#I need to finish the mask but I was too excited about the magnetic bit to not share it lol | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

chipper-smol · 3 years ago

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Hollow Knight Telephone Round Two: Relic Coffee Shop

Prompt

Prompts:

1: Lemm finds an odd fellow at the Blue Lake. Normally he wouldn’t bother to approach a stranger out of nowhere, but something in his gut urges him to take action. Quirrel, feeling the effects of age on his body, stares incredulously at the bearded face of a stranger who apparently wants to have him over for coffee. 2: Lemm sets up shop in an abandoned cafe. It’s roomy and pleasant at first, but there are _stacks_ of these disgusting old bitter coffee beans clogging up the rooms. It doesn’t help that bugs keep coming in to order a drink even though he’s posted signs to _KEEP OUT!!_ However, once they start offering Geo be begrudgingly takes it as an opportunity to achieve funds to pay for relics. 3: At first, the coffee was just an excuse to get Geo to pay for relics, but Lemm’s begun to notice that bugs who wandered into his shop with the telltale early symptoms of infection no longer have them on their return visits. He tells himself he’s not an altruist. He’s _not._It’s just a waste to throw out old coffee when someone just needs a pick-me-up.

By @bluwails

------------------------------- By @hydrochlorinate

“Just don’t. Tell. Anyone. Else.”

Those were the words that came out of the grumpy barista’s mouth that fateful day. One’s that you completely ignored, as you had already been drinking what could only be the drink of HIgher Beings, with just how heavenly it tasted.

Grinning like a lunatic, you give him 45 geo, not a small sum. If anything though, it was hilariously cheap for a drink that was this good. The bug doesn’t complain about the amount though, so he’s probably fine with it. Wings fluttering in excitement, you leave the shop, ready to tell any remaining survivors about the amazing drink shop you just found.

===============>(Coffee Shop AU)

The next time you come in, the store is absolutely packed. Denizens from all across the ruins of Hallownest are here, ranging from some uninfected moss knights to that one ladybug that you had a dance off with a while back. There's even a noble here, and- is that a mantis?

Anyway, it looks like your very subtle method of giving publicity to this cafe by talking about literally nothing else to whomever you talked to over the following week paid off. Good, this place deserves all the atte-  “You.”

Oh? You snap out of your thoughts, and look towards the counter, where the barista is levelling a glare at you that could instantly wither those delicate flowers that have been spreading around recently.

You stroll on up to the counter, a grin stretching across your face. The barista narrows his eyes.

“Didn’t I tell you to keep this a secret? Why is my establishment filled to the brim with bugs? Who are these people?!”

...huh. Did he tell you to keep it on the down low? It seems in character from your limited interactions, but you don’t remember exactly. Oh well, time to play it off. You tell him that, well, what can you say except you’re welcome.

You’ve never seen a bug go from “Irritated” to “Ballistic” as fast as this barista. Usually they make a stop at “Angry” or “Absolutely Livid”.

“YOU’RE WELCOME?!?!”  No, see, he’s supposed to say thank you.  “THANK YOU???”  You tell him he’s welcome, before laughing. No, really, you tell him, look around, the place is packed! Business is booming! The barista (you should really ask for his name) manages to bring his volume under control, taking in a deep breath.

“That’s part of the problem. I’m a relic seeker, not a-” He gestures around the cafe, as if looking for the right words to use. Barista, you suggest.

“Exactly. I’m not made to brew coffee-” Oh, that’s what it was called. “-or to be dealing with customers all day long.”

Sure. That’s why he decided to allow people to keep purchasing coffee, or why he decided to put on a cute green and white visor.

You didn’t just come to check in on your new favorite bug though, you have coffee to order! Taking out a sheet of paper from your bag, you begin to read out both your order, and those of your companions. Even with the end of the infection, the leftover damage to hallownest’s caves and architecture makes it dangerous to travel alone.

As you begin to read out your order, the barista shifts from crotchety old bug to attentive worker. You really wish you had come back earlier, instead of letting some of your other traveling buddies pick up the coffee for you. Something about the atmosphere here is… relaxing, despite the amount of people.

After your order is finished, you leave the cafe. Back to the real world bucko, as an old friend of yours would always say.

...Wait a minute you never got the barista’s name.

===============>(Coffee Shop AU)

It’s been 3 weeks. You think. Time gets a little funky down here, what with the sudden influx of void. Sure, most of it has cleared out by now, but every so often your exploration party comes across a tunnel that hasn’t quite been fully illuminated, the shadows just a bit too thick to be natural.

You enter the coffee shop again. It’s gotten a lot quieter as time went on and bugs started coming in on a schedule. There’s still plenty of other customers here, but it’s nowhere near as packed as the first couple of days. Lemm (yeah, you finally got his name) stands at the counter, still slightly disgruntled, but a lot less so than he was at the beginning. In fact, he’s actually talking to someone right now! An actual conversation too, not just an exchange of witty remarks. You can’t see their face, but they appear to be a pillbug wearing a blue hood.  As you step up to the counter, you can hear their conversation a bit better.

“...of course, I couldn’t just leave it sitting there right? So I move to pick it up, only to find out that the desk I dropped it on was magnetized! So here I am, trying and failing to pick up this one plant hanger for a solid 10 minutes.”

They both laugh at this, before noticing you. The unknown bug turns to face you, allowing you to see his mask.  “Oh, hello, I don’t believe we’ve met before!”

You greet him back, introducing yourself.

“It’s nice to meet you. My name’s Quirrell. I’m… well, I can’t really call myself an explorer, because I’ve already been everywhere! I’m more of a wanderer, really.”

Ahh, a free spirit, you see. You point out that just because he’s been everywhere doesn’t mean he’s seen everything. After all, who knows what could’ve gone down during Hallownest’s peak. Both Quirrell and Lemm get amused by this, for some reason. Seeing your confused look, Lemm decides to speak up.

"He probably knows more about Hallownest than everyone here, having lived here since before the infection and all."

Your eyes widen, and your wings begin to flutter. Truly? An original denizen, and not someone else trying to piece together its history? Quirrell waves off the words, though.

"I wouldn't go that far…" He begins, but Lemm cuts him off before he can go any further.

"Hah! Next you'll be telling me that you weren't the head assistant of the kingdom's best scientist!"

Giving off the equivalent of a blush, Quirrell rubs the back of his head. Lemm turns back to you.

"I'm sure you didn't come in just to chat, though. What can I get for you?"

It's nice to see him making friends.

------------------------------- By @schyrsivochter

Lemm wasn’t a sociable person. That was a fact. He wasn’t good at talking, or at being friendly. (It wasn’t like he needed it, anyway. It had been a long time since he’d enjoyed conversing with another bug.)

No, Lemm was much more of a person for reading. Deciphering the journals of the long dead, the writing and languages, was something he thoroughly enjoyed. Other artefacts spoke differently: the materials from which they were made, the way they were worked, the artistic style. It was a different kind of reading; some might say a more figurative one. But it was just as interesting.

Of course, architecture was part of that. It had not been a coincidence that Lemm had set up camp in Hallownest’s abandoned capital. When he’d arrived, he hadn’t dared to think that he’d ever finish exploring and finding new things. And it was true; he’d only explored a little bit before he’d realised that collecting and gathering relics was no use if he never took a proper look at them, instead letting them gather dust on the shelves, the tables, and the floor of the long-abandoned shop he’d moved into. So he’d decided to stay there, poring over his collection. His picture of the world of Hallownest in times past grew ever more detailed, more complete.

He’d opened the shop because people did not seem to stop wanting to sell him relics, and it never hurt to appear a little professional. And it had been a reliable source of new artefacts; new knowledge. He’d never sold anything, of course. His collection was his, and his alone.

And then came the dark. The cleansing void. It had taken him by surprise; he’d been working, and only noticed that anything was amiss when the light dimmed and he was finally bathed in darkness. He must’ve fallen unconscious at that point, and there’d been no telling how long it had been until he’d awoken. It hadn’t been until later that he’d learned that this was what had obliterated the plague, leaving in its wake hundreds of confused survivors and thousands of dead. No, the next thing to happen that told him things were not as usual was that a bug had come in, asked if he was open, and, upon his affirmative answer, asked for a hot drink, holding out a piece of ten.

Taken by surprise, he’d offered to make tea. He’d immediately regretted it, since it meant the bug would be staying for a while, probably without selling him relics, but it was easy enough to do and would get him geo, his supply of which had been running low. So he put a kettle on and took the money. The bug had thanked him profusely, while he had elected to remain quiet.

Not long afterwards, the same bug and four others stood in the doorway. Whether they had relics for him, he’d asked. They’d looked amongst themselves, and one had asked, ‘Is this not a coffee shop?’

‘I suppose it might’ve once been,’ he’d said. ‘Now it’s mine.’

More confused looks and standing around, and then the bug he’d seen before asked if he’d make more tea. He’d said no, not unless they paid him twice as much as the last time and stayed quiet and didn’t disturb him in his work. To his horror, the five bugs had agreed, and so he’d dug out cups from the coffee shop’s former stock and afterwards found himself a little richer in geo but with a significantly worse mood.

He had his peace afterwards, though. At least for a while. Now a bug had arrived, taller than the others, wearing a headscarf. Lemm had mentally prepared for the bug to ask for coffee, but the bug had halted in front of one of the tables that Lemm had repurposed for his collection of relics.

‘Admiring my collection?’ Lemm asked.

’Yes, quite!’ the bug answered, chipper and friendly. ‘I’m curious how you managed to get a hold of so many texts in such diverse languages! These are journals, are they not?’

‘They are,’ Lemm acknowledged. ‘From all over Hallownest.’

‘But most of them aren’t any Hallownest language.’ The bug put a hand on his mask. ‘I suppose they’re from travellers that came to the ruins and perished?’

‘Quite right,’ Lemm said. He had to admit, begrudgingly, that the bug standing before him was sharp and knew his history. A trait not many others shared.

‘Can you read all of them?’ The mask turned towards Lemm, inclined in question.

‘No,’ he answered truthfully, making his way around the counter to stand next to the bug. ‘I haven’t had the time to decipher all of them yet. But I’ll get around to it eventually.’

‘Interesting,’ the bug said. ‘I can—huh?’

He turned towards the entrance, and Lemm followed his gaze. Lemm was about to ask what the problem was, when a bug appeared in the entrance. The one that he’d made tea twice for. Ah yes, he thought. A customer. Two of them, in fact; one of the others from before had joined the one who’d taken a fancy to paying Lemm to make tea.

‘I don’t suppose,’ Lemm said, ‘there is any way to convince you to find tea somewhere else?’

The bugs shook their head.

Lemm sighed, and muttered an apology to the tall visitor. Time to get it over with.

He went to the back room to prepare the tea, and overheard the two visitors conversing in the front.

‘What’s this, anyway?’

‘Historical documents. Journals of travellers.’

‘What’s it doing here?’

‘I think the shopkeep collects them.’

‘That’s correct!’ Lemm called. ‘I’m always buying, if you have anything of historical value.’

He grabbed the cups and walked back to the front. ‘That’s fifty geo. Unless you have relics.’

The bugs complained under their breath, but paid up, and Lemm could direct his attention back to the visitor.

‘So is this what you do?’ they asked. ‘Opened the coffee shop again and collecting relics in your free time?’

Lemm was dumbstruck for a moment. Then he remembered to be outraged. ‘No! I am not opening this place as a coffee shop! People just keep coming and demanding tea and I cannot let an opportunity to earn easy money go to waste!’

‘Relic business not exactly booming, then, I assume?’

‘I’m—’ he spluttered, ‘It’s not a business! I don’t sell my relics, they’re mine!’

‘So you wouldn’t have any income if you weren’t selling tea?’

Lemm had the distinct impression that the bug was making fun of him. He didn’t answer, but simply walked up to the table, grabbed a random journal, and took it to his desk to try and get some work done.

He had not yet prepared his quill and ink when he was interrupted yet again.

‘You know,’ the visitor called, ‘that one is from a traveller from Greynest. Came here looking for his brother, never found him. No doubt said brother also perished in the ruins.’

Lemm turned around to see the bug standing in the doorway, having followed him halfway. ‘And how do you know this?’ he asked.

The bug shrugged. ‘I read it.’

Lemm regarded the bug. They didn’t seem to be joking.

‘You mean to tell me,’ Lemm began, slowly, ‘you know this language?’

‘Yes,’ they said nonchalantly. ‘I think I’ve been to Greynest? Must have been a while ago.’

‘Are you a traveller, then?’ Lemm asked. ‘You don’t seem the type.’

As soon as he’d spoken the words, Lemm became aware how utterly ridiculous it was of him to make observations about people. He didn’t like people, he wasn’t interested in people—

The bug laughed. ‘I am, in fact. I have travelled far and wide.’

‘Hmph,’ said Lemm, unsure what else to say. He turned back to his work, looked at the angular shapes carved into the stone, but now it seemed senseless to try and make sense of it when he knew that it was no mystery to the bug standing behind him.

At some point, he looked up and found that he was hungry and the visitor was gone. Oh, well. Time for a meal, then, and afterwards he might be able to find something else to do.

* * *

The next time the tea-drinker returned, they asked for tea and then asked Lemm about the relics, and he was in a favourable enough mood to talk about them. They asked some fairly stupid questions, but it seemed to come out of a genuine interest in the topic, so he indulged them. Plus, he had to admit that he enjoyed having a reliable source of geo. Not that he needed it much for buying relics, these days, but he supposed that his supplies of food – and of tea – would not last indefinitely, and he didn’t particularly fancy having to go back to scavenging, now that there were actual people living in the vicinity again. No, he’d rather find some place where he could buy what he needed fair and square.

The traveller with the headscarf returned, and it was an odd sort of feeling Lemm had about them. Like he actually liked having them in his shop and talking to them. And the perplexing thing was that the bug also seemed to enjoy conversing with Lemm. Which one one hand was absolutely preposterous, on the other … it was a refreshing change.

The bug introduced himself as Quirrel, apprentice to Monomon the Teacher, and Lemm could hardly believe it. Monomon the Teacher, one of the most brilliant minds of Hallownest? It couldn’t be! And yet it was not all too difficult to imagine. He’d seen stranger things in these lands.

Quirrel also was the one who later suggested Lemm officially open the shop as a coffee shop again. Lemm had thrown him out at that and gone back to work.

Now, a short while later, he looked up and Quirrel was back, standing at the counter, watching Lemm silently.

Lemm rose and went to the front, choosing to stare back equally silently. Lemm was good at that. Probably.

‘So,’ Quirrel said at length, his voice still as annoyingly friendly as ever, ‘have you thought about it?’

Lemm kept staring.

Quirrel held up his hands. ‘You need money, you don’t have much else to do, and besides’ – Quirrel shrugged. – ‘people like your tea.’

‘I certainly have enough to do,’ Lemm started. ‘These texts don’t decipher themselves. What’s so funny?’

Quirrel stopped his giggling and said, ‘They sort of do. Have you forgotten who stands before you?’

‘You don’t read all of these languages.’ Really, Quirrel’s ego was getting on Lemm’s nerves.

‘But most of them,’ Quirrel said, shrugging, ‘and most of the Archive’s records are intact. And we do have a nice section on language and writing.’

Lemm was silent for a moment, mostly because he could not think of a good comeback. Quirrel had a point, and Lemm did not like that in the slightest.

‘Let’s make a deal,’ Quirrel said. ‘I help you translate your texts and catalogue your artefacts, and you’ – Quirrel jabbed a finger in Lemm’s direction – ‘you sell your tea officially.’

‘Out of the question.’

‘You’re already doing it.’

‘I am not!’

‘Yes, you are.’ Quirrel said this with absolute certainty and no anger, and there was a voice at the back of Lemm’s mind that said: You really sort of are. And you could use the help. You don’t like the busywork anyway.

‘All right,’ Lemm grumbled. ‘Deal.’

‘Thank you,’ said Quirrel, audibly grinning.

‘I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?’ Lemm asked under his breath.

‘I don’t think so,’ Quirrel said. ‘I’m curious – what else can you make? Tea alone is a bit boring, don’t you think?’

‘Shut up,’ Lemm said, ‘or I change my mind.’

* * *

Lemm did not change his mind, even though Quirrel didn’t shut up. It had been a while, and Lemm hated to admit it, but he enjoyed doing something different for a change. Customers were now plenty, and Lemm had a menu with more than one item, and his relic collection was no bigger, but more orderly and better understood than it had ever been, thanks to Quirrel’s – and the Archive’s – help.

Another thing that Lemm was not quite ready to admit was that people could be nice. The more he talked to customers, interacted with them, observed them, the more he began to appreciate them. He used to be content in reading historical texts and artefacts, preferring to learn about people that were dead and gone. Living bugs had never really interested him.

Nowadays, however, it seemed that people could be just as interesting to read as anything else. And, as Quirrel entered, greeting him, and he could not help his mood being lifted just by the prospect of learning something new and interesting that Quirrel learnt on his last trip to the Archive, Lemm supposed that sometimes, very rarely … people were something he could enjoy.

------------------------------- By @gardening-clown

------------------------------- By @buglife

Lemm was five seconds away from throwing someone through the window.

His shop was now occupied by five bugs of various species, talking, laughing, and sitting around when he could be in the back doing literally anything else. It took weeks of bugs thinking that his relic shop was a coffee one before he simply gave up and made peace with it. At least he got some geo from it to pay adventurers that did come by to sell legit relics. How they mistook his shop for a coffee one, he would have never guess.

All he had was a little brewer that was barely put back together that he scavenged from some random shop, but other bugs seemed to like it, for some strange reason. It wasn’t even good coffee he was making, but they seemed to accept it. After all, who else in this dead kingdom was even selling coffee? He had looted plenty of shops and took as many sacks of beans as he would when he first arrived, and there was no way he could drink them all, so he might as well do something with them.

But he was steadily losing his patience with the amount of bugs around him. They were talking and loitering. Loitering was probably the worst of it all as it made the loner bug feel his shell crawl with the forced social interaction. He just wanted them to leave. He couldn’t stand the feeling of a crowded space, which is why he went to a dead kingdom in the first place.

Hell, he had to take his beloved odds and ends down from the shelves to keep some curious bug from touching them all up with their dirty fingers and breaking something.

He found himself dreading the sound of the bell above his door, and when it rang he wondered if someone else was coming to ask him for some random drink or be an annoying thorn in his side.

To his hidden delight however, it was the little wanderer. They looked like a grub, to be honest, with a black body and a stark white horned shell for a head. The nail on their back seemed to be a little put together the last time he saw them, perhaps they visited the Nailsmith? He never asked for their name, he didn’t want to learn it to avoid attachments, but he found them oddly endearing. They liked to listen to him ramble about his theories on various relics they bring him, so they can’t be too bad. Plus they were quiet and polite, something he was immensely grateful for.

They bounced inside the door and came to a stop, looking at the five other bugs sitting around and chatting. They tilted their head to the side, watching the bugs for a moment before looking at Lemm. They stretched out a stubby arm from under their cloak and pointed at him.

Lemm sighed. Of course, the little Wanderer had been gone for a while, and obviously didn’t know what had become of his beloved shop. He gestured for them to come over, which they did and looked up at him expectantly.

“Bugs keep thinking that this is a coffee shop.” He explained. “So here they are, drinking coffee that I make on a terrible little brewer. I gave up trying to kick them all out all the time, it stopped being worth the effort.”

The little wanderer blinked a few times, looking somewhat confused. They pointed to the cup being held by the beetle on one of Lemm’s chairs and mimed the action of drinking it.

“Yes, that’s coffee they are drinking.” He raised a brow as he looked down at the grub. “Haven’t you ever seen coffee before?”

They shook their head.

“Really now? Hrm…” He wasn’t sure where the little wanderer had come from if they never saw coffee before. It was a fairly common drink besides tea. They must have grew up in a rather isolated place If they never saw it. He decided he might as well explain it, it would be better to do it now than later.

“Coffee is a drink that bugs like to drink to give them energy.” He saw them perk up a bit at the ‘energy’ part. “It’s rather bitter, so some like it with sugar. I like it plain. It keeps me awake when I am working.”

They somehow made a face when he said it was bitter, tilting their head and angling their eye holes to look affronted. Lemm squashed down a laugh at the expression and decided to get to business.

“Anyway, they trade me geo for it, which lets me compensate bugs that get me relics. Do you have any for me today?” He hoped they did, he needed something to brighten up his day.

The wanderer nodded, reaching under their cloak to pull out a black orb. Lemm recognized it immediately to be an arcane egg. He loved working with those. Peeling back each layer revealed new information and new discoveries. He was in fact, still working on the one he got weeks before. He needed to be careful with them, and he reveled in the intense focus and work it needed to discover it’s secrets. His day instantly got better.

“Very nice, I’ll be glad to take that off your hands for the usual price.” The old beetle held out his hand and the wanderer gently placed the egg it in. They held up a hand once it was free and shook their head, pointed to a cup sitting on the counter.

“Ah, you want to trade this for a cup of coffee?” He wasn’t going to say no to that. If the wanderer was okay with it, it was a perfectly reasonable business transaction. His suspicions were confirmed when they nodded and bounced in place, looking as excited as they were able to. “Well I can certainly do that.”

Thankfully, the two bugs occupying the chairs in front of the counter left, leaving behind their dirty cups and a few geo for the mess. They thanked him and he grumped out a ‘have a good day’ as they left, seemingly indifferent to his mood. Oh well, at least it brought down the occupancy to a more manageable level for his social batteries. He pushed the dirty cups out of the way and gestured to an open seat. “Here, sit down and I’ll get you a cup.”

They bounced upwards to take a seat, swinging their legs back and forth as they waited. It didn’t take Lemm long to throw some ground up beans and water into the grinder, watching the brewed coffee pour into a clean cup. He carefully carried the hot cup down and set it in front of the wanderer. “Be careful, it’s very hot. I’ll bring you some sugar, you didn’t seem to like the ‘bitter’ description.”

They nodded and watched as he pushed over a bowl of honey sugar and a spoon. It was the least he could do after they got him another arcane egg. “There you are, help yourself.”

They bowed their head in thanks and took up the spoon, poking it into the bowl.

“Excuse me,” One of the bugs by the window got up, the one with a bent antenna and holding their empty cup. “Could I get a refill, please?”

Lemm held back a sigh and nodded, taking the cup and heading back to his brewer. He had to smack it a couple times for it to start working again, but in the end he got a passable cup of coffee out of it. He returned just in timed to hear said bug exclaim, “Woah there buddy, you must really like sugar!”

He looked to the wanderer, who had added so much sugar to their cup of coffee, that he could hear the sugar that couldn’t dissolve scrape against the ceramic as it was stirred. It looked like fresh cement, there was only a bit of brown to denote that once, it was indeed a cup of coffee.

He wordlessly handed the other bug their coffee, who took it and retreated back to sit by the window. He was about to say something to the wanderer, when to his horror, their head tilted backwards. A maw of sharp black teeth opened wide, and he watched, astonished, as the mix of sugar and coffee oozed into their mouth and to who knows where. A long black tongue lashed out to get every last bit of sugar out of the cup, before the mouth closed with a quiet click. They must have felt him staring, because they turned to look at him with their fathomless, dark eyes. He stared back, wondering what the hell was actually sitting in front of him.

They then bounced in place and gave him a thumbs up. They made a shape of a heart with their hands, a way that they say ‘thank you’. They seemed rather happy.

“Um…you’re welcome?” He managed, after he gathered his composure again.

They sat still for a moment, seeming to ponder on what they had just consumed. He figured that they were probably trying to figure out if they liked it or not. He doubt they even managed to taste the coffee from the sheer amount of sugar in that cup.

Then, to his horror, they began to vibrate. At first it was a few twitches, and then it steadily became more and more severe, until they were a literal blur. The chair rattled under the stress and the bugs that remained in the shop turned to look at the commotion.

It was then, Lemm realized he fucked up.

They suddenly dashed away, slamming into the shop door with such force that it caved outwards. There was only the short sound of shattering glass and the scream of metal before it flew off it’s hinges and rattled down the hallway. He could hear the hurried pitter-patter of the wanderer’s tiny feet, now fast enough to blur into one continuous sound, race down the hall and out of sight and hearing.

He just stood there, looking at the wreckage of his shop door, wondering where the hell is he going to get a replacement, if there even was a replacement. He looked at the three shocked bugs, standing and looking at the wreckage, and then he got himself an idea.

“Hey fellas,” He said, as he turned and looked at the bugs next to the window. “How would you all like some free coffee if you find me a door?”

------------------------------- By @radical-mudkips

------------------------------- By @unregisteredcookie

Lemm's 'shop' was empty.

Actually, no, that… that wasn't right. Lemm's shop wasn't a shop in the first place--it was a haven for relics and ancient knick-knacks, and the shelves were filled to overflowing with stone tablets and peculiar eggs that held unimaginable information. Not that Lemm was ever able to crack into the eggs' shells, but he knew--he knew there was more treasured information sleeping beneath. If only he were able to open it up without risking that information being damaged.

And that wasn't right, either. The shop being empty, that was. Right now, the shelves were empty, but that was less because of the absence of relics and more because they were all stowed away in the back room to be sorted. He had a notebook he was combing over, quill in hand as he scribbled out little bits of information that might relate to one another.

'Might', because Lemm wasn't really from Hallownest. So he didn't know for sure whether this smooth L-shaped contraption was a door handle or a piece to a lost work of art.

It was while Lemm was scribbling about in this journal bound in parchment (hand-made and flimsy, using the paper he found around the area that was clean and allowed to dry) that he heard it: The distant clattering of the elevator. There were about seven options he could think of off of the top of his head, each more dreaded than the last. It could be that scarcely-seen Nailsmith who seemed to know more about the history of this ruin than he let on. It could be the peculiar little silent bug that stared up at him now and again, the one that sometimes passed by with a relic to sell. It could be that talkative windbag, droning on and on in his droning voice, so grating and persistent that Lemm struggled to ignore him. He was probably the worst.

Lemm stopped writing, tilted his head, and listened for the telltale sound. The rattling stopped, and all that he heard for a while was silence. And then.

Ding.

He sighed, getting to his feet. A customer it was, then. How delightful. Here's hoping that the customer wasn't 'Zote the Mighty'.

He had a small moment of dread when he saw the horn, a critical blow of dismay that tempted him to retreat back into the back room and pretend to be out for a walk, but then he saw the second horn and breathed a sigh of relief. Oh, it wasn't the Zote person after all. It was… them. The other little one.

They looked up at him as he approached the register and looked down at them. Their eyes were vacant as ever, face impossibly unreadable. Lemm doubted that he'd ever get used to it.

Lemm liked this little bug, if for no other reason than they were quiet, kept their hands to themself, and brought him relics to purchase. They were the only one willing to sell these relics, and they were the only reason Lemm often said what he said next.

"Cup of coffee, or looking to sell?"

He never had much company in this place until the Nailsmith (Lemm never caught his name, never bothered asking, really) first came in looking for materials for his smithing. Almost took one of Lemm's Pale Idols from under his beard while he was noting in his journal. After the initial yelling that followed and a cup of coffee, the Nailsmith apologized by paying for the cup. And he did it again. And again. Until the mapmaker came in, saw, and bought a cup himself. Until the hooded pillbug came in, hummed, and bought one for himself. And then--

Well. And then he had a coffee shop.

Lemm wished he could say that he hated it, and he did, at first. But over time, he found the company rather pleasant. Besides, the geo paid for this little bug's relic collection well enough, so he wasn't complaining.

So. Did they want a cup of coffee, or did they want to sell their relics? Lemm didn't get an answer. Instead, they looked around at the empty shelves for a moment before turning their empty eyes back onto him, tilting their head to the side slightly.

It took Lemm a moment.

"Oh, I moved the relics into the back room," he said. "I've been needing to work on sorting them out and writing notes about them. Never would I have thought that I would have so many to study."

Satisfied, they reached into the confines of their cloak. Lemm leaned forward a little, watching as they rummaged about for a moment, heart skipping a beat as he pondered what sort of relic they were going to sell this time.

And then they withdrew their small hand, reached up, and dropped a fist full of geo onto the counter.

Lemm blinked and stared at the geo for a moment. Something wispy and thin clung to them, and when he picked it up and opened the register, it was sticky. Was this webbing? Lemm wasn't aware of there being any spiders in Hallownest, aside from maybe that red-cloaked bug he saw very rarely flitting about outside his window.

So. No relics today. Fine, at least he'd have more money to buy another one later.

"One coffee coming up," he murmured, rummaging around behind the counter. Underneath the register was where he kept the coffee pot, which he refrained from moving just so he could be prepared if a 'customer' came by. He busied himself with it for a few moments, filling the filter and checking the water, before clicking the button and letting it steep. Granted, he didn't know what kind of coffee they'd drink, but they didn't make it clear anyway, so he doubted that it mattered.

Besides. They seemed a little preoccupied by something else at the moment. After a few minutes, the coffee was finished, and Lemm poured them a cup. He chose a caramel-like flavor, because they seemed about the size of a child and a little bit of sweetness never hurt anyone. Lemm reached over the counter and held it out to them, which they took in their hands and stared down at for a moment. Lemm was about ready to head back into the back when it happened. A crack. It almost sounded like something breaking, but when he turned to look behind himself at the small knight, they still stood there. Another crack, one that made his fur stand on end and his body stiffen, and Lemm caught the glimpse of something sharp and white shifting beneath the bottom of their mask.

A mouth?

They tilted their head back. A jaw opened. Many layers of teeth glimmered in the dim light, cracking as they did so, the noise chilling him through his chitin and making his hemolymph freeze. Lemm stood there, stock still, as they lifted the cup up to their face, jaw extending outwards to drink it, and then-- --they set the scalding hot coffee in their mouth, cup and all, closed it, and crunched.

Lemm had never seen a bug eat a cup of coffee before. He could still hear the crunch, crunch, crunching, muffled and quiet and growing quieter, noise sounding like a particularly crunchy tiktik being eaten.

Lemm shuddered. When the knight looked back at him, he turned around quickly and went into the back room.

Okay. Suddenly they weren't the second most welcome sight for sore eyes. Suddenly Lemm wished that it was that talking, yapping Zote fellow who came in instead.

------------------------------- By @doodle-chris

------------------------------- By @payasita

There was no shortage of open real estate as far as the City of Tears was concerned. But that certainly didn't make every option an equally viable living space.

First, Lemm wanted something enclosed away from the rain, and insulated enough to stave off the humidity. That discounted anything open to the outside, as he wouldn't risk his relics to even the threat of exposure. A leaking roof dripping down onto crumbling tablets or fragile spider silk could devastate hundreds of years worth of history, so that also discounted any room without a few protective floors above it.

Next, it had to be out of the way of any and all shambling husks and infected critters. They weren't the brightest of creatures, so a room only accessible by elevator was ideal. He'd never seen anything plague-cursed have enough wherewithal to operate one, and the noise of it would give him plenty warning of visitors otherwise.

Lastly, he wanted someplace with plenty of shelf space. He needed little in the way of actual living space, so long as he had ample storage room set up in such a way that things could easily be organized.

All of these qualities described, in his opinion, the ideal relic storage and research dwelling. And in the end, he was lucky enough to find it.

Unearthing the previous tenant's belongings informed him that it also, apparently, described the ideal setup for a small café. On his first day in his new residence, he'd uncovered an antique coffee machine and a few other ancient tools, kept miraculously free of rust and wear. The room's conditions must be far better than he thought.

He'd dusted his findings off and set them back up on the counter, having quickly deduced where they'd once been put to use through old nicks and rings left on the shellwood by years of service. Lemm had felt a small swell of pride at finding this small bit of the city's history, and began a set of notes on his theories about this tower complex and its surrounding culture from everything he found around. Perhaps the whole place had been a shopping centre.

On the second day, he pried open the crates in the back room, and they had spilled forth bags upon bags of beans and teas. There were so many of them that he was able to rationalize cutting one open and examining its contents without much guilt. The beans were coffee, that much was obvious at a glance.

Biological samples weren't exactly his area of expertise, but smell and texture alone all but convinced him that they'd been perfectly preserved in their airtight prisons, well dried and perfectly edible.

Most likely.

For the sake of research, and because the bag was already open, he put them through the machine. He committed some time to studying the machine beforehand, as he was afraid mishandling it may destroy it. But an hour of trying to figure the damn thing out was frustrating enough that he finally reasoned that if he did break it, he could at least take it apart and examine its insides for anything interesting. Lemm was a relic keeper, not a tinker. So he winged it with a bit of rainwater and the beans, and got wet beans and hot murky water all over the counter to show for it. He figured out the grinder and filter after his second attempt, and by the third, he had a mug of fresh coffee to show for his efforts. The scent that filled his shop and the outside corridor must have been nothing Hallownest had experienced in centuries. Lemm had little taste for the stuff himself, but in his experimentation he'd gone and made a whole pot. So he supposed he needed to acquire a taste for it rather quickly.

Luckily for his health, that turned out to be unnecessary. The smell, perhaps amplified in the ever-present petrichor, quickly attracted guests of the still-living variety. There turned out to be far more travelers and treasure hunters bumping around this old city than he'd initially expected, prone to tucking himself away in solitude as he was. Introverted or no, he happily gave the coffee away rather than waste it or risk giving himself a coronary. There were even a great deal of disposable mugs stacked away that just made it all the more convenient.

Just over the course of an hour, Lemm was graced with a fair amount of odd characters intruding on his doorstep. There was a surly fellow wielding a metal shield of some foreign make, who announced his intentions towards finding and conquering Hallownest's old colosseum. He was convinced it was still in operation somewhere. Lemm decided that if it was, the place was more than likely not populated with the sorts of honorable warriors this poor bastard was looking to prove himself against, but he kept his thoughts to himself and sent the boy off with a steaming cup of acrid bean water. Next came another traveller who gave off a more scholarly air than the first had, and who carried a more conventional weapon at his hip. The pill bug certainly acted more like a student than a warrior, all bright-eyed and curious and talkative. But no doubt he must know how to use that nail of his to have survived this far down and still be so cheerful. His stay wasn't entirely unpleasant; the two actually talked a short while about Hallownest's history and their shared learnings. The bug even tried to insist on paying, but Lemm was adamant that his reliquary wasn't a damn breakfast nook, thank you, keep your geo. But if he really wanted to pay, Lemm would certainly take any interesting artifact or trinket the bug happened to pick up on his travels. They eventually came to an agreement: A journal pilfered from a shrine somewhere in Greenpath for an extra cup for the road. Lemm's next visitor was, of all things, a cartographer. This one was far too involved in his work for much conversation, which was fine by Lemm. But he did manage to barter a cup for a map of the city. It was incomplete and bare of any landmarks, much to Lemm's disappointment. Finally, an odd little wanderer walked in almost soundlessly. They did not speak to Lemm, nor did they give any indication that they were here for any specific reason. But they had acquired an old city crest and a King's idol on their path, and Lemm had a more typical exchange of geo for relics with them. And then because it was the last of the coffee in the still warm pot, and because the little wanderer did not refuse, he sent them off with a cup on their way out. Thankful to be rid of all the blasted coffee and done with the uptick in social interaction, he then washed the pot and continued with his normal studies. It was nice and quiet, now.

But then the next morning, the pill bug returned. And he was surprised (and clearly disappointed) to see the coffee pot empty. It was a shame, he'd said. For he'd gone and found himself another journal, and considered a relic he couldn't use for a hot morning's drink to be a fine deal indeed. Lemm was inclined to agree, for how it saved him his geo in case of a more potentially significant find down the line. He turned the machine back on at once at the prospect. Unfortunately, he didn't know how to brew just one cup, and was still rightfully intimidated by the old, fussy contraption, and not inclined to mess with what worked. So he made another full pot, and talked shop.

The pill bug wasn't the only one to return that day. The would-be gladiator came back, still not having found his destination, and had the gall to just expect another drink. After the deal he'd just made, Lemm was feeling markedly less generous than he had been the day before, and informed his nasally guest that he'd have to barter something old and interesting for it.

The ant grumbled and left, but returned a few minutes later with a guardsman's crest. He'd apparently seen old treasures all over the place, but had found it beneath him to go and pick them up." A warrior has no need to weigh himself down with baubles," he'd sneered over his cup. Lemm privately thought that the plague-crazed beasts who were doubtlessly running the colosseum now would soon show this haughty kid what they cared for his warrior’s creed in due time, so he said nothing.

The silent wanderer came later. This time when they held up an ancient journal, they made no move to take the geo held out to them. They only stared at Lemm, with their little mask so perfectly unmoving he could easily think them a sudden corpse. Then his hand drifted towards the pot, and the creature set the journal down on the counter.

"...News of a relic keeper bartering goods for coffee has already spread among your lot, then? I suppose even wanderers must have a rumor mill," Lemm talked to himself while pouring their cup. Predictably, they padded away without an answer, drink in hand. Lemm would soon learn how right he was.

- The coming days were more lucrative than his business had ever been. All the travellers he'd met before all came back with various oddities found around Hallownest, as did anyone new. Though not everyone quite understood what constituted a relic, and Lemm had to turn down more than a few shiny rocks and petrified lake detritus. But they all got the routine down soon enough. And, well, Lemm did have an extraordinary amount of coffee that'd just go to waste for another thousand years otherwise, so, may as well.

The pill bug, Quirrel, came to be his best "customer", though Lemm would be twice damned before he ever said the word aloud. Either way, Quirrel often stayed long enough just chatting to warrant a second cup.

"I ought to have you bring double the treasure," Lemm griped once while handing that second cup over. Quirrel's response was a good natured laugh.

"Perhaps elsewhere, that'd be fair. Coffee was a luxury in some lands, and remains so to this day, but by my understanding it was quite in abundance here. Though I couldn't tell you where in the world they must have been growing it," he mused. Lemm raised a brow, wondering once again where in gods' names this bug was educated. But as asking would be an invitation to hear his life story, Lemm deferred.

"Is that right?" he asked instead, "I don't care for the stuff myself, luxury or no." "Really? Not an uncommon opinion, I suppose. I picked it up as a habit at one point... Though, I couldn't tell you when, now that I think of it," Quirrel trailed off, adjusting the oversized mask over his head. Lemm found it an odd choice of protection from the rain, though he supposed it was better than nothing. He only shrugged, "I hear many students do make a habit of caffeine. Your sorts can never get enough hours out of the day."

Quirrel stared at him for a brief moment, and then huffed a laugh again. "Student? You mistake me, sir. I've only ever been a traveller for as long as I can remember."

Lemm didn't bother to mask his surprise, and Quirrel's eyes crinkled. "You're right on that second part, though. So much to see, and never enough time." He took a sip.

The mapmaker came back one day with an order for two drinks. He had no relics, but offered an extra inkwell and quill instead. Lemm found equipment for keeping good notes was lucky to come by, and reluctantly made the trade, much to the old bug's gratitude.

"Thank you, the second is for my wife running our shop surface-side. It was her suggestion you might want materials for your research."

Lemm cleared his throat, blustering slightly under his beard.

"Ahh. Hm. I can appreciate that, then."

"Oh, on that note, have you any sugar you can add in for her?" The bug peered over Lemm’s shoulder, which rankled him for some reason.

"...I did find a jar back here somewhere, I think." Though he couldn't promise it was good. Could sugar go bad? It still just looked like white sand.

"Thank you. ...Err, actually, is that a box of tea on the shelf, there?"

Lemm paused in his rummaging, and looked back at the open storeroom door. The room now made a good home for his relics, though he never bothered unpacking the open crates.

"...It is," he eyed the bug neutrally.

"Ah. Iselda enjoys her coffee, though I quite prefer a good cup of tea myself. ...Erm, if it isn't too much trouble, of course," the bug grinned politely over folded hands.

Lemm, to his credit, did not sigh. There was indeed a kettle back there, too. And at least he knew how to brew tea without making an entire day's worth of it.

He brought up the jar of sugar, and leveled the bug with a grumpy look.

"Fine. But next time, you bring relics."

The cartographer acquiesced immediately, and that was the point where Lemm realized he'd invited them both to expect a "next time".

The silent wanderer came back again, on the tail of a group of treasure hunters who came in and left up the elevator. Shortly after, there was the sound of struggle above them.

This had become commonplace. Anyone who showed up had to contend with the violent husks above and beyond the shop, and some were more prepared to deal with the dangers of Hallownest than others. Lemm only poured the wanderer's cup in bored silence, tuning out the thumping and shouts above. "You know this stuff stunts your growth, right?" Lemm asked flatly. The wanderer only ever stared.

"Dehydrates you, too. You active types probably ought to stick to water. Imagine having to deal with the horrors of rotting sentries and whatnot with a diuretic sloshing about in you." Unbothered, they leaned forward and took their cup in both hands, still staring up while he spoke. Lemm honestly had no idea if they even understood him, and considered the possibility that their muteness was compounded by a language barrier. But they at least always made the effort to appear attentive.

There was a thundering crash above them that made Lemm flinch, and then a silence that kept him tense. The voices started up once again after a few seconds, and the sound of footsteps hurrying away as fast as they could. By his guess, his last customers had just had a very close encounter with a belfly. He'd likely not be seeing them again.

He turned his attention back down to the wanderer with a sigh.

"...Let me see what you have, then."

The tiny thing set their cup carefully down by their feet, and fished a genuine void egg from the depths of their grubby cloak. Lemm was struck with the brief impulse to give them the entire coffee machine for it.

There was a new visitor one morning, just as Lemm brewed the pot for his regulars. He rarely got anyone so very early, and was guiltily nursing his own cup of acrid sugary heart disease before anyone would be around to see. Alright, so he'd acquired the taste for it. It was hardly unreasonable with how much time he spent around the smell, and it helped him make up for lost time studying his relics later in the night. Perfectly understandable, and so he definitely did not freeze mid sip like he was caught in a crime when the door opened unexpectedly. The red-clad stranger who walked in wore a wicked-sharp needle slung across her back, and fixed him with an even sharper gaze.

"...I hear you sell tea." Her voice was quiet enough, but cut clear without the normal hesitant lilt of a question.

Lemm slowly put down his mug, and the soft thunk it made against the countertop sounded awfully loud in the morning lull.

"...I don't sell anything. I buy," he insisted.

The altogether frightening lass glanced between him, the full coffee pot, and the kettle sat next to a stack of assorted loose leaf teas. Then back at him.

He grunted, hiding an inane flush of indignation behind another swig of his drink.

"...I seek artifacts. Relics of this place's past, and anything that may help me understand it, for geo. ...Or for a cuppa, for those who'd rather." He shifted behind the counter, nearly trailing off into a mumble. But at this point, there wasn’t much use in fighting his reputation.

The girl just scrutinized him until she seemed to come to a decision. She then turned and left without saying anything else, opting to hop down the elevator shaft rather than waste a moment calling the lift.

Lemm rolled his eyes and gulped down the dregs of his coffee, vaguely annoyed. By this point, he was used to the rude and half feral sorts of vagabonds that only came by out of curiosity. At least she was quick about leaving.

All the better for him, as far as he was concerned. He doubted such a young thing would have anything of note to share with Hallownest's foremost historian.

#telephoneknight #hollowknight #hollow knight #RelicCoffeeAu #lemm #tiso #ghost #quirrel

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pitubea1910 · 4 years ago

Text

10th Anniversary

Pairing: Harry Styles x Reader

Words: 4k

Warnings: -

Tags: -

Request: -

Notes: I was supposed to post this for their 10th Anniversary but I totally forgot about it and just found it on my drafts! So I hope you like it :)

MASTERLIST

The moment you woke up you knew what day it was without even looking at the calendar.

July 23rd 2020.

10 years. It had been a whole decade since all the craziness started. Looking back now, you would have never imagined everything you all had gone through in that time, how much you had grown up -together and separated-, how much your lives had changed.

You were a 15 years-old-girl when you met them thanks to your aunt Lou. When you first laid eyes on them, you just saw five loud and unstoppable guys. You would have never imagined that you would find four brothers and something else in them.

However, there you were, 10 years later, checking your Twitter timeline with a stupid grin on your face. It looked like 2012 all over again and you loved it. You missed those times like crazy. Of course, you knew the hiatus was coming the moment Zayn left the band -and they had earned every single day of it-, but that didn’t change how much you missed them all.

Even though you had kept in touch with the five of them it wasn’t the same. They were all busy with their own solo projects and they barely had the time to meet up. You couldn’t blame them, but you still missed them. Especially the green-eyed one.

Harry and you immediately clicked when you met. It turned out you had a lot in common and similar personalities. You had a tight relation with the whole group, but what you and Harry had was special. Probably it helped that you were the same age. But the truth was that it didn’t matter the reason, you were always together.

Everyone who saw you together and knew how your relationship was just kept on saying that you two would end up together. It turned out they weren’t completely wrong, although it never worked out the way you would have wanted. You were a couple for less than a year. It was the best year of your life and the worst break-up you ever had.

You loved him and he loved you, there was no doubt of that, but it was too complicated to keep it going. As much as you loved touring the world with them, spending every single day with Harry, you also needed a life of your own, you wanted to go to college and doing it from afar didn’t work for you. It was the hardest decision you ever made, but everyone understood and supported you. Harry the most.

It broke his heart as well, but he knew he couldn’t ask you to keep with his lifestyle. He had to let you go. You gave distance a chance, but with their schedules and the time zones it soon became impossible. You remembered the last FaceTime you had, how heartbroken you both were. But it was for the best.

You never lost contact though. Every single time he would come to London he called you to spend a day together. Those days ended up being the best days of the year and they usually ended with you two going back to his place and spending the night together. And every morning your heart broke knowing you had to say goodbye again. But you kept on coming back to him every time his name showed up on your screen.

Usually he was the one who reached out, which made sense since he was the one who was travelling all the time. That morning, that July 23rd, was different. You texted first for the first time in a long time.

Happy 10 years, Styles. Wish we could celebrate together. Love you.

You gulped before sending the text. He was probably in the States and he wouldn’t see it for another few hours, so after sending some other texts to Louis, Liam, Niall and Zayn, you got out of bed and headed to the shower. Usually, you would have to hurry to get to your internship, but with the pandemic you still didn’t have to go, so you had another day completely off.

However, before you got into the shower, you heard your ringtone. You frowned confused. It was way too early for your mum to be calling, so you had no clue who could it be. Maybe it was your boss, giving you an update on the status of your internship. With a sigh, you turned on the water and went back to the room, hoping it would be a quick call so you could go back to your shower.

You took the phone without even looking at the phone and answered it.

“Hello?” You said as you started walking back to the bathroom.

“Happy ten years to you too, love”, a deep known voice said on the other side, making you stop on your tracks as your heart started racing.

Quickly, you checked the caller and saw Harry’s name. He was probably the last person you expected to talk to that day.

“Thanks”, you finally managed to say when you put your phone against your ear.

“I’m guessing you didn’t expect my call?” He said. Judging by his tone, you knew he was smirking, which made you smile.

“You guessed correctly”, you admitted. “How are you awake?”

“I was out for an early run”, he said, making you frown.

“Wait, are you in England?”

“In London to be more accurate”, he said.

“R-really?” You stuttered.

“So maybe we can also make the celebration happen”, he said.

“Really?” You repeated. “I mean, yes! That would be great!”

You smacked yourself on the forehead for being such a nerd. He chuckled quietly before saying he had to make some calls during the morning, but he could pick you up at noon to have some lunch. You said yes immediately. Most of the restaurants were still closed, but he was Harry Styles. He always had a trick up his sleeve, and you couldn’t see what he would pull off that day.

Since you woke up way too early, the morning went off slowly. Or maybe it was just you being impatient. However, you finally got a text from Harry saying he was parked outside of your building. You grabbed your purse with the basic stuff -wallet, keys and phone- and a mask. Once you were sure you had locked the door properly, you went to the elevator.

Usually, he would wait for you in his car in case some recognised him. So it shocked you to see him casually leaning against the vehicle when you walked out of the building. When he heard you, he looked up from his phone. You couldn’t see his whole face due to the mask he was wearing, but his eyes told you he was smiling.

Despite all the precautions and distancing you were supposed to take, you knew it wouldn’t work with him. He was like a magnet and all you wanted to do was hug him and have him hugging you.

“Can I hug you?” He asked.

The fact that he was thinking the same as you made you laugh. All you did was hugging him tightly. He could always hug you, no matter what. He was the exception to every rule.

“I missed you”, you said with your eyes closed, which made him squeeze you a bit tighter.

“Me too”, he whispered.

You spent a couple of minutes just holding each other before he pulled away and opened the passenger door for you. You thanked him with a smile and got into the car and buckled up while he walked around the vehicle to get in before taking off the mask. You did the same and looked at him, the whole him this time.

“I love your hair short”, you said.

Harry looked at you with a dimpled smile and ran a hand through his hair -an old habit he didn’t seem to be able to shake but you loved- before turning on the engine.

“How long has it been?” He asked once he started driving.

“Christmas, I think”, you said after thinking about it for a moment. “Hans’ Christmas party before you went back to the States.”

“Right”, he said and looked at you, making you blush and smile at the memories of that night. “How have you been?”

“Locked”, you chuckled making him chuckle as well. “But good, I finished my thesis, watched a lot of movies and TV shows and baked. A lot.”

“You’ve always been good at baking”, he said.

“And you’ve always been good at eating”, you teased, making him laugh. “What about you?”

“I got stuck in the States until a few days ago”, he shrugged. “Didn’t do much either.”

“Sorry about your tour, by the way”, you said when you remembered. “I was excited.”

“Me too”, he sighed. “But some stuff are more important.”

You smiled a little and nodded to yourself. This pandemic had been, and was been, a wreck all around the world. As usual, you reached out to turn on the radio, which made Harry smile to himself. Ever since the first time you had got into his car, all those years ago, you would always start the music, no matter what. At first, he was surprised you took such confidences in someone else’s car, but he soon loved that detail about you.

“How is it going with your internship?” He asked when the song that was playing on the radio ended.

“I’m on furlough”, you shrugged and sighed. “I got an email last week saying some people would start coming back to work soon. But I don’t think that includes interns.”

“I wouldn’t be in a hurry if I were you”, he commented as he checked the mirrors. “You don’t have a car to go to the office and I wouldn’t be too excited about getting into the tube.”

“I could always get a bike”, as soon you said that you both started laughing. You were the less sportive person you had even known. “Yeah, that was a good one.”

“Indeed”, he chuckled.

“I’m not in a hurry to go back”, you shrugged. “But it’s boring.”

“I know”, he sighed and looked at you for a moment. “But at least now we have time to hang out.”

“Like old times”, you smiled. Harry smiled softly and nodded.

“Like old times.”

“Where are we going by the way? Most restaurants are still closed”, you said.

You had been so focused on talking to Harry and watching him drive that you hadn’t been paying attention to the streets, so you had no idea where you were going.

“My place”, he said, surprising you. “My new place, actually.”

“You have a new place?” You asked even more surprised.

“Yeah. Too many people knew about the house in Hampstead. It was annoying”, he sighed. “Hopefully, no one will find out about this one.”

“But you loved Hampstead!”, you pouted. You loved that house too, to be honest.

“I didn’t sell it”, he shrugged with a smile. “I just don’t use it as official residency.”

“Good”, you smiled now. “So… your place.”

“You’re okay with that?” He asked a bit concerned.

“Oh yes! I just assumed we would to some restaurant”, you shrugged.

“I thought about it”, he nodded. “But even if they’re open, I feel bad for the people who have to work in them, so I guess it makes their lives less anxious with less customers.”

“Always so thoughtful”, you commented.

“Can’t help myself”, he said, his cheeks blushing a little.

You smiled sweetly and looked out of the window, now curious to see where he had moved to. Judging by the zone, you were in the south of London, although you couldn’t figure out exactly where.

Finally, he drove into a subterranean parking in a big brick building. The parking didn’t have many cars, which led you to believe that he didn’t have many neighbours. Harry parked at the very end of the place and, once he turned off the engine, you unbuckled yourself and got out of the car.

“Quite big for a few cars”, you commented looking around.

“I know”, he laughed after locking his car. “It’s a new building. Probably is four years old, so not many people live here yet. And those who do, have more than one car so…”

“You have more than one spot?” You asked.

“Those three are also mine”, he said pointing.

You smiled when you saw the familiar black Range Rover in which you had been so many times over the years. The other two spots were empty, but you knew he had the cars to fill them.

Without saying anything, he started walking to an elevator you hadn’t seen at first sight. You followed him while you checked your phone before throwing it into your bag for the rest of the day. When you got into the elevator, you looked around at how new it looked.

“How long have you been living here?” You asked, leaning against the wall of the elevator.

“A couple of years”, he shrugged and you nodded. “I was the second one to move in.”

“Really?” He nodded. “Nice”, you chuckled.

It didn’t surprise you when the elevator opened at the last floor. He had always liked high places and he had always said that he would love to live in a penthouse someday. It looked like he had fulfilled another one of his fantasies. As you stepped out, you saw that there were only two doors. Private.

“I’m the only one in this floor”, he commented. “These two places are the most expensive so”, he shrugged.

“More silence for you. Imagine a family with three children living across the hall”, you said.

“You would go crazy”, he laughed.

“Definitely”, you smiled a little.

It wasn’t like you didn’t like kids. You did. But when there were many of them, you got a bit nervous, especially if they were loud.

Harry took out a keychain and put it in front of where a locker should have been. It beeped and he pushed the door open. He looked back with a cocky grin.

“Snob”, you mumbled when he let you walk in first.

“Hey!” He laughed.

He took your bag and hung it next to the door while you looked around in awe. It was an open-space living room and kitchen, surrounded by huge windows from where you could see Vauxhall Bridge and the other side of the Thames. It was all decorated in cold colours, but it wasn’t a cold environment. He had managed to give his personal and warm touch.

“What do you think?” He asked standing behind you, a bit more closer than what you expected.

“Much better than Hampstead”, you admitted.

“You think so?”

“There’s no way teenage girls will camp just outside your door”, you shrugged.

“Good point”, he laughed. “Come, I’ll show you the balcony.”

“I’m not a big fan of heights”, you reminded him while he was dragging you by your hand.

“I won’t let you go”, he said.

Saying no to him was an impossible task. There was nothing you could deny to him, not when he gave you that dimpled smile that you loved so much.

To be honest, the views were breath-taking, it couldn’t be denied, but you didn’t go too close to the edge just in case and Harry didn’t push you. All he did was hold your hand tightly.

“I have to confess something”, he said after a while.

“What is it?” You asked quietly.

“I haven’t cooked anything. I was praying you were craving pizza”, he said, making you laugh out loud.

“I’m always craving pizza, you idiot”, you said giving him hand a gentle squeeze before going back inside.

He followed you inside but left the door open. While he ordered the pizza, you walked around the living room, checking out the photos he had framed and also the vinyl collection he had. You smiled a little when you saw that he had all One Direction CDs there as well, as vinyl.

When you started looking at the photos, the first one that caught your eye was one of the two of you, so many years ago, in the tour bus. You took it from the chest it was on. You smiled warmly as you remembered all those long hours stuck into the bus. Somehow, they all managed to make it fun.

In the photo, you and Harry were laying down on one of the sofas, sleeping while facing each other. You were cuddled up against him while he had one hand on your waist, hugging you, and the other one stretched over your head. You remembered having that photo as your lockscreen for so long.

“I think that’s my favourite.”

You hadn’t expected Harry to be just behind you. You hadn’t even heard him coming close to you, so you gasped and almost dropped the photo, but he was quick enough to catch it.

“So I would appreciate if you didn’t break it”, he chuckled.

“Sorry, you scared me”, you said.

“Sorry”, he said too and looked down at the photo before putting it back on top of the chest. “We really had fun that tour, didn’t we?”

“Wasn’t it the one when we started dating?” You asked. He nodded and turned around to walk to couch. “It really was fun.”

“Are you seeing anyone?” He asked all of sudden.

You chuckled and looked down before shaking your head. It was a question that always came up between you two. If the answer was positive it changed the whole mood of the time you spent together. It wasn’t like you didn’t want each other to date other people, but it still hurt to see it.

“Are you?” You asked.

“No”, he said and looked at you before smiling a little.

“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that”, he said and looked down at his hands. He started playing with his rings, which he used to do whenever he got nervous.

“About what?”

“Us.”

“Oh…”, you gulped and looked down as well.

You always feared when he brough that up. Usually it was because he was seeing someone, so you guessed this time wouldn’t be different, even though he had just said he wasn’t seeing anyone. You bite your lip and nodded.

“Okay”, you whispered.

“I was going to wait until after we ate but since it came up”, he shrugged.

“You brought it up”, you quickly said.

“Good point”, he chuckled.

“Anyway”, you looked at him. “What is it? What’s her name?”

“Her name?” He asked confused. “I’m… I’m not seeing anyone. I told you.”

“Really?” You frowned, even more confused than him. “I just- Every time you want to talk about us, it is because you’re seeing someone.”

“Oh… I hadn’t thought about it, to be honest”, he said thinking about it before laughing a little. “It’s not the case now”, he shrugged.

“What is it?” You asked now curious but also fearful. What if he said he didn’t have feelings for you anymore?

“You know how we have always said that we can’t be together because of how messy my life is, right?” He asked and you nodded, having no clue where he was going with this. “Well, I’ve been thinking about it, and you were right about it back then. When I was in the band. Now it’s different.”

“How? You still have the same job”, you shrugged. “And I don’t want you to have a different one”, you quickly added.

“Yes, but I’m not touring all year long”, he explained. “Now I can take my time. It’s been two years since I dropped my first solo album and only last year, I dropped Fine Line. Yes, when I’m on tour I spend a lot of time on it, but I also have a lot of time between one and the next. Especially now that it’s been postponed.”

“Harry”, you interrupted him. “Go to the point”, you chuckled.

“Yes, sorry”, he smiled a little. “I want to give it, us, another chance.”

Your mind went completely blank as he said the words. You had no idea how many times you had dreamed about this and, now that it was right in front of you, you didn’t know what to say. Suddenly, you felt scared, confused, lost. You loved him? Of course you did. Was this a good idea? You got no idea. You only knew that the first time almost broke you and you didn’t know if you were ready to go through that again.

Although it could work out this time, a tiny voice inside your head said.

What if it didn’t? What if you just didn’t work as a couple?

Luckily for you, just then the bell rang.

“Pizza!” You exclaimed and got up, relieved to have some time off from that conversation.

Harry looked at you as you ran to the door, obviously running away from him at the moment. He had no idea what to think of that. Did that mean you didn’t feel the same way anymore? You only saw him as a friend? Or maybe it was just that you didn’t see it coming and felt a bit overwhelmed? He wanted to believe it was the latest, but his mind kept on going to the worst-case scenario.

Anyway, the food was there and he figured that giving you time to take his words in wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Harry had already paid for the pizzas when he ordered them, so all you had to do was take them. Once you closed the door by pushing it with your foot, you went to the isle that separated the kitchen from the living room and put them on top of it.

“This smell amazing”, you said while Harry was walking around the kitchen gathering the dishes, glasses and napkins.

“I’m drooling just by the smell”, he agreed. “Do you want to eat here, in the living room or out there?”

“It’s a bit chilly out there”, you said. “Maybe the living room and we can watch something on Netflix?”

“Sounds good”, he nodded.

Silently, you two moved everything to the living room and set the table up. When it was all ready, Harry turned on the TV and logged into his Netflix account before he started looking for something to watch while you poured water into the glasses.

“What about Harry Potter and The Priosioner of Azkaban?” He suggested.

“You know me”, you smiled widely.

It was your favourite Harry Potter movie, so there was no way you would say no to it. Harry smiled warmly and nodded to himself.

“I do”, he sighed before pressing play on the remote.

***

“I’m surprised you watched the whole movie”, you said two hours later when the movie was over.

“Why?” Harry asked.

He stood up and started taking everything back to the kitchen.

“Well”, you got up too and took the glasses. “You always fall asleep during the movies I choose.”

“Technically, I chose this one, so it would’ve been rude to fall asleep”, he said while you handed him the glasses so he would put them into the dishwasher.

“It’s rude anyway but whatever helps you sleep at night”, you said with a smile.

“Are you saying I’m rude?” He asked with his eyes narrowed after he closed the dishwasher.

“Contrary to popular belief, Mr. Styles… I know the whole truth about you”, you said, crossing your arms.

“And what is that?” He asked, mirroring your position.

“That you can be rude sometimes”, you shrugged.

“Falling asleep during a movie is not rude. It is… tiredness”, he said, making you laugh.

“And you always have a reply for everything”, you said.

“I like to be prepared”, he shrugged.

“Like I said…”, you laughed and leaned against the counter.

Harry laughed out loud and shook his head before excusing himself to go to the bathroom. You stayed there in the kitchen, thinking again about what Harry had said just before the pizza arrived. You had barely paid attention to the movie thanks to that.

You had no idea where that proposition came from. It had been years since you two had had any conversation about your relationship and you had no idea what you wanted. Yes, you loved him. Yes, you wanted to be with him. But you feared that this was just about him feeling nostalgic. You remembered vividly the great couple you two were, but you didn’t know if you could go through that kind of heartbreak again.

“You know what I’ve been trying to get better at during lockdown?”

You jumped a little since you hadn’t heard him coming back from the bathroom.

“Surprise me”, you said, still lost in thought.

“Football”, he said. You looked at him with an eyebrow raised, trying not to laugh.

“Really?” You asked. “How did that turn out exactly?”

“Awful”, he admitted, making you laugh.

“I figured”, you nodded and sighed, looking down at your hands.

You felt him coming closer until he was standing right in front of you. Yet, you didn’t dare to look up.

“You okay?” He finally asked.

“Where did that come from?” You blurted out. When he didn’t answer, you looked up. He was frowning and the look in his eyes told you that he was measuring his words. “About us.”

“From… what I feel for you”, he said like it was obvious. “What I’ve always felt for you.”

“Right”, you sighed.

“Don’t you feel the same anymore?” He asked worried.

“I don’t think there’s a world, a universe, where I don’t feel that way about you”, you sighed.

“What’s the problem, then?”

“Why now? How do I know that this, you wanting more again, is not something that will just go away?” You asked.

“I’ve always wanted more from us, (Y/N). The only reason we broke up was because we couldn’t make it work with our lives. We can now”, he said. Hesitantly, he took a step towards you and held your hands. “I’ve loved you since we were 18. I can promise you it isn’t going anywhere. Ever. And neither am I.”

“It…”, you sighed. “It just hurt so much when we broke up, Harry. I don’t think I can go through that again.”

“You won’t.”

“You can’t promise that”, you chuckled.

“I could”, he shrugged. “Because that’s a promise I plan on keeping.”

You looked down at your united hands and sighed. His hands had always been so big, way bigger than yours, which had always made you feel safe in a strange way. You bit your lip, not knowing what to do. You knew what you wanted, but you didn’t know if you were brave enough to do it.

“I love you”, you whispered.

“And I love you too”, he said back, rubbing your hands. “You’re my endgame.”

“Don’t use The Avengers against me”, you said, making him laugh. With a sigh, you looked up and it surprised you to find his green eyes so close to yours. “You can’t look at me with those eyes and expect me to give you a reasoned answer.”

“I don’t want you to follow reason”, he shrugged. “I want you to say what you really want.”

“You”, you said without hesitation. “Always. Every day.”

Harry smiled warmly and put some hair out of your face gently, before cupping your face.

Your heart was beating so fast and it felt so loud, that it surprised you that he couldn’t listen to it. You didn’t know what the right thing to do was, but you knew that reasoning about this wouldn’t get you anywhere. You knew you loved him, you knew you wanted to be with him. Maybe he was right. Maybe you could make it work this time. They said that third time was the charm, but maybe the second could be your charm.

“Is it a yes?” He asked, now looking at your lips.

“Yes”, you finally nodded.

His smile grew even bigger now before pulling you towards him and pressing his lips against yours. Just like every single time, you felt fireworks in your stomach. Ever since the first time you kissed him, you felt you could spend your whole time kissing him and would never get tired of it.

Maybe this time, you could do it forever.

#harry styles #harry #harry imagine #harry styles imagine #harry x reader #harry styles x reader #one direction #10 years #10 years of 1d #niall horan #zayn malik #louis tomlinson #liam payne #fluff #imagine #one shot #pitubea #original work

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miraclekittyandbug · 3 years ago

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Ten Questions With A Twist Chapter 7 (Final Chapter)

Here ya go! Final chapter! So exciting! Please don’t hesitate to comment and tell me what you think of it and what you would like to see in the next fic!

~ Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ This Chapter ~

Patrol that night couldn’t have come fast enough. Adrien got there about fifteen minutes early, only to be surprised that Ladybug was already at their meeting place. When he saw her the realization hit him all over again. There, on the ledge of the Eiffel Tower, was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, in a magical suit and a magical mask. She glanced up and him and beamed. His heart melted. There was only one more step to the plan.

“Evening, my lady! How are you fairing on this lovely parisian night?”

Ladybug sighed and smiled, staring at the city before her. “I’m doing… really well. I’ve got all those answers, if you’re ready for them.” She turned so she was sitting cross legged next to Chat, who had sat down to her right.

“I actually have one more question for you to ask him.” Chat focused on his dangling legs, not brave enough to make eye contact with what he was about to say.

“You’re never going to guess all these answers, kitty.”

He responded, glancing her direction, “I have my ways.”

“Alright what’s this question?”

Still not daring to make eye contact, he mustered up enough courage and told her the addition to the list. Her reaction was immediate.

“No. No way, Chat, I absolutely cannot ask him that question! I barely got through the ten you already gave me and that question is a million times worse than any of them! I’m simply not capable!”

Chat shrugged, having expected something along these lines. “You’re capable of anything, Bugaboo. But you don’t have to ask it if you don’t want to. I’ll have the answer either way.”

“He could be anybody, Chat. How can you be so sure? Really, tell me.”

“I’ll tell you what, Bug. Ask the question or don’t. Either way, I’ll explain everything tomorrow night, if you’re willing to listen.”

The next day at school, Adrien couldn’t contain his excitement. Knowing Marinette, he didn’t bother getting to school early. He did, however, wait outside until he saw her run up the sidewalk. Not as late as she had been the day before, but still in a hurry nonetheless. He stood there, frozen for a minute. He watched as she met up with Alya and chatted a bit as they walked up to the steps. He stared in horror as she glanced in his direction to find him gazing at her.

Suddenly, Adrien realized he wasn’t excited. He was nervous. Like, REALLY nervous. Because if she worked up the courage to ask that question then he would have to work up the courage to answer it. He would have to answer that question that he gave her. THE question. Holy shit, he couldn’t do this. He was sweating. And she was walking towards him. She was blushing, but grew more concerned as she grew near. Adrien felt the sweat trickle down his neck and his face grow flush. He could only imagine what horrifying monstrosity his face had mangled itself into.

But Marinette was in front of him. She waved her hand in front of his face and he snapped out of it.

“Are you okay, Adrien? You don’t look too good.”

Adrien cleared his throat before he dared to answer, “Oh, me? Yeah I think I just need some fresh air.”

Marinette looked around her. “Well you’re already outside, so hopefully that will help. Did you need me to take you to the nurse’s office?”

“No,” he waved his hands in front of him, “I’m just gonna run to the bathroom and splash some water on my face.”

“Okay. And I want you to know,” she lowered her voice so nobody else could hear them, “If you think this might be a panic attack, I know all sorts of techniques to help with that. Breathing exercises and pressure points in your hands, the whole deal. They’re nothing to be ashamed of.”

Oh god, he fell in love with her all over again. He suddenly felt like crying, just because her gaze was so comforting. She stared into his eyes and smiled the most genuine smile. He found himself being drawn to her. Faster than he had control over, he glanced down to her lips and found that she did the same. Microscopically, they grew closer. This, Adrien thought, was not part of the plan. But who am I to resist?

“Adrien! Bro!” Nino called, snapping the two out of their shared reverie. Nino ran up to them, completely oblivious to the fact that he was interrupting something. “Hey, are you alright, dude? I’ve been calling your name for like two full minutes.”

“Yeah,” Adrien shrugged his way out of the awkward air that surrounded them, daring to look at Marinette, he found she was doing much the same. She wasn’t making eye contact and instead she was studying the hem of her sleeve.

And so the day went on.

And on.

Adrien got in close proximity to Marinette as often as he could, but once she saw him, Marinette would only blush and walk away. A handful of times she was the one that approached him, but they both lost their nerve before the question was asked or answered.

All too soon, and yet not soon enough, that evening’s patrol was about to start. Chat found himself circling the block a few times, trying to run off his adrenaline. He thought he had purged himself clean of it, but when he landed at their meeting place, his heart started racing again.

This was it. This was the moment.

“Did you ask that question?” Chat asked, settling down on her left side this time.

Ladybug sighed, “I tried, Chat, I honestly did. But I just couldn’t. Everytime I attempted, my heart started beating so fast and I got in my own head and then I pictured his response and was wondering if it was going to be the response that I wanted or if it was if he would even be able to say that to me or even-”

“Hey! It’s okay! Calm down, you’ll hyperventilate. A friend told me today about breathing exercises and pressure points. Do you know any?”

Ladybug paled, but after a moment took a deep breath and dug her thumb into her opposite hand.

“It’s alright that you didn’t ask. I know the answer anyway.”

“Alright, Chat,” Ladybug relaxed and looked her partner in the eyes, “I’ve waited a day. Now tell me how you know these answers. Because, unless you have proof, I’ll never believe you know the answer to that question.”

Chat was leaning back on the palms of hands, and glanced at Ladybug. “You want proof?” he asked, trying to be casual.

Ladybug looked at him, concern and something unnamed in her eyes, “Desperately.”

“Alright. I’ll tell you. But I need you to promise me something.”

Ladybug sat up straighter when she saw Chat do the same, “Whatever you need.”

“Promise me you won’t interrupt me. I honestly don’t think I’ll be able to finish saying what I have to say if you stop me at any point.”

Her eyes grazed the skyline, something in her knowing that things were about to change. “I promise. I’m ready.”

Chat faced his partner and crossed his legs.

“This boy you like has blonde hair and green eyes. He’s really good at fencing and loves his friends,” somewhere in his mind, Chat was aware that these weren’t the answers, but he couldn’t help himself. He needed to describe himself fully. “But you already knew that.” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Man, this is harder than I thought it would be.” Ladybug put a hand on his knee. Not interrupting, because she promised she wouldn’t, but just making enough contact to let him know she was listening.

Chat continued, “This boy you like wants to visit Italy. He’s been before but never got to sightsee because of his father’s business. His favorite animals are cats, and if he could have any pet in the world he would have a black cat named the Plague. His worst fear is that he’s going to work for his father his whole life when he actually wants to be a stay at home dad one day. His favorite movie is The Princess Bride and he even referenced it when he was asked what his name was by responding ‘Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die.’ If he were stuck on an island he would bring his three best friends to keep him company. He said he goes to Hogwarts and you were really frustrated that he wasn’t giving you straight answers. His favorite dessert is the macarons from your parents bakery. And, my lady, if you had asked him that question, the one I begged you to ask him.” Chat looked her in the eyes for the first time since he started talking, “If you had worked up the nerve to ask and he had worked up the nerve to answer, I would have told you that I am in love with Ladybug, but I’m really starting to fall for you too, Marinette.”

Her eyes were red-rimmed and watery. The two just stared at each other for a moment. There was only silence between them, heavy and filled with something neither of them could name. Chat was forcing himself not to think about what he just did, if only because she hadn’t responded yet. Ladybug’s lips were wavering, but not in a frown or a smile, only twitching as if they were eager to say something but hadn’t been given a script. Chat was about to run away- go around Paris and chase rooftops while he tried not to consider the damage he had just done to the most important relationship in his life.

But then he heard a chuckle, short and sweet. Tears were streaming down her face, but the chuckle built itself up into a giggle and then into the sounds of laughter. If that sound, still, he thought, the most beautiful sound in the world, was any indication, those were tears of joy falling between them.

Ladybug clutched her stomach in laughter and her heart in joy. Chat heard her talk through her laughter, “You’re such an asshole! You made me reconsider my sexuality!” She was leaning towards him with tears still in her eyes, staring at him incredulously, “You actually had me thinking I might have been poly!”

It was impossible for Chat to stifle his own laugh, “Hey, you had me thinking the same thing before I figured it out!”

Something magnetic within her drew her closer to Chat, “I can’t believe it, she spoke, mostly to herself, “I fell in love with the same boy twice.” Chat could barely hear her over the sounds of the city, “Chat, I think you should ask out this girl.”

At full volume, he leans his head down so he could catch her eye, “Would you go out with me, Ladybug?”

Another laugh erupted from her, this time loud enough for the whole world to hear, “Silly kitty. Superheroes can’t date! I think you’d be much happier if your civilian self asked out that Marinette girl. I have a feeling she’ll say yes.”

~ Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ This Chapter ~

And that’s all she wrote! I so hope you guys liked this. Please don’t hesitate to send me asks, as I would really love to write more for you! I’m working on another fic in the meantime, but it will probably be a while until it’s out.

I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all your like and comments and reblogs!

#miraculous ladybug fic #miraculous fic #ladrien #adrienette #marichat #ladynoir #ten questions with a twist

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crystalessenceswrites · 4 years ago

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Shadows- Chapter Five

Shadows

A modern monster AU Pairings: Din Djarin x fem!reader Rating: T (at the moment- subject to change) Warnings: Swearing Summary: Crypto- concealed; secret. You have always lived your life in the shadows; after all, you’re one of the creatures who go bump in the night. He has sworn his life to a creed that aims to protect the world from monsters like you.

[Masterlist] [Chapter Four] [Chapter Five] [Chapter Six] Cross-posted to AO3

Din’s head is spinning and he’s certain it’s not from the blow Qin landed earlier. Half-bloods? Cryptos? Slayers who hunt them? How had his people not stumbled upon this before now? Generations of Mandalorian warriors had fought and given their lives to protect humans from the monsters lurking in dark corners, yet there was a whole system they had missed. A whole kind of people they had not known were possible.

That would explain why he had such trouble determining what (Y/N) was. If she was a half-blood it would make sense she appeared more human than the typical monster masquerading as such. That did not make her human though. She was still one of them. Din could not let himself forget that.

Silently he watches her finish up with the burning body. It seems routine to her. She’s also well prepared, the thistles and the gas, not to mention armed to the teeth. Following their previous encounters, the last thing Din was expecting her to be carrying was a firearm. Yet she’d managed to stun a vampire with one shot. She knew what she was doing. If there were more slayers half as skilled as her how had they gone under the radar all this time?

And why hadn’t she tried to kill him?

It kept playing over and over again in his mind. That night at the dive bar her companion was more than hostile. She had sounded more than willing to get rid of him. But (Y/N) defused it. Both opportunities she’d had to kill him, she’d ignored. Instead, she had explained herself, given him insight into what she was. She wanted him to understand her. More than once she had compared what they both did- claimed they were both protecting humans. Could he believe that? Could he believe her? Believe someone who wasn’t human?

She looks up at him, eyes soft despite the fact she has a vampire’s body burning to ash at her feet. Deadly and yet she looks so normal in that moment. “Do you…uh, need any of him to take back?”

The confusion must be plain as day on his face as the corner of her lips quirk up.

“We have to bring something back as proof of death,” she explains, “I take it you guys don’t need that?”

“No.”

That explains all her supplies then. It also goes to show how organized this group is, tracking their kills, bounties, and all under the radar of his people. Din tries to ignore how impressed he is by it all.

The innate weakness vampires hold to fire means their bodies breakdown to ash considerably quicker and at lower temperature than a human body. It’s not long till Qin is just a pile of dust on the warehouse floor. He watches in mild curiosity as the slayer collects some of the ashes into a spare jar before scattering the rest with her boot. The bloodsucker would not be bothering anyone again.

(Y/N) shifts from foot to foot, watching him closely. “So…all good?”

They shouldn’t be. He should not be letting her leave a third time- it went against every bit of training they’d drilled into him- but she stepped in to help him. He couldn’t kill her after she’d done that. Or after all she had told him. That would make him just as much a monster.

Her shoulders relax as he nods. For a moment it looks like there’s another question hanging on the tip of her tongue, but she decides against it. She shoots him a small smile as she walks away, disappearing back into the darkness of the warehouse.

Din wonders what the fuck he’s doing as he lets her go.

Even after a quick stop at the covert infirmary on his way back Din still finds himself plagued by the events of the day. He kicks himself for letting her walk away, but the thought of killing her is almost revolting. Was it because he knew that some part, no matter how small, of her was human? Because she had helped him? Or because it was her?

Excited squeals pull him from his spiraling thoughts the moment he opens the front door. In seconds the wide-eyed ball of four-year-old energy has barreled up to him, chubby hands clinging to his pant leg for dear life.

“Hey, kid. Good to see you too.”

Din gets a toothy smile in return before he runs back off again to return to what looks like coloring at the dining table with Kuiil.

“He has grown very attached to you, these last few months.”

Din cannot disagree with Kuiil, the kid was quick to latch onto him when he returned home from his hunts and often would not go to bed at night unless he was there to say goodnight.

“Will you take him as your foundling?” The old man has been asking him that since the day he brought the young child back to the covert.

“We’re still looking for his family. There must be people out there who miss him.”

Kuiil continues to watch the child, a soft hum falling from underneath his thick beard. Din can see the wheels turning in the old man’s mind. He always had an air of wisdom about him, an air that led one to believe that deep down Kuiil did hold all the answers, if only he could uncover them. Even Armorer came to the man for advice. While he was not a Mandalorian, he was a friend of the covert and had been with them for several years now. He often helped look after the kid when Din was out hunting, and he wasn’t in class in the other foundlings.

“Maybe so, but he is here now, in your care. You have a choice to make, now or in the future. But you still must make one.”

Din agrees with a sigh, collapsing into the seat next to the kid, watching his grubby hands drag crayons across his coloring book.

“How was the hunt?”

“It was a success.”

“But?” Not only wise, but he was a perceptive old man.

“The slayer appeared again.”

“And I take it she left this encounter alive again?”

Din nods, his face solemn as Kuiil continues to help the child with his coloring.

“Did you learn anything new?”

He had almost learned more than he wanted to. “She claims to be a half-blood.��

“Half-human? Is that why you could not harm her?”

“I…I don’t know.”

“She has shaken you- you don’t know what to do with this new information.” The old man speaks as if it is an already known fact. Din would be remiss to say he was wrong. Knowing this now, he sees her both as a monster and a human, both someone he is sworn to destroy and sworn to protect by his creed.

“You don’t seem surprised.”

“That she is half-human or that you are conflicted?”

Din scoffs, “both.”

“They have existed here as long as we have, among us in the most cases. It should not be a surprise that we have crossed paths before,” Kuiil shrugs, “the situation of her birth probably gives her advantages in her work.”

If she could blend in with both sides it would allow her to keep a lower profile. He could not even determine what species she was, that was proof enough she did not struggle to blend in with humans. She wore her mask well.

“As for your creed… that is another decision you’ll have to make for yourself.”

Kuiil’s wise words rattle around in his skull as he watches the kid totter around in the garden, arms outstretched as he chases another frog around. If their running track record meant anything he would run into her again, and he would have to make a choice. He just wished the right answer would make itself known before then.

“Ba!”

Din cannot help but smile at the proud kid as he runs up, the frog in his hold out on display. He was a quick little bugger, that was for sure. “Well look at that, little hunter in training.”

“Ya!” The little one waves his hands around happily, grin spread across his chubby cheeks.

It amazes him how quickly the kid had bounced back after everything he had been through. There were days it did not even cross Din’s mind that he’d rescued the child from the monsters who kidnapped him. He was happy, got along with all the other children in the covert and did well in his classes, even with his limited verbal skills. Well adjusted, is what the doctor had said.

“Ba!” The kid reaches up, grabby hands flailing.

“Alright, alright,” Din hoists the boy up, “should we get something to eat? Besides frogs?”

“Patu!”

“And here I thought you hated vampire jobs.”

Kannan looks almost smug as he watches you finish up exchanging paperwork for the reward on your most recent kill. Rolling your eyes, you stuff the check into your bag, “wasn’t like I had much of a choice with the lists today.”

“True.”

“So, did you need something, or did you just stick around to tease me?”

Kannan scoffs, “well I was gonna ask if you wanted to catch up over food but if that’s the attitude you’re going to take…”

“Where’s your apprentice today?” The teen was attached to Kannan’s hip these days, eager to get out in the field.

“He’s got his studies today, why?”

“Then food sounds like a great idea.” It had been sometime since you’d had a real chance to catch up with your old friend. He took his roles as Ezra’s mentor seriously, so he was rather booked up these days.

Kannan shoots you a satisfied grin, “the diner on 4th?”

Your stomach nearly growls at the thought. “Please.”

“I have to agree with Kira. You are a magnet for Mandalorians- or at least this one.”

You sigh, scrubbing a hand down your face. “I don’t know what I did to deserve this.”

Kannan chuckles, “since when has the universe needed a reason to screw us over?”

“You’ve got a point… I just can’t get over the odds. Three times in completely unrelated spots.” It was a large city and of all the people in the world you had to keep running into.

“There hasn’t been anyone else in the office who’s run into him. Are you sure he’s not tracking you?”

“This time I stumbled onto him, there’s no way he could have orchestrated that when I picked up the job this morning.” He obviously had not been planning on your arrival. You’d spooked him good.

Kannan shakes his head, “well you are simultaneously the unluckiest and luckiest person I know. You’ve gotten away three times now.”

You preferred to think it was due more to your skills and sharp tongue than luck, but the luck certainly was not hurting.

“It still worries me he knows your face. Even if he hasn’t been tracking you up till now it doesn’t mean he won’t try in the future.”

He had a point, but nothing about your interactions with Mando up till now would you lead you to believe he would. “I’m keeping my eye out for anything suspicious. If he does try, I’ll know. Hopefully, the fact that I know what he looks like deters him from trying.”

“We can hope.”

“I also think I figured out why we haven’t been able to find his local source in the community.”

Kannan’s eyebrows shoot up, “and how did you figure that out?”

“He asked me why I hadn’t killed him yet. Mentioned something about how my job was to deal with nuisances, so therefore I must have to kill him to get him out of the way,” you explain, “there’s no way he’s working with a crypto if that’s what he thinks slayers do. After the Fett debacle everyone around here knows we can’t do a damn thing about the Mandalorians.”

“That does sound like he’s either got old, secondhand information or his informant is messing with him. But I can’t imagine if he managed to get a full blood to help him, they’d yank him around like that,” Kannan strokes his goatee, face drawn together, “yet he’s been spot on with all his kills. He tracked down someone you pulled the bounty for before you’d even gotten there.”

“Could he be working with another hunter or have another Mandalorian partner? Someone who manages surveillance while he does the hunting?”

“It would seem the only other likely answer. Have you told Boss all this yet?”

You shake your head, “no, I don’t want to get ahead of myself… and I’m not sure what kind of reaction I’ll get once he knows I’ve crossed paths with the Mando again…”

“You haven’t told him?” Kannan goes wide-eyed, “Miss. By-The-Book not reporting a run in with a hunter?”

“Sue me for being worried about the perception of it all!”

“Chill, I’m not going to rat you out, (Y/N). I just want you to make sure you’re going to be okay. That you’re thinking this through.”

“I am thinking it through, Kannan. And if something important comes from it I’ll report it to Boss, but for now I’d rather keep this to myself.”

Kannan nods, “I trust your judgement. My lips are sealed.”

“Okay, enough about me and my drama! Tell me how things have been going for you and Hera lately!”

#fic: Shadows #the mandalorian x reader #the mandalorian x f!reader #din djarin x reader #din djarin x f!reader #din djarin imagine #the mandalorian imagine #din djarin #x reader #the mandalorian #the mandalorian fanfiction #the mandalorian au #modern au #enemies to lovers #monsters and monster hunters #fanfiction #chapter five #crystalessences writes

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kitsunesakii · 3 years ago

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A long day: part two

Part one here

Original prompt here (No.7)

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The next day I woke up alone, got dressed and headed back to work. I'm going to get fired for what I do the words echoed in my head. A red hue taking place on my features. I got to work a little late, headed to my desk, and waited for my first call.

"Frisk! Come quick! We get to work in the feild today!" Maggie could barley contain her excitement as she nearly ran into me, quickly grabbing my arm and pulling me outside towards the 'bus', a military vehicle used when catching robbers and such.

"W- what?!"

"They said they needed reinforcements, and we were the only ones left!" We were given tactical gear and shoved in the back with a bunch of others.

"Where are we going?" I swallowed thickly, A tinge of fear swelling inside of me, I wasn't used to being in the feild. On the account of no powers, our division was pretty useless outside the building, mostly just used for reassurance. This must be pretty important if they were calling us in.

"We got a tip off the web that there's gonna be a robbery but most of the force is working on the other side of the city due to the super villain 'pyrite'" Maggie whispered into my ear. We got there fairly quickly. The main police were already there, in civilian attire.

I nodded in understanding, walking with her and an undercover officer into the bank. It was still morning, pretty empty except for an older couple and a mom with a sleeping baby over her shoulder.

I sucked in a breath, uncomfort stirring in my stomach. This wasn't going to end well.

We must have been there for thirty minutes, nothing. I looked at Maggie, she bit her lip, glancing at the officer a little ways away. He gave a short nod. Finally, we started towards the door.

"Everyone on the ground!"

My stomach flipped as I watched two men in masks break through the window. The mother screamed, covering her child with her body. Bending low against the floor. The older couple, frightened, leaned against a pillar, too out of shape to bend low to the ground. One of the men looked over at them, and angled their gun.

"Did I stutter? Get. On. The. Ground."

"Hey" I mentally cursed, why can't I ever keep my mouth shut, "come on, do they look like they're a threat?" Maggie gave a curt wine. I ignored her, lifting my hands, trying to give a peaceful gesture.

"Did I ask you?" He growled, his partner shifted, whispering something in the others ear. My eyes flicked from one to the other. The first lowered his gun off of the older couple and placed it in the holster. He looked back at me and cocked his head.

My brow furrowed, I felt heavy. I looked down to see my feat weren't touching the ground. Someone screamed. I was lifted up nd swung to the side, back hitting the wall. Hard. The impact would of killed me if the partner hadn't of knock into him. The pain came quick, a small rippling pierce cut through my ribs. Knocking the air out of me.

I closed my eyes, my body feeling the cool of the floor. I heard a gun shot before everything went silent, my body going limp.

Whatever room I was in was bright, I was on something soft. I jerked, remembering the past events and quickly feeling a sting close to my gut.

"Hey," someone breathed "carful, you're lucky that he didn't damage anything severely."

I rubbed my eyes, I was on a couch, whoever was talking was behind me. I strained to look. Sean. I breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing into the couch.

He walked over with some medical care. I looked at my arms, realizing I had bandages wrapped around cuts from the fall.

"I thought-" he paused, studying me, "you were out for a while..." He finished flatly, undoing a rather bloody bandage and replace it with new gauze, gently wrapping it over the cut.

I gave a weak chuckle "looks like we switched roles"

He didn't smile, instead moved on to check other bandages. "You hit your back really hard, and while I checked for signs of rib damage, I'm still gonna need you to try and stand." His voice was near silent, blanketing over the anger that was glazed over his eyes.

He helped me up, making sure I didn't hurt myself as I stood to my feet. I tried again at a small smile, "with all of this information, why did you ever need my help?"

Silence. I felt him gingerly roll up my shirt. I winced, everything felt like a low sting. He shifted into my line of sight, quickly grabbing some type of gel. The cool of it hit my back, shattering the numbness that was in place and caused my shoulders to rise.

He stopped emediatly, "did that hurt?" His voice lost its cutting edge and instantly turned into worry.

"No, no," I reasurred, "just cold"

He continued placing the gel, smoothing it over what was probably a bruise.

"Why were you in the feild?" He asked, moving over to scoop up a second layer of gel.

"We were the last resort, most of the team was working on detaining Pyrite." The pain was fading, only a small rising and falling pinch in my gut.

He hummed in agreement, moving his hands skillfully over the bruized patches. A minute passed.

"It wasn't your fault. " I held my breath, feeling his hands stop mid stroke. Simply lingering.

"You shouldn't of been there dearest" his words carried a bite, but I also felt the bit of weight roll off of his shoulders.

"Maybe I just wanted an excuse to see you" I whispered, echoing his previous statement.

I was rewarded with a small chuckle. He shifted, unravling my shirt until no skin showed.

"You can sit back down, I'm glad your safe. "

Speaking of safe, "why did they let you take me?" I asked, curiosity tinted on my face.

A grin spread over his features like wildfire, amusement bubbling in his words, "ah, yes... They let me. "

"You kidnapped me?!" My stomach dropped, "wha- how long have I been gone, are they searching are-"

"Hey, hey, relax dearest, I told the officer that I'd return you after I fixed you up"

I slumped into the couch "Oh and I'm sure they believed you!"

His lax posture returned, his grin spreading ear to ear with every comment. He stared for a moment, studying me before standing back up.

"What?-" I choked on my words as he moved over, taking up the space on my lap. Situating each knee at my sides. I sunk into the cushions, my heart leaping out of my throat. He draped his arms over my shoulders, towering a good inch higher than me.

My face lit up like a firecracker. My brain all but working. Leaving me frozen to the spot.

"Once they see that your bandaged up they'll relax"

"Ah yes, the villain that kidnaps people, patches them up, and sends them on there way." I drew in a breath, forcing my thoughts into words. "Nothing suspicious about that, your going to get me fired!" I squeaked, watching the amusement sparkle in his eyes.

He hummed, dragging a finger through my hair. Goosebumps danced along my skin. "Don't worry, you'll be on your way soon, but first-"

He leaned in, pressing his lips flush against mine. At the same time moving his hands to my sides, drawing shapes on my skin. I melted into his touch, easily leaning into his kiss, loosing my sense of gravity. Like a magnet I was pulled closer, paralleling his stance with my own.

He held me there for what seemed like forever. A love letter written in the blush of my cheeks, in the strength of his hands.

Then, without warning, he drew back, leaving me lightheaded. Taking his long forgotten spot on the couch back, and giving me room to breathe.

"Incase it wasn't clear enough dearest, I love you"

I gawked at him, taking on shallow breaths, my brain slowly starting back up. I couldn't help but giggle. I rubbed my forehead, a smile creeping up on my features. "I'm so fired"

#heroine x villain #bank robbery #writing snippet #writing #romance #cute

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southslates · 4 years ago

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happy valentines, @felgia-starr! you requested a zutara celebrity au, so here’s this aha. thanks for organizing this, @gemmica!

don’t be dramatic / 1.2k zutara meet-cute oneshot. on ao3 or under the cut!

“The director is shit,” Azula calls over to Katara as she walks past her dressing room.

Katara stops at the door and raises an eyebrow at Azula’s overdone makeup— she likes playing villains (with depth, she’d said at their last movie night, heroes are so boring) and this complex drama starring an antihero fits her all too well. She manages to look poised and calm, even bloody and covered in fake sweat. Katara isn’t quite sure why Azula is wearing makeup— considering filming doesn’t start till tomorrow— but the woman is a perfectionist. It’s likely that she may simply be testing out how the stage makeup works on her skin. There’d been a scandal several years ago when she had an allergic reaction to eyeshadow in a dramatic thriller, and kept the puffy eyes while crying about how her mother thought her a monster.

“Isn’t he your brother?” she smirks, leaning against the side-door. She normally doesn’t pick up minor roles but she just finished the Painted Lady series— a modern remake of a folktale which took two years to film— and she’d wanted to explore something more dynamic before she took a well-deserved vacation. Her character in this film dies halfway through— and it’s Azula’s fault— and the setting is high fantasy rather than historic, so she’s excited to begin.

“So?” Azula swivels, the lady at her side maneuvering to put away her makeup. “He’s still an ass. Not like the rest of them, though. He won’t touch you. He’ll just scream at you.”

Katara hasn’t met the elusive Zuko Rokura, the young director’s prodigy, though she’s heard enough about Azula’s brother. He’d been set for stardom until his own father, iconic actor Ozai Sozin, had burnt off half his face and left him an angry mess with a ruined future. Apparently, his uncle and sister had helped him find another way to stardom. He’d gotten a movie nominated to the Tui and La Awards last year— the youngest director in years to do so.

She’d seen him on stage, then, but his face had been covered with a Blue Spirit mask— a nod to his blockbuster film. Nobody knows who actually played the Blue Spirit in the movie, though it’s well known it’s someone prominent in the film industry. Katara is willing to put her money on Jet Malik, the elusive rogue who’d broken up with her right before filming on the movie began.

“If he screams at me I’ll shove his own hand in his mouth,” Katara stands still as Azula walks over to her, dressed in her silk bathrobe, and kisses her on the cheek, leaving a disturbing red print there.

“Yeah, I’m not worried about you, Tara. See you tomorrow? Ty said she wants to drag Zuko along to the meet-up, so maybe you’ll get to kick his ass after you get to know him.”

“How bad can he be?” Katara teases as an intern grabs her arm and pulls her towards the infamous man’s office.

“Watch out!” Azula chuckles. Katara’s aide looks nervously at the hallway in front of them.

“The front desk said Mr. Rokura’s office is right ahead— we’ll meet you in the dressing room right after!”

“Thanks Meng!” Katara smiles brightly at the girl and falls ahead of her, opening the dramatic obsidian door to Zuko’s office. There’s a receiving desk in the corner, but the boy sitting at it gestures for her to go through a second door, eyes wide, when he quickly takes her in. She smiles and walks in.

There’s a pale man at the desk, glasses perched on his nose, gazing down at papers littering his hand. All she sees at first is his dark hair, and she wears her most performative grin and holds her hand out. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Rokura.”

Then he looks up, and Katara’s breath stutters. He does have a scar, a rather red and dramatic one at that, taking up the majority of the right side of his visage, but the other side is . . . attractive. The scar is smooth and ridged and a bit alarming but as she acclimates to it in seconds she thinks it’s striking. Not quite attractive, but striking. It gives him a sense of hardness and authority.

He has a reputation to be rough, that’s certain, but Katara doesn’t take shit from anyone. She shifts her gaze to his eyes, which are the same striking shade as Azula’s, and keeps her hand held sturdy.

For a second, she’s scared he’ll kiss it or do something else slightly chauvinistic, but he just tilts his glasses up and grasps it firmly, calmly. “Katara Kuruk. I’m so glad you decided to take up my offer. I’m absolutely thrilled to have you.”

“I’m thrilled to be here,” she keeps looking at his eyes as her grip stays firm on his. His hands are incredibly warm and so are his eyes— she was wrong, they’re not like Azula’s. They look kind.

But she supposes actions are louder than words, and she’s heard plenty of things about Zuko Rokura— formerly Sozin.

(But she also knows rumors spread far in her industry— fake tweets of her saying a slur were circulated by racist groups on the internet just a few weeks ago, in the wake of this proposal. They’d eventually been officially disproved, but that had been a PR nightmare, not to mention ruined a few of her nights.)

A small smile falls upon his face as he lets her go and settles down, stacking up the papers he’d been looking at. “We’ve exchanged a lot through email, and I think we’re ready to go on paperwork— I just need to officialize all of this right here,” he gestures down. “How are you feeling?”

“I think this script is amazing,” she blushes under his intense gaze. “You co-wrote it, I believe?”

“Yeah,” he chuckles, “with Aang? I believe you’ve worked with him before.”

“I have! I’ve actually spent the past few years working with my brother on the Painted Lady series, so I’m definitely oddly adjusted to working with someone in a more . . . professional setting.” She’s blushing. Why is she blushing? She’s an actor, damnit, she should be able to control herself— and oh, he’s blushing too. “I mean, that environment was absolutely professional, I just . . .”

“I understand what you mean,” Zuko chuckles. “I’ve been working with Azula and her girlfriend for several years, particularly as starring roles. It’s always great to meet new actors. And I absolutely want us to be comfortable together,” he leans in to her, a little. “I . . .” he starts and then fades off, focusing on her face.

Katara’s gaze has briefly lowered to stare at his collarbones, and she raises it again to meet his, hoping her face isn’t completely giving her away to this strangely awkward man. She sees no hint of the anger Azula had mentioned. “I wouldn’t want to impose on too much of your time,” she starts, unsure if she’s imagining the magnetic pull between them or the way he’s staring into her eyes.

“No, no, you absolutely couldn’t,” he almost stutters out. “The first day of filming is tomorrow— I’d want you to rest tonight, but I’m ensuring everyone leaves early. Would you be— I mean would you— want to head out to an early dinner? Just to discuss . . .”

“The set,” Katara swallows, “and the background of the character? In more depth? I heard you conceptualized her.”

She’s read a six page description of her character and spent days practicing her lines.

“Yes, absolutely,” he says. Katara’s eyes crinkle. This movie may be more fun than she’d anticipated.

#zutara #dee writes #don't be dramatic #zuko #katara #atla #happy valentines!#felgia-starr #zutara fic

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voorbeees · 4 years ago

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[ hi im back with a part 2 bc im a sappy bitch. you can read part one here ]

Jesse makes his way into the kitchen. Early mornings are a thing he's had to get used to and there doesn't seem to be enough coffee in the world to keep him awake. Sure he's typically awake for work, but he schedules appointments around the time he spends recouping from his nightly hobby. After all a business doesn't run itself. He thinks this, accompanied with a move to LA shortly after taking the girl in could play a large part in it.

Shortly after they'd arrived at the new home, Tilly had been thrilled to learn she had her own room and own things. Apparently that was another thing her mother had failed to provide. He wants to ask her what her life was like before, but each time he thinks to broach the subject something makes him shy away from it. Maybe it's for the best. Besides, considering what it was, Jesse's sure he'll feel fire settle in his veins. Not long after that he'd had her enrolled in a small private school. It was never too early to start an education. He's also taken it upon himself to start teaching her ASL. The decision was only made final when she had looked up at him with those puppy dog eyes and said the simple phrase "I wish we could talk better."

And that had been another thing, not once had she acted like he was a stranger. It was actually the opposite. She acted like she'd known him her whole life. Maybe that was good, it made breaking the ice less difficult, at least in his mind.

Now Jesse adjusts his black suit coat, making sure he looks dressed to a T, even if he is just going downstairs. He's always been one to preen, current circumstances haven't changed that at all. Black Oxfords echo off the marble floor and he's instantaneous met with the beaming face of Tilly.

"Jesse! Jesse!" She rushes from her seat at the dining room table and bounces around his legs. Her tiny red curls dance about her shoulders in the process. She wastes no time in asking for her favorite thing, which is only made obvious a split second later when she holds her arms up, waiting to be picked up.

He picks her up with ease, acting like she weighs nothing (and to him she probably does). Her tiny arms wrap around his neck. She's made it clear she enjoys being at his height. Tilly pulls out of the hug a second later and starts flapping a tiny arm in the air. "I've been practicing with my writing!" She beams, little face begging for approval. He'd be cruel to deny her that so Jesse nods and walks the both of them back over to the table. Tilly wiggles herself out of his grasp just enough so she can grab the paper and shove it in his face.

It takes his eye a moment to focus and he has to hold the paper back a bit but sure enough, there in a child's scrappy handwriting is her name repeated at least ten times. Her statement is met with a slow nod of approval.

"Oh!" She finally makes the effort to remove herself from his arms and settle back into her chair. "Maybe I can try writing your name next?" It's a question but he knows what she's implying and its not a moment later that he pulls his phone out. He spends a moment typing on it and then turns it around to face her.

J-E-S-S-E

An amused look settles on his scarred face as he sees her focusing all her attention to write his name. Her tongue pokes out of the left side of her mouth as she finishes the last letter and holds it up, rather proud of herself.

It's messy but it's a cute gesture, so he takes it from her and pins it to the fridge with a magnet. That earns him a squeal of delight. The excitement is short lived as she goes back to her task. Jesse takes the opportunity to finally pour himself a cup of coffee.

' YOU'RE SPENDING THE DAY WITH SPANN. ' He hasn't actually left her alone yet. At least not that she knows. He's made sure to always leave when she's asleep, a caretaker there if something was to arise in his absence. The last thing he wants is for Tilly to think he's abandoning her.

"Why?" She asks as she looks up at him and then goes back to her work.

' I HAVE...BUSINESS. ' If you can consider visiting a plastic surgeon business. It's something he's wanted to do since he first saw what was once his "face". But Spann and the doctors had highly discouraged any reconstruction until the scars were fully healed. All in all it had added up to almost a year's time and it had been nothing but pure hell. Not that he cared what people thought when they saw him, more so he cared what he saw when he looked at himself in the mirror. It wasn't good. Hell, for the first several months he'd busted every mirror within five feet of him, going so far as to have them removed from places of his organization that had them. It'd been a touchy subject and not many could breach it.

Jesse remembers when Tilly saw his face for the first time. It had been the next day and it was on accident. He wasn't planning on showing the mangled part of himself until she seemed comfortable around him. But she had walked in on him in his home office. He'd been sitting at his desk, mask safety packed away in the chrome case. She was supposed to be sleeping and much to his horror when he had looked up, she wasn't. Instead she was standing in the doorway with wide eyes. He'd frozen like a deer in headlights. What the fuck was he supposed to do? Was she scared of him? Fuck, he'd be scared of himself. It's not like he even looked human anymore. He sat there for what felt like an eternity, unmoving until she walked forward. "You got hurt bad, huh?" She hadn't looked at him in disgust, but rather understanding. It was like it was the most common thing to ever happen. Tilly had come up and stood in front of him. "I got hurt one time too." She pulled her hair back to show a small indention on her forehead. "I hit my head and it left a really big spot." Something about that small stupid child gesture had made him laugh. It had demolished the wall he had built, afraid of traumatizing her.

Tilly lays her pencil down and looks up at Jesse now. To only be six she's intuitive. She can tell by the way he grips the handle of the mug and shifts his weight slightly that something is off. Usually its "I have work." Not "business." It's an odd choice of words. So she does what kids do best, she bombards him with fucking questions. "What kind?"

' BUSINESS. '

There's that word again. No matter how hard she tries, she just can't fucking pick out the problem. "Can I come?" Jesse shakes his head 'no.' A tiny frown creases her brow. "Do you have to go to the doctor?" Suddenly she gasps, standing up in her chair. "Are you sick!?"

Jesse's signing and shaking his head 'no' before he can stop himself. It's not hard to tell she's working herself up. Fuck, the last thing he wants right now or at all is her to he upset.

"Are-are you going for your face?" Tilly sniffles and wipes her nose with the back of her hand. Of course he fucking is, why else would he go to a god damned doctor. He obviously can't say it like that so he nods. "Bu-but there's nothing wrong with it!" Now she's just being polite, Jesse's sure of it. But the logical part of his brain says no, she's upset because she fucking cares about you you god damned fool. "What i-if I don't know who you are after? Because you lo-ook different?!" At that she breaks into full on hysteria. There's a few other words but Jesse can't make them out. It just all sounds garbled to him.

He considers pulling his phone out again but settles for a different approach. Jesse lowers himself on to one knee a few inches from her perch in the chair. He signs "hush" and "okay". Those are the easiest ones she's able to read but she just shakes her head crying even harder. "It's no-ot okay!" There's a hiccup added after she finishes speaking and for a split second Jesse thinks she's going to suffocate on her own tears. He blinks several times, actually taken aback by just how upset she is over this. This is a good thing not a bad one. He's going to look better but she doesn't want that. Of course he understands the whole "changing of features" process but it's still him. It's not like he's cutting off one of his fucking hands.

" It will be okay. " His hand hovers over her back like it's debating if it should offer comfort or not. Instead the decision is made for him as Tilly wipes at her eyes and sniffles.

"You don't know that!" There's a long pause and for a second Jesse thinks she's going to start bawling again, but she doesn't. Instead she looks up at him and the intensity in that stare almost has him drawing back. There's something in it. Love? Impossible. People don't love him, they tolerate him. Or rather he pays them to tolerate him. Tilly blinks once, then twice and yes, he sees it now. It's a mixture of love and adoration. Something almost foreign to him. "What if something happens?" Her tiny lip quivers. "Who will I have then?"

Fuckfuckfuckfuck. His mind draws a blank. There's no way for him to completely assure something won't happen. Granted people don't usually die from plastic surgeon, though he guesses it's possible. ' IT WON'T. I WILL STILL BE HERE. ' The phone's electronic voice drones out into the air. That's not what he wants to say. Jesse wants to say this huge fucking essay of why she doesn't need to worry but sometimes the simplest answers are the best.

"Promise?"

' YES. '

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

Blinding light sears his brown eye as it flutters open. Are lights always this bright? He doesn't think so. If they are then he's definitely paying someone to dim all the ones in his house. Because Jesus fuck that's a horrible thing to wake up to. Jesse blinks a few times then lets out a sigh. He can't feel his face (which, God willing, with strong as fuck drugs he won't have to until it heals).

It's only after he's been awake for an hour or two that he turns to the door at his right and sees Spann standing there, Tilly's small wide eyed form in front of her. He offers a shakey wave as a greeting. Tilly looks up at Spann, who nods and urges her in then steps back out to answer a call. Jesse thinks she looks even more comical like this. She's acting like he's a porcelain doll that could break at the lightest touch.

Tilly rests her tiny arms on his bedside. "Do you feel better?" Jesse gives her a so-so response with his hand. She takes this as privilege to climb her way up into the bed beside him, her tiny form looking even smaller near him. "Well," her forehead wrinkles, "you don't look different."

Now he is laughing. His shoulders shaking as an indicator. She looks at him before deciding to curl up next to him, her tiny head on his shoulder. "I still love you anyway. Even if you look like a mummy."

Jesse signs. " I love you too, squirt. "

#voorbeees writes #slashers #slasher fandom #jesse cromeans #chromeskull #laid to rest #also i had a mental breakdown half way through bc of life #dont @ me if the second half is shit

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rammaukins · 3 years ago

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SHARA - THE NEW LATEX DOLL

IMPORTANTE NOTE: Everything that appears here, in this story, only exists in my mind, anything that resembles reality is coincidence or fortuitous. . . ( hopefully there will be many of these 🥰, or not, who knows 😓 )

( You just have discover this story? I recommend you start read this one: >> Damn! Where is the Zipper? << )

Short Saga: Damn! Where is the Zipper? - Movimento 1

Part 3

The dressing room was spacious and had three big mirrors. There was a vintage armchair on the side. Shara wondered how she could be so easily manipulated into trying on the suit. But at this point she desperately wanted to know how she looked wearing it. She began to undress, taking off her top, skirt, stockings, panties and bra, leaving everything on the back of the cheslon. On a small table next to it was the set she had chosen, the suit, the corset and collar and of course the balletheels with the straps.

When she picked up the suit, she heard a voice from outside reminding her that she should be well greased with the oil gel before putting on the suit. Shara thanked Beky for the reminder as she had forgotten the bottle with that strange sweet smelling substance. Before starting to spread it across her skin, she wanted to know the composition of the lube, but the directions were in a language she didn’t understand.

Shara shivered and blushed when feeling the cold gel on her skin. She had really let herself be persuaded by a stranger to put on a suit, taken from a perverted story, to make her look like a sex doll. And what struck her the most was, the more she thought about it, while she was applying that thick gel-lubricant, the more she wanted to see how the suit looked on her. Its measurements made her doubt that she would really be able to wear it. Judging by the length of the suit, it seemed to be made for a much smaller person than her. Keeping in mind, that also the sleeves, the torso and the legs of the suit, looked too tight.

How at last Shara was completely covered from the line of her face down to her toes with the gel. She told the shopkeeper, Beky, who then indicated that now she had to put some lube inside the suit and then could start dressing. Shara pulled open the zipper of the suit and after she had poured some of the gel into the suit she began to insert her right foot through the opening in the back. Shara’s foot went into the suit, which somewhat mimicked the colour of the inflatable sex dolls. The first thing she noticed was that the suit was really tight, but the material gave way with relative ease to the pushing of her foot, moving to reach the sock. The cold material, together with the gel, created a feeling that, together with the tension of the material on Shara’s skin, made for her a sensual but somewhat strenuous experience. As she inserted the second foot into the suit, the shopkeeper offered to help Shara, but she declined. Even though it was a bit troublesome for her to pull the suit above her knees, there was something about it that was starting to turn her on.

After about twenty-five minutes, Shara was dressed up to the waist. The lower half of her body now looked like a doll, her legs now had the same glow and appearance as those of the sexist dolls of the eighties and nineties. And the feel of the rubber and that look of the artificial skin color, just heightened that idea, because the touch was very similar, but it also felt a little weird. Her hand felt something like rubber, but her thighs almost said she was wearing nothing and what was more curious, she could almost swear she had a little more sensitivity where she already had her body covered in latex. It was almost like having irritated skin, but instead of producing an annoying or unpleasant feeling to the touch, it was completely the other way around.

While pulling the suit up to her waist, Shara had had some awkward moments when she had to insert the tubes of the suit into her private parts. She was not used to having sex that way. At first it had felt strange and uncomfortable but that soon changed into a very pleasant and exciting feeling.

With every touch, Shara felt like someone was pulling her closer to himself, feeling that exciting magnetic contact. It was like that first hand-holding of a couple, a feeling of irresistible attraction, that made her want to feel the breathtaking skin more and more. Which caused Shara to start caressing the surface of the suit without being able to stop.

Shara felt that her heart was speeding up as she dressed. It wasn’t for nothing that she was getting more aroused by the moment. She didn’t realize it, but that lube oil had a special additive that enhanced the arousal and she was already experiencing the heat almost too much to go on getting dressed. She loved that feeling of having a liquid layer between her skin and the suit that made the latex give her sensual caresses in those parts covered. When she moved, when she lifted a leg, when something moved inside the suit when she rubbed it, she felt waves of pleasure. All that just made her uninhibited even more.

That layer of oil created a curious effect when caressed. It was as if the caress spread in waves on her naked skin or as if sensual waves were moving beneath the layer of latex, spreading sensually from wherever she touched herself. That feeling created a chain effect, because if she touched a thigh, she could feel it from her ankles to her abdomen, from her hands to her shoulders. The more she stroked herself the more sensual, the more pleasurable it became and that made her want to look more and more like a doll, sexy and provocative.

Then she looked in the mirror, and saw that she was not complete yet. She needed to see her whole body the way her legs now looked. And she began to pull the suit up, covering her belly, noticing that the suit had begun to absorb the warmth from her body and this seemed to help the suit stretch more easily. But the moment the pull on the material relaxed, it began to contract immediately, but adapting to the body of its wearer. As the suit went up, it stretched more easily and at the same time became tighter and slimmer in the areas already dressed. This was because it was one size fits all and the suit had looked like it was made for a smaller person than Shara, when it had been empty.

After another ten minutes, Shara was slipping her two arms into the suit, struggling to keep it from slipping off her shoulders, and trying to get the gloves well on each finger of her hands. The mask still hung from her chest, which began to feel more and more of the tension that the suit produced, even if the zipper part of the suit's back had not yet been pulled in place. But Shara gradually was making progress, consequently stretching the material onto her arms, until suddenly she instinctively stretched her arms to the sides and bent over backwards. With a slight rubber whisk, the opening of the suit moved to where it already should have been and Shara suddenly felt a tightness around her breasts that was at once constricting and strangely pleasant. She then noticed a detail that she had missed so far. The fingers of the gloves were joined by a short membrane, which went from the flexor to the middle of the second phalanx. Gearing the appearance of a hand of an aquatic being. The membranes would hinder any movement of the fingers, but they were definitely more practical than if they had shaped the hands into fists.

It was obvious that her reflection was a huge distraction, Shara couldn’t stop looking at herself. And with every look she wondered how she was going to make that expensive suit her own. But what she did know was that the more she was wearing it, the more she wanted to have it. She didn’t know how, but it had to be hers. Inside the suit she felt trapped in a sexual world she had never dared to imagine, and now she was intoxicated by it. She wanted more, she needed to explore all possibilities of this suit. But the hard reality was, that the price of that suit, focused on a certain economic level, was something which she just couldn’t afford. She was just hoping that the discount, that the shopkeeper might give her, would make it worthwhile to drag along one more expense every month until the suit was fully paid for.

However, although Shara was still missing the mask to fully take on the figure of a doll, dressing up was far from over. She still had to put on all the complements for “Complete Dillification”. Although she now looked like a sex doll, it was a fairly un-fed image, for her taste. It was like having sex with no foreplay, no lingerie, no adjectives to praise her beauty, no pretty phrases. So Shara picked up the first piece she wanted to wear, the corset. She had used several before, both to look attractive on a weekend with her friends and for the videos she shot at home.

Soon Shara discovered that her hands were now quite clumsy, due to the gloves of the suit. She tried several times, but she couldn’t fit the corset to her waist. So, seeing that she couldn’t put on the corset herself, she peeped out of the dressing room and called the shopkeeper. Beky replied that she would close shop and lock the door so that they would not be interrupted and given any trouble and would come to help her.

Soon a voice asking permission to enter, was followed by Beky. Shara then held out the corset and asked Beky to surround her waist, but Beky told her that she would have to finish dressing and close the zipper of her suit first. Then she wouldn’t have any problems to close the corset she wore

Shara grabbed the opening of the mask that hung over her breasts. She hesitated for a moment, but then she looked at her reflection once more. That semi-transparent suit seemed to fit her better than perfect, it was as if it had been tailor-made for her. It was tight, but very comfortable. She had felt burdened at first, but with each movement the tension of the latex seemed restricting, but at the same time it was like a second skin and adapting to all her movements naturally. In addition, the touch of the suit was changing, now it felt like it was a sensual massage. That seamless suit, made of one piece, exposed her entire body, giving her the appearance that she was an inflatable doll.

She stared at the inside of the hood again, having last doubts for a moment, thinking, with the this mask she couldn’t talk, just make muffled noises and growl. . . she’d be at the mercy of the shopkeeper. Then that last thought made her think that she would be like a real doll. At the mercy of the will of it's owner. . . trapped in that roll. . . being a sex object with no will. . . except to receive and give pleasure. . . "Here we go", she said feeling a blossoming heat beneath her throat and stretching across her chest as she had these thoughts. Bending her head, trying to disguise how eager she was to know how it felt to expirience what she had just thought about.

She opened her arms as her hands pulled the mask of the suit upward, at the same time she tried to insert her face inside it. Shara pulled and Beky helped her to make the latex start to give way and completely surround her face. Then Beky put her hand to the mouth of the mask and placed the snorkel between Shara’s lips and then pushed it into her mouth. And while she felt her head getting lost inside the mask of the suit, the probes entered her nostrils, creating a somewhat unpleasant sensation. Inspite of this and the fact that she could no longer close her mouth, Shara felt good, better than good, very sexy even without seeing completely, it was like being a sex goddess before having sex.

to be continued...

Story by Rammaukin - Correction by KunKlo.

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#digital art #tights #corruption #story #catsuit #digitalilustration #dollification #tf #transformation #rammaukin

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fiftyshadesof-h · 4 years ago

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You are my Remedy (Jemily Fanfic)

Masterlist

Summary: JJ and Emily have spent their whole friendship together trying to deny their lingering feelings, what happens when they make a decision that could change their lives forever.

Content Warning- Description of violence.

A/N- Hey guys!! I hope you enjoy my new Jemily fic! I haven’t quite decided where I want to go with this fic so bear with me. Try and figure out all of my ships in the story, I have quite a bit. Only the cast of 6 is in the story right now but new characters will be here soon :)))

“Moments with you, that's when I wish I could stop time.”

Chapter 1-

(Emily's POV)- I got to The Base early today, only after Sergio kept nudging my head until I got out of bed to feed him. The sunrise was like creamer being poured into coffee, the delicate lines slowly blending together as the sun washed over the darkness of the night. When I saw the sky I wanted to stop and stare at it forever, finally pulling my eyes away to get ready.

My trousers, the same coloring as Sergio, laid just above my hips. I had picked out a red sweater today, the shirt tightening the lower it got. My cleavage clawing its way out from under the low-rise shirt.

I grabbed a bracelet off my dresser before walking out the front door. I smiled looking down at the piece of jewelry in my hand realizing it was JJ’s small gold chain link bracelet, the light shone off of the intricate designs of it, the bracelet was small and delicate, just like JJ.

She told me I could keep it when she saw me ogling over it the last time I was at her house. I had a love for JJ’s things, that bracelet she gave me that day was like having a piece of her with me constantly.

JJ and I were always together, we were like two separate pieces of a magnet that you wouldn’t dare separate, I wouldn’t want it any other way.

It was boring being at work so early, the normal buzz of voices and fingers typing on keyboards was lacking at sunrise. My eyelids drooped from my lack of sleep. My mind was constantly on JJ but last night I was drowning in thought, I laid there on my pillow, eyes opened wide looking at the ceiling thinking about the possibility of us.

I can’t believe I'm saying it but I miss hearing Spencer’s statistics this early in the morning, I'm sure the good doctor could come up with an explanation for my fatigued state, better yet an explanation for the overwhelming amount of thoughts in my head. You know, I think if you jus-

I thought about him talking as I lifted up the coffee cup sitting on my desk in the bullpen, slowly inhaling the steam cascading off of the top before taking a long sip.

The ripple of the warm liquid flowing down my throat had my chest rising and falling in deep breaths. Mmmmm. I hummed to myself in a hushed exhale.

“Ooooo is it good?” a voice said coming from behind me. I spun around in my chair excitedly, coffee still in hand. My smile was wide when I met eyes with the woman who was talking, Jennifer Jareau, my breathtaking best friend, as she walked down the stairs into the bullpen.

The light came off of her blonde hair like a reflection in a mirror. I nodded my head with a hum. “Mhm, it is, delicious.” I said as JJ came closer her next action was almost too quick to stop, her hands reached forward and took the coffee right out of my grasp.

“Jayge! You can’t just come prancing in here to steal my coffee.” I tried to sound serious and stern but it was hard to not smile around her. I could never find the words to describe it, maybe I never would find the words but every time I saw her smile I wish I had the power to stop time so that I could live in that moment forever. To see her happy forever.

(JJ’s POV)- I took a long exaggerated sip, looking up at Emily the whole time through my heavy lashes.

“All right, all right I need that coffee,” Emily said standing up out of her chair walking towards me, I tried to back away from her but nearly tripped trying to focus on not spilling coffee.

“Jennifer, I am serious.” Emily said, her lips pressed together in a straight line trying to suppress a laugh.

“Em,” I said, my hand going out in front of me in protest. “I swear your coffee just gets better and better, maybe I should just have one mor-”.

I gasp as Emily yanks the coffee cup out of my hands playfully, almost causing me to spill.

I shook my head at her laughing. As I was wiping the dripping coffee off my bottom lip, I noticed Emily’s eyes danced across my face and then they landed back down on my lips as I ran the back of my hand along them.

I would always notice when Emily looked down, dared to look down at my lips. Emily’s eyes always avoided my lips, like they were some delicate piece of china she didn’t want to shatter by looking at too hard.

She kept her eyes locked up in invisible chains never daring to let them wander down to my delicate lips. I wonder if she noticed when I did it too, if she noticed that I too would steal small glances at her lips, her eyes, the way she walked wishing, hoping, that maybe one day I’d get to her against my own lips.

“Hey,” I grabbed the wrist that wasn’t holding the coffee. I smiled to myself then looked up at Emily. “I think it looks good on you. My things always look good on you.” The smirk on my face grew as I mentioned the bracelet that was on her wrist.

“Hey come on lovebirds, round table in 5.” I heard Dereks’ deep voice coming from behind Emily. I hadn’t even noticed that the rest of the team had arrived, I was so engulfed in Emily's presence. We both laughed at the name ‘lovebirds’. It’s like everyone except us could feel the chemistry.

“Yeah, okay Derek.” Emily said back to him, the words accompanied with a vulgar gesture. I hit Em playfully on the stomach and grabbed on to her shoulder lifting myself up to her ear and whispered, making sure Derek could clearly see us talking. He rolled his eyes walking away from us.“Okay lovebird,” I said, making sure to accentuate the word.

I gave her a kiss on the cheek, savoring the moment as long as I could, the feeling of her skin on my lips electrified through my whole body, going right to heart and jolting when I finally had to pull away. My heart begged me not to stop, begged me not to take my lips off of her.

No one ever thought anything of our intimate touches, maybe I thought about those small touches too much, we were just friends. It didn’t matter if I wanted more than that, if we wanted more than that.

As Emily and I walked into the room I noticed Spencer leaning up against the wall one leg crossed over another, his hands on top of eachother fidgeting. Derek on the other hand was sitting in one of the chairs surrounding the large table right next to Penelope, he turned his head to see who had just entered the room he quickly turned his head back to penelope with an exaggerated sigh once he realized who it was.

“Oh come on, seriously Morgan. Knock it off.” Emily said, her cheerful mood dropping once we walked into the room. Emily went to send Morgan the same gesture she sent him earlier. I quickly realized what her hand was about to do and I slapped it down.

Hotch must have noticed what she was doing too because his booming voice cut through the tense air. “Agent Prentiss, Jareau, have a seat please.” My head whipped toward him when my name came out of his mouth. I gave him a timid nod before sitting in my seat.

“Garcia, go ahead.” Hotch spoke up again, nodding his head toward garcia. Everyone's eyes went directly to her as she began speaking. “Alright beautiful people, we have a not so beautiful problem in New Orleans, Louisiana. As of this morning there have been 6 female bodies found behind various restaurants.”

Morgan scoffed. “6 girls and we’re just now being called in, seriously?” Hotch turned his head quickly; his face quickly morphed from a mask of tranquility to one I couldn’t quite decipher, all I knew was that he looked like a lion about to lunge for Morgan to rip his head off. Hotch was always protective of Penelope, they had a strange relationship Penelope was one of the only people who could make Aaron laugh.

“The first presumed victim,” Garcia continued after Hotch gave her the go ahead. She pointed as the screen switched to a picture of a mangled female body covered in blood, her previously blonde hair now smudged with various shades of decaying blood.

My eyes widened as they raked down the rest of the photo. “As you can see she had her ring finger cut off, the body part... unfortunately wasn’t recovered at the scene.” She took a harsh swallow, it seemed so odd to me that Penelope was able to talk about such harsh topics, she was that girl that never stopped smiling but everytime she talked about a case a piece of her got ripped away, she denied it, hell we all denied it.

Hotch cut into Garcia’s speech, finishing it off. “The chief of police in New Orleans thought he had the suspect in custody until another murder occurred.”

“Wheels up in 30.” Hotch said, turning to walk out the door.

“Here you go,” Garcia said as she walked around the table handing each of us the case files, the sound of her small heels clicking as she walked around the table. “Be safe you guys, I’ll be in my cave if you need.” Penelope blew us a kiss before walking out the door towards her office.

My eyes followed Garcia through the window, I let out a ‘Hmph’ when I saw Garcia turn straight into Hotch’s office.

(Emily’s POV)- I turned my head towards JJ and noticed her eyes were trained on something outside the room, I turned my body and angled it in the same direction then turned my head to look at JJ.

The look on her face gave me butterflies in the pit of my stomach. JJ was the first person in a long time that could give me butterflies, I almost forgot what it felt like to get excited to see someone everyday.

“Whatcha looking at Jayge?” I said putting my hand on her knee, she tensed at my touch but relaxed again when she met my eyes.

Those eyes, they stole my heart. She smiled at me, shaking her head “Oh, it’s nothing.”

JJ looked down at the hand on her leg and moved her own hand under mine, holding it. My breath hitched in my throat at the sight of us holding hands. Everytime we had any kind of small intimate touch I could feel fire igniting my bones.

JJ and I stayed facing each other for a few more seconds enjoying each other's silence before she pulled her hand away from mine to check her watch. Her brows furrowed slightly. “Come on blackbird, we gotta go.” She said, cocking her head to the side towards the door.

Blackbird.

“Yeah, yeah ok.” I replied in a somber way.

-----

(Emily’s POV)- The whole plane ride I couldn’t sleep, or read, or focus on anything for that matter, the storm in my mind wouldn’t calm. The winds in my head were filled with whispers of JJ and what we could’ve been or what we can be.

“JJ I just, I want more of you, I want more of us.”

“I can’t do that for you Emily, I’m sorry, I thought when I told you you’d just- that you’d just forget about it. I wanted you to forget!

The tears in my eyes started to fall when JJ spoke those words. “I love you Jayje. You.” My heart slowly broke apart inside my chest piece by piece falling to the ground below me like shattered glass.

I threw my hands in her direction. I watched my JJ as she wrapped her arms around her waist, cradling herself as she backed away.

“Tell me you feel the same way, tell me you feel this.” My voice broke in the back of my throat as I spit the words out at JJ.

“No, Em, I don’t, I-, I can’t feel that way about you.” JJ’s hand went up to cup her mouth.

She kept backing up towards my front door. “Jayje don’t leave me please.” I said as I stepped towards her, my heart breaking when she turned her back to me.

“Stay away from me Emily, just,” Her hand moved to the door knob. “Stop.”

#jemily #jemily fanfic #criminal minds #jennifer jareau #emily prentiss #moreid #wlw #criminalmindsfanfic #i love my babies #harcia

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write-like-you-mean-it · 4 years ago

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You’re my Sunshine: Haikyuu Coffee Shop AU

This is a Choose Your Own Character. This is part 2 to Hinata’s story. Go to part 1 to read the beginning of the story.

When I’d agreed to a lovely date with the tiny, orange-haired player, I didn’t imagine that he would text me so quickly after our first encounter. Within the bus ride, we spent the majority of the time texting back and forth with basic questions. Soon, we added each other on snapchat because Hinata wanted to show me a picture of Atsumu. That was quickly followed by a video of him practicing with the same guy. After he hit the ball to the floor, Hinata turned to look at the camera and shouted “Bokuto, did you see that?” There was a scream of “good job Shoyuo” from behind the phone which resounded in the quiet bus.

That snapchat was followed by a few more with Hinata introducing each member of the team. First was a tall black and white spiked hair player who posed as if it was a photo except it was a video. It was followed by a guy whose face was half covered with a mask. He didn’t introduce himself but said “Shoyuo, do you know how many germs phones carry?”

Hinata seemed to get more excited with each video he sent showing off his team and himself. After he introduced every single person he could including managers, his best friends, and a few cats on his walk home, Hinata asked if you could show him your friends.

At this point, it was closer to one am than it was to when you last saw each other. Most of my friends have jobs that require an early rise in the morning. I snapchatted back “I will but it is a little late. I’m going to go to sleep. Good night, Hinata.”

I received a text almost instantly with the same sentiment. The chaotic pure energy left a smile on my face and a racing in my heart that didn’t cease until I finally fell asleep an hour later. When I awoke, there was a new message wishing me a good morning and another one asking “when I might be off today?”

My text was simple. I said “I’ll be off at 3:00. Will I see you then?” followed by a few choice emojis. I must’ve been caught up in his excitement of both the impending date and countless messages from the short player.

“I’ll pick you up at 3!” was the final message he sent. Throughout the rest of the work day, Hinata must’ve been busy. There was not a single text sent by either of us back and forth. Not a snapchat in sight. His lack of texting left me with a constant buzz in the back of my mind of what he could be planning for the latter half of the day.

Once three pm hit the clock, my nerves started back up again. I found myself watching the door in anticipation of Hinata's arrival. While taking an order for a customer, Carrie placed her hand on my back and whispered in my ear “you’ll stare a hole in my door if you’re not careful. WHo are you watching for?”

I wanted to respond with ‘no one’ except karmic justice isn’t pretty, and Hinata walks through the door. “I see,” she responded to her own question. Hinata took this opportunity to wave in my direction. “I’ll pick up from here. Your shift has been done for ten minutes now. You won’t want to keep your date waiting.”

My response was to roll my eyes as I finished with the customer in front of me. “Thank you for coming in today. Your drink will be at the end counter.” The moment he stepped away from the register, my apron was off my head and hung haphazardly on the hook.

“You don’t have to leave for me,” said the player as I walked up to him. “If you still have to work, I can wait until you’re done. “

“No, no,” I said. “My boss said I was working too many hours and to enjoy my time off.” Hinata grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the cafe. His sudden movements caught me off balance as I stumbled into his smaller frame. “That’s good. Then we have to get going.” He didn't react to my apparent inability to stay on my feet.

Hinata walked, no, dragged me to a shop near my own workplace. It was a newly opened ice cream shop. “We’re here,” he says. His own hand has yet to let go of mine.

“Ice cream?” I ask confused before the tug on my arm gets stronger as we walk into the brisk shop. “Why ice cream?”

“Atsumu, Bokuto, and I go here after we win a game in this tournament,” said Hinata. “It has my favorite flavor of matcha ice cream.”

We both get in the line to look at the multitude of ice cream flavors displayed behind plexiglass. “I can’t believe that you’re taking me to such a special place for you,” I joke. The player turns to look at me. “Of course I’d take you here. You’re my good luck charm.”

In that moment, you could feel the sunshine off his smile. He became the beam that could cast away any shadow. My heart beat raced in my ears as it drowned out any other thoughts in my mind. His hand squeezed my palm and let go. The pressure brought me back down from orbit.

“Hinata-,” my lips whispered.

“Oh, you can call me Shoyuo. It’s what my team calls me.”

“Okay, Shoyuo, what makes you so cheerful?” Again, the words roll off my tongue as if they were a foreign language. His spirit was rarely found within anyone I had met. It was an intoxicating trait that magnetized anyone in his life.

Hinata was about to answer but the clerk called for the next person. His interruption was a needed break. The wing spiker found himself busy in choosing multiple ice cream flavors and the size that would suit his needs. I found myself ordering my regular choice even though it was a basic flavor. He paid for both our cups and we found a booth near the entrance to the shop.

The player sat next to me and left an empty booth seat. “I hope you don’t mind,” he said.

“Of course not,” I replied, trying not to think about how I could feel heat radiating off his body. “I have enough space if you do.”

Hinata takes a bite of ice cream from his spoon and nods. “It’s fine by me,” he mumbles with the plastic still trapping his words. “Have you always worked in the coffee shop?”

“Ever since high school,” I say while taking a bite of my own. The cool taste made my tongue tense up with each bite. “I started out as an intern to get extra points on college scholarships. I ended up staying here because I loved the people and I enjoyed the free drinks.”

Shoyuo seemed to eat up every word. His eyes would be locked on my own or onto his ice cream. “And you didn’t go to college?”

“No,” I sighed. “It was a far off dream. I didn’t have enough money and spent too much time working. I make a decent living now but I had no way to pay for school when I should have applied.” We both took bites of our sugary dessert in silence. It was as if we were stalling for words that refused to come. “What made you choose volleyball?”

His eyes lit up with the same excitement I saw before. “I saw the tiny giant play on T.V. He looked so cool and was as short as I was. I wanted to follow in his footsteps. I played through high school and even went to Brazil for a while. I wanted to become better than anyone else.”

“Have you done that?”

“I’m not better than Kageyama. He’s still winning the last time we counted.”

“Whose Kageyama?” I ask while scraping the last bit of ice cream out of the bottom of the container.

“It’s a long story,” said the volleyball player before putting another large glob of ice cream in his mouth. “He was a rival in middle school. The only team I faced then. We found ourselves at the same high school only a year later. We became friends throughout our time. He went on to play right out of high school; I had to still train. He’s the only setter that has caught up to me.”

“He must be pretty special in your life.”

“He is,” Hinata says while finishing his own ice cream. He looks at both our empty cardboard and turns to face me. “Maybe this wasn’t the best place because we both are done. I don’t want this date to be over yet.”

The orange haired player’s smile fades at the thought of ending our time early. It was my turn to squeeze his hand in mine and beam his own smile. “We don’t have to be done. Come on. I know a great stop for part two of this date.”

“Part two?” Shoyuo asks. “How many parts will there be?”

“As many as we can take,” I reply back while lightly pushing him out of the seat. He refuses to move; however, he scraps some of his extra ice cream in his bowl. I looked at him confused before he placed the dripping liquid in front of my mouth.

“I forgot to have you taste the matcha. Sorry this is all I have left. It’s a little liquid-y.” I chuckle at his words before taking the spoon into my mouth. As he pulls away, I notice some slipping from my lips. I go to lick it away but Hinata leans in and kisses away the extra.

My face burned as I was caught off guard from his actions. He was the first to pull away while whispering “you taste sweet” which only caused my face to burn brighter.

“Shoyou,” I mutter.

“Was I not supposed to do that?” he asks.

“It’s alright,” I said before leaning in for my own quick kiss. “Now come on. We have places to be.”

(This series is a choose your own adventure. Pick your favorite man or all of them. I will try to make as many of them as possible with continuations. So far, there is Oikawa, Sugawara, Tuskishima, Hinata, Kageyama, and Akaashi. If you have a suggestion or comment, please message me!!)

Haikyuu Masterlist

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inkribbon796 · 3 years ago

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Flight of the Bomble Bee Ch. 1: Troubleshooting

Summary: Logan and Ethan take their new apprentices out to test equipment, and fail to not get themselves in trouble.

Chapters: 1, 2

In retrospect, Logan knew that taking Tubbo as an apprentice wasn’t the wisest decision. Not only was he a former young criminal, but he was completely unpredictable.

Tubbo had taken some thought on his superhero name: Bumble Bee. He enjoyed tinkering and threatening to test explosives in random parts of the city or the superhero base.

He reminded Logan a bit too much of the Duke on some days, but there were other days when Logan got to bask in the company of another scientist. Days when Tubbo would sit in Bing’s workshop with Logan and the other androids and he would tinker or build things. Tommy would come in and out to pester Tubbo and the young man would brush him off in the pursuit of trying to finish whatever he was building.

After a week or two of tinkering, Logan was rewarded for his patience with Tubbo by being the first to see Tubbo’s finished products.

Tommy was the second because Tubbo had spent his time building himself and Tommy streamlined superhero suits. Tommy’s was outfitted with speakers so he could play music if he wanted or shoot out concussive blasts of air. Tubbo’s fit a brown and black theme with all kinds of pockets and patches for him to hide all types of weapons and explosives. Then he started working on a third one that was a midnight black color that Logan initially — incorrectly — assumed was going to be Ghostbur’s outfit.

Tommy and Tubbo went out on a patrol with Ethan and the Core Sides. Ranboo had come to join their group because Tubbo was there, and what the heroes didn’t know is that the three teens were a bit of a package deal. Ranboo had wanted to check on Tubbo for a myriad of reasons, at first from a distance, and then he disappeared and reappeared a bit less human, and started walking with the group and just watching Tubbo and Tommy arguing.

Thomas came with in a new prototype suit that Logan had built for him, he was hesitant, but excited for a calmer mission. The new hero was more than a little excited for superhero missions, and had chosen the name: Iridescence. His outfit having a rainbow theme to it. Mostly to troubleshoot Tubbo’s new suits in the field. Even though Tubbo was spending half the time hijacking Tommy’s speakers so he could play his own playlists.

“Fook[1] you, man,” Tommy shoved Tubbo away from him as “Killer Queen” was playing on full blast from Tommy’s new speakers. “Play it from yer[2] own damn shit.”

“Nah, I didn’t wanna[3] bog down my own equipment with a speaker system, that’s what I got you fer[4],” Tubbo smiled, headbutting Tommy’s arm and side affectionately.

“Oh, fook[1] off,” Tommy rolled his eyes and stomped off to stand next to Ethan.

“What now?” Tommy smiled at Ethan.

“We got permission to test your suits in King’s park,” Ethan answered.

“What, like city hall had ta[5] give the okay fer[4] this?” Tubbo asked, sounding a bit confused. He walked a bit faster to catch up with Tommy.

“No, from King,” Ethan corrected. “Didn’t used to need one, but even since Phantom showed up, King said he needed to send a good message. So it’s mostly a formality.”

“King’s one ‘a[6] the Entity’s kids, isn’t he?” Tubbo asked, looking back at Logan.

“Yes,” Logan answered. “Although he has been very diligent about working with us for many years now. His loyalty is not to be called into question.”

“Nah, I wasn’t gonna[7], family don’t mean shit, I get that,” Tubbo defended.

Logan mentally paused, there was a lot of charged emotion to metaphorically unpack in that statement. A lot of history that Logan didn’t think he’d even fully be trusted with.

“Oh no, Dark and King are close, but King’s on our side,” Patton tried to explain with a huge smile.

Logan quickly diverted the conversation to talking about the details of the sparring match. Which Virgil lost interest in, but he was noticing that Ranboo’s nervousness and apprehension wasn’t calming down. He was glancing at Tubbo and only seemed to be getting more highly strung. So Virgil tried to calm him down, even though he was awful at small talk.

“So, does everyone in the SMP take a class on shapeshifting?” Virgil asked Ranboo.

“Kinda,”[8] Ranboo admitted. “I was never really good at it, though.”

“You look fine to me,” Virgil told him.

“Thanks, but I can’t change my mouth, or my colors,” Ranboo confessed, pointing to his face mask. “I don’t know why there’s only so much my magic can do.”

“I’ll keep my eye on him, don’t worry,” Roman smiled, answering some comment that Logan and Tubbo had made about Ranboo. The two groups broke apart and quickly Roman cast an illusion so that Virgil, Thomas, and Roman could switch to their civilian outfits in secret with magic. They would have used more caution but Ranboo had already met them in both civilian and superhero outfits, so there was little point.

As they walked back to the other heroes, and loitered outside the park, watching Logan and Patton start the sparring match. Tommy quickly got a bit too rough and excited in the fight.

“Wanna[3] escape the madness?” Virgil offered Ranboo, leaning over.

“Uh, yeah, sure,” Ranboo agreed uneasily.

“Good,” Roman smiled. “Virge, find Thomas a nice spot in the park. We’ll be along shortly.”

Virgil rolled his eyes, “I’ll find a nice haunted spot next to the sewers.”

“No! Desist!” Roman ordered as Virgil chuckled before pushing Thomas into the park. Thomas looked confused.

Virgil cackled a little but as Roman was following them, he realized that Ranboo wasn’t taking a step into the park. He was glancing around and the young demon looked like someone was going to spring out of a bush and attack him.

“You alright?” Roman asked.

“Dark attacked me when I first walked into Egoton,” Ranboo explained. “I was trying to get groceries and I didn’t know where the boundaries were. I . . .”

Roman stared at Ranboo for a bit before calling out, “King!”

Almost immediately the animal magnet dropped out of a nearby tree, his squirrels scurrying around him. Ranboo stared at King in alarm and took a step back.

“King, meet Ranboo, his significant other works with us and he would like to enter your park,” Roman smiled.

“The SMP can go fuck themselves, but I’ll make an exception for him because he looks very polite,” King told Roman, pointing at Ranboo.

“Uhh, thanks,” Ranboo told him, and cautiously took a step into the park, and when he didn’t get yelled at or attacked, he took another.

“I can see why Dark targeted you,” King hummed. “You just radiate a certain energy.”

“What energy’s that?” Ranboo walked over to Roman and King.

“The kind that gets you killed or surprise adopted depending on his mood,” King warned. “So tell your parents to keep an eye on you.”

“I don’t have parents, or at least I don’t remember them,” Ranboo confessed.

King sucked in a deep breath, “Don’t tell him that, I have enough brothers.”

“Mm-mmm, okay, I won’t,” Ranboo promised.

“Don’t burn my park down, and we won’t have problems,” King said before he walked away.

Roman was quick to motion for Ranboo to follow him. “Come on, I gotta plan and it involves helping a prince find his prince charming and you and Virgil are helping.”

“O-Okay,” Ranboo repeated and followed Roman over to where Virgil was sitting with Thomas over by the park’s little food court area.

People had gathered around the hero exhibition at this point. Logan and Patton working together like a well oiled machine against Tommy and Tubbo, Ethan taking notes and sometimes cutting in to fight as well.

As the older heroes quickly found out, Tommy and Tubbo were not only experienced fighters, but were adept at working together. They enjoyed sparring, so the fight quickly got a little rougher than Logan would have preferred, but Tommy refused to go easy on them.

“Logic! Logic!” Roman raced over and caused Logan to get hit in the face by Tommy’s elbow. Thankfully his suit took all the damage and the worst it did was wound the logical Side’s pride.

“Shit,” Tommy pulled back, “I got yeh[9] good, man.”

“Oooh, that looked bad,” Roman hissed.

“I’m fine,” Logan dismissed, looking over to see Roman, Patton, and Thomas all in their superhero outfits. Ranboo was hanging back behind them, amongst the group of onlookers. “The suit was safety rated for worse blows.”

“Want me ta[5] test it with a sledgehammer?” Tommy offered.

“Another time,” Logan promised. “This suit is overdue a pressure test.”

“Yes!” Tommy pumped his fist down. “Nice!”

“So, I have the best news,” Roman gushed in overexcited glee, pushing Thomas closer. “Iridescence met someone. Someone amazing. It’s true love, I tell.”

“Uh, Princey, it’s a little too early for that,” Thomas tried to rebuttal as Patton let out an enraptured gasp.

“Interesting,” Logic looked from Roman to Thomas. “Were you all in costume when this happened?”

“Nah, don’t get your tie twisted, Specs,” Roman smiled. “We suited up afterwards so we could share the good news. He’s amazing, I tell you, a true wonder of the world.”

“I thoroughly embarrassed myself and toppled into a trash can,” Thomas corrected.

“It was awful,” Virgil agreed, with a goading smile on his face.

Logan led the group out of the park, it was getting dark. “I can see you’re going to be thoroughly distracted for the rest of the day,” Logan sighed as they started heading back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Accessibility Translations:

1. Fuck

2. your

3. want to

4. for

5. to

6. of

7. going to

8. Kind of

9. you

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illfoandillfie · 4 years ago

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Hi love! So excited about the readings! Could I get the Year Ahead?

here you go lovely! and happy new year!

Let’s just jump right in here.

January: 9 of Cups

Brilliant way to start the year. The 9 of cups is all about satisfaction and success. The man on the card doesn’t have to look at his cups to know that each of them is full. January is going to bring positivity in many areas of your life and it may be that things you’ve been hoping will happen will actually come to pass.

February: 9 of Wands

Another 9. In tarot the nines represent the step before completion. It’s about awareness - you’re realising what you already have, becoming aware of what is around you. But, not every realisation is a good one. Becoming aware means becoming aware of the more negative things as well as the positive and the 9 of wands is waking you up to challenges you face. You’re close to success but the road hasn’t necessarily been easy. The 9 of wands signifies resilience and grit, taking a stand. February will bring success with it, or at least put you close to achieving something, but it may take a toll in some way, be it physically, mentally or spiritually.

March: The Devil

Bone down. If you’re looking for a physical relationship or looking to spice up an existing one, March may be a good time for that. The Devil represents vice in all forms but is often specifically linked to sex.

Seriously though, at it’s highest vibration, the Devil signified self-knowledge and self-mastery - learning a lesson and applying it to your own life. But at it’s lowest vibration is can symbolise oppression and addiction. The two people on the card are collard and appear to be chained but their bonds are loose enough that they could break free if they wish. They choose to remain there, they choose to stay attached to their vices. I believe this could be a warning. Following on from the 9 of wands in Feb, it may be that March is a bit of a stressful month and in such situations it is easy to fall into patterns of addiction. Everyone has a vice or two - smoking, drinking, expensive clothing, power, etc - but sometimes the line between habit or escape from overwhelming situations can be blurred and slip into addiction. If in March you find yourself picking up a new “bad” habit, be careful. It could also related to a addiction someone around you is dealing with.

April: Ace of Wands

Something new is going to begin in April. The wands suit is representative of passion and creativity. It may be that a new physical relationship (or a new aspect to an existing one) begins this month, or perhaps a new creative endeavour.

May: 7 of Cups

The 7 of cups is about imagination, choice, wishful thinking, and fantasies. It may be that during May you’ll be faced with several options to choose from, perhaps related to that new thing begun in April. It’s important to evaluate all your options so you can make the best choice. Not all the cups on the card contain positive things and you don’t want to pick up a snake when you meant to grab the treasure. This card may also be a sign that you need to start putting your dreams into actions. Coming up with ideas is easy but while it can be exciting to start making them a reality, it can also be frightening. But this card indicates that May will be a good month to work on making something real, making something happen for you.

June: Queen of Cups

The Queen of Cups is seen as a compassionate and kind woman. She connects with people at an emotional level and is honest and fair. She’s also not one to become overwhelmed by her emotions of those of others, though she thinks with her heart more than her mind. June may be an emotionally heightened month and you may be called to be compassionate and caring to others, or someone specific. She may also represent someone you will be able to turn to for help - the Queens are often seen a signs of older women who are part of your life but it isn’t always the case. The Queen of Cups is also highly intuitive so remember to trust your instincts and spend some time looking after your own emotional wellbeing.

July: Page of Wands

The Page of Wands represents excitement, adventure, energy, fearlessness and fresh ideas. He is passionate and has so many ideas of how to succeed at his tasks or goals, but often his inexperience and perhaps a fear of the unknown keeps him from actually doing anything. Sometimes he just has too many ideas and gets distracted too often. July may bring conflicting messages about how you are progressing with a goal or project. It may be a time when the voice that discourages you is particularly loud. But it will also be a time when something will trigger a desire to take the leap, to explore something new, to make an advancement in your life. Summon your courage and harness that desire.

August: The Magician

This card is the representation of pure willpower. During August you will have the chance to tap into your potential. Whatever doubts crept in during July are no longer worrying you. You know what you want and you know what you have to do to get there, all that remains is to do it. August will be a good month to put your plan into action. The Magician represents skill, resourcefulness and manifestation so there is no doubt that you are capable of achieving what you want.

September: 5 of Wands

Here we get a little bit of conflict. Now, the 5 of Wands speaks of rivalry, competition, arguments and aggression, however it may not be the bad kind of conflict. The imagery on the card can be interpreted as either a group of men fighting or a group of men play fighting/enjoying the competition. So, September is likely to be a time when conflicts arise but they could take many forms. It might be a rivalry at work (say two of you are up for the same promotion or you’re applying for a job against other candidates), or it could be an argument resulting from a miscommunication or misunderstanding. Whatever it is, there’s a chance it won’t be as serious as it first appears.

October: Judgement

The Judgement card represents awakening, renewal and reflection. It indicates that October will a be a good month to reflect on yourself and the progress you’ve made through the year and evaluate what is left to do or what you’d like to achieve by the end of the year. Use these reflections to make any changes you need, no matter how small, so you can finish the year in the right frame of mind.

November: 8 of Wands

November is likely to be a month of quick decisions and fast turnarounds. The 8 of wands symbolises movement, speed, progress, and sudden changes. If during the year it has felt like you’ve not made much progress, don’t worry. The momentum has been building and this is the time when things will begin to fall into place and the progress will become clear.

December: The Hierophant

And finally, December. The Hierophant is about tradition, conformity and convention but it’s also about seeking knowledge, learning, and being strong in your beliefs. If you celebrate Christmas this card may just be indicating that it’s a time of tradition and faith. It may also be indicating that December will be a good time for you to learn something new or that you’ll have success in a teamwork scenario. In regards to the progress you made in November, the Hierophant indicates that now is the time to stick to traditional or conventional methods of continuing that success rather than making outlandish adjustments that aren’t guaranteed to work.

Your oracle cards are:

From the Destiny Cards you have the word Discipline. This is definitely reflected in the Page of Wands the The Magician and even in The Hierophant. Don’t be discouraged if things don’t seem to be progressing how you’d hoped. Stick to your guns and you’ll get where you want to go.

From the Elemental Oracles we have Magnetism: Attraction. This is card number 37, so that number may be of importance to you. Know your values and needs so you can be aware of what your true attractions are. Take notice of what or who you attract and if it was your intention or an accident. Just like with magnets, there will always be an opposite energy to any endeavour you might take, it is natural law, so do not let it bother you.

From the Believe In Your Own Magic deck we have Homeward - Take yourself out on a date. This is card number 42 so, again, if you’re into numerology that may have extra meaning. But this card is reminding you to look after yourself. Treat yourself to something nice every now and again, take yourself out on a date, give yourself an evening to soak in a bubble bath or listen to your favourite album all the way through or whatever else you might do to look after your own emotional and mental wellbeing.

And then there is your sigil for the year from the Making Magic deck. The Triple Moon. Embracing all aspects of yourself - the divine and the earthly. This symbol is also known as the Triple Goddess symbol as each of the moons represents a different aspect of divine feminine power - the maiden, the mother and the crone. It’s a popular symbol is Wicca and you’ll find it on numerous items used in witchcraft.

Last but not least we have some charms.

In Jan we have the dice with the drama masks which are symbols from Ancient Greece for comedy and tragedy. It might indicate that this will be a time of heightened emotions.

On Feb we have the word Freedom as well as the number 4 and the mushroom. Freedom may indicate that you’ll be free of something this month. That may be thing that the 9 of wands card is referring too. The number 4 may be of particular significance this month or may be a lucky number of sorts. The mushroom could be a warning of potential danger. A lot of mushrooms are poisonous so seeing this charm it may indicate that something you’re considering is dangerous or that you’re approaching something in the wrong way.

Over Mar we have the lightbulb. The coil inside the bulb spells the word love so it may be that the Devil really is referring to sex (though of course you don’t have to have one to have the other). It could also just be indicating that this will be a period of bright ideas for you.

Over Apr we have the badge with the camera. This could represent your ability to decide how a moment or time in your life will be remembered. Your perspective of a situation will change how you remember that time when you look back months or years later. It may also indicate a need to slow down and appreciate the things around you or to document something in photographic or video form.

Over May we have the cotton spool. This could indicate a desire for things to be neat and orderly this month. The spool could also indicate a complication popping up, perhaps related to the choice indicated in the 7 of cups.

Over Jun we have the word Treasure. This could mean that during this month you’ll form a connection that you come to treasure or find an object you consider treasure. It may also be related to the treasure that appears on the 7 of cups card, perhaps indicating that you make the right choice or that during June you’ll make a start on turning your dreams to reality.

Next we have the hello kitty charm which lies between jul and aug. To me this is a sign of childhood, nostalgia. Perhaps you’ll interact with a child/children during this part of the year or perhaps it’ll just be a time when you revisit some old favourites.

The over Aug we have the question mark which indicates some confusion, and the “hello” badge which is a sign of an incoming message. It may be related to an old friend wanting to reconnect or someone delivering good news. The scissors also appear here. They represent cutting something unwanted out of your life.

Then over Sep we have the words “to” and “true”. It may be that a truth reveals itself this month which could lead to the conflict indicated in the card.

Between Sep and Oct we have the book. This charm represents knowledge and learning. Perhaps you’ll seek out information about a particular situation or, if you’re studying, now may be a particularly fruitful time.

Over Oct we have the Dolphin, a symbol of fun and frivolity as well as social situations. This is doubled with the Fun Token from an arcade. It may be that a fun social situation will happen this month - a party or other event. Or it could be that you’ll be able to find a lot of enjoyment in this month as part of your reflections or self care.

In Nov we have a dice with a sleeping symbol (a face, eyes closed, with Zs floating up from him). With the 8 of Wands it’s likely that this month will leave you tired or exhausted.

And finally the word Think. This charm fell sort of between Nov and Dec so you may find that as the busy Nov comes to an end you’ll have more time to think and consider what’s happening.

#card readings #sorry it's a lil late lmao #hopefully at least some of it resonates now

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xwaywardhuntress · 5 years ago

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The Batman to my Catwoman

Summary: Imagine Y/N gets Comic-Con badges for herself and the Winchesters.

Pairings: Dean Winchester x reader

Warnings: Curse words.

Word Count: 2500+

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural. This is fanfiction only. Please do not redistribute my writings on other sites, horrible or not. Thanks!

Author’s note: Another slow day at work, so here’s a quick fic.

“Y/N, come on! What’s taking so long?” Dean banged on the bathroom door of the motel.

Sam snickered while sitting at the table with a laptop in front of him. “Relax, man. She’s excited as you are, if not more with what she bought to wear to it.”

The older Winchester shot his brother a glare. “If she was so excited, we’d be at the convention waiting in line already. Also, I’m not excited. I’m only going with her so she’s not alone with a bunch of nerds.”

“Right.” Sam just shook his head at his brother’s denial. Every year, he’d hear both his brother and Y/N talk about comic con. This year, Y/N was able to get badges for all of them.

“Are you almost done yet? The line to that panel you wanted to go too is only getting longer.” Dean commented frustratingly.

Y/N threw the door open as she came walking out of the bathroom. “Who put a stick up your ass today? I’m done. Geez.” You stalked over to your duffel bag, placing in the clothes you had worn earlier when you went to go grab yourself and the boys’ coffee from the motel lobby. You were oblivious to Dean’s astonished look. When you turned around, you saw Dean eyeing you from top to bottom. “What? I’m cosplaying?” You stated.

Sam couldn’t help but chuckle at his brother’s speechless reaction. He stood up, closing his laptop. “It looks good, Y/N.” He complimented.

“Thanks, Sam.” You smiled as Sam started to talk about the panels that he actually wanted to check out.

Meanwhile, Dean was truly speechless. You were dressed as one of his favorite superhero’s love interest. Catwoman. And it was a very tight costume as he was able to see all the curves of your body from top to bottom. The cosplay was making him feel things he fought almost daily to keep hidden away. As much as he wouldn’t mind staring at you all day in the costume and fantasize about you, Dean finally found the will to clear his throat. “If you’re both ready, let’s get going then.” He stated as he walked past Y/N and his brother, grabbing the lanyard with the badge and throwing it over his neck. He had missed the disappointed look on your face since he hadn’t commented about your cosplay.

At the convention, Dean found himself grumbling to himself almost the whole time. Every Batman they passed by wanted to take a photo with you. What made him more frustrated was that you would never say no.

“This is pretty fun.” You commented as you made it back to Dean.

“Oh yeah, posing with a bunch of random strangers is fun.” The older Winchester complained.

And that was the last straw. All morning long, Dean just complained or said snarky remarks and you had enough. “Says the guy who sleeps with random strangers all the time!” You replied back as you stalked off into the crowd annoyed at Dean’s words.

Dean ran after you, unaware of where exactly he was going. He hadn’t paid much attention to the layout as his eyes were glued to you basically all morning. Eventually, he lost you in the crowd as he came up to another Catwoman cosplayer, mistaking her for you. “Shit…” He mumbled as he pulled out his phone to try to call you.

You had made your way outside of the convention, needing some air to cool yourself down. You sat down on one of the outside steps. Feeling your phone vibrate in the secret pocket compartment you had added to suit, you saw Dean’s name flashing on the screen. You rejected his call, sending him straight to voicemail. You didn’t want to fight with him while you all were supposed to be enjoying this hunt-free day as well as nerding it out. However, Dean’s complaints and smart remarks, which you had caught onto every single one of them throughout the morning whenever you’d talk or pose with other cosplayers had been getting to you. You had no idea what his problem was, especially since he didn’t exactly compliment you on your own costume either.

While mumbling about how Dean was being ridiculous to yourself, another voice spoke behind you as it cast a shadow that covered your own. “Why do we fall?” The gruff voice asked.

You turned your head to look at who was behind you. It was a rather slender Batman. You stood up to find yourself almost the same height. The stranger was a much shorter Batman than the usual ones you had run into so far.

The slender Batman continued, this time in a feminine voice, “So we can learn to pick ourselves up.”

The feminine voice sounded definitely familiar as you looked questioningly at the Batman. “Do I know you?” You couldn’t help but ask.

A grin came across Batman’s mouth. “I’m Batman. And you shouldn’t let a jealous jerk ruin the comic con experience, especially a green-eyed one who doesn’t have the balls to say how he really feels.” The Batman spoke in their regular female voice.

You caught on to the words green-eyed one, forgetting that the voice was familiar, as your hands slid to the whip that came with the costume. The whip might’ve been just a prop, but you were sure you could figure out how to use it to defend yourself if needed. There was only one green-eyed jerk that you could think of at the moment, Dean Winchester. If this Batman knew who you were, could the stranger be a demon?

While cautious and in thought, the Batman cosplayer decided they would remove their mask as red flocks of hair came undone. You instantly relaxed at the sight of a friend.

“Charlie?” You asked, surprised.

“Duh! Who else would it be?” Charlie asked chuckling as she went in for the hug. “I can’t believe you’re here! I ran into Sam at the Game Of Thrones panel and he said you had dressed up as the feisty Catwoman.” The redhead pulled away from the hug as she couldn’t help but check out your Catwoman costume. “Damn are you hot as Catwoman! Are you sure you don’t swing the other way?” She joked. “I was told Dean was with you too, but I’m guessing he was being a jerk which is why you’re out here by the stairs by yourself.”

You narrowed your eyes away, confirming Charlie’s suspicions, but also not wanting to continue thinking about it. “You can say that, but let’s not talk about him. I’m so glad you found me! I don’t know why I didn’t think of you when coming here. I feel so stupid.” You chuckled.

“I know! This is my guilty pleasure once a year.” Charlie stated proudly.

“And you’re batman!” You added.

“Dude, he’s a chick magnet, and not just for one way…if you know what I mean. “ She winked at you. “I’ve gotten some numbers that I definitely plan on calling later. But, I could always use a Catwoman by my side if you’re up for it.”

“Oh definitely, yes!” You exclaimed when you felt your phone vibrating again. It was probably Dean.

As you took your phone out and saw the name that flashed on your screen, confirming it was Dean, Charlie grabbed your phone and answered for you. She turned on a device attached to her batman suit that changed her voice to make it deep. “Sorry, but the Cat is with the Bat. She’ll maybe call ya later when we’re done together.” And then Charlie hung up on Dean without giving him a chance to talk.

You couldn’t help but laugh at what Charlie said.

“And now he’ll definitely be looking for you. But he won’t find you if I can help it! Let’s go back to the convention?” Charlie asked as she placed her mask back on and then held her arm out.

“I suppose just for some time the Cat can follow the Bat.” You commented chuckling as you intertwined your arm with hers and then walked back into the convention.

- - -

Meanwhile, after Dean got hung up on after who he thought was a man answered your phone, he met up with Sam again as he explained to his brother what happened.

“I can’t blame her, honestly. You’ve been acting like a jerk since we left the motel. If she found someone else to have fun with, then let her. She’s a big girl.” Sam explained as he shrugged. “There’s still some other panels I want to check out. I’ll see you later back at the motel.” The younger Winchester shared as he began walking away, leaving his brother speechless as Dean had no rebuttal to what Sam had said.

Instead, Dean was set on finding you, so any Catwoman and Batman pair that he saw, he went up to all of them.

- - -

You had spent about three hours with Charlie without Dean finding you. Luckily, Batman and Catwoman were popular cosplayer pairs. You and Charlie had also checked out one of the panels you had shared with the Winchesters as wanting to go too that probably helped in hiding you two as well. As you and Charlie were leaving the finished panel, that’s when you spotted Dean sitting at the back of the panel room. Had he actually listened to you before when you listed all the panels you had wanted to go too? He looked tired and defeated. As much as your brain kept telling you to leave him, your heart felt a bit guilty for leaving him alone the past three hours. After all, you had fallen for the jerk.

You pulled Charlie off to the side to let others pass you two. “Dean’s here.”

Charlie looked around till she spotted him sitting down still. “Do you want me to go all Batman on him?” She asked, half-serious, half-joking. The redhead knew she had no chance against Dean, who fought off real monsters practically every day.

“No. I’m kind of over it. I should probably spend the last part of the convention day with him.”

“Alright, if you say so. I think he should apologize to you, at least.” Charlie suggested as she looked over at Dean. “He does look kind of lame and lonely.”

“You’re welcome to join in, of course.”

Charlie bit her lip. “I’ll think about it. Go get’em, tiger!” She said as she pushed you in his direction.

As the room cleared and you made it over to the lonely Winchester, the moment you came into view, Dean stood up and embraced you.

“H-How do you know it’s me?” You asked confused but enjoyed the embrace, nonetheless.

“I just know.” He mumbled as he continued. “I’m sorry I was a jerk.” He said as he pulled away from the embrace. “I just wanted to spend time with you and nerd out on all the things that you and I share an interest in. I know I messed it up with my complaining all morning, and I’m sorry for that. I was…” He paused for a moment.

You couldn’t help as your eyes stared back into his green ones, listening to his not-so-bad apology.

He closed his eyes, letting out a breath of air as he reopened them to stare back at you. “I was jealous.” He finally admitted. “You’re hot as Catwoman. I get what all those Batmans saw. And honestly, when you first walked out in your Catwoman suit, I didn’t want anyone else to see you in it. I wanted you all to myself.” The Older Winchester chuckled as he shook his head. “Geez, what am I saying? I sound selfish. You’re too good for me.”

“Stop.” You finally spoke. “Don’t say stuff like that. Maybe I want you to be selfish. I’m too good for you? Don’t make me laugh.” You smiled at him as you placed your hands on his face to make him look at you. “You know you’re a stubborn asshole sometimes.”

Dean’s eyes widened at your comment. He wasn’t sure what to expect, but he wasn’t expecting you to call him names.

You continued as you felt the frustration and anger from earlier being released. So much for being kind of over it. “You’re also an overprotective jerk. You always think your plan is the way to go. You’re always getting mad at others when they get hurt, but when you get hurt, we’re not allowed to get mad at you.”

Dean scrunched one eye, feeling each blow of a sentence you spoke. “Okay, I get it. You’re still upset.”

“Oh no, I’m not done yet. You always have to be the right one. You act without thinking. You complain about strangers giving me attention when I don’t complain at all about you hitting on chicks at the bar. You get mad at me for stupid reasons. You’re a downright jerk!” You paused to catch your breath. “But…” You lowered your voice to speak softly. “…somehow, despite all of that, you still made me fall for you.” As you were about to lean in to kiss him, a familiar Batman interrupted which caused both you and Dean to look away from each other.

“I’ve found you kitty cat.” Charlie spoke in her Batman voice.

“You!” Dean recognized the voice from the phone. “Listen, you stay away from my girl! She doesn’t need you anymore, she has me! And…” He yelled walking up to the Batman as he lost his train of thought, noticing that this was a very short and slender Batman. “…wait a minute.”

“About time.” Charlie spoke in her usual voice as she took the mask off.

You had started laughing behind Dean, who was confused to see Charlie dressed as Batman.

“Charlie? W-what…? Wait, were you the one that hung up on me on the phone?” Dean asked still processing the reveal.

“Guilty. Had to put you in your place, Winchester. If you weren’t going to make a move on Y/N, then I was ready to try to convert her.” She laughed.

Dean looked down, “God, I’m so stupid.”

“You are, but you deserved it.” Sam spoke out of the blue, joining the group. “I knew Y/N was with Charlie this whole time, by the way. I figured letting you think she was with some guy would push you to tell her your feelings finally. Looks like I was right.”

Charlie greeted Sam as the younger Winchester also complimented Charlie in her costume.

While Dean was processing that he had been an idiot thinking Y/N had chosen some random guy to hang out with this whole time and had literally hunted down every Batman and Catwoman cosplayer he saw for about an hour, you walked up behind him.

You tapped him on his shoulder. “So….will you be the Batman to my Catwoman?” You asked with a smile.

Dean pulled you to him with a mischievous grin. “We’re endgame, baby.” He said as he pressed his lips to yours.

“Wrong superhero verse!” Charlie shouted from the sidelines, as she and Sam watched the hunting world’s very own Batman and Catwoman finally get together.

#dean winchester x reader #dean x reader #supernatural imagine #spn fanfic

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thosestarsthatshine · 6 years ago

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Loved and Lost

Ch. 5: The Truth Comes Out

Despite training with Aizawa for many years, Hitoshi Shinsou always ended up being surprised by his old sensei and his ability to kick his ass at every turn. Even when Hitoshi thought he had gotten the upper hand, Aizawa would always come around and teach him a lesson. It wasn’t fair, but yet it always fueled him to do better. Maybe that’s why Aizawa never failed to hand him his ass on a silver platter.

They had been training for a couple of hours now, while little Hiro watched in awe the entire time. Even though he was itching to show off the quirk that had manifested only a few months ago, he couldn’t help but be excited watching the two heroes go back and forth. He was mesmerized, but at the same time he was beginning to grow impatient.

Hiro began to whine from the sidelines, “Papa, when is it my turn?”

The two heroes couldn’t help but let out small chuckles at the little boy so eager to begin training of his own. Aizawa soon turned to Hitoshi, eyebrow raised, “Do you mind stepping back for a bit?”

“Nah, I don’t mind, could use some water.”

“Was I kicking your ass that bad?” Aizawa grinned at Hitoshi as he spoke, sounding ever so cocky in his abilities.

Hitoshi couldn’t help but laugh, “You wish.” Calling to the little boy waiting so eagerly on the sidelines, “Alright Hiro, you’re up!”

Hiro couldn’t help the megawatt smile that formed on his face. Eyes wide with excitement to show off what he could do. He began to rush over to where the two heroes were standing. Hitoshi couldn’t help but notice just how cute the boy really was. Wearing a somewhat, oversized black and orange Ground Zero shirt - he made his mother get him a bigger one so it could fit over the muscles he would have one day, and a pair of dark blue jeans. His hair wildly bouncing as he ran with all his might over to them. Once he had made it over, he eagerly began pushing Hitoshi’s leg, shooing him away. As if to tell him that his time was up.

“Okay, okay, I get it. It’s your turn.” Hitoshi couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips at the sight of the boy.

As grandfather and grandson began to start their training, Hitoshi felt that it was the perfect opportunity to observe the boy a little more. He still had this feeling in the back of his mind that he was being kept in the dark about something in regards to Hiro. He was beginning to form his own conclusions but he needed a bit more evidence.

Nevertheless, Hitoshi didn’t have time to dive deeper into his thoughts as he soon saw the boy use his quirk for the first time. He saw Hiro reach out and touch Aizawa and the older man’s form abruptly went rigid. Hitoshi saw Hiro tell Aizawa what he wanted and after as if on cue, Aizawa moved forward. He walked about twenty feet forward and then Hiro quietly whispered stop. Hiro then commanded his grandfather to return to him, which he obediently did. Soon he was pushing Aizawa to go farther and farther. Eventually, after about ten minutes Aizawa had been released from the boy’s control.

Hitoshi stood there flabbergasted at the sight. He desperately wanted to play it off as coincidence. Mental quirks ran in his family, both with his mother and grandfather. Still, the nagging feeling wouldn’t go away. The evidence was staring him right in the face but at the moment he was choosing to ignore it. He had one thing on his mind for the rest of the day, to get Y/N to reveal the truth to him. He needed to hear it from her, hear the words come from her mouth. He couldn’t fully accept it until then.

After a few rounds of training Hiro, they soon made their way back from the U.A. campus - the afternoon sun blaring down on them, making the air unbearably hot. They had only been walking for about ten minutes when Hiro began to complain.

“Papa, it’s too hot! Can we please get ice cream?”

Ten minutes later, the trio were sitting on a park bench enjoying their cones while a gentle summer breeze blew by. It was hard not to notice the lavender hue in the boy’s hair when the sun shone through it, and eyes once considered to be obsidian had a deep amethyst shade to them. Hell, even his quirk was pretty much Hitoshi’s with some minor differences. To play those off as mere coincidence would be beyond foolish. He was being foolish.

Was he simply in denial?

Perhaps denial was a better term for what was going through Hitoshi’s mind. Denial was better than facing the possible reality that was placed before him. The possibility that for five years, he was unable to know about him - kept away from him. They were reduced to strangers. Still, HItoshi knew that if Hiro was indeed his son, he would be there for him. He would demand to be involved in his life.

Hitoshi wouldn’t deny that he was intrigued by Hiro. He was a little spitfire, curious about everyone and everything. He radiated confidence, even for his small stature - something that he must have learned from watching Bakugou. Hitoshi wanted to learn everything about the boy - from his likes and dislikes to what he dreamed about being when he grew up. He came to the conclusion that IF, and that was a big if, Hiro was not his son, he still wanted to be involved in his life. He felt drawn to the boy - as if there was some magnetic force pushing them together.

It was a little past five o’clock in the evening when they finally made their way back to Aizawa’s house. The summer sun just beginning to make it’s descent for the day. As they were approaching the walkway, a certain explosive blonde was walking towards them causing Hiro to run towards him - a huge smile plastered on his face. Bakugou couldn’t help but return one of his own.

“Daddy!”

Bakugou scooped Hiro up in his arms in a big bear hug. “Hey Squirt! How ya been?”

“Good! Papa took me to train with him!

“He did?”

“Yeah, and we got ice cream and Mama’s friend Hitoshi came along!” Hiro was rather elated about the ice cream part.

Looking away from Hiro and acknowledging the two men that stood before him, Bakugou could feel his irritation begin to grow as his jaw clenched. He could sense that something underhanded was going on, but he just couldn’t determine what exactly it was. Y/N had told him all about the previous nights events - he knew what had happened, he just didn’t understand fully what motives were at play here. Y/N had never mentioned that Hitoshi was joining the two of them, so he had to assume that she didn’t know. Aizawa must have invited him after the fact. Even his appearance at dinner last night was rather peculiar. Bakugou needed to know why Aizawa felt the need to include himself in affairs that really didn’t concern him. Then there was Shinsou. Bakugou knew that Hitoshi was a smart guy, in fact, there was no doubt in his mind that he was most likely trying to put two and two together. The thought of this made Bakugou hold on to Hiro just a little bit tighter - pulling him closer, his eyes narrowing at Hitoshi’s figure. He felt threatened by Hitoshi’s presence, and he absolutely despised it. Yet, at the same time, Bakugou knew that deep inside of Hitoshi he was probably feeling the same way.

He was right.

Hitoshi felt anger and jealousy bubble up inside him at the sight of them. He could still hear Hiro’s excited yell when he first laid eyes on Bakugou. He was still replaying in his mind the moment they embraced and how happy the two of them had looked. He felt his lips get tight as fists clenched at his sides.

That could have been him, it should have been him. Yet, here he was a complete and total stranger. It was wrong. Here he was again losing everything to Bakugou, first the love of his life and now possibly his own son. He was furious. Furious at himself, at Bakugou, at Aizawa, and most importantly at Y/N. He was determined to make her tell the truth.

Bakugou broke the silence that now consumed the four of them, as he placed Hiro on the ground and grabbed his hand.

“Let’s go inside, I bet your Mama is gonna be happy to see you!” The smile on his face masking the anger forming inside.

Y/N was just finishing looking at prospective wedding venues when she saw Bakugou and Hiro appeared in the doorway. She couldn’t contain the smile that arose to her lips at the sight of them.

“Hi Mama! We’re home!” Hiro excitedly waved towards Y/N the moment he saw her. A small giggle escaped her lips as she went to greet them.

“Hello, my loves!” She placed a gentle kiss on Hiro’s forehead.

Bakugou had raised an eyebrow to her, sarcastically asking, “What about me?”

Y/N rolled her eyes and playfully slapped Bakugou’s arm. He leaned down and she planted a tender kiss on his lips.

If anyone had told Y/N in high school that she would be engaged to Bakugou she would have likely laughed directly in their face. The Bakugou that stood before her was so unlike the Bakugou that she knew in high school, it was like night and day. Sure, there were some things that had remained the same in him - his short fuse, his drive to always be the best, his explosive personality. Still, there were things that were distinct to this now mature Katsuki Bakugou. He was gentler, kinder, loving - of course all in his own way. He absolutely adored Y/N and Hiro, and it was the thing about Katsuki that Y/N loved about him the most. He chose to stick around when he had no obligation to, Hiro wasn’t his son and yet he chose to be an active part of his life, he chose to be his father.

Five years ago, Y/N and Katsuki had reconnected when his agency had sent him over to America to assist her agency in catching some criminal that had left Japan and had begun committing crimes in the States. She and Bakugou had been assigned to the case as partners, and it wasn’t the best of starts. They were constantly competing against each other and butting heads. But then, something changed, at least it did in Y/N.

Bakugou wouldn’t lie if he said that he had always had his eye on Y/N. She was fierce, strong, and confident, yet, at the same time she was kind and compassionate. She was an enigma to him and he had always wanted to get closer. Working together on that first case, had done just that. Still, there was a little hiccup in their relationship, Y/N had discovered that she was pregnant with Hiro. Any other man would have run at the very thought, but Katsuki Bakugou was not like any other man.

Sure, it’s never ideal when the only person that you had ever seen yourself having a future with was pregnant, with another man’s baby no less. However, Katsuki knew what he had in front of him, a real chance at true love. Even though Y/N would refuse to go out with him until things settled, he still stuck around. He knew it must not have been ideal for her to be going through a pregnancy alone - her family was in Japan, and the baby’s father was absent. He would hear her cry sometimes at night, at the office, anytime she had alone to herself. So, Katsuki made it his mission to be by Y/N’s side. He would go and do anything and everything that Y/N allowed him to, from doctor’s appointments to building the crib. He knew that she needed someone by her side, even if it was just as a friend. He would wait, even when it wasn’t always easy he would wait. Katsuki Bakugo had never been a really patient person, but love can really change a person.

As the pregnancy progressed he had found himself falling more in love not only with Y/N, but with her unborn son. He couldn’t help himself. Maybe it was due to being around for everything or maybe it was something else, but Bakugou had found himself getting excited for Hiro to be born. Then when the time finally came, just like with everything else, he was there by Y/N’s side the day that her son was born. She had even let him hold him, and Katsuki Bakugou found himself growing further in love with the tiny bundle he cradled in his arms.

Hiro looked so small and fragile wrapped in his soft blue blanket. He needed someone to watch over and protect him, and Bakugou made it his mission to do so. He would be there for him, to guide him and to love him as if he was his own, and he would continue to be there for as long as Y/N would let him.

For a year they stayed in this neutral state - more than friends but no more than lovers. During that year, Bakugou was going back and forth between America and Japan, and it killed Y/N to have him leave for months at a time. She had come to realize that she could no longer push her feelings for Bakugou to the side. Y/N was still somewhat heartbroken over Hitoshi. Still, it felt like time to move on and recognize the incredible man that had been there for her in her darkest times. Realizing that it wasn’t fair to deny the connection they so clearly had and that Katsuki had been at her side throughout it all. The moment that Bakugou had returned stateside, Y/N confessed everything to him.

“I just need you to know how much I appreciate you being here for Hiro and I.” Y/N’s heart felt like it was going to explode out of her chest. “I am so hopelessly and desperately in love with you and I know it sounds cheesy, but I just needed you to know.”

Bakugou was unable to express how deep her words at touched him. So he did the only thing he could think to do, he kissed her. The kiss was needy and rough, filled with the emotion that they had pushed aside for almost two years.

The three of them stayed blissful in their own little world, happy and content with the home they had built with each other. For two years it stayed this way, until finally Bakugou had worked up the courage to ask Y/N to marry him.

Bakugou, Hiro, and Y/N had spent the entire day together, they had gone to the aquarium and to the park, just enjoying each other’s company. After a day filled with fun, just the three of them, they had returned home to cuddle up for the night. It was during this that Bakugou had gotten down on one knee to propose.

“Y/N, I am so in love with you. You and Hiro own my heart, and I want to spend the rest of my life with the two of you.” Bakugou could feel his heart pound out of his chest and his hands grow a little sweaty, “Will you marry me?”

“Yes!”

The ring was beautiful. It was an oval cut ring with a rather large diamond in the middle, 3.5 carats to be exact, and smaller diamonds going half way down the band surrounding it. Y/N couldn’t be more elated to get to marry the explosive hero that she had fallen for.

Y/N would have been content to stay in America forever, just the three of them, but Bakugou had been itching to return back home to continue moving up the hero rankings. It made sense, their assignments in America had finished and there was more action happening back home. Yet, she knew that if she returned, there would be a certain person who would come back in their lives. She wasn’t ready for him, wasn’t ready to face the pain she had escaped from so many years ago. Y/N also wasn’t ready to expose a secret she had kept for so long. It took some serious convincing on Bakugou’s part, but she agreed to return back home.

So, here she was staying at her father’s house until their new apartment was ready. Nervous that it was only a matter of time before everything went downhill. Coming back to the moment before her, she broke away from Bakugou’s kiss and could see Hitoshi storm through the door. Her father hot on his heels. Hitoshi seemed to be fuming and she knew that the one thing that she had secretly feared for so many years was soon about to rear its head.

“We need to talk. Now.” Hitoshi was trying so desperately to hide his anger from the rest of the room, and especially from Hiro. He didn’t want to upset the boy by yelling at his mother, but he was beyond furious.

Y/N nodded her head and quietly followed him into Aizawa’s study. She could feel her body trembling from fear for the confrontation that was about to happen. As the door closed behind her, she couldn’t help but feel the room closing in around her.

Hitoshi was staring daggers into Y/N. His jaw began to clench as his hands formed tight fists against his side. “I need you to tell me the truth. Is Hiro my son?”

Y/N could see how angry he was, could feel it too, as it radiated off of him. She never wanted things to happen like this. “Hitoshi, I-“

Hitoshi felt his anger boil over, losing control as he cut her off with a growl, “Answer me.”

Y/N’s eyes soon turned into a muted grey as she slipped under his control. He didn’t mean to use his quirk on her, but when he lost control, it just happened. Tears began to well in her eyes, as she felt her mind force out the answer.

In a quiet and shaky voice, she spoke. “Yes... Hiro is your son.”

Hitoshi was seeing red, his body began to shake in rage. How dare she keep Hiro a secret from him.

Was she ever planning on telling him about his son?

Yet, suddenly his rage turned to sadness, as he began to break down, with his own tears now welling in his eyes. He felt hurt more than anything. A person who he had loved so dearly, who he had shared so much of himself with had kept this secret from him.

“Why did you never tell me about him?”

Still under his control, she responded. “I tried. I tried to get in contact with you but you would always ignore my calls. After a while, I was so frustrated in not getting a response that I gave up.” Y/N hesitated as she spoke. “For almost five years, I wished that I could have pursued it further and told you, but I was nineteen and I did the best I could with what I was given.”

Hitoshi was quiet as he spoke, “Your dad could have told me?”

Y/N responded. “This was not his news to share. It was for me to tell you. He didn’t need to get involved in this.”

“Were you ever going to tell me about him?” His voice spoke as he said this. It was the one question that plagued his mind more so than the others.

“Yes. Eventually, I would have told you about him. That was one of the reasons for us moving back. I had planned to tell you,”. She paused, sighing as she said, “just, not this soon”.

“Were you ever planning on telling him about me?”

“For an almost five year old, I don’t know how he would have handled it. Knowing that your dad is not your biological dad, is pretty confusing at that age. However, I would have told him once he had gotten used to you being around, and only if you wanted him to know.”

Y/N was suddenly released from his control as the tears spilt from both of their eyes. They were both feeling so many things - anger, sadness, resentment, and fear.

Silence filled the room as the gazed at each other, realizing that they were indeed different people from the ones they knew all those years ago. It was like they couldn’t recognize the people that they had become. For Hitoshi, the Y/N that he had known back then would have never kept a secret like this from him, and for Y/N, the Hitoshi she knew would have never used his quirk on her in anger.

When had things gone so wrong between them?

Could things ever be fixed?

Hitoshi didn’t know what to say to her anymore. He was still trying to process the information that now hung in the air. He had a son. They had a son. Something that he once used to think about, now seemed much darker. The room felt much smaller as let the weight of her words really sink into him. He felt so broken inside. He needed to leave Y/N to really think about what to do next. Yes, he still wanted a relationship with Hiro, and at the same time he still wanted a relationship with Y/N. Not a romantic relationship anymore, but one as friends and co-parents. However, he knew that he needed to not be disgusted at her sight to do so. He needed to get some space from her to really think about everything, so he just walked out of the room and left. As he was pushing past Y/N to leave, he felt her reach out and grab his hand. The tears that once threatened to spill in her eyes now staining her cheeks.

“Toshi, I am so sorry.”

“I know, but right now I just can’t forgive you.” His words stung her like poison as he released himself from her hold and walked out the door.

#bhna bree #shinsou x reader #hitoshi shinsou #bhna shinsou #bhna bakugou #katsuki bakugou #bakugou x reader #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #bhna x reader #bhna #mha #loved and lost #shinsou hitoshi #bakugou katsuki #angst

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nicole-lynne · 6 years ago

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Tense Muscles and Flying

This idea was inspired by the lovely @stuckonspidey. I loved her story so much and had this idea rattling around in my head. I hope I did your world even a little bit of justice.

Hope you all love it! Like, comment, and reblog!

The first time she had ever felt him, she was seventeen. All the other kids in her school had starting making connections as soon as they had hit their teens, but she hadn’t. But she had decided she was a late bloomer. She wasn’t stressed out about it because she knew it would happen when the universe deemed it necessary.

Y/N had been walking home from school, the tall New York buildings created a boundary around her that made her feel so safe. In her mind, the city is where she belonged. The seas of people that traveled there made her feel like she could be anyone and anything she damn well pleased.

It had been so warm and sunny that day, Y/N figured what could be the harm in letting her legs stretch a bit. She was bopping along to the music coming from her headphones and all at once, she felt like the air had been swept out of her lungs. Her eyes widened in shock and she dropped her heavy book bag to the ground with a thud. Y/N pushed her back flush against a brick wall and slid to the ground, reaching for something to steady her. Her heart was beating like crazy and her arms were shaking as all the blood rushed to her muscles. She was surprised but she knew immediately that this was being caused by him.

As people passed her on the street, they stared as if she had grown a second head. Y/N shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, and forced herself into a standing position. With her knees shaking, screaming to give out, she pushed forward with each step. Tears flooded to her eyes but she wiped them away quickly, refusing to let this get to her. The fact that she was no longer in control of her own body would not be a reason for her to cry. Y/N kept her thoughts focused on her home and her bed, and before she knew it, she was collapsing into her soft comforter. For the rest of the night, she was confined to her bed. Her muscles were tensing and releasing for hours and she just let it happen. He was the overpowering ocean and she had to learn to push and pull with him, rather than letting him drown her.

---

After five years, Y/N still had not met the man who consumed one half of her body and mind. Unlike every other person in the world, she was completely calm about this fact. Of course, she was curious about the person on the other end of every adrenaline rush or panic attack. Sometimes he would be riddled with fear, a fear that could incapacitate her. A fear mixed with guilt that would paralyze her for hours.

Y/N longed to calm that part of his, so soon after their connection had started, she had begun to take hot relaxing baths with stress-relieving salts in hopes to rest his stirring mind. She would meditate every morning and night, sending him positive thoughts to help him through the days. The two of them worked as a team, and for now, that would have to be good enough for her. But still, she wondered where he was and what he was doing. Was he looking for her?

As much as she wanted to know, Y/N had never been the type of to stress about things beyond her control. Overall, she was a pretty confident person; secure in herself and her abilities. In her world, that wasn’t very common. A world that relied on feeling your other half - your soulmate. A world that let you feel every emotional and physical thing that your soulmate was going through, 24/7. It could really take a toll on a person the longer they stayed unconnected. Every person was focused on finding the love of their life.

Y/N had never wanted that to be her only will to live. So rather than obsessing on finding her adrenaline junkie soulmate, she finished college and had gotten a good job at a small publishing house. It was a perfect distance from her beautiful New York apartment and she could spend hours reading; on the hunt for the next best-seller.

---

It was the middle of summer and the sun was hanging high in the sky today, Y/N bounced outside of the publishing house. She was ready to get changed into her workout gear and head to the little gym near her home. As she turned to head for the subway, the sun called out to her, begging her to stay out and play. Y/N stopped and stared up at the sky, letting the heat sink into her soul. That was all she needed to decide she would walk home, opting to stretch her sore legs.

She hummed along, gazing into all the little shops, making mental notes of things she would like to buy sometime in the future. Y/N was wishing now she had worn the flower skirt that was hanging in her closet. Her legs were definitely in need of some sunshine. Y/N moved to pull the earbuds out of her pocket when a large hand gripped her upper arm and yanked her into a shaded alley.

A loud squeal left her mouth in surprise but a dirty hand clamped over her lips, effectively shutting her up. Then, a gun was cocked and pointed at her head. The color drained out of her face and she felt her body shrinking back in absolute terror.

“Give me your bag now, bitch!” A masked face screamed at her, anger radiating out of the eyes.

Y/N swallowed down her fear, stood up a little taller and pulled her shoulders bag. Her heart was racing and she had to ignore her basic instinct to swing on this dirtbag. She knew it wouldn’t help anything to get into a physical altercation. This was the time to be calm and collected. “Just take the bag and be on your way. No one needs to get hurt, sir.” With that, she held out her leather bag.

Just as the mugger’s fingertips grabbed for the bag, something swung into the alley and kicked the man back into the wall. Y/N blinked a few times in surprise, recognizing her rescuer as Spider-man. She had followed his crime-fighting career over the years.

“Now that’s not very nice, is it? How about you get a job instead of harassing nice girls.” He shot a web and stuck the mugger against the side of the building. “Maybe the cops will help you get your life straightened out.” Y/N had to hold back a giggle that was bubbling in her chest.

He heard her laugh and turned to look at Y/N. She could immediately feel the pull of him, his soul. Her mouth gaped open in realization that this was him, her other half. Her soulmate was the Spider-man.

Determination flowed through his body and he walked towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist.The second his hands touched her body, her own emotions came to the forefront of her mind. It was as if he had been expelled from her and she was on her own again. She furrowed her brows and studied his masked face for any sign that he knew her too.

“Hold on tight, beautiful.” A web shot of his hands and they flew into the air, out of the alley.

The breath was knocked out of her almost immediately. A wild laugh fell from her lips, his head whipped over to look at her. “I’ve been dying to know what this feeling was for years!” Then, they started laughing together at the thought.

Y/N tilted her head back and let the wind blow through her hair. She wanted to fling her arm out but her body wouldn’t let her move her hands off of his chest. It was as if he was a magnet, holding all her pieces together. Her world became a little more clear with him in it.

Spider-Man dropped them onto a roof a building but they stayed in each other’s arms, the universe fading around them. Their breath was ragged with excitement, the adrenaline flowing through their veins like water. Cautiously, Y/N reached her hand up to the bottom of his mask and began to lift it.

At that same moment, Spider-man backed away from her and his feelings slammed into her like a freight train. All she could feel was fear and anxiety taking over her feelings of passion and elation.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do this. You can’t know who I am.” Her heart dropped at his statement and she longed to reach out and touch him but he stayed out of her arms reach.

“Wha-what do you mean?” Y/N stammered out. “You-you’re him, though. I-I’m me. Doesn’t that mean anything?”

His head hung and she could feel the shame radiating through him. “It’s just too dangerous for you to know who I am.”

Y/N let out a sarcastic laugh and he looked over at her in awe. “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard, Spider-man... If I knew your full name, I would use it right then and there, mister. I could get hurt everyday just doing normal stuff. .” She put her hands on her hips and stared at him with adamant look fixed on her face. “Besides, I could have taken that mugger if you hadn’t shown up.”

Spider-man burst out laughing at that, “Okay, I would have loved to see that! I can’t believe you were acting so calm. I could feel your heart beating like a thousand beats a second.” Y/N’s face flushed at that.

Y/N dropped her hands down to her sides. “Look, I’ve been waiting for five years to find you and I’m not going to let something as...small...as you being Spider-man keep me from being with you. You shouldn’t let that fear keep you from getting to know me. Besides, I’m pretty cool.” She shrugged casually and he let out a soft laugh.

“Okay... Let’s try again.” He said quietly.

Y/N brought her hands up to his mask again, moving agonizingly slow so she didn’t spook him. His breath hitched as her thumb ran against his cheek, her touch filling a space in his heart he didn’t know existed.

In a single breath, the mask was gone and Y/N was met with the most gorgeous chocolate brown eyes. Her heart skipped as she took in the man that stood before her. His dark brown curls were like a unruly mop on his head and just one look pulled at her heartstrings. Her heart pounded as she admired the way his suit fit him. He looked at her with uneasiness, unsure of what was supposed to happen next.

He held his hand out to her, “My name is Peter. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Y/N laughed again and pulled Peter into a hug. “I’m Y/N, and I’m so glad we are finally meeting.” He pulled her against his chest tightly, the feeling that he could conquer the world with her at his side. They fit like two pieces of a puzzle - perfect.

---

Peter and Y/N had spent the rest of the evening on that roof, talking about everything that crossed their minds. He had explained about his life, his job with Tony Stark, and all of the different things he had fought.

Her heart panged at the thought that she could have lost him to some unknown creature before she even knew him. Peter immediately felt her sadness wash over him and quickly placed a chaste kiss on her cheek. Y/N looked up at Peter in amazement. This boy was hers.

“Ya know, I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me over the years.” Y/N looked at him with a puzzled expression. “With all the hot baths and all of that. It really helped my anxiety. More than you’ll ever know.”

He wrapped an arm around her and rubbed his hands up and down her arm. She looked up into his eyes, the sun hitting them and creating deep pools of honey.

“I’d do anything for you, Peter. I’m glad that I finally get to know you.” She buried her head into his neck and tried to rest her beating heart.

They sat there, holding onto one another, neither one of them wanting to give this up. The warm, evening air putting them in a place of comfort until the only left to do was to move. The sun sank past the rooftops and Y/N stood up shakily. “Well, I best get home. The whole afternoon has passed in the blink of eye.”

Peter jumped up with realization and he wiped his palms on his thighs. “Oh, oh rig-right. I would, um, walk you home but...” He gestured to the Spider-man suit. She chuckled softly and nodded.

“I don’t blame you. We might get some pretty funny looks if I was walking around hand-in-hand with the neighborhood crime fighter.” Y/N nudged his shoulder and he let out a laugh.

Peter walked her to the rooftop entrance and stood there, he could barely take his eyes off the beautiful girl standing in front of him. Y/N turned to look at him, brought herself up on her tiptoes, and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. Peter’s eyebrows shot up and a huge grin spread across his face.

“I’ll catch you around, Spidey.” Y/N whirled around and disappeared into the darkness that was the staircase. Leaving Peter to his own racing emotions, shooting webs across the city.

As she got ready for bed, her heart was soaring and she knew Peter’s was too. The whole day had been a big mess but she wouldn’t change it for anything. She had finally connected with her other half and now she knew why her friends pushed her so hard to find him sooner.

She finished up her bathroom routine and opened up the door, dragging her exhausted body to the bed. But she stopped in her tracks. Sitting at the top of her bed was a little brown teddy bear in a Spider-man outfit. A wide grin grew across Y/N’s face and she walked over to pick up the note attached to him.

For the times I’m not around. So glad I get to know you, too. x Peter

#peter parker #spiderman #spiderverse #fanfiction #peter x reader #tom holland

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