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jace-the-writer-guy · 4 years ago

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M.I.A. Part One

The sounds of gunfire filled the night as a lone woman fought against a squad of Sentinel operatives that guarded a special facility. The facility in question experimented with portal technology, which would make transporting supplies all across the Auroa Archipelago simple and quick for Sentinel. The company had taken Skell Tech hostage, which was the company that they were forcing to make their drones, weapons, and now these portals. And numerous private operatives were hired to stop it.

One such operative was a lavender-eyed woman codenamed "Viper", and she was currently fighting her way into the main facility where the portal experimentation was taking place. She was a very fit woman that stood at five feet and eight inches tall. Her hair was semi-bright red, drawn up in a tight ponytail with a bit of her bangs hanging down over the right side of her face and eye. She wore a black half face mask covering her mouth and nose, with some black face paint over her eyes and forehead but not completely covering her skin. She wore gear that was all black, with a black magazine harness that held a few spare dual-magazines for the gun she was using which was a mainly matte black, classic MP5A4 chambered in 9mm. The gun was complete with a red dot sight, a flashlight integrated in the front of the handguard under the barrel, and a folding stock that could fold to the left side of the gun. The barrel, flashlight, magazines and sight were all a dark purple color. On the right side of her harness were three spare magazines for her DMR on her back. Under the harness she wore a simple black combat jacket, and along with that she wore black military cargo pants with armored thighs and knees that led into black combat boots. Over her hands she wore a pair of armored gloves, with black metal over the tops of them and along the knuckles.

Lastly on her back, she wore a black military backpack with clips on both sides of it for her two longer-range guns. One was a designated marksman rifle for medium to long range firing, which was an MK14 EBR that was fully matte black with a dual-range sight, and a foldable grip on the bottom rail. It was custom chambered in .458 Socom rounds to deliver a massive punch when needed. On the opposite side was her sniper rifle, a Barrett MRAD bolt-action sniper rifle chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum. On the bottom rail of her sniper rifle was a bipod, and on the right rail was a range finder that was linked to her rifle's large scope which told her the exact range of her targets in her crosshairs The stocks of both her rifles were folded against the bases of them to make them a bit more compact for carrying. Lastly on her right hip was the holster that held her custom .50 AE Desert Eagle, which had a black frame and slide with black grips and silver barrel. Being trained as she was, she can carry all of these weapons easily with little restrictions, but her ammunition stores for each weapon on her person was limited.

Viper brought down two of her target in the facility before she ran inside, taking a few grazes from bullets fired after her along her arms and her sides. She ran into a door that led to lower levels and closed it behind her, locking it with a hacking device she held up to the digital lock of the door. She quickly began to walk down the stairs and descended deeper into the facility, and she eventually found her target.

She quickly attached her silencer back onto her MP5, and she began to go to work in the shadows of the large room. Thanks to her taking out the alarm system before her move on the facility, no one was alerted to her presence this deep underground. Viper worked through the room she was in and put down all the guards she saw, each being taken down with a bullet right to their heads. One by one their bodies slumped to the metal floor, and Viper was soon left as the only one in the room with the experimental technology.

"I'm in," She spoke quietly into her earpiece to her commanding officer, "Time to take this thing out."

"Good work, Viper. Report back to me once you're clear." Came her commander's reply, and she took her finger from her earpiece.

Viper then plugged her hacking device up to the console in the middle of the room, and she began to upload the program that she was given that would make the experimental portal self destruct, along with the entire facility. But, things had not gone exactly to plan. When Viper began to run that program, the portal activated and lit up the room in a bright light. Viper shielded her eyes from it with one hand, and she went to contact her commander once more.

"Commander, something with the program activated the portal!" She was met with static, which turned into a high-pitched sound that began to turn painful before she pulled the earpiece out.

"Attention Personnel. Facility will self destruct in one minute. Please vacate the premises."

The automated voice came through the speakers of the facility, and then the portal's light began to pulsate and the entire thing started to shake wildly. The entire facility began to shake with tremors as well, and many of the shelves and walkways hanging above the edges of the room began to fall down to the ground. Viper began to feel herself being pulled toward the portal soon after, and she began to try to run and escape the area. But, the pull only got stronger and stronger and she found herself unable to resist being sucked toward the portal. Soon, she was pulled off her feet, and with a final scream she disappeared into the portal, just before the self destruct sequence completed and the facility, and the portal, were destroyed.

Officially, Viper had been declared M.I.A. by her commanding officer. Eventually after that, after search parties had been sent out for days, weeks, and months and even up to five years later after Sentinel's downfall, she had been declared K.I.A..

But she wasn't killed.

Almost as soon as Viper had been pulled into the portal, she had ended up in a forest she didn't recognize. She fell to her knees, feeling her stomach lurching within her, and she pulled her mask down just before she began to vomit profusely after she had been pulled through God-knows-what, all the way to what she assumed was some remote part of Auroa. She soon stopped vomiting, and she folded her MP5's stock to put on her left hip, and she took her backpack and rifles off her body so she could lean her back against a tree, breathing deeply as she stared up into the... bright blue sky.

It was nighttime when she last checked. She checked her watch and saw that it said it should have been just past midnight, and she began to grow extremely confused. She put her earpiece back into the ear and pressed her finger against the button. "Commander Black, respond. This is Viper. The portal sucked me into it, and it transported me to some... unknown location during the daytime."

After several moments of radio silence, Viper tried again. "Commander Black, respond. I'm stranded in a forest and I have no idea where I am. I-"

Viper began to hear a growl behind the tree she was leaned up against, and she stopped talking immediately. She slowly glanced around the tree to where the growl came from, and her eyes went wide as she saw some... black-furred werewolf covered in bone plating, and it had glowing red eyes. She jumped to her feet and rolled away from the tree just before it struck, and she pulled her MP5 from her waist and opened fire on the creature's head. In a few shots, the strange beast went down and began to evaporate into the air, and that just confused her even more.

Before she knew it, she noticed more of the creatures surrounding her from all sides. She had no idea what they were at all, but she did her best to fight them off as they came. The 9mm rounds tore into the hide of the beasts but with their attacks, reloading was hard even with dual mags like she had. She ducked out of the way of a strike from one and fired into its face with the last rounds of one magazine before she was struck in the side, knocking her MP5 out of her hands and sending her to the ground with a gash in her arm.

She rolled to her back and quickly pulled out her Desert Eagle, and she blasted one of the beasts in the head. One powerful shot put it down, and then another came at her and she shot and killed it as well. As its evaporating body came down on her, she began to hear gunfire from another source, and she could tell it was a very big gun that was being used. When the beast evaporated fully, she could see each of the others that surrounded her were going down with their heads being blown to bits or their chests were blown out. She glanced around to see who had come to her rescue, and her eyes widened even further when she saw a huge man dressed like someone from a western movie.

She aimed her pistol at him at him trying to determine whether he was friend or foe, and he just looked at her in shock. She soon lowered her gun and nodded to him, and then she saw another of the beasts appear from the bushes behind the man. Before she could give him a warning, the man's weapon transformed into a claymore right before her eyes and with one hard swing and a pull of the trigger, the recoil of the gunshot send the blade straight through the beast's body.

He then put the blade on his back and turned back toward her. "Hey there. You don't look like you're from around here." His deep voice came to her a moment later.

"Where am I? Who are you?" Viper replied, her hands still gripping her pistol.

"Well first off, I should be askin' you that since you brought some Grimm near my property," The man replied to her, crossing his arms over his chest, "My name's Auron. Auron Karmine. What about you?"

"My... codename is Viper. Thank you for helping me."

Auron stepped forward and reached his hand down to her. "I get the feelin' you got a story to tell about why you're here on Remnant. You seem like you're like my daughter's fiance."

"...Rem...nant?" Viper replied in confusion before slowly taking his hand.

Auron chuckled a bit and pulled her to her feet. "That tells me all I need to know. Get your gear, an' I'll take you to my home an' you can explain everything."

"Oh god, this has to be a weird dream..." Viper remarked and went to gather her backpack and her Vector, "What you're suggesting is fucking crazy."

"I wish I could tell ya it was an' you could wake up in your own world, but..." Auron shook his head, "It's as real as that cut on your arm. I know a few more people that came from another universe or world or whatever, an' one of 'em is set to marry my oldest daughter. You got a lot to learn about Remnant here, an' the Grimm. We need to see if we can get your aura unlocked."

"My fucking what?"

Auron took in a deep breath and let it out evenly. "This is gonna be a long day."

#oc #cameron 'viper' roberts #auron karmine #rwby oc #ghost recon breakpoint #ghost recon #original story

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dem-obscure-imagines · 5 years ago

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The Time-Traveler’s Daughter

Prince Zuko x Reader Summary: You are where history and prophecy collide, the daughter of a time traveler and a witch, and this has done nothing but cause problems...But maybe getting stuck in another dimension isn’t the worst thing to happen to you. Note: I will probably use this reader again. I don’t know, I just really like this concept. Warnings: None? I’m a hoe for Zuko as usual lmao. (I went way overboard. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think this is the longest one-shot I’ve ever written for this blog) Word Count: 6k

Being the child of a dimension-hopping time traveler and a witch who knew better had given you quite possibly the strangest childhood you could have ever asked for. Your father’s friends from all over history and the universe were always popping in for a visit, and your mother’s ancestry granted you an education at a magical boarding school.

It was the summer just after your graduation, and so each of your parents had decided to give you a gift. Your mother’s gift was her own coming of age necklace, a powerful amulet that had been passed down from woman to woman, all the way down her side of the family. Your father, as always, had invented something of his own for you, a watch.

This was no ordinary watch, however. The large steel device allowed the wearer to time travel or travel through dimensions as they pleased. It harnessed the same technology his metal glove did. Your mother was a bit on the fence about this gift, but your father insisted that it was time for you to explore and have your own adventures. After all, if he hadn’t gone out to explore the universe, he would have never met your mother.

So, she relented and let you try it out. That was, perhaps, why you were blacked out in a dimension that wasn’t your own. Your head hurt something fierce, and by the time you started to open your eyes, there were two familiar strangers hovering over you. The first was older, his friendly features obscured by a white beard. The second was around your age, shaggy dark brown hair partially hiding his fierce amber eyes. A scar stretched across the right side of his face.

“Oh my God…” You groaned, struggling to sit up.

“I’ll get you some tea. Please be careful.” The first stranger, someone you recognized as Iroh from your years of watching Avatar as a child, told you. “You’ve been asleep for a long while.”

“You’re...Iroh and Zuko…” You mumbled, looking at each of them for a moment. Zuko’s eyes widened and he looked to his uncle for some clue about what to do. Depending on when in their timeline you’d found them, that might have not been the best thing to say. “I’m...I’m not from around here. I don’t know how I got HERE of all places…”

“I thought you were dressed a little strange.” Iroh noted, chuckling to himself. He didn’t seem bothered about your comment, nor the fact that you knew who they were while they were pretending to be simple refugees as opposed to powerful fire-benders. “I’ve never seen clothes like those before.”

In most dimensions, your gray hoodie, black t-shirt, and ripped jeans would have been more than normal. Of course you found yourself in the one where they weren’t. And then there was the matter of your watch, which upon further inspection was broken, sparking and jolting when you rushed to take it off. “Shit!”

“What’s wrong?” Zuko jolted at your sudden outburst.

“It’s broken! Oh my God, my mom’s gonna kill me! I...” You took a deep breath, trying to center yourself. “I can’t get home without it. It’s broken, so I’m...stuck here.”

“What do you mean you’re stuck here? It’s just a bracelet. I’m sure if you explained to your mom--”

“You don’t understand, Zuko. That watch is...the reason I’m here. It’s like a portal. And without it, I can’t get home.” You looked to Iroh. “I, uh...wasn’t kidding when I said I wasn’t from around here…”

“You’re from another world, then…” Iroh thought about it for a long moment, passing a warm cup of tea to you. “That is quite the pickle. Well, you’re more than welcome to stay with us until you find a way home. Zuko, find our guest something...suitable to wear. Wouldn’t want to draw attention.”

“Thank you.” You were still floored that this was your reality. Your whole childhood, you’d looked up to Iroh. His wisdom and kindness were values you’d appreciated forever. And Zuko...well, it wouldn’t be too far off to say he’d been one of your first crushes, despite the fact that he was animated. Of course, now he was in the flesh in front of you, and it was...different. You couldn’t deny the fact that the prince was handsome.

Zuko left to go to the market and get you something that wouldn’t make you stand out in Ba Sing Se. Meanwhile, Iroh asked about where you’d come from.

“My father is like me. A dimension-hopper. He made my watch as a graduation present. Where I’m from, you and Zuko...you’re fictional.”

“Fictional, you say? Very interesting…” He took a sip from his tea. “So how did you come to know about us, then, if we’re fictional in your universe?”

“Well, you two are characters in one of my favorite cartoons growing up.” You thought for a second. This world you’d found yourself in was very technologically behind the one you’d come from. “Cartoons are like...drawings that move. And they have sound. It’s...hard to explain, I’m sorry.”

“Cartoons sound incredible! It must be such an interesting world, where you’re from.”

“It is, yeah. Where I’m from, the only people with powers are witches like my mom. Like...me. I always thought benders were so cool. The idea that you can just control the elements is so cool.”

“You have magic?!” The old man’s features lit up. “Would it be out of the question to see some?”

“Of course not, um…” You thought for a moment before letting go of your tea cup and letting it float in front of you. When you did it, the amulet around your neck glowed. “I can’t do much. My staff is back home, but without it, I can do some little things. If I had it, I could just...fix my watch. Without it, though, I guess I’ll just have to figure it out.”

“Zuko could probably take you to the market tomorrow to look for parts. Someone around here must have something that could help.”

“What about me?” Zuko entered the house, closing the door behind him. He had a bundle of clothes tucked under his arm. He handed it to you. “I wasn’t sure what size you are, but I think those should fit.”

“Thank you.”

“We were just discussing the matter of (Y/N)’s broken watch.” Iroh explained, motioning to the device that was still sparking every few seconds. “She needs some parts to fix it. I wondered if maybe you could take her to the market tomorrow to get some spare parts for it.”

“Sure.” He shrugged, sitting between you and his uncle. Your heart lurched, and so, you stood up to go to the spare room and change into these new garments. Zuko had found you some naturally colored undergarments with a green dress that went over top. You used some clips to pull your hair back and folded your clothes from home before returning to where Zuko and Iroh were sitting.

The way they both stopped talking and looked up at you when you returned made it obvious what they had been talking about. Well, that, and Zuko’s interested statement, “You’re a witch, too?”

“I’m a lot of things.” You laughed, tucking your folded clothes into the corner of the room with your backpack. “Did Iroh tell you the other thing?”

“That we don’t exist? Yeah, he did.” Zuko looked uncertain as he said it.

“It’s not that you don’t exist.” You walked back to the table and sat down next to him. “My dad explained it to me when I was young like this: there are a lot of dimensions in our universe, and sometimes they leak into each other. Sure, you don’t exist in MY world, but you do exist here. If we’re being technical, most of my dad’s friends technically don’t exist where I’m from, my mother included.”

“Really?”

“Hell, I technically went to school in a whole dimension that isn’t supposed to exist.”

“Well, I guess that makes me feel a little better.” He laughed and shook his head, smiling softly. “It must be weird to...meet the villain from your favorite childhood thing.”

“You’re not the villain.” You told him with an amused chuckle.

He looked genuinely surprised. “I’m...I’m not?”

“Not even close.”

Iroh smiled to himself, going to the other room to get some sleep while you talked with his nephew.

“So...If I’m not the villain, then who is?”

“Your dad.”

“Ah, that makes sense.” He nodded. “So I’m, what, I’m some minor villain then?”

“In season one you were. Kind of. Although that’s arguable, even.” You shook your head, taking in his face in the quiet. There were crickets chirping outside. “I mean, sure, you’ve done some questionable things, but...honestly, you have one of the best redemption arcs in history.”

“Redemption arc?” He laughed. “Me? Really? Me?”

“Really. You’re a fan favorite.”

“People like me?”

“People more than ‘like’ you.” Your cheeks flushed, thinking about it. That you were sitting on the floor next to the love of your seven-year-old life.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. Goodnight, Zuko.” You got up and walked to the bedroom, settling into the bedroll Iroh had set up for you.

“Night…” He watched you go, a surprised smirk settling onto his handsome features. Maybe he’d have to investigate that some more…

***

The next morning, Zuko decided to make breakfast for you and Iroh, which judging from the slight burning smell coming from the pan, you learned was not a usual thing.

“I’m really sorry. I tried.”

“Thank you, Zuko.” You laughed, eating it anyway. It wasn’t great, but it was edible, and that was really all that mattered. “It’s actually pretty alright.”

“Thanks. Just, uh, trying to get that redemption arc on a roll.”

“What’s this about a redemption arc?” Iroh asked, amused, as he drank his tea.

“Nothing, Uncle. After breakfast, I’m taking (Y/N) to the marketplace.”

And so, he did. The prince of the Fire Nation led you through the rows of stalls, and you diligently searched for any merchant that might have a little box full of gears and metal bits. Zuko watched you as you went, an unsure expression on his face. How was it that this stranger had wandered into his life and changed so much? Good, changes, sure, but changes no less.

Your face lit up as you approached the stall of an inventor. Among his wares, there was a box filled with itty bitty gears and pieces, exactly what you were looking for.

“Sir, how much for the...box of gears?” Zuko asked, his hand on your shoulder, essentially claiming you in front of the locals.

“Oh, those? Couldn’t find a use for them, I’m afraid. My eyesight went years ago, so I don’t have the patience to deal with such small parts. If they make the girl happy, then take them. They’ll do you more good than they ever have me.”

“Thank you so much, sir. I really appreciate it.”

“Of course.” The kind old man handed you the box and winked at Zuko. “She’s a keeper, that one. You’ve got yourself an inventor on your hands, boy. Be careful not to lose her.”

“Believe me, sir, I will.” He smiled and the two of you turned, faces flushed, as you walked back home. “Thank you. For playing along.” He said once the market was far enough away.

“Gotta blend in somehow.” You nodded. Of course. Of course that was what had happened. The two of you were just blending in. The love of your childhood life had certainly not just claimed you as his sweetheart in front of an entire market full of people.

When you got back to the house, Iroh was reading, his cup steaming with a fresh cup of tea. You moved your watch to the table and set the box of gears down. In your backpack, you had a pair of tweezers and some goggles, so you put them on and set to work, carefully pulling out the broken pieces and searching the box for suitable replacements.

Zuko watched as you worked, amazed that someone could know how to manipulate such tiny pieces. “How did you...learn how to do that?”

“Many years of practice. My dad is kind of the best inventor ever. He taught me everything I know.”

“Mmm…” Zuko nodded. He wondered what it was like to have a loving relationship with your father. After all, he’d never really gotten that. His mother had been one of the kindest people he knew, but once she’d exited his life, he was left with Ozai, and...well, the rest was history.

“Speaking of parents...there’s a moon in this dimension, right?” You asked. “That’s a dumb question, of course there’s a moon here.”

“There is. Why?” Iroh asked.

“Well, I have to contact my mom. You know, tell her I’m alright. She was worried about this whole dimension hopping thing.”

“Ah, I see.” Iroh nodded. “Well, I’m sure we can help you if you need it.”

“Thank you. Seriously, thank you both. You’ve done so much for me.”

“Well, showing you some basic kindness is the least we can do. I can’t imagine what would have happened to you if someone else had found you.” Iroh lamented on it, humming to himself.

“Me either.”

You tinkered away for a few more minutes before finally finishing. “I think I did it.” You sat up straighter, wrapping the watch around your wrist and looking it over.

“You’re done?” Zuko asked, watching as you stood and started to gather your things. “That was...quick.” You pretended not to notice the disappointment on his face.

“Yeah, I don’t think it was as broken as I thought it was. Well...here goes. Thank you for everything. I’ll come visit if I can.”

“You’re welcome here any time.” Iroh promised.

You let your eyes linger on each of them for a second longer before adjusting the settings and pressing the button on the watch. For a few moments, it whirred the way it was supposed to. And then...everything went wrong. The metal started to get hot. Really hot. The device groaned, pieces grinding against each other. You ripped it off of your wrist and threw it out the window, just in time too, because only a moment later, you heard a loud BOOM and then a cry of “MY CABBAGES!”

“Maybe my...calculations were off.”

“Maybe.” Zuko nodded, looking out the window and then back at you. There was some little piece in him that couldn’t help but be glad you weren’t leaving just yet…

***

When dark fell, Zuko took you beyond the city walls. It was a clear night. The stars reflected off of the little pond, and inside the crystal waters was the image of the crescent moon. You walked over and knelt beside it, reaching out to skim your fingertips along the surface, letting the waters ripple out from you.

When the image cleared again, your reflection was replaced with your mother’s. She looked at you with concern.

“Are you alright? Did something happen?”

“I’m fine, mom. I just thought I’d check in, let you know where I landed. I’m in the Avatar universe. My watch broke on impact.”

“BROKE?!”

You winced at her outburst of panic. “It’s fine, though. Dad said I’d have to learn how to fix it, so why not now?”

She wasn’t listening to you, though. “That’s it, I’m sending your father to pick you up right now—”

“Mom, you don’t even have to. Seriously, it’s fine. Don’t send Dad. I need to figure this out on my own.”

She looked at you, tilting her head in that way that she did when she was deciding to be angry or proud of you. Eventually, she caved. “Fine. I’m not sending your father. But…you call me if you can’t figure it out and I’ll send him in a heartbeat. You don’t have to do everything alone, you know.”

You looked to Zuko, smiling softly when he looked at you with those sharp golden eyes. “Believe me, Mom. I’m not alone.”

You talked with her for a few more minutes before finally dismissing her aura and standing up again. Zuko stood up beside you, looking down at you, waiting for one of you to break the silence somehow.

“You’re taller than I expected you to be.” You told him.

He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s weird that…you know, you knew who I was before. Maybe not weird, just…you know.”

“No, it’s definitely weird. I used to watch your cartoon every single day before school. They used to play reruns in the mornings while I was eating breakfast. My parents had to basically drag me away so I could actually catch the bus.”

“Really?”

“Oh yeah.” You nodded, and the two of you began the long walk back to the safety of the city walls. But not before running into a bit of trouble first.

“What have we got here? The fire prince and his little damsel in distress? I wonder how much we could get for the two of you…” A group of bandits had formed around the two of you. You looked up at Zuko, his eyes blown wide with panic before melting into the confidence he so often had. Flames tickled his palms before igniting in his hands.

You didn’t have any weapons, no watch, no swords of any kind. You were lucky, though, that the two of you were standing back to back beneath the branches of a great tree. You reached a hand up and the tree seemed to kneel under your control, one of the limbs dipping down, down, down until the wood was gripped tight in your hand. The end of the thin branch snapped off, leaves flying off as the new staff formed, twisting and bending to your will.

“What kind of bending is THAT?” One of the bandits’ very panicked voice asked.

“Oh, I’m not a bender.” You replied, fingers tightening around your staff while the tree stood itself upright again. “But you’re going to wish I was.”

And then the battle broke out. Zuko’s flames blazed any of the bandits that dared to get close to him, punching fireballs at anyone who got too close to you. Meanwhile, you were using your staff, which was nowhere near as powerful as the one you had at home, to send the bandits back with waves of sheer power. Needless to say, they hadn’t ever seen anything quite like the two of you.

A few minutes later, all that was left was a scorched field, a panting fire bender, a tired witch, and a trail of bandits making a run for the woods.

“Where did you learn to fight like that?!” Zuko turned to you excitedly.

You rested your staff against the ground and looked up at him. “My mom.”

“Figures.” He chuckled. “You’re good. And you’ll have to be if you’re going to stay with us until we get your bracelet fixed. Uncle Iroh and I…”

“I know. You’re in a bit of trouble. Maybe you need someone like me looking out for you, huh?”

“Yeah, just maybe…”

***

It didn’t take long for you to fall into a rhythm. In the mornings, Iroh would make tea while you helped teach Zuko how to cook breakfast. After that, Zuko ran the store they were using as a front with his uncle and you helped tidy up a bit. It was only at night that you tinkered with your watch some more. Well, that, or Zuko would take you out to the field to practice fighting. After all, you had a staff to break in.

Fight practice led you to be caught in some precarious positions. Only a few nights ago, you’d wound up pinned beneath him, his breath warm across your cheeks, his shaggy bangs hanging in your face. Something in you lurched, your heart doing a backflip. Never had you imagined, despite your unusual childhood, that you’d ever end up there, your wrists pinned down by rough, warm hands, breaths shallow, lips aching for his. But neither of you acted on it.

Your magic was getting stronger by the day as you became less dependent on your primary staff and learned how to use this new one. Every time you cast a spell, Zuko noticed, the amulet around your neck would glow, as would your eyes. You would meditate on sunny afternoons, and when you did, your form would hover a few feet above the ground. It was mesmerizing to watch, and he often did, only caught by you a few times, causing him to leave the room red-faced, babbling some excuse about going to find his uncle.

Zuko wasn’t sure what it was about you, but he trusted you. He supposed he had to, since you were living in their house after all. Given that he and his uncle were wanted fugitives, trust was a thing they had to be careful with. Yet, the longer you stayed, the less he wanted you to leave…and the less YOU wanted to leave.

In all of your days there, you had yet to see Aang or Katara of Sokka or any other members of the main cast. Just Zuko and Iroh. Not that you were complaining. The fire prince and his uncle were more than fine with you and they had been nothing if not welcoming.

It had been a few weeks since you’d woken up in this place. You were sitting by the window, looking out at the starry sky. Zuko walked in so quietly you didn’t hear him and he sat down beside you, watching the way your features flickered in the light of the lantern.

“Would it be awful…if I said I didn’t want you to leave?” Zuko asked quietly, his voice soft and his expression softer.

“I’d love to stay, Zuko, but…you have a destiny. One that doesn’t involve me, I’m afraid.”

“Mmm.” He nodded. “Right. You know everything that happens, then.”

“Just about.”

“And this…your visit?”

“Not part of the plan.”

“But a pleasant addition.” He amended, reaching out to rest his hand on top of yours. He was so warm, endlessly warm, a result of the flames raging inside him. How someone so broken could be so soft, you weren’t sure, but he was. You were certain you’d never met anyone with a kinder soul. “I could just…go with you.”

“They wouldn’t win the war without you.” You whispered, shaking your head. You looked away from him and instead locked your eyes on the sky. “They need you, Zuko. Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph…they all need you.”

“Please don’t leave me.” He pleaded. “Please…”

“Zuko, what am I supposed to do? If I stay here, I’m putting you in danger. I’m putting your whole WORLD in danger! You’re so important to this place. So, so important…”

“So are you!”

“No I’m not!”

“You’re important to me!” Zuko shouted. It was the first time you’d heard him raise his voice the whole time you’d been there. Sure, he’d had little spats with his uncle here and there, but never like this. There were flames flickering in the golden irises you’d come to love. His expression softened when he saw how tense you were. He reached out with a gentle hand and stroked your cheek. “You’re important to me…”

“I can’t be. I’m not supposed to be. I’m not even supposed to exist…”

“But you do. You’re here and so am I. Why can’t you just—”

“You’re supposed to end up with Mai.” You interrupted. He went quiet for a moment. You could have cut the tension with a knife. “She’s your endgame. Not me. You’re going to end up with her and forget all about me.”

“I don’t want Mai anymore.”

“What do you mean you don’t—”

“I want YOU.” Zuko leaned closer. “I don’t want Mai. I want you. Don’t you feel the same?”

“It’s not about my feelings, Zuko, it’s about your future.” You fought the tears that were welling in your eyes, blurring his face.

He was quiet for a long time, thinking. “You can leave this place. You can go home. But once we win the war, I’m going to come find you. I don’t care what it takes.”

***

You could only stall on your watch for so long without letting it be noticeable, but you knew the longer you stayed, the more it would hurt when you finally left. So, after a few tests and the aid of your growing magic, you decided you were finally ready to go back.

“You know you’re welcome here any time. We could use a witch around the house.” Iroh told you, pulling you into a tight hug.

“I know I’ll see you again. I’ll be sure to come visit sometime.”

“You better. I’ll miss you if you don’t.”

Zuko stood there quietly for a moment, waiting for his moment with you. Once Iroh had said goodbye, he left the two of you alone, and it was silent for a little while. Then, Zuko took a step closer, hesitating before reaching out to take your hand. Zuko let out a long sigh.

“You…don’t have to leave, you know. You could stay a little longer.”

“If I stay any longer, it’s just going to hurt both of us more.”

“Yeah…” He was quiet, tilting your chin up so you were looking at him, into those fierce golden eyes one last time. Zuko let his eyes drift shut as he closed the distance between you, his lips pressing against yours for the first and last time. Then, he murmured softly. “I’m going to find you after the war. I don’t know how or where, but I will. I promise.”

“I hope you do.” You whispered back, tears welling in your eyes as you kissed him one more time. And then another. And then one last kiss for the road, and then before you knew it, you were activating your watch. There was a flash of light and then you were standing in your backyard, knees trembling until you fell to the ground, finally letting your tears flow as you realized that he was gone. You’d never see Zuko again.

***

It was quiet in the house without you. Dark. Empty. Zuko missed you. He missed your glowing eyes, your fierce energy, the sight of you floating in the sunlight streaming through the window. This place was so different now. He thought he’d be ready for it, but he wasn’t. He never could have been.

“You miss her.” Iroh noted, watering one of his plants. Zuko only nodded. “So do I.”

It was then that there was a bright flash of light. The same kind that had happened when you’d left him. Zuko sat upright, preparing himself for whatever or whoever was standing there, but to his disappointment, it wasn’t you. However, the stranger standing there did resemble you a bit.

“Are you Zuko?” The man asked, looking over the fire prince. Scar, check. Shaggy dark hair, check. Forlorn look in his fiery eyes, check. This had to be the outcast prince you were so heartbroken over.

“Y-yes, sir. Who are you?”

“I’m (Y/N)’s dad.” He offered the teenager his hand, and he shook it, unsure. “She doesn’t know I’m here, before you ask, and no, I’m not here to take you to her.”

“Oh.” Zuko deflated slightly, listening for what else the dimension-hopper had to say.

“I came to give you this.” He pressed a small metal token into Zuko’s palm. “After the war, use this, and it will take you to her. You’ll know what to do.”

“But how do I—” Before Zuko could finish his question, the inventor was gone as fast as he’d come, leaving him standing there wide-eyed, gripping the disc tightly in his hand. He couldn’t lose this. It was his only chance.

***

For the summer solstice, as you had every year since you were young, you helped your mother prepare the back yard, put up tables, string up streamers, tape balloons into place. You helped her cook food and make punch and make sure everything was just right for when all of her witch friends came over to celebrate.

You were wearing your nicest summer gown. It was yellow, knee-length, and the fabric was covered in butterflies, a crown of enchanted flowers sitting in the curls of your hair. Everything was perfect. Well, everything except for one thing. You’d gotten home from the Avatar dimension about a month ago, and still, you were stuck in a post-Zuko gloom. You didn’t think it was possible to miss someone so much.

You weren’t sure why it was, exactly, that the fire prince had captured your heart. You hadn’t stayed with Zuko and his uncle for all that long. You had only kissed the one time before you left. And yet, you couldn’t help running through all of the memories: that day in the market, your first fight side by side, practicing combat with him in the field outside the city once the sun had gone down, and it was just you, the prince, and the stars. You thought of every meal you shared, every stolen glance, every flicker in the golden amber of his eyes.

There had been a time, once, when Zuko had gotten a cut on his face. Some squabble with some man in the market had resulted in the prince being on the receiving end of a knife. He’d come to you, a little blood dripping from the wound, claiming it to be nothing. The cut had been just above the top of his scar, something you knew he was sensitive about.

“Can I?” You’d asked gently, and he’d nodded, leading your hands up to the spot. Your fingers brushed against his reddened skin as you used your magic to heal him, reducing the bleeding gash to nothing more than a faint white scar.

That was the first time the two of you had been that physically close before, face to face, his lips only a step away. The next was the sparring match near the woods that had led to him pinning you down in the grass. Your heart raced, remembering how it felt to have him. And God, it still hurt.

Liking Zuko had been so much simpler when you were seven and he was a cartoon.

“It gets easier.” Your mother whispered, embracing you from behind. She kissed your cheek tenderly before letting go of you. “I know it hurts now, but it will get easier. You have a universe of possibilities at your fingertips. There’s no need to get tangled up in one boy.”

And you knew she was right. What you were, both halves of what you were, gave you quite the variety of opportunities. But it still hurt.

One flick of her wrist sent the gate at the front of the yard flying open, and minutes later, your mother’s witchiest friends started filing in, mingling with each other under the sun’s bright light. Your father was bouncing around, too, chit-chatting. Some of his friends from other dimensions had shown up, as had some of your school friends, who were dying to hear about your experiences dimension-hopping.

“So uh, have you ever…you remember that cartoon Avatar?”

“The one with the blue people?” One of your friends, Jacob, asked.

You laughed and shook your head as your friend Amber corrected him. “Avatar with the blue people wasn’t a cartoon. She means the one with the four elements and the little bald kid with the arrow on his forehead.”

“Yeah, that one.”

“What about it?” Jay asked, watching your expression. Usually when one of you brought up a childhood show, it was met with waves of nostalgia, not…whatever look you had on your face. “Oh my God, is that where you went?”

“It’s kind of a long story, but yeah.”

“Oh my God, is Sokka as handsome as I remember him being?” Amber gasped.

“Wait, wait, wait, you had a crush on SOKKA? Not Mr. Fine-Ass Firebending Prince of my Heart?” Jade held her heart like she’d just been shot. “Zuko is so hot. No pun intended.”

“And that look has to be for something…” Jacob studied your face when the topic had changed.

“No way, you met Zuko?” Amber’s expression softened.

“I…yeah, you could say that.” Before anyone could ask anything else, you grabbed Jade’s hand and dashed over to the dancefloor, pushing all of the thoughts out of your head and instead giving into the beat of the music. Time didn’t exist anymore, which was evident by just how fast the sun seemed to set, igniting the sky with orange.

Eventually, you wandered to the edge of the dancefloor, where Amber and Jade were. You could tell they were curious, and you couldn’t hide from the questions forever, so in the reds and pinks of the setting sun and the flickering lights of the candles on the tables, you decided to surrender to their inquiries.

“So…what exactly happened between you? You don’t have to answer—”

“I kissed him.”

“You AAAAAAH! Oh my God! Tell us everything!!!” Amber squealed.

“You kissed Zuko.” Jade stated, dumbstruck. “You Kissed him. With your lips.”

“Yeah.” You giggled, shrugging. “I kissed a prince.”

“You kissed a prince.”

“So…are you going to bippity boppity boo yourself back to him?”

“I can’t.” You shook your head. “When I got to him, he and his uncle were still pretending to be refugees. The war hadn’t ended yet, and by the time it does, he’ll probably be in love with Mai. I’m…I’m never going to see him again…”

“Now, why would you say that?”

Your eyes widened, and you traced Jade and Amber’s gazes to a spot behind you. Your racing heart had prevented you from noticing the bright flash of light.

“Holy shit…” Jade murmured, covering her mouth. You were almost too afraid to look.

“Zuko…” You whispered, voice catching in your throat. You felt a large, warm hand on your shoulder. As much as you wanted to turn around to look at him, you couldn’t move. You were paralyzed, frozen by the fear that if you looked, he wouldn’t be there.

Footsteps trailed through the grass, walking around you until he was standing in front of you, as real as you remembered him. His hair was a bit longer now, shaggier, almost hiding his gorgeous amber eyes from you. But his smile was still there, as rare and precious as his smiles tended to be.

His voice was soft and gentle, as gentle as the large hand that rose to stroke your cheek. “We won the war, princess. I told you I’d come find you.”

Instead of replying, you launched yourself into his arms, causing him to let out a soft ‘oof’, his strong arms fastening tight around you. “H-how are you here? H-how did y-you--?”

“Aww, don’t cry,” he cooed, stroking your hair as he teased, “I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

“I missed you s-so much…” You cried, shaking as he held you like you were the only thing in all of the worlds that mattered. “I t-think I love you, Zuko.”

“I know you do.” He chuckled. “I love you, too. Took us long enough to say it, huh?”

You pulled your face out of the crook of his neck and stroked his cheek, turning his face towards yours. He smiled softly before leaning closer and closing the distance between you. The crowd of people in your backyard cheered when they saw you and the prince of the Fire Nation locked into an embrace.

“Oh my god, she’s dating Zuko.” Jade whispered to Amber. After only seeing the prince in cartoon form, it was strange to see him here, living and breathing, and as real as you were.

“She’s done what every cartoon-loving little girl has ever wanted to.” Amber agreed.

“I can’t believe you’re here…” You whispered, brushing the bangs out of his face. His hair was a bit longer than when you’d last seen him. You wondered how much time had passed since you left.

“But that’s a good thing, right?”

“A really, really good thing.” You nodded, stroking his cheek as you studied his features, his arms still tight around your waist.

“Good. Because I don’t plan on leaving you any time soon.”

You pecked his lips. “Good.”

Tagged: @rikersgirl22

#zuko #zuko x reader #zuko imagine #atla #prince zuko x reader #prince zuko imagine #atla imagine

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atinytokki · 4 years ago

Text

H O R I Z O N

Chapter 7: Overdrive

Seonghwa isn’t usually one for celebrating his victories, and he’s already afraid that doing so for the first round has cost him precious practice time.

Pulling the zipper on his snowsuit all the way up, he positions himself as low to the ground as possible. His team takes their places alongside him and the firing begins.

It’s already round two and this time they’ve been dropped right into the action.

There's significant pressure weighing on them to live up to their victory last match, but Seonghwa lets it fuel him into fighting even harder.

“Not so fast, Yeosang,” he cautions when the younger boy pops up and fires round after round of stun blasts in quick succession. “We’ll never make it down the hill if we don’t cover each other. Fire when I’m reloading and vice versa.”

Yeosang adjusts on cue and the two of them become a very efficient team, flitting from snowbank to snowbank and giving Team A no chances to take them down.

A fortress is nestled at the bottom of the hill, surrounded by wind blown snow and icy plains that stretch past where Seonghwa can see. With the stalemate broken, both groups are on their way out of the pine woods and down to where the flags are most likely hidden.

“You should head for the lower entrance, it’s the closest to you,” Jongho’s voice informs them through the comm link. He’s been stationed at the top of the hill to keep a lookout on the activities of both teams. “But hurry, they’re already on their way down.”

His message sends Yunho and Mingi hurrying out from under the cover of their snowbank in an attempt to follow Seonghwa and Yeosang, who are halfway down to the fortress.

“Wait, they’ve stopped!” Jongho warns suddenly. “Yunho, Mingi, they’ve seen you! Take cover!”

But it’s too late.

Just as Yunho pulls Mingi back, trying to slow his momentum, a stun blast comes out from behind the tree-line and strikes Mingi in the leg.

Yunho drags him behind the snow drifts and checks the damage, ducking from the shots aimed at his head. “Are you okay?”

Mingi catches his breath and nods. “I can’t- I can’t walk on it. It’s completely frozen.”

“At least the rest of you isn’t,” Yunho sighs before switching to his radio. “I’m going to need help getting him down there, they’re still firing on us.”

Seonghwa groans and turns around, Yeosang tagging along behind. At this rate they’ll never find the flags.

“I’d make it quick,” Jongho cautions them again. “They’ve turned their backpacks into sleds and they’re moving very quickly.”

“Can you take any of them out?”

“They’re already out of range,” he responds, checking his sight and watching the last member enter the fortress.

“Move a bit closer,” Seonghwa orders, slinging one of Mingi’s arms around his shoulders and helping Yunho bring him down the hill while Yeosang keeps a sharp eye ahead of them.

“I’ve got them in the north tower,” Jongho reports from his new position. “They’ve blocked my shot but I can see a flag in the room with them. Let’s hope it’s theirs.”

“We’ll know very soon if it isn’t,” Seonghwa mutters.

The four of them enter the fortress and follow directions from Jongho, stationing themselves in a tower opposite where their enemies are.

“I think I can fix the damage,” Yeosang pipes up from the floor, where Mingi is laid out low enough that no other shots can reach him while Yeosang digs through his med bag for an anaesthetic reversal agent. Yunho and Seonghwa set up their weapons by the north facing window.

“Then get his leg working again so you two can look for our flag,” Seonghwa says, firing a blast just shy of Youngseok’s head.

“Let’s even the odds.”

___

In the continuing shootout, Hongjoong’s eyes aren’t on their enemies but the surrounding buildings, scanning the area for the Z Team’s flag.

Junyoung spots it first and smacks himself in the forehead when he does.

“What? Where is it?”

“The turret to the left of theirs, a floor below them. But unless one of you can make a shot at an impossible angle, we’re going to have to get over there somewhere.”

Hongjoong bites back a sigh and returns fire when one of Seonghwa’s blasts lands a little bit too close to Youngseok’s face.

“How are we even supposed to make it without them stunning us?” Wooyoung whines, looking around their small room for anything that might help.

“A zip line!” San exclaims, pulling an equipment kit out of his backpack and then squeaking and dropping to the floor when a laser zooms towards his hands.

“Careful, that could’ve hit the flag,” Hongjoong chides, joining him while Junyoung moves to cover the target. “And we know they aren’t above burning us with the laser setting regardless.”

San nods quickly and unloads the kit. A cable, harness, trolley, handle, extra clips for safety and a metal clamp to shoot into the opposing wall are all ready for assembly, and with no prompting Wooyoung and San get to work.

“You’ll still be stunned the second they see you,” Youngseok points out as he reloads and Hongjoong covers him.

As he observes the intensity with which Seonghwa returns fire, an idea hits Hongjoong full force.

“A diversion. I’ll make it look like I saw their flag and run the opposite direction while you cover me,” he throws his head past the fortress, towards the icy plain. “Seonghwa will take the bait, I’m sure of it.”

Youngseok bites his lip in concern. “But if he stuns you—”

“It won’t matter,” Hongjoong reminds him. “One of you will already have entered the turret and shot their flag. Any volunteers?”

“I’ll do it,” San offers immediately.

Wooyoung gives him a look. “After what happened last time... are you sure?”

“I’m the fastest, Woo. We both know I’m the best chance.”

“Alright, the three of us will hold Yunho and Seonghwa,” Wooyoung agrees, mouth pressed into a firm line as San gets himself saddled up and positioned. “Wait, wait! Helmet,” he interjects, shoving a helmet onto his head and nodding to Hongjoong when they’re ready.

Hongjoong snaps his goggles into place and hurries down the stairs, shivering. He’ll need to run for his life or risk being stunned frozen in the snow until the game ends.

“Don’t go until I say,” he orders through the radio as he prepares to sprint. “I want all their eyes on me.”

He hears their words of assent and takes a deep breath.

Go time.

___

Mingi has progressed enough to wiggle his toes by the time the first dose of the serum has been emptied.

“Hongjoong is at your three o’ clock and he’s getting away,” Jongho warns through the comms. “He’s already out of my range.”

Yeosang turns from loading the syringe and sees the moving figure after a moment staring out the back window and into the bright abyss.

White haired Hongjoong, looking like the ghost he is.

At least Yeosang is convinced he is, with the way he appears and disappears at random. He’ll attend morning group class and then not show up to launch viewings for the departure of previous Horizon groups. Then he’ll eat lunch with them like nothing happened but spend the entire night in the hangar.

Yeosang shakes off his misgivings and grabs his weapon. Hongjoong has the advantage of blending in, so pulling up his hood for maximum camouflage, Yeosang follows him.

Yunho and Seonghwa concentrate their fire on the fleeing rival at Jongho’s insistence, but it’s clear after a slight pause that they’ve just noticed Yeosang going rogue.

“Yeosang?” Seonghwa’s voice comes through the comm a moment later. “Yeosang, what are you doing?”

“He’s too fast for you, I’m tailing him,” he pants back, receiving only static in response. He can hear the whooshing sound of blaster fire ring out from the shrinking fortress and pushes on into the swirling snow. They must be in a standoff again.

Soon, Yeosang is lethargic and lost in the cloud of flurries surrounding him and has to squint to see the form of Hongjoong finally collapse ahead.

He sprints towards him, blaster ready. “It’s... over,” he gasps for air, nudging him with the toe of his boot, expecting to see a flag somewhere in the distance.

Hongjoong gets back to his hands and knees and adjusts his goggles before turning around and smiling.

“You’re right, it is.”

At the southern turret, San flies through the window and crawls to the flag, legs numb from being shot at the second Team Z caught on to him while he zip lined.

With no one to stop him, he raises his blaster and fires.

The results of the match light up his wristband as he rolls onto his back and sighs contentedly.

That’s some pretty sweet redemption.

___

“You shouldn’t have left like that,” Seonghwa scolds Yeosang in the changing room, ripping off his jacket a bit more forcefully than necessary.

Yeosang pretends to ignore him while he fixes his hair in the mirror, but deep down he’s already upset with himself.

“Well, at least my leg’s already better,” Mingi shows it off for emphasis, but it has the opposite effect of what he intended.

“See, he could’ve been healed and joined the action if you’d just stayed with him!” Seonghwa snaps.

“As if you weren’t itching to chase Hongjoong down anyway,” Yeosang snarks with a roll of his eyes. “Which wouldn’t have mattered in the end because it was a diversion.”

“You’re right, Yeosang, it was our fault,” Yunho sighs. “If we’d shot down San it would have given us a fighting chance. The zip line was a good idea, you have to admit.”

An awkward silence stretches on until Seonghwa clears his throat and faces Yeosang. “I’m sorry, I’m just upset. I know you did the best you could. We’ll just... have to be more alert next time. Get some rest.”

“Hey,” Yeosang calls before he can leave the room, eyes softening when Seonghwa meets them. “You should get some rest, too.”

They share a hesitant smile and part ways, argument forgotten.

As he paces by the lockers, Jongho’s call finally goes through.

“Hello? Hello, is anyone there?”

The voice that responds isn’t one he was hoping to hear, but it’s the next best thing. The landlady.

“Hello, it’s Mrs. Noh. Who is this?”

“Um, Choi Jongho... I used to live in a building you own, but now I’m in the Horizon Project.”

“Oh, of course!” She gasps. “I couldn’t forget you, dear. Is everything alright?”

“Actually,” Jongho rests his forehead on his locker and squeezes his eyes shut. “That’s what I was going to ask you. Is my family alright? They haven’t picked up since the flash flood last night.”

Mrs. Noh hums over the line before clicking her tongue remorsefully. “I’m sorry, Jongho, but we’re down in the countryside this week so I haven’t heard from them. Flash flood you say?”

“Yes,” Jongho answers, feeling very far away from himself. The longer he goes without answers, the worse he begins to spiral. “I was trying to get into contact with anyone... to figure out if they’re alright.”

“Ah, I’m so sorry dear,” the woman sighs over the phone. “If you still haven’t connected by the time we get back, I’ll look into it, alright? Stay safe now, I’ve got to go...”

“I understand,” Jongho nearly whispers. “Goodbye.”

No closer to knowing what’s going on, he puts on a brave face and heads to class.

He could either wait even longer for answers or take matters into his own hands.

___

On the way back from xenobiology class, Mingi’s wristband lights up with an announcement.

Report to the Dome at 0700 tomorrow with your team for Round Three.

He drops his bag on his bed and reads it again, surprised.

“But we just had a match this morning,” he splutters. “Another one so soon?”

“They’re keeping us distracted from the flood damage with back-to-back simulations,” Jongho mutters darkly from his desk, just loud enough for Mingi to hear. The xenologist casts his gaze down on his bed and doesn’t comment, but the idea that the group has become wholly disconnected from the rest of the world is concerning.

How bad is it out there?

Yunho pokes his head into the doorway, already in his soft pajamas, and asks to come in, closing the door behind him when he does.

“Did you notice we’re supposed to report twenty minutes before our opponents?” He whispers, sitting cross legged on the floor.

Mingi and Jongho go wide eyed and shake their heads in unison.

“How do you know?”

“The Z Team victory party is right next door to me,” he chuckles. “I heard Wooyoung read their notice aloud.”

Jongho snorts and spins around in his chair. “They’re only throwing a victory party because we did. We’re going to be out of snack food if there’s a party every round.”

“Speaking of snack food,” Yunho coughs, getting to his feet. “I should get back. They’re cleaning up already and San said he’d smuggle me some sour candies.”

Chewing some sour candy of his own, Hongjoong crosses the hall to get ready for bed.

Seonghwa’s there in their room, working out on the floor again just to get on his nerves, so he rolls his eyes and mutters as he pulls on a soft hoodie for sleeping in, “You could at least put some clothes on.”

Seonghwa seems to be in the mood to ignore him, so Hongjoong throws himself onto his bed without further comment, diving under the blankets until the sound of a call coming through his wristband makes him sit up so quickly he smacks his head.

“Mom!” He exclaims, running back out to take the call privately. That’s one development Seonghwa is thankful for.

He can still hear a few fragmented phrases through the door. She’s staying with a friend... the house is flooded still... rations miraculously survived.

Seonghwa tunes the conversation out and finishes his set, distracted by the sound of a transmission on his own wristband. He enlarges the holoscreen to read it at his desk in the lowlight and breaks out into a sweat at what he sees.

A few pictures from the unknown source of his parents’ house, and a video of it being drained by emergency cleanup staff.

He grips the chair for support and tries to breathe normally.

He needs to do something. He needs to do something now before the next picture is straight from his nightmares.

Seonghwa types half of a code into the message bar and sends it, following it up with a compromise. You get the second half when I’m in space and you’ve given them protection. Unless you want the information all over the public holoboards…

It doesn’t sound nearly as threatening as he wants it to be, but at least when Hongjoong returns to his blanket nest, he doesn’t bother him about it.

On the other side of the wall, Yeosang lies awake and wonders why Wooyoung hasn’t come back to their room.

By the time the night is dark enough for the cheap plastic stars they glued to the metal ceiling to glow faintly, he’s decided Wooyoung’s probably spending the night with Youngseok and Junyoung.

He’s left to the now familiar ambiance of the tram tunnel and watches one of the stars peel off and fall to the floor, too exhausted to even be upset.

It’s another early day tomorrow.

___

The moment Team A gathers at an otherwise abandoned the Dome entrance, San has a feeling he knows what’s happening. The platform lifts them into the playzone without their opponents ever appearing.

Yunho had woken up unusually early in the morning.

“Where is the other team?” Junyoung mutters just in time for their wristbands to chime in unison and the intro message to appear.

All blasters have been set to stun for the duration of the game. If all five members of your team are hit, the opponent automatically wins, flag or no flag. Flags have been hidden, and at the end of this message you may find them. The main challenge this round is traversing a dense landscape, puzzle solving, and dealing with unfair advantage/disadvantage. Good luck and may the best team win!

“Unfair advantage and disadvantage—” San groans. “They’ve let the other team in first!”

The platform screeches to a halt and they have just seconds to take in the jungle greenery and distant animal calls before a hidden Team Z opens fire.

“Split up!” Hongjoong screams and they all scramble for cover, but it’s too late for Youngseok who has already been hit directly in the chest and completely immobilised.

Junyoung looks like he wants to stop and go back for him but Hongjoong takes his hand and pulls him forward, returning fire until he’s stunned in the leg and has to drag them both behind a tree.

He can see San crouched a few feet away and signals him to make a strategic retreat.

“We’ve been held back on purpose this round and they’re probably already halfway to our flag,” Hongjoong pants into the comm link for Wooyoung to hear, wherever he is. “It would be better to go on the defensive.”

San hurries over to the pair and pulls the med kit out of his backpack. They’ve been passing it around to a different member for each round with no designated medic on their team, but it’s lucky for Hongjoong that San can stick him with a properly loaded syringe and at least some level of knowledge about what he’s doing.

“Alright,” Wooyoung finally answers, his grunts of exertion coming through the radio. “I’m climbing a tree to get a look at the surroundings. It can’t have been all of them behind that ambush, they wouldn’t waste their head start like that. You didn’t happen to see who was shooting at us, did you?”

“No,” Hongjoong responds, limping out from behind the tree when the firing has been stopped for long enough. “They’re gone.”

“Oh no,” Wooyoung whispers to himself when he sees the full area around them through a pair of binoculars strapped to his suit. An extremely steep temple-like structure with four different levels peeks out from above the forest canopy and the rest of the environment is thick jungle without end.

“Keep heading west,” he says into the comm link. “You’ll hit a stone structure and you’ll need climbing gear. I’m pretty sure that’s where the puzzle solving will come in.”

“Stay in your tree and see if you can spot the other team or a flag,” Hongjoong’s voice comes through the radio. “But be careful not to be seen. If you’re shot down from that height... it’s not going to be pretty.”

Wooyoung swallows and agrees, sinking a little lower into the leaves and searching for movement in the brush.

They won’t get anything out of this sabotaged match if they don’t try.

___

“They’ve entered the playzone, boys,” Yunho warns through the radio. “How are we doing?”

“We’ve still got one level left once we finish this one,” Yeosang reports back, watching Mingi wrack his brains to solve the puzzle in front of them while they cling to the cliffside. “But there may be a slight problem.”

“Problem?” Seonghwa’s anxious voice comes over the frequency next. “What is it?”

“Each level locks itself behind us,” Yeosang explains. “If we can’t solve the next puzzle, we’re stuck up here.”

“And they’re getting progressively harder,” Mingi mutters, sliding a stone into a gap and then shaking his head when it doesn’t look right. “The last one was a word problem, this is a picture puzzle.”

“You don’t think they’ll catch up to us, do you?” Yeosang asks quietly, chewing his lip.

“Don’t worry about them,” Seonghwa insists in his ear through the comm link. “Yunho, Jongho, and I just spotted Wooyoung and we already took out Youngseok. Just focus on getting inside that temple.”

Yeosang voices his assent and joins Mingi, scanning the puzzle quickly. “Try this piece,” he suggests, and Mingi snaps his fingers in revelation before taking his advice.

The door slowly opens with a grinding sound and the two cross the threshold then painstakingly climb their way up to the next level.

Onwards and upwards.

___

“I’m scared of heights,” Junyoung confesses as soon as he’s harnessed up and ready to climb.

“You’re kidding,” San gapes at him, unwinding some rope. His eyes widen as Junyoung shakes his head regretfully and he turns to Hongjoong for help. “What do we do? We can’t leave him here.”

“Junyoung, just hang on to me and don’t look down, okay?” Hongjoong sighs, clipping their harnesses together so Junyoung can’t fall. “It’s just like... climbing a staircase.”

“A very steep staircase with lots of gates and puzzles,” Junyoung mutters, but he figures out the first challenge, a calendar puzzle, almost immediately. It gives the small group a bit of hope that they may yet catch up, until Wooyoung stops responding to the radio and they realise they’ve got another man down.

“I have to go back for him,” San insists as the door opens.

“San—”

“Hongjoong, I’m the one with the med kit. If he fell out of the tree, he needs me.”

Hongjoong grits his teeth but lets him go. There’s no turning back when they enter the second level.

San makes it almost all the way back to Wooyoung’s tree when Jongho pops up from behind a bush and aims his blaster at him.

Ducking for cover, San tries to balance his own weapon and the med kit while avoiding Jongho’s blasts and scanning the treetops for Wooyoung.

Finally he sees him, stunned and dangling from a tree limb, but at least he hasn’t fallen through the branches and broken anything.

San knows first-hand how painful that can be.

“He’ll be okay,” he pants through the link. “But I’m—”

But he’s been in the open too long, and before he can retreat, he’s been stunned in the back by Yunho.

Stunned in the back by Yunho.

He and Seonghwa reveal themselves and inspect the motionless San.

“He came from that direction,” Seonghwa points out, waving at the others to follow him. “Three down, two to go.”

___

Junyoung has spotted Mingi and Yeosang at the level above them, already on the last puzzle. It’s uncertain which flag is inside, if not both, but he’s solving the games as fast as he can despite his acrophobia with Hongjoong encouraging him and pitching in occasionally.

“The rest of Team Z is right behind us,” he gasps after peeking at the ground for a moment, and right on cue the gate they just finished is opening again for their three hunters, who open fire without hesitation from the forest floor.

“Just finish the puzzle!” Hongjoong orders, returning fire and landing a hit to Yunho’s leg but receiving one to his in return.

The door finally gives and Junyoung turns to look at his leader, wide-eyed, when he unhooks them and swings away, trying to draw their fire.

“What— What do I do?”

“Get inside and hope it’s their flag, not ours.”

Junyoung purses his lips and tries to shake his head but Hongjoong is already pushing him through the gate and away from the fighting.

“Junyoung, go. I can’t climb with my leg stunned, I’m slowing you down. We haven’t lost yet, we have you. Go.”

Junyoung obeys and Hongjoong lets out a breath of relief before unleashing the rest of his ammunition on the three pursuers to no avail.

Seonghwa cracks a small smile when he sees that he’s got him cornered and aims his weapon, not at the fleeing Junyoung but at Hongjoong.

Hongjoong can’t hold his gaze anymore and swallows his resentment, looking away as that cold numbing stun blast hits him in the chest.

Some losses are just too disappointing.

As Junyoung unlocks the final door, his wristband lights up with the results of the match.

Mingi and Yeosang are there with a flag that’s been hit. They halt their celebrating and lock eyes with Junyoung, standing dumbstruck in the doorway.

Game over.

___

The cadets get three days until the next round. It’s still much sooner than they would have expected, but they’re beginning to get the hang of things. Adopting each other’s strategies, anticipating each other’s movements, and getting more and more competitive by the day.

They’re being extra careful about everything now, so this time Hongjoong arrives five minutes early and does a verbal check of everyone’s equipment himself before entering the playzone.

“Flashlight? Eye protection? Tape? Multitool? First aid?”

All four of them answer affirmatively to each and their leader sighs and nods, satisfied.

“We’re ready this time.”

“We’re never really ready,” Wooyoung sighs.

“And we won’t be as long as the Project Coordination Council keeps pushing us like this. Are they aware we also have an astrophysics test tomorrow?” San picks up Wooyoung’s thoughts where he leaves off. “I could be studying right now.”

“Then let’s get it over with quickly,” Hongjoong says with a smirk, already strategising.

“Did you know the fastest recorded Dome game lasted only eleven minutes?” Mingi chirps from where he’s suiting up.

“How fast was your victory the other day?” Youngseok asks shyly.

“I think it was approximately thirty-six, from the moment you entered the playzone,” Mingi hums in response. “That would be the fourteenth fastest recorded Dome game.”

“Not bad,” Junyoung acknowledges, arms crossed. “But we’ll beat you this time.”

“Do you think they’ll give us an advantage?” Youngseok leans over and mutters.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” Yeosang interjects with a wink as he takes his place on the platform. “We’re going for the hat trick.”

___

It’s immediately apparent that this isn’t going to be an eleven-minute Dome game.

The environment is a complete desert wasteland, and it’s hot. Obscenely hot.

According to the intro message, the challenge this round is dealing with an extreme environment, exhibiting resourcefulness, and time efficiency.

Whether it’s intentional or not, Team A does find themselves at an advantage when Yeosang’s heat sensitivity becomes a problem to slow down their competitors, and Wooyoung happens to trip over something in the sand during their relentless march onwards in the assumed direction of the flags.

“Ow!”

“What is it?” Youngseok asks quickly, already at his side. Today he is the bearer of the med kit.

“It’s metal of some kind,” Wooyoung hisses through his teeth, bending down and brushing away the sand. “Hang on, whatever this is, it’s big.”

It takes a lot of digging and probably too much of their water supply to free the vehicle from the sand, but the reward is well worth the risk.

“It’s some kind of desert patrol rover,” Hongjoong laughs with delight. “Do you four think you could get it running again?”

San and Wooyoung simply look at each other and smile.

___

“What are you supposed to do when your medic passes out?” Yunho gasps, staring in disbelief at the unconscious Yeosang in Seonghwa’s arms.

“Their team has been operating without one from the start,” Jongho points out. “You just have to adapt.”

“Pass the water,” Seonghwa instructs, wetting a small towel with it and then placing it on Yeosang’s forehead. They’d taken some measure of respite in the shade of a large sand dune, but were no closer to finding either flag or their opponents than they’d been at the start.

And now they were a man down without a fight.

“I’m going to the top of that dune to take a look around,” Seonghwa informs them, getting to his feet and wiping the sweat off of his forehead. “The flags have to be here somewhere, even if they’re hidden in the sand.”

Maybe it’s his need to do everything himself, but he ignores the protests of his group and climbs the dune, the only vantage point from which he can see most if not all of the simulated territory.

When he sees what looks like a desert rover speeding towards him, he quickly regrets giving away their position.

It’s Team A, and they’ve definitely spotted him.

He fires off a few shots at their tires, but with one well placed blast from Hongjoong as he drives by, he’s completely stunned before he can even put up much of a fight.

Seonghwa’s face is frozen in an irritated expression, and it makes Hongjoong giggle as the engine starts up again and he takes the wheel.

He gives him a noncommittal shrug and grins.

“That’s payback for the last round.”

___

It doesn’t take the rest of Team Z long to figure out what happened when Seonghwa doesn’t return and the roar of an engine fades away.

“No medic and no leader?” Jongho groans. “This is turning out to be a fine hat trick.”

“Can one of you carry Yeosang?” Yunho suggests. “We really should be on the move.”

The long march continues, but with no sense of direction and only a simulated sun to follow, their flag remains unfound and unguarded.

The rover pulls up to a small palm oasis where both flags are staked and Junyoung delivers the shot himself to make up for last time.

“We barely saw our opponents,” San points out. “Do you think they’re alright?”

“I’m sure they’re fine,” Wooyoung teases, hopping out of the vehicle and giving a pat. “Besides we earned it for rewiring her so efficiently. Oh, we really should have thought of a name...”

Together they laugh and follow the green lights to their platforms.

An hour later, Yeosang wakes up in the med lab, having practically missed the entire match.

His dissatisfaction with himself is at least eased by the fact that Wooyoung waits to collapse in bed and watches over him in the infirmary.

The teams remain neck and neck through the next couple of weeks, when class work becomes more intense and deadlines to log flight simulation hours are fast approaching.

The reason for so much time off of the training games becomes clear when the next match lasts almost a full twenty four hours. Team A comes away with the victory, but the search for the flags is again long and arduous, and everyone’s ammunition is depleted significantly by the end.

Their round’s effects continue into the next day when the trainees are summoned to yet another Dome exercise, still exhausted from the last one.

Hongjoong falls asleep in the middle of the game while stationed to keep a lookout, so Team Z takes the win and again the two are tied.

By the end of the second month in the Horizon Project, all ten of them have had enough, and Jongho still hasn’t received definitive word on the wellbeing of his family or the state of their house.

He decides to take his issue up with Soojin for once.

“Can’t you check in for me, then? I mean, this is ridiculous! We aren’t even allowed to know if they’re alive?”

Hongjoong happens to be walking past, on the way to his flight instructor’s office. He stops just outside the door to listen.

“I’m sorry, Jongho, I really am,” Soojin sighs. “But there’s nothing I can do for you. The Council won’t open any outside communications for the time being, not even to the Citadel so San can talk to his sister.”

“What on earth do you have hidden in this facility that you’re so afraid will get out?” Jongho’s voice drops as he gets more frustrated. “Some kind of secret science experiment? Do you really think we’ll accidentally slip sensitive information we don’t even know about into our conversations with our parents?”

“It’s not about you,” Soojin insists. “If you must know, suspicious correspondence with an unknown source has been detected inside this facility. Until we get a better idea of who is responsible and what they’re after, all communications are on lockdown. Including yours.”

When Jongho comes out huffing a moment later, Hongjoong doesn’t bother hiding anywhere.

“They won’t budge, will they?”

“No,” Jongho growls. “It’s utterly ridiculous and I’m one incident away from quitting this Project completely.”

“You know...” Hongjoong whispers, already regretting his offering in the back of his head. “There’s another way we can check on them.”

___

“And break literally all the rules, risking expulsion? Absolutely not,” Seonghwa responds easily. “Have fun without me, I want no part in this.”

Hongjoong snorts and rolls his eyes. “I only told you because you asked what I was packing for. Why do I even bother being nice to you...” he mutters before turning to face his roommate. “If you don’t want to come with, at least promise not to tell Soojin or anyone else, okay?”

“Fine, I’m busy with homework anyway,” Seonghwa answers from his desk, and because apparently he’s in the mood to antagonise Hongjoong some more, he continues speaking. “Usually, this week would be Chuseok break, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes, but even if we did get a real break, I somehow get the feeling you wouldn’t use it properly anyway, with your poor time management skills and all.”

Their sharp banter has become habit by now.

“Poor time management? Tell me, who was it that fell asleep in the middle of the last match? Oh, that’s right, you.”

“And who wasted their unfair head start in the second round by trying to pick us off one by one instead of searching for flags?” Hongjoong shoots back as he pulls on a jacket. “I think that was you.”

“We won that match!”

“Only because Mingi and Yeosang were fast enough at puzzle solving.”

“Please give it a rest you two,” Wooyoung whines from the doorway. “Hongjoong, are you ready?”

“You’re coming, too?” Hongjoong’s eyebrows raise, switching over seamlessly to being kind and tolerant and Wooyoung shrugs.

“I caught Jongho packing the last of the choco pies and wasn’t going to let it slide. Don’t worry, I didn’t tell anyone else.”

“Not even Yeosang?” Hongjoong asks, surprised.

“He and Mingi are at the med lab for some genome sequencing lecture or whatever,” Wooyoung answers sharply, clearly not in the mood to discuss it.

“Alright,” Hongjoong backs off and slings his bag over his shoulder. Wooyoung heads for the elevator but Hongjoong pauses at the door.

“I can check on your parents if you really won’t come,” he offers, pulling up his hood.

“How... How do you even know where they live?” Seonghwa asks suspiciously, turning around and facing him.

“I, um, I saw your house on your holoscreen and it’s in the same neighbourhood as mine so I recognised it,” Hongjoong coughs nervously and rubs the back of his neck. “It was your house, wasn’t it?”

“It— you were going through my wristband?” Seonghwa growls, grabbing a fistful of Hongjoong’s shirt and backing him into the wall as he tries to explain himself.

“No!” Hongjoong stammers. “I didn’t, I swear. You fell asleep with it on so I went to turn it off so you wouldn’t drain the power.”

Seonghwa narrows his eyes at him as if trying to see through a lie before finally releasing him. “Stay away from my family,” he hisses with a little more venom than necessary. “And stay away from me.”

“Fine,” Hongjoong huffs, brushing himself off. “Have it your way.”

He and Jongho join Wooyoung in the elevator, all of them keeping a wary eye on the office buildings.

“Choco pies, huh?” Hongjoong smirks at an embarrassed Jongho.

“My dad really likes them,” he explains as the doors slide open and the three stealthily make their way by tram to the hangar and follow Hongjoong’s lead, strapping into one of the smaller test planes that he has clearance for.

“You guys are my first passengers,” he chuckles nervously, triple checking all the gauges and safety measures before sealing them in and rolling out to the track. It’s technically the first time any of them have left the ground and they’d much rather be doing it with official IPF authorisation, but it’s time to take things into their own hands.

“We’ll be there and back before they even realise we’re gone.”

___

Taglist: (Let me know if you would like to be added): @mooneylooney1 @hwashinestar @delphinium3000 @kpop-choco

Recommended listening: Lift Up by WOODZ

A/N: Thanks so much for your patience! I've got a lot on my plate right now but I love writing for this AU so I'll keep doing it when I find the time. Don't forget to let me know what you thought and follow me on here or on twitter for other updates and tidbits :) See you soon~

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lemonlinelights · 4 years ago

Text

Marvel Fanfiction

Title: Control

Be found on: Here, https://my.w.tt/pPGjBE2br9

and maybe Ao3 when I can figure out how to use it

Summary: It’s an Endgame fix it fic y’all

Pepper Potts often feels that she can't handle the world.

Such as at this moment.

"What do you mean he's not in the lab?!"

Pepper paced the hallway she was in frustratingly. On the other side of the phone was Bruce Banner. One of the very few responsible people around. So of course she thought that she could trust him to get Tony Stark (her child of a fiancé) to the meeting on time. She was oh so dreadfully wrong.

On the other side of the phone Bruce tried to redeem himself " I don't know Pepper! One moment they're babbling about The Flash and the next thing I know,poof! They're gone!"

Pepper paused suddenly. Her hand felt shaky as she asked a question that was hard to get out.

"What do you mean by they." The tone of Peppers voice caused Bruce to audibly gulp over the phone. But despite his fears he answered her.

"The kid."

~——years ———later——~

"Hey Peter could you pass the wrench." Peters hand automatically grabbed the wrench and passed it to Tony without thinking.

"Kid,I need the wrench." Tony pressed. Confused Peter looked up from his project allowing his grease smeared face to be seen.

"But I just-" his explanation was cut short at the sound of repressed giggles. Peter sighed dramatically and slumped forward.

"Oh what will I ever do without the wrench my dear Father needs?" At Peters over the top posh accent the laughter became louder. Tony at this point had caught on and joined in on the charade.

"This wrench is indeed the final piece to my abomination!" Tony yelled maniacally.

"Daddy,a new arm isn't an a-Bom-in-nation!" a child teased. Soon enough a bump could be heard from underneath the work bench as the little girl emerged.

"Awe honey that's sweet of you but since this one is going to be all red N gold your Mom will certainly say it is one." Tony explained.

"Your Dad is perfectly right dear it will be an absolute atrocity." A new voice piped up from nearby.

"Hey Mom." Peter greeted as he spun around to face her. Pepper walked over to ruffle Peters hair and ended up with greasy hands. All well,she's used to it at this point.

"So what's so important that you had to send in the Dæmon Pep?" Tony questioned while he scooped Morgan right into his lap and started to tickle her.

"Daddy stop!" She screamed. At this Tony put his hands up in mock surrender as if he was the victim.

Pepper rolled her eyes at his shenanigans but couldn't help it when her eyes lingered on his prosthetic hand that glinted in the workshops lights.

"Well.." Pepper started getting herself back on track "I have a surprise trip for all of you!"

"Ice cream?" Peter asked hopefully.

"Better than ice cream." Pepper told him. Peters eyes widened at this. What could be better than ice cream?!

"It's officially been a year since everyone came back so...." She trailed off making Morgan wiggle in anticipation. "Disney World is back open and you bet Tony's arm we're going!"

Morgan's screaming was enough to make Peter cover his ears. The smile never left his face though. Peter has never been able to go to fancy parks before. He's always had to stay home to help his Aunt May out. It's not like they had enough money to go anyways. "But now" Peter thinks "I have enough money to be able get a spaceship!" As Peter actually started to realize how wealthy he is Tony could be heard protesting about betting on his arm.

—————-—————-~

The next morning the little family was packing their luggage to head on over to the airport. Even in retirement Tony refused to go second class so he of course kept his private jet which is what they would be using.

A while later after taking off Pepper took note of how they had about twenty minutes before landing and decided now was the best time to do it. After gently shaking Peter awake she stood up in front of everyone as poised as she would be if she were at a meeting. A package of some sort was tucked under her armpit.

"So as you all know Air ports and Florida in general are very crowded-"

"Yeah,yeah" Tony interrupted her "stick together,do the buddy systems and all that wonderful stuff." He opened his soda and started to pour it into another cup as if saying that's that.

"Actually I had a better idea." The package crinkling as Pepper opened it was painfully loud in the quiet jet.

"What is it Mommy?" Morgan asked. She leaned over the edge of her seat hoping for a better look.

"Good thing you asked Mo because it's a gift for you!" Morgan gasped in excitement and sure enough Pepper pulled out a backpack. Morgan squealed in happiness at seeing it. The bag had the Spider Man symbol and it's classic red and blue accents all over it. Hopping out of her booster seat she slipped it on and snapped the front clips together.

"You look awesome Mo!" Peter complimented her. Peter thought what his Mom was doing to be pretty clever. The bag had a leash attached to it which was also red. Meaning the bag was really a way so that they wouldn't lose her. All the while making her think that it's a gift.

"Glad you think that Peter." Pepper said as her hand disappeared into the packaging again.

"Cause I got one for you too." His face must have been painfully obvious because he could hear Tony break down into laughter beside him.

The bag Peter got was also spider themed causing Morgan to shout in excitement "We're twinsies Peter!"

The backpacks were indeed exactly alike minus the sizes. His also including the leash and harness. He wanted to complain,really he did but Morgan's excitement was darn too pure to ruin. So instead he gave his best smile and tried to fight his embarrassed blush.

"We sure are Mo." He decided to say.

"What no Iron Man ones?" Tony joked before sipping his soda.

"Actually.." Pepper then proceeded to pull out an adult sized Iron man backpack. Including the leash and harness. Tony gagged on his drink,spitting it back into the cup. Morgan's sounds of disgust could be heard over his sputtering.

"What have I done to deserve this Pepper?!" Tony asked in shock. He held his cup to his chest defensively.

"That board meeting you missed to instead cause havoc on the lower floors with Peter." Pepper said cheerfully.

"Pep..." Tony's voice quiet in disbelief "that was over five years ago."

"I did say I would get my revenge on the two of you someday."

She clapped her hands together.

"And that day happens to be today also including the duration of our stay here!"

—————-——-~

An hour later Pepper Stark was holding onto the leash's of her astonished children. Peters eyes lit up at the sight of the Cinderella Castle. Morgan was instantly drawn to the shops filled with her Disney Princess idols merchandise. But they remained in her eye sight thanks to her ingenious plan.

"Oh come on Happy!" She could hear her husband whine."You don't need to hold onto the leash the whole time, I am not a dog!"

"That's debatable sir." Happy replied.

Pepper stood there soaking in the moment.Years of loss,sorrow and pain finally leading up to this. The this being her family.

Pepper Stark just needed to remind the world that it was in-fact the one who couldn't handle her.

Now all she has to do was further sucker punch the universe by giving Harley his backpack too.

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tipsyraconteur · 6 years ago

Text

Good Boy, Part 2

I can’t stop. I’ve got a big WIP and all I keep doing is writing dog fluff. Send help.

Good Boy, Part 2

KakaSaku Coffee Shop AU

Word Count: ~1.8k

[ Part 1 ]

It was stupid to care if he showed up. Extremely stupid.

Sakura sighed inwardly as she outwardly plastered a smile on her face, counting change for the last customer who currently stood in line. It was already two hours into her evening shift, and it was the point of the evening when the shop was usually empty, with most people eating dinner. The lull gave her enough time to think about how Kakashi, the mysterious dog-wearing man from the night before, hadn’t shown up.

Not that she cared. Because she didn't.

Besides, why would she want him to show up? The man hadn't even paid for his drink—something Sakura had to personally explain to her boss—and a free drink was probably the only goal he'd had. He'd probably had a good laugh at her expense afterward: poor, silly Sakura, flirt with her a little and she won't even notice when you rob her blind.

Sakura scowled. Here she was, sulking over some guy who’d skipped out on paying. It was ridiculous.

The bell over the door jingled. Sakura turned, calling out, "Welcome to Konoha Grind!"

Her mouth snapped shut when she saw Kakashi come into view. He was wearing the same fluffy navy scarf as before with jeans and a grey thermal, same backpack over his shoulder—but this time he also held a leash in his hand. The scruffy-looking dog at the end of it was wearing a harness that looked like a vest, and it looked inordinately pleased to be out with its master.

Sakura crossed her arms, frowning at him. "I hope you remembered your wallet this evening."

He had the grace to look embarrassed, his free hand lifting to tug the scarf down beneath his chin as he gave an awkward laugh. "I really didn't mean to do that. I just saw the 'Dogs Welcome' sign yesterday, and one thing led to another," he said, gesturing to the sign in the window.

"Mmhmm,” Sakura said, unimpressed.

"But look,” he said, gesturing to the grey dog who stood beside him. "I brought a new friend. He wanted to meet you.”

Sakura looked at the dog. The dog looked at her. He was cute, in a slightly mussed way—sort of like his owner—and Sakura thought the wild tuft of darker fur on the top of his head was pretty adorable. She softened a little.

"I don't know," she hedged. "I'm not sure if he's cute enough to get you out of trouble."

Kakashi leaned down toward the dog, and in a quietly firm voice, said, "Shiba! Speak!"

The dog abruptly sat on its haunches, threw back his head, and went, "Awoooo!"

In spite of herself, Sakura let out a delighted laugh, clapping her hands. Leaning over the counter, she cooed, "Good boy!" Shiba responded by letting his mouth hang open in a doggy grin, tongue lolling out.

Kakashi was watching her with a pleased look in his eye. "You like dogs."

Though it wasn’t a question, Sakura answered anyway. “I love dogs, but I don’t spend enough time at home to keep one myself. Can I pet him?”

"Sure," he responded. Sakura took off her green apron and came around the counter, crouching in front of the friendly-looking dog and holding out her hand. Shiba immediately and enthusiastically offered her his paw, and she giggled as she shook it. She noticed that the vest he was wearing had a little scarecrow face on the back of it.

When she released his paw, Shiba immediately offered it to her again. She laughed, shook it, released it—and he offered it to her again.

"Oh, uh, he's probably going to keep doing that. I trained him to do it by giving him treats, so now he just thinks that he'll get a treat every time he does it." Kakashi followed her lead and dropped into an easy crouch, affectionately patting Shiba on the head. "We're working on it."

“Still, he’s pretty well behaved,” Sakura complimented, having completely forgotten that she was supposed to be mad at Kakashi. She looked up, meeting his eyes. They were a soft grey that she told herself she did not find extremely appealing. “Do you have any treats on you?”

Wordlessly, he reached for a little pouch clipped onto the pocket of his jeans. Opening the zipper, he reached inside and pulled out two treats. Sakura held out her hand for them, ignoring the little thrill she felt when his fingers brushed her palm.

She looked at the treats, and then back to him. “I can give him two?”

His eyes creased in a smile. “One of them is for Pakkun.” A muted ‘boof’ came from behind him.

Sakura brightened, leaning forward and around Kakashi’s shoulder to pet the pug, whose head poked out of Kakashi’s backpack. “How could I forget such a sweet boy?” she crooned, feeding him one of the treats. Kakashi turned his head to watch her, his eyes warm, and—suddenly aware of how close he was—Sakura flushed, leaning back.

Looking back to Shiba, she laughed to see the dog straining to hold his paw as high as he possibly could. Feeding him his treat, she asked, “How many dogs do you have?”

Kakashi gave a short, quiet laugh, looking away. “…A few.”

Taking his reticence as a sign that their little chat was over, Sakura stood, remembering that she had a job to do. “Let me just wash my hands and I’ll take your order.” Walking behind the counter, she took a few moments to wash her hands in the small sink, before putting her apron back on and turning back to Kakashi. “What can I get you?”

“Medium flat white, two puppuccinos,” he replied.

Rather than writing his order on a cup, she went straight for the cash register and started ringing him up. “That’ll be fifteen dollars and 76 cents.”

Two silver brows shot upward. “That sounds… kind of expensive.”

She gave him an unimpressed look. “It’s $10.76 for two flat whites. Today’s, and yesterday’s.”

He gave her the same lopsided smile that she’d found so engaging the evening before. “And the other five dollars?”

Finally giving him a devious little smirk in return, she resolutely pointed to the jar marked ‘Tips’. “There’s a five dollar charge for the talk I had to have with my boss about a certain thief.”

“Fair is fair, I suppose.” He heaved a dramatic sigh and drew a leather billfold out of his back pocket. As he drew out a few bills, handing some to her and stuffing the others in the tip jar, he raised a brow. “You seem like you’re having a better day than yesterday, at least.”

“Yesterday I got a really low grade on an anatomy test. Today, my professor told me he’d let me retake it,” she called over her shoulder as she grabbed a medium cup and began to make his drink.

He hummed thoughtfully behind her. “Anatomy test, huh? You’re a med student?”

Leaving the espresso to brew, she held the milk beneath the steam wand with one hand while reaching for two shot cups with the other. “Yep. Working at the Grind is just how I make up the gap between what my scholarship covers and what I actually need.” She placed both cups beside each other on the bar and filled each of them with whipped cream.

“A med student with a scholarship, no less. That’s not easy to do.”

Leaving the milk for a moment, she took both cups of whipped cream and turned to face him again, holding them out. “I’m not an easy kind of girl.”

Sakura realized what that sounded like much too late, her eyes widening. Kakashi’s face crumpled for a moment, his lips pressing together as he clearly tried not to laugh.

“I’m sure you’re very difficult,” he finally managed in an admirably casual voice.

Sakura could feel the heat rush into her cheeks and knew she had to be bright red. “Shut up,” she warned.

He held up both of his hands in a placating manner, but he was grinning as he took the two cups from her.

Letting out a little huff, Sakura turned back to the hot bar, focusing on pouring his flat white and letting her stupid cheeks cool down. When she turned back around, she paused with the finished drink in her hand, smiling slightly at the sight before her. Kakashi stood with Pakkun’s backpack slung around to rest against his chest and stomach, feeding one cup of whipped cream to the pug while Shiba happily stuck his snout in the other cup.

“Your flat white is ready,” she said unnecessarily, approaching the counter and setting the drink down since he didn’t have any free hands.

“Do they often leave you all alone here at night?” he asked as he stacked the two now-empty cups together and casually (and a little impressively) tossed them across the room into the nearest trash can. Then he winced a little. “I really didn’t mean that to sound so creepy.”

Sakura grinned. She wasn’t the only one who could sound like an idiot. “It’s okay. Saturday and Sunday nights I work with a coworker, but Monday through Wednesday I’m on my own.”

“That seems kind of dangerous.” Kakashi tipped his head to the side as he cast his gaze over the coffee shop. “Do you have wifi?”

Blinking at sudden the non sequitur, Sakura said, “Yes?” making it sound like a question.

“Are you against people camping out and doing work here?” he asked, ignoring her obvious curiosity.

“People do it all the time,” she answered.

“Also… is there a limit on the number of dogs I can bring?” he continued in a serious voice.

Sakura let out a short laugh. “I’ve never been asked that question before.”

“…Because Shiba really likes difficult women who also like dogs.” Kakashi’s face was casually expressionless, like he was discussing the weather. “And he has friends.”

Trying and failing to keep the smile from her face, Sakura gestured at the empty shop. “Well, there’s plenty of room this time of night.” She couldn’t stop herself from putting her hands on her hips and teasing, “Tell Shiba that his friends are welcome as long as they’re well-behaved.”

“Oh, Shiba and Pakkun only associate with good boys,” he said with a wicked smile as he picked up his flat white and walked backward toward the door.

“Somehow I doubt that,” Sakura said, rolling her eyes yet still smiling. “Have a good night, Kakashi.”

“See you soon,” he said with a salute of his cup, leading Shiba outside and letting the door swing shut behind him.

#kakasaku #my stories #coffee shop AU #needs moar dogs #good boy #tipsyraconteur

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fucking-hell-skarsgard · 7 years ago

Text

Paradise - Chapter One

A.N. - There is some swearing and medical issues in this chapter. In later chapters there will be smut (Or at least my attempt of it). The main character has a chronic illness, she also was in a motorbike accident. I’m telling you that there might be some emotional triggering parts in the future. (I will warn you before hand if there is). This is your warning. I hope to update every Friday. Any comments are welcome, thank you and enjoy!

September 23rd, 2016 - Toronto Pearson International Airport, Toronto, Canada.

Eva P.O.V.

~~~~~~~~~~

One of the joys of having a disability was getting to board the plane first. Some lovely person pushes you in a wheelchair all the way through the airport, onto the plane and stops by your seat. The air hostess helps pack your personal belongs away, so all you need to do is sit back and relax. Two downsides though, to board early you must get there ahead of the normal boarding time. Also when you travel with a service dog and have bad legs, it’s just easier to upgrade to first class. You and the dog get more room, it just costs you a little more. The only thing I had to worry about now was if anyone sat next to me, I was hoping to get some sleep within the next 7 hours. The flight left Toronto at 4:30 am, it would be sometime around 10 am when we land in London (Yeah I know time zones are shitty). I was hoping the sleep on the plane would be enough to help me stay awake for the rest of the day.

The hostess for this flight was Stacey, who I had flown with many times told me we’d be taking off in ten minutes. No one had sat next to me so far, so I was hoping that I’d have a free seat for the whole flight. I heard Stacey speak to someone, I also heard the number for the seat next to me. There went my dreams of being alone for this flight. I tried to read my book paying no attention to whoever was going to sit next to me. I felt my service dog Ragnar lift his head off my feet. Which was weird as he never normal reacted to strangers.

When I peeped up from my book to see who I was sitting next too, I couldn’t see his face. He was trying to get his carry on in the overhead storage. No matter if your luggage was the correct size, it never fit in the storage properly. With his hands above his head, his black t-shirt had risen slightly showing a sliver of pale skin and a light treasure trail down into his jeans. He was extremely tall. Coming from a 5 foot 10 women, let me tell you, only a select few men have the gift of towering over me.

With one final shove, he managed to get his bag in and quickly shut the hatch. I went back to my book not to make it obvious I was staring. I could see him moving around out of the corner of my eye, once he put his seatbelt on her must have looked at who he was sat next too.

“Oh, fucking hell.” he quietly exclaimed.

I looked up unsure of what was happening. I came face to face with Bill Skarsgård.

He huffed and slumped back in his seat. “This is perfect. Seven hours sitting next to you.”

I smiled at him, “So charming as always Sweetheart. What’s this all the Swedes home on the soonest flight out?

Ragnar recognised the man next to me, he sat up and started to wag his tail. He kept looking between the two of us, knowing that he couldn’t say hello unless I told him he could.

He smiled back at me and winked. “It’s a little early for your sarcasm darling. There’s a couple of months break before promo starts, so I thought I’d hide for a while. You?”

I patted Ragnar on the head and he stepped over my legs and rested his head on Bill’s knee. Bill ruffled him behind the ears, both happy to see each other even though they had spent time together yesterday.

I placed my bookmark back in my book. “Yeah, I missed my baby sisters 1st birthday. I’m stopping in London for a couple of days, so I’ll get her something there.”

“Yeah, that sucks big time. The first one is always special.”

For a moment I had forgotten that Bill had four younger siblings, the younger two were only Seven and Four.

“I’m stopping in London too for a couple of days. You know of anything good to do?”

I nodded, “Yeah there’s loads, just depends on what you like. Shopping, museums, other tourist stuff. You booked somewhere to stay?”

Bill shook his head, “I was just going to see where the wind took me.”

I sighed, “London’s not like Stockholm, even in term time it’s still busy. Most hotels will be fully booked.”

He tipped his head back, “Shit.”

I patted his leg, “Don’t worry I’ve got a spare room.”

He turned his head towards me, “You have a place in london?”

Before I could answer Stacey came round checking all the seat belts. Ragnar knowing the routine settled himself back down under my legs. I clipped his seatbelt to the back of his harness. It wasn’t really a seat belt but a lead that was looped around the leg of the chair in front. To stop him rolling if something bag happened.

“Yeah, my dad bought the apartment in Westminster when he was teaching in London. Then I used it during university. Now we use it whenever we visit and rent it out short term for people who don’t want to stay in a hotel. Don’t worry I made sure it’s empty.”

“That’s cool, thanks.”

The plane started to move to the runway. I was fine with flying, just not take off, landing and turbulence. I offered bill a candy apple sweet to suck on before placing one in my mouth. I clenched onto the armrest as the plane picked up speed. Ragnar placed his head on my feet, knowing I needed reassuring but he knew he couldn’t move during takeoff as he was anchored to the floor.

Bill looked at me, “You okay?”

“Uhh… I’m not so good with takeoff and landings.”

He smirked, “The big bad wolf is scared of planes.”

I glared at him, “Not funny.”

“Sorry.” He took my arm off the armrest, tucking the armrest up in between our seats. He threaded his fingers through mine. He placed our conjoined hands by our legs, to hide from view.

I could feel the plane start to shake more rapidly. I concentrated on keeping my breathing steady and even. Bill was rubbing circles on the back of my hand with his thumb. The plane tilted back and in a matter of minutes, we were in the air. Bill held onto my hand until I had calmed down.

“Thank you. It really helped.”

He smiled at me, “No problem.”

The seatbelt sign turned off and Bill let go of me and got his headphones out of his backpack. Ragnar knowing he could move tried to sit up. I leaned forward and unclipped him. He got up and placed his front legs on my lap. I rested my head on his stroking his silky fur. I began to feel unwell. A little shaky and dizzy, a regular feeling for me.

“You ready for 7 hours of mind-crushing shit tv?”

I snorted, patted Ragnar on the head who laid back down. “I plan on sleeping, waking for breakfast then try to get some work done.”

“You’re always so organised.”

“Ha! Organised! You’re looking at a woman that has now been awake for…” I checked my watch, “about 26 hours.”

“Shit. Why?”

“We had an early start yesterday and then I had work to do in the evening. Come 10 o’clock I couldn’t switch my brain off. Then at 1 I had to head off to the airport.”

“Hardcore. Get some sleep, I’ll look after you and Ragnar.”

I leaned the chair back and pulled on my eye cover. “Thanks, Bill.”

~~~~~~~~~~

When I woke later I couldn’t work out why it was pitch black and why my pillow was breathing. I reached up to my face feeling an eye cover, that explains the darkness. I pulled it off my eyes. The breathing pillow actually turned out to be Bill. I sat up quickly embarrassed I had slept on his shoulder.

He pulled his headphones off. “Ah, sleeping beauty has awoken.”

“Sorry I didn’t mean to use you as a pillow.”

“Don’t worry it’s fine. You needed the sleep.”

“How long was I out for?”

He checked his phone. “A little over three hours. The breakfast order went round a couple minutes ago. The stewardess said she knew what you liked.”

I sat up and stretched. “Perfect thanks, yeah I’ve flown with her many times. Could I leave Ragnar with you will I visit the bathroom?”

“Yeah sure.” Bill tucked his legs in.

I picked up my carryon and shuffled out, Ragnar stood to follow me. “Ragnar stay with Bill.”

He shuffled closer to Bill and sat down. I wandered down the corridor. In the bathroom I used my potions in my wash bag to freshen myself up, hoping that it would make me feel better. I don’t know if it was the lack of sleep but I still felt awful. My head was spinning round like the waltzers at the fair. I wet some paper towels to put against my forehead. I tried to take some deep breaths in but it made no difference. The last thing I remember was the sink coming closer.

When I woke up for the second time that day the first thing I saw was beautiful pale green eyes. When my brain caught up I realised they belonged to Bill.

He let out a sigh. “You frightened the shit out of me.”

“Sorry, the first one is a bit of a shock.”

“This happens often?”

I nodded. I tried to sit up and was unable to do so. Bill tucked his hands under my arms and helped me sit. He slid forward on the floor so my back rested on his chest. Only then did I realise I was laid in the galley part of the plane where the hostesses prepare the food. Ragnar was laid across my legs and Stacey was knelt beside me.

She smiled at me, “You have one smart dog there. He started acting up which I know isn’t him. Next thing I know he’s bolted over your friend and was scratching the bathroom door. I unlocked it and you were on the floor. Luckily you didn’t hurt your head. Bill lifted you out, we put you in here so you had some privacy..”

“Thank you. I’m sorry to freak you guys out.”

Stacey snorted, “Darling this ain’t my first rodeo. I’d rather have you passing out on me then deal with drunks or rich guys with wandering hands.”

That made me laugh. “Can I go back to my seat.”

“Sure thing honey. If your friend can take you and I’ll make you some sweet tea.”

Bill moved from behind me and Ragnar got off my legs. With Bill’s arms under mine, he helped pull me up. He put his arm around my waist to steady me and we walked slowly back to our seats, Ragnar following behind. Bill made sure I was seated and Ragnar was tucked in our row. Ragnar chose to lay on the floor in the middle of our seats.

Bill’s face was etched with worry. He sat and turned to face me. I placed my hand on his.

“I’m sorry for frightening you. It’s always rough the first time you deal with it on your own.”

“Is..is it because of your… Ya know.”

“My condition. Yeah. Sometimes I just get dizzy and pass out.”

Stacey came by with tea for both of us. She placed them on the tray in front of Bill. “You feeling better?”

“Yes thank you. And sorry again.”

“Oh, Evie stop it. It’s not the first time I’ve found you passed out in the bathroom. Breakfast will be about 30 minutes.”

Bill picked up one of the cups and passed it to me before picking up his own. “So Evie… has she dealt with this before?”

I blew on my tea and took a sip. “Yeah, Stacey does the Atlantic flights. I’ve traveled multiple times over the last 5 years so you get to know people. She knows all about me, she’s the first aider too so she’s taken care of me when I’ve been ill before.”

“You’re a nomad like me then. Forever traveling.”

I sighed. “It feels like it sometimes. It’s not how I imagined my life to turn out. But here I am.”

“What did you want before?”

“It doesn’t matter now. Rule number 3, never dwell on the past.”

Bill snorted, “You have rules?”

“Oh yes. I think that everybody should have rules or a code to live by. I bet you have rules.”

Bill wet his bottom lip. Oh, how I loved his firm plump lips. Especially when… Huh, excuse me.

“Yeah, I suppose so. Make sure I call mum once a week. Always try to make it home sometime during the year. Oh and always home for Christmas.”

“See. They’re no different to mine, I just put mine in order.”

“How many do you have?”

I hummed, “Ten at the moment. Some can change, somethings come and go.”

“Will you tell me them?”

“Maybe one day.”

He pouted, “You’re no fun.”

I laughed, “You and I both know that’s a load of shit.

He smiled again, “You’re right. Now drink your tea.”

We sat in content silence both drinking our teas. It wasn’t much longer before Stacey and one of her colleagues began the breakfast round. I noticed that she gave me mine before anyone else. That was another perk of flying first class, the food. When Stacey told Bill she knew what I liked, she wasn’t lying. She had made me a special breakfast; scrambled egg on toast, a small bowl of fruit and apple juice.

“So what shopping you need to do?” Bill asked taking the lid off his breakfast. In true Bill style, he had gone for the classic English Breakfast.

“Well, Harrods for mum’s biscuits and I need to pick up some things they’ve got on hold for me. There are some clothes things I need on Oxford street. Oh, and I might have to pop into work. I asked Katie to do most of the shopping, she’s an angel.

“Who’s Katie?” Bill asked with a mouthful of food.

“She’s the housekeeper, but a family friend too. I knew I didn’t have enough time to do everything, so I asked Katie to do a lot of the shopping. The last two weeks her family’s been staying there and they did things around London. She lives in north London, she pops in once or twice a week to check on stuff. Today she’d make the rooms up, make sure there’s food in the fridge. You can meet when we get there.”

“Ahh okay. Why does none else have your breakfast?” Bill asked.

“Because Stacey knows that after one of my episodes I don’t feel like eating. So she makes me a small portion. She’s my flying guardian angel.”

We didn’t really speak till breakfast was finished, I couldn’t manage everything so Bill and I shared the bowl of fruit. He picked up a strawberry. I rummaged in my purse for my pill box, I took my morning meds with the last of my apple juice.

“Will you be okay if I get some sleep?”

I nodded, “Yeah I’ll be okay. I won’t move.”

After the stewardesses had cleaned away our breakfast Bill asked for a pillow. Stacy brought him one back and another cup of tea for me. Bill tipped his chair back slightly and turned on his side so he faced me. It wasn’t long before he was asleep. Once he had relaxed you could see the stress and worries leave his face. You looked so young and peaceful.

I took my Ipad out of my handbag and glasses. I needed to get on with some of the work that I needed to do. There were some last minute things that needed to be dealt with for the Spring/Summer 2017 that was happening next week. I had to get them sorted before I left London in three days time, once I was back in Sweden there was nothing I could help them with. Once I had everything finished I could email the updates to the show’s director. I tried to work I really did but there’s one thing that I adore more than clothes, it’s the man sleeping next to me. Of course, he doesn’t know and I’d like to keep it that way for the foreseeable future.

I loved watching Bill sleep. I couldn’t help myself. I grabbed my sketch pad from my bag, I flipped to the back where most of my personal drawing were; most of them were either of Bill or Ragnar. I turned in my chair so I could get just the right light and then went to work. I can get lost drawing, time flies by quicker than watching tv or reading. The drawing wasn’t the work of Michelangelo, it was still quite rough around the edges. I nearly had it completed before he woke. While he was stirring I inconspicuously slid the pad back in my bag.

He rubbed his face and sat up, his long hair sticking up at the side. I reached forward and brushed it down. He sleepily smiled at me before stretching and stumbling down the aisle to the bathroom. I checked the clock on the tv screen, it told me there were only an hour and a half left of our flight.

Once Bill was no longer a sleeping distraction I finally managed to concentrate on my work. When Bill came back from the bathroom he spotted the book that I was currently reading on the top of my handbag.

“What’s the book about?”

I looked over my glasses at him then peeped down at my bag, “Oh it’s Christopher Nolan’s biography, it’s about his disability. It’s not a typical autobiography it’s told in the third person by a narrator. Go ahead borrow it, just don’t move the bookmark.”

I rummaged in my bag and pulled out a piece of blue ribbon. “Use this for your bookmark.”

Bill took it from me, “Thanks… Why ribbon.”

I looked up at him, “Working in fashion and wardrobe there’s always spare pieces of everything lying around. Plus it’s thin enough that it won’t damage the book or spine.”

Will Bill got stuck into the book I slid my glasses back up my nose and carried on with my work. It wasn’t long before we had to put our things away and buckle our seatbelts. I made sure Ragnar was hooked up too. During landing, Bill took hold of my hand again. Once we were down and people were started to move I just stayed seated.

Bill looked at me funny. “Aren’t we leaving?”

I checked my watch, “Yeah to get a wheelchair on they have to wait till first class is empty.”

Bill nodded. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a wheelchair.”

“I only use it if I’m really bad or need to cover long distances. When I’m working I can sit anytime I need and there’s not much walking involved. Airports are too big for me to walk and there’s too much standing.”

Bill nodded. He stood and started to arrange both my luggage and his bag. It wasn’t long and two men came onto the plane one pushing a wheelchair. I recognised them straight away. The one with the wheelchair who was tall and ginger was Charlie. And the man behind him with dark hair and arms the size of Chris Hemsworth was Alfie. Those two normal helped me.

Charlie smiled at me,“Ready for your carriage m’lady.”

I moved from my seat and into the wheelchair. I still didn’t feel very well. I knew Stacey and told them because they normally wait in the walkway. Alife took most of the luggage leaving Bill with his backpack. I handed Ragnar’s lead to Bill.

“Could you hold him please.”

“Yeah of course.” Ragnar was more than happy to walk with Bill.

It didn’t take long to get our bags which Alife loaded onto a trolley. Customs was a breeze, neither Bill nor I had much stuff to bring home. Charlie wheeled me through the airport, Alfie was behind pushing both mine and Bill’s luggage. With Bill’s long legs he had no problem keeping up with Charlie’s quick pace, he had hold of Ragnar’s lead. I rummaged in my bag for my phone, at 10 o’clock I knew Katie would be at the apartment by now. I got my phone out of my bag and sent her a message. ‘Hey I’m bringing a friend to stay could you please get one of the spare rooms ready. Thanks, Exx’

I turned to Bill. “I just sent Katie a text, she’ll make a room up for you by the time we get there.”

Bill smiled down at me, “Thanks”

We got to the airport’s main doors where a large black chauffeur-driven car was waiting. We were thankfully undercover because in true British style, it was raining. Once Charlie had helped me into the car he checked on Alfie and the driver, both had managed to load our luggage with ease. Arthur and Charlie waved us off before heading back in with the now empty wheelchair. Bill let Ragnar in first before sliding in. Ragnar lay on the floor between the two of us. It wasn’t long before we were on the motorway heading home.

I turned to look at Bill, “So it traveling with me as terrible as you thought?”

He turned from the window and smirked, “Nah it was alright. A personal baggage handler, being rushed through customs. It makes up for having to wait till everyone’s out of first class. I think I could get used to it.”

“So what do you want to do today?”

“Could I grab a shower first, then whatever.”

“Yeah that’s cool,” I checked my watch, “It’s 11 now, it will be 12 when we get there. So maybe shower, lunch and Harrods then.”

Bill nodded and went back to looking out of the window. I checked my phone seeing I had two messages. One was from Katie tell me that Bill’s room is sorted and she had arranged lunch. The other was from my friend Leo, who ran one of my favourite bars in London. He wondered if I could perform tomorrow night as one of his girls had injured themselves at rehearsals.

“Hey, Bill.”

He hummed.

“I need to go out tomorrow night. Do you want to come with me. It’s a cocktail bar.”

He did not turn from the window. “Yeah. I’ll come, sounds good.”

I pressed my lips together so I didn’t laugh. Little did he know it would be more than ‘good’ and yes he would definitely be coming.

A.N. - Please excuse my crudeness all will be revealed in the next chapter. A cookie for whoever can guess what’s happening at the bar.

#bill skarsgard #bill skarsgård #bill skarsgard imagine #bill skarsgård imagine #bill skarsgard fanfic #bill skarsgård fanfic #pennywise #it #hemlock grove #roman godfrey #paradise

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aemilythings-blog1 · 5 years ago

Photo

Artwork by Elena S

“It has to be easier than the usual walk out”.

It started with those words. It was the first time I ever used them, and unfortunately, not the last. The idea had sprouted when I looked down the steep rainforest covered slopes above a local canyon.

We had been canyoning in this particular canyon many times, making it seem familiar and welcoming. But we didn’t feel the same about the walk out, or the ‘exit track’ as we called it. A hard 4 hour uphill hike was the way out after abseiling the last 60 meter waterfall. It was our least favourite part of the trip. Obviously.

What Is Canyoning? Is Canyoning for You?

The Ultimate Canyoning/Canyoneering Film List!

What if there was a way to shorten the walk out, I wondered? With the idea kernel bursting in my head, it came to me.

Setting up ropes from the top before we started the canyon, and before the last waterfall into the deep, inescapable valley, we could ‘ascend’ out using rope grabbing devices and haul ourselves out, avoiding that 4 hour slog. A short spurt of energy followed by victorious cheering. It should shave hours off the usual time, and be much easier.

That was the plan.

I enlisted my good friend Josh for the adventure. Always up for some action, he was still new to rope skills, like I was, but we figured we could do it.

Packing bags that now weighed far more than on our average trips, after all, we now had double the amount of ropes, we set off one cool winter morning full of excitement about our adventure.

SETTING UP FOR SUCCESS

Before we started the canyon, I had to secure our ropes to ascend out. Smiling from ear to ear thinking of the sheer brilliance of my plan, I wiggle into my wetsuit and buckle up my harness.

This was going to be so easy!

Abseiling down the steep, heavily vegetated slopes, I find the best tree to use as an anchor. It takes one 60 meter rope to get down to the canyon edge, and another for the vertical 40 meter drop into the dark blue waters below.

Peering down, I am amazed to see the canyon from this new angle. Usually we are swimming below through the deep pools while we look up at the high rock walls. I lower the rope down the final vertical section.

I triple check the tree and the rope, making sure it was safe from any nasty sharp edges. I then ascend back up the slope to Josh and we begin the canyon as normal.

IS IT USUALLY THIS COLD?

We carefully walk into the first pool. A few steps in we know we have to, there's no point delaying the inevitable. We jump into the frigid water. Slowly, water seeps past the back zipper on our wetsuits and we gasp at the sudden piercing cold.

Despite it being winter, I was enthusiastic to do the trip. Winters in Queensland weren't that cold anyway, surely a 10 degree difference wasn’t that bad?

We continue on and do the first jump, a nice 4 meter drop next to a huge log wedged in place.

Canyons are amazing places. Like playgrounds, they offer up an abundance of fun that takes you back to being a kid. But while they are spectacular, they hold many dangers to the inexperienced. You need the skills, gear and teamwork to tackle any obstacles you find. Once you commit, there's only one way out and only one way to escape: Finish the canyon.

Soon we reach the major abseils. We had already done a few smaller ones, now the main show awaits. Throwing our ropes into the darkness below, we abseil next to the pounding waterfalls, occasionally brushing close enough to feel the pinpricks of the high speed water droplets.

Once the last abseils were done, we had the final 100 meter swim to where the rope hung from the trees above.

Nearing the dangling rope, I figure out the plan to get up. We only had one set of ascenders. Knowing this from the start, the plan was for one person to go up and slide them down again to the person below.

It'll be easy, right?

I had only bought my ascenders a few weeks prior so had a basic idea of how to use them. But Josh hadn't so a crash course was needed.

I quickly run him through the steps. There was a body ascender, and a hand ascender for the foot loop. Two different devices, two ways of attaching them to the rope, both doing the same thing. Helping you get up!

The water was cold and we were keen to get moving. We were starting to shiver.

I spot a small ledge 5 meters above the water. If we could both get on that, the other person wouldn’t have to wait as long in the icy water. I go first, as I would be better able to help from top should Josh have trouble with the ascenders.

We leave our floating bags attached to the end of the rope and I make my way upwards to the ledge.

Ascending was tiring. Moving the hand ascender up, I would stand up in the foot loop attached to it and take up the slack with my body ascender before repeating the process. After 5 meters I've warmed up significantly.

But Josh hasn’t.

It doesn’t take long for the onset of hypothermia to begin. It is one of the dangers in canyoning. Leading to a loss of mental and physical capacity, and eventually death, it’s important to be aware of it. Generally, as long as you keep moving, you stay warm. But stand still, or worse, float in the cold water without moving for a while, and it can begin very quickly!

I slide the ascenders 5 meters back down to Josh in the water. He struggles to open the carabiners with numb hands. Confusion begins and his speech is slurring. This is not good!

I talk him through the steps again. He needs to get up here quick!

Fighting through the mental fog and numb fingers and body, he finally gets the ascenders onto the rope. Like I did, he warms up again by the time he greets me on the ledge. Hypothermia avoided. I relax a little.

The next part is another hard decision. For the moment, Josh is ok on the ledge, and if I go first I can always help him from above easier than from below. We have a chat and agree this is the best option.

I start upwards again, working furiously to get to the top as fast as I can. Step up, take the slack, and repeat. Only 35 odd meters to go.

I reach the top, sweating, gasping, and exhausted. My biceps burn and my legs quiver. I feel worked. I'm done.

I detach my body ascender after clipping my safety to my anchor around the tree, and yell out to Josh to get ready. Using a jacket, he would catch the ziplining ascenders as they zoom down the rope. After 35 meters, they would be travelling extremely fast and hit with incredible force.

I send the first ascender, the one used for your body and your main attachment point, down on a carabiner hooked on the rope. Josh catches it without issues.

In my tired state I leave the foot ascender clipped to the rope and prepare to send it down with the progress capture teeth disengaged. The teeth sit less than a centimeter away from the rope allowing it to slide down.

But there is a flaw with my method. Tired, and without another thought about it, I send it down.

F*@K!

The word escaped my mouth before it had even happened. As the ascender screamed down the rope, it whipped back and forth. And those teeth that were so close to the rope, were just waiting for a taste.

A loud crack echos through the canyon. Those teeth got their taste and the stop was so violent, the rope bounced. The teeth must have brushed the rope and caught. It was 3 meters above Josh’s head, out of reach, and stuck.

The word made it out again.

There was a better way to send it down, by just clipping it to a carabiner. But I hadn't. Now, we had more trouble. This was all new to me. And to Josh.

At worst, the rope may have been badly damaged. And at best, a small nick. I rest my head against the tree I'm anchored into, close my eyes, and take a moment (of swearing uncontrollably).

When done, I focus again on our situation. At least he has the rope in his hand. Without that, he would have been truly stuck. I yell down. The moment of truth. Did he have his prussik loops?

Prussik loops are used as a emergency ascending method. Slow and physically demanding, its a backup option using loops of cord. They require practice to know how to loop around the rope and ascend up with them.

After some tense searching, he locates them on his harness. Thank god! But in the meantime, the cold had once again started its sinister work on him. Not only did he have to remember how to attach the prussik loop, he had to do it while fighting the cold gripping hold of his mind and body.

With some coaxing and yelling on my part, he finally manages. He now has to ascend on the prusiks 3 meters to the hand ascender and hope it isn’t permanently jammed on the rope, or worse, damaged the rope or itself.

Those 3 meters felt like an eternity as he slowly moves up, bit by bit. My mind played horrible scenarios of being stuck in this canyon and having to be rescued. That is, if we could even get a signal out on my personal locator beacon!

As he finally reaches the ascender, relief washes over me as he reports a

little nick on the rope, nothing too bad, and the ascender is fine. He can now continue with the hand ascender which was much more efficient.

The day was starting to take its toll. My stress levels were off the charts and I was tired. I just wanted the day to be over. But it was now my turn to feel the cold and its icy embrace. I started shivering, then stopped and felt very tired. Just a little nap is all I needed...

Josh joins me at the tree, bringing me back to the present. There was one sure way to beat the cold so we set about our next task. Hauling the bags.

AND YOU THOUGHT THE HARD WORK WAS DONE?

Setting up a basic pulley system, we start to haul the bags. We have since upgraded to specialised canyon packs which drain the water through mesh panels, but on this day, we hauled two 60 litre, water logged fabric backpacks.

And it was killing us.

If I thought I had worked hard on the ascending, I had been dreaming. Steam fumed from our wetsuits as we heaved, again and again. Countless times the bags got stuck on some unseen edge. It felt like we were hauling gym weights and it was a never ending session of pain and swearing. So much swearing.

With a final pull, the bags reach the anchor. We drag them in and with dismay I see water slosh out. We had hauled our already heavy bags up 40 meters with some extra water inside.

Pulling up the rope dangling in the canyon and packing it away, we still have to ascend the steep vegetated slopes to the trail above. Averaging 50° with some vertical rock steps, we had our work cut out for us.

As I had weaved the rope around trees in the beginning while I set it up, there was no clear way to pass the ascenders back down other than to attach yourself to a tree and slide them down again. A process that had to be done on each tree. A common theme was forming.

And now, carrying heavy water-soaked, rope-filled packs, it wasn’t any easier. With each bit of progress we become more and more exhausted. Muscles ached and cramped. Our brains felt like mush. We were 5 hours past the original estimated time I had expected it to take.

By the time we reach the top and touch the hiking track, savouring its familiarity, the sun was setting, the last rays touching the tips of the trees. But the day was not done with us yet. With 4 wet ropes, wetsuits, and our usual canyoning gear, we still had another hour of ‘gentle’ uphill track to get back to our car.

Because I had anticipated an early finish, Josh hadn’t brought a headlamp and mine was almost out of battery. So through the black rainforest we trudge as all the wildlife awakens for the night, a stark contrast of energy levels.

As we approach the car, the only one left in the car park now, our moods improve and we had to laugh out loud.

Compared to our 'shortcut', the walk out was probably the easiest part of the trip!

Lessons Learnt is a series documenting or telling the story of the adventures and epics that could have been avoided, done differently, or at least, provide a lesson on what not to do. Some details or events may be simplified, left out, or added for story telling purposes, and the sole purpose is to provide entertainment, not instruction.

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welldresseddadblog · 5 years ago

Text

I’m a backpack guy. Always have been, ever since my school days. Backpacks are super handy for carrying stuff, with no hands involved and giving an equal distribution of weight on the shoulders. It’s the perfect solution really to all your lugging stuff around needs. Yet here I am with a messenger bag, on the one hand wondering how this is going to work out, on the other chuffed to pieces by this precise messenger bag. To understand what’s going on, I’ll need to wind time back a year or more to when I first discovered Philipp and his one-man company Taktonik on Instagram.

The messenger bag background story

Instagram has the potential to open you up to new ideas and images on a scale unlike anything else in history, yet most of us are probably following people like ourselves, celebrities we say we despise yet secretly yearn to be and brands that make things we’d like to own. It’s rare to come across something that is totally different, but that was what I found when I stumbled across Taktonik. Philipp, the guy behind the name, is a retired soldier with a penchant for ex-military materials and details. He uses these to make the messenger bag and an unusual style of ex-Soviet army rucksack called a Veschmeschok.

What really drew me in was Philipps evidently nerdy fascination with army surplus fabrics and details. Camouflage jackets, vehicle tarps, shelters, parachutes, various harnesses and straps. The sum of all these sources comes together in the bags, very much in the vein of pacifist military designs, something I wholeheartedly approve of. So I followed him, enjoyed his long descriptions of obscure and arcane camouflage fabrics and got talking about him making me a bag. This pretty much took a year of occasional back and forth, before in a marathon Skype session we nailed it down.

The details of the messenger bag

And here it is. Rarely have I had something where so much thought has gone into the details. The starting point was the standard messenger bag that Philipp makes. This was made a bit larger, to accommodate the laptop computer I use for work, and the laptop section given extra padding. From there on out it was total customisation and has become the most complicated bag he’s made so far.

The primary outer fabric of this messenger bag is an olive green canvas salvaged from a vehicle tarpaulin from a vehicle used by the early Federal German army. It’s really solid! The tarp is the main fabric and includes details such as the holes to tie it down. Offset against this there are two camouflage fabrics, one vintage and one newer. The vintage one is from the Algerian war era and is “Camouflee de Leópard“ or “French Lizard Mod. D“, taken from a French army shelter half, with some of the shelters features intact. The webbing camouflage is from a Level IV ballistic vest from Federal German army and their “Soldier of the Future” program, with the classic German “Flecktarn” or “Tarndruck, 5-farb” pattern. A contrast between classic and modern there.

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The badge is from the weapons support system personnel in combat aircraft, which I thought kind of suitable, but really I’ll admit it was just a good-looking badge and made for a nice focal point.

While still on the outside, the main strap is an extra wide canvas piece that remarkably is NOS, new old stock, from a former supplier of material to the German Army. The fittings are taken from T-10 parachute harnesses and helicopter load-sling equipment. I think this should ensure my laptop, packed lunch and an exciting paperback should stay firmly in place. The two straps to keep the bag closed are salvaged tie-down straps from either German or Austrian army. There’s also a small outside pen pocket made form a Czechoslovakian duffle bag, with the leather patch intact.

Some more nerdy details

The main part of the inside is lined in rare camouflage US parachute fabric from WW2, a lining that feels kind of silky, but is also very strong. The lining under the lid is an authentic silk escape map over the part of Northern Norway where I grew up. Both an emotional choice, and also handy if I’m up there and need to find an escape route. Silk escape maps were used during WW2, as they could be sewn into the lining of clothing to avoid them being found. When has luggage ever taken this good care of you?

#gallery-0-14 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-14 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-14 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-14 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

There is also an internal pocket that has been salvaged from a Belgian Army Airborne smock from 1958 in Belgian Brushstroke pattern and the key-strap is a G3 rifle carrying sling. There is a large internal pocket that opens with the zipper from a CBU-13 G-suit, Starfighter pilot suit to you and me, of the German Air Force. The internal pocket is lined with black and white Soviet-era cold war photos that Philipp had specially printed onto a suitable fabric. A subversive Easter egg providing another link to a past many have already forgotten about. Again, mixing up the eras and influences.

There is also a large outside pocket on the rear, suitable for a magazine, held closed with wood toggles from a rare Czechoslovakian camouflaged shelter half. No option is left undecided here!

As part of the thoughtful creation that this is, Philipp also includes a swatch reference that includes a small sample of each fabric that has been used in making it. This can be seen fastened to the key strap.

#gallery-0-15 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-15 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-15 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-15 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

How is the messenger bag in use?

So that was all the about the parts that have gone into making the messenger bag, now you’re most likely wondering how it is in use, right? Well, I don’t really know quite yet, as I’ve been so busy writing all about it that I’ve not had much of a chance to try it out yet, but I’ll give you more valuable feedback in a few weeks time when I’ve really used it. For now, all I can say is that it feels good hanging off my shoulder, it has all the space and features I might require, and it looks incredible.

Granted, it’s not lightweight. using hardware and straps rated for lifting cargo from a helicopter does add a certain payload to the proceedings. Still, it’s not unreasonably heavy, so I think it’s worth it just for the bragging rights alone. I know, totally shallow, but this is what the world has come to! Sizewise it did look surprisingly large when lying on the table inside, but with a laptop inside and hanging off my shoulder it looks just right. And this messenger bag was made a little larger than the usual models, as the laptop computer I use for work is sizeable.

The Taktonik messenger bag in use. And yes, my dear stylist insisted the bicycle clip added an edgy look. I don’t think it will catch on.

In summary

So, there you have it. A solidly crafted, custom messenger bag with a unique look and personal meaning, made from upcycled and demilitarised army surplus materials, and considering the amount of work and exotic components that’s gone into it, I think it’s a huge success and very affordable.

If you’d like to discuss your own Taktonik messenger bag with Philipp, you can find him on Instagram as _Taktonik_, on his shop on Etsy as Taktonic. His regular message bag starts at around 150 euros, custom made bags like this are more, depending on just how special you want it. The Veschmeschok rucksacks are about 50 euros. Also keep an eye out for the occasional special ideas, such as the Royal Mail fanny packs, the streetwear buzz this Summer.

A review of the Taktonik messenger bag, a custom mage bag with heaps of custom camo and pacifist military detailing, including hidden subversiveness. #messengerbag, #custom #luggage #madeingermany #artisanal #bagfor life #streetwear #streetfashion https://wp.me/p7WtT3-3im I'm a backpack guy. Always have been, ever since my school days. Backpacks are super handy for carrying stuff, with no hands involved and giving an equal distribution of weight on the shoulders.

#artisan #camouflage #germany #hardmade #Messenger bag #pacifist military design #small business #Taktonik

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originaldetectivesheep · 7 years ago

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A Life of Riley Part 2: The Building That Had A Grudge Against Furniture Or Something ch 1

may want to go read part 1 first

"I'm sorry, miss," one of the overgrown Cub Scouts said to me as I tried to walk past him, away from the shelter at the bus stop towards the quad, "but we're going to need to check your bag."

I stopped and squinted at him, him and his equally corn-fed buddy in blue military shirts that had probably been bought in bulk and passed out at random to whoever fit them the closest, stupid red braid wound around their armpits like half-assed Japanese rope bondage. "Excuse you?" I said. "Check my bag? For what? Why? Who died and made you the TSA?"

The kid took a half step back, eyes open in shock like he wasn't used to being challenged. "I – I'm sorry, miss, but it's the rules." He pointed to a giant red poster on the side of the bus shelter: Grinckle Elimination Front Certified Grinckle-Free Area – Mandatory Checkpoint. "They certified Engineering Campus grinckle-free last night, so we need to check everyone who comes in. To make sure people aren't bringing fish across the perimeter." I looked over the poster, looked over the frosh Chuckle Brothers playing cop; they were being serious. For real, they were taking this seriously. Screw it.

"I tell you what," I said, undoing the clasp on my handbag, juggling it a little to make sure that the brass knuckles in it ended up underneath my pocketbook or spare sanitary supplies that these babies would be too scared of cooties to touch, "I'll come back tomorrow, and if you find even one fish in someone's backpack getting smuggled in here, I will eat it in front of you raw. This is the stupidest thing ever, or at least since this whole stupid friggin grinckle invasion started in the first place. God. Look, there it is; look, no fish. Can I go now?"

"Just – just one second," the other one said, bumping at the bottom of my bag with the back of his hand. "We have to check and make sure there isn't any fish in a false bottom. That's clear – but – Sid, we also got to check –" He cupped his hands in front of his own overfilled chest.

"Yeah," the first one said, trying not to snort. "It's possible; we got to be sure. That you aren't – you aren't carrying any fish under your shirt."

I saw red, and gritted my teeth. "The shit you hurfdurfs are going to feel me up looking for your imaginary fish. This, do you know what this is?" I hauled my lab pass out of the side pocket on my bag, brandishing it in their faces. "Read it, turdball: this is an Applied Physics lab door card. You know what the AP lab is, right? You know what this means, right? This means that I can go in that lab, even when Riley isn't there, and use the lab materials however the hell I want. Let that sink in a little. And when you're done thinking about that, think a little bit about Riley, about how Riley would react if it got around that some jumped-up crossing guards thought it was okay to grope lab members – think a little bit about what I could do to you with the AP lab materials, and how likely it would be that anyone would ever find your bodies." The wannabe fish gestapo had backed up away from my door card, nearly all the way to the hedge at the side of the path, and they were sweating like they were about to piss themselves in another second or two. "Are we clear? Are we good? Am I good to go?" The one who'd first suggested molesting me grabbed the other dude in a panicked bearhug, whimpering, and I figured that as as intelligible a reply as I was going to get from these idiots.

"All right," I said, stowing my card again. "I'll take that as a yes, and as long as you're actually getting rid of those fish you can do whatever. But if I hear one thing, if I get one DM about you jerkoffs or any other shitass pretend grinckle cops harassing people like this, I'm gonna come back down here, and there's not going to be enough of you left to bait a hook with. Do you get me, assholes?" The assholes got me, nodding frantically, wide-eyed, as I walked away, completely ignoring the other students and their backpacks getting off the bus and walking the other way around them towards Dittmarsch Hall. Some security checkpoint. Great job there by the pervert brigade.

As a way to ruin your entire morning, an attempted sexual assault by the shitbird wannabe fish police is just A-1 fantastic, and I stayed in a bad mood all the way over to the physics building, and then all the way up the stairs to the lab. I clicked my badge to the sensor by the door, and the EMO drop bars fell with a clunk, without even asking if someone was working on high-voltage stuff inside; I just wanted to get in, get in to my workspace, and get back to myself before this day got any worse. Nobody yelled or cussed like they'd gotten hit with a power cut, so that was good, and as soon as I came through the door, Carolína was standing up, leaning around a bookshelf full of greasy cylinders looking for me. "Sajitha!" she said, "are you okay? Are you all right?"

I picked my way past the wet-vac that someone had left in the middle of the floor and sat down at my workspace, stacking the sample parts on the tabletop out of the way and pulling the keyboard down from the hooks glued to the top of the monitor, switching the screen on. "Barely. I didn't get molested by the grinckle police, and I didn't have to punch either of them into the hospital either. Things could be worse. Did they go after you too? Check your bag, offer to squeeze and make sure you didn't have any fish strapped to your tits?"

Carolína shook her head, ducking to and fro as she tried to work around to my side of the work table to offer moral support. "No – no, they didn't; that's awful – I feel so bad for you – did you call security?"

"If I called security, they'd squeal about how I threatened to murder them if I found out they were harassing anyone else; lumpy freshmen threatening sexual assault gets laughed off as boys being boys, AP lab member telling someone they'll be ground up for fish food if they don't cut their shit turns into handcuffs and a terroristic-threats or conspiracy-to-commit-murder charge. They take us seriously. And you can't call the cops on the cops, even junior dress-up cops like this. How'd you dodge them? Do you have a secret way up here? I just came up on the bus like normal." Carolína had wrapped herself all around my back, chin resting on my shoulder. It wasn't helping me a whole ton, but if it helped her feel better, it was okay.

"No," she said, "no, I just came up that way too. I had my backpack, but they didn't stop me. I barely noticed them – I'm pretty sure they were there, but I was on the phone with my mom and I wasn't paying attention. Maybe that's it, like they don' pay attention to people who go by speaking Spanish."

"Either that, or it was just a clipping plane thing and they didn't see you down there," Leo said from somewhere up near the ceiling. I turned around, following Carolína's arm as she gave him the finger, and saw Leo hanging off a rickety shelf by one hand, knee braced on some kind of superstructure that he was nudging a heavy-looking bushing into.

"Leo!" I said, surprised, "what the heck? How are you up here already? And what are you doing? Do you really want to be jacking bushings around that high up without a harness?"

"If he wants to keep having a place to lay his head when he can't find some thirst monster to hook up with, he'll get that upper blister assembly fixed up by tonight, harness or no harness," Riley said, invisible behind a towering stack of binder specs at the back of the room. "This is a physics lab, not a Salvation Army hostel; you want to stay here, you have to work here."

"Wait," I said. "Leo, you still haven't found a new place to live? You're still sleeping on the floor in here? How do you even live? And isn't it crowded with you and Yuping?"

"Hey, don't put Yuping in the same boat with me," Leo said, reaching back over onto the shelf for a wrench. "He doesn't live here – he just gets stuck sleeping on the floor sometimes when he's on deadline. On days when he doesn't, like today, he's back with Simon in, no lie, the perfectest twee-est one-bedroom bungalow apartment you could possibly think of. The place looks like a staged fake off some interior design magazine's Instagram. Ex this lab, Yuping's life is a goddamn model of domestic bliss, and we ought to respect that more."

"Oh-kay," I said, accepting Leo's domesticity thirst if he was still sleeping on cardboard, "that's fine, I'll send him and Simon a nice fruit basket on their anniversary or their move-in anniversary or whatever. But jeez, Leo, how the hell do you not have a new apartment yet?"

"I can't afford a new apartment," Leo answered, wrench gritted in his teeth as he worked on something with a pair of pliers. "It's kind of the middle of the semester and nobody's failed out yet or quit, so everywhere that's remotely affordable is locked down solid until next summer. There's a handful of places that aren't like student apartments specifically that have some vacancies, but the rent on all of them is so high it makes blood shoot out my eye sockets even thinking about it. I've been on Craigslist looking at roommate-wanted posts, but anyone who'd be accepting a single white dude, I'm following up with them and all of them are like in horrible trouble where they have like drug dudes leaning over their shoulder, or the house is full of mold – and there's not one of them that I'd trust to be out about being in with the AP lab with. If it wasn't just me, I'd look a lot less like a sketchy rando, and then maybe some of the other places might be more affordable, but it is just me, and it is what it is." He laid the pliers down and went back to the wrench.

Next to me, Carolína nodded hard, understanding. "Yeah – I get it. I want a little bit to move out, too: after Melanie, you remember, Remy's ex, moved out, it's just me and Kenji at the house and the rent is a little too much with just two of us – but you don' wanna move out on your own, because you don' know who these people who put up the roommate ads really are. It'd be different if I knew them, if it wasn't just me looking, but everyone I know, they're all settled, so…" She shrugged, leaning back against my workbench.

"You hear that?" I asked up at Leo. "Why don't you move in with Carolína? She's looking for someone else to split the rent, and you've got to be able to afford what she's paying, and you know she's a normal person."

"At Ham House?" Leo asked, like I was putting him on, and Carolína made a face. "No thanks; Carolína is chill and I could afford it, but I think Kenji has beef with me, and then there's that smell that hasn't completely gotten out of that place yet. Thanks, but no thanks; if that's option B, I'mma stick sleeping under the drill press."

"Hey, screw you!" Carolína yelled, giving him the finger again. "I don' like the smell neither, but it's not so bad, and I got my name on the lease – I don' got to hear a homeless guy tell me my apartment's not fit to live in!" Leo shot her a double-bird back, and wobbled like he was going to fall off the shelf, or have it completely collapse under him.

"Guys – guys –" I said, trying to calm things down before people started throwing wrenches at each other and someone got really hurt, "cool it – cool it. You're both in tough spots – it's not worth fighting about this crap for no reason." I was thinking – thinking about my nice one-room single in a shared condo that meant I never had to have any of these problems. It was nice and all, but it didn't feel like college – nothing felt like that so much as long nights in here, working with friends, arguing with friends, eating takeout with friends and fighting about who was holding out on the tip with friends. If I got a little out of my shell, and the three of us found a place together, we could have something like that more of the time (and maybe with less chance of Riley dragging us into other people's weird problems), and I could use my own privilege to help out friends who didn't have it, whether it was Leo who was actually homeless or Carolína who was just going broke living in a house that still smelled like the glop at the bottom of a pack of raw bacon. And I could sublet or Airbnb my single and keep it as a fallback – and if I did that, maybe we could afford to do our college communal living somewhere that wasn't a grubby college communal apartment.

"Hear me out – just hear me out a second," I said, still not quite sure of how to set this up so it wouldn't sound like I was patronizing Leo and Carolína, doing them a favor by going in with them. "What if we all make some time this weekend, all go out apartment hunting together? We don't have to all go in together, don't have to all get on the same lease, but maybe there's places that we could get into together that you guys couldn't get into separately – maybe we won't find anything and you'll be stuck the same way you are now, but maybe we will find something and it'll work out. How about it? It'll make a good break from school and work, and it'll be something to do that doesn't have anything to do with those stupid grinckles." I looked around, Carolína to Leo and back and forth again, looking for approval; maybe not yet, but at least they weren't jumping down my throat about it.

"This weekend? Apartment hunting together? Word, count me in – and if there's four of us, two chicks and two dudes, that's perfect for a good quad, right? I'll start up a group chat – Leo, send me over those listings you thought you didn't have a chance at, I'll send them around." I looked down at my feet, where Remy had suddenly rolled out from under something, like a landing gear assembly or something else that made all the sense in the world, and my heart fell right down into my shoes. I should have checked; this was the AP lab, and you never knew who was hiding under a pile of machine parts waiting for an invitation that shouldn't have been extended. No way I was going to move in with Remy – not and end up Netflixing every night on the same couch with him because he thought if he did that, the 'chill' part would go and happen by itself.

"Yeah, that'd be good," Leo said, tossing his tools over towards a bucket on the top shelf. "I'll be down for that; I'm free all day Saturday and most of Sunday as long as I can get the spare microwave emitter in here working in the next couple days. Loop me in on the chat, I'll send those listings over as soon as I get down from here."

"Yes, agreed," Carolína said. "It'll be better with more people, the four of us coming as a unit – people won't worry about a new roommate up in their room if we go as a quad, where we'll have all our own relationships just with us." She looked at me with a total poker face – they were doing this on purpose, they were absolutely doing this on purpose.

I took a deep breath. "Okay. Okay, fine. But Remy, why are you in this boat? Don't you have a dorm room or something, or a room in someone's house? I was pretty sure that I thought you were rooming with Derek and Howie from your team, weren't you?"

Remy smiled a goofy grin and put a hand to his forehead, rolling a little back and forth on the mechanic's tray. "I – uh – there's kind of a thing with that. I was real busy at the end of last semester, finishing up my big project for orgo, and I thought that I'd gotten in, but I guess it slipped my mind. I was supposed to be in a dorm this year, but I forgot to enter the housing lottery so yeah, while I've been kinda living with Howie and Derek, I've kinda just been sleeping on their couch and keeping my laptop and my spare clothes in this box in their TV room."

"Forgot. You forgot to have someplace to live this year." I facepalmed like I was going to tear my brain out with my fingers, and he waved his hands, starting up again to try and look a little less stupid.

"But it's gonna work out! It's gonna work out, I promise – I been saving up because they haven't been looking for more than like beer money to use their couch, and a couple bucks for the washing machine, so I'm flush now, yo! I'll take care of the security deposit on any place we want to go in on – I can handle it, trust me."

"Fine," I said, through the heel of my hand. "Fine. Whatever. It's okay. Everything's cool. No problems. Saturday then, right? Cool, whatever; just give me some space now so I can get ahead on my work and make sure we're ready to go out." I rolled my eyes and slumped back down for my chair and my workstation; out the corner of my eye, I was pretty sure that I saw Leo and Carolína giving each other a thumbs-up. This was going to turn out great, just great – but at least it couldn't be any weirder and dumber than that thing with the fish.

Chapter 2

#nanowrimo #alifeofriley #fiction #moar callbacks

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