#I would assume from the movies that the number of people Will kills (in cold blood*) are a grand total of zero

[pandasaurio-espacial]

I'm starting a death tally for Will but not like his body count ok? things he's done that Hannibal would kill someone else for

[tuffduff]

Friday the 13th

Pairing: fluffy 80’s Dave Mustaine x female!Reader

Words: 1,800+ ish

Warnings: mentions of scary movie, otherwise none!

A/N: I’m so excited to share this with you guys I MISS YOU ALL SO MUCH! Inspiration strikes, eh? This isn’t Guns N’ Roses, but it really hit me being Dave’s birthday and Friday the 13th. It ain’t the best but I thought I would because y’all just imagine? Anyways, I hope I can write more GNR related things too for y’all soon. If you’re still around and reading and liking my posts, thanks. I love you ❤️

Taglist (sorry if y’all don’t like Dave 💀): @ubernoxa @heavymetalgirl420 @stradlin-cold-heartbreaker @rumoured-whispers @born-to-lose @lost-in-the-80s @petals-and-bullets @ginny-rose-sixx @julessworldd @greeneyezblackheart @blackberryblossom @clowncaits @the--blackdahlia

(pic not mine)

“What, are you too scared?” Dave sneered, waving two movie tickets in front of your face. The teasing was apparently warranted by the too-long-of-a-pause you had taken. “C’mon, Y/N, when are we ever gonna have the chance to see Friday the 13th on Friday the 13th?”

“Probably never.” You conceded, trying to hide any apprehension you felt. Horror movies weren’t really your thing; they weren’t not your thing, but really, you never quite got the hype. “Isn’t this like…the millionth one, though?”

“Read the ticket.” Dave replied. You rolled your eyes; his bluntness wasn’t anything new to you.

“Well, I’ve never seen the first five.” You replied, crossing your arms.

“Y/N, c’mon. There’s not much to it. You don’t really need to keep up with the storyline. It’s a masked psycho going around killing people at a campground. Besides, they use Alice Cooper’s music in this one—that’s what you really need to know.”

“But why—” he was already rolling his eyes.

“Are you gonna go with me or not?” He snapped, cutting you off impatiently. Your eyes narrowed.

“Why?” You repeated, now growing suspicious.

“Are you kidding me?” He asked, his own eyes narrowing. “I don’t know, he drowned as a kid because he was neglected by camp counselors and now he kills other counselors—”

“No.” You cut him off, albeit with a frown. “Why do you want to go with me? I’ve never even seen these movies. Do none of your other friends want to go? Assuming you have those.” He glared at you now.

That’s how it always was between the two of you. You were probably the only one allowed to joke with Dave like that without getting dropped to your ass.

“You should take it as a compliment that I’m coming to you first.” He replied.

“Should I?” You bantered back, starting to smirk. He continued to glare and roll his eyes before snatching up his keys.

You both knew there wasn’t anyone else he would want to go see a movie with. Outside his band, he wasn’t exactly dying to hang out with anyone, and he didn’t want to see a movie with his bandmates either. Usually, he claimed hanging with you was his break from them. You were his go-to for everything; checking out new recording studios at the drop of a hat, scouring through pawn shops and record shops, late night fast food runs. Your number was the only one he had memorized, judging from the countless phone calls you had received from random phone booths all over LA at all hours of the day.

“Hurry up.” He merely threw the words over his shoulder at you.

“Are you going to buy me popcorn?” You continued on as you hopped into the front seat of his car. You knew you were the last one in it; the seat was still moved to fit your body and your jacket was still in the seat where you left it last night.

“No.” He grunted as he started the car. You glared at him silently as music immediately blared through his speakers, which finally made him smirk at you.

“How many times have I told you about your ears?” You scolded, turning the metal on the radio down to a more sensible volume. Again, you were probably the only one allowed to do so without him biting your arm off.

“Yeah, yeah.” He muttered dismissively, putting the car in drive. Quickly, you clicked your seatbelt on. It wasn’t wise to go without it with Dave driving.

“How about a big soda?” You jumped back to teasing him again, giggling as he rolled his eyes. “It’s funny though because you and I both know I’m gonna have a gigantic popcorn and a huge coke and gummy bears.”

“Oh yeah? I know that, huh?”

“Yes.” You nodded confidently.

“And why is that?”

“Well, you invited me to see this movie—which I don’t particularly want to see—when I could be taking a bath and reading a magazine and relaxing.”

“So what? I owe you or something?”

“Yes.” You replied brightly, again with a nod and smile.

“Yeah, alright. In your dreams.” Dave muttered.

“How about because you love me?” You proposed innocently. His eyes narrowed a little, but you could see the corners of his mouth curving upright.

“We’ll see about that.”

Sure enough, not too long after that conversation, you were sitting in theater 9 with your popcorn, soda, and popping a gummy bear in your mouth while Dave was grumbling to himself about movie theaters being a rip off.

“So, if he drowned as a kid how is he alive and killing…?” You whispered as the lights dimmed. Dave leaned in really close to your ear, making you freeze as he moved your hair aside. His lips were so close you swear you felt them ghost against your skin.

“Shut up.”

He leaned back with a smirk and you laughed, immediately getting shushed from a couple behind you. Dave rolled his eyes and you giggled again, this time a little more quietly.

As far as horror movies went…well, you wouldn’t really know. You didn’t quite have much to compare it too. At times, it felt a bit silly, but you soon found yourself really drawn into the plot. Which also meant you found yourself getting progressively more scared when Jason Voorhees popped out of nowhere. Dave laughed at you unabashedly when you jumped so hard you sent popcorn scattering.

“Are you sure you can handle this?” Dave leaned over to tease you as you plucked popcorn from your hair. You glared at him.

“Shut up.” You replied.

“Here.” Dave pushed up the arm rest between the two of you and beckoned you closer to him. You wrinkled your nose. “Alright, fine.” He replied, pushing the arm rest back down. You caught it with your hand quickly and pushed it back up and moved in next to him. “That’s what I thought.” He whispered as you sidled up next to him. He put his arm around you. “I knew this was going to happen.”

“What?” You hissed. There was another shush behind you and Dave turned his head to glare before turning back to you, leaning in close again, this time to ensure his words were only heard by you.

“I knew you were going to get scared. And I knew you were going to come crawling right into my arms.” His lips were so close, his warm breath tickling your skin.

“Oh, you just knew I would get scared?” You demanded. He raised an eyebrow. “Whatever, fine. But how did you know I would crawl into your arms?”

“Just a feeling.” He replied.

“Oh, I see. But Friday the 13th is normally bad luck, you know. What if your big plan didn’t work?” He chuckled.

“Yeah, right. You think some silly superstition scares me?” He said. “And besides, I bet you say my name in your sleep.” Your mouth fell open at the audacity.

“Are you kidding—“ an aggressive shush came once again from behind you. Dave immediately twisted in his seat.

“Fuck off.” He snapped before putting his arm back around your shoulders and tugging you close to him, giving your back a pat.

You had to admit, it was a perk being close with Dave due to his protective nature. Or was it possessiveness? The lines always seemed to blur with him. Not that you cared. You remembered the time at some guy’s house party when someone spilled a bright red drink on your shirt. Before you knew it, the guy was knocked out on the floor and Dave was guiding you to the bathroom with an arm around you, giving anyone too close to you a glare as if he dared them to even breath on you. He had given you the shirt off his back without hesitation and made you laugh when he asked if you wanted him to “break that guy’s neck.”

“I’ll do it.” He had threatened, and you weren’t sure if he was really joking or not, but the party foul was instantly forgotten.

It was always you and Dave. Not only was the line blurred between possessive and protective, there was also no boundaries it seemed in regard to personal space. His arm around your shoulder wasn’t anything new, but what did that mean exactly? You definitely looked like every other couple in this theater. When his bandmates called you his girlfriend he would usually call them some derogatory name in return, but he didn’t bother correcting them. But this wasn’t something that had ever come up between the two of you. He was always teasing you, and you could tease him back free of the vitriol and venom that he gave everyone else. Did that mean anything? You spent the rest of the movie consumed by the swirling thoughts in your head rather than what was occupying the screen.

“So what’d you think?” Dave asked as you both drifted out of the theater. His arm at this point seemed to be perpetually draped over your shoulders, adding more fuel to the thoughts in your head.

“Hm?” You asked, blinking a few times when you realized he was staring at you.

“Wow. Was it so scary that you repressed the memory of it all?” No one else could make condescension sound so close to fondness.

“No,” you laughed and shoved him lightly, breaking the physical connection between the two of you. But he came right back. “…Did you really ask me to see this movie with you so you could scare me into cuddling with you?”

“Scare you? Hold on,” he said indignantly. “Who says I need to scare you to get you to touch me?” You scoffed and he smirked. “No. A) I wanted to see this movie. B) I wanted to see it with you.” He laid out each piece very deliberately as if you needed help understanding. You rolled your eyes.

“That’s it, huh.”

“…And I wanted you to touch me.” He added. Maybe because it was only the two of you and the late night brisk fall air that allowed him to be vulnerable enough to tell the truth without trying to deny it whatsoever.

“Well, did it ever occur to you that you could just ask anytime?” You asked him, placing your arm around his lower back and squeezing him close.

“No. It’s better tricking you into seeing some scary movie.”

“Why?” You lamented.

“It’s a bonus. I get to see you scared.” You scoffed, shaking your head and trying to pull away from him but he only pulled you closer and kissed the side of your head.

All you wanted to scream was what are we?! But instead, you just went with it. Maybe some things didn’t need to be explained, at least not yet. Besides, if you lived in your head wondering what it meant that he laced his hand in yours and asked if you were hungry, you wouldn’t get to enjoy how nice it all felt.

[magicalmiraclebear]

The socratic method.

I sat at the couch, quietly sipping a glass of whiskey listening to the soft music. I felt a bit like a wealthy old man with a drinking problem, who finally got a few free hours for his true passion. In a way I was exactly that, with the exception that I am young. Not to mention that neither the whiskey nor the house I was drinking it were mine.

It was a rare time in which I chose to leave my usual small world of university, my apartment and coffee shops. It was a small get together for a friend’s birthday. The fact that I have friends, remains astonishing to me, but I assume enough people find my drunken ramblings amusing enough. Or my disregard and forgetfulness when it comes to money I am owed is convenient enough for them.

‘’Do you believe in morality, Peter’’ I spoke to the host who had sat next to me.

‘’Don’t start please. Can’t we have a normal fucking conversation for once?’’

‘’What, you want to talk about the weather? Or movies we saw, or whatever things people we know have been up to? What precisely constitutes a normal conversation to you, that you haven’t had with me already?’’

‘’You don’t make it easy to be your friend’’

‘’I don’t see the gun at your head forcing you to be.’’

Peter sighed. He always indulges me, sooner or later, yet another mystery. I believe he enjoyed this as much as I did. It was a part of a little game we play, I think. Or he just likes me for some other reasons and he chooses to put up with this. I’ve often been meaning to ask, but never got around to it. The question seemed stupid, in some way.

‘’I guess I do, you know, you can’t go around killing people, robbing them and stuff like that’’

‘’Says who? If there are rules, someone must have made the rules. And since all men are supposedly equal, nobody has authority to make rules that apply to another. Therefore we can’t create a single, objective set of rules.’’

‘’Then you have as many individual set of rules as you have people.’’

‘’Precisely’’ I smiled camly. I loved the attention already.

‘’However most systems of rules seem to agree on most basic stuff across all cultures. Murder, unjustified violence, however you define ‘justified’ and mostly things that prevent society from functioning.’’

‘’So you agree that all morality is based on convenience?’’

‘’In a way. Traits that helped species survive and all that.’’

‘’So there is nothing inherently immoral in me killing someone as long as it helps me achieve my goals?’’

‘’It’s a good thing you don’t have any goals.’’ Peter laughed

‘’You didn’t answer my question.’’

‘’Because you don’t argue in good faith. You know perfectly well, that this type of thinking or behavior won’t lead you to your actual goals.’’

Fuck, I forgot I was talking to him. The guy knows me since we were kids and I might have drunkenly told him too much once or twice.

‘’And yet, if it would, there wouldn’t be anything inherently immoral to me doing it’’

‘’I suppose not, but your hypothetical is inherently absurd, because it requires a person to be devoid of empathy, thus humanity for him to be able to live with killing someone in cold blood, which would in turn make any kind of goals he sets for himself meaningless.’’

‘’Again we return to the point, that we cannot define meaningful and meaningless objectively.’’

‘’What about utilitarianism?’’ A soft voice cut off.

Maddie, also known as the most insufferable person I have the displeasure of knowing. No other person I know insisted on spouting meaningless drivel for attention. I at least have the dignity not to turn every conversation into a parade of my supposed insights.

‘’The belief, that the correct choice is the one which will produce the best outcome for the greatest number of people?. Once again you will fail to define the best outcome’’

Maddie gave me a pompous smile.

‘’The one that allows them to survive and creates an environment giving them the most amount of freedom to pursue their goals, without harming others.’’

‘’You created this definition out of thin air. It is not more or less valid than one that says, that the best outcome is the one that harms the most people.’’

‘’However most people do not wish to be harmed and formed societies and structures based around that interest of theirs and in turn made it the results of harming others as unpleasant as possible.’’

Peter had said mostly the same thing earlier and she hoped I wouldn’t notice. I have to admit arguing with Maddie is more fun, mostly because she argues to feel better than others, while Pete does it to indulge me. He sees it as a chore that comes with being my friend, while she truly wants to win, to feed her sense of superiority.

‘’So you admit morality is based on strength and convenience?’’

‘’Were you expecting to find some sort of divine, unquestionable set of rules through drunken arguments? It doesn’t exist outside of religion and you know it. You just can’t have a conversation that isn’t about you, so you spout shit like this every time so people think you’re smart.’’

‘’Eat shit Maddie.’’

‘’Go argue with strangers online, asshole.’’

Her banter is more on point, I have to admit. Her reply made sense, while I just spout insults.

‘’Your response is disproportionate, I’d never wish that upon anyone.’’

Oddly, she chuckled at that.

‘’I’ve known you for almost a year now and that was the first thing you said that was slightly funny’’

‘’Why bother arguing with me then?’’

‘’Because you’re pretty, it doesn’t take much effort to counter all the idiocies that come out of your pretty, spoiled mouth.’’

She is so full of shit. It was a weak argument at that. Did she assume me not to own a mirror? To refer to the goblin like creature, with the comically oversized neck and nose and unhealthy yellowish skin as pretty would only work on a comically delusional person.

‘’Now that is pathetic. Did you take the answer which would piss you off the most and apply it to me without putting any thought in it? Just admit I am a good intellectual adversary…’’

‘’Whatever keeps you talking’’ she chuckled.

‘’If stupid jabs are your last resort, then I clearly won the argument.’’

With that I stood up and went to get another drink. That was a clear win in my book, she had never resorted to childish mind games before, she would admit defeat sooner or later.

[tomyo]

I watched Trap and it was wild.

Spoilers ahead

Its weird because my cohorts said it was bad but also were more quiet during the movie than they were for Beetlejuice 2 (we were at a double feature). I think overall it had a lot of potential but it went in to many directions.

For those who want to know the twist, I guess it is either one of two things; 1. His wife set him up or 2. He just keeps not getting caught. But okay let's explain 2.

Basically it's everything the trailer promises you; he's in the concert, it's ridiculously covered with police, he notices and tries to escape. Now let me explain all the ways he tries to get out JUST at the concert (yes he does get out). First he starts trying to get out normally, drags his daughter around and scopes all exits, pushes over a drunk woman down some stairs to distract the guards and then leave except there are so many officers they are immediately covered by more, so he starts collecting a bunch to figure out how to get out, he befriends the t shirt seller, he goes in back to get more shirts with him, steals his card, learns there's a special password he has to give, uses the card to go into the break room, listens in on a police briefing, pretends to get coffee, somehow knows where the sugar is to give to an officer, steals a radio (mind you there is enough guards to be more than all of Philadelphia's squad and yes I'm aware how large that number is), tries to convince his daughter to dive into the trap door that opened audience side in the stadium (why would they allow that if they're so militant about catching him?), he finds out there's a profiler who is basically L, steals a bracelet from a different attendee to cover his tiny arm tattoo they somehow identified was on him, almost pulls a fire alarm until the profiler mentions that over the radio, sets off an glass oil explosion just to distract guards so he can get an apron, goes on the roof, pretends he's crying over the girl who got mailed, finds out there's a card he also is supposed to have, lucks out the apron had a wallet, asks about the profiler and the fucking swat team tells him despite his sudden coldness despite how scarred he is, at some point he tells his 12 year old daughter to meet him at a distant meeting spot if he doesn't come back, tells m night shamalan's character that his daughter has leukemia that she hates acknowledging so she will get taken back stage, administers first aid to a preteen who fainted back stage (he is a firefighter), notices the pop star needs an inhaler yet never uses that info, and despite somehow them all being extremely aware one of the men in the audience in the killer, convinces the pop star to go into her dressing room alone with him.

Now my friends and I were cracking theories the whole time (this was a drive in so we were able to talk in a more private space) and at some point I assumed that this was the whole trap, the profiler was clearly aware of his likely actions about as soon as he came up with them. I was banking on the idea that the t shirt seller, the guards, and the info back stage were the only people getting out was a very intentional goal to lead him into getting caught. I thought it would be so smart to say "This whole time the way out was actually the trap."

But no, what happens next is he reveals himself as the butcher to the popstar and tells her he will kill the guy via his phone if she doesn't get him out of there. So she does, she actually drives him and his daughter out but then does a smart move in asking to drop them off at their house. And suddenly everything is using pov shots from the popstar's view. And AGAIN it's almost smart, it's like we are parrelelling his attempt to escape with her attempt to catch him. There's all these suggestions of themes; he has some mommy issues and it's suddenly also a plot point he is OCD (they really just drop it in out if no where and it becomes suddenly really relevant) and she doesn't know her father. It's almost like her fatherlessness and him being a father is meant to mean something or his mommy issues that people use against him are meant to mean something. And she theoretically does smart things; she puts him in a situation where his phone is close enough for her to grab, she locks herself with it in the bathroom pretty haphazardly but it's okay cuz she's panicked, and after getting info from the captive, she goes on live and uses her star power to crowd source finding the victims location.

Now here's where another "this is the theme" moment really could have played out. All while this concert is going on there are thousands of phones being used to capture the concert and certainly would catch some of the butcher acting weird. It's easy to say even if he escaped, he still would've been caught by camera right? That is an easy answer to how he could've been foiled but still create a surprise. But I mean okay, instead we have the guy that can do everything against the sheer number of the police force and now the size of a pop star following. Wow! The power of the community he terrorized takes him down I guess.

So finally caught with the police called on him, the killer locks his family upstairs and tries to take the popstar hostage. She tries to play mental games with him by acting like his mother but it doesn't work. I hear this as a critique of her acting but I think it's find that she's a little bad at it because I don't think the average pop star would be good at going up against a serial killer. They open the garage door and GASP the family is blocking the escape, they got out by going down the tree next to the house. Unable to flee, he goes inside and starts doing the chores that needed doing. He's caught? Wait no, there's a secret exit and he somehow quickly dressed up like a police officer and drove off in the popstar's limo with her in it again. He handcuffs her and drives her through downtown to get to his safe house. But again, she manages to get out of the situation because she opens the window and begs for help so her fans surround the car. The police come, surround the car and shoot it except YES, he escaped AGAIN. This is like 5 minutes apart from the garage convo.

So we are back at his house where his wife is waiting and promptly 3 seconds after she is told she is safe here, he appears in the kitchen ranting about how he realizes she ratted him out and that's how they knew he was going to the concert. She begs him to finish their daughter's celebration pie together before he kills the both of them only to GASP realize she doped him with his own arsenal of sedatives. He's out! Sort of. He hears his mother and walk towards her excepts it was the profiler (she's an old lady with roughly similar features) and he gets tazed like, so many times. He's finally handcuffed but dang that OCD, he begs them to let him stand up his daughter's bike which????? They allow??????? Why??????.

And yes, we finally hit the final final end, he's in the heavily armored transport but he stole a spoke and uses it to uncuff himself, supposedly going to get out AGAIN.

Somewhere in this jumble of two puzzles mixed together there was good stories and good elements but I can only describe the plot as that one fanfic author who finishes the original premise of their opus fic only to try and start a new arc and fumble, ending arc 1 in 36 chapters and arc 2 in 4 which is also the end of the whole story. A good narrative that just didn't know how to end or if it should end.

The biggest fault of the movie is mistaking the story climax for does he get caught when it really was does he get out. The moment he made it out of the stadium it should have started to wrap up and instead it just kept going on. Like a half of the movies just kept going on.

And now a toast to all the dropped side plots; the image of his mom the butcher kept hallucinating, the butcher's MO, the popstar's struggles and why they were important to bring up, the daughter who apparently was on bad terms with her sort of friends, the sort of friend's mother aggressively trying to defend her daughter for being a bitch, any presence you were supposed to feel from the profiler, the set up to him using doping powder (how funny it is that he didn't just use it in the coffee scene because that's what I was suspecting), the whole point in learning a bunch about the killer's victims.

Still I think this movie is certainly consumable but idk why it just focused on the wrong things. People think it's the nepotism or something you should be mad at but I'm more upset that it went so beyond the scope of the concert. The constant perspective changes towards the end was hard. Of various guesses we also made, the mom who was the betrayer was made (which was right), the daughter exposing her own father, the mom/family all being killers, and that this was a part of the split universe (because holy shit he should not be escaping as much as he did) were all guessed.

Yeah that's it, it's a movie. It's a watchable movie and maybe even a good movie at points but it becomes frustrating at other ones. Hope this fufills someone's curiosity.

[frickfrackapplesnack]

Cold hearted Love Part 2

A/N: This is part 2 to Cold Hearted Love, I hope you all enjoy it. Requested by: Anonymous Warnings: Mentions of death, mentions of sex, swearing, Blood & Gore Word Count: 2719 Also slightly OOC Chishiya

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It's impossible to predict how much a bullet will hurt until it hits you. You can watch as many movies as you want, and witness people being shot and dying. But you have no idea how bad it hurts until that bullet collides with your skin and more blood than you thought you had starts pouring out of you. When Y/N felt the bullet strike her body, she assumed that death would be the next step, that the pain and blood would inevitably transport her from this world to the next. She couldn't say she blamed anyone for leaving her to die. She would leave too if one of her teammates had been shot, staying behind could get you killed. And no one here wanted to die, they all wanted to return to the real world, to their families. If one of her teammates was shot, she would leave as well; staying behind could result in death. And no one here wanted to die; they all wanted to get back to their families and the real world. That opportunity would never come to Y/N. The game was held at the Tokyo Sky Tree, which is located quite far from the Beach. They'd driven there a few hours before, and y/n knew that even if the gunshot wound didn't kill her, she'd die before she got halfway back to the Beach on foot. The game was a scavenger hunt in which each player had to find five objects in twenty minutes. There were no other dangers besides a laser to the head if you failed to find all five objects. Y/N had been doing well, having found 4 out of five objects when she bumped into a very stressed Niragi, he had only found 3 items and the game had only 10 minutes remaining.

He had demanded y/n give him her objects so he could get out and when she refused, he shot her, taking two objects from her completing his collection and clearing the game. Now you may be wondering how y/n had lived after the timer went off, in her adrenaline filed state y/n had managed to find the number of objects she needed to clear the game, with only thirty seconds remaining. She had finished the game and was now lying on the floor, unsure why she had continued. It was pointless; she'd been shot and was bleeding profusely. But the prospect of being killed by one of those lasers terrified her more than the prospect of dying slowly and painfully. Maybe she was hoping to make it back, that if she cleared the game, she'd be able to drive back with the others and be treated by Ann. But by the time she got to the bottom floor, everyone had already left. Y/N was doomed from the start. She'd never see her friends again, and she'd never get the chance to return home and see her family. In this fucked up world, she would perish. She heard hurried footsteps approaching her, perhaps a guardian to take her into the next life, as her vision began to blur and her mind fell silent. If that's the case, why was her Guardian dressed like Chishiya? It had the same white hair and dark eyes as he did, and spoke in the same manner. The Guardian Chishiya lookalike was crying, and its mouth was overflowing with jumbled words. Only a few weeks ago, a mouth y/n had been addicted to.

“Chishiya…” she mumbled, reaching toward the look-a- likes face, a bloodied sob escaping her chest. The guardian began to speak, using Chishiya’s voice, but y/n couldn’t quiet pick up on what it was saying. But before her mind shut off and her vision blackened, she hears him say:

“Y/N…I’m sorry”

To say Chishiya had gone insane was an understatement. He had been running around for the past 30 minutes gathering medical supplies and shoving the into a bag. He had stolen keys to one of the Cars that belonged to the Beach and had dragged Kuina from her spot at the bar to be his driving buddy to make sure he didn’t crash on the way due to his erratic behaviour.

“Chishiya she’s dead.” Kuina said, as she watched Chishiya pack his things into the back of the car. “There is no point on going after her.” She argued, crossing her arms to protect herself from the cold night air. A bikini wasn’t the best bit of clothing to keep you warm.

“For someone who claims to be her friend, you sure don’t seem to give a shit.” Chishiya scoffed checking his bag for what seemed like the hundredth time, making sure he had everything. Bandages, alcohol, needles…

“That’s rich, coming from you.” Kuina laughed. “You don’t care about her.”

“I do-“

“You don’t, you don’t think she told me everything?” Kuina asked. “The lack of sex or any kind of physical affection, oh and the notebook” That fucking notebook was going to be the death of him. Of, course y/n had told Kuina everything, the two were practically joined at the hip. She wasn’t going to believe him if he told her that he loved y/n, that he had stopped showing her affection when his heart would race every time, he was near her, when the only way he could sleep at night is if she was there. And she certainly wasn’t going to believe him if he told her that the moment, he realised his feelings that every single one of the plans in the notebook involving y/n had become redundant.

“I’m not going to waste my time explain myself to you, but I have to find her because if she is by some fucked up miracle alive…I have to save her.” He sighed. “It’s for my own selfish reasons, I need to apologise, I can’t let her die without her knowing how I really feel…”

“If she is alive, do you really want to hurt her like that?” Kuina asked. “By telling her you love her, after everything that you’ve put her through? It’s just going to confuse her.”

“I know, but I have to try.” Chishiya replied, sliding into the driver’s seat. “Are you coming with me or not?” he asked Kuina. She nodded, getting into the passenger seat, doing up her seatbelt.

“Do you even know where her game was?” she asked. Chishiya looked over at her with a look that said, ‘I’m not stupid’. The first thing he had done was demand the other players in her game to tell him where the game had been located.  They had told him where it was, what the rules where, and what would happen if you didn’t complete the game. The chances of her survival where low, but when someone had mentioned hearing a gunshot his interest peeked.

“Last I checked she was with Niragi, then I heard gunfire…” They had said, that was particularly interesting. Chishiya had no doubt that Niragi had done something to her, to benefit himself and win the game. And it disgusted him how his ways of thinking were not so different to those of the trigger-happy militant.

It took them about half an hour to get to the Tokyo Sky Tree. Chishiya saw no need to follow the speed limit as it had become redundant the instant everyone disappeared. So, it didn’t take as long to get around the city. Once they had arrived Chishiya told Kuina to wait in the car, not wanting her to see her best friend most likely dead. He grabbed the bag of medical supplies and ran inside, screaming y/n’s name. When he saw her laying there, in the middle of the lobby he froze. There was blood everywhere and she didn’t look to be breathing. Snapping himself out of his frozen state he rushed over to her, falling to his knees by her side. Analysing her for injuries he saw the gunshot wound in her shoulder bleeding profusely. Checking her for a pulse, he found one and although light that meant that she was alive. There was hope.

“Y/N can you hear me?” he asked, softly tapping the side of her face, her eyes fluttered slightly, and he swore he could see the hint of a smile pulling at her pale chapped lips. Slowly he flipped her to her side, checking for an exit wound in her shoulder. There was none, which was a good sign, he could try and stop the bleeding long enough to get her back to the beach. But she had lost so much already. He placed her back onto the floor and noticed that she had paced out. He checked for a pulse again, relieved it was still there while he went to work. First, he grabbed the alcohol and poured it over the wound, praying to whatever god was out there that she wasn’t awake to feel the pain, and that her bikini top had made it so easy to get to the wound. After he grabbed the needle and thread, if he could close the wound, she stood a better chance at making it to Ann, who could heal her wounds properly. At one point she had woken up and called out his name, obviously recognising him, but passed out again soon after. He readied the needle, praying the pain would not wake her.

“Y/N…I’m sorry” he winced as he pushed the needle through her bloodied skin.

Her skin was easier to push the needle through than he liked, each pull of the thread splashing blood onto his hands. Once that was done, he wrapped the wound tightly and carried her back to the car where Kuina helped him place her into the back seat.

“Kuina, I need you to sit back there with her, check her pulse every few minutes. If you can find it at any point, I’ll pull over and perform CPR.” He explained, getting into the drivers seat, starting the engine.

“How do you know all this stuff?” Kuina asked, placing y/n’s head in her lap, stroking her friends hair.

“I went to med school,” Chishiya replied. “Now stop asking questions and keep her alive!”

Y/N awoke cold and stiff as a corpse.  Which was understandable given the fact that she was almost certainly dead. She hadn't expected the afterlife to resemble Ann's makeshift lab at the Beach when she opened her eyes. Y/N had expected something akin to endless fields and a clear blue sky. A forensics lab that isn't cold and damp. This could be the afterlife; the place was eerily real and reeked of death. It was exactly the same as she remembered. Everything was too perfect and disgusting to be the afterlife. How had she gotten here in the first place? She pondered as she craned her neck to scan the space. Niragi shooting her was the last thing she remembered, and then nothing. How had she made it through the game? Y/N attempted to sit up, but the extreme pain in her shoulder prevented her from doing so. She hissed and slumped against the cool table she'd been laying on. Getting shot fucking hurts. Someone groaning beside her caught her attention, immediately recognising the white-haired man beside her, his head laying against the metal table, sound asleep. It was a rare moment when anyone could catch Chishiya in such a vulnerable state, Y/N being lucky enough to witness more than a few. Including this moment right now.

His cheeks were a light shade of pink, and his white hair covered half of his face, but y/n could still see that his mouth was open, and drool was pooling on the table. Chishiya was completely out of it, and y/n wished she'd brought a camera with her, a laugh escaping her. His eyes fluttering open slowly as he lifts his head from the table, brushing his hair away from his face, it appeared that her laughter had jolted him awake. Y/N forgot why she had been so angry with him before the game because he looked so adorable. How could she ever be mad with someone so cute. Her giggles continued, as rubbed his eyes like a child.

Chishiya froze at the melodic sound, slowly turning to look at the girl on the table, who had been asleep for the past 3 days, sighing in relief as he watched her laugh. “Thank God you’re awake.” He said, grasping her hand. Y/N giggles ceased at the sudden contact, Chishiya pulling his hand away fearing he had hurt her. “I’m sorry, did I hurt you.” Y/N shook her head, turning her head away from him. “Y/N?”

“How did I get here?” she asked, not looking at him.

“Kuina and I came to get you, we were told you were dead, but I needed to make sure.” Chishiya answered. Y/N scoffed; she could remember now why she had been so upset with him. She remembered the notebook, she remembered how cold he had been toward her, and she remembered ending things with him. She may have been shot, and he may have been an adorable sleeper. But her mind was not dead, she remembered everything.

“Was it because if I was dead then I would ruin your plan to steal the cards?” Y/N asked, turning back to glare at him.

“Fuck.” Chishiya scoffed. “No y/n don’t be so naïve! I went after you because I care about you, I didn’t want you to die without knowing that.” He explained, reaching into his jacket pocket, pulling out the tiny notebook that had been the cause of so much heartache. He could see y/n’s eyes darken at the sight of it. “I was waiting for you to wake up,” he started, “It’s been three days and I was starting to lose hope…you lost so much blood.” A flash of a memory appeared in Y/N’s mind, it was of Chishiya leaning over her, blood covering his favourite white hoodie.

“You saved me…” Y/N said, “You were really there…”

“Mhm…Anyway…” Chishiya muttered. “I’m sorry about your shoulder, you’ll probably have a bad scar. The stitches I gave you were rushed.” He explained, “Anyway…” he began taking a lighter out of his other jacket pocket.

“Wait…you know how to do stitches?” Y/N asked.

“Yes, I was training to be a doctor before-“

“You went to med school!? How could you never tell me this?”

“Well-“

“What else did you not tell me?” Y/N asked, her anger flaring.

“Y/N can you shut up for one second I’m trying to be romantic and you’re ruining it.” Chishiya snapped, y/n stopped talking, mumbling a small apology before Chishiya continued holding up the small notebook. “I regret ever involving you in my plans, the truth is I wanted to use your feelings against you. For my own advantage. I spent time with you, I slept with you…and I didn’t mean to fall in love with you, but I did. And I got scared so I distanced myself to keep you safe.” He sighed. “Every plan involving you became redundant the moment I realised my feelings for you and so…to prove it” he said, holding the lighter under the notebook. “I’ll burn this stupid fucking book.” With that, the lighter was turned on and the book began to burn, Chishiya throwing into an empty bucket nearby. “I don’t expect you to forgive me…” He said, “But I couldn’t let you die.”

“Kiss me..” Y/N mumbled.

“What?”

“I said kiss me you idiot!” Y/N laughed. Chishiya waisted no time, leaning down to kiss her softly on the lips. Not all had been forgiven, there was a lot of talking that still needed to happen for both of them to heal and allow Y/N to fully trust him again. But he had saved her and shown his love for her by burning that stupid book. That deserved a kiss.

Little did the two know that Kuina had been watching them, a small smile on her face. She knew that Y/N had changed Chishiya for the better, and Chishiya had changed her. There were no means perfect for each other, but their love was true.

They would protect each other no matter what.

As for Chishiya, he would never lie to Y/N ever again.

[cipheress-to-k-pop]

A Sister's Love

Pairing: Platonic Damian Wayne x Al Ghul!Reader

Warnings: Injuries and blood. Drugging, Trafficking and sexual assult but these are not the main themes.

Word Count: 4.9K

Summary: You realize you have a lot to learn about yourself outside of your little brother, Damian's, shadow.

A/N: Was originally gonna make this a Dick Grayson x Reader but realized it would be weird cuz of mixed families and stuff. And I don't wanna be pushing the boundaries of incest.

Growing up in the League of Assassins meant a lot of things for you. It meant that you were raised to be powerful and commanding. It meant you knew how to kill a man in 47 different ways and counting. It meant that you were raised to rightfully think that you were the best.

Although for every good thing there was always cons. Your schedule was rigid and your peers were unfeeling. Your mother most of all, but that didn't stop you from trying to win her affection. It was the reason why when your little brother was born you felt threatened.

That was until you met little Damian. Your mother had handed him to you with a smile of pride that she never showed you and you hated him. But then you saw his precious little face, a nose tinier than a button and adorable lips that were curled into a pout. He was so beautiful.

Since then, you put any differences you might have had with your mother behind you. According to Ra’s it would have been a mistake to show Damian such tenderness, to teach him about loyalty to your heart, instead of without it.

But Talia couldn't ignore the tug she felt in her heart seeing you and Damian together. You still worked hard, harder than she had ever seen before, now determined not to show that you were weak and have them take your brother from you. Damian followed your example, training to her approval, however taxing it was for him.

And more importantly, Damian loved you. You were the first woman he had ever loved and he was smart enough to know that would never be a mistake. You were his shelter in a storm, his fire in the cold. You were the best sibling that anyone could ever even dream of.

But then you had to part. At age 10, Damian went to live with his father, Bruce Wayne. You had never met the man when he was with your mother and you assumed you wouldn't need to, he wasn't your father.

Both you and Damian didn't want to leave each other. You'd miss your little brother and you'd miss the feeling in your chest whenever you'd look at him. Damian would miss home; he would miss your presence and he would miss the familiarity. But he couldn't stay.

That's something you learnt at the League. Damian couldn't stay, with you. He was meant for bigger things than you.

Another thing you learnt was that you didn't have to stay either. You wanted to see the world, see what everything else had in store for you. And your mother, bless her, gave you her blessing.

Of all the things the league taught you, there were things they missed out on. And a part of you was thankful for that. Because you enjoyed the feeling of wide-eyed wonderment when you stepped into a train station for the first time ever.

You had never tasted a chocolate muffin before, you realized as you stuffed your face at a local bakery. Coffee and chocolate muffins went well together. You liked sweet things better than spicy things, you noted when you didn't enjoy the tteokbokki you bought at a Korean food stall.

People were kind, not foolish. They smiled at you when you came in and genuinely asked you where you were headed. Like the woman you met on the tram who was heading to Washington DC. Even through the short ride, the two of you had bonded and she had left you with her phone number and a promise that if you were ever in DC, you would ring her up. Diana was trusting, too trusting. You could have assumed it was because she was stupid, but you wanted to believe it was because she was smarter than even you.

Some people were kind like her but of course, some were impolite and pig-headed. You of course didn't waste any time putting them in their place. Maybe that was why you shouldn't have any faith in humanity.

But isn't humanity just the thing you should be putting faith in?

It was fun at first, discovering new things, seeing how people really lived outside of books and things taught to you back at the League. You knew everything, you weren't naive enough to be oblivious but reading about something was miles apart from actually experiencing it.

After a while however, you got lonely, it was a huge world with people constantly moving and you've come to realize that unless you're with somebody, you can't really move from your place. Instead, you'd be stuck watching all of them. So, you sought after your brother.

It was easy enough to track Bruce Wayne, he lived in a house large enough to be seen from outer space. Getting to Gotham took longer than you expected. Time passed so easily when you didn't have a purpose but now that you had somewhere you needed to be, the train couldn't go any slower.

Gotham City was less gloomy than people made it out to be. The sun was shining and the city was bustling. In some ways, it seemed a little homey. Maybe that was because you didn't have to worry about someone hurting you. If anything, they should pray that they don't choose you as their next victim.

Of course, you could've gone to Wayne Manor and introduced yourself civilly but you wanted to see Damian more than anything and didn't want to delay it any longer. And more than that, you wanted to see Damian is his cute little school uniform.

That's what led you to wait outside of the well-reputed Gotham University, waiting patiently for the bell to ring and students to file out of it. You already knew that they wouldn't come out singing like in the movies but a very small fraction of you still hoped.

Your heartrate increased with every passing minute, excited to meet your brother after nearly a year of being apart. Eventually, the bell did ring and students began trickling out of the doors, looking like bumble bees, excitedly zipping around and talking to their friends.

'Would this have been my life if I was never born in the League?' You wondered, looking at a girl who was animatedly chatting with her friend, arms interlocked as they moved towards the parking lot where their parents were waiting.

When you finally saw Damian, you suddenly felt out of place. Like an outsider watching someone else's brother when you saw his eyes lock onto someone in the commons. Even though you weren't on the school campus, you could still recognize who it was.

Richard Grayson, oldest son of Bruce Wayne, waiting to pick up your little brother on a motor cycle.

And for the first time in your life, you experienced insecurity, watching them greet each other like brothers. The feeling was sour and you wondered if it was a mistake coming here, thinking that you still had a place here.

It was true, people didn't move from their place unless they had someone to go with. You hadn't felt fulfilled like that since your brother stopped being at your side. He was everything you knew. It was just your mistake for thinking that in the year apart your brother wouldn't have found anyone either.

***

"Drake, pull up the security cameras from today at my school parking lot." Damian ordered, stepping into the Batcave.

"No 'Hello', no 'How you doing?', it's always 'Tim, do this' 'Drake, do that'," Tim commented sarcastically but still pulled up whatever he needed, "And then as soon as I give you what I want, you're going to forget me again. And not even visit the kids."

Dick spared him a laugh at his dramatic scene, ruffling his hair as greeting and then turned his attention to the screen. The footage was played at double the speed until Damian's eyes locked onto just what he wanted to find.

It was just for a second, when Dick's motorcycle had zoomed past but that was all he needed. Damian had seen your face and it wasn't any mistake, he'd know you even if he was blind. Even though he was so sure it had been you, he still couldn't hide the way his body froze, eyes wide when he saw your face.

It was the same face he'd see every night before he went to bed and the very first person he wanted to see every time he woke up. Your image was what came into his mind when he thought of being nurtured, when he thought of being safe.

There was a time when he was younger, too young, there was a thunder storm. He doesn't remember much from the night, just hiding his face against your chest and you wrapping a blanket around him. His mother trained him even harder the next day, until he almost dropped but he'd never forget curling up to your warmth. Not even now, when he knew that thunder storms were the least of his fears.

It was as simple as that. With his father and brothers, he didn't have to worry about looking weak, he didn't think of love as a weakness, rather he considered it as the fuel behind strength. Yes, his father taught him well. And now he would show you just how much he's grown. So, you can be proud of him.

"We need to find her."

"Why? Who is she?"

"My sister."

***

Of all the things you wanted to experience, visiting a bar was one of them. Was the air really enough to intoxicate you? Were you really going to lose all sense when you stepped into it? Would be able to drink your troubles away?

You were sorely disappointed. The alcohol didn't taste good, it burned when you swallowed it and made your tongue feel fuzzy. The music was so loud that your brain began throbbing against your skull to the beat of the song.

Men were picking fights and women were having fun but even then, you couldn't find it in yourself to get up and actually have fun. I mean, how were you supposed to? How was cosying up against a drunk man supposed to make you feel better? How was getting lost in throngs of sweaty people who didn't know what personal space was meant to improve your mood?

If anything, it just reminded you of just how pathetic your life was.

You were realizing you had no purpose. Damian was all you had known for years now, knowing only to protect him with your life and love him with your heart. Who were you without him? What did you like? What made you happy outside from your duty at the league?

A man knocking into you brought you out of your thoughts, which had been happening all night. Except this man stopped in front of you and gave you a smile that turned your stomach upside down.

"Sorry about that pretty lady, let me buy you a drink to make up for it." He spoke with a voice that was trying to be smooth but instead sounded like metal scraping over each other.

"No, thank you." You said sharply, not yet done with your Manhattan anyway. You were barely enjoying your time here as it was and you were sure another drink wouldn't change your mind.

"Not a fan?"

You shook your head at him, choosing to humour the man.

"Then let me buy you another one, if you don't like it then you have nothing to lose."

You pretended to giggle at him and he swelled with pride. Did he think he was winning?

"One Boulevardier." He told the bartender who nodded and began preparing the drink. Until it was ready, you indulged the man in front of you who reeked of cigarettes and alcohol.

He placed the drink in front of you and if you hadn't known that it would burn going down and turn you into a shell of yourself, you might have been curious to what it tasted like.

"You see that dude over there?" He nodded to a man standing in the other corner of the bar and you turned to look at him. Another man, covered in tattoos who didn't look any different than the one standing behind you.

"He's my pal, owns the bar. Ask him and he'll hook you up with free drinks tonight. For a price, of course."

You turned back around to face the man and out of the corner of your eye saw something dissolve into your drink. It was only for a second but you saw the last remaining grains turn invisible and you definitely noticed the way the once steady drink was now swirling into a vortex in the middle.

"Drink up, princess."

You smirked. Tonight, might be fun after all.

***

This was boring.

You had been pretending to be unconscious for about 40 minutes while these men drove you to some undisclosed location. Their conversations were unbelievably dry and it's not like you had anyone else to talk to. Everyone else who might have been even mildly interesting were knocked unconscious.

Eventually they pulled up to some sort of holding facility and if your assumptions were correct then this would be a midpoint before they sold all the girls here to some sort of pimp.

Once they lugged you off the truck and threw you into a room with so many other people, you could hear their breathing did you open your eyes. It seemed like this was some sort of abandoned butcher or meat factory, judging by the ominous hooks hanging above your head and the metal walls. The door had been bolted shut, the only way to look through it was a small glass window.

Only after you finished taking in your surroundings did you even look at the other women who had been trapped in the room along with you. Your stomach turned.

There were so many unsuspecting faces who looked like they didn't sign up for this. Half of them looked under the influence of something, sweating profusely even in their sleep, faces scrunched up in pain. The other looked like they were forcibly taken, bruises covering their skin, hair and clothes in disarray and more than half of them had either a black eye or a swollen lip.

Maybe it was their fault for not being trained, that's what someone at the league would've said. But isn't it their captors’ fault for misusing their training, their strength, for something as vile as this?

You decided to wait, you couldn't assume that this small group of girls was the only one in the confines of the building. How many more were here?

You weren't feeling overwhelmed, not at all, not with the weapons that were littering you. A kunai hidden is either of your boots, throwing stars in your pockets hidden underneath your vest and a war fan in your pocket. You could handle these clowns without even looking up.

But it wasn't your life you were concerned about. It was the lives of these underaged, vulnerable girls who had fallen prey to these monsters.

While you were waiting a couple of the girls started to wake up. Some were still heavily drugged, still groggy when their eyes fluttered open and unable to focus onto anything. Others shot up straight as an arrow and began crying, screaming, begging for them to let them out.

They were ignored, by both their captors and you. Why try and reassure then when you weren't sure what was going to happen. More importantly, why throw off the monsters lurking outside the door that there was one woman who hadn't been phased.

Instead, you just stared blankly, trying to get comfortable and hear anything through the walls. Eventually, you heard the sound of footsteps coming towards the room. You covered the lower half of your face with a scarf, making sure that anyone who left here alive today, wouldn't be able to remember your face. Whether it be as a saviour or their punisher.

The girls whimpered and curled into one another, crying quietly and you felt sympathy. There was no way they'd be able to move forward from this without having fear stab at their heart with every step they took. You could only hope they had something in their life that would make them feel safe.

For tonight, you'd be that for them.

A few men opened the door with a cruel smile, stepping inside for a second before bolting it shut. They flaunted guns and other weapons to the girls, finding pleasure where there should be compassion and worry. You were disgusted watching their smirks twist maniacally when the girls cried harder seeing them brandish their weapons.

One of the men stepped forward and grabbed the girl closest to him who begged and cried to spare her. His disgusting hand might as well be made of acid because you almost felt the sick burn when it snaked between her legs and copped a feel while she sobbed and screamed, trying to fight him off.

You grabbed one of your weapons and returned their sick grins with one of your own.

It was going to be hard to cop a feel when he can't feel anything.

You were going to break each and every bone in his hand to ensure that.

***

"Can I borrow your phone please?" You asked the bloody and broken man by your feet. He glared at you and spat blood on your boots, unable to do anything else. You sighed and faked a pout.

"Is it here?" You wondered, holding the dirtied boot over his ribs and his eyes widened, catching drift of what you were about to do. You rammed your foot into his broken ribs, courtesy of yourself, and he screamed bloody murder. Music to your ears.

"Apparently not. Want me to check your pants?" You asked, raising a brow and he frantically shook his head, using whatever strength left to pull out his phone from his pocket and you smiled, thanking him quietly.

"Now, let's hope that one blow is enough to put you out of my misery." You sang, punching him right in the face and he passed out. Lightweight.

You took a look around the place, seeing bodies littered over the place like confetti. Blood was scattered on the ground and you're sure if people looked hard enough, they'd find someone's teeth. You on the other hand looked fine.

You sat on the floor, crossing your legs comfortably, tired after the fight and dialled a number onto the phone.

"Hello, police?"

"Yes, how can we help you?"

"Well, there's a sex trafficking scam going on at my location. Quite shoddy but they have a number of women trapped here and it would be nice if you could send backup to have them escorted home safely."

"A sex trafficking scam?"

"Well, it could be just a regular trafficking scam but I'm not too sure."

"All right, I'll have someone check it out."

"Good, and I realize you might get a lot of calls like this but please don't talk to me like I'm an idiot. Tell your people to send a couple of ambulances as well, you'll need them."

"Of course."

You could only hope the person on the other end of the line would eat their words when it was on the front of the newspaper. For now, your work was done.

In the meantime, how were you going to get anywhere from here? Where even were you? Was there anyone even conscious here who could give you directions? Or would you have to call the police again to find out where to go?

Not that you'd wait long enough for them actually arrive here. You'd return to the bar way before that for another drink. Maybe now you'd actually be able to enjoy one.

Just as you were about to leave, you heard a creak coming from the other end of the warehouse. It echoed through the halls and you leapt to your feet, soundless moving to hide in the shadows and pulling out a kunai.

The footsteps that followed it were light and airy, barely even touching the ground. They were trained, whoever they were. You kept your ears open in order to hear something.

"Whoever was here was trained." You heard someone comment.

"Are you really that stupid, Nightwing? It's obvious that my sister was the one who took out this ring and reported it." Came the snappy reply back and your breath caught in your chest. Make no mistake, that was your brother's voice.

"We must find her."

He was actually looking for you? He knows you're here? You're not entirely surprised, you haven't exactly been careful or stealthy when it came to concealing your face around Gotham. A mistake on your part but you couldn't have been more relieved.

You still remained quiet, not wanting to disturb the flow, not wanting to interrupt. You had the mind of a soldier but when there was no one to follow you seemed more like a sheep. It made you feel slight shame, that you were unable to stick up for yourself despite being so many things.

Maybe, the league wasn't the best thing for you.

Immediately you scraped the thought from your mind, berating yourself for even thinking that. The league had given you everything, everything you were today was because of them. You were strong and calculating, the leagues proud soldier.

You were proud of your roots, thankful that you grew up to be the person you were. They had given you everything, and your brother was just one of the gifts that you had been blessed with in your life.

"Damian." You spoke softly, stepping out of the shadows. His head snapped towards you, eyes widening when he took in your form. It really was you. His sister.

Damian wasted no time in bounding towards you and you knelt down to meet his eye level, catching him with open arms. A part of your heart sang when you realized he was still small enough to fit in your arms. He still held you close. He still loved you.

"I've missed you, Ya Amar." You spoke softly, cradling his head that was buried in the junction of your neck.

"I as well, Okhti."

***

Damian was ecstatic that you were in Gotham. Of course, it didn't look like it to anyone but everyone who knew him well could tell that he was happy that his sister was home with him. He didn't wait for even two seconds when you got to the Batcave (much to Bruce's surprise) to show you all his pets.

The next few days would be considered the best of his life.

Damian wanted to be as close to you as possible, sitting near you during meals, training with you, talking with you, even going as far to sneak into your temporary bedroom at night for cuddles. He certainly got more comfortable showing affection since the last time you were around.

He showed you his hobbies like painting and sketching and you were impressed. He had the skills to be doing something like this? Damian had picked up many new talents and many new stories since you last saw him and he was eager to share them all with you.

The next few days would be considered the worst of your life.

You had found Damian now, so why didn't you still feel fulfilled? Why did you feel like something was missing? Like this wasn't meant for you? Why weren't you satisfied?

Why did you feel envious that Damian got to experience so many things? Why did you feel resentment against him when you realized you never got the same things he has?

Your life felt like it amounted to nothing.

You loved your brother but so far you had just been living for him. And now that you realized there were parts of the world that you wanted to see. There were thoughts in your mind that were of your own and desires that you didn't have to explain to anyone. As long as it made sense to yourself.

And you realize one thing with an aching heart.

You couldn't stay here in Gotham.

"Does Damian know?" Bruce asked you one day when you had asked him a favour. Bruce so far had been a little cold and unfeeling ever since you had met him in the Batcave uninvited. His feelings towards you got more negative when you gave an offhanded comment about how you thought he was taller. But he was the only one you could ask for a favour. He was the father to your beloved brother and you could only hope he would offer you the same consideration.

You had asked him for a flight to Washington, to see if Diana really meant what she said. To take a leap of faith for the first time in your life.

You shook your head no, "Not yet. I'm hoping he will take the news well. It's not like I'm leaving forever. I just—I need to—" You trailed off, unable to find the right words.

Bruce nodded, "I understand. Just tell him before you go. I don't think I've ever seen him this happy before."

"It makes me feel worse." You admitted, feeling a little guilty. How could you not feel happy at your brother’s happiness?

"You need some time to figure out that your world is yours. No one else should determine how you feel about yourself."

"You are very wise," You said softly, "Thank you."

***

"I love you dearly, Damian." You tried to coerce him from his room where he had locked himself in only 5 minutes ago. No doubt he was sulking since he found out that you would be leaving for DC in two days’ time.

"If you did, you wouldn't be leaving!" His voice was muffled, as if his face was buried in his pillow or even Titus. You had been trying to coax him into open the door for 20 minutes now and had multiple offers from Grayson, which you turned down.

"Oh, for the love of—Damian Wayne, you open this door right now!" It was silent for a moment before you heard the lock click open and took that as the indication from him to step into his room.

It was large and from the moment you stepped in, it was easy to tell the space was his. There were swords mounted on the wall, paintings on the wall adjacent to it. His desk was tidy and in the corner of his room, there were multiple easels and sketch pads.

Damian was sulking on his bed and you sighed, feeling guilty. You sat beside him and ran your fingers through his hair. Even though he was upset with you, he still sank into your touch, feeling comforted by mere contact.

"It's not forever, Damian. Wherever I'm going, I'm going to come back. I just need some time to myself." You tried to explain.

"But why!"

"The league taught me well, Damian. But it taught me to live like a soldier, but not as a person. There are so many things that I don't know about myself. What do I like? What do I want to do with my life? And I need to figure it out for myself."

"Why can't you do that here?"

You gave him a pained look and realization dawned on him, "Because of me."

"Damian, in the time we spent apart you learnt so many things about yourself. That you like animals, that you like art. There are so many blanks in my life and I need the distance to figure it out. I need to understand myself." You explained wistfully.

It was true, there were so many blanks in your life. You didn't even know what food you liked better, what hobbies you enjoyed. You wanted to experience new things, without the influence of Damian, without relying on him. And more importantly, you were scared you would put Damian above yourself time and time again.

It was all you knew. Damian was worth more than your life, worth more than your heart. But if that was true, you wanted to know at least what your heart was worth to you. If you didn't hold any value to yourself, it would be foolish to think you would to anyone else.

You needed the distance. You needed something new. You wanted to dive into uncharted waters and figure out the magic for yourself, without anyone to help you.

"It's not forever," You reminded gently, "I'm going to come back, I can promise you that."

Damian began leaning until his head was settled in your lap and you chuckled, gently scratching his scalp and he nestled into your belly. Hard to believe this was the same boy who left only a year ago. You wondered if you would change as much as he did or if you were stuck in your ways now.

"Okay," He said, voice muffled and you smiled, "I hope you find what you're looking for."

"Thank you for your blessing, Ya Amar. It means the world to me. I love you; you know that."

"I do." He said, now wrapping his arms around your waist, "I love you too."

Forever Taglist:

@simonsbluee

DC Taglist:

@emmacata

@p--e--a--c--h--e--s

@sometimeseverythingsucks

@sokkas-honour

@unstable1902

@lostgirlheart

@missdisapear

@tadpole-san

[ballin-and-cant-get-up]

MK Intros - Ice Mountain

Request: Cool! Could you do intros with an R who is dating Frost (Pre-Cyberizing)? R is like Kakashi. Johnny Cage, Cassie Cage, Frost, Jaqui, and Sub-Sero (Kuai Liang).

I am going to add that R is from the Narutoverse and was trained by Kakashi. Also they have one Sharingan and are close with the Cages. Also Frost, is no longer a cyborg, but once was.

Masterlist

Other Content for Ice Mountain 

Ice Mountain - Bonus

Ice Mountain -Bonus 2

Okay, I am going to cap the number of each intro at 4 cause 5 is a little too much. I did this instead of my HW so enjoy:

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Sub-Zero

Sub-Zero: You distract my pupil.

You: You assume she listens to you.

Sub-Zero: Seems you need a lesson as well.

______________________________________________________________

You (Looking like Scorpion): GET OVER HERE!

Sub-Zero: You can’t fool me, (Y/n).

You (Back to Normal): Worth a try.

______________________________________________________________

Sub-Zero: Your eye allows you to infiltrate the Lin Kuei?

You (Playful): If I told you, I’d have to kill you.

Sub-Zero (Serious): I can’t let this weakness be exploited

______________________________________________________________

You: Are you sure I can’t date Frost?

Sub-Zero: Would you even take no for an answer?

You(Sighing): No, I guess not.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Cassie Cage:

You: Could you please try to get along with her?

Cassie: She tried to kill me!

You(Sighing): Why can’t things ever be easy.

______________________________________________________________

Cassie: Do you think you could use your techniques to look like my ex?

You: Sure, why?

Cassie: It will make this fight a little bit easier for me.

______________________________________________________________

You: Stop leaving Ice Pops in my bed!

Cassie: I didn’t want you to get lonely.

You: Hardy Har.

______________________________________________________________

You: She said she was sorry.

Cassie: So that I look like the bad guy.

You: Now I think you’re just jealous.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Johnny Cage:

You: Please don’t tell Cassie that I am dating Frost.

Johnny: Trust me, I won’t. She can get like her mother when upset-

You: And we both know how terrifying that is.

______________________________________________________________

Johnny: Like I said last time, I can’t say anything about the new Ninja Mime.

You: Actually, you said there was no new Ninja Mime.

Johnny: FUCK!

______________________________________________________________

You: Do you think you could produce a movie about my life and journey?

Johnny: Of course: Johnny Cage in “Ninja Mime vs The Beyonder.”

You: That’s not what I- Ugh. Never Mind.

______________________________________________________________

Johnny: What’s it like sleeping with a freezer?

You: I am going to stab you now.

Johnny: Worth it.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Frost:

You: Are we still on for later?

Frost: Depends on how hard you hit me.

You: W...Was that a Civil War reference?

______________________________________________________________

Frost: Another ice pun, and I’ll gut you.

You: What’s with the cold shoulder?

Frost: I’d kill you, but I’d miss you too much.

______________________________________________________________

You: Why did you ever use that move? It’s so- so-

Frost: Impractical?

You: Weird! You would throw your head at people.

______________________________________________________________

Frost: (Y/n), who is Elsa?

You: We should talk about this later.

Frost: I’ll beat the information out of you, if I have to.

[passanima]

rewrite of “mars needs moms”

there’s so much that went wrong in this one it’s hard to rewrite. normally i’d redo it completely but that would take too long and defeat the purpose of just using what’s here and making it better. so i’ll try to diverge as little as possible... but oof

since the internal logic is their biggest problem it’s what i’ll focus on

1/ change the reason why the martian dudes are rejected. the movie tells you it’s because they waste all their time dancing and hugging and it’s wrong for martians to act like that... but you later learn martians are naturally loving creatures and it’s their cold upbringing that change them. the villain of the movie wants order and obedience so it makes sense for her to shape people that way... but then why exclude the dudes? there also seems to be way less guys than girls, and it’s never commented on, so idk if it happens naturally or if it’s lifestyle (survival) that cut their number

so make it instead that being born male makes you a minority on mars. guys are smaller and weaker than girls, and it’s this physical difference that make them useless in the eyes on the villain, and the reason why they’re abandonned as babies

2/ not something i’m gonna touch really but why... do martians have two sexes? they do not reproduce sexually or at all really, babies popping out of the ground. so. what are the different sexes for? other than making them more human-like... which, boring.

3/ story goes like this: every 25 years babies pop out of the ground, and the martians having no “marternal instinct” (or time and interest) don’t want to raise them, so they kidnapp human mothers to extract their parenting skills (which kills them) and program it into nanny-robots. but the robots can only be used once, so every 25 years they kidnapp (and kill) someone new

this is... an impressive level of nonsense, so instead. they kidnapp more than one human at a time and force them to raise their babies. to keep it similar enough and the stress level up, the martians still kill the humans when they no longer need them (when the babies are old enough)

the villain want martians to grow up in a way that’s easy to manipulate so that might seem like a bad idea but the fact that humans are very different from them + do not speak the same language + propaganda against them could make it so martians grow to feel superior to the humans who raised them and feel no remorse when those die

4/ enters ki. a martian that finds beauty in human culture. her character stays the same as she appear in the movie, but her role is amplified. while she finds humans fascinating and secretly learned their language (well, english) she didn’t fight to protect her human-nanny (possibly because she was too young when that happened) and feels guilt. when she meets the main character, milo, and hears he’s here to save his mom, she decides to help him

5/ with these changes, milo’s mom is no longer asleep for the whole movie, and has her own view on the situation, as she’s forced to take care of the baby martians with the others human moms (and in this ver they’re all moms, not because dads don’t take care of their kids, but due to the explanation on martians views on genders)(aka men are weaker and useless)(which they must assume is the same for human men)

6/ as for gribble... i understand the point of his character, as sole human milo meets on mars, and adult that helps him. but the way they wrote the man and the space they gave him was a waste of time. he’s annoying and at time is given more importance than milo, which sucks. also pretty sure he’s the reason ki is under-developped. so he can still exist as a survivor of last kidnapping 25 years ago who now lives with the abandonned martian dudes who he’s friends with, but his role will be smaller. also, in those 25 years he will have learned the martian language, it’s silly the writers didn’t make that happens. even if you want nothing to do with some people, if you live with them for 2 decades you’re bound to learn their language!

7/ also no romance between gribble and ki. it was terribly written and didn’t have time to happen anyway. griggle “falling” for ki simply cause she paints and ki “falling” for gribble because he can change colors (blush)... those don’t even work as reasons.

8/ milo ends up saving all the moms thanks to ki’s help (and a bit gribble and the martian dudes) and revealing the truth to the martians: that the villain lied and manipulated them (tho that part didn’t make sense either...) and that they once all lived together, without abandonning the men, and raised the children with love. it’s also discovered that while physically weaker, men martians have other set of skills they’re good at that the women aren’t so much, proving they need everyone to create a self-sufficient society (no more kidnapping since they don’t even need the help)

9/ should have put that in the beginning, but change milo’s family structure to a single parent household. the dad wasn’t even present in the movie, and since the focus is on milo’s relationship with his mom it would just make the script stronger if they had no one else to rely on. when milo hurts his mom, he feels even worse about it because he knows she works hard for the both of them and she didn’t deserve that. also give the mom a better (more understandable) reason to “snap” at milo, as she’s already exausted.

10/ end the movie on martian society being reformed, and have ki go live with milo and his mom, as she wants to know more about the earth. maybe she has technology to help her pass as human, or as hinted at the end, martians show themseves to human and cohabitation can start. possibly they also bring back the martian baby milo’s mom raised for a bit anyway, milo got two moms and a sibling now (imagine the rescue took more than a day)(the other moms get to go home too of course)(gribble stay on mars like og and not because he found a girlfriend, just cause he lived there 25 years and sees it as home)

11/ movie becomes about “what makes a family” and not just milo’s slow (too slow) realization of “wait i love my mom actually” like he legit had a moment of realization in the movie WHILE on a dangerous mission to save his mom... the writting i swear

[fullmarvelheart]

Crossing Lines (6/?)

Pairing: mob!Bucky x fbi!mob!Reader

Word Count: 5,199 

Recommended: 18+ readers

Summary: A sudden and unsettling event rocks the underworld, and Y/N is immediately called in to prepare for what’s to come. What she isn’t prepared for is James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, also known as the new head of the Brooklyn mafia clan. When these two get shoved into a world of danger and deceit, will they ever learn to trust each other? Or will they be doomed from the start?

Warnings: Swearing, angst, a wee bit of fluff?, Grant Ward (because he’s his own warning), mentions of violence

A/N: Happy Black Widow Day! I’ve been waiting for this movie to come for so long and unfortunately I won’t be able to watch it tonight😢. But anyways, here’s part six with a surprise character😉 (literally didn’t think of adding her until yesterday). Hope you guys enjoy! This has not been beta read at all. All mistakes are my own. The GIF is not mine, so credit goes to the original creator!

Series Masterlist

“Skye, come on! Why the hell did you drive off to the middle of damn nowhere?”

“Just trust me.” She says calmly as she parks the car, completely ignoring my outburst in the process. “And stop complaining, Y/N/N. I know you had another fight with your dad, so I know you wanted to be out of the city.”

“Fine, ok. But what is going on? I’m guessing Ward has no idea what you’re doing.”

“You’re not serious, right? You know he hates me doing anything remotely dangerous.”

“Not that I’m against going behind your boyfriend’s back, but what did you do?” I ask my, running my fingers through my hair.

“So, you know how Ward mentioned HYDRA’s top runner, Crossbones, the other day?” I nod. “Well, I got curious. We know nothing about him, and Ward thinks he can set a trap for him. I just, I just don’t want him to get hurt when I could have done something.”

“And you know if you did this at the Bureau, he’d find out somehow and stop you. Or Gonzales would.” Now she nods. “Alright, but I’m helping you with this. I’ve got a weird feeling about the whole thing and as your partner, it’s my job to keep you safe.”

“You worry too much.” She chuckles. “Besides, I’ll practically be behind my computer screen the whole time. Nothing’s gonna happen.”

“You’re right, I guess. Doesn’t mean I’ll stop worrying though. And why are you still with Ward?” I groan dramatically, causing her to laugh.

“Oh, be nice. He’s not bad once you get to know him.”

“I don’t know. Something about his arrogance just doesn’t settle well with me.” I shrug.

“You’re being over dramatic. He’s great!”

“He better be, he is dating my best friend after all. Now let’s find the next exit, I’m hungry!”

Her laughter echoes in my head as the car moves along the highway.

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

I stomp through the halls on a mission. The office was empty, and disturbingly dark and stuffy for nine in the morning. If he’s not in his office there’s only one other place I could imagine him in, his bedroom.

“Please, don’t kill me for this.” I mutter to myself before taking a deep breath and throwing the door open.

My eyes scan the room and zero in on the lump underneath the covers.

“Go away, Steve.” His usually pleasant rough voice is mixed with hints of sleep and something else. I can’t help it that my inner self finds it sexy while I try to stay concerned rather than turned on.

Now’s not the time for a daydream. Focus.

The door shuts with a soft click, giving him the impression ‘Steve’ left. You aren’t that lucky today. I’m no push over! My boot clad feet thud on the wooden floor as I march straight towards the end of the bed. With one strong grip at the end of the comforter, I yank the sheets off his body before turning towards the curtain clad windows.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” He screeches, trying to pull the blankets back up to cover himself from the cold air of the room. That was nothing. “Hey! What the hell is this, Rogers?” I pull the curtains open; the intense sunlight illuminates the room causing even me to briefly squint.

After successfully finding a single blanket to cover back up with, I notice the fact that Barnes had curled himself into a human ball in the middle of his mattress to block out the light.

“Oh, for fucks sake.” I groan, grabbing onto an edge piece of the fabric. “Get up, now!”

I try to yank it off him in one swift motion, again, but he’s faster than I thought. He springs up into a sitting position, latching on to the blanket I almost had off him, commencing a tug-of-war over the stupid thing. The muscles and veins in his arms flex and bulge, and in normal situations, I’d be impressed. But I’m getting irritated.

“You’re an absolute child.” I grunt as I fight with him.

“Let go, you heathen.” He counters.

At his command, I let go, causing him to fly backwards and bounce slightly on the mattress.

“Dangerous mob boss my ass.” I chide, crossing my arms as he just looks at me with disbelief.

“What do you want, Fury?” He groans, rubbing his eyes.

“Too much for you to comprehend at the moment but let’s start with this. How about you get your head out of your ass, get out of bed, and do your damn job?”

He scoffs, rolling his eyes.

“You wouldn’t understand, Fury. And you’re crossing a line here. Get out.”

“It’s Maximoff to you right now. And what don’t I understand, Barnes?” I ask, ignoring his other remark.

“You have some nerve, coming here, into my room. Now get out.” He growls, tossing the blanket away, exposing me to the fact that he sleeps only in a pair of boxers. Damn, suits really don’t do his body justice, but damn does he look good in either.

“You have some nerve thinking this doesn’t concern me.” I snap back, regaining my focus, glad he didn’t catch me staring or was too annoyed to notice.

“And how,” He starts, finally standing up and slowly walking towards me, “Does this concern you?”

His muscles bulge as he crosses his arms, stopping at the foot of his massive king-sized bed. Though, there is an unsway of his body, and the shakiness that was in his hands that doesn’t evade my attention. Where I once noticed stubble, an unkept beard lies in its place. His hair looks knotted, unwashed, and greasy. Overall, he looks like an absolute train wreck.

“How does it not? Furthermore, how does it not concern you?! Barnes when did you last have a full meal, let alone showered!?” I exclaim, looking him over more closely. I can barely see the fact that he’s lost weight, but it’s there, it’s noticeable. The lack of a hot shower is more than just noticeable though.

He scoffs again.

“This is none of your business. Leave.”

“Stop being so fucking defensive with me. And this is my damn business, or have you forgotten the deal you have with my father? With Brooklyn on uneasy ground, especially after losing their last leader, you’re a target for HYDRA to attack. Not to mention the threat of the other mafia clans. And you know damn well that if my father has any idea that your alliance will cost him more than benefit him, he’ll watch you be fed to the sharks. But it just so happens that his daughter is in your territory, which gives you just a bit more wiggle room. However, if you put me in danger, he won’t just watch, he’ll feed you to the damn sharks himself!”

“I know!” He yells, walking closer to me.

“Then start acting like it.” I hiss.

“You don’t understand!” He argues, throwing his hands up in the air.

“Understand what?!”

“I can’t do this without him!”

The room falls into silence, and I stare at him, stunned.

“Okay? I can’t do this without my father. Yes, he’d been preparing me for years. But I always knew I could get advice from him or help if I needed it, once I took over. But this, all of this. I don’t know how to lead my men; I don’t know how prepare us. I don’t even have time to grieve the fact my father, not my boss, is gone forever, and I don’t know how to do this without him.” He chuckles dryly, hands on his hips. “I told you, you wouldn’t understand.” And he’s turning away from me.

“You’re wrong.” I cringe at how shaky and quiet my voice comes out.

“What?”

“You’re wrong.” I repeat firmly. “To think I don’t understand.” The sting of tears forming in my eyes has me pausing to close them and take a deep breath.

When I open them again, Barnes faces me properly with a look of confusion and mild concern.

“No one knows exactly what to do in these situations. But from one ally to another, you have your training, and the people you trust to help you figure it out. And you have your friends. It might not always work the way you planned, but nothing ever really does. You aren’t the only one grieving the death of your father, the men also adored him. Keep that in mind.” I pause, watching him work through what I said to him. “But don’t you dare ever assume I don’t understand grief.” I sneer. “Or how to continue on with the weight of it constantly on my shoulders. You don’t know me. So don’t act like you do.” He gapes at me, like a fish. “Get your shit together Barnes, and get to work.”

I walk out of his room as quickly as I can, letting the door slam behind me. Two corners later and I finally let myself slump against the wall. I gasp for air I didn’t know I needed as I fight back the tears trying to escape. It’s been six months! It was just a stupid dream! Get it together!

When my breathing returns to normal, I pull out my phone. The message from the unsaved number glares at me as I ignore it, again, and type out a message to another party.

“Meet me at the shore this afternoon. More details will be given soon. Bring the info you have gathered and don’t tell the boss.”

The response is almost immediate.

“Understood. He’s getting antsy about the report...”

I groan to myself as I push off the wall. He’ll just have to wait longer.

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

The zippers of my backpack nearly shriek as I pull both of them together quickly. I’ve been frustrated with my more legal job before, but this is something different.

Why the fuck are they making me go to a check in with the case officer this early? A month! I’m supposed to have a month to gain traction and trust in the role they requested of me! They should know that it isn’t safe to possibly expose an undercover operative at all, why would they risk it this early on?!

I growl to myself under my breath as I lace up my boots, aggravated that they’re risking the objective of this mission. If I get made, my father will also lose the alliance, HYDRA might learn of my role in the government and go into hiding, and that’s a lot of fuck up that doesn’t need to happen. Gonzales better either know what he’s doing or have good intel for me.

I swing the backpack up on my shoulder, just as someone knocks on the door.

“Give me a second.” I call, letting the pack flop onto my bed.

I’m surprised to find Natasha on the other side of the door, waiting with her arms crossed patiently.

“Come on in.” I say before she can speak, nodding to the inside of my room.

She raises an eyebrow in suspicion but walks in anyways. She turns to face me just and the door closes.

“All I was going to say was that Barnes is requesting everyone to head to the warehouse, but I’m guessing there’s something else?”

I nod. “I got called for a check in.” I tell her with an eyebrow raised, not needing to tell her who I’m referring to.

“This soon?”

“I’m hoping to get something worth the risk for this, but my gut says otherwise.”

She hums to herself in thought as she processes.

“I can get you a cover this time.” She states sharply. “But they need to get their act together. The cover might work just enough, but there are still people in here who don’t trust you, yet.”

“They might never.” I shrug. “But I agree with your risk assessment. I’m prepared to chew out whoever it is.”

She smirks, then motions towards my door. “Get to the warehouse and leave your things here for now. I’ll make the arrangements.”

I give her a small smile before we’re both walking off in different directions.

The warehouse is packed with people, many of which I don’t recognize, all of whom are engaging in loud conversations. I begin to push my way through the crowd, though I don’t make it too far as I feel a hand grab onto my arm. When I turn towards the pull, Drax smiles at me, motioning for me to follow him. I laugh quietly to myself as people practically jump out of Drax’s way. When we stop, I spot Carol not too far away and walk over to her.

“For the record,” She says, not even looking at me. “This is odd for us too.”

“Is this everyone?” I ask, confused.

She scoffs. “No, there are still those on patrols or jobs that aren’t here. But I’m sure they’ll be brought up to speed, on whatever this is, later.”

I hum as an answer, my eyes scanning the crowd of faces, seeing who I’ll recognize. I just make out Rollins’ silhouette as the voices begin to fall silent. Barnes stands in front of the gathering on a small platform, Rogers and Wilson flank him on either side. He looked a lot better than what I saw earlier. His beard trimmed back to a five o’clock shadow, his hair washed, brushed, and tied into a small bun behind his head, and there was strength in his body showing that he was able to eat since I last saw him. If I hadn’t seen him this morning, I wouldn’t have believed anything was wrong in the first place.

Standing behind the three mafia men, I see Barton, the two Odinson brothers, and five other men and one woman that I don’t recognize. Natasha casually merges in with the group at the last second.

“Many of you have taken note of my absence recently.” Barnes starts talking, his voice booming across the warehouse, commanding everyone’s full attention. It sends a thrill down my spine that I suppress. “And I am aware of the rumors that have been spreading regarding such absence.

“I was reminded earlier today that I was as close to my father as he was with many of you, maybe just a little closer. And yes, I’ve been grieving. But that grief has not blinded me to the enemy that is still out there, just as it has not blinded you.

“The enemy that has let their guard down because HYDRA thinks it has weakened us!” Grumbles of disapproval make him pause. “But they have not weakened us! This clan, this family, is not weakened by the grief of our leader. We are angered, enraged, that they dare try to cross us.” He pauses, listening to the murmurs of agreement of his people. “They have no idea what awaits them. Since the fall of George Barnes, they’ve expected us to kneel before them, begging for mercy. But they will be the ones begging. Their days are number because we will find them, and we will bury every last one of them as we watch HYDRA burn!”

The men begin to shout out their support, the roar almost sounds deafening to my ears, but I follow their lead, yelling with them. Barnes holds up his hand, and the crowd silences.

“Get a move on. We have work to do.” The warehouse erupts in applause, shouts of affirmation, threats to HYDRA, and anything of the sort.

The men begin to clear out of the warehouse, and Carol motions for me to follow her before walking towards Barnes.

“It’s good to see you again, boss.” She tells him with a smile, one he reciprocates before glancing at me. “I was wondering if I’d be able to take new girl around for a drive. Just to show her around our territory.”

“That’ll have to wait, Danvers.” Natasha cuts in, before turning to me. “Let’s go.”

She’s walking away before Barnes or Danvers, who both share a curious glance with me, can say anything. I only slightly hesitate before hurrying after her.

“Thank you.” I mutter once we’re out of the warehouse.

“Don’t thank me, yet. The boss will have questions.”

“Hopefully it’ll be worth it. If it isn’t, I’m gonna chew out whatever unlucky soul is sent.”

“I have no doubt of that.” She replies, and I can hear a hint of a smirk in her voice.

We near one of the doors that serve as an exit to the base, and I see my backpack sitting at the bottom of it.

“Know you way around?” She asks as I swing the backpack over my shoulder.

“Well enough. It shouldn’t be too hard.” I say, shrugging.

“Good. If you do get lost, call me,” She hands me a piece of paper with a number on it. “And I’ll sent someone for you. Good luck.”

“Thanks.” I nod, folding the paper up and slipping it in the back pocket of my jeans.

She nods back, then walks away. I take a deep breath before throwing the door open and walking out in the direction of the nearest subway. When I’m a decent way away from the warehouse, I pull out my phone.

“Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 2, two hours.” I press send on the text before placing a call, one I admittedly should have done earlier.

“About damn time!” I cringe at the tone in his voice but carry on as if I didn’t piss him off.

“I thought I wouldn’t have any contact with the Family. But everything’s going well. There was a slight issue, but I handled it and everything’s back to the way it should be.” I say over the noise of the street traffic.

“What issue? And why are you calling in public?”

“I was called in.” I grumble into the phone.

“Already?”

“Yes, but I swear if this is a waste of time, whoever I’m meeting is getting an earful.”

“I’d be concerned if they didn’t. But what issue?”

“It’s been fixed, it doesn’t matter, but I need a copy of the contract.” I state firmly, hopefully distracting him from the other thing.

“Y/N, you know-”

“Father!” I take a breath, so I don’t start arguing with him in public. “I need that copy. If I’m going to be doing this, I need to know every single condition, and every term.”

The other end of the line is silent, and I know he’s thinking things over.

“Alright. But in turn, when I ask for an update, you give me one that fucking day. Understood?”

“Yes.” I mumble, hating feeling like a scolded child.

“Good.”

“I’m getting on the subway, I have to go.”

“I expect an update tomorrow.”

“Yes sir.” I hang up the phone and let out a deep sigh before walking down the stairs.

As the subway approaches, my phone chimes and I glance at the text.

“Understood. I’ll see you there.”

The meeting place my case officer chose, a quaint little coffee shop, is two blocks away from my stop. The amount of people on the sidewalks has me wishing for my bike as I squeeze in between people, and there are several times I wished to shove the slow walkers out of my way when I couldn’t pass. Honestly being stuck in traffic was a bit more enjoyable to being stuck behind of group of gossiping women.

I come up to the corner of the street, where the shop is located, and spot its cute little sign. As I cross the street, I happen to take a glance in the window and immediately find a face I recognize.

“You got to be shitting me.” I growl to myself.

The door chimes as I walk through, and I head towards the table.

“Fancy seeing you here.” I grumble as I take a seat, using the heel of my boot to put pressure on the toes of his foot.

“Right, well,” He coughs, covering up a wince as he pulls his foot away from mine. I smirk to myself. “Considering I called for this, I’m not really surprised.”

“Ward, you son of a bitch.” I hiss, quiet enough not to draw attention, as I kick his shin sharply. “You’re an idiot. You better have a good reason for doing this Grant.”

He visibly winces and adjusts himself before clearing his throat to address me.

“As your case officer, I don’t need to explain this to you.”

“You do when you compromise my position. This was way too early!” I hiss before clearing my throat, remember not to cause a scene. “Do you have information for me or not?”

“We’ll get to that in a second. Look, if Skye was still alive, she’d want-”

“Yeah, well she’s not here. How does your new girlfriend, what was it, Kara, feel about you still being hung up on your dead ex?”

“Do not bring her into this.” He hisses, before straightening up and burying any hint of annoyance until there is barely any emotion visible on his face. I hate when he does this, it unnerves me how easy it is for him each time. “Here.” He states before putting a thin file on the table for me to grab. “This is everything that we’ve been able to find out about them recently.”

I swipe it off the tabletop and gently toss it into my backpack, without opening the folder.

“Hopefully, I don’t see you again anytime soon. This better not become a regular thing with you.” I mumble before getting up and ordering a cup of coffee to-go.

As I walk out of the store, I almost bump into a blonde woman that was on her phone. Luckily for both of us, the coffee didn’t spill. After a few seconds of hurried apologies, and foreign curse words on her end, I hurry to the station, hoping I won’t have to wait that long for my ride.

When I get to the park, I decide to wander around for a little bit. It feels good to be out in fresh air inside of being inside a building for the entire day. The clouds look fluffy and soft, the breeze is cool on my face, and the sun feels just warm enough to enjoy without sweating to death. I stop once I get to Pier 2 and just find myself leaning on the railing of the pier, looking out onto the river and the skyscrapers on the other side.

While I wait, I decide to enter Natasha’s number into my phone, then letting the piece of paper fall into the water of the river, the safest way to dispose of it. After I can no longer see the white of the paper, I return my gaze to my father’s city.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you like this.”

“Like what?” I ask, looking towards the voice.

“Content. Happy, even just a little bit.” She says with a small smile while moving to stand beside me.

“It’s the little things like this that make me happy, May. It helps me forget about the mess that is my life, even just for a few minutes.”

She hums and we just stand in silence for a moment.

“What have you been able to find?” I ask, breaking the silence and going into business mode.

“Not much. I doubt it’ll be much help to you.”

“A little may be what I need. I still have some of her research. At this point I just need anything on him.”

“Having nightmares about her again?” She asks, concerned.

It causes me to smile, even just a little bit. Sure, my father hired her, but she has always remained loyal to me, more so than to the family. Though, I have no doubt that if she had any concern about me, she’d go talk to my father.

“More like memories. Still, they leave me feeling restless because I haven’t been able to find a lead on this guy. Skye was getting close, I know that. Which is the only explanation as to why she was killed.”

She hums again. “Still not planning on telling your father?”

I scoff. “After he basically called me paranoid for looking into Ward? No. If he finds out I haven’t let this go like he thinks, he’s going to ask questions. Questions I’m not ready to answer. Not only that, but if he finds out I contacted you while on assignment, I’d get my head chewed off. I’m technically not even allowed to contact him, yet here we all are.”

She nods with a slight chuckle, then pulls a file out from underneath her jacket and hands it to me.

“I’ll keep checking in with my contacts on the street to see if anything new about him surfaces, but until then, this is all I have.”

I stare at the closed file for a moment, before sliding that into my backpack as well.

“Thank you again, May.” She smiles briefly before nodding.

“You should get out of here, before anyone questions why you’ve been gone for a while.” I nod and push away from the railing. “Oh, and Y/N?” I turn back around. “Stay safe.”

“You too, May.” I call back, walking away.

A flash of blonde hair in the corner of my eye has me pause for a second, but when I see nothing, I shrug to myself and keep going. It must have been in my head.

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

The door to my room shuts and I feel my body sag from the exhaustion of the day. I let my backpack slip to the ground with a soft thud and shuffle towards my bed. When my back meets the cool sheets of the mattress, a deep sigh escapes my lips and I close my eyes, finally enjoying a bit of rest. But, there’s a knock at my door that has me groaning loudly.

“Of course.” I grumble under my breath.

When I open the door, I’m very surprised to find Thor standing on the other side with a slight scowl on his face.

“Follow me.”

I do so, hesitantly, letting the door slowly click shut before catching up to him. The walk is silent, and for some reason, I feel uneasy for the first time since I walked in here. He leads me through the halls, and I find myself recognizing where we are going. James Barnes’ office.

Thor opens the door and motions for me to step inside, and I do, trying to maintain a façade of confidence. And I’m grateful for it, because the glare Barnes wears as he watches me enter almost has me reeling backwards. He sits behind his desk, looking regal, deadly, and in charge. No trace of friendliness shows on his face.

What really throws me for a loop is the petite redhead curled on his lap, her well-manicured nails raking through his hair in almost a possessive manner. The sight makes something churn uncomfortably in my stomach, and by the smirk on her face, she knows it too.

I look away from her, finding Rogers and Wilson in their places behind Barnes, leaning against the wall. Natasha stands off to the right, near the only window in the office.

“Dot, leave.” He says stiffly, not removing his gaze from mine.

“But Bucky Boo-”

“Now.” He growls, ignoring her high-shrieked protest. This is the infamous Barnes I’ve heard about on the streets.

She huffs in irritation, untangling herself from Barnes’ lap and starts stomping out of the room like a child throwing a small tantrum. She brushes past me, giving me the death glare on her way. I simply raise an eyebrow at her retreating form until the door shuts behind her.

“Lovely person, Bucky Boo.” I mutter under my breath, turning back around. “I haven’t looked at the information I was given, yet. I only just got back to the compound.” I say to Barnes, assuming that’s what got him so miffed.

“How was the meeting?” He asks, completely ignoring my remark, irritation still evident.

“I wanted to shove Ward’s head through the window only a few times. So, fairly well, I guess. Still pissed off he’s assigned as my case officer though.” I shrug still not seeing the point of this.

I see Barnes’ eye twitch and hear the soft click of the door closing. I turn around to see the blonde that I almost walked into on the sidewalk from earlier, and everything falls into place. With a click of my tongue in understanding, I turn back around towards Barnes.

“You had me followed.” I state.

“Yelena Belova, Nat’s sister, was sent to keep an eye on you. Make sure you stayed safe.”

“Hmmm. Interesting.” I hum towards the ground, frustrated that I didn’t see that coming earlier, as my hands find purchase on my hips, my nails digging into the fabric of my shirt.

“Imagine my surprise when I got a message saying you weren’t on your way back after the drop off, but was going to meet someone else.”

“Yeah, and I’m not telling you why.” I fire back stubbornly, my hands still on my waist.

Barnes blinks rapidly, shocked, because I didn’t deny it, that I said no to him so easily, or maybe because of something else completely. Whatever the reason, he recovers quickly. A scowl now twisting up his features.

“We had a deal with your f-”

“I’m not the one that needs reminder of that deal, it seems.” I snap. “What I did today, was for reasons you aren’t entitled to.” His scowl deepens. “Now, I could give you some information about it. If you were to tell me something in return.”

“And what’s that?” He growls, but willing to play my game.

“The last crate I picked up on my assignment.” Recognition dances over his eyes. “Yeah, it’s about that. Tell me what was in there because I know for a fact it wasn’t the shit on the manifest. That was just a cover. You tell me what the shipment was, and I’ll tell you what I was given.”

He clenches his jaw, but doesn’t say a word. I wait for a moment before nodding, more to myself than him.

“You’ll get the info the Bureau sent me, once I make sure it’s actually useful.”

I turn and exit the office quickly, no one saying a word to me before the door closes. My nails dig into my palms as I stomp back to my room, pissed off at the day I’ve had. My door slams shut, and I begin pacing the floor of my room. Anger flows through my veins like a fire that can’t be stopped. I had at least thought I was gaining some ground with Barnes and even some of the others, but apparently not. The only reason he let me go free is because of that stupid deal.

One thing’s certain after tonight, though. James Barnes is not to be trusted.

 Part 7

Tag List:

@the-ss-horniest-book-club

@broco8

@tcc-gizmachine

@miraclesoflove

@ladyacrasia

[moonlayl]

Thoughts on ScarletVision?

You mean WendySiri? Just kidding, just kidding. (sorry for the late reply). I assume you’re talking about the show ‘WandaVision’ but since I’m not sure I’ll also share my thoughts on the actual ship. 

 (long and negative rant)

Okay so throughout the entire show, I was kind of conflicted. Marvel did a really good job with all the clues and the suspense, and also the whole sitcom-through -the-decades kind of thing, and I applaud them for that. it honestly was really good and interesting and I really loved it. The show had so much potential, but that’s where things went wrong. 

A part of it is on me for assuming, or more accurately, wanting, but I was waiting for the reveal that Wanda was being controlled or manipulated. Obviously that didn’t happen, and it just ruined the character for me. This show literally took everything that I liked about Wanda, and everything that made me sympathize with her or even defend her, and then changed it for the worst. I was a fan but not anymore. Wanda’s character through the other movies was someone who tried to do better. Like she joined the avengers to fix her mistakes and to help people. She hurt people in civil war and was guilty over it. She killed Vision to try and save the world and stop Thanos. WandaVision took a big dump on all of that. 

I know many will use the “she’s grieving” card, and while it’s important to note, does it really excuse torturing and mindcontrolling a whole town? “But it was an accident. She didn’t mean to.” Yeah, at first. She discovered what she’d done way back in episodes 2/3 and decided to keep it. “She didn’t know she was hurting them.” But she knew she was violating them and keeping them captive. She knew they were actual people. And she still went with it. She didn’t care.

Fake Pietro says he admires what she’s done and she goes “you don’t think it’s wrong” Like she is literally self-aware. Vision, the man she loves is literally scared and confused and she goes “can’t I?” when he says she can’t control him. Broooooo. Wtf was that? Like she literally admitted to wanting to control him, or at least doing it, and wasn’t even ashamed? And in one of the episodes, despite literally dying and being in pain, he still tries to escape Westview so that he could fix her problems. So that he cold get away from her. So she brought him back, and had children, and just decided that she gets to control them along with the whole town??? I’m sorry but the show literally made her a terrible partner, mom, and avenger. And here’s the thing. I don’t think she’s evil, and I sympathized a lot with her. But she just got worse. 

So not only did she willingly keep a whole town hostage (where everyone was suffering and separated from their families and children literally stayed asleep which means they were in a constant state of seeing her nightmares) but this woman got scared and angry when Agatha freed them. She’s like “I kept you safe.” Wanda literally would’ve kept them in that prison if Aatha had never arrived. She wouldn’t have cared about them. Like Agnes said, heroes don’t do that. 

And then there’s her treatment of Monica. Wanda literally tried to kill her multiple times, and Monica only tried to help. Then she doesn’t even apologize in the end. I hated how this show wrote Monica or how they included her. From the Wanda only starts to use her powers when she sees Monica (when literally everyone else is pointing a gun) to how she automatically grabs her and tries to kill her, and then later has the audacity to say “don’t make me hurt you.” And Monica basically being ignored and used just to defend Wanda and prop her up. Like it was just bullshit. The way they treated their only black character. They even had her say she’d do the same. wtf? Even Jimmy Woo, their asian character, was more of a sidekick to Darcy in those episodes and ended up not contributing much. It sucks. 

And as a person who criticizes Tony Stark, it’s really weird how a lot of his haters use the same arguments as his stans when they try to defend Wanda. ‘She has mental illness” “she paid for her mistakes.” No, giving up her family that only existed because of the torture of innocent people doesn’t win you any points. It’s the least she SHOULD’VE done.  

And the thing that bothered me the most is that she never even learned her lesson? Like she took the darkhold and is trying to find a way to bring her kids back. mf, didn’t the entire show and mess start because she accidentally brought back vision? She literally didn’t learn a thing. What grief did she process if she’s just going to go and try to use dark magic to bring them again? 

And then there’s all of Sword. First Maria was killed off, and then Sword was introduced as this thing that’s always existed, yet we’ve never heard of it??

And there’s also Agatha. “Agatha All Along” umm. What exactly did Agatha do all along? The show set her up to be this big bad and then Wanda took her down it was not satisfying at all. Wanda, who doesn’t know how to cast spells, managed to learn a spell and use it without Agatha knowing in 5 seconds? As Agatha was taking her powers? BS. And then I hated Wanda’s plan. She decided to take her back to the past for what? Agatha’s own family to kill her? And then  later she traps Agatha into her nosy neighbor counterpart? And I’m supposed to go, “what a hero’? 

Obviously Agatha isn’t a good person, but the entire mess happened because of Wanda. It felt wrong for her to use the same prison on innocent people on another person and it be celebrated. And then there’s the whole “They’ll never know what you sacrificed for them line” i literally lost all sympathy for that character after that. 

And I still don’t understand the romance between Wanda and Vision. I can’t get over the fact that he’s a robot. All in all, there are many aspects of the show that I didn’t like, but the number one reason is that it completely ruined her character. There was so much potential. But no. First they changed her age. “it was never said that she was a teenager.” Hawkeye literally said “if you want to go to high school.” no one says that to a 27 year old. Maybe he meant it as something else but in aou, he was the one to form the closest bonds with her and Pietro and it was the same movie that showed us that he had kids. it would make sense if it was supposed to be like a “he wants to help them because they’re young and he’s a dad so he knows how to deal with young people. And everyone referred to her as kid, so it just all fit. (also the actress looked  a lot younger in aou than in her other works before that movie so the make up department probably tried to make her seem young.) And the way she dressed and acted. 

second, apparently even though aou had us believe that they thought they were signing up to save their country, wandavision literally just went “yeah Wanda knew it was a terrorist organization’ and she didn’t even seem to regret it? 

The show went about the entire situation the wrong way, and really ruined her character. 

[magdaclaire]

the other end of the line

parts one, two, and three. and once again. heavy discussion of character death.

"Don't go."

She had hardly picked up the phone before the sound of Missouri's voice cracks her right in half, Missouri Moseley closer to begging than Ellen's ever heard her and she doesn't even know what for yet. They're at a hotel right now. She has no idea where Missouri got this number, but she's willing to bet she plucked it straight from the universe itself.

"Baby, I don't-" she starts, confused, but finds herself interrupted.

"Those Winchester boys, Ellen. I know those boys are convincing, but you can't go with them, Ellen Joleen. You and Joanna Beth stay at home and I'll come visit next week, okay?" It's the repetition that gets her more than anything else, hearing her name crack across the speaker more than once making her feel off kilter. Something's wrong. She'd had the dread-cold feeling she usually gets before Missouri calls for days now, so she had assumed by this point that it was just good old fashioned anxiety. Now, she's thinking it might be something bigger.

"Miz, what's this about?" she asks, sitting down on the floor by the landline, curling up with the telephone cradled in her lap. The line of her shoulders is so tense it's rigid against the the frame of the bed she's leaning against,

"Can't you just listen to me, El? Just this once?"

"Not a damn chance, you know I need more than that,"

"I saw something again. I can't- I can't do this, Ellen." Ellen frowns, fingers tapping against the hard casing of the telephone. She took apart one of these when she was in her twenties, curious of what a phone would look like if you cracked it right open. Wires, mostly. If you were wondering. Metal. Shiny bits. She's not so good with machines. Jo gets that all from her Daddy. Ellen taps her fingers on the casing of the telephone.

"Can't do what, Miz? We're just talking. Tell me what's going on in that head of yours. Tell me what you saw," she wants to give Missouri a little nudge, would if they were sitting beside each other, and it's like the ache to touch her never has anywhere to go. It just lives inside of her like the original Alien movie, dangerous and waiting to claw its way out. That's how she felt when she was a kid, really. Now, she's getting to old to be shaking everybody up with what she wants or likes, and she's settled into who she is, really. Except that feeling.

"You and Jo can't go, Ellen. It's not safe," Missouri says, and Ellen snaps back into the conversation like she's been slapped. It's all she can take not to make her next words to Missouri sharp, so she consciously softens her tone.

"It's the end of the world, Missouri Rose," she says, smiling despite herself, "pretty sure nothing's safe out here anymore."

"Ellen," Missouri says her name again and this time it's out as a sob and Ellen wants nothing more than to comfort her, to hold her hands and wrap an arm around her, than to hold her like she's always wanted to. She wraps her fingers around the phone chord and tries to kill the yearning in her to find something to say to her oldest friend, anything for comfort. She's never been much good for it when it comes to comforting Missouri about things Ellen just isn't willing to change.

Bill always told her that her stubbornness would bite her in the ass. He was talking about their daughter, but he'd be glad to know he's right about this too.

"Baby, how am I supposed to leave those boys alone? Let them run into Hell's half acre without any backup? Mary's boys?"

"Goddamn it! We already lost Mary. We already lost Bill. Why do I have to-" Missouri cuts herself off with a heaved sob, pulled away from the receiver where Ellen can hear it, but only barely. Ellen puts away her own emotions on the matter and focuses on Missouri. It's what she's always been best at, focusing on other people.

"I know, Miz. I'm sorry. How bad is it this time?" she asks, that coaxing voice coming back to her right naturally,

"Oh, Elly, it's bad," Missouri says, thick like she can't swallow around the weight of the future on her tongue, and Ellen would kiss her to take that weight out of her mouth. She'd kiss her for just about any reason. She always thought she and Missouri would always have more time, that they would never run out. The sand is looking thin in its stream through the hourglass.

"What can I do?" she asks, action oriented. Lingering on what never happened has never fixed things for anyone. She can only handle now what will. Missouri gives her an unhinged sort of laugh, laughter like she doesn't mean to be laughing at all. Laughter like mourning.

"Short of staying away from those boys all together? I don't know, Ellen. I don't know, and I'm scared." She doesn't know that Missouri has ever told her that straight out, bled her fear over the line so openly that the word was willing to be defined. Ellen's heart wrenches.

"Oh, baby. You gonna have somebody with you when we get off the phone? I don't want you to be alone," she admits, her voice so gentle she feels like it almost does that task of wrapping Missouri in a blanket like she wants to, but Missouri makes a disapproving noise on the other side of the line.

"Ellen Joleen, I know you are not trying to console me through your own death right now,"

"Well, if there's any way I can be prepared, it might as well be this," she says, the joke falling flat as she thinks about every way that she can't be. She and Jo left the Roadhouse months ago. None of the hunters they left keys with are guaranteed to have survived this long.

"She won't be safe either, El," Missouri says, and Ellen knows she's talking about Jo. Her baby. Ellen lets a hot breath out through her teeth.

"I can ask her to stay away, hell, I can even tell her that she might die. But you know how she is. It's like danger itself leads her around by her nose, just like her Daddy, my girl," she says, missing Jo before either of them are even gone, and her baby is only gone to get some takeout. Jo's so much like Bill it hurts to look at her sometimes. Even if she never loved Bill like anybody told her she was supposed to, she still loved him right, she thinks. She loved him as well as either of them ever could have managed. He was her best friend.

"I don't know how you even could make it out. I'm sorry, Ellen,"

"It's okay, Miz. You called and told me. That's all you had to do,"

"I want to do more. I want to help. I feel so- so goddamn helpless! In this house with my visions and you dying bloody on the other side of the country, Ellen, I can't do this without you. How am I supposed to do this?"

"You do not get to stop after I go, you understand me, Missouri Rose? I go and you keep on. Just like I did when Bill passed, just like we did when Mary went. I know this is the most it's ever been. But we always knew this would happen, didn't we? Talked about it when Bill died, didn't we?" she asks, rhetorical and borderline unkind, knowing damn well that Missouri is losing something different by losing her than she did when she lost Bill. Ellen had lost her co-parent, her best friend, the only man she had ever invited into her bed. Missouri will be losing her confidante, the person she calls when the fog in her mind grows too thick, the person at the other end of the line. Ellen doesn't know what she would do if she lost Missouri either.

"This is so much worse than never having known you," Missouri says, a sob breaking through the last of her words. Ellen holds back a sob of her own. Whether she dies today, tomorrow, next week, this is goodbye, isn't it?

"Is it really, baby?" she asks, her barest hint of flirtation always just so easy with Missouri, even when she's holding back tears of her own, forehead against the bed frame. Missouri gives that strangled laugh again.

"No! It isn't. And that's what's so godawful about it, isn't it? Because losing you is about to be the worst thing that's ever happened to me, I think. Ellen, I don't know how to say goodbye to you," Missouri says. Ellen hates that cracked sound to her voice, that quality she takes on when she's so hurt and unsure.

"Then don't say goodbye. How about, I'll see you one day? Eventually, because you better not be following me too soon or we'll have something to talk about before we get to more pleasant conversation."

"El, as much death as I've seen, I don't know that I've ever seen an afterlife," Missouri says, unsure, so damn unsure.

"Believe anyway," she requests, quiet and strange, but sure of herself. Sure enough for both of them.

"What?" Missouri asks. Ellen gets it. It's not like she's ever been much of a woman of faith. For once, just for once, she just wants to believe in something. For herself. For Jo. For Missouri.

"For me," she says, "for whenever you come after me. Believe in an after. Okay? We all know Dean Winchester went to hell. What's there to say there isn't a Heaven for you and me too?" she asks, her eyes closed as she imagines it. She thinks Heaven is a bedroom with Mary and Missouri in it, when she's so young she doesn't know what she's feeling yet but she doesn't think it's wrong either, she thinks Heaven could just be Missouri Moseley. Missouri snorts.

"For you and me, Ellen Joleen? If I didn't know any better, I might think you were sweet on me," Missouri says, almost back to her typical routine of flirting with Ellen until she moves away from anything that might make Missouri actually feel something. Ellen digs her heels in instead of taking the out.

"I wasted enough time in this life pretending I wasn't. I don't wanna pretend in the next one too." Of course now is when she finally feels brave. Halfway beneath her tombstone and you'll find her with a rifle in hand, ready load up against God.

"Ellen-" Missouri starts, but there's a card slid into the door scanner, and an entrance made before Ellen can hear anything else.

"Mom?" Joanna Beth asks, opening the hotel room door with a bag of burgers. Ellen waves from her place between the beds.

"Jo's back, Miz. Come find me, okay? I'll see you one day," she says, her emotions curled back inside of herself now that her and Bill's daughter is in the room. There's nothing here she needs to see. Missouri sniffles on the other end of the line.

"I'll see you one day."

[exyrpf]

best stucky fic recs pwease

Okay, disclaimer, these are all like five+ years old (which is the best Stucky era, imo) and definitely not the only ones I enjoy; these are just a few in my bookmarks on ao3.

In no particular order besides the order I bookmarked them and under a read more because there's a shit ton of them (really, it's a lot):

- hold me until we crumble; Not Rated, 23k

“Sam told me you were watching Antiques Roadshow,” Natasha says, shaking out her hair. “I assumed it was a national emergency.”

- despite the threatening sky and shuddering earth (they remained); Explicit, 72k

“They really didn’t want the mask to come off.” Hill thumbed through the scans, and pulled out a film that she then handed over to Sam, face mostly expressionless but for the flat line of her pursed lips.

Sam accepted the film and held it up to the light, angling so both he and Steve could see it, squinting at the outline of the Winter Soldier’s skull, and the blips of unnatural white that showed up, God, in his brain, not to mention about half his teeth, plus the mask, with its thin protrusions—

“Those are pins,” Steve realized. He looked over at Hill. “The mask—it’s nailed to his face.”

Hill’s face was as unmoved as ever. “Like I said. They really didn’t want it coming off.”

- family means no one gets left behind or forgotten; Teen, 11k

“Why did you think I wouldn’t like you for being gay?” Steve asks gently.

“You’re Captain America.” Eli’s got his teeth clenched and is resolutely looking ahead. “You stand for truth and justice and the American way. You stand for American morals. You stand for…” he shrugs awkwardly. “Not people like me.”

Steve blows the air out of his cheeks slowly, trying to figure out how to keep the anger out of his voice so Eli doesn’t think it’s at him.

Or, Steve comes to terms with his new world, and gains some children in the process.

- Mistake on the Part of Nature; Teen, 1.3k

Steve takes in Bucky's betrayed look and Sam's confusion, follows Sam's gaze to the pile of mangled fruit in the trash can. Sudden comprehension fills his face.

"Oh," he says. "Bucky found out about bananas."

In which an American icon is mourned. But probably not the one you're thinking of.

- Swear Jar; Teen, 1.5k

Bucky isn't the only troll in the future.

OR

Steve has a Swear Jar and he makes the Avengers pay up every time they cuss.

- Barnes & Rogers and the Goddamn Truth; Not Rated, 19k

There are three well-known facts at Shield High:

1. The history teacher Mr. Barnes is a stone-cold terror, and it’s not even because he only has one arm. 2. The other history teacher, Mr. Rogers, is a mysterious enigma, and it’s something to do with the body of a Greek God and contradicting stories of his past. (They’re all rumours, anyway.) 3. Mr Barnes and Mr Rogers hate each other.

Bucky wouldn’t have it any other way.

- perfectly right wrong number; Teen, 32k

It all starts because Steve is too dumb to handle his smartphone.

A wrong number AU in which Bucky Barnes doesn't enter Steve's life (meaning: Bucky wasn't born until the eighties, but Steve is still Captain America) until Steve accidentally dials the wrong number. Wherein there is a lot of texting, some advice via Natasha and Darcy, a bit of pining, and a first date in an amusement park. Oh, and on top of being a disabled veteran, Bucky is a professional catwalker. Literally.

- The power of the right shirt (a.k.a. God bless America); Teen, 1.2k

"He just…" Phil trails off, mouth gaping. He is staring at the field outside the house, eyes glazed.

Clint sighs. "Yeah, he just ripped a log in two with his bare hands."

- To fill it up with something; Teen, 21k

A fateful encounter with Dr. Strange leaves the Winter Soldier transformed, and Bucky Barnes reunites with Steve Rogers in a most unexpected way.

“Steve brings the puppy inside, into the apartment that doesn't quite feel like home no matter how much he's been trying. He isn't used to being alone. Before the war, he always had Bucky, and his mother until her death. During the war, Bucky was there, too—and the rest of the Howlers, of course—but Bucky always meant home. (And well, maybe Steve's already got a name for the puppy in mind)."

- build it bigger than the sun; Teen, 10k

“Yeah, because nothing says heteronormative like living in Dupont Circle for two years and wearing skin-tight shirts to hit on hot airmen when you go running in the morning.”

“Look, I know you’re being sarcastic but I really don’t get how no one picked up on that.”

Steve and Bucky try to work out their relationship. The Avengers keep getting in the way.

- Memories Circle (Like Birds of Prey), Teen, 32k

Everything seems to be going right, Steve's fighting with his Commandos, they've saving lives-- until Steve falls from a train, is taken prisoner, and turned into the Winter Soldier. Meanwhile, Bucky takes up Steve's mantle as Captain America, and thanks to Zola's experiments, he gets dropped into a whole new time, only to cross paths with a Steve who doesn't know who he is anymore.

Essentially, the events of CA:TFA, mild mentioning of Avengers, and CA:TWS but with Steve as the Winter Soldier and Bucky as Captain America

- The Gentleness That Comes; Mature, 9k

Steve Rogers never really views the things he had to do to get by before the War with any sort of shame or embarrassment. People ask him for his opinions on modern issues in interviews, but Steve has gotten good at talking around those types of questions. Fury insists that there's no way to answer them without casting a shadow of controversy across the reputation of the Avengers, and that's the last thing Steve wants.

But then a sex tape is released featuring Tony Stark in bed with another man, and Steve can't stay quiet any longer.

- salt for the sea; Mature, 7.5k

Natasha comes home with intel regarding the fate of the Winter Soldier; Steve leaves to go and avenge Bucky Barnes.

“It's a list of everyone who was involved in his death, and a rough timeline of everything that happened beforehand,” she tells him.

“And the notebook?”

“I explained what they did,” Natasha says, “The blank pages are for you to explain what you do to them.”

- Lone Cat and Samurai; Teen, 8.4k

"We lost Kitten America sir!" Junior Agent blurted out. Then turned an unlovely shade of purple. "I mean, Captain America. Who’s a kitten. Because magic. Sir."

- Waiting To Prove You're Not Alone; Explicit, 41k

Months after he woke up on the banks of the Potomac, when a reporter mistakenly assumes Steve would disapprove of homosexuality being as accepted as it is in the modern day, Steve accidentally snaps and unleashes his real opinion on the matter... and with that, a secret he's hidden for over eighty years.

When that secret comes looking for him in New York, Steve can only hope that he can get a second chance at saving his best friend, even if it means keeping his heart in check.

“Yeah, back in my day it wasn't tolerated, and because of that I knew from the minute I figured it out, that I’d never get to tell my best friend that I loved him, and sure enough, he died without knowing that I’d been in love with him for a decade."

- I'm Not Sick (But I'm Not Well); Mature, 30k

Steve Rogers doesn’t meet Bucky Barnes in the 1930’s. Instead, Steve meets him April 17th, 2012.

Well…sort of meets him.

In actuality, Bucky had almost hit him with his truck.

Or: The fic where millennial Bucky Barnes nearly runs over a freshly thawed national treasure, and what Steve Rogers did to adjust to modern NYC during those two weeks before the events of The Avengers.

- pure as the driven slush; Explicit, 11k

He should have worked it out sooner. But then, Steve always was a sneaky little bastard—had to have been, just to survive this long.

For the SteveBucky Fest prompt, "Steve is quite experienced while Bucky's never gone beyond second base with anyone".

- Let's Be Exposed and Unprotected, Explicit, 5k

Bucky’s pretty sure he should be into getting fucked through the floor while walls explode around him like in that Mr and Mrs Smith movie that Clint loves. But he likes it like this. He likes being on his back with Steve looming above him, big and naked, blocking out the rest of the world.

- Man of Steel; Explicit, 6.7k

It’s like Steve looked at his metal arm and thought ‘Challenge Accepted.’

- 5 Times Steve Got Arrested and 1 Time They All Did; Teen, 4.9k

What it says, 5 times Steve Rogers ended up in jail (with and without Bucky) + 1 time all of the Avengers got arrested with him.

- the best of you; Teen, 16k

Bucky is on a mission when he gets the call.

They tell him that Steve has been compromised.

[The story wherein Hydra captures Steve to create a new weapon. Bucky, alongside the rest of the Avengers, come together and work through the fallout.]

- pull apart the dark; Teen, 79k

Steve's unending faith in his best friend was beginning to look less like hope and more like fantasy. When they'd caught the Soldier – in a fire fight that still gave Sam nightmares – the only thing the man seemed to recall was how to hit exactly where it hurt.

Four months later, Barnes still refused to speak English. Refused to heed anything but Steve's voice.

So, all in all, it was not a great time for Hydra to attack New York. All in all, Sam really wished they'd just killed him, instead of turning Captain America into a baby.

- Not Another Supersoldier Fantasy; Explicit, 8.9k

Bucky finds a popular sex toy modeled on Captain America's own anatomy. Well, isn't this just perfect? Because even after all this time, he still hasn’t seen Steve’s supersoldier cock. But apparently in this day and age anyone with $29.95 can get a decent replica. The unfairness of this is of galactic proportions.

- the blood of the covenant; Teen, 7.5k

Steve has a "thing" for hot water.

Or, Sam Wilson adopts Steve Rogers.

- Mighty like Love, Mighty like Sorrow; Teen, 19k

After freeing himself from the Russians' mind control, Bucky is left at loose ends, drifting through the decades. Still, he's in no hurry to take up Nick Fury's offer to once again fight the good fight -- especially not when Fury has the nerve to put some imposter in his best friend's old suit and send him out to fight against Chitauri.

- Read Me Like a Book; Gen, 1.5k

In which Bucky accidentally becomes a book collector, because when the universe gives you a million biographies about your boyfriend, you go bookcase shopping. And then he finds out about The Grenade Incident, and the boys actually talk about it like actual adults. (Somewhere, Sam sheds a proud tear.)

- the broadest stroke of color; Gen, 16k

Sarah Rogers always loved Steve's hands.

"Your hands will do a lifetime's work," she'd say. "Remember to do the work you can for those you love."

Almost a century later, Steve does just that.

[The story wherein Steve draws comics for Bucky to help him recover his memory. Through a series of events, the issues are leaked, and Steve finds himself reviving the Captain America comics. He still isn't sure how that happened.]

- If You're Loved By Someone (You're Never Rejected); Teen, 9.4k

You’re fifteen when you realize why you stare at Bucky’s lips more than normal when he laughs and when he says your name. You lean into his shoulder when you walk next to him and when you’re sick you don’t fight off his soft hands. You tease him, he teases back and being around him is so easy you forget what it was like to live without him. You can’t remember life pre-Bucky and it scares you.

- Unusual Weather; Explicit, 8.7k

Bucky’s been at the Avengers Tower for three weeks before he finally gives in to Steve’s gentle coaxing and Stark’s cheerful waving of fistfuls of circuits, and lets them scan the arm.

It doesn��t go well.

- this city bleeds its aching heart; Explicit, 35k

The one where Steve and Bucky pose as a happily married couple while on a mission for SHIELD, to catch an international arms dealer hiding in a suburban neighbourhood.

- Good Boy; Explicit, 13k

Bucky is still adjusting to life with the Avengers, and Steve is willing to do whatever it takes to make him feel comfortable. Increasingly, though, what seems to make him comfortable is strangely intimate.

Surprise, Steve! You're a gentle dom and Bucky wants to be your pretty pet!

- Brooklyn; Teen, 8.8k

"Captain America, what's your stance on gay marriage?"

Everyone knows that, by now. Everyone but Bucky.

[moonlit-mizukage]

Chapter twenty: The Dance

Summary: Y/l/n Y/n, a third year at Sakura High School, is just a girl with a bad attitude towards anyone outside her small circle. When y/n’s younger sister starts first year, she gains a lot of attention. Unfortunately for everyone in school, the Y/l/n household has one rule, No dating till y/n does. Some people become just desperate enough to pay the leader of the “Monsters”, the trouble making group on campus, to date y/n. What will happen when she finds out? (All characters aged up to third year unless otherwise stated)

TW: Swearing, mentions of pregnancy, mentions of abandonment, Oikawa being a complete ass, physical violence, angst 

______________________________________________________________

Third Person Pov 9:30pm 

Oikawa pulled into the y/l/n’s house. He exited his car as he approached the door. He did a quick reflection check and pushed his hair around and fixed his suit. 

“You’re a hottie, you got this, tonight IS the night.” He said to his reflection. He then knocked on the door. At first there was no answer. So he knocked again. He pulled out his phone and tried to call Mei on it, but just to his luck, no response. The door opened but the sisters father was left standing in front of him. 

“Can I help you?” 

“Yes, we met once,” 

“I remember, that teen boy who smells like a teen sex magnet.” He cut Oikawa off. 

“Umm okay… Is Mei home?” He asked, trying to ignore his previous comment on his smell. 

“No and if she was I still would not let her out with you again.” 

“Sir I assure you I am a good guy who just wants to treat her right.” 

“I see your kind everyday in the hospital I work at. The type to get someone pregnant and then run while they are giving birth and never look back.” 

“That is oddly specific, but I must assure you I am not interested in that stuff right n-” Before Oikawa could finish his sentence the door was slammed in his face. 

“Okay wow that was rude.” He said to himself walking down the front steps back to his car. He checked his phone for more time before leaving. Atsumu had sent him an image. Oikawa opened it only to see Mei and Yamaguchi dancing together, holding onto one another even. He felt himself get angry. He tossed his phone aside and pulled out of the driveway heading to the dance. 

At the dance already- Third person pov 

Tendou walked up to the door with his arm entangled with Y/n’s. He seemed to be a little nervous. Nothing anyone could see upon first glance, but definitely something the other monsters were aware of. Tendou swallowed a lump in his throat as they entered inside, to look over the dance floor. 

“Do you wanna dance?” Y/n said louder then she normally would speak to him. 

“Yeah let’s do it babe.” She seemed to not even notice the nerves he was dealing with. 

They made their way down to the dance floor and Tendou did the best he could to Oikawa and his goons at this time. Not seeing Oikawa yet he assumed it was safe for now, but seeing Yamaguchi dancing with Y/n’s younger sister, he could only guess Oikawa would be angry with them and him. Tendou was not afraid of Oikawa in any way, but he was afraid he would tell y/n before he got a chance to tell you himself. 

Just as y/n was laughing and staring up at Tendou with the utmost love, a slow song started to play.  

“I hate slow songs at dances,” She began to say, “They make me feel like I’m the main character of some cheesy ass romance movie.” 

“Well you are.” He said back as she leaned down, resting her head on his shoulder.  

“What do you mean?” She said just loud enough for him to hear.

“You are the main character in my romance story.” Her body stiffened with this remark as he leaned down leaving a kiss on her forehead. “You don’t have to worry, you know me Y/n. You can trust me, I promise.” Just as he was finished saying that the song ended and he saw Oikawa as he rushed through the crowd heading right up to her younger sister. 

Tendou pulled you away, 

“Can we go get some air in the room over there? It’s just a bit hot in here that's all.” Y/n nodded her head in agreement as she followed close behind. She never let go of his hand the whole way there.  

Still on the dance floor, Mei and Yamaguchi were having a wonderful time. Oikawa grabbed Yamaguchi harshly as he ripped him apart from Mei. 

“What the fuck Mei!” He shouted. People around them moved back to either give more space or witness the drama unfold. 

“Oikawa go away! I am not interested in you anymore!” 

“Did your bitch sister tell you more lies about me?” He asked as she reached up and slapped him as hard as she could. 

“YOU BITCH!” He shouted as Yamaguchi pushed her behind him. Tsukishima and Shirabu showed up in perfect time to stand next to Yamaguchi, knowing how intimidated Oikawa would become. He looked Mei directly in the eyes and yelled, 

“That's fine. You were an expensive whore anyways. You weren't worth my time or money. Have fun being a nobody the rest of your life bitch.” Before anyone knew what was happening, Yamaguchi threw a fist and connected it directly to Oikawa’s face. “What th FUCK!” He said as he tossed a punch right back into Yamaguchi’s stomach, knocking him onto the cold floor. 

“You dick!” Mei said. She then punched Oikawa hard in the eye. “That’s for Yamaguchi,” She then punched him again. “That’s for y/n.” Next she grabbed his shoulders and pulled him in a hunched over position, kneeing him in the balls, “And that’s for me asshole!” On that note he fell to the floor. Atsumu and Iwaizuimi came and helped him up and after a minute he was fine. He got the two guys to follow him on the hunt for Tendou. 

In the other room of the dance, Y/n and Tendou were doing your own thing and having a great time. The two of you laughed as you rested on the railing that looked down on the floor below. 

Oikawa entered the room, his two goons as Tendou called them, following right on his trail. He noticed the two about to kiss as he then spoke up. 

“What the absolute fuck Tendou!” 

“Who the hell do you think you are talking to?” Tendou said back, already in front of you as to protect you.  

“I didn’t pay you to take out this psycho bitch for her whore sister to come with someone else.” Y/n’s head snapped into Oikawa’s direction. 

“Fuck off Oikawa.” He said, noticeably angry at that point. 

“What the fuck does he mean pay you?” Y/n asked Tendou. 

“Oh you didn’t think this was real did you Y/n? You really think anyone would willingly go out with you without being paid did you?” Oikawa asked with full intent to hurt coming through his words adding a conniving laugh to the end of his words. 

“He’s lying right Satori?” You asked, voice on the verge of being broken then. 

“I-” Tendou stuttered, he took a deep breath before he carried on.”I wanted to tell you sooner, I really did Y/n.” 

“So it’s true?” She no longer attempted to hide her tears in that moment. She turned to run away as Tendou grabbed her wrist. 

“Please, let me explain first?” He asked her. 

“Go to hell Satori!” She said as she ripped her arm from him and ran down the stairs. 

Tendou turned to the three guys who had just remained still in front of him. 

“You three have just made some powerful enemies.” Tendou stated as he pulled out his phone. The other three fled as they knew the Monsters were now on their way there. 

As for y/n, she called Shirabu who had grabbed the other and took her home in Tsukishima’s car. They all sat around y/n’s room after they had just changed from their fancy clothes. Y/n sat in the windowcell, with her head rested upon the glass. She looked out upon the moonlight wondering how such a thing could come to be. 

Y/n felt a buzz on her phone as she picked it up. She didn’t recognize the number but the message read;

I know I messed up but I just want to talk to you, please.

________________________________________________________________

Previous | Masterlist | Next

An: I have been honestly so excited to write this part and the ones after for some time now UwU 

Taglist: @belongtothewcrld​ @elianetsantana @its-the-aerieljeane @london-quynh @vhskenma @denkithunder @swagdaddycam @ems1des @tendouispretty @senpaisbadass @elephantloser @smolbbgorl @mikeys-thighs @kuroolilchibichan @softesyoongi​ @ouijaeater15​ @xxsilverwingxx @prettyinblack231 @kookie-doughs  @mikesdeath @bruh-kill-me @skeet-skeet-double-fckn-yeet @d0llpie @0-hysteria-0 @katsumi-sumi @rintarawr​ @sirachano0dles  @satan-ruler-of-hells @himboos @maer-333 @pastel-prynce @tanakasimpcorner​ @atria-avior

[prettyyoungandbored]

Becoming Mrs. Wayne [The Dark Knight] Seven

Pairing: Christian Bale!Bruce Wayne x OC

Summary: Demetria Gallagher knew her cozy life would change the second she became engaged to Bruce Wayne. But what she doesn’t know is she’s getting more than what she agreed to. (I am trash at summaries.)

Warning: This chapter contains description of a heavy panic attack. Please read at your own risk.

Taglist: dragonballluver, disgraceful-marvel-trash, barikawho (Let me know if you want to be tagged in this!)

Author’s Note: A chunk of dialogue in this chapter comes from the movie and has been expanded on to fit the storyline. 

Previous

“And when exactly is your mother planning to visit us?” Monsignor O’Malley inquired as he followed Demetria. 

Demetria snapped a photo of the hallway before looking over her shoulder. “Most likely next month. Once I send her the photos , she’ll work on drafts and whenever she comes, we can all sit down and discuss how to go about the process.” She snapped her fingers. “You know what, I have her business card with me because she sometimes does work in Gotham City.” 

She pulled out her wallet from her purse and handed Monsignor O���Malley the thing off white card. “She’ll be happy to answer any of your questions and or concerns.” 

He smiled as he took the card. “This is awfully generous of you, Ms. Gallagher. We can’t tell you how grateful we are.” 

“It’s the least I can do,” she waved her hand. “Both Bruce and I want to make sure you, the sisters, and the boys are taken care of with whatever you need.” She paused. “How are the boys doing?” 

“They’re wonderful.” 

“Oh good! I was actually wondering if I could go say ‘hi’ or-.” 

“Unfortunately the boys are on a field trip with the sisters.”

Demetria nodded understandingly, trying to hide her disappointment. “Absolutely.” Then an idea hit her. “Do the nuns teach the boys?” 

“Some do. We’ve been thinking about incorporating more schooling into the boys schedules, but we’re a little short staffed and not all the nuns feel comfortable teaching certain subjects.” 

“I’d love to step in,” Demetria offered. 

Monsignor O’Malley raised an eyebrow. “Oh? What is it you would teach?” 

“I’m excellent at English. All levels. I was a TA my senior year of high school. I even minored in it in college.” 

Monsignor O’Malley nodded his head, impressed. “Well, if it doesn’t interfere with your schedule-.” 

“I don’t have one,” she laughed. 

He chuckled. “Then I suppose it’s something we can try out. Are you free next week?”

Her eyes lit up. “Absolutely!’ I would love that!”

Before she could say more, the sound of her phone ringing cut her off. She gave Monsignor O’Malley an apologetic smile as she dug into her bag. “Excuse me one second.” 

She glanced down to see it was a reminder that she had to start getting ready for the fundraiser. 

“Please excuse me, but I’ve got to head out,” Demetria said. “Remember, if you have any questions, you have my number as well as my mom’s.” 

“Of course. I also look forward to discussing you working here.” 

“I do as well.” 

The two shook hands and Demetria headed out of the orphanage.

She had taken Bruce’s Cadillac XLR, seeing as it was the only semi-low-key-looking car he owned and the only one she didn’t get anxious driving. She wished he had owned something a little less glamorous for trips like this, hating how it made her look, but it was what it was.

As she she opened the driver’s side door, she noticed a photographer snapping her from the distance. The two stared at each for a moment, acknowledging just what was going on. She exhaled softly, mentally reminding herself to keep it together.

Since her essay was published, the media outlets had backed off a bit. The Gotham Times were still insistent of doing a piece on her and published one on her, but it turned out to be a dud as no one close to her would speak to them with the exception of her former News Director and the Head Booker, her other boss. It also helped that a local mob boss was mysteriously killed and the news decided to fixate on that. 

She gave him a quick, tired smile before she slid inside and closed the door, driving off.

===================================================

Back at the Wayne Penthouse, Bruce adjusted the cuffs of his pristine white dress shirt as he made his way down the stairs. 

Alfred wrapped up his conversation with the party planners and turned his attention to Bruce. 

“I think your fundraiser will be a great success,” Alfred remarked. 

“Why do you think I want to hold a party for Harvey Dent?” Bruce questioned, almost annoyed at the thought of it. 

“I assumed it was your usual reason for socializing beyond myself and the scum of Gotham’s underbelly to try to impress Miss Gallagher.” 

“Very droll, very wrong,” Bruce responded, glancing up for a brief moment. 

Alfred looked over his shoulder for a moment, noticing the party planners were not in the room. “Have you considered telling Miss Gallagher what it is you’re doing at night?” Alfred inquired in a voice low enough for Bruce to hear him. 

Bruce glanced up. It wasn’t the first time this conversation came up between the two. “Soon.” 

“Before or after you say ‘I do’?” 

“When the time is right.” 

“Perhaps she should truly know what she’s getting herself into.” 

Bruce stopped in his tracks. “What are you implying, Alfred?” 

“Miss Gallagher has given you every ounce of herself.” 

“Who says I-.” 

Bruce’s attention was caught by the low sound of the television. He looked over to find GCN airing what appeared to be a figure of Batman, hanging with a rope around it’s neck on a building.  The lower third read “BATMAN DEAD?”

Demetria walked down the stairs and into the living room, tightening the belt on her cozy white bathrobe when she saw Bruce and Alfred staring at the tv. Curious, her eyes darted to the tv when she saw the lower third. 

Her blood ran cold with disbelief and shock, heart dropping into her stomach. 

The camera cut back to GCN anchor, Mike Engel. 

“Be aware, the image is disturbing,” he warned. 

The camera then cut to a man dressed in a cheap Batman getup, his plump cheeks spilling out of the cowl. He was sat on the floor of what looked like the back kitchen area of a butcher shop with a silver cart and a large pieces of animal meat hanging behind the victim. He had his hands tied behind them, his face lowered to the game. 

“Tell them your name,” the camera man said in a menacing, sing-song voice. 

“Brian Douglas,” the fake Batman answered weakly.

“Are you the real Batman?” There was a childish, teasing tone in the voice behind the camera to a point where it was menacing. It was almost as if whoever it was took immense pleasure in this man’s torture. 

“No.” Brian was barely hanging on. 

“No?” the voice repeated back, almost in a whine to mimic Brian’s pain. 

“No.”

“No?” The voice giggled. An arm reached over and pulled the cowl off Brian. “Then why do you dress up like him?” The camera pulled back, the arm dangling the cowl in front of Brian. The voice laughed a stomach curdling “Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!”

“Because he’s a symbol...that we don't have to be afraid of scum like you,” Brian retorted with a slight bit of courage in his weak tone. 

“Yeah. You do, Brian.” The hand grabbed the side of Brian’s face, the camera coming in close. “You really do.”

The hand pulled the top of Brian’s head as the man whimpered. The hand turned back and stroked Brian’s cheek. “Oh, shh shh shh.” 

Demetria shook her head, her stomach growing weak. Bruce’s eyes fixated on the TV, his expression stone cold with eyes colored in disbelief. 

“So,” the voice continued on, “you think the Batman's helped Gotham? Hmm?”

Brian didn’t respond. 

“LOOK AT ME!” 

The roaring voice caused Demetria to jump back, her hand slapping on her mouth. 

The camera swung around to reveal the person behind the voice, the sight causing Demetria to yelp, “Jesus Christ!” 

The red smeared smile was complimented by his chalk-white foundation and accentuated the long scars on the sides of his face. Two lazily painted black eyeshadow covered his eyes and he revealed his dark yellow teeth. 

“You see, this is how crazy Batman's made Gotham. You want order in Gotham, Batman must take off his mask, and turn himself in.”

It was something behind the clown that Demetria recognized. A memory popped up in her mind, her jaw dropping at the realization. 

“Oh, and everyday he doesn’t, people will die. Starting tonight. I’m a man of my word.”

As the camera switched around, the man let out a menacing cackle as Brian screamed in the background. Demetria, overcome with her realization and the man’s grim promise, hurried up the stairs, Bruce and Alfred watching her. Bruce turned off the television and glanced at Alfred who shot him a look. He gave the old man a nod, indicating the message was received.

In their bedroom, Demetria grabbed a notebook from her nightstand as well as a pen. She began writing hurriedly, her cursive handwriting slightly smudged from the pen. Upon finishing, she ripped the page from her notebook and folded it. She reached back into the drawer, grabbing an empty envelope and shoving the folded paper in there. She licked the envelope, sealing tightly with her fingers and placed it back into the drawer. 

Just as she went to close the drawer, she heard the door unlock and grabbed her anti-anxiety meds.

Bruce entered the room.

“Everything ok?” he asked, gentle concern laced in his tone.

She waved her hand. “Yeah, yeah. Just that video was, uh, pretty overwhelming to watch. I’ll be fine in a few minutes.” 

He eyed the pilll bottle in her hand. “You know you should probably put that in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom.”

She chuckled. “You’re right. I’m just used to putting them in nightstand drawer. But considering we’re having a bunch of random people over, I guess you’re right.” She paused, a smirk playing on her lips. “Should I leave some viagra in a little bowl for our older guests trying to impress their much younger dates?”

He sat beside her on the bed, smirking at her. “I don’t have any because I don’t need it.”

She hummed, patting his leg. “I wouldn’t say that.”

He pulled her close, his breath hitting her lips. “Not funny.” 

“Oh, but it is. It really is.”

She gave him a chaste kiss, nuzzling her nose against his. “You think maybe we should cancel this party? I mean, I don’t think it’s safe.” 

“We’re going to be fine,” Bruce reassured. 

She sighed, realizing there was no point in changing his mind. “Then I guess I better continue getting ready.” 

He chuckled. “Well, don’t get too excited, sweetheart.” 

“It’s just...” she stepped back, “I don’t know.” Her fingers toyed the robed belt. “I figured you’d cancel the party and we could spend the night in here...” She continued to move back toward the bathroom area, throwing off the robe to reveal her naked body to him. “And I’d let you do whatever you want to me. But since you won’t cancel it...” She shrugged. “Oh well.” 

Bruce could feel his pants grow a little tight and he was ready to have her pay the price. His hungry eyes stayed on her, like a lion ready to pounce on it’s prey. “You get back here. Right. Now.” 

She shook her head. “I have to get ready.” She pointed to the tent in his pants. “I suggest you take care of that situation before you leave this room.” 

She grabbed the robe from the floor and closed the door behind her, locking it so Bruce wouldn’t try anything. 

She exhaled and ran a hand through her damp hair. She wasn’t sure how long this party would last, but she had to make sure Batman got her letter. 

==================================================

Bruce waited outside near the helicopter landing pad, his hands in his pockets. He watched as the navy blue sky took over the sunset, but once he turned his head, his breath was taken away by an even more beautiful sight. 

Demetria walked out on to the helicopter landing pad, her black hair in an updo with long, curled strands of hair framing her face. Her navy blue gown was strapless with a subtle reverse sweetheart neckline, and hugged her small curves just right before flowing out on to the floor.  Her makeup stayed on the subtle side with her eyeliner and mascara accentuating her warm, emerald green eyes and her Goldilocks lips were the perfect shade of pink. 

“Is it too much?” she asked, stopping in her tracks. She put a hand on her stomach, feeling the knot inside tightening. Her face fell into a panic. “Oh shit, it is, isn’t it?” 

He shook his head, his thumb grazing her cheek as he smiled at her adoringly. “You look incredible, sweetheart.”

Color filled her cheeks as her pink lips curved into a bashful smile. “You don’t look so bad yourself, Wayne.” 

His lips gently crashed on to hers as he cradled the side of her face. For a moment, as they relished in their kiss, the world was still and time froze. Neither of them could remember the last time they shared such a moment, but they truly savored it while they still could. 

Bruce pulled back, resting his forehead against hers, his lips hovering over hers. “For the record, you still owe me from before.” 

She hummed against his lips. “I’ll take it into consideration.” 

He smirked at her. “You’re lucky I like you. C’mon, let’s go.”

He took her hand in his, leading her onto the helicopter. The pilot helped her up first, Bruce following right after. As the two sat in the back, Demetria turned to him.  “What’s the point of doing this again?”  

He took her hand once again. “Grand entrances are fun. Plus, wait til’ you see the view from above.” 

He felt her latch on to his arm as the sound of the choppers roared in. Soon enough, the helicopter began rising, the weight of the ground lifting. As it took off into Gotham City, Demetria watched the twinkling city below her.

As childish as it seemed, Demetria felt like Jasmine did on that magic carpet with Aladdin. Seeing Gotham from a bird’s eye view, the city looked beautiful and peaceful. 

Bruce relished in watching his fiancé’s amazement, hoping he could make her feel this way for the rest of their lives. 

She looked over at him. “You were right. This is incredible.” 

She scooted closer to him, leaning back on his shoulder as she continued to look out the window. Bruce pressed a kiss to her temple, reaching his hand over to hers on her lap, clasping them. 

Both stayed in the moment, wishing they could stay like this forever. 

But once the helicopter scoured every inch part of Gotham, it was time to descend back onto the landing pad. 

Bruce helped Demetria off the helicopter. Her eyes shifted to the once empty ballroom which was now filled with a large crowd inside staring at her. Her chest grew heavy, palms sweating.

“They’re staring at us,” she told Bruce. 

He took her hand. “They see how you beautiful you look”. He gave it squeeze. “Remember, I’ve got you.” 

She nodded and exhaled softly as the two made their way inside. 

She followed him as the door opened to the gala room. All eyes stayed on them. She flashed a closed mouth smile at partygoers until her eyes met Harvey’s. It wasn’t until his familiar, warm smile that hers became more genuine and honest. 

“Sorry we’re late,” Bruce announced. “Glad you started without us!” He let go of Demetria’s hand, clapping his together. “Where's Rachel?!”

Demetria eye’s turned to Rachel, who cringed slightly. 

Bruce motioned to her. “Rachel Dawes- my oldest friend. When she told me she was dating Harvey Dent, I had one thing to say... ‘the guy from those god-awful campaign commercials? 'I Believe in Harvey Dent?' Nice slogan, Harvey.” 

As the crowd chuckled, Demetria’s smile faltered even more. She was thrown off by the Bruce that was speaking. It was like the second his hand left hers, he’d become another man. He’d become like everyone else in the crowd - pompous and slightly arrogance.

He’s putting on a show for them, she thought to herself. This is not the real him.

“Certainly caught Rachel's attention,” Bruce went on. “But then I started paying attention to Harvey, and all he's been doing as our new D.A., and you know what? I believe in Harvey Dent. On his watch, Gotham can feel a little safer. A little more optimistic. But what he’s done for Gotham isn’t just the only good thing Harvey Dent has done.”

He then shifted his tone and his gaze, now looking at Demetria who’s heart dropped to her stomach. 

“Harvey convinced his good friend from college, Demetria Gallagher, to move to Gotham,” Bruce continued, smiling at her. “It’s because of Harvey and Rachel that I was introduced to the love of my life.” 

The crowd let out a collective “aw” as Demetria gave him a small smile.

“I spent years thinking I’d never find the ‘one’.” He turned back to the crowd. “I figured if I’m never gonna find her, why not have some fun? And I did.”

The crowd laughed. Demetria rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

“Then I ran into Rachel having a lunch with this beautiful woman and I couldn’t help myself. I asked her three times to have dinner with me.” Bruce shifted his attention to Demetria, taking her hand in his. “While I will never know who or what convinced you to say ‘yes’, all I know is that from the moment I left that dinner, I knew this witty, kind, beautiful woman was who I was going to spend the rest of my life with. Demetria, to say you are my heart and my soul is simply not enough. There will never be enough words or adjectives or uses of symbolism to describe how much you mean to me and how happy you make me. I love you more than anything.”

The crowd, once again, “awed” as he pecked Demetria’s cheek. He then grabbed two glasses of champagne off the server’s tray, handing one to Demetria. He then  turned back to the crowd, raising his glass. “To-.” 

“I just want to say something really quickly,” Demetria spoke up, putting a hand on Bruce’s shoulder. “If that’s, ok?”

Bruce smiled, her sudden burst of confidence bringing him pride. “By all means.”

She turned to the crowd. “You all know Harvey as your DA, but I know him as  my confidant, my greatest friend, and above all, my family. He’s also my get out of jail free card, but that’s neither here nor there.”

Everyone laughed as Harvey shook his head. Demetria turned to her best friend, her smile fading a bit. 

“Harvey, you’re selflessness and dedication to making Gotham City a safer one for its citizens is not just admirable, but also inspirational. You fight for the voiceless, the scared, and for those who want to make their home a better place. You’re one of the reasons Gotham has a brighter future.”

“So get out your checkbooks and let's make sure that he stays right where all of Gotham wants him,” Bruce toasted. “All except Gotham's criminals, of course. To the face of Gotham's bright future- Harvey Dent.” 

Everyone toasted and took a sip of their champagne.

As the crowd went back to their party, Bruce turned to Demetria.

“I’m going to go outside for a bit,” he told her, pecking her cheek. “Make yourself comfortable.” 

She opened her mouth to protest but it was too late - he’d wandered off. She sighed, wondering how he could he just leave her to fend for herself at their first gala together. She took a sip of her champagne, giving up and giving in to the situation at hand.  

“You’re a very lucky woman,” an elderly woman marveled. “And quite adorable. I bet Martha would’ve loved you.”

“Thank you, that’s so kind,” Demetria remarked. “Were you a friend of hers?”

“We were both on the chair for many charities. Such a wonderful woman. If you’re interested, I would love to bring you aboard some of them and get you acquainted.”

“I would love that! I’m actually working with the boy’s home and helping them with renovations and whatnot.”

“How wonderful!”

“I’ve also expressed interest in helping them with schooling and whatnot.” 

The gleam in the woman’s eyes softened. “Oh...really, now?” 

“Yeah, I would love to do some teaching.” 

“She’s going to do a fantastic job,” Harvey remarked, chiming in. He threw his hand around Demetria’s shoulders. “Those kids are going to be well looked after thanks to her.”

“I don’t doubt that,” the woman agreed before walking off. 

Demetria turned to Harvey. “I think she realized I wasn’t one of them.” 

“Who cares?” he shrugged. “But forgetting that, you’re seriously going to become a teacher?” 

“I brought it up to Monsignor O’Malley about the possibility of teaching English. Besides, it would give me something to do that I actually like. You know, talking to them about novels and what it means to express yourself in your writing.” 

“That’s fantastic!” Harvey remarked. “You would be perfect for that.” 

“I hope so. How are you handling this...whatever it is?” 

He sighed. “I’m...just here. How about you?” 

“I wanna go into my bedroom and go under the covers and wait til’ everyone leaves.” 

“Well for what it’s worth, you look beautiful tonight.” 

“I’m working with what I’ve got.”

“Bruce is very lucky.”

“Yeah, he should be. But he decided to give up on the party.” 

Harvey furrowed his eyebrows as Demetria motioned her head to the outside. He then turned his head, the two watching Bruce and Rachel engage in what appeared to be an intense conversation. 

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Demetria wondered aloud. 

He quickly glanced over and took a look sip of his champagne. “Probably nothing.”

Her lips curved into a smirk as she eyed Harvey. “Don’t be jealous.”

“I’m not.”

“You’re getting defensive.”

“And you’re annoying me.”

“After that heartfelt speech I gave, that’s the thanks I get?” 

“It was alright.” 

She punched him in the shoulder, causing him to cringe. “Asshole. I gave a beautiful speech.”

He rubbed his shoulder. “Well, hopefully it will be just a nice ad one you’ll give at my wedding.” 

Her eyes widened. “Shut the fuck up. You proposed to Rachel?” 

“Not yet. I’m planning to.” 

Her mouth hung open as she leaned in close. “Holy shit, dude! When?!” 

“Well first there are some things I gotta-.”

“So you two are friends, yes?” another female guest inquired, cutting him off. Her arm was linked with a man who looked at least 20 years older than she did.

Harvey and Demetria turned to her. “We most certainly are,” Demetria agreed, pinching his cheek. 

“So how long ago did you two date?” one man remarked, chuckling. 

Harvey and Demetria’s eyes went wide.

“We never have,” Harvey answered.

The man elbowed Harvey, laughing. “Aw, c’mon son. It’s alright.” 

“He’s basically my brother,” Demetria said. 

The man shook his head as he and his concerned date turned away. Demetria and Harvey turned to each other.

“Oh my god these people suck,” she giggled to Harvey. “At least they’ll fund you.”

“Yeah, I could give a shit,” he retorted. 

“Mind if I steal him for a bit?” Rachel asked, chiming in. 

“By all means,” Demetria motioned. 

Harvey and Rachel went off when Demetria  noticed Bruce still standing outside. She made her way out.

“Doing ok there?”

Bruce turned to her, smiling. “So far, so good.” 

“I love you but you’re not the best liar,” she chuckled, her fingers gently combing his hair. “Babe, if you want to leave, say the word and we’ll sneak out. We can go anywhere.” 

“Tempting,” he remarked, smirking. “Where do you propose we go?” 

She cocked her head back, shoulders shrugging. “Anywhere. We could literally get in a car and go anywhere we want.” She paused. “Anywhere you want.” 

Bruce’s body turned to face her, giving her his full undivided attention. She set her glass down on the railing. 

“While I think it’s sweet that you threw this for Harvey, I don’t want to be alone in a room with people I don’t know let alone give a shit about. I would rather be with you in the middle of nowhere where we don’t have to pretend we’re people that we’re not.”

His smile faltered, his eyes going to the ground. Demeteria shoulders tightened, fear creeping into her now uneasy stomach.

“What’s the matter?” she asked.

“There’s something I have to tell you.”

She tried to swallow the lump in her throat. “What did I do?” 

He shook his head. “No, you did nothing wrong. It’s...” He sighed. “I never want to keep anything from you.” 

“What have you been keeping from me?” she questioned, her voice low 

He scanned the area as well as the inside of the ballroom. Realizing he wasn’t the safest, let alone most secure place, he leaned closer toward her. “I’ll go in the bedroom and grab a couple things. Go tell Alfred we’re heading out. We’ll meet at the elevator, alright?” 

“Bruce-.” 

He kissed her cheek and made his way inside. Bruce pushed through the crowd, fielding attempts of conversation from partygoers. She threw her hands up in defeat as an annoyed exhale left her mouth. 

“At least we’re leaving,” she muttered under her breath.

========================================================

In their bedroom, Bruce grabbed a set of keys for one of the cars from his safe in their closet. Realizing it was probably best to bring her anxiety med, he went into the medicine cabinet only to find it wasn’t there. 

He then remembered her saying she always kept it in the drawer in her nightside table. 

Figuring she put it back, he went over to it and opened the drawer and there it was. When he pulled it out, he noticed an envelope underneath with ‘For Batman’ written on it. 

He quickly glanced back at the door to make sure the door was closed. He then set down the bag and opened the envelope to find a handwritten letter.

My Night Friend ,

There’s something you need to know about that viral video of the copycat. 

I recognize the kitchen in the video. It’s the Fatted Calf on East 28th. A guy I briefly saw in college worked there and I hung out with him in the kitchen while he was closing up the shop. 

What people don’t know is that there’s a secret room. The guy told me the owner had it made to be used as a bomb shelter back in the day. It’s located right beside the freezer. If you can get into the boss’ office, there’s a special key inside a safe that can open the door. The Joker may be taking shelter in there. 

Take what you will with this information. I hope it serves you well.

Sincerely,

Your Rooftop Friend 

Bruce’s couldn’t believe what he was reading. His fiancé, the love of his life, was helping the Batman. The severity of the situation as well as time the huge piece of information made him realize he needed to get both of them out of the penthouse and into the Batcave. He could explain everything to her there. 

Shoving the letter into the bag, he zipped it up and made his way to the door when something on the security camera screen made him stop. 

It was The Joker followed by some henchmen. 

He threw the bag in the closet hurriedly, closing the door, and made his way to the party. Seeing Harvey Dent close by talking to Rachel, he figured he’d had enough time to get Harvey to safety and then grab Demetria. 

He came up behind Harvey, putting Harvey in a headlock as Rachel’s eyes widened in fear. 

“What the hell are you doing?!” she exclaimed. 

“They’re coming for him,” Bruce said, using his Batman voice. “Go grab her and get yourselves to safety.”

========================================================

Demetria spotted Alfred near the wall area. She made her way over, catching the old man’s attention. 

“There you Miss Gallagher,” he greeted. “Are you having fun?”

“I feel like a zoo animal. I’ve had more people stare at me than actually talk to me. Anyway, Bruce and I are heading out.” 

Alfred chuckled. “You and Master Wayne are a truly perfect fit.” 

She eyed the room before leaning closer toward Alfred. “Alfred, he said he had something he’d been meaning to tell me. Any idea what it could be?” 

Just then, the sound of a single gunshot silence the room. Everyone turned, including Demetria and Alfred, to see The Joker, the man from the video, enter the ballroom with his posse of men behind him wearing clown masks. 

“Good evening ladies and gentlemen,” he greeted in a sing-song voice. 

His posse pointed guns at the crowd, a silent order to step back. The crowd formed a circle around The Joker. 

Alfred, who was a few rows behind the crowd, stood in front of Demetria. 

“Stay behind me,” he whispered to her. 

She watched from behind his shoulder. 

The sound of tray hitting the ground, broke the silence. The Joker looked back for a moment before turning back to the crowd. 

“We are...tonight’s entertainment.” He grabbed a piece of shrimp from a table, stuffing it into his mouth. He looked around. “Only one question - where is Harvey Dent?”

He eyed around, pointing the gun at a group of women before ripping one of their glasses of champagne from their hands and taking a swig of it. He set back on the table and began questioning those he passed, occasionally grabbing at them. 

“You know where Harvey is? Do you know who he is?”

He squeezed one guy’s cheek. “Do you know where Harvey is? I need to talk to him about something. Something little.” 

He went up to an old white man. “You know I’ll settle for his loved ones.” 

Meanwhile, Demetria felt someone grab her hand. She turned to find Rachel. 

“We need to get you out of here,” Rachel whispered. 

Demetria went to follow Rachel when she felt someone grab her hand. 

“Where the hell do you think you’re going, sweetcheeks?” one of the masked men retorted. 

He grabbed Demetria, despite her attempts to break free. Her heart rate quickened, stomach growing weak as the man pushed her in front of the crowd. 

“Hey boss!” He called out. “It’s her!”

The Joker turned to her, his fixation on her making her blood run cold. She stood frozen and helpless. He got into her face. “So this is the future Mrs. Wayne. You’re also Harvey Dent’s best friend.” 

He grabbed Demetria’s face, cradling it forcefully. 

“Harvey is your best friend, isn’t he? Your buddy ol pal?” He let out a vicious cackle. “Possibly an old lover? An unrequited love? Either way, you’re somewhat of an asset to him.”

She moved her eyes, looking around as the crowd watched her in fear.

“C'mere, look at me.” 

She whimpered, closing her eyes. 

He tightened his grip on her hair “LOOK AT ME!” 

She yelped, opening her eyes as tears filled to the brim.

“Please,” she begged, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Oh shh, shh, shh,” he hushed her teasingly. “Well you look upset.” He asked, pointing to scars on his mouth with his knife. “Is it these? Is it the scars? You wanna know how I got ‘em?”

She didn’t have time to answer, at least he didn’t bother to give her a chance to. She went to move her head when he grabbed her again. “Hey, look at me.”

She stopped moving, her eyes on him. “So, I had a wife, who was beautiful...like you, who tells me I worry too much, who tells me I oughta smile more, who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks.” 

She squirmed when The Joker pulled her back. “One day they carve her face. And we got no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again. Hmm? I just wanted to let her know that I don't care about the scars. So, I stick a razor in my mouth and do this to myself. ”

She squeaked, frightened as he put the knife to his scars. 

“And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves! Now I see the funny side. Now, I'm always smiling!” 

He pulled her back, took the knife, and slashed her forearm, the sharp stinging, sensation causing her to let out a blood curdling scream.  She collapsed onto the ground, blood spilling down her arm and onto the marble floor. 

Demetria couldn’t move, her body frozen, mind unable to process what had just happened. She opened her mouth to speak, her chest stinging in pain and her head growing lightheaded as the Joker stepped on her bleeding arm.

“Please help me,” she begged in between her hyperventilating. “Please...I’m...I can’t...help!”

“Why doesn’t Harvey Dent come save his best friend?!” The Joker called out.

“Let her go!”

Rachel made her way. The Joker stomped on Demetria’s arm one last time.

Alfred rushed to her side. “Deep breaths, Miss,” he whispered. “Deep breaths.” 

“Alfred...I’m gonna....don’t let me...” 

“You’re going to be alright.” 

“Step back!” one of the masked henchman ordered, pointing a gun at Alfred. 

Alfred held up his hands stepping back from Demetria. The henchman walked away as Demetria continued to hyperventilate. 

She was going to die in front of everyone. Her vision became blurry, her breath uncontrollable. She watched in what she thought would be her final moments Batman attack The Joker. 

In and out of blackness, she heard glass shatter followed by footsteps. 

Tears strolled down her face as she struggled to breathe, trying to hold on to whatever breath she had left, her body shivering. Alfred rushed to her once again.

“Don’t just stand there!” he cried out. “Someone call a bloody ambulance!” 

He gave Demetria his hand, which she held onto tightly. 

“Stay with me,” he told her. “Stay with me.” 

But she wasn’t sure how long she could last. Between the chest pains and the pains from her wound and the light-headedness, she was barely holding on. 

How badly she wanted to see Bruce....and how could he leave her like this?

__________________________________________________________________

Dress: 

Hair/Makeup:

[margoslxix]

Incoming mini-essay/rant on Little Shop of Horrors because I can't stop thinking about the movie and the musical and the different endings and all of that. I'm on mobile, or I'd put it under a cut.

Anyway, I keep thinking about how the ending of the musical was also originally the ending of the movie, and the fact that test audiences hated it, they were upset and felt cheated by it. And most people either basically chalk it up to "people who watch movies are too unsophisticated to appreciate unhappy endings" which... ugh, no; OR the more widely-accepted theory, "this isn't a play, so there's no curtain call, no assurance the actors are alright, they've simply been taken away and audiences feel that's unfair" which... what? Are we assuming that these people do not understand the concept of acting and can't handle character death?

No, I don't think that's the case at all.

For years, I struggled with the movie's ending. I thought it was silly, too predictable, a neat little Hollywood bow on a Faustian tale. But then, the last time I watched the movie, I completely changed my mind. I actually think I understand exactly what those test audiences saw that they didn't like.

Okay, bear with me.

I think that most of the test audience hadn't seen the musical. That's... probably obvious. What they had seen, though, was the whole beginning and middle of the movie which, being a movie, made some minor changes that changed everything.

Here's what I mean:

In the musical, Audrey II can barely move. The puppet is usually cool, but generally, you get full jaw motion and maybe a couple floppy tentacles. In the movie, however, they're this gorgeous Henson Workshop puppet, with an absolutely ridiculous amount of articulation that just wouldn't be feasible on stage. This leads to three huge changes:

1. There is no need for Seymour to trick Mushnik into climbing inside the plant. In the musical, we see Seymour calculate the most effective way to get rid of Mushnik, calmly telling him that the money is hidden deep inside the plant, easily cleaning up the loose end of Mushnik's suspicions. It's cold, it's premeditated, it's the first actual kill Seymour makes (we'll get to Orin later). In the movie, however, Rick Moranis is panicking as Mushnik accuses him, unable to get a word in edgewise as the accusations come between lines of the Suppertime song. They head up the stairs, and Audrey II easily snaps Mushnik up. Rick Moranis looks on, horrified, not necessarily consciously cornering him against the plant. It takes the agency, the premeditation, the decision to kill out of Seymour's hands.

2. In the musical, Audrey simply comes to the shop because she couldn't sleep. She senses that something's wrong with Seymour, that he's been acting erratically, and she comes to check on him. Audrey II takes advantage of this and tricks her into falling into their mouth, ultimately leading to her death. In the movie, however, this bit of contrivance isn't necessary, and we don't see this thought process for Audrey. Audrey II directly manipulates the situation, calling Audrey on the phone to goad her into coming to the shop where they can easily grab and eat her. If the ending had stayed the same, this would have ended much the same way as in the musical, but with more manipulation by Audrey II and less concern for Seymour on Audrey's part.

3. Even with the originally-filmed Bad End, "Mean Green Mother" was an entirely new song and sequence added to the movie. It's a great showcase for both the beautiful Audrey II puppet and the singing talents of the legendary Levi Stubbs, who honestly would have been wasted without a big solo number. This is a thrilling, fully-choreographed fight scene that wouldn't have worked at all on stage, but it pits Seymour against Audrey II, and we watch Seymour's sad, hopeless attempts to destroy the creature he's created. We see him struggle and fight, not quite at the bottom of a downward spiral, but finally reckoning with the creature who's been manipulating him all this time.

Even aside from Audrey II's increased physical power and aggression, there are changes to the story. Like most movie musicals, several songs have been truncated or cut completely for time, and some of these are absolutely crucial to Seymour's fall as a tragic hero

First, there's "Now (It's Just the Gas)." In the musical, this represents Seymour being unable to kill Orin, but realizing that he doesn't have to, as he is about to asphyxiate. The whole musical number features an increasingly desperate Orin begging for his life, and Seymour responding with a sort of patter song about moral dilemmas. Orin is unaware that Seymour is trying to kill him, and does not stop begging for help.

It's the first time we really get to see Seymour calculate, see his lack of empathy (not that Orin necessarily deserved it, but still). It's the beginning of the end.

In the movie, the song is replaced with a scene in which Seymour confronts Orin more directly. Rick Moranis is clearly terrified the entire time, hand and gun shaking. Orin gets the chance to ask why he's doing this, and Seymour gets the chance to tell Orin exactly what he's done wrong, reminding the audience as well that this man is a villain, and that his death is justice. He asphxiates quickly and quietly, and Seymour barely has any time to think or process what's happening.

The other most important changed song is "The Meek Shall Inherit." It's long in the musical, and Seymour gets a soliloquy about his situation. At first, he resolves to kill Audrey II, only to talk himself out of it. He clearly states that what he's doing is wrong, he knows it's wrong, but he sees himself as so worthless that Audrey will no longer love him if he destroys the one thing bringing him wealth and fame. He then immediately, very clearly, asks "where do I sign," metaphorically sealing his Faustian bargain.

Movie Seymour does no such thing. The song has been shortened to a single chorus, sung at a frenzied pace compared to the musical's version, set to a rapid montauge of a distressed, confused, lost-looking Rick Moranis being herded around to various events and crowded by reporters. He barely looks like he gets any say whatsoever in this, his fame is a tide that he's utterly swept up in.

All of these changes utterly change the themes of the story. Seymour is no longer a desperate man who makes a deal with a being that is wholly dependent on him, consciously and coldly killing to sustain it, in the hopes of winning the heart of the girl of his dreams with money and fame, as he is in the musical. Instead, he's a poor, anxious man, helplessly being passed from an abusive father figure to a manipulative, dangerous, powerful alien who causes mayhem and violence around him.

For this Seymour, a tragic end is a slap in the face. It's a betrayal of the audience, who have been rooting for this poor guy to free himself of these influences in his life from the beginning of the movie. It would have been an empty, soulless ending for the musical, of course, but that's because the entire musical has been establishing the classic downward spiral of a tragic hero, while the movie really wasn't.

The thing is, I don't think any of these individual changes are bad, per se. I think that each one was pretty sensible to manage the runtime and spectacle of a feature film, as well as utilizing the cast to their potential. It just so happens that they all come together to make something that is fundamentally, incompatibly different from the source material.

And that's okay!

[somedayonbroadway]

Dark Magic

So like, I was reading my baby Race AUs again and watching Harry Potter and I know I have like 170 some asks (which i love and am so excited to write) but like... I couldn’t help myself.

For short background, Jack is Race’s dad. He’s the youngest Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Hogwarts had ever had and was a prodigy growing up. He knocked up a girl at fifteen and was a dad at sixteen.

This scene takes place later in the story. I was watching movie number seven at the time but I just started over for my little siblings who are loving it!

Let me know what you guys think!

TW: Kidnapping, Magical Torture

Tyler could do nothing but watch the scene in front of him, terrified to make a sound. If they heard him, it was over. They’d kill him on the spot. He couldn’t let that happen.

His father was hanging in midair, nothing holding him up but cruel, agonizing dark magic. Race could see the way the man’s muscles were tense in pain as he twitched and gasped for air that would hardly reach his lungs, only barely keeping him alive. The young man’s back was arched. His arms were stiff a few inches away from his sides as he was dangled above the table the Death Eaters all sat casually around, like they were putting him on display. All the boy’s father could do was lay there, his head nearly hanging upside down as the magic of fifteen wizards trapped him and slowly tortured him. Tyler couldn’t help but let his heart sink. His father was in pain and there was nothing he could do to make it stop.

It wasn’t until he swore those panicked green eyes locked in on him that he heard a strangled cry. The boy quickly pressed his back into the post he hid behind as the quiet murmurs ceased. “Wiesel, did I not ask you to keep our guest quiet?!” Tyler squeezed his eyes shut tight, hearing a spell being muttered. The small whimpers that he could only assume were coming from his poor dad were slowly silenced.

“Sorry, my Lord...” someone apologized.

Tyler felt sick.

He peaked his eyes open to glance over at the corner where he saw his friends hiding out, waiting for him. He shook his head, feeling more helpless than he’d ever been in his life.

“Welcome, my children,” a smooth, stone cold voice announced. A chill went down Race’s spine. “I expect you are all curious as to who our guest of honor is this evening...” The boy listened carefully, watching as Spot and Albert both readied their wands. Race slid his own into his hand, not knowing what was to come. “James Francis Kelly, Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at my own Alma Mater, Hogwarts.” The old man sounded impressed and Tyler couldn’t help but sneak another glance. “The youngest person to ever teach such a complicated subject at that school.”

The young man’s mouth hung open wide again as he desperately gasped for air. He’d no doubt been up there for far too long. His face was flushed as he hung. Tyler bit down hard on his lip to keep himself from crying out for the man who’d always protected him.

“Mr. Kelly, here, is a muggle born wizard. He advocates for the right to allow wizards and witches to fraternize and mate with creatures who are below us!” Race’s hand began to shake with his wand. He tried to think of a spell, anything he could do to get his father out of that place. But the dark lord was not done speaking. “He has even gone so far as to exercise this right himself.” Tyler’s breath caught in his throat. He once again hid himself behind that large pillar, praying he wasn’t giving himself away. “Once we find the boy, we will show this young teacher his mistake. I believe Mr. Delancey has had the pleasure of making this half-blood’s acquaintance.”

Cold hard betrayal settled in Race’s chest. He and Oscar had never once had a common thought to share but that didn’t mean anything. Just because they didn’t get along didn’t mean Tyler expected the other boy to be okay with this. His father, Jack Kelly, he was a teacher. He was Oscar’s teacher. He was a good man who only wanted the best for his students.

And this is where it got him.

“Y-yes, sir... I know him...” That was Oscar’s voice. He sounded terrified. Still, he did nothing.

Race looked back down to his friends. Spot was moving towards him, every step calculated and quiet. He didn’t make a sound. Not until he reached the younger boy. “We have to get you out of here—“ Race just shook his head, tears falling down his cheeks at the thought of leaving his father like he was. Spot placed a steady hand on his arm and nodded. “If they find you, they will kill you right in front of your dad,” he whispered as Race tried to calm himself down. “They will torture you and then murder you right in front of him. We have ta go. Now.”

Still, Tyler hesitated. Everyone knew what the dark lord wanted. He wanted to purify the wizard world. He believed that pure bloods were the only true wizards and those who didn’t fit that criteria should be disposed of in order to cleanse their once sacred world. Trouble is, only very few witches and wizards these days were pure bloods. In fact, the dark lord himself had muggle blood running through his veins. But these people didn’t seem to care. They still hung on his every word, fetching him muggle borns and making a grand show out of torturing and killing them.

His father was next.

As he peaked around the corner again, he saw that the dark lord was still talking, but many of his followers had stopped listening and were instead throwing food and drinks and insults at the paralyzed man floating above their dinner table.

“Scumsucker!”

“Blood-traitor!”

“Filthy mudblood!”

They were laughing. It was vividly clear that the young man was in pain, hardly able to take a breath, now horrified at the thought of his only child being brought here to join him and they were laughing at him.

“I can’t leave him here,” the child argued, grasping his wand even tighter in his hand. “Spot... I can’t leave him—“

“You are the only thing keepin’ him alive, Racer!” the older boy hissed, grabbing his arm. “We have ta go. You have ta go!”

Before he could protest again, Albert was at his side too, grabbing his other arm and guiding him away, gently pulling his wand from his grasp.

The derogatory terms sunk into Race’s skin like fire. They burned and stung and he didn’t know why. They were just words. None of it should hurt him this bad.

He could remember stories his father had told him about his time as a student at Hogwarts, how other kids had been rude and mean to him because of where he came from. They’d called him “Mudblood.” They’d written the word everywhere they knew he would see it. Someone from his own house even carved it into his wooden bed frame. He remembered his father telling him how much the word hurt even though he knew he was on his way to becoming a very powerful wizard.

The young man had been trying to explain to him that some people would always see him as a half blood, just as many of his own students still saw his father as a mudblood. That didn’t mean that they were less than or worthless. It just meant that they came from different places.

It didn’t make the words hurt any less.

“I can’t leave him!” Race hissed again, trying to get back to his dad. He needed to get back to him. But Spot and Albert did not let go of him. And before he could struggle from their grip, he was back outside.

I’m so sorry...