#I like to think that Caleb would only be okay with hand holding if it comforted him or if Matthew wanted to for a little bit

[milla-frenchy]

Ughhhhh I cant' believe it's almost over, I'm gonna miss them dearly ❤️❤️❤️

Joel stayed for three nights. On the fourth night, Lily woke up cold, alone, the absence of his warmth like a missing limb ripped from her some time in the soft, orange morning. Panic seized her gut before she was fully awake, bouncing around, squeezing at her organs like a leech. She blinked manically, squeezing her eyes shut tight, eyelashes going spiky as she tried to clear her vision, as she tried to reach for the bulk of him only to come back empty.

Your writing is so vivid, I almost feel the emotions as if I were lily, how amazing is that? 🤌🤌

Lily tried not to think about it, tried not to think about his note, his silence, tried not to think about Caleb, how he was still out there, some part of him possibly still aware as that fungus ate away at him, forced him to do its bidding.

My god...

It took Joel five hours on horseback, weaving around the grounds outside of Jackson, to find those damn flowers. The idea had burrowed itself into his head last night, as he held a sleeping Lily, gently tracing the big, open flower tattooed on her shoulder. Those lilies, the ones he'd ripped out of the community garden years ago. He needed them back. 

omg he left to find some lilies??? 😍😍😍

Maybe it was a little silly, his sudden need to go get those flowers back, but it felt necessary, felt like some final piece falling into place. He'd ripped those flowers out once, because he couldn't bear the thought of her, couldn't even speak her name without falling apart. And now she was here, and he was trying, trying to be soft for her, gentle for her. If she was back, he needed the flowers back too.

Noooo it's not silly, it's amazing and I love it 😍😍

But before he could, Ellie was bursting, like she'd been holding the words in for just as long as she'd been ignoring him. "I was supposed to die in that hospital," she spat out, driving each word home with a slam of her hand against the top of the railing. "My life would have fucking mattered, but you took that from me." Joel wanted to tell her that her life did matter, mattered to him, mattered to her friends, should matter to her. Joel wanted to tell her that he loved her, but he couldn't, didn't know how. So, he said something else, something just as poignant, just as true, as he pushed himself off the railing to stand up straight and face her. "If somehow the lord gave me a second chance at that moment I would do it all over again." Silence fell between the two of them as Ellie searched his face, then turned to look back out across the yard, toward her house. "Yeah..." she whispered. "I just— I don't think I can ever forgive you for that—" And that stabbed into Joel like a hot knife, a choked breath shuddering out of him. "But I would like to try," she added, after a biting moment of silence. His heart slammed into his ribs, while something wet and trembling echoed from his lips. "I'd like that," he whispered, blinking hard to try to dissolve the tears in his eyes, something glimmering in his core now, something like hope. "Okay," Ellie said softly, pushing herself off the railing, "I'll see you around."

Ok, I need to express how much I LOVED how you added the game part. The EXACT game part. This is amazing. I played the game so many times, I love it so much, and your series fits in so perfectly it's so damn brilliant

"I missed you, Lily. Every day. I never stopped missin' you." He felt her tremble in his arms, her fingers twisting into his shirt as she slowly lifted her head, those bright glossy eyes searching his own. "And I'm— I'm sorry," he choked out, the words clawing their way out of him. "M'so sorry, baby, for lying to you, for bein' so horrible, I— I hate myself for it. I don't deserve your forgiveness and I'm not asking you for it." Lily opened her mouth, about to speak, those blue eyes gazing up at him, so soft, so bright he loathed himself for ever making her cry, for ever speaking such blasphemous, egregious things to her, even if he'd spoken them to keep her safe, to keep her away from him, the disgusting creature he'd become. "Let me finish," he said, before she could speak, reaching up to run his thumb across the soft skin beneath her eye, collecting a tear as he did. "When Sarah died," he exhaled the words, relief and agony swirling in marriage in his gut. "That first day. I— I didn't see any reason to keep goin'." His hand shook as he took her wrist in his hand, bringing her fingers up to that gnarled scar on his temple. She exhaled sharply as her fingers brushed against it, her hand trembling against him, those bright blue eyes going a little dark, glossing over with new tears that made him want to scream. "When I went to pull the trigger, I flinched, 'cause I heard your voice."

Oh boy. The confession about his feelings. The fact that he heard her voice????

"M'right here baby, you feel me? You're so full of me, little one," he purred, taking her hand from his shoulder and placing it on her lower belly, pressing his own hand over it so she could feel him inside of her, feel the thick shape of his cock hammering into her.

wow. So hot, so perfect

Joel dropped his head, trying to push the darkness he felt surging through him away, trying to cast it out so she would not fall victim to it, to him again. Never again. But then he felt it, her little hand spreading out over his cheek, and he trembled at the touch, a shudder working itself down his spine, and he let himself fall into it, into her, let himself be weak. "I killed them all," Joel muttered. "I saved her." Lily gently lifted his head, those blue eyes he'd been in search of his entire life gazing straight into his, without fear, without disgust, with something so warm he felt that black rottenness inside him completely melt away.

I love that he told her. And of course, of course, Lily's perfect, perfect words.

"Caleb," she choked out, when he was close enough to see, when she could make out the way his blue eyes had gone glossy and red, see the way his skin had gone discolored and scabbed. And he paused, the creature controlling him— or perhaps him, buried deep somewhere inside that vessel— paused at the sound of his name, cocking his head, twitching in place as he stared at her. It was almost like he knew, like he heard her somewhere in there, like the last remaining shred of his humanity was desperately trying to keep the creature controlling him from ripping her apart. She let out a sputtering cry, blinking rapidly, trying to keep her vision clear so she could see him one last time, even if this version of him was monstrous, even if the virus had eaten away all the life that had once brimmed in his eyes.

And here I am, sobbing again while I re read this chapter 🥺🥺🥺

"The Jeff Goldblum love." Something sprang open in Joel's chest at that, and he laughed, a full-bodied, thundering laugh as his head tilted back, and he heard Lily match it with a little giggle that made his stomach flutter. "You guys are fucking weird," Ellie breathed out, but when he glanced over at her, there was a smile tugging at her lips, and her eyes flickered to him for just a moment, but it was the first time she looked at him with anything but animosity in years. Joel had his girls, safe, warm, with him, for the first time in a lifetime.

I had to take off my glasses and wipe my eyes there, I was crying so much while rereading this.

Thank you SO MUCH for this series. I can't say it enough. One of my favorite series ever ❤️❤️❤️

Nights Like This One: XXV.

"He looked at her, and he loved her, loved her so much it burned, like something eternal, something that no amount of time, nor distance, nor the end of the world as they had known it, could kill off. He'd loved her, perhaps, since that first moment he saw her, looking hollow and bereft on the threshold of her mother's house. He loved her in every death, every birth, every reiteration of himself."

paring: joel miller x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 9.5k a.n. this is the last full chapter. i'm so bereft knowing it's almost over. i don't know if i've ever been so emotionally invested in a story i've written before like i have this one. i literally cried writing the last few paragraphs. i hope you love it. i hope it mends you. i hope it balms the pain i've put you through over the past couple months. thank you so very much for reading. epilogue will be out soon. ily <3

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[blingblingsparklesparkle]

Hi hello I can’t stop thinking about Matthew x Caleb

[spookyserenades]

Trouvaille - Chapter Nineteen

Pairing(s); BTS OT7 x Reader

Genre/Themes; Hybrid!AU, themes of the supernatural and the occult, religious themes, violence, hurt/comfort, horror, romance

Rated; 18+ for swearing, violence/gore, future sexual themes. Reader discretion is advised.

Word Count; 16k

Trouvaille Masterlist

Trouvaille playlist

Updates on the 7th of each month

HI!!!! Dana loves loves loves you all and I'm kissing every single one of you on the forehead for waiting for this chapter 🥺 most of you know that I caught a lovely plague, but on a more positive note, I got to spend more time writing hehe. WELL that aside, get ready for some ANGST babes!!!! No smut in this chapter (Y/N needs a break!) but there is some goooood fluff and a LITTLE bit of a spicy moment in there. Forgive me for another cliffhanger. I love you, thank you, and I can't wait to hear from you (and respond when I can feel my legs again!) 💜

Previous Chapter // Next Chapter

Orange embers floated up into the darkened sky, mingling with the deep blue of the moonless night. Taehyung found the contrast of these two colors, fiery orange and velvet blue, striking. Something he wanted to capture in a still frame and hold onto forever, to revisit when everything felt hopeless and without purpose. Lost in thought, he hardly noticed the chatter around him, nor the chill Alaskan-July mist clinging to the material of his flannel. There was a deep ache starting in the muscles of his upper back and spider-crawling down through his shoulders and biceps, and when he used his hands to prod at the muscles in his arms, he realized he couldn’t recall the last time he wasn’t sore. 

“Taehyung, brother. What do you think?” Taehyung was pulled out of his trance of staring at the roaring bonfire in front of him, turning his attention to one of the other Kodiak hybrids he worked with sitting on the log beside him, Andy. 

“About what?” Taehyung’s voice was scratchy after not speaking for so long. He wasn’t a fan of talking when there was nothing to say. 

“You’re a goddamn space cadet. We were talking about ghost stories, do you have any?” Caleb, Taehyung’s least favorite co-worker, rolled his eyes at him from across the bonfire. 

“No. I don’t have any ghost stories,” Taehyung replied, a frown tugging on the corners of his mouth. “This is what we choose to talk about after a double?”

“What else are we going to talk about? It’s not like we have lives,” Andy pointed out, Taehyung snorting humorlessly and taking a swig from the lukewarm beer someone managed to smuggle into the plant. “Okay, I’ve got one. When I was working in the western plot for an overnight, I could have sworn I saw a woman in a nightgown by the lake…”

Taehyung zoned out again, the aftertaste of the beer turning sour on his tongue. He had heard Andy’s ghost stories a hundred times, and they lost all their luster over the years. Instead, he focused on finishing his beer and losing himself in the flames licking the sky, the scent of pine stuck in his nostrils. 

He wondered if there ever would be anything else at all for him and the hybrids he was destined to work with to discuss. All there was to speak of was the day’s work, the woods, and after a few cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon– ghosts and things that go bump in the night. For once, Taehyung wanted to dig deeper. Was he really such a shell of a being? Was there nothing more than work? He dreamed of expression, though he was not a hybrid of many words. 

“Was the ghost lady hot at least?” Someone drunkenly asked Andy, Taehyung furrowing his eyebrows. “Maybe she fell in love with you, Andy.”

The other Kodiak hybrids dissolved into tipsy laughter, Taehyung pulling his threadbare beanie further over his forehead, the fabric muffling sound from both sets of his ears. 

“I think that would be nice,” Andy sobered up once the chuckles died down, Taehyung peering at him curiously. “Though in this life, none of us have time.”

“What do you mean?” Taehyung spoke up, apparently the only one confused as everyone else nodded seriously. 

“Falling in love. It was never for us, Taehyung. You know that.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Taehyung bristled, staring down his nose at the leopard hybrid, the feline hissing at him.

“It’s too early for this bullshit. You wanna live in denial? Be my guest. But stop with the shifty behavior. It’s hurting Y/N,” Yoongi narrowed his eyes at Taehyung’s gritted teeth, not intimidated in the slightest that Taehyung had an inch or two of height on him. 

Taehyung’s mouth dropped open, the color draining from his face, unable to come up with a response. As soon as Yoongi mentioned Y/N’s feelings being hurt because of him, a shard of ice wedged itself in his heart. Shaking his head, Yoongi ran a hand through his long, inky locks, pushing past the frozen hybrid. All Taehyung could do was follow the movement of Yoongi’s spotted tail curling behind him with his vision slightly fuzzy. 

“Wha– Why would you say that I’m in love with her? Isn’t she with you and Seokjin?”

Yoongi stopped by the door, taking a deep breath. After that conversation, he’d need thirty minutes of Y/N holding him on the couch to calm him down. 

“Bro, it’s fucking obvious. You’ve been a jealous prick since you found out about us, which I can understand. Stop fucking growling at me, I’m answering your question,” Yoongi crossed his arms over his chest, one of his ears twitching in agitation. “Before that, it was written all over your face. Following her around like a shadow. You had a fist-fight with the wolf over her, when he flew off the handle last summer. And it’s all in your scent. Are you really in denial or just out-of-touch with your emotions, Taehyung?”

Shocked, Taehyung leaned against the wallpapered alcove across from the piano, his skin flashing with heat. Falling in love wasn’t something Taehyung thought about much. Sure, he listened to countless songs about the sensation of falling for another, but he was a hybrid, not a human. A hybrid who was designed to be a workhorse, nothing more than that. Apparently, stuffed beneath his baser instincts, feelings he had never experienced before started to bloom when Y/N swept into his life. 

“For what it’s worth, she really cares about you, too. Way more than you think. She goes to every single one of your expos, finds rare records for you online, lets you take pictures of her when you think she isn’t paying attention. She couldn’t give a shit about your past. For fucks sake, she turned a linen closet into a dark room for you. Is that what this is about? You don’t think there’s a possibility that she could love you back?”

Taehyung flinched like he was slapped across the face. Yoongi sighed, thinking he had said enough. It wasn’t his place to tell Taehyung how Y/N felt about him and the rest of the hybrids, but it would make things a hell of a lot easier. All he could do was nudge the Kodiak hybrid in the right direction so Y/N wouldn’t look so sad whenever Taehyung would flee from her sight. 

“Just– think about it, okay? I’m gonna get the coffee started before Hoseok complains,” Yoongi shoved his sheet music under his armpit, suddenly feeling sort of bad that he was the reason Taehyung looked like he was having a nervous breakdown. Mouth pressed into a line, Yoongi left the Kodiak hybrid in the music room, Taehyung gaping after him. 

Perhaps he had been a little too harsh on the younger hybrid, but all of Yoongi’s instincts were screaming at him to protect Y/N. The instinct had only grown stronger since he claimed her as his mate, and sensing her gloom towards the odd situation between her and Taehyung had become unbearable. If he had to shove a few cold, hard truths down Taehyung’s throat for Y/N’s sake, he’d do it time and time again. As he slouched down the stairs, his nose twitched, picking up the rich smell of roasted coffee beans, and brightening up, he caught a whiff of Y/N’s jasmine lotion mingling with her natural scent. She must have beaten him to the kitchen that morning, and he was thankful that both the music room was soundproofed and Y/N had only human hearing. 

She was by the island, an arm curled around Seokjin’s waist as he cut up some fruit in his pajamas. Yoongi snorted at the goofy print on the set, the pink pajamas stamped with cartoon puppies, one of Seokjin’s black ears twisting back at the sound. Cheek smushed against the side of Seokjin’s arm, Y/N looked back, catching Yoongi’s gaze and smiling sleepily. Even first thing in the morning, she was lovely, despite the fact that her hair was sticking up in several directions. 

“Morning, angel! We’re gonna make banana pancakes, wanna help?” Y/N asked, watching her leopard hybrid stroll into the kitchen, grinning when he booped her nose as he passed by. 

“No, I think you two have it covered. I wanted to start writing something for your next lesson,” Yoongi tapped the book of sheet music, Y/N’s eyes sparkling with excitement. 

“You’re composing something new?” Y/N squeezed Seokjin’s waist, lips automatically parting as the jaguar hybrid fed her a slice of banana. 

“I’m going to attempt to. We’ll see how it goes,” Yoongi settled on a barstool across from the other two, pausing when Y/N pushed something in front of him. 

“Here, your coffee,” Y/N said proudly, butterflies soaring in his stomach when he glanced at the glass. “Iced Americano, your favorite! I finally figured out the espresso machine!”

“Are you sure you figured it out on your own? That smirk on Seokjin’s face is sort of giving you away, silly girl.”

“Ugh. Seokjinnie, you need to learn how to school your features,” Y/N complained, reaching up to tug on the dangling earrings hanging from the jaguar hybrid’s lobe, his thick lower lip jutting out into a pout. 

“Sorry, pretty,” Seokjin replied, stooping so he could kiss the apple of her cheek. 

“It’s fine, honey, I’m only teasing. I like that you display your emotions so clearly. You’re like Jimin in that way,” Y/N pulled away from Seokjin, Seokjin making a sad little purr when she disappeared into the pantry. Yoongi watched Seokjin’s neck blush furiously at the compliment with a chuckle. 

Y/N definitely wasn’t aware that her constant kind words meant the world to all of them. The hybrids she adopted were used to a world that was against them, treating them like commodities or prey. Compliments were far and few in between, and kindness was rare and usually met with suspicion. To be so accepted, to be allowed to pursue their interests, and to have a safe and loving home was sometimes unbelievable. Clearing his throat, Seokjin made meaningful eye-contact with Yoongi, wondering if he felt the same. 

“My loves? Do either of you know where the new jug of maple syrup ended up?” Y/N called from the pantry, Seokjin’s blush reddening even further with the way she addressed the two of them. 

“Behind the wolf’s sugar cereal,” Yoongi answered, using a pencil to draw the treble clef on the staff paper.

Y/N made a satisfied hum from the closet, emerging with a gallon jug of syrup, nearly knocking into Jeongguk who was trudging into the kitchen. Hand shooting out to steady her by her shoulder, Jeongguk grunted, taking the jug from her swiftly. 

“Watch it, you were about to take me out with this thing,” Jeongguk scolded, flicking Y/N’s forehead. Y/N scrunched up her nose at the elk hybrid, flicking him right back and returning to Seokjin’s side. “Why do we even need this much syrup?”

“Namjoon,” Y/N, Seokjin, and Yoongi spoke all at once, Jeongguk’s eyes going round at the chorused answer. 

“That tracks,” Jeongguk admitted, scratching above the barbell threaded through his eyebrow. “I’m surprised he doesn’t have a cavity. Y/N, you spoil him with too many sweets.”

Seokjin glared at the elk hybrid, while Yoongi simply shook his head, definitely not taking him seriously considering he looked like a doe without his bony antlers. 

“Well, we’ll find out. You guys are going to the dentist next week,” Y/N reminded them, Jeongguk sending her a grimace. 

“Do I have to take these out?” Jeongguk asked, pointing at his lip ring and then sticking out his tongue, Y/N’s eyes glazing over as she stared at the barbell so close to her face.

“Jesus, I didn’t know you had that in your mouth,” Yoongi lifted an eyebrow, Y/N mumbling something under her breath as heat rose to her cheeks. If only Yoongi knew what was under the elk hybrid’s shirt– thinking about Jeongguk’s chest had her hiding her expression by hiding around in the fridge. 

“Yeah, you’ll probably have to take them out, sweets,” Y/N’s voice came out feathery, hoping that the three hybrids didn’t notice her spontaneous fluster. “Uh, what should we do today? It’s Saturday, so we could go into the city for dinner or something.” “You three aren’t going on a date or something tonight?” Jeongguk snarked, but there was no real bite to it. 

“No, not that I’ve planned. Yoongi, Seokjin? Have you? Shall we invite Jeongguk so he isn’t lonely?” Y/N teased right back, pure shock and embarrassment washing over the elk hybrid’s face as he tripped his way to the breakfast nook. 

“Stupid,” was all Jeongguk could mutter, Yoongi and Y/N sharing an amused snicker at his shock. Jeongguk supposed he walked into that. “What you do on dates is none of my fuckin’ business.”

It had only been two days since Yoongi’s birthday, and thankfully, no one teased her when she snuck out of Yoongi’s room in his tee shirt and boxers, smelling like his vanilla body wash. Though truthfully, she didn’t run into anyone as she scampered to her bedroom to change into her own clothes. By the time she bumped into Hoseok on the way to the kitchen, all the fox hybrid did was tickle her sides teasingly when he greeted her. 

She supposed that her hybrids would likely not even acknowledge her tryst with Yoongi; after all, they knew that the two of them had been intimate. Suspecting that they didn’t want to embarrass her, that slight comment from Jeongguk was the only minor implication that he had at least thought about what Y/N was doing with Yoongi and Seokjin once or twice. Surprisingly, Y/N couldn’t find it in her to feel ashamed, only continuing to slice bananas beside Seokjin. 

“I think there’s an early farmer’s market near Faneuil Hall. We can stock up on some produce and then get some drinks and good food around there,” Y/N continued, trying to ignore the intriguing heat rising in her cheeks when she pictured Jeongguk listening in and imagining what her and Yoongi were doing the night of the leopard hybrid’s birthday, just down the hall in his own bedroom. She shivered, turning to the stove and greasing up the skillet for the pancakes in order to compose her expression. 

“Let’s do it! We have to pick a designated driver,” Hoseok made an appearance, his usual disdain for the morning time patched up by the potential opportunity to explore the city later. “Not it!”

“I got it,” Yoongi volunteered, predicting that Taehyung would be the only other option, and Yoongi guessed that Taehyung wouldn’t be showing his face the rest of the day. “When do you want to leave?”

“Uh, not sure. I’ll have to talk to Joon, Jimin, and Tae, before making a solid plan,” Y/N stepped to the side so Seokjin could sprinkle chopped banana into the dollop of batter she ladled onto the pan. 

Internally, Yoongi cringed. He had no idea if Taehyung would even talk to Y/N after Yoongi confronted him like he had, much less be willing to hang out with the rest of them in the city. With his human side regretting saying anything at all to the Kodiak hybrid, the animalistic side regretted not tearing into him further. It was all very confusing, and part of the reason Yoongi decided to opt out of drinking that evening. Booze and moodiness was a hell of a mixture. 

Jimin came in from outside shortly after that, a basket full of eggs swinging from his elbow, and when the house began to fill up with the buttery, sweet smell of pancakes, Namjoon was summoned from his bedroom with a wagging tail. Everyone helped themselves like normal– it wasn’t unusual for members of the household to eat at different times, but Y/N still caught herself glancing towards the foyer every few minutes, waiting for Taehyung to silently enter the room and make his coffee. 

Even when she was washing dishes besides Jimin when breakfast was picked over, a cellophane-wrapped plate of pancakes left for the Kodiak hybrid sitting on the stove, she waited for him. Chewing her lip, she entertained the idea that perhaps he was just sleeping in or not very hungry, but Y/N still couldn’t help that wounded section of her heart from throbbing painfully. When her hands were dry and almost everyone had cleared the room, she pulled out her phone to text him. 

Y/N: Morning, Tae! Left some breakfast out for you if you’re hungry

Y/N: We’re all planning on going into Boston for dinner tonight, and to walk around the farmer’s market! 

Tae 🐻: Thx

Tae 🐻: Have to work on expo pics tonight…

Y/N: oh, okay! You don’t have to come if you have too much work

Tae 🐻: yeah, I’ll stay here if that’s alright

Y/N: totally fine, want me to bring you some food home?

Y/N was picking her nails nervously when Taehyung offered no response, starting to fret over him. It was typical, when nearing a photography expo, that Taehyung would hole up in his room or the dark room to work, but Y/N couldn’t help but think that he was perhaps still distancing himself from her, even after their last talk– her almost-confession. Limbs stiffening with dread, a dish slipped from her grasp when she considered how horrifyingly embarrassing it would have been for her had she managed to confess, the phone call from Diana following directly after. Thankfully, with Jimin beside her, he managed to catch the dish before it shattered on the floor, a canine noise of surprise ripping from his throat. 

“Are you alright?” Jimin placed a palm over her shoulder blade, a pout on his full lips. 

“O-oh. Yeah, I’m okay, sweetheart, just clumsy!” Y/N assured him, the warmth of Jimin’s palm immediately soothing her. Chuckling to herself, she pushed some golden hair off of Jimin’s forehead, poking his cheek when his pout didn’t let up. 

“Hey, can I help you put the herbs into the planters today? Before we leave? It’s nice and sunny out,” Y/N shook off her worry, thinking that some time spent outside would do her some good, Jimin’s pout transforming into a brilliant grin as he nodded.

“You still need to wear a sweater, pretty,” Seokjin called from the hallway, where he had dashed away moments ago to rummage around in the coat closet. 

“Wouldn’t dream of leaving the house without letting you bundle me up, Seokjin,” Y/N snickered, waiting patiently by the slider into the backyard while her jaguar hybrid approached her, one of his soft felt coats in his hand. 

Humming as he puffed out his chest dutifully, Y/N went lax as Seokjin maneuvered her limbs through his coat, a happy purr leaving her lips as his eucalyptus scent swallowed her whole. If Y/N had her way, she’d throw away every single one of her coats just so she could wear one of her boy’s every time she’d have to go outside, so she could drown in the scent and comfort of them. As Seokjin slid the last button in place, he ducked low, brushing his lips against her temple softly. Seokjin wasn’t as bold as Yoongi when it came to kissing her in front of the others– though hugs and words of affection he doled out generously regardless of the audience– so the gentle kiss had her skin tingling. 

“Have fun,” Seokjin’s cheeks rounded out cutely when he smiled at the dazed look on Y/N’s face, a hand on her lower back as he guided her towards the door. 

“Mm-hmm,” Y/N waved him away, embarrassed. She scurried off, following the swish of Jimin’s sandy tail off in the distance. 

The grass was starting to become green again, with the nearing arrival of spring, and small sparrows swooped overhead as they scouted for spots to build their nests. Tiny red bulbs were just beginning to swell on the branches of the willow trees, and while the temperature was still rather raw, Y/N couldn’t feel it with the way she was wrapped up in Seokjin-scented warmth. The anticipation of spring was making her giddy, and when she caught sight of Jimin patiently waiting for her by the newly refurbished greenhouse with a pot of mint sprigs, she skipped her way to meet him with a smile. 

Y/N placed the stir-fried noodles she brought back for Taehyung on the stove, next to the untouched wrapped stack of pancakes that were looking really sad. Apparently, the Kodiak hadn’t bothered to come downstairs the entire day, and even with the merry tipsiness flooding through her bloodstream from the Mai Tais she ordered at the bar with Hoseok, the sight of the food sitting there had her mood souring quickly. 

“He could have at least put these away,” Yoongi muttered from her side, scooping up the plate and promptly dumping the pancakes into the garbage. Seokjin made a low hiss in agreement, upset that his and Y/N’s hard work was ignored by Taehyung and was now sitting in the trash.

“I should check on him. I don’t want him to pull an all-nighter, and he should eat something, at least,” Y/N sighed, resting her chin on Yoongi’s shoulder, her eyelids fluttering at the sensation of his tail curling around the back of her knee. “Jeongguk, it’s your turn to pick a movie tonight, just make sure it isn't something too horrifying. I don’t think Hoseok can handle a film like Hereditary again, no matter how much rum he’s had.”

“Sucks the fun out of it,” Jeongguk complained, sending Hoseok an evil eye, the fox hybrid offering him the middle finger right back as he very tipsily filled a glass with water for himself. “Should I put on Aladdin, or is the Genie too intimidating?”

“Pfft. It’s not the Genie that’s scary, asshole, it’s that big talking lion cave,” Hoseok cleverly replied, his cheeks flushed and eyes slightly squinting. Jeongguk snorted, eyes rolling into the back of his skull. 

“Heart of a lion, you have, Foxy,” Yoongi teased, narrowly dodging his ear from being pinched by Hoseok, Yoongi ducking behind Y/N and hiding his face in the back of her neck. 

“Okay, enough,” Y/N giggled, Yoongi’s fingertips pressing into the soft of her tummy. “Go get comfy while I check in on Tae. Anyone see Joonie or Jimin, by the way?”

“Jimin’s half-asleep on the couch already. I think Namjoon went to shower the bar off of him,” Jeongguk helpfully informed her, scratching at the bony spots where his antlers once were. Y/N had said antlers sitting prettily on display on her altar in her bedroom on a strip of velvet– something Jeongguk didn’t know. 

“Alright, queue up the movie. No Aladdin or Sinister, please,” Y/N gently requested, able to wiggle her way out of Yoongi’s grasp. Scooping up the carton of noodles on the stove, she cupped Hoseok’s warm cheek tenderly as she passed by him, his worried grimace at the thought of a horror movie dissolving into nothing at the touch, his sunny grin replacing the storminess. “Be back soon!”

Sobered now that she had an important task to complete, Y/N soldiered up the stairs, stopping right in front of the dark room, the door open and lights off. Frowning, considering Taehyung told her that he was busy working that night, she spun around, glaring at his bedroom door across the hall. 

“Tae? Are you alright? Not working too hard, I hope?” Y/N knocked on his door, the only indication that he was inside being the lamplight that spilled out underneath the door. “I brought you some dinner. Shrimp stir-fry, your favorite!”

No response. 

“Um, Taehyung? You’re worrying me, is something wrong?” Y/N felt her heart begin to race, picturing Taehyung sick and unable to reply, much like how Seokjin was many months ago when he had to scent her. 

“N-no, nothing’s wrong, I’m fine!” Taehyung’s voice abruptly cut through her spiraling thoughts, right when Y/N was about to turn the doorknob and enter the room. “Thanks for the food, you can leave it there. I– I’m just getting out of the shower.”

Taehyung’s normally smooth voice was strained, making Y/N furrow her eyebrows. If she didn’t know any better, she almost detected a fib based on his tone. Considering the odd distance between the two of them, Y/N decided not to push it, and instead left the carton of noodles on the floor with a sigh. 

“Jeongguk is picking out a movie if you’re interested in taking a break from editing,” Y/N offered, hopeful that he’d make an appearance. She hadn’t seen him once the entire day, which was far too long for her to go without him. 

“Uh– I,” Taehyung cleared his throat, pausing. “Maybe. I still have a lot to do.”

So that was as good as a no, Y/N knew. Nodding at the closed door, she tried to imagine his face, as if it had been days rather than hours since she last saw the graceful lines of it. 

“Okay, well, let me know if you need anything. Otherwise, goodnight, Tae,” Y/N kept the disappointment out of her reply as much as she could, but she wasn’t as good at masking her emotions at Taehyung. The melancholia was plain as day and she knew it. 

Returning back to the stairs, Y/N found it impossible to perk up, even when she heard Hoseok’s pitiful, playful whines when the introductory music to Friday the 13th began to echo through the house thanks to the surround sound in the parlor. When she got to the parlor, all she could do was curl up on Seokjin’s lap on the leather recliner, wrapping a blanket around the two of them without a word. 

Y/N was eternally grateful that Seokjin didn’t ask her what was wrong. He knew already, she was well aware. He simply snaked his arms around her middle to hold her close, the purrs vibrating from his chest soothing her a few degrees. Relaxing, she rested her head on his bony collarbone, whispering quietly into his skin. 

“Love you, Seokjin.”

The jaguar hybrid tightened his hold on her, brushing his lips over the crown of her head. 

Sleep evaded her. It wasn’t just because of the slasher film before bed. She thought about going upstairs and slipping into Yoongi’s bed, but she didn’t want to disturb his sleep by tossing and turning. Grumbling at her darkened ceiling, she tossed the quilt off of her body, shoving her feet into some slides. Since the weather was mild, Y/N decided maybe a lap around the backyard would tucker her out. Blindly, she felt along the walls in the hallway, not wanting to turn on a light and wake anyone up. Kitchen completely dark, Y/N fumbled for the coat rack by the slider door, pulling a garment on at random. Gasping quietly, she noticed that the lock on the door was loose, which was seriously abnormal– Namjoon was militant about locking up. Figuring he might have just forgotten that evening, Y/N shrugged, easing the door open and trudging outside. 

It was colder than she thought, and the coat she selected– Jeongguk’s leather jacket, as it turned out– didn’t do much to block out the chilly wind. Burying her nose into the collar of the jacket, she breathed in the elk hybrid’s scent; mahogany wood, leather, and smoke. Slowly, as she began her walk around the property, Y/N’s vision began to adjust to the dim outdoor lights that lined the trails. Somehow, being outside, even more alone with her thoughts, Y/N felt her throat growing thick. Pausing, she plopped down on a boulder by the pond towards the rear of the property, rubbing her eyes. With a sniffle, she managed to choke back tears, at her wits end trying to figure out how to fix things with Taehyung. 

The moon, half-full, shined down on her indifferently. Wishing that the moon could give her answers, solutions, she cursed her weak heart and inability to tell Taehyung how she felt. It was sucking the life out of her, not being able to tell him, to not even be able to see him, and Y/N had no idea what to do. What she needed was someone to confide in, but she didn’t want to worry Seokjin or provoke Yoongi into saying something to Taehyung. She knew what Ben and Alice would say. Laura would probably agree with them, too. So really, Y/N had to work things out on her own, and that made her utterly miserable. 

Unable to stop frustrated tears from gathering in the corners of her eyes, she shoved her hands in the pockets of Jeongguk’s jacket, attempting to stop the tears gathering further by staring at the placid pond. Sniffling again, she froze when a twig snapped off to the side, Y/N searching for the source of the noise– it was probably a squirrel or a rabbit. Her ears strained as her heart leapt into her throat at the sound of heavy footsteps, far too heavy to be some kind of tiny critter. Uneasy, she squinted at the bushes beside her, a startled noise leaving her when something squinted right back at her. 

Instant horror flooded through her, the golden orange eyes narrowing further as she stared back. The eyes resembled the ones belonging to the creature she had nightmares about, the creature that would chase her through the woods. Body locked up and unable to move, her heart was hammering around in her chest, Y/N whimpered in fright. Could it be that the entity banished many months ago was back, and this time manifested as the creature Y/N was terrified of for years? Helplessly, she scraped her nails against the boulder she was glued to as the creature emerged from the bushes, and even in the darkness, Y/N could make out how big it was. As it got closer, Y/N breathing heavily, her heart suddenly stilled; the creature’s left ear was jagged and scarred over. 

“Jesus C-christ, Joonie? Is that you?” Y/N gasped, her fear slightly slipping away, realizing that it wasn’t a creature in front of her at all, it was a wolf. 

Limbs unfreezing, she leaned forward, getting a better look at him. Indeed, it was her Namjoon, Y/N recalled exactly how he looked back when she first saw him at the shelter. He gazed at her analytically, still several feet away, his head cocked at the sound of her voice. 

“What are you doing out here? It’s so late!” Y/N recovered, not wanting Namjoon to think she was afraid of him. With shaky knees, she stood, slowly approaching the hybrid. Namjoon glared at her, as if to say and you? “Um. I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to take a walk…”

Namjoon sat on his haunches, Y/N hardly able to believe how big his wolf form was– it was almost as intimidating as his tall, muscled human form. Hesitantly, she moved in front of him, the top of his head reaching just under her chin. Her earlier fright was a distant memory, and all she wanted in that moment was to pet him. Unfortunately, she didn’t know if Namjoon would be okay with that. 

Namjoon blew a puff of air out of his nose, Y/N wondering if he could read her thoughts, and to her surprise, he pressed his face against her chest, a quiet whine coming from the back of his throat. 

“Whoa, am I dreaming?” Y/N blurted, Namjoon nuzzling his face further into the jacket she was wearing. Automatically, Y/N’s hands dove into the shaggy fur around Namjoon’s neck, effectively holding him as he melted into her. “Didn’t know you were such a love bug. Looks are really deceiving, huh?”

Giddy, Y/N scratched behind Namjoon’s damaged left ear gently, earning another whine from the wolf hybrid, his tail beating the grass behind him. Y/N, stunned, wondered if Namjoon was actually trying to comfort her– after all, not only had he scared the shit out of her, he had caught her pathetically weeping by herself, on a rock, in the middle of the night. Namjoon was perceptive, so the idea was fairly feasible to her. 

All too soon, Namjoon was pulling away, looking over his shoulder expectantly when he began to walk back towards the house. Apparently wanting her to follow, Y/N obeyed, her eyebrows shooting into her hairline when the wolf hybrid led her to the drive in front of the garage, where his van was parked. The vehicle was running and lit up, apparently Namjoon had been hanging out in there after she bid him goodnight. Y/N’s face grew hot when she spotted the pile of clothes Namjoon left outside, the wolf hybrid growling, Y/N getting the hint. She turned, facing the house, cheeks still aflame as she heard the sound of fabric rustling against skin. 

“Y/N, you can turn around,” Namjoon spoke after several seconds, Y/N not proud that she almost broke her neck while spinning around to look at him. He appeared just as startled by her sudden movement, still yanking his sweater down over his lower stomach, the strip of golden skin hidden from her greedy view in a flash. “Uh, want to tell me why you were crying?”

“Oh. I forgot how forward you can be,” Y/N quickly swiped under her eyes, the skin still a tad tacky from the few tears that escaped. 

“Did I scare you that badly?” Namjoon’s mouth flattened into a line, a rare look of vulnerability flashing over his face. 

“N-no! No, it wasn’t you that made me cry, Joonie,” Y/N exclaimed, hurrying over to his side. “So why were you out here?”

Y/N dodged his original question, something that did not escape Namjoon’s attention. Expecting him to press her, Namjoon soaked in her appearance thoroughly, like he was trying to figure out how she was feeling without her speaking a single word. She fidgeted under the weight of his gaze, especially when something in his eyes shifted when he realized who’s jacket she was wearing. 

“Come on, let’s go in. It’s cold,” Namjoon opened up the van door, gesturing for her to hop inside. Secretly, she was thankful that he wasn’t making her go back into the house quite yet. 

Hovering by the kitchenette, she wasn’t really sure where to go with the conversation since they were both avoiding each other’s questions. Namjoon’s Walkman was playing quiet folk music on the counter, and there was a package of Oreos open beside it. He had put on the fairy lights Y/N taped around the ceiling months ago, something that had her heart squeezing in her chest. 

“I… take a walk around the house every night,” Namjoon admitted after pulling the van door shut, his bitten ear fluttering. 

“Huh? Like… that? In your wolf form?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?” Y/N asked, Namjoon shrugging nonchalantly, leaning against the van door. 

“I want to make sure we’re safe,” he finally answered, vulnerability all over him again. 

“Oh?” Y/N blinked, not exactly expecting such raw honesty from Namjoon. He had really come a long way when it came to trust, so for him to answer so earnestly, Y/N was taken aback. 

“When you live most of your life without security, once you get it, you’ll do anything to keep it,” Namjoon clarified, and contrary to the heaviness of his words, a faint dimple appeared in his cheek. “It’s instinct. Protect myself, protect you.”

“Just me? Not the others?” Y/N couldn’t help but giggle, knowing that she was toeing the line of provoking Namjoon into laughter or provoking him into agitation. 

“Well. Mostly just us two…” Namjoon muttered, toying with the silver ring in his earlobe. Loving this version of Namjoon, Y/N could hardly remember that she was miserable only fifteen minutes ago. 

“What about Jeongguk, you aren’t worried about him? He’s our teammate, right?” She continued to jest, Namjoon shaking his head.

“Y/N, I know you’re just trying to tease me to get out of telling me why you were crying. I hope you know by now I’m not going to force it out of you,” Namjoon’s ears went sideways, pointing to the loft above the cab. “Can I show you something?”

“What?” 

“Climb up, I wanna show you something, Y/N,” Namjoon moved towards her, Y/N all but herded to the ladder with his mass behind her. There was no reason for her to refuse, so she hauled herself up to the cushy space, astonished that Namjoon was close behind her. 

“Ah, thankfully I’m not claustrophobic,” Y/N cringed at her inability to stop jokes from spilling out, cramming herself against the wall in the bunk. Apparently, Namjoon had cleared all of the books he had stuffed up there, transferring them to the bookshelves in his room where his and Y/N’s shared library was, and it was a comfortable place to sleep again. “It’s cozy up here! You used to sleep in this bunk?”

“Mm-hmm, but it’s been a while,” Namjoon carefully swung his large frame onto the bunk beside her, the space wide enough for the two of them to lay there without touching. “Seems like a lifetime ago.”

“Shit’s been crazy, hasn’t it?” Y/N said, snorting. Namjoon was right, it did seem like a lifetime since she adopted the seven hybrids, and between getting to know them, dealing with ghosts, and falling in love, any normal person’s head would be spinning constantly. “I think we’re taking it in stride, though.”

“You have a pretty good ability to bounce back,” Namjoon hummed, reaching up to the ceiling, Y/N following the movement and glowing under his praise. 

“Oh! There’s a sky light up here!” Y/N’s eyes widened, Namjoon grunting, pushing the moss-covered window upwards and revealing the night sky. “Is this what you wanted to show me?”

“Uh-huh. I don’t think you or Jeongguk knew it was up here, since the glass is covered. Thought you’d like it, I remember you telling me you wanted to learn more about constellations.”

Y/N’s focus on the sky was effectively stolen, gawking at Namjoon’s side profile as she laid beside him. Suddenly she was falling in love with the wolf hybrid all over again, with his perception, the way he listened, the slope of his nose, even. 

“That’s right,” Y/N whispered, the fairy lights making his starlight hair appear lilac. 

“There’s only a few in the sky this time of year, in this hemisphere. Since we’re outside of Boston, it’s a little easier to see the stars, which is good,” Namjoon didn’t seem to notice that she was staring at him, extending a digit up to the sky. “If you look closely, you can see the constellation Lynx over there. Cancer is right underneath.”

“You really know everything, don’t you, Joon Bug?” Y/N commented softly, Namjoon finally turning his head to look at her. He cocked an eyebrow, watching her shiver at the gust of wind brought in by the open window. 

“Of course not. Nobody knows everything,” Namjoon pointed out, making Y/N giggle at the reproach in his tone. “Not much else to do in the wild but look at the stars.”

“Do you know the stories of the constellations, too?” Y/N asked eagerly, scooching closer to him subconsciously for warmth. 

“Some of them,” Namjoon replied, reaching towards the foot of the bunk, dragging an old knitted blanket up and offering it to Y/N. “Want me to tell you what I know?”

“Please, can you?” Y/N accepted the blanket, the smell of it reminding her of the woods. There was a beat, one filled with tinny folk music and rumbling coming from Namjoon’s chest. 

“Lynx, right there. See it?” Namjoon waited for Y/N to nod, adjusting his body so he could face her on his side, Y/N finding it hard to believe he was willing to be so close to her. “The reason it was named that is because the stars are so faint, people believed only those with eyes of a lynx could see it. Cancer, below it, has to do with a story involving the Greek gods.”

“I used to love Greek mythology,” Y/N grinned, Namjoon’s expression turning sly. 

“Oh, I believe that,” he chuckled, Y/N wondering if he knew how flirty he sounded. “Hercules was trying to slay a creature called a hydra. Goddess Hera sent Cancer– the crab, to distract Hercules from accomplishing that.”

Y/N watched Namjoon trace the constellations in the sky with his finger, swallowing thickly. Namjoon had done so much to open up to her, and she hardly ever confided in him herself. Clearing her throat, she got his attention, his mouth twisting up quizzically. 

“I was crying because I was frustrated,” Y/N confessed, Namjoon blinking in surprise. 

“Okay…” Namjoon drew out the syllables to the word pointedly, shifting closer to her. 

“Joonie, you’re observant. Have you noticed Taehyung acting strange?” Namjoon stiffened at the mention of the Kodiak hybrid, so Y/N gave his arm a gentle pat. “I know you don’t. Uh, like him. But I just wanted to ask if you’ve seen how weird he’s been.”

Namjoon paused, throat bobbing, turning the words over in his head.

“He has been acting odd, I agree,” Namjoon answered honestly, with a soft exhalation. “His behavior is frustrating you?”

“Well, yes and no. I’ve tried talking to him a couple of times, but we never get anywhere. I don’t know how to fix things,” Y/N frowned, eyes on the sky again. Thankfully, though, with Namjoon at her side, she didn’t feel like crying again. “I just… if I did something to hurt him, I want him to tell me. I don’t want him to feel like a prisoner in his own home.”

“I doubt he feels that way,” Namjoon said, the note of firmness in his tone. “As much as I hate to admit this, Y/N, Taehyung is similar to me in a lot of ways. He takes a while to adjust to things. Maybe he’s simply getting used to newfound freedoms he has never had before. Or he’s got that moodiness lots of artists get. You haven’t done anything to hurt him, Y/N. You shouldn’t think so badly of yourself.”

“Yeah?” Y/N’s voice was small, Namjoon’s insight bringing her swift comfort. “You think he’ll come around?”

“In time, yes,” Namjoon assured her, realizing how tired Y/N looked– it made something in his chest pinch uncomfortably. “Y/N, you’ve made us feel safe here. We’re not prisoners, we’re home.”

“Oh,” Y/N breathed, and just like that, she was almost moved to tears again. Struck by the heaviness of the conversation, she yearned for something to distract her. “Can you… tell me more about the stars?”

Namjoon gave her a closed-mouth smile, turning his attention back to the sky. 

“That one there. Constellation Draco. It represents the dragon who protected golden apples in the garden of Hesperides, Ladon. See it? The golden apples would grant immortality to those who would eat them…”

Y/N listened to Namjoon as best as she could. After confiding in him, she felt like a weight was lifted off of her chest, and his silky, deep voice instilled a sense of calm in her. Namjoon dove into stories of Greek myths, probably trying to make her feel better, and Y/N would ask an occasional question. Some stories he had more details on, others, he’d simply name the constellation and point out where it was. At some point, while he was relaying the tale of Virgo, Namjoon noticed Y/N’s lack of response. Curiously, he glanced at her, eyes widening when he realized she had fallen asleep beside him. 

Not knowing what to do, considering carrying her to her bedroom would be impossible to do without waking her (not to mention, he worried about dropping her when climbing down the loft’s ladder), Namjoon could only stare at her serene expression. Gritting his teeth, he closed the window above them as quietly as he could, trying to inch his way towards the ladder. He’d let her sleep up there, and he’d curl up in the booth for the night– he didn’t feel right staying next to her, for some reason. 

He froze like a statue when he heard an unintelligible mumble, turning to Y/N, a pout pulling at her lower lip as she slept, squirming in her spot. Namjoon could only compare the sensation in his chest to something that was melting, his ears pressing against his skull in alarm. And before he could escape and unpack all of that, the muscles of his abdomen contracted when Y/N moved again, slinging her forearm around his middle, this time in an embrace. Utterly paralyzed, Namjoon didn’t dare breathe, Y/N mumbling again and cozying up to his side, resting her cheek against his bicep. 

Namjoon tried, as best as he could, to relax. Clearly, he wasn’t going anywhere without waking her up. He was surrounded by the floral, vibrant scent of her, and shamefully, it made his mouth water. He inwardly cursed himself– he hadn’t scented Y/N in months, and judging by the volume of saliva gathering in his mouth, he would probably have to do it again in the near future. Even with Jeongguk’s musky scent coming off of the jacket she was wearing, he was nearly choking on the unique smell of her. 

Now, Namjoon was the one who couldn’t sleep. Not when Y/N was burrowing against his side like a newborn cub. Every instinct within him was screaming, and it was all he could do to just remain still and focus on his breath. After a few moments, the weight of her arm curled around his center, Namjoon was able to loosen up a bit. Before she’d wake in the morning, he’d be able to move and not make her uncomfortable. In that moment, however, all he could do was let her hold him, and surprisingly, he was able to fall asleep, contrary to his initial hypothesis. He did, after all, remind Y/N that he didn’t know everything. 

Y/N was disoriented when she woke up hours later, curled onto her side and blinking at the indented spot where Namjoon was previously occupied, a frown on her face wondering if he had left her alone. Peeking over the edge of the loft, she gasped quietly, the wolf hybrid barely fitting in the booth in the back of the vehicle, asleep. Even though he was unconscious, his triangular ears twitched at the sound of her movement. Climbing down quietly, Y/N felt guilty that Namjoon had slept in such a cramped spot, his body twisted in an odd position. After glancing at her watch, Y/N hissed at the late hour of the mid-morning. She hadn’t slept that late in months, let alone so well, so she definitely owed Namjoon some gratitude for that. 

“Joon? Joonie, that can’t be comfortable. I’m awake now, so if you want to keep sleeping you can move up to the bunk,” Y/N slid her palm up and down his back to wake him up as gently as she could. He mumbled, one of his golden eyes cracking open, and immediately the tips of his ears turned scarlet. “I feel bad you had to sleep like this. You could have just stayed next to me!”

The flush on Namjoon’s face deepened, clumsily sitting up, Y/N’s hand falling from his back. Wanting to tease him, she quickly stopped herself, remembering how sweetly he treated her the previous night. 

“Thanks for last night, Joonie,” Y/N watched him stand, and before she could think against it, she looped her arms around his middle, squeezing him into a fond hug. “Next month, can you tell me about the constellations you can see in April?”

“S-sure,” Namjoon answered, bewildered, placing his hands over her shoulder blades tentatively, Y/N able to feel his pounding heartbeat through his sweater. That, and she could hear his stomach growling, Y/N giggling and letting him go. 

“Should we get some breakfast?”

“Uh-huh,” Namjoon averted his eyes from her, ears drooping in embarrassment. Stumbling his way to the driver’s seat, he turned off the engine, following Y/N back to the house. 

“What, did you two fall asleep reading each other’s Tarot cards?” Jeongguk was in the breakfast nook with his feet kicked up, chewing on an apple, his eyebrows pulling together when he spotted Y/N. “Is that my jacket?”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I grabbed it by accident last night,” Y/N shucked off the garment, hanging it back up on the coat rack. 

“Whatever,” Jeongguk shrugged, still looking at her kind of funny. Using his half-eaten apple, he gestured to the kitchen island. “Toast and eggs over there. Your phone, too, Y/N. It was going off every five minutes this morning in your room so Yoongi brought it out here and turned it off, some spam risk calls, I think. Woke me the fuck up.”

“That’s weird. It’s probably just an over zealous telemarketer,” Y/N reached for the device, turning it back on without too much thought. “Sorry to interrupt your beauty sleep.”

“Whatever,” Jeongguk repeated, this time looking out the window, feigning annoyance and continuing to munch on his apple. 

Taehyung removed the clothespin from between his teeth, shaking excess fluid from the photo paper poised between the tongs he was holding, clipping the image up on the wire above him to dry. The picture was one he took of the swan boats in the Boston Common weeks ago with one of the vintage cameras Y/N dug out of the basement for him. 

Y/N. Even just thinking her name had him biting down on his lip hard enough to draw blood. Shaking his head, Taehyung pushed a hand through his unruly curls, trying to put her out of his mind by focusing on straightening out spare rolls of film on the shelf. He had left the house that morning before the sun was even up, just so he could spend more time at the rec center and clear his head. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he tried to put Yoongi’s words out of his mind. 

At first, Taehyung wanted to knock the leopard hybrid down a few pegs. Every word out of Yoongi’s mouth infuriated him; Taehyung wasn’t used to others trying to psychoanalyze him. Usually, if Taehyung stuck to the wall, he wouldn’t have people trying to pry into what he preferred to keep to himself. Particularly, his emotions. However, what Yoongi said to him sunk in like a heavy stone thrown into a pond. He could no longer deny it: he had feelings for Y/N. 

The heavy door to the photography door was pulled open, making him flinch, swear, and topple over the canisters of film he had just organized. Taehyung must have lost track of time, because it was mid-morning, and several other club members would be arriving shortly. Catching the scent of who it was, Taehyung internally groaned. He wasn’t ready to deal with that issue yet.

“Taehyungie, you’re here early!” A raspy female voice, delighted, trilled in his ears. “Thought you would be. Miss me already?’

Taehyung adjusted the collar of his flannel, gazing at the sky for bravery before he turned around. The bobcat hybrid was pretty, for sure, with feline upturned greenish eyes, and gray-blonde hair. At the sight of her, Taehyung had guilt boiling in his stomach he had to squash down, painting a neutral expression on his face. 

“You’re here early, too, Diana,” Taehyung answered nonchalantly, watching a pout tug at her lips. 

“Jeez. Full name today?” Diana set her camera bag down on one of the benches, sniffing the air delicately. “Is something up?”

“No. Nothing,” Taehyung shook his head, fixing the film rolls again. 

“Liar,” Diana narrowed her eyes, methodically placing the items of her camera bag on the table. “Tell me.”

There was a stark difference between Diana and Y/N. Well, there were several, which caught Taehyung’s attention in the first place. The major one, however, was how Diana liked to press Taehyung for information, and Y/N let him come around and tell her his thoughts when he was ready. Yoongi was in his head again, taunting him. Calling him out for using Diana as a distraction. 

“I’m fine, Diana,” Taehyung sighed, hoping someone else would arrive momentarily so he would have a better excuse to talk about something else. “Don’t worry about it.”

“I bet it’s something at home. The other hybrids you live with must be causing you trouble. That has to be rough, living with so many others. Poor Taehyungie,” Diana cooed, making Taehyung’s hair stand on end. “Sort of selfish for a human to adopt that many hybrids. She should know how stressful that is for us.”

“She’s the least selfish human I’ve ever met,” Taehyung reacted as if someone struck him with a fire poker. A light, surprised hiss came from behind him, Taehyung cringing that he wasn’t able to keep the anger out of his response. To boot, he bumped into a basin filled with developing fluid, the liquid spilling everywhere. “Uh. Shit. I’m going to get more paper towels from the supply closet.”

“Wow. I get it now,” Diana breathed, Taehyung hardly able to look at the insecurity shadowing her features. 

“There’s nothing to get. I said nothing was wrong,” even Taehyung didn’t believe himself. Before he could brush by the bobcat hybrid, she caught his sleeve. Throat bobbing, he waited for her to speak. 

“This isn’t going to last, isn’t it?” Diana asked quietly, making Taehyung’s heart pound. “You love her too much.”

Taehyung didn’t answer. She was the second individual in less than 24 hours that brought that to his attention. When he had no reply, Diana sighed. 

“I hope you can figure it out, Taehyung. It’s not just you that you’re hurting,” Diana let him go, Taehyung fleeing from the room as swiftly as he could. 

He hated himself. Always running, running, running. From himself, from his problems, from those who grew to care about him. It made him sick, and instead of finding himself in the supply closet, he found himself in the bathroom, hurling up the hasty breakfast he had into a toilet bowl. Heaving, he thought about everyone he hurt. The man he killed– even if it was in self-defense. Diana. Y/N. Another dry heave had his body locking up, never feeling more miserable in his entire life. It was like every emotion he desperately locked away had unleashed themselves with a vengeance.

“Fuck,” Taehyung rinsed his mouth out at the sink, wiping away tears that tracked down his cheeks with the back of his sleeve. He had to get out of there.

Out in the parking lot before he could bump into any other members of the club, Taehyung pulled the keys to the station wagon out of his pocket, and like the tires were on fire he was leaving the rec center, Yoongi and Hoseok be damned. A problem for later, and to his misery, a problem that would probably have to be solved by Y/N. Slamming his palms against the steering wheel in frustration, he wondered if he’d ever stop making her life more difficult than it had to be. 

After half an hour of him driving catatonically, Taehyung was parked by the Boston Common. He decided to do the only thing that could potentially calm him down; walk around the park and take pictures until his fingers and mind was numb. Shoving a beanie over his head, simply so he wouldn’t have to deal with people staring at his ears, he grabbed his camera and hauled himself outside. 

The anonymity brought him a semblance of comfort. With the beanie on, he looked like any other human, so he passed by groups of children without them pointing at his ears peacefully. Taehyung spent the better part of two hours taking pictures of early blooming flowers, the task controlling his newfound raging emotions. Zooming in on a pink tulip, Taehyung’s ears picked up a sweet giggle even with his hearing muffled by the beanie. He went pale, the giggle sound very close to Y/N’s, Taehyung fell backwards on his ass from his crouch, searching for her face amongst the throngs of people. How would she even know he was there?

Suddenly, the laughter was closer, Taehyung whipping his head around to spot a young woman who wasn’t Y/N at all. She wasn’t by herself, she was pointing at flowers, her arm linked with a tall man beside her. The wind carried their scents, the woman just a human, but the man was a hybrid, some kind of feline. Frozen, Taehyung gawked at them, the pair totally wrapped up in their own little world. His fingertips twitched, a certain part of him wanting to snap a photograph of the two, but he couldn’t move. It was the look in their eyes. 

Taehyung had seen the expression on the male hybrid’s face before. He’d seen it on Yoongi when Y/N would determinedly practice his compositions beside him on the piano. Seokjin often wore the same look whenever Y/N would enter a room. Once or twice, he swore he saw it on Jimin whenever the two of them would work on the garden beds. 

And the one the woman was wearing? As she glanced at her hybrid companion picking a flower from the dirt for her? It was pure adoration, easy and sweet. One that Y/N offered him, all of them, endlessly. Taehyung then knew.

“Who’s that?” Jimin asked when Y/N’s phone went off for the third time, the two of them covered in soil as they transferred flowers into one of the garden beds. 

“Spam risk. I keep trying to block the number but then another one will replace it. I think some newspaper peddlers got a hold of my cell,” Y/N grimaced, switching her phone off. “So annoying…”

Jimin grunted, packing soil loosely around one of the plants. Spring was fast approaching, so whenever she had a moment to spare, she was out with the coyote hybrid setting up the garden. Judy hadn’t forwarded any new consultation cases for her, Namjoon, and Jeongguk, so the three of them would sit in the shop during her shifts and basically stock inventory. On the bright side, with the two of them there, she’d get to tell them what certain herbs were for witchcraft, sometimes Jeongguk would explain who was on the saint medallions, and what they represented. 

“Maybe you should change your number,” Jimin pointed out, concerned. Nudging her elbow into his ribs, Y/N shook her head. 

“Nah, that would be a total pain in the ass. They’ll give up eventually,” Y/N brushed it off, turning her head to survey the completed garden bed beside her, filled with culinary and witchy herbs. “I’m so excited to start using these herbs. But even more excited to see what we can grow and cook!”

“Me too. Maybe you can teach me how to make something besides pancakes. I was never much of a cook,” Jimin admitted, admiring the glow on her face. 

“You could always go to a cooking class with Seokjin and I. He’d love that, it gives him a chance to show off,” Y/N replied, running her fingers over the rosemary plant in the herb box. “Oh, yeah. Speaking of classes, I know you were interested in maybe taking one once the universities started offering them.”

“I… yeah. If it’s okay, I mean,” Jimin paused, setting down the rake he was holding, Y/N groaning. “Huh?”

“Jimin, of course it’s okay. You guys need to get it through your pretty, thick, skulls that it’s alright to ask for things,” Y/N grasped onto Jimin’s arm, playfully shaking him. The alarm in his eyes changed to surprise, his cheeks hot. “What kind of classes interest you?”

Jimin, contrary to his usual impeccable self-control, had a whine leaving his throat, brushing dirt off of his jeans bashfully. Y/N shook him again with a coo, trying to coax it out of him.

“W-writing. I like reading, but I want to learn how to write down things I’ve seen,” Jimin mumbled, now picking dirt out from beneath his fingernails. “We had basic education on the ranch, but we never really learned how to write creatively. It wasn’t necessary.”

“Creative writing! Sounds like fun, have you looked into any local universities, if they’ll offer that?”

“Yeah, Boston College is going to,” Jimin was completely pink, Y/N finding his shyness adorable. “In the fall.”

“So, are we signing you up?” Y/N cocked her head, Jimin growing redder by the second. “C’mon, Jimin. You should! It’ll be fun for you to meet some new people, write together.”

“If it’s okay–” Y/N shot Jimin a glare, making him cut himself off, chuckling nervously. “I’d like to try it out.”

“Great! As soon as there’s information about applications, let me know, I’ll help fill them out if you need me to,” Y/N cheered, pumped for the coyote hybrid. “Oh! If the classes are in the fall, it’ll be after our trip to Montana to visit your family. We can tell them about it too!”

Jimin stuttered, apparently haven forgotten about Y/N’s promise to take him out west. Blonde hair falling into his eyes, Jimin flashed her a shaky smile, nodding. She opened her mouth to continue, when her phone went off again. Agitated, this time she actually picked up, murmuring an apology to Jimin. 

“Hello? Please stop calling. I’m not interested in anything you’re selling,” Y/N spoke firmly, Jimin watching her with rapt interest. 

“Actually, I’m interested in something you could sell me,” A slimy, smug male voice answered. Wrinkling her nose, she exchanged a puzzled look with Jimin. 

“I think you have the wrong number. I’m not selling anything. Please stop calling,” Y/N was about to hang up, when the man scoffed. 

“You’re Y/N L/N, right?” The man’s tone turned condescending, Jimin’s ears perking up protectively as he listened in on the conversation. “You’ll want to sell when you find out what I’m offering.”

“Fuck off,” Y/N barked, an icky sensation filling her. She hung up, blocked the number, and turned off her phone with jerky movements. “Ew. Telemarketers are getting creepier and creepier.”

“That was… worrisome,” Jimin’s eyes softened when Y/N appeared slightly disturbed, offering him a half-smile. 

“No, it’s fine. Just trying to intimidate me into giving my credit card number, probably,” Y/N shook off her nerves, blindly searching behind her for another pot of flowers to plant. 

“We’ve planted them all, Y/N. Yoongi will probably want your help with dinner, you want to head in and wash up before then?” Jimin changed the subject. Instinct told him to look further into what he perceived to be a threat, but if Y/N wasn’t too concerned, he decided to let it go. For now. 

“Good idea. It’ll be a while before we plant the vegetables, anyways,” Y/N agreed absently, letting Jimin help her up with an arm around her waist. “We’ll start planning our trip to Montana in a couple of weeks! Right after we come back from New York to visit Hannah.”

“Sounds good,” Jimin agreed, reluctant to let her go once she was back on her feet. “I’ll help any way that I can.”

“You know how to book airline tickets?” Y/N teased, both of them making their way back to the house. However, when they entered the kitchen, the lack of Yoongi occupying the room had them both stopping in their tracks. “Weird. He should be home by now. Maybe Hoseok convinced him and Taehyung to stop for pizza?”

“Seems like the most likely possibility,” Jimin nodded, switching on the lights. “Maybe ask Seokjin?”

“Yeah, I think I will. See you in a bit, okay, sweetheart?” 

Y/N left Jimin in the foyer, the coyote hybrid off to take his shower, Y/N deciding to do the same before she sought out Seokjin for any information. 

Meanwhile, Yoongi was incessantly trying to call Y/N, getting sent directly to voicemail each time. Cursing, he wondered if it was karma for jumping down Taehyung’s throat that he was now stuck at the rec center with Hoseok, without a way to get home. 

“Why the fuck would he leave us here? I get why the wolf hates him hour by hour,” Hoseok complained, leaning against a cement pillar in the lobby of the rec center. His gym bag was by his feet, exhausted from a day of both coaching and practicing with his own team. The fox hybrid was ready to throttle Taehyung. “I’m gonna hide all of his cameras if we ever get back. Y/N still not picking up?”

“No. I think she turned off her phone, the spam callers were probably bothering her,” Yoongi mumbled, tucking his freshly-showered hair behind his ear. “This is fucked. Should we call a cab?”

“I don’t think we can,” Hoseok whistled his three-tone tune, mouth set in a sardonic smirk. “Call someone else. Call Jinnie, maybe he’ll pick up.”

Yoongi, hissing, did just that, ready to blow his brains out when the jaguar hybrid didn’t answer the call either. It was just his luck, getting stuck with Hoseok at the rec center with no one coming to get them, when all he wanted to do was have a beer and rot on the couch the rest of the evening. Hoseok was annoying the shit out of him, pacing around the lobby, ordering him around. In a last-ditch effort, he called the next number on his phone.

“Why the fuck are you calling me?” Jeongguk picked up on the third ring, his voice a sarcastic drawl. 

“Taehyung ditched Foxy and I at the rec center. Y/N’s phone is off. We’re stuck here,” Yoongi snarled, fed up with the three hybrids pushing his buttons at the moment. 

“And what would you like me to do about that? You know I don’t drive,” Jeongguk sounded like he was rolling his eyes, Yoongi pressing his forehead to the cinderblock wall and praying for patience. 

“Well, first, you can remove the stick from your ass. Then, you can put me on the phone with someone who can come and fucking pick us up before the janitors lock us in here.”

“Nice,” Hoseok commented from across the room, giving Yoongi a thumbs-up of approval, his russet tail swishing merrily. 

There was a sound of rustling, before Namjoon’s confused voice filled Yoongi’s ears.

“I can come get you,” Namjoon said through the receiver, Yoongi muttering hallelujah. “What about Taehyung? What do I say to Y/N?” 

“Let me handle that when I get back. If you say something now, she’ll freak,” Yoongi ordered, Namjoon making a noise of agreement. “He’s probably just fucking around with his cameras in the park and forgot about us.”

“Asshole. Alright, I’ll be there in twenty,” Namjoon hung up, Yoongi putting his head in his hands.

“What’s wrong? He’ll be here soon,” Hoseok approached the leopard hybrid, hands on his hips.

“Y/N is going to be pissed,” Yoongi leaned his head back against the wall, rubbing his temples.

“Well, yeah. Not at us, though, don’t sweat the shit,” Hoseok bumped his hip against Yoongi’s. “It’s Taehyung that’s going to be in the doghouse.”

“Yeah I know. I think it’s my fault he’s lost his fucking mind, though.”

“What are you talking about? Did you say something to him?” Hoseok exclaimed, surprised.

“I told him something he didn’t wanna hear, but had to know.”

“Oh, you’re so fucked, dude,” Hoseok tsked, walking to the doors and peering outside. “Guess we’ll see.”

“What in the fuck are you talking about?” Y/N got out of the shower and walked into a whole new pile of shit. “He left you there? Where is he now, is he back yet?”

Y/N was livid. Every hybrid in the room, Yoongi, Namjoon, and Hoseok, all had their ears pressed to their skulls, like they were going to be punished. The only one she cared to scold was Taehyung, more worried about him than she ever had been. 

“No,” Namjoon broke the silence bravely, Y/N ready to tear her hair out. 

“Perfect. Absolutely perfect. Let me call him,” Y/N turned her phone back on, glancing at everyone in the room, tails between their legs. “I’m not mad at you guys, it’s not your fault. He’s been a pain in my ass for like three weeks now. He’s lashing out, for whatever reason… I gotta get Laura over here, do some conflict resolution…”

Hoseok gave Yoongi an encouraging eyebrow raise, the fox hybrid slyly spiriting himself down in the basement to change. Meanwhile, Namjoon went back outside to check the driveway for any sign of the station wagon Taehyung hijacked. Only Yoongi remained, Y/N wondering why he looked so suspicious, shifting from one foot to another. Tabling that for a moment, she dialed Taehyung’s number, ready to chew him out. To Yoongi’s astonishment, the Kodiak hybrid answered right away. 

“I’m on my way back to the rec center now, I just lost track of time in the park, now there’s rush hour traffic–”

“Don’t bother,” Y/N cut him off, seething. Yoongi had never seen Y/N so pissed off at someone (other than himself, when he was being elusive about their first meeting). “Namjoon picked them up a half hour ago. They were waiting for two hours for you, Taehyung. How could you take off like that?”

“I–I…”

“We’ll talk when you’re home. I told you that it was fine for you to go wherever you please, Taehyung, but to take off without a word? Leaving the other two behind?”

“I’m sorry,” Taehyung’s voice was thick, the sounds of Boston traffic coming through the receiver. The pain in his voice had her heart breaking.

“Just get back here, okay? Drive carefully, Taehyung.”

Y/N hung up, arms limp by her side, Yoongi eyeing her carefully. 

“Can I have a hug?” Y/N asked hollowly, Yoongi springing into action promptly by gathering her in his arms, ashamed that he likely set that whole thing in motion. Y/N was too exhausted to even cry, simply hiding her face into Yoongi’s hoodie, bathing in his comfort. 

“Y/N… I think this might be my fault,” Yoongi cradled the back of her head, Y/N snorting humorlessly. 

“How? You were the one that was ditched,” Y/N pulled away, tucking hair behind Yoongi’s ear. 

“Yesterday morning. I confronted Taehyung about his behavior. Maybe this is karma kicking my ass,” Yoongi confessed, Y/N’s eyebrows pulling together.  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything to him.”

“Well, that depends on what you said,” Y/N replied slowly, fear creeping into her gut. Surely, Yoongi wouldn’t tell Taehyung how she felt about him?

“I didn’t tell him how you feel. That’s up to you,” Yoongi said quickly, Y/N breathing out in relief. “I just– I was pretty harsh. Told him to stop acting shifty. I was just trying to protect you.”

“I appreciate that,” Y/N squeezed his shoulder, his ears perking back up at the touch. “I should fight my own fights though, angel. Talking to Tae about matters of the heart… is tricky. Delicate.” 

“You’re not upset with me?” Yoongi purred, secretly pleased. 

“Not that much. You’ll have to make it up to me in the future, though,” Y/N flicked his hoop earring, not having the energy to get upset with Taehyung and Yoongi. Yoongi, relieved, ducked and stamped a kiss on her forehead. 

“With pleasure,” Yoongi placed another kiss on the tip of her nose, grasping for her hand. “Come. Let’s start on dinner, take your mind off things until he gets back.”

Minutes crawled as she and Yoongi began chopping vegetables for a quick curry recipe, Seokjin joining them after a while, the jaguar hybrid helpfully making the rice to go with the main dish. She dropped the knife she was holding when the front door creaked open solemnly, the two feline hybrids in the room with her exchanging uneasy side-eyes. After she hung up from Taehyung, Y/N cooled down somewhat, and was mostly just relieved he had made it home. Yoongi and Seokjin remained behind in the kitchen, and Y/N went into the foyer to meet Taehyung. She hadn’t seen him, physically, in over 24 hours. He looked like a mess. 

Normally golden skin ashen and a touch green, eyes tired and lacking their usual sparkle, Taehyung stood in front of her with his shoulders slumped. 

“You’re back,” was all Y/N said, a lump in her throat. “What happened?”

“I just– I went into the city to take photos. Forgot that they’d be without a car,” Taehyung pulled at the hem of his sweater, avoiding her eyes. “I’m so sorry, I won’t do that again. I didn’t mean to.”

“Um, okay. I accept the apology, but it’s Yoongi and Hoseok you should probably apologize to. Namjoon as well, he picked up the slack,” Y/N’s chest throbbed painfully. She didn’t know how much more she could take of seeing Taehyung in such distress. “Tae, have you been sleeping? You look like you don’t feel well.”

Y/N took a step forward, panic flashing over Taehyung’s face. Did he think she was going to hurt him? He glanced at the stairs, towards his bedroom, and shook curls out of his eyes. 

“I think I caught a bug from the rec center. I don’t want to get you or the others sick. I’ll… apologize in the morning,” Taehyung breathed, his voice cracking on the last word he uttered. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I am.”

With that, Taehyung left. Y/N had not a drop of energy to chase after him. She was tired of waiting for him to be honest with her. Y/N decided then and there that she would listen to Namjoon, who swore to her that Taehyung would eventually come around. Putting her faith in her wolf hybrid, she swallowed down her agony and returned to the kitchen to finish making dinner. 

“How you doin’?” Hoseok stared down at Y/N, who was standing below him while he sat on the metal bleachers. Y/N snorted at his silly accent, his attempt to make her laugh. 

“Oh, you know. Another day in the life,” Y/N sang, pulling her jacket around her tightly. “First outdoor meet of the season. You excited?”

“A bit,” Hoseok swung his feet in front of her face, his expression turning contemplative. “Too bad all the other lumps I live with didn’t want to watch it.”

“What, am I not enough?” Y/N teased, catching the loose shoelaces dangling before her. With a hum, she grasped his ankle, gingerly tying the laces so he wouldn’t trip on the track. 

“You’ll suffice,” Hoseok relented dramatically, wiggling his foot in her hold playfully. “Hope you’re not as upset as you were the other night. We’re worried about you.”

“Ah, Ho-seok,” Y/N complained, considering she had put the drama at home aside to watch his meet peacefully. “Don’t worry. I’m a big girl, if I can’t handle road bumps from time to time, I might as well be a princess.”

“You know… there’s a French saying. ‘Après la pluie, le beau temps’. That basically means after wading through the shit, something good will happen,” Hoseok sobered, reaching up to the bar above him and swinging his body through the slats of the bleachers so he could stand in front of her. 

“Is that a literal translation?” Y/N drawled sarcastically, Hoseok smirking at her and pinching her nose.

“No. The literal translation is ‘after the rain, good weather.’ The sentiment is the same, though. Things will blow over.”

“Wait a second, you speak French?” Y/N blinked, even when his coach’s whistle blew to call the team members to the track. She never even considered that he could, even though he was born in Paris. That made her feel quite silly.

“Pensez-vous que l'hiver sera rude, darling?” Hoseok called, jogging backwards with a wink. He was off, quick as lightning, Y/N pulling out a translation app while repeating the words he shot at her. 

“‘Do you think winter will be hard’? It’s the end of fucking March, you goober,” Y/N scoffed to herself, though despite the ridiculousness, a grin tugged at her lips. 

A while later, back at home once Hoseok won first place in the mile run again, Y/N decided to tidy up her room. Full of energy somehow, she started at her altar by organizing items on the vanity. She had the moonstone Namjoon once gave her front and center, and against the mirror were Jeongguk’s antlers. Recently, Jimin had dried a bunch of lavender and sage for her to use in her practice, so Y/N used natural string to bind the leaves into a bundle for smoke cleansing. Enjoying a few moments to herself, Y/N lit a candle on her altar, burning some calming sandalwood incense to really let loose. It was only a matter of time before one of her boys sought her out, which didn’t bother her in the slightest, but the rare solitude was refreshing as she wrapped the bundle up tightly. 

Almost as soon as she tied the last knot, there was a knock on her bedroom door. 

“Come in!”

“Hi, pretty!” Seokjin slunk into the room, shutting the door behind him. In his arms was her laptop and a fuzzy blanket from his bedroom, and he was dressed in sweats and a slouchy white tee shirt. “Wanna watch a movie with me? I miss you!”

“Of course,” Y/N melted on the vanity stool she was seated on, Seokjin placing her laptop and the blanket on her bed. Before she could get up, Seokjin was behind her, a closed-lipped smile on his face reflected in the mirror. “I miss you too! I’m all yours this afternoon.”

“We could watch Emma. I just finished reading it and waited, like you suggested. What do you think?” Seokjin began to make a nest on the bed for the two of them to curl up into, Y/N watching him through the mirror and setting the herb bundle she made down. 

“Yes, please! I haven’t seen it yet, surprisingly. I wonder how it’ll compare to the book.”

“I guess we’ll see,” Seokjin mused, straightening up and shutting her curtains, attempting to create the perfect environment to watch a movie. Again, Y/N adored that trait Seokjin possessed, the ability to figure out exactly what she needed to decompress. Once he was satisfied with how everything looked, he turned his attention to her, trudging over cutely. 

Seokjin leaned down to kiss the top of her head, his entire body suddenly locking up as soon as his nose was buried in her hair, a growl low in his throat. Suddenly, he wasn’t so cute. “Oh.”

“What? Do I smell? Is it the incense smoke?” Y/N frowned in the mirror, Seokjin’s palms curling around her shoulders heavily. 

“No, you smell…” Seokjin pulled her up to a stance, spinning her around and shoving his face in her neck. “So good.”

“You always s-say that,” Y/N mumbled, embarrassed and slightly turned on. It had been at least a couple of weeks since someone touched her in a more heated way. Part of her brain– distantly– wondered if he had to scent her or something, with the way he was backing her against a wall. The sudden change in the mood had her reeling. 

“Mm, but something’s different,” Seokjin’s words took on that siren-like quality he usually reserved when he was alone with her, Y/N’s lips dropping open to reply. However, her words were choked from her as Seokjin dragged his tongue from her collar bone up to just below her ear, shuddering against her. “Sweeter. Stronger.”

“W-well, I haven’t done anything different,” Y/N clutched the front of his tee shirt desperately, eyes going wide when he shoved a knee between her legs. “Seokjin. Baby. Are we really…?”

“Mmmph,” Seokjin’s speech was muffled, considering he was frantically dragging his face and lips across every exposed patch of skin around her neck and upper chest. “Just wanna. Mm. Kiss you.”

“Then kiss me,” Y/N egged him on, Seokjin nibbling along her jugular. 

“Not… n-not while they’re here,” Seokjin sounded strained, regretful. “I don’t want them to hear you with me.”

“I didn’t say fuck me, Seokjin,” Y/N protested, a strangled noise coming from the jaguar hybrid. “You can still kiss me.”

“Fuck, okay,” Seokjin relented, sliding his lips from her throat to her jaw, littering kisses all over the sharp angle. “God, you’re irresistible. What are you doing to me?”

“Nothing,” Y/N whined, wrapping her arms around his neck urgently, pressing her chest to his and getting on her tip-toes. Absently, Seokjin pressed a palm against her lower abdomen, which had her stomach flipping over unexpectedly. 

“You have no idea how good you smell right now. You must be ov– I… makes me wanna–”

“Wanna what?” Y/N breathed “What am I?”

Seokjin pulled away a degree, his face flushed and eyes wild, predatory. Lust and thrill pulsed through her, but she wasn’t about to escalate things when Seokjin expressed he didn’t want to take things further while the other hybrids were still in the house. His hand still pressed against her abdomen, she looked down, confused. Ov… ovulating. The realization had heat flashing though her violently. 

“Yeah,” Seokjin read the sudden understanding blossoming across her face, restraint in his posture. Swooping down, his lips landed on hers in a heavy kiss, but it was short and sweet. “Remember what you asked me about a couple of weeks ago?”

“Uh-huh,” Y/N nodded, trying not to whimper when he removed his knee from between her legs, stepping aside. When she asked him about ruts. 

“I think next month might be my time,” Seokjin was scarlet red, adjusting his sweatpants awkwardly. “Judging by my reaction to your scent at this point in your, um. Cycle.” 

“D-damn. I thought I was the one famous for dropping bombshells,” Y/N attempted to recover from the sudden attack on her neck and chest, though cutting through her lust was also a concern. “Next month? You’ll tell me how to prepare for that, right?”

Seokjin nodded eagerly, despite his clear embarrassment. 

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to ambush you like that.”

“It’s okay, it’s natural for you, honey,” Y/N grabbed his hand, bringing it to her lips and kissing his knuckles reassuringly. “You still want to watch the movie with me? I don’t want the scent torturing you.”

“I still want to spend time with you,” Seokjin quickly shot her doubts down, urging her towards the bed. “The scent just caught me off guard. I swear, I can control myself.”

“Too bad,” Y/N quipped, Seokjin clicking his tongue at her but snorting softly at her jest nonetheless. 

“You’re so easy to rile up, Y/N. It might get you in trouble with me in the future,” Seokjin warned, pushing on her shoulders slightly so she’d flop onto the bed bonelessly. “Scoot over and play the movie, hmm?”

The teasing threat had sparks shooting through her veins, and she obeyed him completely by making space for him, waiting until he was comfortable and pulling her into his side before playing the film on her laptop. Y/N let Seokjin nuzzle into the crook of her neck for pretty much the entire movie, positively amazed by his self-restraint. 

“The book was better, so far,” Seokjin commented halfway through, tail curling around Y/N’s waist. 

“I agree, but it’s still nice to watch this with you,” Y/N stroked her hand through Seokjin’s silky waves, content. “Let’s watch Pride and Prejudice next.”

“Again?” Seokjin exclaimed, finally retreating from the crook of her neck with amusement all over his handsome face. 

“Come on, Seokjinnie. I thought you liked spoiling me,” Y/N jutted out her lower lip and batted her eyelashes, trying to lay it on thick just so she could spend more time with him. 

“A little bit too much,” Seokjin leaned his head back, relenting. “Queue it up.”

That evening ended with her and Seokjin falling asleep with movies still playing in the background. The following morning involved Y/N doing menial chores once untangling herself from a very clingy Seokjin, wiping sweat from her brow as she vacuumed the entire first floor. The task distracted her from thinking about the sticky situation with Taehyung and the fact that Seokjin told her to expect his rut to hit the following month, lining up pretty closely with their trip to New York. Talk about timing. 

Her phone had been going off all morning with more spam calls. She ignored every single one, starting to agree with Jimin that she’d have to change her phone number in the near future. Taking a break, she sat down on the staircase, an email notification popping up on the screen from her boss, Judy. Curiosity and excitement stuck through her, hoping for a new case so Jeongguk would stop suggesting the three of them investigate local haunted churches as she tapped on the message. 

Judy@sacredcuriosities.com: 

Y/N, Jeongguk, and Namjoon, 

I hope you are all doing well. I would first like to congratulate and thank you for your success at the Sanders’ home. Ms. Sanders has reached out to me and raved about your professionality and dedication to helping them. 

I’ve received information about a new consultation I’d like to hand over to you three. There’s a bed and breakfast inside of Boston city that has changed hands many times. The rumors that it is dangerously haunted drives customers away, aside from amateur paranormal investigative crews. The newest manager stated that these amateur crews have increased the activity tenfold. 

Considering the business may be shut down due to lack of revenue, the manager has reached out to me for a potential cleansing and banishment. Would this be something the three of you would consider handling? Let me know when you come into work tomorrow, and I’ll email the manager for more information. 

Blessed be, 

Judy

Screenshotting the email, she sent it to Namjoon and Jeongguk in their group chat titled Dream Team. She wasn’t expecting an immediate response, considering the two of them were out in the van picking up a short list of necessities from the drugstore in town. Her phone started to buzz in her palm, and her reflex was to throw it considering the amount of spam calls she had been getting lately. However, she relaxed once she saw that it was Laura calling, to her happy shock. 

“Hi Laura! Long time no chat! How are you, Kai and Tyler?” 

“Hey baby, sorry to keep you in the lurch. Ty and I have been looking all around the area for a good preschool to enroll Kai in next fall. You wouldn’t believe the loops you have to jump through to get a nearly four-year-old into preschool!” Laura sounded exasperated, but still retained her sunny sound. 

“Oh, no worries! Adult life really takes the wind out of you, huh? I sometimes feel like I’m chasing my tail.”

“Was that a pun? Y/N, last time you started making puns all the time, you were writing your thesis and living off of caffeine,” Laura accused, making her crack up. After so long, she missed her girlfriends making wise cracks at her expense. 

“It wasn’t, but thanks for the laugh. I needed it.”

“What’s up? You sound high-strung, baby.”

“The usual. I could use your conflict resolution skills right about now. Any chance you’re free in the next eight months?” Y/N joked, even though she was half-serious as well. 

“I’m free on Saturday. Want me to swing by? Fresh perspective might be useful. You’re all by yourself over there, diffusing situations.”

“Can I text you about it before you come? You’re sure you’re willing?” 

“Am I sure? Y/N, we’ve been like sisters for years. I’d do anything for you, just like you would for me. I’ll help you out!”

“Do you want me to babysit Kai on Saturday night? Date night?” Y/N offered, a smile on her face. 

“Y/N, I could kiss you. I need a date night so bad, you have no idea. I’ll bring him by when I come for the little meeting. Text me the details so I’m prepared, alright? Love you, baby.”

“Bye Laura, love you,” Y/N massaged her sore lower back, strained from dragging the ancient vacuum around all day. Grunting, she stood, resuming her task so she would be done by midday and perhaps take a nice, long shower.

Just after shoving the vacuum back into the coat closet, the front door banged open, Y/N flinching and shouting a colorful swear. Poking her head around the staircase, she stared daggers at the figure clad in black waltzing through the door. 

“Jeongguk! I’ve told you at least three times to be careful with the door. If you break the stained glass, I’m dragging your candy ass to the auctions to find exact replacements. And that could take months,” Y/N threatened, marching up to him and taking the bulk-sized package of toilet paper from him with her tongue sticking out. 

“Judas priest. That’s like the first time a threat of yours has actually frightened me,” Jeongguk scoffed incredulously, Namjoon gently locking up the door behind him with several bags of his own. 

“Quiet and bring everything down to the basement,” Namjoon requested, Y/N able to tell that he was sick to the back teeth of hanging out with Jeongguk for the afternoon based on the agitated swish to his fluffy silver tail. 

Y/N assisted them in putting everything under the basement stairs, Jeongguk able to duck under the tight space now that he didn’t have his antlers taking up so much headroom. 

“You guys get my text?”

Both of them appeared confused, Y/N watching with a snicker as they fumbled for their pockets on the way back up to the ground floor. Waiting as they read the screenshotted image Y/N bounced on her toes, their eager expressions having a warm, fond sensation filling her entire body. Jeongguk’s mouth opened, no doubt ready to ask one hundred questions, but he was interrupted by some rapt knocking on the front door. Namjoon recoiled, since he knew that with his and Jeongguk’s return back home, everyone should be accounted for. 

“Ah, it’s probably a Girl Scout or something. Hold on,” Y/N gave Namjoon a soft arm pat as she passed by him, unlocking the door and pulling it open. Instead of a little girl she was ready to fork over significant cash to in order for a large shipment of Thin Mints, there was a middle-aged man standing on her porch. 

“Um, hello, sir. Can I help you?” Y/N assessed the person in front of her. He didn’t appear to be holding onto any pamphlets like a Jehovah Witness, and the expensive, well-tailored suit he was wearing didn’t make him seem like a robber of any kind. However, his greasy, expectant face had her a little on edge. 

“Y/N L/N. You’ve been dodging my calls,” the same slick voice from the phone call she had in front of Jimin days ago was now several feet away, pure horror flooding through her system. “Figured I should swing by.”

“Who the fuck are you? How did you find my house?” Y/N raised her voice, and in less than a second flat, Namjoon was on her right, growling darkly, and Jeongguk was on her left, a firm grip on her elbow that felt protective. Instead of backing away in fright, the man smiled slimily, a gold tooth replacing one of his normal incisors, looking from Namjoon to Jeongguk like they were prime plots of real estate. 

“Real nice animals you’ve got there. Gerry’s Hybrids is where you got them, am I correct?”

“You have about five seconds to get the fuck off this porch,” Namjoon’s tone had never been more deadly, the man simply barking out a laugh. 

“Oh, he’s a pill. Just what I was looking for.”

“What do you want? Jeongguk, call the cops,” Y/N placed a hand over his, but the elk hybrid wouldn’t budge. 

“Ms. L/N. The name’s Harold Bass, from Manhattan. Those hybrids next to you, and the other five no doubt lurking around in this dump of yours, were supposed to belong to me.”

“That’s too bad. They’re mine, now get the fuck off my property,” Y/N was about to slam the door in his face, unable to believe the guy’s audacity. It had been so many months since Y/N had adopted her boys, she never even considered that this guy would try and find her. 

“Before you close this piece of plywood on me, you should know something. I’m giving you an ultimatum.” 

“What the fuck?” She breathed, Harold’s nose curling at her continued use of profanity. He reached into his suit jacket, Namjoon grabbing Y/N’s other arm and pulling her partially behind him. 

“Here’s the deal. You either take my generous offer for the animals, or I take you to court for stolen property. This is an agreement I signed with Gerry stating I had them on hold. I put a deposit down before you ‘adopted’ them.”

“What?” Y/N squeaked, bile rising in her throat. 

“Simple, simple girl. Gerry mentioned you weren’t the sharpest tool in the shed,” Harold sneered, all venom and acid. “Are you hard of hearing?”

“Namjoon, please,” begged, grasping a fistful of the back of his sweatshirt to stop him from lunging at Harold. “I don’t understand, Mr. Bass. I’ve legally adopted them. You can’t take my boys away.”

“No? You haven’t heard my offer?”

“There is absolutely nothing you can offer me.”

“Not even one million dollars for the seven of them?”

Jeongguk swore from beside her, his grasp on her elbow loosening. Even Namjoon went statue still, all of the color draining from his face. Y/N was really going to be sick, her two hybrids evidently already concluding she’d take that offer. 

“Fuck. That. And fuck you. Get off my property,” Y/N spat, finally managing to slam the door shut and lock the deadbolt in place. Breathing raggedly, she saw the shadow of Harold Bass behind the stained glass beside the front door. He was laughing, Y/N could hear it even with the barrier of the locked door. 

“Well then. You’d best get a good lawyer, Ms. L/N. You’ll be hearing from mine soon– and it’s a call you cannot ignore.”

Taglist; @blancflms @grazysf @sbromp @jaxavance @sunderlight @ot7nem @mageprincess7 @wittyreader @drenix004 @mayla548 @skyys-universe @ddaeng-angmoh @trtlthts @exfolitae @kalala22 @xiusmarshmallow @bangtans-momma @zae007live @paigetj @singukieee @serendididy @lilacdreams-00 @dreamerwasfound @ninjacups @osakis-gf @itwillbealways-d @xthefuckerysquaredx @momowantscats @molshole @gooooooomz @uarmyhore @lopprhe @oopscoop @xicanacorpse @i-like-anime13 @hemziii @demarie04 @im-sinking-in-mud @talkyoongitome @bangtxnbxunch @primrose2507 @kihyunniesmonbebe @7evensin @lilmxchis @00ihatesnaku @neverthefirstchoice @missyoueverysingleday @cathy-1997 @prybts @doublebunv @milopenne @steadycreationangel @rinkud @breadcheeksseokjin @nikkiordonez12 @actualz0mbie @tinybasementmaker-blog @hufflepuffwriter1995

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[chaos-in-deepspace]

LADS Xavier: Stardust | SFW Angst

So anyway, did y'all see the um...story branch trailer for Xavier that was posted an hour ago? Well. Here we go. 1.2k with angst and comfort.

Pairings: Xavier x Reader Warnings: Angst but with Comfort Disclaimer: This is an original fan work for “Love and Deepspace”. Do not repost on other platforms or plagiarize. All characters shown in this fic is 18+.

Blog Information | Masterlist

Xavier

“Xavier,” your voice cracked as you saw him clutching his chest. He collapsed onto the ground as you rushed over to him, grabbing his hand, “Xavier!” you said it more forcefully. How were you supposed to know this would happen? One moment, you were fighting wanderers, trying to find clues on a possible Aethercore, and the next…how did this happen? You don’t even remember how you got here; the only thing on your mind is Xavier right now.

“I-I’m,” his voice cracked, and it almost sounded like a death rattle as you heard the sharp intake of air. It was almost like his lungs refused to allow anything inside of them right now. YOu couldn’t even register the wetness on your cheeks as you tried cupping his cheeks.

He was so pale, so cold. How did this happen? How did this happen to him? Your heart beat erratically as you looked at him, his eyes already glazed over. You could see the shine of whatever collar was around his neck. You know you had seen it before, and he never told you why it was there, but now it was so much clearer. Another shaky intake of air, this time almost wet like his lungs were filling up with water.

“What can I do?” you said, trying to help him. Why was he glowing now? His body seemed brighter, almost like the light of his evol. It was unnatural as you looked at him. His temperature hadn’t changed; he was still cold as ice, and his skin was now clammy. “Xavier, please tell me there’s something I can do.” You cried out.

Then you saw it, the paleness of his face as he looked up at you; those brilliant blue eyes now lacked the normal luster they always held. They were almost hollowed, ghosts of their former self, and completely unfocused as he tried looking directly at you, “It’ll be okay?” he said, “I promise, it’ll all be alright.” He tried to assure you, but his voice was so quiet and almost distant. It was like he was speaking so far away, his words echoing through a tunnel, and you realized now that it was because there was too much blood rushing in your ears. You were panicking; you were losing him.

“Please, Xavier, don’t…” you said, choking out a sob, “You can’t leave me, not like this. There’s still so much we have to do.” You cried out, holding onto him for dear life. Even as you held him, though, you could feel it. His body slowly became nothing, turning into the brilliant light that was normally a comfort to you. Now, it was mocking your naivety, thinking that things could stay the same as they always had. Thinking that in this lifetime you could find happiness with him.

This…lifetime.

“I promise, just look into the sky,” Xavier said, and through tears, you tried looking up, but it was overcast, “My light, I promise, it’ll always shine on you. Guide you. It’ll never be far.” He said, letting out a small cough. Then he was gone, and in an instant, your entire world crumbled. Your nails dug into the ground as you wailed into the night sky; the only thing left of Xavier was a singular star-shaped charm that you so often saw on his light blade.

He was gone, and you felt…so hollow. It was nothing like when Granny died or Caleb died. It was like a part of your soul was ripped out of your chest, and you could only stare at the ground, sobbing and letting your tears wet the dirt underneath you.

Then, there was a startled gasp from your throat. Your eyes snapping open to reveal nothing but darkness around you. As your eyes adjusted and you came to, you felt something warm around you, the brush of something soft on your wet cheeks and a voice that was so familiar and grounding it made you sob again.

Your eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and you could finally hear it, “It’s okay, shhhh it’s alright,” Xavier’s voice was trying to get you out of whatever nightmare you had been having. You turned in his arms and wrapped your own around his torso, pressing your face into his chest. You couldn’t help the sobs that escaped you, little hiccups leaving your throat as you cried into his chest. His hands never left you, one of them playing with your hair, the other rubbing along your upper back.

His words were soothing, letting you know he was there, he was with you, he’d protect you. But you couldn’t protect him. It sent you spiraling again as you hugged him closer, and you felt his lips on your forehead now, his hand rubbing away some of your tears as he forced you to look at him.

“Hey, come on, look at my little star,” he murmured, his voice calm despite your hysterics. You could hear his breathing for once, forcing your own to even out with his own as you felt your heart slowing down a bit, your body no longer in a complete panic despite how your mind still told you that you let him die.

“Xavier,” you finally said, your voice wrecked and broken as you cupped his cheek. It was warm under your palm, soothing; his skin wasn’t clammy, and he felt alive. His blue eyes shined down on you, and you realized then that he had used his evol to make speckles of yellow light engulf the entire room, creating a starry night scene around you.

“Yes, I’m here, it’s okay.” He said, taking your hand and kissing your knuckles, “I’m not going anywhere, so you can breathe.” He was soothing you, and you were melting into him. It was a nightmare, a bad dream, but it had felt so goddamn real.

“You’re really not going to leave me…” you began, biting your lower lip as you tried not to cry again, “You won’t turn to stardust, right? You won’t die on me, right? You’re gonna stay right here by my side.” You could see the way his eyes widened at your statement before taking on a more solemn look.

“I have never, and will never have any intention of leaving you,” he finally said, “My place is by your side, and I’ll do everything I can to remain by it, to make sure you’re okay.” He promised you, and you nodded.

“And what about you?” your voice sounded so tired, “You’ll make sure we’re both okay, right?” you asked, needing to hear it. Something flashed in his eyes as he took in a shaky breath, then he nodded.

“I’ll do everything I can to make sure we’re both okay.” He settled on. He was sitting up now, dragging you with him as he pulled you onto his lap and pressed his forehead against your own, “I’d never want to see you sad.”

“Then you have to stay alive, no matter what.” You spoke, knowing what you wanted, “Because without you…I…” he could see the tears welling up in your eyes again.

“I know, shhh, I know.” He was rocking you in his arms, “I’ll do my best not to die, okay?” they weren’t the words you needed to hear, but it was a little nice to hear his honesty. At least he’d put in the effort to stay alive for you.

“Okay,” you finally said, the word was barely a murmur as you closed your eyes, “Okay…”

[whattheshock]

⭐️ STAR TREATMENT (miguel o'hara band au)

summary: your childhood friend is trying to convince you to be his band's new manager, & one of the members piques your interest... wc: 969 cw: use of y/n, mentions of alcohol/drinking, miguel is kind of an ass

⋆part 1⋆ masterlist

“please… c’mon it’ll be fun!!”

“i said i’ll think about it after i see your show, okay?”

he gave you a little pout. “alright…” he gave you a friendly kiss on the cheek before running off backstage to join his band mates.

your childhood best friend, caleb, has been begging you to be the new manager for his band. it’s not that you didn’t want to do it for him or that you was too busy or anything, you were just… nervous, because their last manager quit & you didn’t know why. despite having no clue what could’ve happened to make them quit, you were willing to give them a shot. you told caleb you would consider becoming their new manager if you could meet them first, so he agreed to let you meet them after a show.

you walked through the doors of the club they were playing at tonight. they weren’t exactly famous (yet, as caleb would always add) so they only played a few gigs a month at local places. he’s shown you their music, but you’ve never actually been to one of their shows before. you walked through a dark hallway & past the poster for their band. you made my way out of the hallway & into the club, squinting at the sight of the bright stage lights. you went to the bar & ordered a drink before sitting on a velvet couch in the back corner of the club. you swirled my drink in your hand & took a sip, then, the lights on the stage became a bit brighter as the members took their positions.

"good evening, new york! or just a handful of new yorkers..." caleb said, getting a laugh out of the crowd. "we're spider sense! this first song is called 'aphrodisiac'..." he continued before they started playing their first song. you took a good look at all of the members. caleb, obviously, the lead singer, his reddish hair & freckled skin, sweaty & shining under the spotlight. the blond guitarist, fingers covered in tattoos move masterfully across the strings. the bassist with deep skin, gets the crowd hyped. the keyboard player with glasses, stares intensely at the keys.

then, your eyes shifted to the drummer, who was the definition of tall, dark, & handsome. he was built like some sort of god with a bunch of piercings. his dark hair was slicked back, but a few strands fell against his tan skin. his eyes were intense & so was his grip, his large hands holding onto his drumsticks as if he was afraid to let them go. he seemed so focused, so into the music. suddenly, his gaze met yours, & you quickly looked away, staring at your drink as you took another sip.

after a while, they finally finished their set. you lost count of how many songs they'd played, all you knew is that they were incredibly talented. you got up from your seat & started making your way to the stage. caleb saw you & helped you up onto the tall platform. "that was amazing!" you said as you got onto the stage, wrapping your arms around him in a hug. he returned it, holding you for a while before finally letting go.

"yo, caleb... you've been dating someone & you didn't tell us?" the bassist asked with a smirk as he slid his bass strap off of his shoulder.

"nah, this is just my best friend, we've known each other for forever..." he said with a smile. "[y/n] here is gonna be our new manager."

"caleb, i haven't agreed to anything yet..."

"please?"

"god, you're relentless..." you said with a bit of a laugh.

"y'know, we could really use a new manager, we've been kind of a mess without one..." the keyboard player said nervously as he scratched the back of his head.

"oh! i've gotta introduce everyone to you! this is aiden, our guitarist, dean, our bassist, daniel, our keyboardist, &-" suddenly, the drummer got up & walked backstage, a scowl on his face. "...& that would be our drummer & the reason our last manager quit, miguel."

you raised your eyebrows. "what happened?"

"no clue, all she said when she quit is that it was miguel's fault..."

"huh..." you was so curious, what could've happened? "you know what, caleb, i'll take you up on your offer... i'll be your manager."

"really?" he said excitedly, his eyes wide. "yes! thank you!" he picked you up in a hug & spun you around before setting you back down on the stage.

i smiled. "is it okay if i go backstage real quick?"

"knock yourself out," he said as he moved out of the way so you could pass.

you headed backstage & looked around a bit before you saw him. you walked up behind him, realizing how intimidating & ridiculously tall he was. "um, excuse me, hi..." you said to miguel.

"ay, por dios..." he mumbled under his breath before turning around to face you. "what do you want?" he asked, the scowl still present on his face.

"sorry to bother you... i'm [y/n] i just wanted to say hi & let you know that i'm gonna be the new manager for spider sense."

"oh, great..." he said a bit sarcastically. "look, i'm a bit busy right now, so could you just-"

"oh, uh, yeah, totally... sorry to bother you..." you left him alone & made my way back to the stage. "i don't think miguel likes me..." you said to caleb.

"hm? oh, don't worry, he's like this most of the time, just a generally pissed-off guy," he responded.

"well, no wonder your last manager quit if she had to deal with that all the time... but don't worry, i'll be fine... i hope..."

an: haiii tysm for reading part 1 of star treatment! this is the first fic i've shared on here & i'm kinda nervous... i will try my best to post a new chapter every monday & friday at 8 pm est. lmk if u have any questions (my inbox is always open!) or wanna be tagged in new chapters! reblogs r greatly appreciated :)

credit to @benkeibear for the dividers

part 2 out now!!

[coraniaid]

I have a confession to make: I don’t think I like Selfless very much.

It certainly feels as though I should like it.  Doesn’t everyone?  It’s one of a handful of Season 7 episodes which both supporters of and detractors of that season seem to always hold up as great.  This episode makes deliberate callbacks and references to episodes from years earlier in the show (specifically, to Season 2’s Becoming and Season 3’s Consequences), which is the sort of thing I like.  I’m on record as thinking the first third of this season was good – before Caleb and the Potentials and Spike's hypnotic trigger and the long drawn out question of whether Giles might really be dead and all the sad attempts to make the First seem more intimidating than any previous Big Bad – and, well, this is an episode from that part of the season and it doesn’t have any of that stuff. And, of course, I like Anya as a character a lot: she's probably one of of my top five characters on the show.

And yet, well.  I don’t like it. 

I don't hate it, either. I think it’s … fine.  Probably one of the better episodes of the season, yes, but if I were to rank all 144 episodes of the show I don’t think it would trouble my top fifty.

Why not?  Let me try to explain:

“Sjornjost, 880”. 

Most fans of the show seem to be particularly fond of flashback episodes.  Becoming Part 1; Fool For Love; even the detestable Lies My Parents Told Me are all consistently popular episodes.   And I get it.  It’s fun to see the characters dress up and behave in ways they’d never normally act.  But … well, the thing is, this show does not have the budget – and the writers do not have the historical understanding – to actually convincingly write flashbacks to ninth century Scandinavia. (They didn't even have the time to have the characters practice speaking proper Swedish, instead mostly preferring to have them speak "hilarious" gibberish. Although why they are even trying to speak modern Swedish a thousand years in the past in the first place is, admittedly, something of a mystery. Does Drew Goddard think King Alfred spoke Modern English?)  So what they write instead is .. well, generic European fantasy village. The sort of place that Gabrielle might wander through in a particularly underwhelming episode of Xena: Warrior Princess on her way to somewhere more convincing.

Not only does the setting feel bland and generic, all the nonsense with Aud and Olaf's domestic squabbles is just .... well, it's deeply unserious. Deliberately so, of course, but it's still irritating to sit through. I'm sure some people find Olaf's description of Aud as being "like a Baltic woman from a slightly more arid region" hilarious, but I am not one of them. This doesn't feel like a look at Anya's past so much as it feels like a flashback to that week Anya took up LARPing and joined the SCA. I’m just left thinking … well, what is the point of all this? Beyond doubling down on the idea that Anya is a joke? It's silly, is the thing. Silly in a way that none of the other flashback episodes are. And sure, the show has often been silly before: the Knights of Byzantium weren't particularly credible either, chasing after an RV on horseback in full plate. I didn't like them either though, to be fair.

“Perhaps you should take your furs and your literal interpretations to the other side of the river.” 

One of the things a lot of people like about this episode -- and the flashbacks in particular -- is the ‘reveal’ that Anya’s “strangely literal” behaviour – the way she’s acted more or less consistently since her re-introduction to the show in Season 4 – is not, in fact, something that can be explained by her being “newly human” but is in fact something that’s always been true of her.  And, okay, yes, let’s make the existing autism-coding more explicit, sure, only … Well, look, while we’re embracing being literal: Anya is literally not real.  We cannot “find out” anything about her that her original writers didn’t plan (and it seems pretty clear that this is not something the show has been sitting on for years).  It’s a retcon; the Season 7 writers have changed their minds about how Anya’s backstory works. 

Which I don’t have a problem with as such – whether it’s Drusilla having sired Spike; Spike being in love with Buffy; the Watchers Council existing; or even Angel being a vampire with a soul, the show’s lore has always been built on retcons and changes of direction like this.  That's fine. The problem I do have is that … unlike those changes, I don’t see what this retcon actually adds to Anya's story, beyond being something people can point to and go “see, Anya’s always been like this!”.  It doesn’t advance the plot or provide any interesting new context to Anya as a person.  (If I’m being cynical, it’s just an excuse for the writers to keep writing Aud the way they’d have written Anya and not bother to give her any obviously different personality.)

“Your logic is insane and happenstance, like that of a troll”. 

Except, of course, that they do give Aud the personality trait of … liking bunny rabbits.  The way Anya doesn’t, see?  This feels like an example of how it’s often better not to explain the joke: the fact that Anya, as a thousand year old vengeance demon, was afraid of something as innocuous as bunnies was already funny.  It didn’t need to be explained by some traumatic event in her pre-demon life.  Similarly, the use of the phrase “insane troll logic” from Season 5’s Triangle really didn’t need the call forward it gets here.  We can surely aspire to a higher level of writing than that awful Han Solo movie.   It just feels like the writers are pandering to long-term fans by giving them bits of “continuity” that don’t mean anything to the characters and have no bearing on the plot.

“Do you remember giving me Willow’s message?” 

By far the worst example of this sort of fan-pleasing fake continuity doesn’t appear in the flashbacks,  Selfless marks the first – and only – time after Season 2’s Becoming that the writers will acknowledge Xander’s Lie, the fact that Xander chose not to warn Buffy that Willow was attempting to restore Angel's soul but instead told her Willow wanted her to "kick his ass". And yes, Xander’s Lie should have been acknowledged at some point – in Season 3’s Dead Man’s Party, perhaps, when Xander chides Buffy for running away from home because of “boy troubles”.  Or in Season 3’s Faith, Hope & Trick, when Buffy admitted to Giles and Willow that Angel had his soul back when she sent him to hell.  Or in Season 3's Revelations, when the gang confront Buffy over the fact that Angel is back, and are outraged that she is trying to protect him from them all. Or even in Season 3’s Amends, when Xander finally admits to Buffy that he hasn’t been “the mostest best friend to you when it comes to the whole Angel thing”.  Some time during Season 3, in other words. But by Season 7?  That ship had long sailed by then.  Better by far, surely, to assume either that it was never a big deal at all or that Buffy, Willow and Xander talked things through off-screen at some point. 

Instead, the episode brings up the Lie here, in a way that makes it clear Buffy herself never learned the truth, that it’s poisoned her entire relationship with Willow over the last five years (she thinks Willow gave Angel his soul and deliberately didn’t even tell her she was going to do it!) and then … well, that’s it.  We never address the Lie again, and Buffy goes on believing the worst of her best friend for the rest of the show.  It’s as if the writers have just nudged us in the ribs, grinned, said “hey, isn’t it weird we never brought this up again?” and then … gone back to not bringing it up.  Again, what is the point of this? Other than making any attempt to headcanon that Buffy and her friends might actually sometimes sit down and talk to each other like actual friends do more difficult, of course. I like continuity, but winking and mugging to the camera about things that happened years ago and won't ever be satisfactorily resolved is not the way to go.

“There’s only me.  I am the law.” 

All of the above is … well, it’s arguably kind of pedantic, I suppose.  Just me wishing the show had a bigger budget and the writers cared more about real continuity (and about the social norms and customs of Scandinavia in the Early Middle Ages, apparently).  A more substantial problem I have with this episode – and something that I think foreshadows a lot of the problems that Season 7 will have going forward – is Buffy’s big speech as quoted above. It's a well-written speech and SMG delivers it well. It's something that shows up in gif sets on here all the time. And yes, it’s fun to compare and contrast it with Faith’s speech in Consequences.  Yes, there’s yet another slightly gratuitous continuity nod when Buffy denies the existence of any “mystical guidebook” (presumably she never did get to read the Slayer’s Handbook that Giles kept from her).  

That being said… well, one thing people who like this episode can’t seem to agree on is whether or not we’re meant to think that Buffy is actually in the right here., or if what she's saying makes sense.  The episode is shot and staged as if she is – and we don’t see any sign that Buffy learns to fundamentally question her approach when it later comes to being “General Buffy” and taking charge of the Potentials.  But she very, very obviously is in the wrong – her approach doesn’t help, her methods wouldn’t have worked anyway – and it’s troubling that the episode doesn’t quite seem to realize it. 

It's true that there’s a kinder reading of the show where this is all deliberate, and – like Buffy’s misguided choice to emotionally distance herself from the Potentials and try to train them as a quasi-military force rather than as the group of scared and powerless teenage girls they actually are – is meant to be building to a big reversal in Chosen when Buffy instead chooses to share her power with others.  I … don’t think I’m persuaded that this kinder reading is an accurate description of what’s actually happening though.  This feels more like a Dead Man’s Party situation: the pieces of the episode just don’t quite fit together in the way the writer wants you to think that they do.  Again, maybe I’m being uncharitable, but if Buffy is meant to be wrong here – and if the unconscious echoing of Faith is deliberate – it’s strange to me that the episode doesn’t lean into that more, and that we don’t see any sign Buffy has learned from her mistake this episode later on in the season.  

“The life and soul of a vengeance demon.”

Finally, I think the actual resolution of the episode: in which Anya goes back to being a human at the cost of the life of a minor recurring character who most of the audience don’t care about and who (in, admittedly, classic Buffy fashion) nobody will ever mention again after this episode, is … pretty underwhelming.  Anya only got to be a vengeance demon for eleven episodes, and this is all the show could do with that before resetting things to the status quo?  Seriously?  This too feels like a symptom of a larger problem I have with this season: a sense that the writers are desperately (over)correcting for the perceived flaws of Season 6 by undoing or ignoring as much of that season as they possibly can.  

It’s also just another case of the writers refusing to take Anya seriously as a character.  The show will keep coming back to the question of whether Angel and Spike deserve to be forgiven for the evil they did as soulless vampires.  Hell, Angel gets a whole five-season spin-off show from that question.  But the various demonic acts Anya did – for hundreds of years longer than Angel and Spike combined – just don’t seem to matter.  They’re just funny stories Anya tells people sometimes.  (Maybe they didn’t even happen.  Certainly The Wish implies that destroying Anya’s power center will undo “all of the wishes she’s granted”, but that doesn’t seem to be something the show ever remembers or sticks to later.)  Anya choosing to become a demon again should have had far more weight than the writers allowed it to have.  It should, frankly, be the sort of decision she doesn’t get to take back.  Anya actually staying as a vengeance demon gives the ending of Hells Bells the emotional weight it deserves to have.

And the pay-off for Anya becoming human again is ... she gets to rejoin the gang and maybe get back together with Xander, and then she dies. Is that really worth it? I mean, we could surely at least try to play up the parallels with Willow and Faith a little bit more, no? Why are we supposed to take Willow and Faith's quests for redemption seriously but shrug off the fact Anya reacted to having her heartbroken by signing up to kill people and torture people again? Does that not tell us something about human Anya that might perhaps be worth taking seriously?

Anyway, yeah.  Still miles better than Him or Bring on the Night or Get It Done though, obviously. But as good as the best of Season 7? No, I don't think so.

[utilitycaster]

i feel like for the critical role trauma thing i HAVE to ask about caleb even if that’s a subject that’s been talked to death. i’m also super interested in your thoughts on Yasha in this conversation

The thing about Caleb is he is very visibly not okay from the get-go. He has a mechanical penalty to killing humanoids with fire which we see very early on. Then his backstory came out pretty much in full quite early as well. And before I continue, I want to stress: I really love Caleb as a character. I think his story is fantastic. He is hands down my favorite Liam character. He is complicated and difficult and sympathetic and heartbreaking.

He also garnered some of the most unbelievably toxic type 2 (ie, "um he is traumatized and can do no wrong?") fans I've seen in my LIFE, and many of them were also mixed with the "there's only room for one traumatized person in this d&d party and therefore whoever fits my idea of What Trauma Looks Like and/or whoever I personally project onto the most is the winner." I'm talking people actually getting on my posts and saying "why haven't the Nein stopped all the pesky adventuring and world-saving they're doing and taken him to Duasad Keef (an NPC only mentioned in the EGTW at the time, ie, post hiatus when the plot pretty quickly went to Eiselcross and stayed there, whose methods of therapy would actually probably be triggering for Caleb and who was probably well out of their paygrade and frankly unlikely of anyone else in the party to have heard of)." Those people have largely left because they hated that Caleb decided the best revenge was doing what he could to heal and living well and ensuring no one in the future would suffer as he had, rather than murdering the entire assembly and presumably dying in the process, but man, they left a mark.

There's definitely his detractors too, and I have no patience for the "ewwww sadboy attention hog" people, many of whom were either of the "I am feeling uncomfortable when we are not about Beau?" variety or that bizarre cohort of people who just fucking hate Liam for reasons I have never been able to fathom, but I'm not going to lie, as someone who likes Caleb a lot, the fandom response was rough because there was definitely a noticeable faction who really just did not accept the idea that basically everyone in the Nein had some degree of trauma. The High Richter Heist is a great example. Fjord holds Caleb at swordpoint for deviating from the plan. We later learn that while Caleb is acting from his trauma (trying to collect as many books as possible to achieve the purpose that is frankly his main reason for living at that time), Fjord is just as much acting from his (was very recently betrayed by Sabian deviating from the plan in an all hands on deck situation, stabbing him, and blowing up the ship leaving everyone, Fjord included, to drown). The infamous Bowlgate, not long after, is also a similar case of Beau and Caleb's respective traumas clashing. It's why Campaign 2 is so good, but man, it really is a litmus test if someone's like "actually Caleb is objectively 100% right in either of these situations;" you know you're dealing with either an idiot or someone who can't conceive of the possibility that trauma isn't a competition that Caleb has obviously won.

So, with that, Yasha: I think Yasha is tough for a few reasons. The first is that she wasn't around a lot early on, so while we learned the basics of her backstory in episode 46 we simply didn't see how she reacted in all situations. The second is that the fandom is specifically really fucking bonkers about people whose romantic partners die young; see again how people were like "see? Orym would be happier dead with Will!" like that isn't the kind of statement anyone with a brain would be MORTIFIED to say. So there was some of that with Yasha. I think the extent of what happened with Obann came up in a pretty dense arc and only got unpacked after the fact (and once Ashley was at the table regularly). And finally, Yasha got a lot of hate from shippers that was not strictly related to her trauma but did sometimes include it. So she's an interesting case of "trauma not so much ignored as frequently misconstrued or taken in bad faith to support interpretations barely related to Yasha herself, compounded by the fact that you had to read between the lines to understand her trauma in the first place."

[deadbydangit]

This might be strange and you may not even know what I'm talking about, but could you write characters with an S/o who acts like Jinx from Arcane?

Maybe this with Ghostface and Leon? Feel free to add any and all people if you do take the request. Thank you ^^

I did a bit of research on this character. She sounds rather chaotic but intelligent. So I'm going to go with that. I hope that's okay if I add one more to it as well. I hope you enjoy it.

With a Reader who is chaotic and intelligent.

Ghostface, Leon, Legion (Frank)

Ghostface

Yeah, let's fuck some shit up.

You and Danny are like the same person.

Much to everyone else's dismay.

Your collective appetite for chaos knows no bounds.

You could both be asleep when Danny shakes you to wake you up.

"Hey I remember this fucked up joke and wanted to tell you."

And you're both just going to laugh.

And then go right back to sleep.

You're both inseparable.

If he could sneak you into every trial to help him, he so would.

"Like, babe, think of the ways we can kill survivors together."

The Entity, much to everyone's delight, refuses to let that happen.

So you both go terrorize whoever happens to be in the woods at that time.

Not as fun, but still entertaining.

Your intelligence has helped him numerous times when it comes to constricting any sort of trap he'd like.

And he won't have to worry if his precious camera ever gets damaged.

The pranks you pull in each other are great.

The pranks you both work on together are masterpieces.

You are the bain of everyone else's existence.

And you both wouldn't have it any other way.

Leon S Kennedy

He has his hands full with you.

He may have the intelligence to match.

But he's a hero, not... Whatever you are.

He'll often walk in on you building some crazy invention or trap.

He is highly concerned.

More about everyone else.

Because that does NOT look safe.

He does take interest in some of your inventions.

Watching you build and explain them, watching how passionate you are about your craft.

It's super cute to him.

Leon is absolutely going to do that stereotypical hero thing where he tries to make you 'see the light' and 'renounce your evil ways.'

Good luck with that buddy.

Leon is very agile, alert, and fairly smart.

So pulling a prank on him takes some work.

If you do manage, he'll applaud your determination and creativity.

Provided it isn't something dangerous.

If he wants you to hold still for a while, he'll challenge you to a boardgame or chess.

This is where his competitive nature shines.

But it's all in good fun.

He never goes easy on you though.

Just because you love him doesn't mean he's going to let you win.

You've already won his love.

Legion (Frank)

Anarchy! Anarchy!

Frank has no idea what that word means, but it sounded cool and he heard you say it once.

He might not be the sharpest tool in the shed.

But he loves you for the chaotic crazy you are.

He's so down to pull pranks too.

And he's always willing to help you whenever he can.

Need him to sneak into Caleb's workshop to grab supplies for your newest invention?

On it!

"Hey. Want to go put mentos and coke in one of Herman's test tubes?"

That's the closest thing to a science experiment you're going to get from this boy.

Just be honored he's making an effort for you.

You might even see him trying to make inventions of his own.

You inspire him.

His lack of regard for the safety of himself or the safety of others might be a concern to others.

But the both of you couldn't give less of a shit about it.

You only live once.

Well, technically not in the realm.

But it's the principal of the matter.

Frank doesn't know what you mean when you say that, but you're smart and it sounded cool so he's going to say it too.

And, he knows you're cool, so he'll say it.

[luffyrose]

Ghost in a Birdcage - DC x DP AU

I got a name for the Au! I am referencing the song Rule #4 Fish in a Birdcage as the title. I thought the song actually fit this whole au pretty well so yeah :D

Anyway, I told y'all I was working on stuff and part of it was this (plus the memes, which I'll share later) as well as thinking of a design for my Danny in this AU. I have a few ideas, but I'll probably work on the story itself before actually solidifying it.

Here's a little bit of sadness and softness from the past in this AU. Idk if this will be put into the main story, but it's just a general short story that is canon for this au.

~~~~~~~

GiaB AU Taglist: @markus209 @olivethetreebitch @chrysanthemum9484 @blackroserelina @avelnfear @edgyboi10000 @lokiaddams @samgirl98 @phoenixdemonqueen @iceknight-of-sun @autumnwulf @chronicallyonline-fandomwh0r3 @thegatorsgoose @nikki-pondtheauthor @jaxinkh @paper-bag-boy @dxrksong @lesling123 @learning-to-fly-on-my-own @gmkelz11

(As a lil side note the tag list is gonna be on any writing I do for this au, if I make other posts about it I'll leave it to the tag for people to find. Not including a link to the Ao3 when I do make the fic or one-shot series itself, taglist will be there too :D)

~~~~~~~

Small sniffles filled the room. Jason's gaze shifted toward his little brother, a frown overtaking the anger that'd been apparent on his own face. Danny, his precious little brother, was laying on the mattress on the ground beside him. Turning and scooting closer, Jason's hand lightly landed atop slightly wet and messy curls.

"Danny, are you feeling better?"

He could see the younger open his mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by coughs. Along with the coughs, a loud clattering noise came from the door that had been locked from the outside. Gritting his teeth, the instant yelling from outside telling them to shut up making him look toward the door. Really, almost three years, and Catherine still couldn't accept that a toddler was going to be loud. Danny wasn't even loud on purpose! Huffing in silent rage, Jason's eyes fell back on his little brother.

Danny was staring up at Jay, his eyes wide in slight fear at the yelling, but he knew his brother would protect them. He was very small, almost 4 now according to Jason! But he was also very smart. His brother told him that a lot, especially when he hid away when the yelling or fights started. Danny liked to be smart. He didn't like seeing the other with new injuries though, but Jason let him put bandaids on them, and then he would take them out to the library.

The library was nice.

Catherine, that's what Jason always called the angry lady, didn't like to go in there. She didn't like to go anywhere with them, but Jason liked to take him places so it was okay. They didn't go places when sick though...so why was Jason getting some of his stuff?

"We're gonna go to the library buddy."

Seeing the smile that crossed the kid's face, the tension in his shoulder's loosened, but with the loud rattling of the door and cursing, they were right back to how they were before. Getting up quickly, he shoved what he could into a little bag and helped Danny up, the small boy coughing again.

"CALEB DANIEL TODD I SWEAR WHEN I GET THIS DOOR-"

Jason didn't let Danny hear the rest of it, carefully getting them both out onto the fire escape. He knew Catherine had been...less than ideal. His father was worse. But now with Willis gone, she didn't hold back. Half the time she wasn't home, the other half the time Jason was keeping her away from Danny. Sometimes he wished she just wouldn't come home, or that Danny wouldn't be in danger because she did.

So he made a plan. He was gonna get Danny a better home. A safe one. Except, when he'd gotten sick and wasn't getting better with the cold medicine he stole, Jason's plans didn't matter so much anymore. Danny needed somewhere to get better, but he needed a way to do that first. He'd found a way...though he didn't like it.

Carrying the younger on his back, the backpack slung over his front while a star blanket Jason had actually bought for once was draped over them both. Danny was watching the people they passed by, a small but nervous smile on his face before he inevitably hid his head in the crook of Jason's neck. "Jay Jay..." The elder hummed, feeling the smaller hands tighten for a moment after. "Is Cat-rin gonna be mad at you again?"

Slowing for only a second, Jason scanned the area before looking at his brother. Danny was too smart for his age, and Jason knew it was because of their stupid 'parents'. "She's not gonna have the time to be mad at me..." He trailed off, the lump in his throat stopping him from saying anything else until they were already in front of the Library. Slipping through the door when a young adult couple was leaving, too distracted in their conversation to notice the two poor kids, they made their way to a small dusty nook.

The nook itself was filled with old books that most no one wanted to read, and the librarian who'd seen them reading there tended to leave them be. Setting Danny down, Jason held up a finger, turning to go get some better books from elsewhere. A small sneeze made him chuckle, knowing his little brother hated how dusty it was when they hadn't been back for a while. Slipping through the isles he got himself some bigger books, and a few picture books for Danny. He knew the kid would read one or two before asking for Jason to read him his books, so he'd started picking light-hearted stories or classics whenever the two came.

Making his way back and sitting down, Jason passed the smaller storybook about stars to his brother, watching Danny's expression almost glow at seeing it. At first, Jason let himself be absorbed in his own book, the only thing other than it he paid attention to being the gentle pressure that was Danny leaning against him. It was after a little while that Jason realized Danny hadn't started to bug him like usual. Looking over from his own book, he saw Danny staring at one of the pictures of a constellation.

"Do you wanna learn more about the stars?"

He'd jumped, but Danny had nodded after a moment. Something was bugging him, Jason could tell, but he wasn't about to push it. Instead, he smiled and grabbed one of the nearby books. It was a much older book, more of a journal really, but it held a bunch of sketches of the constellations. So the two sat there, whispering to one another in the privacy of the little nook. Jason was glad he knew some astrology, and Danny was so genuinely amazed, that he could ignore the lingering pain from old injuries that hadn't had time to heal.

Feeling a small tug, Jason looked toward Danny, frowning slightly when he saw small tears. "Jay Jay...are you gonna go somewhere?" He could feel the pit in his stomach knot even more at that, staring for a moment before a wobbly smile tried to cover his face.

"...What?"

A sniffle caused the smile to fall. "Danny, hey, buddy, I'm not going anywhere...I- I'm gonna find somewhere better for you though. Somewhere where you'll get to feel better and not be afraid." Looking down as Danny's small tears covered his face, he gently used his sleeve to wipe them away, knowing he would never have the heart to lie to him. "That's not gonna happen yet though...and when you have a nice home, I'll make sure to visit. We can read and look at constellations too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'll do everything I can to try and keep that promise, alright?"

"Promises are hard to keep..."

Jason felt a sigh escape his lips, putting the book fully to the side and pulling Danny in for a hug. "They are...but just because they are doesn't mean that I won't try my best." Holding onto the younger, he felt the tears soak through the shirt on his chest, ignoring it. After Danny had stopped crying, he moved the boy back, hands on his shoulders. "If I can't keep my promise, you can get back at me." The small gasp from that made him laugh.

He seemed almost offended that Jason had said such a thing. "I don't wanna!" Jason tried not to laugh more, ruffling the younger's hair. "If you don't" —he was clearly thinking deeply about a suitable punishment— "then you have to help me." A proud smile formed on his face. With a slight smirk, Jason pulled the other back onto laying on his chest.

"Help ya with what?"

"With family."

It was quiet for a moment, Jason's fingers twitching for a moment before he started messing with Danny's hair. "How so little mans?" Danny seemed even more confused, pursing his lips as he kicked his feet some. Watching him with a small smile, Jason couldn't help but think this was the reason he'd survived so long. Danny was the one good thing in his life that had no strings attached. He was fine with that...but he needed Danny to be alright, even if it meant not being right there.

"You gotta help us have a BIIIIGGGG family. With more sib-a-lings!"

There was a snort from the older, ruffling Danny's hair. "You said it wrong you little dingus." Danny's own laughter erupted from him after a moment, swatting Jason's hand away. "But sure. If I break my promise, then I'll help you get a big and nice family." The toddler seemed to absolutely beam at that. "However! I still get to be the best brother-" Danny giggled at that, "and if anything is ever wrong you come to me, no matter what. Alright?"

With a happy nod, Danny's hair was once again ruffled up by Jason, the laughter filling up the small area they were in. Even when a few older ladies glanced over, not a word was spoken to the two. And when the librarian found both boys sleeping...well, if she gently readjusted the blanket they'd brought and let them sleep it was between her and the other librarians.

[hughjidiot]

Total Drama Level Up Finale Sneak Peek

Life is still more than a little crazy for me right now, but I am getting work done on the finale of Total Drama Level Up. Here's a brief preview for you all.

After nearly a week, the storm over southern Toronto had finally broken. The gray clouds that once choked the sky had broken into small clusters, allowing the morning sun to shine through for the first time in days. The rain itself had ended sometime in the night, its only remaining evidence being swollen run gutters and puddles that dotted the landscape, soon to be evaporated by the heat of the summer.

Zee took all of this in as he sat at one of the tables in the cafeteria, glancing out the window as he picked at some waffles and took the occasional sip of soda. The silence was broken by the squeaking hinges of the entrance door swinging open; Zee looked over and offered a small smile.

“Morning, dude,” Zee said to Damien, who paused on his way past the table.

“Morning Zee,” Damien said after a moment. “You uh, doing okay? After last night and all.”

Zee sipped his soda and shrugged. “Eh. Still kinda sucks not having Lauren around, but at least I’ll get to see her later today, so I can’t complain too much.”

Damien nodded, hands in his pockets. “Yeah, I gotcha. Listen, I know we haven’t talked much this season, but I wanted to say sorry about Scary. I meant what I said yesterday; I have my issues with her, but I have nothing against you.”

“You’re good, brah. This is just how the game goes. And I know Lauren gets… pretty intense sometimes, and she got a little competitive this year. But deep down, she’s a cool girl.”

Damien shrugged. “Well, she can’t be all bad if she wound up with someone like you. Speaking of which, I’ve been meaning to ask for three days: how did that happen?”

“Well, it started with her wanting to hear about how I lost my leg. Then we just started hanging out, watching movies, getting to know each other…” Zee paused for another sip of soda, blushing faintly. “Then when I saved her from Zombie Robot Caleb, she just up and kissed me. Caught me off guard, not gonna lie. I did a lot of thinking that night about the time we’d spent together, and realized how like, nice it felt to be with her. So the next morning I went looking for her to ask how she felt, turns out she liked me back and… Here we are.”

Damien nodded along with Zee’s speech, noting the sincerity in his tone. As odd as it still felt to hear someone speaking so fondly of Lauren, Damien couldn’t deny the two seemed happy together. And who knew? Maybe Zee’s chill nature would help curb some of Lauren’s intensity. (Or at least, Damien hoped, direct it towards anyone but him.)

“Well I’m happy for you,” he finally said. “Like you said, at least you’ll get to see her today.”

“That’s right.” Zee cracked an amused smile. “And hey, at least you won’t have to face her for the million, right?”

Damien chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, I wasn’t thrilled at the prospect. On that note: nothing personal, but I’m fighting like hell for that prize.”

“I’d expect nothing less, brah. Do what you gotta do, so will I, and may the best player win.”

“Thanks, I’d planned on it.”

Zee and Damien looked up at the familiar scratchy voice. They’d been so engrossed in their conversation they hadn’t noticed MK enter the cafeteria and saunter up to them.

“Last chance to back out now and spare yourselves the humiliation of losing to me,” MK said with a smug smile

Damien barked out a laugh, crossing his arms. “You wish. I got this far; I’m seeing this through to the end.”

“Me too, and I’ve got a lady to win for,” Zee said, holding his soda can over his heart.

“Ooh, the power of love,” MK snickered. “What’s next? You gonna take me down with a Care-Bear Stare? Team up with the others to blast me with a friendship rainbow?”

“Big talk from someone that needed Julia and Scary Girl’s help to even make the finale,” Damien said with a smirk.

MK smirked right back. “Maybe I did. But in the end I’m here and they aren’t.”

[satancopilotsmytardis]

omg!! plz tell us about ur fnaf au!!

I have been let off my leash again!!! Okay so I want to preface this with what the state of FNAF lore was like when I started working on this:

Started working on this between the release of FNAF4 and Sister Location, ended shortly after the reveal of Michael's "I'm coming to find you"/Robot spaghetti endings.

Back when the Puppet was still using He/him pronouns and we had limited knowledge about Charlie/Henry, etc. past the stuff from FNAF: World and I think the Silver Eyes novel.

This was still firmly at the tail end of people switching from calling Purple Guy Vincent in their AUs to using William Afton because of the books.

Very little of this will match anything even remotely canon including names.

So the AU was what I called the 'Afton Siblings AU':

Basic premise: None of the Afton children died. They still went through deeply traumatic shit and grew up under their father's thumb until he got arrested for the Missing Children's Incident, released, and then fucked off into the ether.

Michael: 26, he works as the nighttime security officer at their Fazbear's location. When he was 13 he stuck his brother's head into Freddy's mouth on his birthday as a prank after treating his brother like shit in the wake of their mom leaving them, and Caleb nearly died. Their father ended up sticking his own arm into the mouth of the animatronic and breaking his hand very badly, but kept Freddy from crunching all the way through Caleb's skull and killing him. Once William healed up, he brought Michael back to the restaurant and killed all of Michael's friends to make a point. Michael has been in charge of taking care of his siblings ever since.

Bailey (Baby): 23, the tallest of the kids, which is something she delights in literally holding over her brothers. She works as their Fazbear's location's mechanic. She keeps the animatronics running and it the only one who is aware that the suits aren't just haunted, but that the bodies are inside of the suits as well.

Caleb (Crying Child): 18, he works as a server at the Fazbear's location he once almost died at when he was a little kid. He forgave Michael years ago for the incident and he has the best relationship with the animatronics because the echo of his childhood trauma is still lingering in the pizzeria as Golden Freddy. (Think Stone Tape theory)

The Afton kids are all pseudo-adopted by Henry when shit goes down, and he makes sure that they have jobs and bought them their childhood home when everything goes tits up and their father is in the wind. They all call him 'Uncle Henry' and he doesn't hold what William has done against them, but none of them have ever directly talked about that with Henry. They all live together and are just trying to keep things at the pizzeria calm and under control as their father keeps, somehow, going around and continuing to rack up his body count.

However, I got distracted before I ever fully fleshed out this AU by some side characters and their extremely unhinged sex life. So hey, y'all remember Jeremy?

Jeremy Fitzgerald: 25 forever, died in 1987 when the Mangle bit through his skull, taking one of his eyes and causing catastrophic brain damage. As with all things in a Fazbear's location, he could not simply stay dead, and Fazbear Entertainment dug up his corpse (or perhaps never let his body be buried in the first place, he's not sure) and sat him back in the security office to continue doing his job after death, and uh, to his great displeasure, yes that absolutely worked. He is stuck in a haunting loop like the animatronics and continues to do his job for many years.

Nightmarionne/the Puppet/Net/Marion: Looks like the normal puppet during the day/to other people, but to Jeremy, he looks like Nightmarrionne because Jeremy can now see how he's been twisted and warped by his need for vengeance. However, he normally puts that aside to care for the 'children'. Somehow, pre-FNAF6 I had decided that he would grow and be more fully sapient than the rest of the animal-suit-bound animatronics and I was accidentally right about that.

Jeremy and Net start off very contentiously, because Net thinks that Jeremy stole the 'gift' of life after death somehow, which would tie him back to 'The Man' who the animatronics know as their murderer.

Jeremy, of course, has no fucking idea what he's talking about. He still gets tortured about it though.

Years pass and eventually Jeremy's brain kind of rewires to the pain of being tortured, especially because no matter what Net does to him (or the other animatronics cause he does end up in a suit more than once), it's all temporary. Net eventually explains to him about the children, the gift, the murders, and they (as essentially the only adults in the building) try to look after it and the other suits.

Jeremy pops a boner while Net's playing with his offal one night and the rest is pretty gory history with them genuinely falling in love and having a very healthy and trusting relationship-- where half of their sex is body horror but, shhh 🤫

All is fine and dandy until their location gets marked for re-opening and Henry sends Michael to go to that location and check it out, where he meets Jeremy, finds out their location is also haunted, and Jeremy learns that because he's haunting his own corpse, he's not actually bound to the same rules as the animatronics. He can leave the building, stay up after 6am, and etc. he just hadn't because he was so conditioned by the others he never tried.

Jeremy befriends the Afton kids not knowing about their father, and that creates further conflict down the line when William comes back into town for some reason.

(he also has a very weird threesome with Michael and Net at one point, but you know, that's not important)

(Baily also makes Net a strap but that's also not important)

I spent... more time writing Jeremy/Net porn than I want to admit to, frankly, and this fic eventually started to be adapted into my Everrealm Amusement Park story that I also never finished.

[el-huddpudd]

Bright like fire

Hi @jadesabre301!! Merry @widojestsecretsanta and I hope you enjoy! Title is from Feels Like Home by Auliʻi Cravalho. I'll post on ao3 later today but I wanted to start the day with giving your gift.......

In the Blooming Grove, Caleb sneaks away from the group to say goodbye to Frumpkin and dismiss him from being Caleb's familiar. Matt narrates that Frumpkin looks over at Sprinkle on Jester's shoulder, and there's a brief moment of fey connection between them before Frumpkin walks away.

The Fey realm is a dangerous place. Shadows curl and creep without the need of light to pin them down. If there was any constant, it would be the whispers twining around the trees. But even the whispers would rearrange themselves into surprising silences.

It is precisely the place where tricksters can thrive.

Jester felt her necklace begin to warm, and she recalled Arty’s promise to bring her back home. Home, with cinnamon pastries and the paint shop around the corner and no more wobbly time stuff when she messaged her friends. Home safe.

But then was a blur of movement rushing towards her and– 

“Lumpy!”

Her favorite cat in the whole wide world had pounced right into her arms. He scrambled down to wind around her ankles, purring the whole time.

“Frumpkin, it is so good to see you. So very very good! But I am about to go and the Traveler has a really powerful spell for me that is about to kick in so you’re going to have to scootch a few feet away so you don’t get swept up because I am just about to leave the Fey Realm.

Jester had spent many hours and miles with Frumpkin nearby. There was something slightly different about him here in the Fey Realm. A slight shift in his posture or size or something else she couldn’t quite put her finger on. His head tilt made it clear, as clear as if he had messaged her, that Frumpkin had arrived in the place and time entirely on purpose.

“This will just have to be our little secret for a while, okay. I don’t think Caleb will be angry that you are returning – you know he did agree I could have you for forever – it’s just that he gets scared sometimes. But we won’t let that keep us away, will we?”

&

Caleb heard a chuckle behind his shoulder. “Artagan,” he called out without looking, “what brings you to my humble classroom?”

“She worries about you.”

“Is that your answer?”

“I check in on all my followers from time to time. Gladly, it’s a much more manageable itinerary since our little shindig at the volcano. Even so, I still have my favorites.”

“Is that what I am?”

“As I recall it,” Artagan said before slipping into a cheap Zemnian accent. “We are all low key acolytes of the Traveler.” His voice slid back to the usual grandeur. “Don’t tell me your keen mind has suddenly lapsed?”

“If you were paying attention, you would know the context. I would be her disciple while she is being yours.”

“Oh, you can assume I’ve heard far more than you’d like me to, Caleb Widogast. You... amuse me.”

Caleb finally looked up from his stack of student parchment. The Traveler was twirling a few quills in a serpentine motion and flicking his wrist to aim them at the desk in the corner as if it was a dartboard. 

“Sprinkle saw all your unexpressed expressions, little wizard. I certainly know the context.”

“Is that why you are here?”

“Excellent question. Firstly, I am here because I want to be. I am only ever where I am because I want to be.” Artagan flashed a wink and reappeared close at Caleb’s side. “I want to be here because there’s this thread hanging. I simply can’t resist tugging.”

Caleb smirked. “Tug away, Traveler.”

“You have your students, your schnitzel, your small small apartment with the east facing window. But woven into this retirement of yours is this insistence to send away certain companions.”

“I have learned to hold loosely.” He looked down at his weathered hands. “I do not need to grasp and claw any longer. This is my hard fought truth after so many years of desperately grasping for the ones who departed.”

“Ah, but have you learned who wants to be held?”

&

There was just enough of a snowdrift collected on his windowsill for that tender glow of winter to reflect with the candlelight. It was a small apartment, yes, but he had already filled two bookshelves and that was home enough for now.

Caleb knelt by the books now, weighing a few in his hands. Would she like the Port Zoon romance? Had she read it before? Would she want to see the notes for his lectures, the new cantrip he employs?

He stacks both books in the ‘bring’ pile. Because after all, isn’t the point of his trip to set everything before Jester and let her decide what she wants to keep? He is resolved to tell her.

He is also resolved to bring pastries, so he really should go across the street to place an order at the bakery to pick up tomorrow. At this precise time in the evening, Greta should still be rolling out the twists to set overnight.

When he opens the front door, his breath freezes.

“Can I stay here?” 

Jester is at his doorstep with snowflakes settled in her dear blue hair. She looks warm with that purple flush in her cheeks. She has more freckles than the last time Caleb saw her, he is sure.

“Well, I guess my real question is can we stay here?” She gestures behind him, to the cat already curled up on his window seat.

“Jester, ah, it is good to see…It is very good to see you, but what is Frumpkin? How…?” His voice falters in awe.

She beams up at him. Oh. She beams and she walks right into his home and she is here.

“Well Caleb, you remember I wanted to visit the Fey Realm with Arty, and I finally got to see it and there was lots of really weird shit but also beautiful sunsets but not quite sun setting because it’s so different there.” Jester had her full ensemble on with mittens and hat and scarf and fur lined cloak and she chattered through commentary while taking off each item and setting them down on his shelf, his table, his desk.

“I remember, Jester.”

“So I was just about to return back and I had this whole signal set up with the Traveler so none of the timing would get fucked up. And then, out of nowhere, Frumpkin appeared with me! He really missed you, he told me.”

She ended up sitting criss-crossed on the floor right next to his pile of books. Her hands dance through the air as she talks, fidgeting.

“Because even though you don’t need him anymore, he still wants to be where you are. He understands you let him go because you are stronger and kinder and ready to be okay with change.” Jester holds his gaze. “But he knows he gets to choose too and he would like to choose to stay, with you. He would like a nice quiet life with lots of animals.”

For all of the times that Caleb looked away, held his tongue, flinched from getting nearer. This time Jester is keeping her blue eyes steady with his. Her voice is warm and sure. She sits with her head high and a new ribbon wrapped on her left horn and with all of the courage in the world.

“Of course, Liebling, but not so quiet we don’t see adventures.” His hand shakes, just a little, as he raises his it to her cheek, so it is good Jester brings her hand up to match his. It’s a sharp thrill of heat.

“I am so glad you understand what Frumpkin is telling you, Caleb.” There’s the twinkle, the mischief in her eyes. “Because on the way over, he was a little worried you might be stupid about this. And then he would have to go on and on and on about how much cooler everything will be once you team up together. Instead, we can skip right to our happy ending.”

She winds her hands through his mess of reddish-brown hair and finally, they kiss.

&

Artagan checks in on all his followers from time to time. 

Over in Rexxutrum, there is a small small apartment with a large window seat and many bookshelves. A cacophony of rugs overlap on the floor with zig zagging patterns and paint splotches. The window is often open so the colored glass hanging above can twirl and refract and birds with orange and blue feathers can find a soft place to land. There are a great many other animals who wander in and out and there is the constant of one cat who is not a cat and one weasel who is not a weasel.

[writerownstory]

✨we will fight to shine together✨

HEAVILY inspired by When in Rome by Sarah Adams. I will always always ALWAYS recommend her books. also shoutout to @bex2313 for not only encouraging me to read When in Rome but also being my go-to to talk about Sarah Adams related anything☺️ (if you’re looking for a sunshine pop star x grumpy small town baker—this is the book for you)

~

Luke notices Julie isn’t beside him just as they’ve passed the town’s hair salon.

He typically doesn’t pay it any mind, usually just because the women always try to talk him into getting haircuts he doesn’t actually need. But Julie stares at it like she’s lost something inside.

A dismissive comment floats through her brain that sounds suspiciously like Caleb, “Think of the maintenance with natural curls! This looks so much cuter on you!! You don’t want to look like a puff ball, do you?”

At the time, Julie vaguely remembers questioning it, but trusting Caleb and his professional opinion. He knows this business better than anyone. Why would he do anything to hurt her? But now Julie realizes her mistake. Caleb only cared about how much money she could make him, not about her as a person.

Luke backpedals until he’s standing beside her again, but she doesn’t move. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she says immediately, but once she realizes what she’s said, she tries again. “I just… I haven’t worn my hair naturally in years because…” She reaches up to play with the end of a smooth, loose curl. Luke’s not sure she’s aware she’s even doing it. “Caleb always said it wouldn’t be good for my image.”

And it breaks Luke’s heart because he can’t imagine anything about Julie being anything less than perfect. Not that he’d ever admit that to anyone, especially not her. Not right now. It’s not fair to either of them. “That can’t be true,” he finds himself saying. “If your fans care about you, they’d want you to do what makes you happy. This Caleb guy can screw off. If you want to do it, Jules, I say do it.”

Her head whips around at the nickname and Luke fears he’s overstepped.

But as Julie looks up at him, eyes wide and full of hope with a tinge of fear, any worry immediately goes away. “Will you stay with me?” She knows she could walk in there by herself—Ray and Rose didn’t raise a wimp of a daughter, when a Molina woman set her mind to something, that was it!—but if Luke is there, it certainly makes things a little less scary.

Now Luke truly has no business in a hair salon. He’d be wildly out of place and usually cannot sit still for his life, and he knows that if he really didn’t want to be there, Julie would let him off the hook. But for Julie Molina? He wants to be on the hook, for everything, always, as long as she’s involved. It drives him nuts, how easily he’ll bend over backwards for this girl, but he can’t bring himself to stop. “Anything for you, Julie, you know that.”

Luke is rewarded with the warmest, brightest smile and he’s pretty sure the sun has some competition. He guides her inside with a hand on the small of her back, totally unsurprised when Carrie perks up immediately, like she hasn’t been watching them through the window.

“Hey Luke, Julie! What brings you two in here?”

He looks at Julie, who seems frozen in place. She must feel his gaze because after a beat she turns to him. “I don’t… I don’t think I can do it.”

“Hey, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, okay? Not here.” Luke’s voice has dropped to a soft whisper to afford them the slightest privacy in the otherwise busy salon. “But if you’re still worried about what Caleb or anyone else thinks—that’s not what’s important. What matters is how you think and feel about yourself.”

Julie nods resolutely, his words giving her the final burst of courage she needs before turning to Carrie. “I want to try to restore my natural curls. I’m sure there’s damage from the amount of heat over the years but—“

Carrie holds up a perfectly manicured hand. “Say no more. You’ve come to the right place.” She pats the empty chair in front of her and Luke has to give it to Carrie. He doesn’t know a thing about hair, let alone what to do with curly hair but Carrie handles the whole thing with practiced ease.

For only having met her a handful of days ago when she and Luke were shopping together at the grocery store (Luke insisted Julie accompany him grocery shopping to prevent her from burning down his house—you start a small fire cooking pasta one time!), Carrie talks to Julie as if they’ve been friends for years instead of days, and it absolutely warms Julie from the inside out. She isn’t treated like world renowned pop star Julie Molina. She’s just… Julie. Just the way she likes it.

At some point, Luke ends up falling asleep with a magazine covering his face until he’s awakened abruptly by the smallest tap on his shoulder. He startles, sitting upright and causing the magazine to fall haphazardly into his lap, but the sight that meets him threatens to knock him right back down.

Julie stands in front of him, looking exactly the same as she did before except now she has a halo of the most beautiful curls Luke has ever seen—he’s probably a bit biased, but sue him. They’re much tighter ringlets than he’s used to seeing on her, but he’s fallen more in love with her already. What he’d give to have the ability to play with those curls while Julie rests her head on his chest while they—wait. Whoa. What? This is not protecting himself or his heart!!! He shakes his head at the thought, focusing back on the girl in front of him. He can tell the time in Carrie’s chair has had an effect on Julie already.

She’s positively glowing, looking much more comfortable in her own skin. Luke doubts he’s ever seen her with her natural curls, but he can just tell. This is the Julie everyone deserves to know and see. This is the Julie he wants to—alright, this is getting ridiculous.

“Luke? What do you think?”

The words come tumbling out of his mouth before he can give it a second thought. “I think you look perfect.”

She laughs in disbelief, like she thinks he’s just being nice (he’s not) but the blush to her cheeks tells Luke his words had their intended effect. Julie turns back around to face the wall of mirrors where Carrie is cleaning up her station. She swishes her hair around, back and forth over her shoulders like she doesn’t quite believe that this is her reflection she’s looking at. “Carrie, how much do I—“

“Absolutely nothing. Well, if someone asks you where to go…”

“I’ll tell them to come see the one and only Carrie Wilson,” Julie finishes. “But seriously, I can pay you for—“

Carrie shakes her head. “Julie, please. Don’t you think if I wanted your money by now I’d have taken it?” She glances over Julie’s shoulder where Luke now stands, talking with another one of the stylists, but his eyes keep floating back to Julie. “Between you and me, you’re doing the whole town a favor by making that boy happy.”

Julie glances back at Luke who shoots her a wink. She turns back to Carrie. “Trust me, I’m the lucky one.” There’s really no use in hiding it at this point. So what if she’s kind of really in love with Luke Patterson and his stupid flannels and his moody expressions or the way his eyes give away his every emotion even if his expression tries to show something completely different? So what if she knows they can’t be together because she doesn’t want to go off on tour and hardly see him for months on end because she knows it how much it would hurt him? He’d explained as much when she finally admitted her feelings to him anyway. He said he wasn’t looking for a relationship, and he wasn’t ready to have one as potentially complicated as theirs. And Julie respected that.

Which is why when it comes time to say goodbye, Julie is really proud of herself for not crying… until she gets in her car. A weight settles on her chest all the way back to LA, and it gets heavier with each passing day she’s away from Luke, Reggie, Alex, and everyone she’s met. She does feel some excitement for the tour—definitely more than she did before escaping LA—and she does love performing, seeing her fans, and getting to see in real time how much they love her music. But as more calls to Luke goes unanswered, Julie feels a sense of dread settle in her stomach. Maybe he no longer wants to pursue anything with her, platonic or romantic. Maybe she will just have to tuck the memory of him and her trip away, only to bring it out when she needs to remember why she loves music in the first place. This realization doesn’t really lend itself to the bright stage presence that she usually likes to have, so when it comes time for soundcheck she plasters on a smile that satisfies Caleb and everyone else except for Flynn. (She’s also really good at dodging Flynn.)

It isn’t until she gets back to her dressing room after the opening night of her tour that she feels like she can finally let herself relax. Julie collapses into the chair in front of the vanity, glaring grumpily at her reflection.

“Hey Molina, why so bummed?” She hears his voice before she sees him appear in the mirror behind her. “You’re making this face.” Luke contorts his face into an overexaggerated pout and if it were any other time she’d roll her eyes at him, but instead she jumps out of her chair, throwing herself at him.

“What are you doing here??”

Luke catches her easily, and his chuckle vibrates through her chest, loosening the heaviness she’s been carrying around. “I needed to see you.”

Julie pulls away just enough so she can see his face. “Yeah?”

Luke grins down at her, his hands holding her face gently as he takes her in. His eyes trace over her stage makeup and the glitter left on her face. Her curls have been pinned into some half up do, with colorful butterflies placed within it, but beneath it all she’s still Julie.

His Julie, he hopes.

“I made a mistake. Letting you go was the dumbest idea I’ve ever had. And I’m never doing it again.”

Her face falls, shaking her head slightly, but Luke doesn’t let her pull away. “I won’t let you give up your life for mine. That’s not fair. What about the band? Or the boys? What about you? What about your dreams?”

“All I want is to play music with the people I love. Reggie and Alex can meet us sometime while you’re on tour. But you, Julie, you’re part of my dreams now too.”

Her hands cover his, but she still doesn’t move. “But you… you hate the city. And traffic. And most modern technology.”

“Guess I’m gonna have to learn to live with it, if I want to date the greatest musician of our time.” Luke succeeds at hiding his smug grin for all of two seconds.

Her eyes widen, beautiful brown orbs shining up at him. “You mean…?” Her brain can’t comprehend it, it’s too much, too good to be true.

He leans in, brushing his lips against hers once, twice, before the third turns much more passionate, both of them pouring their hearts into this one exchange.

When Luke pulls back, Julie’s eyes are still closed, and there’s a hint of fear in her voice when she says, “I need to hear you say it.” She’s already declared herself once, and the feelings still stand, but she won’t put her heart on the line again.

“I want this, Julie. I want you. I know our lives are different and that we’ll have a lot to figure out. It might be complicated and maybe messy and sure, we’ll be apart sometimes. But I want to know you’re always coming home to me. And I’ll do the same for you.”

Julie’s eyes flutter open, glossy with tears now. “Really?”

He nods. “I love you, Julianna Rose Molina. And I want everyone to know it.”

Her hands have slipped around his neck without him noticing but it makes it easy for her to pull down him down to her in another heated kiss.

When they finally pull back, their foreheads touching and heavy breaths between them, she says, “You Googled me.” Her mind is still caught up his earlier comment. A title some random entertainment reporter probably gave her that she rolled her eyes at when Caleb or Flynn presented it to her. But when Luke says it? It sounds genuine. Like the best honor she can receive.

Luke doesn’t seem very ashamed to admit, “I missed you.”

“I love you too.”

[knowltonsrangers]

theoretically pt.7

Benjamin Tallmadge x F!reader

first , prev

Caleb never asked if you got seasick, expertly drawing the boat to the shoreline and jumping inside. The man hummed a tune you didn't know as he offered you his hand, swaying gently as the waves bobbed to the coast unanimously.

“Thanks,”

Your hand finds his, his unused hand grabbing your opposite elbow to steady your balance.

"You seem like you’re good friends with the Major,"

Small talk is awkward, but if it meant to carry on a conversation longer than a question and an answer, you would entertain the notion.

"I would sure hope so. Been friends since we were kids,"

“That’s sweet,”

You mean it wholeheartedly, something you hope translates with a small smile on your lips.

Then, your own feet betray you, unceremoniously tripping onboard the small boat as Caleb lunges to catch you.

"I said I'd take care of ya, y/n, can't do that with you in the drink,"

Swallowing thickly, you nod, regaining your footing before sitting down, gasping slightly at how unstable and unsafe all of this felt.

“Speaking of,”

You catch his attention as he looks over to you curiously, seated across from you as he halts his digging through his bag.

"I think Benjamin’s just about had it with me,"

You sigh as he pulls the rope free, the boat officially leaving the shore in one swift motion.

"What makes ya say that?"

"Well, for one, he's incredibly insistent that I leave here. And he doesn't seem to like my jokes."

You only mean the second half as a poor attempt at a jest, yet Caleb begins to seriously mull the two reasonings over, gathering the oars in his hands as he begins to row.

"Nah, don't think of it that way, y/n. He's sendin' you away to protect ya, and I think in my entire life I've seen Ben genuinely laugh six times."

He pauses.

"Maybe seven."

"I can't help it that humor is my defense mechanism. Or coping mechanism.”

You hesitate, then include:

“Or both."

"If I could see it your way, y/n, I'm positive I'd understand."

"Yeah, I can empathize with that."

There's a pause, and you find yourself frowning slightly, every time your mind wanders to the fact you are scarce out of ideas to find your way home from here.

"Do you think I'm crazy?"

You whisper, hands coming to your upper arms as if to instinctively hold yourself. Caleb laughs, then takes a good look at the expression on your face and realizes you aren't kidding.

"No, no! Not ta me, at least. Interestin’, that’s a way I'd call the situation."

“Thanks.”

The warble in your tone is enough to make you physically cringe.

“That means a lot,”

There’s a beat of silence before the brunette presses onwards.

"May I ask you somethin', y/n?"

You swallow thickly, shaking the feeling of dread away for a moment, gently bobbing your head up and down to usher him onwards.

“Why didn’t you listen in yer history class?”

Your eyebrows raise, and then your mind reels. That would be an excellent question that you don't have the heart to tell the man, so you opt for an ambiguous answer instead.

“I…I don’t know. I guess before now, I didn’t have a good reason to.”

“Well, makes me think that if there’s a class to teach, means we’re doin’ somethin’ right.”

“You’re an optimist. That’s a good way to look at it.”

“Not that I’m known for my great ideas or nothin’.”

The trip across the sound was full of mindless chatter, and one thing you appreciated was that Caleb never tried to pry any more information out of you. It was quite nice to just have a simple conversation like it was meeting a new friend, and happy to not be stuck in that tent, nor the endless hours of interrogation.

Once you arrive at the opposite shoreline, it becomes hours of the waiting game. Your chin finds your hand as you sit on the sand, knees drawn to your chest as your clothes bunch and gather uncomfortably.

"I'm due back to get Ben soon. Think you'd be okay for a bit?"

Your head swivels, noting how dark the wooded area had become since you both had arrived upon it.

"He's coming here?"

"Well, yeah. He's gotta tell me what to do with ya, miss."

Caleb snorts, hands on his hips as you sniffle quietly.

"Am I safe? I mean, it seems desolate, but you would know the area better than me,"

The man does a full three-sixty shuffle, eyes scanning the tree line and listening patiently for any movement.

"I'd say so. If someone comes too close, or somethin' rattles in the distance, just keep movin' along the shoreline. S'all connected, I'd find ya."

Your hands run down your pockets, a bit of worry twisting in your stomach at the notion of having nothing on your person.

"Got any spare knives?"

Another joke, but Caleb seemingly contentedly agrees. Shuffling around in his bag, he pulls out a small pocket knife, no bigger than the palm of your hand.

"S'not much, but it's enough to protect yerself."

He hands it to you, and you take it graciously, holding it close to your chest.

"Thank you!"

To you, you have no choice but to happily oblige to any of Caleb's ideas. He was easygoing and downright hilarious, but you can tell just how much he respects Benjamin.

"I promise, even if you come 'cross some lobsterbacks, they wouldn't harm a lady. Just say ya got lost, and ask for the Captain or Major. They'd be able to help you."

His index finger comes to his lips, as if he's about to disclose a secret.

"Jus' don't mention anything about the camp, alright? Yer a patriot now, y/n, don't go switchin' sides."

You stand, wiping the sand from your pants as you go over to Caleb, offering him your pinky. You weren't quite sure if he'd understand what you meant, but almost instantly he locked with yours and shook your interlocked hands once, firmly.

"I promise." "'Atta girl."

And just as quickly as he was in front of you, he was in that boat again, and then in the water, and then...far enough into the fog that you could no longer see him.

"Well, shit."

You kick a rock, praying for the daylight just to hold a little longer. The night hours would be much scarier alone, and you wouldn't find much solace not being able to see your enemy.

"Just another fine predicament, nothing I can't handle." Your fingers run over the pocket knife tucked neatly in your hand, jumping slightly as the crunch of leaves echo within earshot.

"Yeah, right-"

[wr0temyway0ut]

Lukewillie binder??????? !!!!!!

Okay so! Do you remember a couple months ago when you said something in the rarepair server about Willie stealing Luke his first binder and I was like "Inny write it or I will have to"? And then you said you didn't have the 20k words you know it would turn into? I was going to try to write the whole thing within a decent timeframe and be like "challenge accepted, you pulled my hand" but that... didn't happen lmao. I'm almost done with it I'm just blocked on how to finish it.

Anyways it's about Willie being the best boyfriend ever and stealing Luke's first binder for him. Here's a snippet under the cut!

Willie likes to think that they’re a pretty damn good boyfriend. For example, when their girlfriend told them that he was actually their boyfriend, Willie didn’t bat an eye. He simply told Luke he loved him and gave him his first haircut. When Luke’s parents gave him shit about transitioning, Willie sent his uncle to put the fear of Caleb Covington God in them. And when Luke spent hours meticulously measuring himself and researching which binders are the best, only to realize that even the cheapest options were out of his price range, Willie decided to take matters into his own hands. 

“Babe,” Luke giggles, his eyes covered from behind by Willie’s hands, “you know I love your surprises. But my shoes are untied and if you flat tire me again I’m going to fall and break my face.”

“I’d never let that happen,” Willie assures him. “That face is a priceless work of art.”

Willie can feel Luke’s cheeks heat up under their hands. They smirk to themself, then bring Luke to a stop in their bedroom. 

“Keep your eyes closed,” Willie says. “Are they closed?”

They can feel Luke roll his eyes. “Yes, sirma’am.”

“Okay.” Willie drops their hands and grabs the package from the bed. “Hold out your hands.”

(Send me a title from this list of WIPs and I'll tell you about it)

[sergeantsporks]

Writing request: Cherry left in charge and shenanigans happens

“Cherry!” The newest grimwalker slammed his hands down on the kitchen counter. He was still going by ‘Hunter’ in general for now, but he ran through half a dozen new names a week, all taken from his books. Right now it was… Jason? Cherry was pretty sure it was Jason today. “Cherry, are Evelyn and Caleb going to leave each other?”

Cherry blinked at him slowly, swirling a mug of tea in his hands. “…what?”

Jason started to pace back and forth, arms folded behind his back. “I’ve been doing a lot of reading. Tales of heroes, epics. But also, tales of modern humans ‘coming of age’ and romances.”

“Okay?”

“Caleb and Evelyn—they’ve lost a child, neither of them have stable employment, they never leave home or go out together, and they’re currently dealing with a large stressor in their lives. Namely, Uncle and us.”

Cherry rested his elbows on the counter. Jason still used the stilted formality of golden guard language, and it could take him a while to get to the point. “Right.”

“They show all of the classic signs of a young protagonist’s parents that are on the verge of a divorce!”

“A what now?”

“A divorce! A separation! A split!”

“Oh.” Cherry scratched the back of his neck. “I don’t think you have to worry about them splitting. They love each other too much for that.”

“Still!” Jason tore off, returning seconds later with a notepad. “Often, parents’ divorces are stopped through the intervention of their children. Now, it might be presumptuous of me to call myself their child—”

“It’s not.”

“Nonetheless! I have taken careful notes on the various methods children use to push their parents back together, selecting only the most successful for us to use with the least risk.”

“Us?” Cherry echoed.

“Us. I can’t do it without you.” Jason gave him huge puppy-dog eyes. “I know you don’t think their marriage is in jeopardy, but it can’t hurt to strengthen their bond, can it? Just to be sure?”

Well, he couldn’t exactly say no to that face, now could he? Especially since Caleb had told him to watch out for the newest grimwalker. “What do you need?”

“To convince them to go on a date.”

Cherry coughed. “Sorry?”

“A date,” Jason repeated, “You’re the oldest, you’re the most responsible, surely if you promise to watch the house, they’ll be amicable to the idea.”

Cherry chuckled. “Yeah. Okay, sure. Sure. Would you like Sam’s help to engineer a perfect date, too? Throw some magic sparkles their way?”

“Hmmmm.”

“Joking. Joking, Jason.”

“I know that.” Jason stared at Chery while he drank his tea, fingers tapping on the counter aimlessly. “So…?”

“So…?” Cherry repeated.

“So are you going to?”

Cherry grinned. “Oh, you meant now?”

“Yes!” Jason came around the counter, pushing Cherry. He was miniscule compared to Cherry, and it might as well have been a griffin chick’s push for all it did in moving Cherry. “We—need—to—get—this done—why are you so big?!”

Cherry shifted to the side, and Jason lost balance, stumbling forward. “Ack!”

Cherry chuckled, reaching out towards him. “Uh—right. Permission to touch?”

Jason eyed him warily. “Granted.”

Cherry ruffled his hair. “Give me a second, I don’t want this to get cold.”

Jason spluttered, pushing his hand away. “What about their relationship? What if that goes cold?!”

Cherry drained the rest of his mug. “Alright, alright. I’m going.”

He found Caleb and Evelyn outside with Mole, examining a hole in the wire fencing around the garden. Mole knelt in the garden, cradling a broken cucumber plant in his hands.

“I just don’t understand how whatever it is got past the fence,” Evelyn murmured, “The enchantments are still holding.”

“Maybe it dug under?” Caleb suggested.

Mole sniffed, and Evelyn knelt next to him. “Aw, don’t worry, kiddo. I can fix it, look.” She drew a glowing green circle, and the plant perked up, new leaves sprouting from the broken stem. “There, see? Good as new.”

Cherry knocked on the wire caging. “Hey.”

Caleb moved to the fence. “Hey. What’s on your mind?”

“It’s about Jason.”

Caleb blinked, staring at him blankly, then circled one finger around in the air. “Oh! Oh, right, he said that was his name yesterday. He’s still with that one, then?”

“Hasn’t told me a new one.”

“Is he alright?”

“He’s mostly fine. Hey, when was the last time you went on a date with Mom?”

Caleb spluttered. “What?”

“A date. Courting her. Or her courting you. When was the last time you and she went out, just the two of you, for fun, none of us with you, not going out to get something for us?”

“Um…” Caleb scratched the back of his head. “A while. Definitely a while. Possibly years.”

“You should go on one. Just the two of you.” Cherry glanced behind him. Jason was (badly) hiding around the side of the house, his head poking around the corner to watch. “I can watch the house.”

Caleb followed his gaze to Jason, then back to Cherry’s face. “…So, what’s this have to do with Jason? I’m assuming that’s why you brought him up, right? This is his idea?”

“He’s convinced you and Mom are going to split.”

“What? Why?”

“I…” Cherry ran Jason’s explanation through his head, then shrugged. “It’s complicated. Anyway, he thinks that if the two of you don’t go on a date immediately, you’re going to split. And I don’t exactly think it’s the worst idea for you and Mom to take a break.”

Caleb turned to face Evelyn and Mole, leaning on the fence. “What do you think, love? Do you think you could bear a night out on the town with me for poor Jason’s peace of mind?”

She laced her fingers through the fence near his head. “Oh, it’ll be a sacrifice, to be sure, but one I’m willing to make. For Jason’s sake.”

Mole gagged.

Evelyn snickered, turning towards Cherry. “You’re sure you can handle this rowdy lot?”

Cherry almost snapped a salute, but turned it into an eyepatch adjustment at the last second. “Perfectly.”

“Alright, then. Date night it is.”

“Wait, like now? Tonight?”

“Sure. Why not? If you need a day, we can—”

“No,” Cherry interrupted, “It’s fine. Go. Have fun!”

Caleb and Evelyn headed towards the house, and Mole raised one eyebrow at Cherry, twisting the busted wire of the cage back together.

“What?”

Jason cannoned into Cherry, grabbing his arm. “You did it! See, I told you they’d listen to you!”

“Yeah, you did. Marriage saved. Are you going to help me run the house while they’re gone?”

Jason pulled back with a gasp, stars in his eyes. “Really?! You trust me?!”

Cherry’s nose crinkled. “More like it’s your fault I’m roped into this, so you’d better help.” He tousled Jason’s hair. “But yeah, because I trust you, too.”

Jason didn’t push his hand away this time. “I’m on it! Whatever you need!”

Caleb and Evelyn stood at the door, concealment stones in hand. “There’s soup on the stove,” Caleb told Cherry, “Frank’s cooking it for now, so you don’t have to worry about that, just make sure everyone eats. And make sure Mole comes in, I think he might be planning a stakeout of the cucumber patch. And—”

“He’s got it, sweetheart,” Evelyn teased, shoving Caleb’s shoulder, “They’ll be fine. Let’s go.”

She grabbed his hand and yanked him out the door, laughing at his startled splutter. Cherry closed the door. “Well. You ready?”

Jason snapped a salute. “Reporting for duty!”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“Okay.” Jason bounced up and down in place. “What’s my first job?”

“Oh. Ummm, go see if you can get Sam’s head out of his glyphs long enough to eat, okay?”

“On it!” Jason bounded down the hallway in the wrong direction.

He’s certainly eager. But is that a good thing, or a sign that something’s wrong?

Jason ran back past him down the other side of the hallway. “Wrong way! Don’t worry! I’ve got it!”

A smile crept across Cherry’s face watching him go. Whichever it was, it was pretty funny to watch. Jason disappeared into Sam’s lab. Seconds later, Cherry heard a scuffling, and Jason backed out of the room, arms wrapped around Sam’s waist. Jason only came up to about Sam’s chest, but Sam was willowy, and Jason was able to wrap his arms all the way around him. He tugged, dragging Sam just a little farther out.

“You—can go—back—in—a second!”

Sam gripped the doorframe, struggling to get back into the lab. “NO! LET ME GO!”

“You need—to eat!”

“I’ll grow something with a glyph! Let go!”

Jason tugged again, successfully dislodging Sam from the door. The older grimwalker squawked like a startled bird, his long limbs flailing. Jason took advantage of his loss of balance to drag him down the hallway.

“Got him!” he remarked cheerfully when he passed Cherry.

Laughter bubbled up in Cherry’s throat, but he turned it into a cough. “Yep. You did. Good work.”

“Cherry!” Sam yowled, “Call him off!”

“No. Go eat. It’ll take less time than struggling and fighting the whole way.”

Cherry followed the two of them to the kitchen, blocking off Sam’s escape routes. Sam finally gave up fighting Jason, snatching a spoon and heading right towards the pot. Frank swung a long wooden spoon at him, batting his hand away. “Bowl,” he ordered.

“One bite doesn’t count,” Cherry warned, “Full meal, Sam.”

“Full meal, Sam,” Sam mimicked, “Hey, what’s going on outside?”

“Nice try.”

“No, I’m being serious, Lucy’s going nuts!”

Cherry ran to the window. Outside, Lucy was clawing at the garden cage, shrieking furiously. Mole crouched inside, holding a griffin chick in his arms.

Sam made a break for the hallway, but Cherry didn’t care what he was doing anymore. He slammed the door open, running towards the garden, Jason steps behind. Huge gusts of air from Lucy’s wings pushed him back, but he forced his way to the garden, holding onto the cage.

“MOLE!” he yelled over the sound of Lucy, “MOLE, LET THE GRIFFIN CHICK GO!”

Mole shook his head, holding the griffin tightly. He glared at the chick, but flinched when Lucy tore at the cage again, this time ripping through the wiring. She perched on top, snaking her head in through the hole she’d made and snapping at Mole. He backed away, carefully stepping over the plants. But he would not let the chick go.

“Mole! Just let it go!”

Jason caught up to him, grabbing his arm. His eyes darted over the scene. Mole, the chick, the torn fence, the broken vegetables, and Lucy. “Oh!” he gasped, “The griffin chick’s been eating the garden, and you caught it!”

Mole nodded, still glaring at the chick.

“Okay—well, Mama’s going to tear you apart if you don’t give her back her baby. It’s not worth it!”

Mole shook his head, flinching again when Lucy thrust her whole shoulders through the hole, twisting and biting at him.

“It’ll get you out of revenge,” Jason realized aloud, “You can’t let go!”

Mole nodded, tears sparking in his eyes.

“Get Joseph,” Cherry ordered, “He can help.”

Jason ran back towards the house, and Cherry climbed up onto the fence, reaching through the fence and wrapping his arms around Lucy’s thick neck. “C’mon,” he grunted, tugging her away, “He’s not gonna let go if you’re scaring him!”

Lucy shrieked again, pulling herself out of the fence and whipping around wildly. Cherry swung from her neck, yelping and grabbing on with his legs as well as his arms to keep from being flung off of the garden.

“Cherry!” Joseph ran parallel along the edge of the fence. “Cherry, you have to—Cherry, you’re agitating her!”

“She’s agitating me! Mole, go!”

Mole ran out the garden door, letting the chick go and making a break for the house. Lucy reared up, eying first her chick, then Mole.

“The chick,” Cherry murmured, leaning his weight towards it, “Go for your chick!”

Joseph squawked and squeaked, imitating baby griffin noises. “Come on,” he yelped. Another squeak. He picked up the griffin chick, but more gently than Mole had. The chick purred in his arms, snuggling in. Joseph backed up towards the coop, still imitating the baby griffin. Lucy swung towards him, her feathers smoothing down. She took a couple of steps forward, squawking gently in response to Joseph.

“Thaaaaaat’s it. C’mon, girl.”

Jason ran around in front. “Let go,” he whispered to Cherry, wrapping his arms around Cherry’s chest and walking backwards. “I’ve got you, let go!”

Cherry let go, and almost immediately, Jason fell under his weight. They tumbled to the ground, Cherry on top, and he curled over Jason as Lucy passed them. She delicately stepped over the two of them, then snaked her head around to blink at them.

“Awk?” she purred.

“Lucy,” Joseph said in a low warning voice, “Lucy, no. Not new chicks.”

Lucy tilted her head the other way, gingerly pawing Cherry off of Jason. He froze, but her sharp talons didn’t draw any blood.

“Lucy. No.”

Lucy snatched up the back of Jason’s shirt in her beak. He yelped, twisting around.

“No!” Joseph yelped, “Drop it, Lucy. Lucy! Jason, don’t struggle, she’ll think it’s funny.”

Cherry rolled out of the way of Lucy’s claws. She crouched, her tail wiggling in the air.

“No. Not a game. Lucy…”

Lucy leapt over Joseph’s head into the coop, still holding her prize. Cherry scrambled to his feet, chasing after the two of them. Lucy dropped Jason in her nest, sitting on top of him with a whump. Her rouge chick scampered past Cherry, wriggling in after Jason. Cherry approached, holding his hands up. “Easy… Easy… “

“Help,” Jason called from under the pile of fluff, his voice muffled. One hand stretched out, and Cherry grabbed it, tugging.

“I’ve got you, I’ve got you—”

Joseph hissed in from the doorway. “Ohhhhhhh, Cherry, I wouldn’t—"

Lucy shifted uncomfortably at the movement, first one way then the other. She bucked and emitted an odd cackle, almost like a laugh, and just out of one corner of his good eye, Cherry saw her wing flaring out right towards him, moments before it smacked him in the head.

“I killed him. I killed Cherry! I should have just left it alone, I should have just—”

“Take a deep breath. He’s not dead. I promise he’s not dead.”

Cherry blinked up at the ceiling of his room. His head throbbed in time with his heartbeat, and everything smelled like a barnyard. “…Hrngh?”

“Cherry!” Jason grabbed his arm. “Are you okay?”

“…You got out…?”

“Yeah, Joseph threw a grub in the air and Lucy jumped for it. Mole’s okay, too, he got to the house in time, and I think Lucy forgot about him.”

Cherry closed his eye again. “…Ow… how bad is the fence damage?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Auric ordered, “You’ve got a bruise the size of my palm on your head, and I’m not ruling out a concussion. Joseph’s already on it.”

“I’m sorry,” Jason murmured, shifting back and forth, “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“Eh. ‘s okay.” Cherry rubbed his eye. “What t—”

The sound of the front door swinging open made him jump up, heart pounding wildly in his chest. “Mom and Dad! How long was I…?”

He stumbled towards the door of his room and out into the hallway. The sky outside sparkled with stars, framing Caleb and Evelyn in the doorway.

“Have fun?”

Caleb hummed. “So much—what happened to your head?”

Cherry and Jason glanced at each other, Jason’s eyes brimming with worry. Cherry shrugged. “Oh. You know. Just normal in-charge things.”

Evelyn eyed him. “Really.”

“Yep. Oh, and the baby griffins are what’s been getting into the garden.” Cherry slung one arm around Jason. “Jason was a lot of help.”

Caleb beamed. “Really? That’s great!”

Jason squeezed Cherry back. “Yeah! Just… maybe don’t leave again in a hurry.”

“Deal.”