his chest. Huffing loudly, you move further down the counter and finish a wing clean off the bone. “Don’t,” you deadpan, waving it at him, “I’d rather have smegma than do this anymore.” Hyunjin wrinkles his nose in disgust. “That’s – ew, YN. You’re gross.”

“Then leave me alone,” you counter, eying him scornfully, “go back to your group masturbation.”

Hyunjin lunges for the wings, but you are quick to grab them, stumbling past him and retreating back toward the refrigerator. “Stop!” You yelp when he comes after you again; this time, you duck under his arm and back against the sink. “You already had dinner!”

In one last effort, Hyunjin manages to trap you against the counter. “You’re so mean,” he whines, arms caging you in, “Jeongin wouldn’t share, either.” You desperately want to brush the ruffled strands of brown hair out of his eyes, but lucky for you, your hands are preoccupied hiding the container behind you. The fact that he even had to go and bleach his hair and dye it a light shade of brown is just another factor leading to your insanity.

“Well,” you scoff, freeing one hand to jab a finger into his chest, “it was his dinner. Maybe he didn’t want to share.” Hyunjin pouts at this, lower lip jutting out much to your dismay. His puppy eyes alone are enough to break your resolve. “Fine,” you huff, bringing the container from behind you, “just because you’re wasting my time and I want to take this dress off.”

“Why?” He asks, visibly brightening once you let him take a drumstick. “You look gorgeous,” he mumbles like it doesn’t leave you week in the knees, clean hand tugging at the skirt of the yellow sundress you wear. “Thanks,” you hum, trying to ignore his use of the hefty G word and the sincerity in his eyes, you focus on your food, “but it’s uncomfy and I’m ready for bed.”

“You’re not going to hang with us?”

“Well, if you guys were doing something fun and totally not suspicious, maybe. But my brain is fried, so no. I need sleep,” you say, licking residue hot honey sauce from your fingers, “tell Jeongin he can come snuggle.”

Hyunjin gasps, beginning to panic when you turn on your heels. “What?” He screeches, shoving the leftovers back into the fridge and following after you as you head toward your room. “Why Jeongin and not me?”

“Because Jeongin is my favorite,” you tease, pressing your back into the door because you refuse to let him be in there with you, “and naturally, next is Jisung. So you’re shit out of luck.”

Hyunjin deflates in front of you. Like, actually, full on like a balloon; shoulders sagging, chin jutting, soft eyes clouding with disappointment. “I’m kidding, Jinnie,” you giggle, leaning up to wrap your arms around his neck, “you’re all special to me.” This seems to make him feel better, brown irises flickering golden and arms wrapping around your waist. “Promise?” He whispers into your hair, swaying your body with his to a silent song. Pressing your cheek to his chest, your heart seems to give a single, solid thump as you try to etch this moment into your mind forever. Maybe in another universe, you would have this dress on for something else, and the two of you are slow dancing not in the corridor of you and Jisung’s apartment, and the heavy weight on your chest was from a different overwhelming emotion.

Yeah. You definitely have your feelings under control.

“I promise.”

Jisung straight up pulls an AirPod out of your ear like a monster.

“I hate you so fucking much,” you hiss, trying to keep your voice quiet so as to not disturb the fellow bus passengers. You go to take the earbud back but he only holds it up over his head like a child. “Jisung.”

“You owe Jeongin an apology,” he replies, gesturing to the younger boy beside him who looks up from his phone with eyes widened in shock.

“I literally have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Jisung, you don’t—”

“Shush,” Jisung interrupts Jeongin’s rushed protest, “I don’t know what you and Hyunjin did last night, but he was real weird around Jeongin for the rest of the night.”

“Again, I don’t know what you are—”

“Do you like him still?”

“YN likes Hyunjin?”

You suck in a sharp breath, unsure of who to address first; a very flabbergasted Jeongin or a very annoyed Jisung. “Please,” you snap, snatching the AirPod from his grip now that he isn’t paying attention to it, “just announce it to the whole fucking bus, why don’t you.”

“I didn’t know you liked Hyunjin…” Jeongin mutters, clearly puzzled by the revelation. “That’s because it’s a secret,” you look to Jisung with a pointed glare, “but some people don’t know how to keep their mouths shut.”

“Oh, come on YN,” Jisung scoffs, “I thought we were over this. I thought you were over this. When are you going to stop?” Nibbling on the inside of your cheek, you momentarily look away to gather your thoughts. If only it were that easy. A snap of your fingers and you miraculously would not be hopelessly in love with Hyunjin.

“I’m not,” you sigh, “I’m not going to get over him, at least anytime soon. It’s… it’s complicated. You wouldn’t understand it. Your head is too far up your ass and sometimes Minho’s ass to know what it feels like.”

Jisung frowns at this, crossing his arms over his chest because he knows you’re right. “Is this like,” Jeongin waves his hand between you, “something that’s been going on for a while?” Jisung barks out a laugh at this, and even you can’t help but crack a smile. “Yes,” Jisung chuckles, “YN has been all heart eyes for him since they met.”

“Have you told him?” Jeongin asks. Totally serious. Eyes sparkling hopefully.

“I – well, no. Not with words.”

“Hyunjin and YN had a little wink wonk night last year,” Jisung whispers like it’s some sort of secret you don’t know, jabbing Jeongin in the side with his elbow. “Yeah, and then he met what’s-her-face and forgot about it, apparently,” you grumble, slouching in your seat. “YN! How many times do I have to tell you that you left in the morning before he woke up? He was upset! You left him!”

“Then he should have talked to me about it!” You bark, shriveling in your seat when a sea of heads spin in your direction. “Instead, he went to cry to his boba bitch and get his dick sucked or something while I had to clean up Maddie’s vomit for two days.”

“YN,” Jisung deadpans, looking at you with an unamused expression. “I’m done talking about this,” you sigh, looking away once more. When you go to put your earbud back in, it’s Jeongin who stops you this time.

“YN, you two are really close. This whole time I thought it was Hyunjin who liked you. You seriously need to talk to him. Whatever happened last year was awhile ago and I’m sure it’s all just a big misunderstanding. We’re around you guys every day, and we can all see that there’s definitely something going on between you.”

“But what if he doesn’t feel the same? What if it just fucks everything up all over again? I can’t live with that kind of rejection,” you whimper, wincing when your voice cracks. Jisung takes it as his cue to wrap his arm around your shoulders and pull you close. Reaching for your hand, Jeongin squeezes your knuckles. “You won’t know unless you try, right?”

“I guess,” you mumble, cheek pressed to Jisung’s shoulder, “why can’t he just make the move?”

“Well, I don’t know, YN. Maybe because you were off fucking Changbin every day?” Jisung teases, comforting arm turning into a chokehold when you go to move away. “We were not fucking every day.”

“It sure felt like it,” he snickers, finally releasing his grip when you punch him in the gut, “Binnie got a big dick or something? Were you crazy for Changbin’s chode?” You scoff, mirroring Jeongin’s own mortified expression. “I – he does not – never mind, I’m not talking about Changbin’s dick,” laughing to hide your embarrassment, you send a thanks to the heavens when the bus slows down at the first campus stop, “this conversation ends now.”

Following them out to the sidewalk, it isn’t until silence settles over you do you realize just how lucky you are to have such supportive friends, even if Jisung is a little shit about it. “Hey,” you pipe up just before you have to head in a separate direction, “thanks for listening. I appreciate you guys.”

“Does that mean you’re going to talk to him?” Jisung gasps, excited. Adjusting the straps of your bag on your shoulders and rocking on your heels, you can only offer them a shrug. “If it comes up, maybe. But it probably won’t, so I’ll just have to deal with you guys being shitty wing-men for now.”

“Hey!” They both shout in protest, but you’ve already spun around, laughing to yourself.

Jeongin’s right; things are different than how they were in May, but you are not ready to dig your own grave again. Besides, now that you’re living with Jisung, you get to spend way more time with not only Hyunjin, but all your friends. And even if you fall asleep making up cute scenarios with Hyunjin every night, you aren’t about to make things awkward all over again. So if you must suffer in the meantime, suffer you will.

four.

“What’s the point of smoking at a party if it’s just going to turn you into a slug?” Maddie whispers next to you, vaguely gesturing to Lia passed out on the recliner. Even you aren’t sure how she does it. No matter how high you may be, something about a good party only seems to heighten the experience; maybe it’s the music that now rattles your brain, maybe it’s your reputation, or maybe it’s just the combination of weed, alcohol, and friends.

“Lia can’t handle what she smokes,” you laugh, taking a sip of beer. Christ, it’s fucking nasty, but you’re not about to start with the heavy liqueur when you are only two hours in. You still have a long night ahead of you. “Weed just has a different effect on her.”

Maddie hums in agreement, whipping her head to look behind you at the sea of people when “A Thousand Years” starts playing and everyone cheers. “Jesus, what did you do without me?”

You laugh, turning to watch the crowd as well. Your university may not be big on Greek life, but the upperclassmen who rent houses as a group really know how to throw a good party. After time, though, they start to lose their appeal. They definitely can be fun, but it all depends on who you are friends with, who else is there, and what you make of it on your own. Personally, you’re not a ‘let’s dance!’ kind of gal (it’s kind of hard to dance to crazy rap songs from Meek Mill and Kendrick Lamar, anyway), preferring to chill, drinking and maybe smoking with your own friends, and that’s about it.

“I told you, I became a master at beer pong,” you grin, waggling your eyebrows at her, “we should play later.”

“Is that why everyone was saying hi to you when we came in?” Maddie gasps, connecting the dots. “Damn, girl. Ms. Popular now, aren’t you?”

“No!” You try to object, but then someone is leaning over to hug you from behind. And of course it has to be Jeon Jeongguk, of all people. So much for proving that you aren’t as ‘popular’ as she’s made you out to be.

“YN! What’s up?” The older boy shouts way too loud in your ear, chin resting on your shoulder. He winks at Maddie and she has to look away just to hide the way her cheeks bloom pink. “I’m good!” You yell back, leaning your head affectionately against his. “Are there any good drinks tonight?”

“Yes! Do you want me to get you one?” He offers, standing up but leaving a hand dangerously close to your neck. “No, thank you” you smile, tilting your head back to look at him, “I’ll check it out in a bit. Go find your friends, you look lost.” Realizing he is, in fact, lost, Jeongguk only flicks your nose before disappearing in the sea of increasingly loud students.

“Was that—”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t he—”

“Yes.”

“Christ, who are you? What did you do to YN?” Maddie fake-cries, burying her head in her palms. “Chin up, princess, your tiara is falling,” you attempt to joke but only earn an unamused glare in return. “Alright, I think it’s time for one of those drinks Mr. Jeon was talking about,” Maddie decides, standing up and tugging the hem of her skirt down. “Unless you still want to ‘vibe?’” She mimics your previous words with air-quotes.

Laughing, you chug what’s left in your cup and stand with her. “No,” you beam, “I need to find Felix and make sure he’s not dead, anyway.”

Following Maddie around the crowd ‘dancing’ in between where you were and the kitchen, you are delighted to find not only Ryujin and Chaeryeong standing around the island, but the rest of your friends, too. “You may want to check in on your roommate,” you say to Ryujin, wrapping your arms around her and resting your chin in the crook of her neck, “she’s knocked the fuck out.”

“Aw, man,” she sighs, definitely not the most sober one around either, “I told her not to smoke if she was going to drink.”

“YN, I just think it’s funny how Maddie comes and gives me a hug, yet I don’t think you’ve even said hello,” Seungmin barks at you from his stance against the sink, eyes bloodshot and frown deep. “Dude,” you laugh, making your way over to him and opening your arms wide to give him a dramatic bear hug, “please forgive me, my friend.” Swaying side to side just for the extra measure, you then pull back to cup his face in your hands. “How are you?”

“Good,” Seungmin beams, “take a sip out of Hyunjin’s cup. It’s so good.”

You step back to look at the older boy who’s too busy playing rock-paper-scissors with Felix and Jisung. “Why?”

“Trust me.”

Shrugging, you step around a shrieking Felix to snatch Hyunjin’s cup right from his hand. “Hey—”

He stops once he realizes it’s you. “Seungmin told me to,” you confess, handing it back once you’ve taken a sip. Shit, that is good. “What is that?”

“Want me to make you one?” He offers, ignoring the initial question. You nod, unable to give him a verbal answer because Felix is already yanking your hand to get your attention. “Are you high?” He asks, spinning you in a circle until you end up in the corner of the kitchen. “Yeah, a little,” you hum, watching curiously as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a chocolate bar. Leaning closer to hide it, he whispers, “Don’t have it tonight, but this is the best edible I’ve ever had. I was actually seeing different dimensions earlier.”

Laughing, you take what’s left and turn it over to inspect. Looks like chocolate. Smells like chocolate. “Alright,” grinning excitedly, you shove it into your wristlet, “thank you.” With a wide grin, he then spins on his heel to join Jeongin shouting at Jisung about something you don’t quite catch.

Smiling to Maddie across the room as Minho chats her up, you look beside you and realize with much joy you are right next to the chip bowls. Bingo. Fueled by munchies, you hop up onto the counter and dig your hand into the potato chips, listening in on Chaeryeong and Seungmin discuss what law schools they are looking into. Kudos to them for having their shit together.

“One beverage for m’lady,” Hyunjin appears next to you, proudly holding a red cup out to you. Laughing, you happily take it and take a careful sip. Definitely not as strong as his, but he can probably tell you already have a buzz. “Thank you,” you smile, finally eyeing him to see what attire he chose for the night. As discreetly and not-sexually-attracted as you can, of course.

Black button-up with a cute peach pattern tucked into black jeans and black Vans, he looks nothing short of incredible. It’s so easy for him, though; he could wear a trash bag and still look good and that really makes you angry. With soft brown hair messily parted to the side, he actually has you salivating. He’s crazy.

You definitely are not as slick with your checking-out as you thought you were, and he easily catches on. He’s tipsy, but not that tipsy. Hands coming to grip your thighs, Hyunjin pries them open just enough so he can slot in between, keeping his hands where they are. Suddenly you wish you didn’t wear jeans tonight.

“So,” he hums like he hasn’t just sent your blood pressure skyrocketing, “what did you do today?”

“I – well,” you stammer, brain actually rendered to mush as he rubs up and down your thighs, sometimes drawing way to close to the inside, sometimes brushing up to the curve of your hip. Drunk Hyunjin is always touchy, drunk Hyunjin is always touchy, you try to convince yourself. “Uh, I went shopping with Maddie and then we, um, we got milkshakes.”

“Yeah?” Hyunjin hums, completely invested in your short recall. He’s dangerous. Like, actually a danger to your life; no man should ever be equally cute as he is hot as he is sweet. Jail! “What flavor did you get?”

“Cookies and cream,” you whisper, beginning to panic now that he most certainly is leaning in closer and your brain is screaming to wrap your arms around him, “Maddie got strawberry and I got Jisung a, uh—”

“Is YN here?” Someone shouts in the middle of your sentence. Hyunjin frowns, mere inches from your face and moves his arm to slide possessively around your waist. “She’s right here,” he answers for you, turning and finding with much surprise Bang Chan twisting back around. Dear Lord. You grab your drink and guzzle half of it just to get some feeling back.

“You.” Chan beans, full dimples. He points directly at you.

“Me?”

“You.” “That would be me.”

Chan laughs heartily at this, stepping closer and Hyunjin’s fingers twitch against your side. “I need you,” Chan admits. You practically choke. “Yugyeom and Woojin think they’re the best beer pong players and I laughed in their face, so now I’ve been challenged to play vodka pong and I know with you, we can win.”

Geez, how dramatic. You wrinkle your nose at the whole vodka part, but you promised Maddie a game, so what better game to play than with the one and only Bang Chan.

“Sure,” you agree much to Hyunjin’s disappointment, “since you made it sound like such an honor. I’d be happy to.”

Grinning ear to ear, Chan waits for you to hop off the counter. “You gonna come?” You ask Hyunjin, finding his hand and giving it a squeeze. “Yeah,” he hums, seemingly annoyed and it makes you wince, “just need to get another drink and I’ll try to get everyone to come with.”

“Okay,” you smile, hoping to get one in return. And you do—except it lacks every aspect of a whole-hearted Hyunjin smile and an annoying thought bubble pops up to say that he’s jealous. Christ, if that’s the case… You can’t help but smile at the thought before releasing his hand and approaching Chan.

“I don’t think we’ve ever formally met,” he chuckles softly, hand on your back as he leads you toward the back door. “I don’t think so either,” you laugh, grateful that the mix of marijuana and alcohol in your body has left the anxiety that comes with talking to cute boys on the low, “only through Jisung and Changbin. And beer pong, I guess.”

“Definitely,” Chan laughs, nodding to Yugyeom and Woojin at the far end of the yard, “I think they were shocked when I said I was going to get you.”

“Oh, doubtful, are they?” Clinging closer to Chan, your brows raise as you near the senior and unfairly tall junior. “All bark and no bite.”

“What was that, YLN?” Yugyeom yaps, rounding up on you as if you would ever actually feel intimidated by him. “You wouldn’t switch up on your Olympics partner like that, would you?”

“Actually,” clicking your tongue, you poke him in the middle of his chest, “my Olympics partner is the whole reason we lost in the final four. So yes, I am switching up on you, unless you beat us.” Behind you, Woojin whistles, offering Chan an impressed nod. “And for you, I’ll pay double for my next order.”

“Deal,” Woojin beams, giving your hand a solid shake when you make your way over, “you win, next order is my treat.”

“Damn,” Chan frowns playfully when you return to his side, this time at your end of the table, “I guess nothing is in it for me besides my ego.” Laying your hand on his arm and giving it a comforting pat, you can’t help but laugh. “Don’t worry,” you reassure, “we’ll figure something out when the time comes.” What you mean by that, you’re not sure.

Maddie goes absolutely berserk when you and Chan both make your shots and get balls back. Felix, on the other hand, seems torn. While Woojin is his friend and weed plug, he realizes that you winning means not having to spend money for a good while. Which also means a disgruntled Woojin. When you miss your shot, you turn back to your friends who have crowded around the table, returning a thumbs-up to Jisung and Seungmin before frantically searching for Hyunjin.

You realize you are way more intoxicated than you thought when a troublesome idea pops in your head. It’s a close game, after all; two cups on your side and two on theirs. And right now, you don’t care about winning when the only thing you’re after is but a few feet away. When he manages a soft smile, just a shy quirk of his lips that has your heart doing somersaults, you really, truly think you may just confess. It’s now or never. The alcohol in your veins tells your heart and your head that you will just march right on over and kiss him, kiss him hard and kiss him long enough for him to know how you feel, and fuck, if he doesn’t understand you’ll tell him. Tell him how long you have wanted to do that and how badly you wish to do it again. How much he means to you and how you truly—

“Yes! Woojin, yes!” Yugyeom shrieks, loud enough to break you from your trance. Vodka pong. Winning. Bang Chan. He must have missed, as well as Yugyeom. But now Woojin made a cup and its one to two.

“Shit,” Chan sighs next to you, hand slipping away from your hip. It’s found its way there awhile now, you realize. “You got this,” you tell him, wincing as he downs the shot, “I’ll close my eyes. No pressure.” Covering your eyes with your hand for extra measure, it feels like an eternity goes by before something happens. And then, “Yes! Shit, YN, we got this!” Ah, shit. Now the pressure is on you. Of course, Mr. Perfect made the shot.

“Aw, man,” you huff, giving him a pained smile and rolling the cheap pong ball between your fingers. Your mind is a little fuzzy to focus on the singular cup and that alone, and your muscle coordination is certainly not at its best shape. But you think you have a good shot. You think. Sucking in a deep breath, you let the ball fly and bite your lip hard as it arches over the table, nearing the cup, hits the rim, bounces back up vertically, and… plops back into the cup.

“YN, you crazy son of a bitch!” Chan hollers, and you are momentarily blinded by joy as he wraps his arms around you and squeezes you in a tight hug, spinning in a circle and ever so gently lifting you from the ground. “You did it!”

“I – bruh,” steadying yourself against him once he sets you back down, you glance between his bright smile and a sulking Woojin as he drinks from the last cup, “we won!” Laughing, you squeeze him into a second hug because fuck yeah, winning feels nice.

“Man, good game,” Woojin sighs, making his way over to you, “I think you two are the crowned champions.”

“You had us sweating though,” Chan confesses, wiping said sweaty hands on his thighs, “that was really fun.”

“Stressful, but fun,” you agree, offering Woojin a sympathetic smile. “You don’t have to give me free weed, by the way. It was just fun setting the stakes high.”

“No! A deal is a deal,” he beams, “just text me whenever, yeah?”

“Alright,” you laugh, “whatever you say.” Finding Felix in the crowd, you grin proudly at him. Free weed for all! “You’re going to use this against me forever, aren’t you?” Yugyeom pouts, appearing in front of you. “Well,” you pause, pursing your lips at him, “as long as you don’t give me a reason to, no, I won’t. You were my pong partner at some point, right?”

“Hell yeah!” Satisfied with this, Yugyeom pats your head before wandering off, probably to go drink all his worries away.

“Well,” beside you, Chan reappears with two bottles of water, “that was pretty amazing.”

“Truly,” with an appreciative smile, you take one and down half of it, “did you hear what Woojin said? ‘Crowned champions!’ We’re a great team. Truly unstoppable.”

Chuckling, he nods in agreement, leaning against the table next to you. “You’re stuck with me now, though. Anytime I’m playing, you’re playing too. That’s just how it is now.” Laughing, you nod and hum in agreement, glancing at him briefly. “You know your paparazzi aren’t going to be happy about that.”

“My what?” Chan sputters and you quickly take another sip of water to hide your smirk.

“You know,” gesturing vaguely to the boys and girls gathered in the yard you’ve noticed send envious glares your way, “your fans. I’m sure someone out there is a gold star beer pong player waiting to play with you.” Chan scoffs, pressing closer and you would be lying if you said your heart rate didn’t pick up. “But I don’t want to play with anyone else.”

“Woah,” scrambling to get your cool, you turn to him and are shocked to find just how closer he has gotten, “how many girls have you used that line on?”

“None,” Chan admits, chuckling and you desperately want to press your finger in his dimple, “but I figured since we still have to figure out my prize for winning, I would try my luck.”

“Oh,” you hum, understanding. You turn to face him fully, heat working its way up and down your body as he reciprocates the movement, stepping closer and anchoring his hand to your hip. “Did you have anything in mind?”

“A few things,” Chan whispers, other hand coming to hold your jaw, tilting your head to meet his eyes. This is when you come to your senses.

Not even ten minutes ago were you convinced you were going to confess to Hyunjin, and here you are now, with not Hyunjin. You cannot help but pull back, frantically searching for the taller boy. Beside Yugyeom, Hyunjin is definitely one of the easier people to find. Could just be your Hyunjin tunnel vision, though. But as you look all around, to the left and to the right, behind Chan and behind yourself, you cannot find him. He’s not here to remind you where your heart truly belongs.

But yet again—why would he? Why should he stick around and watch as you are mere centimeters and seconds away from kissing someone else? Perhaps a part of you thought he would fight for you. Perhaps you were wrong for ever thinking that was a possibility.

And here you are, leaving someone waiting who has succeeded in making you forget about Hyunjin for the time being. Leaving someone waiting who is hot, and not in the sex appeal, six-pack all muscles type of hot. (Well, maybe a little of that, because you have been to enough swim meets to know what Bang Chan looks like underneath all his clothes.) But hot not just physically—he’s the whole package. Sweet, humble, and nothing like most of the guys who look the way he does.

“YN?” Chan asks, brows furrowed and concern clear in his voice at your prolonged hesitance. “Sorry,” shaking your head and making a final decision, you wrap your arms around his neck and lean in closer, “I was just thinking of where else we could go.”

Chan surprises you with the force he uses to kiss you, tongue skillfully wrapping around yours and hands hurrying to press you closer. Whimpering against his mouth, you slowly but surely lose yourself in the feeling, clawing at the fabric of his shirt and aching to have him closer. It isn’t until he has you bumping against the edge of the table you were just playing pong at do you realize where you are, certainly drawing attention in the middle of the yard with Chan’s hips rolling into yours and your hands tugging at his hair.

“Chan,” you shakily pull away, taking a necessary breath and cupping his face in your palms. This close, you realize just how beautiful he is. This close, you pray this could be the start of something new. “Somewhere else?”

Chan swallows heavily, Adam’s apple bobbing as he brushes blonde hair away from his forehead. “Yes,” soft smile greatly juxtaposing to the lust that leaves his eyes heavy-lidded, he takes your hand in his and leads you back inside, “not out here.”

Wordlessly following after him, you keep close, holding onto his hand for dear life as the desire pooling in your abdomen grows the farther he takes you into the house and finally up the stairs. “Sorry,” he mutters, maneuvering around the few people waiting to get into the bathroom, “seniors typically get the best rooms.” Opening one of the last doors further down the left corridor, Chan finally releases your hand once you have entered a very tiny, very cramped bedroom.

“I mean,” you pause, scanning the room with just a full-sized bed, black desk littered with music equipment, and dresser just barely squeezed next to a small closet. “At least you have your own room.” Humming in agreement, Chan regards his room too, wincing at his unmade bed and wires tangled in a heaping mess over his desk and onto the floor. “I wasn’t expecting to have someone over, everything’s a mess, I’m—”

“Hey,” you reach for his arm, stopping him from fixing the comforter that hangs halfway off the bed, “stop worrying. This is fine, you’re fine.” Smiling softly, Chan allows you to pull him back, stopping before you and caging you between himself and the door. “Are you sure?” He whispers, tilting your head up with a finger under your chin. “Yes,” unable to fight your smile at just how sweet he is, you finally lean up and press a quick kiss to his reddened lips. “Now please, do something.”

Chan does not hesitate, hurriedly returning to your previous business; this time, not holding back. His hands skirt down your body, one curling to cup your neck as the other slides down your spine before giving your ass a good squeeze. “Shit,” you hiss, head thudding against his door when he journeys down your neck, plump lips pressing random kisses against the soft skin before sucking a dark mark above your collarbone. When his fingers fumble against the buttons of your jeans, you offer him a hand, hurriedly popping the four open and sighing happily when he gently touches your clothed core.

“Are you sure?” Chan checks one last time, forehead pressing into yours and you nearly scream. Half because what a gentleman he is but half because every nerve is begging to be sated. “Yes,” your voice comes out more as a croak, quickly kicking your shoes off by the soles and tugging your jeans down to your knees to give him extra room.

Chan wastes no time, fingers quickly disappearing beneath the waistband of your underwear and drawing a teasing line up your slit. “Chan,” you groan, squeezing his arms at the subtle touch, “please.” Chuckling at your expense, he softly circles your clit with his thumb, reveling in the way you tremble and whimper before him.

“I’ve never been so turned on playing beer pong,” Chan admits, middle finger moving to prod against your entrance, “I kept missing my shots ‘cause all I could focus on was you.”

“Fuck,” you sigh blissfully, rolling to meet the gentle sway of his finger as it reaches deep within you, “you’re going to make be blush.” Chuckling, Chan quickly adds a second finger and makes sure to grind his palm against your clit until you are a whimpering mess. “I’m so glad we won. This would not be as enjoyable if we were doing this to make up for losing.”

“For sure,” nodding frantically, a high-pitched whine escapes your lips when he moves his fingers in a come-hither motion, brushing deliciously at that sacred bundle of nerves, “this is better than winning.” Sensing your impending orgasm with the way your walls begin to flutter around him, Chan suddenly pulls his fingers from your heat and takes the overwhelming pleasure with him.

“What are you doing?” You gasp, breathless and confused as he plops down on his bed, leaning against the wall and quickly tugging you to join him. “Want you to come on my thigh,” he grins, totally not fitting for your given circumstances, but the thought is tantalizing enough to convince you. Fully stepping from your jeans and shakily sitting over one thigh, you glance back up to him and feel a fresh wave of arousal simply from how godly he looks; cheeks flushed and eyes dark. Pressing down, it isn’t until his hands find your hips and guide a subtle back-and-forth movement do you find just how amazing it feels.

“Oh, god,” you cry, eyes squeezing shut as you rock desperately over his thigh, relishing in the way the fabric of his jeans rubs against your clothed core and directly to your clit. In the midst of such a frenzy, you make out the shape of his cock tented painfully within his pants and release your grip on his shoulder to pop open the button and slide the zipper down. “Shit, YN,” Chan sighs shakily, finally receiving the same treatment as your hand tugs the waistband of his boxers down just enough to wrap your hand around him.

“God, sorry, I’m gonna come,” biting onto your lip, you try to keep the momentum stroking his cock but with one final rut against his thigh, the pressure against your clit causes the knot within you to snap. High on the intensity of your climax, it takes a few seconds for you to come back to reality, mind swimming and limbs shaking with the aftershocks of such ecstasy.

Looking up to meet his eyes, you realize your hand has gone limp by his thigh and offer a shy smile. “Sorry,” wincing, you lean forward and press a grateful kiss to his lips, “that was like, insanely amazing.”

“I’m glad,” Chan purrs, cradling your jaw and finding himself content with just kissing you for now. Until your hand finds his still very much hard cock and brushes against the tip.

“Wait,” he stops you no matter how hard it hurts him to do so, breathing shakily as he reaches for your wrist. “I hope this isn’t going to make things complicated for you.”

“What?” You laugh in disbelief, pulling back with brows raised in confusion. “What are you talking about?” Chan frowns, helping you settle comfortably on his lap like his dick isn’t standing tall and proud between you. “You were looking for someone earlier,” he says, eyes soft with sympathy, “I hope you being here with me doesn’t mess things up.”

You scoff, truly amazed at his words. Here we go again. “I – no, it doesn’t. Well, things are already complicated. Actually,” the haze of alcohol and post-orgasm bliss suddenly clearing from your mind, you move to stand up, “never mind. This was a mistake. I should go.”

“Wait,” Chan stops you, hand softly reaching yours and tugging you back. Just the sadness in his expression alone is enough to soften your resolve. “I know we’re not best friends or anything, but you just came on my thigh. You can tell me what’s wrong. I think I deserve to know.” Well… he has a point. Swallowing past the lump in your throat, you contemplate turning away and leaving. But even if it’s not his business, he has given you something special tonight. Maybe telling someone like him will help.

“You’re right,” you sigh, quietly returning to sit beside him, “I was looking for someone. I was hoping he would be there to remind me who I’m really after, but he wasn’t. And then I realized I was wasting time. And now I’m here with you.”

Chan’s hand finds yours, thumb swiping softly against your skin. “Why didn’t you go find them?”

“Well – I… it’s not like we’re dating. It’s just a stupid crush, and I was hoping maybe he somehow feels the same, and when he saw me with you, he would get jealous… I’m sorry, this makes it look like I used you,” frantic, you struggle to find the right words, “I promise I’m not. I like you, you made me forget everything and I—”

“Hey, stop,” Chan interrupts, cupping your face so you look him in the eyes, “I didn’t think that at all. I really like you and thought maybe something could happen between us, and even after I realized you were looking for someone else, I was selfish and wanted you for myself.”

“No! Stop, please,” laughing to hide your disbelief, you squeeze his hand to assure him. “I was hopeful because you made me forget about him. But I don’t think I ever will fully forget.”

“You need to tell him, then,” Chan says, “or else you’ll never be able to move on.”

“It’s not that easy. Confessing just how much you like someone is a big deal,” you point out.

“No, it’s not,” he argues, brows furrowed, “you just told me you like me. Just do that again but to the one you really feel that way for.” Sulking, you look away, focusing on his desk’s clutter. “I guess you’re right,” sighing, you rest your head against his shoulder and squeeze your eyes shut, “but for right now, I’m with you. And you still didn’t get a prize for winning.”

Bellowing out a laugh, Chan snuggly wraps his arms around you. “Well, if I can help take your mind off things without ruining any relationships, I’d be happy to do so.” Smiling against your hair, his palm lays flat against your bare thigh and gives it a firm squeeze, bringing your attention to his slowly softening dick.

“That sounds like a great plan,” you agree, littering kisses over his neck before resituating yourself over his lap, “I’ll figure the rest out tomorrow.”

⇢ part 3

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itstittycitybaby · 4 years ago

Text

Flirty (Lin Beifong x Reader) Part 3

a/n: im pumping these out so fast. after i finish an episode i have to immediately start typing or i’ll go crazy.

“This is Azure and this is Ruby!” The two of them hopped in your palm as you held them out. “They’re prettier up close,” Opal said, grinning. Her eyes were bright today. She looked happier than last night after she ran from Lin’s room crying. You chuckled, “For the most part, until Azure pecks my face for food because he’s a dick.” Opal looked taken aback but didn’t comment on your choice of words. It was weird considering Suyin had a mouth on her when she was younger. Her and her daughter were different.

“Would you like to hold them?” She nodded. “Ruby is very shy,” you said, moving slowly with the hand Azure was on. “So she has the tendency to be more skittish and peckish. She’s sweet though, don’t worry,” you reassured Opal once you saw the nervous look on her face. “Okay,” she said softly, watching Azure stand on her palm. “He’s beautiful.”

You chuckled, “Oh he knows. The more you feed his ego, the more he thinks he’s in charge.” Opal giggled, stroking his feathers gently. An idea popped in your head. “Hey Opal?” She perked up, “Yes?” “Could you look after Azure today? I have some work to do and he can be a real pain.” Opal smiled brightly and her eyes lit up with joy. “Are... are you sure?” “Mhm,” you replied, grinning. “Just give him back after dinner.” “Okay!” With that you bid Opal and Azure a goodbye. “Whore,” you murmured to Azure as you left, ignoring your leave because of some new attention.

******

Suyin was excited about your plans. Her husband looked over them and praised your new pitch for the tram station. “Hey Suyin,” you said, after her husband left. Suyin hummed while pouring the two of you wine in a couple glasses. “Mind if I ask you something?” She nodded, handing you a glass before sitting down. You sat across from her, legs clamped together nervously. You fiddled with the glass in your hand. “I’m not sure how to ask this..since I haven’t seen you in well, forever.” “Nonsense (Y/N),” Suyin waved you off, “We’re family! I’ll answer any question you have.” “Thanks,” you responded, genuinely. She’d always been so welcoming and kind. The Beifongs were the only family you had. You regretted not staying in contact with at least Su.

“Whenever I was in the village..there was some gossip.” Suyin’s brow quirked as she took a sip of her wine. You sighed, brows pulling together and a soft frown on your face. “I don’t really listen to shitty rumors but it’s been so long I couldn’t help but think.. was there something that happened? Between you and Lin..?”

Suyin looked surprised. She tapped her finger on the wineglass as she pondered. The ring on her finger “Sister drama, you know how it is. Nothing happened. Lin is just so bitter and won’t let go of the past. You know that better than anyone.” You frowned at her words. Suyin wasn’t wrong but..she made Lin sound totally heartless. “I just wanted to make sure. She’s been so...angry since I’ve gotten here. I know I probably have a part in that but..I’m just..worried.”

Suyin leaned over and squeezed your hand. Her smile didn’t seem to reach her eyes. “It’s alright (Y/N). Just give her some time. I can see she cares about you. Not that she’ll admit it.” You chuckled, a grin splitting your face. “Really?” Suyin looked amused at your enthusiasm. You really were a child even from how much time passed. “I promise. Now, why don’t we catch up. I haven’t seen you in what, thirty years?” You nodded, taking a gulp of your wine. As Suyin filled you in about her life you couldn’t help but feel, that she was lying. Your instincts screamed at you that there was more going on than she led you to believe. She wasn’t telling you everything. But she had been so kind and comforting to you since you’ve got here. Surely Suyin wouldn’t lie to you. She was your friend, the one who listened to your ranting after a fight with Lin. Su let you cry on her shoulder once your parents kicked you out and offered for you to share her room. Yet, as much as you tried reassuring yourself, your gut kept screaming.

*****

Lin touched her scar gently. The memories and the emotions she had tried so hard to repress and forget, were now bubbling back onto the surface. Toph had allowed Suyin to walk all over her. She gotta away with anything while Lin busted her ass trying to impress her mother. The price gave Lin a scar that mocked her everyday. It was disgusting to know that Suyin had been let go scotch free and still hadn’t given an apology.

The needles had done its damn job alright. Lin was reminded of her failure of being the perfect daughter. No matter how hard she tried, Top didn’t seem to care. Was she really that unloveable? Could she even have someone want her? Lin huffed as she limped from the acupuncturist’s office to find Suyin. Her hand trembled from anger and the rocks shifted underneath her feet. It was getting bad again. Except this time she didn’t have her work or whiskey to drown herself in. Beads of sweat rolled off of her face and back. Lin ignored the acupuncturist’s qualms of resting and hurried to find Suyin. She was going to end this once and for all.

*****

Lin dodged the metal sculpture thrown her way. It missed her, barely. Lin raised some rocks from the ground and unleashed them onto Suyin. She couldn’t help but smirk when one of them hit her. Her sister retaliated by hurling metal plates towards her. Lin dodged all of them except for the last one. The impact made her tumble. Another boulder was thrown in Lin’s direction, but she rolled fast enough. She was getting slower and more sluggish. Her head felt hazy but she brushed it off. ‘Now’s not the time.’

Getting into a fighting stance she anticipated her sister’s next move. Lin lifted another boulder. It wobbled in the air but she still flung it toward Suyin. “Getting tired,” Suyin taunted. “Barely,” Lin barked. Suyin flung her fingers and bended the metal wall around her as a shield. The boulder broke from hitting the metal as soon as her sister warped it. “I wonder Lin,” Suyin yelled, face tugging into an ugly smirk. “If this was the reason Tenzin left you. No wonder (Y/N) left to travel the world. They couldn’t handle a bitter woman like you.”

Lin’s jaw clenched in anger. Her teeth ground together and her hands trembled. She felt hot in her chest and the blood inside of her veins prickled. Lin raised a leftover metal plane on the ground. “That’s enough!” Lin snapped her head over to the new voice. The metal plate clattered onto the ground. (Y/N). There was a wooden staff in your hands. You twirled it in front of you, fighting off the tiny sharp rocks Suyin hurled over. Your arms trembled, eyes hushed with angry tears. You shook with rage from the mess in front of you. Lin stiffened; for once in her life she was afraid. Afraid of what you might say or do. Lin finally had you within her fingertips. Were you going to slip away again?

“I left on my own terms,” you growled. “How dare you use that against Lin.” The staff twirled effortlessly in your fingers. Lin was frozen in her spot. All she could do was watch you and your bird flit around you. “You’re a coward Suyin,” you gritted out, “A fucking weasel. What did you do Suyin? Don’t you think you’ve done enough?! ” Korra and Bolin gawked from the sidelines, witnessing unfolding between the two of them.

Suyin’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t say anything. Su’s eyes calculated the situation. Using her sister’s fear to her advantage, she flung the metal wall hard enough that Lin was sent sprawling. “Lin,” you cried out. She flew towards the courtyard and her back hit the fountain’s stairs. Lin growled, rising up again. Her stance wobbled from the force. Little black spots formed in her vision. Shaking out of it, Lin raised her fists, preparing for the next hit. Suyin walked calmy, crossing the bridge. “Are you done,” she asked, sounding bored. “Not yet,” Lin snarled.

You glided into the air. Your paraglider soared you towards the two of them. A group of Suyin’s people spectated the fight. The tips of your feet touched the ground beneath you. Rolling, you folded your paraglider away. You jumped on your feet and facing Lin. “Move out of the way,” she snapped at you. “No,” you replied stubbornly. Lin created metal shards with her fingers. You grabbed your staff from your back, preparing for the onslaught to come. The shards sliced the air and they raced towards you. The staff moved in a tan blur as you twirled it with rapid speed, flinging some of the sharp metal away from you. They made a thunk, as it pierced into the wood. Once the metal stopped racing towards you that’s when the adrenaline died down. Your temple seared with pain and felt warm and sticky. You hissed, fingertips touching the wound. It stung like hell. You were bleeding. Your hand flung up to your nose. It throbbed from the blood coming out of your nostrils. Lin felt her heart shatter. You looked up to her with disbelief. She didn’t mean to hurt you, she didn’t mean to-

“Look what you’ve done Lin,” Suyin taunted, raising a boulder. “All you’re good for is hurting people. Especially the ones you care about.”

Suyin flung the boulder. Ruby started fluttering her wings, her cries piercing your ears. The pain in your temple worsened more thanks to her screeching. Ruby flew away from your shoulder to safety. Turning around, you shifted yourself in front of Lin. “Move,” she shouted. You ignored her, pressing your fingers into your palm. An orange shield burst out from your palms and surrounded the two of you. Lin gasped softly. Son of a bitch actually did it. You stood in front of her determined. The orange bubble was see through like an orange stained glass window. Your stretched your hands and fingers out in front of you. As soon as the shield popped up, Suyin’s boulder hit with a sickening crack. You cried out, straining to hold it up. A searing pain erupted through you. It felt like your soul was splitting in two. “It’s hurting you,” Lin cried.

Suddenly, a flash of green jumped on the bridge between you and Suyin. Opal. Air pushed out of her hands. “Fuck,” you shouted, shield starting to crack. “You’re both sisters,” Opal cried, “Why are you hurting each other?!” Her words fell on deaf ears. Lin was focused on how your body swayed, struggling to keep itself up. Lin yelled, “(Y/N), stop. This isn’t about you! Save yourself!” The shield shattered. Orange shards flew into the air and dissolved into nothing. You whimpered, tumbling to the ground. Lin’s heart tugged at your soft cries. Ruby flew to you immediately, shrieking. Lin hobbled over and panted. The red parakeet’s high shrieks made her ears hurt. Her vision started to fade. She felt weak. She was hopeless to do anything. Lin’s feet fell under her. She stretched her hand out, trying to reach you. You were too far. The last thing she saw was your unmoving form, curled in on itself.

#legend of korra #legend of korra fanfic #legend of korra x reader #lin beifong x reader #lin beifong #flirty series #x reader #reader insert #fanfiction #fan fic

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gravelyhumerus · 4 years ago

Text

Criminal Minds College AU - Chapter 7

Title: “I may just take your breath away”

Relationship: Jemily

Summary:

Hallowe’en chaos.

Slow-burn Jemily college AU where they live across the hall and despite all odds, the universe pushes them together. AKA they’re silly gay babies who pine after each other for months.

Read it on AO3

Tumblr: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, (bonus scene), Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Epilogue

After trivia night, Emily Prentiss found her world had shifted slightly.

For the first time in her life, she had a friend group: a consistent presence of not only just Derek and the occasional Hotch, but also Spencer Reid, Penelope Garcia and most importantly, Jennifer Jareau.

Emily noticed it most in the dining hall. Most mornings this semester, she would grab coffee and maybe an apple on her way to class. Now, she was invited to breakfast in the caf. And everyone was also invited, so the six of them began eating not only breakfasts together when their schedules lined up, but soon that melded to include dinners and the odd lunch between classes. While Penelope initiated at the beginning, soon this became a routine.

While they were all busy, and driven people, all with full course loads, extracurriculars and miscellaneous commitments, they managed to get the whole team together multiple times that week.

A few times, extra faces joined them. Penelope’s friend from class, Kevin… something, joined for a lunch on Wednesday. He sat shyly as Derek stared him down the entire time. On Thursday, somehow Hotch convinced their Criminology TA, David Rossi, who was part time Masters Student and part time weed dealer, to have lunch with the bribe of them using their guest pass so he could get a free meal. He reluctantly acquiesced, but seemed to enjoy himself. On Friday, the day before Halloween, Emily brought Tara Lewis, the MC from the Trivia night that was two years ahead of her in criminology, they ran into each other in the quad, recognizing each other. This open door policy made these dinners fun, with new faces alongside their team.

This was all new for Emily. Not having friends, that is, because Emily could always muddle along with some friends, and when she was younger she shaped herself easily into whatever the popular kids wanted her to be. No, it was new because it was so easy. The team, as they now called themselves as a shorthand, had fallen together so effortlessly.

Today was Halloween and they had plans at Dave’s student house, the shabby place that she had ran into JJ, Penelope and Spencer all that time ago. Had it only been a month? She felt like she had known them all for lifetimes by now.

It happened that way with Derek last year, the whole living together thing sped up that connection. Intimacy comes fast when you brush your teeth next to someone.

Emily was sitting at her desk, finishing up her makeup. She was aiming for a vampire, which wasn’t hard given her previous fashion aesthetic.

Yes, Emily did have a goth phase. She will admit it. Not to her new friends just yet, and Derek had been sworn to secrecy. She was now a much more toned down goth, more alt than goth, wearing mostly black but significantly less chains and make up.

Tonight, she wore her fishnets, a short black dress and a cape that was already tied around her shoulders. She had put a slightly too pale foundation on her face, down her neck, and was currently working on her eye liner. She carefully created elegant swoops over her lashes, coming to sharp points.

Next, she added a deep red lipstick. Blood red. It was all very spooky.

Finally, she struggled to test out the fake teeth insert that she had ordered online, slipping it over her top teeth. It fit surprisingly well.

“Happy Halloween,” she said to herself, testing out whether or not she had a lisp. She did. She didn’t care. It was perfect.

Emily did a couple of spins in the mirror on the back of the door. Turning off the overhead light, she looked at herself in the glowing light of her string lights.

She was satisfied. She looked like a hot vampire.

She grabbed her tote bag, which was filled with six miscellaneous beers and coolers that she had leftover from the last few weeks, knowing that she hated the cheap hoppy beer that Rossi would have at his party.

Emily was picky about her alcohol.

She glanced out the window, considering taking an extra layer. It was dreary outside, with the sky an eerie green and powerful gusts of wind rattling the window. Emily grabbed her leather jacket.

Hoisting her bag onto her shoulder and draping her coat over her arm, Emily peeked out of her door, looking out into the hall. In both directions were students in costume; she spotted a Frankenstein, a couple of cats and even someone dressed up in an inflatable t-Rex suit.

She made sure her door was locked and then walked down the hall to Derek’s room, who was at the very end of the hall, as he had lucked out and got a massive room with lots of windows, across from the showers.

She opened the door, finding just about all of their friends already there, sneakily drinking out of mugs, cups and water bottles.

Reid was a zombie, wearing tattered, bloody clothes and a full face of makeup that Emily assumed that Penelope did for him. Sitting next to his computer, queueing music for their pre, was Derek, dressed in a baseball jersey and hat, apparently as a baseball player. This was expected, he wasn’t big on Halloween. Hotch was… a devil? He wore all black and simply had devil horns on his head. Low commitment but the spirit was there.

Emily hoisted herself onto Derek’s bed and greeted her friends.

Spencer was sneaking up behind Derek, peeking his head over his shoulder. Derek, at that moment, seemed to be texting, squinting down at his phone.

“I’m going to eat you!” Spencer yelled into Derek’s ear, causing the larger man to jump to his feet, swatting at the boy in his fright.

Emily laughed at her friend’s distress. He really didn’t like Halloween that much.

“Are you ready for a spooktacular evening?” Spence asked, making his voice wobbly as he put on a dramatic effect. He shone an orange, pumpkin patterned flashlight under his chin.

“Of course,” Emily lisped, “In fact, I vant to drink your blood!”

She lunged forward, and Spencer hid from her behind Derek. It was silly but she could tell how much he liked Halloween, he had talked about it all week, and she couldn’t help but adopt a lispy vampire voice to go with her costume. Though the boy was only two year younger than them, his thin frame and wide eyed expression made him seem much younger.

“Your teeth are excellent,” Spencer pointed out, “Very realistic.”

“I don’t get the hype about Halloween,” Derek said, “Disguises? Pass. Horror movies? No thank you.”

“Booooooo,” Emily protested, “Don’t be a buzzkill, Morgan. Let us have a little fun.”

The door opened again, and Penelope, followed by JJ, joined them.

“Is my statuesque god of sculpted chocolate thunder being lame again?”

“He barely dressed up,” Emily complained.

“Neither did Hotch!” Derek said, gesturing to Hotch’s devil horns.

“Hey, at least I bought these at the party store,” Hotch said, “I’m sure both of those are items from your own closet.”

Derek did not confirm or deny this. Emily knew he wore the same get up last year.

“So when should we be there?” JJ asked.

She was dressed as a witch, with an oversized pointy hat perched on top of her head, her blonde hair falling around her shoulders in perfect curls. She wore a purple dress and tall boots to go with her witch look. She and Penelope joined Spencer on the floor, sitting with their backs to Derek’s closet and cracking open a beer for JJ and a fruity cooler for Penelope.

With large wings, glittery make up and an adorable skirt, Penelope was clearly dressed up as a fairy, which was entirely apropos to who she was as a person. In fact, it was not entirely dissimilar from her normal outfits.

“Rossi said to come by eight,” Hotch said, “So in party talk he means nine-thirty earliest.”

“It’s, what?” Derek checked the time on his laptop, “Eight fifteen now, so we can pre here for an hour or so then start walking over.”

“Yeah,” Hotch said, “His house is just off campus.”

“The weather is crazy out,” Penelope said, looking out the window. The trees were swaying and the leaves were blowing everywhere.

“We could take a cab?” Emily offered, “I’d rather avoid getting leaves in my hair tonight.”

There were some nods, then they got back to preing, playing a few rounds of King’s Cup to ensure that all of them were sufficiently drunk before they left.

Morgan put on his new playlist, not “For The Boys (and emily)” this time, but one titled “Team Vibez” that Emily had seen him make during their lecture on Thursday. It had a lot of his normal songs, some top hits, but a few fun pop songs that Emily knew he added for Penelope, and even some classic rock for Hotch.

At this point, Emily was feeling buzzed. She had two cans discarded in the bin, both hosting lipstick prints from her dark red vampire lips.

JJ was currently chatting with Hotch about some student government scandal that was happening at the time. While politics gave Emily the heebie jeebies, she had reluctantly joined the Criminology Academic Society. It would give her a leg up on grad school applications, for one, and so far, even as a low-level member, she found she was actually making a difference for her classmates. This meant that Emily, despite her deepest urges to not touch political scandals with a ten foot pole, knew exactly what they were talking about.

As the two discussed the student politicians—there were some minor accusations of nepotism, embezzlement and coverups by the undergraduate executive—Emily looked at JJ. Her brows were furrowed in concentration and she was gesturing wildly with her hands as she talked about how badly they were handling their crisis communications.

Suddenly, interrupting this discussion, their phones blasted out a siren, followed by a chorus of the same robot voice announcing an emergency alert.

“National Weather Service: TORNADO WARNING in this area until 10:15PM EST,” the robot announced, “Take shelter now in a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building.”

They looked at Derek’s three, large windows, and watched as large gusts of wind sent leaves barrelling down the street.

“If you are outdoors, in a mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from flying debris,” it continued. “Check media.”

Then, their phones went silent and Derek’s music continued unheeded.

“A tornado?!” Penelope said, “Here?”

The window rattled. Derek stood up and hesitantly moved away from it.

Penelope grabbed Derek’s computer, her hands moving in a flurry.

“Ok so,” she began, “from what I can gather from the good old Internet, we’re in a region of extreme winds and the meteorologists are thinking that funnel clouds and tornados are possible this evening.”

“So much for Halloween,” Spencer whined.

“Party is definitely off,” Hotch said. “We should probably take shelter. Is there a basement here?”

“There’s the laundry room?” Emily said.

Adrenaline started pulsing through her veins. She’d been through some severe weather before in her life but never a tornado, nor did she expect one. They were in the north east, nowhere near tornado Alley.

They all stood, making a move for the basement, when the lights flickered once, twice, then shut off entirely. Rain begin to fall down, hard onto the windows, and the boom of thunder filled their ears.

“Shit,” Emily said. “Anyone have a candle?”

---

Ten minutes later, the six of them were seated in a circle, on the strange carpeted floor of the laundry room, with the severe weather making the wind howl outside. Between JJ’s two candles, which were very against the rules, and Derek’s laptop screen, they had enough ambient light to see, but it was all very spooky.

The room smelled damp and earthy, with a strange combination of laundry soaps and dryer sheets. They had to move a spare sock to form a circle around the candle. It looked very much like a séance, so that did fit the Halloween spirit.

“Well,” Hotch said, “At least this is festive.”

Derek was still queuing his music, filling the silence with his DJ skills.

“Aren’t you worried about your battery life?” JJ asked, “What if the power doesn’t come on in the morning.”

“Then I have a great excuse not to finish my essay,” Derek said with a shrug.

“Fair point.”

“Anyways,” Derek continued, “No sense giving up on our party. We have drinks, we have music and thanks to JJ we have illegal candles.”

“They’re not illegal!” She protested, “Simply very against res rules! I like lighting a candle while I study.”

“It’s lucky that there was no one left in res because of Halloween,” Emily said. “Or we would've had a bunch of party crashers.”

“This is better,” Penelope, “Team bonding!”

“What should we play?” Hotch said, “we don’t really have much to work with.”

“This is all very high school,” Penelope said, “A couple of kids, in a basement, sitting in a circle on the floor…”

“With a tornado tearing through our city…” Emily quipped.

“Statistically speaking for this region we are more likely to experience dangerous winds rather than an actual tornado. Worst case is that fallen tree branches hit power lines, or fall onto houses or cars.”

“So you’re saying that we’re in the worst case scenario right now?” Hotch said.

“Yup.”

Hotch frowned.

“How about we play truth or dare?” Penelope changed the subject.

“I’m down,” Emily said, surprising herself. “If everyone else is.”

“I’ve never played!” Spencer said.

“Never?” JJ asked. “Not at any sleepovers.”

“I didn’t get invited to many sleepovers.”

“Neither did I,” Emily admitted, “Some parties I went to played it too.”

JJ looked at her, there was a brief look of sympathy, and then understanding on her face. Emily made note of that.

“I guess we’re playing,” Hotch murmured.

“Derek,” Penelope purred, “Mon cher, truth or dare?”

“Truth,” he said defiantly, bracing himself with a swig of whatever was in his water bottle.

“Who is the prettiest fairy in the basement?”

“You, of course,” he replied with a wink.

“Gross!” Emily exclaimed, “Truth or dare is not for flirting. Hotch: truth or dare?”

“Dare,” he said with a quirk of his eyebrow.

“Show us the… most embarrassing photo of you on your phone.”

He frowned.

“I don’t take many photos.”

“Try,” Emily urged with a laugh.

He fumbled in his pockets, grabbing his phone and scrolling through his photo album for a few minutes.

“It’s from high school,” Hotch said with a sigh. “I was in a play.”

He held up a photo of him in a pirates outfit, he looked smaller, younger than he did now. His hair was shaggy and his face rounder. He was pointing the sword at the camera.

“Who’s the girl?” JJ asked.

“My girlfriend Hayley,” Hotch said, “we’re long distance now. I joined the play to get close to her and it seems to have worked.”

“That’s not embarrassing,” Penelope said, “that’s adorable. Try again.”

“Oh I have one!” Emily said, pulling up her Snapchat memories. She had a photo of him conked out in a lecture last year. His mouth was open and his head conked back, fast asleep in a dimly lit lecture hall. Emily had taken a series of these photos before waking him up.

“Now that’s what i'm talking about,” Derek said.

“How can you fall asleep during lecture?” Spencer asked in horror.

Hotch shrugged.

“I was tired, we had a game the night before,” Hotch said. “Morgan: Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I don’t know any dares,” Hotch looked around for help.

“He could play the tinder game?” Emily said.

“What tinder game?”

“Oh that’s a good one,” JJ said, “Derek opens tinder and we randomly tell him which way to swipe and see who he matches with.”

Derek groaned. Opening the app and placing it down onto the carpet.

“Right!” JJ said to start.

A match.

“Left?” Hotch said, it came out more like a question.

“Right,” Emily said. Another match.

Left, right, left, right. New message from a recent match, left, right, right, right, right. Derek looked on in horror.

“Ok I think he’s had enough,” Emily said with a laugh.

“Derek it’s your turn,” Penelope said.

Derek sighs in relief.

“Uhhh, Pretty Boy,” he turned to Reid. Thinking for a moment. “Have you ever smoked before?”

“Smoked what? Cannabis, tobacco? Something else. Be specific.”

Emily’s jaw dropped.

“I dunno man,” Derek said, “I was talking about weed but go off.”

“I have.”

“How?” JJ said, “You’re like sixteen! I haven’t even smoked weed.”

“Me neither,” Penelope said, sounding outright disappointed.

“I believe it,” Hotch said. “He has a Juul.”

“Seventeen now,” Spencer said. “Kids in my first degree found it funny when I performed actions that they deemed mature for my young age.

“What?” Penelope said. “But you were sixteen last week.”

“It was my birthday on Wednesday,” he said.

“And we missed it?” JJ asked.

Emily decided not to inform them that her birthday had been a few weeks back as well.

“It’s no big deal,” Spencer said, “I don’t really do birthdays.”

“Well I do birthdays!” Penelope said, “and you’re getting one.”

Emily could see the gears turning in Penelope’s head.

“Wait you haven’t smoked weed?” Emily said. She didn’t mean to sound so surprised, but hell, it was college.

“I’ve never been offered,” Penelope said with a shrug.

“You have a Juul, Spence?” JJ said.

He shrugged.

“Anyways,” Derek said with a laugh. “Reid it’s your turn to ask.”

And the game continued roughly the same for a few more rounds, with some truths, some dares, a lot of drinking and a fair amount of laughter.

Emily learned that JJ likes some angry rock music when she’s upset, that Penelope has committed several federal crimes, that Reid used to coach basketball in high school, that Derek has been posing nude for art classes on campus for extra cash, and that Hotch has never successfully completed a word search in his life.

The dares were limited, because frankly they were basically hiding out in a basement during what might actually be a tornado. Emily was dared to do an impression of Hotch, which wasn’t good and involved a lot of eyebrows and frowning. After, JJ was forced to leave her snapchat at Garcia’s mercy for the entire night. Other dares involved dancing, attempting gymnastics, and seeing whether or not Reid fit into the dryer. He did.

The game finally had played out when it was Hotch’s turn again to ask.

“JJ, what’s your greatest fear?” Hotch asked.

“Mr. Serious over here,” Derek said with a whistle.

“Probably the woods,” JJ replied.

“Why?” Spencer asked, tilting his head.

JJ grabbed a candle, holding it under her chin much like Reid did earlier.

“I used to be a camp counselor, when I was a teenager. In the woods up in Vermont.”

She leaned forward. Emily didn’t know she worked at a camp. It made sense. She pictured her in a camp t-shirt making a bracelet. It suited her.

“I had the night shift. I tucked the girls in, turned off the lights. The typical drill. Everything seemed fine; all the kids were asleep. You know, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.”

Another dramatic pause, both Spencer and Derek had leaned in, invested in the story.

“Until I noticed there was some blood, on the hallway floor. So, I followed the blood trail out to the camp director’s cabin, walked up to his bed and he was just lying there, underneath his covers. Dead!”

Penelope gasped. The room was silent.

“Someone stabbed him. I ran out of there so fast, out the door, down the hall. I just remember it… being really dark. Once I got to the door, there was another counselor there. I guess she heard me scream.”

JJ set the candle down, looking at the flame flicker. This couldn’t be real, Emily thought, this had to be a joke.

“They caught the caretaker on his way to town, I guess he still had the knife on him.”

“Anyway, I guess that’s probably when I decided I didn’t like the woods.”

“You’re serious?!” Derek demanded.

“No!” JJ said with a laugh. “You bought that! I’m kidding!”

“So are you afraid of the woods?” Emily asked.

“Yeah,” JJ said, “They’re spooky I don’t know.”

They all laughed at that.

Emily glanced at her phone; they had been down here for almost two hours. According to Penelope’s intermittent checks on the status of the extreme weather, most of the city was experiencing black outs, but there was no sign of an actual tornado. They were still supposed to take shelter for the next hour or so, just in case.

In this time, Emily was close to five drinks in, with only one left in the basement. A growing pile of empties had built up around them, and Hotch had pulled out a small bottle of whiskey in addition to his beer, passing it around the circle. Having recently turned 17, the group had officially decided to give Spencer a beer, which he nursed slowly, wincing at the bitter taste.

“Emily,” JJ turned to her and looked mischievous. “Truth or dare?”

She felt her heart flutter.

“Truth.”

“Hmmm…” JJ said, “Where was the weirdest place you’ve ever had sex?”

Emily found herself blushing at the memory.

“Oh god,” Emily buried her face in her hands. “IHOP parking lot.”

“What?”

Emily nodded, downing the last of her beer.

“No further questions,” she proclaimed as she opened her next drink.

“I think that should conclude Truth or Dare,” Penelope said, “It’s time for another sleepover classic, since some of you are sleepover virgins.”

She grabbed Derek’s water bottle, plopping it down onto the carpet and spun it.

“Spin the bottle!”

Emily went pale. What was Penelope doing? She stared into her drunk, not daring to look at anyone else.

“That doesn’t seem very sanitary,” Spencer said.

“Boo,” Penelope, “You’re no fun. It’s a classic! And we’re all friends, it’ll be fun. Hotch you spin first.”

He looked horrified, but took the bottle. There was no getting in the way of Penelope Garcia’s will.

“The rules are simply: kiss or you have to finish your drink?,” Penelope said, “Got it?

Hotch nodded, he spun the bottle. It went around the circle, once, twice, three times, then landed clearly on himself.

“How do I kiss myself?” he said, deadpan.

“Drink!” Emily told him. He downed his last beer.

Derek spun next, rubbing his hands together nervously as it went around and around. It landed on Penelope.

“Come here, chocolate thunder!”

Derek took his baseball cap off, turning it backwards. Penelope pulled his shirt towards her, tugging on him as their lips met. They both closed their eyes, she could hear JJ giggle at the sight.

“Was that the only reason we’re playing this?” Spencer asked, “So that you could kiss Morgan?”

“Maybe?” Penelope, “What’s it to you, boy-genius!”

He put his hands up in surrender, it was his turn.

He spun the bottle awkwardly, so that it rocked back and forth in addition to spinning. It went around once before landing on JJ.

Emily wasn’t sure what to think about that. On one hand, he was just a kid and the kiss wouldn't be anything, but on the other hand, Emily was jealous that she didn’t get a kiss.

“Come here, Spence!” JJ said, making a grabbing motion at the boy and laughing.

He leaned in with his eyes closed, Emily wouldn’t be surprised if he told them he hadn’t done even this before. JJ put a hand on his face, turned it gently, and gave him a peck on the cheek.

Derek clapped him on the back and made a comment about it being ‘pretty boy’s first kiss,’ and Reid simply sat and blushed as he busied himself with drinking some of his beer.

Emily’s turn. She tried not to cross her fingers and pray for JJ, but it happened anyways. It landed on Derek. Emily sighed dramatically.

“Ewwww,” Emily mock protested.

“Come on, princess,” Derek jeered, “You know you want some of this!”

He lifted his t-shirt up and rubbed his hands down his abs.

“Put that away sir!” she covered her eyes.

“Oh come here,” she said, leaning in. They kissed on the lips with a loud ‘mwah!’ noise.

“That was cute,” Hotch commented.

Emily fake gagged, while Morgan tried to wipe her red lipstick off him.

Last was JJ in the circle. She spun it casually. Emily tried to read her facial expression, wondering if JJ, too, wanted it to land on Emily.

See, Emily was starting to believe that JJ liked her back. She was single, and for all Emily knew, she was straight, but the more Emily got to know her, she got queer vibes. She played soccer! Her nails were short and-

Emily couldn’t think of any other things that moment, as she was currently freaking out about the spin the bottle situation that was presently unfolding.

The moment in the bathroom, Emily thought, that was something! The way she looked at Emily… she was sure that she felt JJ’s eyes on her linger.

The bottle landed on Emily. They had to kiss. It was part of the game.

Holy shit.

Penelope squealed and Emily could feel the entire room's eyes on her, except JJ whose eyes were on the ground.

Emily could hear her heartbeat. She desperately wanted to kiss JJ but did she want to under these circumstances? For a dare?

JJ looked at her. Blue eyes staring into brown. She could hear her blood rushing in her ears. She found herself leaning forward, only slightly. JJ did the same. Her lips parted, her eyes hungry.

Emily shifted forward, she sat with her legs tucked under her, bracing herself with her arms. JJ was cross legged, her arms free to grab at her face. JJ’s hands tugged her forward.

Their lips met.

It was uncertain, chaste, soft. Then, JJ’s hands pulled her closer. They were pressed together, heads tilting so that their noses didn’t bump.

Jennifer Jareau was kissing her. They were kissing!

Emily’s brain short circuited. JJ filled her senses; the blonde’s vanilla perfume and soft lips and the taste of alcohol on her tongue.

Oh god, her tongue.

Emily did not want it to end. Their mouths opened and their tongues slid against each other, feeling so perfect and sending Emily’s blood racing away from her face and noticeably south.

JJ was incredibly hot and Emily desperately wanted to do more than kiss her. Or kiss her like this forever. Her ams were caressing her cheek and tangled in Emily’s hair, pulling her closer.

The lights flickered on; they had power, again. JJ pulled away from her, sharply.

Emily sat back, sitting up straight. The room was luckily too distracted by the lights to notice how out of breath Emily was. Or that they probably shouldn’t have passionately made out on a dare.

JJ wouldn’t meet her eye, but Emily could see her own lipstick on the other girl’s lips. Emily blinked at the bright light, started by the sudden return of the electricity after she had become accustomed to the dim light of the candle.

“What impressive timing,” Spencer murmured.

Taking the lights as a good sign, Penelope checked on the emergency alert. It was over and they were safe to go back upstairs. She found out that a few downed trees were the cause of the outage and there was never an actual tornado. No one was hurt but there was a bit of property damage throughout the city.

Without the atmosphere of the candle light, and the likelihood of a RA doing a check of the building, they decided that that was the end of their party. They gathered up their empties, and blew out the candles.

As they finished up cleaning, all making sure not to leave any trace of their illicit affairs, Emily tried to quell her racing heart and blushing face, completely unable to look anyone in the eye.

The door opened, their RA was there. Erin Strauss. She was a hardass.

“What are you all doing down here?” she demanded.

They all stood, stock still, jaws dropped, smelling of alcohol and clutching clinking tote bags.

“Erin,” Emily said, trying to sound as sober as possible despite the five plus drinks in her system, “We were simply following the directions on the emergency alert.”

“Yes! It said to seek shelter from the storm and the basement seemed the best for that,” Penelope said.

“Uhuh,” Erin said, “What’s in the bag?”

The bag clinked.

“Oh just some garbage,” Emily said, lying through her teeth. “We had some snacks.”

“Sure,” Erin said, not believing them.

Emily tried not to sway, but did not feel steady on her feet. She wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or her recent kiss with JJ.

For a second, Emily was sure that their RA would bust their asses, but the girl simply sighed and told them to go to bed, muttering about how dealing with non-existent tornadoes wasn't part of her job.

The six of them scurried upstairs, all freaked out about their near-miss with a write-up.

Reid disappeared up to his room, then JJ and Penelope walked down the hall to their’s. Emily slipped into Derek’s avoiding Erin Strauss’ watchful eye, helping Derek steady a very drunk Hotch.

Hotch, who had probably had a little too much of that whiskey, stumbled into Derek’s room and decided to sleep on the floor. Emily placed a water bottle next to him, and placed him in recovery position, glad for the distraction from the blush that refused to leave her face or the lingering taste of JJ on her lips.

She walked slowly down the hall back to her own room, the events of that evening playing back in her mind. She threw herself onto her bed, dazed by her situation.

Emily fell asleep with vampire make up still on her face that night.

#criminal minds #cm #criminal minds tv #jemily #emily prentiss #jennifer jareau #gravelyhumerus cm college au #prentiss x jj #jemily cm #fanfiction #fanfic #criminal minds fic #my post #my writing #this is such a chaotic chapter!!!#enjoy!!!!

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brandyllyn · 4 years ago

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In our own image... (01)

Chapter 1

(Poe Dameron x OFC)

Other chapters... My Masterlist

Word count: 2200. Read it on AO3.

Rating: Teen & Up (PG) language.

Poe Dameron, Commander in the Resistance Army, hands down the best pilot in the fleet, hero of D’Qar, and one sexy guy - although admittedly that one might be just in his own head - was having a shit day.

It started when he fell out of his hammock that morning. He fell out every morning, but this morning was especially bad because he had somehow missed putting his foot down correctly to catch his fall and whacked his head on his table on the way down. Despite having strung up his hammock in a private little stand of trees, canvas tarps providing a roof from the rain and some additional privacy, he still cursed loudly enough to wake up several people nearby. Which on its own wouldn’t have been that bad either except one of them was Snap which meant Poe was never going to hear the end of it.

It had been downhill from there. Breakfast was leftover rations from the night before. There were no flight maneuvers on his schedule today, just endless strategy meetings. No mission in sight to get him out of this jungle either.

And they were running low on caf - so low the pots were being brewed less than half strength, weak and watery. Barely worth drinking even though he savored what little jump he could get from the murky beverage.

By the time lunch came around Poe was ready to throw in the towel. The day was not going to get better and to top it off, BB-8 was mad at him. They’d been arguing for nearly ten minutes while Poe was trying to eat lunch. A few other people had come and tried to make conversation but Poe’s bickering with BB-8 had made most of them quickly move on to other tables.

"Come on buddy," Poe pleaded with his droid. "I’m sorry, I know you don’t like it. But I can’t fix it right now either." BB-8 beeped at him with exasperation, ending on a trilling note that Poe would have called insubordinate if it hadn’t been paired with a sad whistle. "I know, I know. The moment I can get somewhere that sells the tools I need we’ll fix it I promise."

"What’s up with Beebs?" Jessika Pava asked, sitting down at the table next to Poe and clutching a mug of tea. Poe eyed the beverage dubiously. Last he heard they were on their third or fourth use of tea leaves and her drink didn’t look much better than his caf had that morning. But if the Black Squadron pilot wanted to pretend she was holding more than the dregs of what used to be tea he wasn’t going to say anything about it.

"Someone pushed him down a cliff and now he’s got sand in his circuits," Poe replied, eyes carefully avoiding the man sitting across from him.

Finn heard him anyway. Obviously. He was sitting less than two feet away, he couldn’t help but hear Poe. "I’m not the one who got us crashed on the sand dunes."

"I’m not the one who-" Poe started but was cut off by a mournful whistle from BB-8. He sighed, "I know buddy, we’re both really sorry."

"Real sorry Beebs," Finn echoed, rocking the droid affectionately with his foot.

Pava snorted, hiding a smile behind her mug when Poe glared at her. "Why don’t you take him over to the droidsmith," Pava offered.

Poe turned to her in confusion, seeing BB-8 do the same at his feet. "The who?"

Pava tilted her head at him and then blinked, "Oh yeah, you’ve been gone a while. We’ve got a droidsmith. Set up over on the south side next to the Mu."

"When did a Mu shuttle arrive?" he asked.

Pava rolled her eyes, "With the droidsmith."

"Yeah Poe," Finn mocked, "with the droidsmith."

Poe glared at him. "What do you know about the droidsmith?"

"I know he’s over by the Mu shuttle," Finn retorted.

"She," Pava muttered under her breath and Finn gave her a glare before correcting himself.

"She’s over by the Mu shuttle, everyone knows that."

"Mmhmm," Poe grunted, looking down at BB-8 who was blinking up at him hopefully. "Right after lunch, I promise."

Without the constant interruption from BB-8 Poe managed to finish his meal in peace, Pava falling into step beside him after he pushed back from the table. She led him past the Command center and a string of X-Wings, then pointed out where the shuttle was settled next to a large canvas tarp strung between three trees. From where he was standing, it looked like it was covering nothing but crates.

He took a step forward and then frowned when he realized Pava wasn’t with him. "You’re not coming with me?" He asked

Pava shook her head, "It’s probably best if I don’t. She doesn’t like me much."

Poe glanced at the shuttle, then back at the pilot. "Why not?"

"Me? The Great Destroyer? Why do you think a droidsmith might not like me?" She asked sarcastically.

Oh yeah, Poe thought, that. It wasn’t that Pava tried to get her droids shot, exploded, imploded, or short-circuited. It just always seemed to happen to droids that were near her for more than a few minutes. BB-8 flatly refused to fly with her, even when Poe had directly ordered him to once.

BB-8 was ahead of them both, rolling across the ground and investigating the new ship. Poe looked back at Pava, "Do you at least know her name?"

Pava shrugged. "I’m told she doesn’t speak Basic. She’s got a little translator droid you can talk to though. Name’s K-0."

"Great," Poe muttered as he watched her walk away. When he turned back, it was just in time to see BB-8 disappear around a stack of crates. "Just great."

Judging from the size of the roof tarp, the droidsmith’s shop covered several hundred square feet. She had stacked crates around several sides to create the illusion of walls and there was covering on the ground to keep everything out of the inevitable mud after the rainstorms. Poe ducked under the tarp, his boots making a hollow thunking noise on the ground cover.

He waited a minute for his eyes to adjust to the shadows and then raised an eyebrow. In front of him was a table, set fairly low to the ground, with a ramp leading up to it and an R4 unit in two pieces on top of it. The droid whistled at him as he went by and he gave it a nod. From that table there was another ramp to a higher table, this one scattered with a variety of parts. It took a moment before Poe realized the benefits of the arrangement. Different droids would need to be at different heights for repairs. And the ramps made it easy for them to roll where they needed to be.

He walked past the second table and around a corner made of boxes and entered a larger, enclosed area. The ceiling was tall, at least fifteen feet, and he could see various parts hanging from the poles that held the tarp up. Light filtered through the opaque fabric but the interior was mostly lit by a variety of battery operated lanterns and lights strewn around. He idly noted a hammock in the corner, and a stack of crates leading up to it. Falling out of that one could cause serious injury. On a table near to it, at a normal height, Poe got his first look at the droidsmith.

He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting. He’d met a few droidsmith’s over the years. One had been a burly Snivvian, another an elderly human woman. Enough to know that there was no one kind of person who was drawn to the profession. It required smarts, quick fingers, and mechanical know-how - but once you had those the possibilities were endless.

This droidsmith was… there was no other way to describe her than stunning. Skin a dark golden color, a few shades darker than his. She had large irregular shaped spots framing her face, extending along her hairline behind her ears and down the sides of her neck, underneath the wide leather choker she wore. They continued on, disappearing into her clothes and he wondered briefly how much further they went. She was Chasinian, Pava hadn’t mentioned that. One side of her dark hair was cut shorter than the rest - the rest falling over her shoulder.

Poe felt an instant jolt of attraction. It wasn’t just that she had striking looks, but the entire picture she presented seemed to be tailor-made for him. She was sitting on the table, knees spread wide and feet touching, BB-8 nestled in the gap of her legs like a small child. As he watched, she pulled off the sturdy work gloves she was wearing to reveal long fingers. She immediately began running her hands over the droid, pressing on sensors and caressing the edge of his panels with soft, graceful touches. For just a moment, Poe was irrationally jealous of his friend. He shook the thought off quickly. He heard BB trilling happily, popping open ports to show her the array of gadgets and mechanisms Poe had installed over the years.

As she stroked the droid, Poe could see her muscles moving. The white tank she wore left her arms bare, and she had a streak of grease along the outside of her forearm. She looked like someone who could not only kick his ass in hand to hand combat - but like she’d steal his X-Wing while he was still trying to catch his breath.

Poe had a type. He’d admit it. And that type was "could kick his ass and steal his ship." It had gotten him into trouble too many times to count in the past, and yet here he was. Suddenly lusting over a perfect stranger based on the way she was touching his droid and the mental fantasy he had drawn up based on no more than a twitch of muscle and streak of grease.

Then again, there was also the fact that she didn’t report to him. Or he to her. That was… on a military base that was maybe the sexiest thing of all.

He shifted his feet, his boots making the flooring creak and she looked up at him. Her eyes were deep brown, almost black, and she cocked an eyebrow and then tilted a head down at the droid. He flushed at her perusal and quickly coughed, trying to cover his face with his hand.

"Yeah, he’s a little beat up, someone rolled him down a cliff." Her expression didn’t change and he quickly added, "Not me." He gave BB-8 a hard look, silently begging the droid to not rat him out to this woman. "Is, uh, is K-0 here? To talk to?"

The droidsmith gave him a confused look and made a clicking noise with her tongue.

Poe heard a rustle and a small single-wheeled droid, barely bigger than his two fists, rolled out from under a table. "I am K-0," it intoned, tilting a sensor array back to look up at him. "What need?"

Poe looked between the droid and the droidsmith before nodding. "Okay, well K-0. That’s BB-8," he pointed to the orange droid as though there might be some confusion and then grimaced, abruptly halting the motion and running his hand through his hair instead. "He’s uh, he’s had a rough time and he’s got sand in all his gears. I also think he’s got a sensor loose. I could fix it but I…" he glanced around the workshop. "I don’t have the tools. I was thinking I could borrow-"

As he was talking the little droid beeped and whistled in binary, aiming it at the woman holding BB-8. When Poe got to his last sentence he saw her shake her head vehemently, giving him an annoyed look. Or maybe a skeptical one. Or possibly some mix between the two. Whatever it was it wasn’t a look he had hoped for. Certainly not from her.

"Okay," he continued, listening to the little droid translate, "no tool borrowing. Would you be able to…? I mean, I was told you’re a droidsmith so I was hoping maybe…"

She was nodding, smiling at BB-8 and ignoring him entirely as she pried one of the panels off with her fingernails and set it gently on the table next to her. He heard her make a soft tsking noise and BB hummed contentedly back.

K-0 tilted to look at him. "Will fix. Do good."

"Thanks?" Poe looked between the three of them again. "I’ll be back in-"

"Two day," K-0 intoned solemnly.

Poe nodded and backed out of the workshop, feeling suddenly like he was intruding in a moment he wasn’t meant to see. She looked up at him as he went, those dark eyes meeting his before she leaned back over BB-8 in apparent fascination.

Poe stumbled back out into the light, putting one hand out to catch himself on a crate and turning his head toward the sun.

"Sithspit," he muttered.

He wasn’t an expert, but he was pretty sure that hadn’t gone particularly well.

Chpt 2

#poe dameron x ofc #star wars sequels #writing

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autisticfangpyreclub · 4 years ago

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Don’t fear the dark, let it protect you - part two

Lloyd never paid much attention to his dragon side. But he never could have imagined how much it wanted to be heard.

The smell of bacon and eggs greeted Lloyd as he entered the kitchen. He sat down at the table, and Zane handed him a plate.

“Sorry, it’s a little cold,” he said with a frown, “we were going to wake you up but…”

Lloyd shrugged. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it…”

He poked at the bacon with his fork, unease gnawing at his gut. He’d never had a problem eating meat before. He ate meat all the time. But the overwhelming smell of grease and burnt flesh coming from his plate was nauseating, headache inducing even. Suppressing a gag, he pushed his plate away.

Cole looked over at him in concern. “What’s wrong, you feeling sick?”

Lloyd’s cheeks flushed. “No, just, uh…” he stuttered, “I’m just not… uh…”

“You don’t appear to have any sort of high temperature,” Zane said, placing a hand on Lloyd’s forehead, “though your face is very red… is there something wrong with your food?”

Lloyd gently pushed Zane away. “No, it’s fine, but… do we have any vegetables?”

Zane blinked and raised an eyebrow. Everyone at the table gave him similar bewildered looks. “Vegetables?” Zane asked.

“Yeah, I’ve been really craving some all morning,” Lloyd replied, getting up from his seat, “we probably have some carrots leftover from thursday right?”

“Yes, but…”

Lloyd opened the fridge. He snatched up the bag of baby carrots and started shoveling them into his mouth. Zane stared at him, mouth agape.

“Lloyd, are you sure you’re… feeling alright?” he asked as he watched Lloyd toss the empty bag aside and move on to the lettuce.

Lloyd swallowed a mouthful of lettuce and shrugged. “I dunno, I feel fine, why?”

“Because you hate vegetables!” Jay said, “did you fall out of bed and bonk your head or something?”

Lloyd finished off the head of lettuce and stuck his head back in the fridge. He sniffed for more vegetables, growling when there were none to be found. He was still hungry.

Kai placed a hand on his shoulder. “Lloyd, what’s going on-”

He snarled at him, his teeth suddenly much longer and sharper. Kai jumped and drew back in alarm. “Woah, dude!” he yelped.

Lloyd slapped a hand over his mouth. How had that slipped out? His eyes darted between Kai, who was still slowly backing away from him, and the shocked faces of his friends. He shuddered.

“I… I have to go…” he mumbled, and ran out of the kitchen, ignoring the shouts behind him.

He didn’t stop running until he was outside the monastery, standing on a patch of grass overlooking the cliff. Lloyd sighed, and sat down to catch his breath. He shouldn’t have trusted those oni in his dream. He shouldn’t have let his oni side take over. Now he was turning into a monster.

...a monster with an unending hunger for vegetables, which to be fair, wasn’t the worst possible scenario. It was almost kinda funny. Okay, the snarling was bad, but he could deal with that.

Speaking of hunger, the grass he was sitting on smelled pretty tasty too…

Before he could stop himself, he was down on all fours ravenously munching on the grass. He probably looked so ridiculous. He didn’t care though, all that he could think of was how sweet and delicious the grass was.

“...guys, I found him.”

Lloyd froze like a deer in headlights. He hesitantly turned to see Nya standing behind him, and almost felt like dying from embarrassment.

“Um… this isn’t what it looks like,” he said weakly.

Nya raised an eyebrow. “Really? Because it kinda looks like you're on all fours eating grass like a goat.”

Lloyd looked down at his hands. “Okay, yeah, it is what it looks like…”

He stood up and brushed himself off, as the rest of the ninja gathered around him. Cole laid a comforting hand on his back. “Hey, no matter what’s going on right now, we’re here for you y'know?”

Kai nodded and patted Lloyd on the head. “Yeah, and sorry about what happened back there, I didn’t mean to scare you bud.”

Lloyd leaned into his touch and smiled. “Thanks guys… but you shouldn’t apologize, you were right to be afraid…” he murmured.

“Aw, don’t say that!” Jay said, “we’d never be afraid of you, even if you have turned into a werebunny!”

Lloyd squinted at him. “A… what?”

“Y’know, a werebunny, like a werewolf but a bunny,” Jay explained, “that’s what happened right? You got bitten by one and now you're turning! Oh no, tomorrow’s a full moon too-”

“I’m not turning into a bunny!” Lloyd shouted, “I’m turning into an oni!”

“Since when do oni’s eat vegetables?” Nya asked, “seems weird, given their whole destroy everything thing you think they’d eat meat.”

“Herbivores can be quite destructive, even more so than carnivores actually,” Zane said.

Lloyd groaned and put his head in his hands. “I don’t wanna turn into a giant bunny… wait, why aren’t you guys more freaked out? I just told you I’m turning into an oni!”

“Why aren’t YOU more freaked out?” Jay shot back, “I thought your oni side taking over was like your greatest fear.”

“It was, but… I had a dream last night that I turned into a full oni, but I wasn’t destroying anything, or hurting anyone,” Lloyd said, his body relaxing as he remembered, “it was… peaceful.”

“Have you talked to Wu about this yet?” Cole asked.

Lloyd shook his head. “No… but I think I should, before I start eating grass again… ugh…”

Master Wu was deep in meditation when Lloyd crept into the room. He sat across from him, and crossed his legs. Wu didn’t acknowledge him. The room was awkwardly silent for a moment.

“...I sense something is troubling you,” Wu said.

Lloyd flinched, then cleared his throat. “Yeah… so, um… it’s kinda hard to explain…”

Wu poured a cup of tea for himself, and then one for Lloyd. “I’m listening.”

Lloyd nodded in thanks and took the cup of hot tea. Deep breath in. Master Wu is part oni too, he’ll understand. “I had a dream last night… about the oni.”

Something in Wu’s expression shifted. His grip on his cup tightened. “...what happened in this dream?”

“I turned into an oni.”

Wu gasped and narrowly avoided dropping his cup. He coughed, composing himself. “You must’ve been horribly frightened by this vision.”

Something in the way Wu was looking at him made Lloyd nervous. Like he was being interrogated. He tensed his shoulders and looked away. “Uh… actually… it wasn’t that bad.”

An uncomfortable energy settled over the room. “What?” Wu asked, a dark tone seeping into his voice.

“Yeah, I know it sounds crazy but when I was an oni, when I was with the other oni I felt…” Lloyd wrapped his arms around himself and sighed, “safe… like I belonged.”

Wu stood up abruptly. He grabbed Lloyd by the arm and pulled him to his feet. “Wait, master, what-”

Lloyd’s next words got caught in his throat. Wu was glaring at him, like he had done something seriously wrong. “Lloyd, listen to me, and listen well.”

The nervous feeling Lloyd had was crawling in his gut, making his head foggy. He tried to pull away, but Wu’s grip was strong. “Master please let me go-”

“The oni are dangerous, deceitful creatures who only crave destruction, you cannot trust anything they say.”

“Master, please stop, please let me go-”

Wu ignored his pleas. “You must suppress the darkness, or it will consume you, just like it consumed your father.”

At that, something in Lloyd snapped. He growled. His nails transformed into claws, and he swiped at Wu with his free arm. He hadn’t meant to scratch him that bad, but from the pained scream Wu made he’d obviously done some damage.

Lloyd scrambled back the second Wu let go of his arm. The smell of the blood on his claws only riled him up more, his eyes narrowing and illuminating the dark room with a neon green glow. “I told you to LET ME GO, old man.”

Wu gaped at him, gingerly touching the gash on his face. “How dare you use your claws against me nephew!” he yelled.

“I am not my father,” Lloyd snarled, “I’ll never be my father, and I do not fear the darkness anymore.”

Green scales covered his arms and legs. He grit his fangs as his horns tore through his skin, this time not bothering to grow them slowly. The pain only gave him clarity.

“You say oni are dangerous and deceitful… what are you then?” Lloyd asked with a scowl.

“Excuse me?”

Lloyd rolled his eyes. “You're more oni than me, and you know it,” he said as he approached Wu, claws bared, “maybe that’s why you lie, maybe that’s why you don’t tell anyone your secrets even when it could help them.”

“What are you talking about-”

“You lied to me!” Lloyd could feel tears pricking at the corner of his eyes, but he pushed them back, “you knew embracing my oni side wouldn’t make me dangerous, but you still made me suffer!”

Wu’s face changed from anger to sorrow. “Lloyd… I’m so sorry, but you must calm yourself-”

“SHUT UP!”

Fiery tears poured down Lloyd’s cheeks. Scales had grown over his entire body, leaving him thankfully fireproof. He cried out as his limbs cracked and popped, becoming more animalistic and quadruped, until he no longer could stand on two legs. He fell to the floor with a thud.

He looked up at Wu, terror in his eyes. “This… this isn’t like what it was like before… what’s happening to me…?”

“I… I don’t know…”

Rigged spikes formed on his wrists and ankles, and along his newly formed tail. He heard a gross tearing noise as large bat-like wings burst from his back and ripped through his shirt. Lloyd’s pained cries morphed into growls. His face pushed out into a snout, the final part of his transformation before he collapsed in exhaustion.

Before he passed out, he saw Wu standing over him. Hopefully this scared him enough to make him never want to grab Lloyd like that again.

“Oh youngling, you poor thing…”

Lloyd opened his eyes to see a familiar face leaning over him. A gentle paw touched his cheek. “Oni…?”

The oni smiled, and stroked his hair. “My name is Theta, actually.”

Lloyd groaned. “Theta… what happened? My head feels awful…”

“You transformed into a dragon,” Theta said quietly, “but don’t be afraid, in time you will learn how to control your shapeshifting abilities.”

“But I… I attacked master Wu…”

“Oh don’t worry about that, he deserved it,” Theta scoffed, “he won’t harm you ever again, I promise.”

A calming sensation washed over Lloyd as he was cradled in Theta’s lap. “Um… sorry for the weird question, but what pronouns do you use?” he asked.

“She her dear,” she replied, hugging Lloyd close to her chest.

Lloyd sighed in content, and snuggled into her warm fur. She hummed a lullaby for him, one his father had sung to him when he was little. He felt safe.

“Rest now child… even when you awake in the physical realm, my shadow will still protect you.”

#lego ninjago #ninjago #lloyd garmadon #ninjago lloyd #ninjago zane #ninjago cole #ninjago jay #ninjago kai #ninjago nya #ninjago wu #peaceful oni au #ninjago au #ninjago oni #ninjago oc #body horror tw #oni lloyd #dragon lloyd

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hobbitsnapes · 4 years ago

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The Red Hoods Protègè chapter 13

Older Damian Wayne x ofc

(Photo made by my lovely friend @tyuuniverse)

Summary:Red hood has taken a young vigilante under his wing and subsequently changes Damians life forever. (I suck at summary’s)

A soft hum leaves her as she wakes, the soft plush of her blanket creating a soft warmth that surrounds her. She opens her eyes and is met with a soft glow of the sun peaking through the blinds of her window. The glow creating a lovely warmth of light throughout her room.

A soft hum is heard from outside her door, growing more clear along with soft footsteps. A faint knock to her door is heard before it opens, Jason walking in with a faint smile and tray of food. His hair is a total mess, having grown out slightly with Unruly curls. Clad in black pajama bottoms and a grey t-shirt. His smile growing larger at the sight of her awake. “Haapy birthday too yoouu. Happy birthday too yoouu. Happy birthday dear sandy, happy birthday to yoouu.” He sang softly, a small laugh leaving her as she brightly watches him sing. She had heard him sing multiple times, loving every second due to his incredible voice. But whenever he saw her, he’d stop immediately. She was glad to see he had even done that small bit in front of her.

She sat up in her bed, Jason scooting his large body underneath her covers with her, setting the tray on both their laps. A small gasp leaving her at what he brought. A bowl filled with yogurt that had been neatly filled with bananas, strawberries, granola and blueberries. 2 slices of bread with peanut butter. And a glass of cranberry juice. “Is it-“ “it’s chunky peanut butter.” She turns her body to the side, hugging him tightly. The action almost making him spill the entire breakfast. He wraps his arms around her, a soft laugh from him shaking her slightly. “Thank you so much dad.” She mumbles in his chest. A large smile covering his face. “You’re welcome bub.”

They both sat in bed as they both ate their meals. Her going straight for her parfait. “Are you gonna eat anything?” She asks. “I already ate, I’ve been up since about 5 o’clock.” “What’d you have?” A soft smile etched on his face at her question. “I had eggs and toast.” A soft laugh leave her at his answer. “You and you’re bread.” “Hey, your thing is yogurt, my thing is bread.” They both start laughing, finding humor in their love for yogurt and bread.

“Okay now that you’re 19, we must culture you in one of the greatest things in cinematic history.” A laugh leaving her as she watches him crouched in front of the tv, looking like a large Gollum. “And what would that be?” She asks as she watches him press play on the DVD player. “Star Trek.”

A large laugh leaves her, turning to Jason who is trying to hold In his laughter. “Not now doctor.” She says, his face breaking as he bursts out a large laugh.

“You guys didn’t have to do all of this for me.” Tears fill her eyes as she says this, some cascading down her face due to what she walked in to see. The kitchen that usually only has a small table, a fridge, and some cabinets is filled with white and red balloons. 4 gift wrapped boxes varying in size sit neatly beside the table. There sat Roy, Artemis, bizaro sat in there large bean bag, not being able to sit at one of the wooden seats, and Jason, standing with a large smile on his face. She had fallen asleep on the couch some 3 hours prior. Huddled comfortably with her blanket and pillows around her. He had successfully picked her up, and carried her to her bedroom. A faint smile on his face as he watched her let out slow breaths and truly look at peace. “But we wanted to hun, it’s your birthday after all.” Artemis says as she goes and hugs her, a sob leaving sandy when her arms wrapped around her.

Her last birthday, was nothing like the one tonight.

It has been only 8 months since Jason had adopted her, helping to train her for a year at that point. The day was coming closer each day, and each day she dreaded it.

It was the day before her birthday, a cold autumn night and they both were up on the roof sparing. She had been hoping he wouldn’t remember, but as fate would have it, he did. “Okay let’s call it a night.” He says slightly out of breath. Where he had the muscle and force, she was significantly smaller and more flexible. Being able to get out of his grip and out of the way to take him down. Where she didn’t have the strength to take him down, she used his strength and hits against him. They both walk over to the door to the roof, walking down the staircase and into their apartment. Slowly the apartment was coming more into a home, having just gotten a tv and a few rugs due to the hardwood flooring being so cold.

They walk into the kitchen, grabbing leftovers from the previous night when jason invited his friend Artemis over, it had started out uncomfortable. With sandy mostly staying in her room, still awkward and aloof around Jason. While their bond had definitely improved, it still was awkward when it came time for their personal lives. But Artemis truly seemed nice, having knocked on her door and asked if she would join them for a movie. Sandy had agreed, sitting beside Jason on the small sofa, and ultimately had ended up falling asleep on Jason. Not knowing the large smile on jasons face seeing the young girl so peaceful.

They both stood in front of the counter, eating their pasta silently. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence that typically filled the room, but rather a calm one. She let out a yawn, looking at the clock and seeing it was 10 o’clock. Panic filled her, in fear that he’d remember and want to do something with her in the next few hours. “Hey, I’m gonna head to bed okay?” She said, Jason looking over to her with a sad smile, “okay, get some rest.” He gave her a small hug goodnight. And she headed into her room, climbing into bed, and fell asleep.

She felt a slight tapping on her arm, opening her eyes and grabbing for her picture frame by her bed, held over her head ready to hit, but stopping when she saw what woke her. There sat Jason, with a small cupcake in hand and a lone candle sticking out of it. And a small smile covered his face. “Thought I’d come in to wish you a happy birthday, probably wasn’t a good idea to wake you up like that.” He said, with a small chuckle. “I-thank you. How did you-?” “I have a copy of your birth certificate in my room, is in with all the adoption papers. And besides, how could I forget? Today’s your 18th birthday?” “I just, I haven’t celebrated since-“ “I know, since what happened. I know how it feels, I didn’t start celebrating mine until just a year ago.” She tilted her head at this, not understanding why he wouldn’t. “Why’s that?” She asks. A sigh leaves him until he looks down to the foot of her bed. “A lot of stuff happened to me. And for years I wasn’t ever able to do it, I had a messed up life, and until last year, I never wanted to do it. I wanna celebrate with you, and I can tell you didn’t want to either. I don’t want you to end up like me, not wanting to celebrate because of what’s happened to you. To this day I feel uncomfortable when Roy wishes me happy birthday. And besides, you’re an adult now!” Tears fill her eyes and she lets out a small laugh. Setting the cupcake on her nightstand and hugging Jason tightly. She sobs in his neck as he hugs her closer. “Thank you, so much.” “It’s no problem bub, now, let's go celebrate with a movie.”

The night was truly amazing, everyone had sang her happy birthday, had her blow out 19 candles, 2 of which had been trick candles that kept lighting back up. That was until Bizarro had seen the frustration on her face, and slammed his fist into the cake. Spewing it everywhere and making everyone laugh. So everyone sat there and enjoyed their mushed up cake, and laughed and joked around, truly feeling like a family.

First box came from Roy, when she opened it, it contained all of the resident evil games, from the originals to the remake ones. She hugged him tightly, having wanted to play them with him for a while due to them playing games on a weekly basis.

The second one came from bizarro, it had opted to be what was originally a Superman plushie, has been painted by hand to resemble himself. “It much uglier now than it was.” He said, a large laugh erupting out of the room from everyone.

The second box was from Artemis, it was smaller than the others but heavier than the last. And when she opened it, tears collected in her eyes. There lay in cloth, a black hunters knife with rope wrapped around the handle, with her insignia on a button on the front. The blade was pristine, having a shine when she lifted it. “I had it made custom for you. It’s made of one of the strongest materials on earth. Able to cut through bone in a single slash.” Sandy set the knife back in the box, and looked up at heritage tear filled eyes. “Thank you,I love it so much.”

The last one was from Jason, it was a small box, the smallest one out of all of them. Jason stood there, shaking slightly as he watched her open it, a small gasp and tears fell down her face when she saw what it was. It was a pure red heart locket. It had a metallic finish to it and had small intricate details in it. But that wasn’t what made tears stream down her face, it was what was inside. The locker opened to 4 photos. First one being the day jason signed the adoption papers. Tears were filling both their eyes in the photo, hugging righting with the largest smiles on their faces. In jason's hands he held the papers clear in the photo. That was one of the best days of her life.

The next one was from the fair, when they had been high up in the Ferris wheel. It was like she could relive the day like it was just yesterday.

The third photo was the first day she had gone out with the outlaws, everyone stood around her. Jason was directly behind her, with Roy and Artemis behind him with bizarro in the back. Everyone had been suited up ready to go, and you could clearly see everyone, apart from jason due to his helmet, with large smiles. Truly feeling like one large family.

The last one is truly the one to cause tears to fall down her face. There stood her and her parents. It was her 15th birthday. Both parents hugging her tightly, smiles beaming at the camera. Not knowing that just 3 months later, they would be gone.

She hugged jason tightly to her, tears falling down both their faces. “I-I don’t know what to say.” She sobs into his chest. She never thought he’d get her something like this, having thought he’d get her a new weapon or something for her suit. But one question still remained. “But, why did you add the last one?” She asked. “Because, I might be your dad now, but they’re still your parents. I’m so happy I found you, you literally keep me going each day. But I still want you to remember who you are fighting for. Family. They are still your family no matter what. And I wanted to have that made for you, so whenever you’re doubting, or feel alone, you open that to see your family and those who love you. And I never want you to forget them. I never took photos of my parents when Bruce took me in. And now, I hardly remember what they look like. Keep those memories with you, so you never forget your way.” Years fell out of everyone’s eyes at his speech, even bizarro has let out a few as he brought everyone into a large hug. “Okay now, we’ve got a dinner I got booked for ya in half an hour, so go get ready.” Jason said, she turned to bizarro, “go have sad time with family. I go find family too. Small angel and I can have bizarro day soon!” Everyone laughed, truly feeling the love and joy in the air brought to them by her.

Damian ran as fast as he could, jumping from one building to the next to grab one of the last remaining criminals from the bank robbery him and Bruce just ended. He almost made it to the man, until he heard a laugh. It stopped him dead in his tracks as he looked down, pain flooding in his heart at what he saw. There walked sandy with Jason, Roy, and Artemis. She was, beautiful. Wearing a long sleeve black cocktail dress, with red heels and red lipstick. She was walking along with her head thrown back laughing. It shot a pain through his heart at just how happy she looked. Memories of him making her laugh like that, making her smile and watching the utmost joy cover her face. He wondered why she was so dressed up tonight. And then he remembered what today was.

They sat on the ground, sitting beside one another with his arm around her and her head resting on his shoulder. Having just had a small picnic near the pond, playing with Titus and the small ducks. Today had been his 19th birthday. He asked her if they could go back to the same park they met at, he had been shocked when he saw her with a picnic basket and blanket. Today had been one of the best ones he’s had. Having skipped out on having a large party or gala, no extravagant evenings or day. Just getting to spend time with her. He turned to her, his arm wrapped around her waist. A soft smile made her face look even more breathtaking, her hair messy due to the many times he had run his fingers through it. He noticed overtime that whenever she liked stressed or sad, that if he just ran his fingers through her hair delicately, it would bring a smile to her face and calm her. “Hey, you actually never told me when your birthday is?” He asked, he knew they were around the same age, her telling him their first date she was 18. She looked up at him, the same smile was there, and her cheeks dusted with red fur to the chill air of autumn starting. “My birthday is actually coming up, it’s September 15.” A smile covered his face, “well then, looks like I’ve got to make sure my schedule is free that day then.” A faint red dusted her cheeks further, looking up at him with her eyebrow raised. “And why’s that?” She asks, a small chuckle leaving damian as he gazed down at her. “Well you just made my birthday the best one I’ve ever had. I’ve gotta make sure I make yours just as amazing. And besides, why wouldn’t I wanna spend a day celebrating the life of the most beautiful and breathtaking woman in the world?” A small smirk covered his face as he says this. She ducked her head down and into his chest at this, “Damian.” She wines as she smashes her face into his chest. He chuckles as he brings her in closer, kissing the top of her forehead, causing her to let out another wine. He pulled her face out of his chest, crimson red covering her face. He held her chin in his fingers, keeping her face close to his. A smile covered both their faces as their eyes gazed into one another’s. “What? It’s nothing but the truth?” A small giggle drips out of her as she puts her face in his neck, causing Damian to smile as he watched the large smile on her face grow.

Tears filled his eyes as he watched her. He had everything planned for the day. He was gonna take her out to their usual coffee shop, flowers in hand wearing the same attire he wore on their first date. He’d then take her all over the city, to the peer, to the park, anywhere she had wished he would take her that day. But what he truly was planing for was later when the sky had darkened, moon high up in the shy as stars danced in the blackness of the night. He was going to take her to a pond outside of Gotham, the sky so clear and when the moon was high in the sky, it shined over the water. He was going to have a small picnic Uber one of the many trees right beside the water. With white Christmas lights stung around the blanket, to give a soft glow to the area. Plush silk blankets and pillows surrounding them,with an easel and canvas and a chair, he’d have her wear a dress he had brought in the backseat of his car. It was an ivory chiffon dress that cascades down her body. He’d have her lay there, dress sprawled out as she layer there as he painted her. Making her truly look like an angel sent to him from the heavens. That night they would lay there, laying under the stars, wrapped up in one another. And right before they fall asleep, as they lay there together, under the covers with the lights and the moon giving a soft radiant glow to them, he would ask her to be his.

Now he looked down at the girl he had planned on making his tonight. The girl who stole his heart, the girl who made him the happiest man alive, walk without him, a large smile on her face, a smile that he didn’t cause. He watched as his heart broke further, watching the girl who stole his heart, but broke it at the same time.

Tags: @psychovigilantewrites @comic-nerd-dc @comic-brew

#damian wayne x reader #damian wayne fanfiction #damian wayne imagine #older!damian wayne #batman #batfamily #batfam x reader #damian wayne #dc #dc imagine #dceu #red hood #jason todd #dick grayson #tim drake

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inventedbymelvin · 4 years ago

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Ch.4: Advanced Learning

( Disclaimer: Sorry if this chapter is lacking or isn’t right in some places. I had a trouble figuing out how to end it properly but I hope you enjoy it anyways. Shout out to @kittykat-creations for the help when it came to accuracy about adhd )

Once he got home, Melvin quickly went to the drawing board to draft his revenge. He surprisingly worked fast to draw and build his new invention in the garage, showing up for dinner and going to bed at a reasonable hour. His mother was more than glad to see he was in a much better mood. At dinner he explained he had recived some good news and mentioned the field trip, handing her the slip to sign. Once everything was prepared, Melvin finally had a peaceful night's sleep. He wanted to be ready to surprise them and prove he's better than third place. The morning of the field trip, all four stood in the morning fog as the monthly cut grass collected dew on it's leaves. Krupp stood with them, as he was chaperoning the trip. All of them had been given special jackets to go along with the trip and they could keep them as souveneirs. They also helped with the morning coolness and were fashionable. Thirty minutes later, the bus arrived at a futuristic looking campus complete with everything the aspiring genius needed. The inside was sleek and clean as everyone's footsteps echoed through the shiny hallways. In the main office, they chatted while waiting for their tour guide. Krupp immediately took a seat and looked around at the much better kept school. Melvin seemed particularly better than the day before.

"I'm glad you're feeling better." Harold patted his shoulder. "It's nice to see you back to normal." George smiled. Erica felt something was a bit off. The four had filled their backpacks with neccessary items like lunch, notebooks, pencils and paper but Melvin's seemed to have something more. She wanted to believe it was just a lunch box but she'd never seen the nerd carry one. He insisted it would ruin the value of collectable Advancimals merchandise. Erica decided to pull the boys aside for a moment. "I think he's hiding something. It doesn't make sense he'd turn around this fast, usually it takes him a week to get over an A minus." "He seems fine to me, much better than screaming at us all the time." Harold nodded his head in agreement with George's statement. "You're just being paranoid, he's fine. We'll all have a great time and he'll learn-" George was cut off as the guide entered the office and greeted them. "You must be our winners! Erica I loved your idea to clean up our waters! Boys, it truly is important to laugh! And Melvin, you have a budding career in robotics! Of course, Mr. Krupp, hes clearly doing his job well to have amazing students." The tour guide woman said cheerily as she shook their hands. She was in uniform with a pencil skirt and blazer outfit matching the colors of the school logo. After introductions she lead them to the first part of their tour, a lecture experience to feel like they're part of the school. Today happened to be a talk on Einstein's thought experiments taught by a young red headed girl named Max. Her record showed you could mix both imagination and smarts, having a positive reputation all around the world at the age of twelve! Surprisingly George and Harold paid attention. They had expected a boring mumbling professor that only Melvin would understand but Max seemed to encourage thinking and daydreaming. During the hour while the two were highly interested in hearing Max speak, Erica took a chance to observe the other boy in their group. Meanwhile, Krupp took a seat in the far back and immediately took a nap. He didn't quite understand why Melvin wanted to be here so badly, but sleeping was easier than figuring that out. Melvin simply took notes and was just as interested in the lecture. She was starting to think maybe she was expecting something too big. This changed when Melvin took a moment to check something inside his backpack, pressing a few buttons that seemed to be a code or as if he were setting something. Immediately she went to investigate, taking a seat next to him. "Whatcha doin?" Erica casually greeted. "Just checking something, it's not important." Her sudden interest seemed to annoy him, but it wasn't new that asking about any of his inventions or tech bothered him. "Do you think I'm going to do something?" He asked in return with some pain to his tone. "Look Melvin, I'm not trying to hurt you. There just seems to be a record of you...overreacting alot." "We already have a lecture in progress, I would respect you save yours for later." Despite his mask of cheerfully enjoying the trip, he was still getting over things. "I was answering a text from my mother." he took his phone out of his bag, showing the conversation. She felt a bit bad for her suspicions and returned to focusing on the lecture. At the end of the day after an extensive and winded walk through the whole school complete with a science experiment demonstration, provided lunch break and complimentary themed stationary, the tour guide asked if there were any leftover questions about it all. "Yeah! Why is this place so big! It took us all day to get around, and you don't even have those little golf carts!" Krupp complained for the upteenth time that day that his legs felt like jelly from walking so much. All the guide could do was offer him a bench to sit on and apologize for the strain. "Remember! You all three hold potential for attending this school with your wonderful thoughts and inventions." She smiled. "What makes certain potential less worth than other's then?" A familar voice asked. "Oh! None of you are less than each other! It's just there's typically a rigourous evaluation process with many factors that include--" Her sentence was cut off as a mech was heard putting itself together and Melvin was being seated where it's controls were. It was typically smaller than his usual but big enough to still cause property damage. He had to make it portable after all. "--include's emotional stability...." "I won't hurt anyone, I just want talk to the two who decided I got THIRD PLACE!" He grinned with a tone that sounds like he absolutely would hurt someone. Melvin kept his focus on the tour guide. "Where are they?! I just want to talk!" "I don't think theyre around today..." She tried to keep her best smile, trembling as she spoke. "Then GO GET THEM!" his voice was magnified by the speaker in the controls. "I'm afraid meeting them isnt part of--" She was cut off by Melvin walking down the hall with no choice but to look for them himself. She followed behind, stating that this was against the rules and asking for any form of help. Multiple students and teachers turned their attention to the commotion, as a small mech searched for two specific people. Max jumped a bit, associating sudden commotion with her run-ins with the corp even though they were no longer a threat. Melvin however, kept wanting answers from staff until he either found them personally or got their names. After yelling at a few teachers, he finally got some names and stomped off looking for their office. Anything thrown his way was met with being destroyed or pushed out of the way. Doors were broken, walls were smashed in, and offices were invaded as he searched. Drones, other bots and the occasional attempt to power down his own invention slowed his mission but he refused to quit in his blind rampage. George and Harold immediately summoned Captain Underpants much to Erica's disbelief. "Do you really think he's going to help us?" she sighed. "What other option do we have?" both boys shrugged. "He's fought Melvin before so it's easy to do again." Harold hypothesized based on very repetive data. "I'm here too! Plungerina!" Erica held her arms out dramatically. "Don't you think calling me would work too?" "If they need their toilets unclogged, we'll call you." George cheekily grinned, running off with Harold and CU to follow the sounds of hydrolics coming from the west wing. Plungerina followed after them with an exasperated sigh, doubtful of their abilities. Down the hallway, CU and the boys could hear Melvin unleasing his breifly contained anger at the judge's he now held in the mech's right hand. He sounded like he wanted to cry, being reminded of the shame. It seems the boys were a bit late but tried to talk some sense into him before any punches were thrown. The boys were dropped onto the robot's shoulders. "We really hoped you wouldn't try this. Erica thought you would but--" George couldn't finish in time. A metal fist slammed in the ground out of frustration. "I KNEW IT! YOU'RE JUST WAITING TO POINT AND MAKE FUN THAT I DIDN'T WIN!" He pushed them off his shoulders, both being before hitting the ground. "Someone didn't wake up on the right side of the bed." Captain remarked as he held the boys by their collars. "Well if he wont listen to us, maybe you can do something. Go try to stall him, we'll be right back." CU put the two down and flew in front of the robot waving his hand enthusastically. "You know, you don't seem happy right now, maybe a hug would--" The free metal hand slapped CU away like a bug as attention was turned back to his original targets. "Hey! That isn't how you treat a friend! I'll forgive you, but you have to stop--" He was swatted away again, only to return each time. This left Melvin with no choice but to drop the judges in a small cage as the nerd focused on trying to get rid of the soft boiled egg. "I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIENDS! IT WAS ALL A CRUEL JOKE!" came from the speakers as Melvin failed again and again to catch the caped hero. "I TOLD THEM TO LEAVE ME ALONE! I KNOW THEYRE JUST GOING TO PROVE THEIR STUPID COMICS AND CAPED BABIES AND FRANKENSTEIN DOGS ARE BETTER THAN MY ADVANCED ROBOTS!" "Well actually--" Captain attempted to respond which gave Melvin time to grab him by his cape and toss him in the prison with the others. A screen showed up in the small space, the feed coming from the control. "Now tell me WHY I won third place and not first, not even second!" He gave them a second to respond as he breathed in his inhaler. Angrily yelling took the wind out of him. The two stammered in their response, baffled why a science fair winner had inprisoned them in part of his impressively built mech with a man that needed to put on pants. "W-well, it didn't prove anything...." The male mumbled. "WHAT?!" "It didnt.....prove anything...." The lady repeated her collegue's words. "Melvin, your robots are impressive but you can't win by impressing people. We chose the others as better because they studied something. We see robots every day, if you had put your robot to beneficial use...." She tried to be gentle as possible but no words could soothe the fiery child at this point. "CHANGE IT!" "We can't...our requirements said the best would be judged by how it would provide insight or benefit--" "IT DOES BENEFIT! TEACHERS CAN GRADE MUCH FASTER!" "That's not..." "THAT'S IT!" The robot's foot stamped the ground in response to the controller's actions before taking off to simply destroy things. In blinded rage, more walls were smashed on the way to a garden greenhouse. Other staff, students and teachers tried to help but were no use unless they wanted to risk being thrown in a growing prison now consisting of two students who attempted to use a drone, a body guard, Captain Underpants and the judges. He hopped out of the mech and ran in, sitting among the greenery. It was calming and alot better than the darkness of his room. The other three eventually caught up via a golf cart that was allowed on school property for security purposes, winded by running to find one. Krupp might've had a point about needing a little bit of transportation help. "Where is he?" they asked in unison, as all pointed to the greenhouse. "Wait, why didn't you get out, you can bend bars!" Harold asked. "I couldn't leave my new friends! Jeremy was just telling me about his new favorite show!" The man mentioned as Jeremy(which was not his actual name) was shaking his head, clearly uncomfortable. The three ignored this and ran off. They kept calling Melvin's name only to hear footsteps far off trying to get away from them. Even mentioning that he was safe with them only made all four run in circles. Eventually with no more unwalked paths, they met in the middle. With no other form of defense, he held out his inhaler as if it would do anything damaging. "THIS IS BATTERY ACID YOU TRAITORS!" Unfortunately for him, this only worked on evil clowns and not three school children. "Please tell us what's wrong. Remember older you doing really dangerous things? We don't want you to do the same." She tried to be gentle but the mention of Melvinborg seemed to cause him pain. "You DONT understand! Leave me alone!" He tried to back up but George and Harold wouldn't let him leave. "Don't understand what?" "Losing...losing is bad. Shame." For someone who used big words, he was at a loss for them now. "Hold on Erica, he's....he's having a hard time with words." Harold backed away. "I was like this one time after school. A teacher couldn't help me with math and I couldn't find the words to explain myself." George backed away too, leaving Melvin free. Melvin looked at both of them nervously knowing Harold was correct. He had helped explain the homework better after Harold came home distraught from a teacher poorly understanding how to tutor him after school. He even made a better fidget cube when George complained he couldn't stim, resulting in a detention for going into a meltdown. Despite this, he still didn't entirely trust them right now. After a moment of silence, they handed him a pencil and paper. "If you can't say it, draw it." George offered. This surprisingly interested their frenemy and he quickly went to work doodling a small comic of his recent nightmares and feelings. It felt kind of nice and he wondered if this is how they were able to handle emotions better. Once he was finished, it was shoved into Harold's hands. When he was done he passed it off to George and after he was done, it was passed to Erica. She chuckled a bit, trying to hide it. The irony was very clear to her. "I think you're between two people who understand completely." "Who told you we'd laugh at you?" George asked. His answer came in the form of the comic author grabbing it back and flipping to a page, pointing at a very square drawing of Melvinborg. "He's gone, he can't hurt you." Melvin shook his head in response, pointing to his head. "So.....you spent the whole weekened and Monday thinking you were a target?" Erica looked towards him. He nodded in response. "What about our comic? Why'd you hate that?" On his phone, Melvin scrolled through pictures of various comic issues mocking him in one way or another, looking indignant at Harold. "Oh...right." "We wouldn't do that to you now. You're...not always aware of social cues but it's not cool to make fun of someone's insecurity. We made you this to show you we cared." George handed him the comic to read. When he finally got to the end, Melvin hugged his friends, still a bit wary of Erica. Suddenly the two judges came in with CU following behind them. "How did you guys get out?" George asked in confusion. "That bald man worried after a while about the small space and smashed through the bars allowing us to be free." He pointed to the visible broken jail just by the door. "I forgot I was claustraphobic until someone mentioned it was cramped." CU grinned, going over to the boys and Erica. "Let's forget all this happened, sometimes geniuses need a way to express themselves." They really didn't want to have to explain all this, since robot attacks were a frequent occurance in Piqua anyways. All of them nodded in agreement and headed to the bus. Just as they left the greenhouse, water misters started spraying the plants and hit Captain on the way out, turning him back to Krupp. When getting back on the bus, he quickly said "DONT ASK" to the bus driver, Mr. Meaner who had spent the day napping. Melvin salvaged what he could of the mech with it's prison broken, noting to fix it later. On the way home, he started to get his voice back too. "Th-thank you." It felt weird to be nice. "No problem, we just wish you told us earlier. You don't have to win everything to be good enough for us." Harold yawned. "You're already good enough making cool stuff for us to 'borrow'...and--" The rest of George's sentence got cut off as he dozed on the way back. Melvin smiled. It felt kind of dumb to worry about nothing but at least they understood. He still wanted to win and be better than the others, but maybe losing won't hurt so much if it happens again.

#science unfair #chapter 4 #its done #melvin sneedly #the epic tales of captain underpants #fanfic

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i-am-a-closet-fanfic-fiend · 5 years ago

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Sexiled (Part 17/23) ~ Steve Rogers x Reader ~ College!AU

A/N: Tag list for this story is now closed. Check out the masterlist for a schedule of the remaining five parts. Enjoy!

Summary: Unable to go home for Thanksgiving, Steve invites you home with him. You aren’t about to turn down an opportunity to spend time with Sarah Rogers or the Barnes’ Clan.

Characters/Pairings: Steve Rogers x Reader, Bucky Barnes, Becca Barnes, Sarah Rogers, George and Winnie Barnes mentioned

Rating: T

Warnings: Fluff. Really nothing. Maybe language? but I don’t think so

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

“Oh my god, you’re here!” Becca squealed when she opened the door and flung herself at you.

“Yes, I’m here,” you laughed, holding her tightly. “How are you?”

“I’m great. Oh I’m so excited you’re here.”

“Oh how are you, Bucky? I’m good thanks for asking,” Bucky grumbled.

“Oh shush,” Becca admonished as she hugged him and Steve. “I’m getting to you two. I just didn’t know that y/n was coming.”

“Well we weren’t sure until a couple of days ago because we were having trouble getting my train ticket, so we wanted to hold off on saying anything.”

“Well I’m so glad you made it.”

Becca squeezed your hand as she led you into the living room, taking your coat.

“Me too,” you assured her as you followed behind.

“Hey, Becs, where’s Ma and Pop?” Bucky asked as he poked his head into the kitchen.

“They had lunch with the Quill’s. They should be home soon.”

“Alright. Lunch run then?” Bucky suggested.

“Hell yes. I’m starving,” Steve agreed patting his stomach. “Where do you want to go?”

“Why don’t you and Steve go pick something up? And y/n and I will stay here and catch up,” Becca countered, vibrating with excitement.

“Can you wait that long, sweetness?” Steve asked, knowing you get woozy when you’re hungry.

“Yeah. I’m good to wait.”

“Alright. Sandwiches from Glenn’s?” Bucky suggested.

“Ooh good call. Do you want to look at the menu, y/n?”

“I trust you to get me something I like.”

Steve nodded. “Do you want your usual, Becs?”

“Yes please.”

“Alright let’s got then.”

Steve gave you a short but sweet kiss before they headed out and you heard Becca gasp. Bucky cackled at her reaction.

“Have fun with that, doll. Come on, lover boy.”

He yanked Steve out of the house by the collar, leaving you with a very excited Rebecca Barnes.

“YOU AND STEVE ARE TOGETHER NOW?!”

“Ummmm, yes.”

She gaped at you.

“When? How? I need details.”

She dragged you to the couch and then ran to the kitchen for snacks. Once she was settled she stared you down.

“Okay, spill.”

You recounted the night you and Steve finally decided to start officially dating.

“So Bucky is the only one who knows? And he didn’t blab?”

“Nope. He’s kept our secret. And yes, he’s the only one who knows. Well, him and Skye.”

“Who’s Skye?”

You were about to say “Bucky’s girlfriend,” when you realized he clearly hadn’t said anything yet.

“She and I were best friends in middle school and the beginning of high school until I moved away. We reconnected at a party a few weeks ago.”

Becca didn’t seem to notice your hesitation.

“Oh that’s nice. I can’t believe no one figured it out. Do mom and Sarah know?’

You paused again. Now that you thought about it, you had no idea if Steve had told his mom.

“I don’t know actually. Probably yes. He talks to her about most things. I guess I’ll find out.”

“Well if she doesn’t already. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled. I definitely am. I knew you’d be the best couple ever.”

“Thank you, Becca.”

“I hope I can have that with Peter,” she mumbled unthinkingly.

“Who’s Peter?”

She tucked her hair behind her ear before scratching nervously at the back of her neck – a nervous tick she shared with Bucky.

“Oh. Umm. Just a friend from Queens.”

“Friend, huh?”

You shot her a disbelieving look, despite her eager nods.

“Nice try. Spill it.”

She hung her head in defeat.

“Okay.”

She launched into her own romantic tale. Explaining how she’d met a boy, Peter Parker at a Science Triathalon and they’d started talking. And she thought he might like her, but she wasn’t sure. You were just ironing out the details of a plan for her to ask him out for coffee by the time Bucky and Steve got back. You quickly stopped talking when they walked in.

“What are you two up to?” Bucky asked suspiciously.

“Nothing!” you both answered quickly.

“Yeah right.”

He glanced at Steve who just shrugged, already munching on fries.

“Whatever,” he chuckled. “Come on. Let’s eat.”

George and Winnie returned while you were finishing up eating and the afternoon was spent happily catching up. After dinner, you and Steve got ready to head back to his apartment.

“Thank you for dinner, Winnie. It was delicious.”

“Our pleasure. Do you have everything? Where are your bags?” she fussed.

“We dropped them off at home before we came here. I wanted to see Ma before she went to work.”

“Oh good. Okay. Oh that reminds me. I wrapped up some leftovers for you to take home for her. Just one second.”

She hurried to the kitchen and came back with a Tupperware container which you took from her.

“Thank you, Winnie.”

“You’re welcome, sweetie. We’ll see you tomorrow at two.”

“We’ll be here with bells on.”

“Good night and get home safe.”

“We will,” Steve promised.

“Good night!” You called with a small wave.

Steve guided you down the steps before taking your hand as you walked the three blocks back to his apartment.

“Steve. Thank you for this.”

“For what?”

“Bringing me here.”

“I couldn’t let my best girl spend Thanksgiving alone. Besides an extra five days with you without stressing about classes? I can’t think of anything better.”

You smiled up at him, as he unlocked the door.

“That does sound ideal.”

You and Steve made breakfast before settling on the couch to watch the parade. Sarah woke up shortly after eleven.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning, Ma. Coffee?” Steve asked as he kissed her on the cheek and went into the kitchen.

“Yes, please.” She smiled warmly as she sat next to you. “How did you sleep, dear?”

“Very well.”

Steve strolled in with a mug of coffee and the cinnamon rolls you made.

“Here you go, Ma.”

“Did you two bake this morning? You didn’t have to.”

“My mom and I always made cinnamon rolls on Thanksgiving morning. I thought you might like it,” you shrugged.

“It’s a wonderful surprise.”

“How was your shift?”

She sighed heavily and took a sip of coffee as Steve sat next to you, arm curling around your waist.

“Let’s just say I’m glad to have the weekend off. It’s always crazy around the holidays.”

“Lots of accidents?”

“Tons. These are delicious. You two are so sweet to make these for me. Thank you.”

“Wow, you look amazing,” Steve breathed out when you came down to go to lunch at the Barnes a couple hours later.

“Thanks, but now I think I’m overdressed,” you admitted, eyeing his jeans and polo.

“Well, Thanksgiving’s been pretty casual since the mud pie incident when Becca was four.”

You giggled, “Well, I definitely need to hear that story. But, your mom said to dress up.”

Steve’s brows furrowed.

“Are you kids ready to go?” Sarah asked as she came in from the kitchen, looking through her purse for her keys. “Oh wow, you look lovely, sweetie. So fancy.”

“Thank you,” you mumbled, cheeks flaming in embarrassment.

“Ma, did you tell Y/n to dress up?”

“No?” She asked tilting her head at you both.

“You texted me and told me to bring a nice dress.”

Sarah’s eyes widened in realization.

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry. I did, but that was because I have a surprise for you later in the weekend. I should have been clearer. I just assumed Steve would tell you lunch was casual.”

“Surprise?” You and Steve both asked.

“Yes.”

“What is it?” you asked, unable to contain your excitement.

“Why don’t you change into something more comfortable? And then I’ll tell you.”

“Okay, just give me a few minutes.”

“Take your time.”

You hurried back to Steve’s room, grateful you’d also packed your favorite sweater dress.

“Better?” she asked when you hurried down the stairs five minutes later.

“More comfortable for sure. So…”

“So,” she smiled and gestured to the couch. “Come on. Have a seat.”

Steve was now wearing a bright grin, and mischief lightened both of their gazes, and you smiled as you recognized the similarity. Clearly Sarah had told him the surprise. He perched on the arm of the couch next to as you sat right at the edge of your seat.

“Here,” she handed you an envelope with your name in her elegant handwriting.

You carefully undid the flap and dumped the contents into your palm.

“Oh my god!” you gasped when you read the ticket. “Really? The American Ballet Company’s opening night of the Nutcracker?!”

“I knew that I had to take you to some sort of show, and since you love ballet as much as I do. I thought you would enjoy it. We can save Broadway for the next time.”

“This is amazing. Thank you so much, Sarah.”

You hugged her as tightly as you could and she softly stroked your hair.

“You’re so welcome.”

You looked up in time to see Steve was watching you both with a soft expression.

~~~~~~~~

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! We’ll see more of Sarah in the next part on Monday!

Happy weekend!

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wocfics · 5 years ago

Text

Eyes Of An Angel

Jeon Jungkook Series

Part Of the Arranged Marriage Series

Arranged Marriage Series

Main Masterlist

JJK x Poc Reader

Warnings: None

Word Count: 2k

Those big brown eyes stared at everyone in the room when he walked in, he was shy and caught off guard by your appearance. His long hair was pulled back behind his ears and his white t shirt clung to his body in sweat. You could see every detail of his body from where the material was sticking to. You were sure that you had to be the only Hispanic person in general to be here. Although you had a thick accent, your Korean was perfect. It was just hard for people to understand you sometimes which was understandable but you made it this far with living here for over two years already.

When you first moved here, it was to pursue a teaching career since you studied world cultures in college and fell in love with this culture, more interested than anything. Teaching didn’t work out too well the first few months because of the misunderstanding of weather they thought you were speaking Korean or just straight up Spanish. You didn’t want to leave just yet so you became a bartender at two different bars in Itaewon, Seoul. You got paid more than enough in tips alone and your other co workers were surprisingly very nice.

The dating life however, consisted of a few hookups and pointless dates. Although the bartending was nice, you ended up doing some photography as well for extra money. If there was anything you loved more, it was taking photos of anything, especially scenery. You always made a trip to the Han River to capture moments just before sunset or even of the night life when you went to buy street food. You had stopped dating after picking up so many photography gigs, having no time to waste time.

You were somewhat fit, if you had more time you would work out more than what you were already doing but you made sure to have somewhat of a healthy diet, dark hair that was straight most of the time or in a bun, full lips, big brown eyes, and an outgoing personality. You did have a big of a nurturing nature, which your few friends loved especially when you invited them over whenever you were in the mood to cook one of your traditional Mexican cuisines, which was often.

Today, you wore a long sleeve crop top, black leggings and black boots. You had your signature black winged liner and red lip, your hair was pulled up into a high ponytail. When Jungkook had walked in, you were already in the middle of signing papers and had a big black bag sitting on the side of you. He was nervously chewing on his lip as he sat down, listening to his manager and lawyer and Mr. Bang, nodding his head while looking over the paperwork.

If it wasn’t for your last photography job, you probably wouldn’t have even been here. You got a call, asking to photograph for PSY and his new line of artists that he signed to his label. He gave Bang PD a call, after hearing about what was going on and recommended you afterwards. You had never thought about arranged marriages, but then again the dating life wasn’t the best for you and you couldn’t think about wasting your time doing that again.

After finishing up with the paperwork, made your way to the apartment, which was amazing in itself. From the outside to the inside, it was quiet and secluded almost. Of course it was private, gated community. You left your shoes at the door, turning to Jungkook. “I got you something, just so nothing is awkward or anything and I know you like video games so..” You held up the black bag out to him and he smiled. “Thank you.” He nodded his head while taking it and carrying it over to the living room area and setting it on the table to see what was inside. It was the PS5 which wasn’t even released yet but with the strings you had to pull and the price of the damn thing, you were able to get it right before the meeting. There were a few games for it as well and Jungkook’s eyes went so wide you thought he was frozen with how still he was. “Wh- wow. What!” He was excited, taking it out of the bag and looking it over.

You smiled wide, seeing how happy he was and giggled a little. “You can set it up while I put my stuff away.” Moving towards the boxes, you picked up a few and carried them into the bedroom, pausing in the doorway when the smell of vanilla hit you. Everything smelled good and everything was pretty neat in here as well. It didn’t take you long to put your stuff away with the space he provided for you.

Walking back into the living room area, you saw him sitting on the floor in front of the t.v, finishing his set up of the console before he looked back towards you and stood up after putting the games and controllers away and grinned. “Thank you. Are you hungry?” He asked. You nodded and looked towards the kitchen. “I can cook and please, Jungkook, you don’t have to speak English for me. I can speak Korean too, it’s a little hard to understand but I’m very fluent.” He nodded.

Leaving him to finish up some laundry that he was supposed to do the night before, you made yourself busy in the kitchen, you had managed to go grocery shopping before hand and you had put the stuff on the counter. You wanted to make him something that you made often for you and your friends. Tamales and empanadas. Speaking Korean with Jungkook was a bit challenging because anytime you said anything in Korean he would tilt his head to the side until you said it in English to him and he did that ‘o’ face. You knew it would be a little difficult but hopefully you would get better in time.

By the time the food was done, you places everything on plates, along with the rice you made and placed them both on the table. Pouring two glasses of water, you set them next to the plates and waited for him to join you. Once he sat down, you explained the food to him and let him dig in. He hummed when the food was good and you took note of that. Once you saw how much he enjoyed the food you ate your own portion.

He showered after dinner, once he helped you clean the kitchen and put the leftovers away that he said he would take to the boys tomorrow to try. You were glad he loved your cooking. After taking the too tight ponytail out of your hair and removing your lipstick, you glanced up at the bathroom door when you heard it open and your eyes wouldn’t leave his upper body. The towel he had on his lower body didn’t do enough to hide the v cut he had. You could tell he hits the gym hard, his abs and pecs were so prominent that you just wanted to bite him, especially with the water dripping off of him. The veins down down his arms, sitting well with the ink on his left one while he dried his hair with another towel.

You blinked when he made eye contact with you. “Oh. Sorry.” He went into panic mode and quickly made his way around the room, grabbing a few things before walking out and into the spare bedroom. Taking a deep breath, you blinked a few more times, shaking your head and grabbed your towel to head into the bathroom.

After washing your hair as your last step, you stepped out of the shower, went into the room to change into an oversized shirt since you hated wearing pants to bed, and brushed out your hair while Jungkook made his way back into the room right after you climbed under the blankets. He moved so close to the edge of the bed, you thought he would fall off.

“I don’t bite you know. You can sleep normally, or I can sleep in the other room if you’re uncomfortable.” You shrugged. He shook his head. “No, no. It’s fine. Let’s just sleep.” He said, moving slightly closer to the middle. You shrugged, laying on your side, your back facing him and quickly fell asleep.

He woke before you, still on his side of the bed, with room still in between you two. Glancing over his shoulder at your still sleeping body, your hair a mess over your face as you sighed into the pillow. His fingers twitched as he reached over to move some of your hair out of your face to see you better. Feeling his fingers graze your face, you slightly stirred before your eyes fluttered open and your surroundings settled in before you realized where you were. Stretching your arms over your head, you turned over in bed and saw him sitting up.

You did the same and scratched your head, your cheeks puffy which they usually were in the morning. You rubbed your eyes and stood up, your hair sticking up and tangled in some areas as you walked into the bathroom and back out in a few minutes after you brushed your teeth. “Morning.” You spoke and yawned, walking over to the window as he made up the bed. “Good morning.” He said back, watching you stare out the window.

You put your hair up in a messy bun before heading into the kitchen and sat at the counter while he cooked you both breakfast and made coffee. You attempted to hold his hand but as soon as you reached for it, he moved it away, grabbing his mug instead and taking a sip of the hot liquid. He was still nervous. You didn’t know how long he would be but you hoped that he would at least hold your hand eventually. Instead of trying to decipher why he was still nervous, you ate your breakfast, washing it down with your coffee and cleaned up.

After you both got dressed, you in black sweats and a crop sweater and him in all grey sweats and sweater, you sat on the couch after you were finished untangling your hair and watched him sit down on the opposite end of you. “So, once we get our schedules figured out, I figured maybe we can set up a few dates so that we can get to know each other.” You spoke in Korean to which he nodded and fiddled with the strings on his sweatpants. “Jungkook.” You called and he looked up and over at you, raising his eyebrows. Smiling, you shook your head. “I want you to be comfortable around me, okay? I know this is..a lot, trust me, but I do want to at least try. I know you’re nervous and that’s not a bad thing but can you at least try with me, please?” You scooted closer to him until your legs were touching and he took a deep breath and nodded.

“I’m really nervous. I don’t want to push anything onto you and this lifestyle might get hard for you and I want to be there. I’m just not ready for certain things yet.” He said quietly and you were confused until you saw the pink spread across his cheeks and you nodded. “Oh, that. Listen we don’t have to do anything unless you’re comfortable. I’ll understand. Slow is always better.” You nodded. “I’ve been with girls before, you know.” He said matter of factly and you laughed. “I wouldn’t put it past you but I know this is new territory because we’re married now, to each other. So if you want to take this step by step then we can. I don’t have a problem doing that at all.” He nodded and smiled.

This was going to be one long adventure.

#jeon jungkook #poc bts #bts ot7 #ot7 #bts fanfic #bts imagine #jungkook imagine #jungkook fanfic #bts x poc reader #bts x poc #pocreader #pocimagine #kpop poc

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inspirationdivine · 4 years ago

Text

You Can’t Sit With Us || Lydia and Cece

Timing: Current Parties: @inspirationdivine & @thebickedwitchoftherest Summary: Cece provides Lydia with some much needed security. Warnings: Head trauma tw, stalking reference

Lydia's heart has taken up permanent residence in her throat. It pounded fast as she sat in her kitchen. Thank God the summer sun hung in the sky so long, keeping her safe with every minute of its presence. The doorbell rang, and Lydia used her smartphone to see through the camera who it was. Showtime. Lydia picked up her crutches and slowly, achingly shuffled to the door. She wore a long dressing gown, heavy make up and as much glamour as she could manage. She wouldn't look well, she wouldn't look herself, but the blackened bruises on her face would be hidden, not would she look anything but human. At least, for as long as she could hold it. "Ms Bishop, thank you ever so much for coming as such short notice." Lydia smiled, but no amount of magic could hide the croak in her voice. She hopped aside, careful not to say any invitation.

Cece felt like a call girl, without any of the implied action. She waved at the camera after knocking and readjusted the bag on her shoulder. The thing kept getting heavier and heavier as she added more things to it she deemed necessary. God forbid anyone decided to check her bag. They would probably think she was insane. The woman, who Cece assumed was Lydia, opened the door and Cece sucked in a low whistle. She didn’t look good. She answered on crutches, and despite the makeup and expensive looking robe, it was pretty evident that she was in a rough place. “Anything for a friend.” Cece answered, wondering how it was that Lydia and Remmy had become acquainted in the first place. “You can call me Cece, it’s preferred actually. What should I call you?” The two stood for a long moment before Cece realized that she wasn’t about to get an invitation into the home. “I’m just gonna let myself in then.” Cece leaned forward, talking softly and then pushing past Lydia and into the home. Smart choice though, avoiding words like that. Clearly, Lydia had learned the wrong way. “So a little birdy told me you’ve got some vamp troubles. What’s the story? Ex-lover? Pizza boy? If so, I hope you gave a shitty tip.”

She smiled thinly, nodding at the name. "Lydia will do nicely," she replied, and lead CeCe into her home, slowly, with the loud click of crutches on hardwood. She couldn't, however. Hide the disgust as Cece tried to guess at the causes of the dispute. "Nothing worth sharing. I just need to know that he won't ever walk back in again." Lydia squeezed her eyes shut from the sun. Bright light was a terrible thing. She grabbed for the sunglasses she kept on a nearby counter, and hoped Cece wouldn't question it. At least the place was clean, Lydia thought. Nothing on display. There was a couch sized gap in the living room, but beyond that, not much to be concerned about. "I don't know how it works. Your spell, I mean. Where do you need to set up? Does it work for the entire house or do you need to do it at each door? Because I have a lot of houses." Lydia frowned, pinching her nose. "I mean I have a lot of doors. Just the one house to spell. Do you- do you want a drink, uh- a coffee or something?"

Cece got the message. Lydia wasn’t much of a conversationalist it seemed. At least not regarding the vampire she wanted to be permanently evicted from her house. “Point taken. Well, no vampires will be coming back through this door unless they’re paying rent.” Cece began unpacking things from her bag. Multiple bottles of water, a tuft of sage, and the ever spell important candles. She eyed the sunglasses, wondering if Lydia had spent the night coping with her problems. Cece had her own pair of hangover sunglasses she dusted off and fashioned from time to time. “The spell? Piece of cake. I can set up right here. I’ll just have to circle your house a couple of times, but I’ll do the actual spell near the front door. It’ll work for the whole house, and all vampires. Unless you just have one you want to keep out.” Cece grabbed two bottles of water from her bag and carried them over with her to Lydia. “That depends. Do you have wine? Whiskey? Anything alcohol actually.” Cece questioned, never one to turn down a free drink if offered, “Holy water” Cece held the bottle up and shook it for clarification, “I’m gonna go and sprinkle this around the house. Be right back.”

"Right, right of course." Lydia nodded weakly. Wine was doable. While she couldn't drink it right now, she had plenty in stock, and might even enjoy briefly discussing it. Until she imagined bending down or crouching to reach into the wine cooler, and she felt electricity shoot down her spine. But the whiskey was in the cupboard, just below eye level. "Whiskey I can do," she agreed. "See you in a little." Considering that Lydia's home contained her entire restoration studio, her luscious living space, work studios for Sammy and Chloe, and multiple spare bedrooms, it was a large mansion, so she might not be back immediately. Lydia hobbled to the kitchen, moving on automatic as she got out the glass, grabbed the whiskey. It wasn't until she'd finished pouring the whiskey that she realised she has gotten Cece a wine glass rather than a whiskey one, and had poured her a wine portion size of whiskey. She could repour it, but that simple effort was suddenly overwhelming, as Lydia staggered into a kitchen chair, cradling her head between her hands. She stayed there until she heard footsteps back in the hallway, her heart plunging into a panic as she sat upright a little too fast. "Cece?"

“Whiskey it is!” Cece answered before jogging out the door with her bottles of water. The house was massive, far larger than Cece’s own house. This town managed to have an impressive amount of large homes and rich people for its size. Clearly, she should have worn more comfortable shoes today. Curse her for matching the shoes with the outfit. She used her keys to poke a hole in the top of the first bottle of water, squeezing it to spray a stream of holy water into the grass. She began her long trek circling the house, switching bottles once she ran out of the first. Once she had finally circled the yard, she used the small leftover amount of water to spray around the front door. When she went back into the house, Lydia practically jumped. Fuck. Whoever this vampire was, it did a real number on her. “Just me. Don’t freak out.” Cece held up the empty bottles and abandoned them on the counter, noticing the wine glass full of whiskey, “Now that’s what I’m talking about. I like you.” She grinned making a beeline for the glass and taking a long drink from it. “Part one done. Ready for part two? We get to burn some sage, light some candles. Really sets a nice ambience.”

If Lydia had looked pale before, she might have been mistaken for a Banshee now, all the blood drained from her face. She dropped back into her seat, shoulders low, back hunched. She eyed the empty holy water bottles, and swallowed as she realised that it might have just been water, and she wouldn’t know until she tried. It occurred to her, quickly, that she didn’t have any vampiric friends that she’d invited in her home, no one to test with until he tried again. Lydia swallowed, looking back up at Cece with a small smile. “Let’s pretend that was entirely deliberate, shall we?” The smile immediately faltered as Cece told her the next step. “Does that… require my involvement? I’m not feeling too well, I’d rather just sit here.”

“I’m great at pretending,” Cece swirled the glass as if it was wine in it instead and took another sip. Lydia didn’t seem up to the task of helping out with the spell, which wasn’t that big of a deal. The spell was simple enough, it just involved a certain amount of Christian iconography that Cece didn’t typically work with. “You sit there and look pretty, I got this.” Cece grabbed the sage and moved towards the door. She lit a candle and began the incantation, using the candle’s flame to light the sage in a dish. As she spoke, the smoke from the sage began thickening, turning a dark red color as the spell began working it’s literal magic. Cece didn’t stop the chanting until the the smoke began to lighten, turning its regular color and eventually burning down completely. Then, Cece dipped her index and middle fingers into the bowl, gathering a bit of ash on her finger tips and using it to draw a crude outline of a cross on the front door. After that, she made her way back to her bag and dropped off the bowl of sage and candle and wiped her hands clean. “Leave that cross up for a few hours and you should be vampire free.”

“That’s what I’m best at,” Lydia said drily, feeling anything but pretty as some beat drums inside her brain. She listened carefully as Cece moved around the downstairs, if only because keeping her eyes open was harder and harder by the minute. The sage smelled thick and heavy, lingering in her nose and irritated throat. When Cece came back, Lydia shuddered, her head ringing like thunder, hard as the hit which had caused the concussion. “Wonderful. What is the best way to pay-” Lydia inhaled sharply, then groaned. Her glamour began to falter - her ears grew longer and pointier, her bathrobe filled with the bulk of her wings, and her face slowly gave way to the deep bruising and heavy swelling that she’d been hiding. Her glamour came in and out in patchwork, flickering unevenly on her skin, shrinking her ears and then revealing their full length again.

Lydia brought up the discussion of payment and Cece began waving her comment away until something flickered. It had been so quick that Cece wasn’t sure she had actually seen anything at first. Until it began happening again. It was like a glitch in a computer program, flickering in different areas of Lydia’s body. They were just flashes, too hard to be able to make anything out clearly. But it was enough for Cece to figure some things out. This was a glamour. Which meant that Lydia was hiding something nonhuman. From the few features that she could see, incredibly pale skin, long nonhuman ears. Something that could pass for human from far away, but the closer one got features would start seeming irregular. “Well that’s different.” Cece tilted her head, studying the woman and questioning her next move. Clearly, the woman didn’t want her true form revealed or she wouldn’t have been glamored. What did that mean for their conversation? Cece was here to do Remmy a favor. She was hardly in the mood to brawl it out with a mutual friend. Best to proceed with caution. “Your glamor seems fucked up. You do that yourself, or is it some kind of bewitched jewelry?”

“What’s different? Oh- Oh shit.” Lydia didn’t even realise that her glamour was falling out of place until Cece said something, but then she wasn’t much in the mood for noticing much of anything at all. The headache roared inside her like one of Jared’s beasts. Ringing in her eyes, burning under her eyelids. Inescapable. Lydia scrabbled in her purse for the decoction of liverwort and stray sod, cringing at the mulchy texture. It helped, just enough for her to yank her glamour back on, although if anyone had looked at her skin too closely they would notice the lack of veins and imperfections. “My own. My mistake, you should never have seen that.”

That had been a panicked response. Cece couldn’t exactly blame her. Being a witch came with it’s perks, and the main perk was that in all other aspects she was a normal human. To avoid detection the only thing she had to do was not do spells in front of others. If she had been something else, something that looked less like the status quo, she would probably be a little panicked if her disguise had failed in front of a total stranger too. Luckily for Lydia, Cece was pretty chill about that sort of stuff. Hopefully for Cece, Lydia took notice to that and didn’t get defensive. Or aggressive. “Seen what?” Cece questioned, rifling around in her purse, “Even if I did see something, my lips are sealed.” Cece found her notepad and pulled it free, scribbling down her cell number and holding it out towards her, “I know you have my online information, but here’s my cell. Call me if you need anything else or if you have any more troubles with that vampire. I could pencil in a count Chocula ass whopping pretty quickly.” Cece hopped back and forth on her feet, throwing a fake punch and acting as though she were in the middle of a boxing ring.

Lydia squeezed her eyes shut, rubbing her forehead, and didn’t even think to try to promise bind Cece to her words. “I appreciate that. Like I said, I’ll… pay you back in kind.” She peeked open her eyes as paper was rustled near her face. She nodded, eyes flicking over the numbers as she took none of it in. “Thank you,”she said again, words she so rarely spoke ever now coming out of her lips quite quickly. “He’s- Well, I don’t know that he’d appreciate being called count Chocula.” Her lips quirked. At the very least, Remmy had sent her a fun human. Maybe she could ea- hmmm maybe not. “You’re very sweet. Thank you.”

Cece got the feeling that it was time to let the woman rest. She seemed even less focused than she had been when Cece first got here. Keeping up the glamor in her current state probably took a lot of energy. “This was a favor for a friend. You don’t owe me anything.” Cece waves the offer of payment away and flung her bag over her shoulder. “Well I don’t appreciate a vampire roughing up a mutual friend. Frankly, I don’t give a damn what he thinks.” All packed up, Cece was ready to split and let the woman get some rest. Luckily for her, she didn’t need to worry about any blood sucking visitors making an unwelcome entrance. “Since you’re all set, I’m gonna head out, okay? Looks like you could use some sleep.”

#para #chatzy #cece #wickedswriting #head trauma tw #stalking tw

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alpaca-obsession · 5 years ago

Text

Princesses Don’t Cry

Hello there! This was written for @holylulusworld 4k writing challenge.

My prompt was “You stand there and accuse me, but where were you at that time?”

Word count: 2,714

Warnings: yelling, mom!reader, witch!reader, slightly hurt reader i guess. (I think that’s it. Let me know if I missed anything!)

A/N: This is the first fic I’ve finsihed in a long time actually. Also Lisa and Ben are mentioned, but I didn’t set this in any specific season. The boys do life in the bunker, and yeah. I honestly don’t know. So have fun! Feedback is appreciated :)

-----------------

Opening my fridge for the third time now I look at the leftovers of my last meals and sigh, eventually closing the door again and making my way on to my couch.

When there is a knock on the door I panic for a short moment. No one should be out here at this time.

"Elijah, could you go and check on Annabelle?", I ask the cat sitting on the windowsill. Grunting the black cat makes his way up the stairs.

Taking my gun I approach the door.

"Y/n, are you home?", I hear a familiar voice.

"Cas?", confused I open the door, looking at the angel in front of my cottage.

Beckoning him inside I put my gun down on my couch table.

"What do you need Cas?", I ask.

"I need your help. To be more specific, Sam, Dean and I need your help", the angel says.

"Oh no, absolutly not! We won't help these Winchester boys, so I suggest you leave now", says Elijah who jumps up on the couch to be a little taller in front of Castiel.

"Elijah I told you to be nice to Cas. He is my friend, so don't be rude", I scold my familiar. "What do you need help with Cas?"

"We are hunting another witch and I thought you could be of some assistens", Cas says.

"I'm sorry Cas. I don't think I can be of any help. You can handle a witch on your own. And I haven't been on a hunt in 5 years you know that", I said and look at the angel in my living room.

Just as he was about to say something, footsteps come running down the stairs and into the room.

"Uncle Cassie!", my daughter Annabelle squeaks hugging the angel of the lord.

"Hello there Belle. How are you small one?", Cas asks the five year old.

"Mommy has been teaching me some magic and it's been really fun! Also Elijah caught some mice yesterday and he ate them! Can you belive that?", Annabelle rambles on, never letting go of Castiels leg. He stands there and listens to the small child.

"Anni, Mommy and Uncle Cas have something important to talk about. Why don't you go back to your room and try that spell I taught you?", I ask my child, hoping she takes the bait.

Shaking her head violently she clings thighter to Castiels legs.

"No! I wanna talk important too! Maybe I can help Mommy", she says giving me her puppy dog eyes.

"Fine. You can stay, but you have to sit still and be quiet, okay baby girl?", I sigh and my daughter nods eagerly. Hopping on to the couch, pulling Castiel with her, just to sit on his lap.

"What is this important thing you are talking about Uncle Cas?", Annabelle asks.

"Some old friends of your Mum and me need help, but I can't seem to convince her to help, can you belive that?", Cas asks the child on his lap, which gasps in shock.

"Mommy! How can you not want to help your friends?", Annabelle asks shocked.

"You see sweatheart, me and one of those... friends had a bad disagreement", I try to explain what happened in a child friendly way.

"But Mommy, that's no reason not to help. You always say that you need to talk if you have a disagreement. And that you should help friends even if you had a disagreement. That's what you said last time me and Sunny had one", the child huffs and crosses her arms in front of her chest.

"Fine. I'll help. But neither of them boys gets to know about Annabelle", I sigh and stand up. "Elijah, will you come along?"

Rolling his eyes the cat looks between me and my daughter. "As if I had a choice. So yeah. I'll come along", Elijah says, rolling his eyes in the process.

"Good. Come Anni, you gotta pack some of your things. We'll probably not be home for a few days."

"Yay! So it's like a family trip!", she giggles and runs up to her room to get some clothes and toys.

"You make sure these boys stay away from my child. Or I will rip of your wings with my bare hands, do you understand me?", I tell the angel and he nods.

Cas takes his leave and I head up to my bedroom to pack some things. Elijah hops on to my bed and looks at me with this famous look of his.

"I know I'll regret this 'Lijah. You don't have to tell me", I sigh and close up my bag.

Taking one final look around the cottage I take Annabelle to the car and get in the drivers seat. At least it wasn't going to be that long of a car ride. Still two hours to the motel I planed on staying at. But not the worst.

Annabelle fell asleep 45 minutes into the ride and Elijah was curled up by her side. Even though he didn't admit it, he loved her as much as I did, and he took care of her in whatever way he could.

Not wanting to wake Annabelle up, I pick her up and walk into the motel. After checking in Elijah is already sitting outside of the window.

"I'll be meeting with Sam and Dean in the morning. Will you look after Anni?", I ask the cat that curled up on a chair.

"I'm your familiar, not your babysitter", Elijah scoffs.

Raising an eyebrow at him, he sighs, murmuring his agreement. Scratching him behind the ears I smile as a purr leaves him.

After getting Annabelle's and my bag from the car, I settle down and set up some candles and protection spells. You never know what is out there.

In the morning Annabelle and I grab some pancakes and Elijah gets himself some mice or whatever he's up to.

"Okay sweetie, Mommy is going to meet her friends now. Elijah will take care of you for as long as I'm gone. If anything happens you know how to use the phone I gave you, yeah?", I ask, giving my daughter a questioning look.

"I remember Mommy. Elijah and I are going to have a tea party!", she explains, while Elijah's eyes went wide. He didn't particularly enjoy the tea party's, but he always put up with them.

"Safe some for me okay suger cube? I'll be back as soon as I can. Love you", I say, kissing the top of her head and Annabelle giggles, returning the 'I love you'.

I make my way to the resturant Cas said to meet them in and take a seat. Thankfully I don't have to wait long for the three of them to show up. They all sit down opposite to me and I sigh.

"Why didn't you bring-", I know what Cas was about to ask, before he cut himself of. Damn angels..

"Bring who?", asked Sam.

"My familiar. Surely you remeber Elijah", I say, saving Castiels slight slip up, giving him a warning glare.

"How could we not remember that damn cat. Tore up my favorite flannel", Dean muttered.

"He had every right to do that Dean. You weren't really nice to him back in the day", Sam says, giving his brother a weird look.

"Now, tell me about that witch, so I can get back to my cottage", I demand.

We spent a few hours talking about all the things they had gathered. It wasn't that much to be honest. But enough to track her I guess.

"I'll do what I can. If I get a lead, I'll let you know. Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta get back to Elijah and you gotta go back to.. whatever", I cut myself of, not wanting emotions to show.

Heading back to the motel I try to think of what spell I might use. When I open the door to the motel room, Annabelle is nowhere to be seen. For a moment I'm worried, but Elijah comes out of the bedroom.

"She was tired, so I put her to bed. You have been gone almost the whole day after all", Elijah says, sounding just slighlty pissed off.

"I'm sorry 'Lijah. I needed some air after that meet up. But thanks for keeping an eye on her", I say, reaching out to pet him.

Setting up the things I need for my spell, I try not to focus on my thoughts about seeing Sam and Dean again.

After finishing my set up I decide not to start the spell today. I can always do that tomorrow, and maybe I'll let Annabelle help me a little.

Just as I was about to drift of to sleep, there is a knock on the door. Shooting up from where I'm seated, I walk over to the door, opening it jsut slighly enough so I can take a look at who's in front of the door.

Seeing the Winchester's out in the hallway I sigh. Opening the door just a little wider I give them a questioning look.

"We wanted to know if you'd maybe like to grab a drink with us?", Sam asks, smiling at me hopefully.

"Thanks, but no thanks."

"Could we at least come in then? Catch up maybe?", Sam asks.

Looking back at Elijah, he makes his way over to the door, looking up at the hunters.

"You won't take no for an answer, will you?", he asks the brothers, which then both shake their heads.

Sighing I beckon them inside. Annabelle sleeps like the dead, so talking to them won't wake her up.

Offering them a beer each and making them sit down, Sam starts his small talk. Elijah sits on my lap, slightly calming my nerves with his purring.

Sam actually seems happy talking and catching up with me and my life. Well, without Annabelle of course. Dean doesn't talk much. I wonder why Sam even made him come here. Dean had broken up with me, kicking me out of his life 5 years ago.

"Mommy, Mommy, I had a nightmare", a small voice hiccups.

The brothers watch with wide eyes as I make my way over to my daughter, wiping the tears from her face.

"I'm so sorry sugar cube. But you know what Uncle Bobby always says to you? Princesses don't cry. And you know why? Because princesses are so strong and brave. And you're my brave and strong princess, right?", I say, smoothing my hand over her hair and hugging her small figure.

With a small nod, and some light sniffling Annabelle pulls away and smiles up at me. Eventually her eyes fall on the man on the couch.

"Are those your friends Mommy?", Annabelle asks, walking past me and towards the brothers.

"Yes. But they were just about to leave, weren't you?", I smile at Sam and Dean, hoping for their own good that they get the message.

But the Winchesters being the Winchesters, they don't get my message.

"I like your hair", Annabelle says, standing in front of Sam, giving him her biggest smile.

"How old are you sweetheart?", Dean asks, getting Annabelles attention.

"I'm 5! And my Mommy has started teaching me some magic. Do you wanna see? I'm already pretty good!", the now wide awake child says.

"Anni you have to get back to sleep. Elijah said you were practacing earlier. We both know how exhausted that gets you", I try to reason with the child, "maybe you can show them another time."

"Okay Mommy", Annabelle says, skipping her way into the bed room. Following her, I tug her in and close the door on my way out. Just to be meet with two pairs of wide eyes.

"Was that.. you're daughter?", Sam asks.

"No. I kidnapped her and made her think I was her mum. Y'know, I'm that kind of witch that steals your babys. Of course that's my daugther you jerk", I say, sarcasm dripping in my voice.

"Is she mine?", Dean speaks up now, looking at me with his green eyes.

"Gosh darn it Dean, not every child roaming this earth is yours. Just because you and I used to be a thing, dosen't mean that Annabelle is your daughter", I exclaim starting to get pissed at the situation. Why would he care now?

"Now get out of my room please. Elijah and I want to start early tomorrow to finish this as fast as possible", I say opening the door, waiting for the brothers to get up and leave.

Sam nods and makes his way out of the room. Dean follows him, but stops in front of me.

"Answer my question y/n. Is she my daughter?", he asks again not breaking eye contact.

"Yes. You're the father. Now get out of my room", I say in a stricter tone this time.

"Why didn't you tell me? How could you keep that from me?", Dean starts raising his voice.

Pulling him out of the room I close the door behind me in an attempt to lower the voices that would eventually reach Annabelle.

"Why do you care Dean? You didn't care five years ago, why should you care now?", I ask him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"She's my daugther! Like my biogical child. I had every right to know about her!", Dean now yells at me. "You had no right to keep her from me! Why didn't you tell me about her? Didn't you want your child to have a father, unlike you? Why keep your child from having a father? Didn't you love me?"

"You stand there and accuse me. But where were you at that time? Oh right. You were busy playing the apple pie life with Lisa and Ben! I tried telling you that I was pregnant! But you never listened to me! You claimed that you loved me, until Lisa and Ben showed up and you had the chance to get away and have a family. But you already had one! You had Sam and me. And you could've had Annabelle. But you lost every right to my child, the day you threw me away like a piece of rubbish!", I yell, tears threatening to spill from my eyes.

"Lisa and I were over the day Sammy stood in front of our door. And now you want to keep my biogical child away from me?", Dean demands to know, emotions playing in his eyes. From anger to sadness.

"See. Sam will always be more important. And he'll be more important than Annabelle at one point. I can't let you hurt her", my voice cracking at the end, tears now running down my cheeks.

"Then come with us. Take Annabelle and Elijah and move into the bunker with us. I'll hunt with Sam and still be there to be Annabelles father. And you would be able to help us if you'd like", Dean says, pleading green eyes filling with tears.

"How can I be sure you won't leave me again? That you won't throw this away again?", I ask.

"I swear on Sam's hair and all myy love for him, that I will be a good father for Annabelle", Dean says letting tears roll down his cheeks, and putting his hand over his heart.

Pulling Dean into a hug I hold him tight. I didn't even realize how much I missed his arms wrapped around me.

After a few moments we both pull away and I open the door to my room, leaving Dean to stand in the hallway.

Standing in the middle of the room is Annabelle.

"I'm sorry Mommy, I know I should be sleeping, but I heared yelling and I got worried", she say, big doe eyes looking at me.

"It's okay sugar cube. I would like to introduce you to someone", I say holding out my hand to her.

Taking her outside the room I see Dean's face light up.

"But Mommy I already know him. He's your friend", the small girl says.

"Yes that's right. But he's your Daddy too. And I'm planning one moving in with him, if that is okay with you?", I ask my daughter.

She just gives me the biggest smile, nods and hugs Dean's legs. Maybe this wasn't so bad.

#supernatural #sam and dean #dean winchester #sam winchester #witch!reader #mom!reader #dean x reader #supernatural x reader #supernatural oneshot #4k writing challenge #holylulusworld #dad!dean

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yunaffie · 4 years ago

Text

With Friends and Loved Ones

For the tenth anniversary of Ghost Trick, I bring you a special treat fic to celebrate the occasion. This was written for @fyeahghosttrick‘s Ghost Swap exchange. Prompt: “The gang celebrates an anniversary”

This is a very special day, being the 10th anniversary of Ghost Trick, a game very close to my heart, and so I’ve written this celebratory fic. To be honest, I already had the idea knocking around, even had a scene partially written, and this was the perfect opportunity to bring it back to life! And thus, I bring to you a fic full of much joy and fluff, with plenty of characters sharing in the fun. Happy tenth anniversary, and may the fandom continue to be around for many more years!

Crossposted on AO3 here.

Cabanela looked quite the sight, pumping the pedals and sailing along on his bike, red scarf flapping dangerously close to the wheels and yet somehow never managing to get snared in the spokes. Many had marveled about his reckless behaviour when it came to riding a bike and none had figured the secret of how he got away with it. Many heads were turning even now as he coasted along the road, whistling a cheerful tune to himself, keeping a careful eye on the traffic around him.

"Uncle Cabanela!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Cabanela spotted another cyclist coming up behind him, lilac hair flapping from underneath her helmet. The ends of a yellow ribbon flapped around her shoulders. He pulled the bike over to the side of the road and stopped, waiting for her to catch up.

Kamila brought her bike to a stop just behind him and took a moment to catch her breath. "Phew. Glad I caught you. I didn't want to come into the police station because Dad might have seen me."

"Oh, really?" Cabanela twisted around and rested an elbow on the handlebars, regarding her with a wry smile. He figured from the fact that Kamila had her backpack with her and was in her middle school uniform that she must have come straight from school. "I take it you're planning something and don't want him to fiiind out?"

"Bingo." Kamila tilted her head and lifted a hand to her hair, taking a strand and twisting it around her finger. Crease lines formed in her brow. "You're not busy right now, are you?"

"Hmm, not especially. I was just gonna head on home and come over later, but I can make time for you. So, what's the deal, baby?"

"Well, you see, I'm planning a big surprise." Kamila rested her arms on the handles of her bike, her eyes gleaming. "Mom and Dad can't know about it, you see, and I'm trying to get other people involved too. Actually, speaking of other people, would it be okay if we went to see Grandpa? I can explain everything there."

"Oh, the Professor? Suuure, why not, it's been a while since I last saw him so I guess I'm due another visit." Cabanela placed his feet back on the pedals and gripped the handlebars. "Well then, off we go."

Cabanela and Kamila took off, riding their bikes in unison all the way to the edge of town, their journey taking them into the junkyard. They rode their bikes up to the superintendent's office and dismounted. Kamila hurried in first.

"Grandpa!" Kamila called out, looking around. The office was empty. Reaching a hand out to the kettle on the stove, she felt a faint heat rising out of the spout. "Hmm, maybe he's downstairs."

Cabanela gracefully leaped into the room, doing a twirl. Stopping in place, he kicked his leg up into the air, swayed his arms in a brisk motion and finished it off with a dramatic twist of his head. Kamila watched all this with a blank look.

"You know, I've often wondered this," she said, placing a hand to her cheek, "but do you do that even when coming into an empty room?"

"Ha! But of course, baby, it's veeery important to do everything you can with flair." Cabanela hopped slightly to the side, resting a hand on his hip while his gaze scanned the room. "Suppose he must be down in the basement."

"I guess so, but, Uncle, what's the point of showing off if there's nobody else to see it?"

"It's the principle of the thing, you see. I gotta keep on moooving, no matter what. It's okay if you don't get it, nobody else really does either." Cabanela finished off his statement with a jovial smile.

"Hmm. Okay. Well, I think you're pretty cool anyway, Uncle Cabanela, so keep on dancing."

"Why, thaaank you, baby."

Kamila scampered off through the door, racing down the stairs. Entering the basement, she spied the elderly man sitting in an armchair, clutching a steaming mug of tea in his hands while he gazed at the television. "Grandpa!"

The professor gave a start, blinking and looking up. "Honestly, couldn't you knock next time? You'll give me a heart attack at this rate. Also, I ain't your grandpa, kid." He rose to his feet. The blue pigeon perched on his head shifted about, flapping her wings.

Kamila bounced over and threw her arms around him. "How are you, Grandpa?" She stepped back and reached out to stroke the pigeon's head with a finger. "Hello, Lovey-Dove." The pigeon responded with a soft coo.

"I've been fine, thank you. These old bones of mine are mighty tired as usual but otherwise I'm in perfectly good health."

"That's good. So, has Lovey-Dove been using the bird bath I made for her?"

"Oh, yes, she likes it very much. Thank you, it was very thoughtful of you." The professor looked aside at the twirling inspector who had just made his entrance. "Well, if it isn't Cabanela. Been a while since you last showed your face here."

"So sorry about that, Professor! I've been pretty busy working on a case but it's all wrapped up now. You know you're welcome to pop over to Jowd's whenever you're feelin' lonely, we're always theeere for you."

"Hmph." Pushing his glasses up his nose, the professor remarked, "Whoever said anything about being lonely? I was just afraid you might have sprained an ankle or something with all that ridiculous dancing of yours."

"Ha!" Cabanela's face brightened. "Like a sprained ankle could get in my way. Even broken bones wouldn't stop me!"

"Yeah right." Shaking his head, the professor turned his attention to Kamila. "So what brings you here?"

"Right. Well, you see, my parents' anniversary is coming up soon." Kamila clasped her hands behind her back.

"Ahh, I figured that was what it was about." Cabanela leaned against a table. "You're planning sooomething special for the big day, is that it?"

"That's right, but I'm going to need your help. I want to get all the family together for the day and throw Mom and Dad a surprise party!" Kamila spread her arms wide. "But to do that, I'm going to need to get them out of the house first and that's where you'll come in, Uncle Cabanela. They won't get suspicious if it's you."

"Hold on, what does this have to do with me?"

Kamila turned her gaze on the pigeon man, blinking in puzzlement "Whatever do you mean? You're invited of course."

"Hm? You said 'get all the family together' so..."

"Yes, and you're like my grandpa so I want you to come as well," Kamila said, beaming at him. "There's no way I would just leave you out. You will come, won't you?"

"Huh. Well." He lowered his head, causing Lovey-Dove to shift around in an effort to sustain her balance. Raising his head, he spoke again. "I think I can find the time. Not like I have much of a schedule anyway."

"Yay!" Kamila's face brightened even more and she hugged him again. "I'm so glad. It would be so sad if you couldn't make it, Grandpa."

"Honestly, how many times must I tell you, I ain't your grandpa." In spite of his protest, his voice sounded considerably softer. He gazed down at the floor, blinking rapidly.

"Give it up, Professor, she's adopted you and there's no poooint in arguing with her. So, anybody else you're inviting?"

"Lynne and Missile, of course. Hmm, I think it wouldn't hurt to invite some family friends as well so I might invite Amelie and her parents too, and how about Mr. Yomiel, do you think he might want to come too?"

"I could ask him, it wouldn't hurt. I could take care of asking the justice minister too if you want."

"Really? That would be super helpful, thanks."

"No problem, baby, I'm veeery happy to help. Sounds like it's going to be quite the lively party. The more the merrier, as they say."

"Yeah. I want to make this a really fun party that everyone will remember." Kamila turned around to face the professor. "Well, I'll let you know when I've decided on the time. I hope you'll be able to make it."

"Don't worry, I expect I will. Junkyard superintendent is hardly a demanding job." There was a pause, before he spoke again. "You know, I really appreciate your thinking of me. It's nice to be included."

"Oh, come on, like we'd ever think of leavin' you out."

"That's right, you're like a member of our family now," Kamila added.

"Right." The professor swallowed. "Well then, I expect you'd better be getting on, then?"

"I'll come for a proper visit next time, promise. Look forward to seeing you soon," Kamila said, hugging him. "Bye, Grandpa!"

"Take care, Professor."

The professor watched them leave then reached up to rub a wet eye. He sank back down into the armchair and exhaled. "Well, Lovey-Dove. It sure is nice to have a family, isn't it?"

Lovey-Dove responded with a coo. With a smile on his face, he reached up to stroke her head.

Cabanela and Kamila had hopped onto their bikes and ridden back to the entrance, where Cabanela stopped. "So, what's your next plan of action?"

"Hmm." Kamila put her hand on her chin. "You're taking care of Mr. Yomiel and the justice minister, so that just leaves Lynne, right? But I can't go into the police station. I really would like to tell her as soon as possible though."

"Lynne's working on a case, so I expect she'll be late home tonight."

"Will she?" Kamila was silent for a moment before her face lit up. "Oh, I know! Mom's making curry tonight so maybe I can take some leftovers to Lynne, and even take Missile for a walk too, he would really love that."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, baby. This plan is goin' to go off without a hitch, I'm suuure. Anyhoot, I'll be seein' you all later, and I'll be sure to let Yomiel know before I come over, yeah?"

"Great. Thank you so much for the help, Uncle Cabanela."

"No need to thaaank me, baby. I'm always happy to do you a favour, you know, and gettin' to actually surprise Jowd is something I just caaan't resist the thought of."

"Hehe. Yeah, I want to see that too." Kamila grinned. "Well then, I'll see you later!"

The two of them set off, giving each other a wave as they went their separate ways.

***

Yomiel's fingers were practically a blur as they tapped away on the keyboard. His keen eyes were trained on the monitor, watching the lines of code scroll by on the monitor, ready to spot any errors that popped up right away.

"Yomiel! I'm home!"

The sudden voice made him jolt. A glance at his watch told him it was already evening. How time flew when he was working. Rubbing his eyes, he pushed back the chair and slumped against it, a long sigh escaping his body. An ache was already building up in the back of his eyeballs, he realised. Definitely a good idea to take a break. Picking up a mug containing dregs of coffee that had gone cold a long time ago, he made his way to the kitchen. Sissel was there, pulling the ice bucket off the cabinet which she set down next to the bag of ice sitting on the counter.

"Hey." Yomiel walked up and slipped his arms around Sissel's waist from behind. "Good to have you home."

Sissel twisted her body round and hugged him back, giving him a kiss as she did so. "Hey, sweetie. Have you been working hard?"

"Of course. I've got a big project on at the moment."

"I hope you didn't forget to eat lunch."

"Of course not, I've even installed a program that reminds me to do so."

"Good. Keeping healthy is very important, you know." Sissel turned her attention to the bag of ice and tore it open. She then upended it and emptied the contents into the bucket before reaching for a bottle of champagne that Yomiel hadn't noticed until now.

"Champagne? What's the occasion?"

"I can't just feel like drinking champagne?" Sissel flashed a smile at him over her shoulder, a small laugh bubbling through her lips. "But seriously though, I've got some really good news." She pushed the bottle down into the ice before turning around to face Yomiel with a big grin on her face. "Guess who's got a recording contract?"

"What?" Yomiel stared at her, his mouth hanging open. "You mean, you've been picked up by a studio?"

"That's right!" Sissel did a little hop, raising her fists to her chest. "They actually want me to put out a CD. I've finally made it!"

"Oh, gods. Wow, that's fantastic." Yomiel pulled Sissel into a hug. Breaking away, he held onto her with a big smile. "I'm so happy for you, Sissel. This is amazing. You're finally achieving your dream."

"I can hardly believe it." Sissel slipped her arms around Yomiel and buried her face in his chest, a deep sigh welling up from inside of her. "It feels so unreal, you know? I never thought I'd actually be noticed, but, well, here we are. I'm going to make it big. People are going to know my name."

"This really is so wonderful." Yomiel kissed the top of Sissel's head and stroked her hair. "You've dreamed of this for so long and now you're actually going to be famous. You know, after all we've been through, it's fantastic that our lives have turned around like this."

"I know. We've been through so much. It took years before we could even get married but now here we are." Sissel raised her head, looking up at him with moist eyes. "Happily married with promising futures ahead of us." She placed her hands against Yomiel's chest. "Now then, what should we get for dinner? Since we're celebrating, it ought to be takeout. Does sushi sound good?"

"That sounds great."

After the sushi order had been made, Yomiel and Sissel relocated to the living room, plopping themselves next to each other on the couch while they waited for the champagne to chill. Sissel snuggled up to Yomiel and he held her in his warm embrace, burying his face in her hair and inhaling the scent of her perfume.

"It's like a dream," Sissel whispered. "All these years I worked so hard, doing gigs, playing the piano, and singing, it all paid off at last. There was a time when it all seemed hopeless, but I pulled through anyway because I knew the day would come when things would finally look up."

"You mean when I was in prison, right?" Yomiel stroked her hair. "I know it was hard on you, Sissel, and I really am so sorry."

"No, no, don't be silly." Sissel caressed his cheek. "You were in a terrible situation that day."

"But, still, I wish I hadn't lost control like that. I was a coward. I ran away and made a bad situation even worse."

Sissel let her hand drop onto his shoulder, gazing at him with a sad smile. "But at least we're here now, with our lives in order, so that's all that matters, isn't it? I love you so much, you know?"

"I know." Yomiel kissed her tenderly. "And I love you too."

They continued to sit there for a long while, just resting in each other's arms, until Sissel decided the champagne had to be ready and went to fetch it. Just as she was leaving the room, the phone rang. Yomiel headed into his office to answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey there, Yomiel, how are things goin' with you?"

Yomiel raised an eyebrow slightly. "Hello, Inspector. It's unusual of you to call. Things are fine, well, pretty good actually. My wife has got a contract with a studio and we're about to celebrate."

"Oh? Marvellous. Tell her congratulations from me."

"Will do." Yomiel sat on the desk. "Anyway, I imagine this isn't just a social call, so what's up?"

"Are you and your wife both free Friday this week by any chaaance?"

"Friday? Hm. I certainly don't have anything scheduled, but I'll have to ask Sissel. How come you're asking?"

"It's Jowd and Alma's wedding anniversary on that day, you see."

"Ah. I see." Yomiel fiddled with the phone cord. "I guess you're doing something to celebrate?"

"Indeed. There's going to be a surprise party. We're keepin' it secret from Jowd and Alma."

"Heh." Yomiel's mouth curved in a smirk. "I feel like Jowd would sniff something like that out right away. So, you're telling me this because?"

"You're both invited, of cooourse."

"I am?" Yomiel tensed a little. Not that he minded being included in social occasions, but the thought of being invited to a party at Jowd's house, especially to celebrate something like a wedding anniversary, made him feel just a little bit uncomfortable. He wasn't looking terribly forward to being involved in festivities in that house where he once murdered a woman. While he may have had plenty of time to come to terms with that unsavoury part of his past, it could still be awkward. "Are you sure about this?"

"Well, why not, it's a party after all and the more people there are, the livelier it will be. This is a celebration, baby. Also, Kamila wants you to come. You wouldn't dreeeam of saying no to her now, would you?"

Well, Yomiel hadn't intended on refusing. The cat would be disappointed in him, Jowd too probably, they wanted nothing more than for him to put his past behind him. He was gradually becoming part of their circle, and one such result of that was becoming acquainted with Detective Jowd's daughter. Kamila was a curious young girl who had taken an interest in his hobbies. It had been strange at first to spend time with that girl whose life he had ruined in another timeline but he gradually became more comfortable with it. Now that he knew Kamila was behind this invitation, he really couldn't refuse. How could he ever disappoint her?

"Alright, I'll come then. Hopefully Sissel can make it as well."

"Greeeat. Once I know when the party is going to be, I'll let you know."

"Sure. Thanks. Well then, bye." Yomiel hung up and returned to the living room, finding Sissel back on the sofa. A bottle of champagne sat on the coffee table, next to two flute glasses.

"Hey. What was that about?"

"That was Inspector Cabanela. He says congratulations, by the way." Yomiel sat down and reached for the bottle. "Seems it's Jowd and Alma's wedding anniversary, and their daughter's throwing a surprise party for them." There was a soft pop as he pulled the cork from the bottle.

"A surprise party!" Sissel exclaimed. "That's so sweet. So we're invited, then?"

"Yeah. You're free on Friday, right?"

"Absolutely. Ahh, I can't even remember the last time I went to a party." Sissel slumped back on the cushions, a sigh slipping through her upturned lips. "It's so nice to be included."

Yomiel picked up a glass and tilted it. The champagne fizzled as it was poured into the glass. He handed the glass over to Sissel then filled his own.

Sissel held out her glass and Yomiel clinked his own against hers. "Cheers." She brought the glass to her lips and took a sip. The cool liquid was deliciously refreshing and fizzy. "Here's to our future."

Yomiel exchanged a smile with Sissel before sipping at his drink. It had been a long and bumpy ride but now here they were. Things really were looking up and he couldn't be happier.

***

After everyone had eaten dinner, Kamila had put some of the leftover curry and rice into a container before heading off to Lynne's apartment. Since she had a key to the place, it would be possible for her to just let herself in. While she was off doing that particular duty, Jowd, Alma and Cabanela were relaxing on the sofa, all of them feeling comfortably full and content after a delicious dinner.

"So," Cabanela said, in a casual tone, draping his arm over the back of the sofa. "Your wedding anniversary is this Friday."

"Oh?" Jowd responded with mock surprise. "Why, I had absolutely no idea." Looking at Alma, he added, "Did you?"

Alma met her husband's gaze, letting out a little laugh. "Thank you for the reminder, Cabanela. Yes, it is our anniversary soon, what of it?"

"I'm sure you would have let me know, but just to be suuure, you're definitely not plannin' on doing anything, right?"

"Not especially, no." Jowd folded his arms, his brow creasing. "It's not like it's a milestone this year, so I suppose we'll just do the same as usual, which is not much at all. Why, do you want to do something?"

Cabanela lifted a hand into the air. "Let's just say, I might have an idea. What if I took you both out somewhere after work? Nothing faaancy, maybe just go to that nice little bar, Gates of Heaven? Listen to some songs while we're there?"

"That sounds like a lovely idea." Alma rested her cheek in her hand. "What brought this on all of a sudden?"

Cabanela shrugged, smiling. "Do I neeed an excuse to treat my two favourite people? It's a very special day after all, and I want to make you feel special."

"Fair enough." Jowd shrugged. "I'm up for it. Just the three of us, having drinks and listening to songs, it doesn't seem like a bad way to spend the evening."

"Mmm. It sounds delightful. I'm looking forward to it. Thank you, Cabanela, that's so sweet of you."

"Aw, it's no big deal. Just wanted to show you my appreciation, that's all. It's your special day and you deseeerve it." Cabanela reached for his glass of wine, letting a quiet sigh of relief pass through his lips.

***

Lynne trudged into her apartment and dropped her bag, reaching up to massage an aching shoulder. "Ahh." After a long day at work, she wanted nothing more than to get herself a glass of wine, but first she would have to take Missile, wait, where was Missile? He was usually right there at the door when she came in. Glancing at the cabinet, she caught sight of a slip of paper and picked it up.

'Lynne,' the note read, 'I heard you would be late home tonight so I brought some dinner over. It's in the fridge. Taken Missile for a walk. If you haven't come back by the time I've returned him, I'll call you later. Kamila.'

"Oh, wow. Kamila, you're amazing." Lynne felt ready to cry tears of relief. Having to take Missile out before she could relax with a drink had seemed like a daunting prospect, and she had been fully prepared to order takeout for dinner but getting homemade cooking was even better. She made her way into the kitchen and took out the container and a bottle of wine from the fridge. The delicious aroma of the curry made her mouth fill with saliva. Just a few minutes in the microwave and it was ready to eat.

Lynne was tucking into the curry when Kamila entered with a panting Pomeranian at her side. She unclipped Missile's leash and he scampered over to Lynne's feet, turning his pleading eyes on her.

"Hi, Lynne." Kamila came over to the table. "I'm glad to see you."

"Thank you so much for this, Kamila. Seriously, you have no idea how grateful I am."

"No problem." Kamila clasped her hands behind her back. She smiled, letting out a small chuckle. "I'm always happy to help my big sis out. Uncle Cabanela told me you might be late home tonight so I figured I'd lend a hand."

"I'm sure Missile was happy to see you. I really should have let you know I was going to be busy." Lynne rubbed Missile's head. "Good thing Cabanela said something. Sorry, Missile, sometimes I just get lost in my work."

"Oh, I'm sure Missile understands. You're a detective after all. Being a hero of justice isn't an easy job." Kamila sat herself down opposite Lynne. "It's good, isn't it? The curry."

"Mmm, yes. So good."

"Mom makes great curry." Kamila rested her cheek in her hand. "I've tried making it a few times, but it's never really the same. Maybe I just need more practice."

"I think you're a good cook too, Kamila. I've always liked the meals you've made."

"Really?" Kamila's face lit up. "Thanks. I've just to keep trying. Anyway, there's something I wanted to ask you about. You think you can make some free time Friday evening?"

"I can certainly try. Why, what's up?"

"It's my mom and dad's wedding anniversary on that day and I've decided to throw them a surprise party. Uncle Cabanela's involved too. It would be great if you could be there."

"Oh, wow." Lynne's eyes lit up. "A surprise party? Alright, count me in! I'll be prepared to help in any way I can, so please don't hesitate to ask."

"You want to help?"

"Of course!" Lynne declared, her face stretching in a grin. "I'll do my best to ensure that this goes off without a hitch. You can count on me. After all, what are big sisters for? Hm." Placing a hand to her chin, she looked thoughtful. "You'll have to get party things, and-"

"We've got the whole week to figure it out, so you don't need to think about it now."

"Alright, alright, but, wow, a surprise party. Thinking about it just makes me so excited." Lynne pumped her arms. "I love parties! Especially surprise ones!"

Missile joined in with a bark.

"And of course you're invited too, Missile." Kamila reached out to pet him, laughing gently. She got to her feet. "Well then, it's getting dark, so I'd better head home now. We'll talk another time, alright?"

"Alright then. Bye, Kamila! And thanks again!"

With a wave, Kamila made her exit. Lynne gazed at the door, then looked down at Missile, who was still staring in the direction Kamila had gone. She reached down to rub his head, causing him to look up at her. Missile's tail thumped against the floor as he started licking her hand.

"Kamila is amazing, don't you think? I'm so glad to have an honorary little sister like her."

Missile barked again, wagging his tail even harder.

***

The week flew by, with Kamila, Cabanela and Lynne preparing for the party behind the scenes. At no point did Jowd or Alma come to suspect that there was anything going on. Finally, the day itself came around and the adults all went to work as usual. In the evening, Jowd and Alma arrived home and waited for Cabanela, who soon came along on his bicycle. They were just about to leave for the bar when Lynne turned up with Missile in tow.

Once the door had closed behind the trio, Lynne turned to Kamila, who was currently indulged in receiving a torrent of affection from the exuberant Pomeranian, valiantly defending herself against an onslaught of licks.

"Okay, Missile, that's enough." Kamila patted his head, laughing. "Lynne and I have got work to do. We're throwing them a party, so we've got to get everything ready."

Missile gave a short bark and backed away, wagging his tail.

"Alright, it's finally time!" Lynne put her hands on her hips. Her face was glowing with a big smile stretching from ear to ear. "We're going to throw them a great surprise party!"

"You've got everything, right?"

"Yup, it's all here. Cabanela brought everything over and it's in the trunk of my car, so let's go get it all out."

"Okay." Kamila followed Lynne out the door. "We'd better hurry, it won't be long now before the guests start arriving."

Lynne and Kamila got to work, putting up decorations around the room and preparing food in the kitchen. Meanwhile, Missile occupied himself by playing with Sissel and occasionally racing out into the yard through the open back door. He understood well enough that the two ladies were not to be disturbed as they worked on their task. Soon enough, the room was looking festive and food was on the table, with more in the oven.

"It looks great," Kamila said as she surveyed the room. "Mom and Dad are going to be so surprised. They don't suspect a thing."

"Haha. I can't wait to see the looks on their faces." Lynne carried some cutlery and napkins out of the kitchen, which she dropped onto the table. "We did well keeping it a secret. Detective Jowd is pretty sharp so I was worried he might figure it out."

"Yeah, but we were really careful not to give it away. Whew. I'm so glad we pulled it off." Kamila glanced down at the kitten weaving around her legs and picked him up, stroking his fur. "Now we just wait." The words were barely out of her mouth when the doorbell rang. "Oh? Looks like the first guests are here." Kamila set the cat down and hurried over to answer the door. The justice minister, Emma and Amelie stood on the other side.

"Amelie!" Kamila exclaimed, throwing her arms around her friend. ""It's good to see you. I'm glad you could all make it."

"Hi, Kamila." Amelie flashed her an equally happy smile. "I've really been looking forward to this. I love parties."

"I had to twist my husband's arm to get him to come," said Emma. "He gets far too wrapped up in his work sometimes."

"This coming from the woman who stays up all night working on her novels?" The justice minister shook his head with a smile on his face. "You know fully well how busy the job of a justice minister is."

Emma responded with a light scoff. "Come on, dear, you can afford to take an evening off once in a while. As for my novel writing, deadlines are a very big deal in the world of publishing. Every minute counts."

"Oh, boy, there they go again. Mama, Papa, can't you stop talking about your jobs for five minutes?" Amelie rolled her eyes as she stepped into the house. Her parents followed her in and Kamila closed the door behind them. "It's a party, you know!" she added. "We're here to enjoy ourselves, so what does it matter if you take just one night off?"

Emma picked an empty wine glass off the table. "Ahh, to be young and unaware of the troubles of living in an adult world. Here's to my innocent and oblivious daughter!"

"Darling, you're toasting with an empty glass."

"I know that! Now where's that wine? I need a glass of red."

"Coming up!" Lynne hurried over with a bottle. "It's so nice to see you both. Thanks for coming."

"Who are you calling innocent and oblivious?" Amelie muttered with a slight scowl, blowing out a puff of air that ruffled her bangs. She looped her arm around Kamila's. "So, what's been happening? Anything interesting?" The two girls walked away as they launched into a conversation, leaving the adults to talk among themselves.

A short while later, the doorbell rang again. This time, Yomiel had turned up with Sissel.

"Mr. Yomiel! And Miss Sissel too!" Kamila greeted them. "I'm so glad you could both make it."

"We wouldn't miss this party for the world," said Yomiel, as they came inside.

"Hello, Kamila. It's so nice to see you." Sissel embraced her, pecking her cheek. "Throwing a surprise party for your parents, that's so incredibly sweet of you."

"Hehe." Kamila's smile turned bashful and she clasped her hands behind her back, fidgeting. "I just wanted to do something nice for them. I'm really glad you could come, I'm sure Mr. Yomiel is very busy with his computer stuff."

"I have the option of working from home at least so that helps," said Yomiel. "If you like, you could come over sometime soon, we could fly drones again. You had fun doing that, didn't you?"

"Uh huh." Kamila nodded. "I really did. Maybe one day I'll try making my own. But, you know, what I'd really like to do is learn how to make a game. You are going to teach me someday, aren't you?"

"When I have the time. It's alright, I haven't forgotten, it's just not something you learn in five minutes."

"Okay, but I'm supposed to be a really fast learner, you know?"

"Oh, I know. I'm sure you would pick programming up in no time at all."

"You really like to make things, don't you?" Sissel tilted her head.

"Yeah, I can make all sorts of cool toys and gadgets. I like to make things that are fun and that people will enjoy."

"Very impressive." Sissel patted Kamila's shoulder. "A bright girl like you is going to do really well in the future."

"Yeah, I don't doubt it," said Yomiel. "We'll be cheering you on. I'll be ready to help you whenever too."

"Thanks. I'm going to work really hard."

"Well, hello there, Sissel dear!" Emma came over to embrace Sissel with one arm, pecking her cheek. "It's so lovely to see you."

"And it's great to see you too." Sissel hugged her back. "How are things?"

"Fantastic. I've just started a new romance novel and it's going brilliantly. I'm sure it's going to be a real hit."

"Is that so? I look forward to reading it."

"Hello, Yomiel, Sissel. Thanks for coming." Lynne had drifted over as well. "Can I get you two a drink?"

"Hello, Lynne. Nice to see you," said Sissel. "A glass of white for me, thanks."

"I'll have a beer."

"Sure thing!" Lynne hurried away.

"Well, hello." The justice minister approached. "It's nice to see you, Sissel. Ahh, and this must be your husband, I take it?"

Yomiel swallowed, shifting his head in a small nod. "Yes. I'm Yomiel. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Minister."

"Oh? You're quite sharp." The justice minister raised his eyebrows. "You've already figured out that I'm the justice minister."

"Oh. Uh. Er." Yomiel averted his gaze, eyes meeting with the kitten's.

"Whoops." The world flared red around him and he found himself looking at Sissel's spirit form. "You slipped a little there, didn't you?"

"I can't believe I just messed up like that! I've been so careful about not saying the wrong thing, and now to go and slip up!"

"It's not that bad, Yomiel, relax. It isn't that weird you'd know who he is, your wives are friends. Detective Jowd used to keep messing up too. New timelines can be a really confusing thing. I'm impressed you've lasted this long."

"Yeah. Yeah, I suppose you're right." Yomiel drew in a deep breath. "It's not that big a deal. I just feel so awkward right now, thinking about how I manipulated this man, caused him to wallow in agony for a whole month, and even tried to have his daughter kidnapped. Gods. This isn't easy, Sissel."

"I know. You're doing very well, Yomiel. Hang in there."

"I'm glad you're here." Yomiel smiled. "It really helps. Believe me, I wish I could just put it all behind me and not think about it. I really appreciate Jowd, and even Kamila, trying to include me. I'm not sure I deserve it sometimes."

"Come on, Yomiel, don't start wallowing in self-pity now. It's a party. Enjoy yourself."

Yomiel gave him a wry look. "You make it sound so easy."

"Well, just do what you can. Anyway, you're not going to spend all evening talking to a ghost, are you?"

"Alright, alright." Turning his attention back to the justice minister, Yomiel coughed and forced a smile. "I mean, it looked as if you were here with Emma so I just assumed."

The justice minister chuckled. "It's quite alright. A pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise." Yomiel shook the hand that was offered to him.

"Here you go." Lynne had returned with the drinks, which she handed over.

"Thank you." Yomiel took a sip and smacked his lips, exhaling.

Sissel looked around at the cluster of adults. Kamila had already slipped away to join Amelie in fussing over Missile. "Well, we've got a lively gathering going on here now, haven't we? I can't wait to share my good news."

"Oh, good news?" Emma swirled her wine around. "Now you've got my interest."

"Sorry, but I think I'll wait for Alma and the others to turn up first."

"Ah, yes, fair enough. Then we can all celebrate together."

"There's plenty of champagne too," Lynne added. "So you don't have to worry about that."

"Great!" Sissel beamed.

"Better keep an eye on Amelie, she might try to sneak some. That girl, I swear." Emma shook her head. "She really thinks I don't notice if she goes sneaking sips here and there, but I do."

"Teenagers, huh?" Sissel smiled wryly, looking over at the two girls. "She seems quite taken with that cute little dog."

"Ugh. Dogs." Emma shuddered. "I can't stand their incessant barking. And those people who don't pick up after them! It's infuriating, let me tell you! Even though there are severe fines for dog fouling, they do it anyway." Pausing to take a sip, she added. "That dog is a little odd, you know?"

"Er, how so?" Lynne asked.

"I've only met him a few times, but every time, I swear it seems like he's afraid of me or something! I've only ever been nice to him, so what's up with that?"

"Hm. I can't imagine why," Lynne replied, keeping her face blank.

"I take it you're never going to have a dog in your family then?" Yomiel asked in an aside to the justice minister.

"No chance," the minister replied. "Amelie's often asked for a pet, but it's difficult. Emma dislikes dogs and cats. She might consider a caged animal though."

"Why wouldn't she want a cat?"

"She likes to keep things clean and tidy, and we have a lot of expensive furniture and stuff, you see. Also, imagine if it was to jump onto her typewriter. That would be the end of the poor thing."

"Ah." Yomiel swallowed, glancing at Emma. "Yes. I see. Better not to get one, then."

The doorbell chimed once more. Kamila hurried to answer the door, finding the professor standing there. Lovey-Dove, perched on his head, flapped her wings and cooed.

"Hello, hope I'm not late."

"Grandpa!" Kamila threw her arms around him. The professor brought an arm up to pat her back. She released him and stepped back. "I'm glad you could come. Come on in."

The professor shuffled in, surveying the room. "Well, I see you've got quite the gathering already. Looks like this party is going to be a success. Jowd doesn't suspect a thing, eh?"

"Not at all." Kamila grinned. "Mom and Dad are with Uncle Cabanela right now. Actually, now that you're here, I'd better make the call." She hurried away.

"Hmm." The professor's gaze swept around the room, taking in the brightly decorated scenery. "How long has it been since I last saw a scene like this?" It was a heartening thing to see, especially knowing of another reality, one where his career change came about because of a strange corpse. In this particular timeline, it had been an urge to retire. Jowd had suggested he research a mysterious meteorite and shown him his undead, magical cat. He'd still ended up a junkyard superintendent, but at least this time he wasn't keeping a murder machine in the basement.

Something soft rubbed against his leg and he heard a mew. "Well, hello there, little black cat." Kneeling down, he held up his hand. "You want to say hello, Lovey-Dove?" The pigeon responded by hopping onto his finger. "There we go." He lowered his hand until the pigeon and kitten were face to face. Lovey-Dove let out a soft coo and Sissel responded by rubbing his head against Lovey-Dove's chest. "There's a good kitten." Of course, Sissel was the only feline the professor could ever trust around his beloved pigeon. He still remembered the day Jowd brought the kitten to his house. He had been terrified for Lovey-Dove's sake in spite of Jowd's reassurances. Now he knew well enough Sissel would never so much as lay a claw on her.

"Now then." The professor straightened himself and Lovey-Dove returned to his head. "Let's get started with this whole socialising thing. Hope I'm not too rusty." He shuffled over to the group of adults, with the cat tailing him. "Hello. Having a fine party so far, are we?"

"Hello, professor," said Yomiel. "Good to see you." He picked up Sissel and started stroking him. "Life treating you well?"

"I'd say it's about the same as ever."

"Hi, there!" Lynne said cheerfully. "Do you want a drink?"

"Just water for me, thanks, I don't drink and drive."

"Same here, I'm staying sober while my wife gets to drink the night away." The justice minister cocked a glance at Emma, who was deep in conversation with Sissel, telling her all about the antics of her neighbours. "Not supposed to drink too much anyway, medical reasons and all that. You're a friend of Jowd's then?"

"That I am, used to be a coroner and worked with him on the force. Now I'm a junkyard superintendent who studies space rocks in my spare time."

"Ahh. That sounds like an interesting hobby," the justice minister said, smiling. He looked at Yomiel. "You're into computers, right?"

"Yes, I do programming, systems engineering, that sort of thing. One of the best in the industry actually, caused me quite a spot of bother. You've heard of that, right? How I was accused of being a spy. Ended up taking a child hostage."

"Yes." The justice minister nodded slowly. "I remember. Emma did mention something about you being a jailbird, though she didn't tell me the specifics."

"An unfortunate victim of circumstances, as it were," the professor said, sipping at the water that Lynne had brought him before returning to conversation with the other women. "I still can't believe anyone could be foolish enough to leave their gun in the room."

"Yes." Yomiel exhaled. "Well, I'm not proud of myself for the things I did. Mistakes were made, and I served my time for it."

"You have my condolences," said the minister. "I'm very sorry about what you had to go through."

Yomiel shook his head. "I have no hard feelings. I took a child hostage and got the sentence I deserved. That's all. Anyway, what's important is looking forward to the future, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's right. It's no use dwelling on the past," said the professor. "Just focus on the now." Adjusting his glasses, he added, "I do wonder when the others will get here, I am quite famished."

***

Soft music swelled through the bar, accompanied by a woman's dulcet tones. When her song trailed off and the music faded, everyone began clapping, Jowd, Alma and Cabanela included. The party of three were seated together in a booth, Jowd sandwiched between the others with his arms around their shoulders.

"What a lovely song," Alma murmured. With her head nestled in the crook of Jowd's shoulder and her arm draped across his body, fingers interlocked with Cabanela's, she looked utterly content. "It really takes me back."

"Mmm." Cabanela closed his eyes, smiling. The experience was only made even better when getting to cuddle up with his loved ones. "I love this place. Comin' here to chill with your friends and listen to music, there's nothin' like it, baby. Not a baaad place to be spending your wedding anniversary, eh?"

"Not at all," replied Alma. "It reminds me of when we would get serenaded during romantic dinners."

"It does, doesn't it?" A wistful gleam shone in Jowd's eyes. "We've had such lovely times together and this was no exception."

"We should do this more often," said Alma.

"Deeefinitely."

"As nice as this evening has been, I do wonder if we shouldn't be getting home soon."

"You're hungry?" Alma looked up. "To be honest, I am too, and it's getting quite late. Kamila must be wondering where we are."

Cabanela sat up straight, a brief flicker of worry passing over his face. "Hmm, are you suuure we couldn't stay for maybe one more- hm? Hang on." Feeling a vibration in his pocket, he removed his pager and checked it.

"Is something wrong?" asked Jowd.

"Not at all, just a message from Lynne. Our baby's wondering where we are." Cabanela put away the pager, a relieved smile gracing his lips. Kamila had perfect timing. "Dinner should be ready any minute now, so off we go." With that said, he hopped to his feet.

"Honestly, I am sorry we couldn't stay longer," Jowd said, rising. "But we can always come another time, yeah?"

"It really was so nice of you to bring us here." Alma got up as well. "We've had such a lovely evening."

"No need to thank me, I just wanted to do something special for the two most important people in my life." Cabanela flashed them a smile before turning around. "Well then, time we went back home." He strutted away, Jowd and Alma walking after him. They got into the car and Jowd drove them all back home.

They were walking up the drive when Cabanela cleared his throat. "If I may just saaay something?"

"Hm?" Jowd looked back at him. "What is it?"

Cabanela slung his arms over their shoulders and exhaled. "I just wanted to say that I love you both so much. It's so wonderful, being able to celebrate your anniversaries with you, getting to see you two every day, I know how luuucky we are to have this and I just, I appreciate it so much."

"Oh, Cabanela." Alma spoke in a soft voice, placing her hand on his cheek. "We love you very much too."

"Yes. You are so very important to us." Jowd put an arm around him, pressing his lips to Cabanela's head. "I'm so glad we have you in our lives."

"You've given us such a lovely time tonight, and we'll be having many more anniversaries." Alma rubbed her hand against Cabanela's back. "Together."

Cabanela looked from Jowd to Alma, his throat filling up. Conscious of a prickling sensation washing over the back of his eyeballs, he swallowed and lowered his arms. "Anyhoot," he said, arranging his face into a cheerful smile, "now that we've had our touching moment, I dare say we better be headin' on in. Can't wait to see what's in store for dinner tonight, can you?" "Hm, yes, I'm quite curious to see what Kamila's made for us. No doubt it's good."

Alma had already gone on ahead and opened the door. "Huh?"

"Something wrong?" Jowd came over. Alma glanced at him before venturing inside and Jowd followed, finding himself faced with a pitch black room. He slowly turned around to look at Cabanela, who strutted over and leaned against the doorway.

"Hm? The lights aren't on?" Cabanela met Jowd's gaze with a look of pure innocence. "I wonder why."

"So, that was your game, was it?" Jowd tilted his head, smiling. "Keeping us occupied while our daughter set up a surprise for our anniversary. I'll say this much, your ploy worked. I had no idea something was going on behind the scenes."

Cabanela said nothing, smirking as he slipped inside and closed the door.

"Oh boy. What kind of contraption does our daughter have to show us this time?" Alma grasped for the switch. With a flick, light flooded the room, banishing the darkness.

"Surprise!"

Explosions followed the chorus of voices. A shower of colourful streamers flew into the air. Jowd and Alma recoiled.

A brief period of silence followed before Jowd spoke. "Okay, now that was actually a surprise. I was expecting another contraption."

"Come on, Dad." Kamila approached them with her hands on her hips, tilting her head as she smiled. "If I was going to try and surprise you, do you really think I would be so predictable?"

"Hmm." Jowd folded his arms, nodding. "Yes, I suppose you're right, that wouldn't have been a surprise at all."

Alma looked around the room, taking in every little detail. "Did you actually do this all by yourself?"

"Well, I did have some help from Lynne and Uncle Cabanela. It would have been a bit difficult to pull all this off myself." Kamila stepped forward and threw her arms around her father. "Happy anniversary, Dad." She then moved on to Alma. "Happy anniversary, Mom." Stepping back, Kamila continued speaking. "I really wanted to do something for your anniversary so I thought I'd throw you a surprise party."

"Wow." Alma put a hand on her chest. "This was so sweet of you, Kamila, thank you so much."

"I must say, I'm impressed," said Jowd. "We had no idea you were even planning anything."

Cabanela laughed. "But of course, we had to be extra careful and sneaky in order to hide it from the nation's best detective." He twirled past them, taking his place by the crowd of guests. "Now, let the paaarty begin!"

"Hello, Yomiel." Jowd approached him first. "It was so good of you to come." He held his arms out and Yomiel embraced him. The two patted each other on the back. "I know it couldn't have been easy for you," he murmured, before they pulled away.

"Yes, well, I could hardly pass up an invitation." Yomiel shrugged, with a smile on his face. "I would never want to disappoint your little girl. Happy anniversary."

"Well, thank you for coming. I really do appreciate it."

"Happy anniversary, Detective." Those words came from the justice minister, standing slightly to the side.

"Well, if it isn't the justice minister," said Jowd. "Good to see you could take time off for the party. I know you have a busy job."

The minister smiled in resignation. "Yes, well, my wife was very insistent that I come and I really am glad that I did. She's right, really, I do need to try and get out more often. It isn't good to be wrapped up in your work."

"Indeed." Jowd's gaze shifted to their elderly guest. "And I see that the professor is here too. It's good to see you. Nice to get out of that stuffy junkyard, isn't it?"

"Actually, I find my office quite cosy." The professor pushed up his glasses, peering through them at Jowd. "Your little girl was kind enough to invite me to this party and, well, I suppose I couldn't very well refuse. It was very thoughtful of her."

"Well, I'm glad that you were able to come. Kamila really thinks of you as part of the family now, you know?"

"Yes, she does, doesn't she? Happy anniversary, Jowd. I hope you'll have many more to share with your wife."

"Yes, me too." Jowd turned, meeting Lynne's gaze. She had a wide grin on her face. "Lynne. I hear that you helped out as well. And here I thought you were just keeping Kamila company."

"Heh heh. That's right, I helped out with getting everything set up. You really had no idea that anything was going on at all, did you?"

"I certainly didn't. An impressive feat indeed. Thank you, Lynne."

"No problem. I just love surprise parties. Getting to see the looks on yours and Alma's faces was so worth it." Lynne laughed. "Happy anniversary, Detective Jowd!" Missile, who was sitting at her feet, joined in with a bark.

The world around Jowd turned red. Sissel appeared before his eyes.

"Happy anniversary, Detective Jowd."

"Ah, Sissel." Jowd smiled. Before he could say anything else, a certain Pomeranian appeared.

"I already said it just now but why not, I'll say it again! Happy anniversary!"

"Thank you. I suppose you both knew all about this too, didn't you?"

"I knew from the very beginning, when I overheard Miss Lynne and Miss Kamila talking about it! Oh, I was so excited to hear it, I just love parties!"

"And of course, when this little doggie next came over to the house, he proceeded to tell me everything he heard. I'm sure I would have found out anyway. Hard to keep secrets from a ghost, you know."

"Indeed." Jowd chuckled. "I was expecting a quiet evening, but having a party isn't so bad either."

"It's your anniversary after all!" said Missile. "Those are kinda like birthdays, right? And birthdays should be celebrated! I love celebrations. They mean more people to say 'welcome' to, and more pats, and sometimes food scraps from the table! Although, having that scary lady here is a bit..."

"We've been over this, Missile. She's not going to do anything to you."

"But, still...!"

Jowd laughed again. "Ahh. I really am so lucky, having family and friends to celebrate with, aren't I?"

"Yes." Sissel gazed at him. "You are."

"And I'll never forget that. Well then, I'll get back to talking to the guests and enjoying this wonderful party my daughter threw for us."

Alma had gone over to talk to Emma and Sissel. Amelie was there as well, hanging by her mother's side.

"Emma, Sissel, how nice to see you."

"Hello, dear." Emma came forward to embrace Alma. "It's so lovely to see you. The look on your face when you saw us, we really did give you quite a surprise, didn't you?"

"Oh, yes." Alma laughed. "I had no idea whatsoever. I thought we'd just have a quiet evening."

Sissel came forward for a hug as well. "Happy anniversary, Alma. You've got such a lovely daughter. Throwing a surprise party for you! Oh, it's just so sweet."

"Yes, it was quite a nice surprise."

"So, are you going to be sharing your big news with us?" asked Emma.

"Ooh, what big news?" Alma regarded Sissel with keen interest.

"Alright, guess I'll go ahead and say it. I've been picked up by a recording studio. They want me to actually record songs for them."

"Oh, my, that's marvellous, quite marvellous indeed, Congratulations, dear."

"That's wonderful!" Alma hugged Sissel again. "I know you've dreamed of this for so long. Congratulations. You really deserve this, you're such a good singer."

Sissel smiled bashfully. "Thanks."

"May I have your attention please?" A chime rang out and everyone turned toward Cabanela, who held aloft a bottle of champagne. He stood by the table where several flute glasses had been placed. "I do believe that it is tiiime for a toast. Come and get your fizz, everyone!"

While the guests queued up for a glass, Amelie gently tugged on her mother's arm, turning beseeching eyes on her. "Can I have some too, Mama? Please?"

Emma gazed at her with a pensive frown then sighed. "Alright, fine, but only one glass, and you had better not think of sneaking any more booze! I've got my eye on you!"

Alma leaned toward Emma and murmured. "It sounds like you have your work cut out for you."

Emma expelled a puff of air, giving her head a slight shake. "My darling angel has always been a handful but now that she's thirteen, she's trying too hard to be like an adult. It's exasperating."

"Please don't talk about me like I'm not standing right here." Amelie narrowed her eyes.

Alma flashed her friend a sympathetic smile. "Well, I think Kamila could have a glass too. It's a celebration after all. Kamila, would you like a glass of champagne?"

"Okay, Mom!" Kamila caught Amelie's eye and they exchanged grins.

Once those were drinking had all got their glasses, Cabanela raised his own. "I have known Jowd and Alma for a very long time. They are the most important people in my life and I love them more than you could ever possibly know. I am so thankful to have them, and every moment I spend with them is precious. I wish you many more anniversaries together in the future. To Jowd and Alma!"

A chorus of voices filled the air, followed by the clinking of glasses. Jowd and Alma embraced each other, sharing a tender kiss.

"Speech!" Lynne called out, thrusting a fist into the air.

"Yeah, give us a speech!" Kamila joined in.

"A speech, huh? Very well." Jowd stepped away from the crowd and turned to face everyone, clearing his throat. "I'll just warn you, I'm not terribly used to giving speeches so don't expect an eloquent masterpiece from me." He gazed at Alma, mulling over the words in his head. "Sixteen years ago, I married Alma and we've been together ever since. She is kind, smart, and caring, and she has always been there for me, supporting me in hard times. Alma is an amazing woman. Why, she even puts up with my personality quirks."

Scattered laughter rippled through the crowd.

"Thank you for staying by my side, Alma. I love you." Jowd raised his glass. "I also want to give thanks to Cabanela, our dear and precious friend, who's also put up with me for all these years. I'm so grateful for your friendship."

"Aw, shucks." Cabanela ducked his head, his cheeks turning pink.

"And thanks to the rest of you for coming." Jowd raised his glass again, before returning to the crowd amid their claps.

Alma moved to the spot where Jowd had been standing. "Hello, everyone, and thanks to our guests for coming. Also, thank you to our lovely daughter, Kamila, for throwing a surprise party, and to Cabanela and Lynne for helping out." She drew in a long breath, then released it. "I'm not sure what to say, honestly. Um. Jowd is... well, he's Jowd. He's funny, even if his sense of humour can be a bit dodgy at times. While he can be kind of blunt, he's also very loving and caring, and he really is a sweet man, and I love him so much." She let out an exasperated sigh. "I'm not really any good at speeches either, am I?"

"You're doin' fiiine, baby, don't worry about it!"

"Er, okay." Alma cleared her throat. "I'm very glad that I married Jowd. I couldn't imagine life without him." Running her tongue over her lips, she continued. "Cabanela too, he has always been there for me and Jowd through the years and I am so thankful to have both of them in my life. I love you both." She stepped away from the table, receiving a bout of applause as she did so.

"Well then, let's get stuck in, shall we?" asked Jowd. "I'm famished."

Everybody flocked to the table, picking up plates and cutlery, helping themselves to the various dishes that had been put out for them. They ate and drank, talking merrily all the while. When their plates were empty, Kamila and Lynne headed into the kitchen and returned with two different desserts, which were swiftly demolished. Now that they had eaten and their bellies were full, Cabanela declared that it was time for dancing, changing the music as he did so. Slow, romantic music filled the room.

"This is our favourite song," Alma said, looking at Jowd.

"Hm, I guess he's expecting us to dance." Jowd shrugged. "Maybe it will go better than it did at our wedding."

"I hope so," Alma replied, draping an arm over his shoulder and holding his hand. Closing their eyes, they began to waltz, soaking in each other's warmth as they moved in slow circles with careful steps.

Before they knew it, the song had ended. Jowd and Alma stopped, blinking at each other.

"Well, you didn't step on any toes this time."

"Huh, what do you know, I'm getting better at this."

Alma looked over at the others. "Come on, all of you join in already."

"It just didn't seem riiight, not letting you have the first dance." Cabanela twirled over. "It's your anniversary after all."

The next song started, its soft pulses flowing through the room.

"Ready to dance?" Yomiel asked his wife, smiling.

"Naturally," Sissel responded, taking his hand in hers. They hurried over and started moving their bodies in tandem.

"Darling wife, would you do me the honour of a dance?" The minister offered his arm.

"But of course, my darling husband." Emma put her arm in his. They walked over and began to do a slow waltz.

Lynne, Kamila and Amelie joined the dancers. The professor was left standing on the sidelines, watching on. He gave a start when he felt Missile's paws on him. Missile yapped, wagging his tail.

"Oh, no, I'm quite fine, thank you. I'm happy to watch."

Missile barked again and whimpered. He stepped back and reared up several times.

"Don't tell me you're asking to dance with me. I'm not dancing with a dog. That's just daft."

Kamila approached them. "I think he's trying to say he wants you involved too. It's too sad if you're left out, grandpa."

"These old bones of mine aren't what they used to be."

"Well, you can dance slowly then. Come on." Kamila gently tugged his arm.

"Alright, if you insist." The professor shuffled over with her. Missile twirled ahead of them into the throng of dancers, where he repeatedly reared up and let out the occasional bark.

The merriment continued for a good while with everyone dancing, talking, laughing and drinking while the hours passed by. As the night went on, they started making their leave. The professor was the first to leave, conscious of the fact he had to drive. Kamila gave him a hug, promising that she would come to see him again very soon. Next were Yomiel and Sissel. Finally, the justice minister and family departed on the minister's insistence as his wife had clearly had too much to drink.

Now that all the guests had gone, the house was feeling oddly quiet. Lynne stood still, just gazing at the scene for a while. Quietly sighing and thrusting her hands into her pockets, she ambled over to Kamila. Her lips curved in a gentle smile as she looked upon the focus of Kamila's attention. Missile and Sissel were curled up side by side in the basket. "It was a fun party."

"Yeah, it really was."

"Well then." Lynne clapped her hands together. "I'll clear up the dishes."

"Let me help. The sooner we can go to bed, the better." Lynne would be sleeping in the spare bed in Kamila's room, an addition that had been suggested by Kamila herself.

"Thanks, Kamila." Lynne yawned. "I'm pretty beat."

While the girls were cleaning up, Jowd, Alma and Cabanela were slumped on the couch in a mesh of limbs, languishing in a sleepy haze brought on by booze, food, and the lateness of the night.

"It's been such a looovely evening."

Jowd peered at Cabanela through half closed eyes. "I couldn't agree more."

Alma's mouth gaped in a yawn. "Suppose we should get to bed soon."

"I'm not sure I could move even if I wanted to." Even if Jowd wasn't weighed down by fatigue, he would have found extricating himself from the embraces of his loved ones an impossibility.

"Oh well." Cabanela shifted his hold on Jowd, burrowing further into the crook of his arm. "Guess we'll just have to stay like this all niiight."

Alma chortled through closed lips. "Sure, why not." Her voice came out heavy with exhaustion.

Jowd gazed at Alma, then Cabanela, etching their faces deep into his memory. Closing his eyes, he released a loud exhale. "You know, I really could not think of any better way to sleep."

#ghost trick #ghost swap

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