#I have been house hunting for MONTHS. It's got to the point where I gave myself an early stress period 10 days after my regular one

[aeolianblues]

at last!! It ends!! Fucking finally!! I'm HOME I HAVE A HOME AGAIN

[solar-wing]

⚣ Five & One 💪🏻

⚣💪🏻 A/N → This is a re-post and, once again, it was inspired by this post by @gone-batty-fics. I'm leaving the full NSFW version up here since it's not that much, so no need for an extra link. I hope you guys enjoy reading this around a second time and sorry if any of you have been missing it. This was my most popular post on my previous account and I'm sad I gotta start it over, but oh well. WARNINGS: Breathplay/Choking, Implied Size Kink, Jealous and Possessive Behavior, Rough Anal, Violence, etc.

⚣💪🏻 Summary → Five times people thought you needed rescuing from your boyfriend, Jason Todd. And the one time, someone needed rescuing from you.

⚣💪🏻 Words → 7.8k

REBLOGS & replies are greatly appreciated, please! 💛

Also, vote in my Omegaverse/Yandere poll here!

⚣ ENJOY 💪🏻

Okay, you got it.

Your boyfriend was a very intimidating and scary guy when he wanted to be. But, that didn’t mean people had to keep asking you if you needed saving like you were some damsel in distress. You weren’t even a damsel! You were a damsmen. Damsman? A Damson?

Oh, forget it. Point still stands, people needed to stop treating you like you needed rescuing. You were fine! Besides, when he wasn’t out hunting criminals, Jason was literally the least threatening person in the world. It was you bitches should be worried about! And if bitches didn’t believe you, bitches could just find out on their own.

Bitch.

The first time wasn’t bad. You considered it actually sweet and could see how under the circumstances someone was not aware of the dynamic between you and the vigilante.

It was a sunny day in Gotham for once. Everyone was out, enjoying the sunshine while having barbecues in the parks, strolling down the street in sunhats and sandals, and going swimming at the local pools. You were no different, seeing the usual moody and depressing atmosphere absent from the sky and deciding immediately to take advantage of it and drag your boyfriend Jason out, making the whole day a date between you two.

You and Jason decided on simple outfits since the sun was out and the temperatures were warmer than usual. You decided on a regular button-up, leaving the top three buttons down to show some skin, which your boyfriend both loved and hated since he could ogle your chest with no shame, but anyone else could do the same. You paired it with some boat shoes and simple shorts that did an excellent job hugging your ‘boo-twah,’ a nickname Jason gave your ass for its large-hand-friendly size, as he liked to say.

“Instead of like boo-tee, it’s boo-TWAH. It’s just out there.” He explained one morning when you had spent the night at his place. Jason, sitting and ogling at his boyfriend in his well-fitted yoga pants and sleeveless hoodie while you made breakfast.

“You are such a nerd.” You laughed at him.

“Well, this nerd scored big,” He responded before landing a heavy smack on your behind, which you chastised him for since he made you almost fling the eggs you were scrambling out of the pan.

Back to the sunny day, Jason dressed simply too but was more relaxed than you. He went for a comfortable pair of joggers, one of his nicer gym shoes, and a tank top covered by a sleeveless hoodie since he got hot easily.

A few months after you and Jason got together, he told you about his double life and his family’s. It explained why when he would spend the night at your house a few times, you’d play doctor while wondering where he was getting all these bruises and wounds. As you and Jason grew closer and began to explore your ‘interest’ in each other’s bodies, you’d find he was actually shy about his body even though the man was built like a tank.

It wasn’t necessarily his body he was ashamed of. It was his scars he actually didn’t like. All things he saw as painful reminders of his more than rough past, especially the bigger ones he had received from Joker. You were patient with him and reminded him at every possible chance that his scars were nothing to be ashamed of. Instead, they were to be celebrated and seen as trophies. Reminders that in the face of everything thrown at him, he came out on top stronger than ever.

Over time, Jason became more confident and comfortable in his body. He bought more shirts, tank tops, and shorts that showed his arms, chest, and legs. Even going as far as cutting the sleeves off some of his hoodies since you owned many pairs, and he loved how they looked on you. He’d prefer to wear yours, but since you were much smaller than him, he’d end up stretching or ripping them. Now, you were no dainty stick or anything like that. You had some meat on your bones and were taller than the average guy. But again, Jason is built like a tank and very much dwarfed you in size.

You weren’t complaining. 

He also loved the benefit of the sleeveless hoodies as they made him look more intimidating, which helped whenever he noticed other guys and girls at the gym ogling you a little too long for his liking. He didn’t care who it was, Jason would always look out for and protect you.

Yet, others seemed to see it differently as you walked down the street in Gotham, going in and out of the various stores. You were both sipping on some slushies while chatting about whatever, Jason holding your shopping bags in one hand. You tried to snatch the bags from him multiple times since you didn’t want to feel like Jason was your butler or servant. Besides, you worked out too. Look at your arms! You could carry Jason if you wanted to.

Okay, yes, you knew that was a lie but you were allowed to dream. You’d get there…someday.

“Jason, give me my bag. I can carry it myself!” You said, trying to reach for the bag again.

“Sorry, Bugs, you know the rules. You’re not allowed to carry anything in my presence. Well, except my love for you. That’s heavy enough as it is.” Jason said with a cheeky smile.

You rolled your eyes at your boyfriend’s corny behavior and another one of his nicknames for you. You’d made the mistake of bringing Jason around your best friend during a study session for one of your classes. He revealed your childhood obsession with Looney Tunes and how many times when you reacted to a situation, you were a carbon copy of Bugs Bunny with his sarcasm and behavior.

“Get away from me dude,” You said, putting distance between yourself and the brick wall of a man.

“Ah, get back here.”

Jason grabbed you by your waist and pulled you to his side, nuzzling his face into your neck while tickling your sides.

“Jason, stop!” You shouted in laughter, trying to push him away.

“Never! You are now my hostage.” He joked back with you.

You stood there for a few more seconds wrestling with each other on the sidewalk. Someone should really scold you two for acting so cutesy and loving out and public like that. WE GET IT! You’re in love! Stop rubbing it in our faces.

When you broke apart, you found yourselves outside a bookstore. You saw Jason’s eyes light up even if his face didn’t show it. He turned towards you, giving you his best puppy-dog eyes and pout.

“Oh, get in there you dork. But, don’t max out your dad’s credit card!” You said, successfully pushing him off you.

He leaned down to plant a kiss on your lips before shooting into the store like the Flash. “No promises!” He yelled over his shoulder.

While he was in the store living out his childhood fantasy, you decided to let your ankles rest since you had been on them for a few hours. Jason offered to carry you at one point, and though it was tempting, you declined.

You sat on a nearby bench while scrolling on your phone for a bit. Your head shot up when you spotted someone approaching you from the street. It was two girls, both who looked to be in their late 20s to early 30s, carrying concerned looks on their faces.

“Hi!” You spoke with a smile, waving to the women walking up to you.

“Hey, are you okay?” One of them asked when they got to you.

Now, you had a confused expression on yours.

“I’m sorry?” You responded with a puzzled eyebrow raised.

“We were across the street when we saw that guy grabbing you. We can walk with you to the police station if he’s harassing you.” The other woman said.

‘Were these chicks on crack?’ You thought.

“Um, I think there’s been some confusion–” You started but was interrupted by the door swinging open, an excited Jason springing out of the store.

“BABE! THEY’VE GOT A MINT-CONDITIONED PRIDE & PREJUDICE! Can I get it?! Please!!!” Jason shouted while running up to you and grabbing you by your arms.

You could barely keep off the amused smile on your face while looking around your boyfriend’s shoulder to see the two girls looking shocked and embarrassed by your giant for a boyfriend, begging you for a book like a kid.

Jason turned around as well, seeing the two women staring at you two while he just pulled you closer to his body, wrapping his arms around you.

“Who are your friends, Bugs?”

“Just some nice girls being friendly,” You answered before using your hand to turn Jason’s head back toward you. “Don’t you already have three copies at home, Jason? Why do you need another?”

“Okay, but those are all old copies and are falling apart. This one is BRAND NEW! Never been opened. Please!!!”

You could only sigh at his antics before turning back to the girls, “I’m fine, ladies. But, thank you for asking.”

They both nodded with embarrassment before walking off down the street, Jason watching them with a confused expression before looking down at you.

“What was that about?”

“Don’t worry about it.

This one also wasn’t so bad, but it was still annoying.

Your parents were out of town for a month for their anniversary, so you invited Jason over. When he got there and saw how your cupboards and fridge were damn near empty, he was upset at you for not telling him you had no food and your parents for not supplying you with anything.

Truth be told, they literally just forgot to go before they left. Jason always wondered where you got your forgetfulness from. Now, he knew.

So, he dragged you to your local wholesale store once again with his adoptive father’s credit card to stock and load your cabinets so you wouldn’t go hungry. Well, really so, Jason wouldn’t go hungry since he would be spending a lot of time at your place now. Again, the man was like a mountain, so of course, he ate like one.

You had been in the store for about 15 minutes, and already your cart was damn near half-full.

“Jay, don’t you think this is enough? We don’t have to get a bunch of stuff today.” You voiced, eyeing the growing basket with concern.

“Bugs, you can’t stay in your house for a month and not have any food. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let you go hungry?” He responded while grabbing four boxes of your favorite cereal brands off the shelf and placing them neatly in the basket.

If it’s one thing that shocked you to learn about Jason was that he was very clean and organized with anything. You expected that trait more out of his brothers like Tim or Damian. But in truth, Tim was more of an organized chaos type of guy, and Damian was very simplistic, so he didn’t really need to organize much, except for his drawings and paintings, which he sometimes left scattered all over his desk.

Dick was a mess that couldn’t be saved. God bless the soul that ended up with that man.

But Jason was the cleanest out of all of them. The man could barely go two days without scrubbing down or re-organizing something. Again, you weren’t complaining. Every time he came over, he’d clean your room without you even asking.

“Okay, but my parents did leave me money to order out. Plus, I don’t want Bruce thinking I’m using you for money, or anything like that, especially since you keep taking his credit card.” You pointed out to which your boyfriend scoffed in response.

“Please, as much as that man has put me through, maxing out his credit card is the last thing he’s worried about me doing. And don’t worry, he and the rest of the family love you. Honestly, if it wasn’t for you dating me and the fact that you have great parents, I wouldn’t be surprised if the old man didn’t try to adopt you, which, if I haven’t mentioned this already, I don’t recommend.” He finished while heading further down the breakfast food aisle and grabbing boxes of Pop-Tarts.

“Fourth time.” You stated. Jason does not hold back regarding his tense relationship with his adoptive parent.

That was something you’d also been watching him work on. 

When Jason met your parents and saw the relationship between your father and you, it opened up an emotional wound he wasn’t prepared for. And though he still had some resentment toward the Billionaire Playboy, aka the Dark Knight, for not sending Joker to the seventh ring of hell after his death, it didn’t mean he didn’t still care for and love the man. He just had mental blocks he needed to work through, and you’d be there to support him.

Jason was about to give you one of his dorky responses until he realized he forgot the credit card in your car.

“Shoot, I forgot the card in the car. Where’re your keys?” He asked.

You handed them to him, and he gave you a quick kiss and a slap on the ass with a warning to not put anything back before rushing towards the entrance/exit of the store. Rolling your eyes, you moved down the aisle scoffing at his warning. Of course, he knew you were going to try and put some of the items back. Just like you knew him better than himself sometimes, it was the same for him with you. He could predict your next move before it popped into your head which you found very cute but extremely annoying at times.

While you stood there for a few moments scrolling on your phone out of boredom, you heard a voice speak up behind you.

“Excuse me.”

You turned around to see two guys around your age standing behind you. You figured they were trying to get to something behind you, so you moved yourself and your cart out of the way.

“Oh, my bad. Here ya go.”

“No, no! Not that. We were just wondering if you needed help getting your car or getting away from that guy. We saw him drag you in here.”

You barely held back the eye roll that was itching in your skull. Yes, Jason did somewhat have to drag you into the store since you insisted that you didn’t need to go grocery shopping. But, what happened to common sense? If Jason truly was holding you hostage or had bad intentions for you, why in the world would he bring you to a grocery store out of all places?!

Seriously, what were they thinking? That he was going to stick a Fruit-Loops box over your head and torture you with your most hated juice flavor?

A small sigh escaped your mouth before you responded to the boys, “Okay, this is not what it looks like. That guy is my boyfriend, and we’re just grocery shopping. I promise I’m fine.” You assured the guys.

“Are you sure? He isn’t forcing you to say any of this, right? I know that guy’s intimidating, but we can call security or the police to help you.”

Before you could respond, you both heard the sounds of quick footsteps approaching from around the corner. You turned to see him holding a plate with two large slices of pepperoni pizza and a large orange soda.

“Babe, I got you two slices of pizza and your favorite soda from the food court. I know you haven’t eaten today, so I figured you could snack on this, and then we can get you some chicken tenders and fries from your favorite restaurant after we leave here.” He offered while handing you the plate, looking at you with the most adoring gaze.

This boy really did have your whole heart. You could only wonder what you did to deserve someone like him.

When Jason took note of the two other guys standing by you looking dumbfounded, his arm instantly found its way around your waist, pulling you into his side while eyeing the two boys suspiciously and on guard. Anyone that wasn’t your parents, best friend, or his family, Jason saw as a potential threat. Even his family sometimes was included in that list a few times, and living in Gotham, you could never be too careful.

And any excuse for Jason to show you as his to anyone else watching was always an appreciated opportunity.

“Can I help you, fellas?” Jason said, a stern tone in his voice while eyeing the two down with every menacing look he could muster in his eyes.

You’ve never seen two guys who looked like they wanted to shit their pants so bad and run in the opposite direction. They started stuttering out a response before you took pity on them.

“They’re fine, Jay. They were just trying to grab some cereal behind me. I was just moving out of their way.” You threw a look toward the boys, who looked at you confused before they caught on to what you were trying to say.

“Y-Yeah m-man. Just ... um gra-grabbing some Frosted flakes.” One of the dudes said, pointing his fingers toward the boxes right behind you.

Jason eyed that finger with malice before he felt your fingers turning his face toward you.

“Hey, stop it. I’m good. Now, are you going to let them get their cereal and let me eat my pizza before it gets cold?”

A small smile crossed his face while he backed you both up moving the cart as well. You ruffled his hair watching the two boys grab a box and run down the aisle with their tails between their legs. He let out his usual whine, using his other arm to fix his hair.

“Shut up, you big baby. You promised me chicken tenders and fries, so get a move on before I get a food attitude.”

Jason smirked at your words before the hand around your waist moved to your butt, palming and squeezing your cheeks under the ‘hoochie’ shorts you were wearing.

“I know something better that’ll fill you up and take care of that attitude for you.” He whispered in your ear before giving a nip.

At least you weren’t in front of the salads when this was happening.

This wasn’t bad. It was actually funny, and you got a friend out of it.

You and Jason were at the gym, getting a workout in. You decided you both liked going in the afternoon when it was less busy. It was leg and glutes day for you (per usual) while Jason was working chest and shoulders. 

Two of your favorite body parts on him, including his arms, but that’s not important.

Now, you both agreed when you went to the gym that you would do your workouts separately but your warm-ups and cardio together. So, at some point, Jason was on the Smith machine doing a shoulder bench press while you were on another bench doing Bulgarian split squats.

Of course, the gym was a place where people met each other all the time. And, in many of those meetings and interactions, people would find others attractive and want to date or hook up with them. You were no exception to these rules. You were approached many times by both girls and guys, but you always politely declined. Well, you tried at least before Jason walked over and made it clear who you were with.

It was no secret to anyone that Jason did not only get easily jealous at the thought of you giving your attention and time away to someone who was not him, but he was also the living definition of anger issues. Match that with his very selfish and possessive attitude towards you, and you had a man ready and WILLING to do just about anything to anyone who dared lay a finger on you in the wrong way.

So, whenever someone deemed themselves stupid brave enough to approach you and flirt a little or leave a teasing touch to one of your arms, you’d try to give them a warning but it was always too late. They’d quickly find a towering shadow looming over them and turned to see a less than pleased Jason staring down at them with his bulging arms crossed over his chest. These being one of the few moments Jason gladly showed off his scars because they communicated his message quickly and effectively.

Back. The. Fuck. Off.

That was usually enough to get them to do just that. Most of the time, at least.

There always ended up being at least one guy or girl who wouldn’t take no for an answer. This time, it was a guy who kept finding himself next to you during your sets. Jason was watching you from afar with hooded and irritated eyes as he also noticed your gym shadow moving around with you. 

The guy decided to play smart and keep his hands off you since he could tell your brute of a boyfriend was watching his every move. The only reason he didn’t do anything was because he knew if he did, the guy could claim Jason as the aggressor, and since this was your favorite gym because your college’s gym was always crowded, he didn’t want to risk you getting in trouble and banned.

So, when Jason went to the bathroom, the creep took advantage of the moment and offered to ‘spot’ you on your set of squats with the smith machine, which you were sure was just an excuse for him to get behind you so he could ogle your ass and ‘accidentally’ grind his dirty crotch into it.

Luckily, a girl working out nearby noticed your uncomfortable stance when the man came over to ‘help’ you while you were setting up and immediately stopped her workout to shoo him away.

“Dude, he’s clearly not interested. So either go and finish your workout or pack up and get out!”

He tried to get defensive and argue with her, but when she revealed her boyfriend was one of the owners and threatened to have him kicked out and banned, he finally backed off. He made sure to point out how you weren’t even all the hot anyway to mask his hurt pride while you threw an appreciative look toward her.

When he left and Jason returned from the bathroom, the girl unleashed her rage on him as well.

“And you too! I’ve seen you harassing and stalking him all over the gym. I’ll kick your ass out too and have you banned if you don’t leave him alone.” She scolded the dark-haired man.

Jason looked confused while you just laughed before grabbing his arm and pulling him to you, “Nah, don’t worry about him. This one’s good.” You said, reaching up to ruffle his hair, even though you had to stretch a little bit.

Jason pouted down at you in childish anger, “I told you don’t do that! Do you know how long it takes to get this in the right floppy position?” He whined while trying to fix his hair.

She looked back and forth between you two before realization dawned upon her.

“Boyfriend who’s a menace to everyone but is a total baby when around you?”

You gasped, “Girl, how’d you know?”

“Mine’s the exact same.”

“Oh, we’re gonna be great friends.” You declared.

Okay, this time, it was lowkey your fault, but still. People should be able to tell the difference between an actual cry for help and a joke.

Jason decided to take you to one of his favorite cafes in Gotham since you were in desperate need of a study break. You picked up some classes over the summer, so the schedule was much more tightly packed since they had to speed up a four-month course into two with the semester being divided into two sections.

Jason was sitting on one of the lounge chairs reading while you were sipping on some apple juice and reading a fanfic story on your phone. Whether or not it was smut was not important and nobody would be able to tell by the look on your face. At least until you read over one particular part that had you gasping out loud which managed to catch your boyfriend’s attention.

“What?”

“Nothing.” You quickly said, liking the fic quickly and closing the browser, knowing Jason was not going to drop it.

“Uh uh, Bugs. What were you looking at?” He asked, setting his book on the table and moving over to your side of the table.

“Nothing Jay! I promise it was nothing.”

“Oh really? So you wouldn’t mind if I looked at your phone then?”

You felt your cheeks heat up while Jason took notice of your tense stance, peering at you and your phone while slowly leaning toward you from his crouched stance.

“Let me see your phone.”

“No.”

“Give me your phone.”

“I said no.”

“Bugs,” Jason said, now mocking a stern look on his face, “Give. Me. Your. Phone.”

He held out his hand for emphasis, and you felt your fingers reflexively tighten around your smart device. You stared back at him with your own dour expression, “No. Means. No.”

You both stared into each other’s eyes for a moment before he suddenly grabbed at your phone, attempting to snatch it from your hand. It became a tug-of-war over the device while you both consciously tried not to be too much of a disturbance to the other patrons of the cafe.

This is where it accidentally was your fault.

“Help! Assault! Violence! Thief!”

You thought you were shouting it quietly, but there was a reason your family always told you to quiet down when you thought you were speaking at a normal volume. You got it from your mother really. Strong voices and all…

“Dude, fucking back off!”

You both heard the deep voice shout before you watched a guy tackle Jason to the ground, feeling hands coming to your side.

“Oh my god, are you okay?!” This random brunette said while checking you over to make sure you weren’t hurt.

You were FINE. However, you were worried as hell now. Not for Jason at all, cause… Well, ya know.

You were scared for the other guy that had tackled Jason. Your boyfriend did NOT do well with physical touch, considering how long it took him to get comfortable with just cuddling with you. Let alone sudden physical touch? And the man is used to fighting criminals at night and having to be on guard 24/7 if he feels something suddenly grab or touch him? Yeah, you were hoping this didn’t end in a trip to the precinct like last time.

Don’t ask.

“I’m fine. But, I do suggest you quickly get your friend off my boyfriend before he has to go to the hospital.” You assured the girl while warning her at the same time.

She looked at you confused, “Boyfriend? Wait, huh? We thought that guy was attacking you and trying to steal your phone. And don’t worry, my boyfriend’s a professional kickboxer. He can handle him.”

‘Yeah. Mine has anger issues and was trained by Batman and can re-load two guns in under twenty seconds with his arms tied behind his back.’

“AH!”

You both turned your heads to see Jason holding the other guy in a chokehold while looking up at you.

“Aww, man! He spilled my coffee over my book.” Jason whined, “Babe, can you get me another one, please?”

“Yes, Jason. Can you do me a favor and let him go before you break his neck?”

Jason rolled his eyes before releasing the guy, who went into a coughing fit on the ground as he caught his breath.

When he sat back at the table as the girl went to help her boyfriend off the floor after giving you both weird looks, he set your phone on the surface, eyeing you with a quizzical look.

“What?” You asked after he stared at you for a few more minutes.

“Really? Yandere?”

Your heart jumped in your chest, and you were ready to bolt for the door.

“So, all those times you swore you weren’t trying to make me jealous just to get a reaction outta me, were you actually just trying to get me to tie you up and lock you in my room?” He said with a dark look in his eyes and a cheeky smirk on his lips.

HOT BOY DOWN! I REPEAT, HOT BOY DOWN!

Now, this was just ridiculous. Of course, it made sense, but you were thoroughly pissed off when it happened.

You and Jason had returned to his apartment after having dinner with his family at Wayne Manor. Bruce decided he wanted to have at least one family dinner a month, and since you were considered an honorary Wayne and everyone loved you, of course, you were invited. Jason, on the other hand, was still hesitant.

Even though he was working on his relationship with Bruce and trying to move past his mental scars, his family still brought up some sensitive subjects for him. Typically, they made his insecurities flare up a lot more. You were Jason’s safe space. So, he wasn’t really keen on mixing the things that made him question himself and the person who made him feel the most loved and secure together.

You didn’t push, still wanting to go at his pace and let him bring you around more when he was ready. The day of the dinner, you figured he either had a change of heart or somebody had talked to Jason and convinced him to bring you along, and you had a great time. Jason was a bit quiet throughout the evening, but you could see a small part of him was happy at seeing how you integrated well into his family dynamic. He took great pleasure in how you humbled Dick a few times as well.

But, something was off, but you couldn’t tell what it was. You knew Jason was usually the quieter one out of the rest of his siblings. When you were around, he showed more of his goofiness and playful side. You barely saw that at all tonight. You knew he was watching you as you made conversation with Bruce, argued back and forth with Damian, repeatedly told Tim he needed to get more sleep, snapped photos with Steph, joked with Duke, and even learned a little sign language from Cass.

He watched as you offered to help Alfred with the dishes, who respectfully declined, but did make his appreciation known to you and the others, especially Tim.

“I offer to help you sometimes, Alfred!” Tim shouted while chasing after the butler offering his help.

Usually, Jason would laugh at any moment that came at the expense of Tim’s sanity.

None of that happened. 

So, when you got back to his place, you asked him what was wrong. He remained silent as he just looked at you, but you could see there was a storm behind his eyes. When you came up to rub his arm and hug him, his hands shot up to your neck, wrapping around it firmly but not tight to where you couldn’t breathe.

Your hands grabbed his wrists as he maneuvered you against the wall that connected the living room to the kitchen. He placed his lips roughly on yours, forcing his tongue into your mouth while never loosening his hold on your neck.

“Mine. Not theirs, mine.” He muttered against your lips before quickly taking his hands off your neck, ripping your clothes off while ridding himself of his.

In less than two minutes, Jason had you pressed back against the wall, your legs wrapped around his waist, and his long and girthy member tucked deep inside your ass, fucking you with hard and menacing thrusts. His large and rough hands were back around your neck, now squeezing around your neck as you moaned breathlessly against him.

Jason took immense pride in your sounds of satisfaction and whining, increasing his already brutal pace in your guts while slowly stealing more of your breath away. Jason’s hard breaths pounded against your face as he stared at your now sweaty and ragged body, limping weakly against him. You placed your arms on his shoulder but were careful to avoid his neck, knowing that along with some other areas on his body were off-limits unless specified otherwise.

This was the dynamic between you two always. Anyone could see how Jason was wrapped around your finger in public and even in private whenever you two were just lounging around and relaxing. In these moments, you were fully under Jason’s authority. You lay completely at his mercy while he dominated your body and controlled where, when, and how you got pleasured. 

The who rarely came into question as though your boyfriend had considered it a few times, you didn’t see a day likely where Jason’s jealousy and possessiveness would let him allow someone else to see you in this manner. No, you were for his eyes only.

And the why, well that was simple. Jason had needs, you had needs. And, no one was better suited to fulfill those needs than your boyfriend. Though with him, anything could spark those needs at any given time. Whether the dark-haired boy was just feeling horny and wanted some ass. You decided to wear a tempting outfit, and he decided he was going to right then and there he would have you, whether in the house, in the car, or in public, it didn’t matter. If he felt you were being a little too friendly with someone else, he’d be happy to remind you about who you belonged to. The why was simple; if Jason wanted you, he would have you. No ifs, and’s, or but’s about it.

“J-Jason... nngh p-please-” You begged, feeling yourself nearing the edge as your dick was crushed between Jason and your hot and sweaty abdomens.

“Say my name again,” He ordered, feeling how he flexed his dick inside you while still pounding your sore hole.

His name fell from your lips in a needy moan as you felt his fingers pressing against your windpipes. You could feel how the wall behind you became slick from your sweat as your body jutted up and down against it with Jason’s increasingly erratic thrusts.

He grunted in approval of your increasingly loud whines as you both approached your climaxes. Jason fully squeezed your neck at this point as he punched your insides with his cock. Your own member was feeling the pressures as well as it repeatedly smashed against Jason’s abs before you reached your end, screaming out in blissful agony.

Jason came to his finish with his own groan as you felt him bury himself with his cum deep inside you. You let out soft little whines feeling his appendage throb against your walls. Even though you knew he didn’t like hands around his neck, he didn’t object to you rubbing a hand down his nape. He gave you a warning glance at first, but when he felt your soft hands rubbing up and down his skin, he visibly relaxed, placing a kiss on your cheek.

The quiet and sweet moment though was abruptly ruined by the sound of Jason’s front door being kicked in and heavy boots rushing into his apartment.

“GOTHAM P.D.!” You heard the intruders shout.

Of all the fucking things…

Well, when the cops came around and found you and your naked boyfriend against the wall, and his hands around your neck, you had to admit it didn’t look good.

You had to quickly explain to the officers it wasn’t what it looked like and that everything was consensual. Against the orders of the cops, Jason did not move one inch off the wall, keeping your body covered with his. He’d sooner dip himself in another Lazarus Pit than let these arrogant blue caps have even the smallest peek at you.

So, with a little charm and finesse, you convinced the cops to walk out and let you and him get dressed. Jason couldn’t decide what he was more upset about. 

The fact that his door was off its hinges, or that one of his neighbors called the cops on him thinking Jason had been abusing you, or that your private moment was intruded upon and some pervy cops basically saw you naked.

Yeah, he was going to be extra brutal on patrol tonight.

After a call was made to Commonionser Gordon at Jason’s request, the cops dropped everything and left you two alone when Gordon made it clear this was a bogus call.  “Jason? Abusing Y/N? That boy is the biggest simp this city’s ever seen. Whoever called that in was obviously misinformed.”

Even if it was true, Jason didn’t appreciate being called a simp. He didn’t deny it, though.

You could barely hold back your laughs to which your boyfriend responded with a harsh smack to your very sore ass. It was a wonder how you were even standing on your legs as they still felt like jelly.

“I’m sorry, but I just can’t see him in that manner.”

“No way, he’s way too sweet and innocent to be like that.”

“Dude, have you met your own boyfriend?”

These were all things said to Jason when he would complain to them about how he was tired of everyone thinking he was a threat to you and not seeing the truth. If anything, you were more of a threat to Jason and honestly, should be placed on a national security watch list for some of the things that have come out of your mouth.

The only one who really knew and understood what Jason was talking about was your best friend, who was the first one to warn Jason. The boy didn’t believe him either at first and ended up finding out the hard way.

Well, it looked like Jason’s brothers were also about to find out as they had come to your school’s campus looking for him. You were happy to see the Wayne siblings, as some time had passed since the last dinner. For some reason, seeing how easily you interacted with his brothers drove up Jason’s jealousy to a new level. As soon as they showed up, Jason placed you on his lap, and you could feel his prominent bulge throbbing under you. You knew immediately you were in for it when you both got home.

When you got up to go to the bathroom, Jason was going to follow you, intending to give you a little preview of what to expect in the stalls, but was stopped by Dick, who said they had something important they needed to talk to him about.

Before that could happen, a new presence appeared at your table, and your best friend visibly and audibly groaned at who it was.

“Hi there.” Jason heard a sickly sweet voice say, turning to see another boy he’d heard of.

“Xavion.” Jason heard your best friend mutter under his breath.

He knew that name. He’d heard you curse it and mutter it in irritation and anger plenty of times. He purposefully went out of his way to piss you off and pick with you on multiple occasions. He also thought that because his dads were rich and gave him everything he wanted, he was entitled to anything and everything, including other people’s significant others.

No one knew what started the rivalry between you two, but they knew it got cemented when he had sex with your first college boyfriend while you guys were dating and then went on to sleep with any guy you had the slightest attraction to.

So, Jason would be no different when he placed himself a little too close for the dark-haired boy’s liking, trying to maneuver himself away.

“I’ve seen you around on campus before. Are you a student here?”

“Xavion, don’t you have someone else to harass and stalk?” Your best friend commented with an irritated eye roll.

The boy in question only threw a dirty glance at your comrade before turning back to your boyfriend, taking considerable delight in looking him up and down, “Damn, aren’t you a big boy. You’re Y/N’s boyfriend, right? Gotten bored yet?”

Everyone tensed at that, watching how Xavion only got bolder in his flirting, “I’d understand if you did. Y/N’s just not that interesting, and honestly, a little ran through. I’d be happy to show you other options though,” He voiced with a suggestive tone.

Dick, Tim, and Damian watched with slightly nervous eyes as the promiscuous boy moved his hand that was caressing Jason’s arm and placed it around his neck, waiting for the ball to drop as the second Wayne kid's hands began to twitch on the table.

Before anyone could move to stop it, they saw Xavion get literally yanked off of Jason and onto the ground. Your boyfriend and his siblings along with your best friend who began to cheer your name watched as you dragged the slut onto the ground by the back of his shirt and proceeded to WHALE on him.

No one had noticed you coming back from the bathroom, too busy watching Xavion rub his hands all over your boyfriend. When you got closer and saw what was happening, you immediately saw red and picked up your pace, only to dash into a mad sprint when you saw his hand touch Jason’s neck.

Jason after breaking out of his stunned trance immediately ran over to pull you off the screaming boy who was crying for help. Dick and Tim ran over to pull Xavion out of your grasp, just barely managing to save him from what would have been a devastating kick from your boot to his face.

“Touch my boyfriend again and see what happens bitch!” You shouted out at the boy. Luckily, you were in a secluded part of campus, so no one had seen the fight. But, when Xavion had gotten off the ground looking thoroughly fucked up, he tried to run up on you, seeing Jason holding you back and thinking he had an open shot.

Little did he or Jason expect, you used your smaller stature to slip out of Jason’s hold and rushed the boy before kicking your leg up and landing that hit that was taken from you earlier. You took sick satisfaction hearing and feeling the crunch under your foot as it connected with his nose.

Dick, Tim, and Damian watched in complete shock seeing you beat the shit out of this boy. Now, they could really see why you and Jason were such a good match for each other.

When Jason got you back in his arms, he made sure to hold on a little tighter to you so you couldn’t slip away again. Dick and Tim had to help the sobbing boy cradling his broken nose, saying they would take him to the emergency room.

Jason pulled you both back towards the table, sitting you down on his lap as he held your hands down. He could not help how hard he was under you and didn’t care to hide it. Watching that display had him a different level of horny and he frankly couldn’t wait to take you home.

After a few moments passed and you settled down, everyone looked up to the sound of a throat clearing.

“Todd, I don’t know if I ever told you this before,” Damian started, looking at you both with his usual judgemental stare, “...Good job.” He said with a nod toward you.

You were both surprised, Jason especially, as neither of you had ever heard the youngest Robin give out a compliment.

“If you screw this up somehow, which I have little doubt that you’ll find a way, I will not hesitate to end you.”

There was the Damian you both knew.

“I second that motion,” Your best friend added to which you just laughed.

“Shut it, gremlin.” Jason retorted before squeezing you against his body.

“Don’t worry, Damian. I don’t think Jason will do anything to screw this up. Besides, if he does do something stupid, he’ll have me to worry about.” You said, a mischievous twinkle in your eye.

You heard Jason growl lowly against you before grinding you into his lap, letting you feel his hardness poking you through your shorts. You popped his arm to which he responded with a pinch on your ass, your best friend watching in disgusted amusement.

“You two make me sick.”

“Back at you, ugly.” You responded.

Damian turned his head, looking in the direction where Dick and Tim took Xavion to an ER room, “I despise harlots.”

“OH! Speaking of which, thank you, Damian, for reminding me.” You said before leaning over Jason to grab your bag and pull out your laptop.

“What are you doing?” Your boyfriend asked.

“Insurance. I knew the day would come when that hoe went too far. So just in case he decides to go to the university about this little spat, I’m emailing a detailed description of how everything went down, along with photos and evidence of his affairs with various teachers and staff. To them, it will look like Xavion attacked me out of retaliation because he thought I would snitch on him about his sexual misconduct. Now, tell me, babe, did you feel physically violated?” You asked while making various edits to your already drafted email.

“Huh?” Jason replied confused.

“Just say yes.” Your best friend told him with a smirk.

“Um, yes? I think…”

“Perfect! Putting that down for the record, so, if that slut decides to try to get me in trouble, I can show I had completely justifiable reasons to hand him his ass on a concrete platter.” You stated a little too cheerily to be considered not disturbing.

Your best friend was not surprised by this at all, while Damian and Jason looked at you like you had two heads.

“Isn’t the expression ‘silver platter?’” Damian pointed out.

“Yeah, but I dragged his ass up and down on concrete, so it’s a concrete platter today.”

You looked up to see the two Robins staring at you.

“What? Bitches fucked around, so bitches found out. Don’t blame me.” You said while continuing to type.

“I fucking love you,” Jason said while biting at your ear lobe, making you laugh.

Damian could only scoff as he watched you two.

“And people swear Todd’s the threat.”

☀️ | Jason Todd/Red Hood | ☀️

☀️ | Masterlists | ☀️

[chillinglyadventurous]

Fresh Start - Stanford Pines

Thank you to @ultravioletqueen for the request! I know it’s not the headcanons you requested, but I hope you still enjoy!

I could definitely be talked into a part 2 of this.

Tags: Fluff, mentions of abuse

“Hey mom,” you son called from down the hall, “is it okay if I go hang out with Dipper? His Grunkle Ford is taking us to find a monster in the woods.”

You looked up from your book to see Jack, your 13 year old, looking at you with puppy dog eyes. You had moved to Gravity Falls a few months ago. The divorce was messy. Your ex husband was a prick. You needed to get that boy out of there. Of course, you had been worried about moving to a new town. You had a job. You made friends easily, but your son wasn’t the same.

He was a shy boy, too intrigued by the supernatural for his own good. You were excited he found a friend, even if Dipper was only there in the summers to stay with his great uncles that lived in the local tourist trap.

You nodded. “Of course, honey. You need a ride over there?”

You’d met Stan before, Mr. Mystery. He wasn’t a good influence, but he was nice enough. You knew you could trust him to keep your kid safe. No part of you doubted that, but Jack had been gushing over Dipper’s other uncle, Ford. Jack had referred to him as a mad scientist. That made you a bit wary.

Monster. Yeah, that freaked you out too. You had heard whispers around town about last summer. You’d seen some weird things around Gravity Falls yourself, things lurking in the forest near your home. Some had even told you that you were so lucky you weren’t there last summer. You wondered what had happened. When you asked, you were always met with the same response: Never mind all that.

You parked your car out front of the Mystery Shack where Dipper was there to greet Jack, “Hey, man! You ready to go?”

“Dipper,” you began, “can I meet your Grunkle Ford before you guys get going?” You just wanted to be cautious. There were a lot of creeps in the world. Granted your ex husband knew most of them, but you always felt more at ease when you met someone before letting your kid have sleepovers or hang out at someone else’s house. “Would that be okay?”

Dipper nodded, but, before you could get inside, a man came out with a large backpack strapped to his back. For a moment, you thought it was Stan. He stood a bit taller than Stan, just enough for you to notice. His back was straighter and his glasses were cracked.

He gave you a warm smile, “Greetings! You must be [Y/N], Jack’s mother.” He took your hand in his. His handshake was firm. When he caught you mentally counting the fingers on his hands he pulled away. “You’ve got a smart boy, [Y/N]. I’ve never seen someone so young recite the first hundred digits of pi so quickly.”

“I even won a contest at my old school, for it, Ford!” Jack beamed up at the man you couldn’t stop staring at.

Ford ruffled his hair, “There’s nothing more fulfilling than academic achievement.” He gave loud laugh. “Boy, do I miss those college days.”

“Can I talk to you?” You said. You pointed towards the door to the Shack, eyes on Ford. He muttered a quick ‘certainly’ before following you inside. You could see the boys gabbing over what they were going to do. Jack seemed so excited. You hadn’t seen him that way in a long time. “I’m really excited Jack found a friend, but, if I’m being honest, the whole monster-hunting thing freaks me out a bit.”

Ford gave a curt nod. He could see your hesitation and understood it completely. He gave your shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I can promise you,” he reassured, “I would never put Jack or Dipper in any danger.” Another warm smile stretched across his face. The lines by his eyes creased with his grin, “I haven’t told the boys yet, but this isn’t going to be some grand adventure. They’ll be a bit disappointed. We’re just going to catalog the migration patters of a local creature I’ve named beard cubs.”

“Harmless?” You wondered, giving him a soft look. Okay, he was normal-ish. This was fine.

A curt nod was given. “Absolutely. The worst that could happen is your teenager comes home with facial hair. You’re welcome to come if you’d like!”

“No,” you declined, “don’t want to risk becoming the bearded lady.”

Ford gave you a hardy laugh, “Very well. I’m assuming Jack has your phone number. I will give you a call when we return so you know we’ve made it back safely.” He shook your hand again. “It’s very nice to finally meet you, [Y/N]. Jack talks speaks very fondly of you.”

You gave Jack a quick hug before getting back into your car. It was cute the way the boys trudged after Ford. What really melted your heart was the way Jack looked up to Ford, completely enthralled by the amazing man leading him and Dipper into the woods.

Of course, a flutter was in your stomach. Family of your kid’s friends never led him off into the woods before, but nothing about Ford set off any red flags. He seemed safe, capable. You made a mental note to invite the Pines family over to dinner soon. They’d really made Jack feel at home in this little town.

By the time evening rolled around, you were standing in your kitchen washing dishes. Your phone was right next to you. Nothing yet. You were about to pick up the phone and call Jack when you heard a car pull up. The door opened, Jack and Dipper’s chatter filling the room.

“In here!” You called. Dipper and Ford followed your son into the kitchen. “You guys have fun?”

Dipper beamed at Jack, but Ford’s gaze was fixed on you. “As promised,” he smiled, “and no children with beards.”

The kids ran off up the stairs to Jack’s room. You dried your hands, turning to the man standing in the middle of your kitchen. You sat at the table and gestured for him to do the same. With this grace about him, he sat comfortably at your table.

“Jack didn’t cause you too much trouble, did he?” You were trying to make small talk, something you had always struggled with especially after your ex. Then, you had learned it was always better to stay quiet. You couldn’t fight if you didn’t speak. “He gets carried away sometimes.”

Ford shook his head. “Jack has never been any trouble. He’s actually very helpful. He’s very intelligent. He created this-“ Ford paused when a clatter came from up their stairs, “Is that normal?”

“Boys,” you shrugged.

Over the next few weeks, you had seen a lot of Ford. Dipper hanging around was normal. One night, they were both sleeping at your house. The next, they were at the Mystery Shack. It gave you some peace and quiet which you appreciated, but, soon, Ford was showing up at your door just to talk to you, often when Dipper and Jack were out exploring with Mabel.

You and Ford had grown quite friendly over that time. You would sit and chat about mostly nothing over tea or coffee or the occasional glass of wine. You were enjoying his company.

Tonight was one of those nights. Ford had brought Dipper and Mabel over for a sleepover. “I promise I made her leave the grappling hook at home,” Ford assured as the kids ran up the steps with their sleeping bags in tow. “I can’t promise, however, that she didn’t sneak it in her bag.”

“Eh,” you grinned. You motioned for Stanford to follow you into the living room. “Luckily, there’s nothing she can break.” Crash. You laughed as you plopped onto the sofa next to Ford. “So, no experiments to conduct tonight or are you just playing chauffeur?”

“Chauffeur.” He stared at you for a moment. You noticed that a lot lately. He reached out, brushing something from your cheek. “Sorry,” he blushed, “you had some flour or something-“

Before you could respond, three kids came barreling by you, “Hey, no running in the house, Jack!”

“Sorry, mom!”

They kept running. Mabel, however, stopped in her tracks. She had seen that. She saw the blushes and Ford’s hand on your face. “What’s going on here?”

“Mabel,” Ford warned. One of your eyebrows raised as you noticed his blush grow deeper, “Go play.”

Her feet planted themself in your throw rug. Her usually sweet grin was wicked, “Is Jack about to be my new cousin?”

Your back straightened. Had Jack said something? You didn’t think he had heard you on the phone with one of your friends from back home, yapping on and on about Jack’s friend’s hot uncle.

“Grunkle Ford has a crush on you!” She ran off.

You stared at Ford and he stared at you. Both of your eyes were wide. You two were concentrated on the other, looking for some sign that Mabel was lying.

That was when the boys came running by again, but it was Jack who stopped then. His grin was just as devious as Mabel’s had been. “Mom has a crush on you!”

Your head fell into your hands in embarrassment as the kids laughed maniacally in the distance. Ford was on his feet. For the first time ever, he was at a loss for words. His attention was only on you. A part of him was hoping you’d confirm what Jack had screamed. You wanted him to do the same. But, the silence ticked on. Even when you finally had the courage to see his face, he stood silent.

“Please apologize to your husband for me,” Ford’s voice was curt and dry. “I think this has gotten out of hand.”

You blinked as you tried to comprehend what he just said. His words weren’t really registering until he was opening the front door. “I’m not married. Not anymore, at least.” That seemed to catch his attention. Suddenly? You couldn’t stop yourself. When the subject had been broached in the past, you had avoided it masterfully. Now, you couldn’t. “Jack’s father and I divorced a little over a year ago. The yelling, the emotional manipulation, I couldn’t do it anymore. So, I left.”

Ford stared blankly at you, but you continued. “Jack’s telling the truth. Its silly. We’re grown adults. I know-“

He kissed you, “I’ve wanted to do that for a while.”

“Awww!” Mabel cooed from the top of the steps, “Jack, you’re our cousin now!”

[the-final-sif]

Okay, so I understand a lot of people don't like spiders in their home, but I have a different policy with them. My rules are simply that as long as the spider remains up on the ceiling with it's web, then it's fine and I won't bother it. If it starts getting into my space or on the floor where my bird could get to it, then it gets escorted outside.

There is a single exception to this rule, which is the spider in my bathroom. Or rather, the web in my bathroom. It's on the floor in a corner, and I kept meaning to clean it up but forgetting to, and in the end got attached to the spider maintaining it's web.

Why? Because it was a total loser.

I'm not sure if it's the location or what, but somehow despite my house having plenty of bugs caught in other locations, I have never seen a single insect caught in that web. Not once!!

I assumed, that at some point the spider would realize it had picked a bad spot and go away. Eventually, it did! It took nearly a month though, and I planned on waiting a few days to see if it was really gone so I didn't accidentally vacuum it up.

Only, then it got weird.

Because on day 2, I enter my bathroom, and there's a new spider on the web.

Now, I am no spider expert, but this was very much a different spider. Whole new species. Lighter in color and thinner. Though still decently sized.

At this point I'm at a loss, but I decide to give it a few more days for this spider to also realize that it's found a dumb web.

That spider stuck around for another month before finally giving up, still not catching a single bug in it's entire stay.

I don't think it was even maintaining the web properly, the damn thing is all dusty and aged now, you can see it easily. But it still took a month to give up!

I wait a few days again, and this time in under 24 hours, a third spider that is very much not either of the other two takes over. I see him on it, and I gave him a very judgemental look for picking such poor hunting space.

Like, it's not like my house doesn't have prime spots! The spider by the bathroom window has made out like a bandit catching flies!! She's on top of her game! But no, three different spiders all looked at this dumbass corner like "yeah, this is really gonna work out for me".

That third spider finally gave up after two, nearly 3 months. And it's now been a few days without a fourth moving in, so I am finally cleaning up this pathetic excuse of a web. This stupid thing has been here for four or five months now and I have never seen it catch a single bug. Truly an example of the absolute most pathetic of spiderkind.

[winchester-24]

Imagine You couldn’t save everyone on the last hunt, and Dean is there for you.

You and the boys had been tailing this Shtriga for two weeks. You would get close to it, then it would escape, and then it would hop somewhere different. It has already put a total of 14 kids in the hospital, and you were hoping it would be greedy and try to get one more kid before it disappeared again for who knows how long. It was now in a small town and had already taken the younger sibling of two girls, and you are betting it would be going after the oldest tonight.

At the motel room, you, Dean, and Sam were finishing up packing the gear you wanted to take and going over the plan one more time. You were acting as a detective earlier that day and were able to set a camera up in the girl’s room. You three would sneak in and wait for the Shtriga to come and then kill it before it could escape again. Everyone was on edge; this thing has been escaping you guys for the past two weeks, but everyone is determined not to let it get away this time.

“You okay?” Dean asks as you look out the motel window, lost in your thoughts as they load up the car. You turned to your boyfriend of just about six months and smiled at him.

“I’m good; I just really want to get this son of a bitch and go home.” Dean came over and wrapped his arms around you and then gave you a quick kiss on the lips, which you returned to him immediately. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he hugged you.

“We will get him, and then 15 kids will wake up, and we will get to celebrate a job well done.” You smiled at him before Sam coughed and muttered, “We are good to go.” You giggled and kissed Dean one more time before hurrying out to the Impala after Sam.

Hours after you guys arrived at the house, you finally noticed movement in the window. You hit Dean softly on the arm and pointed to where you were seeing the Shtriga. All three of you took the safety off of your guns and were waiting for it to start feeding. Your heart was beating, and nerves were beginning to kick in. There was an 11-year-old girl in the room, and her safety was a top priority. Your job was to get to her while Sam and Dean would shoot at the Shtriga. You would have to crawl quickly, but you would be able to make sure she stayed down and out of harm's way.

Dean squeezed your hand before letting go and slowly standing up, and you and Sam followed suit. You were the first to go in that way. You didn’t have these two men blocking you from getting to the girl. You three watched as the Shtriga began feeding.

“Now, now!” Dean whispered and yelled. You hustled to the door, slammed it open, and quickly dropped to the floor to get to the girl. The Shtriga looked up as Sam and Dean let off rounds. The girl screamed, and you pulled her down to the ground with you.

“It’s okay; I’m going to get you out of here.” You say to the shaking girl. “I need you to stay low to the ground and crawl with me, okay?” The girl crying nodded, and you two began to make your way across the room. Something grabbed your ankle and pulled you back; you let out a little scream and tried to turn to face what was pulling you.

“Y/N!” Dean yelled. You tried to kick at the Shtriga, but it wouldn’t let go of you. It grabbed your shirt and flew you against the wall. Your vision got hazy as you hit your head. You heard the little girl scream for her dad while you tried to stand up. Between trying to focus your vision back, you see Dean on the other side of the room groaning, holding his side, and Sam knocked out by the door. You see the Shtriga quickly move towards the little girl, pin her down, and start to retake her life force. You groan and try to get up quickly.

You hear a new voice. “Hey! Get off my daughter!” The dad comes in, trying to push the Shtriga off of his daughter, who takes hold of his shirt and flings him into the other room. You hear a bunch of clattering and hope the dad is okay.

On your feet, you yell for the Shtriga gun already raised. “Hey, bitch!” You yell. The Shtriga slightly turns towards you, still feeding on the girl. You shoot. The Shtriga’s head jerks back as you shoot straight in the forehead, and it stumbles away from the girl and falls on its back on the floor. You run to the girl and immediately put your fingers to her neck, trying to find a pulse. It’s faint. You let out a shaky breath; she is safe. You look up to Dean to celebrate this, but he isn’t in the room. You look around frantically, thinking something happened that you missed, but you catch a glimpse of him in the other room. He is kneeling by the girl's father. A pit forms in your stomach. He looks up and makes eye contact with you, then shakes his head. Fuck.

The ride back to the hotel room was quiet. The death of the father weighs on everyone. For you, you take it personally more than the boys. It was your job to get the girl to safety. If you did your job and got her out of the room like you were supposed to, then there was no reason for the dad to be there. He would be holding his little girl right now instead of a paramedic trying to tell her that her dad is never coming back. Were you being irrational with yourself? Of course. But this is what you do. You take it personally when you can’t save everyone- especially families. Dean’s jaw was clenched the entire time back to the motel; you knew he was upset. You couldn't guess whether he was upset at you or the hunt in general, but if you were him, you would be mad at you, too. You messed this up; you couldn’t do the one thing you were supposed to do, and a father paid the price. Sam kept glancing at Dean and you. He was upset, but he knows how you and Dean are when a hunt is not perfect. You either take it out on each other or yourselves. Sometimes both.  It was one of the many things you had in common, but this trait was the most toxic one you two shared. He was waiting for the bomb to blow because the fuse had already been set.

Dean got out of the Impala quickly and quietly. Sam waited a second to see if you would do the same, but when you didn’t, he turned around to face you.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked you. You looked up at him.

“No, Sammy, I’m good.” He knew arguing with you would get nowhere, so he just nodded his head and got out. You sat there for a few minutes alone in silence, letting the demons take over your thoughts about how you fucked this up. It was your fault that family is torn apart now and that their lives are changed for the worse because you couldn’t manage to kick an old hag’s hand off of your ankle. You tilted your head back, not daring to let one tear fall, and let out a shaky breath. You closed your eyes, trying to regulate yourself, when the back door on the other side of the impala opened. You smelt him before he was even in the car.

Dean slid in the back and looked at you. There was tension as you both waited to see if this would be a conversation or an argument. You made the first move.

“I fucked up, I know.” You said, finally looking over at him. His gaze on you was intense as if he were trying to read you to figure out what he needed to be and do at that moment. When you said that, his gaze softened, and his shoulders relaxed.

“Sweetheart, this isn’t on you.” He said.

“It was my job to get her out of there. If I had done my job right, the dad would have never come into that room,” you said.

“You don’t know that; he could have come back in there to try to take care of the three intruders in his house for all we know. He was protecting his child, something any good father would do.” You looked out the window and mumbled.

“It’s our job to protect them.” Dean grabbed your hand, and when you didn’t pull away, he laced your fingers together. You looked back over at him, tears threatening to spill, but you'll be damned if you are weak right now; you don’t deserve it.

“I know I’m a hypocrite saying this because I do the same thing,” Dean started, “but we can't save everyone; you did everything that you could do at that moment, and when you didn’t get up at first, I was scared for a moment that you hit your head a little too hard, and I lost concentration on what we were there for. My only thought was to get to you and ensure you were okay. I could have grabbed the girl and taken her out, but in my moment of weakness, it grabbed me and threw me. I am as much to blame for that father as you and Sam. We take this blame together, learn from it, and move on. You are a damn good hunter, but it's insanity to think that we can save everyone from everything.”

You let one tear slip, then another, then another, until you were full-on crying but not daring to make a sound.

“Oh, baby,” Dean said, pulling you to him. He twisted himself on the seat so you could lean your head in his chest as he held you close. He rubbed your back with his hand as he kissed the top of your head. You two sat there in this position until the tears stopped, and the only thing you could hear was each other’s breathing. You looked up at him.

“Thank you.” You said as you wiped your runny nose with your sleeve. He gave you a soft smile.

“I know I’m not perfect, but I promise I’m always going to be here for you, sweetheart. You mean everything to me.” You leaned up and gave him a soft kiss on his lips.

“Let's go inside and get some rest, okay?” You say as you scoot away from him. He nods his head, and you both get out. You meet at the front of the Impala, where he grabs and holds your hand as you walk to the motel room.

Not every hunt will be perfect, but at least you have the best comforter to help you through it.

[cakerybakery]

Adamsapple week- prompt Marriage

Lucifer slammed his phone back down and glared at Adam from across the table.

“Is everything alright, Lucifer?” Sera asked, annoyed at the interruption as she spoke.

“Yeah. Spam message.” On occasion his phone would buzz but Lucifer wouldn’t pick it up.

Instead he listen to Sera the best he could. She was so boring and he itched to look at the dirty pictures Adam was blowing his phone up with. To look at the crude drawings of sex acts and ask why Adam was sending them.

How Adam managed to draw such a detailed penis with his hand and cell phone in his pocket was nothing short of talent.

It wasn’t until the meeting was halted for a break and Lucifer slammed the sinner against the wall in a utility closet that he got an answer to why Adam was sending him the drawings.

“To keep the romance alive. Duh.” He puffed up his chest, “Eve used to think it was funny when I did stuff like that in front of the angels. Took her hand and fucked her finger with my fist for a moment like I was jerking off a dick.”

Did Adam seriously think that doing simulation sex acts when no one can see was romance?

“Why do you think you need to do that?”

Adam looked at Lucifer like he was an idiot. “Cause that’s the shit you do when you’re married.”

Lucifer’s brain crashed for a second. “We’re not married, Adam.”

“Ah, yeah we are. We even fucked. Sounds pretty married to me.”

Ohh nooo.

They did fuck. Like three months ago. A lonely, desperate night where Lucifer had been drunk off his need for connection, to be with another person, to feel something, anything. Adam was possibly the only other being in the universe who understood how deep his loneliness ran.

How he and Lilith loved each other, but it was a love born of being each other’s only connection. Adam opened up and his relationship with Eve echoed his and Lilith’s.

Under the moonlight Adam made the first move. Lucifer assumed it was another one night stand for Adam. One of the countless he endlessly bragged about when he was supposed to be sharing his feelings in the group therapy at the hotel.

He was lonely and missed the feeling of being wanted, physically, so he reciprocated.

“What exactly gave you the impression we were married?” Lucifer released Adam. Their position now reeking of intimacy instead of intimidation.

Adam was smug. “Uhh, I let you fuck me? I’ve only let Eve do that. And I talk to you about my feelings.” He started holding up his fingers at this point. “We’ve gone on dates. I get you presents. We hang out all the time.”

That did sound familiar. Adam seeking Lucifer out whenever Lucifer stopped by the hotel, telling him about his day or week if Lucifer hadn’t been there in awhile. Adam giving him a basket of berries from the bushes he was growing or flowers. Adam inviting him out to go to the hardware store, to the park, to get something to eat afterwards.

Lucifer assumed Adam just needed Lucifer to be his wallet. That the food and flowers were Adam showing off. That talking to him was his way of bragging.

“We don’t live together?”

“So? I spent lots of time away from the house. Working and tending the sheep, moving them to different pastures. Months huntings without seeing Eve.”

Lucifer hadn’t realized that for the last three months Adam had been, in his own clumsy way, courting him. Or maybe the proper term was romancing him. Treating Lucifer like he had Eve.

A woman he had just been given as a wife. There was no dating, to talking, she was just his wife. So he did things for her. Tried to make her laugh, providing her with food and pretty things she might like, telling each other about their days.

“Those acts are how you tell apart a spouse from everyone else?”

Now Adam was as confused as Lucifer, “yeah. Did- have you… did you not think of me the same way?”

He pulled away, his cheeks were turning red then Adam turned his face to stone. Looking nonchalant and unbothered.

“Usually you talk about that sort of thing before hand. I was just surprised.” Lucifer had hurt Adam’s pride.

“Whatever.” Adam went to push past him, “no big deal.”

Lucifer stepped in the way. “I’m flattered.” Now that he knew what Adam had been doing the feelings he felt about those acts changed in his mind. He was feeling foolish for not noticing sooner.

For not reciprocating.

If he was opposed to the idea of being with Adam he never would have fucked him the first time. Lucifer just wasn’t thinking Adam would take it seriously. He never took anything in hell seriously.

“Being married doesn’t sound so bad. Although I think we should work on communication.” Lucifer reached up to Adam still guarded face.

It didn’t take more than cupping it in his hand for Adam to break a little to lean the slightest bit into the hand.

“I’m sorry I didn’t realize it sooner.”

“Yeah, well. It’s, whatever. I wasn’t-“ Lucifer cut him off with a kiss.

Adam gasped and groaned, leaning into him. It was obvious Adam was pent up. He’d been waiting three months for his husband to touch him again.

Pulling away, Lucifer shot off a text to Sera that he wasn’t coming back as something came up. Then he turned off his phone. “I think we need a honeymoon.”

Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe they were rushing into this. But like that’s stopped him before.

“And I want to hear more about this Eve fucking you thing.” Lucifer was sure it was another case of him misunderstanding Adam, but it sounded interesting.

He opened a portal to Adam’s room so they could start packing.

“There’s not much to tell. She was made from me, and I’m a man, so sometimes he felt like a boy and I let him fuck me. But that’s special. I don’t care about banging chicks but I only let my husband fuck me.”

Lucifer supposed it made as much sense as anything else in Adam’s weird life.

[reigningqueenofwords]

The Call

Pairing: Dean x Reader Word count: 2,190 Warnings: Character death

Read on AO3

Humming to yourself, you kicked your feet up on the arm of the couch and looked through the pages of an old copy of Rolling Stone. “Hey, sweetheart.” Dean smiled, walking into the living room. You’d bought the house together right after the birth of your oldest son, DJ, and had been living there for nearly 5 years. It had seen your marriage to Dean in the backyard, and then the birth of your twins- a boy, Levi, and a girl, Nicolette, who were three.

“Hey, handsome.” You looked over at him. Seeing the state of him, you groaned and got up, tossing your magazine on the coffee table. Dean still hunted on occasion, much to your dismay, but you gave up fighting that battle years ago. “You’re so lucky the kids aren’t home!” You hissed at him, earning a sheepish look.

“Well, I know DJ’s at school, where are the twins?” He asked, pulling off his jacket.

“Daycare.” You reminded him. “Remember, I signed them up for part time to get used to playing with kids other than each other? They go three days a week. Today is their first day.”

He thought for a moment and nodded. “Shit, that’s right.” He chuckled. “I’ll go get cleaned up before they’re home.” He told you, leaning over and kissing your cheek. “You know you love me. Covered in blood and all.”

You rolled your eyes at him. “Yeah, yeah. I married you, didn’t I?” You teased. “I go pick them up in about an hour, by the way. If you want to go.”

“Of course I want to go!” He told you excitedly. “I’ve been away from home for three days, and I miss my kids.” Dean was an excellent father, and very hands on. “Oh, Sam says hi, by the way.” He told you.

“I’ll text him later.” You told him. “Now, go shower before I drag you outback and hose you down!” You half threatened.

At dinner that night, you raised an eyebrow at your husband. “If you shove any more of that in your mouth, I’m pretty sure you’ll choke.” You teased him, with a chuckle.

“Daddyyyyy.” Nicholette giggled at her father’s face. You’d made home made mashed potatoes, baked chicken, and green beans. He had shoved some chicken and potatoes in his mouth and currently reminded you of a chipmunk. “You so silly!” She grinned.

He slowed his chewing, blushing slightly. Licking his lips, he swallowed before sipping his beer. “Sorry.” He gave you a bashful smile. “This is just so much better than eating on the road.”

You chuckled, shaking your head. “I take it as a compliment, but remember, we have three small Winchesters who look up to their Daddy…” You motioned to the three kids who were a bit messy.

“Good point.” He motioned at you with a fork. Hearing his hunting phone ring, you both furrowed your brows. “What the he– heck?” Dean corrected himself when you shot him a look. “Let me go get that.”

It worried you, as he never got called in that close together. Most of the time, it was weeks, or months, between hunts. Never, ever this soon! “I’m sure it’s nothing.” You told the three kids who looked at you with curious green eyes. They had very little knowledge of hunting, and you wanted to keep it that way as long as you could.

“I gotta go, sweetheart. I’m sorry.” He rushed in, a panicked look on his face as he kissed your cheek. You looked at him, scared. “I know, I know. I never take hunts this soon after I get home.” Dean sighed, resting his forehead against yours. “I’ll call you tonight and fill you in. I promise.”

You nodded, knowing that was his way of saying he didn’t want to say anything in front of the kids. “Alright. Kids, say bye to daddy.” You gave them a small smile.

“Bye, Daddy!” They yelled in unison, tugging at his heartstrings. “Love you!”

Moving to them, one by one, he kissed the top of their head. “Be good for mommy, guys.” He told them firmly. “Or I’m not gonna be happy when I get home.”

They looked at each other, wide eyed. “Uh oh.” Levi breathed. “We be good, Daddy!” He looked over at Dean, who was trying so hard not to laugh at their expressions.

After dinner, you’d cleaned the kitchen up, bathed them, given them a bedtime snack, and managed to get them all into bed. By the time you sat down from housework, it was nearly 9. You had a glass of wine, and had the Food Network on a very low volume. You’d changed into a pair of Dean’s sweats, and a t-shirt, your socked feet up on your coffee table, and your cellphone on the cushion next to your leg. Once you spoke to Dean, you’d likely crawl into bed, wanting to recharge for another day of parenting three small children alone.

It was mid Master Chef rerun when your phone vibrated, lighting up with your husband’s smiling face. Sipping your wine, you smiled softly as you picked up your phone. The bottom of your glass clicked gently on the side table when you set it down, putting the phone to your ear. “Hey, handsome.” You greeted him.

“Hey, sweetheart.” You could hear the grin in his voice. “Sammy says hi.” He chuckled.

“Tell him I’m mad at him!” You joked, tucking your feet up to the side. “But, I still say hi back.”

He relayed the information to his brother as they drove down the highway. “So, I’ll spare you the gory details for now. I know you aren’t a huge fan anymore.” He teased you lightly, remembering how the month after you’d had DJ you’d thrown up hearing the details. You just couldn’t stomach them much anymore. “We’re thinking ghouls.” He sighed, and you made a face. “I know you’re scrunching your nose, so…yeah. Exactly.”

You chuckled. “You know me too well.” You pointed out.

“That I do, Mrs. Winchester.” He replied, chuckling. “How was bedtime with the kids?” He asked, wanting to talk about something on a lighter note for the remainder of the call. He’d be wanting to get home more than usual, as this was sooner than he would have wanted to be gone.

Sam sat back in his chair with a groan. The sleeves to his button up shirt were rolled up to right under his elbows, the top button undone, and the tie loosened. Over the back of his chair hung his suit coat as his laptop was open in front of him. “I don’t know. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe this isn’t out type of case?” He looked over to where Dean sat on the bed closest to him. “We’ve been here two days, and we’re still at square one.” Sam pointed out, sighing.

Sipping his beer, Dean licked his lips. “Don’t tell me that. Don’t tell me I’m missing time with my kids for nothing.” He shot his brother a look. “You called me saying there was a case, and that you needed me. Don’t make me call my wife and tell her that I’m missing time with my family for nothing.”

“I’m sorry, man.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I’ll go grab some take out and see if I hear anything.” He got up, rolling his shoulders. “There’s a place down the street, Chinese. What do you want?”

Holding his gun aimed, Dean moved through the large house, his heart beating his in chest. Sam went another way, trying to cover more ground. Feeling his phone vibrate, he licked his lips and pulled out his phone. “What?” He hissed.

Sam was quiet on the other end of the line. “Dean, it’s not fucking ghouls!” He snapped, making Dean pause. “It’s not ghouls.” He repeated.

“Then what the fuck is it?” He ground out.

There was a moment of silence before Sam spoke. “This isn’t our type of case, man.”

Dean’s face paled, knowing that humans could be so much worse than monsters. “Are we dealing with fucking Hannibal or somethin’?” What the else could it be? They were finding people with parts missing. Sometimes whole parts, sometimes just pieces. “If that’s the case, then I–”

Sam furrowed his brows when Dean’s voice cut off. “Dean?!” He panicked. “Dean??” Hearing the phone drop to the floor, his stomach sank when he knew it had been stomped on. There was no other explanation. “Shit.” He knew he couldn’t do this alone, but his hunter friends were beyond limited. Many were dead for all he knew.

You were giving the kids a bath when your phone rang. Seeing Sam’s number, you felt like you’d be sick. You picked up quickly, your eyes on the kids. “Hello?” You answered, terrified that you’d be told Dean wouldn’t be coming home this time. It was the same fear you’d had for years.

“Shit, I’m sorry, but I wasn’t sure who else to call.” He replied quickly. “I need you to come out and help.”

“I have three kids, Sam! What the he–heck am I supposed to do with them?” You asked, shielding yourself from some bath water.

He sighed. “Do you have a friend that can watch them? Just tell them that it’s a family emergency.”

You ran your hand through your hair. “It’s just a ghoul, Sam, what happened?” How could the two of them not handle that?

“It’s not a ghoul. It’s human, and they have Dean.” He told you seriously.

“I’ll call my best friend.” You snapped. “Text me where to meet you, and I’ll be there as soon as I can.” You had a harsh look on your face.

It felt like an eternity had passed from when Sam called you, until when you met him at the start of the dirt road. The house that Dean was being held in was fairly large, and the only one for two miles (at least) in every direction. You wore jeans, a t-shirt, boots, and a jacket. Your old hunting gear. “Sam.” You greeted him with a curt nod.

“You know I hated having to call you.” He gave you those puppy dog eyes.

Your eyes were full of fear as they met his hazel ones. “Let’s just get my husband back.” You weren’t angry with Sam, per say, but you had to keep yourself in check.

Running his hand through his hair, he nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.” He motioned towards the house before the pair of you started moving quietly through the trees on the property.

Dean grunted against his restraints, his eyes covered with a dark blindfold. He’d heard his captor speak, and he knew the voice, but the name just wasn’t coming to him. It was so familiar, yet sounded like a stranger. It was pissing him off, and he wanted this to all be over. As much as he kept telling himself he was done hunting, he knew it was a bluff. He’d never send Sammy away.

“Dean!” Hearing your voice, he froze. “Oh, God.” You slid to your knees near him, pulling the blindfold off. As you worked on his bindings, your heart raced. “We’re getting you the hell out of here.” You told him. He worked on the rope around his ankles, panicked.

“Oh, look, you brought guests. Pretty little thing, too.” Came a man’s deep voice.

Dean snarled. “Show yourself, Hannibal, you sick son of a bitch.” He spat, putting himself in front of you slightly.

When the bald man stepped out, you saw Dean falter. “Is that anyway to talk to your Grandfather, Dean?” He smirked.

His jaw was tight as he spoke. “Samuel.” He glared.

“Dean?” You glanced at him for a split second, gripping the back of his shirt.

“How do you know my grandson?” Samuel asked, slowly moving closer.

You swallowed, watching his every movement. “Why should I tell you?” You countered, holding your head high. Being bullied by him wasn’t something you intended to do.

“Because I’m the one who holds both your lives in my hands.” He pointed out, pulling out a gun. “Now, normally I prefer other means, but you’re leaving me no choice.” Samuel sighed, aiming at Dean.

Without a second thought, you moved in front of Dean, the searing pain happening in an instant. Your hand went to gushing wound. “Fuck.” You breathed.

Sam stumbled, fighting to keep his eyes open, and leaned on the doorway. “You calculated wrong.” He ground out, making Samuel turn to look at him. To the best of Sam’s ability, he lifted his own gun and fired as he slid to the ground, groaning. His eyes were heavy with what Samuel had dosed him with, and they moved to where Dean was cradling you.

“Come on, baby.” Dean sobbed, putting his hand over yours, feeling your blood seep between his fingers. “Don’t you dare die on me. We got three kids that need you. I need you.” He breathed, feeling a pain that ate at his soul. “Please, baby…”

[shadowisles-writes]

Innocent (Part 1) [Elucien]

A/N: Here is the first part of my gift to @kingofsummer93 for the ACOTAR gift exchange <3 A big thank you to everyone behind @acotargiftexchange, this is always one of the loveliest events of the year!

Summary: Lucien had always thought his life would be normal—or as normal as it could be growing up in a werewolf hunting family. All it took was one full moon for the truth to unravel in front of him and force him to make hard decisions. His fate was forever changed, and no amount of trying running from it could prevent it from catching up to him.

Huge thanks to @rosanna-writer for the beta <3

Read on AO3

.

And here I sit alone behind walls of regret Falling down like promises that I never kept - Castles Crumbling, Taylor Swift ft. Hayley Williams

6 years ago - Elain

Elain ran through the field with a shriek. The teenage boy with shoulder-length red hair chased after her, laughing as his longer legs easily caught up with her. His arms wrapped around her and Elain stumbled, unable to slow to a stop. The weight of his body and his own speed drove her off balance, and they collapsed in the grass together.

“You’re going to ruin my skirt again, Lucien.” Elain tried to check her cheerleading uniform for grass stains, but his body on hers covered most of it.

“It’s already too late for this one.” He gave a half apologetic shrug, knowing that she had an immaculate outfit to perform in folded in her closet.

Elain squirmed to look at the short skirt. “Where?”

“Right here,” Lucien grabbed her ass over the fabric and grinned.

“You’re impossible.” She tried to sound stern, but the way she tilted her head up to kiss him gave her away.

Lucien smiled against her lips, then quickly pushed himself to his feet and held his hands out to her. “Come on,” he lifted her until she stood. “I should drive you home.”

“Already?” Elain looked over to the almost empty parking lot. They had stayed long after practice ended, but it didn’t feel like enough time.

“Gotta stay in your dad’s good graces.” He squeezed her hand and led the way back to the locker rooms so that she could pick up her bag.

Elain knew that sulking wouldn’t help, but she was quiet all the way home. It had been four months, and Lucien still wasn’t allowed into her house apart from the occasional dinner. She followed her family to church every Sunday and endured the talks of abstinence and marriage, as if she would even get the opportunity to be alone with Lucien.

All he had ever done was kiss her. Hands wandered over clothes sometimes, but the only time they ever got to be together was the hour they stole after school and practice ended. Often enough, Elain’s father showed up after practice to pick her up and interrupted them, though he’d only ever found them sitting on the bleachers holding hands and talking.

Lucien wouldn’t take any chances and risk her family forbidding her from seeing him, but Elain’s patience was wearing thin. Nesta, of course, was always proper and only seen talking to the boys their grandmother thought would be a good match for her. No one cared enough about Elain to find her a match until Nesta was taken care of, so she was unfairly sheltered instead while Feyre ran wild, too young and headstrong for anyone to bother with her.

“Come on El, it’s not that bad.” Lucien placed his hand on her thigh as he drove.

“Aren’t you sick of it?” She traced the veins on the back of his hand and studied his profile.

“It’s not ideal,” he conceded. “But as long as I get to see you, I’m happy.”

“Don’t you ever get angry?” Elain asked, because she did. She got angry at the world for keeping him from her, for telling her that she was only a child and didn’t know what was good for her when her heart told her Lucien was the one she needed by her side.

“What’s the point?” Lucien glanced over at her and flipped his hand to lace his fingers with hers. “Of course I wish we could have more freedom, but I don’t see another way at the moment.”

“We have a year and half of this ahead of us,” Elain sighed. “I just… I don’t want you to lose your patience.”

“I won’t, never when it comes to you.” He kissed the back of her hand. “I promise.”

.

Dinner was quiet that evening, as it always was. Elain’s grandmother and her father were the only people who ever really talked. The three girls had been raised to know that children didn’t speak at the dinner table, and as they had gotten older the rule had never truly been lifted. Elain never had much to say to her family anyway, only answering questions when she was spoken to.

It was typically uneventful until her father had to leave the dinner table to answer the phone. The conversation was short and impossible to overhear, and Elain didn’t think any of it would matter until he sat back at the head of the table.

“Who was it?” Feyre asked.

“Beron Vanserra.”

Elain’s heart skipped a beat as she looked up from her dinner. The way her father was looking back at her did nothing to reassure her. Beron never called.

She was just about to ask about the reason when her grandmother stepped in. “We haven’t seen a werewolf in this town in twenty years. What would be important enough for him to interrupt dinner?”

Everyone knew werewolves were the most unpredictable creatures. Elain hadn’t heard of one anywhere near this town in her lifetime, and she could only pray it wasn’t about to change. Some towns were riddled with them, but hunting families like the Vanserras had cleared many areas for humans to safely live in.

Beron Vanserra and his oldest sons were some of the rare people who lived after facing down one of those creatures on a full moon. Lucien talked about it, sometimes, though he still had a few years before he would be forced to follow in his family’s tracks.

“It wasn’t about hunting. Lucien was in a car accident, he knows he picks up Elain for school,” he explained before adding, “You can take the bus tomorrow.”

Elain nearly dropped her fork. She couldn’t have cared less about school or the bus as she quickly asked, “What happened? Is he going to be alright?” 

“I assume he’s going to be in the hospital for a few days at least.” Her father reached for the spoon in the middle of the table and helped himself to more potatoes.

“Well,” her grandmother scoffed. “Good thing Elain won’t be getting in that boy’s car again.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t his fault,” she protested, unable to even look at her food anymore. “Can I call them back after dinner? Just to know if he’s alright?”

“His brothers will be at school tomorrow.”

“Daddy-” Elain began to argue, but Nesta interrupted her.

“I have my final project with Eris due tomorrow,” she said. “I was going to have to call to talk over a detail of the conclusion. I’ll ask about Lucien.”

.

Lucien

Everything had happened too fast for him to remember. One moment, Lucien was driving; the next, he was in a hospital bed. He tried to move his shoulder and immediately groaned from the pain that shot through his articulation. His arm was partly immobilized by a splint, and he could only wish they had put it on tighter as he breathed through gritted teeth. The room was entirely white, and the steady beeping by his head was enough of a clue for him to know where he was.

“Oh sweetheart, you’re awake.” Lucien’s mother quickly noticed his eyes were open and reached for his hand. His eyes followed her touch, noticing the IV in his arm and the plastic covering one of his fingers.

At least that arm wasn’t injured, he realized after carefully moving his shoulder to check.  “What happened?” He croaked before clearing his throat.

“You had a car accident,” she explained and handed him a glass of water. “Beron is outside, he’s on the phone with the insurance company,”

Lucien wouldn’t be surprised if his father never came into the room. He didn’t expect him to care beyond the cost of car repairs. Beron hadn’t spent time with him in years, always too busy traveling to nearby towns with other werewolf hunters to care about his youngest son.

“I don’t remember it,” Lucien said about the accident. “Was anyone else injured?”

“No, you only hit a tree.”

“Okay,” he breathed out, at least relieved that no one else had been hurt. “Did I hit my head or something?” It certainly didn’t hurt now, but maybe that was what affected his memory. “I just don’t remember anything happening in the car.”

“I-”

“I see you’re awake,” a nurse walked into the room and interrupted before Lucien’s mother could start her explanation. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine, I think,” Lucien diverted his attention to answer more questions.

Something was clearly going on with his mother, but she didn’t speak with the nurse in the room. After several questions and a promise to have a doctor check on him soon, the nurse left them alone again.

Lucien’s mother didn’t meet his eyes until she was sitting beside him again. Even then, it was hardly more than a glance at him. The tight bun that usually held her bright red hair had fallen loose, and her light brown eyes were rimmed with red.

Lucien didn’t remember the last time he had seen her so distressed. She was always put together at home, even in the worst of circumstances she could hold her head up and pretend everything was fine. Three of his brothers had been in accidents that sent them to the hospital before, yet she had never looked this pale waiting in their hospital rooms.

“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” She fussed with the edge of his bedsheet.

“I’m fine. What were you going to say?”

“There are a lot of things I need to explain to you.”

“Just tell me what happened.” Lucien frowned, her reluctance to say anything only making his worry increase.

She kept staring at the bedsheet for a moment, then met his eyes, took a deep breath, and finally began to explain. “There’s something you need to know about your father.”

“What about Beron?” Lucien couldn’t fathom what that would have to do with his accident. Could he be cheating on his mother? Probably, he was a piece of shit and always traveling, but there was no reason to tell him that now.

“I’m not talking about Beron.”

“What?”

“Let me explain.” She rested her hand on his. “I should have told you this a long time ago, but Beron isn’t your biological father. Many years ago, before I was married to Beron, I met someone. My family wouldn’t have approved, for a million reasons, but we remained in contact through the years, and that man is your real father.”

“How the hell-” The heart monitor beeped faster as he processed the words. “How could you not tell me?” He pushed on his good arm to sit up, betrayal written all over his face.

“Lucien, please—” His mother glanced to the corridor to check no one would come in. “He’s a werewolf.”

Lucien laid back into the bed with wide eyes. He had grown up with Beron’s stories of the creatures, and it was expected he would learn how to hunt them too sooner or later. Every story he had ever heard depicted them as monsters, not people.

They were wild, they did not have feelings, they only killed. It was what he had been taught from the youngest age, it was impossible that his mother could have associated with one, or that he could be one of them.

“I’m so sorry, Lucien. I’ll tell you all you need to know now.” She blinked several times to clear the tears from her eyes. “Last night was a full moon, and you’re old enough that the symptoms are beginning to manifest. That’s what caused your accident.”

“How could you not tell me?” He repeated himself, still too shocked to say anything else.

It was impossible. It was going to destroy his life.

“I thought that because I was human there might be a chance you could escape it.”

“Escape it—they’re going to kill me.”

“Of course they won’t.” More tears rolled down her cheeks.“Your father, Helion, lives far away from here, I called him after your accident. You’ll live with him and learn how to protect yourself, there’s a place for you at the high school so you can still graduate and— I’m sorry, Lucien. I truly am.”

 Lucien’s mind immediately went to Elain. How could he explain himself? She would be terrified, she would hate him before he had a chance to give her an explanation. “I can’t just leave, Elain-”

“Can’t find out.” His mother interrupted vehemently. “It would put you both in danger.”

“I can’t just leave her like that,” he protested, but his thoughts were too frantic for him to figure out what he could possibly say to her either.

“You have to, or you’ll hurt her. Full moons will make you uncontrollable, and you won’t be able to keep it secret. Beron will kill us both, and Elain will be caught in the middle of it.”

Lucien quieted at that and brought his hand up to cover his face. He couldn’t think—could hardly breathe from too much information yet not enough for him to understand it all.

It took most of the day for him to calm down. His mother stayed beside him the entire time, answering every question he had and apologizing so many times he didn’t have it in him to remain angry at her. Beron had always been a horrible husband and father; there was no love lost between them,and he couldn’t really blame his mother for loving someone else.

It would take more than apologies to fix the broken trust between them, but there was no time for Lucien to sulk or reject her when listening was the only way they would both survive. The hardest part was hearing that werewolves weren’t monsters. Lucien didn’t believe he was a monster himself, but would these symptoms eventually make him into one? If werewolves could hide among humans, maybe even fall in love with them, why had Beron lied all of these years?

“Lucien, you need to know-”

“Stop.” He interrupted before she could start another one of her apologies. “I need… I don’t fucking know what I need, but just stop right now.”

“If I could keep you here with me I would,” she whispered anyway “but when lives are at stake-”

“I know they are!” Lucien’s voice rose with anger. “You think I don’t realize what a mess this is? And Elain…”

Lucien sank his teeth into his cheek until he could taste blood. She was too smart for him to just break up with her without an excuse, and it was only a matter of time until she showed up at the hospital. Even with her father opposing her, she was a caretaker, and she would always find a way to be there for the people she loved.

The only way for Lucien to keep her safe would be to make sure he wasn’t one of these people anymore.

[aylacavebear]

She Thought She was Normal

Story Summary: Maria really thought she was normal, for most of her life. It was normal for people to have natural talent, she would tell herself the older she got. Many things came easy for her, and that was probably how their rivalry began when she was five and he was seven and she met the Winchesters. Little did either of them know that it wouldn't stay like that forever, both having a far larger destiny than they could imagine

Word Count: 2131

Please don't take my work. I'll post warnings for each chapter. Will eventually be 18+!

Warnings: Alcoholism, Hustling Pool, Injuries

----------------------------------------- Chapter 9

Maria spent the next three years traveling across the country, torturing numerous demons trying to get any information on the yellow-eyed demon that had taken her parents from her, but not one of them gave anything up.

Maria had changed the paint job on her father’s truck, her truck, to all black, wanting it to blend in as much as possible. She’d also given it a few upgrades over the years; better gas mileage and tweaked it so that it could go faster than it used to. She’d also installed a lock box in the bed of the truck where she kept her hunting supplies, as well as other supplies like spare clothes.

The nightmares had mostly stopped at this point, as had her grief. She hadn’t coped with it in the healthiest of ways, killing every monster she came across and finding solace at the bottom of a bottle most nights, whiskey her choice of numbing poison. Maria found that she had a knack for playing pool as well, eventually getting good enough to win games and become quite the pool shark. She used the money for motel rooms when she felt the need for a bed and a hot shower.

She’d found herself back in Sioux Falls, South Dakota one day in late August, driving with no particular destination in mind at the time. When she saw the familiar buildings from a life that seemed to have almost been a dream, she sighed as she turned down a side street, mindlessly heading to her Uncles, more muscle memory than anything. 

His place looked the same as she’d remembered it as she pulled into the driveway, turning off the engine. She hadn’t spoken to him since that night they’d burned her father’s body, the memory played in her mind for a moment of the night she’d driven away. A heavy sigh left her lips as she got out of her truck.

“Maria?” a voice asked from the doorway of his house.

She’d been looking at the ground, moving somewhat slowly when she heard his voice, “Hey Uncle Bobby,” she said with a small smile as she looked up at him.

For a moment all he could do was stare at her, relief, shock, anger, and curiosity all mixed in his expression. She was an adult now, twenty, and her birthday was only a few months away. She was in front of him, embracing him in a hug before he could even speak, “Sorry I never called,” she told him quietly.

“I’m just glad you’re okay, kid,” he told her, hugging her back before the two went inside, “How you been?” he asked.

They sat in his living room, spending the next several hours catching each other up on their lives over the time she’d been gone. He didn’t even mind her having a couple of beers while he drank whiskey. When she excused herself, he called John, asking him to pass along to the boys that she had shown up at his place and was okay. It was the least he could do, knowing they’d been just as worried as he had been. John thanked him and agreed before the two hung up. Bobby debated asking her about the book she’d taken out of his safe but chose not to. He had also chosen to keep the package that had shown up at his doorstep four months after she disappeared, a secret as well. The instructions stated not to give it to her until she was twenty-one.

“So, you get a new number?” he asked when she returned.

“Yeah. I’ll leave it with you before I head out tonight,” she replied, sitting down on the couch and getting comfortable again.

“You’re not staying?” he asked, sighing.

“No. Heard about a werewolf a couple states over,” she replied casually, sipping her beer.

“Can you make me a promise kid?” he asked, looking over at her.

“What’s that?” she said, tilting her head a bit.

“Will you at least stop by again, for your next birthday? You’ll be twenty-one. Least I can do is get you something,” he replied with a small smile.

“I don’t see why not,” she chuckled.

“Wish you were staying longer,” he sighed.

“I’ll try not to be such a stranger,” she replied, looking out into the room at nothing in particular.

“You still didn’t promise,” he told her, raising an eyebrow.

She looked over at him and rolled her eyes, “Fine, Uncle Bobby, I promise I’ll be here on my twenty-first birthday,” she said, slightly sarcastically, but had meant it.

That had at least made Bobby feel better. He knew she’d keep her word, or at least hoped she would. She stopped drinking once her beer was gone though, needing to sober up before she headed out in a couple hours. Maria enjoyed getting to catch up with her Uncle and was thankful none of the Winchesters were there, wanting to leave before they had a chance to show up, even if they had no intentions to. 

The two bid each other farewell before she drove away while Bobby watched her from the driveway. He could tell she had shut her emotions away and had pulled away from everyone she’d known, even after three years. She’d left out how she’d turned to whiskey most nights, drowning out the memories and the pain just so she could sleep without the nightmares of that week. She hadn’t wanted him to worry but had no idea he saw through the facade she had put on in his presence. He didn’t know the details, but he’d been through enough grief in his life to have an idea of how she was coping with it. 

She took care of the werewolf, barely breaking a sweat, but was glad she’d gotten a motel room for the night. It had been an easy enough kill but the blood splatter required a shower and a change of clothes. As she sat on the bed, brushing her damp hair, her mind wandered to Sammy and Dean for a moment. She hadn’t thought about them since that night. Her gaze fell on nothing as she remembered the two of them, briefly curious as to what they were up to. A small smile came to her face, thankful she hadn’t asked her Uncle for their numbers. 

“Another day, another dead monster,” she said quietly before heading to bed for the night.

Over the next several months, past the holidays and into the new year, she was still interrogating demons for any clue on the yellow-eyed demon. She wanted to know not only who he was but what he was, knowing he wasn’t a normal demon. Maria also took care of random cases along the way. Her phone though, had gotten destroyed on the last case she took, and that wasn’t the only thing that had taken a bit of a beating. 

She groaned as she pulled off her flannel, then her shirt, barely able to raise her arm high enough to get it off after fixing her other dislocated shoulder against the motel wall. Her other arm had a gash four inches long on it. Thankfully it wasn’t deep. She went to the bathroom to clean up her wounds. As she glanced in the mirror she noticed the bruise forming on her cheek and her split lip.

“Stupid demon,” she grumbled as she turned on the warm water and grabbed a washcloth.

Maria cleaned up her wounds before bandaging her arm. Her whole body was sore after that fight and all she wanted to do was sleep, not even having the energy to drink that night. 

Again, she’d lost track of time, completely forgetting her promise to her Uncle, following yet another lead on the yellow-eyed demon. Before she knew it, another almost two years had passed. She was twenty-three, only a couple of months before her twenty-fourth birthday, and found herself in Palo Alto, California. The drive she had been on had been a long one so she got a motel room for the night before heading to the local bar near the college. 

It was a Friday night and the place was packed with college kids, most of them around her age. She wasn’t paying much attention to any of them when she heard a voice to her left, “Sis?’

She felt goosebumps run down her body hearing that word before she turned to look at the man who had spoken to her. His hair was short, but also with a little length to it, and even with his age, she saw that little twelve-year-old boy in his eyes, “Little brother?” she asked, wanting to make sure.

He smiled and fought back tears at seeing her. There was no mistaking that jet-black hair of hers, even if it was longer now, laying over a red flannel, even if it wasn’t the same one from their childhood, “How have you been?” he asked, pulling her up and into a hug. 

She was a bit shocked at his strength and his height. He was almost a foot taller than she was now when he’d always been shorter than her before.

“Who’s this?” a female voice said before Maria could answer his question.

Sam let her go, and wiped away the couple of tears near his eyes as he put his arm around the woman who was now next to him, “Jessica, this is Maria, my little sister,” he told her.

Jessica smiled at her, “I’ve heard a lot about you,” she told Maria before she pulled her into a hug.

Maria was surprised but hugged the woman back, “Uh, nice to meet you,” Maria replied, before she pulled away from the hug, fighting all the emotions that had begun to surface.

Sam kissed Jessica on the cheek as Maria just watched the two of them curiously for a moment before the woman walked over to a group of people a few tables away, “So, how you been sis?” Sam asked her again as he sat down at her table.

“Uh, good…” she replied before she too sat down across from him and looked up at him.

“What brings you to Cali?” he asked her, sipping the beer he’d brought over with him.

“Honestly, not sure really. I was just driving and needed to stop for the night,” she replied, and glanced around the bar, looking for his brother and father.

“They’re not here,” he told her, figuring out quickly who she was looking for.

She looked back at him and tilted her head a bit, confused, “You’re hunting alone?” she asked.

Sam laughed a bit at that one, “I stopped hunting. I’m going to college to be a lawyer,” he told her, “Jess is the love of my life,” he added, looking over at the woman and smiling.

Maria glanced at her before looking back at Sam, “Well, you’re smart enough for it,” she chuckled.

Jessica gave the two space for the night as they caught up on each other’s lives. Sam explained that he and John had gotten into numerous fights over the last few years when it came to Sam wanting to go to college and stop hunting. It had eventually boiled over to where John had told him that if he left, he wasn’t to come back, and he hadn’t looked back, especially after he’d met Jessica, whom he called Jess.

Maria stayed in town over the weekend, hanging out with both Sam and Jess. It was a feeling of family she hadn’t had in a long time and the two easily slipped back into their routine of being siblings. Sam had explained that he hadn’t even spoken to his brother or father since he left. That had made her feel a little more comfortable about staying the weekend. Jess had taken several pictures with her phone of the two of them, and even some with the three of them. Sunday night had come too quickly for the three of them as they said their goodbyes. Sam made sure to write his number down for her and hide it in her glove box, even if she had programmed it into her phone.

“Hey, come back by around Halloween. I’m taking my tests next semester and it’d be nice to see you again,” Sam told her while she sat in the driver's seat of her truck.

“I’ll do my best, but I’m not making any promises,” she replied, chuckling a little.

“And next time, you can stay with me and Jess. She adores you,” he chuckled.

She rolled her eyes, “We’ll see, okay?” she replied.

“Yeah, we’ll see,” he said before she drove off, heading who knew where to fight god only knew what.

----------------------------------------- Chapter 10

Tag List: @deans-spinster-witch @kazsrm67

Link to the master list for this story.

[calkale]

Okay because i put my thoughts in the tags the first time heres some of my spn au thoughts

Also disclaimer i am changing the supernatural story so dont get mad at me for not including things or changing things you like this is my house and i write the au <3

Characters: Dean -> Mav, Cas -> Ice, Sam -> Slider, John Winchester-> Duke Mitchell, Mary Winchester -> Slider’s mom (her name is also Mary in my Slider lore so), Bobby -> Viper, Ash -> Goose, Ellen -> Carole, Jo -> Bradley (he’s like a teen in this but don’t worry theres no Jo and Dean content 🤮 thats his godson) 

-slider and mav aren’t actually related, they were both 6 (mav older by a few months) when their parents got married, duke was a widower and mary was never married 

-Getting this out of the way although i love the chevy impala i am a truck freak so mav drives his dads black 1990 toyota sr5 with an extended cab 

Backstory: -viper and duke were both navy pilots now “hunting buddies”, they took mav and slider out hunting occasionally but whenever they went on long “hunting trips” they left slider and mav at home, that’s because these hunting trips were monster hunting trips

-the same thing that happens to sam and deans mom happens to mav and sliders mom but when they’re both around the age of 10, since they’re older and not stupid they have a lot of questions that duke can’t just bullshit answers to so he tells them about monsters and what he thinks took their mom (because he doesn’t actually know at this point)

-since they no longer have a house they stay at vipers or go on the road with duke 

-once they both start high school slider wants to stop hunting and stay with viper to focus on school, his relationship with duke gets weird after that because duke wants him to keep hunting to find what killed his mom but slider wants to do well in school to make his mom proud, they come to an agreement where slider stays with viper but once a month he has to come hunting

-slider leaves for university (idk what hes studying), mav graduates but stays with duke, he starts hunting on his own 

Now time: -This au starts in 2005 like the show

-duke picks up a lead on the thing that killed mary but is super vague about it when telling viper and doesn’t tell mav anything, he says he’ll be gone for a week but a week and a half later theres no word from him, viper refuses to go after him because “he’s gonna get himself killed” and “ive been telling him to let it go for years” but mav still has to go look for him

-mav finds slider and this basically carries out exactly how it does in the show, he agrees to help for one day, when he gets back his gf is dead, agrees to ditch school 😎 to come help look for duke

story wise thats all i've got so far, i want ice to come into the story a lot sooner than cas does in the show and i dont remember when ash, ellen and jo come in but i want them to come in sooner too. hopefully ill actually work on this more but i hope you guys enjoy

Character descriptions:

Mav: -has the classic dean necklace given to him by slider

-dresses basically the same as 86 movie mav but with flannel 😎

-does wear his cowboy boots but he’s normally wearing work boots

-eyebrow scar eyebrow scar eyebrow scar!!!

Slider: -wears his mother’s wedding ring on a necklace, duke gave it to him after she died

-dresses like early season sam, carhartt jacket, hoodies, tshirts and baggy jeans

-silver eyebrow piercing 😎

Ice: -exactly the same as cas but with a dark grey trench coat

-his eyes always glow a little, not enough that its noticeable unless its in the dark

-has a grey hoodie and black jeans for when he needs to look a little less “formal” 

Goose: -has a mullet its a key part of ash’s character so 

-just think mater from cars personified mixed with goose idk

Carole: -dresses exactly like ellen 

-her classic curly meg ryan hair stays tho

bradley: -just a mini goose

Duke and Viper: -they look pretty much the same, just some dad with a mustache and flannel

-only difference is duke always wears his wedding ring

[ihni]

Boys, Beards and Best Friends

For the @harringroveweek prompt "In The Front Seat Of Neil Hargrove's Truck" as well as for my @billyhargrovebingo square C1, "Depression beard".

Rating: T, Word count: 4538. Harringrove + Buckleway.

Summary:

The best thing about Billy's best friend Heather was that she was fierce, loyal, protective, sassy and never shied back from speaking her mind. Billy had been rooming with her since they both got out of Hawkins, six years ago, and he was lucky to have her in his life.

The worst thing about Billy's best friend Heather was that she knew all that, and wasn't afraid to use it to her advantage.

(On AO3)

~~~

The best thing about Billy’s best friend Heather was that she was fierce, loyal, protective, sassy and never shied back from speaking her mind. Billy had been rooming with her since they both got out of Hawkins, six years ago, and he was lucky to have her in her life.

The worst thing about Billy’s best friend Heather was that she knew all that, and wasn’t afraid to use it to her advantage.

“Come on, it’s one night out. I really like this girl and she’ll be bringing her friend to act as a beard so I need one too. Who knows, maybe you and him will hit it off, huh?” She wagged her eyebrows suggestively and stabbed an elbow in his ribs in what was probably supposed to be a lewd insinuation.

“I said no,” Billy said, pretending to be busy clearing the table. Heather had cooked, so it was his duty to do the dishes. “I’m not looking to date right now.”

“No one said anything about dating,” Heather said, refusing to let it go. “Getting laid, on the other hand …” He groaned and rolled his eyes, but she wasn’t deterred. “Remind me again how long it’s been?” Refusing to answer that on principle, Billy took the stacks of plates and glasses and walked over to the sink, turning his back on her. Unfortunately, since she was as relentless as a bloodhound on the hunt, she followed. “Come on, Billy. You’ve been a depressed sad sack for months now.”

“Uh. My dad died?”

“Yeah, and he was a homophobic asshole who made you miserable, so good riddance.” Did he mention she always spoke her mind? “My point is that you need to get out there and have some fun again. Where’s the Billy Hargrove I got to know back in Hawkins, who took every opportunity to party?”

That drew a reluctant smile out of him, as this was something they had discussed many times before. “That Billy Hargrove was an angry son of a bitch who was posturing all over the place and took any and all opportunity to get out of the house.” He turned around to face her, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not that guy anymore. And I don’t need to be. I have you, and our awesome apartment, and a job I love. I don’t have to go out and get drunk to have fun anymore.”

Groaning, she threw her hands over her head. “Ugh, fine, you’ve become a healthy model citizen in your twenties, congratulations. But think of me. Don’t you love me?”

“Of course I do. Platonically.���

She acknowledged this with a nod, and then interlaced her fingers and gave him a pout and the old puppy-dog eyes. “Then please will you do this for me? Please please please please please …”

He groaned. “Why can’t you just take her to the movies like a normal date? People will think you’re friends, and they won’t care if you hold hands in the dark or whatever.”

“Because,” Heather said as if what she was about to say was obvious, “she has the worst taste in movies, I swear. It’s all European, or black and white, and everything is like forty years old.” She caught his raised eyebrow and hurried to add, “But it’s the only downside. The rest of her is divine! And I really really want to take her to this club, because I really really want to grind on her on the dance floor. I know she has some moves, Billy, I know it. And I need to see them. Like I need air!”

“God, you’re really horny for this girl, huh?”

Instead of trying to deny it, Heather just widened her eyes and nodded emphatically. “Yes.”

Rolling his eyes and sighing, he muttered “I’m gonna regret this … Okay, fine.”

Heather squealed and jumped up and down, clapping like an excited seal before pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you! You’re the best! Oh man I’m gonna go call Robin now.” She backed up, but threw up a pair of fingerguns before she left the room. “And then you and I are gonna go through your closet and find you something to wear! You wanna look good for your fellow beard, right?”

He rubbed at the bridge of his nose when she whirled out of the room, calling after her, “I’m not gonna fuck him!”

“Maybe you’ll get lucky, and he’ll fuck you!” was the reply.

Billy buried his face in his hands and amended his previous statement: the worst thing about Billy’s best friend Heather was that he simply couldn’t say no to her.

~~~

“This girl better be worth it,” he grumbled from behind the wheel of his late father’s – now his – Ford Ranger. He hadn’t had a car since the Camaro, which had been totaled before he left Hawkins, but then again he didn’t really need a car in Chicago. He and Heather lived close enough to a station that he could take the L-train to and from work, and his job paid well enough that he could afford to take a cab now and then, if needed. When his dad croaked, a couple of months ago – divorced and with only one kid – Billy inherited his belongings. He sold most of it, but Heather convinced him to keep the truck, claiming it would come in handy.

“Like now,” she’d said, beaming, just before they left. “This way, we don’t have to stand around and wait for the train in the cold.”

“But someone has to be the designated driver,” Billy had grumbled.

She’d only smiled sweetly at him. “I thought you said you didn’t need to get drunk to have fun,” she’d said, laughing brightly when he gave her the finger.

Now, she sighed wistfully. “She is so worth it,” she said. “Billy, she’s amazing. You’ll see.”

“I guess I will,” he said.

She kept fidgeting in the passenger seat; smoothing over her skirt, touching the ruffles on her blouse, adjusting her bra. Eventually Billy just sighed and said, “Relax, you look good. She’s gonna love you.”

In a rare moment of vulnerability, she turned to him and bit her lip. “You think so?”

He softened. He couldn’t help it, she was his best friend and he wanted her to be happy. “She’d be crazy not to.”

Heather beamed at him for that, and seemed to perk up. Enough to comment, after moment of silence, “Well, maybe you’ll have some fun with her date, too?”

He flattened his lips together. “I’ve told you, I’m not looking to get laid tonight. I’ll be your beard, that’s fine, but don’t try to set me up with some random guy, okay?”

“Okay,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I’m just saying, maybe he’s a babe.”

“Heather.”

“Okay, okay! Be boring, whatever.” She pulled the sun visor down and checked her makeup in the mirror that she had attached with rubber bands. Making a kissy-face, she added, “God forbid you have some actual fun.”

He clapped her on the thigh. “You just worry about your own fun tonight, okay?”

Turning to him, she put her tongue between her teeth and winked at him. “Oh don’t worry, I plan to.”

~~~

It had been a while since Billy had been to a club. He’d definitely not been to this one. It was already packed with people even though it was relatively early, so he supposed it was pretty new.

When he and Heather first moved to the city, they used to go out just about every weekend, but nowadays he preferred other kinds of socializing. Sure, he could go out for a couple of beers with the guys at work on a Friday once in a while, but he was usually one of the first ones to leave. He liked to get his seven hours of sleep, and since he was typically an early riser even in the weekends, that meant going to bed at a reasonable time.

He sighed and shook his head at himself. Heather was right, he needed to get out more.

It wasn’t the first time he had accompanied Heather to one of her dates. Sometimes the other girl was alone and Billy got to act like a shield to the both of them, and sometimes – like today, apparently – the other girl brought a beard, too. And Billy had hooked up with one of them, once. But it only happened that one time, which was why it rubbed him the wrong way that she kept dropping hints about this guy. At this point, Billy had decided to dislike him on principle.

He and Heather walked into the club arm in arm. They turned heads – from both women and men – like he’d known they would. They made a striking couple, after all, and they’d both worn their best outfits. Heather was in a black and red ensemble with fishnets and high heels, with makeup to match, her hair long and loose. Billy – who wasn’t going to turn down an opportunity to look good, even if he was just going as a favor to his best friend – wore a wine red button-down and a pair of well-fitting black jeans. He’d lost the mullet a couple of years ago, but still wore his hair long. It still reached his shoulders, but was more evenly cut nowadays.

Despite the fact that the both of them looked good, he had to admit that Heather was outshining him. She had really gone the extra mile tonight, which was a sure sign that she was into this girl. He was preparing to beat hopeful suitors off of her with a bat for the rest of the night.

It started as soon as they got into the club, with several guys tracking them with their eyes as they made their way to the bar. Billy put his arm around Heather’s shoulders and glared at them. He didn’t remember that guys used to be quite so shameless in their ogling, from the last time he was out and about.

They’d barely made it to the bar – hadn’t even caught the bartender’s eye yet – when some dude leaned in close and purred, “Hey there, beautiful. Can I buy you a drink?”

Billy took a steadying breath – this was going to be a long night – and turned to the guy, ready to snap … only to find that the guy was looking at him, not Heather. Smiling at him. Reaching out for his hand, and –

“Uh, no thanks,” Billy managed to stutter as he pulled his hand away from the man’s reach. “We’re kinda … waiting for …”

“We’re waiting for our dates,” Heather said, smiling at the man. “They should be here any time now. Thanks though.”

The guy took it well, only inclined his head and said, “Well, if it doesn’t pan out, come and find me”, smiling all the while.

Once he had backed off, Billy surreptitiously glanced around the room and reassessed the situation before turning to Heather and hissing, “Is this a gay bar?”

She pointed with a thumb over her shoulder, to a corner where two women were kissing right there on the dance floor. Behind them, two muscular man were doing their best reenaction of the Dirty Dancing grind. Raising one eyebrow, she said in the driest voice possible, “Whatever gave you that idea?”

“Then why –“ he started, and then lowered his voice and leaned in closer, the leather seat on the chair squeaking. “Then why did you need me as a beard?”

“Oh, I didn’t,” she said brightly. “But you can’t spend all your time at work or at home, Billy, you need to get out, meet some people.”

“So you lied?” he said incredulously, despite being not surprised in the least.

“Yup,” she admitted easily. “We thought it’d be good for you.”

“Wh –“ Billy started, and then fell quiet. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Wait, ‘we’?”

As if on cue, a tall brunette appeared at Billy’s side, and Heather’s eyes lit up. “There you are, babe!” The girls kissed each other on the cheek, and then Heather turned her date around to face Billy. And Billy realized, about two seconds before the girl reached out her hand for him to shake, that he recognized her.

“Hi, Billy right? You probably don’t remember me, but we went to the same high school for a while? Robin Buckley.”

Billy did remember Robin, actually. Remembered her well, even, because not only had she apparently been a part of the whole mall debacle – although from what little Billy heard about it once he woke up in the hospital, she’d been drugged for most of it – she had also always been hanging around–

“Steve!” Heather chirped. “Good to see you!”

Swallowing hard, Billy slowly turned around on his chair, knowing who would be standing there but somehow still being wholly unprepared for it.

Steve Harrington, the guy Billy had had a huge gay crush on back in high school, back in the day when he’d been angry, afraid and closeted. Steve Harrington, who he’d beat up once and then hardly spoken to for the remainder of his time in Hawkins. Steve Harrington, who Billy had seen on the second floor of the mall while he got skewered like a shrimp at a barbecue.

Steve Harrington, who he’d finally admitted to crushing on to Heather, when he shared a hospital room with her during their recovery.

He tried to say now, silently, with his eyebrows only, ‘I know what you’re trying to do’ and ‘I told you that in confidence’. She only shrugged and smiled sweetly. “Oh, you two must know each other already, right? Why don’t you guys catch up, then? Me and Robin are gonna check out the dance floor.” Before Billy thought to open his mouth – not that he knew what he would say – she patted him on the cheek and leaned in close to his ear and whispered, “Have fun.”

And with that, they were gone, leaving Billy alone with his old high school crush.

His old high school crush who had the gall to still look hot. In fact, he might look even hotter now –like he’d grown into his body somehow. He was broader, but also seemed softer, which was a good look on him. His hair was short on the sides and in the back, but still long and voluptuous at the top. Billy wanted to run his fingers through it; an urge he never thought he would experience again, since leaving Hawkins behind.

“Wow,” Harrington now said, awkwardly rubbing at his neck before seemingly shaking himself out of it and reaching out his hand instead. “I mean, hey man. Good to … uh, good to see you.”

It took Billy a second or two to remember his manners, enough that Harrington’s polite smile fell a bit and he moved to pull his hand back. Billy shook himself out of his stupor and grabbed Harrington’s hand, perhaps a bit too hard and fast, and shook it.

“Sorry,” he said, “I didn’t … I didn’t expect to … see you. Here. Now.” Cursing internally at his sudden inability to speak in full sentences, he took a deep breath and tried again. “It’s good to see you too.” Then he added, because they were currently in a gay club: “You look good.” His cheeks burned as he spoke, but he counted on the low light of the club to hide that fact. Besides, it wasn’t like it wasn’t true.

“Thanks,” Harrington said. “You too.” That’s when Billy realized that they were still holding hands, and he dropped both Harrington’s hand and eye contact, under the guise of hailing down the bartender.

“Uh, drink?”

They ordered their drinks and Billy paid for them both, ignoring Harrington’s half-hearted protests. “Nah, it’s on me.” He did a one-shouldered shrug, glancing at him before looking away, not managing to hold his gaze. “I figure I owe you a drink after what I did to you back in high school.” He motioned with the glass to Harrington’s face, and watched as the other man smiled at the reminder.

“Oh yeah!” he said, sounding way too chipper about it. “I still have a scar from that plate you hit me with, actually.” As if to prove this, he swept his hair out of the way to show off a part of his forehead. Billy sure as hell couldn’t see a scar, even if he strained his eyes, and he didn’t want to lean in closer to get a better look, so he just hummed noncommittally.

“Two drinks then,” he said.

Shrugging, Harrington pulled his hair back in the perfect waves it had been before, and said, “I mean, it’s not that bad. You need to part the hair just right and need, like, a really good lamp to be able to see it, but …” He smiled. Tentatively, Billy smiled back.

“Besides,” Harrington continued, “I feel like I’m the one who should buy you a drink. After what you did for … well, for all of us.”

Nightmarish images flashed before Billy’s eyes for a second, and he didn’t notice that his smile had fallen off his face until Harrington cleared his throat loudly and asked, in an obvious attempt to switch topics, “So, uh. You’re friends with Heather, huh?”

“Yeah,” Billy said, grateful for the opportunity to talk about something else. “We live together, actually. She’s my best friend.” And because there would be no misunderstandings – Billy may not wave his sexuality in people’s faces, but they were currently in a gay club with a seemingly unaffected Harrington, and Billy was done hiding – he added, “Friends only.”

Harrington took a drink from his glass and nodded, his eyes flitting over the people on the dance floor for a second, before looking back at Billy. “I get it. It’s the same with me and Robs. We actually live together, too.”

“Yeah?” Billy said. “Doesn’t that make it awkward when you bring your lady friends home?”

Laughing in a way that made his eyes twinkle, Harrington said, “I could ask you the same thing, Hargrove.” Hearing his name out of Harrington’s mouth was a thrill, but it sounded wrong. He hadn’t been ‘Hargrove’ since high school.

“Billy,” Billy said and added, a little belatedly, “Please. Hargrove was my piece of shit father’s name.”

Harrington looked at him curiously, as if he wanted to ask more, but eventually just nodded. “Billy.”

The moment felt almost charged, before Billy cleared his throat and picked up their conversation. Because fuck it. “And no. Heather is actually way more into the ladies than I am, if you catch my drift.”

“No shit?” And perhaps it was his imagination, but it looked almost as if Harrington choked a bit on his drink at that. A moment later Harrington put his glass down on the surface of the bar and made a show out of inspecting all the bottles on the shelves behind it. “I, uh. I’m more of an equal opportunity guy, myself.” And low light or not, there was definitely a light blush on Harrington’s face now.

“Really?”

A motion that was probably supposed to be a shrug, but was a little too stiff to look relaxed. “Yeah.”

“I just, I never would have guessed, back in school.”

Harrington inclined his head in Billy’s direction, raising his eyebrows. “Ditto.”

That made Billy laugh. “Yeah, it was … it wasn’t the best time of my life, let’s leave it at that.”

Seemingly content to keep things light, Harrington nodded. “Same. And actually, this is a pretty recent discovery. I didn’t …” He looked like he was searching for the right words. “I wasn’t really aware that I had options, back then. It wasn’t until I moved in with Robin, like a year ago, and we started talking, that I realized that it was okay to like both. And, you know,” he gestured vaguely with the hand not holding the glass, “that there was a word for it. For what I am.” He looked around the room at first, before his eyes settled on Billy. He seemed to steel himself before speaking again. “Bisexual.”

As soon as he’d said it, he let out a shaky laugh. “I’m still not used to saying it out loud.”

“I’m gay,” Billy blurted out, bluntly.

Instead of looking at him with pity or disgust, Harrington just kept smiling. He raised his glass in an approximation of a toast and said, “To realizations.”

Billy could say that he realized that he was gay in second grade, but he didn’t. Instead he clinked his own glass to Harrington’s and matched his smile. “I’ll drink to that.”

~~~

They were on their fourth drink – which Harrington had insisted on paying for, this round – and Billy was having a great time. Both of them were skillfully avoiding the heavy topics like monsters and shitty parents, and instead kept to more light-hearted stuff like shared memories from Hawkins’ High and the shenanigans their respective lesbian best friends got up to and often dragged them along for. Now and then, they spotted Heather and Robin on the dance floor – Billy was pleased to see that Heather got to do her grinding – but the girls hadn’t shown their faces in a while now. Not that Billy was too concerned. They’d probably gone to find a dark corner they could make out in.

Honestly, looking at Harrington’s full lips that pulled over white teeth when he smiled, Billy kind of wanted to do the same thing.

“She called me a depressed sad sack and said that I needed to get out more,” Billy confessed, head close to Harrington’s. They were each sitting on a stool next to each other by the bar, leaning in close – so they’d be able to hear each other over the music. No other reason at all. “And then she lied about needing a beard!”

“A what?”

“You know. When you pretend to be a couple so people will back off?” Harrington nodded in understanding, while Billy laughed out loud when it dawned upon him just how funny the whole thing was. “She brought me to a gay bar … and said she needed a beard!”

Even Harrington snickered at that. “Robin just said we should check out this club,” he said, taking a drink from his glass and licking his lips after. “Said we were meeting up with a couple of friends.” He gave Billy a significant look. “So she wasn’t being entirely truthful either.”

“Our best friends are dicks.”

Harrington clinked their glasses together again. “That, they are.” He grinned. “But we love them.”

Billy groaned. “I know, we do. It’s horrible.” And the alcohol must have loosened Billy’s tongue –  either that, or the easy acceptance Harrington had shown so far – because he added, “She knew you’d be here, and she didn’t tell me because she’s a meddling bitch. Which is part of why I love her, but still.”

Harrington raised his eyebrows in question, which made it easy – too easy, really – for Billy to lean in and admit, “She knows that I used to have such a big crush on you back in school. Bet she thought she was being sneaky with this, setting us up or something …” He laughed and fully expected Harrington to laugh with him, but instead he was just looking at Billy. His eyes were dark and intense. A shiver ran down Billy’s spine and he swallowed, mouth dry all of a sudden.

“Now I’m wondering …” Harrington said, voice low, “what Robs and Heather have been talking about.” Before Billy could ask what he meant, he continued, “Because Robin definitely knew that you were going to be here, too, and she didn’t tell me.”

“She probably remembered our fight,” Billy said, licking his lips. It was a thrill to see Harrington’s eyes drop to his lips at the movement. “Didn’t want to scare you off.”

“No,” Harrington said, slowly. “More likely she remembered that time I was a bottle and a half deep in cheap red wine and had my big bisexual realization over the fact that I used to have really confusing wet dreams about you.”

That was a lot of information to process. “What?”

Instead of an answer – or maybe an answer in itself – Harrington’s lips were suddenly on Billy’s, and Billy’s eyes slipped shut. He dropped the glass he was holding – thankfully onto the bar, where it only sloshed out a little – so he could wrap both arms around Harrington’s shoulders and tangle his fingers in the man’s hair. One of Harrington’s hands were in Billy’s own curls, while the other was travelling down his back to slip into the back pocket of his jeans. Billy moaned into the kiss, which made Harrington press into him harder.

“Boys,” someone said, and they sprung apart as if shocked, only to find the bartender raising an unimpressed eyebrow at them.

“Uh, oh, sorry,” Harrington started, but the bartender waved it away.

“I don’t care what you do as long as you don’t whip your dicks out, in which case I would have to ask you to leave.” Billy blushed at that and next to him, to his delight, Harrington did too. The man behind the bar reached out a piece of folded paper between two fingers. “But your friends told me to give you this when you’d, and I quote, ‘gotten your shit together’.” He smirked at their blushing faces. “I’d say your shit looked pretty put together just now, so here you go.” He waved the paper in front of them until Billy snagged it from his hand.

Opening it, he was entirely unsurprised to see what it read. ’We took a cab back to Robin’s place. Have fun. /Heather’. And ‘Don’t come home tonight, dingus! /R’

Billy laughed sharply. “I was her ride!”

“Why don’t you ride me instead?”

Billy’s head flew up and his mouth fell open. Harrington looked like he couldn’t believe he’d just said that, but the surprise only lasted for a moment before it melted away into a smarmy grin. And Billy couldn’t help himself. He snorted.

“That was so bad, Harrington.”

“Steve,” Harrington said.

“What?”

“Harrington is my piece of shit father’s name,” Harr– Steve said, repeating Billy’s earlier words.

“… Steve,” Billy said, tasting the name. It felt right on his tongue.

“Also, may I point out that that wasn’t a no to the riding …”

Jesus. He couldn’t help himself from launching himself at Steve for another round of kissing. When they broke apart next, flushed and panting, Billy leaned in close. “My dad died five months ago,” he whispered, and then took Steve’s earlobe between his teeth for a second, making Steve groan. “He was a homophobic asshole.”

Talking a step back and getting to watch Steve sway slightly in his absence, he cocked his head to the side and looked at him through his lashes.

“I want to blow you in the front seat of my dad’s truck.”

For a couple of seconds, Steve just worked his mouth as if to find words. “I mean …” he started. Licked his lips. Grinned. “Yeah. Good idea. Lead the way.”

[biggerbetterbat]

WITH YOU [27] HOME SWEET HOME

Daryl Dixon x OC!Charlie Reed

Summary: After hard eight months Rick's group finally sees hope. T-Dog and Rick put strange thoughts into Charlie's head.

Warnings: language and killing walkers

Song: I'm Born To Run American Authors

A/N: Hello...I don't like his chapter AT ALL. I don't like the prison era so it might be a problem for the next two months....I hope YOU will like it, so enjoy. Thank you for your interactions <3

It had been eight months.

The world continued to grow more dangerous together with Lori's baby inside her belly. The past eight months have been the most difficult time in everyone's life, and the weariness was evident on their faces. Surviving in a world overrun by the undead, with limited resources and protection, was even more challenging for the group which included an elderly man and a pregnant woman. Rick emerged as a confident leader, though some might argue that he was more of a dictator, making decisions for everyone and demanding respect. However, he didn't impose fear on his followers, and no one was scared of him.

Over the past eight months, Charlie grew closer to Daryl as Glenn focused on the early stages of his relationship with Maggie. Charlie didn't mind this, as she enjoyed spending time with Dixon and learning from him. He often took her on hunts that turned into bow lessons, and she found solace in his company. As they spent more time together, Charlie began to understand Daryl's behavior better. He was always there for her, even covering her with his poncho after a rough night's sleep. Sometimes she stayed up to talk with him during his watch. When Daryl was away for a long time, Charlie felt a strange pull in her heart, making her search for him or worry about his safety. Eventually, they became inseparable.

Carl sat down beside her and proceeded to open the dog's food. She looked at it with disgust, and if she had anything in her stomach, she would have probably thrown up. However, she understood that both of them were hungry, so she considered asking the boy seated next to her for some food. But before Carl could even taste the canned food, Rick snatched it from him and hurled it across the room. The boy, whose stomach was grumbling, touched his belly, so Charlie sighed and reached into her bag. She then nudged the boy seated to her left. "Here."

He looked at the bar with oatmeals and dried fruits and then he looked up into her eyes. "You don't want it?"

"I've had so many, that I can't even look at it." she shook her head. "It's good if I lose some weight anyway."

He accepted a gift, but when he opened it he broke a bar in two pieces and gave her one. Charlie smiled down at him and rubbed his back as she placed the bar in her mouth.

"Psst, guys," said T-Dog and it was their sign to leave the house, their shortstop was over.

That's how it was for those past months, that's how it was the whole winter. They were going from house to house, finding supplies, and then when Walkers eventually showed up, they were back in cars - it was tiring, but that's how they survived. On the bad days, Charlie was still thinking if this life had any sense anymore. If surviving like that was even worth trying? But she didn't have much time to think anyway, there was always something to do and other things occupied her mind. The good part about those past months? No one died. The bad part? They were out of the houses to search.

When they stopped in the middle of the road, Rick placed Beth and Carl on a watch, while Maggie placed a map on the hood and they all gathered around it. Charlie sighed as she examined the map and sadly she had to say that they already were everywhere. "We got no place left to go."

"When this herd meets up with this one, we'll be cut off. We'll never make it south." Maggie nodded, pointing to areas where they knew herds were.

"What would you say?" Daryl said. "That was about 150 heads?"

"That was last week," Glenn said. "It could be twice that by now."

"This river could have delayed them," Hershel said and pointed at the map, turning everyone's heads to the blue line. "If we moved fast, we might have a shot to tear right through there."

"Yeah, but if this group joins with that one, they could spill out this way."

"So we're blocked," Charlie said to him.

"Only thing to do is double back at 27 and swing towards Greenville," Rick said.

"Yeah, we picked through that already," T-Dog said. "It's like we spent the winter going in circles."

"Yeah, I know." Rick snapped and inhaled. "I know. At Newnan, we'll push west. Haven't been through there yet. We can't keep going from house to house. Need to find someplace to hold up for a few weeks."

"All right." T-Dog nodded. "Is it cool if we get to the creek before we head out? Won't take long," he said. "We got to fill up on water. We can boil it later."

She walked around the car, so she was leaning on it, looking at Daryl who was fixing whatever in his bike. He looked up from his task and squinted his eyes. "You look skinny," he said. "And pale."

"It was winter," she said. "But now I can start working on my tan," she said. "And those extra kilos I lost? This belly was never that flat."

"Because you're starving yourself."

"Like all of us." she shrugged.

"Not all of us," Daryl said looking over at Lori who was sitting alone in a car. "Olive Oil is full."

"Because she's pregnant."

"So now to eat you have to get pregnant?" he asked her ironically. "You and Maggie should work on it."

Charlie rolled her eyes and gently pushed him. She had noticed that he didn't seem to like Lori much. Although he never explicitly said it, his facial expression always changed and he became tense whenever he heard her voice. "Don't be a meanie."

"I'm going hunting with Rick." he ignored her words. "When we get back, you better eat the meat we will bring."

"Yes, Dad."

The prison was the largest building in the area, yet the group managed to miss it due to their poor map-reading skills. It was the perfect place for Lori to have her baby if they could clear it of the dead. They cut the wires of the fence and quickly entered. Glenn tied the wire back up to prevent any walkers from following them inside.

As they followed the outer section of the courtyard, connected to the watchtowers, they found themselves right in front of the main entrance to the courtyard. This gave them a chance to see everything up close.

Charlie was in a difficult position as there were at least a dozen walkers, maybe more, in the area. It was like a small herd, and they were clearly hungry, having been trapped there since the beginning of the apocalypse. However, Rick had a different opinion.

"It's perfect," Rick said. He pointed at the opened gates that lead to the building, that's from where the Walkers were coming from. "If we can shut that gate, prevent more from filling the yard, we can pick off these walkers," he explained. "We'll take the field by tonight."

Hershel nodded. "So how do we shut the gate?"

"I'll do it," Glenn said suddenly. "You guys cover me."

"No." Maggie protested and reached to touch his arm.

"It's a suicide run," Charlie said.

"I'm the fastest," he argued.

During the winter, their relationship became a little strained. Although Charlie and his sister were still close, he was focusing his attention on building a romantic relationship with Maggie, leaving his sister feeling left out and upset. She missed spending time with her best friend, Charlie, and this was causing her distress.

"No, Charlie's right." Rick nodded, pointing at the Asian."You, Maggie, and Beth draw as many as you can over there. Pop 'em through the fence." he said and immediately they walked in the direction she pointed. "Daryl, go back to the other tower." he pointed. "Carol, you've become a pretty good shot. Take your time. We don't have a lot of ammo to waste." he explained and turned to the old man. "Hershel, you and Carl take this tower." when they disappeared he looked at Charlie. "And we...we will run for the gate."

"Of course we will," she muttered, so he wouldn't hear.

"You ready?" he asked as he turned away from Lori who was ready to open the gate.

Charlie looked at the leader and thought about his question. She wasn't ready. You're never ready to go and risk your life, that's not how it works. But there was no other way to get this done and if Rick trusted her enough to cover his back from that close, to let her go with him hand in hand, she had to be ready. "Let's get this over with."

He nodded and Lori let them inside the courtyard. At first, most of the Walkers were interested in the noise Maggie and Glenn were making, but soon they saw them. She started shooting, but soon the rest of the group joined her and the Walkers were falling to the ground like flies.

His heart stopped for a second as Daryl saw Charlie inside. He didn't know that Rick was planning on taking her with him, he would have volunteered for her if he did. Dixon saw one Walker extremely close to the girl, so he quickly aimed at its head and with content watched as the arrow was going through the skull. His eyes crossed with the girl's, but only for a second as she had to cover Rick- who was almost shot by Carol.

Grimes kicked the Walker that prevented him from closing the gate to the entrance to the prison and with swift motion closed it. Charlie was making sure that they wouldn't get surrounded as their friends wouldn't be able to help them as they were in the blind spot.

"Charlie! Come on!" Rick screamed and pulled her sleeve, pulling her towards the door to another watchtower.

"Oh, shit," she said leaning her back on the doors, they closed in the last moment.

"We did it."

"We did it." she smiled, nodding.

Rick embraced her tightly as they laughed together. The unexpected gesture caught her off guard, but at that moment, she was simply grateful that they had survived. Adrenaline continued to course through her veins.

Seeing her up on the watchtower, smiling and taking out the Walkers, made Dixon feel as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He hadn't even realized he was holding his breath until he finally let it out.

Charlie grabbed a plate and made it her mission to ensure that Daryl had something to eat that night. He was standing alone and distant, once again surveying the area behind the fence to make sure everything was secure. "I heard you ordered dinner, sir."

He looked down at the plate and then at her. She placed the food in the car and climbed on top of the bus that was sideways. He helped her climb, holding her up by the forearm. "You're not eating?"

"I already did," she said. "That's not much, but if I didn't bring you this now, you wouldn't eat."

"Thanks," he said with full mouth. Daryl pointed his chin in the direction of the building. "You like it here?"

"It doesn't matter, does it?" she asked. "We just need a place to stay for a while."

"Or for longer."

"It's safe," she said, but at the exact moment, one of the Walkers on the fence hit the fence, making them look in that direction. "Safer."

"You did well before," Daryl said. "I didn't know you're handling guns like that."

She looked at him and smiled. He was eating like an animal because he had a meal like that in forever. He was complimenting her, but his voice shook a little, which meant he was nervous. "What? Were you worried?"

"Surprised." he shrugged. "Glad that you're fine." Dixon pointed at his lips.

"What?"

"You smile again," he said. "I mean...the real smile. Like back in the quarry. This real smile, not the forced one. It's nice to see."

Charlie smiled at his reddening cheeks. She maybe wanted to say something, but they heard steps and soon she heard a familiar voice.

"I'll go," she said and made her way down as Carol was trying to climb up. Charlie still didn't know what was going on between those two, but she never dared to ask.

She didn't see the longing eyes, Daryl was giving her and how he was following her with his gaze. He was following her with his gaze, not wanting to stop talking with her, not ready to be left without her. He was annoyed that Carol interrupted them.

"I wanted to bring you food, but I guess someone was faster," Carol said. "I'm glad she makes sure you eat. You wouldn't eat if not that."

"I hope there's left anything for her." he shrugged. "Little Shane over there has got quite the appetite."

"Don't be mean." she smiled. "Rick's gotten us a lot farther than I ever thought he would, I'll give him that. Shane could never done that."

"What's wrong?" he furrowed his eyebrows, as Carol was massaging her shoulder.

"It's the rifle. The kickback," she answered. "I'm just not used to it."

"Hold on," Daryl said and started massaging her shoulder. That's when Charlie turned and she felt a pang in her chest. Carol was smiling, looking at Dixon and he was kneading her muscles. She turned away the moment she met eyes with the woman.

"Charlie's gonna be jealous."

"Shut up," he mumbled taking a step back, taking away his hands. "Better get back."

"It's pretty romantic." she teased. "Want to screw around?"

He scoffed. Daryl knew that she was joking, but still, it was making him a little annoyed. He squatted to climb down."I'll go down first."

"Even better."

"Stop." he scolded her.

"Oh, right. I forgot that you already have your special someone," she said as she was down. "Charlie's sweet."

"Hmm."

"And she's pretty."

Daryl furrowed his brows.

"She likes you." Carol smiled. "Don't look at me like that! She does." she looked at him. "And she's pretty."

"Yeah. You've already said that."

"You like her too," she said. "You know, better tell her that. She might think that you're not interested."

"You're really strange today." he huffed and walked first.

As Daryl and Carol returned together, Charlie made eye contact with Carol once again. Charlie quickly looked away and tried to smile, but it was an awkward moment. The attention of Charlie was diverted to Hershel who requested his youngest daughter, Beth, to sing. Soon, they were surrounded by the sweet voice of Beth.

Charlie was smiling, but it was the most fake smile she ever had on her face. Even in her TV show her smile was more sincere. It was sweet that she wanted to distract everyone with a song, but this situation made her insides cringe.

"Better all turn in." Rick interrupted while squatting. "I'll take watch over there. Got a big day tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" Charlie furrowed her eyebrows.

"Look, I know we're all exhausted. This was a great win. But we got to push just a little bit more." he said. "Most of the Walkers are dressed as guards and prisoners. Looks like this place fell pretty early," he explained. "It could mean the supplies may be intact. They'd have an infirmary, a commissary."

"An armory?" Daryl asked.

"That would be outside the prison itself, but not too far away." Rick nodded. "Warden's officers would have info on the location. Weapons, food, medicine. This place could be a gold mine."

"We're dangerously low on ammo," Charlie said.

"We'd run out before we make a dent," said Hershel, backing her up.

"That's why we have to go in there...Hand to hand. After all we've been through, we can handle it," he said. "I know it. These assholes don't stand a chance."

After Rick left, she lay down on her jacket to protect herself from the grass. She clearly wouldn't be able to fall asleep, not when they were surrounded by Walkers and looked like a dessert on a plate. There was no way she could close her eyes, with the constant snarling and rattling of the fence. She felt extremely anxious, her nails digging into her palms.

"Mom, dad, Finn, Zach, Will, Pete, Amy, Jim, Jacquie, Sophia, Shane, Patricia, Jimmy, Andrea," she whispered as quietly as she could. "Mom and dad...Finn...Zach...Will...Pete...Amy...Jim...Jacquie...Sophia..."

"What are you doing?" she heard the whisper. She opened her eyes wider as her heart stopped. It was the first time anyone paid attention to her new sleeping method. "Charlie. I know you're not sleeping."

She turned her back and looked up at the sky, something she liked to do when everyone else was sleeping. One thing she noticed during her sleepless nights was that she had never seen so many stars before. Without planes or city lights, the sky was always so dark and clear. "I'm trying to."

"That's why you're saying their names?"

Charlie sighed and looked at Daryl. "You know...I read once that when you wake up from a nightmare, you should solve a math problem. That way, your brain focuses on numbers and you forget about a dream. I focus on them. Sometimes I even name the stars after them."

"Why are you doing this to yourself?"

She just shrugged. "It just makes my brain tired."

He hummed and looked up. Daryl placed his head on one of his arms while the other one he placed next to him, between their bodies. She felt his pinky brushing hers, but she didn't push back. Warmth was radiating from his body and it was comforting.

"What do you think?" Rick asked as they all were bringing their belongings inside.

"Home sweet home," Charlie said as she looked around the block. She never expected to find herself in a place like that.

But yet again, she never expected the dead to walk.

"For the time being."

"It's secure?" Lori asked.

"This cellblock is." her husband nodded.

"What about the rest of the prison?" Charlie looked at their leader.

"In the morning, we'll find the cafeteria and infirmary," he answered.

"We sleep in the cells?"

"I found keys on some guards," Rick said. "Daryl has a set, too."

"I ain't sleeping in no cage," he answered and walked away. "I'll take the perch."

For the whole of ten months, Daryl had never said anything about his past. She told him about her childhood and brothers, and he told her some stories about Merle - for example one night when they both couldn't sleep he told her a story about fishing with his brother and then rescuing him as he fell into the water. Yet he never said anything about having a job. But seeing his reaction she suspected that maybe he had been in a prison before, or maybe he was afraid that whatever he was doing would take him to the prison. She also suspected that maybe Daryl was working in a prison.

"Can I share a cell with you?" Carl asked.

Charlie sent him a look. "Think about your question one more time and then ask me it again."

The boy nodded, feeling disappointed, and walked away to find his own space in the prison. She found cell number four to be really inviting and didn't mind that T-Dog was already occupying the lower bed. His snoring didn't bother her too much, but the brain on the wall kept her from sleeping. She just couldn't seem to drift off.

A table was completely covered with various weapons. They were preparing to venture into the prison to search for an infirmary, canteen, or whatever else they could find. Charlie knew she needed to go with them because sitting idle would drive her crazy.

"Not bad," Daryl said as he started examining what they had.

"Flashbangs, CS Triple-Chasers." Rick listed. "Not sure how they'd work on walkers, but we'll take 'em."

"I'm not wearing this shit," she said as she picked up a helmet, but as quickly she dropped it with a loud bang.

"We could boil them." T-Dog proposed.

Charlie sent him a glance of disgust. "Not enough firewood in the whole forest. No way."

"You would be safer," Daryl said.

Rick, T-Dog, and Charlie looked at him, but all of them with different emotions."I feel safe when you are around. I don't need this." she said and pushed the helmet with her little finger. "Besides, made it this far without them."

Carol entered the room, but that didn't stop Dixon from answering. "I want you to be safe."

"And I will because you will be with me," she said.

"Charlie I might not be able to protect you out there, so just listen to me."

"Why do you think I need protection?" she asked.

"Because you're..." Daryl opened his mouth, and what he wanted to say was that a TV presenter couldn't possibly be able to survive without help. "You will listen to me or you won't come with us."

"And what are you? My dad?" she raised her brow.

"I might have been, so shut up and put this on," he answered, pushing a vest into her chest.

Rick smirked shaking his head. "Let's get Glenn and Maggie, so we can get this done."

"Yeah, you better go get the lovebirds." Charlie pushed Daryl's arm.

He took two more vests and gave her a death glare. "You better wear this when I'm back."

She looked down and took one gun for herself, making sure there were enough bullets, not realizing that she was smiling under her nose. Soon she realized that Rick was looking at her with a small smile. "What?"

"Nothing," he said with a smile.

"You know that you look scary when you smile?" she asked. "Like Joker."

"When will you tell Daryl that you have a crush on him?"

Charlie placed the gun down as her heart stopped at his question. She never had exactly time to think about her feelings...well, feelings towards Daryl at least, because since the beginning of the turn she has been thinking about feelings. So now, under the piercing gaze of Rick's blue eyes, she started to think did she really like a hunter that much to have a crush on him? Her last crush was when she was fifteen probably. "I won't because I don't have a crush on him."

"Charlie..." Rick sighed.

"I feel safe when you're around," T-Dog said imitating her voice. "You will be with me," he said and batted his eyelashes.

"I don't know what this is about."

"Daryl's super into you, dummy." the black man said. "That's why he acts like he actually believes you're made from porcelain."

"Oh? Maybe I am a girl that needs protection because I'm delicate?"

Rick snorted. "You're as delicate as a grenade."

She opened her eyes wider, trying to argue.

"Charlie...we will be having this conversation once you mature enough to admit that you have a crush on him." T said and passed her.

Did she actually have a crush on Daryl?

Dead body on another dead body on another dead body. Blood, brains, and human leftovers. And the smell...Honestly, the worst was the smell. She probably got used to seeing the human insides and the blood, but she was sure that the smell was something she would have never gotten used to. She could describe it as the most disgusting thing that was indescribable with words.

"Go back! Go back! Move!" that was what pulled her out of the thoughts she had standing in the dark hallway.

She began to run towards the sounds of people, unable to see anything in the darkness. At this point, it wasn't just about fear anymore. The lack of light and the echoes made it difficult to determine where the snarling was coming from.

"Come on," Daryl said and pulled her bicep, his tight grip was the only thing she felt and he probably didn't realize how strong it was because Charlie was sure she would have a mark.

Once they closed the doors and were safe for some time, she looked around. Her heart stopped as she saw Rick, T-Dog, and Hershel, but she missed two more people."We have to go back."

"What?" Daryl furrowed his eyebrows.

"We have to go back, we lost Glenn and Maggie," she repeated.

"But which way?" Rick asked.

"I heard the doors closing." said T. "They had to find someplace."

"We won't leave them," Charlie said looking at Rick, knowing that his word was the last one.

It felt pointless. Walking around not knowing where to even start looking. But they knew that they had to find the two, even if that meant getting lost for days. For obvious reasons Charlie and Hershel were the most stressed about their well-being of them, so quickly she saw that the old man was the only person with her.

"Glenn," she said as loud as she could to not draw the Walkers. "Maggs."

Her voice was mixing with Hershel's as he was walking right behind her. Suddenly they heard the third voice, that they waited to hear in the darkness. "Charlie? Daddy?"

"Glenn." Charlie gasped as she heard the girl, knowing very well that right where she was, there was also Glenn, so she followed the voice. She was focused on finding her friends but was careful around the dead bodies on the ground. She looked down as she was passing one, carefully placing her feet, looking at it all the time, ready to cut its head open. She was careful, but fast. "Glenn."

"Mag?" asked Hershel and then his scream spread across the corridors.

Charlie turned and saw him on the ground with the same Walker that she just passed attached to his leg. It could have been her leg, she could have been on this ground with blood running down and pain impossible to bear. She didn't hesitate as she swung her axe and dropped the blade into its face. She heard Maggie gasping, but she was more focused on the old man groaning in pain. Glenn and Rick were fast to pick him up, as his scream attracted other Walkers to the buffet and they were already coming from around the corner.

"Go, go, go!" Daryl was yelling, pushing her back to follow the rest as more and more walkers appeared. He stayed back, covering for them, his crossbow high in the air.

"What now?" Charlie asked. They were stuck as the doors that seemed the only way, were blocked. A thick chain was wrapped around the handles of the double doors. Before she really had a chance to do something, T-Dog pushed her lightly to the side, breaking the cuffs that were making a lock himself.

Once everyone entered the room, Charlie closed the door, and together with T, they tried to hold them. She was holding the surface, pushing back, so no Walkers could even peek inside. Her back was facing the group, but she could hear whatever was happening behind her. Yet still most of her focus was on the door because once she let go, that would be over.

"There's only one way to keep you alive," Rick said. "Charlie give me your axe!"

"What?" she asked even though she knew exactly why Rick needed her axe for. Charlie turned her head to the scene behind her and her blood ran cold once again. Hershel was on the ground, whimpering and wincing from pain, while the bit was getting messier, the only thing preventing the virus from spreading was Rick's belt.

"Your axe, now!"

Charlie swallowed hard and threw her weapon, being careful not to hurt anyone. It hit the floor with a metallic thud and Rick quickly reached for it. As soon as she saw that Grimes had a grip on it, she turned back to the doors, shutting her eyes as if it would make the situation any better. But it didn't. She could hear the flesh tearing and the bones cracking with every hit of the axe. Charlie felt dizzy and her mind started to give her ideas of how the scene would look like. Soon after, Hershel went quiet, indicating that he had lost consciousness.

"He's bleeding out."

"Holy shit." said in an unfamiliar voice making Charlie look to her right with furrowed eyebrows.

previous masterlist next

[marazhaibrainrot]

Speculating on the companions a bit (and altering some their circumstances) to explore my take on what a possible dynamic with owning Marazhai would look like for them and how they'd define it.

It's also kind of hard because this reduces him to just another drukhari about to be swallowed and crushed by the imperial machine. RT can order their retinue to get them a dark eldar from the expanse and have them as a toy, heck, you literally have two to mess with for your coronation.

But getting marzipan means you get one that's going to be wierdly into it. It's the equivalent of bestiality for their species and still he will go down on his knees and beg. You can literally tell him up front you're going to be starving him and there's the rage yes but also a strangely aroused subservience. He'll beg you to brand him, show it off and then crack if you try to toss him aside. And RT is the only one who would think to play into it and also be in a place of sufficient power, both personal and political, to be able to do so safely.

And there's also the question of just how did he end up this way? Did getting the low gothic tortured into him also embed other human concepts into his pscyhe/identity that kind of morphed with everything that was already there and gave him a taste for what he does to his victims?

Or maybe just knowing the language was enough. Languages also affect the way people think and model the world and if marzipan has been thinking in low gothic, not just speaking it, it could also be a candidate for why he turned out wierd. Or maybe he was always like this from the start.

Anyways, the main piece (lol), RT gifts marazhai to one of their retinue as a jape/appreciation

Heinrix first since you actually can do this: full dogmatic heinrix admits to utilzing xenos weapons/artifacts in an inquisitorial capacity so I think they'd have something where, if Marazhai wasn't passed on to another member of the order, he'd be mutilated until he was docile. It would be clinical, and he'd replace marazhai when the latter wore out so to speak.

Marazhai would be outwardly the same little shit but inwardly tense, calculating, desperate. He recognises the sheer danger heinrix is to his person but is too damaged to do anything about it. Attempts a furious attempt at freedom, or at least hurting heinrix, when it becomes clear he's outlived his usefulness and is about to be disposed of, but heinrix literally just taps a button and like a little bomb goes off inside marazhai's skull and that's that.

Cassia: hmm, I guess I could see a version where she's the Novator, and it's an official gift from von valancius to the navigator house, among other things. And when the noblity gather and hold little hunts he's released into a bounded enclosure with other captured xenos and like maybe he dies an anticlimatic death getting mauled by some creature after months of muscle fatigue or maybe he makes it out and onto corsairhood. Very detached, and no different than say RT had gifted marazhai to any other noble house.

Argenta would take him behind the Imperial 7/11 and put him down, Abelard I see packaging and passing the xenos off to the Werserian house because it's a gift from the rogue trader, and like he'll be entertainment at the next event. Pascal and Yrilet wouldn't even play this game with you. For Idira this stewardship would make her day to day worse because slaneeshi warp whispers would also be showing up in her head along with everyone already in there, trying to get to Marazhai through her and like she'd get fed up at some point and get rid of him.

I think Jae would be the most vulnerable to marazhai's manupilations all things considered. Literally everyone in RT's retinue has some wierd edge going for them (and Abelard is too level headed for this xenos nonsense) while she's just a very ambitious trader that lives too close to the abyss just to see if she can and the abyss is where marazhai thrives.

Think that's everyone.

Ulfar got bugged first play through and just wasn't there so I don't know him all that well :P

[the-no-name-of-nowhere]

This is going to be my thoughts on Emperor Belos, Philip Wittebane, MeltyMcfuckface, or whatever want to call him. Mainly on how he became so fucked in the head.

And why Philip would have killed his brother even if he married a human.

To start with, let’s go with Philip’s story. We all heard it by now so I’m to cover the key points of the story.

Being orphaned at a young age

Moving to Gravesfield

We’re told Caleb and Philip were orphaned when Philip was young. We’re not told though, how this happened but this was during the 1600s, so it probably wasn’t anything pleasant. (They also could have be rich. Caleb and Philip’s clothes looked kind of fancy when they first arrived to Gravesfield compared to the ones they have on later. So money could have been one of the reasons they had to leave their home). Whatever the reason was, it affected Philip gravely.

Then they had to leave their home. Under normal circumstances, kids hate doing that. They have to say goodbye to everything they know, their old home, their friends, everything they grew up with. But the brothers had to leave because they had no parents and they couldn’t stay in their old home. So they had to leave with nothing but each other and the clothes on their back.

Finally they arrived at Gravesfield. They did not receive the warmest welcome from the people of the town. Seeing as the town’s main thing to do was hunt ‘witches’, they most definitely did not trust the two brothers and did nothing for them. Just left them on their own.

When I look back on all the shit that Philip went through, all I think is ‘Wow! This screwed up this lovemap!’

Now you’re wondering what a lovemap is. Well, it’s a mental guide into how you react when giving or receiving love. Like, if someone gave you a hug and you grow up in a house where no one was affectionate with one another, you probably wouldn’t know how to react to it and stand there awkwardly.

The issue with lovemaps is that if something bad happens when the lovemap is forming, which is between the ages of 5 and 8, it will screw the kid for the rest of their life.

And since Philip looks to be around those ages, it’s fair to assume that everything that happened to the brothers: losing their parents, leaving the only home they’ve ever known, and living in a town where no one cared for them, it didn’t leave Philip in the healthiest mind set.

But there was one thing left in Philip’s life, his brother Caleb.

Caleb was always there for Philip, always took care of him. Especially so after their lives were turned upside down.

The issue though is that, after losing so much and being stuck in a new environment, you need something that can bring you comfort, something that makes you feel safe and brings some normality into your life.

For Philip, that was Caleb.

While that would be an alright thing for awhile, it’s always a good thing to try and make friends so ‘the whole latching on to something or someone’ would go away. But since Philip grew up in a full of paranoid nuts, that didn’t happen. So Philip still thought of Caleb that way.

As time went on, it only got worse.

Philip thought of Caleb as most important person to him. Nothing else mattered, no one else mattered like his brother. As long as Philip had Caleb, everything would be alright. If they have each other, nothing was impossible.

To Philip, Caleb was his whole world.

Then Caleb was gone.

He didn’t leave a note or anything behind telling where he went, but Philip knew where his brother was and he knew had to go and save him.

Philip spent months searching for Caleb. He was tired and hungry, but he didn’t stop. He knew if it was the other way around, Caleb would stop at nothing to find him. So Philip had to do the same.

Then he found Caleb.

After searching for so long he finally found him. Philip was so happy, that was about run to his brother, when he spotted her.

The woman that took Caleb away.

What was she still doing with him? She already tricked his brother into coming here. What more could she-

Then he saw her stomach.

It was round.

She was pregnant.

She was pregnant with Caleb’s child.

Why?

Why!

WHY!!!

How could Caleb do this to him!? After everything that has happened, Caleb decided to run off and spend the rest of his life with some. With some WOMAN! Who had not been through the same pain was they went through! So how could Caleb choose her, over staying with his brother!?

As the anger and sadness continued to grow inside him, Philip did something that would forever change him.

Now, after reading all that, you probably noticed that I never once called Evelyn a witch.

That’s because Philip’s hatred towards Evelyn wasn’t because she was a witch.

Sure, a part of Philip wasn’t to thrilled that she was a witch after being stuck in a of witch haters.

But the main reason why Philip hated her was because he didn’t want Caleb to be taken away from him.

Like I said before, after everything that had happened, it mentally screwed Philip up. Since he had Caleb with him however, he was able to stay stable. But it’s been proven time and time again that no one person can do that. Mix that with the fact there was probably no clear visible signs of it or those types of doctors around to help, Philip only got worse. And worse. And worse.

That when Caleb left, Philip almost lost it.

The only reason why he stayed somewhat sane was because he kept telling himself that Caleb hadn’t left him. That, there’s another reason why he was gone. And that, when he finds Caleb, they can figure out what’s going on, fix it, and they can go back to living their lives together.

But when he discovered the reason Caleb was to start a new life without him, all hell broke loose.

With all that being said, it wouldn’t matter who Caleb fell for, witch or human alike, Philip was going to end his brother’s life either way.

Because the thing Philip feared more than anything, was thought of his brother leaving him.

As for the reason why his hatred of witches grew to the point of wanting to destroy every single one of them.

Well, I’ll put it like this,

He had just killed his brother. His brother. His last remaining family. The person who was always there for him, and he KILLED HIM! He couldn’t believe it! He had took his own brother’s life with his own hands!

The pain and guilt felt was too much for him, HE COULDN’T TAKE IT! IT HURT TOO MUCH!

So, he started to blame others for it.

He first blamed the witch that brought his brother here. If she hadn’t gotten in the way, he and his brother would still be living their lives back at home.

Then started to blame all witches internally. If they hadn’t existed in the first place, none of this would be happening.

He even started to blame his own brother. If he hadn’t left him for that witch, he would still be alive! But instead, he chose this…this…

THIS PLACE!

It was this place’s fault!

This cursed realm! If it hadn’t existed in the first place, that witch wouldn’t have existed either. Then she wouldn’t have shown this place to his brother and he wouldn’t have been tempted into coming to this realm.

His brother was too weak willed. He probably couldn’t resist not coming here after that witch filled his head with nothing but lies about how wonderful this place was. And he was too blinded by his so called ‘love’ for the witch to see through them.

His brother was too far gone, this might had been the only way to save him.

Yes. Yes, he had saved his brother.

Now he must make sure no one else would have to go through the same pain he did. By making sure this realm is no more.

And as God as his witness, Belos will not fail.

Anyway this just my 2 cents, do what you will with it.

[mikestoklassa]

My time at the Zak Bagans Haunted Museum

This ghost hunting episode has compelled me to share my own experience with Zakary Bagary's Spooky Emporium, mostly because I've only shared this story orally and also because I want to flex that I've been somewhere Mike Stoklasa has been. Mayhaps it will inspire one of you to write a Fanfic (gentle persuasion). But truly this is mostly a diaristic blog post for me so that my memory of the Zak Bagan's Haunted Museum never truly slips from my grasp. Facts may not be totally accurate because this is months later and I have a shit memory. Anyways read more if u even care

THE BEGINNING

So my boyfriend and I went to Vegas this past year so that I could see my beloved Vegas Golden Knights <3 Of course that couldn't occupy the whole weekend, and my boyfriend and I aren't gamblers, so we had to find other things to pass the time. When we realized that Zak Bagans' Haunted Museum (which I will refer to as ZBHM) was in Vegas, we had to go. To be honest, by boyfriend and I have only seen a few episodes of Ghost Adventures, but we love spooky stuff and people whose reputations proceed them, so we knew we had to go.

We were staying on the strip, and ZBHM is located more in their downtown, so we had to Uber there. NGL I was expecting some spooky old Victorian house painted in all black, but truly it is just a pretty historic home in a residential neighborhood.

To my shock as a North-easterner, the check in for the museum is outside. So we're greeted by a lovely person who asks if we have tickets. We said we didn't and they told me the wait can be anywhere between 15 minutes and 3 hours, as we'd essentially be hoping that someone who bought tickets didn't show up to their tour. We didn't feel like waiting in the Vegas heat, so said we'd come back. Out of nowhere a man who looked like Guy Fieri if he shaved his head came up to the desk and said we were making the right choice, and to come back tomorrow with tickets. The workers were really nice and let us peruse the gift shop before we left.

My BF and I ended up going to the Mob Museum which was in the neighborhood. It sucked. Don't go.

THE RETURN

That night we purchased tickets for after lunch the next day. They were a whopping $54 dollars each, meaning two tickets was already over $100. There was something called an "RIP Access" ticket, but all I saw was we got to go to a basement and got a shirt and I thought that was dumb as shit so we didn't get it.

So we return the next day and have to wait outside for the next group to enter the house. Most importantly, we're asked to sign wavers stating we WILL not sue Zak if a ghost follows us home. I'd never hold Zak to that, so I gladly signed. Once we're informed we can head inside, I assume the tour is starting but no, we're being led to a lobby with a ticket booth. I thought that was weird, because we already had tickets, but I figured they had to give us badges so they knew we were on the tour. There were pictures of people who had come to ZBHM before, including One Direction's very own Liam Payne. No photography was allowed on the tour, so this is the only photographic proof I went.

So in this lobby, we're basically lined up to a ticket booth where I think we're getting badges. But no, when you get up to the booth, a lovely worker asks if you would like to give Zak Bagans additional money to do the "RIP Access", which includes extra experiences and rooms, as well as free T-shirt at the end. I still think that's dumb as shit, so I say no. But then my BF and I realize we are the ONLY people on the tour who don't have RIP Access, and we don't want to have to stand like dumb dicks outside of certain rooms while everyone else got to go inside, so we let peer pressure get to us. We upgraded for an additional $32 each, meaning now instead of giving Zak Bagan's $108 dollar, we gave him $172. Truly a low point.

THE SPOOKY TOUR BEGINS

So once Zak swindles you out of your money, you're guided out of the lobby, through a yard, and into the museum proper. The first room is truly, deeply, honest, the most censory overload I have ever experienced in my life. Every breath you take will contain 0% oxygen and 100% smoke machine gas. The first room was just an oddities room, filled with haunted items and general cool things that Zak has found along the way. There were human skulls on an old church pew, and as a museum worker myself, I so desperately needed to see the provenance of those. I'm still waiting, Zak. Anyways, our tour guide then proceeds to uncover a machine which is an old Zoltar machine, but instead of a Zoltar animitronic, it's a Zak Bagan animitronic. Then, after each person on this ten person tour gave Zak Bagans $86 dollars each ($860 total), the tour guide asks if anyone would like to "spare a dollar" for the Zak Zoltar machine so Zak may give our tour a fortune. I thought everyone on the tour would feel just as indignant about this as me, but no, people were desperately reaching for their wallets so that they may be the person who blessed our tour with a fortune. I can't remember exacts, but it has something to do with bewaring stairs. Spoiler alert: the fortune did not come back up.

THE GROSS

So from the main room, we enter a haunted doll closet, our first RIP access experience! It was a hall filled with old dolls. I think old dolls are cute not creepy, so this was a pretty lame experience for me. Next we entered a room that looked like a chapel, and we are for the first time greeted to Zak's lovely presence. Zak in a voice over begins to tell us the story of Anneliese Michel, the German woman who underwent a bunch of exorcisms. Now I am very much like Jay, in the sense that ghosts are most interesting to me when they're presented as amorphous fields of energy. I do not care for demon stories, especially when it's obvious that the "demonic person" is just severely mentally ill. So needless to say, I was not about this room. After the voice over, Zak invites RIP ticket holders to the spooky crawlspace tunnel below a mantle holding a chalice the Michel family owned? Idfk. I was NOT crawling through some damn tunnel with someone I don't know's ass in my face, so I declined and walked in the hallway with our tour guide to the next room. My BF went through and said the scariest thing was the idea of the person in front of you farting.

I won't lie, it's about here where my memory gets murky, so I apologize if this is out of order. ("But isn't this just the second room you went in??" Girl idk!!) What I remember next was entering a room with a large bed in it. In the room we are greeted to another voice over from Zak explaining that this bed came from Love Ranch. Zak spends a long time explaining that this is the bed that NBA player Lamar Odom OD'ed and almost died on, and that the Love Ranch owner Dennis Hof died on. I was like "Okay I guess that's a little creepy and sad but is it haunted?" And then Zak on the voice over was like "Oh by the way here's a picture of Hof on the bed with a creepy face in the back that may be a ghost" and then we were PROMPTLY ushered out of the room.

Next we're taken into a room that looks like a medical office. We're told the drawings on the wall and the items in the room belong to Jack Kevorkian, who was a doctor and proponent of euthanasia. The Zak Voice Over spent a lot of time explaining how people would faint in this room after feeling very emotionally overwhelmed. I was like okay....it's the Vegas heat, we've been standing for awhile now, every square inch of this place is nothing buy fog machine smoke, and now we're talking about euthanasia...yeah that'd probably make me pass out. Anyways we go into a room which has Kevorkian's van where the euthanasias were performed. To me, this stuff isn't spooky like at all? IDK I don't know a lot about Kevorkian but from what Zak said he just sounded like a doctor who wanted to give people a chance to go with grace.

So with all of that leaving a bad taste in my mouth, we were taken to a room full of serial killer memorabilia. Personally, I don't like the idea of serial killer's being tortured souls who must stay on this mortal coil as ghosts, but I guess it was better than Zak exploiting the deaths of their victims so whatever. It was a little cool to see the artifacts in the room but honestly now as an adult who understand serial killers aren't complex and fascinating psychos and mostly just guys who hate women, I didn't really feel compelled by this room. There also weren't really any ghost stories in this room. I think Zak just wanted to flex he had a John Wayne Gacy painting.

We were then taken to a room that looked with a barn with a big cauldron in the center. I IMMEDIATELY clocked it as an Ed Gein room. The Zak Voice Over once again comes on to explain a little bit about Ed Gein and how the cauldron in the room is the one Gein used to drain the blood of victims. Again, I'm not into this stuff, but was snapped back into it when Zak explained that on a paranormal investigation of the museum, two English witches were performing a seance in this room and one became possessed by Gein and tried to attack the other. I was so onbroard. Zak please if you're reading this pay those English witches whatever they want to explore your museum more.

THE UPTICK...

So the English witches had me so unbelievably hype and the next point in the tour was so fun. We're taken to this carnival themed room where a man introduces himself and then promptly sticks a drill bit up his nose. He then swallowed a sword and explained he'd been working there for awhile. I asked him how you learn you're good at something like that, and he actually explained the process by which he trains. It was genuinely interesting. Next to him was a caravan which apparently was haunted by a little girl, so the group was split in two to investigate. My group was second, so we had a moment to talk to this guy and ask questions. I am of course annoying so I asked how often Zak is bringing objects to the museum, how he decides where to place them, where does he get them from,etc. I think the guys wanted us to ask if Zak was like cool and nice lol but he played along and answered as best he could. Anyways we went in the caravan next and nothing happened.

...TO THE STEEP DROP

After we departed from nice carnival man, we were made to walk in a hallways with scary clown animatronics, only some of them were real people. I don't hate clowns, but I do not like haunted attractions with real people, so I spent the whole time just staring at the ground. I couldn't tell you what anything looked like.

Then we were in a normal hallway with two doors. Our tour guide informed us that we'd be going to the left, which was the "torture room". I had my fill of human suffering, so I asked if I could wait in the next room. My tour guide was kind enough to let me do so. My BF went in and informed me it was a serial killer who prayed on male sex workers and they had the bed he would torture them on. I did not mind missing it.

The room I waited in was next, and you guessed it, we were greeted to the Zak Voice Over. Zak explained we were in the antechamber for the Dybbuk Box. I was hype, because this is something I definitely know Zak for. All was well until the Zak voice over started explaining to terrifying night Zak had with the Dybbuk Box while investigating with his "friend, Post Malone." Something in me just snapped, I started crying laughing. I thought it was so fucking funny. But you need to understand, everyone else on my tour was SO into this stuff. I didn't want to be the asshole yucking everyone's yum, so I turned to the corner. I then noticed our tour guide looking at me and realized he was assessing if I was crying or not. Not wanting to be used as a story of "a woman who started having an emotional breakdown right outside of the Dybbuk Box room", I pulled it together. We finally entered to see.....the Dybbuk Box behind four giant wooden walls. Apparently Zak had a vision of someone stealing the Box, so he added the walls for good measure. I was whelmed.

After this, my memory gets REALLY murky. I know we went to the basement where the previous owner claims her dad would perform satanic rituals on her. Very sad, but Zak made a point to note that she stopped texting him eventually. Take a hint Zak.

I remember a spooky doll named Peggy, who we were told NOT to disrespect as she was SUPER MEGA HAUNTED. Even Zak apparently wouldn’t go in alone. We entered, and Peggy was just a doll from the 70s with a page boy haircut and a prairie dress. There was a spirit box in the room and we were told we could commune with Peggy. NO ONE spoke for the longest time so eventually I said “…I like your haircut Peggy!” No one laughed and Peggy did not respond.

The most exploitative room undoubtedly, was the celebrity haunted memorabilia room. Inside were such respectful object such as Brandon Lee’s coat from The Crow, which he died in, Paul Walker’s sunglasses, which he died in, Truman Capote’s summer clothes, which he died in, and for some reason, Patrick Swayze’s tooth. Nestled in the corner was an object which I was immediately drawn to, and which I paid the most attention to throughout our time in this room. It was Sharon Tate’s wedding dress. I don’t exactly know how this object was supposed to be haunted, as she didn’t die in it, but my God did I want to deck Zak Bagan’s in his fucking face because something like this genuinely belongs in a real museum and not Zak Bagans’ Misery Porn Tour of Horror.

I also remember being taken to a nautical themed room which had some Titanic objects, but was mostly a Natalie Wood room, as it had items from the boat she was on when she died. Voice Over Zak explained that he was doing a separate paranormal investigation and placed some objects in the room. At the same time, the captain of the ship Natalie died on texted Zak saying, practically verbatim, “OMG!!! All my books just flew off the shelves. It’s Natalie, I know it.” All I could think was, “For the love of God, let this poor woman rest.”

THE END

At this point, the tour was just throwing everything at the wall and seeing what stuck. We went into a room with a rocking chair that supposedly possessed a child. I asked our tour guide what happened to the kid and he was like “Oh the demon left him and he’s fine now.” Oh, good! We went into another room with artifacts from an occultist with a specialization in EVPs. I LOVED this. Again, I love the idea of ghosts being energy who can speak through radio waves. What I didn’t like is Zak being like “Oh by the way, listening to EVPs infected her with demons and she went crazy and wasted away.” I’m sorry, what is it with Zak and demons???

Lastly, of course, was the house from Zak’s wonderful documentary. You’re led a dark room where Zak explains the portal to Hell resided in the basement of a home in…Gary, Indiana. The the walls lifted and from behind a fence you could see some dirt from the basement with a pentagram in it. I’m sorry, how did they transport that? Everyone has to understand they redrew/drew that pentagram in there, right? Anyways, super anticlimactic way to end our tour.

Then of course, exit through the gift shop. I was offered a shirt for buying the RIP access ticket. I declined. My boyfriend did get one, though. Still trying to convince him to do a Mike and Jay Halloween costume with me.

TLDR, the ZBHM had none of the fun campiness of Zak’s personality and was full of human suffering and very little ghosts. I cannot stress enough, though, how awesome all of the employees there are. I truly, TRULY hope that a good portion of the ~$860 Zak is getting form each tour is going to them, because they sell you on it.

Anyways Mike what if we kissed in the Creepy Demonic Crawlspace of the Zak Bagans’ Haunted Museum 😳

[amarantine-amirite]

It’s Just A Burning Memory

Sometimes, when I try to go to sleep, I have this long lost childhood memory playing in my brain on loop. I was in the car with Seger Ellis’s “Heartaches” playing on the radio. My parents went on an explosive rant containing the sentence, “What about the talk we had about privilege and responsibility?” I hadn't the foggiest idea what they were talking about.

One day, I found the following note on my IEP: Margaret doesn't cope with getting stranded

Reading that note made me realize the truth. The memory of that car ride happened a lot more recently than I thought. And I got half of it wrong.

It started when my mom's boss asked me to babysit his 3 month old infant grandson. I had other stuff to do, so I asked Julia, my lab partner from AP Chemistry, to cover for me. 

Everything was going great until I My phone rang. I just ignored it because I thought it was yet another loser pretending to be the Pondicheri traffic authority, so it went to voicemail. I picked it up after I recognized who it was. It was Julia.

“it's all good,” she said, “Yeah, I may have only gone 96 hours without any sleep, but I got the goose in the oven”

I froze. “the goose?” I interrupted.

Julia responded, “I'm running on fumes, but when your mom's boss comes back to the house for supper, it'll be worth waiting for that roast goose. Unrelated, but that baby has been awful quiet”

I hung up after that. We didn't have a goose. What if she put the baby in the oven thinking it’s a roast goose? 

In a frantic blast, I called my mom to pick me up. I called 6 times, but to no avail. When I finally got mom on the other end, she didn't get a chance to talk. It sounded like Mom was in a meeting of some kind and an upper level personnel confiscated her phone. 

In the end, I had to get a ride home with some girl in a Georgetown shirt. I wasn't worried because based on her conversation that she had about her economics final, I think she actually goes there. I understand that my parents have a rule against me getting in the car with a random teenage driver, but I wasn't worried. This person was a very sensible college student.

Or so I thought. The drive started off okay, but GG shifted into a fury unexpectedly. “Did you see that?” she barked

“see what?” I asked.

GG slender hands on the steering wheel and gestured aggressively at the road. She pointed to a powder blue Mini Cooper that had a stick figure family with a tiny mother and seven monster kids. “That guy just gave me the finger!” she hissed.

I hadn't seen anybody flip the bird. “Are you sure?” 

“positive” GG replied before stepping on the accelerator and following them. She pulled out her phone, took a picture of the license plate, and then turned somewhere unexpected.

This started to freak me out. “where are we going?”

“the DMV. I got a picture of their license plate, so we're going to the DMV to run the plate and get his address”

I seemed very unsure about this. “so, we're following him home?”

“exactly.”GG replied. “He gives us the finger, we go to his house and kick his ass!”

I honestly can’t think of a worse idea. The minute we get there, it’s gonna end badly. The guy who gave us a finger could easily come to the door with a gun and shoot us. I don’t see an upside to hunting him down and harassing him because he gave us the finger.

That turn to go to the DMV ended with us getting on the highway where we got stuck in traffic. And we ran out of gas. It doesn’t take long for a car stuck in traffic with all the windows closed to turn into a sweat lodge.

I didn’t realize how screwed I was until I heard “Heartaches” come on the radio. It didn't start from the beginning, but from some random point in the song. It sounded unfocused and nostalgic, like an old guy ambling around oblivious that something is wrong with his memory. 

The song played on loop. The second time it looped, it had less instruments, more slowed down and had a despair-laden tone. 

The radio then channel-hopped to a different part of the song. It either sounds like it's screaming in pain or the melody sounds like it’s melting. The static sounds like a crackling fire.

This is not normal. Something is wrong, and not with the radio. What was on the radio began to distort because I was suffering from heat stroke from being left in a hot car. The traffic, the heat, and everything aren't going to get better, so we can only hope that they don't get worse. 

“You know it’s hot outside when what’s playing on the radio starts burning.” I snickered.

GG didn't think it was funny. Instead, she got angry and she said something completely out of left field. “that's what you get when you burn the Earth so you can go on a summer road trip where you’re locked in a car for 10 consecutive days, non-stop with no bathroom breaks. Enjoy it, bitch.”

“we need to cool the car down”

“You should’ve thought of that before you got a car.” At this point, she's just assembling words together at this point without any thought as to what they actually mean.

“I'm serious,” I responded, “We’re at the point where I could reasonably die. Can you at least go out and get a can of gas so we can at least put the AC on in the car?”

GG shrugged. “No,”

“Can we at least open the windows?” I asked. Would be better off if we could let some of the heat out.

“not if you value your life, you dumbass”

This doesn't change that I can only perceive faint snips of reality drowned out by a blurry haze, and what's visible through the fog is distorted beyond recognition. It doesn’t change that neither one of our bodies can cool off efficiently. Both of us lost our grip on reality because the car got too hot for the human body to function properly. 

I pointed to the door. “OK, then, gas can it is.”

GG finally got out of the car to get a can of gas. She walked onto the road, only to get mowed down by a truck. GG exploded all over the road like a bag of meat soup. 

I laughed. Like, shoot tea out your nose laughed. I laughed because it didn't seem real, and there was a very good possibility that I hallucinated it. She was probably just meandering timorously to the gas station. 

I waited for about an hour. She didn't come back. Maybe she really was dead after all? 

I got an idea. I'd open the door and exit the car on my own terms. If GG isn't coming back, then this car isn't going to get fueled up anytime soon, which means I'm just going to be stuck here. Besides, I have no reason to stay put. Not my car, not my problem.

I didn't walk out of the car. I stumbled. I had to hold on to the overheated metal of the car bodies so I could move without collapsing onto the road. 

Good news, the traffic was so congested that nobody had any room to run me over. Bad news, I had to stop twice; once after I clambered over the guardrail, and again after I got to the top of the hill in the green space on the other side of the road.

I stood up. I felt my blood pressure fall out of the sky like aircraft landing gear that wasn't installed correctly. I surveyed the landscape and saw hordes of ghosts in the sky, demonic reflections in the skyscrapers, and a sidewalk leading to a business park with a Bed Bath and Beyond next door to a GameStop. If I were that property manager, I would be worried about having so many meme stocks in my plaza. 

I can't remember how I got to Bed Bath and Beyond. All I remember is one minute I was walking on the sidewalk on a bridge and the next, I passed out on a piece of patio furniture. I don't know what would have happened if Julia's sister hadn't spotted me and took me home to my lab partner's parents and my mom's boss' wife giving her a long speech about responsibility while she freaked out instead of listening. They really should have given her a speech about getting enough sleep at night. This wouldn't have happened if she hadn't gone for 96 hours without sleeping.

Mom still wasn't home yet. She's never been this late before. 

@apromptadaykeepstheblockaway