#ITS OK. AT LEAST I WILL GO TO COLLEGE ... SOMEWHERE! HOPEFULLY!!!

[elytrafemme]

just submitted my first three college applications i feel like im going to throw up but also like neg and pos at once

[leopoldainter]

There's the seven wait and see.

If you miss it you tell them your sic

Then I get to lay down

But now Christmas is in both. Countries.fuck

We all know it's fore commercialism but it's also about baby Jesus

Well sounds like it's offputing to people I have heard of

At least read about

Or that

Could try something you like.

It's mostly static, I saw a woman once and she had a male servant with a motorcycle carry its oasset a squeaky shoe but no where's there s A shoe with a Bae window not unless it's with the Allstars converse brand I can picture now, probably some grassy knoll fir a potted plant.

Giant tiger offers seeded nylongrass. Tray and silence peoud separate. Inedible.

Your binos are viewable. I try move mine a bit. Ok weird national grocer rearranges and it's time to open the store floor to the oarking lot. Inert grey waves YUG I meant YIG is there a bank or something yolean me against a generator thanks

Makes way to the norms gym off route but whats this homeward doing here next to place dembrun. I see the seid onja Grei Cooin. That's not a tree. The jewelry store inside is called placed or the gold spot sign by window brass frame cursive down the side on white it's tripped the Dollarama bar for alcohol assumption Angeles to Ranch, the place where to get brunch. It's a buffet. Some people came from cubek way abead to duh I'll come back with a college. Certificate.

Ok sorry didn't mean to miss the real estate compendium ofv all time, I sure you call yours something similar

No we have the general store and that's about it. Norther rok went down about I don't know it'd be twelve years in September if a I guess bear Stearns is then .. a couple months before why not have a hole room behind the office facing the jewelry store selling priceline figurines. It's porcelain nort de port.

Not the the both pole but akey dolarama has exchanged dq and now the bar is lucky ranch and the buffet place is always been something venetian someone started selling plastic fruit at giant tiger so the vine brown meshed nicely withem are bencheasisse walls all miror

We've been to brunch before but why's it weird.

They got a license to sell alcohol. The spread down from the place d'Embrun runs rif up to Meridian hops the embankment there's bullet proof la roux.

A street probably something like st tomas

Starts along the farm route stops dead end

Go all the way down to the grillz

It's fine you pushed hard to brake your driving straight and steady. Dead Aheads a transformer box the lefts the key home we only have stop here they to the left and right and vooo m .eft a tip. Drive as fast as they want where's the problem take a right thats stop, but in French and on your lefts Ecole secondaire French public school there gyms available for rent for functions like child's bur day or some place for kitty Kars or forgetting boubolpizza. There's Cuban post office for people whose house less I guess I don't know I see where the stones named from debttorobto so a gas station on the right are seeing. I'm sure it's what I remember if not it's ultramar and gem because I don't have all the tapes I can't afford a hole under.the hole under the house for more boxed cases and bored games There's a bench and shelving unit somewhere we keep getting someone to try to walk you through the ceiling you painted in to remember another upstairs ok so left at ultramar till the sun goes doento. Out of ce.ent most of it was laid half a century or mor agos back towards McDonald's hopefully there's a lice ces for fishermen the are canoes I can tell by there oars. It's true it's a restorappwar. Another sign, the first was so far away but it's because we took a left at ultramar so McDonald's down they overham diesel could ve only been used in the truck that didn't fit by year. So when they changed from oetro OSS to petrocanx a highWave barometer fifty years ago UT feels by now but hang on sneaky found a hole nother canadian toreYIGanew one way over hete to Casselman the place where dunkinskfcpizapiza and diesel select gas hose how much. Hand s hem to ha uts costly.

Private

Goes BBQ umbrella Rhianna bak to the tim hortons that sold muhn to chickens have got a wall clearly up to show where your allowed to smoke inside, the answer that side which side is the smoking section. They all learn to just say double double they know how to serve guests.

This can notval charge to Elken Degeneres but there it is she's being dressed as a doll came right up to the highway and back angry face corned window a secret farde. Some u derwaters are grenere some have expensive CoRel eill Hassel the tool tip into a face again if I need to tell tge some more help question no.

Maybe ... he cannot know more about upstairs TV we just showed the footprints once.

A framed magnet hand prints a heart felt sort of kindergarten magenta. It came from pope John Paul ii elementary

I haveva scholarship posted outside the door to the bedroom I end up in but not before you cried then brass said last flip form glass lays. It's not even what he wrote that caused the tesrs

The brass disladl is hung very close to the kiyen from the hallway.

Then she also forget style lish vent between. Carpet linoleum grade. A duck work. That's how they do it in family guy

So much so now there's a white painted wooden slammed tofeter and knels clear manufacturer painted home sweetie but there's a lotbog mercur y in the o andb now there's a space for yerr grillez

I'm the square bent from the wood hold on more space for dishwasher under then board up the part that's clearly an inert marriage the undersibk niptuck I'd you've seen the tely like I have you can bett your wedding g bam so much safer in there cuz why bend the curve

Someln it's Simon saying bye now you've waxed and waned the cotton into a green backed civil war across what's pretty much a poster we keep in a science class you may have heard about it before it's the peir eoti ticr

Clocks chimney it's a peat. Moss glimr

Oer

Peer gynt hall oftm. Oz

Music to my ears. To reprieve a long lost lostlove I stole your perfume soul Needle never have ta has that I habit in my hand

I think she wants the cuko clock

This is a doorbell store but otherwise why the hell not derun the ohonrist

It's birds before a super bowl.

They even show up to whip from the hood of his budget your Goliath o thought

That's smiling

Car, wont

Does any of you have jumper rail just stan arum.

Every week the same thing sometimes so much the same it's rerun that's what tell people

[kkusuka]

hiii I was wondering if you could do a threesome w kuroo bokuto and y/n?? plsss💞

i can actually, that’s the fun part.

(I'm going to try to use gender-neutral pronouns, but the reader has female anatomy, I hope that’s ok!) 

I deadass just took this and ran with it oml. 

All 18+, public sex, circumstantial humiliation, slight voyeurism, orgasm denial, threesome M/F/M, they’re both kind mean but not really, slight degrading 

Synopsis: Your college chem class is kicking your ass so when your professor recommends you to Kuroo, who seems to come in a package deal with another owl-ish boy, you were more than thankful. 

4/25

You couldn't believe it, you were so sure you had done well on this test. You made flashcards and even scoured the web for as many quizlets on the subject as you possibly could. But one thing remained the same: Masahiro sensei’s chemistry class was kicking your ass. 

No matter how many times you looked at the reference tables and started at the elements you didn't understand a single word that came out of that man's mouth. What’s worse is that you seemed to be the only one who ever had trouble in his class, and he always made sure to let you know. 

Side glances during lectures, calling you out when he knows you have no clue what the answer could be, talking about how 'some people’ would do better if they tried harder. You just didn't know what else to do. 

So, in some twisted way, you were thankful when he requested to keep you a few minutes after class requesting to talk about some personal issues. Issues you wished would include a new grade and easier tests. 

But him telling you about a boy with exceptional grades who would be a perfect fit to help you out, was something you had expected, but did not want. You felt more embarrassed than you already were, couldn't he just give you a website where you could watch videos about ionic and binary compounds? 

Looking back to the phone number he had written for you on an index card, you relent. Sending a quick message to the number you shut your phone off and tried to get to your dorm, dropping onto your bed faster than you’d like to admit. 

Hey, this is y/n l/n, Masahiro-sensei gave me your number for possible tutoring, if you're up for it of course. Any time for me works. 12:56 pm 

Yeah, he let me know about a possible tutoring session, how about the library tomorrow at 4? 1:03 pm 

I'm Kuroo Tetsurou btw. 1:07 pm

And like that your day got 10x worse, you don't even know who this way. You at least hoped it was the boy with the fluffy hair in the first row. At least Masahio told him, you assume it may have gone worse, tomorrow at the library at 4. 

You could deal with that. 

-- 

Your first meeting had gone fairly well. You arrived that the library entrance five minutes early reaching for your phone to let the mysterious Kuroo Tetsurou know that you had arrived, but before you could get that far- 

“No need babe, I'm right here, L/n right?” 

He was tall, taller than you at least. Tall enough to be able to lock down at you. Looking at you with his narrow hazel eyes and his sleazy yet comforting cat-like smile. His hands were shoved into the pockets of a bright red- volleyball jacket? Nekoma volleyball club must be from high school. 

He led you to an isolated corner of the science section on the third floor, a place you had frequented during your mid-semester crying chemistry sessions-- hopefully your tears have dried up by now and you won't make a fool of yourself. 

He wasted no time asking exactly what you need help with and seemed more than surprised when you told him everything. He let out a laugh that made you want to get up and run away before letting you know that it was normal to be confused and that you would just start with the electron configurations. 

It was going great, he was an amazing teacher and knew exactly what to tell you to make you remember all the rules of the SPDF configurations and everything leading up to the oxidation states of the transition metals. It was just sad that he had to go over everything a second time just for you to get it in your mind. 

In the middle of explaining lead’s second oxidation state, Kuroos phone lit up with a notification a Bokuto was calling. Without a second glance, he declined the call and went right to the first state of silver. 

Three seconds in this same Bokuto called back after a few choice texts, letting out a sigh he apologized muting about a stupid owl not giving him a moment of rest no matter the time of day. 

He picked up and tried to walk away as quick as he could, the only thing you could gain from the conversion was a 

HEY HEY! you still at the library? Though you’d be done by now Kuroo!

To which Kuroo told whoever was on the end of the line, that he didn't mind and they should mind their own business. Then you were out of earshot. when he came back he looked as if the life was sucked from his soul. 

He plopped into the chair across from you and sat for a second before releasing a deep breath. He looked back at you connecting eyes--they looked impossibly cat-like under the lights of the library-- before shooting you a shifty smirk. 

“Babe you're doing great but I've gotta cut it off for today, and you don't mind if a friend joins us for the next few sessions? He isn't that bright.” 

It took you of all five seconds to think of your answer, another person who wasn't the brightest will make you look less stupid. Just the thought made you feel bad, you're sure that Bokuto was a wonderful person, hopefully, and did not deserve to be used to make you seem less hopeless. Yet still, 

“Yes! That’s totally fine, I'll see you in two days?” 

“Sounds great” 

--

“‘C'mon babe what's the dashed configuration of bromine?” 

You didn't know, or maybe you did. It's not like that would matter considering the two fingers curling into your sweet spot. You could only focus on the way he rubbed your throbbing nub that sent sparks straight beach into your core. 

“I-i I don’t- god, please, please, need to cum.” you were so close, Kuroo had already ripped two orgasms from you because you didn't know the answer, and you were going to scream if he did it again. “Please, wanna cum” 

“No can do baby Owl, that’s the deal no cumming until you get the question.” 

Bokuto. 

You would have forgotten he was there if it weren't for his piercing gaze on Kuroo’s fingers drenched in your slick. Not once has it wavered from you, your silt to you tits up to your lips. 

You had to try, he’ll stop. Somewhere in the back of your mind you know the answer, they know you know the answer. Somewhere else in your mind you think about how you got caught up in this in the first place. 

How Kuroo was frustrated and told you the if you got another wrong answer he would fuck the right one into you. Or bokuto purposely mocking him that sent him further until his hands were pulling your panties down your legs stuffing two fingers in your cunt, saying how he won't stop until you get all the answers right. 

“Two- e-eight- eight-teen- please please, si--six- NO seven, it’s seven. ‘M so close please” 

Kuroo seemed pleased with your answer, his hands moving quickly around your bud and curling further into your g-spot as Bokuto makes his way around the table to where the two of you are seated. 

Pulling the shirt above your head, Bokuto circles a nipple through the fabric of your bra commenting on how quickly it had pebbled, attaching his mouth to your other as Kuroo commanded you to cum around his relentless digits. 

Clenching around his fingers you hadn't noticed a head of white and black hair moving towards your center. Coming off the high of your orgasm you felt Bokuto’s tongue spread your lips as his nose circled your clit.  

“Oh, dude! You gotta taste ‘em! Like liquid gold, Man!” 

You flushed further, if possible, tethering a hand into Bokuto's hair. Understanding the compliment Kuroo swiped a finger along your slick-covered thighs and let a mockingly loud moan fall between his lips. 

As if you could be more embarrassed by the noises of Bokuto slurping whatever he could catch in his mouth, Kuroo’s coos of how red you look and how delicious you look, as the man under you eats as if it was his last meal. 

Two hands grabbed your waist and lifted you off Bokuto, placing you back on your feet. Turing you toward the wall of windows and hand on your back bent you over the table surrounded by all of your notes. 

“Look at that, she’s just gushing all over the place. All this over a chemistry lesson? Who knew I was teaching such a cockwhore this whole time.” a hand met your clit as Kuroo began to push into you, forcing you further into the table. 

You heard a gasping moan as he bottomed out, glancing over to where Bokuto sat hand around the base of his cock, standing as Kuroo waved him over to you. 

“I think you can fit two, right?”  and just like that bokuto was forcing his way into your clenching walls. There was discomfort until a soft pop to which both the boys let out a sigh. 

You feel so full. You didn't know who but one of them was brushing against your cervix. The first thrust came to you as a surprise,  following with a second's rest before the two of them created a steady rhythm.

The faster they went the more apparent it was, they were using you like a fleshlight. You couldn't even speak as a cock hit right at your g-spot. Back arching you let out a series of small “ahs” much to Kuroo’s enjoyment. 

“You fucking like this! Getting dicked where everyone can see. By two cocks no less!” he laughed pulling your head up from its place in your arms, making you have to look at your reflection in the glass. 

“No-no I-” a smack to your ass stopped you from trying to defend what little dignity you had left. There was no defending as Bokuto leaned towards your ear, never breaking rhythm. 

“No?,” he was practically snarling, “Then why the hell are you clenching our dicks so well, Baby Owl?”  

As if he flipped a switch your world went dark as you clenched further on the two men as you came. Riding out your orgasm neither of them let up the pace as they jackhammered into your poor pussy. 

Bokuto came first, with a loud groan of your name before he slumped into the chair he previously inhabited.  Settling to watch as Kuroo pulled your chest up to meet your back to his chest. Rutting into you as his orgasm rapidly approaches. 

If you weren't so sure this place was desolate you would be worried about someone hearing the slaps of your skin, or Kuroo’s final grunt as he filled you with his load, dropping you to lean on the table. 

At least your next chemistry test was graded with a 21/25, you’re sure the two of them will love to hear about that.

[anabsolutesimpforegos]

Anon: new college roommate but with damien

a/n: hello!! Its been a while, but I'm back :D!! This may have a second part, stay tuned 👍 one question before we continue: would anyone be interested in a taglist :0?

The summer heat sapped your energy as you moved your few belongings up into the towering dorm rooms. Sitting the final box down with a sigh, you slumped, or rather collapsed, onto it. Your roommate was nowhere to be found and, while you hadn't met them yet, some help would've been nice. ‘I didn’t expect a welcoming party but come on,’ you thought as you ventured to your bedroom. ‘Not even a “hello, we’ll be living together all year”??’

Having just begun unpacking, a loud crash from somewhere outside your room snapped you from your bitter thoughts and you jumped, dropping the shirt currently in your hand. After quietly opening your door and leaving your room, you crept to the end of the hall and peeked around the corner to see what looked like a man with black hair sprawled on the living room floor like he had fallen. He didn't seem like he had bad intentions, with what you assumed to be his possessions scattered everywhere on the floor around him.

“Hello..?” His head shot up at your voice and your grip on the door frame tightened as the only thought you could formulate was ‘oh god he's pretty.’ “I hope I didn’t scare you,” he smiled nervously, “I’m your roommate, though this isn't how I planned us meeting...” Scrambling to his feet, he smoothed back his hair and extended his hand with a slightly less nervous grin. “Hello, I’m Damien.”

“I’ll admit, you did scare me, but it could've been so much worse,” you laughed, taking his hand. Hopefully your face wasn't as red as it felt, because god he was just so… pretty. The word felt off ,and repetitive even, but god if it didn't fit. He shook your hand quickly and then fidgeted nervously.

“Do you need anything? I’d be happy to help you unpack! Or something...” he seemed... guilty? Nervous? Whatever it was, it turned what looked to be a rather put together man into a rambling mess.

“Its fine! I’m in the middle of it now,” your eyes flitted to his belongings on the floor, “You should probably be more concerned with your things, yeah?” Recognition washed over his face and for the split second before he turned, you swore his face had flushed. You didn’t see him often if you were honest with yourself. It made a small weight form in your chest. It made sense; you were both busy with your courses but come on. It was like you were living with a ghost! ‘He must be working himself half to death,’ you pondered, lifting your head from your book one night to listen for movement outside your room, ‘surely he can't be coming home just now.’ He was, of course. You had ruled out him bringing anyone home in the first few weeks. He always seemed to be carrying books and papers, actually. 

Despite seeming constantly tired, Damien was always friendly and kind. Living with him felt like living with a courteous ghost. A courteous ghost that went shopping and left food in the pantry at that. You felt bad; it seemed he was always at least slightly stressed. The tiredness behind his eyes was almost palpable.

The telltale shuffling sounded after a door click and you closed your book with a sigh. Glancing at the clock, you pulled on your house shoes and hesitantly opened your door. It felt odd to be up and out of your room at 11pm, but it was a lot more odd to hear him come home then. 

As you rounded the corner of the hallway’s opening, you collided with Damien. Because of course you did. You sprung back slightly, but quickly stepped forward again to catch the books slipping from his grasp.

“The library again?”

“Yeah...” he smiled weakly. 

“Maybe a break is in order?” your tone was enough to suggest it was an offer, but he declined.

“Oh I could never! This is important you know.” he was fidgeting again, smoothing over his uncharacteristically unkempt hair. Ok, fine, you decided, it was no longer an offer.

“... no, a break is in fact in order,” you said, taking the remaining books from his arms. His face showed vague annoyance, but you could see relief behind his eyes. Sitting the pile of books on your shared work desk, you turned back and began to fuss over him.

“Have you been eating properly? All that food you buy and you never eat it? look at those bags under your eyes… plus you look pale, my god how do you function like this?” you continued rambling for a solid 5 minutes, and it only occured to you as you were cupping his face with your hands that maybe this was a tiny bit odd. Your hands shot down suddenly and you looked anywhere but his face.

“Ok , ok, ok, you,” poking him in the chest lightly, you continued, “need to go to bed. No ifs or buts about it.”

He was obviously too tired to resist, so all he could do was tiredly mumble as you pulled him to his room. You had never been in his room before this moment but it was just about what you expected it to be like. An organized mess is what it was; papers and books littered a small desk yet every other part of the room was clean. With a gentle shove, you steered him towards his bed and as he laid down, he didn't even bother changing his clothes.

Feeling uncomfortable, as you had realized you barely knew him with how little you interacted, you turned to leave quickly. A muffled mumbling stopped you, however, as you reached the door. “Thank you.. For this..” “You’re welcome… good night, Damien.” Poor man was asleep by the time you finished your sentence, having cut off in the middle of his. He looked peaceful almost, the worry lines you hadn’t realized were present before now fading, and you smiled to yourself softly as you shut the door behind you.

[themonotonysyndrome]

Emerald Onlooker

Part 2 of the Successors to the Future is here! I, uh, didn’t expect a lot of people liking it, but since I’m still pretty excited about this AU, I want to write as much as I can. 

Thank you again @tri3tri for inspiring us with your Second Wive AU and many, many wonderful Yandere!Malleus content. A little summary about this AU: Yandere!Malleus married and took MC against her will. He turns her into a Queen and they had 2 daughters. However, Yandere!Malleus is pushed to take on a second wife (a Fae woman, Gekkon) to give him a son, a male heir. During the wedding ceremony, MC took the opportunity and escape to NRC with her daughters in tow and Crowley finally did them a solid and send the three of them to MC’s world.

Successors to the Future, summary: Without a court of condescending Faes and Malleus’ oppressive affection, MC and her daughters live happily in the other world. When she left Twisted Wonderland, MC didn’t realise that she was pregnant and thus, she gave birth to a son who grew up as carefree as a bird and just as kind. However, now that her eldest daughter had just turned sixteen and discover her Unique Magic, she was returned to Twisted Wonderland as a first-year student in Diasomnia. Since it’s only a matter of time before Malleus and his court discover her presence at NRC, MC and her children did their best to prepare her for that inevitable day. 

This oneshot is a continuation of that. 

FD/N = First daughter’s name/Renata Draconia (half-human, half dark Fae Princess. Malleus & MC’s eldest child)

SD/N = Second daughter’s name/Sherrie or Cherry Draconia (half-human, half-dark Fae Princess. Malleus & MC’s middle child)

S/S = Son’s name/Lucien Draconia (half-human, half-dark Fae Prince and the heir to the throne. Malleus & MC’s youngest child). 

MC/S = MC’s surname

-

Sherrie enjoy going about her daily lives on her lowest brain capacity most of the time. There’s nothing like just... switching off your brain and ignore all the boring things around you.  

The only thing that gets the gears and cogs in her brain spinning is when she plays video games like Portal or coming up with schemes to get her eldest sister out of trouble. 

When she jokes about only having 2 braincells and that both are constantly on holidays at the same time unless Renata did something stupid, Renata howl with laughter while Lucien just rolled his eyes at his cackling sisters. 

But now that Renata is playing student in Night Raven College, Sherrie is surprised to find herself looking forward to not only help her oldest sister dodged their father’s steps, but also pulling the proverbial rug underneath the Thorn Kingdom. 

Especially Lilia Vanrouge. 

It’s addicting. The unholy glee running within you when your cute puppets finally realised who’s been tugging on their strings all along. 

Humans are easy and oblivious enough for her to practise on. Despite how monotonous school can be, the environment was a good place for Sherrie to learn and play. Everyone has a chip on their shoulder; everyone wants to stand out among the rest. 

So it’s really not that hard to learn who’s the right person to blackmail, who’s desperate enough to do anything to make their crush look at them and how to make the key figures dance on the palm of her hands. 

This year’s prom night was certainly a memory she won’t ever forget. 

And now? Now Sherrie can’t wait to play with the so-called ‘superior’ species - their father’s ancient court and loyal retainers - once she and her sister could establish contact. 

They’ve been working hard on this little project. Everyone in her little family is. Renata is off being a good little student and let the gossips travel on its own, their little brother is doing his best to assured their mother that all would be well and Sherrie?

Sherrie is busy setting up the stage for the climax once Renata usher all the important players to where she wanted them. 

(Mama likes to call her a ‘smart cookie’, always rubbed her head affectionately and said, “You’re a brilliant girl, Cherry. You’re just lazy. I know you can achive anything you want with the proper motivation, just like Floyd-senpai.”.) 

(Their Mama can never know just how far her daughter had use the same skill that she praise to manipulate others.) 

In the middle of the evening - just shy after midnight -  Sherrie heard a water drip somewhere in her bedroom. 

Drip... drip... drip... 

She pushes her chair away from her gaming laptop, game paused and just listen. Her eyes scan the dimly lit bedroom. 

Drip... drip... 

“This better not be the start of a horror movie.” 

It’s coming from... somewhere near her vanity table. Sherrie ignores the clutter of make-ups, perfumes and figurines on the table and waited eagerly. Her leg couldn’t stop bouncing when the surface ripple like water’s surface once. 

The ripple clears and instead of staring at her reflection, her oldest sister stares right back at her. 

“It works!” Renata said incredulously. “I can’t believe the headmaster’s half-assed runes actually works!” 

“The fuck? What happened?” Sherrie reply, a bit taken back. Behind her sister, Sherrie could see a bed, study table and walls and other furnishing that eerily looks similar to the ones back at the castle. 

Renata waved her hand in a dismissive manner. “I had to literally bullied a grown ass man to help me contact you. It took me a week of camping in the library to figured out how, but we managed to come up with runes that allow us to create a link to every mirror in the house.” She explains in an exasperated tone. “I’ll teach you the drawing tomorrow. All you guys need to do is just draw them on any mirror and it’ll send me a signal to find a mirror of my own.” 

“That kinda sounds like a phone call. Like, an interdimensional phone call!” 

“I know right! I already put a compact mirror in my purse so I can call you anytime!” Renata said with a smug grin. She’s clearly proud of her clever little trick. Even with the help of the headmaster. 

Sherrie never doubted that her sister couldn’t find a way to contact them. She’s a prodigy when it comes to magic. 

She might be young, but she could still remember how their tutors gave out praises as if they were candies when it comes to her older sister and her affinity for magic. 

It’s just too bad that their compliments are worthless when they always ended with, “If only the Princess is a full born Fae...” 

“Ok, so, contact established. Now are you still in Phase 1?” Sherrie said, bringing their conversation back to important matters. She made sure to properly and slowly explain their game plan a week before the Ebony Carriage took Renata to Night Raven College. The words are clearly written, highlighted colourfully and important steps are accompanied by cartoon stickers. 

Despite being a prodigy at magic, her sister woefully has short attention span when it comes to playing the long game. Her attention spans burn hot and fast, just like her anger. It also burns out just as quick as it came. 

Renata rolled her eyes, unimpressed. “Yes, yes. I’m still in Phase 1. It’s hard to make friends when everyone is wary of you. Do you know they hung up portraits of past Dorm Leaders and their Vice Dorm Leaders in each dorm? It’s so annoying when everyone stares at me and at father’s portrait whenever I walk into Disomnia!” 

Sherrie hums and made a quick dash to grab her tablet. The one where she wrote down her plans. She swipes the screen to the list of names that their mother had given them. 

“They’re just NPCs, don’t worry about them. What you need to focus on are the students with the surnames that Mama gave us.” Here, Sherrie is tapping on the screen of her tablet to the mirror. “Have you met any of them or did you fucked up the plan already?” 

“Calm your tits, I’ve been following your instructions.” Renata assured her, not the least riled up. “We’re only in the first semester; I only managed to match the names and faces of my dorm mates so far. It’s gonna take me at least a month of snooping around before I could find them.” Renata paused and her eyes suddenly lit up as if she just remembered something. “Oh, but I’ve been farming intel of the Thorn Kingdom using the Lucky Leanan spell every day after curfew. It took some trial and error but I successfully managed to find the castle again!”

Sherrie recalls that one of Renata spells - Lucky Leanan - creates a small fairy made out of pure magic that would do sneak attacks by shooting lightning bolts while Renata fights. It’s small enough to flit behind an opponent’s line of sight and take them off guard. 

Small enough to sneak into the castle without anyone none the wiser. 

So Sherrie nodded. “That’s a good move. You’re safely far away from the castle and you can remotely dispel Leanan if it gets dicey.” 

“Yup! Look at my one braincell go!” Renata cheered. “If I keep this up and give it plenty of water and sunlight, maybe it’ll grow!” 

Sherrie burst out laughing alongside her sister. Her joke took her off guard. Hopefully their laughter didn’t wake up their mother and Lucien. 

Sherrie hiccups and wipe the tears from the corner of her eye. It feels nice to talk to her sister again.  

She misses her disaster of sister already. 

“Anyway, I need to hit the bed soon.” Renata said, breaking her train of thought. “I’ll do my best to gather as much info as I can about the ongoings inside the castle for you. Are there any heads up you want me to look for?” 

Sherrie smiles brightly and reply, “Of course! If you could, be a dear and get everything about father’s... other wife. Everything - right down to the most boring shits.”

“On it.” 

-

That first-year Diasomnia student has been the talk around campus for weeks now. 

Not only is she the only girl in Night Raven College, word on the streets quickly spreads that she’s look too similar to one of the previous Dorm Leader of Diasomnia to not be related. 

Staring at her while she’s busy taking a selfie of the Great Seven statues, he agrees that the similarities are too uncanny. 

Now, why would he sends his own Princess to a villain school without any retainer? 

That, and why under a different surname? 

Something’s not right. 

Renata MC/S brought with her an interesting mystery to Night Raven College. A mystery that caught his interest at the first whiff of her scent. And oh Great Seven, her delectable scent. The first time his nose caught that mouthwatering smell, it had his tail swishing in eager and his head spinning. 

It’s the scent of his favourite flower - blood lily - with a hint of something... otherworldly. He still can’t quite put words into it. 

He wants to unravel her. Understand what makes her tick. 

Uncover what she’s hiding. 

Four days later in History class, Professor Trein gave him - and Renata - their golden ticket. 

“Kingscholar, MC/S - you two will be partners for this assignment. I expect you two have no objection.” 

“It’s fine...” 

“I don’t have a problem with the arrangement, professor.” 

The professor nodded and class is dimiss. Students began making their way out of the room. Except for him... and her. 

Renata steps in front of his desk when they finally have the class all to themselves. He takes a good, long look at her. 

She’s certainly beautiful; a real heartbreaker. But there’s something interesting within her bright green eyes. Something volatile. He wonders what could it really be. 

“Hi there. So you’re Bakari Kingscholar, hmm? Hope we can ace this assignment without any problem.” Renata said with a small smile. Is she trying to be friendly? Because it just looks condescending as hell. 

But that just makes this a lot more fun. 

“Same here. Girl or not, I won’t let it slide if you prove to be a dead weight.” 

His warning clearly took her off guard with the how her smile froze. It was only for a moment though, before she let out a laugh. As if he just told a funny joke. 

“Kitty-cat is flexing his claws, huh?” Renata had the audacity to grin. The other Savanaclaw students would’ve lowered their heads at his tone. “Don’t worry. Do your part and I promise I won’t light your tail on fire.” 

Oh, his old man needs to know about this girl. 

-

You have no idea how much fun it is to write about Malleus and MC’s children! Especially the Princessess. Unfortunately, they’re more like Malleus than they or MC even realise it. Anyway, my main reference for SD/N is none other than... TADA! Fyodor Dostoevsky from BSD!

It’s just that Sherrie is a lot more lazy and rather keep to herself and stay at home. She only goes out of her to way to mess with people because of Renata and her tendecies to get into trouble.  

I’m still thinking on the draft for part 3 so we’ll see how that goes. Also, I was struggling wether to name Leona’s son or not. I think that honoured should go to @tri3tri​! 

[charlemange1]

Ranking adaptations of Victor Frankenstein from least to most evil

The character Victor Frankenstein has been adapted many times over the years. Sometimes he’s a heroic YA protagonist while others have him using his clone army to wipe out humanity and take over the world. But which Victor is truly the worse?

After reading several adaptations, I’ve decided to rank Victor’s morality in each one and find out! The gothic lit community doesn’t talk about these adaptations much, so hopefully this list can introduce the fandom to some of the lesser-known interpretations out there!

This is part one, which ranks printed retellings only. If people enjoy it, I’ll do a part two and merge the films into the mix!

Disclaimers (please read):

SPOILERS! Victor’s actions in these adaptations will be thoroughly analyzed with no regard for the spoiler tag.

Some of the more evil Victor’s get into dark territory, and while I will not go into extensive detail (lest I go insane) if mentions of abuse, sexual themes, possessive behavior and murder bother you, don’t make my mistake and turn back! (I will leave an additional reminder when said parts come up)

This list centers on Victor’s actions and NOT the quality of the books themselves—so if you see your favorite title getting a low score it’s not because it’s a bad book—it’s because Victor is a jerk.

This list is by no means complete, just the ones I’ve read personally.

These are my silly personal opinions and if you disagree with my ranking that’s perfectly fine!

Ranking: On a 1-10 scale, with 10 being fantastic and 0 being “run if you see this man in a dark alley.”

10/10 Perfect Sunbeam. Overall great, wholesome guy!

*crickets chirp in a serene backdrop of a Romantic field*

Good dude

Junji Ito’s Frankenstein: 8.5/10

Props to the master of manga monsters for making the twist be that Victor is not secretly evil/insane.

Not only does Victor pity the creature and agree to create a mate for him—but he keeps his word! This is especially touching when you consider how the creature treks alllllll the way to Switzerland to dig up Justine’s head as a face for the bride. (Henry says he probably didn’t know it was Justines, but come on, you just happened to pick up the head of the girl you framed and carried it for miles across land and sea to deliver it to Victor instead of stopping somewhere closer? I don't buy it.)

Victor even goes the extra mile, kindly stating:

Yet the bride rejects the creature (not Victor’s fault) and in revenge, the creature kills Henry, Elizabeth, and Alphonse. In retaliation, Victor follows him onto the ice and relates his tale to Walton before dying.

Victor's actions are nothing heroic, but what more could he have done? He didn’t break his promise and kill the bride like in the original novel and he clearly cared about reanimating “Justine” as shown in the above image.

And did I mention this manga was done by Junji Ito? Would YOU stay in the same room if you created a Junji Ito monster? Didn't think so! After the initial mistake of abandoning his monster, this Victor did the best he could to make amends and protect his family--making him an overall good person.

Decent guy

This Dark endeavor by Kenneth Oppel: 7/10

Serving as a prequel to the original novel, This Dark Endeavor tells the untold story of what leads young Victor Frankenstein to create his monster.

While Victor very much struggles with his angsty dark desires (bad), he tirelessly searches for the alchemic "Elixir of Life" to save his twin brother (good). A brother who is more talented than Victor, has the heart of his love interest, and Victor believes everyone prefers over himself.

Good on you, Victor, for letting the love for your brother override understandable sibling jealousy. If that wasn’t enough to make him decent, letting a few fingers be cut off to save his twin definitely does.

What brings Victor down to a 7 is his relationship with Elizabeth. It’s born out of jealousy from her loving his twin rather than genuine affection. Even if this retelling makes Elizabeth a feisty, pants-wearing independent female (to lessen the possessive undertones Victor exhibits, I presume? Read it and judge for yourself), the relationship does nothing positive for his character. Tricking someone into kissing you is a jerk move, bro.

Ok I guess….

Such Wicked Intent by Kenneth Oppel 6/10

The sequel to This Dark Endeavor loses Victor’s careful balance of good and bad traits its predecessor boasted. Victor wasn’t perfect in TDE, but the majority of his negative actions stemmed from trying to save his ill brother and were mostly forgivable. In Such Wicked Intent, his understandable sibling jealously now comes off as petty since Victor’s twin is already dead.

Victor trying to bring his brother back to life (good) is undermined by his growing reliance on supernatural butterflies that increase his abilities despite other characters pointing out the obvious danger. Victor is also not the greatest parent to Twin 2.0 and the previous issues with him and Elizabeth from book 1 don’t improve. He’s the same Victor from TDE, but the plot focusing on his selfish desires makes him more flawed as a result.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (the original novel): 6/10

Depending on how you interpret the events of the original novel, Victor is either a college Dad in over his head and trying his best after an initial mistake, or a misogynistic, irresponsible jerk only capable of thinking of himself. There are enough professional articles to support both interpretations, and I’m not the person to pick one over the other. 

However, if the narrative he tells Walton is to be taken as truth (and the creature not correcting Victor's account tells me it is), Victor spent most of the novel trying to fix his mistake (intentions may vary)—and isn’t too bad as a result.  

Pride and Prometheus by John Kessel: 5/10

Despite being a crossover with Pride and Prejudice, Kessel tries to be as faithful to the original Frankenstein as possible. However, the few changes he makes hurts Victor from a moral standpoint.

Victor’s not the greatest guy when handling the romantic gestures of both Mary Bennet and Henry. Also, murdering his creature's mate with poison right before they leave to start their happily ever after is awful, but understandable from his point of view.

Then there's P&P's ending, where Walton describes meeting Victor on the ice. It’s revealed that Victor left killing the creature's mate and the Bennet’s out of his narrative. While this is probably Kessel justifying why Jane Austen’s characters and his changes weren’t mentioned in the original text (and who can blame him?) it does make Victor a liar. In the original, the creature never called Victor out for omitting anything—so altering the story on his deathbed places P&P’s Victor a rung lower than his original counterpart.

Ehh….

Frankenstein According to Spike Milligan: 4/10

As a nearly-word-for-word retelling with minor, humorous changes by the comedian Spike Milligan, Victor is more pathetic than anything. He’s a harmless, pathetic, hilarious jerk.

Some quotes:

"I bounded along with feelings of unbridled joy and hilarity. From a great distance my family could see me bounding with unbridled joy and hilarity." (53)

*

"'I tell you,’ I said, ‘that murderer had his trousers down, was eating fish paste sandwiches and traveling 100 miles per hour.’" (59)

*

"‘I can offer you no consolation,’ said he.

‘Then piss off.’ said I." (54)

Here’s his jail visit with Justine in animatic form (and me shamelessly plugging my other creative endeavors)

Monster by Neal Bell 3.5/10

Warning: contains mentions of animal abuse

On one hand, Victor wants to conquer death to save his family and is clearly disturbed over Justine's and his mother’s death. However, the man expresses little concern at the possibility of William getting struck by lightning with his kite in front of his mother who had already lost 9 children.

He can also talk to dogs and cats (for…some reason?) who are portrayed as intelligent beings with feelings—yet that doesn’t stop him from eating said dogs in the Arctic and killing said cat after threatening her with a knife. He also flings around Bible verses while being painfully egotistical about “being God”.

Using Henry’s romantic affections toward him to his advantage, briefly forcing himself on Elizabeth, and tenderly caring for his monster only to abandon him after the creature expresses a want to die just makes him an awful person all around. The fact he doesn’t do these things with clear malicious intent saves him from being any lower.  

Quotes:

ELIZABETH: A bone. A brittle bit of skin. A tooth—

VICTOR: Would you not be womanish now?

Be useful. Here—hold the Leyden jar,

While I attach the string…

*

VICTOR: A satisfactory morning, then, Mister Puss—tormenting the dogs?

CAT: God gave me a duty. I fulfill it.

VICTOR: Papa says there is no God.

(He takes out a knife)

Pretty bad dude

WARNING: Please note that some of these Victors get into unsavory territory. If the mention of sexual themes/abuse/murder bothers you turn back:

The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein by Peter Ackroyd: 3/10

This one was tricky. The narrative chugs along with Victor being an intelligent, thoughtful guy with only a few obsessive tendencies. He’s chilling with the Shelleys, talking to the poor in the streets and financially supporting Fred’s family along with giving out generous tips. He’s a cool guy. He’s a great dude! He’s….revealed in the final 2 pages to be recounting everything from a mental asylum, the monster was in his head, and he’s actually the one that committed the murders.

Alrighty then.   ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Having his insanity revealed in the final pages, it’s hard to judge whether there was genuine malicious intent or if Victor truly thought he created the creature and believed he was doing good in trying to “stop” it. No matter his intentions though, the body count remains and a child strangler has no place being anything higher than a 3.

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White: 1/10

We all knew this one would make the list. Elizabeth’s first flashback sets up Victor as having serious issues—the question becomes how low will he go? Turns out pretty low. 

He’s the one who killed William and framed Justine along with murdering his father, brother Robert and various people at Ingolstadt. 

What really makes him despicable is that Elizabeth is the novel's main POV character who only sticks with Victor so she’s not thrown out on the streets. He’s abusive, controlling, dominating, and so possessive that he’ll perfect reanimation so that not even death can take her away from him! Yikes. I can’t stress enough how being in Elizabeth’s POV makes these actions all the more menacing. 

Quote:

“There was never another path for you. Consider how much worse it has all been for me. How much I have had to suffer. And how much of that suffering has been caused directly by you!” His face twitched, and his fingers tightened on the pistol. Then he sighed. “It does not do to dwell on it. There is no point in fighting. This is your fate, Elizabeth Frankenstein. I will let no other claim you—not man, not death, not even God.” (279)

Nice guy.

Despite his terrible actions, Victor is trying to "save" Elizabeth from death. In his mind, he wants what’s best for her. It’s a crazy mind that mixed up domination and love, but the fact that his evil actions come from wanting to keep someone he wants to control cares about safe vs. other versions where his crimes stem from wanting to rival god and rule the world, this version isn’t THAT bad. At least his hearts in the right place—even if his mentality is utter garbage.

The Memoirs of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Theodore Roszak 0/10

*insert my screams of insurmountable anguish here*

Caroline: Hey son, you should do NSFW things.

Victor: Sure. I will now do NSFW things.

Victor: *proceeds to do NSFW things*

The reprint of this novel mentions on the cover it’s erotica, but the copy I bought (and to this day have not finished) had no such disclaimer. I’ll break my rule and speak on the quality of this book: there is none. For an alleged “pro-feminism” novel everyone is terrible—and Victor is no exception.

Literally Satan.

Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein Series: -∞/10

So you’ve read far enough to join me in Hell.

Where do even I start? This is a Victor who extended his life to the present day. Who worked with Hitler, Stalin, Castro and regretted the fall of the Third Reich. Who created an army of emotionally deprived “new race” creations to kill people and assume their identities so he could ascend the ranks of politics. Who, once he has enough of his new race integrated into society, desires to commit mass genocide on humanity and establish himself as supreme ruler of the world—only then can he conquer the cosmos as well because why the hell not?  

Oh, and he’s a wife-beater/murderer too! Which isn’t a problem, considering he can create a new wife whenever he sees fit (he was on Erika 5 by book 3). The sheer lack of any positive traits in this man is laughable. Koontz really, REALLY wants to get across that Victor is a bad guy.

And if you’re somehow not convinced by the above description, here are some quotes I pulled from the first 3 novels as a bonus to reeeeeally sell how despicable this clown is:

Regarding Elizabeth:

“Victor had not loved Elizabeth. Love and God were myths he rejected with equal contempt. But Elizabeth had belonged to him. Even after more than 200 years, he still bitterly resented the loss of her, as he would have resented losing an exquisite antique porcelain vase if [his creature] had smashed that instead of the bride,” (3.97). 

Regarding Mary Shelley:

“When Mary Shelley took a local legend based on truth and crafted fiction from it, she made Victor a tragic figure and killed him off. He understood her dramatic purpose for giving him a death scene, but he loathed her for portraying him as tragic and as a failure. Her judgment of his work was arrogant. What else of consequence did she ever write? And of the two, who was dead—and who was not?” (1.79-80)

(Author Note: For your information, Victor, The Last Man is considered by some to be the first dystopian novel)

His…ah…"friends”:

“Fire was featured in some of his less pleasant memories. The great windmill. The bombing of Dresden. The Israeli Mossad attack on the secret Venezuelan research complex that he had shared with Mengele in the years after World War Two. Nevertheless, he liked to read to the accompaniment of a cozy crackling fire,” (1.76).

*

“Victor admired Hitler. The Führer knew talent when he saw it.

In the 1930s and 40s, Victor had worked with Mengele and others in Hitler's privileged scientific class. He made considerable progress in his work before the regrettable allied victory…the problem with the Führer had been that his roots were in art and politics…The future did not belong either to artists or to politicians,” (2.24-25).

Dat ego tho:

“When I die, those cells will be capped descend a signal that will be relayed by satellite to everyone made of new race flesh, to every meat machine that walks. And you will fall down dead,’…Victor smiled, anticipating triumph in spite of their silence. ‘Did you think a God would die alone?’” (3.345).  

*

Civilization would not be remade or sustained by Christianity or by Islam. Neither by Scientologists nor by the bright-eyed adherence of the deliciously solipsistic paranoid new religion encouraged by The Da Vinci Code. Tomorrow belonged to scientism. The priests of scientism were not merely robed clerics performing rituals, they were gods, with the power of gods. Victor himself was their Messiah,” (2.25).

*

“With Victor's unstoppable drive for power, with his singular intellect, with his cold materialism and his ruthless practicality, and now with synchronicity on his side, he had become untouchable, immortal.

He was immortal,” (3.329).

*

“How they goggled at him, abashed by his wisdom and knowledge, mortified by their ignorance, over-awed by his godlike power,” (3.330). 

*

“’Murder,’ said the caller. ‘murder…excites me.’

Victor kept the growing concern out of his voice. ‘No, your mind is fine. I don't make mistakes.’” (1.156)

Oh yeah, he has a wife, doesn't he:

“This is why Victor requires …the cruel humiliation of his partner. He has long ago transcended the guilt that committing acts of cruelty might spawn in others...the exercise of raw power thrills him,” (1.244).

*

“I have given you a life…remember that. I have given you a life, and I will choose what you do with it,” (1.464).

Wives view of him:

“She owned literally hundreds of outfits. Having been created to his ideal measurements, Victor had purchased everything…She hoped that someday she would be allowed to shop for herself. When Victor allowed that, she would know she had at last met his standards and earned his trust. Briefly, she wondered what it would be like not to care what Victor—or anyone—thought of her. To be herself. Independent. Those were dangerous thoughts. She must repress them.” (1.107)    

*

And those are just the PG bits, he does much, much worse.

*

In conclusion:

So yes, Spike Milligan made Victor a pathetic jerk, Casebook made Victor a madman, Memoirs made him an erotic predator, Dark Descent had him as an abusive boyfriend ruthless in possessing “his Elizabeth”,  but nearly succeeding at worldwide genocide while abusing/murdering/manipulating people to achieve his goals makes Dean Koontz’s Victor Frankenstein the worse, more morally despicable Victor Frankenstein of them all. At least from what I’ve read.

Annnnd that’s it! If you want me to make a part 2 and add in the films/plays let me know! Hopefully at least one of these peeked your interest as something to check out during spooky season.

Shameless plug-in: here’s my own Frankenstein adaptation

*

Bonus!

Ranking the books on how much I liked them personally!

Great:

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein: Nice to see Victor’s villainy stem from family relations and not ego and wanting to defy God for a change.

Junji Ito’s Frankenstein: Phenomenal artwork, fairly faithful adaptation, and the changes serve to put Victor in a better light—which I love! The master of manga monsters himself made the right choice in keeping the creature more monstrous in this version instead of focusing on his humanity.

This Dark Endeavor: Frankenstein characters go on a Harry Potter styled adventure. Need I say more?

Average:

Such Wicked Intent: Victor’s character takes a dip, and pit monsters/life-absorbing butterflies don’t quite fit in a Frankenstein prequel.

Frankenstein According to Spike Milligan: It’s a silly, stupid comedy. Got a few chuckles out of me.

Pride and Prometheus: The concept works way better than it should. However, it follows the original text to a fault and can be boring at points. 

Bad:

Warning: contains mentions of suicide 

Monster: Victor’s character was far too inconsistent to be likable. He can talk to animals why, exactly?

Casebook of Victor Frankenstein: So, Victor is revealed to be crazy in the final 3 pages? So, the monster was in his head? Alright. But other characters throughout the book SAW the monster and described him like Victor did. So, there’s no way to separate Victor’s POV from reality and that kills the reread value and makes this a waste of time. Don’t get me wrong, the creature being symbolic for Victor’s inner demons is a fascinating direction if done well—and I recommend the essay “Frankenstein: The Man and the Monster” by Arthur Belefant if you want a much shorter exploration of this concept. It’s not perfect, but beats Casebook by a longshot!

Also, taking the real-life suicide of Percy’s wife Harriet and turning it into Victor murdering her and framing it on someone else to mimic Frankenstein’s Justine/William scene is just wrong. You made a woman’s suicide a cheap plot point in your fanfic of the mistress’s novel. That is what you did, author.

Dean Koontz Frankenstein: It starts out good and has great suspense—too bad the actual plot is awful. Victor’s so painfully evil it comes off as comical, the characters are bad/bland, plot holes abound (they state Mary Shelley’s novel is canon, then mention the windmill which was only in the films—so who even IS this Victor? Book or film?). The conclusion in book 3 is one of the most underwhelming finals I’ve ever read, and the creature “cures” a kid of Autism in the final chapter. No really. How this is a book series/comic series/movie is beyond me.

So atrocious I couldn’t bring myself to finish:

Warning: contains mentions of sexual themes

The Memoirs of Elizabeth Frankenstein: It claims to be pro-feminist, but the women “good guys” blatantly state they are grooming children for sexual rituals and Victor and Elizabeth are coerced into doing NSFW things by Victor’s mother in the name of “women’s rights”. Here’s the kicker: these awful actions are framed as being positive. I—a woman—loath this novel. Maybe things got better by the end (and if there was some plot twist that changed the entire setup, I apologize for ranting about nothing) but I’m not reading to that point to find out! This will forever stay both my first and last experience with erotic literature. Thank goodness The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein exists to give us a decent feminist take on Frankenstein!

[aenariasbookshelf]

New Ficlet: The Art of Snuggling

Title: The Art of Snuggling

Summary: Some days, it just isn’t worth getting out of bed, when being human is just too hard to handle. And on days like that, sometimes the best thing for Darcy Lewis is a good, old fashioned, snuggle.

Pairing: Darcy Lewis/Steve Rogers/Wanda Maximoff

@typhoidmeri and I have been tossing around snuggling headcanons for ages, and when we hit on an OT3 idea I couldn’t resist putting it down on paper. So, this story is for Meri, who I am very thankful to have had in my life for all these years, and this is a small token of my appreciation for you.  

**********

Some days, it just isn’t worth getting out of bed. Darcy has accepted this as a fact of her life at this point: that there will be days when being human is just too hard to handle and the best thing she can do is stay in bed. To lounge there like some fairy tale heroine, propped up on lush velvet pillows and lovely, tactile blankets that cocoon her body. 

Those are far too fancy words for depression though. From her own first hand experience, Darcy knows that her depression doesn’t result in her looking like a sleeping beauty, but rather a zombie who’s lost a lot of days to a restless, uneasy sleep and a brain that vacillates between feeling too much of the pain in the world sometimes and blindingly numb to everything on others. And when she finally manages to get out of the stupor, she looks like she’s been dragged through a hedge backwards, with a rat’s nest worth of curls on top of her head and in desperate need of a shower. Definitely not fairy-tale like.

She’s developed better coping mechanisms since college at least, which had involved a lot of cheap wine and other risky activities in an attempt to feel something, anything. Even the revelation of Thor and those events were only able to keep the depression at bay for a little while. When she crashed back down to earth afterwards, the nightmares and the “it’s totally not PTSD, I just keep seeing the giant metal Asgardian creature out of the corner of my eyes,” brought all of the feelings of uselessness rushing back that had to be hid away from Jane lest she lose her internship. Frankly, Darcy’s not sure how she managed to graduate, really.

Medication and the health insurance to pay for it makes a world of difference. And Darcy finally has people who she knows care about her just the way she is, damaged and dinged up and beautifully flawed, who love her and accept her love in return, even if the words don’t always come easily. 

But, even with the medication there are still days when Darcy just can’t get out of bed, and so she pulls her cozy sweater tighter around her and curls into the blankets, eyes heavy and body trying to become as small as it can be. A few minutes later the door to the bedroom opens, soft footsteps heading her way. It’s the smallness of the tread that tells her it’s Wanda rather than Steve, gliding through the world at her own pace. Wanda sits down on the edge of the big bed, brushing some curls away from Darcy’s eyes. “Mmm,” Darcy hums, leaning into Wanda’s light touch. 

There’s a clinking noise somewhere that Darcy can’t quite make out, so she pries her eyes open to spot a couple of fresh mugs on the bedside table amidst the rest of the clutter that’s built up there. “Did you take your pills yet this morning?” Wanda asks. More than once Wanda’s told both her and Steve that she’s not their therapist, she’s their girlfriend, and they try their absolute hardest to honor this...but it’s no secret that Wanda tries to help them where she can, with gentle reminders and quiet little prods that push things in the right direction. 

“Not yet,” Darcy sighs. She pushes herself upright, the blankets falling around her, dragging her sweater down a bit until one pale shoulder is sticking out of the cardigan (it’s oversized anyway...and come to think of it she probably borrowed it from Steve’s section of the closet). “I need to.”

“Here.” Wanda leans over to the bedside table and pulls an orange pill bottle out of the mess there. “I think these are them.” She hands them over and Darcy hefts them in her hand, tossing them in the air and hearing the medication rattle around inside.

“I love and hate these things, you know?” Darcy says, popping the cap. “I hate that I’m so fucking dependent on them to keep me balanced, but I love that they actually mean I can function right.” She measures out the dose into her hand and pops them into her mouth, washing them down with a swig of coffee.

Wanda shrugs, moving around to lean against the headboard next to Darcy. Their bed is large enough to fit all three of them comfortably; it may have initially been a custom job to fit Steve’s large frame, but none of them can deny that it’s perfectly shaped for the three of them to sleep at nights. “The medicine’s a lot less self destructive than the other options, at least.”

“Depends on how you use them,” Darcy points out. She snuggles her coffee cup close and leans against Wanda’s side, letting the other woman’s warmth seep into her chilled bones. “Take enough of those pills and destruction is guaranteed.”

The statement is enough to make Wanda groan loudly with frustration. “I swear, between you with the bloody dark jokes and Steve with the bloody fists, you’re both going to make me go entirely grey-haired before I’m thirty.”

And while the rational part of Darcy knows that the comment’s only in jest, it’s enough to make Darcy shrink down inside herself, bury her feelings and the sting down inside of her and curl up inside that hard shell once more. “Sorry,” she mumbles in the direction of her coffee cup.

“Hey.” She feels Wanda’s hand on her face, turning her so they can lock eyes. Wanda glides a knuckle over Darcy’s cheekbone and gives her a soft smile. “No matter what,” she says, “you are absolutely enough as you are, and I love you just like that.”

Darcy can feel the tears start to sting at her eyes, one breaking loose and tracking its way down her skin to gather in the corner of her mouth. “I love you too,” she says, using her free hand to pull Wanda into a slightly desperate kiss that hopefully says everything that words can’t. Darcy pours all of her feelings into it, knowing that Wanda, with all of her psychic skills and abilities, will feel them that way too.

Wanda’s lips trail away from Darcy’s slowly, stretching up to plant another kiss on her forehead. “It’s going to be a bed day, isn’t it?”

“I think so.” Darcy glances over Wanda’s shoulder and out the window, seeing the sky a dull grey color, clouds heavy and leaden, like it may possibly snow but really, it just can’t muster up the energy for it. “Weather’s right for bed and cuddling.”

“Here.” Wanda grabs the remote from the other bedside table and drops it in Darcy’s lap. “You find something to watch, and I’ll get the blankets.”

It doesn’t take long for the two women to get everything situated just so, pillows in all shapes and sizes and colors piled high against the headboard, and some knit blankets that are probably about as old as Darcy is, but they’re warm and cozy, and that’s what matters. “What are you doing?” Darcy asks a few minutes later, once they’re finally curled up together under the blankets, the tv on the other side of the room telling stories of baked goods in soft voices that help to put her brain at ease.

“Texting Steve,” Wanda says, nose buried in her phone. “He’s out running right now, but I’m going to see if I can tempt him to bring some goodies home for us.”

“Goodies are fun, but really, I am a-ok with just cuddles.”

“Well, there’s nothing to stop us from having both of them.”

Wanda’s arm drops around her shoulders, pulling her close, the skin to skin contact doing wonders to soothe Darcy’s soul. Beneath the blankets, she curves her leg atop Wanda’s, clinging on like a truly desperate octopus, and it helps to settle her even further. They’re still like that when Steve arrives later, slightly sweaty from his run, with a tray of drinks in one hand and a paper bag in the other.

“Hey you,” Darcy says, still not moving her head from where it’s pillowed on Wanda’s shoulder. Wanda’s fingers keep idly stroking at her hair anyway, and it’s enough to make her positively melt. “Good run?”

“Good enough. Nothing special.” Before Darcy can ask what’s in the bag the bed dips and Steve crawls over the two of them, bracing himself up so that they’re not crushed under the entirety of his body. He kisses Darcy first, slow and languorous with just a hint of tongue, tasting enough like hot chocolate that Darcy licks her lips when he pulls away. Steve kisses Wanda next, gracing her with the same sweet, slow kiss, and it’s a sight that Darcy will never be tired of. 

“You need a shower,” Wanda says when Steve moves back. “You smell like jogging.”

“She has a point.” Darcy plucks at the T-shirt stretched over Steve’s chest, finding one of the sweaty spots there. “Go shower, then come cuddle with us.”

“If my sheets are getting sweaty, it won’t be because of this,” Wanda points out with a giggle.

Steve rolls his eyes, and sighs. His head drops forward and Darcy pats the back of his neck to try and comfort him a bit...and then wipes the sweat that collected on her hand off on his shoulder. “All right, I’m going.” He hauls himself off the bed and heads to the bathroom, the sound of delighted giggles trailing behind him.

One military-quick shower later Steve comes back, wearing loose shorts and a tank top, and crawls into the bed behind Darcy. His body brackets hers neatly, and his arm stretches over her head so that he can play with the loose strands of Wanda’s hair that spread across the piles of pillows. Darcy wriggles back into him, soaking in the skin to skin contact on her back, while tugging Wanda that much closer to her. There’s an art to the group snuggle, after all, which ends up resulting in the finest puppy pile that they could achieve, skin to skin to skin, making it hard to tell where one body ends and the next one begins. 

“So what are they making today?” Steve murmurs into Darcy’s shoulder, just as his hand steals up to slide under her shirt, settling large and warm against her soft stomach and grounding her.

Wanda laughs, a little snorting chuckle that is absolutely adorable, and Darcy just shakes her head. “Just wait and see,” Darcy says. “It’s going to make your inner New Yorker curl up and die.”

Even on those darker days, when her brain chemistry is being especially stupid, Darcy knows there’s still something there that makes it all worth it. It could be something small, so minor that no one else would be amused by it, but it’s hers. These two beloved people, who accept and love her for everything that she is, flaws and all, are hers too, and she loves them back. And never let it be said that Darcy doesn’t fight for those she loves.

(a/n: if you’ve been watching this season of GBBO you’ll know exactly which challenge it is that made my inner new yorker curl up and...actually, it made me rage and throw a sock at my TV screen. Sign of a true Brooklynite right there.

Ask me how I really feel about this season of GBBO. Go on. I dare you.)

[jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels]

Don’t You Hear My Call Though You’re Many Years Away - Chapter 9

A/N: Settle in y’all, this is a long one. Things heat up between the Y/N and Deacy. And Y/N spends the day with Brian! Y/N slips up.

Warnings: Angst. Steamy moment. Mentions of drinking. Maybe one cuss word.

I imagine John playing “Something” would have sounded like this. https://open.spotify.com/track/0zi2LVUPp1gGssRSHgIW36?si=PIyL9IJ3QquJD6MIy1XGxQ

Before I knew it, a week had passed. I spent most days with John, others with Mary, sometimes Freddie and Roger, but all my evenings were spent with John. And just like that first night, he would walk me to my door, and leave me for the night.

But today I spending time with Brian, who I hadn’t had the chance to get to know as well as the others.

John was helping his friend again, Mary was working, as were Roger and Freddie, but when John asked what I would do with my day the previous night at the pub, Brian offered to show me around more.

I met Brian in the lobby of the inn around 11am.

“Good Morning, Y/N!” He said cheerfully as I made my way down the stairs.

“Hey Brian!” I greeted him with a hug and a kiss on each cheek.

Margret, the inn keeper, looked us distainfully. What she must be thinking. One man leaving last night and now a different one picking me up. She was nosy and miffed.

I wiggled my fingers at her, waving goodbye. She huffed indigently and walked away.

Brian caught the interaction and couldn’t help help but ask “what was that about?”

Laughing I replied, “she seems sort of nosy, and well John left me at my room last night, and now you, a different man, are picking me up.” I raised my brows in a ‘you know’ expression.

“Oh” Brian laughed softly.

“What type of woman does she take me for?” I clutched at my bare neck dramatically as we left the inn, causing Brian to laugh harder.

“You’ll be the talk of the city if you’re not careful” he added playfully.

“Where are we off to today?” I asked as he headed down the sidewalk towards the van.

“The observatory, if you’re alright with that” he said as he opened the door for me to climb in.

“I’ve never been to an observatory” I replied, causing him to smile.

On the ride there Brian talked excitedly about the observatory, giving me some of its history. He was softer spoken than Roger and Freddie, but not as much as John. He had a gentleness to him that was endearing.

His enthusiasm was catching, but it also could have been that I still wasn’t over the fan girl shock at times, so I was always excited about everything.

Once we arrived Brian showed me the equipment and explained what everything did. Telling me what I was looking at through the telescope. It was like having my own personal tour guide.

His enthusiasm didn’t waiver until he realized I hadn’t said much.

“Sorry” he said quietly, “I can get carried away.”

“Please, don’t appologized!” I replied, reaching out to touch his arm “I’m simply taking it all in. I never learned half this much all the years I spent sitting in the yard with my Dad looking through his telescope.”

“Oh, does he enjoy astronomy?” He asked, his curiosity peaked.

“He does. He took a few classes in college. He taught me about the constellations, unfortunately I can’t remember them all now.” I laughed “funny enough, my first word was ‘moon’.”

He laughed softly as we walked “really?”

“Yes” I continued “but I pointed to a light fixture when I said it.”

He laughed louder, causing a few of the other guest to look our way.

“A light? Priceless!” he said as his laughed subsided.

“One of my Dads favorite stories to tell about me.” I laughed.

**

After a few hours at the observatory, Brian and I made our way to a small pub for some lunch before heading back to their flat.

I was deep in my glass of wine when I decided to maybe give a few hints about myself away. Or at least where I came from.

“So tell me Dr. May, what do you think the future holds for space travel?” I started there.

“I’m not a Dr.” he replied.

“Not yet” I quipped, smiling.

“Ah well, space travel, hmmm.” He thought for a moment “more trips to the moon hopefully. Although they’re doing some pretty wonderful things right now.”

“Do you think people will ever go to another planet?” I promoted.

“That would be an amazing feat now wouldn’t it?” He said thoughtfully, “I don’t honestly know though. Technologically speaking, there would need to rather great advancements. But most planets would be difficult to reach and even more difficult to survive, completely inhospitable, at least given the equipment available now.”

“Ok, what about...” I paused “time travel?”

“Time travel? Well that’s different than space travel isn’t it?” He took a sip of his drink before he continued “Einstein‘s theory of relativity suggests it may be possible.”

As he explained I began to feel the truth bubble under surface again. The urge to tell, that was ever present, begging to come out. So many stories and secrets fighting to be told.

I knew I could trust him, I also knew he’d have so many questions I couldn’t answer. But my heart held me back. John was the one to tell, if I told anyone. But would he believe me? How would I tell him? And most importantly, when?

“What brought up time travel?” He asked as he finished explaining.

“I just like to read science fiction, that’s all” I lied.

“What have you read?” He asked. With that the subject changed, and I didn’t give any hints.

**

“Thank you for today, I had a wonderful time” I told Brian as we made our way into the flat. And it was true. I enjoyed spending time with him, getting to know him better. I kept breaking the rules as days passed. They were all becoming my friends.

“You’re welcome” he said allowing me in before him.

As I stepped inside I heard soft music coming from up the stairs, someone was playing a guitar.

I turned to look at Brian, “someone here?”

“It’s John” Brian said, nodding in the direction of the stairs.

I smiled at him before slowly making my way up, listening to the song he was playing. I recognized it quickly, he was playing “Something” by The Beatles.

Once I reached the landing, I quietly stepped towards the opened door and peered in.

John was sat on his bed, acoustic guitar in his lap. His eyes were closed as his fingers skillfully moved over the strings. He swayed slightly as his heel tapped, keeping time. He seemed lost in the music, in the moment.

I stood silently against the door jamb, taking him in. His handsome profile, the set of his mouth and jaw. His hair falling down his back. He was captivating. I could have watched him for hours. He began to softly hum the words of the song, and I could literally feel myself swoon. What was it about a cute guy and a guitar?

I watched him quietly, the moment was too serene to interrupt. As I listened, the inner turmoil that constantly lingered in the pit of my stomach halted. All the worry and fear melted away as he played. Calmness settled over me, a welcome break from the incessant angst. Everything seemed perfect in that instant.

But all too quickly the song ended. John still sat quietly.

“I read somewhere he wrote that about his guitar” I said softly, derailing his train of thought.

John jumped, causing the guitar to bounce on his knees, as he yelped.

“You startled me!” He exclaimed.

“Sorry” I couldn’t help but giggle. “That was beautiful, Deacy” I said as he stood to lean the guitar against his desk.

“Thank you” he said, bashfully. “You going to stay in the hall?”

“I didn’t want to barge in and disturb you.” I replied, stepping into the room. Taking it in fully. I hadn’t been in here yet, I’d only caught a few glimpses.

“I wasn’t thinking about my guitar playing that thought.” He said softly, as he closed the door behind me.

“Oh, you were thinking about you bass guitar then huh?” I asked playfully, smiling at him.

He swiftly stepped towards me, smiling before he pressed his lips to mine. His hands rested on my waist as mine wrapped around his neck.

I sighed happily as the kiss ended.

“Hi sweetheart” he whispers against my lips.

“Hi Deacy” I whispered back, my eyes still closed.

“How was your day with Brian?” He asked softly as his lips moved to my cheek. His hands moved gently, gliding up my back.

“Good” I exhaled, letting my head lull to the side, exposing my neck to his lips. He took the invitation and peppered my skin with soft kisses.

He moaned quietly as my hand found his hair, my fingers tangling in the strands.

His lips left my skin, and as I opened my eyes, he was staring at me as his darkened, smiling. His hands found their way under my shirt as he began to kiss me more deeply, making me moan in his mouth. Slowly we moved towards his bed, when I felt it bump the back on my knees, I broke the kiss. I pulled away from his grasp, toed my shoes off and climbed on his bed. Kneeling, I took his hands in mine and pulled him towards me.

As his lips crashed into mine, his hands returning to their spot under the hem of my shirt, while mine tugged at the buttons of his. His calloused fingers drifting along my back, his warm skin contrasted by the cold metal of the rings on his fingers. My body shivered from the contact.

Suddenly his door swung open and Roger burst in, “Deaks...shit! Sorry!” He bellowed, turning his face away from the scene before him.

I sat back on my heels, flustered, as John spoke gruffly “what is it Rog?”

“Oh” he said, peaking back at us, seeing the situation had changed, he faced us again “we’re having a party tonight. I wanted to see if you wanted to go to the shops with me...but I see you’re busy.”

“We’ll go Rog” I told him. John looking back at me questioningly.

“Thought you didn’t want an audience, love” he retorted.

“We didn’t have one until you came in” I said, cocking a brow at him.

“What do we need?” John asked.

**

There were more people in the flat that I thought possible. People chatting, eating, drinking, smoking, dancing. It was a bit like a frat party, the music and clothing may have been different but the situation felt similar. And still felt awkward for me.

Freddie and Mary were playing host and hostess, introducing me to people, and in some cases to John as well. People were interested in their new American friend, who they took on. Like I was some sort of stray, which wasn’t far from the truth.

Brian was there with a date, and a camera. Taking pictures of anyone who would let him.

Roger was flirting with a girl, and while I toyed with the idea of getting some payback for walking in on me and John, I decided against it.

John stayed by me the entire time. Touching me, kissing me, holding me. I was surprised at his public affection, but I enjoyed every moment of it.

Freddie pulled us all together, telling us he had news.

“We have more dates booked! A tour!” He cheered, raising his glass.

Brian and Roger flooded him with questions, like when and where.

“Cornwall, there’s 9 shows” he continued.

“We can stay with my Mum! She helped pull this all together!” Roger said cheerfully. It was cute.

John pulled me into an embrace, “we haven’t had our first show, I can’t believe we’ve got a tour!” He said excitedly.

“It’s going to be amazing. You’ll all be amazing!” I said as I kissed him.

Freddie poured more drinks for everyone. Tonight was a celebration.

After a few more drinks I didn’t give much thought to when Freddie took the camera from Brian and told him and I to stand together for a picture. It seems I had forgotten I wasn’t meant to be here. Taking photos was careless. Dangerous even. I was leaving a tangible trace.

But I was reckless. 

Brian slung his arm around my shoulder, and leaned his head down until his curls were laying on top of my head, making me laugh as Freddie snapped the picture.

“Now your turn Fred!” Brain yelled over the music. Why were they wanting pictures with me?

Freddie handed over the camera, and pulled me into a bear hug, squishing his cheek against mine for the picture. Smiling cheerfully.

“I want a picture with Y/N” Roger almost whined as Freddie spun me around.

Roger put his arm around my shoulder too, and as Brian shouted “ready”, Roger kissed my cheek, making me roll my eyes, even though I was still smiling.

“Mary and Y/N next!” Freddie said, pulling me towards her. We posed with our arms around each other’s waists, smiling happily at the camera as the bulb flashed.

“Now the lovebirds” Freddie yelled, as he pushed John towards me. We stood awkwardly together at first, not sure how to pose.

“Aw! Cmon! Act like you at least want to shag! Like earlier!” Roger yelled loudly, making people around us laugh.

I laughed as I turned my face into John’s shoulder. I wasn’t sure what poses or moments were captured as a series of flashes went off. The last one flared as I was looking up at John, smiling.

John sat on the arm of one of the sofas and pulled me to sit in his lap. I loved being close to him. Since I was pressed up against him, I decided to be a tease, seeing as I was still frustrated from our heated moment being interrupted.

As ‘All Right Now’ began to play over the stereo, I started to move my hips, wiggling them to rhythm. Like I would if I were driving in my car, listening to my favorite song.

As I started to move, I heard his breath hitch, and felt his body go rigid. His grip on my hip tightened as I continued.

After a few moments I could feel his excitement. I couldn’t help but look over my shoulder at him. His pupils were blown, as he swallowed thickly. He set his drink aside to pull my face to his, the kiss was hungry.

As I leaned back to look at him, his mouth was open slightly, his eyes dark. He leaned into me, pressing a kiss to my cheek before his lips settled on the shell of my ear.

“Let’s go to my room” he whispered.

“We’d defiantly have an audience now” I reply “but I know where there’s an empty room.”

@queensdivas @liliah39 @leah-halliwell92 @painkiller80 @painandpleasure86 @deakys-chesthair @yourlocalmusicalprostitute @heybuddy-drabbles @queenwouldyourathers @mirkwoodshewolf @ixchel-9275 @johndeaconstoothgap @deakysmisfire @thosequeenboys @tryin-her-best @amethyst-serenade @deacyspatronusisacheesetoastie @johndeaconshands @apailana @deakysgurl @john-deacon-fucks

[ramblinganthropologist]

N7 Challenge - 14 (Military)

Summary: Alistair Shepard isn’t the military type. So... why’d he enlist in the Alliance anyway?

---

“Shepard... mind if I ask a question?”

Normally, questions like that made Alistair's skin crawl. However, he was currently bent over the Mako and trying to get it to work so all his thought process was focused on that. It didn't really register who or what was asking him a question until he backed up to evaluate his progress.

Then he realized it was the Normandy's only turian.

“Oh, hey Garrus.” He glanced back at the panel – still loading for twenty more minutes. That meant he had time to catch his breath after the nightmare that was Noveria. Hours later, and he still felt freezing as he pried frozen rocks out of the treads. At least any ice had long since melted.

A quick glance told him that the turian's body language registered as curious. So, that probably knocked out tactical or mission questions. If he had to guess, Garrus was about to ask something personal. For a turian, that was... odd. Definitely against the manual of interacting with someone in authority. So whatever it was, it had to be important.

He could play ball.

The turian looked around the empty room before he spoke. Then his mandibles twitched – a classic sign of turian nerves acting against him. He was curious, but uncomfortable about asking this. So it was probably important enough that Alistair backed away from the console and let it keep working.

Man, he was glad he took that turian body language course back in basic. It was saving his ass now for sure.

“What's up?”

Garrus's mandibles twitched again. “Just... you're not really the military type, are you?”

Alistair blinked at that. “Uh... I'm going to have to ask for some clarification there. What do you mean?”

Now the turian in front of him really looked uncomfortable. Had he been annoyed, the Spectre would have enjoyed it. But mostly he was just tired and cold, and he wanted to get this conversation over with so he could get back to work. His bed was calling his name, and he needed to answer it as soon as possible if wanted to stave off the post biotic headache that was currently looming behind both his eyes.

Biotics – they got you coming an going. At least he wasn't an L2 though. Man, it sucked to be Kaidan.

“Well... you're not...” Garrus mulled over his words. “Aggressive. Forward? When people look at you they don't seem to think you're a threat, even in armor.”

Yeah, that happened when you were under 5'5” and didn't really carry much muscle. Hooray for being the medic.

He held up his talons quickly though. “No offense, by the way. Just pointing out something I noticed while we were on Noveria. You don't really have a military presence about you.”

Alistair resisted an eye roll as he glanced back at the panel – 15 minutes now. “Yeah, I know. It's because I'm small and all lean muscle. Still managed to get to the end of N7 though, so I don't see why that's a problem.”

Ok, maybe there had been a bit of edge to his voice there. But could you blame him? This wasn't the first time he had ever had this conversation with someone, and no doubt it wouldn't be the last. He was pretty sure people would start adding Spectre to the 'shit people didn't thin he was' list. It was getting kind of long.

But whatever, welcome to his life.

“I didn't mean anything by it... you just don't seem the type.” Garrus' mandibles twitched as he shrank back a little. “Why'd you join anyway? Is it a Shepard family thing?”

Despite his annoyance, Alistair let out a quick and bitter chuckle as he typed something into the mainframe. “No, I'm the first in the family and hopefully the last.”

Then he turned around, tapping the spot where his head met his neck. Though he couldn't see it, he could feel the metal embedded into his neck. Right then, it was warmer than usual. It wasn't quite overheating yet, but it got close.

“I joined because my brain was going to explode if I didn't.”

Then he went back to the panel, typing out commands as he tried to ignore the turian all but standing over his shoulder. An awkward tension filled the room, probably because neither really knew what to say. Garrus probably felt guilty... and he didn't like talking about this.

Almost a decade later, and he was still annoyed.

“Your brain?” Garrus's head cocked to the side briefly. “I thought if you got past infancy, the rate of cancer-”

Alistair shrugged his shoulders as he gave up on the console for the moment. “It does. My problem was that my biotics are so strong they were overheating my brain without an amp.”

He smiled bitterly as he rubbed the port. “Most humans get their implants at puberty to help jump start more serious training. I should've gotten mine at 14, but... well, let's just say I didn't get that chance. I probably would have been part of the L2's if they had gotten to me in time.”

Instead, he had been whisked off Mindoir as the batarians rounded everyone up. A few years in foster care, then aging out... his teen years had mostly been a jumble of headaches and missing memories that came from his brain overheating. Or at least that's what the doctors told him from ages 14 to almost 20 when he went to them.

Then his brain had almost fried at 20.

“So... when did you get yours?”

The Spectre still had his hand on his amp as he spoke. “20, when I enlisted. I think I set a record for oldest person to get one and not have permanent brain damage. Pretty sure I'm in a couple medical text books under patient X or something.”

Not that he had ever gotten the chance to read one. He'd wanted to – med school had been in his goal plan once he finished community college and transferred to a four year school – but the military had made that goal a distant dream. He still thought about it sometimes, but with how things were going he'd probably be in for life.

It wasn't how he'd seen his life going, but that's how it was.

At any rate, Alistair shrugged and let his hand drop from the cooling amp. “I only joined because the Alliance had the tech to keep me from dying from brain overheat. I was only going to stay for my enlistment, but then the Blitz happened and Akuze wasn't long after. Before I knew it, here I am at N7 and suddenly I'm a Spectre.”

So, for a guy who didn't seem the military type... he was ass deep in the military. Maybe that was to his credit. Either that, or the universe didn't want him to settle down and go to med school. Was there some  future where he was like Doctor Death or something that it was trying to prevent?

Could've done that without the Reapers, you know. He would've accepted not getting into med school well enough.

At least Garrus nodded at that. “Sort of all just hit you at once.”

“Yeah. Besides, couldn't leave Bo in by herself. We work too well together to split up.”

The meter on the Mako beeped to let him know he had five minutes left until he could finish up. With any luck, he would be able to do so in silence. After having to talk about a past he wasn't too happy about, Alistair wasn't feeling too cordial as he continued to type data in.

Bitter? Absolutely.

Unfortunately for him, Garrus didn't leave. Instead, he just stood there, his body language screaming he wasn't sure what to do next. In animal species, they might wash their face or dig a hole. In turians, their mandibles twitched and their talons flexed. He was making a show of both at the moment, all he needed was the teeth grinding.

Not that Alistair wanted to hear that. Recordings of it were nasty enough.

So he worked in silence, finishing up the Mako repairs. After he pulled a few more rocks out of the treads, the timer beeped to let him now he could shut the diagnostic off. Its details were already streaming into his omni-tool; he could analyze them later at his desk, away from everyone else in the quiet of his room.

“Well... guess that's it for me. If you need to fix-”

“I'm sorry I said anything. You are a military type.”

Alistair blinked as he looked up at the turian in front or him. “Quite the change of heart you've got going on there, Garrus.”

He watched as his mandibles flared out a little – classic signs of embarrassment. Well, at least they were getting somewhere. Honestly, he was feeling a little bit in the same way. He just hid it by running away instead of staying there like an idiot.

Amazing the coping strategies between their species.

The turian cleared his throat as he glanced away. “Sense of responsibility, I guess. Should've seen it sooner.”

“Some might call that idiocy.” He allowed a brief smile. “Thanks, I guess. I don't mind not being seen as a military type, mind you. It makes getting people to agree to things without having to shoot them a lot easier.”

Which was good, because he had terrible vision and barely massed marksmanship in basic. Now that he was down an eye... well, he was glad diplomacy worked much better for him than shooting. Maybe that was why he had survived in N7.

At least that made the turian relax. “You have a point there. I think I probably would have been more annoyed if someone the other Shepard's size bumped into me in the Presidium.”

“Garrus, if Bo had bumped into you, you'd have been flat on your carapace and probably dealing with a concussion.”

He would know – he had seen enough of it.

At least that got his companion chuckling, which wasn't a bad sound. It was kind of chicken like, but not in an awful way. Honestly, it was something almost soothing to his grated nerves. Maybe this was his reward for sitting through the conversation.

Wasn't totally worth it, but it was nice.

“Yeah, that's probably true.” He stopped chuckling. “Anyway... looks like I should get out of the way so you can get back to work.”

Alistair nodded as he started to walk. “Nice talking to you, Garrus. If there's anything else wrong with the Mako, let me know. You know I have these nice, non-military sized wrists that are good at fitting into things.”

“Never going to let me live that one down, are you, Shepard?” Still, there was that chuckle again. “Right, talk to you later.”

Something about it felt good as Alistair left the area to head back to his quarters, wrist full of data. If he thought about it, it was the first decent conversation the two of them had ever had. Maybe they should have more of those.

Though... he could do without the 20 awkward questions next time. Some things he just liked to keep to himself.

[mysticthot]

RFA Soulmate AU

spoilers for v and ray’s routes

Yoosung- Whatever you draw on your skin, your soulmate can see

He learned about soulmates when he was a little kid

Loved the idea that there was a person made perfectly for him

Didn’t try to really contact you until he got into his teen years

He was nervous to try and draw something, he didn’t know what to say, but he didn’t want you to think he was lame if he just said hi or something

You and him had shared drawings before, but just little things like a homework page or a doodle of a flower

He didn’t know why you had never tried to talk to him before, but he couldn’t really say anything cause he hadn’t tried either

Maybe you were shy like him

His first word from you comes when he’s least expecting it

He’s in high school, hella focused on a test, then he feels a weird sensation on his arm

He looks down, and he’s unfamiliar, yet somehow comforting handwriting 

“Hello...? I’m MC <3

Boi is shook

Then he is immediately called out by the teacher who thinks he’s cheating and writing answers on his arm

That whole ordeal takes over his focus, so he isn’t able to respond to you until after class

“Hi, I’m Yoosung!”

After that, you guys are constantly talking

You tell each other about your day, and the places you live, or even draw little things to make the other laugh or blush

He’s so excited to graduate and go to college, but you’re a year behind him, so you wont be able to join him at University right away

He promises that he’s fine waiting one more year, he doesn’t want you to have to move on your final year of high school

Then Rika dies

And he’s a mess

You see him change through his writing

He writes less, and it’s almost always about Rika when he does

You want to go visit him, but he insists he’s ok

You were the only one who seemed to understand him, he didn’t know if he would have been able to make it without you

When he gets into gaming and starts slacking off a lot, he’s worried you’ll think he’s a loser and you wont want to be with him anymore

“Yoosung, you’re literally my soulmate I don’t care what you do as long as you’re happy!”

Definitely cries

When you graduate, he is so excited

All the RFA members know all about you cause you’re all he talks about the months leading up to your move

He waits at the airport for your plane practically vibrating with nerves and excitement

“OMG Zen what if she thinks I’m too short, or not manly enough, or she doesn’t like my hair, or-”

“Yoosung, I’m in the middle of a rehearsal, stop calling me!”

You spend the whole plane ride drawing intricate designs all over your arm so you will be able to find him in a crowd easier

Your plane lands, and you walk out, trying to find someone that meets his description

You see him before he sees you

He’s standing there, holding flowers, looking so nervous

You have the biggest smile on your face as you run over to him and his eyes finally meet yours and-

Oh no, he’s crying

He break down in tears running into your arms, sweeping you off your feet

“Oh MC I’m so happy to see you I’ve waited my whole life for this moment you are everything I ever hoped you would be!” 

“I love you Yoosung.”

“I love you too.”

You give him his first kiss and its perfect

He’s never been so happy

Until he logs onto the group chat and finds Saeyoung had hacked the CCTV and showed everyone how he immediately cried when he saw you

Not so happy anymore

Zen- Have each others first word tattooed (has to be spoken directly to them)

Zen had always found his soulmate tattoo rather funny

On his wrist, his soulmates first word were delicately written in a beautiful cursive

People always admired it, until they looked closer and saw what it actually said

“Oh fuck- Shit oh no I fucked it up!”

As a child, parents and teachers did not appreciate when he showed the vulgar words around to the other kids

It was like a badge of honor when he was younger

Kids thought he was cool purely based on the curse words on his wrist

As he got older, it lost its novelty and became just like any normal tattoo for him

Though, it was still funny to see people’s faces when they first saw it

He was sure he would meet his soulmate when he was in the biker gang

The girls he hung around with then were tough and cursed frequently, but it never happened

He had gone out with a few girls, but it never felt right, and he knew it was cause they weren’t the one for him

When he got his act together and started doing musicals, he thought maybe you would be a coworker, cursing after messing up a line, but he had still yet to find you

The hopeless romantic binch he is, he is constantly complains about his lack of soulmate to the RFA

But none of them found theirs either, so they can all kinda relate

He is always thinking of you, so of course you would show up in his life the only time he wasn't

It was during the opening night of a production he was in

He was the lead, of course, and this was one of the rare moments you weren’t the main thing on his mind

You were sat in the crowd, near the stage with a few friends

You had a friend in the play, and she had gotten you good tickets, so you brought flowers and stuff to show your support

The lights dimmed, and the most gorgeous man you had ever seen in your life walked out onto the stage

You swear he must have been a statue or something

The play began, and he delivered his lines perfectly

You were supposed to be there supporting your friend, but you’re pretty sure your eyes hadn’t left him all night

It was near the end of the production, when he turned to the crowd with a flourish, his eyes suddenly meeting yours as he spoke his next line:

“Could this be love?”

His eyes stayed glued to yours for a second to long, before he unfroze, and continued his monologue

You were shook, looking down at your tattoo with wide eyes

His words were on your wrist, and as you read over them, it was like his voice spoke to you all over again

You couldn’t wait for the play to be over

You sat through the rest of it trying to figure out the perfect first line to say to him

His was so romantic and beautiful, you didn't want to screw this up!

As soon as the curtain fell, you hopped up, shouting to your friends that you were going to the bathroom, before running off towards back stage

You really didn’t know where you were going, but you followed down some halls following the faint sound of the cast members voices when you turned a corner and ran full speed into someone

Stumbling backwards, you looked up and saw the guy from the play, your soulmate

Your mind went blank, you scrambled for something to say before

“Oh fuck- Shit oh no I fucked it up!”

You gasped, realizing what had just come out of your mouth, before looking down at his arm and seeing those exact words tattooed on him

“Oh...my...god.”

Wide eyed and mouth open, you stared at him

He looked right back with a smile that made you wanna pass out

“I am so sorry. You had that tattooed all your life?”

“Don’t worry about it, I wouldn’t want anything else.”

He took your hands in his, and you could see nothing but love and happiness in his eyes

“I’m so fucking happy to finally meet you.”

Jaehee- You have a mark where your soulmate will touch you the first time

Most people had their marks on their hands

The hand print of their soulmate forever on their palm, signifying they would one day shake their hand, those were the most common

Some people had their marks in more random places, maybe they would run into them in a crowd, or be passing by one day in the street

Jaehee, how ever, had two hand prints forever marked on her back

There were two possibilities, either she would be pushed by her soulmate or hugged

While she hopped it was the latter, either of the meetings seemed rather forward, especially for a conservative girl like her

Who would be hugging (or, hopefully not, pushing) her at their for their very first meeting?

While thoughts of her soulmate one day showing up in her life occupied her mind for most of her younger years, she didn’t really have much time to think about romance these days

Her work and home life was plagued by corporate heirs, cats, and the RFA, leaving very little room for much else

There were nights when she would be changing, or just getting out of the shower, and she would catch sight of the marks in the mirror

It would fill her with a sadness and a loneliness that not even Zens videos could cure

She was only an assistant, she felt she had no one in her life that truly understood her

That is, until you came along

She was suspicious when you had first entered the chatroom, but over time she learned more about you

You understood her like no one else ever had before

You cared for her well being and stood up for her when she was being over worked

For the first time, she felt she was actually cared for 

She could not wait to meet you at the party 

The day of the party, she woke up to a tingle in her back that didn’t go away 

As party grew nearer, the tingles only got worse, and Jaehee began to get more and more nervous

Time seemed to slow down as a you walked through the crowd towards her

She had never seen your face, yet she knew you must have been the MC from the chat room

A smiled took over your features as you opened your arms and swept her up in to a tight hug 

She could feel as your fingers fell right into place of her marks, and her hands came to rest over yours

Her eyes were wide, and misty behind her glasses, before she let out a breath, and completely wrapped herself into you

For the first time in her life, she felt complete

“Thank you.” she cried into your shoulder.

Jumin- Red strings connecting soulmates(obvi lol)

Jumin grew up in a loveless house

His fathers soulmate had died before he ever met them, so Jumin grew up watching him try and fill that void with other women

That didn’t exactly give him a lot of hope for his future

With no one to compare it to, or even ask, Jumin was pretty clueless about the red string on his finger

All he knew was somewhere his soulmate was on the other end

As he got older any small amount of interest he may have had in his soulmate disappeared

The people in his life didn’t really care for soulmates, that was more of a commoner thing

People married for convenience or to help their image, rarely for love

There were women throwing themselves at him daily, but he was known for being untouchable (does jumin han is gay?)

People thought he was waiting for his soulmate, but he truly just didn't care

He met you for the first time at a Gala event in (your country)

It had taken him a while to notice, as he went out of his way to ignore the string, but he looked up and saw the end of his string for the first time in his life

It was connected to you, a waitress that was catering the event, standing across the room

His heart seemed to jump for a moment, and he turned around, not really knowing what to do

It hadn’t seemed like you’d noticed him yet, you were working hard to balance a tray of champagne as you wove through the crowd

He watched you walk around for a few minutes, you politely smiled at guests and passed drinks

He was internally arguing with whether or not to go talk to you, when you were stopped by a hand on your shoulder 

His mood immediately dropped as he saw the hand belonged to none other than his father, who was clearly flirting with you

He never could resist a pretty face, no matter who it was

Jumin turned and left, calling Driver Kim to take him back to his hotel

With every step away from the building, he felt a tug in his chest like something was wrong, but he pressed on

Soulmates were nothing but a useless fantasy, something people use to comfort themselves into believing they weren’t alone in this world

The last thing he needed in his life was another disappointing woman

He didn’t think much about his soulmate for two years

Then you showed up in the chatroom, and you treated him like no one else had

You laughed at his jokes and asked about Elizabeth the 3rd

You didn’t ask or expect anything from him, you said you liked to talk to him, and he realized he liked to talk to you too

When the hacker was becoming a threat, he refused to let you stay alone and unguarded, and insisted for your safety and his sanity, that you come to the penthouse

He hadn’t thought of his soulmate in years, but now he wanted to hope it was you, that he was getting a second chance to meet you

His string often lead out the front door of his penthouse, but now, as he sat their waiting for you, he hoped for the first time that when those doors opened, he would see the other end and get back the chance he missed

As you stepped out of the car you couldn’t hold back your smile, your string was headed right into that building

You knocked on the door, and his voice immediately called for you to come in

Your string was going right into his penthouse

Heart pounding, your opened the door, and on the other side stood Jumin

His heart soared when he saw you, and it nearly stopped when he saw the end of his string connecting him to you

He had never smiled so hard, tears were collecting in his eyes

He couldn’t believe it was really you

The red string faded away as your hand came to grip his, and he felt all of his strings become untangled

He cant believe he wasted years being without this feeling, without you, all because of his own fears

“MC, I love you. I promise I will for the rest of my days, I will cherish you always.”

“I love you too Jumin.”

He had missed out on you once, he wasn’t gonna let you get away again

(extra-)

“wow jumin u know i used to work for a catering company that did all kinds of fancy gigs, i cant believe i never met u there!”

“uh... about that....”

Seven- Soulmates can feel each others feelings

It was like a constant hum in the back of your mind...well, if that hum came with a particular feeling

Your soulmates feelings weren’t exactly the same as your own, but they were felt as though they were

As a child, you didn’t quite understand why you were sad all the time...cause you weren't sad, you just felt sad

Your parents knew your soulmate must not have the best life, but they couldn’t exactly explain that to a 7 year old

As you grew up and learned more about soulmates, you began to understand

When they felt sad, you did

When they felt scared, you did

When they felt hopeless, you did too

So you made it your goal to be as happy as you could, as some way to possibly comfort your soulmate

You always tried to see the bright side of things and be positive

You didn’t want to add any extra sadness to whatever your soulmate was already feeling

And your soulmate was grateful for that...or at least you felt like he was

As time passed, you soulmates feelings changed

He was still sad, but it was a different kind

Like he was sad, but he was ok with being sad

It was both more and less intense for you to feel

When you joined the RFA, you immediately felt a pull to the mysterious 707

His personality seemed to familiar to you, it was like you had already known him

Meanwhile, Saeyoung was feeling the same thing

You had a bright feeling to you that made him feel like he was in a warm comfortable place

This feeling was something he often retreated into during his childhood

He would feel that happiness in the back of his mind and relish it like it was his own, and it made him feel good

He had a feeling you might be his soulmate, and that’s why he was so hesitant to go to the apartment

On one hand, as soon as you were beginning to be in danger, every part of him screamed for him to go to you

On the other, he knew if he went and you were his soulmate, he wouldn’t be able to keep himself from you

He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if something happened to you because of him

Despite this, he ended up going over, and as soon as his eyes met yours, he knew

And you knew too

It was like meeting someone you knew a long time ago, they were familiar, yet you weren’t sure who they were exactly

You hugged him immediately, and he was so stiff in your arms

He wanted nothing but to melt into that warmth, for the first time in his life, that happiness that kept him going was right in front of him

But he held back, and he was so cold to you

He set up his things in the corner and tried to block out how confused and hurt you felt

You didn’t know why he was acting like this, but you felt his sadness, his loneliness

So you did what you had always done, and you loved him for who he was, and you enveloped him in a warmth so deep he couldn’t hold himself back

“I don’t understand MC, why don’t you get that I’m not good for you?! I’ve done nothing but bring you sadness your whole life, I’m putting you in danger just by being here! Why can’t you let me be?”

“I love you Seven. I’ll love you when you’re sad, and when you’re happy, and everything in between. I’m always going to be here for you whether you want me or not!”

He cried into your shoulder, holding you close

He’d never felt that kind of security before

You were doing you’re best for him, so he resolved to do his best for you

V- You see color for the first time when you make eye contact with your soulmate

Being a photographer who couldn’t see colors was not an easy job

V would take pictures, then put a grey filter over what was already grey for him so it looked the same to everyone, soulmate or not

He wanted to badly to fall in love, to feel complete and be loved in return

He had almost found that in Rika

The feelings were there, they were both sure they were in love, but both of them continued to see in black and white

It wasn’t an uncommon thing for people who weren’t soulmates to date

People often did until they were ready to settle down, and some unlucky few never found their soulmates, so they made what love they could

V tried to be happy with this kind of love, he tried to love her in a way that would make them both feel like they could see the colors

But Rika was unhappy, and didn’t believe he really loved her, after all, if he did he would be able to tell her what color her eyes were

When she faked her death and ran off, he felt he deserved what she did to his eyes, he couldn’t love her enough to see colors, so he didn’t deserve to see at all

He was content keeping these secrets and protecting Rika

Then you showed up, claiming to be sent by her

It didn’t take long for him to find you, being tricked by Rika and Ray to believe everything was just a game

He saw you in the gardens one night with Ray, and for a split second, he thought he saw the color of your hair, but he blinked and it was gone

He knew he needed to rescue you before you got hurt, the last thing he wanted was and innocent person getting dragged into this because of him

When he tried to rescue you the first time, he was thrown off when you turned around and your eyes were a magnificent (e/c) 

Then suddenly everything had color, and you were staring at him and he was staring at you and Ray was yelling that there was an intruder and guards were coming

He had to leave before he was captured, but as he escaped, all he could think about was the color of your eyes

This was not part of the plan, but it made everything a thousand times more complicated

Neither of you mentioned it in the chatrooms, but he promised he would be back to save you, and you knew you could trust him

When Rika brought you out to the gardens, she explained how V had tried to force a love that wasn’t there

You wanted to shout at her, he was never meant to be hers!

But you held yourself back, she was using you as bait and suddenly V was captured and being dragged away

When Seven saved him, all you could do was stare at him as he lay in you lap

He was mumbling your name and asking if you were safe, drugged out of his mind, but still worrying for you

When he began to regain his senses as the drug wore off, he felt terrible

He had endangered you, he had not only hurt Rika, but he had almost hurt you because of it

He realized what he had done was wrong, he didn’t know how to love

But when he was with you, everything that had been difficult with Rika, was so easy

Loving you was like second nature to him, he knew you were truly meant for him

You taught him how to love, and his world was metaphorically and literally brighter

He could paint and take pictures and see all the beauty in the world, because you loved him effortlessly

Saeran- Soulmates can meet each other in their dreams

Saeran did not know what soulmates were for a very long time

His mother didn’t teach tell them about any of those things, and he never got to leave the house, so he didn’t know until one day when Saeyoung�� explained it to him

It was the middle of the night, they were together under a blanket looking at a book Saeyoung had brought home

“I learned something new today. There was a book in the church about soulmates. Apparently we all have them and if we go to sleep and think about them, we get to meet them in our dreams!”

Saeran was so excited to try it, that it took him hours to finally fall asleep

But when he did, he was suddenly in a field

There were wild flowers in the long grass, and a warm sunny feeling Saeran had never experienced before

Then there was a voice

“Finally! I’ve been waiting for you for so long!”

He turned around and there was a little girl with a wide smile running towards him through the grass

She stopped in front of him, she looked about his age

He was nervous, Saeyoung hadn’t told him what to say, and he had never talked to a girl besides him mother before

“I’m MC, I’m your soulmate!”

You hugged him, and it felt so nice, no one except his brother had ever done that 

You were so nice to him, he never wanted to wake up

His dreams became his way to get away from reality

When Saeyoung would leave to go on errands and his mom was drunk, he would go to sleep and meet you

Even if you weren’t there, the field with the flowers was so nice and warm, it became his favorite place

You taught him the names of the flowers there, and told him about things you learned in school

You became the best thing in his life

Until his mom found out

She woke him from one of these naps once, screaming at him for falling for the lie that was soulmates

She told him you weren't real, you were just a made up lie meant to trick and hurt him

He didn’t want to believe her, but her but he was rarely allowed to sleep now, and Saeyoung had suddenly disappeared

After the loss of his brother and being taken in by Rika, things were better 

Rika took him to paradise and gave him a purpose

He knew she would never lie to him like his brother had, so he listened when she told him to never try to dream of you

She said soulmates weren’t real, and the girl in his dreams was just trying to trick him like his brother

You were sad when your soulmate had stopped coming to the field

You didn’t understand why, he had been perfectly fine one day, then gone forever the next

You spent a majority of your childhood and teen years thinking you had somehow messed up, but you learned to live with it and accept that maybe you would one day meet him, but not now

When you got a message asking you to test a game, you felt compelled to trust the person, so against your better judgement, you willingly went

Meeting Ray gave you such a feeling of nostalgia, the way he acted, the way he talked about flowers and ice cream

It all felt so familiar

You went back to the field every night, on the off chance that he would be there, but it was empty time after time

Ray was confused

He liked you so much, you made him really happy so deep down in his heart

But Rika had said soulmates weren’t real, the girl in his dreams was just part of his imagination

He hadn’t had a desire to go to the field since he was a kid, but now that you had shown up, every time he slept, he felt a pull trying to take him there

Ray was confused and curious as to what this meant

But Searan was angry

When he took over, he didn’t like how you made him feel

That idiot Ray was always blushing over you, and his thought blended into Searans sometimes

He wanted to be mad at you

You reminded him of a lie, something his brother had tricked him into believing

But towards the final day, he was no longer able to fight off the pull, and he fell asleep and found himself in the field

It was just like it was all those years ago, the same warmness and flowers and long grass

The only difference was you, all grown up, sitting in the sunlight

You still waited for him after all those years

After everything he put you through, you still came every night hoping to see...him?

He didn’t understand

He had been horrible to you but you still wanted to see him

He woke up the next day and he was no longer those two personalities, but one that was finally ready to love you the way you loved him all that time

“MC...you opened my eyes.. you’re the only one who has stayed with me all this time.”

“I love you Saeran, I’ll always stay with you.”

[bisexualterror]

Five crows Silver for Grace and Nova ^.^

Five Crows Silver: I’ll write our muses’ first meeting in the first person.

I probably shouldn’t be here, but I was bored and curious but mostly just really bored.

I walked on my tip toes as I explored the Salvatore boarding house, a giddy smile on my face. It was in the middle of a school and work day so hopefully whatever its current owner was doing, he wouldn’t be doing it here.

I should probably be in school, but third grade was so boring and Caroline was out with a cold that was going around school and that made it even more boring so here I was, a rebel at nine.

I twirled around the room, taking in the really high ceilings - or maybe I was just really small? - with wide eyes before dashing towards the infamous living room.

Maybe I could reenact some scenes?

Ugh but as good as I was at remembering specific moments and trivia, I was not good at remembering lines.

Still I grabbed a decanter with both hands and shakily began to pour whatever was in the thing - it was brown and it smelled weird, probably whiskey - into a nearby tumbler.

What? I wasn’t actually gonna drink any, it was just a prop I was going to use for the scene I had in mind.

I grabbed the tumbler from the tray, swirling the glass, and spun around over dramatically. “Hello, brother,” I said, a smirk on my face as I try and fail to mock a deep voice.

I made a face, tapping my finger on my chin in thought. “Hmm, no, something’s missing... maybe I’m in the wrong room?”

I distinctly remember someone falling off a balcony in that scene, it was definitely the wrong room. Maybe I could cry and throw the glass on the wall, one of them definitely did that at least once over Elena. Or was that Katherine?

“...What are you doing here?” Came a quiet voice, coming out thin air, startling me and making me drop the heavy glass from my hands.

I instinctively tried to stop it with my Magic, which, you know, probably was the worst idea I’ve had all day but, thankfully I was still inept at controlling my powers and the thing still obeyed the rules of gravity and dropped to the floor.

It hadn’t broke, thankfully, the rug softening to fall, but the rug now had a lovely brown stain to it... Shit what if Mr. Salvatore made me pay for that?

Uughhh, I wanna be able to go to college one day and that thing looked...pricey.

“Whoops?” I said, turning to look at the girl standing in the doorway as she looked at me.

Was Zach suddenly taking boarders again? Huh, that seemed like a risque move considering what happened the last time people had boarded here. Not to mention the dude was a total recluse and seemed to like talking to people less than I did.

“Who are you?” The girl spoke up again, this time more firmly.

I laughed, forcibly, and awkwardly as I tried to come up with an excuse that wouldn’t get the cops called on me. Liz would take me to Grams and Grams would give me the dressing down of a lifetime before assigning me yucky chores.

“Hi... names Nova, I uh, a...had to use a, uh, bathroom?” I was usually a better liar, this was honestly just embarrassing and the girl, whoever she was, seemed to think so too as she scrunched her eyebrows.

Before the tiny brunette could question me more, she sneezed, one, two, three times, and I blinked as I finally took in her appearance; a red nose running, hair a mess, thick zebra pajamas and wrapped in a blanket that was a little too much for this summer heat.

“Are you... ok?” I asked, tentatively stepping towards the girl when it looked like she was moments away from passing out.

“’M fine,” she obviously lied.

“Yeah... sure. Where are.. your parents?” I played with the straps of my backpack digging into my shoulder as I waited for an answer, nervously watching the swaying girl.

“My dad went to get syrup,” came the mumbled reply.

I assumed two things, first that syrup meant like not pancake syrup but like cough syrup. And two, that she didn’t have a mom or another dad or guardian present in her life since she didn’t mention any.

Having heard enough, I grabbed her hand and pulled her further into the room, ignoring the protests that came out of her mouth, I gently led her to sit down on the couch.

“You still haven’t told me what -” a sneeze here, this time way too close to my face for comfort. “- you were doing, playing with daddy’s adult drinks.”

Adult drinks? Oh! Yeah the liquor.

“I wasn’t gonna drink it, just wanted to play with it,” I mumbled, blushing as I placed another blanket over the girl. “What’s your name?”

The girl stared at the knitted blanket now wrapping her in like a burrito, hesitating before replying, “Grace.”

“Hi, Grace!” I said, a big smile on my face that was returned weakly. “I, uh, can I stay here with you, like, until your dad comes back?”

“...ok,” she eventually replied, already half asleep.

I hummed, before turning on my heel and running to the kitchen, dropping my bag somewhere along the way.

Orange juice. Orange juice. I searched the fridge for orange juice but came up empty. Who lives in a house with a snotty nosed kid and doesn’t have freaking orange juice?

I ended up finding three oranges in the back of the fridge and sighed heavily, but found a step stool and a citrus squeezer thing and got to work and tried to make some orange juice for my new friend.

By the time I was finished with everything, my tiny arms and legs were tired and I was ready to go to bed for the next thirty years. But I felt accomplished as I came back to the living room with a tray of canned chicken noodle soup, crackers and freshly squeezed orange juice - it was only like half a glass, but it was something.

I set the tray down on the couch next to Grace, who was fast asleep, and who I rudely poked in the cheek until she woke up. No way was all of my hard work going to waste.

I watched in amusement as she kind of just squinted her eyes up at me, but the sneeze that came kinda ruined what I think was supposed to be a glare.

I handed her a klennex that I had found in one the room’s upstairs - I think it was the Stefan Salvatore’s bathroom! - before forcing her to hold the precious glass of orange juice I had spent years making.

“What’s this?” She mumbled.

“Orange juice....” I said like it was obvious, and it was, painfully so.

“Where...did you get it?”

“I made it!”

Grace only hummed before reluctantly taking a sip of it when she let out a cough.

I sat down next to her, all but in her face as I awaited judgement. I sighed when she drank all of it without complaint.

“You know how to turn on the stove?” Grace asked when I began to spoon feed her soup.

Neither Grams or dad let me touch a stove but, what they didn’t know wouldn’t get me killed.

“Yeah! It’s super easy, I’ll teach you one day!”

Grace didn’t say anything, but I could see a smile!

Score!

[flyingcookierambles]

study plans?

recently i feel like my friend going to japanese college has motivated me to try to start studying japanese again. plus some spontaneous chinese here and there, more vocab/pronunciation/tone focused rather than grammar right now.

ended up a kinda long ramble lol, ill cut it up into two pieces.

i literally do daily: 1 duolingo so the owl doesnt hunt me down like the weak prey i am (any language)

i try to do once a day: 1 or 2 anki decks for vocab. for japanese i use many: JLPT N4, Genki 1 & 2 Including Genki Supplementary Vocab,  Core 2k/6K Optimized Japanese Vocabulary, 2500 Most-Used kanji. For Chinese I use the HSK level 1/2/3 word list. these are seperate, just a pain to type lol. i dont use wanikani actually lol. the renaming of radicals annoyed/confused me, who was forced to learn the names of the very proper strokes in high school chinese lol. plus having no assessment test and having to start over from the very beginning and then getting the simplest kanji wrong because i remember the radical by its shape or a stroke by its proper chinese name and not a silly american name (no i did not learn this character is actually wearing a hat or a pot lid. thats weird.), i just got kinda annoyed and went back to simple anki flashcards lol.

3-4 times a week: going over 2-4 grammar concept from genki 2 so far. partly because when i was studying with my 2 friends over the summer we were doing a cramming thing for our friend to to get up to standards of the college they were transferring to, now attending. as a result, we uhh. kinda skipped over basically all vocab. only did the grammar, and sometimes not even all the grammar. we skipped over really simple stuff (ie the volitionary form which is just slapping a ~ou/おう at the end of things) and the stuff that was just -te form + some extra words. so i’m finally properly going over that stuff in full, alone. plus im rewriting/digitizing my notes in onenote bc pencil and pen kinda smear/fade over time so this will just be better if i want to go to my notes for reference in the future. the ease of searching by control+f is also nice compared to flipping thru pages in confusion. i also feel like my learning style is def repetitive related, so going over things a second time works for me. (for japanese im using using genki 2/the genki 2 track on bunpro.jp. (this website is incredible and for the most part free. even if you want the premium sub version, the cheapest sub plan is $2 a month! while i dont have it, i did do the free trial when i first signed up and it was ok and you can totally do the free version and get all the barebones japanese grammar explanations from like 4 different textbooks) when/if i ever finish genki 2, ill just check out the minna no nihongo track on bunpro, more to see if there’s any grammar that gets covered in that one that genki doesnt have. if they’re just the same but a different order or something, ill just move on to the tobira track since its the intro to real intermediate japanese grammar.) i might check out the free textbook irodori, more out of curiosity than seriousness honestly. iroiro uses a different fluency grading system than the common JLPT N5-1 levels, iroiro uses the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, or CERFL. Since im focusing on the JLPT N level standards and these are totally different curriculums and stuff, im not sure how helpful irodori will be to me at this point but ill look at it because its a free textbook. when i try to relearn chinese again ill dig out my integrated chinese textbooks (goodreads), only intermediate since i seem to have lost my beginner editions somewhere in my house between moving from college dorm to house every summer ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ . i might check out the all set learning site, it seems to both HSK and CERFL. ill probably review the HSK 1-2 stuff real quick since thats basically what i learned in high school/college and i kinda forget a lot since its been like 6 years now. then ill maybe hopefully finally get to HSK 3. ill try to watch videos from yoyochinese on youtube too. she explains things really clearly and helpfully to native english speakers in a way that my previous teachers havent been able to. ill stick to the youtube tho since ive heard that the actual courses from her website are very expensive for online self study tho, and purchasing a regular textbook would be cheaper lol. 

once a week: try to use words from anki decks + whatever grammar i learned in practice sentences/make up sentences yourself. this is a bit hard bc since im self studying if my sentences end up wrong/sounding awkward to a native speaker i am not really sure how to check lol. i’m on polyglot.city (a mastodon instance focused on language learning/blogging) and i post there sometimes and people have helped me/rated my sentences every now and then but recently its been very slow. (japanese, altho i hope that i regain enough of my mandarin skills to do this again sometime)

every 2 weeks: after accumulating grammar for a bit, i try to read a grade/language level appropriate short story in the language. (hint: the level of a toddler probably lol.) for japanese i started using satori reader, altho other short story apps exist. for chinese there’s du chinese and tcb/the chairman’s bao. honestly i use du chinese just because im too lazy to make an account for tcb, altho i may finally make an account and use it one day. one day..... (japanese and chinese)

for japanese i just want to get to tobira right now and then long term is simply reaching what is probably jlpt n3, the typical not quite fluent but still ok enough to conduct business or ask a native speaker for help in a convenience store. kinda eh, a good middle intermediate level. from that point, i should be ok enough to try to read a YA novel. no not a light novel (might try it tho) but like a regular novel for middle schoolers. or maybe doremon? ill see where it goes from there. i hope to at least be able to understand some of the things an average person would like a weather forecast on the nhk or a short newspaper article. maybe ill take the actual jlpt test someday.....not sure how to sign up/where to find it in my city tho....

for chinese, i just want to know more vocab and improve my tones/pronunciation right now. 

[comicsnas]

showtime

WARNING: eye gore!!, violence Disclaimer: this is..... an au where guy fieri isnt a cool and chill dude that just likes food. i am very sorry for what i do to him in this. i dont mean it and if the cops knock at my door i will blame it on hussie word count: about 3.7k. i am so sorry

context john gets kidnapped by his mom dave doesnt panic

Los Angeles, CA, Wednesday

“No matter what happens, nobody cancels the premiere,” you say. “Okay? No matter what’s in the news. No matter how bad it gets. The movie drops on Thursday, and people are gonna watch it. Got it? This is a scare tactic and we’re not falling for it. Even if the world is ending, we are premiering this movie and going through with the promo. With or without me.”

Catalena, your manager, has been with you for too long to think that you’re joking. She was who flew you in from Houston to LA back when you were twenty, who let you sleep on your couch until you made enough money to get an apartment, who thought that the message you had for the world was one worthy of her help. She knows that all of this is real, and that she can’t stop you.

Her face says, Dave, you’re scaring me. Her mouth says, “You got it. Could you at least tell me… what you think is going to be in the news that would make us not premiere it?”

“Something bad,” you say. “Hopefully, anyway.”

She tilts her head. “Are you faking your death?”

“Lalonde and I are gonna disappear for a sec,” you say. “How people interpret that is gonna be up to them.”

“Not like you to leave things up to chance,” Catalena says. “Some will think it’s elaborate PR.”

“That’s why I’m only telling you. Lalonde and I are gonna frame this to look serious, and no one else is gonna know what’s going on. You keep your cool, but don’t let anyone know that you’re in on it.”

“I mean, I barely am.” She gives you a Look, a capital L Look, then sighs and nods. “Fine. So if I hear about your presumed death tomorrow, I won’t freak out. At what point am I allowed to assume you are actually dead, and freak out a little bit?”

“If you don’t hear from me in a week,” you say, “then Lalonde and I have been killed by Betty Crocker.”

Houston, TX, twelve years ago

You’re blind.

That’s not true. You’re not blind. You don’t think you are going to be blind. There is no way that you’re fully blind, because the assassin only got your right eye, so it doesn’t make sense for you to be blind, but you’re blind.

The pain might originate from your right eye, but it’s engulfing your entire head by now, and there is something sticky in your left eye and you can’t open it anymore and it burns, and you’re going to go blind, and then you’re going to die in a ditch, in a pool of your own blood, and this is it. It’s over. You and your half sister fucked around on the internet a bunch, got really deep into some conspiracy theories, and barely two weeks after you made the discovery that Betty Crocker definitely, undoubtedly, literally is an actual alien, someone was sent to kill you.

They didn’t manage, so far. They got your eye, and they broke your glasses, leaving a cut on your nose, and a bunch of cuts everywhere else, and you think you cracked your head open when you fell. But you cut their knife hand off, good and clean off, watched it fall to the ground right in front of you. By the time it hit the pavement, the assassin had already turned around and ran away, leaving you to crumple and suffer here by yourself.

This is it.

“Strider?” Rose says. Before the blood trickling into your good eye ruined your vision, you managed to dial her number and call her up, and now you’re lying on your side with your phone pressed to your ear, imagining her in her college dorm room in New York. You were going to visit her there, years ago, after you ran away from your parents. It never worked out. Neither of you has the money. You really wish you could have seen her at least once.

“Yeah,” you croak. “You at home?”

“At the dorm, yes. What’s going on?”

“You gotta go. She sent someone after me, she’s gonna come for you too. If she knows that I know, she’ll know that you know.”

One of the most comfortable parts of friendship with Rose, you’ve found, is that she never asks you to clarify what the fuck you’re talking about. Either she just lets you ramble, or she knows exactly what you mean. “Shit,” she hisses, and you can hear rustling on her side of the line, hopefully from her getting ready. She probably has a getaway bag somewhere, you think. You have one, but not on you right now. It’s too late for that.

“They’ve already hit me, so whoever she sent to you can’t be far,” you say. You try to blink your eye open, but then it hurts the other more, and it burns. You can’t even tell where exactly. It just burns. “Hurry up, Lalonde.”

“They’ve hit you?” she echoes, still rustling, breathing into the phone. On the move. Good. “Are you okay?”

“No,” you say. “Gonna call an ambulance after this. Just get the fuck out and text me later, yeah?”

Rose pauses. You can hear her pause, you can hear everything go very silent for a second. She says, “You called me before you called for help?”

“Yeah,” you say. She told you, once, that there is a quick and easy way out the window of her second-storey dorm room, that lets her balance over to her girlfriend’s room only a few windows ahead. She can’t hide there, it’s too close, but it’s a start. She’ll figure it out, she always will. She was the first person to ever have your back. “Of course I did.”

On a plane, Thursday morning

“What’s on your mind?” Rose asks.

You’re leaned back, staring out the window, listening to the clicking of her knitting needles next to you. The pilot here doesn’t know who he’s dealing with, just that he is flying two rich people and their car to Washington, DC. Your Mustang is in the cargo part of the plane, a vital part of the plan. You’ll torch it later. It was the first car you bought with your own money, after SBaHJ had become big and you had finally paid off your hospital debt.

Rose’s apartment isn’t that old, she got it after Roxy was born and she decided to move to Los Angeles, so you could help each other babysit. Trashing it still felt wrong. A home is a home, but you wanted it to look broken into, to make sure that people put two and two together. This isn’t a Dave Strider marketing scheme, you both got hit. After all the work that you’ve done, at least some of the public should understand what that means.

“Us,” you say.

“That’s very sentimental,” she says. “Are you sure you aren’t mourning your car again?”

“Shut up,” you say, and blindly swat at her, hitting her elbow. She hits you back, hand slapping your shoulder. “It’s a good car.”

Rose hums. When you look at her, she’s already back to knitting. You have no idea what she’s making, but it looks like a onesie for an octopus. “We will be fine,” she says. “We have to.”

You nod, and go back to staring out the window, thinking about what Alma said. “It’s just,” you say quietly. “We gotta start thinking about the endgame, here, don’t we.”

“Start?” Rose echoes. “Dave, we know the endgame to this. We’ve known for a while. The second you landed in the hospital with a cut inside your eyeball, you and I both knew that this would end in death.”

You don’t say anything. She’s right, of course she is. You knew then, and she knew, as soon as you texted her from your hospital bed, and she texted you back from a Greyhound bus. And you tried to forget, you both did, for a very long time. You almost managed, for a whole decade, until last year, someone made you scared and angry enough to ram a sword through his throat. Until Rose came and disassembled the body on your rooftop, and then helped you burn it. Reality has caught up with you, and someone is going to die.

The clicking of her needles has stopped again. You turn your head to look at her, and she’s looking back at you, and her face seems younger than it should be. She is just as scared as you are. Neither of you ever wanted it to go this far. Neither of you wanted to kill.

“I don’t like it either,” Rose says. “But someone is going to wind up dead, and it sure as shit isn’t gonna be us.”

Washington, DC, now

)(IC: u comin or what TG: yeah about that

You’re on the hood of your car. The children -- and Sally, John’s pet hedgehog -- are with the one sitter you still trust. Rose is in position, which means she is at a remote location outside the city holding Guy Fieri hostage. She has sent you a picture of him tied to a chair and gagged, which means that it’s go time.

All according to plan.

TG: how about you come kill me somewhere else instead of home sweet home )(IC: why would i do that TG: dying mans last request? )(IC: stfu lol this is so obviously a trap TG: wow ok so is yours )(IC: fair TG: just thought that you know TG: john means something to both of us and dont try to tell me no because i know he does TG: so like can we maybe duke it out somewhere where i wont accidentally blow him to smithereens TG: innuendo intended )(IC: UG)( )(IC: gross TG: lmao TG: anyway bethany you know me and you know im comin with c4 in my backpack if im comin TG: do you really want that around your son or can you just get off your ass and meet me here so john stays safe )(IC: u reely think ya have a fighting chance to even get that far )(IC: buoy you set one foot in my house and ya get spearfished TG: yeah not really making a great point for me to come there rn TG: just thought maybe youd wanna be with your guy guy )(IC: who TG: you know TG: guy the guy )(IC: tf

You text her the picture that Rose sent, just Guy Fieri looking miserable, no indication of whether or not you or Rose are with him.

)(IC: )(-EY )(IC: motherglubber what do u think yoar doin TG: yoar??? TG: thats literally not a word. wym you oar?? what TG: anyway im gonna dismember this asshole if you dont agree to keep john safe and come here and im gonna start with the frosted tips )(IC: FIN--E )(IC: cant effin wait to be done with you )(IC: ill come krill ya if its so shrimportant just gimme the location TG: ok shrimportant is actually pretty funny TG: [coordinates] TG: see you soon

She drives a fuchsia Jaguar that looks like Xzibit threw up all over it, because of course she does. You watch it leave from your perch on your Mustang, then slide off the hood. shes gone, you text Rose. get ready to bounce

Before you leave, you turn back toward you car, and gently pat the roof. “See you soon,” you repeat, “for one last ride.”

Look, it’s a good car, alright.

Later on in the plan, once you’ve convinced John to come with you, and Rose has joined you in the no doubt brutal course out of the house littered with security guards, the three of you will pack into this car, and you will drive. You will be tailed, you know you will. Rose and you estimate two to three SUVs with more security personnel that will follow you, and sooner or later, you won’t stand a chance against them.

So, you’ll call the cops. You don’t usually do this -- even during all these years, neither you nor Crocker ever called the police on each other, and technically, you still won’t, today. You will just anonymously call authorities, and tell them about a burning car by the side of the road. Then you will hang up, and you and Rose and John will hop out of a moving vehicle as you crash your beloved Mustang and have it go up in flames. Authorities will come and find Dave Strider’s infamous car, and hopefully that’ll get people talking.

Crocker’s guys will hopefully exit their cars and go looking for you, or at least for John. It’s an easy con from there -- while they look, you will steal their SUVs and drive off toward your safehouses. Simple. No sweat.

“This better work,” you mutter to yourself, then leave your car behind and start climbing the fence around Crocker manor.

You’ve been here once before, while she was out and John was showing you around. You weren’t actively trying to case the place back then, just spending time with your boyfriend and checking out where he grew up, but you couldn’t help how curious you were. You still remember the most important spots, and you did your best to paint a proper picture of them to Rose (you drew a map in MS Paint), so now you have a pretty good idea of where you need to go.

The guard posts, of course, are randomized. You’ll have to take these as they come, and you feel prepared enough, with just your sword and a handful of knives. You’re wearing the kevlar you wore to the Oscars. You’re gonna be fine.

It’s a race against time now, knowing that there is no guarantee when Crocker will be catching on and returning to her house, and knowing that you stand no chance actually fighting her face to face. You climbed in toward the side of the house, because it’s the shortest distance between fence and wall. The front and back yards are ridiculously huge and opulent, and while you would have plenty of gaudy statues to hide behind, you’re not looking to make your way through there.

The first guard spots you right as you hop down off the fence, and your knife is in his shoulder before he even finishes drawing his gun on you. He’s also wearing a vest, but those don’t stop blades, and you take offense in knowing that she made them dress up like that. As if either you or Rose were going to show up with guns. She really doesn’t know you at all. You knock out the guard with a hit of the knife grip against his temple. Maybe you can get through this without deaths.

One of them you comfortably take out from behind a useless fountain placed in this part of the garden for some reason, appreciating how quiet and low-key you can be about it so far. The bigger the ruckus, the sooner she’ll return, so having them all go down in silence is your best case scenario.

It’s the third guard that ruins your track record. You’re almost at the house wall, and you know you’re under the right window, which means all you have to do is scale it and climb right into John’s room, but for that to work you need to have a clean path behind you. Which you don’t, you realize the second a bullet hits your back.

Your vest catches it, but the momentum still knocks you down, and you scrape both of your palms open on the weird break between lawn and pavement. You hate this fucking garden. Who lives like this? You’re gasping for breath and trying not to inhale any grass, dealing with the reality that this is the first time someone has shot at you and actually hit you, and the bullet might not have penetrated skin at all, but Jesus Fucking Christ it still feels awful. Like someone kicked you in the spine, only with a bullet instead of a foot.

Onward. You hear footsteps behind you, and now it’s your turn to kick, hitting them in the face with your boot in the same motion that you’re pushing yourself up from the ground. As they curse and stumble, you draw your sword, but they catch their footing quickly, and you know you only have a split second to act. That gun is pointing at you, again, or still, and they’re going for your head this time, and if you don’t fight now, the journey ends for you here. Someone is going to die, and it sure as shit can’t be you. Your arm darts forward.

The sword goes through their vest, their ribs, and their heart -- you wouldn’t call it smoothly, you really wouldn’t. You can feel resistance with every inch, you feel it right up to your shoulder, and you hate it, and it makes you want to throw up, but you can’t, now. You shove them off your blade and watch them crumple to the ground, and turn right back toward the wall. They are not getting up again. That’s on you, and you can deal with that later. You have to get moving.

Your phone vibrates.

You manage to pull yourself up on a balcony and crouch there, hiding from whatever is going on in the yard now. Other guards must have heard the shot being fired, so you really need to get the fuck out of sight, but this has to do, for now. If Crocker is messaging you, you have to respond, so she doesn’t think you’re in her goddamn garden.

)(IC: yo )(IC: send me proof yoar still with him )(IC: almost there this betta be worth it TG: one sec

As expected. All according to plan, so far. You hope the blood on your sword won’t make the sheath sticky. You’ll have to clean it, later. You don’t want to.

TG: shes asking for proof TG: go ahead. sorry TT: No worries. TT: I know we don’t endorse violence, but honestly, Dawon, after being in a room with him for this long, I am quite happy to do this.

She sends you a picture, and you grimace at your phone. It takes a lot to make you grimace, as a Strider born and raised -- at the same time, you’re not easily shocked or grossed out, but this isn’t great to look at. Fieri’s eye has been pulled from its socket, dangling down his cheek suspended from the nerve, a hole in the eyeball. You hope Crocker won’t be able to tell that this was done with a knitting needle, and forward the photo to her.

TG: hows this )(IC: )(--EY FUCK OFF )(IC: stop i reely like guy 38( TG: yeah well i really like john TG: eye for an eye TG: hurry it up im waiting and theres a second eye to gauge out )(IC: ten minutes )(IC: ur gonna be so sorry buoy

TG: 10 mins TT: On my way.

Okay. Crocker is on her way to a location where there will only be Guy Fieri and a set of elaborate boobytraps which you know won’t kill her, but hopefully slow her down. Rose is on her way here, to help you and John get out of here. That’s plenty of time you still have. Things are going suspiciously well, you think, before you remember the ache in your back and the fact that you killed someone.

You have to get to John.

He’s another two floors up, but you are right in front of a balcony door. For a second, you wonder if you could get into the house from here and do the rest from inside, so you don’t present yourself to the mob of people with guns in the garden. Unfortunately, before you can do that, another person with a gun appears on the other side of that door, mouths an angry what the fuck at you, and draws an assault rifle. Alright, well.

The thing that has mostly kept you from becoming too violent in the past is the fact that you’re fast, and you’re a great climber, so when you hop backward onto the banister of the balcony and pull yourself up to the next one above you, it happens so fast that nobody in the garden reacts. It’s after you’re already crouching behind the balcony, thankfully made of robust concrete, that the shots start hitting it. You do nothing, count the bullets, wait for them to get rid of half of their magazines down there. Then you pull a knife, peek over the balcony, and throw it right into someone’s bicep.

More shots. More ducking and counting. You have two more knives to throw, and you do, rinse and repeat. The people down there are very angry with you now, and very much still able to shoot, but you figure at least their aim will be off, and they’ll be slower. You hope. You haven’t held a gun yourself in fucking forever.

You take a breath, and jump up to grab the balcony you know belongs to John.

As soon as you’re in the open, another bullet hits your back, further toward your side this time, and you almost let go. You let out an undignified noise instead, and hold on harder, focusing all you have into your arms to pull yourself up. Shots are ringing in your ears, and one hits the concrete right next to your head at almost the same time that another one grazes your leg. You hiss in pain, grunt in exertion, pull, pull, and roll yourself onto John’s balcony.

Someone in the garden yells, “Motherfucker!”

You sit, curled up, and pull apart the tear in your pants with your aching fingers to check the wound. It’s not deep, certainly not as bad as the chunk of missing flesh you have in your arm from being shot at last year. It’s fine. You’ll forget about it in a second, when your newest problem will be telling your amnesiac boyfriend that he needs to come with you.

You pull yourself up into a crouch, not more. You don’t want to risk getting shot in the head as you finally face him, so you just do it like this. Hunkered down, disheveled and bloody, you lean forward and knock on John’s window.

[ericsonclan]

You’re My Home Part 2

Summary: When Violet needs a place to stay for the weekend and Louis is out of town, Marlon tells her she can crash on his family's couch.

Read on A03: 

Part 1

“So my folks say it’s OK if you sleep down here tonight,” Marlon said as he made his way down the basement stairs. Violet followed a short distance behind him, looking around the den. A worn-out foosball table stood in the center of the room, the handles worn and some broken from repeated use. A brown couch that Marlon had informed her turned into a fold-out bed faced the TV with a table in front on which empty bowls and soda cans lay scattered. The room had that musty smell all basements do, but it was a pleasant space; lived in.

Marlon quickly swept all the trash on the table into a nearby trash can before setting it aide. “Sorry about the mess. My dad has his buddies down here every Sunday to watch the game and my mom’s been busy at work so no one’s cleaned up,”

Violet simply nodded. On one shoulder she carried her backpack, half-full of the few essentials she’d been able to grab before slipping out of the trailer. Her mom had shifts booked over the entire weekend, and from the set of six-packs her dad had brought home, Violet knew he had no intention of leaving for the next few days. Louis was out of town visiting his mom. He’d reached out to Marlon and asked him if Violet could crash at his place for the weekend. Violet had thought of turning the offer down, but Marlon had called her and insisted that he wanted to host her at his house, not just as a favor to Louis, but as his friend.

Now here they were, awkwardly standing in his basement and wondering what to do. They’d hung out plenty of times over the years, but always with Louis around. He was the one who’d introduced them and he was the reason for almost all their get-togethers. Without his bubbly presence constantly coming up with new ideas, they both felt rather stand-offish, unsure what to do.

Marlon broke the silence first. “I’ll get us some drinks,” He hurried over to the mini fridge that buzzed steadily in the corner. Immediately his eyes darkened. “Damnit!” he slammed the door shut. “My dad must have figured out I’d started sneaking his booze and moved it somewhere else,” He looked to Violet, and immediately realized his mistake. Her shoulders had tensed and her eyes looked elsewhere. “Shit, Vi, I’m sorry. Should’ve realized you wouldn’t want to have any alcohol near you anyway,”

“It’s OK,” Violet murmured. It was actually the noise that had scared her, the force with which Marlon slammed shut the fridge, but she didn’t bother sharing that. She didn’t want to insult him when he’d opened up his home to her. Marlon had insisted it wasn’t for Louis’ sake, but still…

“I think we have some soda-pop upstairs. Hopefully they’re not flat. And there’s some leftover meatloaf in the fridge as well. Sorry we can’t order out. I’m broke till next Friday,”

“That’s fine,”

Without another word, Marlon bolted back up the stairs. Violet looked around the room. She’d been here a few times before when Louis invited her over. There was a cabinet full of old VHS tapes and some miscellaneous DVDs. Old sports trophies and medals covered all available display spaces in the room. Some were for Marlon, others for his dad. She’d heard before that Marlon’s old man was quite the athlete in college before a bum knee took his out of the running for a professional career. It felt like such a cliché, but then again Marlon always did seem like an all-American boy.

It was only a few minutes later when Marlon barreled back down the stairs, a bag of Cheetos in his mouth, two large soda-pops with one under each arm and a huge plate of meatloaf in his hands. He spit out the Cheetos bag and dumped down the drinks before handing Violet the plate. “My mom always says a good meal’s the first place to start when trying to feel at home,”

Violet silently took the plate. It was a nice gesture, but she didn’t know how much of an appetite she had right now.

Marlon walked over to the cabinet, perusing the family’s movie collection. “You wanna watch anything in particular? I know Lou said you like horror. I think I have a copy of Scream that I taped over Teletubbies so my mom wouldn’t find it and throw it out,”

“We don’t have to hang out, Marlon,”

Marlon looked up in surprise at Violet’s words.

Her gaze remained steady. “I’m just crashing here. That doesn’t mean you have to entertain me for the whole weekend. I’m sure you’d rather be outside playing basketball with Mitch or driving around town or anywhere else,”

“I actually thought it’d be nice to hang out together,” Marlon said with a simple shrug. “We’re usually a trio with Lou, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have things in common. Fuck, we probably have more in common with each other than with Louis. We’re blonde, both go to the same high school, both like girls…” Marlon got distracted by something on the cabinet. He grabbed it with an excited cry, displaying it proudly to Violet. “Now this we’ve gotta see! Have you watched it before?”

Violet simply shook her head.

“You’re gonna love it,” With that Marlon walked over to the TV and popped in the DVD. The Predator theme began to play on the home screen. Violet settled into one corner of the couch while Marlon sat in front of her on the floor, reaching for the Cheetos immediately.

It was a good film. Marlon was right about that. The over-the-top action sequences and special effects came together to form a great popcorn flick. Violet found herself enjoying it, even more so thanks to Marlon’s excitement and non-stop commentary. This was obviously one of his favorite movies ever. As she listened to Marlon go on about how the original design for the Predator was scrapped mid-production and how green glowsticks were used to make its blood, Violet took a few bites of the meatloaf he’d heated up for her. It was surprisingly good. Before she’d even realized it, Violet had eaten about half of the enormous portion Marlon had given her. She could honestly live off of that meatloaf all weekend if there was enough of it.

Once Predator finished up, Marlon tracked down his copy of Scream in the Teletubbies case and got that started. As high school students were viciously murdered onscreen, Marlon and Violet chatted a bit about life at their own school.

“Think you’ll invite anyone to homecoming?” Marlon asked before letting out a loud belch from all the soda-pop he’d been drinking.

Violet shook her head, waving a hand to clear out the smell. “Not like I’ve got anybody to ask. Plus, the whole night would probably suck. Nothing to do there,”

“You could dance, spike the punch bowl… steal the title of prom queen,” Marlon smirked.

Violet rolled her eyes. “God, can you be any more of a walking 80’s cliché if you tried?”

Marlon shrugged. “I know what I like. I’m thinking of asking Stephanie, at least giving it a shot. She’s good friends with Therissa. I bet you could convince her to go with you. Then we could make it a double date,”

“The only way Therissa would go to homecoming is ironically, and going to things ironically is stupider than going at all,” Violet slouched back on the couch. Maybe she’d go for it if she thought she actually had a chance. But she didn’t want to go to a dance as a joke or to make some sort of social statement… she just wanted to go with someone she actually liked. That was never going to happen, so there was no point dwelling on it. She stretched out her legs without thinking, immediately withdrawing them when they bumped into Marlon’s shoulder.

Marlon glanced back at her. “Oh, you can put your legs up there if you want. My mom uses me as a footrest all the time,”

“Ok, weird,” Violet did let her legs stretch back out though, resting on the edge of Marlon’s right shoulder.

Suddenly Marlon let out a noise of disgust. “Holy mother of God, what is that smell?” He turned his head slightly, immediately whipping it the other way. “Is that your socks, Vi?”

“What? No! They’re not that bad!”

“No, those things are an abomination,” Before she could react, Marlon got a hold of her feet, tugging off the socks and marching away with them.

“You’d better give those back!” Violet called after them.

“Oh, I will. Just as soon as I run them through the wash,” Marlon disappeared up the stairs, apparently headed to the laundry room. He hadn’t bothered to pause the movie, so Violet continued to watch as one of the girls met her grisly demise. When Marlon returned he took a seat on the other side of the couch, immediately reaching for the Cheetos once more.

“Did you seriously start an entire load of laundry for two socks?”

“It was worth it. Those things were a safety hazard,”

Violet rolled her eyes, but a part of her appreciated the gesture.

---

Eventually it got to be past midnight and both of them were feeling too drowsy to start another movie. Marlon helped Violet set up the fold-out bed, grabbing some extra pillows and blankets from upstairs. After checking that she had everything she needed, he wished her a goodnight and headed up to his own bedroom.

Violet lay awake for some time. She wondered how her mom was doing. She was always exhausted after pulling graveyard shifts over the weekend. Hopefully her schedule would lighten up a bit throughout the week so she could rest. Of course, that would also require Violet’s dad to be out of the trailer and who knew if that would happen. Her phone buzzed. Violet reached out to grab it, the light from the screen seeming to illuminate everything around her in the pitch darkness.

It was a text from Louis. He was on the West coast right now at some kind of resort with his mom. Violet hoped it was going well. Louis always got nervous before visiting his mom, wanting to make sure he made the time count. He’d sent a photo as well, one of a gorgeous, sunny beach. The text read Next time I come here, I’m sneaking you into my luggage.

Violet quickly texted back. Beaches suck, too much sand Her phone pinged again. How are things going with Marlon? Pretty good. Watched Predator That’s Marlon’s all-time favorite. I could tell I’m glad it worked out for you to stay with him. Thanks for setting it up Sorta wish I was there too. Things not going well with your mom? It’s complicated. Violet paused, unsure what more to say. She was definitely the winner out of her friends for suckiest home life, but that didn’t mean she had any sage advice to give when she saw Louis struggle. You’ll be home soon Yeah… miss you. Same. I should let you sleep. Talk tomorrow? OK

There were no more texts and Violet’s screen went dark. She hoped Louis was OK. He’d really been hoping this trip with his mom would be something special. Once he was back, she’d have to make him drive her to McDonald’s. He’d treat her to nuggets, and she’d listen to how his trip went. Until then, they’d both just have to hold out. It wasn’t so bad here though. Tonight had actually been pretty nice. Violet felt herself drifting off, her thoughts becoming fuzzier and fuzzier. Maybe tomorrow Marlon could help her figure out a text to send that would cheer Louis up. For now, it was time to sleep.

[hetacon]

To the Unseen Eye: Chapter 1

Word Count: 1,325

Pairings: Platonic Moxiety, Platonic LAMP, Endgame Prinxiety, Endgame Logicality

Warning: None

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Summary: Patton Hart lives with his college roommates, Logan Mandel and Roman Prince. While the two of them know where they want to go in life, Patton has no clue and feels lost in his journey to the rest of his life. At least that’s how he sees it. Everything changes for the three of them when a boy named Virgil Knight moves in with them and proves a challenge for them as they attempt to befriend him.

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Patton sat in the kitchen, staring down at his cup of coffee tiredly. He usually didn’t need it but he could tell this was going to be the start of a long and tedious day. Anything that would give him a little nudge would help.

He quickly smiled as Logan, one of his roommates, came in and poured himself a cup of coffee, adding some sugar before sitting next to Patton.

“Good morning Patton, how did you sleep last night?”

“Mm, pretty good, I’m still really tired though,” Patton laughed a little, drumming his fingers against the sides of his mug. The two of them sat for a bit, idly chatting about their classes for the day and their plans for the evening.

Soon enough, Roman, Patton’s other roommate, came into the kitchen, muttering lines under his breathe. He made sure to go over to them, kissing both of their heads and latching on to Patton in a tight hug, his chin resting on Patton’s head.

“You have rehearsal today?” Patton asked, hugging Roman back.

“Yep, as if I wasn’t already stressed out with one of my papers due tomorrow,” he sighed before repeating another line, cursing when he messed up a word. He proceeded to muttering it over a few times.

Logan chuckled softly. “Roman, it’ll be ok,” he reassured, taking a long sip of his coffee.

“I know Specs, still stressful!” Roman dramatically declared, moving to hug Logan. “I’m feeling weak, I need affection from our resident nerd to continue on!”

Logan rolled his eyes and hugged back with a slight smile. “Only for you guys will I ever do this, you know.”

Patton nodded and kissed Logan’s cheek. “Yep and we don’t want to share our best friend in the whole wide world with anyone!” he declared, hugging Logan tightly too, effectively sandwiching him in physical affection.

Eventually though, they all had somewhere to be or something to do. Roman left first, clearly in a hurry to make it to his early classes. He called out a goodbye to his roommates, promising to pick up food for dinner after rehearsal. Logan left an hour or so later after working on a paper in the living room, Patton helping him to the best of his ability. He made sure to grab food from Patton when the latter insisted and said a short goodbye before heading to start his day. Patton himself had only an afternoon class so he waited around for a while, ambling about.

Nothing much was happening. Patton still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was coming though. He knew there had to be.

All three of them were currently in college. The three had met somewhere in the middle of their freshman year of high school and became absolutely inseparable from each other. After they had gotten accepted to colleges, they all decided to attend the same college despite their varying majors and career paths. They obviously didn’t plan it just to be with each other, that actually ended being a completely happy coincidence. But regardless, this was their first year, a couple months into the first semester. Roman obviously hoped to pursue an acting career, as you may have been able to figure out. Logan was an English major, possibly considering going into teaching. And as for Patton, he didn’t have too solid of an idea where he wanted to go. He had lots of passions of course. But choosing where he wanted to go with his life was pretty intimidating. He wished he had his life as neatly figured out as his two friends. But while he figured it out, he knew that his friends would support him in anything he wanted to attempt.

A quick glance to the clock brought him out of thought and he dragged himself off the couch, grabbing his backpack, phone, and keys. After turning off the lights, he locked the door to their apartment. And with that, he started his walk to class, breathing in the crisp fall air.

After classes for the day, Logan and Patton met back at the apartment and a few hours after, Roman came back from rehearsal, takeout food in his possession. They ate and talked for a while.

“Look, I’m just saying that I don’t understand the use of analyzing literature when you could just like, read it!” Roman told Logan, pointing his fork at the latter.

“Analyzing it is part of the enjoyment for me, it’s not really that strange.”

“Well maybe it wouldn’t be that bad if high school teachers hadn’t absolutely beat every book half to death.”

Patton pipped in with his own opinion. “I have to agree with Roman on that, they’re rather redundant about that. I definitely could’ve liked them better if I didn’t have to look for all of the rhetorical devices of every single sentence because ‘Everything is important! Of all the things you’ll need in the future, you must know how to analyze The Great Gatsby! It’s essential, essential I tell you!’” Patton exclaimed before laughing. Logan couldn’t help but laugh as well.

“I do see your point, that’s fair,” he smiled. “Roman, are there any rehearsals that Patton and I could come to see you for?”

“Yeah, there’s one in a week or so that I think doesn’t mess with your schedules, I’ll get back to you on that though,” Roman said before taking another serving of food.

“What play are you doing again?” Patton asked, looking at his thespian roommate.

“Measure for Measure, Specs will probably be the only one who understands it. I don’t even understand half of what I say,” Roman snorted.

He continued. “It’s going alright still. How’ve.. things been in general I guess?” he asked, addressing Patton. “Thought of any ideas for life in the grand scheme of its complexities and wonder?” he mused with a silly sort of tone.

Patton sighed and looked down to the table, tapping his fingers against it. “No, not really.. I don’t know why I can’t just decide. I mean hey, it’s not like this affects my whole life!” he joked lamely.

“Patton, I assure you that everything will be alright, you’re not the only one who’s struggling with this,” Logan told him, holding his hand out for Patton. Patton smiled softly and intertwined their fingers, feeling Logan give his hand an encouraging little squeeze. “We’re right here for you no matter what you decide.”

“Absolutely!” Roman exclaimed, shaking Logan’s shoulders as the two of them smiled to Patton.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Patton laughed.

Everything fell back into typical conversation again and just as they were cleaning up, a sharp knock came from the front door. Patton looked at his roommates questioningly and when they shrugged, he went over to the door, trying to see who it was. Their dorm supervisor stood patiently at the door and Patton opened it.

“Hello Emile, what can I do for ya?” Patton asked.

“Hello Patton, are Logan and Roman with you right now?” Emile asked him, glancing back for a moment.

Patton nodded and motioned for his roommates to come to the door.

“Good, there’s something I need to discuss with you,” Emile started but then chuckled at the simultaneous looks of panic flit across the three’s faces. “Nothing bad, promise. It is important though.”

Patton stepped aside, opening the door further. “Come right on in then,” he offered and Emile thanked him before walking in.

Emile turned back and looked to the doorway, a soft smile on his face. “Come on Virgil, it’s alright,” he said gently.

Patton turned to the doorway and heard the tinkling of a silver bell which he finally noticed suspended in the air. He watched as it slowly moved inside.

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Hey guys! So usually I write drabbles but I wanted to try my hand at a full length fic this time! I’m really excited and hope you guys are too! Feel free to drop a comment if you’d like to see more of this and as always, please let me know if you’d like to be added to my taglist, either just for this story or my other writing! Hopefully I’ll be seeing you next chapter!

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Taglist: @stop-it-anxiety, @sleepy-starling, @hickory-dickory-doc-k, @virgils-paranoia, @anotheregofanficblog, @ambersky0319

[buckthegrump]

Falling Slowly - 6

Summary: A story of love

Pairing: Steve Rogers x F!Reader

Word Count: 1662

Warnings: Angst, people being assholes, and fluff, the start of an asthma attack

A/n: if you want to be tagged please send me an ask, Previous parts on my masterlist.

For the next few weeks you and Wanda had become really close with the boys and they had a fifth roommate you had yet to meet. But you kept going on dates with Brock and they kept giving you shit about it but he was being nice and everything he should be. Every time you would hang out with him that wasn’t technically a date he’d always push to hang out with his friends instead of yours; you were afraid they would run him off anyhow. His friends were mostly his teammates which is what you expected.

“Wanda how much booze do we actually need?” You and she were out shopping getting things for a girls night, which was much needed. “Isn’t it just us tonight, I don’t think that we will need four bottles.”

“No, my friend from my calc class is coming I told you this. She’s so much fun you’ll like her I promise.” She assured you, Wanda was typically right about these things.

“Alright well let's hurry up because we should clean at least the living room before she gets there so we don’t look like complete slobs.”

An hour later you were back at your apartment and cleaning like crazy before Wanda got a text asking to be let up. Wanda went downstairs and brought up a very beautiful redhead.

“Hi I’m Natasha Wanda talks a lot about you.” She reaches out her hand and you take it.

“Y/n. Hopefully, only bad stuff so that way you are pleasantly surprised when I’m not that bad.” She laughed at that which was a good sign. 

“No, she’s said some good stuff too.”

“Oh well, I don’t believe that Wanda knows how to be nice.”

“Y/n, I can be nice, bitch.” Wanda defended herself.

“See?” You said to Natasha mostly ignoring Wanda.

“Whatever let's start the movie.” Wanda stomped over to the couch as you and Natasha laughed.

The night went on and you were liking Natasha more and more and she insisted that you call her Nat. You didn’t really watch the movies you mostly talked and got to know one another, for example, you learned that she was roommates with the boys, which you found odd because you couldn’t imagine Natasha putting up with their bullshit. In the middle of the conversation, someone started calling you.

“Y/n, you know the rules no phones unless it’s your parents or an emergency!” Wanda was slightly drunk by this point so she was yelling. So you ignored it but then it starts ringing again. “Who is it?”

“It’s Brock?” You were confused because Brock has never called you in the middle of the night. “I’m going to answer it, it’s got to be semi-important if he’s called me twice.” You got up and walked into your room. “Hello?”

“Why didn’t you answer your phone?” He demanded.

“It’s girls night and we have a no phone policy, I told you this.”

“Even for the people, you're dating? I was worried.”

“Brock, what’s wrong why are you calling?” You asked trying not to let your annoyance show.

“Wow,” apparently it didn’t work. “I was just calling my girlfriend to see how she was doing.”

He hadn’t ever called you that before so you were unsure of how to respond. Being you, you elected to ignore it and move on.

“That’s sweet and I’m doing great but I’m going to go back to girls night now.”

“Noo Y/n stay on the phone with me.” He whined.

“Brock I’m getting off the phone goodbye I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” You wait a little bit to see if he’ll say goodbye. He didn’t, he just hung up. “Great.”

“Is everything ok?” Nat asked you as you sit back down on the couch.

“Yeah, he just wanted to talk to me.”

“Ugh gross,” Wanda said under her breath.

“He did call me his girlfriend though.” Which earned you a gag from Wanda.

“Has he ever said that before?” Nat asked and you both ignored Wanda.

“No, we haven’t even had that conversation yet. And he just said it out of the blue. I think he might have been drunk.” 

“Well, my mom always said that if a boy has to be drunk to tell you something sweet it doesn’t count until he’s said it sober first,” Wanda said and you agreed. So you decided not to worry about it until he did something about it sober.  

You and the girls enjoyed the rest of the night by getting drunk and trash-talking the shitty movies that came on Netflix.

The next morning you woke up to a really bad hangover and were not looking forward to facing the day. You went to your first class and didn’t get anything done. You and Wanda were trying to keep the other in an upright position. You were pretty sure that the professor knew this but she didn’t seem to care.

The next class you had you had with Brock and he sat next to you but he was in a pissy mood, and you honestly were in no shape to be dealing with it. It was a workday to catch up on any assignments you didn’t have done, and when Brock opened his mouth you regretted not skipping.

“So how was last night?” He was being passive-aggressive.

“It was fun I had a good time with my friends.” Two could play at this game.

“Were Bucky and Sam and all them there?” So that’s what this was really about.

“No, it was just Wanda and our new friend Natasha which is what girls night is about, no boys.” He was silent after that until he invited you to hang out with his friends again tonight and you reluctantly agreed.

You had a four-hour break before your last class because one was canceled so you ran home and took some Advil and a nap. And it did wonders. You walked past Wanda who was getting ready for work as you walked to your next class.

You jammed the up button for the elevator three more times before returning to stare at the door. You liked taking the older elevator no one else seemed to take it and you liked not having to stop at every floor before yours. You finally heard the ding and the doors slid open, you got in and pressed the button and right before they were about to close someone slid through in the nick of time. 

Steve stood next to you and gave you a smile which you returned. You two stood in silence as you rode the elevator to the fourth floor.  Then somewhere around the third floor, the elevator stopped.

“Great this is exactly what I need.” You pressed the button as Steve chuckled at your sarcastic remark. You smiled to yourself realizing you liked the sound of his laugh.

“Maybe it will start up again on its own.” He shrugged and you couldn’t help but think about how sexy his voice was. “But I’ll text Bucky and see if he can get help.”

“You won’t get service.” He checked his phone anyway just in case you were wrong but you weren’t. He sighed heavily and you smirked a little. “Told ya so.”

“Thanks.” Steve slid his phone back into his pocket. You let out a sigh and put your backpack down and sat on the floor. Steve gave you an odd look but ended up joining you. You stared blankly at the doors and he kept looking at you. 

Should I talk to him? Probably who knows how long we’ll be in here and it’s not like we don’t know each other. What would you talk about with Wanda? Probably about things that other people don’t care about. God, I wish I had cell service I would text her and ask for help. Just think Y/n it’s just talking to someone pretend he’s someone else and just talk to him.

“Y/n?” His voice interrupted your internal freakout. “I asked you what your major is?”

“Oh, it’s early childhood studies. I want to be a preschool teacher, which ya know is totally gonna pay off my debt for college. What’s yours?”

“Criminal Justice. But that’s cool, I once thought that I could be a teacher but yeah their pay isn’t the best.” The conversation was a lot easier now that you stopped over-thinking it there were times when you couldn’t think of a question but Steve always had one up his sleeve. It was mostly about school and what you did for work. How had you gone weeks without talking to him?

After a while, you look at your phone. “Holy shit!”

“What?”

“We’ve been in here for an hour. Do you think anyone has noticed that we’re missing?”

“I’m pretty sure Bucky or one of the others will notice I don’t typically just not show up to class.” Steve’s reassurance was working until the lights went out. A stopped elevator wasn’t ideal, you could’ve held out for a while but a dark stopped elevator was a different story. Your breathing became strained, you sat down and tucked your knees under your chin.

“Are you having a panic attack?” You had forgotten that Steve was there with you for a second. And you shook your head, remembering that he couldn’t see you, you reached for your phone to turn on the flashlight but the lack of air you were getting made it more difficult than it should’ve been.

Steve was faster than you and turned his on and you shook your head no again so he could see it this time. It was asthma. You hadn’t had an attack in a long time but you knew it was because you didn’t get panic attacks this badly. 

“An asthma attack?” Nod. 

“Ok do you have your inhaler?” You shook your head no.