#I may try for rush tickets for a same-day show when the tour comes around here

[tonyglowheart]

hmmmm okay. okay the costumes are.. growing on me.

the fact that the show is flat-out framed as a 21st century girl-power show though lol. I mean yeah. Okay that tracks. but also. oof.

but on the other hand... Greensleeves interpolation...

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Sole Crusher

Well... It's finally here... the episode introducing the new bee hero. And what do you know? It looks like I was right about how the new character would be portrayed.

It's kind of funny how I made predictions exaggerating what could happen, and they were surprisingly accurate. Isn't that funny?

Let's just get into the seventh (chronologically the seventh and the seventh episode in the season to air after “Mr. Pigeon 72”) episode of Miraculous Ladybug's fourth season: Sole Crusher. Damn, I hate that a pun this clever was used for the title.

We get to the point pretty quickly with the first scene being Zoe arriving in Paris and getting a tour of the city. She asks to stop at the Dupain-Cheng bakery, where she meets Marinette through some brief Unfunny Marinette Slapstick. The two quickly strike up a conversation.

I mean, it's not like Zoe is the sister of the absolute worst human being in existence, right?

Marinette compliments Zoe's shoes, and she points out that she designed them herself, and wrote every good thing anyone has ever said to her on them. But because she only has one friend, there's only a standard “I <3 U” on the left shoe.

So Zoe leaves the bakery and heads to Le Grand Paris where she meets her mother, Audrey. Unlike how she talked with Marinette, Zoe pretends to be just as snobby as Audrey in order to fit in. She then meets up with Chloe, who criticizes her for having poor person things like a phone without any diamonds embedded in it. And then she sees Zoe's shoes.

Look, that meme was already dated when it was referenced in Black Panther three years ago. Please don't try to reference memes in 2021, Miraculous Ladybug.

Chloe offers some golden heels while saying that those kind of shoes are for winners to wear and crush the losers underneath. This is the only episode to mention this kind of ideology, and believe me, it gets worse when Chloe decides to teach Zoe how to be like her.

Get used to this. This episode is all about demolishing any semblance of likability in Chloe's character. Now that Astruc doesn't have to bother with writing Chloe with decency since she's not Queen Bee, watch as he turns her into an absolute caricature of her former self.

Yes, Chloe has ordered her father to give her a lot of frivolous things in the past, but she has been shown to care about him, like immediately rushing to hug him after she was safe in “Origins” and showing concern for when he was akumatized into Malediktator while apologizing for causing it. For the love of God, one of the first things she did when she allied with Hawkmoth at the end of Season 3 was to have him unto her parents' akumatization. I guess she only cared about her rich parents for their status and not because she actually loved them right?

Next up on the list of Chloe's positive qualities to ruin is her friendship with Sabrina.

🎶It's seven o'clock in the morning🎶 🎶I can't believe they made this scene🎶 🎶With the writing Astruc's enforcing🎶 🎶It's like he's trying to piss off me🎶

Yep, Chloe doesn't view Sabrina in a twisted view of friendship anymore. Now she's a slave. I'm not exaggerating by the way, he actually said that in a tweet.

THIS IS WHAT THOMAS ASTRUC ACTUALLY BELIEVES

Okay, so I guess all those times we saw Chloe playing superheroes with Sabrina in “Antibug” and “Miraculer” were just a slave driver playing with their property. Actually apologizing to Sabrina for getting her akumatized in those episodes? Protecting her from the Scarlet Akumas in “Ladybug”? She was just interested in keeping her slave around. I think Astruc may have slept through the slavery unit in his history class. Yes, Sabrina was mostly used as a joke to show how controlling Chloe could be, but there were still semblances of an actual friendship between the two.

Chloe arrives at school and introduces Zoe as her half-sister, despite being the same age and having the same mother. Because I guess we can add basic biology to the list of things the writers don't understand. Now that we're at school, Chloe's friendship with Adrien is next up on the chopping block.

Yep, despite being Adrien's only friend and making a big deal about valuing his friendship to the point where she threw a big party just to make sure he wouldn't leave her and risked cooperating with an Akuma to save him, now Chloe just sees Adrien as a rich meal ticket. Two of the earliest episodes to show Chloe had a more compassionate side to her, and they just undid them. Even as much as I hated the episode, “Felix” showed Chloe was willing to cooperate with Marinette and her friends just to find a way to cheer Adrien up on the anniversary of his mother's not-death.

For the love of God, Astruc, 1984 was supposed to warn people about what could happen if they rewrote the past, not encourage people to rewrite the past. He probably finished Animal Farm thinking Snowball really did work alongside the humans, didn't he?

Marinette comes up and Zoe pretends to hate her, leading Marinette to wonder why she did that. She texts Zoe (she gave her number to her earlier) and invites her to a concert on the Liberty, but Chloe finds out. Zoe thinks fast and pretends it's just so she can torment her more. Chloe then takes out a book listing all the ways she can torture Marinette. I wonder if this is a metaphor for the writing process behind most of the episodes last season.

Zoe decides to go outside for some fresh air, and Andre comforts her. Funny how Andre bends over backwards to give Chloe whatever she wants, yet he's willing to actually talk to Zoe like an actual parent. Andre tries to cheer Zoe up, but she talks about her past where she had to put on an act so she would be liked, but (bet you've never heard this before) she just wants to be accepted for who she truly is. The surge of emotions is enough for Shadowmoth to akumatize her into Sole Crusher.

In addition to having one of the most clever puns for an Akuma name, I actually like Sole Crusher's design. Not only is it a good excuse to reuse Chloe's character design, it makes sense thematically, as Chloe was trying to mold Zoe into a copy of herself. The gold and diamonds also make sense given Chloe's love for shiny things. Her powers tie into the bizarre belief Chloe has about stepping on the winners. Whenever Sole Crusher kicks or steps on someone, she absorbs them and gets progressively bigger, making it easier to do so. While it's not cracking my top ten anytime soon, it's still an interesting character design.

Sole Crusher heads to the hotel to get Chloe, and she manages to get away pretty quickly. Maybe in an alternate universe, she's a track star? For some reason, she runs to the Dupain-Cheng bakery and then... Oh my God... pushes Marinette's parents so they get absorbed by Sole Crusher, before trying to do the same with Marinette.

When has Chloe ever done something like that? Whenever she endangered someone during an Akuma attack, it was unintentional or a result of her naivety. She was only trapped in Pixelator's dimension because Adrien tried diving to save her, she only alerted Rogercop to Ladybug's presence because she eagerly called out for her, and during “Zombizou” she only tried to throw Sabrina towards the horde of kissing zombies once, and that was meant to highlight her growth. The only person to actually do stuff like this consistently is Lila, but I guess she got vaporized by Big Brother offscreen.

This episode is determined to make the audience hate Chloe by retconning everything about her character while portraying her as a complete monster. As bad as Chloe could get, she was never selfish enough to use anyone as a human shield. This kind of behavior honestly could be explained by saying Chloe was lashing out as a result of losing the Bee Miraculous permanently, but the events of the Season 3 finale aren't mentioned ONCE, not even in the next episode that introduces Queen Bee's replacement! How the hell can you set up the next Bee hero without explaining why the original needs to be replaced in the first place?! And trust me, I'm going to talk about Zoe replacing Chloe later.

Sole Crusher grabs Marinette in her hand, so the Horse Kwami, Kaalki, uses her power to teleport over to Adrien's house and inform him Ladybug needs help, meaning once again Adrien did nothing in this episode before becoming Cat Noir.

At the Liberty, Chloe offers more victims to Sole Crusher in the form of the band Kitty Section (consisting of Luka, Juleka, Rose, Ivan, and Mylene) and theatens the giant golden supervillain she can send her back to Paris, even though she's really not in a position to bargain right now. And she STILL continues to insult her. Do you hate Chloe yet? Come on, do you? The writers won't stop until you do.

After we see Sole Crusher's conflicted emotions, Marinette is set free by Cat Noir and transforms into Ladybug, immediately summoning her Lucky Charm, a shoehorn. They only learn Zoe's sneakers were where she were akumatized thanks to Chloe's ranting, so the episode unintentionally made Chloe save the day. Ladybug breaks into Le Grand Paris and breaks the sneakers where Zoe hid them, using the shoehorn to open a door. So Sole Crusher is de-evilized, Ladybug fixes the damage, and gives yet another charm to Zoe.

Afterwards, Zoe goes to the Liberty, apologizes for the act she put on, all while divulging to the audience her “tragic backstory”.

Of course, everyone welcomes her with open arms.

And right here is where the biggest problem I have with Zoe as a character. I normally hesitate to use this term given how often it gets thrown around when criticizing characters these days, but I really can't say anything else.

Zoe... is a Mary Sue.

For those who don't know, the term Mary Sue originated in a Star Trek fanfiction from 1973 satirizing several self-insert stories at the time. Most of these stories showed a beautiful young woman joining the crew of the Enterprise and immediately gaining the attention of the crew. Mary Sue parodied this character archetype by showing how much she was appreciated by Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, the latter being driven to tears at her funeral despite his species being emotionless normally.

What does this have to do with Zoe? She has the exact same storyline as Mary Sue in the parody fanfiction. Her mere presence is enough to make Chloe act extremely out of character in an attempt to make her look better, and as soon as she apologizes while giving a frankly vague backstory, everyone just accepts her as their friend, and I mean everyone in the entire class. I'm sorry, but it just doesn't feel earned. Why was she bullied at her old school? What did her bullies have against her? What caused her to stop going along with her peers, and why did everyone turn against her? How the hell did the bullies who put cockroaches in another student's locker get no punishment while the victim was forced to transfer schools? It's an intentionally unclear backstory designed to make the audience feel sympathetic towards Zoe without actually doing anything else.

I want to ask anyone reading this who watched the episode a question: Outside of her backstory, what do we actually know about Zoe?

What is her personality like? She's nice? Socially awkward? We've never had a character like that in Miraculous Ladybug before! Sorry Marinette, Adrien, Juleka, Nathaniel, Mylene, and Marc, there's a new character with more personality than all of you combined!

What are her goals? She wants to be an actress? Great, but why? Even though there's no clear answer for why Marinette loves fashion, or why Alya loves journalism, or why Nino loves DJing, you can still see the passion in their lives when they do something related to their goals. Zoe only says she wants to be an actress, connecting it to her people pleaser backstory (and given how it ended, she must be a terrible actress), and in the next episode, she immediately gets the lead role in a student film.

When Mylene got the starring role in the movie in “Horrificator”, we at least got snippets of her acting skills in the same episode that established her desire to be an actress, which is also implied to be because she was inspired by her father in “The Mime”. She didn't just say she wanted to be an actress and got the leading role. She still had problems to overcome like her cowardice, which threw her own self-confidence into doubt. Here, Zoe just says she wants to be an actress, and is rewarded for no reason the very next episode.

Zoe basically exists only to be a foil to Chloe, and the writers had no idea what to do in terms of a personality, so they just dumped a bunch of extremely likable character traits onto her without thinking of how her character could come off. And like I said, she's a Mary Sue.

I'm not the only one who thinks this. I've seen a handful of posts on this very site calling Zoe a Mary Sue. In fact, I even asked another Tumblr user @anxresi​ to quote their take on Zoe being a Mary Sue, which I couldn't even top in terms of accuracy. They basically listed off five things that made Zoe a Mary Sue.

She has to have a ‘tragic backstory’ so all the other characters will fall in love with her. Usually within minutes, in the very first episode they’re introduced.

She has to have a supercute design so that the audience at home will fall in love with her. And if they don’t, they’re automatically dismissed as ‘haterz’ even if their objections are purely from a writing POV.

Her only flaw will be thinking too little of herself. “What, lil ol’ me as the Bee Miraculous holder? With my shyness, colorful shoes, chic beret and personalized pink strip in my hair? Gosh, who’d have thought it?”

The contrast to her half-sister will be a constant plot point, with Chloe always getting dumped on. “You see, kids? Bad things happen to bad people. But you see this super-sweet girl over here? She gets a free DAD. Instant FRIENDS. To star in her own MOVIE. The chance to be a SUPERHERO, even though she only arrived last week. Who cares if she has no depth, no personality and barely any reason for being in the show, apart from being a massive ‘Up Yours’ to all the Chloe fans out there?”

What about character development, Mr Generic Zag Guy? “Development? What’s that?! Zoe is already perfect as she is. The only ‘development’ she’ll receive is having her hair done in the first episode she’s introduced. Besides, That‘d’ word is banned here at Zag studios. Why do you think we abandoned Chloe’s stillborn arc so quickly? This is a KIDS show, why bother trying to create a complex character with more than one dimension?”

This is essentially who Zoe is. She's perfect, has no character flaws, has a cute design so the audience will love her already, and was designed only to replace Chloe as Queen Bee. That's all she is.

So the episode ends with Zoe feeling happy at all the new friends she made while we get one of the most blatant attempts of symbolism in the ending card I've ever seen.

See, look. While Marinette is happily talking with Zoe with the image of Ladybug next to them, Chloe is to the far left with an EVIL purple aura, showing how bad she is compared to how great Zoe is. Only a braindead moron would actually like Chloe over the super awesome and pretty Zoe!

I'll give my final thoughts on the episode in the next part where I analyze this plotline as a whole.

LINK TO “QUEEN BANANA” REVIEW

[freddie-mercury-rising]

I got an idea for a drabble... hot random guy Freddie meets at a club on tour in the states and they go back to his hotel for some fun 😏

If you’d have told me that one day, I’d be walking down the hallway on my way to Freddie Mercury’s dressing room, I’d have called you a lunatic. I’m not a tall, dark, handsome guy by any means. I’ve always carried a bit of extra weight, and my folks never had the money to fix my damn crooked teeth. I would never have even dared dream that a man like Freddie would look at me twice. Still, there I was, walking behind some tall guy, on my way to see the lead singer of Queen himself.

It all started when my cousin invited me to see Queen. I told him he was crazy. There was no way Queen was in La Crosse. Of all the damn places in the world, I just couldn’t imagine they’d come to our neck of the woods. But my cousin handed me a ticket and next thing I knew, I was spending half my paycheck getting my haircut and buying a new pair of Levi’s 505s for the occasion. My cousin laughed and asked if I was trying to meet a girl at the show. He didn’t know I was gay then. Hell, I wasn’t even sure myself yet. I knew that yanking it to men got me off a hell of a lot faster than yanking it to women, but that was about the extent of it.

It was a Wednesday evening, and I had to work the next day. My cousin told me to call in—that way we could drink a six pack each and not have to worry about doing the forklift hungover. We worked at the same place in those years, and got paid beans, but it was the only thing in that town for dudes like us. We weren’t dumb, you see, and I can only speak for myself, but I had the itch to get out of that podunk town and see the world. I was in a rut, and little did I know, Freddie Mercury was going to be the one thing that brought me out of my funk.

When I first saw him up close, I couldn’t believe how small he was. Now, I don’t mean he’s a munchkin or anything. It’s just, he looks ten feet tall onstage, but the man was shorter than me, and skinny as a rail. That might sound like he wasn’t handsome, and that’s the furthest thing from the truth. He was handsome all right. Sexy, too. Back then, I would never have called a man sexy, but he was downright sexy. He had this sharp jawline and shoulder-length fluffy black hair. When I stepped in the room, I figured he’d be all sweaty and funky from the show, but he smelled like a million bucks. I remember thinking that he must have showered after he got offstage, but he was still wearing his stage outfit.

When he opened his mouth to say hi, he covered his teeth with his lip like he was shy or something. After I’d seen him hump the guitarist and flail around onstage, there he was hiding his smile and blinking his eyelashes like he was the one who needed to be nervous. I could barely believe it when I saw his eyes trailing down my jeans. I got a rush, though, believe me. I was awfully proud of my Levi’s then, and even prouder of what was underneath. I may have been a corn-fed Midwestern boy with below-average looks, but I was well-endowed.

Freddie offered me a beer, and I drank it way too fast, because I was nervous. I made it seem like I was so cool, though, and sat down beside him, spreading my legs out and trying to seem like I went backstage at rock concerts all the time. I was sweating bullets when Freddie took his long-fingered hand and traced it along my bicep. It was good somebody appreciated those arms, because I sure worked my ass off getting them. And I don’t mean at the gym, either. Guys like me had no time for the gym. God knows, some nights, I didn’t even have the energy for wet dreams after that grueling job of mine. Anyway, Freddie had his hand on my arm and the next thing I knew, I had my hand on his thigh. I kid you not, my whole palm fit over his thigh. He had the tiniest legs, all squeezed into those skin-tight pants.

Freddie drove me crazy even just five minutes in, and I wasn’t even anywhere near his pecker yet. All I was doing was rubbing his leg and kissing his neck. He tasted so damn good. I couldn’t believe I was licking the neck of the lead singer of Queen, and he was moaning in my ear like I was doing way more than that. It gave me a boost, I tell you. I couldn’t believe it. Not that I had much experience, but no one had ever made that much noise from just my mouth on their neck before. My Levi’s were mighty tight all of a sudden, and I shifted around, kind of embarrassed to be so worked up. Obviously Freddie wasn’t embarrassed, because he just kept arcing his hips up like he wanted me to touch him.

Now, before that, I had mostly been with girls, and it was always just okay. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but men were a whole other story. But I didn’t have much experience with them, and always let them take the lead. I could tell Freddie wanted me to take the lead, though. He was practically lifted up off the seat, and he may as well have had a neon sign that said “touch my cock”.

When I put my hand on him through his satin pants, Freddie wailed like he’d touched a hot poker. I almost drew my hand back, because I thought I’d hurt him, but he put his hand on top of mine and held it there, humping it like crazy. He wanted it badly, and it was so sexy that I could barely even think straight. I’d never seen a man so horny for another guy before. It was the hottest thing I’d ever seen in my life, and I was actually afraid I was going to blow my load before I had the chance to get him off.

God almighty, I wanted him so much then. I straddled him and started kissing his mouth, and I had to stop, like a damn teenager, because I was about to blow like Krakatoa. He was so desperate, like this was the first time he’d ever made it with anyone before. It surprised me, because I knew a guy like him could have whoever he wanted in the world. And he probably did, but my God, he made me feel like the only man on the Earth that night. When he got undressed, my eyes didn’t know where to look. There was so much beauty in one human body that it was overwhelming, like when you look at a really beautiful painting or hear a lovely song and it makes your heart want to burst right out of your chest and makes you want to cry and shout and sing all at the same time.

We pressed ourselves together on that sofa, skin to skin, and I had never had a man’s prick against mine before. It felt like sparks of electricity flowing through my body and I had to put my hand down on myself and squeeze so I wouldn’t misfire and ruin the whole night. I wanted to last as long as humanly possible for him, but he wasn’t making it easy, wrapping his long legs around my waist, and moaning so beautifully that it made my soul ache. I thought I was dreaming at some points, when I looked down and saw his lips parted and his head tossed back in bliss. I couldn’t believe I was doing that to him, that he was in such pleasure because of me.

I never topped a man, not before him. But Freddie made it so easy for me. He was so good to me. I say that, and I know it sounds odd, but he was in total control, even though he was on the bottom. He let me take my time with him, get used to the feeling of my fingers inside, and it was mesmerizing and I was honored he was letting me in like that. I know I wasn’t the first, but it’s still a hell of a thing when a man trusts you enough to let you get that close to him. It made me all tingly and proud, and I wanted to do right by him. It’s odd how protective I got of him, even in just those moments I was with him. When he was ready for me, I felt such a tenderness towards him that I was gentle, even though my body was begging me to go hard and fast. I couldn’t do it, because I wanted to smother him with kisses first, and hold him in my arms for a while while I eased inside. It’s funny, since I didn’t know him well at all, but I wanted to make love to him. That’s what he did to me. So I went as easy as I could, even though I was in physical pain from needing him so badly.

When I was flush against his body, smelling him all over me and around me, my brain a big cloud of pleasure, Freddie put his hands on my shoulders and pulled me down. I went just a bit deeper inside and it was like the lights came on inside my body. I started moving and I swear to you, I might have blacked out from the sensation. I was being wrung out, turned inside out and upside down, fireworks behind my eyes—all those clichés that I thought only existed in poems, or Hollywood, or porno flicks. He was making these high, whiny sounds and twisting his hips this way and that like he was trying to kill me in the best possible way.

I was so proud of myself that I held out so that Freddie could finish first. I’d never seen something so gorgeous before that moment, when he scrunched his face up and fell back. I forgot for a second that I didn’t have to hold back anymore, so when I let go, it felt like a river exploding behind a dam. I don’t know what kind of sound I made, because I couldn’t have stopped myself even if my whole family stepped in the door at that moment. I gripped onto Freddie’s waist and rode it out, and he crossed his legs behind my back and pulled me even closer while I did.

Afterwards, when we lay there in a big heap of sweaty mess, Freddie tilted his head up and brushed his lips against mine. I felt, for just a brief minute, that we were lovers, like lovers who might go home together and cuddle up in bed. I felt such a great envy for any man who would ever get to love him and kiss him every single day. Right on its heels was a sense of possessiveness for him, like I wanted to fight any man who did wrong by him, who so much as looked at him sideways. I thought it was funny, because I wasn’t the fighting type, but that’s just what Freddie did to me, you see.

When I left, Freddie gave me a big hug, and I squeezed him so hard I just about lifted him off the ground. I told him something about how great of a singer he was, or some such, and he thanked me. When I was on the other side of that door, I turned to head back down the hall and back to my cousin, to my job at the plant, to the humdrum daily life of La Crosse, Wisconsin. But something stopped me, and I turned to look at the laminated paper hanging on the door that said “F. Mercury”. I said a quiet little thank you to that sign and made a promise to myself.

The United States pulled out of Vietnam later that year, and Sony came out with this funky little gadget called Betamax, and I thought before long, we’d have flying cars. I was always a tinkerer myself, so I took a basic electronics engineering course at our community college that Fall. I got a subscription to Popular Electronics, and started following this company almost no one had heard of at the time. Micro-Soft was in the computer business and it was interesting to a geek like me. I still ran the forklift for a while, but my head was in the clouds, and I kept thinking of Freddie. I just kept thinking of how he made me feel: like I could do anything. It sounds silly, I know. But I wrote a letter to the founder of this Micro-Soft company, just to tell them I liked their business model. Turns out, they needed hands on deck. In 1979, I moved to Washington state and signed on as a product developer, or whatever they called it back in those days.

As I sit here in my lovely big house overlooking the lake, sipping coffee with my husband and two dogs. I think that life’s funny sometimes. Funny and cruel. It was pure dumb luck that Freddie and so many other men didn’t make it—can’t sit here on their porch holding hands with the love of their life. It’s cruel and I can’t think too much about it, or else I’ll be all waterworks. And I know it’s a stretch to think that Freddie saved my life on that March day in 1975. That might be putting a little too much stock into a one-night-stand. But that lovely man lit a spark inside of me that hasn’t gone out since. And for that, I’m forever grateful.

I posted it on AO3 as well.

[natromanxoff]

Queen live at Elland Road in Leeds, UK - May 29, 1982 (Part-2)

Fan Stories

“We got a coach from my home town (about 2 hours from memory) and drank an ocean of lager on the way, by the time we got there we needed the toilet so badly we could have exploded! We got into the stadium and waited for the first band of the day. Soon enough a not very well known (to me) American band came on called Heart. They weren't bad but did nothing for me. Then came The Teardrop Explodes who tried and who I reckoned did quite well despite the flying bottles of liquid being hurled at them from the crowd. After them was Joan Jett complete with Blackhearts who got the crowd going with "I Love Rock'n'Roll" mainly because Brian appeared at the side of the stage with his daughter to have a look. Eventually after a long wait the stage lights dimmed and a strange cranking sound started up and then you were suddenly aware of the drum beat to Flash thumping out and spotlights chasing around the stadium. This went on for a minute or so and the excitement was unbearable. All of a sudden in an explosion of smoke, lights, guitars, drums... Brian, John and Roger are there blasting out the opening part of The Hero. Seconds later in a gleaming white leather jacket out runs Freddie and it begins... A moment I will never forget along with many others from Queen shows since and before it. I can't say which show was my favourite as I loved them all but that moment WAS Queen, the sheer power, the anticipation, the fantastic musical ability and above all else the way they gave people what they crave more than anything... wonderful memories.” - whiteman

“29th May 1982 - a really nice warm day. We only lived a few miles away so walked down to Elland Road - I can't believe it - Queen live in my home town at the home of the greatest football team in the country (well maybe not now!). Got to the ground early and were allowed in by security, such a relaxed atmosphere. Saw band's soundcheck - great! So hot sun, never went behind stadium roofs. Got best suntan I have ever had! Heard Teardrop Explodes - not bad. Then you are aware of the beat of flash thumping out around the stadium, the smoke rises and bang - they are on! The greatest gig I have ever seen from the greatest live band in history. God bless you, Brian, Roger and John. Rest in peace, Freddie - we will never forget.” - Michael Quine

“This was my second ever gig, the first being Rory Gallagher the year before (I am sure I once read that Rory was one of Brian May's favourite guitarists). Anyway, being only 14 and not yet in the habit of getting off my face at gigs,I can remember that day very clearly. I am convinced I saw someone throw a hamburger at Julian Cope (Teardrop Explodes were going down like a lead balloon), and just as Julian was opening his gob to sing, he CAUGHT IT IN HIS MOUTH. A huge cheer went up, then they stomped off. Somebody, possibly Queen's manager, came on and told everbody to behave. I also remember a fan getting on stage and Freddie expertly rolling him off the stage. I didnt like the Hot Space album much but was chuffed they were still a hard rock band. I bought the next edition of Kerrang mag and the write up of the gig said STUNNING. Great memory.” - Edwin

“I was 15 years old in 1982 when I attended my first ever concert. Fortunately for me, it was QUEEN's show at Leeds AFC ground in the North of England. I remember when my ticket arrived in the post, possibly 2-3 months before the concert, as was often the case in those days. I stuck my ticket on a cork notice board in my bedroom and could barely contain my excitement over the coming weeks. Every morning, I would wake up and look at the yellow ticket, wishing the days away. I imagined everything that could go wrong would. Queen would cancel the gig, I would break my leg, the family pet would die on the morning of the concert and it would be too insensitive of me to go, the transport wouldn't turn up or would break down, there would be a pile up on the motorway, I'd lose my ticket en route, etc, etc. As it turned out, May 29th 1982 was a hot and sunny day, perfect weather for an outdoor gig. I was CRAZY about Queen and had been since the age of 9 but I really didn't know what to expect on that day. Myself and three friends took a coach organised by my Dad's company from Lancashire across the M62 motorway to Leeds. Our excitement began to really take a hold when we arrived at the football ground and we followed the droves of people towards the turnstiles. To me, this was something on a really big scale and I could already hear the hum of the crowd inside. Not really believing that we were actually about to witness a Queen concert, we found our seats on the West Stand, offering a great view of the stage. I remember marvelling at Queen's new lighting rig and the equipment that adorned the stage, shining in the afternoon sunshine. The ground was almost full at this point and the pitch was heaving with people. The atmosphere was relaxed as people bathed in the sunshine. I remember two guys climbing the fence from the stand and attempting to get a better spot by running into the crowd and losing themselves on the pitch. Their efforts were in vain however as they were quickly located and ejected back into the stand by two security guards. We bought some black Hot Space tour shirts (I wore mine with pride until it literally fell apart) and a programme from a vendor inside the ground and waited for the first band to take the stage. A guy near us shouted and punched his way through Heart's set and then left just as they vacated the stage. Obviously not a Queen fan! The Teardrop Explodes suffered at the hands of the Queen congregation and found themselves battling against a shower of bottles and assorted missiles. Other than that, I don't really remember much about the support bands. I think that Bow Wow Wow were billed to play (an odd choice) but I can't recall if they actually turned up. No matter, we were about to witness what is still one of the best gigs I have ever attended.

As the dusk descended upon us, the giant floodlights were extinguished one by one and the memory of the roar that followed still sends shivers down my spine. Dry ice drifted across the heads of the crowd on the pitch as the intro tape of Flash thumped out of the PA and the strange 'grating' noises added to the recording created a foreboding atmosphere. Two of our party were on the pitch and to this day remember their chests thumping in unison to the powerful rhythm. A sea of hands clapped in perfect time to the beat. To me, this was already an amazing experience. And then the big moment. Freddie, resplendent in dazzling white made his entrance to The Hero and the blaze of the lights. An apt number to start with. Before he had even sung a note, the audience were locked tightly in the palm of his hand. Such an entrance, such a showman. "You're a F***in amazing crowd", he exclaimed after the first rush. The beginning of the gig is, in truth, my strongest memory of the show itself. In particular, the "Flash!!!" vocals cutting through the night air with so much volume. I recall being shocked at the sheer power of Queen's performance and the clarity of the huge sound they harnessed. Morgan Fisher's keyboards during 'Action This Day' sounded bright and hypnotic. Freddie's intro to Fat Bottomed Girls caused quite a response too; "the bigger the t*t the better it is!". I also remember the follow spots darting wildly over the crowd during 'Tie Your Mother Down' and everybody going crazy. Oddly enough (and this is something I still swear by to this day), I was in a Maths lesson at school the following Monday and I swear I had a flashback of this and could actually 'hear' the music being re-played in my head. It was a weird moment and life was never quite the same again. We talked endlessly about our experience for months to come and one of my biggest regrets is not jumping on a train to attend the filmed Milton Keynes show a week later. Having been to so many gigs since, I can honestly say that there is nobody who has been able to top Queen live; I was lucky enough to see the band five times between 1982 and 1986, including Wembley Stadium and their last show at Knebworth. I think that my personal favourite was their performance at the NEC in Birmingham on 'The Works' tour in 1984. People were literally stood there with open mouths, unable to believe how good they were. Leeds is definitely up there too. I recall Brian May stating that he thought it was one of their best performances ever. I can't argue with that Mr May. I've often wondered if an audience shot cine film or even just photographs exist from the Leeds gig. It would be a dream come true to see my memories come to life again.” - Keith Lambert

“I can't believe it was 30 years ago that I attended my first ever gig at Elland Rd Leeds in 1982. I was 17 years old at the time, I was into Queen when I first heard seven seas of rhye, which was so different to all the other stuff around at the time. I'd heard them live on tv, and had Live Killers. Also I used to buy bootleg cassettes of all of their tours from 74 onwards. But nothing could prepare me for that day. They should have played this gig at Old Trafford Manchester, my home town, so I was gutted when the residents opposed it. Tickets were very easy to come by, believe it or not, cos Queen were not seen as a relevant band at that time. Also touring the Hot Space album didn't seem to excite anybody. So, Billy no mates had to go on his own, haha. My memory is a bit hazy, but I will try my best. I got to the ground about 1pm, and was lucky enough to have a pitch ticket. I got right to the front, well about 10 yards from the stage, slightly off centre and to the right. If I told you I never moved from that spot all day and never spoke to anyone, would you believe me? One of the reasons for this is the rivalry between Manchester and Leeds, also I was only a kid, haha. Not sure who was first on, probably Teardrop Explodes, Julian Cope, I remember while they were throwing bottles at him, picked one up and started hitting himself with it and stretching his arms out saying he was an Argentinian bomber or something. It was during the Falklands war, remember. Then Heart came on, not really my cup of tea, and I had a lie down on the tarpaulin and tried to go to sleep. Then Joan Jett, who was better than the rest, but not really exciting. During the band changes, I remember the roadies polishing Roger's drum kit and climbing up ropes and those threepronged lights, which before I saw them move I thought they were cameras. Queen took ages to come on. From my recollection and I might be wrong, they didn't come on until 10pm and went off around Midnight. I heard later that they got fined so much per minute for being late on stage but they wanted to wait until it was dark for the lighting rig to take effect. If you watch the Bowl DVD you will notice it was light when they came on stage there. But that was being filmed by Channel 4. But it was absolutely pitch black when they came on stage at Leeds. Then the floodlights went off, smoke started to appear and strange noises started, which I can't describe, sorry. Then Flash's Theme started, it was loud, very, very loud. I knew they were supposed to be loud and this was the part that scared me. The ground was thumping, the bass just pumping away. The these 'cameras' flicked into life, with men on them. The intro seemed to last for a very long time. Then BANG Brian appears with the first chord of The Hero and a flash of the biggest white light I've ever seen and will never forget and the absolute loudest noise I have ever heard just hit me. The intro was quite in comparrision to this. When I play Live at the Bowl, I tend to repeat the intro and The Hero, virtually every time, because it was definitely a life changing experience for me at that moment, just incredible. Then Freddie appeared in brilliant white again, I was that close, I swear His hair seemed blue because of the mass of white lights. His voice, so loud, so clear, honestly, I can't describe that moment properly. I heard Freddie swear, saw Roger spitting, quite a lot, over his drum kit and onto the stage, I was bewildered.

When they did Play The Game and also Somebody To Love, when Freddie was doing the intros for them and it will sound strange to those that weren't there, but I didn't know what the songs were. I thought they was new unreleased songs. The reason was they was so loud, It kind of deafened you and then kind of sunk in what they were about to play. Then the rest of the gig flew by and I was singing my head off. Everyone was, but you could only hear Queen. Again my memory may be wrong, but I read afterwards that Queen had paid for residents to move out of their homes for the day. These houses were monitored and they said that the sound was like Concorde flying 10 feet over your head... Yep I will buy that. For all that and for all the bad things said about it, The Works tour, which I went to all the 4 origional England gigs they had planned, was the best tour they ever did. The set list was fantastic and the lighting rig was incredible. Not as loud, I also add. I also saw them in Manchester, 86. They had to be off stage by 10pm and noise levels had to be adhered to. I was too far awy to see them and the screens didn't come on because it was too light. Also I couldn't here them properly. I've watched the mMagic Tour gigs on DVD etc, but for me, that was the poorest tour they ever did. So that's it, hopefully some of you can confirm my bad memory, or say I'm wrong. Hopefully not bored you all. But it was the greatest musical experience I ever witnessed and I am proud I was there.” - Paul Wakefield

Part-1

(x)

[combat-wombatus]

Hot Cocoa

Pairing: Iida Tenya x gn!reader

Warnings: brief cursing (mostly just bakugou being bakugou), some suggestive humor (m*neta is involved too)

Genre: fluff (a lil bit of crack bc why not)

WC: a bit over 8k? went slightly overboard with this idea and not entirely happy with the ending but i already rewrote it like 5 times so it is what it is-

(A/N): heya! so this is my first fic and i was kinda nervous about posting it...

it started out as an idea on @todorkihoe’s discord server but then it evolved into this monstrous nightmare so...it took me like a whole week to hash everything out and the logistics of the secret santa thing was an absolute nightmare. but it was worth it!!

It was the holiday season. Most people were taking time off of work to hang out with their friends and family. You had wanted nothing more than to relax in your hot tub with a glass of sparkling cranberry juice and scrumptious holiday cookies, but being a pro-hero meant sacrifices.

You were signed on as a sidekick in the UA Hero Agency’s Tokyo branch. The UA Hero Agency was exactly that: a hero agency formed by the most illustrious graduating class at UA. Not everyone from their class eventually went into the agency, but they were a large agency, with around 36 pro-heroes working full-time. This meant that they had several branches. You, a recent graduate from UA, knew these heroes who were a year above you at UA. They were special. When you started at UA, there were already whispers about “the Class of Legends”. Every single person who graduated the year after had been through enormous trauma during their years at UA. You thought that they were true heroes: strong, unbending even in the face of overwhelming adversity. They were only in their first year when they had been attacked by villains: twice. One of them had even been kidnapped. You couldn’t even begin to fathom how hard they must have worked to get to where they were today. They were resilient, and it showed. The UA Hero Agency is now one of the top Hero Agencies in not only Japan, but also the world. In fact, with their combined power, you wouldn’t be surprised if they happened to make an international branch. You knew that some of the heroes at your agency, Can’t Stop Sparkling and Pony, wanted to start something overseas but didn’t yet have the manpower to make it happen. You were sure that within a few years, their ranks bolstered by new graduates, they would take UA to the international stage.

So it was Christmas Eve. Even though you wanted the chance to chill out at home with some relaxing instrumental jazz and freshly baked sweets, you were out patrolling Tokyo’s vibrant shopping sector instead, on the lookout for villains who wished to ruin everyone else’s holiday fun. The mall was abuzz with shoppers, some hanging out in the verandas with cup of hot cocoa in their hands, others hurrying through, their arms loaded with shopping bags, searching for last-minute gifts they had previously forgotten to purchase. It was definitely not the worst patrol ever. The cozy atmosphere almost had you sighing in contentment, before you heard a voice shout, “thief!”

Of course a villain had to ruin the fun. They had a tendency to do that. You weren’t very comfortable using your quirk in such a loud, crowded area, but you bet that you could catch a small-time shoplifter without it anyways. You raced through the crowd, tracing the voice that had called out moments earlier. You saw a tuft of orange hair weaving unnaturally through the crowd of shoppers, and sprinted forwards, your eyes locked on the target. You followed the path they had created unknowingly for you, trying not to draw attention to yourself. It would only slow you down and light a fire under the criminal, which was exactly what you didn’t need.

Within moments, you caught up to them. Sneaking up behind them, you snatched their wrist and smacked your quirk-suppressing cuffs on it.

“Fuck!” He swore. How did he get caught so quickly? He could have sworn that there was no one chasing him. Pesky heroes. Relying on the comparative lack of heroes patrolling during the holidays, as well as the customary holiday shopping rush, was a sound strategy. He had done the same in previous years without getting caught. If only that damned, nosy civilian hadn’t shouted…

“Please do not resist arrest. It will be easier for all parties involved. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. There are eyewitnesses to your crime. Please drop your bags and hold out your other wrist.” You said calmly. You had a beautiful voice. It was calming and had a lilt to it that was a byproduct of your quirk. The villain did as you said, knowing that there would be no escape.

You sighed. Pressing a button on the comms situated in your ear, you reported the situation back to your office. You then called the nearest detective station and waited until their patrol car got here so you could hand the man over. Glancing at your watch, you realized your patrol was almost over. You did one last sweep of the premises, then headed back to the agency.

Today, the agency was the emptiest you had ever seen it. It was a large building, with 20 above-ground floors. In fact, it was essentially a mini-city. There was a heated indoor pool, a sauna, an elite gym that would make fitness junkies drool, a massage and spa, three verandas, and a rooftop greenhouse. It had a café reminiscent of the UA cafeteria, and all types of cuisines were available. In fact, Lunch Rush’s niece was working in the café, and the food was always heavenly. Sometimes, heroes from other agencies would drop off at the UA Hero Agency just for a bite of food after a long patrol. It was the unofficial headquarters of all the hero agencies in Japan, and it certainly lived up to its reputation.

Thinking about the café, you were suddenly hungry for some pad thai. Arriving at the door, you dropped off your comms and cloak at the door to your office and headed down to the café for some food.

“(Y/N)!!! You’re back!” Your friend squealed.

“Yeah Mina, just got off of patrol. Arrested this shoplifter trying to take advantage of the holiday chaos.” Spying her coat in her hands, you realized she was on her way out.

“Cool! You’re always so efficient with your arrests. Anyhow, I’m going to head home. My parents and I are getting some dinner together. I’ll be back for the party, yeah? Don’t open any presents without me!” Mina waved, a grin on her face. You assured her that you would make sure everyone waited for her to celebrate. You wanted to see your parents too, but they were currently on an international tour. They were famous singers, pioneers of a new genre of music. It was a sort of lullaby, but it wasn’t meant to put people to sleep. It was more of an enchanting, calming kind of music present only in fantasy books before your mother brought it to life. She was wildly popular, and your father was only too happy to support her. Speaking of which, your phone rang in your pocket. You took it out and accepted the video call.

“(Y/N)! It’s so nice to see you baby! How’s it going? I know you had patrols today but I forgot about the time difference and your father had to stop me before I called you and distracted you during patrols! He’s always so paranoid you’ll hurt yourself, sweetie. Stay safe, okay?” Your mother was always cheerful.

“Yeah mom, I know. I’m doing pretty well, actually. I arrested a shoplifter today,” you replied, recounting the same story you just told Mina. “Everything’s pretty calm here. How’s your tour going? I missed you,” you asked her.

“That’s good to hear sweetie!” You mom smiled. “The tour is amazing. I’ve never had such an international turnout before! Maybe I need to start considering singing in other languages! Everyone’s always so supportive.” You smiled at her, happy that she was enjoying herself.

“You deserve it Mom. I’m glad that your music is appealing to an international audience. You always work so hard. It’s nice to see that people appreciate all that you’ve done.”

“Thanks sweetie. Here, I’ll let your dad talk to you for a bit.” There was a bit of shuffling on her end as she handed the phone over to your father.

“Hey sweetheart,” your father’s voice boomed through the phone. You held your phone away from your ear, wincing a bit. Quickly dialing the volume down, you responded.

“Hey Papa. Mom said the tour was going well.”

“Yeah, it is. How’s the holidays going for you?” You heard the slight sadness in his voice. You knew that he wanted Mom to take a break in the middle of the tour and spend Christmas with you, but Mom was adamant about it. It was a holiday tour, after all, and tickets had already been booked. Some people were going to see her concerts as a way of celebrating, and she wouldn’t let them down.

“I’m doing good. It’s pretty peaceful here. No big missions or anything,” you say, in an attempt to comfort him.

“Ok, that’s good to hear sweetheart. We miss you.”

“I miss you too, Papa. Don’t worry though, I’ll be here when you guys get back. Have fun in Paris!” You replied, suddenly feeling sad. “Bye Papa! Bye Mom! I’ll see you guys soon!” You blew a kiss to the camera and hung up. Sighing a little, you trotted towards Emiko, the revered chef.

“Can I have a pad thai please?” You asked, putting your phone back in your pocket.

“One pad thai, coming right up!” Emiko beamed. “So, I hear there’s a party tonight. Should I make anything special?”

You thought about it for a bit, then shook your head. “No, you don’t have to. It’s mostly just for the presents. We already have the booze covered. I think Momo is ordering some special hors d’œuvres already and Sato is taking care of the cookies. Are you coming?”

Emiko shook her head. “I’m spending the night with my family and my boyfriend. I think I might make you guys some tiramisu though. I have all the ingredients and I don’t want them to spoil since I’ll be gone for a few days. Desserts are my specialty anyways,” she added. Then, with a knowing smirk, she prodded your arm. “Do you have anyone on your mind? You know, Mina and Ochaco hung some mistletoe up before they left…”

You blushed. Of course they did. Your friends knew all about your one-sided crush. You also knew that he would still be working here. He was always working. You were pretty sure that he had the mind of a robot, focused only on his work and his legacy. With those hand motions he made, you weren’t surprised if he actually was one. You shook your head to get rid of these thoughts. Emiko didn’t know. At least, you didn’t think she knew. You really regretted telling Mina about your little crush. With her tendency to run her mouth, you wouldn’t be surprised if the entire agency knew already. With the exception of your actual crush, of course. He was simply too socially dense to see the signs and too uninterested to pry.

Taking your pad thai, you scurried away from a smug Emiko and plopped yourself down at a table. You dug into your noodles and sighed in contentment. Maybe working during the holidays wasn’t so bad. It wasn’t like you had friends who weren’t as busy as you were anyways.

You finished the last of your noodles, then got up and took your tray to the recycling area. Heading up to your office, you paused by Ingenium’s office. His door was cracked open, and you peeked inside. You had to muffle your giggles at the sight.

He was wrapping presents with such a focused look on his face that you found absolutely adorable. His brows were furrowed, the tip of his tongue poking out of his mouth. He had a spool of ribbons laying on the floor next to him, as well as elegant white-and-gold wrapping paper and a roll of tape. What really amused you was the pile of paper, ribbons, and tape that was bunched together and tossed aside, obviously a result of trial and error. Iida looked frustrated. He had already put his presents in boxes so that they were almost uniform in size and easier to wrap, but he was clearly struggling. You estimated that he had forty boxes littering the floor, but he only had five wrapped. You watched as he ripped off the wrapping on the newest box he had started on, muttering about how hard it was to get straight edges with the wrapping paper. Knocking lightly on his door, you stuck your head around the doorway.

“Need some help?” You asked.

Iida looked up from unspooling more wrapping paper. His face brightened at your offer.

“Yes please, (Y/L/N)-san! I would greatly appreciate your aid. I seem to be having trouble folding the paper and trying to tape it together without it sliding from its position. If you could hold the paper in place while I tape, that would be wonderful!” He looked so excited, almost like a puppy.

You smiled at his eagerness. “Of course, I’d be happy to help.”

You sat down across from him and held the wrapping paper in place while he tore off a piece of tape. The two of you worked in tandem for around an hour, until you finished wrapping all the presents. You sat back, face flushed, and surveyed your work. All forty presents, wrapped with elegant paper and tied up prettily with a gold organza ribbon, were laid out neatly on the floor. It was a satisfying sight. Rolling out your back and cracking your knuckles, you got up from the floor.

“Those were a lot of presents, Iida-san,” you yawned, stretching your arms back like a cat. “Do you want to go down and get some hot cocoa? Emiko already left, but I can make us some.”

Iida got up too. His glasses were slightly askew on his face, and he had a dazed look about him. “That would be greatly appreciated, (Y/L/N)-san. Thank you very much for helping me wrap my presents. It was irresponsible of me to leave them until the last minute.”

“Of course, Iida-san,” you replied. “We were all so busy before the holidays I’m surprised you wanted to wrap everything as fancy as you did. I know that I just stuck my presents in bags, covered them with tissue paper, and called it a day! You didn’t even buy those sticky bows, you tied them with real ribbons. That’s dedication!”

Iida blushed furiously at your compliments. It’s the perfect time to confess to her, he thought. We’re alone, and there’s no one here to see if she rejects me. He took in a deep breath, trying to muster the courage to say something to you, but before he could, you grabbed his hand and dragged him down the hallway for some much-desired peppermint hot cocoa.

Humming lightly to yourself as you lead Iida down the halls, you entered the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor. Releasing his hand, you clasped your hands behind your back, hoping he wouldn’t notice how they were shaking slightly. Wow, you thought. I really did that. I really just snatched his hand like that. Ugh, he probably hated it every second of the way, he’s just too polite to say anything. God, my palms are so sweaty. Why did I do this to myself?

Unbeknownst to you, Iida was having a mental freak-out of his own. Ahh! She grabbed my hand! And she didn’t seem to hate it! Does this mean she really doesn’t mind my company? Maybe I actually do have a chance with her! No, stop, he told himself. She was probably just tired of how I was staring at her and decided to do something about it. Ugh, I was staring at her, wasn’t I? God, I’m such a creep. Iida wiped his palms on his slacks, then reached up and adjusted his glasses, trying to hide the obvious blush on his face.

“Ding!”

The elevator stopped at the ground floor, and the two of you stepped out into the lobby. The decorations had been up for two weeks already, but it still took your breath away every time you saw it. There were garlands of lights strung high all over the ceiling, and dainty little ornaments hung from the chandeliers. There was a huge Christmas tree next to the fireplace, the floor around it coated in snowy fuzz. You had to resist the temptation to jump in on multiple occasions. You couldn’t help yourself! It just looked so fuzzy and comfortable, like clouds of cotton candy…

The Christmas tree was decorated tastefully. There was a surprising lack of hero-themed ornaments, mostly due to Momo’s elegant decorating. You had all been in agreement when you refused to let Kaminari or Mineta even touch the tree.

Making your way to the kitchen, you relaxed a little when you breathed in the apple-scented candles. It was a surprising choice for a holiday scent. Usually, pine or cinnamon were much more popular scents. You had gotten the privilege to choose the candles though, and although you almost fainted sniffing at every single scent in the candle store, you decided on apple. It was nice and refreshing, with just a subtle touch towards the holiday season. You liked the change of pace from the usual holiday scents, and it seemed it was growing on everyone else too. You stopped at the cabinets that contained the hot cocoa bombs. Emiko had seen these as an online trend with the food community, and she had made dozens of them “as an experiment”. Everyone fell in love with them (because heroes are allowed to be childish!) and they stuck. Now, the agency had an entire cabinet in the kitchen dedicated to the delightful goodies.

“Oat or regular?” You asked Iida.

Iida had, unfortunately, spaced out again. He was thinking about how cute you looked, standing on your tiptoes to reach the cabinet.

“Hello? Earth to Iida-san,” you turned around and waved a hand in front of his face. “You okay there?”

Iida blinked and had to recompose himself again. He kept getting distracted. This was not good. Not good at all.

“Regular is fine,” he replied, his face flushing once again. He really needed to stop daydreaming.

You poured out some milk into a jug and heated it. Then, you placed a hot cocoa bomb in each mug, licking some sprinkles off your fingers as you did so. Once the milk was ready, you filled each mug to the brim, careful not to spill any. It smelled absolutely delectable. Taking a spoon from the cabinets, you stirred both cups slowly, letting the chocolate melt at an even pace.

Iida was watching all of this, and he was still having an internal debate over when to confess. Would it be better to wait until you both finished the hot cocoa? Should he even confess to you on Christmas? What if his confession ruined your holidays? He began to sweat a little, his anxiety rising with each thought. Before he could come up with an excuse to escape, you stuffed a mug into his large hands.

“All done!” You exclaimed, taking a sip of your own cocoa, careful not to burn yourself.

Iida was not so lucky. Distracted by his thoughts, he raised the mug to his lips and gulped.

“Shit!” Iida swore. You blinked at him, a little shocked since he never swore, then immediately put your mug down and raced to the refrigerator to collect some ice cubes. Iida promptly put his offensive mug of cocoa on the counter, glaring at it like it just murdered his dog. Dumping some ice cubes in a glass, you hurried back towards Iida and popped one in his mouth.

“You really should be more careful next time, Iida-san,” you chided. “I just made it! You shouldn’t take such large swigs of a piping hot drink!”

“Sorry, I got distracted.” Iida replied absentmindedly.

“Distracted? By what?” Your curiosity was now piqued.

Iida’s face turned ever redder than before. He averted his eyes and mumbled out some quiet words that you couldn’t quite catch.

“Sorry, what was that?” You gazed up at him. “I couldn’t hear what you said.”

Iida’s hands were stuck to his thighs to prevent himself from freaking you out with aggressive hand gestures, and he didn’t think he’d ever been more nervous in his entire life. He cleared his throat. “I said that I got distracted by you.”

Now it was your turn to blush. “Really?” Your voice was quiet, almost a whisper. You weren’t sure if you heard that right, and your heart was beating so fast you were afraid that he’d hear it.

Iida finally looked at you. “Really,” he confirmed.

You wrung your hands and stepped towards him. Raising your eyes to meet his, your voice a half-whisper, you gulped before your next words.

“I like you.”

Blinking twice, Iida unclasped his hands and pinched his forearm. He winced in pain, then blinked again. You laughed at his antics, then clapped a hand playfully on his bicep.

“I’m real, Iida-san. I’m right here!”

Slowly, a grin crept up Iida’s face. “Really?” He mumbled, obviously still not entirely convinced he wasn’t dreaming.

You chuckled at how you had just asked the same thing moments earlier, but then you grabbed his large hand with your smaller one and squeezed.

“Really.” You smiled bashfully.

The two of you stood in silence for a while, then Iida spoke up.

“I like you too, (Y/L/N)-san.” Feeling bold now that he knew his feelings were reciprocated, he drew his other arm across your shoulders and drew you into a tight hug. You sighed, feeling comfortable and safe in his arms. A part of you wanted to stay like this forever and never wanted him to let go.

“Would you like to go on a date with me on Saturday afternoon at 3?” Iida’s voice rumbled in your ear.

You were bursting with excitement. A date! A real, formal, date! “I’d love to, but why so specific?” You giggled.

“Ahh, well, my patrol ends at 2:30, so I thought-”

Of course Iida volunteered for patrols the weekend after Christmas. Did this man ever take a break?

“No problem at all, Iida-san. That sounds lovely.”

Iida released you from the hug and rubbed lightly at the back of his neck. “You can… you can call me Tenya, if you’d like.”

You were smiling so big that you feared your face would split. “I’d love that, Tenya.” His eyes crinkled when you called him by his first name. “And you can call me (Y/N).”

Iida nodded his head. “(Y/N). I like that,” he said to himself. He muttered your name a few times, getting used to the way it rolled off his tongue. You blushed and hugged him again, pressing your nose into his chest. He was just too adorable.

You wanted to stay like that, but your phone dinging incessantly in your pocket made it uncomfortable.

Mina

(Y/N)!!! my parents ordered this WHOLE-ASS TURKEY for dinner with JUST THE 3 OF US!!! how we gon finish it all?!?

Mina

*burps* we did it. we finished all of it. the whole turkey. (Y/N). we. finished. a. whole. fucking. turkey. pls send help i can’t walk (Y/NNNNNNNN)!!!

(Y/N)

want me to call u an uber … mina mina MINA MINA DID U PASS OUT im calling an uber mina istg

Quickly sending an Uber to the restaurant Mina was at, you put your phone back in your pocket and looked up at Tenya.

“Hey. Do you wanna get your presents and put them under the tree?” You asked.

Tenya quickly straightened up. “Thank you for reminding me, (Y/N). I had almost forgotten about them!”

“No problem!” You chirped. “Let’s go!” You took his hand in yours again and lead the way to the elevator. As the elevator chimed, the two of you waltzed in, hands still clasped together.

Humming a little tune to yourself, you stepped out of the elevator. You and Tenya entered his office, and each returned with an armful of presents, carefully stacked as to avoid damaging the delicate ribbons the two of you had spent so much time tying.

It was a tradition in the agency to get everyone something small. However, you participated in gift exchanges every year. This year, it was a Secret Santa-type exchange, but the UA Hero Agency did Secret Santa’s a bit differently. Instead of giving your partner the gift on Christmas Eve, the gifts were labeled with typed name tags in generic Times New Roman font. Then, there was the guessing portion. Everyone got 3 guesses at the party when they first open it, and after that, they get one guess per week. Whoever held out the longest (avoided being guessed) would win a batch of Sato’s homemade cookies, a week of free food from Emiko, and two patrol coupons (basically the adult version of homework passes). This year, you had drawn Bakugo as your partner. You’d decided to get him a ¥4,000 gift card to his favorite ramen restaurant, as well as a high-quality leather jacket. The gifts were pretty generic, and you thought that you had a chance at the prize. You chuckled to yourself when you remembered that last year, Momo had been so frustrated when she hadn’t figured out who had given her a pretty earring and necklace set after two months that she’d used Creation to make fingerprint dust and swiped it all over the box. It had turned out to be Todoroki. Needless to say, he’d won the prize that year.

The two of you made a few more trips, carrying gifts from his office to the tree. Checking the time, you saw that it had been an hour since Ochaco’s patrol ended. Right as you were about to call her, the front door to the lobby burst open.

“(Y/N)!!!” Your friend screeched, holding up a kitten with fur the color of cinnamon. “Look what I found on my patrol! I had to take her to the vet really quickly to make sure she wasn’t hurt, and she didn’t seem to have an owner. Just look at her!”

You beamed. The kitten was absolutely ADORABLE. And not only was Ochaco safe, she brought a kitten back with her!

“Can I hold her?” You asked.

“Duh!” Ochaco passed the kitten from her arms to yours. Behind her, you saw Bakugou walking sullenly, arms drawn tight across his chest. You stifled a giggle at the sight. He obviously wanted a turn with the kitten too, but his pride wouldn’t let him as for it.

“We were coming back from patrols and I saw this little one stuck in a tree! And when I floated up to take her down, she just looked so sad. There wasn’t a collar on her or anything, so we took her to the vet. It seems like she was abandoned,” Ochaco pouted. “And so we asked the vet to vaccinate her and everything, and we brought her back here! Can we keep her? Mr. Grumpy over there already said yes.”

Tenya looked like he was about to object, seeing as this building had a no-pets policy, but then he saw how your face lit up and the idea and changed his mind. Maybe having a pet on the premises wouldn’t be too bad, he conceded. It’s not like there were other people sharing the building with them anyways.

“Of course we can keep her!” You squealed. Bakugou huffed a sigh. He’d have to deal with all these idiots fawning over the kitten for weeks, and he wasn’t happy about that, but there was no denying that the thing was cute. He’d mellowed out since his high school days and seeing a therapist for anger management classes certainly helped.

The kitten felt warm and fuzzy in your arms, and when you stroked it down its back with the palm of your hand, it let out a satisfied purr.

“What should we name her?” Ochaco asked.

You thought about it for a moment. “Well, since you found her, and her fur is brownish, why not Coco?”

“Coco! I love it!” She beamed. Coco purred again. “It looks like she likes it too!”

You smiled and looked down on the kitty. “Coco,” You murmured. “Welcome to the family.”

Just then, Mina burst through the doors, brimming with energy and not looking at all as if she’d fainted from turkey overconsumption.

“Mina!” You ran towards her. “I thought you fainted or something!” You accused, poking her in the chest. “You didn’t even leave me on read!! You just LEFT!”

“Chill, chill, girly, I’m alive and kicking! Just had to take a quick nap because of my digestive woes,” She flashed you a big thumbs-up. “And what’s this I see? Do we have an agency pet now? Did Shinso sneak it in his pocket from the cat cafe?”

“Shinso what?”

“Cat cafe?”

“I KNEW there was something fishy about his jacket the other day!”

You, Tenya, and Ochaco said at the same time.

Mina stared at all of you, then shook her head. “Never mind.”

Turning around, you looked at Ochaco. “I wanna hear about this later, you hear?”

“Alright, alright!” Mina shouted. “Change into your holiday gear! Let’s get this rolling!”

You had made a sweater especially for tonight. Knitting was a great way to relax, and huddling up in a cozy armchair with the soft yarn, some hot cocoa, and your favorite book, you had finished your holiday-themed sweater in two weeks. Now, you would finally get the chance to wear it. The sweater you made was white, a soft gold-and-silver threading woven through in the pattern of snowflakes. It was a basic winter pattern, but you were proud of your work.

Setting Coco down on the couch, you headed into the locker rooms to change into your sweater and some flannel pajama bottoms. Walking out, you noticed Tenya was still in his business attire, which looked pretty uncomfortable by your standards, although it did fit him nicely.

“Tenya,” you called out. “Are you wearing that to the party?”

He turned around at your voice, looking slightly taken aback. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I am. Why?”

“Nothing, just wondering,” you replied. Good thing that your present to him was a nice, cozy, hand-knit sweater. You may or may not have thought about making him a matching one, but then you’d decided that it was too forward.

“You look…” Tenya stared at you. “You look…cute,” he said, with a small blush on his face.

Blushing at his compliment, you smiled and ducked your head. “Thanks.”

“Your sweater…it looks nice,” he added.  

Playing with the hems of your sleeves, you smiled up at him bashfully. “Thanks. I made it myself. I really like knitting. It’s kind of therapeutic.”

“Oh, wow. You are truly very talented, (Y/N)!” Tenya praised.

“Thanks.” You rubbed the back of your neck. It seemed like you had lost the ability to say anything else. Why did you suck so much at making small talk?

Just then, Mina stepped out from the locker room and saved you from any further embarrassment.

“Hey, has Yaomomo come down yet?” Mina asked.

“No, she hasn’t. Do you want me to go get her?” You answered.

“Nah, it’s alright, I’ll just text her real quick.” Mina pulled out her phone, fingers dancing rapidly across the screen, then put it back in her pocket. Minutes later, Momo stepped out of the elevator, already dressed in a red sweater and white jeans. She always looked so put-together. You were sure that she had a second quirk.

“Yaomomo!” Mina screeched, running up to her friend. “You’ll never guess what I ate for dinner!”

You groaned as Mina recounted her dining disaster. You loved Mina, but her tendency to tell her experiences to everyone multiple times could sometimes get a little annoying. Trying your best to tune her out, you tapped Tenya’s shoulder and moved to settle on the couch with Coco.

“Hey, (Y/N)!” Mina shouted. “Come here!”

Begrudgingly, you stood up again, having just sat down moments earlier. “What is it, Mina?”

“We forgot to introduce Coco! Yaomomo hasn’t seen her yet!”

Oh right. You did forget. You lifted Coco with both hands, then scurried over to where Ochaco, Mina, and Momo huddled. Momo let out a quiet “aww” when she saw the kitty and lifted her manicured hands in a silent invitation to hold her.

You gently placed Coco in her outstretched arms and was about to turn and leave when Mina grabbed your elbow. “Not so fast, (Y/N),” she scolded you sternly. “Picture time!”

Mina took out her phone and swiped open the camera app. You girls all huddled together as she snapped a picture for the fans.

Settling back down with Coco on the couch, surrounded by your friends, you didn’t think that you had ever felt happier. One by one, more of your friends and coworkers began to trickle in, until finally, when a disgruntled Jirou arrived with a protesting Kaminari in tow, Mina stood up.

“Alright! Everyone’s here now, so let’s get this party rolling!”

She bounced off to the kitchen to grab plates for everyone. You could smell Sato’s freshly-baked cookies from here, and your stomach growled in response. Remembering the tiramisu that Emiko had made, you followed Mina into the kitchen.

Mina held a stack of plates that covered half her face. It was wobbling slightly, the entire thing almost toppling over multiple times. You had gotten out the fancier cake platter and was currently in hyper-focus mode, carefully moving the tiramisu from its cake mold onto the crystal platter. You breathed out a sigh of relief as the process was finally completed and the cake hadn’t been ruined.

Holding the crystal tray with both hands, you stepped out into the lobby, marched over to the coffee table in the center, and slowly set the tray down.

“Hey guys, Emiko made us some tiramisu,” You called out. “Come here if you want some.” You held a cake knife in your hand and began serving everyone.

Tenya watched all of this with barely-hidden admiration. You were just so competent. So hard-working, so kind, and so wonderfully skilled at everything you do. Even the things that you weren’t good at, you tried your hardest to learn and to improve. He was definitely in deep, and to be honest, he didn’t mind a single bit. You were worthy of being admired, and he vowed that he would let you know in all the ways he could.

As you served the last slice of tiramisu to Ojiro, you carried the cake platter back to the kitchen and sat down next to Shinsou, who was, not surprisingly, hogging all of Coco’s attention. Seeing you, Coco scrambled over Shinsou’s lap and faceplanted into yours. You laughed at her enthusiasm and snorted when you heard Shinsou mutter “traitor” underneath his breath.

“So Shinsou,” you started casually. “What’s this I hear about you stealing cats from the cat café?”

Shinsou’s face immediately turned a tomato red. He put his hands up defensively. “No, wait, you have it all wrong- I swear- who told you about it anyways? Never mind,” he stopped his waving motions. You snickered. You were definitely getting the full story out of him later. For now, you had things to do.

Strolling over casually to Tenya with Coco still in your arms, you very sneakily dropped her, front paws landing gracefully, onto Bakugou’s head.

“Hey! What’s this damn cat doing here!” Bakugou yelped. Coco also yelped, and it came to you that dropping her on Bakugou’s spikey hair was probably not the best idea ever. However, as Coco quickly scampered down and curled up on Bakugou’s shoulder, and Kirishima was sitting next to him to make sure he didn’t kill the cat, you felt a sense of triumph. Bakugo was smiling. Not smirking, not grinning maniacally as he beat someone up, but genuinely smiling. You gave yourself an internal high five as you moved onto your next goal.

You walked hesitantly towards Tenya, and when he turned his head towards you, about to ask what you were doing, you quickly linked your hand with his and started leading him towards the rest of the group.

“(Y-Y/N) ?” Tenya sputtered. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” You replied cheekily. “I want to hold hands with you!”

“B-but, do they know?” Tenya gestured nervously with his free hand.

“Nope, but they’re about to,” you grimaced, thinking about all the teasing you’d have to endure from your friends later. Better to just get this over with during the party, when everyone had the attention span of a goldfish and any embarrassing moments would hopefully be forgotten moments later when more exciting things came along, such as Mineta’s annual lingerie gift. Whatever the powers that be were doing, they were definitely not doing the world any favors when they let Mineta draw a girl for the Secret Santa every single year. But, for all the bad things you could say about Mineta, he definitely consumes enough material to have at least semi-decent taste in lingerie. Surprising, and sometimes gross, but not entirely unwelcomed if you could manage to forget who gifted it. The most disturbing thing was he knew all the girls’ sizes. You tried your hardest to not think about that. It’s not like you could erase his memory anyways.

You settled down with Tenya on a vacant couch, inwardly counting the minutes until someone noticed your position. Tenya looked vaguely uncomfortable, his posture ramrod straight, and you squeezed his hand in reassurance.

“No one’s going to judge or anything, if that’s what you’re worried about,” you whispered into his ear. “And besides, at least half the girls already knew I had a crush on you, so this won’t entirely come as news to them.”

Tenya relaxed slightly at that, then stiffened again when he noticed a pair of eyes glancing his way.

Midoriya had been excited at seeing Ochaco for the first part of the evening, but then had wondered where his other friend had gone. He knew Tsu was in southern Japan, as she couldn’t stand the cold and was operating in the warm coastal areas instead, but Iida being absent was strange. He had searched around the lobby, and when his eyes descended upon you and Iida cuddling on the couch, he was intrigued, to say the least.

He stared at the two of you for a solid minute, not wanting to disturb your peace. Slowly, he turned back to Ochaco, thinking that it wasn’t his place to draw attention to the two of you.

Ochaco, however, had no such qualms. Noticing how Deku began to space out during their conversation, she followed his line of vision to the two of you, blinked twice to check if she was seeing it right, then immediately let out a squeal.

Heads turned at the sound, and in moments, everyone was staring at you and Tenya curiously. You hadn’t noticed the attention yet, but Tenya had, and he grew stiffer and stiffer until you finally looked up at his face with furrowed brows.

“Tenya, what’s wrong?” You whispered. “Do you not enjoy cuddling? I can stop if you’d like,” your lips were pressed together in concern.

“I-it’s not that,” Tenya whispered back. “Look.”

You finally raised your head from his chest and saw thirty pairs of eyes staring back. After a few moments of silence, the room erupted.

“Iida-kun! Why didn’t you tell us?” Midoriya was the first to raise a question.

“(Y/NNNNNN)!!!!!!!!!!!” Mina practically screamed as she ran towards you. She clasped her hands dramatically over her heart. “YOU DID IT YOU DID IT YOU DID IT OMG YOU GUYS ARE SO ADORABLE EEEEE!!!!!!”

Half the room winced at her loud tone, and you quickly moved Coco from your lap to save her from the incoming bear hug.

Mina launched herself in your arms, then stepped back and shook your shoulders until you felt your brain rattling around in your skull like soupy mush.

“(Y/N)! What did I say, huh? Bitch I TOLD you that he liked you too, and you wait three goddamn months to finally make a move!?! Honey-”

Your face flushed red. Gently, you pushed her away. “Mina, stop,” you whispered, horrified that she was making a scene. It was too late. Ochaco and Hagakure rushed towards you, Momo trailing more slowly behind them. The boys were stunned for a bit, since you had always seemed so quiet and shy, much less Iida’s feelings towards you. As their initial shock wore off, Midoriya trailed after Momo to approach Iida.

“Congratulations, Iida-kun!” He held up his arms in front of his chest. “You and (Y/N) are really cute together!”

“Yeah bro! That’s so manly that you finally confessed!” Kirishima added, with a quirk of his lips and a thumbs-up.

“Tch. Fucking coward. Took you idiots three fucking months to confess, huh.” Bakugou smirked, but you could tell he wasn’t really annoyed. You actually somewhat got along with him, due to all the times Mina would drag you to hang out with her friends.

You struggled vainly against the arms of your friends encasing you. “Guys,” you pleaded. “Let me out, please.”

Reluctantly, the girls let go, and you immediately tried to redirect their attention. “Shouldn’t we start opening presents?” You asked hopefully.

“Oh, you sneaky little thing,” Mina wagged her finger in your face. “Don’t think we’ll forget about this, (Y/N), but you’re right, we should start opening presents or we’ll be here all night.”

“We’ll be here all night anyways,” Todoroki pointed out.

“You knew what I meant,” Mina sighed.

Mina enlisted the help of Ojiro and Shoji to pass out the Secret Santa presents; you’d all open the rest of your personal presents later.

The best way to go about this, after years of trial and error, was for everyone to open their presents at the same time. It would simply take too long for everyone to open theirs one by one, and you’d all realized that the people who opened theirs first had a significant disadvantage when it came to guessing who their partner was, as the ones who opened theirs later had the benefit of some options already being eliminated. When you opened your present, you tried your hardest to hold back a squeal. It was a limited-edition album from your favorite artist! You hugged it close to your chest, and immediately knew who gave it to you. Jirou. Her parents were musicians too, and you had bonded over your love of this artist. It was a thoughtful gift, and you were glad that she had given it to you, even though it immediately gave her away.

The rest of your friends opened their presents. Poor Momo. No wonder Mineta had looked so gleeful earlier. He had been her Secret Santa and had gotten her a lacy black lingerie set. Her face was so red you were beginning to get scared that she would hyperventilate, but you had to admit that it was a pretty nice set. Mineta was basically drooling at this point, and Jirou was trying to comfort her while sending a death glare towards Mineta. Mineta, meanwhile, had received a new video game. Sero had received a large pack of farmer’s market coupons, as well as some homemade mochi from Ochaco, who had blushed and apologized profusely for not being able to afford something better for him. Sero just grinned and gave her a thumbs-up, saying that it was completely okay and that he appreciated her effort into gift-giving. She had brightened up a bit at that.

Koda had received a new hamster wheel along with some toys for his various pets. Shoji had been gifted a comfortable-looking poncho, as well as three pairs of matching gloves. Ochaco had received a generous sum of money, Midoriya had gotten a new set of comic books, and Iida had received a beanie and a multiflavored pack of tea. Aoyama had received a makeup set, and had gifted a makeup set as well, evidenced by his inability to contain himself and pounced on Hagakure, asking if she liked it. Hagakure was ecstatic, babbling about how she could finally show her face and how she’d never really been able to afford a full set before and how Aoyama was so considerate.

Sato had received a new baking pan, as well as cute mittens and a trending recipe book. He had given Setsuna a batch of cookies, as well as a gallon of frozen cookie dough with instructions on how to make it. There wasn’t really a point in him trying to win the contest, since he would be one of the people providing the prize. Mina had gotten fuzzy socks and a blanket, Kirishima had received a new pair of tennis shoes, and Jirou had been gifted a new pair of headphones. Ojiro had received some sort of custom tail armor with spikes along with an Amazon gift card, and Todoroki had gotten a hand-made red-and-white sweater with a red reindeer nose smack in the middle, along with a gift card to a hair salon, tucked into a bouquet of red-and-white candy canes. The only person you could think of that would go so far into the color scheme was Hagakure, who seemed like just the type to make an ugly sweater for fun. Shinsou had received earmuffs, a silk eye mask with a note (“to help you sleep”), and some gourmet coffee beans (“in case you still can’t”). Mina had seen the little notes that came with his gifts and started teasing him relentlessly about how sweet his Secret Santa was and how it was so cute that he had a secret admirer. Shinsou looked very nonchalant about it all and grumbled about how he just wanted to pet Coco and then go to bed.

Finally, Kaminari received some Pokémon cards to add to his collection (yes, he collected Pokémon cards, what was wrong with that?) along with another Pikachu plush, as per usual. It was an unspoken tradition that whoever drew Kaminari for their Secret Santa would get him a Pikachu plush along with whatever else they decided to give him. He had about twenty, collected over various years from birthdays and holidays. If this kept up, he’d be able to fill an entire closet with them once he retired.

As the chatter slowly died down, you snuggled into Tenya again. At some point during the present exchange, Shinsou had stolen Coco from the couch you occupied. Stifling a yawn, you pulled out a bag and handed it to Tenya.

“What’s this?” He asked, a slight smile on his face.

“It’s your gift, silly,” you booped him on the nose with your index finger.

“Ah, I see,” he replied, still smiling. “Do you want me to open it?”

“Duh,” you giggled into his chest. “What else would you do with it?”

Chuckling lightly, Tenya removed the tissue paper from the top of the bag. He stuck his hand inside, then pulled out a sweater. The sweater that you’d knitted for him. It was navy, the color of the yarn matching his hair, with gold and white snowflake detailing. His heart skipped a beat when he realized that you had made this especially for him, with your own hands. Putting the sweater down beside him, he wrapped his arms around you and pressed his face to your hair.

“Thank you, (Y/N),” he whispered. “I love it.”

You flushed, but you hugged him back. “You’d better,” you teased. “I spent two weeks on that.”

“Well, I appreciate it.” Tenya ruffled your hair.

The two of you stayed like that for a while, just soaking in the pleasant atmosphere. Yawning, you stretched out your arms, careful not to hit Tenya in the face. You gently pushed his arm off of your torso and got up to go to the bathroom.

When you came back, Tenya was nowhere to be seen. You searched around the common area and stepped briefly into the kitchen, but he wasn’t there. Sighing, you grabbed your parka and padded outside.

“Tenya?” You called out as you stuck your head around the doorframe. He was with Kirishima and Todoroki, clearing the entryway of the building of snow. You leaned back along the handrails of the stairs and watched. Your friends were all just so nice. So caring, so wonderful, so kind. As Todoroki evaporated the last bit of snow, you stepped aside to let them all head back in. As Tenya reached you, he paused briefly, looking up.

“What?” You tilted your head up also, curious to see what he was staring at. Oh. So this was where Mina and Ochaco had decided to hang the mistletoe. If Tenya hadn’t looked up, you would’ve missed its existence entirely. You looked back down at Tenya to gauge his reaction.

He gulped, and softly taking your chin into his hand, he leaned down and pressed a chaste kiss on your lips. You leaned up to meet him, rising slightly on your toes and wrapping your arms around his neck. The kiss was long and sweet, and you were both a bit breathless when you let go.

You smiled sweetly up at him and took his strong hand in yours. Standing on your tiptoes again, you pressed another soft kiss to his cheek.

“Merry Christmas.”

Masterlist

[drazzilder]

Half Hot

By Drazzilder 

@justmewoo requested a story. I think there will be more to this but this is the first part, hope you all enjoy!

You are rushing to the hospital. Not even red lights can stop you from getting there as fast as possible. Your mother was in a severe car accident and the doctor on the phone said to come immediately. When you arrive, you quickly talk to one of the front desk nurses and find your mother’s room. Upon entering, you see numerous machines all around her, keeping her alive. It takes all of your will power not to cry when approaching the bed. She is asleep but her eyes open when you grab her hand.

“(Y/N)….” She barely whispers.

“I’m here. Its ok.”

“You know I’m not going to make it.” She says this while looking at you with a loving and apologetic face.

You begin to cry. “I know.”

“I need to tell you something before I go.”

“Anything…”

“I lied to you about your father.”

“What?” your tears are stopped almost immediately when hearing this.

“He didn’t die of a drug overdose. Your father is alive.”

“Wait? Who is he?”

“He’s the number one hero…”

“Endeavor? That’s impossible!?”

“He came to America a long time ago and I did things I regret but I’m happy I can tell you now.”

“That’s why you made me learn Japanese?”

“Yes, I was preparing you for this one day. I’m sorry I lied.”

“Mom….” You squeeze her hand a little tighter as you start to cry again.

“Oh, and Happy 25th Birthday…” The heart monitor holds its tone. You cry at the side of the bed until a nurse comes into the room. She tells you she is sorry for your loss but you get up and head to the front desk. After getting all of the paperwork figured out, you head home. You still lived at home with your mother, so going to an empty home is going to be hard. You were between jobs and you had not much to your name. When you get home, you see a small cake with “Happy Birthday!” written on it. The cake ends up in the trash out of sadness and anger. All this time, you had a father a world away and yet your mother never told you. It would explain your quirk, only being able to heat your hands up but not create any flames. The sulking stops when you open your laptop and look up tickets to Japan.

Endeavor may be the number one hero and you admired him for so long but you need to talk to him. He is even a hero in your eyes, you being a big fan of him. You even have a room almost filled to the brim with Endeavor toys, posters, plushies and more. “I have nothing left, might as well try…” you think as you book the plane tickets. The week wait felt like an entirety but when you got on the plane, your heart was racing. Once on the ground, it isn’t long before you arrive at the Endeavor agency. When you enter, the shock on the secretary’s face tells you that you are in the right place. You never really noticed before but you look like the spitting image of Endeavor. 6’3’’, wide frame, square jaw line, blue eyes, crimson red hair.

“I am here to speak to Endeavor, is he available.?” You say as the words look like they flying over the poor secretary’s head.

“I-I… let me call him and let him know he has a…. visitor.” She is trying to best to hide her shock but you know that it can’t be helped. After she hangs up, she walks you nervously to the office. The doors open and she motions you inside. The big man himself is in his office chair, looking down at his work. He doesn’t even look up when you enter.  

“Hello, uh…Mr. Endeavor sir.”

He responds without even looking up. “You speak Japanese fairly well, however your American accent shines through. I can tell you learned from a native speaker. What do you need?”

“Um… Thank you. I… My name is (Y/N), I don’t know how to say this easily but I think I am your son.”

“What makes you say….” The number 1 hero is stopped in his tracks as he looks up. His body language changed in an instant, those words ringing in his head. When he finally can move again, it looks like he saw death himself. With mouth slightly agape, he just stares for a while then he manages to speak.

“Wa… how…why…”

“My mom told me. She said you visited America and you two met.”

The cogs start spinning in the hero’s head as he starts to remember the past. “Stella?” is all he can manage to remember.

“That was her name.”

“Was? Does that mean…”

“Yes, she passed away.”

“Oh…. And you are about 25 years old?”

“Yes. My birthday was last week actually, the same day she died.”

“What happened?”

“A car accident.”

“I…. I am sorry.”

“It was an accident.”

“No, I mean yes I am sorry about that. I really mean that I am sorry I was never there. Did you have a father as a child?”

“No, it was just me and mom.”

Under his breath “God, why did I….” Then he speaks normally again “I am sorry I did that to you. I guess you are here now because you wanted to find out if I really was your father.”

“That and I have nothing left at home. I didn’t have a job, my mom is dead, no family on her side is left. I had nothing left to live for so I decided to start fresh. Even if you were not my dad I could always start anew here.”

“That doesn’t need to happen. You are more than welcome to stay with me.”

“I don’t need that, I can j- “

“No, I insist. I need to make this up to you. I need to….” the man sounds like he is about to choke but he manages to calm himself before getting up and hugging you. Even though you are almost as tall as him, you are not nearly as built and he feels huge. His hug feels nice, something you never had as a child. The hug breaks and you feel cold again but the look on Endeavor’s face makes you forget about that. It looks like he has been beaten down. You don’t get much time to think about it when he offers to take you home with him after he finishes for the day. Of course, you agree. A sidekick takes you on a tour around the agency until it is time to go and Endeavor gets a ride for the two of you to get home.

The Todoroki residence is a large traditional style Japanese home with a massive property for being in the city. When you enter the home, something feels off. It is stale, lifeless and empty. You look around and see not a single sign of life around, that is until you find a photo frame. This a picture of Endeavor standing next to a frail looking woman with a small boy with red and white hair.

“Is this your family?” you ask while he is in another room.

“Yes…” he almost sighs.

“What are their names?”

“R-Rei is my wife. The children are Fuyumi, Natsuo, and Shoto.”

“Wait, I only see one child in the photo.” You wait for a response but you only hear silence. When he comes to the room, he acts like that question was never spoken.

“Where is your family?”

“They are not here. They live in another home.”

“Is it too much to ask why?”

“It is for their safety.”

“Oh, that makes sense you being the number one hero and all.” You take a moment to settle in. Endeavor takes you to a guest bedroom and you unpack your small bag. It isn’t long till there is some dinner made and you sit eating with him in silence again.

“You know when I found out you where my dad, I freaked out.” This doesn’t get much of a response from him so you continue. “To be the son of the number one hero, the fire hero himself, I was so excited. I have a heat quirk but all I can do is just make my hands really hot, kinda useless. But it makes sense that I got this quirk from you.”

Endeavor just chews quietly until he swallows heavily and manages to speak. “I…. When I saw you in my office, I knew you were my son. You look just like me. I am sorry that you had to go all that time without a father, without me being there. It isn’t right. I should have been there, I should have…..” He trails off before looking back at his bowl of rice.

“It is ok. You didn’t know.”

“Was your life, ok?”

“I guess. There were times where we had it rough but every family goes through that.”

He just sighs. “That…. It didn’t have to be that way.”

“Hey, I am here now. We can work on it now.”

“You are right. Let me make this right. I want to be a good father to you. I will take tomorrow off so we can start to work on that.”

“Ok, that’s a little fast but sounds good.”

“Thank you.” You wonder why he is thanking you but you think his emotions must be high from everything that has happened today. You find your way back to the guest room and fall asleep almost instantly from the jet lag. The morning is filled with the smell of a traditional Japanese breakfast. In the kitchen, Endeavor is waiting for you.

“Good morning, I hope you slept alright.”

“I did and thank you for cooking, it looks great!”

“You are welcome. I wanted to ask you a few questions if you don’t mind.”

“Sure.”

“You never knew who your father was until recently?”

“No, my mom never said a word. She told me that he died of a drug overdose.”

“I see. Did you know who I was before this?”

“Yes, I knew you were the number 2 then number 1 hero. It’s a little funny, I actually had a whole room full of Endeavor stuff. I am a huge fan.”

“What do you mean ‘had’?”

“I sold everything I had left to come here.”

“Oh…. I have one last question. Did you want to meet the rest of the family?”

“I-If they want to. I would love to but I don’t want to impose.”

“I will call and see if they are up to it right after breakfast.” It isn’t long before the food is finished end Endeavor is on his phone. He called his daughter and isn’t on the phone long before he comes back.

“They will be here later in the week. Is there anything you wanted to do today?”

“I never have been around Japan before; we can go anywhere.”

“I have some ideas. Let’s go.”

The two are headed out. They walk to the nearest station and take a train to the center of the city. The looks you got on the train were a mix between shocked and horror seeing two people who looked like the number one hero. Once in the city, Endeavor is quick to show you around. He takes you to the major landmarks, the hot spots for people your age, and even some of his favorite spots to eat. Around noon, you go to a local yakitori shop and enjoy some of the local cuisine. Lunch ends and then he wants to take you to one last place before head back. It isn’t long before you are both at a traditional Japanese temple. You take your time to walk around and take in all of the sights and respect the culture the best you can. He knows you are trying your best to understand and helps when he can.

The whole week goes something like this. Endeavor took the whole week off work early each day to spend time with you. Sometimes you went into the city, other times you went more into nature either a park or more distant parts of Japan. This is was all so much for you, you now have a father, someone who cares about you. You missed this as a child but now Endeavor is giving you the fatherly attention you always wanted.

The big day is here and you can tell Endeavor is nervous. You both head out before dinner. A small bakery was on your walk so you went inside and bought a cake for everyone to enjoy. Once back home, Endeavor set the table for the family. You are a nervous reck until the doorbell rings.

“Hi dad, what’s with us coming for dinner? Is something wrong?” Fuyumi says before entering. You sit there in shock realizing he didn’t tell them why he called them over. When they all enter the dining room, you look up to stone cold faces.

N: In pure shock “I…Who are you?”

S: “Is this some kind of joke?” He responds with some anger.

F: “Dad?”

E: “This is (Y/N). He is my son.”

N: “WHAT?! You have to be joking!” He starts to get red in the face with anger.

F: “I don’t think dad is, look at him. He looks just like dad.”

S: “This is really shocking to find out.”

(Y/N): “That how I felt when I found out.”

N: “What do you mean when you found out?”

(Y/N): “I only found out a few weeks ago. Please sit down and we can talk. I’m sorry this is all a shock to you.”

S: “This is making me uncomfortable. Can we go?”

E: “Let me make this right.”

N: “I’m heading out with Shoto.”

E: “Wait!”

N: “No, this is too much. How do you think we would react?”

F: “I don’t know how to process this. What he must have gone through without a father.”

E: “Fuyumi, you too?” He looks at her almost in astonishment.

N: “I can’t believe you did that to him. What kind of father are you anyway?”

Hearing all of this, how they talk to their father, it makes you snap. “This is how you treat your father? He is the number 1 hero. He has saved countless lives and helped take down hundreds if not thousands of villains and yet you treat him like what he is saying means nothing. He makes mistakes but that’s ok, we all do. I would love to have a father like him, I never had one as a kid. He wasn’t there when I was a kid but he wants to make up for it, isn’t that enough?”

You look over to the hero who has gone white. Endeavor turns around and leaves the room quickly. You are about to go after him but are stopped when Natsuo grabs your hand.

N: “You don’t know anything, do you?”

(Y/N): “What?”

F: “Our father isn’t perfect.”

(Y/N): “I’m not saying he is perfect.”

S: “He hurt all of us.”

(Y/N): “How?”

F: “He neglected Natsuo and I because we were not perfect to replace him. He hurt Shoto by training him too hard and our mom had a breakdown and hurt Shoto. We didn’t even know much about Shoto until recently because we were kept away from our brother.”

N: “The worst of it is that our oldest brother died because of what dad did to him. He was pushed too hard as a kid.”

S: “All of this just to be better than All Might.”

(Y/N): “What?”

N: “He only kept having kids until a child had the perfect quirk to be better than himself. He abandoned those without a good quirk.”

S: “And now we find out about you, we didn’t even know we had another brother.”  

N: “Another child of his, ruined…”

You look at all three of them and can tell that they are all telling the truth. The emotions inside start to build again and overflow as you speak. “But…. I finally have a dad…” you start to cry, just a little. “My mom died on my birthday, I have no family, and I have no one to care for me. I finally find out I have a father and maybe a family but you’re telling me all of this.” You cover your face to try to hide your emotions. “Why does everything have to be so hard.”

F: “I’m sorry to tell you all this. But it’s only fair to tell you before you decide anything.”

N: “What did he tell you anyway?”

(Y/N): “He didn’t know I was alive.”

S: “What?”

(Y/N): “When I walked into his office, he looked like he saw a ghost. He said he wished he was there and he wanted to make things right. He has been with me all week, trying to make up for lost time.”

N: “Really… he is trying to help you too?”

(Y/N): “Too?”

F: “Dad is trying to make up for his mistakes. He even had us move to a new house to help us heal.”

(Y/N): “He said it was for your safety.”

N: “Yes, from him.”

F: “Natsuo!”

(Y/N): “I need to go talk to him.”

S: “That might not be a good idea.”

(Y/N): “I don’t care. Just wait here till I come back.”

You leave the dining room and wander the house looking for the number 1 hero. Some sounds start to come from a distant part of the house. As you get closer, the sounds start to morphing into the sounds of crying. You turn the corner and find Endeavor crying in front of a shrine.

“Endeavor?”

The man doesn’t even turn towards you as he speaks through his tears. “Go away…. Please…”

“No. We need to talk.”

“I-I don’t want to be seen like this. A hero should be strong but… I can’t hold it together anymore.”

“You are human, it’s ok to feel overwhelmed.”

“I know they told you about me.”

“They did.”

“Why are you defending me? Why are you still here? This family has fallen apart because of me. My son died because of me. My children were practically abandoned, Shoto was pushed hard day after day. I sent my wife to the mental institution because of what I caused. How can I be a hero if I only hurt those around me…?” His crying starts to grow louder as his emotions start to peak. The only thing you think to do is something that doesn’t come naturally to either of you. You grab his shoulders and turn him to you. He hardly has the will power to fight your movements when you put your arms around him. He weakly places his massive arms around you as he continues his sobs. His head lays limply on your shoulder as you try your best to comfort him.

You barely whisper “Let it out, there is no need to hold it inside anymore.” You look up to see the shrine behind Endeavor. The photo in the center is of a small boy with pure white hair. “Is that him?”

“His name was Touya. He was my first born, well I thought he was, but his quirk only hurt him. After having more children to fill my selfish desire to be better than All Might, he got angry and lost control. He died from his powers. I pushed him too far.”

“I….I’m sorry.”

“You shouldn’t apologize.”

“Don’t worry about me, just keep talking.”

It takes a few moments for the man to pull himself together enough to to begin to speak again. “I’m so sorry. I’m such a horrible father. I abandoned you and your mother. All those years without the support of a father; I don’t deserve you in my life. You deserve someone better.” The tone of his voice has change to something you have never heard from him before, something sad and vulnerable, the opposite of what he normally is.

“You are all that I have left, I’m not leaving. I know that I just showed up but from what little I was told, I believe you want to make things better.”

“Why are you staying?”

“I want to be here. Something inside of me is telling me I need to be here. I want a relationship with my family.”

“But…”

“No, I am staying and you can’t stop me. Maybe I can help too.”

“These are my mistakes, I need to atone for them, alone.”

“These are too big for you. You could barely look at me when I first got here. I know you feel guilty but you didn’t even know about me.

“But…. l”

“You don’t have to handle any of this alone, we can all work together but you have to let us in.”

“I…. I don’t know how.”

“How about this: let’s see if we can go back and try to have some dinner, as a family. We can try to talk things out, ok?”

“I guess.” The hero stands and he composes himself for a bit before you both head back down the hall. The tension in the air is still thick as you both sit down.

(Y/N): “I’m sorry if it feels like I am intruding into this family, I just wanted to find out if Endeavor is my father.”

F: “You look just time him; we can tell you are our brother.”

S: “We are sorry we acted the way we did you you, it is not your fault.”

N: Looking at his father “A warning would have been nice.”

E: “I am sorry I didn’t warn you about this when I invited you over. I knew you wouldn’t want to come over if you knew.”

N: “This is still a shock for us.”

F: “(Y/N), you said you didn’t know until recently?”

(Y/N): “My mom kept it a secret from me. She even had me learn Japanese since a child. I never second guessed who I looked until after she told me. She said Endeavor met her in America.”

S: “I didn’t know you went to America.”

E: “It was soon after graduating from UA, I wanted to learn more about the world of heroes and trying to learn from other pro heroes. There I met your mother at an agency, she was the secretary. She knew a lot of the ins and outs of hero work but one night things got a little off topic….”

N: “We don’t need to know the rest.”

S: “You left after that?”

E: “I’m ashamed to say yes. I didn’t know she had a child.”

(Y/N): “It’s ok. I don’t think she wanted you to know.”

S: “You’re probable right. But what makes you think we would accept you in our family?”

(Y/N): “I don’t expect you to anything that makes you uncomfortable. I only came to see if Endeavor was my father. After that, I didn’t really have anything in mind. I would be happy if I could be part of this family. I know it’s anything but perfect but he sounds like he is trying to change things for the better. I don’t know where I fit in this but I want to be included.”

E: “I don’t know how to apologize for everything I did to you all. I abandoned my first child, I neglected others, pushed others too hard. I was so selfish in everything I have done in the past 25 years. I wish I could go back and undo all of it. The amount of guilt I feel every day is almost unbearable but the only thing that pushes me forward is knowing that I need to make up for my mistakes. I don’t want forgiveness; I just want to atone.”

F: “We can see that.”

(Y/N): “What about me?”

F: “Give us time to think about this, all of this.”

(Y/N): “Take all the time you need, I waited 25 years to have a father and siblings, what’s a little more time.”  

[alwaysahiccupandastrid]

A dumb concept but hear me out.

Relating back to my post about how the four “rotten” kids didn’t deserve what happened to them, and what I said about the parents being the ones punished/harmed instead, I had some ideas.

First of all, Augustus nearly falls into the chocolate river but his mother rushes forwards to stop her son falling in, and she falls in instead, nearly drowning. Alternatively, we saw her putting candies into her bag, maybe she tries to get some of the chocolate river into a canteen/flask, who knows? She gets sucked up into the pipe instead, and Augustus watches in horror as the Oompa Loompas sing about how she’s encouraged her son’s gluttony, how he could meet a sticky end like her if he doesn’t change. As his mother is taken to the fudge room, Wonka sends an Oompa Loompa to get her out - but Augustus stays on with the tour. He noticeably doesn’t gorge himself as he did before.

In the inventing room, Wonka shows off the three course gum meal and Violet tries to grab it - however, she hesitates for a moment when he mentions how it’s not “quite right” yet. Her mother, however, snatches the gum from her, telling her “winners don’t hesitate, Violet”, before chewing away. Mrs Beauregarde then begins to swell up like a blueberry and has to be juiced. Violet is terrified that a stick of gum did that to her mother, and she listens as the Oompa Loompas sing about how bad chewing gum is, and about how she could end up the same way if she continues to be as competitive and like her mother. As her mother is rolled to the juicing room, Violet also stays on with the tour; no one sees her take her gum out of her mouth and toss it away.

The group goes to the nut sorting room, where Veruca sees the squirrels and decides she wants one. She goes to get one herself, only for the squirrels to leap at her; her father jumps the gate and races down to help her - suddenly the squirrels turn from Veruca and run to swarm him instead whilst she runs back up the stairs and clambers to get behind the gate once more. Everyone watches as the squirrels pronounce Mr Salt a bad egg and toss him straight down the chute; the Oompa Loompas sing about how her parents spoilt her, about how despite his money, he’s not anything more than garbage and that if she continues to act like a spoilt brat, Veruca will be as rotten as they are - rotten as the garbage. She stays on with the tour whilst Oompa Loompas are sent to retrieve her father from the garbage chute; she’s quieter and listens more as the tour goes on, not demanding a thing.

In the TV room, Mike is about to be teleported into the TV when his dad suddenly panics, runs and pushes him off the platform, taking his place himself as the lights flash a second later. Mike watches as his father nearly dies and comes out of the ordeal six inches tall; he hears the Oompa Loompas sing about how television rots the brain, hence why he tried to do something so stupid, and it humbles him a little bit. His dad is taken to the taffy puller to be stretched out, and Mike apologizes for calling Wonka an idiot as they go to continue.

Now Wonka realizes that the only ones remaining are the five kids and Grandpa Joe - and he grins as he announces that Charlie has won the special prize, that Charlie will receive the entire factory. Clearly, his grandparents and parents raised him to he not-so-rotten. The other kids are astounded but quiet, and congratulate Charlie - though they all seem a little down and different than when the tour started.

He leads the group down to the factory entrance - and there are the four parents. Mrs Gloop, covered in chocolate from head to toe, licking her lips and clearly trying to resist nibbling her fingers. Mrs Beauregarde, bright blue-purple and flexible. Mr Salt, reeking and covered in three weeks worth of garbage. Mr Teavee, eight or nine feet tall and as thin as paper. The kids are horrified by what they see - their parents are reflections of what they could become, what they could have become on the tour.

That’s when Wonka announces his proposition: the four kids have a choice. They can go home with their parents, and hope that their day in the factory has changed them, that their parents have learnt a lesson too, and that they’ll all hopefully be better people because of it - or they can stay at the factory, working under his and Charlie’s supervision and learning how to run a business together. He tells them that they’re good kids at heart, and that he’d be willing to take them on if they’re willing to make the effort, to change for the better.

None of them really know what to say, but they look at their parents - at how rotten they are, at how they could become their parents if they’re not careful - and they realize that no, they don’t want to be like their parents at all. It’s a crazy idea, yes, but as Wonka explains how each of their skills could be used and developed for good purposes, they realize that it’s better than what their parents have been raising them to be.

The parents are outraged but Wonka tells them not to worry - Charlie’s family will be living in the factory, and so the children won’t be alone with just one (kind of kooky creepy) adult male and hundreds of Oompa Loompas, because Charlie’s parents and grandparents will be there to take care of the kids and make sure they’re well looked after. Makes sense that the parents/guardians of the least rotten kid can help shape and form the other four to be better people, right? Besides, he adds, the kids are more than welcome to say no and go home with their parents.

The kids - including Charlie - decide to have a minute where they talk about this - their parents may suck, but this is still weird and a bit strange. Charlie tells them that he personally would not abandon his family, not for all the chocolate in the world - but then, he admits, his parents and grandparents are good and honest people who love and care about him, and that while they’ve never been able to afford lavish gifts or even more than one chocolate bar a year for him on his birthday, he’s always been happy because he loves his family and is content that they love him too. The other four realize that they can’t exactly say the same about their own parents - their parents have been neglectful, for the most part, and never encouraged them to pursue new skills or change their dangerous habits.

Having said that, despite the fact their parents are terrible parents, the children don’t think they can just abandon their parents completely - despite it all, the children do hold some love for their families. With that in mind, they make a deal with their parents and Mr Wonka: yes, they would very much like to live in the factory and work with Charlie, and develop new skills - but they don’t want to abandon their parents completely. They ask that their parents be allowed to live near to the factory and that they can see them as often as they like - they would ask if their families can come live in the factory too, but they don’t think a) their parents would want that, given what they’ve gone through, and b) Wonka would want these rotten adults living in his factory with his workers and potentially causing harm/problems with his candy.

It’s kind of pretty useful that Charlie’s family is about to move into the factory - Wonka, with their permission, decides he’s going to use it to make a building/area for the other four children’s families to live in. Not that the parents are thrilled by the idea at all - the Salt family has a whole nut business AND a massive estate in England, why would they give that up? Augustus’ family is from Germany and they have a meat/butcher business set up there, are they supposed to just drop it and move to this strange place?

Things do eventually work out though, and an agreement/deal is made...

Augustus becomes the taste tester for new candies, and he offers up some of his own ideas, as well as some of his own critiques or comments on each idea that Wonka and Charlie present to him. He decides to he healthier, however, and he learns to control himself instead of eating everything in sight - he enjoys things in moderation. As an added bonus, running around the factory as well as healthier eating means he sheds some weight too. His parents manage to set up a butcher business in the town, though it takes a while for them to get used to the way things are and to earn respect/customers; Augustus still visits them regularly, and they have family dinners at least once a week, sometimes with the other Golden Ticket winners joining them.

Violet uses her competitive nature to help with advertising and marketing Wonka products - her competitive nature makes her want to make sure that Wonka candy is the best and number one most bought candy in the whole world. Sales are constantly booming because of her and her marketing techniques - Wonka candy has truly never been so popular, which really says something. Her mother is still blue and flexible, but Violet visits her and soon Mrs Beauregarde learns to be proud of her daughter and what she’s achieving instead of trying to push her to be a mini version of herself.

Mike is somewhat of an expert when it comes to television, and he’s incredibly smart. He’s in charge of helping in the television room (running experiments on different candies to test the boundaries of teleporting food to television sets, etc), helping in the inventing room, and in making sure all of the machines are running properly in each room of the factory. He knows the technical stuff, the physics of how everything should work, but he also becomes a little more open minded about things because clearly Wonka’s factory defies all laws of physics a lot of the time, so he learns how much of it applies to Wonka’s factory and what doesn’t, which helps him understand the machines/science behind the work they’re doing. Given what happened to Mr Teavee, the family do move to be closer to the factory - after all, it kind of makes it difficult for the kids he teaches Geography to in high school to take him seriously when he’s...well, the way he is now. They move Mike’s video games into a television room of the factory - but he plays far less than he used to, and watches less television than he did before. His parents notice that he’s less angry, though still incredibly intelligent and full of snark - they still don’t understand what he’s talking about most of the time, but he’s more pleasant to be around and talk to; he’s more excited and eager to share information rather than snapping or looking down on people.

Veruca is arguably one of the most important people in the team. Veruca is heiress to the Salt Nut business, and so she organizes a merger between Wonka and her father for the factory to start using nuts from the Salt business in their candies. Mr Salt’s Factory continues to use human workers, and they shell nuts just as they did before, selling them as they are; Wonka’s factory uses squirrels of course, and the nuts are used in candy. Other than this, Veruca starts to learn business skills from both her father and Willy Wonka, and she’s in charge of handling the factory’s finances, such as budgeting, keeping accounts of investments and incomes, and making sure that the factory has the money for Wonka and Charlie to pursue their new ideas. Her father and mother aren’t exactly keen, however, on moving into the town and into that apartment Wonka has built for the families of the other winners - they enjoy their lavish lifestyle too much. Her father comes every weekend or so for a stay, and her mother once a month - surprisingly, it doesn’t bother her that much after a while, because she’s always known deep down that her parents have never been sure on how to love her properly. Her pets are back on the estate, with her parents, which she visits for a rare holiday from time to time - perhaps she even brings one or two with her back to the factory, on the condition that they remain on the top floor where the children’s bedrooms are, and they go nowhere near any food production areas.

Charlie, of course, is Willy Wonka’s heir and becomes his protégé, a chocolatier in the making. He has much to learn but he’s always eager and enthusiastic even if they’re having a slow day with hardly any ideas or breakthroughs. He’s working with Wonka, someone he idolizes/looks up to, and they develop a wonderful working relationship; Charlie looks up to his mentor, and Willy Wonka actually learns stuff from Charlie too. Charlie’s happy because his family are all living in the factory with him, and he knows this is where he’s meant to be. Life is good and he doesn’t take it for granted. 

The kids actually all become friends, and it’s nice because none of them have actually had real friends before; Augustus was bullied for his size, Violet’s competitiveness drove others away and she was “too busy” for friends, Veruca didn’t have real friends but rather people who hung onto her and tried to get close to her due to her money, Mike was always too busy watching TV or playing games to bother with friends, and Charlie was somewhat of an outcast due to the fact his family was poor and he had secondhand/“poor” clothes. Working together leads them all to becoming friends.

The Bucket family - who have always struggled to feed the seven in their family - now has enough food for them all and more. They happily invite the children and Willy Wonka to dinner with them every single night, and it becomes a normal part of the evening; the five children happily chatting and laughing, just being kids, the adults chuckling with them, all of them eating until they can’t anymore. Augustus, Violet, Veruca and Mike see what a real family can be, and soon they feel like they’re part of the Bucket family themselves. The other parents are even invited to dinner with the Buckets on special occasions, and - with the exception of the Salts - everyone usually takes up their offer. Eventually though, the Salt parents do slowly start to come around - for Veruca’s sake more than anything else. They still see themselves as better than the others, and they’re kind of stiff towards the other parents/adults, but they agree to dinners on special occasions since it means they’ll get to see their daughter. 

To be honest, the kids are all really happy with life nowadays; they’re happy because they’re all friends and they’re all a part of something special - they’ve all truly changed for the better. The friendship between these five lucky kids is sure to be one that lasts a lifetime.

Life has never been better or sweeter.

[star-six7]

And You’re Someone Who Knows Someone (Who Was Someone I Once Knew)

Mikey Way x Reader (Gender Neutral)

Word Count: 1909

Request: Could I request anything with Mikey? Thanks :)

A/N: I am so sorry about the delay on this one! I’ve been drowning in school and work at the moment, but I’m still thinking of you guys, I promise! Also, catch that title reference ;)

Disclaimer: This is entirely a work of fiction. No part of this story is meant to be libel, slander, or in any way derogatory towards any character’s real life counterpart. I’m not delusional; I know that these characters are simply based off of a public persona and may not actually resemble the people behind those personas. Any additional characters that you do not recognize are entirely fictional, unless otherwise stated. And finally, if you got here by Googling yourself, whatever happens next is 100% on you.

You rocked back and forth on the balls of your feet anxiously as you stood in front of the chain-link fence. Finally, a large guy with a security shirt came into your view, calling out your name.

“Hey,” he grinned when you nodded. “It’s good to finally meet you in person; Gerard’s been chattering nonstop about you for the past few days. I’m Worm, I’m in charge of most of the security for the band; I’ll take you back now.”

“Okay,” you nodded, putting away the backstage pass that Gerard had mailed to you. You were slightly taken aback by the professional quality of the whole set-up; the last time you had been to a My Chem show, it had been in a much less… respectable venue, and there wasn’t even the faintest idea of guards and backstage passes. Something told you that the security probably wasn’t the only thing that had changed over the last few years...

While you were lost in your thoughts, Worm had led you through a back parking lot filled with big box trucks and busy stage crews right to the band’s bus. He punched in a key-code, and grandly guided you up the steps. 

“Gerard, your esteemed guest has arrived!” He winked good-naturedly at you, and then turned to leave. “Soundcheck at four, please attempt to think about being there in some semblance of a timely manner.” He rolled his eyes as he exited the bus.

Gerard, of course, didn’t hear him because he was too busy leaping off the couch so he could tackle you. “You’re here!”

“Yes,” you grinned, attempting to pat his back and keep your balance at the same time. “It’s been so long, Gerard, how are you?”

He let go and returned your smile. “I’ve been great, really great. A lot better than I was the last time we met. Um,” he ran a hand through his close-cropped white hair, and glanced sideways at Mikey. “You remember Ray and Mikey, right?”

“Of course,” you grinned at them. “How could I not? I did go to all of your shows for a year.”

“Well, uh, Otter ended up leaving after we finished recording Three Cheers, so that’s Bob- say hi, Bob- oh! And you remember Pencey, right? Well, Frankie’s with us now, and I think that about covers it.”

You waved at them. You remembered Frank’s wild nature, not surprised that he fit in so well with My Chem, and Bob seemed nice enough. All of the guys seemed genuinely excited about your presence, though you couldn’t shake the feeling that there were some conspiratorial glances and nudges being thrown around by everyone except Mikey. In fact, the bassist in question was doing his best to look artfully bored from his place on the couch and ignore Frank’s not-so-subtle shoving. Still, you felt a certain tug towards him, even after all these years.

“C’mon!” Gerard said brightly, snapping you out of your observations. “Let me give you the grand tour.”

The rest of the afternoon passed by in a whirlwind of wandering the bus park and venue with Gerard, watching the guys soundcheck from the nosebleeds, and dining on pizza in the green room. You were so glad you had been able to make it to a show; Gerard was one of your closest friends, and it had been a couple of years since you had last met. 

Your friendship had started during your senior year of college- you had both had an internship in the same building, albeit for different companies and lines of work. Since then, you had bonded over several of your shared interests and kept in touch, leading you to go to several of the first My Chem shows, and by extension, meet Ray, Frank, and Mikey. Though your busy work life and their crazy tour schedule had caused you to drift apart, it felt like no time had passed at all as you watched Ray swat Frank for stealing his pizza while Gerard and Mikey laughed uncontrollably at Ray’s exasperated expression.

Soon enough, it was time for them to go onstage, which became evident when the venue’s stage manager knocked on the door to lead them to the curtain. Worm reappeared and guided you to the seat marked on your ticket from Gerard- a center stage view from the very first row of actual seats behind the pit. Clearly, Gerard had wanted to make sure you didn’t miss a single part of the show.

The lights dimmed, and you watched two crewmembers dressed as doctors and nurses wheel out a covered gurney while the sound of a heartbeat monitor played over the sound system. You were unsurprised when Gerard leapt out of the gurney moments later, kicking off the show. 

You already knew the guys were awe-inspiring onstage- you had known it from the way you felt the first time you saw them live- but it was clear to see that over the past few years, they had taken it to a whole new level. They had each grown into their stage personas and their identity as a band, but your eyes kept drifting to one member in particular...

You had noticed it earlier today, but Mikey had definitely evolved since the last time you had met. He seemed much more sure of himself onstage; instead of retreating to the space almost directly behind Gerard, he often came up to the edge of the stage or interacted with his bandmates. He also seemed more relaxed off stage, easily interacting with fans outside of the venue and joking before the show with the rest of the band and crew. You couldn’t deny that he was a far cry from Gerard’s shy, slightly awkward, little brother you had met all those years ago.

Before you knew it, the show was over, and Frank was insisting on heading to a nearby diner for several plates of french fries and milkshakes. You glanced at your watch and balked. “Shit… I’m sorry guys, it’s almost 1am and I didn’t get a hotel. I think I’m going to start the drive home.”

Frank and Gerard glanced at each other, and then they rushed to stop you. “Don’t be ridiculous, come with us and you can just stay on the bus!”

“I don’t want to take up anyone’s space…” You hemmed.

“It’s fine!” Ray insisted. “Don’t even worry about it, you can sleep in the back lounge, it’s honestly very nice.”

Though you were suspicious of their enthusiasm, you accepted their offer with a shrug and followed the rest of the group in their search for a 24 hour diner.

…

You sighed as you took off your shoes and settled into the bed in the back lounge. You were exhausted; the long day of walking, dancing, and socializing was starting to catch up to you. However, just as soon as you had stretched out across the soft surface and closed you, you were startled upright by the sound of yelling coming from the bunk area just behind the lounge door. Confused, you opened it to see Mikey, looking irate, and Frank looking guilty yet slightly pleased with himself.

“What the actual fuck, Frank?” Mikey glared accusingly at him.

“I’m really sorry Mikey, it was-”

“An accident? Frank, we all know you’re clumsy as fuck, but there’s absolutely no way someone pours an entire liter of soda directly on my bunk on accident!”

“Oh shit,” you said, stepping out of the doorway to assess the damage.

Mikey glanced at you. “Sorry if I woke you up, Frank’s just being ridiculous.”

“Mikey, I don’t think you’re gonna be able to sleep here tonight,” Ray said, gently prodding Mikey’s mattress. “It’s pretty soaked.”

“Oh, well, of course,” Mikey sighed irritably. “Well, couch it is, then.”

“Actually,” Gerard piped up, oh-so-helpfully, “there’s plenty of space in the back lounge.” He turned to you. “If you’re okay with sharing, that is.”

You stared at him, trying to figure out his plan here. You were pretty sure that if he could bat his eyelashes right now, he would. Ignoring your suddenly accelerating heart rate, you turned back to Mikey.

“I don’t mind sharing, it is your bus after all,” you shrugged, glancing at Mikey. “Gerard’s right, there’s plenty of room.”

The other three looked extremely pleased with themselves.

“Thank you,” he told you, before turning to glare at Frank and head into the bathroom to change.

A few minutes later, you were in the back lounge again, somewhat awkwardly laying on one half of the double bed as you waited for Mikey to turn off the lights and get settled.

He looked abashed as he stretched out on the opposite side of the bed. “I’m sorry for snapping back there,” he said. “It’s just… the guys have been making fun of me for the past few days and it gets old fast.”

“I understand, it's okay,” you nodded, as you watched his silhouette shift closer to you in the dark.

He gave you a considering look. “It’s just… I told them something personal and they couldn’t just leave it alone. Honestly, this whole weekend has been sort of a set up.”

You rolled over to look at him properly as everything began to fall into place. Frank and Gerard’s insistence that you should stay the night, Frank’s “clumsiness,” Gerard’s helpful suggestions, the general feeling that something was going on behind the scenes…

“Oh,” you said, hoping he would confirm your suspicions, “what do you mean?”

“Well, it’s just that,” for a moment, it seemed like the endearing shyness of the Mikey you had met in Gerard’s basement was back. “Okay, like.” He took a steadying breath. “I’m working on building my confidence, so I’m gonna tell you this and hope for this best. I’ve… had a thing for you for a while, if it wasn’t already obvious. I mean, at first, it was just a crush… but as the years went on, and I- we grew up, I’ve realized it’s more than that. I know I’m still working on being stable, but I want to take that chance with you. I mean, if you feel the same way of course.” He paused. “Wow, that was a weight off my chest.”

You stared at him, opening your mouth to speak and then closing it as you parsed your thoughts. You had always felt a certain fondness for Mikey, and the past day had shown you that, over the course of a few years, it had grown into something more than friendship. You couldn’t deny that you also had feelings towards Mikey, and that seeing his new-found confidence and sense of self had only solidified them.

“Um, you’re not like, pissed, are you?”

His timid question snapped you out of your reverie.

“No, of course not!” you rushed to assure him. “I… I feel the same way, Mikey. I think I always have.”

“Oh!” He couldn’t keep the small grin off of his face. “So then I guess you don’t mind if I do this then, right?” He moved in closer to you and wrapped his free arm around your waist, effectively pulling you into his chest.

You smiled, warm with the feeling that things had finally fallen into place. “Good guess,” you sighed, already beginning to fall asleep.

“One more thing,” Mikey paused.

“Hm?”

“Under no circumstances can the others know that their evil plan worked.” “Deal.”

[bywhatilove]

“The Friend Trap” Chapter Five

“Actually,” Fabian began as he stood up, “I’ll go talk to her.”

Before either Eddie or KT could interject by reminding him of the headspace Nina was in at the moment and that maybe it would be best to send either of them out there, he was out the door.

“Oh boy,” KT gulped as she laid her head onto her palms. “Why did I let you talk me into this?”

Eddie’s eyes widened with shock. “Me? Talk you into this? K.T, may I care to remind you that this was all your idea!”

“I was hoping you would forget about that…” she muttered under her breath. “We are screwed, Eddie. Nina is never going to forgive me for keeping all of this a secret from her. Fabian is going to be pissed at you for ambushing him.”

“Oh my god. Would you relax?” Eddie leaned back into his chair like he did not have a care in the world. “Nina and Fabian will thank us for this one day. Probably not today…. but someday.”

“Yeah. Okay. Sure.” KT stated out loud, mostly for her own benefit. She gestured towards an empty spot by the window, which would give the two a front seat for the Nina and Fabian reunite show. “I guess we should give them their privacy.”

Eddie nodded his head in agreement. Yet, not even a moment later, the two found themselves racing for the empty chair that would provide them with the best view.

“No fair!” K.T whisper-screamed as Eddie pounced down onto it first.

“As Nina’s Osarian and sworn protector, Fabian’s roommate and best friend AND the one who has known them longer, I think that I rightfully deserve the front row seat for their reunion.” Eddie replied as his eyes took focus on two of his best friends.

K.T rolled her eyes, but all of those were factual statements, and, well, you can’t argue with the facts. So, she begrudgingly took the seat behind him and strained her neck to get a view of what was going on.

Outside, Nina and Fabian had their backs turned away from the coffee shop facing towards the street, which meant that all KT and Eddie could see was their backside as Nina sat on a bench and Fabian stood behind her.

“Oh what I would give to be a fly on that bench,” K.T blurted.

“That’s a good sign,” Eddie noted as the pair watched as Fabian took the empty seat beside Nina.

A few moments of silence passed, with only the occasional hand gesture or body movement to understand what was being said. But that didn’t stop Eddie from providing his own commentary.

“Right now they are both professing their undying, unconditional love for their other. Nina is apologizing for leaving the way she did. Fabian is accepting it. They are making an oath to never break up again. Next, they are going to come in here holding hands being all adorable again and live happily ever after.”

K.T snickered. “Is that your osarian senses tingling or just your own Eddie Miller instincts.”

“That is just common sense,” he replied straight faced. “They are Nina and Fabian. They have survived much, much worse than this.”

Suddenly, Fabian stood up from the bench. He began walking back towards the shop before he stopped in his tracks. K.T and Eddie watched him tell Nina something without even allowing a glance back in her direction. His face was stone cold, nothing like the shy smile K.T and Eddie knew and loved. Whatever he said (K.T and Eddie had never wished they could read lips more than in this moment), must have delivered a final punch to Nina. She let her elbows fall onto her knees and her head collapsed into her palms.

“Hate to break it to you bud, but I think common sense failed ya.” K.T declared unwillingly.

“Go, go, go,” Eddie ushered K.T back away from the window and to their original table. The two barely made it back as the door opened and Fabian entered the room- looking absolutely pissed.

“I’m heading out,” he grunted, “going for a walk. I just need to clear my head. Text me your address, K.T, and I’ll be there later this evening.” He started to walk away towards the back door to ensure he wouldn’t have an awkward encounter with Nina on the way out. Just before he walked through the door, he turned his head almost as if he was about to say something more. Yet, he decided against it and left with a simple shake of the head.

K.T and Eddie glanced at one another.

“Well, with all considering, that wasn’t too bad.” K.T shrugged. The two had accepted a much worse blow up from their meddling. It wouldn’t have shocked them too much if Nina or Fabian refused to speak to them for a couple days. Or if Fabian had bought a ticket straight back to England on the earliest flight available. Or if Nina decided to escape the city by taking a spontaneous trip to see her gran.

Eddie gently shook his head. “Don’t get too relieved. Fabian has always been the more level headed and calm of those two. I love Nina, but she is known for acting impulsively and not the most level headed. It’s usually because of her love for her friends and determination to keep them safe, even if that means she has to brave all of problems on her own. Hence her leaving without a trace senior year….I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

K.T nodded her head. “You do that when you get nervous.”

An uncomfortable silence fell over the two as they sat and waited for the tidal wave that could be Nina Martin’s anger. They didn’t have to wait long, though, as Nina soon entered back into the shop. She didn’t look mad… but rather just upset. And somehow, that was all the much worse. Her eyes gave away that tears had recently escaped them and her red tinted face was proof of her distress.

“I’m just gonna head back to the apartment,” she gestured back towards the door. “I guess I’ll see you guys tonight.”

Neither K.T or Eddie had the chance to respond before she was out the door.

“She wasn’t mad at us, which is a lot better than I expected.” K.T began to nervously play with her nails.

Eddie let out a deep sigh before responding. “No, she wasn’t. But she looked so…”

“Broken.” K.T interjected.

“Yeah. They both did. Which honestly makes me feel a lot worse than I would have if they came back here guns-a-blazing and screaming at us.”

“What do you think is going to happen between the two of them? And I don’t want any of your fairytale happy ending b.s.”

Eddie took a moment to sit with this. He did want to give her his honest answer. “Honestly? I’ve heard stories from Amber and Patricia about infamous Fabian and Nina fights. Apparently they can be brutal sometimes. Yet, what neither realizes is that they are usually fighting over the same thing. Nina wants to keep Fabian safe by keeping him far away from any of her chosen one craziness and Fabian wants to keep Nina safe by being right by her side every time something happens. So eventually they erupt into some huge massive argument because they are both so darn stubborn. I mean...that is what this is all about, right?”

K.T looked puzzled like she wasn't quite following.

“Oh, yeah, I forget, I have known them longer and do know them better.” Eddie playfully nudged K.T with his shoulder before continuing. “Fabian is mad at Nina for leaving like she did and she left like she did because she was trying to protect Fabian and the rest of us. Obviously, it didn’t work because she didn’t take into account that egyptain gods and curses love to torture us with or without Nina around. So we just have to make both of them see that they were trying to achieve the same thing and ba-bang. They’re back together!”

“You make that sound a lot easier than it is going to be…” K.T huffed.

Eddie flicked his hand jokingly. “Pfff, no way Rush. My osarian senses are ah tingling and I can promise that everything is going to work out. Nina and Fabian are obviously meant for one another. Anyone can see it. Well, anyone but themselves that is.”

“Like you and Patricia are meant for one another?” She winked at Eddie. “How are you two, actually? With all the Fabian and Nina drama, I completely forgot to ask.”

“Amazing. I mean, long distance sucks butt. But, her university is only two hours drive from mine and Fabian’s. We’ll make it work. I know we will.” Eddie suddenly became fidgety, like he was nervous to say what came next. “She’s the one, ya know? I can’t see myself with anyone else.”

K.T responded by looking at him with adoration and a hint of something else. Something Eddie couldn’t put his finger one. “What is it?”

“Oh...it’s nothing,” K.T gently shook his head. “It’s just that, who knew Anubis House was such a place for matchmaking. You and Patricia. Nina and Fabian. Heck, even Willow and Alfie are still going strong. Sometimes I just feel like I missed out, that’s all.”

Eddie playfully hit her on the shoulder. “Hey now, I don’t want to hear any of that self-deprecation. You are a total catch, K.T Rush, and you are going to make one very, very lucky girl extremely happy one day.”

K.T jokingly rolled her eyes, but Eddie continued speaking. “Now, where is that tacky tourist New York City experience I was promised? I didn’t fly all the way here just to sit in a coffee shop all day and worry over Fabian and Nina. Let's go!” He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the door. Eddie Miller was promised a tour of NYC, and a tour of it he shall receive.

A couple hours later, hours full of buying extremely tacky NYC decor from touristy shops, taking even more tacky selfies from NYC tourist staples and plenty of food pit stops. K.T and Eddie's phones dinged simultaneously. It was a text from Nina.

"Could y'all come back to the apartment? We need to talk."

"Oh boy," K.T breathed.

"Oh, boy, indeed," Eddie agreed. "Be there in 15." He responded to Nina's text as the two made their way towards the newest Subway stop and made their way back to K.T and Nina's apartment.

--------

When the two walked in, Nina was sitting on the couch.

"Nins, hey there girl!" K.T called out nervously, trying desperately to hide her nerves and caution the blow.

Nina turned her head and her expression was all but the smiling girl K.T had grown to love. "K.T...Eddie...."

"We can explain," Eddie began.

"I'm all ears," Nina gestured to the open seats beside her. Eddie and K.T sat beside her, looking like a couple deers who were caught in headlights. As much as they loved Nina, she could be pretty terrifying. Even without her ability to call on the Egyptian Gods whenever she pleased, an unhappy Nina Martin was a Nina you wanted to steer clear from.

“Where do we start? Why don't you go ahead, Eddie?" K.T shot her glance over towards the boy sitting next to her. "After all, what were you saying earlier, you have known Nina and Fabian the longest and you do know them better..as her osarian and all that fun stuff."

Eddie grimaced at the way K.T used his previous words against him like a weapon. "Yeah...where do we start?"

Nina interrupted him before he had the chance to begin, though. "How about how the two of you know one another? And what happened senior year?”

Eddie and K.T chuckled nervously. “That’s a really funny story, actually,” Eddie began.

“Eddie,” Nina pleaded, “I stayed away to try and protect you all from any more curses and danger craziness. You said something about a great evil? And, K.T, you know about Sibuna?”

No longer did Nina sound angry about Eddie and K.T messing around in her relationship with her and Fabian’s relationship nor was she sad about what Fabian had told her, but rather she sounded like a friend who was desperate to protect those whom she loved. So, K.T and Eddie told her everything. They told her of keys and visions, of crypts and frozen men, of secret sisters, of sinners and tricks and, as they told her, Nina’s heart broke with every word.

[harryskalechips]

This sucks Part 2

A/N Here is the new part two for this sucks. Thank you for all the feedback and for calling me out for the shitty ending of the last version. I rewrote this part with a mixture of the old one. I’m not sorry about the last version but I did want to rewrite this and give this one-shot some justice. I thought this would be more appropriate for our plot. Lastly, I want to say thank you for your support. Without you, I would not have a place to share my work. Anyways, if you read the last version and is content with that, You don’t need to read this but for my lovely angsty cravers. I serve you a full plate of depression. Enjoy xxx  

Word count 3456

Part 1

“Get the fuck out, Mitch.” Harry slurs to his guitarist as he tries his best not to fall back onto his hotel bed. He kept tripping and stumbling onto the mattress and that’s exactly why he doesn’t want it to happen again.

“Dude, you have a show tomorrow. You’ve been getting drunk every night and I don’t think it’s good for your career.” Mitch leans on the side of the wall with his arms crossed. His sarcastic reply just showed how tired he was about Harry acting out. He missed the last tour when everything was good... despite his breakup with Camille in the near end. At least, Harry wasn’t trying to drown himself in alcohol that time. 

“You don’t know what’s best for me!” Harry grips onto the desk in front of him and reaches over his bag to grab the beaten journal. “Now leave me alone, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I’ve never seen you this fucked up before, Harry. You know we’re all here for you.” Mitch shares his disappointment as he watches Harry throw himself on the couch and dive into his journal. When Love on Tour first started, he was very quiet but as the shows progressed, Harry’s frustration began to seep through. Everyone could tell he was angry at himself. Obviously, heartbroken. 

As Mitch stood in the corner of Harry’s room observing him, Harry tried his best to write something on the paper. He needed it to seem like he was focused. After a couple minutes, his friend leaves the room making Harry rub his face in relief as he throws his journal on the floor. 

Fuck this. fuck this. He repeats in his head as he raises his hips in the air, trying to grab his phone from his back pocket. His eyes are lazily open as he taps on the screen searching for the green phone app. He looks for his favourites and out of fake shock, he stares at the only name on it. Y/N. 

Giving a call once a day showed Y/N, he wants her back but calling her multiple times a day? Y/N had to know he was desperate. 

The number you have reached is not in service or is temporarily disconnected. 

The automated voice he hears every time repeats. It almost felt like she was laughing at him for being so pathetic. Out of anger, he tosses his phone on the floor and lays on his stomach. It felt weird being so angry and sad at the same time about a relationship that only lasted for four months but Harry knew it was the best relationship he has ever had. So maybe everyone can fuck off a bit because he just lost his girlfriend without actually being able to fight for her. 

~

“Harry, you haven’t been answering your sister or your mum. They’ve been calling me to check up on you. Would you like me to schedule a time for you to call them.” Harry’s secretary Andy, asks him as they approach his private jet. They’re on their way back to America since he had just finished the European leg.

“No, but next time they call, tell them I said to fuck off.” Andy nervously swallows the lump in her throat and nods.  

It’s been months! Months after Harry and Y/N’s break up but Harry can’t help but still feel anger at his family for being so close-minded. For hurting her.

“Harry, Camile has also been calling. She’s wondering what show would you like to see her at so we can send her y’know… the tickets.” Harry just scoffs at hearing his ex’s name. Of course, he started talking to her again early this year but after realizing he was in the wrong, he wanted nothing to do with her. 

“Ignore her. I can’t talk to her.”

“Alright.” Andy types on her phone writing down something on her notes. Harry just takes a big sigh and looks out the window. Tour could’ve been fun this year. He could’ve brought Y/N to France, to Italy, to Brazil! But I mean, he couldn’t even be with her in London after she left his stupid ass. Gosh, he hates it here. 

~

“When I wrote this song, I was in a dark place after a relationship of mine ended.” Harry darkly looks around the arena as he fixes the wire of his mic behind him. “I’m a very private guy but let me share one more thing with you all. I fucked up. This song is not even what I’m talking about but it does make me a bit sadder because I did become that guy I didn’t want to be.” His eyes couldn’t help but tear up as he watches his fans look at him in sadness. Fuck, he’s been drinking all the time and all he feels is guilt because these past shows, he was pretending to be happy. Yet he knew he wasn’t even close to that feeling and so did everyone around him.

As the familiar keys began to play, Harry couldn’t help but not look at any of his fans. He had to close his eyes and feel his pain.

I’m falling again, I’m falling again. I’m falling.

~

The number you have reached is not in service or is temporarily disconnected. 

~

The number you have reached is not in service or is temporarily disconnected. 

~

The number you have reached is not in service or is temporarily disconnected. 

Harry rolls his eyes and tosses his phone on the couch. Tonight is his last show in North America. After this, he’s going to be heading south although, it already feels like he’s been heading in that direction for a long time.

“Come in,” Harry yells out coldly as he looks at himself dressed and ready to go to perform tonight.

“It’s just me, Jeff.” His manger lets himself in as he looks at the boy. “The Forum. Remember performing here the first time you released the album.” Harry just nods as he plays with the loose thread of his journal.

“She’s here tonight.” Harry chokes on his breath as his heart beats faster.

“Y/N?” He looks up immediately as he watches Jeff very carefully. “She’s here tonight?” He asks again for confirmation. Maybe, he heard him wrong?

“While we were in London and you were ignoring your family, I decided to give her a call.” Harry just scoffs as he glances at the TV of his fans singing to one of his old songs. 

“You called her? She probably thinks I’m pathetic.”

“You are pathetic! Do you think I don’t know you call her all the time?”

“Her phone number isn’t even in service.”

“Exactly. Pathetic.”

“Where is she sitting tonight?” Harry decides to change the subject as he glances at his phone on the couch. 

“Premium... more on the left side. Look, dude, I gave her an extra ticket to bring a friend but as I was checking in with Mark on visuals, I noticed her with a guy.”

“She brought a guy?” Harry couldn’t help but fist his hands. I mean he’s already had about 60 shows and it’s been 5 months but why did it surprise him, she’s here with another man? Funny to think she claimed she was falling in love with him. Maybe that guy was just a friend but he knew otherwise.

“I’m sorry H. I thought seeing her tonight would fix your relationship but it doesn’t seem like it.”

“I don’t care.” Harry loses his tie. “Maybe, it was a good idea I started talking to Camile again.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Oh but I do.” ~

The show was on full swing now as Harry’s fans were screaming and cheering for him. His hands leave his mouth as he blows kisses to everyone in the room. As he searched the crowd throughout every song, he noticed how some faces were familiar to him. They must’ve been here last night too. After watermelon sugar, Harry turns his back from the crowd to take a drink as Mitch plays his solo for the tour. 

He didn’t want his fans to see his frustration but he was losing his mind. 

“Where are you going?” Sarah loudly whispers as she watches Harry walk off the stage.

“I’ll be back” He cuts her off and takes his water bottle with him as he quickly walks off the stage, waving to his fans.

“Harry, what’s up?” Jeff exclaims as he rushes to his side. “Do you need anything?”

“Where is she? I can’t find her.”

“Do you expect yourself to catch eyes with her tonight? You know full well that’s not even possible.” Harry rolls his eyes as he watches some of the workers moving around.

“Get someone to lead her backstage after the show.” He instructs Jeff coldly. He needed to make sure that Jeff followed through with this.

“Mr. Styles, we’re going to need you back on stage.” An unknown girl with a headset interrupts their conversation. Harry just nods as he turns away from Jeff.

“I need to talk to her... please.”

*** 

“You alright babe?” Robbie wraps his arm around Y/N as she smiles back without a response. It was weird being in the presence of another man during Harry’s concert. She always expected to be by herself watching him. To be with him before and after the show but tonight... she’s just another fan. 

Y/N met Robbie on her flight back to LA after a dreadful trip to London. It was depressing. Walking in the streets alone. Taking awkward selfies at the big ben. What she hated the most was the sad frown she kept on her face or how her heart grew with anxiety when she asked a stranger to take a picture of her at the tower bridge.

“Sorry everyone, I had to take a wee.” Harry runs back on stage as he gives off a smile to everyone. For some reason, Y/N  had a feeling he was lying. Usually, he would run back on stage but it seems like he wasn’t even in a hurry. The wrinkles on his forehead as he stared at the floor made her think there may be more on his mind than what he’s showing.

“So usually in this part of the setlist, I would be singing Cherry but tonight, I wanted it to be a bit more special. I’ll be singing Don’t Let Me Go. A song I wrote back late 2012’s. Luckily, Mitch and Charlotte already know how to play it.” (A/N This makes me sad ugh)

Don't let me

Don't let me

Don't let me go

Cause I'm tired of feeling alone

“Can’t believe you know this guy, babe! He’s amazing!” Robbie crosses his arms as he takes a sip of his beer.  Y/N holds onto the rail, trying to not breakdown. “Hey, Are you crying?” Her boyfriend reaches out to her as she watches Harry looking at them. She doesn’t think he can see them but the way he kept glancing at the area she was in, he knows she’s here. 

“Yeah, it’s just a really sad song.”

“Ms. L/N?” A woman with a headset approaches the couple. 

“Yes.” 

“Hi, I’m Amanda, Mr. Styles would like you backstage after the show.” Robbie flashes a big smile as he looks around them hoping no one is noticing their interactions with the lady. 

“We’ll be there.” Robbie cuts in as he wraps his arm around his girlfriend. Y/N tenses up as she awkwardly smiles back at him.

“Actually, his instructions were very clear and he only wants Ms. L/N.” Her eyes widened as Robbie pulls away from her. 

“Thank you.” She smiles and glances back at Harry.

“I’ll have someone get you during our last song.” and with that, Amanda walks away while Robbie coldly glares at Harry who’s taking a sip of water as the song comes to an end.

“Is there something going on between you guys?”

“No.”

“Why does he only want to see you? You never even told me how you two met!”

“Okay, Robbie. Calm down. I’ll explain later. He and I are just friends.”

~

Y/N follows the boy down the hallway as she hears Harry’s fans chant out his name. It’s been months since she had seen him and if she was being honest, Y/N never thought she would again. But Jeff sounded so sad and concerned about him that she wanted to see him. Despite breaking all her ties with him, She still thinks about him every day.

Y/N looks at the TV screen and notices the lights were now on and Harry and the rest of his band were off the stage. Robbie is probably sulking as he walks to his car right now. She thinks to herself.

The door harshly opens as Harry comes in all sweaty. “Hey.” Y/N waves at him as she quietly sits on his couch. He takes his jacket off and hugs her without another word. “You’re so sweaty.” She couldn’t help but laugh as she feels his familiar embrace. Maybe, laughing would ease off the awkward tension. 

“I missed you Y/N.”

“I missed you too H.”

“I never thought I would see you again.” He sits on the couch beside her and runs his hand through his hair.

“I’ve always been excited to see one of your shows live.” She couldn’t help but brush her hair out of her face. Here is the man she was falling in love with. The man she chose to forget. 

“How did Jeff get in contact with you? I tried calling your number a few times and it wasn’t in service.” Harry bit his lip at his question. He knew full well he called her number at least three times a day.

“I keep in touch with Glenne.” She watches Harry scoff. “What?”

“You can keep in touch with her but you can barely talk to me?”

“Our trip to London was a sign that we shouldn’t be together, Harry.” Y/N couldn’t help but get flashbacks from her traumatic trip. She was so excited to meet his family, only to find out they already hated her before she stepped foot inside their house.

“That trip was not how it was supposed to go. I had plans to make you so happy.”

“That’s funny since the only plan that came through was me finding out you started talking to Camile again.”

“Did you mean what you said to my mum?” He ignores her last comment as he watches her carefully. She shrugs her shoulders in confusion then it suddenly hits her… he’s talking about London. “I heard it all.”

“Oh.” She looks away from Harry and stares at the pattern of the rug in his change room. “Yeah, I meant every single word.” Y/N plays with her cuticles trying to keep herself from remembering that sad trip. 

“I’m sorry about what happened. Camille was a big part of my life and I wanted to start seeing her again. Not like romantically but the way I still talk with Kendall.”

“It’s okay. I think it needed to happen.” Harry’s eyes flash in confusion. Last time, he spoke to her, they were so sure that this relationship would work out. Now, she’s managed to change her whole idea about them and that hurt a lot. Especially since she’s all he thinks about.

“Why would you say that?” He stands up in anger.

“Harry. Your mom and sister hated me! You clearly have or had feelings for Camille and you were going on tour We wouldn’t have worked out!”

“Are you blaming me?” He crosses his arms. He was offended. 

“No.” Y/N rubs her face in frustration. “It was nice what we had, Harry. Believe me but now we can’t be together.”

“What? Why? Because you have that stupid prick as your boyfriend?”

“Yes.” Y/N stands up as well, preparing herself to leave. He grabs his journal from his vanity and opens it. He flips the pages as Y/N watches him in confusion. 

He rips random pages out and crumples them. He takes her hands and forces her to take them. “I’ve been in love with you! Goddammit, just take me back!”

“Harry…”

“Look, I have more! I’ve been writing about you every day. I’ve been writing songs about you.” He looks at his journal one more time before closing it and throwing it on the floor. “I wrote this whole damn book about you!” 

Y/N begins to cry as she watches the strong man she has always known break down in front of her. “I can’t… Harry. Please.” He goes on his knees and takes her hands full of crumpled paper. 

“You never even gave us a chance baby. Fuck, I should’ve stopped you the moment you walked out that door. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Y/N couldn’t bare herself to look at him as she feels his hands on her.

“You should have gone with me to the store that day. I should’ve shown you around my town! Now I can barely talk to my family because they remind me of who I lost. What I lost!”

“Harry. I don’t want this anymore. I’ve always been scared of our relationship. I can’t handle this.” It’s true. She watched romantic movies her whole life and the more she admired those types of relationships, the more she didn’t want one herself. Y/N knows her life isn’t a movie but if Rachel McAdams cried her heart out during The Notebook while in character, she can’t imagine what else Harry can throw at her so she can experience that type of heartbreak. She needed a clean break from him. Robbie was her safe choice. 

“I love you, please.” He shakes his head in frustration. “I dream about you. I think of you. I need you!”

“I can’t!” She shakes her head as she tries to help him up. She takes the crumpled paper and runs to his vanity as he stands behind her, confused. She eagerly tries to flatten them out. She bends down to grab his journal and tries to place each page back in the book. 

“What are you doing?” He approaches her. “Those are for you!”

“No Harry! These are for you. I need you to keep these. I need you to remember us.”

“I need you to remember us.” He whispers and grabs her wrist to stop working. “You forgot about me.”

“I had to. I needed to.” She looks at the mirror and watches his eyes in the mirror.

“I thought we were stronger than this.”

“It’s been five months. You should move on too, H.” She pulls away from Harry and continues to fix his journal. She remembers the nights he would write in the leather book. How calm he looked. How happy he was. 

“Just admit it then! You took the first problem that occurred and used that to leave me!”

“Fine! I did! I admit it!”

“You’re just as bad as me then!”

“You were in love with Camille!!”

“Then why do I feel like dying every day ever since you left me!”

The silence makes Y/N’s heart beat faster as Harry finally lets out his last thoughts. He takes hold of her hips and pulls her in close to him. He glances once at her lips then stare at her eyes. 

Y/N didn’t know what to do. Her mind was screaming at her to pull away from him and leave but her heart wanted something more. Ironic enough, that familiar thump in her heart has always been present. The guilt she felt when she first started dating Robbie. The ache she felt when she watched Harry’s interviews late at night. Now, it was asking for something different. Something more. She holds onto the back of his neck as she kisses him. Harry pushes her back onto his vanity, helping her sit on it. 

Lips so familiar. Taste so heavenly. A scent so intoxicating. He needed more. She missed him. 

“I’m sorry fuck I’m sorry.” Y/N pulls away and pushes his chest a bit lightly. 

“Tell me you don’t love me anymore. I’ll let you go.” He lets out. He was hoping that it wasn’t true. This would be the only way to trap her into admitting that she wants to be with him again. He’s selfish. It’s true.

“You know that wouldn’t be true.” Harry’s heart skips a beat.

“So, stay with me. I need you. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

“I love you but I can’t.” She moves off a bit and hops off his vanity. She takes a deep breath and looks at him. “I think you’ll find someone for you.”

“Do you love Robbie?” He ignores her last statement. Truth be told, Y/N doesn’t. She began dating him two months ago and all she thinks about is Harry. 

“Yeah.”

“You’re lying.”

“It doesn’t matter if I’m lying! Harry, please don’t let me go through this again.”

“I’m sorry. I just hate seeing you walk away from me.” She gives him a soft smile as she takes her phone from her pocket.

“I have to go. Robbie just texted me. He’s angry.”

“Will I ever see you again.”

“Probably not.” 

“So what? You’re going to keep avoiding me from now on?”

“I think I might have to. Take care H. Take care of yourself, please.”And with that, Harry watches Y/N walk out of his life for the final time. 

He takes his journal and walks to the couch. He lazily slouches as he takes a random paper out. It’s about her, of course, it is. He places the sheet on the top of his heart and closes his eyes. “This sucks.” 

Maybe, this was the closure Harry needed but for some reason, his heart was hurting more.

part trois

[440mxs-wife]

The Hunter’s Princess- Chapter 3: Winchester Castle

Pairing: Dean x OFC Kira (eventual), Prince!Dean x OFC Lady Kira. Other Characters: Sam Winchester, Prince!Sam Winchester, Castiel, Rowena, Gabriel, King!John, Queen!Mary, Lucifer and assorted minor characters.

Chapter 3 Word Count: 3145+

Warnings: Dean nightmare, Prince!Dean jealous, fluff with Castiel. Each chapter will have individual warnings as needed.

A/N: This is from some material that’s been rattling around in my head from another project that changed direction. Couldn’t let all this content go to waste, though, so here it is. It’s a work-in-progress, and I will try and update as regularly as I can. If you want to be tagged in this series, send me a message!

Thank you and happy reading!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Two days later, the carriage reached the gates of Winchester Castle. Once inside its walls, Kira was in awe of how much larger it was than her own humble dwelling. As they passed the stable area, Kira saw a short, white-haired man brushing down one of the horses. "Pardon me, sir?" she called.

The man wandered over as the carriage rolled to a brief stop. As soon as he saw who was in the carriage, he removed his cap and gave the ladies a deep bow. "My name is Collins, Lady Kira. I am in charge of the stables. How may I serve you?"

"It's very nice to meet you, Collins," she smiled. "You may help me, kind sir, by letting my driver know where he can park our rig. I need to report for the Princes' Challenge, and I'm sure, be shown to our quarters," she finished.

"It would be an honor, Lady Kira," Collins grinned and winked at her as he proceeded to give the driver the directions he needed.

"Thank you very much, Collins. I hope to see you again, as I love horses. I don't get to ride as often as I'd like, but maybe while I'm here, I'll get an opportunity," Kira remarked.

"Our stables are at your command, Lady Kira. Whenever you fancy a ride, please come down to the stables and ask for me. I would be honored to assist you," Collins replied, with a twinkle in his eye.

Kira laughed and bid him farewell, as the carriage continued to its destination. She and Rowena were shown to their rooms, where they were each assigned a lady's maid. Rowena's was named Katherine and Kira's was named Sarah. When she introduced herself, Kira felt a little dizzy as a feeling of déjà-vu played in her mind. Sarah looked concerned, but Kira assured her she was fine, just needed a drink of water. Sarah quickly poured a glass from the pitcher on the dresser and handed it to Kira, who smiled gratefully, and promptly drained the contents.

"Thank you so much, Sarah. I appreciate it. I think I'll do some unpacking now," Kira said as she moved to open the trunk.

Sarah intercepted her before Kira could put one finger on the trunk. "I will do that for you, Miss. Please, relax. You're competing in the Princes' Challenge, so you'll need to save your strength," she reminded Kira. "Dinner will be at 7 o'clock for any of the competitors who have arrived. May I suggest you wear this?" Sarah held up a pastel green silk empire-waisted gown with cap sleeves. The skirt was dotted with pale pink mini-rosettes embroidered throughout.

Kira marveled at the selection, but did not recall packing such a dress. Rowena. Kira shook her head in amusement as her fingers brushed the locket around her neck. "That will do very nicely, thank you Sarah," Kira responded. "I would like to freshen up a bit from our long carriage ride. Can you please arrange a bath for me in a couple of hours? I'd like to tour the grounds for now, if that's all right," she added.

"Yes, Miss," she said as she curtsied lightly. Kira gently put her hand on Sarah's arm. "When we're in here, just us or with Lady Rowena? You don't need to curtsy. I may be 'Lady Kira', but I'm a little less....formal than most royals, if that makes any sense," she chuckled lightly. This seemed to put Sarah a bit more at ease. "Thank you, Miss. I'll try to remember," she said as she smiled warmly.

Kira decided to check in with Rowena and find out if there were any other surprises in her wardrobe. As she turned around from closing the door, Kira nearly slammed into a raven-haired woman, a little taller than her, dressed in a red satin gown. "Pardon me, I didn't see you there," Kira apologized.

"Then you should watch where you're going," she seethed. "If you don't want to end up on the floor, that is," she smirked.

"Now, Serena, you need to control your temper a bit. It's not her fault she's so clumsy," a man's voice calmly broke in. Kira looked and saw a man with ice blue eyes and sandy blond hair. Lucifer. Her mouth ran dry and she excused herself before he could see the look of absolute terror on her face. Kira hastily knocked on Rowena's door and as soon as it opened, she rushed in, her entire body shaking.

"Och, Kira dear, you look like you've seen a ghost!" Rowena exclaimed. One look at Kira's face told Rowena that she was not far off the mark. "Katherine dear, would you please excuse us?" Katherine nodded and exited the room. "What's wrong, darlin'?" Rowena asked.

"I was coming out of my room, and bumped into someone. I apologized, but she was rather rude about the whole thing. Told me to 'watch where I was going if I didn't want to end up on the floor'. Then a man came up behind her and it was Lucifer," Kira explained.

Rowena's eyes got wide, then she seemed to collect herself again. "I was hoping we could avoid him, but it seems not. Listen to me: you must keep that locket of yours in your possession at all times. No exceptions," she ordered.

"Why? It's just a locket from my mother's jewelry box that she never got around to giving me. What could Lucifer possibly want it for?" Kira asked.

"Darlin', that locket is a very powerful charmed object. It's what brought you here. Your dear mother didn't get a chance to tell you anything about the locket and all of its power. You know as well as I do that if Lucifer got his hands on it, his power would know no limits. He could do the same as you, move freely about the multiverse."

Rowena continued. "Just think of all the trouble he'd cause in those other dimensions, which might even affect our home dimension at some point. Let's face it: we all know that Lucifer is not exactly the poster boy for 'self-control'. It is imperative that you keep hold of that locket, Kira," she finished.

Kira thought back to how the locket glowed in her hands just before she ended up here. Lucifer is a powerful enough archangel as it is. If he were to get hold of the locket....there'd be no stopping him, Kira thought. To her, that was unacceptable. Not to mention, it's her only ticket home after accomplishing whatever it is she's supposed to do here. In that moment, Kira vowed to Rowena that she would protect the locket with everything she had.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dean went to his room in the bunker to try and get some sleep, at least his usual four hours. However, all he could think of was Kira and how far away from him she is right now. He'd give nearly anything to see her beautiful smile or lose himself in the depths of her soft, hazel eyes. He missed hearing her sing in the kitchen while she was making dinner. The bunker was way too quiet with just him and Sam in it.

If Dean really stopped to think about it, he'd been in love with Kira for quite a long time. Probably started after she started showing him up on the firing range. Dean was never truly upset about Kira being the better shot, but how else was he supposed to get pie? Besides, when she shot the targets better than he did, it always made her smile. And damn, did he love to see her smile.

Where are you, Kira my love? Dean silently wondered. Suddenly, her face appeared before him, but it was like she was looking through him to what was behind him. The look of terror on her face made his blood run cold and was enough to make him turn around to see what it was. Lucifer. Dammit, he was with Kira wherever she was. Oh, Kira darlin', hang on.

Dean was jolted awake and scrambled to sitting upright in bed, taking in huge gulps of air. A sheen of perspiration was on his brow and his T-shirt was soaked.

"What?? What is it?? Dean?!?" Sam shouted as he burst through the door. He heard Dean cry out in terror, which brought him to the door. Sam took in his brother's disheveled appearance and knew he'd had a nightmare of some kind, one involving Kira.

"I saw her. Wherever Kira is, I saw her, Sammy. And she's not alone. I also saw Lucifer," Dean rasped.

"No....." Sam whispered. "Okay, while you change into a dry shirt, I'm gonna call Cas. See if he's come up with anything new, or if Gabriel's been in touch with Cas instead of us," Sam muttered.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After her encounter with Lucifer, Kira was still a little shaken up. There was no way she was going to catch a nap before dinner, so she decided to tour the grounds a bit. She started in the gardens, which were breathtaking, to say the least. There were so many beautiful flowers that it would take a lifetime to sample each of their fragrances.

Kira lingered most over the lilac bushes, as they were her favorite scent for the brief time that they are in bloom. Kira sat down on a stone bench near the lilac bushes. She closed her eyes and just listened to all of the sounds of nature happening around her.

"Did you know that a honey bee visits 50 to 100 flowers during a collection trip?" a gruff voice behind her said. Kira shrieked in surprise and nearly fell off the bench.

"Wh-what did you say?" she turned to see a man with dark hair and vibrant blue eyes. Where have I seen him before? Kira asked herself as she regained her composure.

"I am sorry to have frightened you, Miss--" he started.

"Lady Kira. And you are?" she responded.

He immediately knelt before her, bowed his head and drew his right arm across his chest. "Forgive me, my lady, I did not realize who you were when I disturbed you. My name is Castiel, head of security and friend to Princes Dean and Samuel. With your permission, I will take my leave of you," he said, rising to his feet.

Kira placed her hand on Castiel's arm to stop his retreat. "Please, Castiel. There's no need to leave. I was on a self-guided tour of the grounds. Besides, I enjoy learning something new every day. For instance, did you know that a honey bee can fly for up to six miles and as fast as 15 miles per hour?" Kira asked, a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth.

Castiel's face broke out into a huge grin and his blue eyes seemed to sparkle. "No, Lady Kira, I was not aware of that. Perhaps I could accompany you? I could act as your tour guide," he suggested, holding out his hand.

"That would be lovely, thank you," Kira smiled, took his hand and rose from the bench. He guided her hand around his arm and tucked it close to his side. "Shall we tour the marketplace next?" he asked.

"Excellent suggestion, Castiel. Please lead the way," Kira replied.

The pair wandered through the marketplace to see what treasures they could find. As far as they could see, there were all types of merchants within the castle walls. Some sold food and drink, some had bolts of vibrantly colored fabrics for sale, still others offered books and jewelry. Kira didn't have a lot of spending money with her, but enough to have some fun and maybe pick up a few trinkets for her house and pub staffs.

As they passed a man selling apples from his cart, Kira's stomach rumbled rather loudly. Castiel looked down at her midsection then back to her face and chuckled. "Well, that was interesting," he grinned.

"And most un-ladylike, I'm so sorry," she grimaced. "How much for the apple?" she asked the man. He quoted the price, and Kira dug out enough coins for two. "Pick one, Castiel," she said.

He chose his apple and Kira chose one. She smiled and gave her thanks to the vendor, who bowed as they left his cart. She turned to Castiel and said, "Okay, on three, we both take a bite of our apple," Kira commanded. "One....two....three!" she counted as they sank their teeth into the fruit.

It was the most amazing apple Kira had ever tasted, tart at first, then giving way to a sweet finish. She groaned in appreciation and looked over to Castiel, who was having a similar reaction. He nodded and smiled at Kira as he enjoyed his apple and they continued their marketplace tour.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dean and Samuel had just returned from a ride out into the country, enjoying the gorgeous weather. They guided their mounts through the marketplace on their way to the stables. All of a sudden, Dean stopped and Samuel pulled up to a stop beside him. "Look, Samuel. There she is, there's Lady Kira. And she's with Castiel?" he wondered.

The princes watched as Castiel and Lady Kira stopped at a milliner's cart. They took turns trying on different hats, each one more outrageous than the next. When Castiel put on a hat obviously made for a woman, Lady Kira burst into giggles at first, then full-on laughter. At that moment, Dean decided that if he could only hear one sound in the world for the rest of his life, it would be Kira's laughter.

Both princes observed the scene playing out in front of them. Kira seemed so at ease here, not so guarded as she seemed in the pub when the princes had first met her. That night, they heard she'd had to throw out a drunk patron. The man tried to take a few too many liberties with her and one of her staff. She'd also had to deal with two last-minute customers, but both men had to admit, she'd handled both situations with grace.

Samuel looked over at Dean, who had been so relaxed during their ride, now seemed to be genuinely annoyed. Is he....he's jealous! My brother is jealous of his best friend, who at this moment appears as if he's making a move on Lady Kira! Prince Samuel smiled to himself.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Dean dismount and quickly walk over to the milliner's cart. Sam caught the attention of one of the stable hands, Logan, and motioned for him to take the horses to the stables. He dismounted as well and handed the reins for the two horses over to Logan.

"Prince Dean! Prince Samuel!" exclaimed Castiel as his face beamed. "How was your ride today?" he asked.

"Good afternoon, Your Highnesses," Lady Kira greeted as she dipped her head and curtsied.

"Good afternoon, Lady Kira, Castiel," Dean said tightly. "How lovely to see you again. What brings you to our doorstep?" he asked.

"I am here to compete in the Princes' Challenge, Your Highness. I only arrived this afternoon, and have already been shown to a room. I was on a self-guided tour of the grounds, starting in the gardens. That's where Castiel found me and has since been graciously acting as my tour guide here in the marketplace," she explained.

With rapt attention, Castiel and Samuel watched the exchange between Dean and Lady Kira. Sam recalled what he and Dean had found out about her from Collins. After what he saw with Kira and Castiel in the marketplace, he was beginning to see why Dean was so captivated by the woman. Sam found himself wanting to know more about her.

"So, you've only seen the gardens and the marketplace so far?" Dean asked, to which she nodded. "I would be happy to step into the role of tour guide now, if you wish. It would be my honor," he finished.

"I deeply appreciate your kind offer, Your Highness. However, it was a long trip to get here, and I am feeling a bit tired at the moment. I had hoped to get some rest before joining everyone for dinner. Perhaps you and I could continue the tour another time, if I may request?" she asked.

Dean paused for a moment and his face broke into a genuine smile, one his brother hadn't seen grace his features in quite some time. "It would be my pleasure, Lady Kira," he said softly. "May I have the honor of escorting you back to the main hall of the castle?" Dean asked.

"The honor would be mine, Your Highness," she said as she curtsied. Dean offered her his arm, and when she gave him her hand, he kissed her knuckles before tucking it close to his side. A pink blush crossed her features, which made her all the more lovely, if that was even possible. As they made their way to the main hall, Castiel and Sam followed behind. This Princes' Challenge is certainly going to be interesting, Sam thought.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Where am I? Oh dear, this is definitely NOT the pub, this is someone's bedroom, the woman thought as she surveyed her surroundings. The last thing she remembered was that she was just about to pour a beer for someone, then she woke up here. Wherever "here" is, she thought.

She sat up in the bed, which turned out to be kind of a bad idea, as a wave of dizziness crashed over her. She groaned at the dull ache in her head and waited for the woozy feeling to pass. After it had, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and gingerly tested her ability to stand. Once she was satisfied that she wasn't going to fall over, she took a few tentative steps towards the door.

On the other side of the door, she heard male voices, three distinct ones, in fact. One sounded heartbroken, like he'd recently lost the love of his life. She felt a pang of sympathy for the man.

Another man was trying to comfort the first one, to assure him that whatever was going on, they could fix it. The third man had an authority to his voice, confident that a solution would be found to the first man's problem.

As she cracked the door open, all three voices simultaneously stopped and three heads swiveled in her direction. She quickly closed the door and ran back to sit on the bed, her knees drawn tightly up to her chest. The first man carefully opened the door to see who or what was on the other side. His eyes widened as he regarded the woman before him. "Kira?" he whispered.

Part 4 here!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tags: @janicho88 @akshi8278 @magssteenkamp @swiftlymoniquesblog @lyarr24 @miss-nerd95 @distefano123 @hobby27 @deanwanddamons @jessica-noel94 @wayward-mikaelson @jawritter @gabrielslittleangel @jensengirl83 @deangirl93 @ellewritesfix05 @supernatural-jackles

The Hunter’s Princess Series tags: @flamencodiva

[mrcurrygoestospain]

Camino De Santiago - Round 5

Spain travel log, 2021…

Day One:

September 20 - Depart Seattle for Madrid, by way of London. There were plenty of issues just getting to this point. In addition to the ongoing concerns over COVID-19, or perhaps because of them, I had some serious concerns about whether I could and whether I should do this trip at all. In the end, I think I simply realized that it was totally appropriate for me to go on this trip: I’ve been “responsible” and taken the full round of vaccinations, generally avoided social contacts with people and been diligent about the masks. So I made my reservations and thought everything was fine. About 2 weeks before takeoff, I got an email from Iberia that one of my flights had been changed. When I looked into it, I found that it was the connecting flight from London to Madrid and the schedule had been bumped up by about 6 hours taking me from having a 2 hour layover in Heathrow to needing to be on a plane for Madrid 4 hours before I actually landed in London and would be able to board it… It took attempts at phone calls over several days to get this corrected. Finally, I tried while I was at top work one morning around 5:00 am. I finally got through and a nice lady helped rebook my connecting flight. She found the only available flight on that day that would work; now I have a seven hour layover.

I prepped for my trip, checklists and routes planned. I arrived at the airport 3 hours early, just in case. Although I booked with Iberia, it was a British flight. So standing in line at the BA counter in SeaTac, I saw the sign: “All passengers must show proof of a negative COVID test.” What? I’d already checked multiple times; I only need proof of vaccination to get into Spain. I check the internet. Sure enough, if you’re on a layover in England, you need a negative test…A quick Google search helped me find a testing center at SeaTac airport, so I rushed down to baggage claim number nine to see if I could get a test in time. In all honesty, I really thought I wasn’t going to make it and I’d have to try to contact the airline again to find a way to reschedule my flight. I stood in the line for what seemed like forever, but finally had the privilege of paying $250 for a rapid COVID test. T- minus 2 hours 30 minutes to departure and they promised results in 1-1.5 hours. The test itself was relatively painless. After all of the horror stories I’d heard about the nasal swabs, I was a bit worried. But it didn’t hurt, it just tickled a little bit. I waited, and waited…it seemed like they would never have my results. While I waited, I heard stories from other travelers who had missed flights or rebooking because of these ridiculous COVID-related requirements. One young Canadian lady I spoke to shared that she’d spent over $1000 on COVID tests in the last month due to traveling. I guess my $250 wasn’t so much.

I finally got my negative test results and rushed back to the check in counter, filled out the required government forms and headed through security. The flight was delayed.

After a nine hour flight to London, I had seven or eight hours to kill in Heathrow Airport, Terminal 5, before boarding my flight to Madrid. I shopped, I ate, I listened to podcasts. I took a few naps and generally cursed British Airways for changing my original flight. Some Italian guy made quite a scene at the boarding gate for the flight to Madrid. The gate agent handled it quite well and passive-aggressively punished him for his demeanor.

I arrived in Madrid after an easy flight on Iberia, made my way to the metro and on to my Hostel. It was a nice enough place. After 28 hours of travel, I was ready for a shower and bed.

Day 2:

On my one day in Madrid, I walked from my hostel/hotel to the Museo Nacional del Prado. It’s Spain’s greatest art museum. This was my second time there and I spent a lot more of it. There are so many amazing pieces and, for someone who used to truly despise art, it was amazing. I highly recommend it. I haven’t been to a whole lot of art museums, but it is, by far, my favorite. I followed that with a walk through the Royal Botanical Gardens. I’m sure they’re great when all of the flowers are blooming, but in early fall, it’s just a lot of green. Either way, it was still peaceful. I visited another nearby park, walked around and viewed the statues, and then made my way back towards the hotel and passed it to go to the Cathedral opposite the royal palace. It’s a much more modern cathedral than the ones I’ll see on the Camino, but still impressive.

Day 3:

On the morning of the third day, I got up early and got packed. Took the metro to the train station and purchased a ticket to Leon. After two hours on the train, I took a 20 minute walk to the hotel and dropped off my bag, and then spent the next few hours wandering the city. I found a barber and got a haircut for 9 Euro, quite a bargain. Stopped at the “Taste of America” shop to get a bottle of hot sauce (Cholula, of course), and just meandered around the city until I could get checked in at the hotel. It was a pretty uneventful day, which is just what I needed. I was still very tired from all of the traveling and trying to swap schedules.

Day 4:

I got up late, around 8:00 AM and started walking the city. I stopped for a cafe con leche and met a Scottish couple who had been walking the Camino for the last few weeks. While we waited out the rain under cover, the shared with me some of their other walking adventures, including tales of walking through the Swiss Alps on the Via Francigena, a pilgrimage route to Rome. I may have to look into that for a future trip. I also shared with them my plans/considerations of taking a walk on the “Great Glen Way” in Scotland. The wife had already done this and highly recommended it, along with the West Highland Way. Both are approximately 5-day walks through some of the wild country of Scotland. When the rain let up, we parted ways and I went to tour the Cathedral, toured the Basilica of Saint Isidore and wandered around town, shopping and eating. Inside the Saint Isidore museum and basilica, i had the opportunity to see what is referred to as the “Sistine Chapel of Romanesque Art” as well as a gold and silver cup that some historians claim is the “holy grail.”

Day 5:

Didn’t sleep much…I forgot how much they like to party in Spain. It was LOUD all night long. Anyway, started my walk. Today was about 27 km and it rained through about 50% of the day. It was a mix of roads and dirt tracks. I only saw one other pilgrim, a Spaniard who doesn’t speak any English. I got ahead of him and had stopped for a rest at a picnics table on top of a mountain. He showed up a few minutes behind me and I tried to chat for a minute, but the language barrier…. I offered him half of my tangerine and then he took off again. I passed him up later. I had been slightly worried about where to stay for the night as the municipal albergue in this province/state are currently closed due to the ‘Rona, but when I got to town I found a pension with rooms available. The lovely lady named Susana showed me to a room and also worked tirelessly to make me a reservation for the following night. I hadn’t eaten much for the day, so I ordered big: hot dog and patatas oil bravas. Patatas bravas is a traditional dish in Spain which is made of fried potatoe cubes that are covered in a (typically) spicy tomato sauce. Potatoes Ali Oli are the same fried potatoes but with a garlic cream sauce instead of the spicy sauce. This one combined both sauces. It was nice. The inside of the restaurant/bar/cafe was very loud with a bunch of men playing a card game I’m not familiar with, so I went outside to have a beer. An older Spaniard, named Hilario, came out and started trying to talk to me. I explained that I am American and I don’t speak much Spanish, but he disagreed. So he went inside and got another man, a Hungarian who had been in Spain for the last 25 years, named Fernanco(?) who was extremely drunk, to come out and talk to me. He was so drunk, he introduced himself as “muy borracho” or “very drunk” and the proceeded to tell me that he used to be a muy Thai fighter and a coal miner and now he was just a fat drunk who collected money from the government because he got hit in the head too many times. At least I THINK that’s what they were saying…. I went to bed early to get a good rest and let my aching feet and hips recover before a long day tomorrow….from La Robla to Poladura, should be about 25km or so with some very intense climbs. We’ll see.

I’m currently on the Camino San Salvador, which is a route from Leon to Oviedo. They say “whoever goes to Santiago without visiting Oviedo, goes to the servant but not to the Lord.” This is because Oviedo is famous for having a specific relic. While most people are aware of the Shroud of Turin, which is the burial cloth of Jesus, many don’t know (including me, until recently) that traditional Jewish burial included placing a cloth over the face of the deceased immediately after death and until the body was prepared for burial. This cloth would then be removed and the full-body cloth would be applied. So anyway, this Cathedral boasts possession of the face covering that was placed over Jesus’ head, likely immediately after the spear pearled his side and before he was brought down off of the cross. Once I complete the Camino San Salvador (about 5 days, I hope), I will continue on to the Camino Primitivo, one of the many Camino’s de Santiago. So the Camino San Salvador goes to the relics of Christ and the Camino Santiago (Santiago = Saint James) goes to the resting place and remains of Saint James (the major), also known as “Santiago Matamoros” or “Saint James the Moor Slayer”, the patron saint of Spain.

[solediem]

reality re-written; a collection of thoughts and happenings ( @solivaganted​ )

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   20 years in the future, reaper estate

“holly,  he’s  like forty  years  old. stan  someone  your own  age.  “

holly  sighs  heavily as  she  clips a  photocard  of the  ‘like  forty-year old’  to  her display  board.  her friend’s  opinion  was not  asked  for, and  yet  any mention  or  visual reminder  of  holly’s affinity  for  d:fi acts  as  some sort  of  invitation for  ridicule.

“  yeah,  but i’ve  been  looking for  this  photocard for  months.  it’s rare  and  i’m a  collector.  so fuck  off.”

holly  is  very organized  with  her collection  of  photocards and  albums.  albums are  displayed  on shelves  in  chronological order,  with  the packaged  photocards  pinned nearby  to  indicate the  era.  she does  her  best to  get  two copies  of  each album  –  one to  keep  intact an  one  to display  for  her own  pleasure.  sadly, each  album  only has  so  many photocards.  much  of her  collecting  is online  interactions  with sellers  willing  to part  with  pieces of  their  own collection  so  that holly  may  complete her’s.  

the  friend  sucks her  teeth  in annoyance,  mumbling  something about  knocking  her collection  over  if she  keeps  up such  a  rude demeanor.    holly  ignores her  friend  and stares  at  the photocard  that’s  completed her  most  recent collection  venture  –  clé:  levanter.

“  there  you go,  oppa  … home  with  the rest  of  your members…”

hanuel  lee  is making  a  peace sign  at  her from  his  new place  among  the other  cards.  her heart  swells  a little  with  pride.

don’t  be  so difficult  to  find next  time,  okay??

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   20 years in the future, reaper estate

“hey,  you  finished levanter!”

holly  looks  up  from  her  book  with  a  smile  and  beams  over  at  her  collection. her  father  is  standing  in  front  of  it,  arms  crossed  over  his  chest  as  his  gaze  is  caught  on  the  latest addition,

“  yup!  it  came  today.”

“this  is  really incredible,  bean.  your  dedication  is  amazing.”

“call  it  what  it  is,  dad,  obsession.”

jayce    turns  on  his  heel  to  look  at  his  daughter.  the  bright,  beaming smile  she  had  faltering  to  one  a  bit  more  sad.  shame. there’s  nothing  to  feel  shame  over.  but  one  can  only  handle so  much  mocking before  the  words  start  to  hit.  she  can  say  ‘fuck  off’  to  her  friends  a  dozen  times, put  on  a  mask  of  how  proud  and  happy  she  is  when  they’re around.  but  the  moment  she’s  behind  her  doors,  the  pain  each  comment  made  opens  new  wounds  in  her  that  have  turned this  collecting  hobby  of  hers  from  the  joyful  affair it  was  to  something  much  more  bittersweet.

“  bean…”

holly’s  smile  is  gone,  “  it’s  like  …  “  she’s  quiet  a  moment, “  jia  collects cards  and  albums too.  but  everyone she  likes  is  her  age  and  having comebacks  every  month. but  because  i…because i  like  the  groups  and  the  singers that  i  associate with  you  and  mom  and  uncle  i…somehow i’m  the  strange one.  i’m  wrong— i  have  reaper cards  too.  and  x-gene.  you  guys  did  so  much  for  music, but  i’m  not  allowed  to  look  at  that  and  admire  that  …??  why  am  i  the  strange one  ??  is  it  because we’re  related  ??  do  i  have  to  be  some  obsessive  fifteen year  old  in  her  bedroom  two  cities  away  writing  fanfiction for  this  to  be  acceptable ??"

jayce  finds  a  spot  on  holly’s  bed,  and  within seconds,  she’s  up  from  her  armchair  and  crawling  into  her  father’s lap  like  she’s  a  child  again.  he  wraps  his  arms  around her  all  the  same.

“  reese  was  here  the  other  day  while  you  were  out  with  your  friends.  “  as  if  holly  needed to  be  reminded of  who  reese  kim  was,  her  father pointed  to  the  picture  of  d:fi’s  maknae hanging  a  couple spaces  to  the  left  of  hanuel,  “  i  was  showing  him  the  studio, and  when  we  passed  your  room,  he  asked  if  he  could  see  how  your  collection was  coming.  he  stood  there  staring  at  it,  and  he  was  so  quiet. i  thought  something was  wrong,  but  then  i  saw  his  eyes.  i  think  if  he’d  been  in  there  by  himself he  might’ve  cried  a  little bit,  because  he  looked  the  way  i  did  on  reaper’s  final  tour  –  touched,  honored, amazed.  like  he  couldn’t  fathom so  much  love.  he  pulled himself  together  and  smiled  at  me.  and  he  asked  me  to  thank  you  for  remembering him  and  d:fi  like  this.

holly  presses  her  lips  together tightly  and  sniffs loudly,  desperately  trying to  not  cry.  to  know  he  understood her  and  her  intentions  brought a  sense  of  relief.  she’s  not  obsessing. she’s  not  going  overboard.  she’s  immortalizing.  remembering. letting  the  people she  grew  up  with  that  influenced  her  so  much  know  that  if  no  one  else  in  the  world  loves  them,  she  will.  if  the  world  decides  they  aren’t  worth  remembering,  she  will  remember in  spite  of  it.

they  deserve  as  much.  her  family  deserves to  be  loved  beyond  their  music  and  influence.

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   20 years in the future, reaper estate

“happy  birthday!!”

holly’s  not  to  fond  of  surprise  parties. especially  not  when  they  consist of  some  thirty people  all  gathered in  the  main  house  with  party  poppers and  horns.  she’s  practically  on  the  floor  cowering  when  her  brain  registers  that  a  mix  of  friends and  family  had  gathered  to  celebrate  her  20th  birthday.

“  oh  my  god  …  “  she  can’t  even  register  happiness. her  heart  is  to  busy  trying  escape her  chest.

“  sorry,  sweetheart. “  her  mother puts  an  arm  around  her  and  guides her  into  the  crowd,  “  are  you  okay  ??”

holly  nods,  “  you  guys  scared  me,  my  gosh  …  there’s to  many  of  us  for  it  to  be  a  surprise.  this  is  a  heart  attack party,  fucking  hell…”

jaehwa  sighs  a  bit,  “  do  me  the  favor  of  keeping your  mouth  clean  at  least  when  you’re around  me,  hm?”

“  sorry.  “

their  conversation  ends  at  the  kitchen  island where  the  family has  gathered  to  watch  her  blow  out  the  candles of  a  very  tall  cake.  holly  tucks  a  few  strands  of  hair  behind her  ears  and,  with  a  deep  breath, manages  most  of  the  candles on  her  first  go.  when  she’s  taking her  second  attempt, the  estate’s  intercom system  sounds  to  let  the  house  know  someone’s  waiting to  be  let  in.  jaehwa takes  it  upon  herself  to  let  them  and  waits  a  little bit  by  the  door  until  the  guests arrive.

holly’s  made  it  through  the  candles  and  the  cake  is  being  cut  when  she  glances up  to  see  who  her  mom  is  greeting  at  the  door.  two  towering figures  stand  over  her  with  gift  bags  in  hand  and  toothy grins  on  their  face.  they’re bowing  politely  and  holding  out  the  bags  to  holly’s beaming  mother.

“  oh  she’ll be  so  excited!! these  are  from  all  of  d:fi?  that’s so  thoughtful.  “  holly  just  barely  hears.

she’s  straining  a  bit  to  identify  the  individuals,  but  when  they  turn  to  look  at  the  commotion that  is  her  party,  her  heart  drops  into  her  stomach,  and  she’s  caught between  a  happy  smile  and  an  embarrassed one.  reese  gives  her  a  small  wave  and  a  heart  with  two  fingers while  mouthing  what  she  assumes is  ‘happy  birthday’. from  where  she  stands,  she  gives  a  small  bow.

jaehwa  is  motioning for  them  to  come  in,  but  the  other  visitor is  shaking  his  head.  holly’s half  tempted  to  break  away  from  the  party  to  go  speak  to  them  directly,  but  cake  is  being  shoved in  front  of  her,  and  friends  are  pulling  at  her  for  pictures.  before she  gives  in  to  their  pestering,  she  catches  sight  of  the  other  visitor peering  around  reese  to  catch  his  own  glimpse  of  the  party.

gaze  meets,  and  holly  feels  her  heart  (that  finally made  it’s  way  back  to  her  chest) thud  against  her  ribcage.  hanuel smiles  and  holds  up  a  peace  sign  to  her  before  giving jaehwa  another  small  bow  and  directing  reese  out  the  door.  the  next  few  minutes  are  a  bit  of  a  blur,  as  all  her  brain  can  really  focus  on  is  hanuel  greeting her.

it  shouldn’t  be  so  odd  to  her.  this  isn’t  the  first  time  she’s  met  him,  and  it  surely  won’t  be  the  last.  but  something  about  that  moment felt  so  off. like  she  was  seeing  a  hanuel  she’d  never  met  before.  a  hanuel  that’s tugged  at  her  heartstrings  with  just  a  smile  and  she  can’t  seem  to  gather  her  senses  back  up.  the  world  had  shifted  beneath her  and  she  might’ve  fallen if  she  wasn’t being  gripped  onto  by  her  friends  still  pestering  her  for  pictures.

get  it  together, holls

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   2 years ago, ‘my pace’ video set

music  video  sets  aren’t  a  new  thing  for  holly, but  that  doesn’t squash  the  rush  of  excitement that  comes  from  being  on  one.  especially considering  the  set  she’s  found  herself  on.  the  man  that  would  be  her  father  is  near  the  tech  set  up  behind the  camera,  talking to  staff  about  this  and  that,  and  holly  doesn’t care.  she’s  scanning the  tunnel  and  her  mind  is  filling in  the  blanks. in  her  mind’s eyes  she  sees  d:fi  running forward  followed  by  a  crowd  of  extras on  skates  and  scooters.  tickets are  on  the  ground  and  cameras  are  panning  around to  catch  different angles.  

it  goes  dark  suddenly,  then  a  single very  bright  spotlight is  turned  on  and  nearly blinds  her.  scaffolding are  being  moved  into  place  and  holly  realizes that the  next  part  of  filming is  a  dance  sequence.  and  judging  by  the  pink  and  purple lights  that  have  joined  the  spotlight  –  she  knows  exactly  which. and  she’s  a  little  more  giddy  than  she’d  like  to  be  showing,  but  how  else  is  she  expected  to  react  to  seeing  the  foundation  of  d:fi’s  career coming  to  life  in  front  of  her?

“  hey  –  “

holly  whips  around to  see  her  father  in  front  of  her,  looking a  bit  uneased by  the  affair that  is  a  breach  of  time  and  space.  understandable.

“hi.  hey.  sorry. i’m…”  she  stops, realizing  she  has  nothing  to  apologize  for.  jayce  just  smiles  a  bit,  his  expression  reading something  she  doesn’t quite  understand.

“you’re  in  the  middle  of  the  shot.  come  over  here.”

he  leads  her  away from the  spotlight  and  back  to  where  he’d  just  been  sitting.  from  this  perspective, holly  can  see  the  set  coming  together to  shape  the  image  she  has  in  her  mind  of  this  music  video. the  only  thing  missing  are  the  boys  –  and  as  she  waits  with  jayce  behind the  camera,  they  eventually  find  their  way  to  the  center  of  the  spotlight, stretching  and  chatting.

they  look  so  young.

even  knowing  that  age  never  really  catches up  with  these  boys,  they  look  and  feel  much  younger  than  the  polished and  perfected  senior group  she  knows  them  to  be  from  home.  they  haven’t  moved  to  their  starting  positions yet,  and  so  the  members that  would  start  in  the  back  of  the  formation are  standing  upfront and  center.  

gazes  meet.  for  him,  it’s  the  first  time.  for  her,  it’s  one  of  many.  but  just  as  on  her  birthday,  the  small  smile  and  wave  that  hanuel gives  her  sets  her  entire world  off  kilter and  she  stumbles a  bit.  her  father’s  behind her  and  catches her.  

“i’m  fine.”  she  says.  just  confused.  very  confused.

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   2 years ago, ‘my pace’ video set  

“  …  hello, there.  i  was  told  to  bring  you  this…”

the  fact  that  holly  hasn’t fallen  over  with  the  way  everything  around her  seems  to  be  shifting is  a  miracle. hanuel  is  settled in  a  seat  near  the  back  when  she  approaches him  with  a  small  tub  of  water  bottles  on  ice.  the  dancer  beams  and  takes  one,  thanking her  profusely  and  starting  up  a  conversation.

it  literally  feels  as  though the  ground  is  shifting  underneath her,  and  to  avoid  looking like  she’s  going  to  collapse, she  sets  the  water  bottles down  and  takes  her  own  seat  while  they  talk.  she’s  a  theatre  major, and  he  thinks that’s  incredible.  and  ‘jayce-hyung’  is  really  nice  to  have  let  his  ‘niece’  stop  by  the  set.

he’s  talking  so  casually.  so  sweetly.  he  seems  fully  invested,  and  every  attempt she  makes  to  break  eye  contact  with  him  fails. the  longer  the  conversation  goes  on,  the  more  holly  leans  in,  not  even  realizing  that  she’s  inching closer  and  closer to  him.  he  doesn’t  seem  to  mind  it.  in  fact,  he’s  smiling  so  much  it  seems  his  face  might  get  stuck  that  way.  his  eyes  are  lit  up  and  he’s  reaching for  conversation  topics. he  wishes  he  could  see  her  perform, because  he  bets  she’s  really good.  because  someone related  to  jayce  must  be  talented,  right?

“  hyung  !!”

reality  crashes  back  down  on  them.  the  set  comes  back  into  view  and  they  acknowledge that  there’s  more  to  existence than  just  each  other.  reese  kim  –  a  lankier, more  akward  looking version  of  him  –  is  bounding  over  and  motioning for  hanuel  to  return  to  set.

he  asks  her  to  wait  around  so  they  can  talk.  she  agrees.  the  world  is still shifting.

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   one and a half years ago, practice room  

she  can’t  stop laughing.  and  maybe it’s  because  she’s prone  to  giggle fits,  but  every word  out  of hanuel’s  mouth  makes her  laugh  harder. she’s  convinced  he’s doing  it  on purpose  now  because he’s  got  a mischievous  grin  on his  lips.

“  stop  it!! “  

he’s  not  doing anything.  it’s  not his  fault  she can’t  stop  laughing. holly  grabs  at his  arm  and takes  a  series of  deep  breaths, trying  to  calm herself  out  of her  own  hysterics. when  she  meets his  gaze  again, the  wicked  smile is  gone,  replaced with  gentle  eyes. eyes  of  admiration.

holly  wants  to  smack  him.

don’t  look  at me  like  that. don’t  give  me those  eyes.

because  he  doesn’t know  who  he’s looking  at.  he doesn’t  know  that their  time  is limited.  he  doesn’t know  the  truth. but  he’s  still leaning  into  her, and  she’s  leaning in  as  well. he  doesn’t  know that  the  next time  he  sees her  like  this, it  will  be awkward  at  best, mortifying  at  worst. but  their  foreheads are  together,  and he’s  holding  her like  she’s  suddenly the  most  precious thing  in  the world.  she  feels tears  in  her eyes,  but  keeps them  back.

she  wants  to not  kiss  him. she  wants  his lips  to  not feel  as  soft as  they  do. she  doesn’t  want her  heart  to be  soaring,  and she  doesn’t  want to  be  pulling him  closer.  the world  is  shifting beneath  her  again, but  she  feels less  shaky  in his  arms.

i  want  to stay…

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   22 years in the future, backstage

you’re impossible. my impossible girl. but you have to live your dreams, yeah? don’t…get caught here by some stupid boy. you’ve got important things to do.

“positions !!”

the audience is filing in and holly’s mind is everywhere other than it needs to be.

you’re to talented to stay here. i love you. i’ll always love you.

“holls? why are you crying?”

two years! one would think that after two years she’d be alright again, but she’s not. the anguish has eaten at her since the day she left him behind and not a damn thing she does can assuage it.

all her photocards and albums are gone. her entire collection boxed and shoved into the corner of the garage, never to be seen again. every indication of her admiration wiped away as though it never happened. and she hasn’t seen d:fi either. not a single member, since the day she came home. it’s like they don’t exist. and she supposed rightfully so. she’d stay away too if she realized. the awful position she forced hanuel into, she can’t forgive herself. she had so much time while she was there to dissuade him, to not lead him on and yet

and yet

in her selfishness she let it happen. and now that time has put itself right again, surely he’s stuck with the realization of who he’d fallen for. surely he’s avoided every event and party she’d be at for that reason.

“ i’m okay. are we ready?”

she remembers the moments fondly. when she lets herself sink into them, it’s the most right she’s ever felt. but reality always brings her back and every part of her aches. she feels weak. heavy. like she’s wrong.

but the show must go on, as they say. holly’s dedication to her ‘dream’ is the only thing that’s kept her going. without something to focus on, the sadness is too much.  the stage is waiting for her. she’s come this far. she has to do it. she has to keep going now.

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   22 years in the future, holly song’s memorial service

there  are  some  horrors  you  can’t  unsee.

there  are  some  tragedies  that  can’t  be  reframed.

there  is  nothing  that  sits  worse  on  the  hearts  of  parents  than  to  put  their  child  into  the  ground.

jayce  and  jaehwa don’t  see  anything but  her  that  day.  as  many  people surround  them,  they  perceive  no  one.  kind  words  mean  nothing.  holly  song  is  in  a  casket at  the  front  of  the  room  and  the  building is  packed  to  capacity  with  those  come  to  mourn  her.

she  was  to  young.  and  this  is  all  wrong.

her  parents  are doing  everything  in  their  power  to  hold  themselves  together as  person  after  person  comes  into  the  room  to  pay  respects. but  after  nearly an  hour  of  this,  jaehwa is  on  the  floor  letting out  cries  of  anguish  that  only  a  mother  could  make.

hanuel  is  in  the  next  room.  arms  over  his  stomach  and  head  bowed. the  sound  of  jaehwa’s  wails, however,  bring  him  to  the  ground.  he  sits  on  his  knees, doing  everything  in  his  power  to  not  be  loud  as  his  own  sobs  take  over  his  body.  he  doesn’t have  the  right  to  grieve in  such  a  way.  not  when  he  could’ve  prevented this  entirely.  but  that  truth  makes  the  pain  worse. better  to  have  loved  and  lost  than  to  have  never  loved  at  all.  such  a  sham  of  a  statement. he’s  loved  and  lost.  twice.

I  should’ve  stopped her.

[  🙤 · ┈┈┈┈┈┈ ·  ] ⠀━━   2 month ago, two star lobby

as  wobbly  as  she  feels, it’s  the  most  stable  she’s  felt  in  her  life.  her  mind  is  a  mess.  A  mix  of  memories  and  shifting  realities that  come  together to  form  a  jumbled  mess  of  a  new  existence. council  this,  fate  that,  reality this,  aries  that.  

she  needs  hanuel.

the  only  thing  in  her  jumbled  mind  that’s  certain is  the  necessity that  is  hanuel lee  in  her  life  again. he’s  moved  on,  she  knows  that.  she  can’t  expect him  to  be  what  he  was  before, but  for  the  love  of  everything,  he’s  the  only thing  that  makes  sense  and  the  only one  that  can  hold  her  up  while  she  gets  used  to  this  new  reality.    holly leans  against  a  column  in  the  two  star  lobby  and  slides to  the  ground, finally  giving  in  to  the  fact  that  her  body  is  not  yet  ready  for  movement.

he  says  her  name.  he  can’t  believe what  he’s  seeing, and  he’s  in  tears  as  he  falls  next  to  her  and  wraps  her  in  his  arms.  he’s  sorry,  he’s  so  so  sorry.  he  should’ve  never  told  her  to  leave. he  should’ve  held  onto  her  and  made  her  stay  and  saved  her.  he’d  been  broken since  she  left,  the  wolf  in  him  was  dying. everything  in  him  was  dying.

holly  lets  herself fall  into  him.

“  nothing  was  right…”

he  agrees.  he’s  never  letting her  go  again. he’s  her’s  forever.   there’s  much  to  talk  about  and  understand. but  hanuel  can  see  the  state  she’s  in.  he  doesn’t  say  anything  but  kind  and  loving  words  to  her.  a  hand  gently  strokes her  head.  everything is  right.  he  knows  exactly who  he’s  looking at,  and  he  knows  that  time  isn’t  limited  for  them.  

the  world  isn’t  shifting  anymore.

[itsuki-minamy]

“SIX IDOLS” – “SPRINT DREAM” (Part 3)

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

* Part 01 / Part 02

An hour after the start of "Sprint Dream Live", the heat in the Tsubakimon Dome was visibly increasing. At the same time as the entrance began, a group of fans flowed into the audience seats like a flood, and they began to furnish the place with posters, posters and items with each of the recommended men drawn. At the same time, fans are excited about the upcoming festival and are looking at the stage with shining eyes.

To meet that expectation, a scene similar to a battlefield was unfolding in the backyard of the stage.

"The president has arrived at Shikaido Station! We will move on to Sequence B!"

"The target has been set at point B! We will wait until the president picks it up!"

In the temporary monitor room with the sign "Headquarters for the execution of the president's return plan", a part of the backyard, reports were constantly being raised.

The purpose of this headquarters is to fully support the return of Munakata. The staff involved are elite to make the "return plan" successful, from organizing and contacting various locations, managing the schedule, passing on traffic information and understanding Munakata's current position.

In one of the compounds in the panel, his current position is always displayed by the Munakata PDA tracking system. Awashima asks the staff while looking at them with a tight gaze.

"What is the progress of the plan?"

"It is 2 minutes and 15 seconds late, but it is within expectations. Currently, the Sequence C execution unit is moving. We will get to Point C on time."

"So…"

Awashima occupies a small area and looks at the monitor.

The plan is going well. At this rate, he can be in time for the opening ceremony, even if it's at the last minute. Unless something unexpected happens.

"Deputy Director Awashima."

Awashima looks around in a loose voice, rolling her shoulders.

Fushimi Saruhiko was as if he was leaning against the monitor room door.

He is the star idol of "Promotion Scepter 4", which is the center of the popular "Shoumutai" unit. Many fans were fascinated by the lonely atmosphere, and about 30% of the customers who packed the dome today are looking for him.

Awashima opens her mouth as she calmly looks at Fushimi.

"Fushimi. You should be in the final stages of doing a "Dream Corps."

"If the president is late, there won't be any 'Shoumutai', right?"

Awashima's beautiful eyebrows drew a dangerous angle.

“The plan is on the right track. You do not have to worry about that."

Fushimi laughs. It was an annoying laugh.

"Isn't there a countermeasure in case we run out of the star? Do you really think he can pull it off?"

"What do you mean?"

Fushimi casually pulled his hand out of his pocket and tossed what he was holding to Awashima. Awashima takes it deftly.

It is a recording medium in the form of a micro card.

"If you don't, I will. I made a new list of songs. If the president is late, I will."

Awashima's expression becomes more and more pronounced in a throwing tone. She squeezes the recording medium and she says quietly.

"Do you think I will receive this?"

"If you don't need it, you can throw it away. I can't bear to expose ourselves to that person's mistakes."

Awashima quickly waved her arm and threw the recording medium back.

"President…"

Fushimi deftly accepts that which came back like a bullet. Awashima, looking at the stagnant eyes behind the glasses as if shooting.

"I will not make any mistakes."

"Sorry."

Fushimi shrugged slightly and went back to his place. Looking back at Awashima over his neck.

"Well, tell me if you need it."

With that alone, Fushimi left the monitor room.

Awashima stared at the monitor room door for a while, staring into his eyes. It's like doing it is a protest against Fushimi.

It's not that she doesn’t understand what Fushimi is saying.

Believing is different from believing blindly. Fushimi's view that he assumes the worst and take countermeasures is entirely correct.

However, Awashima did not receive that song list. She refused to even see it and turned around.

She felt that receiving it would be a distrust of Munakata, who had confirmed that he would be on time.

"The president has reached point C! Collection complete!"

"We have started to move! The plan is going well!"

Awashima muttered unknowingly, listening to the reports that came in one after another.

"President, be careful."

Those words were like a prayer.

++++++++++

That day, Yuri Yamazaki (26) was vaguely in front of Shikaido station.

She works in a product store managed directly by "Promotion Scepter 4". It was supposed to be closed today due to the shift, but she got an urgent call from her boss about 5 minutes ago. She had no particular plan, and she was quick to get to this point because she was drawn to a pretty good vacation assignment.

Anyway, Yuri thinks.

It was a strange call. Being with the bicycle in front of the station instead of the store.

Apparently, they told her to lend the bike to someone, but they did not tell him who to lend it to and only told her the time of the meeting. It would be profitable to get a vacation allowance on this alone, but Yuri checks her cell phone while deeply thinking that she would complain if she was forced to do something else.

Seeing the displayed time, she sighed.

The "Sprint Dream Live Tour" will begin soon. Like most idol shop clerks, she is a fan of “Promotion Scepter 4.” She decided to work at an idol shop because she loved idols.

However, just because she is an employee doesn't mean there are benefits. Controls in that area are tight, and the clerk who secretly secured her own live ticket was sometimes ill. She must take the ticket herself, and if the lottery is lost, the schedule may disappear from the vacation she got, just like the current situation.

Two minutes have passed since the specified time.

"I wonder... if he's late, can I contact him?"

She doesn’t know, the murmur leaks out. After 5 minutes, she will contact the store manager. Thinking of that, she suddenly looked up.

And she doubts her eyes.

Someone was running from the street in front of the station, at tremendous speed. He easily overtook the next bike and came closer. Yuri instinctively tried to back away.

However, when she saw the man's face, she doubted her sanity.

"Ah, President?"

What she unwittingly said was the nickname of Reisi Munakata, the representative of "Promotion Scepter 4" and "Idol King". Naturally, it spread from the case where the idols under his command called him "President."

Faced with the stiff lily, Munakata strode over to a halt. He exhales a little and smiles at Yuri.

"Excuse me, are you a store clerk?"

"Eh, yes!"

Her voice shook. Feel the blood of her entire body concentrate on her face. The reason is that Yuri Yamazaki's favorite idol is Reisi Munakata.

Half in panic, she yells out the questions that come to mind.

"But why are you here?! What happened to the 'Sprint Dream Live Tour'?"

"I'm having a little problem and I've taken a different route than normal. Don't worry, I'll be in time for the opening."

She felt as if the blood that had risen through her head was coming down this time.

In other words, it is an emergency. Yuri was a fan and she knew how confusing it would be to be late for the opening ceremony. Perplexity, pain, disappointment. Just imagining being there, the pain felt like its own.

Yuri rushes up and says.

"Is there anything I can do?!"

“Lend me the bicycle. It's enough."

Yuri blushed again. If she thinks about it again, it was probably all part of the plan coming here. It is not a feat for the Munakata representative to give instructions to the directly administered office.

"Please..."

"Thank you."

Munakata straddled the bike without showing any pretense of noticing Yuri's tension. Somehow, it was an unattainable sight. The King of Idols, who can only be seen on TV or on stage, sits astride her bike.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going."

"Oh, yeah!"

Yuri instinctively stopped Munakata who was trying to get out.

Munakata looks at Yuri with his foot on the pedal. She held her breath with a mysterious look.

("Please sign.")

She had to desperately suppress that desire that came to her mind. Hasn’t she just found out it's an emergency? There is no second chance. And yet, unable to say such a silly request, that embarrassment forced Yuri's awkward smile and false words.

"Please do your best. I support you!"

Munakata, however, was looking at Yuri's face with calm eyes that looked through all her smile and strength. Munakata laughed lightly at Yuri, who suddenly became flustered and reached into her pocket.

"What should I write?"

"Eh?"

"I have a pen, but I don't really have colored paper. It's not in good taste with a notepad."

Yuri blinked many times. The feeling of regret, even the time she was wandering and wondering why him could see through her desires made her stiff.

Yuri handed him the PDA she was holding in her outstretched hand to Munakata. With her voice asking "Is it okay here?", she was fascinated by the magically moving pen. She picked up the PDA again, looking at the Munakata signature written there, and it was like a soliloquy.

"Why...?"

"I am an idol."

Munakata's response, as well as their relationship, was open and frozen.

"Idols live up to the expectations of their fans. My job is to capture your expectations."

"......"

"Good luck then. Thank you for your continued support."

With a courteous greeting, Munakata pedaled off the road in no time.

Yuri holds her PDA to her chest while watching him back. She murmured in an emotional voice, promising to turn it into a relic, and she was about to buy a new one.

"President, I will follow you for the rest of my life!"

To be continue…

[bechloeislegit]

2020 BeChloe Valentine’s

JEALOUS OF JESSE

Prompt from FanFiction User DarkS0u1s: I know there's usually a lot of either Chloe or Beca getting jealous but can you do a high school AU of Chloe getting jealous when she sees her best friend (Beca) with Jesse?

"So, I'll pick you up at six?" Chicago said as he stared into Chloe's eyes.

"Mm-hmm," Chloe said, smiling.

"I'll see you later then," Chicago said before kissing Chloe's cheek and walking off.

Chloe waited until he was out of sight before giving a little squeal. She sighed as she continued to look off in the direction Chicago had walked.

"Hey, Chloe," Beca said, walking up to the redhead. "Can you be ready by six so we can grab some pizza or something before the show."

"What?" Chloe asked, coming out of her Chicago-induced haze.

"Will you be ready by six so we can get pizza first?"

"Um, six? Pizza? What?"

"Oh, my God," Beca said, rolling her eyes. "The show tonight. The one we've had tickets to for two months. The tickets you asked me to get you for your birthday, and then begged me to go with you. Ring a bell?"

"Oh, shoot, Beca," Chloe said. "I forgot that was tonight."

"And now you remember," Beca said with a small laugh. "So, let's try this again. Will you be ready by six so we can get pizza or something else if you want, before the show?"

"I'm sorry, Beca," Chloe said. "I can't go."

"What? Why the Hell not?" Beca asked, no longer laughing. "You were the one who wanted the tickets and begged me to go with you when I gave them to you. And you've been talking about it for weeks."

"Chicago's taking me out tonight," Chloe said.

"Chicago?" Beca questioned. "You mean, Chicago Walp? Chloe, we've been planning this for two months, and you're ditching me because some airhead football jock started sniffing around you and asked you out? Seriously?"

"Come on, Beca," Chloe said. "He's the hottest guy in school, and he asked me out. We can go to another show some other time."

"Why can't you do the date tomorrow night?" Beca asked. "Or next week? I'm sure you can wait twenty-four hours to shove your tongue down his throat."

"Don't be crude, Beca," Choe scoffed angrily. "We can go to a concert any time."

"Tonight is the final show of the reunion tour," Beca said just as angry. "There won't be any other shows."

"Beca," Chloe whined, trying another tactic. "You're my best friend. Please understand and let me have this. Okay?"

Beca stared at Chloe and shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Chloe. Those tickets only cost me three month's salary working at the record store. Good to know you don't care about wasting my money because of some guy. Enjoy your date."

Beca turned and stormed off before Chloe could say anything.

"I'll see you on Sunday, right?" Chloe called out, hoping Beca could hear her.

Beca didn't slow down or turn around. Chloe stood watching Beca's back as she got further away.

"Beca?" Chloe called out louder, but Beca continued walking until she turned the corner out of sight.

Chloe's shoulders slumped, and she let out a sigh. She gathered her things and started walking in the same direction Beca had gone. Chloe chewed her bottom lip as she walked.

"Beca's my best friend and understands why I can't go with her to the concert, right?" Chloe mumbled to herself as she walked to her car. "I mean, Chicago is the hottest, most popular guy in our class. And she knows I think he's cute." Chloe stopped walking and thought, "But, she's my best friend, and I should have remembered that we had plans to go to the concert, especially since she gave me the tickets because I wanted them. God, I'm a horrible friend."

Chloe looked around for Beca's car, but it wasn't in the parking lot. She opened her car door and slid behind the wheel as her thoughts continued. "I messed up, but it's too late to do anything about it tonight. I'll apologize to Beca tomorrow and promise to make it up to her."

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

It was almost six when Chloe walked down the stairs; the doorbell rang just as she reached the bottom. Chloe answered her door, expecting to see Chicago.

"Beca?" Chloe said, smiling when she saw her. Her smile fell when she noticed Jesse Swanson standing next to Beca. "What's going on?"

"I came to see if you and your date were using the concert tickets," Beca said, looking down at the ground. "Jesse and I would like to have them if you're not."

"We're not using them," Chloe said. "I'll, uh, get them for you. Come on in."

"We'll wait here," Beca said, crossing her arms and making no move to enter the house.

"Um, okay," Chloe said and went to get the tickets from her room.

Chloe had the tickets in her hands and stood looking down at them. She felt the sting of tears in her eyes when she remembered how excited she had been when Beca gave them to her.

Chloe wiped her eyes. Beca gave her the tickets, and she should be the one going to the concert with Beca, not Jesse Swanson. Chloe hurried downstairs. Maybe she can fix this and still go to the concert with Beca.

"Beca, I-" Chloe stopped when she saw Chicago standing at the door, looking out at Beca and Jesse just standing there. "Chicago, I didn't know you were here."

"I just got here," Chicago said. "What are they doing here? I thought it was going to be just you and me."

"Don't worry about it, hotshot," Beca said. "We just came to get some tickets of mine that Chloe has." Beca turned to Chloe. "May I have the tickets so we can go?"

Chloe swallowed and looked at Beca. Yeah, she messed up big time; Beca was angrier than Chloe had ever seen her. And what the Hell was Beca doing with Jesse Swanson of all people? And why the Hell does she care so much?

"Tickets, please," Beca said, holding out her hand and pulling Chloe out of her musings.

"Sorry," Chloe said, handing the tickets to Beca. "Here you go. Um, enjoy the show."

Beca took the tickets without saying another word. Jesse put his arm around Beca's shoulders and pulled her to him as they walked off.

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

It was still early when Chloe got home from her date. She might have had a nice time if she hadn't been thinking about Beca and Jesse being together the whole night. Chloe didn't know how to feel about that. Beca was her best friend and never said anything to her about liking him.

Chloe checked the time. She knew the concert probably wasn't over yet, so Beca wouldn't be home for her to call. Chloe wondered if Beca was having a good time with Jesse.

Chloe got ready for bed and sent Beca a text asking her to call when she woke up the next morning. Chloe fell asleep with thoughts of Beca invading her dreams.

Chloe woke on Saturday and checked her phone; Beca had not texted or called Chloe.

"She must still be asleep," Chloe mumbled as she got up and went to take a shower.

The day moved slowly for Chloe, and she was getting worried. She had been calling Beca throughout the day, and also sent several apologetic texts asking if they could talk. Beca didn't respond to any of them. Chloe thought about going over to Beca's house but didn't want to make Beca angrier if she wasn't ready to talk to Chloe. Chloe felt alone. The two best friends have never gone this long without any communication between them.

That night, Chloe got ready for bed and decided to send Beca one last text before she went to sleep.

To Beca: Hey, I know you're still mad, but can we talk about what happened on Friday at breakfast tomorrow? Please?

Chloe set her phone on the nightstand and turned off the lamp. She was asleep in minutes.

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

Sunday morning, Chloe was up early after a restless night and couldn't get back to sleep. She decided to work on homework to keep her mind occupied until it was time to leave to meet Beca. It was almost nine when Chloe came running down the stairs.

"I'm going to meet, Beca," Chloe called out to her mother as she ran out the door.

Chloe jumped in her car and drove the short distance to the diner she and Beca spent their Sunday mornings in. She parked her car and rushed in, anxious to see her best friend, and apologize.

Chloe stopped inside the door and looked around, but Beca wasn't there yet.

"Hey, Chloe," Jessica called out. "Beca's not here yet. Sit wherever you want."

"Thanks, Jessica," Chloe said and made her way to an empty booth.

Chloe sat and looked out the window, checking her phone for the first time that morning. She didn't see any messages from Beca but wasn't worried; Sundays were their day, no matter what. She was confident that she and Beca would talk, and things would go back to the way they were.

"What can I get you?" Jessica asked.

"Um, just coffee for now," Chloe said. "I'll wait for Beca to get here before I order."

"You got it," Jessica said and left the table.

Chloe sat, smiling, and checking outside every so often. Jessica brought Chloe's coffee.

"Thanks," Chloe said.

Chloe fixed her coffee and checked her phone for the time and to see if Beca had texted her; still nothing.

After waiting for thirty minutes, Chloe texted Beca.

To Beca: Hey, I'm at the diner. Where are you? I really need to talk to you.

Chloe pressed send and set her phone on the table. She picked it back up as soon as she heard the notification.

To Chloe: Not coming. Jesse needed me.

"That's it?" Chloe mumbled. "She ditched me because Jesse needed her?"

Chloe sighed as tears came to her eyes. She realizes now how Beca must have felt on Friday night.

"God, I'm an idiot," Chloe mumbled.

"Ready to order yet?" Jessica asked, startling Chloe. "Sorry. I was wondering if you wanted to order, or are you still waiting for Beca?"

"Oh, I, uh, I forgot she had something else going on this morning," Chloe said, clearing her throat to rid it of the lump that had formed when she read Beca's response to her text. "I'll just take the check."

"Are you okay?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah," Chloe said. "I, uh, just really needed to talk to Beca about something. I guess it will have to wait."

Chloe looked down at the table, and Jessica frowned. She started to say something but changed her mind.

"Coffee's on me," Jessica said with a friendly smile.

"Um, thanks," Chloe said, looking up at Jessica. "I'll see you at school tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow," Jessica said.

Chloe grabbed her phone and left the diner and sat in her car. She wiped away a tear and started the car, pausing when her phone pinged with a new text notification. Chloe smiled and looked at her phone, thinking Beca had texted her again to say she was on her way. Her smile dropped when she saw the text was from Chicago.

To Chloe: Interested in having lunch with me today?

"Not really," Chloe mumbled.

She started to decline but decided that maybe her day wouldn't be totally ruined if she accepted. It was either that or going home to have a pity party for herself.

To Chicago: Sure. I'm out now and can meet you somewhere.

Chicago's response was almost immediate.

To Chloe: Great. Meet me at TGIFriday's at the mall at Noon? Maybe we can catch a movie after.

To Chicago: Okay. See you soon.

Chloe set her phone in the cup holder and drove toward the mall. A little shopping therapy before she met Chicago couldn't hurt.

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

After getting home from her date, Chloe was sitting on her bed, thinking about Beca. She had been with Chicago but couldn't stop thinking about Beca. All Chicago wanted to talk about was football and his weight training. Chloe was bored by the time they decided to see a movie.

Chloe sat through the movie with thoughts of Beca continuing to run through her head. When it was finally over, Chicago walked Chloe to her car. She declined his request for another date. She told him that he was a nice guy, but she couldn't see them being anything more than friends. Chicago wasn't upset, but he did ask Chloe if she wanted to talk about what had been bothering her all afternoon.

"Guess he's not as much of an airhead as Beca thinks he is," Chloe thought. "God, why can't I stop thinking about her?"

"You could have told me you had other plans on Friday," Chicago said after Chloe told him about canceling on Beca to accept a date with him.

He really was a decent guy, and any girl would be lucky to have him. Only, she wasn't that girl.

Later, Chloe got ready for bed and checked her phone. Beca still hadn't called or texted since sending the message about helping Jesse that morning.

Chloe wiped a tear from her cheek and picked up her phone. She opened her text thread with Beca and stared down with her thumbs, ready to type another apology to Beca. Well, she wanted to text Beca, but, at this point, she didn't know what to say to her.

After a few minutes, she put her phone charger in and tossed the phone on to her nightstand before settling down to go to sleep.

"I'll make Beca talk to me tomorrow," Chloe thought as she drifted off to sleep.

Chloe groaned the next morning when her alarm went off. She drew an arm from under the covers and fumbled around until she found her phone and shut off the alarm.

Chloe pulled the covers back up to her chin and closed her eyes. They immediately flew open as she realized that she needed to get dressed and to school so she could talk to Beca. This past weekend had been the first time since they became best friends that they hadn't talked at all. And Chloe was miserable.

Chloe made her way to school and hung out around Beca's locker, knowing Beca would have to come by soon to get her books for their first class.

"Hey, Chloe," Stacie said, opening her locker that was next to Beca's.

"Hey, Stacie," Chloe said. "Did you have a good weekend?"

"Not bad," Stacie said, pulling some books out of her locker. "I spent it with my grandparents. How about you?"

Stacie noticed that Chloe wasn't paying attention to her and furrowed her brow. She followed Chloe's sightline and saw that Chloe was staring at Beca. Or rather staring at who was walking beside Beca with his arm flung over Beca's shoulders.

"Are they a thing now?" Stacie asked.

"What?" Chloe said, pulling her gaze away from Beca.

"Are Beca and Jesse a thing now?" Stacie asked. "I know he has been following her around like a puppy, but she always said they were just friends."

"I, uh, I don't know," Chloe stammered. "I have to go."

Chloe hurried away in the opposite direction from Beca. She had a sudden tightness in her chest, and she didn't know why.

A sudden thought struck Chloe when she rounded the corner. "Could this feeling be jealousy? Is that what I'm feeling?" She leaned her back against the wall and let out a breath.

Stacie stared after Chloe and jumped slightly when Beca spoke.

"Hey, Stacie," Beca said, looking around. "Jesse has something he wanted to ask you."

"Oh," Stacie said. "What is it, Jesse?"

While Stacie and Jesse talked, Beca looked up and down the hall. She had hoped that Chloe would be at her locker so they could talk. Beca frowned when there was no sign of her redheaded best friend.

"Guess she'll be waiting around Chicago's locker from now on," Beca thought to herself and sighed.

"So, do you think she'll go for it?" Jesse asked.

"I'll talk to her and let you know," Stacie said with a smile.

"I appreciate it," Jesse said, grinning. "But, please don't say anything to anybody else."

"I won't," Stacie said.

"Thanks," Jesse said. "I have to get to class. See you at lunch, Beca."

"See ya," Beca said.

"Is there trouble in best friend's paradise?" Stacie asked after Jesse walked away.

"What?" Beca asked. "Jesse and I are fine."

"I wasn't talking about Jesse," Stacie said. "Although you did look a little more friendly this morning. I was talking about Chloe. She didn't seem to be too happy to see Jesse walking with his arm around you."

"Chloe was here?" Beca asked, looking around again. "Where'd she go?"

"To class, I guess," Stacie said, closing her locker as the bell rang. "There's the bell. See you later, Beca."

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

Beca hurried to class and frowned when she saw Chicago sitting in the back of the class next to Chloe. He had his arm around Chloe's shoulders, and Chloe was leaning into him; she looked upset. Chicago leaned down to whisper something in Chloe's ear. Chloe nodded and looked up in time to see Beca shaking her head and looking away.

Beca was still angry at Chloe for ditching her for a date with Chicago. Although, if she was honest, she knew it was coming. Chloe hasn't had a boyfriend in over two years and hasn't really dated anyone in that time either. Beca knew the day would come when Chloe would find someone she'd want to spend her time with and leave Beca behind; she just wishes it didn't hurt so much.

Beca thought about going to Chloe and apologizing, but something about seeing her and Chicago looking cozy changed her mind. Instead, for the first time ever, Beca sat in the front row so she wouldn't have to look at Chloe and Chicago together.

"What the Hell?" Chloe thought as she watched Beca take her seat. "Beca never sits in the front row. I can't believe how mad she is at me. God, I need to fix this."

Chloe found herself staring at the back of Beca's head, silently begging Beca to look at her. Beca never turned around.

Chloe jumped up as soon as the bell rang so she could catch Beca. Beca was too quick and was out the door before Chloe could reach her.

"Dammit," Chloe muttered as she made her way to her next class.

It didn't help Chloe's mood when she walked into her next class to find Jesse Swanson talking with a group of guys.

"I'm telling you," Jesse bragged. "She'll be mine by Friday. As a matter of fact, she'll be my date to the Valentine's Day dance. I've already laid the groundwork."

"Nothing like trying to get a date last minute on the most romantic day of the year," Bumper Allen said, laughing. "If she's going with you, she must be desperate."

The guys laughed at Jesse as his cheeks reddened. Chloe didn't stick around to hear what he had to say. She walked to the other side of the room and sat as far away from them as possible.

Chloe spent most of the class looking at Jesse, wondering what Beca saw in him. He was cute in a goofy kind of way. And maybe he had a certain boyish charm about him. And she guesses he's funny sometimes.

Chloe thought about it a bit and decided he was kind of dull, constantly talking about movie scores. I mean, who goes to the movies just to listen to the background music? Plus, Beca doesn't like movies. Chloe felt a little bit superior to Jesse because Chloe was the only one who could get Beca to sit through an entire movie without falling asleep.

"Yeah, I would be so much better for her than he is," Chloe thought.

Chloe sat up suddenly. "Oh, my God! I am jealous of Jesse."

Chloe thought for a moment and looked at Jesse. "Beca has other friends. So, why am I so jealous of her being friends with Jesse?"

A small gasp escaped Chloe's lips as she slumped down in her seat. "I like Beca, and I'm jealous because I want to be more than a friend to Beca."

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

When the class ended, Chloe hurried out the door when she saw Stacie in the hall.

"Stacie!" Chloe called, getting the taller girl's attention.

"What's up?" Stacie said when Chloe reached her.

"Can you skip next period?" Chloe asked.

"I have a free period and I'm going to the library to work on a paper," Stacie said. "Why?"

"I need to talk to someone," Chloe said. "And I can't wait until after school. I'd ask Brey, but I know she won't ditch class for any reason."

"That is very true," Stacie said with a laugh. "Come to the library with me, and we can talk."

"Thanks," Chloe said and walked with Stacie to the library.

Chloe sat anxiously waiting while Stacie found the books she needed. Her leg was bouncing up and down, and she kept running a hand through her hair.

"Are you okay?" Stacie asked, having seen how fidgety Chloe was.

"I'm in love with Beca," Chloe blurted out, as Stacie sat down.

Stacie froze. She looked at Chloe without blinking for a moment. "Wow. That was quite unexpected."

"I'm sorry," Chloe said.

"No, no," Stacie said. "It's okay. Is that why you looked like you wanted to kill Jesse Swanson this morning when you saw them together?"

"I guess," Chloe said. "I felt something, but I didn't know what it was. Then it hit me that I was jealous that he was with her and I wasn't. And I don't mean as friends."

"Tell me how you came to this revelation that you're in love with Beca," Stacie said.

"It all started on Friday," Chloe said. "Chicago Walp asked me out for that night and I was so excited I immediately said yes. Then Beca came up to ask about the concert we were supposed to go to that night. She had bought the tickets for me for my birthday because she knew how much I wanted to go. I, um, told her I couldn't go because Chicago asked me out."

"That was kind of a dick move on your part," Stacie said.

"I know," Chloe said, looking guilty. "But she's one of my best friends, and I thought she'd understand. I mean, the most popular guy in school asked me out. I couldn't say no."

"Yes, you could have," Stacie said.

Chloe looked down at the table and didn't say anything. Stacie let out a sigh.

"So, I gather that Beca didn't take you blowing her off well," Stacie said.

"No, she didn't," Chloe said. "I had an okay time on my date, but all I could think about was Beca. Telling her how it went, hearing her snarky comments about the cliche goodnight kiss. But she wasn't returning my texts or calls. I tried all day Saturday and got nothing."

"Why didn't you go see her?" Stacie asked.

"I thought about it, but I knew she was still mad and didn't want to get into an argument with her and make things worse," Chloe said. "I thought by our usual Sunday breakfast she'd be calmer and we could talk. Only, she didn't show up. She had finally texted, but it was just to say Jesse asked for her help with something. That was the only time she responded to me."

Chloe quickly wiped a tear from her cheek. Stacie waited for Chloe to continue.

"I was going to text her last night, but knew she wouldn't respond," Chloe said "So, I decided to make her talk to me today. That's why I was hanging around her locker this morning."

"And then you saw her with Jesse," Stacie finished for her.

"Yeah," Chloe said. "She never said anything about liking him, and suddenly she's going to the concert with him, and he's walking around with his arm around her shoulders. It was during the last period that I realized I wanted that to be me."

Tears fell down Chloe's face, and she put her head in her hands.

"Here," Stacie said, handing Chloe some tissues.

"Thanks," Chloe said, wiping her eyes with the tissues.

"I don't think Jesse's into Beca like that," Stacie said.

"Yes, he is," Chloe said. "I heard him talking about Beca to his guy friends. He said she'd be his by the Valentine's dance on Friday."

"Okay, let me put it this way," Stacie said. "Beca is not into Jesse like that."

"They sure act like they're into each other," Chloe said.

"Why are you so convinced that they are into each other?" Stacie asked. "Has Beca ever said anything to you about liking Jesse as something other than a friend?"

"Well, no," Chloe said. "But, she took him to the concert on Friday."

"Because you blew her off," Stacie said.

"She let him put his arm around her while they were walking together," Chloe said. "She doesn't let anyone get that close to her."

"She lets you hug her," Stacie countered. "She lets you do a lot of things that she won't let anyone else do."

Chloe chewed her bottom lip, thinking about what Stacie was telling her.

"I need to talk to Beca," Chloe said. "I just don't know how to start that conversation."

"Just tell her you like her and ask her to the Valentine's dance," Stacie said.

"You don't think she'd be weirded out?" Chloe asked.

"No, I don't," Stacie said. "I think you'll be surprised by her reaction."

"What do you mean?" Chloe asked.

"You've been best friends with her for over three years," Stacie said. "How many dates has she told you about? How many crushes has she had in that time?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Chloe asked, confused by Stacie's questions.

"The answer is zero because she likes you," Stacie responded. "Do you know she talks about you a lot when you're not around? I think it's because she hasn't realized what she feels for you, or maybe she has and didn't want to ruin your friendship. Whatever her reasons may or may not be, she told me she was really looking forward to going to the concert with you. And, when you chose to go out with Chicago instead, she had to have been really hurt."

"What am I going to do?" Chloe said.

"I think you should give Beca a shot," Stacie said. "Beca and I have a big test in Mr. Smith's class on Thursday, so she's coming over to study after school today. You should come by, and you and Beca can talk and clear the air."

"I'll be there," Chloe said. "I just hope she'll talk to me."

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

Chloe made her way to Stacie's after school. She was so nervous that she sat on the porch, trying to decide if she should knock.

"Chloe?" a voice said. "What are you doing sitting out here?"

Chloe looked up to see Jesse Swanson standing in front of her.

"Great," she muttered. She gave Jesse a small smile. "Hey, Jesse. What are you doing here?"

"Beca texted me and told me to come over," Jesse said as she sat next to Chloe on the step.

"Oh, so I guess you two are a thing now," Chloe said.

"What?" Jesse said perplexed. "Beca and I aren't a thing. I like someone, and she's helping me get up the courage to ask her out."

"Really?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah," Jesse said. "Besides, even if I did like Beca like that, she's into someone else."

"She is?" Chloe said, a knot forming in her stomach.

"Yep," Jesse said. "And now I'm going to do something that Beca will probably kill me for, but I think you should know."

"I should know what?"

"Beca was hurt when you canceled your plans with her on Friday," Jesse said. "She wanted to tell you something and thought the concert would be a good time to do it."

"What? What did she want to tell me?"

"Beca likes you," Jesse said. "It took some prodding, but she admitted it to me."

"She likes me?" Chloe asked.

Jesse nodded his head. "Yep."

Chloe sat there, somewhat stunned. This was not what she was expecting Jesse to tell her.

Jesse's phone pinged, and he laughed when he saw who it was from. "I'd better get inside. Beca's going to convince Aubrey not to go out with me if I don't get my ass inside."

"Wait! You like Aubrey?" Chloe asked.

"Oh, um, yeah," Jesse said.

Chloe stood and smiled. "I'll go in with you. I need to talk to Beca."

Jesse smiled and knocked on the door. Mrs. Conrad answered and told them to head up to Stacie's room. Jesse tapped lightly on Stacie's door.

"Come in," Stacie called out.

Jesse held the door for Chloe, and she entered first. Stacie was on her bed with her books and laptop; Beca was sitting on the floor with her back against the bed.

"Chloe?" Beca said, looking up at the redhead. "What are you doing here?"

"I, um, wanted to talk to you," Chloe said. "And Stacie said you'd be here."

"Come on, Jesse," Stacie said, standing. "Help me get some snacks."

"Sure," Jesse said, and the two left the room.

Chloe looked at Beca, and Beca looked at Chloe.

"So, you wanted to talk," Beca said, looking down at her hands.

"Yeah," Chloe said, unsure of how to proceed. After an awkward moment, Chloe went and sat next to Beca on the floor.

Beca cleared her throat and asked, "May I start?"

Chloe nodded and waved her hand for Beca to continue.

"I want to apologize," Beca said, letting out a sigh. "I was, um, hurt when you told me you forgot about the concert and couldn't go. I, uh, reacted badly. And, um, yeah."

"You shouldn't be apologizing to me," Chloe said. "I should be apologizing to you and begging for your forgiveness. I was caught up in being asked out by the popular guy, and I became that girl."

"You mean the girl we make fun of for letting a guy turn her into a someone she's not?"

"I wasn't that bad, was I?"

"You kinda were," Beca said smiling. "I'm sorry I didn't talk to you and tell how I was feeling. I, um, had something I wanted to tell you at the concert, but-"

"But what?" Chloe asked.

"It's not important now," Beca said, turning away from Chloe and staring down at her hands.

Chloe took Beca's hand. "If it's important to you, it's important to me. You can tell me."

Beca removed her hand from Chloe's and moved a few inches away from her. "So, how, uh, how was the date with Mr. Popularity?"

Chloe sighed and tried to hide the hurt she felt when Beca moved away from her.

"Not nearly as fun as it would have been if I had gone to the concert with you," Chloe said. "I messed up, Beca. I realized when you asked for the tickets that I didn't want to go out with Chicago; I wanted to go with you. But, when I came back downstairs to see I could convince Jesse to let me go to the concert with you, Chicago was there, and you looked even madder than before."

"I was mad," Beca said. "And I tried to let it go, but I couldn't. Especially when I saw you and Chicago together in class today. You two looked cozy, and I was-"

"Jealous?" Chloe asked, causing Beca to look at Chloe. "I know that feeling. I was jealous when I saw you and Jesse walking together this morning. He had his arm around your shoulders and I-"

Chloe stopped and looked down at her hands.

"You what?" Beca asked, taking Chloe's hand in hers.

"I wanted it to be my arm around you," Chloe whispered.

"You did?" Beca asked.

Chloe nodded and looked up at Beca. She saw Beca smiling and smiled at Beca.

"I think I've been falling for you for a long time," Chloe said. "But, I didn't realize what it was I was feeling. You're my best friend, and I didn't want to mess that up."

"I feel the same way," Beca said. "I've liked you for almost as long as I've known you, but you never showed any interest in me other than friendship. And, don't get me wrong, I love having you as a friend, but I did want it to be something more."

"We're a couple of idiots," Chloe said, laughing.

"We are," Beca said.

They sat side by side, holding hands. Chloe broke the silence.

"So, what does this mean for us?"

"I think it means whatever we want it to mean," Beca said. She turned to face Chloe. "And I want it to mean that we are going to try and see where this goes."

"I want it to mean that, too," Chloe said softly, looking at Beca's lips. "Can I kiss you?"

Beca nodded as she was already leaning into Chloe. Their lips met, and they both thought it felt right. Chloe broke the kiss.

"Do you want to be my date to the Valentine's Day dance?" Chloe asked.

"That's four days away," Beca whined. "Can't we go out before that? I really want a reason to kiss you again."

"You don't need a reason to kiss me," Chloe said. "Just do it."

"With pleasure," Beca said and kissed Chloe again.

~ 2020 BeChloe Valentines - Jealous of Jesse ~

The next few days found Beca and Chloe closer than ever. A few people were surprised by the new couple, while others thought they were already a couple and didn't know what the big deal was.

Jesse asked Aubrey out, and she said yes. He also asked her to the Valentine's dance, and she accepted.

The biggest surprise was Stacie and Chicago. When Stacie told Chloe that Chicago asked her to the dance, Chloe was happy for her friend. Stacie was going to tell him no, but Chloe told her he was a really good guy, and Stacie would be crazy not to go with him.

The three new couples triple dated to the dance.

Beca and Chloe were on the dance floor, and a slow song came on. Chloe went to walk off the dance floor, and Beca pulled her back.

"Where are you going?" Beca asked.

"I didn't think you'd want to dance to a slow song with me," Chloe said.

"I want to dance to every song with you," Beca said.

Chloe smiled and let Beca pull her to her. They began dancing, and Beca hummed as they slowly moved around the dance floor. Just as Beca leaned in to kiss Chloe, someone cleared their throat.

Beca and Chloe turned to see a chaperone shaking her head and pulling them slightly apart. Beca smiled and resumed dancing. After about a minute, she pulled Chloe to her and tried to kiss her, only to have the same chaperone stop them.

Beca let out a frustrated sigh as the chaperone said, "Ladies, this is your second warning. If I catch you again, I'm going to have to ask you to leave the dance."

"Yes, ma'am," Chloe said.

The chaperone looked at the two girls and nodded. She walked away, and another slow song started.

Beca and Chloe left the dance floor, laughing. They found Aubrey and Stacie sitting at their table.

"We've been kicked out," Beca said.

"What?" Stacie squealed.

"Too much PDA," Chloe said, red-faced.

"The dance is almost over, so we'll just wait in the limo for you guys," Beca said.

"We'll get Jesse and Chicago and be right out," Aubrey said.

"Take your time," Beca said, grabbing Chloe's hand and rushing toward the exit.

"They are so going to be making out when we get there," Stacie said with a laugh.

"I know," Aubrey said, laughing as well. "Let's wait until the last song is played before we go out."

"And, I'll text Beca to let her know when we're leaving," Stacie said. "Don't want any surprises when we get there."

Twenty minutes later, Beca and Chloe came up for air when Beca's phone pinged with a text notification.

"Stacie said they're coming out now," Beca said.

"Okay," Chloe said, fluffing her hair and straightening her dress.

Beca looked at Chloe with a loving smile on her face.

"What?" Chloe asked.

"I kind of love you," Beca responded.

Chloe let out a small gasp. "I love you, too."

They kissed again and broke apart when the limo door opened, and Stacie looked in.

"Break it up, you two," Stacie said as she climbed into the limo, followed by Aubrey, Jesse, and Chicago.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Beca," Chloe whispered as the others entered the limo.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Chlo."

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

That's the last one of the 2020 Valentine's series! Thanks to everyone who hung in there with me and stayed until the end. And a special thanks to everyone who submitted a prompt. Until next time.

[starscheme]

Lost Stars

Chapter Three: Some Well Meaning Advice

The next day, Sodalite was determined more than ever to help Lars. Not with the Bakery, but with his ever declining mood. Unfortunately, since she couldn’t let Lars know of her concern, it meant she would have to do this without him. It also meant she would have to seek help from the one that knew Lars best. To her knowledge, that was her Diamond; Steven. 

With all the courage she could muster, Sodalite warped away from little homeworld and ended up inside of Stevens home. She had her eyes closed tight the entire time, anticipating the awful dark cloud that would be hanging over the room, but when she dared to open her eyes, she was pleasantly surprised to see that there was not much there.

“Steven?!” Shouted Spinel from upstairs, apparently triggered by the sound of the warp. However, she was disappointed to see that it wasn’t who she was waiting for when she rushed down the steps. “Sodapop? What are you doing here,” she asked with genuine surprise considering that Sodalite was alone. 

The blue Gem winced a bit, put off by the dark fog that hovered around Spinels Gem. Still, she needed to be brave. This was for Lars. “I-I came to...to speak with My Steven. ...b-but I guess...he’s...not here...?” 

Spinel sighed sadly, “he’s not. He and Garnet needed to speak with the Diamonds about something...and apparently I tend to distract them...so I stayed behind. ...but what did you need?” 

“I just...I thought Steven could-could help since he knows Lars well...and Lars has been...r-rather melancholy lately...” answered Sodalite, deflating a bit when she realized that her courage had not paid off. “S-sorry to have bothered y—“ 

Spinel outstretched her arm and took hold of Sodalite’s hand, pulling the startled Gem from the warp pad and instead to her side. “I can help!” Exclaimed Spinel, excited to have something that might fend off this boredom while she waited for Steven to return. “I know all about Lars and I’m a Spinel, it’s my job to cheer people up!” 

Though Sodalite would have liked to refuse right away, she couldn’t deny that this sort of thing is what Spinels were created for. Perhaps getting advice from a Spinel would work just as well. “...if-if you don’t mind...” mumbled Sodalite with a nervous smile. 

“Ah gee, it’s no trouble,” replied Spinel happily. “Now, what has our pink pal so down?” 

Now this was where Sodalite needed help the most. “I...I’m not sure. Lars insists that nothing is wrong...but I...when he thinks I’m not looking...he gets so down. ...or...he’ll look at me...and he seems...upset. I-I want to help make him happy again. So-so that he smiles like-like before.” 

Spinel listened carefully, tapping her foot lightly as she thought what would help best. Her favorite past time with Lars was to see how much she could get him to freak out, but that wouldn’t help here. Suddenly, she remembered Steven mention something about Lars having a crush on Sodalite. So if Sodalite just did the same things that she did to make Steven happy, wouldn’t it all work out? “I’ve got it,” shouted Spinel, causing Sodalite to flinch in alarm. “Lucky for you, Lars is human and Steven is half human. Since I am an expert at cheering up Steven, I can certainly help you with Lars.” 

Sodalite had become even more hopeful now. After all, Spinel made a good point. “O-okay! So...what do I have to do?” She asked with renewed optimism. 

While Sodalite was receiving Spinels advice, Lars was just finishing up with the latest customer, waiting for them to leave the shop before he reached back to untie his apron. “I’m gonna take a quick break,” he announced to the Off Colors in the kitchen. The Rutile twins taking their place at the front counter as Lars left out the back to get some air. It was nearly noon and he hadn’t heard from Sodalite at all. Usually she was here before he even opened the store waiting for him. When she wasn’t, it often meant that she was too scared to leave her home, or something scared her on the way here and she was hiding somewhere alone. Either way, it threw him off a bit when she wasn’t around. 

“Bad day?” Came a familiar voice from behind. 

Lars turned to look and sure enough, Sadie was peeking from the corner before she stepped out completely with a smile. “Sorry, they said you’d be back here.” 

Even if Lars was happy to see Sadie, it didn’t erase the sting he still felt every time she was around. “It’s fine. Uh, what’s up?” 

“I came by to give you and the others some tickets to our next show. We’re gonna perform before we head out for the others on our tour.” 

“Oh, thanks, I’ll be sure to-“ as Lars reached out for the ticket she offered, he suddenly recalled Sodalite’s aversion to crowds. “—uh...I actually might have to skip this one. ...sorry...” 

“Why’s that?” 

“Well...you know that Gem...you met the other day with me...? She uh...she’s not great in crowds and it sometimes sets off a bad reaction when she gets startled. I wouldn’t want to mess up your show with a sudden black out or anything.” 

“Oh, so if you can’t bring your girlfriend you don’t want to come?” Sadie teased. Though it was in good fun, she couldn’t help being a little hurt that he would skip her show because of something like that. 

“Sh-she’s not my girlfriend!” Lars exclaimed in a bashful panic. “She-I’m just helping her out. She’s scared of...a lot of things and I just happen to be the only one she trusts right now. So...I-she’s just usually always around me. If I went to a concert she would try her best to come along...but I know it’d just scare her. So...yeah...” 

“You’re the only one she trusts? She doesn’t have any other friends?” Sadie asked, a bit confused and now concerned by the situation. “That’s...not very good is it? I mean...what is she gonna do when you leave?” 

“I’m not gonna leave until she is better. I mean...she needs me.” Lars answered, finding this conversation rather awkward. He was uncomfortable talking about Sodalite with Sadie of all people. His feelings were still pretty complicated with the both them. 

“...well...if you say it like that, but...how do you know how long it will take for her to get better? Are you just going to put your life on hold forever? You were so excited about going back into Space before.” 

This was true. Lars did want to go back and explore the stars again. When Sadie left him, he didn’t have much reason to stay on earth. At least, not until Sodalite dropped out of nowhere. In truth, even though he wanted Sadie to be happy, their break up left him feeling rather down on himself. They had both changed for sure, but his feelings for her stayed the same, why didn’t hers? Even though he thought he’d changed for the better, it wasn’t enough for Sadie. It wasn’t enough to keep her. So when Sodalite came around, it was a bit bothersome at first, but after a while, it felt nice to be needed. Maybe he wasn’t ready to let that go yet. “It doesn’t matter. She’s a nice girl and she needs my help. Besides, she’s been working real hard. I think she’ll get better a lot faster than some people think.” 

Sadie didn’t seem convinced. She worried that Lars was once again avoiding something that could be good for him because he was comfortable with what he had now. “But aren’t there a lot of Gems who can help her? Steven too? It doesn’t have to be you.” 

Though Sadie meant to help, her words only struck a raw chord with Lars. He knew that already. In fact, it was just one more thing he worried about. Something he really didn’t like to admit to himself. After all, the only reason that Sodalite was attached to him was because he met her first. If she had stumbled upon any other human at that time, she would be the same with them, wouldn’t she? This thought only made Lars feel selfish. He didn’t really want her to get help from anyone else. He didn’t want Sodalite to change like Sadie had and realize that he wasn’t enough. That there was someone better. This entire conversation was just making him feel sick with himself. He felt as though he were slowly turning back into that selfish jerk he was before. “Y-you know...I really don’t want to talk about this anymore.” Lars insisted. 

“Lars...I just want you to be happy, that’s all...” admitted Sadie quietly. “You’re...you’ve always been really important to me...” 

His heart felt tight beneath his chest. Why did she have to say things like this? He wasn’t exactly happy hearing something like this from her right now. Not when she was just gonna turn around and be with Shep afterword. Still, he couldn’t change what had already happened. “What? You think Sodalite is holding me back?” Lars asked with a bitter snap in his tone. “As if I suddenly became some kind of saint...” he muttered, turning his gaze to the floor. He suddenly recalled Sodalite’s smiling face, looking at him as if he were something special. Why couldn’t anyone else see how awful he was being? It made him feel even worse. He wasn’t the hero trying to save Sodalite from the tower. He was the villain that kept her locked up there. 

Sadie could see that Lars was getting upset. More so than she thought he would. Truly, she was just thinking of his best interests. Though she realized now that it probably didn’t sound that way. “Wait...I think you may have misunderstood...” she began with a nervous smile, stepping forward and shoving a couple of tickets into his hand. “I’m sure you have good intentions. Just don’t...um...you know, don’t put yourself aside for someone else...” 

For some reason, it almost made him angry to hear that from her. Was she suggesting he just leave Sodalite behind to do what he wanted? As if he didn’t feel selfish enough? “I’m not!” He bit back with flushed cheeks, pushing the tickets back in her hands. “Just mind your own business!” 

The dejected look on Sadies face was all too familiar and it only served to make Lars feel worse. He just couldn’t handle how muddled everything was getting. “Look, I-I’m sorry,” he began with a sigh, running his hand through his hair. “Just...don’t worry about me. Everything is fine, I swear. I’m just kinda tired today.” 

Sadie wanted to say more, but she could tell that Lars had reached his limit. Anything more and he’d just pull back further. “Okay. ...well...I’ll keep the tickets for you if you change your mind. Um...I’ll see you later...” 

“...yeah,” he replied, briskly walking away without looking back. He didn’t want to be cold with Sadie, but it still felt so awkward and he wasn’t sure how to act when things got serious like this. Especially considering he was dealing with a lot of conflicting emotions right now. 

Though he went back inside the bakery, Lars stayed in the back room for a bit. He would have preferred to call it an early day, but he wasn’t sure if Sodalite would be showing up or not. If only she could handle having a phone without freaking out each time the ringer went off. However, just as Lars was trying to figure out some way to contact her, the back door creaked open slowly and Sodalite peeked inside. 

“...th-they said you were back here...” the blue Gem explained as she slowly slipped into the room, but leaving the door open in case he told her to leave. 

Lars was silent, staring up at Sodalite as he sat atop several boxes they kept most of the dry ingredients in. He glanced at the clock, noting that half the day had gone by before she showed up. Where was she until now? Did she get lost? Scared? When he looked back at her, she didn’t seem upset, though she did look rather concerned. Probably because he hadn’t said a word since she came in. 

“...you can shut the door,” said Lars with a sigh. Seeing her here was a relief, but it didn’t help his guilt much after speaking with Sadie. 

“You’re upset...” Sodalite observed as she shut the door. “...what happened?” 

“I’m fine,” he lied quickly. What was he supposed to tell her anyway? That he hated himself for selfishly wanting her to depend on him while deluding himself that it was for her sake? Yeah, that would go over well. 

It was the answer she expected. He never seemed to confide in her when things bothered him. Why not? Was she so useless that he thought there was no point in it? Shaking her head a bit, Sodalite tried not to think negatively on the matter. It’s the whole reason she went for advice. She was determined to make Lars feel better, even if he wouldn’t talk about it. She said nothing as she sat herself down beside him, trying to muster up the courage she needed to make use of Spinels advice. 

“...are you happy?” 

Sodalite was surprised by Lars’ sudden question. What did that have to with how he was feeling? “Happy? ...well...I’m happy when I’m with you,” she answered with a smile.

It’s not like Lars expected a different answer from her. “...what if...” he began, hesitating for a moment when he tried to get to get the words out. It wasn’t really something he wanted to think about either. “...what if it turned out...that I’m not such a good person? What if you found out that I was actually really just a selfish coward who...just didn’t want someone to leave again?” 

Once again, Sodalite found his question strange. It didn’t make much sense to her. When she glanced at Lars’ face, he seemed anxious and almost afraid. Was he worried about her answer? “I don’t understand...” replied Sodalite after contemplating her answer. “...is this what’s been upsetting you? Are you worried that you’ll become these things?” 

Of course she didn’t understand. He already was all these things. Lars shook his head, “forget it...” 

“You’re...the only thing about Earth that I like...” began Sodalite, scooting a bit closer so that she could hug his arm and snuggle her cheek against his shoulder. “I don’t know what’s wrong...but...I’m sure you’re not any of those things...” 

Lars’ chest tightened up and it became difficult to breath all of a sudden. This girl just didn’t know what she was saying. Didn’t she understand that he was taking advantage of her dependence on him? That his intentions were no longer innocent? Even now, with her so close, it would be so simple to turn and hold her. “Sodalite...I’m not a—“ 

Before he could finish, the blue Gem had leaned over a bit more and pressed her lips to his cheek, planting light kisses along his face. 

His cheeks burned beneath her lips and Lars pulled back in an attempt to stop her. “W-Wait...” 

“Why?” Asked Sodalite at once,  only leaning in further to continue. It used to make him smile. Maybe that wasn’t enough anymore? After considering Spinels, Sodalite reached over and placed her palm to his opposite cheek, turning his face towards her before she kissed his lips.