#It took me so long to get the sun flairs/points correct

[screamsofanoutlawbrain]

also here's what Daylight would've looked like if he wasn't scrapped or if he was ever repaired.

I'm going to elaborate more on my "Wiatt fucking dies" AU.

Basically one day Wiatt is killed by Winnie in the dreamworld facility, he haunts the place for a few days while Starlight greaves (Star has his camera too). Then Litho discovers Wiatt was haunting the facility and proceeded to put his soul in a broken old animatronic who was in the caves under the facility.

The broken old animatronic was a sun themed animatronic named Daylight, who was supposed to be the third actor in star-act alongside Starlight and Nightlight (he represented theater as a whole and instead of a mask he was able to create a minimal selection of different lights through his upper body), but was scrapped in favor or there just being two actors and was moved into storage by Sara, and eventually into the caves by Litho. Daylights body was already pretty loose and locked up in parts by the Collector picking pieces off of him, and the building collapse had some ruble hit and crush the lower half of his body, effectively keeping Daylight in place as most of his skin/shell fall off of him (most of his upper halfs internal parts are able to partially function/work except for his voice box, right eye, and left arm), leaving him stationary with a distorted broken voice (if he was able to talk pre-possesion) and barely any signs of who he was before except for the few bits of shell still on him and his cracked faceplate sitting barely outside of his reach.

So Wiatt's stuck in the basement with the Collector, who didn't try communicating with him after they both learned his voice was barely understandable. Daylight(Wiatt) decides he really tired, and now just spends his time sleeping and showing silly broken light effects in the caves at an attempt to entertain himself.

Also Celio left the state on recommendation by Damian, Damian's dead (goddammit Winnie) and possesing a walkie talkie that Hazel has, and Oliver's in hiding planning to fucking kill Litho. Winnie also realized that Wiatt was his grandson and he killed off his only family left alive, Litho cannot care less, and Oddity is about to kill a bitch.

[a-froger-epic]

tw: mention of eating disorders

hey i read something about freddie having an eating disrorder, and I hate asking this but could you please explain if you know anything about it. my poor baby :(

Hey anon!

I’m sorry it took me a while to reply. This is a sensitive topic for many, so I wanted to take my time and give you the nuanced reply it deserves.

I’ve talked about this a little before, but I might as well take the opportunity now to speak about it at length. This is only my personal opinion based on everything I’ve read about Freddie and many different takes I’ve seen others put forward.

So, did Freddie have an eating disorder?

The shortest answer to that, as far as I’m concerned, is... maybe?

Before I carry on, I’d like to say that I think everyone is free to speculate about this and make up their own mind, as well as creatively explore this in their writing, and I don’t consider my opinion to be any more correct than anyone else’s.

Why do people think Freddie might have had an ED?

There are a few things about Freddie and food which could be interpreted as ED behaviours. First off, here is what Phoebe has to say about Freddie and his eating habits:

His taste in food changed over the years I was with Freddie. When I started the group of us would make monthly visits to the restaurant Shezan, an Indian eatery, in Knightsbridge. Freddie never had a menu as they always provided his favourite selection of foods without asking. As his illness progressed, his taste buds could not take the assault of spicy foods and he tended to more bland foods. He also turned his eating habits around. He used to have a lighter meal at lunch and then have a big meal in the evening, usually at a restaurant with a big group of friends. Towards the end he would eat more at lunch and a smaller meal in the evenings.

Nothing much out of the ordinary here, as far as I can see. Freddie definitely had favourite foods he enjoyed, but then, a common misconception is that people with EDs don’t like/enjoy food, and that isn’t true. Phoebe also says this:

As I have said before, Freddie was a very light eater. Some of us live to eat, but Freddie was one of those people who ate to live. He was the master of moving food around the plate to give the appearance of having eaten a good amount. He did enjoy good food, but really didn’t need to consume very much. He loved entertaining guests at meals in the dining room at Garden Lodge and was able to disguise his non-eating by making sure everyone else was ok during the meal. Don’t get me wrong, Freddie always ate enough to keep him going, but I can’t remember one time when he leant back in the chair saying ‘I’m stuffed!’

Now here we have a lot of things to unpack. There are three things in here - moving food around the plate to give the appearance of having eaten more, disguising his non-eating and never eating enough to be full - which are definitely known ED behaviours.

However, people who just do not care about food all that much and are light eaters do also exist. In fact, I’m one of them myself. I did struggle with Disordered Eating in my teens and my early 20s, but I have a healthy relationship with food now and I never like to eat until I’m stuffed because it’s not a nice feeling, physically, to overeat. I’m also someone who easily and genuinely forgets to eat when I’m in a creative haze. Just as an example.

Also, seeing as Freddie most likely was made to finish meals all throughout his boarding school times, like many children in lunch halls, which is usually not a great experience for children who are picky or light eaters, the “moving food around the plate to make it seem he’s eaten” could well be an old habit stemming from there.

Either way, Phoebe doesn’t seem too concerned about Freddie’s eating, and even though people with EDs are very good at hiding them, Phoebe did know him for a long time and very, very well. Phoebe could also be withholding information that he considers too private. All of that is possible, all of that is speculation.

There are other things which point to the fact that Freddie was definitely preoccupied with his weight/appearance. In this interview in 1974, he says:

“Oh really,” he exclaims in disgust, “this paper has no flair - I mean to print this picture three times in succession … and just look at my arms!” He was horrified, “look at how fat they appear, now my arms aren’t like that at all - what do you think?” He rolls up his sleeves for me to inspect and I’d like to state here and now that the poor dear’s arms are quite, quite slender!

The photo Freddie is most likely talking about, is this one:

It’s not a very fortunate angle, admittedly. So I think it’s possible to see where he was coming from, but even so, he was worried about his arms looking fat at a time when he looked like this:

Yes, it is important to keep in mind that people were generally thinner in the 70s than we are used to now. (Brian, for example, was also incredibly thin.) But in this picture it really is evident that Freddie was very, very thin at this point.

Other things which are often brought into the discussion around Freddie’s eating habits is the account of him throwing a fit when Brian ate one of his biscuits once, choosing to walk after a meal at a restaurant while his driver drove alongside him and his friends, eating cereal on the floor in his dressing room, this picture where he clearly prefers salad to chicken wings (unlike Roger “What Even Are Vegetables” Taylor):

All of the above, to me, are things which can be heavily read into but ultimately don’t prove very much.

And there is this bit from Mercury & Me:

The Sun did later print a photograph of Freddie taken while he was performing at the festival, which he didn't appreciate. It showed off "Flabulous Freddie" with a slight paunch, wickedly describing it as his "midriff bulge". When he saw the picture he looked at me and shook his head in despair. 'It's typical,' he said. 'If I'm slim the papers say I'm too thin and if I put on a little bit of a belly they say I'm too fat. It's a no-win situation.'

Now, that doesn’t give off the impression to me that Freddie was particularly distraught about that article, at that point in his life. But it certainly appears to have bothered him to some degree.

So what’s the conclusion?

To me, personally, it seems quite likely that Freddie did suffer from Disordered Eating in the early to mid 70s. That’s really not uncommon, sadly, although it usually afflicts young women more than young men. But he was in the spotlight and had to care about his appearance. He was clearly very preoccupied with it, not only when it came to his body, but his looks in general - there is plenty of evidence regarding that. He was very selective about which photographs of himself he did and didn’t like. However, I find it impossible to say just how much this preoccupation affected him exactly. 1974 especially was also a very taxing year for Queen. Their management was shit, they struggled with money, they almost lost Brian, their touring schedules were brutal, the press was bashing them, Freddie was struggling with his sexual identity. There were a lot of immense stress factors, and he could have very well been someone who responded to stress by not eating - just like others respond to stress by eating too much. And Disordered Eating is not classed as an eating disorder. It is, if you will, the beginning of one.

Or, he absolutely could have developed or already had an actual ED which he was hiding fairly well, and it could have affected him a lot, but nobody would have ever known because he would have been unlikely to ever speak to anybody about it.

Both is possible. I simply don’t think that there is enough information to do more than speculate on the matter, beyond: He had a preoccupation with his looks and minded what and how much he ate throughout his life.

However, in the second half of the 70s as well as the 80s, he was still thin but had started working out and looked more “athletic” thin rather than gaunt. I think it’s entirely possible that whatever issues Freddie had with food were not a constant thing but something that may have been worse and better at times, depending on his overall mental well-being and his levels of confidence.

Or, it could have been something that he always struggled with.

Again, as far as I am concerned, both is possible and I don’t feel I can say for certain. And so, my take leans towards Disordered Eating when younger and less preoccupation with it later on. That’s the impression I get.

But I wrote all this out so that others can make up their own minds, and rather than share my exact opinion, I encourage you to do just that.

[legaciezzz]

Hello Sister

Part 1

Hope & Cain

Genre: Chapter fic

Synopsis: It was always believed that Hope was Klaus’s only heir and the tribrid, but things change when Cain strolls into town and claims his title as a Mikaelson. But just how much of a Mikaelson is he?

A/N: Here it is Finally! the first chapter! I know it took forever but I really hope you guys are not disappointed with this series!

Cain came to Mystic Falls to look for Hope, but instead found himself in a cell guarded by some guy named MG according to the bearded man. Not that he was upset about it, he seemed to be in the right place, judging from the way they reacted earlier they knew Hope Mikaelson.

Cain leaned himself against the metal bars and watched MG, a smug grin on his face.

MG looked anxiously back at him for the sixth time now, it was obvious that the staring was making him uncomfortable. Then Cain's attention shifted as heard voices nearing.

"I don't understand. If he's not another monster then who is he?" he heard a girl say through the walls.

"I don't know, he won't say anything other than he's looking for you." the man he met earlier replied.

"Dr. Saltzman, thank god," MG said as the bearded man walked in with three girls: two brunettes and a blonde. "He's really starting to creep me out."

"Thanks, MG. We can take it from here." the bearded man, Dr. Saltzman, told him and with that he didn't waste any time getting out of there.

Cain straightened up. "So which one's Hope?" he asked, looking at the girls.

The brunette with the blue eyes stepped out from the middle, arms crossed.

He looked her up and down, a slight arch to his brow. "Hm. Thought you would be taller."

"Who the hell are you and what do you want?" Hope said, unamused.

That question made him smile, which combined with the look in his eye was a little eerie. "The name's Cain. Mikaelson."

"Mikaelson?" the other brunette echoed softly. "I thought you didn't have any other family."

"I don't." Hope responded.

"Actually," Cain began, dangling his arms through the bars. "You do. Hello, Sister."

. . .

"That's impossible. I can't have a brother." Hope said aloud, pacing around.

They were now in Alaric's office, discussing what was just discovered in private. Being Hope's sibling was such a bold claim, plus there was something about Cain that seemed off and they were wary of whether or not they should trust him.

"Are you sure none of your family has mentioned anything about this?" Alaric asked from his desk.

"Yes."

"Maybe Klaus got somebody else pregnant." Josie suggested.

"I highly doubt it."

"Hope, relax, okay? We  can just do the lineage spell and then we'll know if he's telling the truth or not." Alaric said.

"Do we really need another tribrid?" Lizzie pointed out, she had been rolling her eyes and checking her nails during the whole conversation. "One Hope is already enough."

"Thanks." Hope said, unconvincingly.

All of a sudden, MG came barging in which grabbed everyone's attention. "Uh, Dr. Saltzman, we got a situation out here."

They all rushed and followed him outside where a bunch of students crowded around a corpse of a now former student, head severed and a small pool of blood. Shocked gasps, murmurs and a little fainting crying fueled the tension in the atmosphere.

"Guess we can check off vampire." Josie said softly, it was no coincidence that as soon as Cain arrived at the school someone ended up dead.

Then they saw Kaleb appear, "Mystery Dude's not there."

"Thank you." Alaric said to the two boys before turning back to everyone else. "Alright, everyone head inside," and as the students started to do as told, he started to look around. "Where's Dorian?"

And on cue, Dorian emerged from the herd of teenagers frantically making their way inside. "Ric, what's going on?"

"We need to find Cain." Alaric told him before deciding to correct himself when he saw the confusion on Dorian's face. "Long story, just make sure everyone's situated inside."

Dorian then noticed the body. "Is that--"

"Yeah, do you mind taking care of that too?"

"So what do we do now?" Josie asked.

"We," gesturing to him and Hope, "are going to look for Cain before someone else gets hurt. You and your sister stay here."

Alaric and Hope quickly set out to look for Cain god knows what he was up to. Even though they just met him and barely knew anything about him, a dead body was hard not to see as a red flag.

"Where do you think he went?" Alaric asked, walking alongside Hope.

"How am I supposed to know?" Hope replied, a bit bitter. All the sudden she apparently has a brother and she's automatically supposed to know all about him.

A minute passed and they didn't seem to find any sign of Cain, until he popped up out of nowhere. "There you are," he said walking towards them with a smile, blood dripping from his lips.

Hope looked like she was about to attack him with a spell, but Alaric lowered her hand. "What the hell?!" she said.

There was a moment of confusion on his face before realizing that they were probably talking about the body. "Right, yeah. Uh, you left. I got bored... And hungry, I guess-- it wasn't that hard to get out." Cain rolled his eyes when neither of them responded. "It could've been worse. Trust me, one person won't be missed."

"We don't feed off of people here." Alaric said.

"My bad. It won't happen again."

"Why were you looking for us?" Hope said.

"Well you walked out in the middle of our conversation. That was pretty rude."

"Well why don't we get back inside and we can finish that conversation." Alaric said which caused Hope's head to snap towards him.

"Are you serious? He just killed someone and you want to let him back in the school?"

"You think just letting him go is a better idea? We need to know more about him."

"You know I can hear you, right?"

Hope huffed. "Fine."

The three made it back inside to Alaric's office. Alaric and Cain sat at opposite sides of his desk, while Hope leaned against it, not bothering to hide her annoyance.

"So, headmaster, huh?" Cain said, casually looking around the room, trying  open with  a little  small  talk.

"What are you doing here?" Hope asked, cutting  straight to the chase.

"What? Small family reunion is not a good enough answer for you?"

"Yeah, actually."

"Is it really that hard to believe you may have a brother?" he asked, that smug look appearing on his face again.

"Why don't you just cut the bullshit and tell us why you're actually here."

Cain opened his mouth but Alaric stood up to intervene. "You know, maybe tomorrow's a better day to discuss this." he said, looking at Hope. It was obvious her hostile tone wasn't helping get answers. "Hope, why don't you take him back down."

Hope sighed before reluctantly walking Cain out. With each step he took, it got quieter, aside from a few whispers. He glanced around at everyone's face. They all seemed to be scared or angry, either way he didn't care. If this was after one body, just wait until they saw what he really was capable of.

They reached the cell and once he stepped foot in there, he heard the door close, lock and hope speak some Latin-- which made his head turn.

"Boundary spell." she said.

He nodded. "Hm."

She turned to leave without saying anything.

"What? No goodnight?" He asked playfully.

Hope flashed him an obviously fake smile, "goodnight," then rolled her eyes before officially leaving.

Once the silence settled in, Cain walked around in circles. Eventually he got bored and decided to lie down on the bed, staring at the ceiling before falling asleep.

The next morning Cain woke up. He sat up, back resting against the wall, and waited patiently. By the way the sun shone through the little opening. It was probably around mid morning, but it wasn't like he was awake for long either.

Soon enough, Hope entered the room and with a wave of her hand brought down the barrier. "Get up," she said, the blatant indifference in her tone.

The smugness returned to Cain as he walked to the bars. "What? Is there a morning drill or something?"

"Tests," she corrected. "All the new students have to go through them. So if you want to stay you're going to have to pass all of them. If you really are who you say, that shouldn't be a problem." That was a lie. Technically he only had to pass one, but she couldn't let him know that. "Give me your hand."

Cain put hand through the bars, slightly confused, before Hope grabbed it, taking a knife out from behind her back and running the blade across his palm. "The hell?"

She watched the wound close almost immediately. "Well test number one is complete."

"And what test was that?"

"Healing factor."

"I thought yesterday would have hinted at my abilities."

"Can't be too sure." she said with a passive aggressive smile that only lasted for a second. Keeping the knife in her hand, she opened the cell. "Let's go."

They exited the chambers and made their way to the school yard, passing by Alaric whom she gave the bloody knife.

The tests went into noon and Cain passed everyone of them with flying colours, adding the flair of cockiness which Hope rolled her eyes at. The rest of the student body steered clear of the testing field, especially when he hurled a log across campus.

"Was that really necessary?" she asked, turning back to him.

"Are we done now?"

"Not yet." She noticed he had redirected his attention to the twins who were walking in the distance and smiled at them. "Hey. Eyes over here."

"You really don't like me, do you?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"You know. I actually always wanted a sibling. I don't know about a twin but anything's better than being alone. I just think  you're  having  trouble  accepting  that you're not that special anymore." He clearly took pleasure in telling her that last segment. He then turned to walk away.

She put a hand out. "Where do you think you are going?"

"I'm hungry."

Hope walked to a cooler that Alaric traded her for the knife, and took out a blood bag. "Here." she said, tossing him it.

Cain examined the rich red fluid before actually drinking. He decided to take a seat on the cooler as he took his lunch break.

He handed her the bag to offer it to her, which she turned her nose up at. "I'm good."

He looked at her with a slight squint to his eyes, wrapping his lips around the straw like tube once again.

A moment later Landon appeared with a brown paper bag in his hand. "Hey. This is for you." He said, giving her a peck on her temple as she accepted the bag with a smile.

"Who's this?" Cain asked, almost immediately making her return to her previous demeanor.

"He's no--"

"Boyfriend." Landon said, puffing his chest in a way that failed to be subtle or intimating.

Cain grinned. "And what are you? I mean you have to be special to get into this place, right?."

"Phoenix." the boy said proudly.

"Okay, lunch is over. Go jump in the lake." Hope cut in, she obviously didn't want Cain getting close to anyone she cared about, especially since his motives were unclear.

Cain scoffed. "Really?"

"Yes." she said, quickly dismissing him with her hand.

He playfully rolled his eyes as he directed himself towards the lake, stripping down to his underwear when neared closer to the water.

Hope sent Landon off to get towels while she ate her bagged lunch and waited. Once Cain was finishing swimming and drying off, Hope noticed something on his shoulder blade, glistening from the remnants of the water. A birthmark.

As he finished drying off, Landon came back around. "The spell is done."

"Spell?" Cain echoed, putting his shirt back on. "What spell?"

Hope sighed before following Landon inside, Cain walking with her. "Lineage spell."

Cain paused for a second. "So if all you needed was a lineage spell then why all the other trouble?"

"We agreed that it was better to keep an eye on you by making you do all the tests since clearly just keeping locked up didn't go that well."

"Hm, smart. Actually, No, it was kind of obvious. You know, I easily could have slipped away."

“So why didn’t you?”

“I wanted to get to know my sister.” he said with a smile that made her eyes roll. "Hey, Boyfriend, is she always like this?" he asked Landon.

Landon turned to Cain then glanced at Hope who gave him an intense look. He hesitated, but when he opened his mouth he stammered until Cain chuckled.

They went back to Alaric's office where he, Dorian and Emma were. Dorian seemed the most guarded, he had his eyes locked on Cain and his jaw clenched.

"So what is it?" Hope said, sitting down with Cain.

"Well it was a little hard with the amount of blood, but we managed. He's telling the truth, he's your brother." Alaric said.

"That's what the knife was for? If you needed my blood, all you had to do was ask."

"Well excuse us for not trusting you," Dorian spat.

"But now that we know you're telling the truth," Alaric said, giving Dorian a stern glance, "hopefully we can establish some."

"You're just going to let him stay here just like that?" Hope asked, completely shocked by his decision.

"There are conditions though."

"Of course there is." Cain said, handling a book from Alaric's desk until he took it back.

"You're not to leave school grounds without permission, you'll attend class as scheduled, you'll be under close watch-- especially by Hope who will be in charge of you and you'll stay in the cell until we're sure you're no longer a danger to the student body. And if any-- and I mean if any-- harm is to come to any students, I deal with you myself. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," he said with a cheeky smile. "Who's she?" he then pointed to Emma.

"This is Emma. She's the school counselor."

"Thanks, but I'm already well adjusted."

"I meet with all the students." Emma stated.

"Well then I'd like to consider myself a guest."

"Dr. Saltzman, can we talk for a minute?" Hope said.

. . .

Cain was now in the library, Dorian watching him like a hawk, while Hope talked to Alaric about what the hell he was thinking. Cain was contently browsing through a book, legs up on the table. His focus, however, drifted as his ears picked up a conversation MG and the twins were having as they huddled near the library doors.

"Do you think Dad is gonna let him stay?" Josie said. "I mean they must have decided something."

"Hope hasn't told you guys anything?" MG asked.

"No, and by the looks of it she isn't too happy about this." Lizzie commented.

"They can't actually let him stay, right? I mean he killed one of the students."

"Like no one here has killed anyone." Cain interjected with head still down in the book, causing the three to go quiet. He then set the book down and got up to walk over to them. "I mean this place is filled with werewolves and vampires, I think it's highly hypocritical of you to judge me as though I'm the only one that has taken a life."

Despite his smile, there was a certain intensity to his eyes that made MG swallow hard.

"Were you eavesdropping?" Lizzie said boldly.

"It's kind of hard to ignore when people are talking about you." Cain turned to her, there was something about her attitude that stood out to him. "I'm Cain, but you know that already."

"Lizzie." she said, unimpressed.

"And the shy one?" he asked, looking at Josie who seemed to be avoiding eye contact.

"Josie." she said meekly.

"And it's MG, right?"

MG nervously nodded.

Hope walked into the library, obviously looking displeased, and they all looked at her.

"And I'm guessing that's my cue." Cain said. "It was nice meeting you."

As he followed Hope back to Alaric's office yet again, she flashed him a look. It was clear that she didn't trust him, especially around her friends.

"So, do I finally get to talk now? Or are you two going to keep having side conversations?" Cain smugly asked as he rested against the back of a chair.

"Why are you here?" Alaric bluntly asked.

"Well I won't bore you with the details, but basically I was raised by a cult that I thought was family, then found out that was a lie along with my entire life and that I have a sister."

"And how exactly did you know where to find Hope?"

"I asked around. I had no idea our family was so popular."

"What do you want  with me?" Hope asked.

"I already  told you. Is wanting to know  your family seriously that much of a crime?" he said, laughing with confusion.

"Forgive us, we've haven't been getting a lot of friendly visitors lately."

Cain sighed and stood up, dropping the smug expression. "Look, I know I didn't make the best impression yesterday, but I've spent my whole life thinking I was alone and now I'm not. Wouldn't you feel the same way?" He stared at her earnestly, waiting for a response.

She looked into his eyes and the longer she did, it got harder to say no without seeming completely heartless. She glanced over to Alaric before sighing and softening her tone. "Fine."

"Great," he said,  smiling  wide as he pulled his sister for  a tight side hug. "I promise you we are going  to have  so much fun together." he whispered  into  her ear, sending chills down  her spine.

. . . 

The next day, it was time to tour the school  and mingle with  the factions. Hope was unenthused to say  the least and only gave a brief explanation to all the rooms they came  across while Cain took a deep interest  in everything. As they came to the end  of  the tour, they crossed  paths  with  Emma who was letting  a student  out of her office.

"Hope," she smiled, pleased  to see her face. "I see you're  giving  tours now."

"Actually, we're  just  finishing  it."

"And I'm glad we ran into you when we did," Cain  jumped  in, "because  I've been  thinking  about  what  I said to you  and  I've changed my mind. I'd love to talk to you."

"I'm delighted to hear that. I don't have anything right now,  if you'd like to come in." Cain nodded and walked  inside, Hope followed  him but was  stopped at the  door.

"I know Dr. Saltzman told you  to stay with  him, but you know the rules. Plus it seems  to  me like you could use a break from him...Don't worry, I can handle him." 

Hope relaxed her shoulders. "okay," she breathed out, forcing  a small smile. 

"And don't  forget, you and  I are scheduled for  Thursday." Emma  closed the door  behind her and  went  to seat herself  across  from  the newcomer. "So, Cain, what would  you  like  to  talk about?" 

"You said that you meet with  all the students.  Do you  keep  files on them?"

She immediately  tensed  at the question, so caught  off  guard. "Those are strictly  confidential."

He leaned forward  and  smiled, looking  intensely into  the depths of her eyes.  "Surely you  can make an exception  for  family."

Compelled, Emma  rose up and  walked out  to her filing  cabinet. 

"And while you're at it, get her friends' too. I should know  what  kind  of company  my sister keeps."

She put a small  pile of files on the table  in the seating  area and  Cain kicked his feet  up as he started to browse them. He took time reading  the files, almost  analyzing them  like  characters  in a book. After he was done, he tossed  the  last file back  onto the  pile.

"My sister  has some  interesting  friends, doesn't  she?" he said, sitting  back up straight. "Oh-- and  I guess  I should  probably give you something  to write about  me in return. But, you know, I think  I'm pretty  well adjusted so there's nothing really  to talk about. I mean I was a true prodigy, I was amazing  at everything  I was taught, I was worshipped. It  wasn't  like  I had  a bad childhood, it's  just  that it was all a lie…" He started to  drift off and  zone out when it came to that last part but then quickly  snapped  out of  it. "Anyway, do with that what you will. This was a nice chat. I know this  was  only our  first time sitting  down  with  each other but I've  learned  so much  from  you."

They rose up together. "No problem," she said, putting  on a smile  to hide the underlying  uneasiness.

Right before walking  to the door, Cain  smiled back and  placed  a hand  on her shoulder. "Oh and just to be sure, no one needs to know about  this. You know, confidentiality and all." he said, using his compulsion again.

He was let  out and  wandered  the  halls  until saw Hope  again in the student lounge with  Landon  and Rafael. 

"There you are, and I see you're  with Boyfriend  and  Friend." he said, walking  over to them.

She looked over her shoulder and rolled her eyes.

"It's  Landon, actually." Landon said. 

"Good  to know," he said before  turning  his attention  to Hope, "So what else is on the agenda for today?"

"Meeting with  the  factions. And since you're here, Raf, I guess  we should  start  with  the  wolves."

"Sure."

The two said  their byes to Landon, Hope  giving him a kiss on the  cheek  before  leaving.

"So when he said  he was a phoenix  did mean it as in the bird or is that some code word I don't  know about?" 

"I'm not  talking about  my boyfriend with  you."

They spent the next few minutes in silence until they reached the gym where the pack were playing a small game of kickball.

"And here's the pack.” Rafael said, as the pack suddenly stopped the game and went to huddle around them. “Guys, this is Cain."

Jed, with his chest puffed out, took a step in. “Isn’t he the dude who killed Tristan Gorecki?”

“That was an accident.” Rafael said to which Cain in the background had his own reaction to the comment that made Hope shoot him a dirty look. ”And Dr. Saltzman said we have to give  him a chance to fit in.”

“How are we sure he’s not gonna hurt someone again?”

“Jed, do we really have to remind you of how  many fights you’ve been in?”

 Hope said, “he won’t hurt anyone. I’ll  make sure of it.”

Cain looked around at each of the werewolves. “So, who’s the alpha?”

“I am.” Jed and Rafael said in unison then looked at each other.

“I mean I did fight you to become Alpha.” Rafael said.

“Then you were a wolf for the summer and someone had to take over.” Jed rebutted.

“But I’m back now.”

The other tribrid huffed a faint laugh and smiled. “This is great. A pack who doesn’t even know who their Alpha is. If you guys are so unsure, I’m more than happy to step to the plate.”

Jed stepped up to him and growled. “You think this is funny? You come in here, kill one of us and--"

"Okay, that's enough," Hope said, stepping  in and pulling her brother away. "I think we found out how well you get along with the werewolves. Cain, let's  go."

Then while walking  in silence, led by Hope  of course, they ran  into MG, Kaleb and  a couple  of vampires who were standoffish to him. The new kid that single head managed to create  tension  between  them and  the rest of the factions.

But then MG, being  the  diplomat, decided to  be the first to engage Cain in conversation even though just  his presence made him nervous. They sat and  chatted-- which felt more like an interrogation  on Cain's end, talking about the ups and  downs of being a vampire.

 "You think we can trust him?" Kaleb  asked Hope  as  they  both  stood by and  watched the other two.

"Hell no." Hope said  bluntly. "But Dr. Saltzman  says until  we find  out  he has a M.O. besides  yesterday he hasn't  really  given us a reason  not to trust him."

"What if he really doesn't have a game and  just wants to be your brother?"

"Trust  me, I know  my family."

MG and  Cain  talking until  MG's discomfort finally  reached  its  peak.

"I do have another  question," Cain  began, leaning  forward  with  his eyes even more on MG than  they were. "Do you get any rippers here? I mean with how many  vampires  that are here, there has bound  at least  one  loose canon."

MG immediately  tensed  up but tried to hide under a nervous  smile.

"Have you met with  the witches, yet? You can probably catch them at the mill, they hang out  there all the time." he said, quickly changing  the subject.

And  with that cue Hope got up from  the wall. "MG's  right. The sooner  we're  done mingling  the sooner  I can get you back  downstairs  and  do some studying."

And  again  She dragged  her brother off to somewhere  else. The witches were at the mill as they socialized amongst  themselves, then all heads turned as soon as the two Mikaelsons stood  at one of  the entrances.

They walked in some more and  just as Hope assumed  there was going  to be tension  like the other two factions, the witches started to gather around them. Although  some witches kept their distance, the  others seemed  to want  to meet  the newcomer.

"So you're  Hope's brother?" Alyssa Chang said, being  the first  to speak.

"Lost and found." Cain replied.

"Well, let's just hope being  a buzzkill isn't hereditary.”

His lip twitched with amusement. "I can assure  you I'm lots of fun." he said, his eyes glancing  over at Lizzie.

"Does this mean you're also a tribrid?" another witch asked.

"Yep. I'm the whole  package."

The witches brought him over  to sit down as they continued  to ask him more things, fascinated  by  him as if he was an exotic animal  or something. And Cain  very much  seemed to be enjoying the attention. Hope looked a little confused as they pulled  him away. 

"They're  acting  like  they've  never  met a tribrid  before." she said  to herself. But on the plus side she knew  she didn't  have  to watch  him as closely anymore. 

After a while, Cain managed to slip away  from the witches  and  found his way to Lizzie  who was on the staircase.

"So you're a witch." he said, pleased.

"How'd  you  figure  that out?" she said, oozing with sarcasm.

"I was just wondering  why you were with  the others."

"I already  met a tribrid. Wasn't  impressed by the first one, not gonna be by the second  one."

"I think  I can  come  up with a few other  ways  to impress you."

She looked over at him. "Never gonna happen."

They sat in silence for a moment  until Cain glanced  over to his sister and  Josie.

"I can't  believe  you and  my sister are friends."

Lizzie looked at him confused.

"I mean  from  what  I've… heard  you two had quite the rivalry. But I can relate, my parents did spend  way more  time  with  her than  me too."

"My dad actually knows I exist. It's  different."

"Is it really?"

The blonde clenched  her jaw right before walking  off. "Your new brother is annoying."

"Tell me about it," Hope said.

That led to a  rant about  how  this whole situation and  Cain showing up out of nowhere felt like  an inconvenience to her. While Cain went back to the witches.

After, Hope  realized how much time had  passed and  decided it was time  for  Cain  to get back  to the cell.

"Alright, time to go."

Cain looked up at her from the couch. "Come on, I just  started  making  friends."

"And  I have  to study for  a class  tomorrow." That and she'd been around him enough for  the day.

Cain let out a little sigh before getting up. Although  he was a little  disappointed  it was time to  leave, he figured if he wanted to get in his sister's  good  graces going  against  her wasn't  the way to go.

They walked  together  in silence again  because the last  thing that Hope  would  want  to  do with  some sketchy stranger  is have  a friendly  conversation or share her whole life story.

"I like the witches," he said, "especially your  friend, Lizzie."

Hope couldn't  help  the snort. "Good luck  with that."

"You take after Mom, don't  you?" he said, catching  her way off guard. "Based  on the things  I've  heard  people  say about  her. I also  came across  a picture  this  one time. You look like  her too." This made her  pause for  a second. She knew  that they were  family but  somehow actually talking about their  family-- key alone  their parents-- seemed  to be the last thing she'd  expected. "Do I look like either of them to you?"

After that, the moment  she looked  into  his  eyes, a bunch  of images of Klaus  raced through  her mind. 

"You have his nose," she said softly before quickly turning  away and  going back to walking.

[damn-stark]

Snips

Chapter 3 of Dark Temptations

A/N- I really love how this chapter turned out! I’m so excited to continue this series!! I really am loving how it’s turning out :) hope you all like it too! :) also you can’t tell me Luke wouldn’t be the softest dad. Because he would! Let me know what you thought?!

Warning- swearing, angst, slow burn, long chapter, slight violence

Pairing- Dark!Poe x Skywalker!reader

(Let me know if you want to be tagged)

————

“Hey, Snips.”

A smile grows on your lips at the sound of the soft and familiar voice greeting you, at the incredibly strong and positive force that surrounded you, vibrating off like calm waves from one single person.

Your eyes drifted up to see her striped montrals come to view first, before you sat up and took in her whole ghostly being. Noticing the same, familiar warm grin plastered on her gentle and orange features. Showing that even if she was a ghost, that one could look so lively. Glowing with a happiness that was yet to be matched by any living person. While her eyes shone a brighter and deeper blue than that blue hue that permanently surrounded her whole being.

Your grin widened and you instantly matched her soft and excited tone; “Hey, Master Tano.”

“Sunbathing?” She queried.

You sigh and fall back on the grass, “more like waiting. Patiently. Very patiently.”

“The new Padawan not here yet?” Master Tano—Ahsoka, asked—her name was still hard to get used to. Even if it has been years since she’s been correcting you, almost begging you to call her Ahsoka. Saying that your relationship was that much more than one of a Padawan and Master. “We’re friends. Best friends.” She would say. “No need for formalities.” She was right of course, but it was formalities that were permanently engraved in your mind.

Thanks dad.

You shake your head and from the corner of your eye watch as Ahsoka leans back, resting her hands by her sides on the grass. Looking as if she was and could take in the warmth of the sun on her face, her eyes on the sky, but her attention solely on you as you continued speaking. “No, she’s late.”

“She’ll show. Just got to be patient.” She chuckles, “more patient.”

You scoff, “Hmm, aren’t you supposed to be busy doing...I don’t know ghost stuff? Y’know instead of stalking me?”

Ahsoka giggles and snaps back with equal the attitude, “aren’t you supposed to be training?”

You chuckle and sit up to fully face her and quip. “I have a schedule, remember?” Ahsoka meets your gaze and the white marking on her right eyebrow bone lifts, shooting you curious look; “early morning, get up, get ready for the day, meditate, then join dad, Jacen and Ben for breakfast with the other Padawans. After that chores, then annoy Jacen. Not done yet, because this Padawan was supposed to come, so, that’s still on hold. But after that it’s talk with my favorite Jedi Master. Check.”

Ahsoka grins, “right on.” She then meets your fist to share a light fist bump at your comment.

You continue, “then more chores. Training with you or dad. Lastly annoy Ben before going to sleep and ending my day.”

“For such a busy person,” Ahsoka teases, “you’re surely doing a whole lot of nothing.”

“Ha. Ha. Funny.”

Ahsoka shrugs nonchalantly, “I know. Must be a Skywalker shared thought. Your grandfather thought I was funny too.”

You shake your head and smirk, “I’m sure he did.” Before you could add something else, the sound of a motor catches your attention, making you jump to your feet and look past the jungle trees, blocking the sun from your eyes with your hand to get a better view at the approaching speeder and who was riding it.

“You think that’s the Padawan?” Ahsoka questioned as she stood up to watch the same thing.

You shrug, “I don’t know…” you trail off, catching sight of what appeared to be a man. His face became more distinguishable the closer he got. A head of dark curls visible first before the sun hit and made clear of the tan face he carried. “Nope. Not the Padawan.” You interjected at the discovery of the seemingly young man on the speeder heading your way.

“Well, we'll talk later, okay? So you can tell me all about the cute visitor.” Ahsoka added with a final smile, her face and body fading away until there was nothing but the view of your father's jedi temple and the young man now a couple feet in front of you.

He gets off his parked speeder bike and his eyes fall on you before they begin to search for something behind you.

“Hello.” You greet with a warm grin, pulling the guys brown eyes back to you with an added smile on his lips.

“Uh, hi.”

You clasp your hands in front of you and search his face for a moment. Coming to a full conclusion that this was not your wanted Padawan; “since you don’t seem to be the Padawan I’m waiting for, I’m going on a whim here to say you’re here for Jacen?”

The young man's eyes widen in recognition at the sound of the name. “Yeah actually, he said he was going to be here.”

You scoff and shake your head, “oh well, of course he’s not here.” You look over your shoulder to see if your brother was anywhere in sight, but alas and to no surprise he wasn’t. “He’s probably busy. And I emphasize the word busy, sucking faces with his girlfriend or smoking. Sorry. You’re welcome to wait or I can go search for him if you want.”

The young man chuckles. A laugh that was meant whole heartedly and not feigned, his shoulders shaking as he did something so simple—“I’m fine. I think I’m in perfect company until he comes.”

You feel a heat crawl on your cheeks, suddenly being overwhelmed by the flustering state he put you in. A first, and a action not done by anyone before..until now; “Oh, well,” you smile and fumble to find any more words without making them sound like gibberish. He was a couple years older than you, you needed to remember that. Being your brother's friend and all. But when the sun caught and brightened the charming grin on his lips; one that showed how perfectly white his teeth were, how his eyes showed the same amount of happiness and glow you couldn’t help but grow more flustered.

What the hell was wrong? This is not you. Pfft.

Seeing your current state, he leaned his body on his speeder and proceeded to introduce himself with the same smile. “I’m Poe. Poe Dameron.”

You twist your Padawan braid between the pad of your index and thumb finger and smile shyly. “I’m y/n Skywalker. Jacen’s sister.”

“Oh, yeah he’s told me about you,” he points, “his as he says and I quote, “my annoying little sister.”

You scoff again, “Well I never said he was my favorite so. Whatever.” You sigh, “anyway if you want I can take you to him, or I can take you to the mess hall while you wait. I made food that hasn’t gotten touched, it would be a shame to throw it away. If you’re hungry that is.” But maybe it’s because you had no friends to eat your food. Your father wasn’t here and Jacen and Ben were somewhere around, the only friends you did have couldn’t eat because they were ghosts of past Jedi. Maybe it’s time to make friends with living people...but then again, they aren’t fun as the ghosts you hang out with. So, it’s better they way you are.

Poe shrugs, “sure I’m up for it.”

You grin and turn to guide him towards the hall, but when you try, the one and only, Jacen, appears a couple feet away with Ben Solo in tow. Looking like a matching set next to one another. One is never far from the other, like twins almost. Only they weren’t that. Looking as always, or at least Jacen all high mighty like he ruled this temple and those in it. Stuck up silly boy. Not at all how Ahsoka described your grandfather or grandmother to be. Sure they had flair to their step, being who they were, but Jacen over passed flair and went straight to stuck up, spoiled daddy’s boy. At least Ben wasn’t that way, even if he was considered a Prince; he was like his mother in that way, sweet and more genuine. Even if Jacen did get to him at times.

Anyhow, disregarding your cousin and brother's demeanor's, you let out an annoyed sigh, noticing right away the glare on Jacen’s pale and slim face, his blue eyes almost seeming to show a red hue due to his anger. A detail that was caused by the sun reflecting on his irises, one if you hadn't noticed such an effect would have thought his eyes changed colors with his aggravated mood. And for what reasons was he mad? Going by the glare he threw to his friend, and you were guessing here, would be because his friend was talking to you—when did he decide to be the caring older brother?

“Dameron,” your brother smiles, “I’m sorry I’m late, man.” For such a cold glare, he knew how to give a warm and genuine welcome. “I hope my sister wasn’t bothering you”

You frown and huff, feeling him very smoothly tug you towards him without showing Poe his true intentions of why he had pulled you away—“You’re rude and maybe if you were early I wouldn’t have to greet your friends.” You snap.

Jacen’s eyes drift to meet your own, his jaw clenching and showing you a feigned smile. “Go, dads back, go greet him.”

“Fine.” You turn to Poe one last time and offer him one last smile. “I’ll see you around, Poe.” Said man smiles in return, not really caring for your brother's death glare. Not like you cared either—Using a bit of the force you spin back on your heels and offer Ben a warm smile before leaving the group of boys and heading towards your father's strong force presence. Unknowingly keeping Poe's attention on you as your father soon came into view, a warm and kind smile on his lips at the sight of you welcoming him back from a failed recruitment mission.

“Dad!” Quickly you throw your arms around his neck and feel his own arms wrap around you to return your embrace, the long sleeves from his Jedi robes becoming a warm secure blanket on your back. As his familiar natural citrus smell engulfs your nose in its refreshing smell. A welcoming smell, just like he was a welcoming sight after what felt too long being without him.

“Hey, kid.” He warmly greets, pulling away from the embrace to cradle your cheek, “is it just me or is it every time I come back from being away you just get older?”

You shrug nonchalantly and refer to his graying hair. “I think you’re the one getting older.”

He chuckles and pulls away, shrugging off the pack hanging from his shoulder, his eyes looking for who you presumed was Jacen. “Where’s your brother?”

Yep that was it.

You scoff, “off being an ass.”

He raises an eyebrow to your choice of word, a reaction you knew wasn’t welcomed lightly, or at all. He wasn’t a fan of profanity, especially since you were to set an example to the other students since you were who you were. It didn’t stop you though, and you knew he let some bad choice words slip himself, you’ve heard him.

“Sorry.” You mutter.

He shakes his head and proceeds to pull out a small bag from his pack. “I stopped by Naboo before coming back here and when I was there I got you this.” He pulls your hand that was resting at your side to place the pouch on your hand, his smile glowing with happiness. “It isn't anything big, but I hope you like it.” Not being to hold your anticipation, you open the pouch and pull out a silver chain with a japor snippet charm hanging from it. The simple yet meaningful gift makes you grin and wrap him in another hug. “I made one for you brother too—I carved it out myself, I just needed something to hang it from. It’s like the one your grandfather gave your grandmother. It's supposed to mean good fortune. And well when I’m gone for too long so you can remember me.”

“I love it.” You happily exclaim as you feel him place a kiss on the crown of your head. Pulling away shortly after to discover something extra in the pouch. Treats from Naboo, his favorite treats, just like yours. A gift you knew he added so you’d share; “Thank you, dad.”

He wraps his arm around your shoulder and begins to guide you into the temple, the same kind smile on his face as he added with equally as kind words, “love you kid.”

——

(Ben Solo p.o.v)

“Where’s my daughter?”

Ben blinks, his lips parting try to form any word, just any word. To explain in the best way possible to his uncle and former Master that the only daughter he had. The last breathing child he had was being held captive by Snoke inside the First Orders capital ship. Of course he could just simply release that news to him like that. But by the look on his face, he preferred to let it out as easy as possible.

“She’s alive, I’m going to go back for her,” Ben revealed confidently, earning a narrowed look regardless of his choice of words. “Whatever it takes.”

Ben’s mother began to walk towards her brother, a softened look expressed on Luke's eyes, his attention falling on her for a second, his concerned expression appearing again as Ben finished speaking. “Possibility is that the ship they had her on isn’t going to be in the same coordinates, but I know people, I can search here for their location. I will go back for her, I promise.”

Luke sighed, “she’s my only daughter. I can’t…” he paused for a short second, if Ben hadn’t been paying attention to Luke, it would be an action that would have gone unnoticed, just like the crack in his voice. “I won’t lose her too. I’ll go with you.”

With you? Really? Is that what he said?

First, no one except for y/n herself knew where he was after he isolated himself. Second this is the first time in years Luke has ever talked to Ben. His mother sure, a couple times before he completely cut contact, but it had been years since anyone had seen him until now. Did he just expect Ben to know where he was?

Ben’s eyebrows furrowed his lips parting to say his peace before Luke interjected. “I can’t stay like this for too long.” He explained, referring to his current...state. “I shared the coordinates of where I am with your mother, come to me and we’ll go get my daughter.”

Before Ben could even nod to agree with what he suggested, or commanded, Luke disappeared, leaving nothing but simple coordinates in his mother’s mind through their force connection.

Ben cleared his throat and let his eyes wander the crowd that had gathered, noticing that they had begun to disperse at the sight of Luke gone and Ben’s hardened gaze searching the crowd. All of them pretending that they were now “busy”. Bullshit—“Let’s search for the coordinates on the datapads.” Ben said to his mother, her gaze turning to see him and expressing her motherly concern. Even after she had slapped him.

Well maybe he deserved that.

“Let’s get you patched up first, Ben.”

Ben shook his head and stubbornly began to head towards the datapads inside base. His words somewhat wavered as he walked ahead. “no, first we get those coordinates down, before anything else.”

“You’re hurt.”

“It doesn’t matter.” He cut her off, “y/n is still out there. I-I can’t and won’t let them keep her as some prisoner. The longer she’s out there, the higher the possibility it is for her to get hurt.” Ben sighed, “we know how she is.”

His mother sighed, unsure of what to really say to ease his worry. “she’s like her father, Ben. She’s strong and patient, she’s going to be okay.” She tried assuring him, but it didn’t at all coax his worry. That reason was exactly why he was worried. “She’d want you looked out after first.”

Ben sighed, “I know. But let’s just first figure out where he is.” Having no other choice, his mother stopped trying to tell Ben otherwise. She knew she wouldn’t win in this argument.

But maybe she should have, basing off the stares he was getting the further he walked into base with his torn clothing, bruised face and busted lip. It’s like they’ve haven’t seen someone hurt before, or seen him. Maybe it would have been better if he had gone somewhere else that wasn’t here….

“And you tell me who can outrun a band of bounty hunters with a inch of fuel left in their ship?”

“You.”

“I’m not one to brag, but yeah. Me.” The old man chuckles, straightening out the invisible wrinkles on his jacket and receiving a smack on the arm by the tall and hairy Wookiee sitting beside him not mere seconds later. “And Chewie. Don’t worry buddy I didn’t forget you.”

Yeah it was definitely better if he had chosen to travel somewhere else.

The old man’s dark brown eyes spot Ben from across the room, his eyes widening in recognition, the smile that grew faltering until it completely fell at the sight of Ben’s visible wounds.

“When did dad get back?” Ben quietly questioned his mother who walked behind him, his hand flying to his ribs at the sharp sting of pain.

“Earlier today.”

Ben hummed, making his way to his father regardless of his current feelings on him. A noticeable happy look on his father's face once he reached him. Not one that really made it on Ben’s face, but he tried. He was trying. “Dad, Chewie.” His eyes shifted to the pilot his father had shown off to. One of y/n’s friends….special friends; His breath hitched and his eyes drifted nervously to the ground with a very faint and shy smile spreading on his lips. “Hi, Mara.” Said girl smiled and offered him a short nod, her dark eyes searching for only one person who wasn’t by his side. The smile she contained slowly falling.

“Where’s Jaina?”

Who?

Ben blinked, an obvious puzzled look growing on his face, until the light bulb in his head went off a couple minutes later—right, y/n’s fake name to keep her real identity a secret. Right. “She’s….” Ben blanked again, a wave of guilt crashing within him. “She’s..not here.”

Mara answered with a soft “oh”, his theory of her answering with just silence, debunking as she looked up at him with concern. “Are you okay? Do you need me to patch you up? I have some free time.”

His dad tried to hide his proud smile behind his hand, but Ben caught the gesture and hoped Mara didn’t. Ben offered her an assuring smile nonetheless and ignored his dad. “uhh no,” he swallowed thickly at how much more nervous he was beginning to get, “later?”

She smiled and nodded, “okay, I’m here all day so,” she grinned at her own joke before finishing her comment. “Come look for me when you want.”

Ben offered a short nod in agreement and watched quietly as she walked away with Chewbacca, his gaze lost on her figure as she swayed her hips in a confident way, he smiled shyly at the thought of talking to her later, until all the excitement went away when his dad broke him from his stupor, expressing his concern for Ben’s beloved cousin. Or sister as everyone knew her here. “Ben what’s wrong? Where’s y/n? What happened?”

Ben responded with silence, turning to walk towards his intended destination, hearing as both parents paced behind him, ultimately having to force himself to answer with a grumble. “I’m going to get her.”

“Ben.”

“I’m okay, dad, really.” Ben winced softly, his face swallowed by the holo-computers bright blue hue in front of him. Ben’s fingers typing a whirlwind of buttons in a matter of seconds before looking over his shoulder to his mother who had barely caught up to him. “Could you please give me the coordinates.”

His mother nodded and pushed Ben to the side, quickly inserting what was needed before a strange new map flashed on, marking a path to the unknown regions of the galaxy. “Are you sure this is it?” Ben wondered before he zoomed into the new marked planet, his black eyebrows furrowing as he tried to decipher what it was and how the hell he was going to get there. He couldn’t go in the ship the First Order had so generously gifted him. Mainly because he knew it would be tracked. And he couldn’t on any of the ships here because they were all just one seater fighter ships. The only thing he could do was—Ben’s eyes slowly slid to his father, a soft sigh escaping his lips at the thought.

“Yes it’s there.” His mother remarked. “It wouldn’t be wrong.”

Ben ran a hand through his hair and then rested his hands on the table. Letting his mother explain to his father what this was and what had gone on just moments ago with her long lost twin brother. A mixture between excitement and confusion expressed on his father's face.

“Dad…” Ben paused and sighed again, hesitating to even continue. Just digging the heel of his boot into the stone ground, barely now feeling the high heat of D’Qar on him. Making sweat beads roll down his forehead as he tried to ask his father one simple question. “Could I use the Falcon?”

“To get your uncle and save y/n?” His father asked as he crossed his arms over his chest; Ben nodded stiffly, letting that be the only reaction his father needed to continue with a smug grin. “Of course. But your mother, chewbacca and I are going too.”

Ben froze and his eye twitched at the comment, his lips parting to protest. “But—”

“No.” His father interjected. “You’re crazy to think we’re letting you do this alone after what happened. Your partner in crime may be gone, but we’re here.”

“But mom has a base to run, she can’t leave.” Ben tried to argue, his father as stubborn as him.

“It’s okay. She can leave someone in charge. We won’t be gone for long. We’re going with you, end of discussion.”

Ben sighed and hesitated for a moment, knowing damn well that there was no point in arguing. “Fine.”

His mother and father smiled before Han added another comment. “Gives us the excuse to finally reunite the old crew. How about that?”

Ben feigned a smile and offered a short nod. “Great. Just great.” Well this was going to be an adventure—if only this was a different situation and y/n was here. She would have made this more tolerable. She would have loved his father's idea. She would have jumped for joy.

Stars. If only she were here…

——

“I am one with the force,” you slowly breathe out of your nose, trying with everything within you to feel a spark of something, feel the presence of anyone. Ahsoka, your grandfather, Ben or your father. Just anyone so that you could feel less hopeless; “I am one with the force. I am—”

“Does that really work?”

When did the door open?

You sigh and open your eyes with a dread, instantly being welcomed by Poe Dameron, his figure in the small dark room upside down as you balanced on one hand. In attempts to try and feel your force ability. Disappointingly enough though, coming out empty, especially now with the annoying distraction and his...cute white and orange droid by his feet; “What?”

Poe cocks his head to side, shifting the helmet underneath his arm and placing the plate of food down on the metal desk, a cocky smirk on his lips. “Mediating? And all your Jedi whatever?”

You huff, “not anymore since you’re here. Annoying me.” You remark, making him scoff playfully and for the droid to chirp to defend his master. His little soft sounds not at all affecting you. After all, you were friends with artoo. That droid was worse—regardless having no other option, you swiftly flipped back to stand on your feet and hesitate to face him, sighing as you did.

“I brought you food,” Poe points to the tray displaying a healthy amount of vegetables, what looked to be steaming mashed potatoes and fruits—At Least the First Orders food option wasn’t as bad as them.

Your eyes drift to the food and you shake your head, “I’m not hungry.” You cross your arms over your chest and shoot him a pointed look, ignoring the way your stomach growled as the smell of the food hit your nose.

“The guards say you haven’t eaten.” He grumbles, reaching to grab the plate, “eat or you’ll starve.”

You shoot him a glare and stay grounded as he begins walking towards you, his steps heavy as they hit the metal ground while his face clearly came to view under the white dim lights on the ceiling, his gaze not really expressing a concern, but an annoyance to your defiance; “you told me to rot in my cell, I’m doing that.”

Poe sighs heavily, “it’s a figure of speech. I was angry that you lied to me. Don’t they have that where you’re from?”

“I’m from Yavin-4 so you tell me.” You quip. Standing straighter as he comes to a stop in front of you.

“Eat, y/n.”

You grab the tray from his hand and grab the bowl of mashed potatoes, a small smirk faintly showing on your lips as you cupped your hand around the bottom rim and lifted it off the tray to shove it in his face. “Why don’t you.”

Poe’s jaw clenched as he reacted quickly by wiping the food off his face, his dark eyes burning holes inside your head. His lips parted to most likely argue, or scream at you, but instead he clenched his jaw once more. Letting the tray drop to the ground with a loud clang, the food remaining spilling on the floor by your feet, and his gloved hand clenching into a fist at his side before he turned to leave the room (cell) in a huff. His droid following him with concern and a hurried pace. Again, being left all alone with nothing but your failed attempts to reconnect with the force.

Usually when there were those moments when you felt alone, you usually liked to very carefully grab the japor snippet that would hang around your neck on a metal chain, but when you lifted your hand this time to try and feel the soft wooden charm, you only touched soft skin. No reminder of your dad, just the feeling of true and pure loneliness—Maybe the better choice was not to take it off before you arrived here. At least then maybe there would be something to keep you company, or keep you from feeling less alone. But there was no room for maybe’s anymore….

With a shaky exhale you drop to the ground, your eyes watering for a moment before they caught sight of the food spilled on the ground; having nothing else to do and really just distracting yourself, picking it up and placing it back on the tray. Feeling only a small, tiny bit of an inkling of remorse for what you did to Poe—He may be rude and annoying but….he..he was trying something nice.

Eww that even hurt to think.

Catching you by surprise the door slid open, different more lighter footsteps following as they walked inside, informing you immediately that it wasn’t Poe who returned, and it wasn’t Rey. You discreetly peeked over your shoulder as the door slid closed, spotting a black uniform reflecting the gleam of white light, a recognizable stormtrooper helmet on its head and a new tray of food in its hands—“there's people that can do that, y’know.”

Ah, now you knew who it was. “Oh, look, Poe sent in his apologetic stormtrooper.” You turn back around and focus on cleaning up the food. “Go away.”

“Finn.” He corrects you. “It’s actually Finn.”

You scoff as you sit up, still letting your back face him. “Okay.”

“You haven’t ate.”

You roll your eyes and sigh. “You too, huh? You know I thought that whole reason of being a prisoner was to torture me. Not to treat me like a child.”

“You’re a guest.”

Finally you roll your head over your shoulder to make sure he saw your raised eyebrow and narrowed gaze. “Funny.” You spin around where you sat to face him with the same reaction. “Tell your master that I’m not hungry.”

Finn nods slowly and grabs a metal chair, twisting it around so he could take a seat. “I won’t leave until you will.”

“Then I guess you’re staying here all day.”

“I guess I will.” He quipped back, sounding exactly how Ben would. So paternal. It sucked; “tell you what, Nomad was going to do this later, but, I can take you to a better room if you eat.”

You scoff. “I’m not some pet or some child that you can bribe!”

Finn sighed, even if his face was covered it was audible that he sighed through his nose. “You’re snippy, you know that?” He paused and shrugged, “look I know you’re not a child or some pet, but I can’t promise you anything else, okay? Plus this room sucks, it’s dark and depressing, your new room will be bigger and have a window. Gives you room to walk and see the stars. But only if you at least have a couple bites of food.”

You huff and hesitate to stand up, biting the inside of your cheek and drifting your eyes to see the soft red lights that decorated the ground as you contemplated your answer. “You’re weird y’know? Different from the other stormtroopers.”

Finn shrugged, “I’ll take that as a complement.”

You meet the visor where his eyes are meant to be and groan softly. “Fine, I’ll eat.” You take the tray of food he offers and sit in another chair across from him, noticing as he crossed his arms over his chest in a cocky way.

“Wasn’t so hard, now was it?”

A scoff escapes your lips before a faint smile tugged at the corner of your lips as you answer him, “I guess not.” Finn shrugs and you simply roll your eyes as you finally take a bite of your food. “Happy?”

He quips, “very.”

——

“You’ve got a smile brighter than any of those stars.”

A smile slowly tugs at your lips at the faint memory sounding in your mind, whilst your eyes get lost on the view of the dark and cold vacuum of space in front of you, pretending that if you thought hard enough, you could see the memory play in the twinkling stars. It was the only form of distraction to keep you from really feeling what your mind, whole being wanted you to really feel.

“Any more compliments and she’ll turn out like you, Anakin.” Master Kenobi retorted, making your grandfather grin smugly.

“And that’s wrong? She is my only granddaughter after all. Maybe I want her to be just like me.”

You chuckle and keep listening to what Master Kenobi had to say in return. “Ahsoka and I enjoy her the way she is. Don’t corrupt her please.”

A knock sounds on the door, pulling you from your stupor and causing your smile to fall. Only watching from the reflection of the transipersteel that Nomad had opened the door, his figure stuck at the entrance of the door, the bright light of the halls growing his shadow on a ground that was a hundred times more smoother than the cold hard metal, grate of a floor that was in your cell before. This cell had a bed. A bigger bed than you’ve ever had in your life, with a bigger room that could probably fit the small boxes you would stay in at base a hundred times over. The sheets were a dark silk heaven...Like how you imagine a cloud to feel, and there was a huge bathroom that was a part of your “room” (cell), and a walk-in closet that was only half full with First Order clothes you would never actually wear, but it had them hanging from the racks. Overall your excitement was obvious and not expected. They had spoiled you to the max with this room. Even if it was locked from the outside; which actually brought you to the conclusion that there was some reason behind this relocation.

Beside just the fact that they were obligating you to stay here alive.

“Do you need something?”

The sound of his weight shifting to his other foot echoed throughout the room, the sound nor him actually pulling your full attention just yet.

“Do you want to get out of your room?”

You sigh and bite the inside of your cheek, “cell you mean.” You correct him.

Nomad sighs loudly, “do you?”

“Depends. Am I going home?”

“No.” He deadpans before letting silence engulf the whole room. The sound of his helmet clicking before it came off was the only noise that traveled around, the sound of his voice much softer now without his helmet following shortly after. “Rey is gone on some mission. I need someone to train with.”

You scoff and cross your arms over your chest, being quick with a retort. “Your girlfriend’s gone so now you’re bugging me?”

Poe chuckled and was heard fully entering the room, letting the door slide shut behind him. “Not my girlfriend. She wishes she was. Plus I think you're more her type.”

“That, or she’s simply not into you.” You quip with a smug grin.

“Possibly.” He agreed, his footsteps stopping a couple feet behind you; “do you want to leave or not? I promise I’ll go easy, wouldn’t want to harm the pretty princess, y’know.”

You roll your eyes. “Stop calling me that, I’m not a princess. Far from it.”

“Your father is basically Jedi royalty, just like your last name, basically makes you one.”

“Nah.” You smirk, “the only princess I know is my cousin Ben. So.” Prince basically, but same thing. You loved to tease him. Got him ticked and got you happy.

“Come on. You don’t want to be stuck in here all day. It gets depressing.” Poe adds, making you grow quiet and not really thinking much of your answer before you answered with another sigh.

“Fine.” You finally turn to face Poe, seeing the cuffs already in his grip.

He noticed your gaze on the object and shrugged. “Trust issues. They’ll be off when we get to the training room.” Having no other choice you extend your hands and let him slap the cuffs on your wrists, watching as he put his helmet back on. Why? No idea. It’s not like he had trouble breathing like Darth Vader had, nor was it intimidating as his. It looked like any other helmet the stormtroopers with the black suits had on. You would have asked, but you didn’t feel like giving him the satisfaction that something about him remotely caught your attention. Unless it was his scar. But that wasn’t something you had the need to comment on anymore. Just like you didn’t comment on the silence that surrounded you both as he walked you to the training room. Walking past stormtroopers with the black uniforms that differed those with the usual get up. Again you wanted to comment, but again you chose not to. Just letting the silence continue until you arrive at the room, the cuffs soon getting taken off once you both are secured inside the unsurprisingly huge area.

“Here,” he says breaking the silence, handing you a new set of hand wraps as he took off his helmet with his other hand, his eyes traveling from what he offered you and up to you. “I’m not going to bite. Take them. And don’t wrap them on too tight, or you’ll open your wound on your hand.”

He remembered about that? You hardly did

With some small hesitation you chose to take the hand wraps from him and only mouth a soft ‘thank you’ before you took off the ugly long sleeved shirt they had put on you before, being in only the tank top underneath, just like he now was. You tried to avert your eyes, really tried, but found yourself looking at him regardless as you began to wrap one hand, noticing that he wasn’t built like before when you first met him, when he would hang out with Ben and your brother. No, he was older now, his arms weren’t as skinny as before, they had a lot more...muscle to them and his chest was much more..how does someone describe it? Toned? Just like his...abdominal area. It was all just stamped through his tight tank….

Wait a minute...no. No—hastily before he noticed you staring, you tore your eyes away and focused on what you were doing—was it hot in here? Stars. Fucking...

“You done?”

You swallow thickly again and nod. “Yep.” Before he was able to comment on anything you jumped up, and met him on the mat, looking around for any usual weapons you were used to training with. “Do I get to use any of my lightsabers?”

Poe shakes his head whilst he gets into a fighting stance. “Not until you don’t want to kill me and you don’t want to leave anymore.”

“I’m a prisoner inside your capital ship, Dameron, of course I will fight to leave. All the time.”

“Then you don’t get your lightsabers. Simple.”

You huff and get into your own fighting stance, a mixture between use of form V and the form Ashoka taught you. Carefully eyeing every movement Poe began to make as he paced around you, waiting for you to attack, watching with his own eyes as you shifted your body to be prepared for any attacks. Smirking once he got impatient and attacked first, letting you to quickly dodge his swing and swiftly return to your stance, kicking his side before swinging your other leg and missing as he ducked.

You grinned and slightly jumped back to avoid his move, shrugging as you added something with heavy breaths. “No training stick or anything? Or are you too afraid I’ll beat you?”

Poe hesitated to answer. Giving right away his thoughts, which was a clear ‘yes’. He might’ve responded with a ‘no’ but you knew.

Poe tried to swing again but you quickly caught his fist and smirked, twisting his arm a bit before jumping slightly to lock his neck with your legs and flipping him over to crash onto the mat. His hand you had pinned to the ground while with his other hand he was quick to tap your leg to call it quits—you did so and loosened your grip, letting him slip out and carefully touch his offended area, while he also tried to breath in air, his eyes on you expressing a mixture of something you couldn’t define; “damn, princess, who the hell taught you to fight?”

You push yourself up to your feet and shrug, “I’ve had multiple teachers throughout the years.”

“Your ghost friends?”

Your head whips to where he is and you furrow your eyebrows in confusion and shock. “You remember?”

Poe stands up and keeps rubbing his neck, using the force to summon a water bottle to his hand. Shooting you a look that read ‘yeah? Obviously.’

“Well them and myself.” Your frown returns to your face at the thought, “I wanted to be stronger so when I fought...Nomad. I’d win. I had to grow.”

Poe’s eyes drop and gulps down his water, licking his lips before he adds his other comment. “Well you have grown into yourself.” He smirks and you scoff, unable to tune him out as he continues. “I just mean you—never mind.”

You don’t press on the matter and look away from him, a sharp pain shooting to your palm repeatedly, making you quietly hiss from the pain. You bring your hand up and see the blood soaking through the wraps. Shit. You clench your hand into a fist and just try to ignore it until you were taken back to your cell. But you should’ve known better. Even if this room was big, it appeared almost small with just Poe and you here. He noticed; “I told you not to wrap it too tight. See now you opened your wound again.”

You huff and ignore him, hearing from behind you as he walked up behind until he stood close, his hand forcefully pulling your injured one. Carefully unwrapping the wrap and turning it to see the mess. “I can stitch it up.”

“No.” You answer bluntly, trying to pull your hand away from his grasp, but coming out unsuccessful as he pulled it back to him.

“I’m doing it.”

“Then why’d you ask?”

Poe shrugs and pulls you to sit on a nearby bench, moving away to get what he needed, not taking long in his leave and sitting right back down beside you, taking your hand in his once more and completely removing the hand wrap. Very delicately, in a touch you barely felt cleaning your deep cut you yourself caused when..you stupidly but bravely caught his blade with your hand. It was a move your grandfather would’ve been proud of and Ben would’ve disapproved. Saying ‘it's too dangerous. You’ll get hurt.’ Even if he does the same move too. Whatever—you keep your eyes downcast and just listen to your breathing, soon hearing Poe’s because of how close he sat by you. Unable to keep your eyes away before they drifted to watch what he did, slowly looking up to see his eyebrows furrowed and his gaze narrowed on your wound. Why was he being so nice?

“Why are you being so nice?” You question out loud.

Poe hesitates and inhales quietly before exhaling deeply, only briefly letting his eyes meet your own before choosing to answer. “You want to get an infection on your hand?”

“No.”

“You’re my guest, I like to treat my guests nice.” He adds, his gaze focusing on the needle in his hand, ignoring your scoff.

“If I was your guest, I wouldn’t be in a cell.”

“You’re in a room.”

“It’s locked from the outside. Forbidding me from going out like a cell would. So it’s a cell.”

Poe stops and looks up at you, parting his lips to argue but choosing to let the silence once again blanket you both. It wasn’t an uncomfortable one, but it was one that soon made you feel the remorse from what you did a while ago; “I’m sorry,”

His breath catches in his throat. He tried to pretend it didn’t, but you caught it. “For throwing the food at you. You didn’t deserve that. You were trying to be nice. I’m sorry.” You pause and a faint smile appears, “only for that though. You deserved me punching you.”

A very faint smile tugs at the corner of his lips, a soft amused huff of air leaving his nose, his gaze meeting with yours for a second before you looked away. Your attention perked up once he mentioned something…“you know when we met for the first time and after you left with your dad and Jacen finally was able to distract Ben with something he told me and I quote, “you’re my friend and as your friend I want to say this. My sister is off limits. I see or hear you talking to her in any sort of suggestive, flirtatious way I’ll hurt you.”

You scoff and smile wider, “he was an ass. I’m sorry.”

Poe shook his head and chuckled. “I didn’t listen, don't worry.”

The smile you had soon faded at the memory of what happened rushed in. Of that night, of who had killed him. The anger returns in a burning fury, causing you to pull your hand away, not caring if he was almost done—He noticed the shift in your emotions, not only by the force, but by the way your eyes watered and your face scrunched up in anger. He wanted to add something, but you cut him off sharply. “Take me back to back to my cell, I’m tired of being here and of you.”

Poe simply nodded and summoned the cuffs to his hand to slap them back on your wrists, his eyes drifting back up to your face to see the tears you tried to hold in. Choosing that only a simple “fine” was enough. Not daring to talk the rest of the way back to the place he called your room. Releasing the cuffs once you were inside, choosing at the last moment, thinking that you wouldn’t notice (when in fact you did) to leave the door unlocked.

A mistake on his part and something you took as an advantage.

——

With very quiet and careful steps you snuck out of your room, looking from hall to hall to make sure the ghost was clear. Once it was you walked down the halls to try and get to the hangar Ben had parked his ship. Hoping that it was still there to make your great escape. Biting the inside of your cheek as a nervous tick. The deeper you walked down the ships halls the tighter you bit down.

Ignoring the pain in your heart to leave your own beautiful purple lightsaber, and the green lightsaber your dad gave to you behind. It hurt your soul, but if you tried to find them you’d be caught, so unfortunately it was something you had to leave, hoping that one day you’ll get them back. Really hoping.

Finally by the miracle of the maker through the wide transparisteel the ship you had come in came to view. A grin spreading whilst you rushed inside the hanger and inside the ship. Lucking out when there were no stormtroopers around, or inside the ship; not like you hoped there would be or you waited to see them as you rushed to the cockpit, letting the necklace you were truly and deeply missing get forgotten until you were out in the safety of hyperspace.

Feeling the cold buttons from the control underneath your hand as it traveled to try and turn it on, feeling a cold breeze of air as you went unaware of the person who had snuck on, his voice breaking the silence that had filled in the small space, the suddenness of his voice causing your shoulders to jump in surprise; “what are you doing?”

Slowly you looked over your shoulder to see Poe standing stiffly by the entrance. His jaw clenched and his glare burned into you as he repeated in a deeper, angrier voice, “What are you doing?”

.

.

.

.

A/N- the Ben part got long, sorry :/ also let me know me know if you actually want more from his p.o.v since the og group is going to reunite. And if you want to share ideas on what you want to see when they do, let me know :) and before you ask, yes, our beloved reader is friends with force ghosts ;)

Tagged- @thescarletknight2014​ , @softly-sad​ , @golden-guide​ , @abysshaven​ , @a-dorky-book-keeper , @kit-jpg​​ , @mybarnesmyhero​

Permanent taglist- @ms-dont-care​ , @commondazy​ , @paintballkid711​

[loukja]

The Princess and the Guard - Daydreams

I wrote a scene from Vexx’s point of view for the first time :)

The princess’s eyes travelled over their surroundings slowly, wide with wonder, her mouth slightly agape. Up until this moment the truth of her having been confined to the palace for all her life had not truly set in, but now it did. This girl had seen nothing of the world. And thus the tall, decorative buildings and the bustling street of the gold district were enough to completely dazzle her.

“Aurora,” Vexx nudged her lightly in the side, then pulled on her arm a bit so she wouldn’t walk into someone. “Get a grip.”

Her eyes snatched back to him, and he allowed himself a small, genuine smile. “Right, sorry. It’s just all so beautiful,” she whispered.

Looking around he had to admit that she was right. The gold district was extremely posh, but it had a certain flair. If it were not for the contrast to so many other places in the system and for the people, he might have liked it. When he turned back to Aurora her attention had already shifted away from him again, this time to a street musician who was playing a lively tune on an accordion. Most people did pay him no mind, striding past as if he wasn’t there at all, some tossed coins into his cap, but those were few and far between.

“Wow,” his princess whispered. “How isn’t anybody stopping to listen?”

“Most people are too busy. It’s just how it is,” he shrugged. It wasn’t like he would’ve stopped, had it not been for her. Also, for Goldis standards, this was basically begging, even when it came with nice music.

For a moment she seemed too transfixed to answer. “A shame,” she finally declared, and twirled, her skirt billowing, “when it would be perfect to dance to.”

“Well,” he took her hand, lifting it up over her head, making her spin once more, “go ahead, pretty. No one’s stopping you.”

She laughed, her cheeks colouring lightly. “No, I can’t. There are too many people here.”

“What, you scared?” he teased.

“Never,” she lied, jutting her chin towards him, making him chuckle.

“I dare you, then.”

For a moment she just stared at him, clearly debating with herself. But then she kicked off her sandals, sunk into an elegant curtsy, her eyes never leaving his, before raising her arms. He had seen her dance often, having had to stand silently by the door for a great many of her dance classes, but it had always seemed just a little bit stiff, the tiniest bit uncomfortable. No wonder when her teacher kept snapping at her to point her toes and do better. But right now she moved effortlessly, lively and free and beautiful. In a way that made you think that she loved what she was doing. When she finally stopped moving her face was flushed and her breath accelerated.

Reaching out she locked eyes with him. “Now you.”

He laughed. “You must be out of your mind if you’re thinking I’m going to dance.”

“Oh, come on, I dare you,” she crossed over to him, pulling on his hand.

“That doesn’t work on me, petal. Some of us aren’t as easily manipulated.” But as Aurora gave him puppy dog eyes and the musician shifted his song into a waltz, he knew he had lost. He rolled his eyes and pulled her close. He was a bit worried that he might step on her bare feet as he tried to remember the correct steps. It went rather smoothly, with a lot of out of tact spinning and improvisation, until he messed up at one point and Aurora stumbled over his feet, just catching herself on him and almost bringing him – or at least his pants – down with her.

“Let’s stop this, I was clearly not made to dance,” he pulled her back to her feet, trying to gloss over the fact that he was blushing with a laugh. “And I’d have a hard time explaining later on if I brought you home damaged.”

“Damaged? I’m not a car you wreck,” she nudged his shoulder.

“No, you’re far more expensive, I’d reckon.”

“And you’re an idiot.” She turned away from him then, tugging a silver hairpin out of her hair. She dropped it into the cap of the musician, who let the song trail out, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. Aurora smiled shyly. “I do not have any coins on me right now, but this is worth a few, I’m sure,” she said apologetically and Vexx almost marched over there to snatch the hairpin back out of the cap. But it wasn’t remarkable enough to pe traced back to the palace, so he just stood by as she exchanged a few more words with the musician before they moved on down the road.

“He wasn’t from the gold district, right?” Aurora asked after a while of thoughtful silence.

The hesitant question made him think of how the silver she was wearing in her hair alone could tide over a whole family for a month or more. “No. What, did your fine nose catch the foul odour of poverty?”

The glare she cast his way was impressive. “What the fuck, Vexx?”

“What? Rich people do mind that. If the poor are not dancing for their entertainment they are supposed to go and suffer somewhere no one important has to witness it.”

Sometimes things like that just slipped out, even when it would probably be better to not hint at his true, rather critical worldview in front of a member of the fucking royal family. Then again he sometimes thought that he’d have to try pretty damn hard at this point to make Aurora stop liking him. She was like a puppy, so naïve and trusting it should be illegal.

Aurora got quiet for a few steps and he was sure that she was cross with him until she spoke up again. “Do you think you could take me to the other sectors sometimes?”

He snorted.  “Aw hell no.”

“Why not?”

“The commute is fucking long,” he started counting off on his fingers, “and we can only be gone for so long before someone would notice. They are not exactly worthwhile sights. Especially compared to this sector. Crime rates over there are higher, too, so definitely not a place for you, petal. All in all it would just be way too much trouble. So no.”

“I don’t want to be just another rich person who decides to ignore what’s going on in the rest of the system…”

Vexx sighed. It worked just fine for you before, though, didn’t it? he thought. “And what good would it do? Even Nerissa can’t sway your father…” he should leave it at that, but for some reason he added another lie to his long list: “Maybe you’ll get the chance to change things and do good once she’s in charge.”

His princess looked crestfallen. “Who knows when that’ll be…” she muttered.

“Hey,” he nudged her side. “It’s not your responsibility to change the world, you know?”

Aurora gave him a doubtful look. “What is my responsibility then? To stay quietly in my room and do nothing with my life at all?”

She sounded unusually bitter and resigned and he felt a little bit bad. “You know what?” he heard himself ask. “One day, we’ll run away, and I’ll show you the world. Everything you want to see.”

Her face lit up and his heart skipped a beat. “Really?”

Vexx laughed and allowed himself to fall into this daydream for a moment. “Sure. I mean, there are a ton of planets I always wanted to see. And what would be the point in going there alone? The best memories need someone to share them with, after all.”

For a moment Aurora seemed just locked in her own thoughts, then she held out her hands in front of herself, framing an invisible picture. “It would be awesome,” she said. “We would go and see the ocean.”

“More than one ocean, darling, all of them. And you’d get to see a ton of sunsets on a ton of different beaches.” He imagined the evening sun playing over her face and her golden curls. Aurora was made for sunshine and laughter and happiness. Unlike him…

“And wild forests and, oh, ruins of civilisations long gone,” she got more giddy by the second.

“Oh, definitely! Old castles and churches, overgrown by wildlife and haunted by ghosts,” he gripped her on the last bit without warning and she shrieked before laughing.

“You ass,” she gave him a light punch against the shoulder that did not hurt at all.

“Well, I’d be damned if I did not tell you all the ghost stories about whatever ruins we would explore. They are the best part. And imagining what those places might have looked like back in the day, of course.” Vexx loved abandoned places. There was just something about the eerie way nature reclaimed them. Something about the thought that those who had built them had probably thought they’d last forever.

“Alright, I’m sure I could handle a few scary stories as long as you’ll be with me,” she granted, her fingertips brushing against the back of his hand.

“A very courageous decision.”

“Stop teasing,” she tried to pinch him, but he sidestepped out of her reach. “I know I scare easily, but I can get better at that. I will.”

“Uh huh.”

“No, really, I will. And then we’ll explore the system together,” she smiled at him, and in that moment, he wished she would get the chance to, even when he knew better.

[littleladymab]

did someone say stardust!jonmartin AU

I DID, and @pizza-snake​ and I have been talking about it all day. We have some details all worked out, but not a very coherent outline of those facts. Will I write a full fic for it? Maybe, but until then, I will write snippets and add to this list of ideas: 

Tristan is Martin, who is trying to win the approval of his Mother 

He promises to bring her a star to show how much he does love her!!! 

Dunstan is Tim, so he’s actually Martin’s roommate. 

He’s a good friend, and is also “yo, listen, you don’t have to prove anything to her???? She’s an awful person to yoU????” 

He had a dalliance on the other side of the wall once, won’t stop talking about her, Martin is convinced she’s made up but is too kind to say so. 

He's been trying to go back but he can't schmooze the guard anymore because he wizened up to Tim's antics 

Lamia is Jonah, an aging warlock who just wants to stay young and powerful forever. 

He hears of a fallen star and wishes to retrieve it so that he can have it’s eyes

The successors are the other Avatars 

NO They’re not related they are just trying to do a power grab when Gertrude dies

Septimus is Peter Lukas

Primus is Simon Fairchild

Una is Sasha 

Which makes Ditchwater Sal the Stranger, who keeps her prisoner! 

Gertrude dies and persnaps she has this powerful gem that can be used to let whichever Avatar has it to bring about their own Apocalypse or something and as one final ‘fuck you’ to the avatars she just ollies it into the stratosphere

It hits Jon, The Most Disagreeable Star to ever fall to Stormhold. 

Georgie is Captain Shakespeare, her first mate (and girlfriend) is Melanie, and Daisy and Basira are there too

When I write this as a Full Fic, I will have shenanigans, don’t you worry (you remember in the book how there is this whole secret society mentioned and then it’s only mentioned twice and never discussed and it’s like what the HELL DOES THIS ALL MEAN yeah I need to give the girls SOMETHING to do)

And for sticking around, here’s a little scene for you all to enjoy 

++++

Dancing vs Dueling

Georgie settles into her stance, hands lifted carefully before her, weight on her back foot. 

Martin stares at her dumbly, his grip completely wrong on his sword, and confusion written over every inch of him. 

She taps the blade of his sword with her own. “Come on, Blackwood. At least try to pay attention.” 

He flushes as he settles in to mimic her stance, though with a bit more flair that completely necessary. Alright, so maybe he has had a little training, but not nearly enough. “Right,” he says. “Sorry.” 

“No need to be sorry,” she says, “just follow my movements.” 

Dueling is a dance of its own. It needs two people on even footing, a balance of rhythm. A back and forth between partners. 

Against Melanie, it has always felt like an argument — but a scripted one, the sort of witty reparté and banter that belong on the stage. Dancing and dueling, though Melanie is a better dueler than a dancer. But it is a pace that is comfortable and familiar and Georgie loves it as much as she loves her partner. 

The first few steps with Martin are a fumble, but Georgie is patient (and strict). Each error she resets them back to the beginning. “Again,” she says, as Martin shuffles the wrong foot forward on an advance. “Again,” she says, as he grips too high up the hilt. “Again,” she says, as he nearly stabs Basira with a blade pointed too low and his own shoelaces coming undone. 

He doesn’t argue. He just resets on her command. 

Dueling is a dance that is hard to learn, but Martin proves an apt student. 

Jon, on the other hand, is incredibly stubborn. Rivals Melanie’s level of stubbornness, though she knows better than to say it outloud. (She is certain that Martin has picked up on it as well, though, and enjoys sharing the look of fond exasperation with him when the pair is at odds.) 

One look at Jon, and Georgie knew that he is not cut out for dueling. His wrists, for one thing, barely look strong enough to wield the carving knife at dinner. 

So she teaches him to dance instead. 

If he is what she suspects him to be, then he’s not a very graceful one. Perhaps the rhythm of the heavens abandoned him when it was forced to inhabit such knobby knees and bony elbows. 

“Chin up,” she says when she catches him staring at their feet again. “At least try to look like you enjoy my company.” 

This gets him to flush in embarrassment, and he mutters an apology that’s something along the lines of how he does, actually, enjoy her company. And that’s why he doesn’t want to be rude and tread on her feet. 

“I appreciate the sentiment, but I’m a strong woman,” she tells him, sweeping him across the deck of her ship as he stumbles to keep up. “I’d rather like it if you looked me in the eyes while we’re dancing.” 

He looks up at her sharply, as if she had said something that made him alarmed, but all she does is wink and his lips form a perfect moue. He must have practiced that while looking down and observing the rest of them. 

When Georgie and Melanie dance, she can feel Jon’s eyes on them — studying their movements, their footwork, the unspoken give and take as they obey the beat of the song. 

The next time she dances with Jon, he’s more sure of himself. He rarely checks his feet. He keeps Georgie’s gaze, like a challenge, and she can’t help but smile. He dances like it’s a duel, a game of take and give. 

“Dancing is a partnership,” Georgie tells him as she stops them mid-beat. 

His brow furrows. “I know.”

“I don’t think you do.” 

This time, he frowns. “I’m doing it exactly as you and Melanie dance.” 

She expected that, figured it, and rolls her eyes fondly at him. “Then maybe you should dance with Martin.” 

Jon stutters, and to her amusement, the blush turns to a soft diffused glow across the surface of his skin. “Why—?” 

“Are you really asking me that question?” 

He at least doesn’t answer that. 

“Martin?” Georgie calls, turning to glance over her shoulder where the other man is currently looking extremely overwhelmed by the drills that Daisy is trying to run him through. 

Martin looks up eagerly at the sound of his name. “Yes?” 

“Care for a different sort of footwork lesson?” 

“Georgie,” Jon hisses, tugging on her hands to try and pull her attention back. 

“Jonathan,” she teases, and steps aside as Martin arrives. Georgie gently passes Jon’s hands over to Martin and backs away with a courteous bow. “A hint: Avoid getting your feet stepped on, and you’ll make a decent duelist yet.” 

To her utter amusement, neither of them are looking at her as they nod. 

From the upper deck, leaning over the balustrade and looking down at the scene as she mans the gramophone, Melanie gives Georgie a knowing smirk. She starts the song over again from the beginning without waiting for the command. 

Jon and Martin stand hand-in-hand in the middle of the deck, the rest of the crew clearing a space for them — and at least pretending like they’re not looking. Their heads are bent close together, having a brief muttered conversation before their hands settle into the correct place and Martin takes the lead. 

He’s a surprisingly decent dancer, considering how rough his dueling was at the beginning. And where Jon would strain against Georgie’s lead (the way that Melanie would, the conversation that he doesn’t know the words to that he tries to perform anyway), he submits himself to Martin’s careful pace. 

Georgie ascends the short flight of stairs to join Melanie on the railing, letting her arm slip around the other woman’s waist. “Too soon?” she asks as they watch Jon and Martin stutter their way through the steps. 

“More like took long enough,” Melanie replies with a scoff. She tilts her chin down at the two men, as Jon laughs at something and ducks his head against Martin’s chest. “Do they think they’re being subtle?” 

“Jon’s glowing, I don’t know how that is for subtle.” 

“Even when he’s not, Martin looks at him like he’s seen the sun.” 

Georgie snorts and tilts her head against Melanie’s. “Try not to sound too bitter, love, or else I’d think you’re jealous of them.” 

Melanie gives an answering snort of her own. “Was I ever that soppy?” 

“You were that oblivious.” 

Melanie just groans, but doesn’t push the conversation, and instead they continue to watch the two dance. 

[hoffkk]

Done Wasting Time

A Brightwell Fanfic

Story By: @hoffkk

Prompt: Gimme a question to start, and I’ll give you a brightwell fic that ends in a kiss!

Question given: Do you want to get out of here?

Summary:  Malcolm is reminded by a recent case how unpredictable and short life can be. So, during a romantic walk through Central Park, he decides he's done wasting time and that forever starts now... or once Dani answers this one little question. Hopefully, Malcolm gets the answer he's looking for.

**********

“Do you want to get out of here?” Malcolm asked. It had been a long two days as they worked the murder of a bride killed the day before her wedding. The groom was gutted, going on about how he had wasted so much time, waiting to be promoted before proposing in order to give his love a better life and the wedding of her dreams. He had thought they had all the time in the world, except they didn’t. Malcolm found the whole thing completely tragic, and now that the case was solved, he was itching to get out of the precinct and spend some alone time with his own love. Dani and Malcolm had been dating a little over a year now, and every day was better than the last. Not to say, they didn’t have their issues. They had bad days along with the good ones, but they learned to lean on each other and talk out their feelings, especially after tough cases like this. So, when Dani said sure and suggested they take a walk through Central Park, he was happy to oblige. 

Entering Central Park West, the couple walked arm in arm, making their way aimlessly through the park toward Cherry Hill to admire the Cherry Blossom trees that were now in full bloom, signaling spring was officially here. The sun was beginning to set and the air was crisp and cool this evening, so there weren’t too many people ambling about. That made it much easier to relax and enjoy the multitude of pink and white flowers that surrounded them. Every so often a light breeze would sweep through, stirring the trees and giving off a sweet scent that smelled of lilacs mixed with vanilla.

Dani inhaled deeply and commented, “I love the park this time of year.”

“You know you said that this past winter and the fall before that.” Malcolm noted. 

“What can I say? Central Park is extraordinary in every season.” She shrugged. 

“There is something magical about it, isn't there?” He asked rhetorically, taking in the sounds of the birds chirping and how the sun's golden rays gleamed softly through the branches of the foliage around them, emphasizing the radiance of the woods that lined their path.

The conversation lulled as the couple walked on, enjoying the serenity of an evening walk. Eventually, they happened upon the Cherry Fountain, flowing with life and effervescent with excitement, then moseyed past it and down another pathway across the way that was lined with more cherry blossoms, azaleas, and forsythia. The latter was Dani’s favorite. She had a thing for yellow flowers. They could cheer up any person and brighten up any room like little pieces of handpicked sunshine. After a few more minutes, the couple found themselves at Bow Bridge, a brilliant piece of Grecian architecture made of cast iron. Every other bridge in the park was made of stone. This one was different.  Yet, somehow, it fit in and made sense in the middle of this great park. That’s why Malcolm loved it. He knew what it was like to be different, yet somehow fit... with both the team and with Dani. That’s why he made a point to visit this particular bridge every time he came to Central Park, and this time was no different as he walked Dani halfway across before stopping and taking in the view. Staring out across the lake, he noticed a single boat floating along, heading toward the city skyline that seemed to extend above the trees in the distance. The buildings were bathed in the glow of the sunset, a striking mixture of pinks, purples, oranges, and yellows swirling through the clouds. Malcolm raked his eyes over the scenic sight and sighed contentedly while Dani muttered, “It’s so beautiful.”

Turning to look at her, Malcolm took in the glimmer of the sun radiating against her bronze skin as a breeze lightly tousled her curls and replied, "Yeah, it is." Slowly, he moved his gaze back to the incredible view in front of him and proceeded to enjoy just how perfect this moment was. 

A few seconds later, Dani looked over at him and admired the blissful smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. She couldn’t help but blurt out curiously, “What are you thinking about?”

“The city.” Malcolm answered, still staring out into the distance. “There are 8.4 million people in this city, and somehow I found you.” On the last word, he turned to meet her eyes then finished, “That makes me feel pretty lucky.”

“I’m feeling pretty lucky too.” Dani replied then, after a moment, elaborated, “After all, you trusted me enough to let me in.”

“Yeah, well, you didn’t always give me much of a choice.” He reminded teasingly.

“It’s called tough love, Bright.” She quipped. “And believe me, you needed it.”

“No. I needed you.” Malcolm corrected, face completely serious. “I still do, and I always will,” Then, taking a deep breath, he added, “which reminds me, I have something for you.”

“Really? What is it?” Dani asked curiously. 

Malcolm didn’t reply. Instead, he unlinked their arms to reach inside the front inner pocket of his jacket. Then, with a little flourish, he dropped to one knee and held out... a lollipop. 

“Really a lollipop?” She queried. Malcolm did always have a flair for the dramatic, but this seemed a bit much. Even for him. I mean, it was just a piece of candy. 

“Look again.” He said softly, the corners of his lips quirking upward once more.

Glancing back at the small sucker, she noticed it was a lemon lime Dum Dum. That made her think back to an old case of theirs where Malcolm gave her the same lollipop. It was the first gift he ever gave her and still sat on her desk at work. The memory made her smile. However, this one was different. There appeared to be a silver band around the wrapper. Then, as Malcolm slowly rotated the lollipop to reveal the other side, her smile fell.  Dani was stunned as her eyes zeroed in on a two carat, emerald cut diamond, twinkling in the light of the setting sun.

“Malcolm, what—“ 

Cutting her off, he shrugged and grinned nervously, “I’ve always been a sucker for you, Dani. I’ve even been sucker punched by you. That’s just how amazing you are. You comfort me like no one else can but also aren’t afraid to smack me back into reality when I need it. Most importantly, you taught me that being myself is okay. From the very beginning, you never judged me or mistreated me because of who my father is or because of the trauma I’ve been through. You’ve always believed in me, been proud of who I am, and given me the love and support that I needed, first as a friend, then as my girlfriend, and now, I hope, as my fiancée... because I love you, and I’m done wasting time. I want to love and support you in return, not just for now, but for the rest of my life. So, Daniella Aurora Powell, will you marry me?”

Dani, who stood there still looking a little awestruck, beamed back at him as she nodded enthusiastically, “Yes. Yes, I’ll-

Instead of letting her finish, Malcolm hastily rose to his feet and pulled her flush against him, kissing her more passionately than ever before. It was short lived though due to the distracting applause from the pedestrians that happened to be nearby. Pulling apart somewhat abruptly, they glanced around, and Dani couldn't help but giggle while Malcolm’s cheeks changed color to match the local flora. Distracting him from his embarrassment, she eagerly held out her hand. Understanding Dani's signal, Malcolm lifted the lolly and carefully slid the engagement ring off of the candy and onto her finger. A rush went through him as he stared down at Dani’s left hand, seeing the ring in place. Then, high on excitement and drunk on love, Malcolm kissed her again, this time much sweeter and a lot longer, relishing the feel of holding his fiancée in his arms.

After a long moment, Dani pulled back to catch her breath and let her hands rest on Malcolm's shoulders. Using one to delicately brush a stray hair out of his face, she took in his euphoric expression and said, “It’s nice seeing you this happy. It's a good look for you."

"Yeah, well, If I look as good as I feel, then I must look like the happiest man alive." He asserted. "and I don't see that changing anytime soon... or ever."

"I'm glad to hear that. After all, you know what they say," she retorted cheekily, "Happy life, happy wife."

Malcolm's heart fluttered at her last word. He loved the way that sounded. So much so, that rather than correcting her on how the expression actually goes, he implored softly, "Say it again."

"Say what?" Dani returned, having a little fun with him. "Happy? Life?"

"Dani," Malcolm warned then more tenderly added, "please?" followed by a gentle kiss to the side of her neck.

The contrast of his warm lips on her skin in place of the cool air that had been there a second ago, made Dani quietly pull a sharp intake of breath through her lungs. Then, quickly collecting herself and gazing back into his sparkling cerulean eyes, she whispered, "Wife. I can't wait to be your wife."

With that, the flutter became a whole field of butterflies roaming his chest who only flew more erratically as he stroked her cheek with his thumb and replied, "And I can't wait to be your husband."

Once more, they shared a warm smile before, once more, sharing a kiss, a lingering, toe-curling kind of kiss. Not wanting to make a scene in the park, Dani ended the kiss sooner than either of them would have liked. Then, tucking her hand into the crook of his arm, she and her fiancé made their way to the nearest park exit, anxious to tell their friends and families the good news.

My Fiancé. My Husband. Dani thought to herself as she looked over at her hand that both wore the diamond ring and held tightly to the green lollipop. Then, shifting her glance to Malcolm who continued to exude joy with every step, she smirked. Yeah, she couldn't definitely get used to using those words. A lot.

[spacegirlinorbit]

Fooling You? Series

Chapter 3: The three musketeers meet the fourth

Warnings: swearing

Fooling You Masterlist

(All rights to the characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I just own the story)

Song: woman by Andreya Triana

Chapter 3: The three musketeers meet the fourth

———————————————————————–

Feeling the warm embracement of the sun and newfound fresh air of this breathtaking view was unbelievable. I can’t believe I will be living here for the next couple of years. I feel utterly nervous as I look towards hogwarts in its massive size.

Then it hits me.

I am going to have to start over. It was easy back when I first arrived to Ilvermorny. Everyone was young and new so making them believe my cover story was simple. Now, I’m going to have to try and blend in with an older crowd and explain my self with a bit more confidence and detail I don’t know if I have. I feel like throwing up as the nerves turns to anxiety and stress. I can feel my heart in its harsh rhythm of ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-

“Miss. Y/l/n.” I hear and the sound my heart fades from ears and I turn slowly to the headmaster. I look up at him and do my best to not seem as anxious as I feel. “Welcome to Hogwarts. Let’s get you settled.”

He tells me and hearing his calm voice allows me to reign my feelings in. 

“Thank you.” I say quietly and we make our way up the steps and inside Hogwarts. 

We reach his office which is enormous in size, but I shouldn’t have expected less for the headmaster. There is bookshelves filled to the brim with every size and color of books and every now and then a knick-knack or two, paintings of scenery’s that move in memory and portraits of people that I assume are famous here. Then what surprises me the most is that there is a phoenix on its own pedestal that dies and comes back to life. 

“Ah yes. You caught eye of Fawkes. He has a dramatic flair as he gets older for bursting into flames and then rebirths himself anew from his ashes.” He shares with me. 

“Why does he do that?” I ask curious to know why the phoenix finds it necessary.

“Why? To keep up his immortality...or so he tells me.” He says in a matter of fact kind of way trying to humor me. “Please have a seat.” I walk up the steps and have a seat in an wooden leather cased chair before his desk. 

“As we walked in, I’m sure you remember seeing our Head Boy and Head Girl greet us and take your bags to your room. We have accommodated you a room with three other bright students here at Hogwarts.” He says with a smile. “After reviewing your file, I thought it wasn’t necessary to have you go through the hat ceremony and decided you’d be fit for Gryffindor.”

“Gryffindor?” I ask unaware of the customs here.

“Ah yes. We have four houses like yours at Ilvermorny. Here we have Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Mostly distinct by their robe color and mascot.”

”Really? That’s cool.” I gleam. Hogwarts is not so different after all. Maybe I shouldn’t be too nervous.

“Once you have settled in your room. Your roommates can take you on a tour of the school and help you get settled. I have here a paper of your schedule. Just ask the students with anything you might have questions on regarding the class and please don’t hesitate to ask me anything.” He handed me a parchment of paper that has my classes and time printed on it for the week.

“I do have one question.” I say and I can feel the anxiety bubble up in my body. “Can you tell me when I can travel overseas? Being in Scotland is a lot closer to Austria where my mother is buried. I would like to visit her grave sometime.” 

He didn’t seem too fazed by the question and instead showed me sympathy in his eyes. “I would gladly provide you with permission anytime you’d like but I believe traveling on the weekends is best and we do have annual holidays as well that you won’t need permission to go overseas.”

“Thank you.” I say and give a small smile back. It was never ideal travel for me when I was at Ilvermorny and permission and time was limited, but now that I’m a lot closer to home I don’t think it would be much a problem now and I was right.

“Right. Well I also have here a small pamphlet and some papers on how things work around here, like mealtimes and curfews. There should also be a list of activities that take place here at school, you know sports events and clubs. Then the school holidays and events.” He hands the papers and I glance over them. “I must say being a transfer student this late in the school year is not all that bad and you’re not the only one. Let’s get you to your room, shall we?” He questions chirpily and smiles brightly as he stands and I follow after him. We don’t have to walk too far to get to the tower of Gryffindor. 

“This here is the portrait of the fat lady although it is a horrible term.” He gestures the last part to the portrait who gives him a shy smile back. “She opens the door to the tower with a password created specifically for this tower only.”

“So you’re saying all the towers have their own password?”

“Correct. It’s like magical security.”

“Hmm. So what’s the password to this tower?” I ask.

“The password is caput aquilae.”

“Caput aquilae. The head of the eagle.”

“Well someone knows their Latin!” Says the fat lady portrait impressed.

“It was a class I took at Ilvermorny for fun. I guess it’s come in handy now.”

“Why yes it has.” Says Headmaster Dumbledore.

The portrait opens to allows us through its door and I’m greeted in a cozy atmosphere with red décor and a fireplace that is lightly brewing. Some students are hanging about talking or reading in the lounge chairs around the room. I look over and see someone with red hair come down the stairs and greet Dumbledore with a bright smile.

“Headmaster Dumbledore! What a lovely surprise.”

“Ah, yes, Miss. Lily. I came by to introduce you to your new roommate, y/n y/l/n, has arrived.” He says and gestures towards me.

“Oh hi. I’m Lily Evans.” 

“Hello, I’m y/n.” 

“Well Dumbledore I do believe I can take it from it here.”

“Of course, Miss. Evans and y/n again welcome to hogwarts.” He says with a smile that never left his lips.

“Thank you, Headmaster.” I say and return the smile back. Now this is where I have to tread lightly. 

“So, shall we see our room first? Your bags arrived not too long ago.” She says with a kind cherry smile. 

“Sure.” I say and she leads me up the stairs. We enter what’s our room now and it’s more spacious than I expected. With four big poster beds adorned in red velvet and two big windows on left side wall and a fireplace across from the door where I stand with bean bag seats by it. 

“I know this must be a lot to take in.”

“A little yeah. At Ilvermorny, we each had our own rooms and well the surprise move from finding out that I’m being transferred all in one day is still a bit of a shock.”

“No way. All in one day? Wow, that’s weird, but it is short notice since school starts next week.”

“Right. So which one is mine?” I ask her. She points to the second bed, furthest from the door on the left wall. 

“That one. My bed is next to yours. Then across from me is our other roommate, Dorcas and next to her Marlene. The bathroom door is in between their beds and we each have our trunk and closet that’s split in two for us to share.” Lily explains.

“Thanks. When will I meet the others?”

“Probably soon. Dorcas just went out for a second and Marlene should be back soon from quidditch practice.”

“What’s quidditch?” 

“Oh that’s-“ Lily is interrupted as a dark-skinned girl with short curls walks in happily with flowers in her hands. 

“Oh hello.” She says. So this is either Dorcas or Marlene.

“I’m Dorcas Meadowes. Are you our new roommate?” She says and quickly puts down the flowers on her bed near her and walks over to me to shake my hand.

“Yes. I’m y/n. y/l/n. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to finally meet you. We’ve been excited all week when we heard we are going to get a new roommate.” 

“Ah well here I am.” I say trying to lighten the mood at this situation. I’m never good with introductions.

“Has she met Marlene yet? Have you met Marlene?” Dorcas turns to Lily and then back to me asking if I’ve met Marlene very quickly.

“No, not yet.” Lily says.

”Well then we better pr-“ before Dorcas can finish what she was about to say, a girl caked in mud head to toe along with what I could tell were grass stains and not smelling the best either rushed in and was rambling loudly about “slimy cheating dirty fucking snakes”, on her way to the bathroom. Lily and Dorcas both turns towards me and say, “That’s Marlene.”

Lily Evans, Dorcas Meadowes, Marlene McKinnon

[quillfulwriter]

The Distraction: FFXV Iggy’s Birthday Fic

Prompto's in on a surprise party for Ignis, and he's been tasked with being the distraction. It's harder than he thought, but he won't let the guys down! (Forgive the Promnis vibes, I'm trash for them.)

Words: 3073 words (10-25 minutes) | Chocobros

This was it, the big day for their surprise party for Specs... Prompto was in charge of being a distraction, probably the hardest job of the whole thing. He tried telling the others that, but they swore up and down that he could do it, no problem. Riding in the passenger seat next to Iggy like usual, Prompto figured out that was probably because they didn’t wanna do it. Not ‘cause hanging with Iggy was bad or anything, but keeping him distracted when he was designed for laser-like focus was gonna be the hardest thing he’s ever done in his life.

He convinced Ignis to take him along to the Crown City mall half by saying he wanted to check out some places and half by saying he should learn what Ignis does for Noct, so he could be a backup if he needs it. And that only worked by stocking up Iggy points with little favors to make his job easier. Y’know, to prove he could be a good backup!

Which was kinda part of his day-to-day anyway. Iggy worked so hard doing stuff for them all the time, and Gladio and Noct didn’t really do that whole ‘helping with dinner’ thing. But hey, that’s what made it such a good cover story!

“We’ve arrived,” Ignis announced and the doors automatically locked once he put the car in park. The morning sun gave a little extra warmth to the winter air, but he couldn’t complain about the cold when it meant Ignis broke out his sharp, double-breasted wool peacoat. All his friends were supermodels, but he had to give it to Ig, he looked extra good dressed for cold weather. Like the Six knew it when they set his birthday in stone.

“Gotcha,” Prompto answered, springing out of the car with his camera around his neck. Just in case! Never know when you’ll see a shot you just got to take, and it was a great reason to draw out their trip if he had to. Ignis always stopped to wait when Prompto wanted to take pictures, and he was pretty patient about it too.

And really, Prompto was banking on that. They still had to decorate, put the gifts together, make a cake… And they hadn’t even started wrapping yet. Leaving all that to Noct and the big guy felt like a recipe for disaster, but all he could do now was his part. Going at a light jog to keep up with Iggy’s longer, purposeful stride, Prompto followed him into the Crown City mall.

“So! What’s our first stop?” There wasn’t much of a crowd, since it was mid-week. No luck there. Just made Prompto think about how he wished there was more color in their uniform.

“We’ll be visiting just the one shop: a specialty dining store,” Ignis answered and led the way. “There are certain cooking instruments designed for the road that will prove essential on our journey.”

“Hey, Iggy!” Prompto raced ahead of him, eager to get started ‘cause this was gonna eat up hours. …Okay, maybe one hour. For his first distraction, Prompto picked up a cup-like thing with a little curve for pouring, some weird plunger thing, and measuring lines on the side. Turning around with a bounce in his step, he showed the tool to Ignis. “What’s this gadget do?”

“Hm?” Ignis strode over to the table Prompto picked out. Even here, he did the driving and pushed the cart along too. There was a lotta stuff here he didn’t recognize, so Prompto had plenty of ammo to keep his attention. “Ah, that is a milk frother, primarily used for lattes and other such beverages where foam is a key part of the experience.”

“Right, right. Y’know, I’ve never had a latte.” He put the frother down by the others, twisting it so it’d match its family of frothers before he took off after Ignis. “Think you could use it in hot chocolate?”

“You certainly can. I’ll show you sometime.” Ignis had a hint of a smile as he wound artfully through the rows and rows of cooking stuff that was either high-end normal stuff or specialty stuff.

“That’d be real sweet of you,” Prompto shot back a pun, giggling while he followed after Ignis.

Maybe if he wasn’t so caught up looking at grills, Iggy might’ve given as good as he got. Probably better, he did a lot more reading than Prom and that gave him more material to work with. Comparing little portable grills to each other with wordless hums and silent notetaking on his phone, Prompto was pretty sure he could do a dance and get nothing from the royal advisor. Or just a quick glance, anyway.

“Hey, uh, Igster,” Prompto ventured an interruption when he looked just about done. “Isn’t this thing just a slab of salt?” He held up a swirled dark and light pink rectangle about two or three inches thick labelled with just ‘mineral salt block’ on the side.

“It is far more than that.” Ignis finished up a note on his phone, picking up a boxed version of the grill he settled on and put it in the cart. “That is for grilling or stovetop cooking for the right stove, and it imparts a lightly salty flavor with the various health benefits of its mineral composition to—” Ignis sighed, picking up on the overwhelmed look on Prompto’s face. Probably. “It’s good for the food and for those who eat it.”

“Ah, gotcha. So Noct’d hate it, huh? Too healthy.” He put the block down, smiling at Ignis’ laugh.

“It doesn’t feature the same textural concerns Noct has with beans, but… I suspect you may be correct.”

Of course Prom got a text right then, and he hoped it was Gladio or Noct saying everything was fine and ready to go. Pulling his phone out of his pocket with only a little extra flair, he brought up the message from Noctis.

Need more time.

Only one way to answer that. Tossing in an exasperated emoji, he sent back just what he thought of that.

y tho

And the picture he got from Noct was so depressing, it was truly a loss for mankind. What was once gold cake was a bit more brown-and-black-ish, and big chunks of it were still stuck on the pan while the rest was somewhere off-frame. Uh, he hoped.

Noooooct

Thank Gladio.

smh how much time u need

A few seconds turned to a minute and Prompto kept checking his screen every few minutes before Ignis finally spoke up.

“Prompto, do pay attention,” he advised.

“Right, gotcha.” Pockets his phone for the last time. Left on read by Noct! If it wasn’t for Iggy’s birthday, he’d be in for a parade of emojis until Prompto got an answer. Or maybe not, but it sounded kinda fun to do. Trotting to catch up to Ignis again, he started up conversation. “So, you do all this by yourself?”

“Typically, yes,” he answered, though he sounded pleased rather than put out. Even looked the part smirking like that when he pushed up his glasses. “Gladio has little patience for it and Noctis has other responsibilities. It’s only natural this should be entrusted to me.”

“Yeah, but on your birthday?” Oops. He was so not supposed to say that, and Prompto’s stilted laugh when he figured out his slip-up didn’t do anything to throw Ignis off his scent. He even stopped to look at Prompto, examining him for answers. Or maybe it just felt like that and Prompto was worrying too much! He just to chill like Noct said to. Yeah, just… chill.

“I didn’t realize you knew.”

“Yeah, well, y’know.” Crap, he was very un-chill right now. Prompto shrugged, eyeing the shelves next to him for a way out of this conversation. “Noct brought it up, and I guess it stuck.” Gotta find a distraction and quick. It’d just buy time, Iggy’d never forget a slip-up like that, but time was all he needed. Prompto snatched up a waffle iron at the end of a really long stick from a display by the camping stuff. “Oh em gee, check this out! Waffles at camp, can you imagine?”

“If you’re willing to make them one at a time,” he teased with that slight smile, turning back to push the cart ahead. That’s right, Iggy, focus on the to-do list and forget that little blunder from Prompto.

“Aw, I’d never keep up with the big guy,” he mourned, dejectedly returning the specialty cookware to its box and catching up to the birthday guy again.

“Indeed not.”

After gathering the rest of their supplies in preparation for the coming trip in the warmer weather, Ignis checked off the final item in his phone.

“And that concludes our shopping for the time being.” The cart was expertly packed just so everything fit in and was even sorted for putting on the belt in an orderly fashion at checkout. Seriously, Ignis’ brain should be melting from all the stuff he thought ahead on. But Prompto was keeping up with him for now, anyway—maybe he really could be halfway-decent at this back-up thing.

“Really? You do a ton, but you really make it look easy. And that’s not just flattery to distract you, I mean it!” Dammit, he was getting bad at this. Thankfully, Ignis pretended not to notice it. Probably. He doubted he really didn’t realize. Ignis, miss something? Next, it’d rain ice cream!

“I should thank you.” With the last item rung through checkout (Prompto didn’t even dare to look at the total), it was as good a time as any, but so weird. Yeah, Prompto got it, he’d do the same if he were Iggy, but… He laughed, shrugging it off. Like always, Ignis kept going undaunted. “As much as I don’t anticipate I’ll need a substitute for my duty to Noctis, it never hurts to be prepared.”

“Hey, uh. No problem! Least I can do, really.” Prompto was spared being even more awkward somehow when Ignis gave his attention to checkout. Plus, it got him a second to text Noct without spectacles maybe seeing what he was up to if he didn’t figure it out yet.

omw home

Not yet.

Prompto let out a groan, slumping in defeat. The shopping trip was over, Noct! What now?

“Stocking the cart might go more smoothly if your hands were free.” Uh oh, that was the informative warning tone. Ignis was audio-coded to hint at what he was thinking and Prompto was getting a code yellow.

“Uh, right.” Putting his phone away, he helped moved the grill and cooking stuff he didn’t exactly recognize into the cart. They were almost done and Prompto blurted out his only idea before he had a chance to think about it enough to stop. “Actually, wanna go someplace cool after this?”

“Pardon?”

“Y’know, ‘cause it’s your birthday! There’s guys who can take this stuff back to the castle, yeah?” He really hoped Ignis would buy this. He couldn’t be the one who screwed up and ruined the surprise, the guys were counting on him! “Isn’t there a place you’ve always wanted to check out, but never got to?”

“Not especially,” Ignis answered after a brief pause. That mildly wide-eyed look was way too caught off guard… Could it be Iggy never thought about stuff he wanted to do before? Seriously? Prompto wanted to not believe it, but with all the stuff he’s always doing for everyone else under the sun, it’s, y’know… Possible. If not super likely.

“Then I’ll show you around. C’mon, it’s just one day, not even. Two hours.” Ignis pulled the cart to the side and out of the way, which wasn’t a yes but it wasn’t a no yet either. He could still get away with this! Prompto flashed the smile that usually worked on Noct, tossing in an eager bounce to cover his bases. “Birthday trip? Birthday trip!”

“There’s snow outside, Prompto.” This answer was just a little bit weaker, not reinforced with the typical Ignis brand crisp certainty that came with every sentence. And what kinda sharpshooter would he be if he didn’t take this opening?

“So? We’ve got boots.” Prompto bent his knee and held one foot up like he needed to demonstrate. Paired with the grin, he could tell—he was winning this round.

“I have to return to the castle for dinner preparation.” Ignis’ gaze darted to the shop windows and the city guard posted outside. The ones that could take all this back to the castle for them and buy the guys some time before Iggy came back.

“How’s this—you go on the birthday trip you so deserve, let me take a couple cool shoots to remember it by, and I’ll help make dinner.” He offered his hand to Ignis, leaning into his field of vision to get his attention. “Deal?”

With a sigh and a signal the guards outside, Ignis gave in. “Very well.”

“Woohoo! You’re not gonna regret it.”

-----------

After their side trip, they had to get someone to give them a ride and man, was it weird to have Ignis riding in the back seat of a car next to Prompto in calm quiet. Not a bad, awkward quiet—he was so used to those—but chill. He was usually in front too so Gladio could get the extra leg room, so at least being next to Iggy was just like always. Prompto dug out his phone again, sending one last warning text. They’d gotten another hour or hour and a half outta this, he hoped they figured it out.

omw 4 real

“When you said cool pictures, I hadn’t thought you meant literally on the ice.” Ignis only just glanced his way, his face still slightly red from spending time in the cold February air.

“Hey, that pond is a prime photo op!” He slipped his phone into his pocket, swapping it out for his camera. “Check it out,” he offered, bringing up a photo of Ignis in the light, warm glow of the late afternoon winter sun glittering off the ice, a faint plume of his breath in front of him and a delicate blush to his cheeks. Say what you want about the royal advisor, but it’d better be a compliment—he was gorgeous. “My best one yet.”

“Oh, so you collect them?”

“Ah, well, y’see, I—” Shoot. The car was slowing down and he caught a peek of the castle entrance. Thank the Six! “I take pictures of all you guys, yeah? Hey, look, we’re here!” Shuffling out his side, half-stumbling out, Prompto fled to safety. Almost over, this was the home stretch!

-----------

“They keep falling!”

“And whose fault is that?” Familiar voices reached Ignis and Prompto as they worked their way back to one of the smaller, casual family dining rooms in the castle.

“The tape.” Ah, classic Noct. Ignis turned to Prompto with a questioning brow and he just smiled back, nodding him to go first. Nothing left to hide now! Ignis pulled the door open and stepped into the room, which… kinda looked like elementary schoolers decorated it, but hey. Not everyone was a perfect party coordinator like Iggy.

“Gladio? Noctis.” Was that disbelief or patient warnings at the sight of lopsided streamers hanging all the way over to Noctis, who stood on a chair taping the last corner up. For the millionth time, from the sounds of it. Mostly decently wrapped presents sat on one end of the elegant dining table and at the other were three whole separate two-layer cakes and enough fancy takeout for a family of six. “What is…?”

“Happy birthday, Specs,” Noctis said, smiling as he stepped down from the chair and came over with Gladio.

“Didn’t think we forgot, did you?” Gladio clapped his hand on Ignis’ shoulder, his too-perfect smile coming as naturally as ever. Maybe a little more, even.

“I… Suppose this was what the escapades were all about,” he remarked, glancing back at Prompto.

“Whoa, three cakes?!” Gotta change that subject, Ignis, they didn’t know about any escapades! It was just supposed to be errands. But it was their fault he had to draw it out, wasn’t it? Chill, Prompto—chill. “All this food… I’m just gonna have to run more tomorrow.”

“After running around all day today too,” Gladio joked, thankfully getting the hint. Probably.

“What’s this about escapades?” Noct was not so merciful, and that is why Gladio got all the ladies, Prompto thought to himself. Okay, yeah, it was always great to see him smile, just—not at Prompto’s expense!

“Hey, you guys told me to keep him busy!”

“And you did very well. I haven’t been ice skating since Noctis was a boy and that pond was rather scenic.” Ignis to the rescue even on his birthday, what a saint. He did fall into a thoughtful silence, looking like he was trying to find life’s answers in the present pile. “Though I had figured you out by then, of course. I am curious why you kept me preoccupied for so much longer than necessary.”

“Gladio wrecked the cake.”

“Okay, Princess,” he dismissed. “Told you to set the timer.”

“And I told you I was busy.”

“Never heard you.”

“Getting old already,” Noctis said like he was in mourning, giving as good as he got and ducking out of a headlock from Gladio by just a hair. He’d better be faster than Gladio after all that childhood of training with him.

“Regardless of the kitchen mishaps I’ll contend with later,” Ignis got their attention back. “Thank you. I admit, I am at a loss for what else I might say.”

“No big deal,” Noctis answered, obviously proud of himself. “You could start by having dinner. I’m dying to try these skewers,” he suggested, leading the way to the meal.

“Speaking of that, I do believe Prompto owes me a standing offer to help with dinner.” Ignis picked up his own plate and shot Prompto a smile. “An awfully easy suggestion when you know there’s takeout on the table, hm?”

“You don’t have to resort to birthday blackmail, dude. I got your back,” Prompto promised. And snagged a plate of his own, he had to get to this food before the big guy got it all. “Still, though. Uh, happy birthday, Ignis.”

---------

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[fanfictionaries]

Playing the Game - Chapter 1

Summary: When aspiring writer Grace Caulder is met with financial troubles, she finds herself reluctantly limping back to a life she never thought she’d go back to. The new personal assistant for two of the most successful Managing Directors in New York investment banking, Grace can’t help but feel disgusted with herself and everyone around her. Struggling to come to grips with childhood memories and an eerily familiar boss, Grace tries to find out just who she is and who she loves? 

Steve Rogers wasn’t always the high powered, elite business he was today. No. At one point he was a skinny, little kid, fresh out of Brooklyn, just trying to make it through the daily torment of high school bullies. And his biggest tormentor just became his new personal assistant. Now’s his chance to get his revenge. But, is everything he thought he knew about her, true? 

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC

Warnings: Swearing, Smut, NSFW/18+ only, Darkish

Author’s note: First chapter is up! Please, please, please let me know what you think! 

***

Have you ever woken up and found yourself possessed by the imminent feeling of greatness? You roll over in your bed, well-rested and content, the sun shining through your windows, the birds chirping outside, and you know that it is going to be your day. A great day. A life changing day.

Well, that was exactly the opposite of how Grace Caulder felt the morning of her first day at Stark Investments. In fact, her emotions could probably be placed somewhere between puking and flinging herself off the fire escape of her fourth story walkup. But, seeing as she’d never had a weak stomach and the fall not being nearly high enough to kill her, she did neither. No, instead she laid there, a writhing mess of self-pity with just a dash of self-loathing, before dragging her butt out of bed and getting ready.

As her tall, black stilettos clicked audibly across the marble lobby floor of one of New York’s most esteemed investment banking institutions, Grace tried to put herself in a state of mind similar to her surroundings. Men in sharp suits and cutthroat smiles eyed her up and down and in return, she flashed them an award winning smile, her red lips parting to reveal the perfectly straight, white teeth her parents had spent so much money on. Money. The whole building reeked of it. Not literally, but as she wedged herself in between designer suits and handbags, before the doors of the elevator closed, she couldn’t help but feel like she was sixteen again.

She was alone when the elevator chimed, and the doors opened revealing the 35th floor.  Clean lines and a grey monochromatic color palette filled the space in front of her. Marble, glass, and minimalist furniture created a sense of movement and growth. It was futuristic. Innovative. No nonsense. It evoked a feeling of success. Walking straight to the front desk with as much poise and elegance as she could must up, she smiled, “Good morning Natasha.”

“Well look who it is. I’ll let Marie know that you’re here,” said the receptionist, her tone monotonic and expression bored, as she pressed in a number, paused for a few moments, and then spoke into the mic piece of her headset.

“Maria. Grace Caulder is here. Perfect, I’ll let her know.” She ended the call, turning her attention back to Grace.

“She’ll be out in a second—” she paused, looking Grace up and down before a small smile spread across her face “—You know, I was hoping you’d get the job. Out of all the miserable little creatures that walked through here, you were the only one that seemed acceptable enough for the position. I mean, you seriously should have seen the people that Maria had interviewing! I was beginning to think we were doing some sort of outreach program.” Rolling her eyes dramatically, she adjusted the sleeves of her cream colored blouse. Grace smiled at her in amusement, admiring her dark red hair and the way that every curl was perfectly swept into a French twist. Truthfully, she had always wished she possessed the same deep shade of auburn and not her coppery shade.

“You know, I love your blouse Natasha. Is that from Miu Miu’s new spring collection?” She leaned over the front desk a bit to get a better look as Natasha eyed her devilishly.

“Gracie, dear, you are a woman after my own heart. I should have known when you walked in here with genuine Prada donning your pretty little feet, we’d be best friends. We should get lunch some time. I know a great, little tapas place right down the stree—”

“Grace?” Turning, she saw Maria walking towards her. An older woman yes, but she hardly looked it; everything about her was primped and manicured. Grace’s eyes followed her long, sharp acrylics as they tucked a piece of her jaw length mahogany hair behind her ear. Grace took the perfectly manicured hand in her own and shook it firmly.

“Lovely to see you again Maria. I just wanted to thank you for this opportunity, really,” she kissed ass. She hated herself a little for it, but she did it anyway. It’s what these kinds of people responded to best.  

“Oh, the choice was obvious Ms. Caulder. I mean with your level of professionalism and your references! Not to mention when I found out who your father was…well how could I not?” Maria finished, placing her hands on her narrow hips.

Grace fidgeted a little, uncomfortable with the mention of her father. She should have known that they would make the connection.

“Well, come this way. I’ll take you to your new office and show you where everything is. Mr. Rogers should be in around noon. He had a few early morning meetings today across town,” Maria informed her as they walked across the lobby and around the corner. Rogers…every time she heard the name something pulled in the pit of her stomach and the back of her head. Something was so familiar about the name, but for the life of her she couldn’t quite place it.

“And Mr. Barnes?” Grace asked as they entered a small office. Just big enough for a desk and a single bookshelf. Behind the desk was a window overlooking the city. There had to be some perks to the position. She placed her purse carefully on the desk and hung her jacket up a hook on the wall before adjusting her silk blouse.

“Well, he’s in right now actually. Shall we go say hi?” Maria suggested as she turned back towards the hallway, not waiting for an answer.

With their heels click-clacking in syncopation, they walked towards past office after office. Grace wasn’t the only personal assistant on this floor. In fact, the 35th floor was one of three floors at Stark Investments that housed the Managing Directors and their immediate personnel. However, she was the only personal assistant to Mr. Barnes and Mr. Rogers, the two highest paid MDs in the company. Reaching the end of the hall, Maria knocked on the door of the corner office.

“Come in!” called a muffled voice from the other side.

Grace followed the older woman through the door to find a bright, inviting space. Floor to ceiling windows showcased all of New York’s financial district and then some. The office still possessed the same modern flair, but little touches here and there made it feel warmer. A picture frame here, a knick-knack there. Her eyes focused on Mr. Barnes as he stood from his desk. He was tall, and broad through the shoulders, but not overtly imposing. She eyed his suit. Expensive but simple. His face was clean shaven, and his brown hair was cropped short on the sides, the longer hair on top gelled back. There was no denying that he was an attractive man, but so were a lot of people in this business. Good looks and charisma often got you just as far as smarts and a cutthroat attitude.

As he walked towards them, it was with the air of someone who held a level of self-assuredness. Not cocky, but confident. Mr. Barnes was from money. Only someone who had known the comfort of money all their lives could hold that level of ease and look so relaxed in such a high-stress position. He eyed Grace up and down before addressing Maria, “Who is this? You know it’s not my birthday for another month.”

Maria gave him a stern look.

“Joking as always,” Mr. Barnes replied, tongue in cheek.

Grace watched as Maria relaxed, “We just stopped by because I wanted to introduce you to my new replacement.”

“Replacement? So soon?”

“Well, I leave for Amsterdam next week. I figured it was acceptable timing,” said Maria, raising an eyebrow in challenge.

“Right, of course. I guess I just let time slip away from me. Haven’t quite accepted that you’re leaving us.”

“Speaking of which, don’t forget the party is this Thursday. You and Sophia are coming, correct?”

“Of course! Wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

Grace fidgeted in her heels, catching Mr. Barnes’ eye.

“How rude. Sorry doll,” apologized Mr. Barnes. “James Buchanan Barnes. Pleased to have you on board.” He shook her hand firmly, the exuding stench of businessman charm nauseating her. He would be the kind to his personal assistant, whom he’d just met, something like doll.

“Grace Caulder, it’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. Barnes,” she smiled big, making sure to maintain eye contact.

“Oh please, call me Bucky.”

The sound of the door behind them opening abruptly and then slamming took Bucky’s attention away from her. A deep voice, irate and resounding filled the room.

“Buck, I’ve just come from JPMorgan and you would not believe the absolute shit that—”

“We have company Stevie—” Bucky interrupted “—come here and meet our new assistant.” He seemed to be completely unfazed to the loud and aggressive man that had just entered the room. Turning around to meet her second and decidedly angrier boss, Grace froze.

“Steven?” Grace choked out quietly in disbelief.

The tall, blue eyed ghost of her past gave her a look of confusion, “Pardon? Have we met?”

Shaking her head, Grace collected herself, smoothing her hands down her black pencil skirt and stepping forward.

“Sorry. Um, no. Grace Caulder, your new assistant. It’s very nice to meet you Mr. Rogers.”

“I swear to god Wanda, it was terrifying. I’m pretty sure I saw my entire adolescence flash before my eyes!” said Grace as she sunk the sharp chef’s knife through another carrot, cutting the pieces julienne.

“Oh, come on G.C., you’re being a little overdramatic, don’t you think?” Wanda scoffed from her place in front of the stove.

“No! I don’t! You don’t get it Wanda. You didn’t know me back then,” she shuddered at the thought. Grace Caulder. Queen Bee Bitch of Trinity.

“I know you’ve probably blown it out of proportion over the years,” said Wanda tasting the tomato sauce in front of her before adding a dash of salt. Wanda, Grace’s roommate of three years, did most of cooking in the apartment. After several instances of near fatal stovetop fires, they both decided it was safer that way. That being said, Grace could wield a kitchen knife like no other and so she often covered salads and sous chef responsibilities. It was a nice give and take that they participated in.

“I mean, you couldn’t have been that bad,” Wanda continued.

“You would have hated me,” Grace responded, pointing the tip of her knife in Wanda’s direction before stabbing it down into the wooden cutting board. Wanda side-eyed her, challenging her statement with a look.

“I was the head cheerleader, took my daddy’s limo to school every day, and made girls cry for sport,” Grace responded, deadpan.

“Alright…maybe I would have hated you a little.”

“I’m pretty sure a couple girls transferred because of me.”

“Well I’m just going to argue that you’re a pretty awesome person now, so I don’t think you should beat yourself up about it. You were young. People grow; they change,” said Wanda, walking past her to grab two plate from the cupboard. They dished up Wanda’s spaghetti and Grace’s salad before walking to the couch.

“That’s the thing though. I was completely self-aware all those years. I knew what I was doing, and I hated it!” Grace exclaimed before digging into her pasta.

Confusion flash across Wanda’s face as she pressed further, “Then why did you do it?”

Grace finished her bite before taking a deep breath and answering, “Growing up where I did was like being thrown in a shark tank. You either learned to swim or you were eaten alive.”

“So, you learned to swim?”

Grace scoffed, “Worse. I became a shark. God…there was always all this pressure from my mom and dad to look a certain way, act a certain way, be friends with certain people, date certain people. Those people weren’t always the nicest, but if I wanted to make my family proud and keep them off of my back, I had to play nice. Of course, playing nice usually involved an array of status degradation rituals very specific to teenage girls.” She shook her head trying to free herself of the memories.

“G.C. that’s some intense shit. No wonder you don’t like to talk about home.”

“Yea and now that I’m at this new job it just feels…I’m just worried I’m gonna turn back into that person. I mean you wouldn’t believe how easy it was for me to slip my Grace Caulder mask back on. Everyone there just cares about money, looks, and status!” She took another bite of pasta, chewing angrily.

“I’m sorry G.C., if I had known I never would have let you take the job. Quit! Don’t work there, we’ll figure something ou—”

“Don’t—" Grace interrupted. “—I don’t want to hear another word. It’s not your fault they cut back your hours and I’m not gonna let you get a second job while you’re trying to get your Masters.” Grace sighed, looking down at her lap, “I always knew that freelance work wasn’t going to pay the bills forever. Maybe, this is a wakeup call. Maybe I just need to realize that I’m not cut out to be a writer, ya know? It’s a hard career and I probably shot above my head. We need this job. We need the money. I’m not gonna let either of us live on the streets. I can do this. I just need to swallow my pride first…and a whole bottle of pills.”

Wanda gasped, picking up a pillow and hitting Grace with it, “Not funny G.C.!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop with the suicide jokes…for now. But seriously, I have a way for us to live comfortably; it would be selfish not to take advantage of it.”

“Okay enough sappiness. I can’t handle it! So, this Steven, are you sure that he’s your new boss?” Wanda asked, putting her plate of pasta on the coffee table.

“I don’t know! I mean, there has to be a million Steve Rogers in the world, and it didn’t seem like he recognized me.” The topic had been melting her brain to mush all day. After their brief introduction, Maria and she had left Bucky and Steve to talk. She hadn’t seen him at all the rest of the day, but her mind kept going back to the absolute lack of recognition in his eyes when they shook hands.

“Well that’s good then! It’s probably not him!”

“Yea, I wish it was that simple. Here, look up ‘Steven Rogers Stark Investments’ on your phone really quick. I’ll be right back.” Grace ran to her room and dug into the back of her closet. After some effort and a lot of dust, she pulled out the item she was looking for. When she reentered the living room, she found Wanda with her eyes glued to her phone.

“You’re in trouble. Why the hell did you not tell me that your new boss is gorgeous?!” she spun her phone around to reveal a picture of him on the cover of Global Finance.

“I’m sorry Wanda. I was a little too preoccupied seeing this when I looked at him,” Grace retorted before opening her old yearbook and thrusting it in her face. It was a page out of the clubs’ section. This particular club was Art Club and there stood Steven. Standing barely five feet tall, thin as a rail and sporting some very ill-fitting, obviously second-hand clothes.  

Wanda let out an audible gasp that turned into a giggle.

“Wow. He’s just a little guy!” she turned the yearbook back to Grace. Snatching the book out of Wanda’s hands, she flopped onto the couch next to her roommate.

“Shut up! For your information he happened to be really sweet and smart and funny…” Grace looked down at the face of the boy she had left long behind.

“Oh my god, G.C.! Did you have a crush on him?”

“Yes. Which meant I was worse to him that anyone else. No way I was going to let my friends know I liked Teeny Tiny Rogers.” Grace scrunched her face in distaste.

“Teeny Tiny Rogers? I thought you said you went to a private prep school; doesn’t that require some skill?” Wanda gave her a disappointed look.

“Wealth doesn’t always equate cleverness Wanda.”

She watched as Wanda’s eyes flicked between the yearbook and her phone, concentration on her face. “G.C. they do look a lot alike. I mean, give him a major growth spurt and about ten years in the gym and this could be him…”

She groaned, “That’s exactly what I was hoping you wouldn’t say. So, what do I do?”

“Well…you said he acted like he had no idea who you were. Maybe he’s forgotten?” Wanda suggested.

Grace let the idea bounce around in her head, “I’d like to imagine that he did, but considering the amount of development that happens during that time in adolescence…memories stick. I mean what do you remember most about high school?”

“Elizabeth Germer. She told everyone that I was born with a tail. I had people oinking at me in the hallways for years…okay I get your point.”

Grace buried her face in the pages of Trinity School 2010, “Wanda, this is a disaster!”

“Well maybe he’s forgiven you. Maybe pretending to not know who you were was his way of saying it’s all water under the bridge. I mean, obviously he’s doing okay. More than okay! You’re working for him. He’s won!” Wanda stood, grabbing their empty dishes and walking towards the kitchen. Grace followed her, thinking over her point.

“But what if you’re wrong? How am I going to walk into that office tomorrow and not act like I didn’t torture him for four years? What do I do?” Grabbing a sponge and the soap from under the sink, she turned on the water and began to wash the dishes as Wanda stored the leftovers.

“You want to know what you’re gonna do? You’re going to stop acting like a giant, overdramatic baby and stop whining! You’re going to put on your overpriced, big girl panties, slip on an expensive dress, step into those ridiculously high heels and go to work. Do your job. Act like nothing is wrong. In fact, you’re going to treat him like a complete and total stranger. Okay?” Closing the refrigerator door, Wanda turned to face her, clearly having heard enough on the subject. Grace rinsed the last dish and put it on the wrack before drying her hands. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at her roommate.

“Okay. You’re right. You are completely right. I’m obviously not going to quit so I just need to do my job. Play the game for a little and if I eventually have to face up to what I did then…so be it,” she decided. Wanda walked towards her, arms outstretched, bringing Grace into a big hug.

“Don’t worry G.C. Everything will work itself out. I promise and besides you aren’t even sure it’s the same guy. I mean sure, they look alike but plenty of people do. Maybe you just happened to find his incredibly good looking and successful doppelganger.” Patting her on the back, Wanda walked past her and towards her bedroom. As she stood there, in the kitchen, by herself, Grace wouldn’t help but think about her new boss. Was he the Steven she’d known all those years ago? The sweet and sincere dork. Or was he some freaky ripped lookalike that happened to have the same name? She couldn’t know for sure, but what she did know is that night she laid awake in bed trying to convince herself that incredibly attractive doppelgängers did exist.  

Marvel Taglist: 

@caffiend-queen​

@hidden-behind-the-fourth-wall​

[roseamongroses]

W.A.L: “It’s A Long Way Down To the Bottom of the River” (26)

s u m m a r y

Eden was the lowest of the low, a monster, hardly human, and was set to be executed. Roman was on trial, perpetually stuck in time until it was time to atone for his families sins.Neither cared much for staying trapped.So when a Stranger offered freedom, offered peace, offered power, it was hard to say no.Even if it put them on the wrong side of history.

v i b e s

time is irrelevent, homophobia who?, magic and beasts, demigods

w a r n i n g s

Imprisonment, Mentions of execution, Blood/ injuries,  Mentions of past Death, repression, cursing, some  dissociation

c h a r a c t e r s

Deceit(Eden) Sanders, Remy Sanders, Logan Sanders, Virgil Sanders, Patton Sanders, Roman Sanders, Emile Picani, Elliot, Kai, Lauren, Dot

Ship: Roceit

1) (2)   (3)  (4) (5)

(6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11)

(12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17)

---

Ms. Drak’on didn’t bother to look up once Logan had entered her office, her massive tail curled in her lap as she tapped away at her computer.

She was busy, always busy and today she was dealing with the mass freeing of the Sanders and all associated parties. For a curse that exhaustive it wasn’t just a matter of freeing them, but it was a matter of arranging new housing, placing younger children under adoptive care, and arranging for funeral services and preservation efforts for any humans or elders caught in the mix.

Overall the whole ordeal was incredibly profitable despite being horrendously irritating. And while being around so many humans was disturbing, it was ultimately for the best. The Council was this world's new future whether the magic-folk liked it or not and Annaliese would be damned if she let her folk be thrown to the wayside like so many others.

Her initial plan was to be a part of the Sanders, seeing as they were a powerhouse among the folk and everyone knew the Council had an eye on them.  It took decades just for her to convince her family to arrange the marriage between her and the Sanders, and many years later for them to forgive her for that failure of an investment. Still, she found away, and when that way fell apart she’d find another and another.

Logan cleared his throat, once then twice, and Annaliese looked up, “Yes?” she said, her long claws tapping impatiently, “Is this related to your studies or the coronation?”

“Uh,” Logan frowned, “No ma’am.”

Annaliese scowled, “Then what is it?”

“I was talking with Patton and Virgil--” Annaliese made a face. She thought he would’ve gotten over them once they had left for the colonies.  Logan continued, “And they mentioned that there was a series of break-ins at The Colonies.”

“And?”

“And… I thought it would a good idea for us to investigate,” He reasoned, “Large amounts of their discarded magical waste had been taken before it was properly deactivated and the only person known to experiment with that is The Stranger so I though-”

“Logan,” She cut him off with a sharp smile, “I admire your dedication,”

Logan blinked startled, “Uh, thank you ma’am,”

“You’re welcome,” Ms. Drak’on’s smile stayed unnervingly in place, “So when I say leave it alone, I’m not trying to discourage you--In fact, I say this as a way to encourage you to keep focus,”

“But nearly a thousand ounces of magical residue went missing that’s enough to--”

“Blow up a small nation, yes, yes I’m aware,” She finished, “Someone else will handle it. I’ll arrange for it personally in fact,” she promised, “But you are going to be the heir of the most powerful folk-family. You need to stop worrying about your friends, stop worrying about some no-name shifter and his joke of a mentor, and start thinking about your own future,” Logan still looked unpleased, “Do you really care about this magical residue or do you just want a rematch.”

“I…” Logan swallowed, “There’s going to be backlash…”

“And? They can have their opinions, it won’t change paperwork, ” Annaliese snapped, “You let them and their little prank under your skin once, but I won’t let it happen again,” she pointed at a singular talon at Logan, “You want to be heir, correct?”

Logan’s face hardened, “Yes.”

“In a couple of months you will be,” She said, “So leave it be, unless you’d rather me pick another heir? You have plenty of cousins who would gladly step up,” Logan flinched and at that, she hummed, “So you’ll leave it be?”

“I’ll…” Logan sighed, “I’ll leave it be,”

---

“It looks pretty, Sof,” Roman said, hands curling around the torn up leaves of the flowers she picked.

Sofia  batted his hands away from her arrangement on the table, “No it isn’t, it’s ugly and stupid,” she huffed as she picked at the flowers, “Marisol would’ve made them pretty,”

“Marisol isn’t here,” Viviane said, readjusting her flower crown with a careless delight, “Momma said she’s still sleeping,”

“I know that,” Sofia grumbled, though she started messing with her flowers more .

“Sofia?”

Her face scrunched and she ignored Roman.

Roman sighed, knowing that at any second she’d get frustrated and either cry or scream. Probably both. He bit his lip, “Sofia, can you do me a big favor?”

At that she looked up, still scowling and eyes watery, “What?”

“Can you help Ma in the garden?”  Roman suggested, pointing out the screen door, “Tami can’t be alone in the house, but Ma’s going to need a lot of help,”

Before Sofia could answer Viviane butted in, “Oh Sofia can’t help, she’d get dirty,”

Sofia’s eyes snapped up full of some equivalent to  fury, “Yes I can!”

“No, you can’t!” Viviane stuck her nose up, pointing to herself, “But I can,”

It didn’t take long for that disaster of an argument to spill outside, startling Ma and a dozing Marie. Once they were out of sight, Roman took a cursory glance at the flowers on the table, before oh so innocently dragging a hand over the stems.

It was a bit harder since the flower's roots had long since been ripped off, but that just meant he had to give them a new root system. It didn’t take long after that for dingy petals to brighten into delicate pinks and yellows and for the torn, leaves to wilt and be replaced with stronger, healthier greens.

While he was finishing up, Lauren walked in, looking sweaty--hair tied in a high ponytail  as she guzzled down water. She raised an eyebrow, “You’re spoiling them,” she accused.

“I can get you flowers too if you’re jealous,” Roman mocked.

Laruen’s eyes narrowed, “I can pick my own,” she scoffed, though her gaze still lingered on the petals, “Maybe you should take some out for your boy~friend, he’s been mean all day,”

“I mean…” Roman shrugged, “I’d be pissy too if I had to babysit y’all instead of, y’know, kissing me.”

Lauren sighed, turning on her heel,  “Leaving now,”

“Love ya too,” Roman said dusting off his hands. He breezed through the living room passing the slumped, heaving forms of Kai and Elliot. He poked his head out of the front door, easily finding Janus in the midst of doing cool-down stretches.

Roman closed the door behind them, a smile creeping on his face, “Darling?” Janus paused mid-stretch but didn’t look up, even as Roman crouched behind them, hugging them from behind. Roman pursed his lips, resting his head on their shoulder, “Janus, you’re ignoring me,” he whined.

“Am I?”

“Yes, yes you are,” Roman said,” Any reason why?”

Janus stiffened, not immediately responding so Roman waited. After a while he finished his stretch, leaning into Roman, “I’m... tired. Just gotta get used to the new training regiment that’s all,”

Roman frowned at that, “Anything I can do?”

“I stink, so a bath would be nice,” Janus sighed.

Roman hummed in agreement, “Can I join?”

“Now,” Janus said, pushing Roman’s face away,

“Aw, you’re no fun,” Roman laughed, giving Janus a little squeeze before standing up, “I’ll run it in a few minutes, try not to stay out here for too long,” He squinted at the setting sun, “It's getting late,”

Janus sighed, “I won’t be long,”

—--

His eyes were burning long after The Stranger gave him another vial. It wasn’t warm, it wasn’t inviting, but it clawed into him deep, stoking an internal itch Deceit never knew he had. On one hand, he could feel himself getting stronger, on the other hand he knew that he had to stay vigilant, lest he lose control.

It wouldn’t be like the first time.

Eden and him had taken the vials at the same time, but it hit Eden much harder. He was human, after all. One moment they were laughing. The next moment, well… Janus couldn’t tell you for sure what happened. But he knew something  changed when the light jabs became shoves, and the words spilling were no longer loving.

Janus had always admired Eden, so of course, it hurt, but if it had just been about Janus well… maybe they would’ve all went to church that day. But Virgil was Janus’s responsibility and Eden… was replaceable. Eden was loved, he was cherished by his family, but at the end of the day he was just as disposable as Janus.

The only difference was that they at least searched for Eden, even if they didn’t really find him. They mourned for Virgil, they were furious at Eden, but never said a word about Janus.

Janus, Eden, Deceit, Janus. It was a mantra he cycled through constantly, but it was especially dizzying when he was alone with himself. One face wasn’t his own, but it was better than nothing. One embraced his nothingness with an obnoxious flair. And one… was nothing, but Roman said it like it meant something. And the more they said it, the more Janus found himself unwilling to hate it completely.

Janus dunked his head in the bath, not rising again until the stink of memories were drowned by his desperate need for air. Then he scrubbed himself as raw as his lungs were, ignoring how his body ached and not lingering on his scales or the irritated and inflamed scars, but instead focussing on his need to be clean.

Once he was done with that, he untied his hair. It had grown back long, but since Deceit tended to just shift to fix his hair it had gotten tangled and matted. After the temptation to rip his hair out of his skull intensified, he dragged himself out of the tub. Throwing on pants, he trudged back into the room--immediately rummaging through the dresser drawers.

Roman, who was hanging off the bed upside down, sat up, “Whatcha lookin’ for?”

“Scissors,” Janus grumbled, “Or a knife, anything sharp--” He frowned, finding nothing but books and clothes.

“Why would you…” Roman trailed off, “Weren’t you going to try to actually take care of your hair?”

“I did try-- it was taking too long,” Janus said, looking up when Roman sighed, “What?”

“Come here, you big baby,” Roman said, leaving no room for complaint as he pulled out a wider-tooth comb from the side-drawer. Janus complied, flopping on his stomach and burying his head in Roman’s lap.

Roman hummed, fingers kneading their scalp gently, causing Janus to tense, before relaxing, “Long day?”

Janus groaned, voice muffled,  “I hate everything,”

Roman had started sectioning Janus’s hair, “I don’t think you hate everything,”

“I hate most things,”

“Eh,”

“...I don’t hate you?”

Roman didn’t say anything to that, starting to pull the comb through Janus’s tangled ends and methodically working his way up. Janus lost himself in the sensation, not quite feeling the pit in his stomach go away, but instead feeling like he had more space to breathe.

At some point Janus had drifted off, only stirring when Roman stopped combing, slowly just rubbing circles in Janus’s scalp. Janus propped his head up on Roman’s lap, vaguely registering that Roman had stole another one of his shirts, “What time is it?”

“Ready to leave me so soon?”

“Mmm…” Janus wrapped an arm around their waist, playing with ends of the shirt, “Not quite,”

“Go--ood,” Roman stuttered, eyes closing as Janus pressed feather-light kisses along their thigh, hand drifting up their shirt, “Aren’t you still tired?”

“A little…” Janus mumbled with a frown, “But with this new schedule I won’t be able to see you as often,” Roman’s face fell, “But... I’m here now,”

“I guess you are…but--” Roman inhaled sharply as Janus’s fangs flashed, “Janus…” Roman squirmed as they sucked at the sensitive skin there.  

“Huh, I thought you were fucking with me, but, “ Janus smiled,  deliberately twirling a vine creeping over Roman’s hip, “You really do like them?”

“Shut up,” Roman whined into his hands, “Of course I like them,”

Janus paused at that, sitting up, “So if I grew a tail and started craving human flesh?”

Roman snorted, “Babe, I had a tail when I was younger,” Janus shot him a curious look, “It fell off--” he explain shortly, “But the point is I’m not even human, you don’t scare me,” he pushed aside his braids, leaning back against the headboard, “In fact, if you hadn’t noticed I find you very attractive,”

“You find Eden very attractive,”

“Yes, I am a fan,” Roman admitted rolling his eyes, “But I guarantee that you can pick any face you want- even your own, and I’d still be just as eager. And… you wanna know why?”

“Why?”

“We’re partners--” Roman squeaked, cupping Janus’s face, his sappy smile beaming into the kiss.

“Is it later yet?” Janus murmured, feeling how Roman’s skin was getting hotter and hotter,  “Cause I really would like to have that talk now--”

There was a knock and they both froze.

Roman was the first to speak, “It's  locked--they’ll go away soon,”

Janus frowned at that, “Are you sure it’s the triplets?”

Roman paused for entirely too long with a look entirely too pissy and Janus rolled off the bed despite their protests. Janus wasn’t surprised to see The Stranger when he opened the door, but The Stranger seemed pretty surprised.

The Stranger’s mouth opened, then closed, “Busy?”

Janus scowled,  “I’ll be out in a minute,” and he shut the door promptly. He winced upon seeing just how pleased Roman was, “Sorry...”

“Don’t apologize… just,” Roman’s gaze flickered to the door, “Be safe.”

---

Deceit had the decency to feel somewhat guilty when The Stranger handed him another vial. It’s just that it was hard to pinpoint any feelings after they handed him another, and another, and another. It was hard to even remember his name and it wasn’t like The Stranger was inclined to remind him.

Blood soaked and vaguely human-shaped, Deceit stumbled up as the snake-like creature slithered towards him again, fangs bared.

He didn’t have to turn around to see The Stranger’s displeased expression. This what...the 45th? 67th? time that Deceit was attempting this shift, whilst trying to avoid the creature -- the pitch blackness of the sky had long since softened into mocking pinks and swirling purples.

The snake lunged and for a dizzying second, Deceit didn’t even feel as their fangs sank into his skin again, tearing at the flesh. He dropped to his knees, fruitlessly clawing at the beast, feeling his shift sharpen and humanity slick away piece by piece.

The Stranger tossed his drink, the cup disappearing, “Alright, enough,” and like that the creature was gone.

Deceit shuddered, hands still grasping as if he could still feel the creature’s grip around his throat, “Was it...was it good enough?”

The Stranger inclined his head, lowering his glasses to observe the glistening, gold scales dripping from Deceit’s lower half, still radiating the same manic energy the snake had, “No, but it's a start,” he said, pushing his glasses up, “You’re too attached,”

Deceit swallowed, “Attached? Attached to what?”

“To your identity,” The Stranger drawled, “Forget it. It's useless anyway,” his spiked boots kicked up the dirt.

“Identity?” Deceit’s laugh  was a choked, guttural thing that caused the pain in his shoulder to flare up,” I don’t have an identity, I’m nothing, remember?”

The Stranger didn’t say anything, an uncomfortable silence stretching, “Same time tomorrow,” he finally said, turning on his heel, “Don’t be late this time,”

When Deceit returned to the house, Lauren took one good look at him before bullying him into getting cleaned up and getting stitches. Deceit let her babble about some T.V show wash over him before he dragged himself to bed.

The next night, it was some underground creature that only appeared when provoked and apparently when you provoked one, the entire nest appeared. It had taken so long to even get a glimpse of them and even longer to shake them all off so by the time he got back to the house it was already mid-day. After Kai stopped yelling at him for missing the sparring sessions they shoved a plate of food in his direction and chucked a water bottle at his head.

On the days that he was nonverbal, they switched to signing without further questioning after Elliot’s telepathy proved to be too overwhelming after a night trapped in a cave with a sound-based creature.

And every day, whenever he could--- he calmed down an upset Roman, letting them check over each new scar and relentlessly curse The Stranger’s name in a surprising amount of languages until they were content that he was in one piece.

Only then did he tell Janus about his day, telling him about the fort the triplets were building outside, about the new book he’s reading, or how he was going to start taking care of Tami and them more often since his mom had finally gotten the paperwork she needed to start working again.

It was odd floating between those moments of normalcy and chaos, but it was odder when they overlapped. Tonight it was less of a creature and more of a gelatin mass that seeped acid.

Deceit wasn’t allowed to attack it back, not unless he replicated it perfectly, but as he was letting that acid bastard swallow him all he could think about was yesterday night.

Roman had just finished Tami’s very specific bedtime routine when he had walked into the room doe eyed and really quiet. After a few attempts at prodding, they quietly admitted that they might want kids when he got older. Which wasn’t surprising, but what did throw Deceit off guard was the fact that they asked for his opinion on the matter. As if Deceit had a future beyond this--and if he did how much of it would be dedicated to being The Stranger’s experiment?

He hadn’t even noticed that the creature was gone until The Stranger snapped in front of his face, annoyed. Deceit staggered up, “Sorry--are we done?”

“Sure, this isn’t working anyway,” The Stranger said cooly and Deceit tensed, “You’re still distracted, you’re still attached,”

“I…” Deceit frowned, “I don’t understand,”

“Of course you don’t,” The Stranger scoffed, “You’re lucky you’re not a complete waste of time or I wouldn’t even bother trying at this point,” he the lollipop cracked in his mouth, “Don’t bother coming back tomorrow,”

Both relief and terror pooled into Deceit’s gut, “What?”

“Don’t get so worked up--” The Stranger scolded, “You get the next three days off and , after that we’re going on a little trip. If it goes as planned, we’ll have everything we ever wanted,”

“And...if it doesn’t go as planned?”

“Well, I'll take a break somewhere blisteringly hot and then try again in the next hundred years,” The Stranger shrugged.

Deceit didn’t have to ask to figure out what would happen to him.

[andrewmoocow]

Fooly Falls 2 Ride on Shooting Star chapter 5: Ex-Partners in Crime (originally posted on May 30, 2019)

AN: And now the end is near. And so we face, the final curtain. My fans, I'll say it clear. I'll finish this tale, of course I am certain. I've wrote this sequel, I improved the source with my own flair. But after all of this, the climax is getting there. WKUHH ERBV, ZLWK GLVFRUG XQZDQWHG WZR ROG IULHQGV, ZLWK SDVWV IRUHYHU KDXQWHG RQH PDQ, DQ DQVZHU PDGH KLP GDXQWHG GHVWLQB OHIW WR EH DQVZHUHG, DQG WKHB'UH JRQQD EH HAKDXVWHG

--

In the style of an old black and white film, an assembly of giant irons stood perfectly single file before the setting sun. Gwen quietly watched before turning away and picked a bottle up off the ground. She then discovered a dejected worker sitting in front of a campfire with his hardhat the only splash of color. Gwen examined the sight before her when she also discovered the outline of a skeleton beneath her feet, where she placed the bottle in the center of its chest. Just then the girl dropped to her side in pain, discovering a small disk stuck in her foot that she gave to the skeleton to serve as an eye. As a nearby engine roared, steam from a structure decorated with irons covered the monochrome land like a sandstorm, sweeping her up along the way. When Gwen opened her eyes, she laid in a colorful body of water with her beanie in hand. Then the world suddenly turned greyscale as she excitedly ran along the shoreline while the Medical Mechanica factory continued to stand upright.

-- Ian whistled a familiar tune while tuning up a large computer monitor nestled within Ford's study. "Ride on shooting star. Yabba dabba doo, somethi-ing." he quietly sang while making a few final touches and dismounted from his maintenance creeper. "Okay, main screen turn on?" "Yeah, main screen turn on." Dipper answered turning to a certain someone tied up and fast asleep in a chair. "Rise and shine old friend." he announced placing a freshly cooked chicken leg under Haruko's nose, and the delicious scent wafting into it finally woke her up. "W-what happened?" she asked slowly beginning to wake up. "Last thing I remember was working on something before there was this napkin that covered me and-hey!" "There's no escaping this Raharu. You will give us the answers on your past that we've been searching for!" Ford declared dramatically stepping out of the shadows. "And perhaps some clues on what you're planning this time. Kanda?" "Will do." Tsukata replied hooking the Vespa Woman up to the machine with a helmet resembling a strainer and the monitor finally activated. "This was originally built to defend minds from the dream demon known as Bill Cipher, but now it's been rebuilt to simply read them and view the memories within." "This could be it everyone, our biggest breakthrough!" Dipper cackled joyously as it began booting up. "You okay there Dipper? You've slowly grown more unhinged." Ian asked nervously placing a hand on the older man's shoulder before he was slapped away. "I'm not going unhinged, I'm just excited to finally see through her lies once and for all!" Dipper continued lighting up a fifth cigarette. "So much so that I've literally cut my smokes in half!" "Yeah, he's officially snapped." Kanda commented taking a puff of his own cigarette and sitting down next to Haruko. "Oy, a bunch of losers the lot of you." Haruhara japed with a grin. "You've all become conspiracy theorists who'd resort to kidnapping an expecting mother just to prove a point. And since when did you take up smoking?" "Since I failed to quit." the agent muttered. "And I've been doing it to help me calm down." Dipper added taking a break from his mini-celebration. "Augh, my back." Haruko groaned struggling to reach for her back. "Must be the ropes getting a bit too tight, or you're just getting old." Kanda commented. "Naw, can't really age." the woman responded. "I've been 19 for what feels like ages now." "How many years exactly?" Ford asked writing in a new journal. "Hell if I know, probably ever since I met you-know-who." Haruko answered. "The summer I turned seventeen, was when I took up smoking for the first time." Kanda explained. "Sort of the same with me, only I took up smoking to deal with becoming a father." Dipper replied just as Project Mentem started acting up. "Oh my God, it's finally time!" "Can't believe it took one conversation for it to get started." Ian remarked pounding at the machine. "Well, let's get cracking." After a few moments of static, a full image revealed itself as a slightly younger looking Haruko dressed in drab work-clothes with a familiar iron in the background. "Wait a minute, is that-" Dipper exclaimed while his eyes widened. "Yep. Haruha Raharu, ex-factory worker." Raharu groaned in resignation over her past. "And it was back when Medical Mechanica had control over my planet too." As the younger Vespa Woman continued trudging about her day, Ford lost interest. "Let's just skip to the interesting stuff." the scientist declared fast-fowarding through the memory until it stopped at Haruha rocking out on some equipment as a makeshift drumkit. "Now that's the little devil we know!" "Hey, keep it down in there Haruha!" a strict, snarly voice cried out to her barging into the room. He was a tall, robust figure with a thick mustache, very long nose and a comically large cigar in his mouth. "Ah, good ol' Heinzenberg. A real J. Jonah he was, really miss when he would scream like crazy at everyone." Haruko reminisced on her former boss. "Either stop those abominable sounds or I'll do it for you!" Heinzenberg screamed pulling out a laser blaster and firing, but his rebellious employee swiftly escaped. "Try and catch me brushface!" "Wow, seems like everyone hated your guts." Dipper remarked as the fight between Haruha & Heinzenberg tore the workplace apart, to the ire of everybody else. When the dust settled, the area was in shambles and Heinzenberg was completely furious. "HAAAAAAA-RUUUUUUU-HAAAAAARAAAAA! YOOOOOOOOOUUUUUU'REEEEEEE FIIIIIIIIIREEEEEEDDDDD!" "Was he really that loud?" Ford asked as the Haruha on the screen was dragged away by security robots. "Yep, to the point where one had to add extra letters to whatever he was screaming." Haruko cackled before her smirk turned into a frown as Kanda fast-fowarded to the biker's home life, where she was being harshly scolded by a man presumed to be her father. "Do you realize what you've done Haruha?!" "Abusive parent, correct?" Ian interviewed their captive. "Oh you better believe it. The old man was a completely irredeemable piece of shit who loved drinking more than his own family." Raharu declared morosely, turning away from that ugly part of her past. "And as for my mom, pretty sure she got killed by him in a drunken rage. But who knows, I barely knew her." "Your slacking off and playing that infernal music nearly got us all in trouble!" Mr. Raharu drunkenly shouted after smacking his daughter across the face. "Either behave like every other girl on this godforsaken planet or never show your face around me again!" Just then, the cruddy former apartment home of Haruha started rumbling and a loud voice bellowed "SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT! I WANT TO SEE WHAT YOU GOT!" The ceiling began falling to pieces little by little, all capped off with a steel girder losing its support and falling right over Haruko's father. "WHAT THE FU-" was all he could scream before the girder reduced him to a puddle of red. "The Cromulons!" Ford exclaimed fast-fowarding to Haruko on stage before the giant planet-sized heads gazing down on her. "PLANET WASPRUS, SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT!" the Cromulon boomed. "So what, do they go around screaming at planets?" Kanda asked. "And what do they want to be shown?" "The Cromulons are a race of giant floating heads who force the inhabitants of planets to perform in their own musical contest show." Haruko answered. "My planet frowned upon any form of creativity, but I just loved sticking it to the man." "Aw shitballs you guys, we gotta run!" the belches of a middle aged man sounded as he and his two companions, a stonefaced bird person and a catlike creature, ran for the hills to a hijacked cargo ship. "Hey, the old gang!" Haruko chirped excitedly. "Wait, the what?" Ian asked staring at the screen. "Those my boy, were the Flesh Curtains." Ford stated putting a hand on the eldest Ramirez's shoulder. "A band consisting of Rick Sanchez, an old frenemy of mine; and his two weird comrades Birdperson and Squanchy." "And it's not just them. Look." Birdperson announced pointing upward to a giant red phoenix that warped itself over Wasprus. "IT SEEMS WE HAVE A SPECIAL GUEST DISQUALIFIER!" the Cromulon boomed. "LEGENDARY PIRATE KING ATOMSK, SHOW US WHAT YOU GOT!" While Rick and his posse urged the younger Haruko to not give in, she was utterly mesmerized by Atomsk's might as she slowly stepped towards him. "Don't do it babe, that's Atomsk! His power will seriously screw with your head!" Rick warned, but Haruha didn't listen and reached out to the giant bird while her hair turned into its trademark pink. A large chain wrapped around the Pirate King's neck attached to the girl's wrist and she pulled it with all her might, eventually breaking it in two. Just as Atomsk screeched, Raharu was dragged away by Birdperson and raced to the cargo ship, escaping the doomed Wasprus in the nick of time when it completely exploded. "Welp, there goes that gig." Rick groaned in defeat taking a chug out of a flask. "How's our extra cargo doing?" "Still out squanch from Atomsk." the cat-person stated checking for a pulse just as their passenger came to. "Oh geez, what happened?" Haruha moaned rubbing her head when she took notice of the old man, the bird and the cat surrounding her. "Where am I, and who are all of you?!" "Well I can assure you miss, I am not a man in a suit that will teach you the alphabet." Birdperson answered. "You may call me Birdperson. These two are my bandmates Squanchy and Rick." "Okay, we played the name game. But where's my planet?!" Raharu shouted grabbing the two animal-like creatures by their collarbones. "Well funny story babe, might wanna squanch around and see what happened." Squanchy suggested trying to break free and the future Vespa Woman took his suggestion, gazing out the back window to find what was left of her home planet. "My home's all gone." Haruha muttered shedding a few tears, but those tears were soon replaced with a celebratory manic grin. "I'M FREE!" "Whoa now, aren't you the least bit torn up about everyone you ever loved there now pretty much dead?" Squanchy stated. "I don't care, cause no one felt that about me either!" the Flesh Curtains' passenger whooped. "No more shitty dad, no more boring job, and no more stifling of creativity!" "Hell yeah, now you're speaking my language!" Rick replied merrily. "Hey, didn't get your name lass. What do they call you?" he asked putting a microphone to the girl's mouth. "I'm Haruha Raharu." she introduced herself. "Hm, doesn't roll off the tongue as much." the drunken traveler commented. "You ever tried picking up a name like the ones in the comics like Peter Parker, Reed Richards, Billy Batson or Fred Flintstone?" "I don't believe that last one came from a comic." Birdperson tried to correct his bandmate until he was shushed. "I got a great one! How about Haruko Haruhara?" Sanchez announced pretending to knight the girl with what would become her famous Rickenbacker bass. "I like it, really does sound like those old comics!" the newly renamed Vespa Woman exclaimed. "So where to?" "Wherever the hell we want to!" Squanchy answered pointing onward before the fond memory paused itself. "Ah, the old gang. We were kinda like the Fab Four back then. Rick was Paul, Birdperson was Lennon, Squanchy was Ringo and yours truly was George." Haruko thought back to happier times with a smile. "The four of us were unstoppable! Traveling the multiverse, playing gigs, sticking it to the man, making crossovers and just having fun regardless!" Haruko managed to sneak her foot out of one of her boots to fiddle with Project Mentem and fast-forwarded through many events during her travels with Rick. In particular were running from an angry mob of robots resembling ones & zeros in a city within a computer, holding a concert for tons of excited colorful fans with gemstones on their bodies, playing with a golden snail that had a phone attached to its shell which led to an entire island being destroyed, defacing a money bin and all other sorts of mischief. "But then everything went horribly wrong when we planned what I call 'The Mechanica Mission'." she stated sadly stopping at the four nomads looking over current plans. "-ere's what we're gonna do. Haruko will infiltrate the Brotherhood and rise through their ranks so she can allow us to find Atomsk." Rick explained. "Afterwards, Squanchy will break into the Medical Mechanica factory where our contact has stated he's being held in while Birdperson & I form a distraction." "So even being a first-class space patrol officer was part of your scheme as well?!" Ford exclaimed. "To be honest, I don't know what I expected." "Don't wanna delve too much into it but in a nutshell, everything went to shit." Haruko regaled forwarding faster to a standoff between her and Rick in front of a Medical Mechanica factory with armies of insectoid aliens & Medical Machines on either side, their bandmates hovering nearby on another hijacked ship and Atomsk appearing out of a giant wormhole. "So all this time, we were just being used so that you can have sex with Atomsk?!" Rick screamed as he felt betrayed by his partner. "Pretty sure his pecker is way too big to fit in your hive! And I'm really going to regret those puns!" "But wasn't there ever a time in your life where you sought after ultimate power?!" the Vespa Woman responded sadistically. "Bitch, I've been possessed by those types before! But did I use those to turn on those I legitimately care for!" the alcoholic nihilist shouted preparing to attack with his guitar. "It's no use Rick, get back here before the portal reaches maximum instability!" Birdperson cautioned his bandmate. "I'll be back in a bit you guys, gotta settle the score first." Sanchez snarled mounting what would become Haruko's Vespa scooter and charging at her with battle cry and bass. Raharu would do the same and then, the video faded to snow leaving the four men utterly flabbergasted. "So it all makes sense now." Kanda declared shutting it off. "Or at least, as much sense as a person like Haruko can make it." "Other dimensions? Wait til the others hear about this!" Ian added excitedly. "Maybe I could pitch this to whatever big Hollywood director hasn't had their reputation ruined." "At least we finally got our answers Dipper." Ford said to his greatnephew, but he received no answer. "Dipper?" Dipper on the other hand stared emptily at the blank screen contemplating over everything they just watched. Her home planet, that crazy man, the multiverse, Medical Mechanica, Atomsk. In the time he knew Haruko, her past was a total enigma with the exception of how she was a space cop gone rogue, but even that was all a sham. He began lightly snickering while clutching his head. "Ha." he flatly laughed. "Ha ha ha. Ffnk, ahoo. Ahoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo." Dipper's sanity began tumbling down even faster before his chuckling turned into full-blown insane cackling. "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" "Dipper, stop laughing and answer me!" Stanford demanded his now completely insane apprentice. "IT WAS ALL A LIE! IT WAS ALL A LIE!" Dipper screamed merrily continuing his mad chortling and smashing the screen. "YOU ARE TEARING ME APART LISA!" "Uh, has anyone seen Haruko?" Ian asked pointing out the empty stool spinning in a circle. "It seems Dipper's little episode here has given her an opportunity to flee." Ford observed on the verge of coming to a shocking conclusion. "But where could she be off t-Oh no." Just as fast as he made his realization, Ford bolted out of his study and went up the elevator to follow the lying motorist. "Where's he off to?" Kanda asked Ian. "Stan is holding a little wake for Jinyu," the eldest Ramirez son answered. "And I don't want to know what Haruko will be up to."

--

A small drum accompanied a confused rabbi singing for Julia Jinyu in front of the equally unaware attendees who are staring at Stanley and wondering among themselves why they're attending a funeral for someone who was basically unknown to them. "We have no idea who the deceased is, but I can promise she will rest in peace. May He take good care of this woman, and continue to watch over us all." the rabbi chanted before clearing his throat, switching his Jewish dialect for a growling Midwestern accent. "All right Pines, pay up!" he shouted holding out his hand and expecting cash. "Haven't got all day, have a wedding in Alabama to preside over." "Who's the lucky underage victim and their offender?" Stan asked fishing a wad of thousands out of his wheelchair. "Don't want to get anyone here mad, but it's a juicy one!" the rabbi replied with a smug grin. After snatching his bills from the old man's hand, he wordlessly allowed the audience to give their condolences before leaving. First came Senator Gideon Gleeful. Although he and Stanley made amends, there was still a friendly contempt between the two. "So how's that conspiracy against President Kitaki going?" the con-artist asked his old enemy. "Moving along quite nicely Pines. Already got the Fundshausers on my side." Gideon replied turning to Grenda & Marius with a wink and a grin. "Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm probably going to being voting for you." Stan admitted. "The less we need of that old hag trying to ban the possibility of intergalactic travel, the better!" Next came Masurao. "Hey I know you! You're that guy from Little Asia!" the great-uncle exclaimed. "I am sorry for your loss sir, but I'm on borrowed time." Masurao apologized before scurrying outside. "What's his deal?" "So the damn thing stood up? And it's also getting foggy." Masurao stated spying on the upright iron from below with Eyepatch. "It'll go away when the sun reaches its peak." Eyepatch responded. "Did we really need to make a pitstop at the Shack on our way there?" "Even if it doesn't have a fraction of the power it once had." his partner remarked gazing upon Canti's head while Aiko spied on the two men without their knowledge. "Don't worry, just forget about it." Eyepatch assured him before they departed in a pickup truck carrying the Medical Machine's remains while the funeral continued on as normal. Eventually the two made it to an orbit elevator area in Portland where a doglike man waited for them. "Hey champ, you training hard for tomorrow?!" Eyepatch greeted the worker with a fistbump. "Oh you know, just trying to save my money." the other man replied. "Feel free to just head on in, warehouse should be up ahead." "Good on the money sport. It's important to make plans for the future y'know." Eyepatch complimented, which warranted a grumble from Masurao. When the worker tried to pick up Canti's head, it suddenly turned on for a split second. "Hey, watch how you're handling that thing Mutt!" Masurao ordered. "It's like, vintage!" "Yeah, this is pretty heavy. My bad." Mutt quickly apologized. "That thing's a piece of junk anyways champ. Hakuna matata as they always say!" Eyepatch casually stated which earned him an earful from his younger companion. "Are you insane?! Do you have any idea how much that-" "I totes got it sir." Mutt assured them. "You know, I had a hard time throwing away my first cellphone! Sentimental value is sometimes worth the most." "You don't understand at all!" Masurao continued shouting before the other two men laughed. -- Back at Jinyu's funeral in Gravity Falls, Arnold grimly faced the wall while Juan & Jorge tried to apologize. "Please, you gotta forgive us Arnie!" the twins cried bowing to the floor in shame. "We'll do anything to make it up to you! Would you like to come with us to that new amusement park opening up?" "I'd rather go with someone who won't deliberately leave me to die just because of their manliness obsession." Arnold glowered not ever taking his eyes off the wall. "But if we bring girls with us, we'll get a hefty discount! Like 99% I heard! Aiko asked me to come with her!" Juan tried appealing to their sullen friend, but he still received no answer even as Gwen entered the room. "Fine, be a jerkass for pretty much barely any rhyme or reason for all we care!" Suddenly, Haruko abruptly barged into the living room riding on her scooter and wearing Jinyu's shades, interrupting the funeral and enraging Stan. She slammed her hands on the coffin to speak to the audience. "So listen up everybody, cause I have an important announcement to make! Kay?" Haruko declared. "I am, um, gonna get married!" she announced switching into a wedding dress to everyone's bewildered cheering. "And everyone is invited! Yes I mean everyone!" "I congratulate you on your marriage madame, but this is a place of mourning. Please save your speech til after the wake." one of Gideon's bodyguards with long hair stated. "Do we have visual on crazy pregnant biker that just interrupted a funeral?" "Noted. Prepare for detainment." his black jerry-curled partner replied swapping the burger he was eating for a cattle prod. "Oh wait wait wait, you can't inflict violence on an expecting mother & housewife like that!" Haruko exclaimed turning into a homemaker with a creepy baby doll on her back. "Now let me tell you all the tale of how my husband and I, fell. In. Love." "So my hubby and I met at an amusement park in Portland, and I was there during sunset." the so-called mother narrated through children's crayon drawings. "Clumsy ol' me was about to get hit by a roller coaster when HE swept in to save me like I was a damsel in distress! It was MY HUBBY!" The final drawing depicted Haruko kissing a humanoid red bird which struck a chord in Gwen, as if she had seen him before. "So remember everyone, amusement parks are a paradise!" the Vespa Woman preached. "Forget this sobstory, let's go have so-" "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-RUUUUUUUUU-KOOOOOOOOOOO!" Stan screamed as loud as his nearly eight decade old lungs could cut his former friend off. "Oh hey, didn't see you there Stanley! Thought this was your funeral." Haruko remarked finally realizing who the funeral was for. "Oh, for Jinyu? You guys barely even chatted!" "Don't play coy with me Haruko! You know I'm being serious since I'm not calling you Raharu!" Stan screamed while Soos & Mabel tried to hold him back. "This will be the chapter where I'll get payback for what you've done to my family all those years ago!" "Okay I just started caring, what?" a plaid-shirted man with some grey in his brown hair & goatee asked. "The rest of you get on outta here! This is between me and her!" Stan commanded and the funeral attendees ran outside just as the coffin was opened by Sammy Determined, a tanned, geeky young man with large glasses and a beauty mark on his chin. "I've been stuck in this coffin pretending to be a dead body for like half an hour. Can I go home now?" "You're excused Sam." Stan politely accepted and Sammy raced out the door within half the blink of an eye. "Anyway, I challenge you to a little standoff sweetheart! You and me, Gravity Falls pool, be there or be half of a square!" The grunkle was just about to leave when he made a mechanical arm appear to grab Arnold. "And you're coming with me Arnold, since you're just as much of a victim here." "Help me." Arnold whimpered as he was taken outside just as Ford and Tsukata burst into the living room. "Oh lord, I'm too late!" he shouted racing around the area for any sign of his brother. "I knew this would happen, I just knew." he groaned pinching the bridge of his nose when Gwen spoke up. "What would happen Greatkle Ford?" "I just knew Raharu would purposefully cut off this funeral to get Stanley's goat." Stanford answered. "Though I'm pretty sure she's lying about being pregnant." "Hey, have you seen Dipper anywhere? Haven't seen him since you kidnapped Haruko." Mabel asked for her brother while the Vespa Woman flipped him off behind her. "We just did some digging through her mind and what we found just...broke him." Kanda answered mournfully. "Who do you think is still available right now?" "Mom and Tyrone are. They're having a mother-son day in watching bad movies." Gwen answered. "Well what are you waiting for dudette? Call 'em!" Soos urged the girl. "Hey Gwennie, wouldn't you rather go to the amusement park instead? You're the one that I wanted to go." Haruko tried to make her change her mind. "I'm not going miss." Gwen quietly said picking up her phone. "GWEN-NIE!" -- "Ha ha ha ha, now I look like an even bigger idiot!" Tyrone & Wendy monotonously cackled in unison in response to the horrible costume worn by the leading man of "Invasion of The Bear-Eating Man Family" while Tyrone knitted a new sweater for Stan. "Wow, Joel Nelson clearly had no idea what made good costuming!" he laughed. "Still slightly better than the outfit he made Michelle Hodgson wear." Wendy replied. "Or lack thereof." Just then, the phone rang. "I got it!" Tyrone shouted racing to the phone, but his mother was also focused on answering which resulted in a play-fight that her son quickly won. "Pines cabin, Tyrone speaking!" Tyrone said. "Ty, thank goodness I can reach you." Gwen sighed in relief. "Listen, has Dad come home recently?" "He's holed himself up in our room a couple minutes ago after getting a can of Willy-Nilly's Coffee beans and a knife." Wendy answered. "I'm getting really worried for him. Tyrone honey, can you go up to check on your father?" "Will do Mommy!" Tyrone accepted with a salute and merrily made his way upstairs, but his cheerfulness quickly turned into dread the further he got. When he opened the door to his parents' room, there Dipper was emptily gazing at an old Petra the Pterodactyl video while munching on raw coffee beans and squeezing a Petra plush and his son's beloved stuffed pig Waddles II in his arms. "I'm asking you for a survey Nilly, do you like Willy-Nilly's Coffee?" Dipper asked through Petra to Waddles II. "No, no I don't." Waddles II replied before Petra suddenly held a knife in its tiny three-fingered hand. "Well survey says everyone does. Because anyone who doesn't gets shanked." Petra revealed about to stab the pig before Tyrone performed a diving save on his pig. "NOOOO!" "T-T-Tyrone? What are you doing?!" Dipper shouted even more neurotically than usual. "No, I wanna know what are you doing! You tried to stab Waddles daddy!" Tyrone cried hugging his father worriedly. "I'm so sorry sport, I've just been going through some things lately." the older male responded hugging him back. "Just some...revelations making me go cuckoo for cocoa." "Like what?" his son asked. "Well for example, Raharu actually came from another dimension where she met this scientist who behaved an awful lot like Stan." Mason explained. "They went on adventures across the multiverse together, playing music and causing borderline madness. Eventually they formed a plan to steal the Pirate King Atomsk from Medical Mechanica but that went south and then everything after that was just white noise." "Wow, that sounds even cooler than what you did with her Dad!" Tyrone exclaimed in awe. "Cool, kinda. Healthy, no way in Hell." Dipper concluded putting a hand on his youngest's shoulder. "We gotta find and stop her at once. Where's your sister and cousin?" "Arnold got taken by Greatkle Stan to participate in his little feud with Haruko and I'm not sure what's up with Gwen, but I really hope everything will turn out okay!" Arnold declared with optimism, blissfully unaware of the oncoming chaos while a faint knock on the door was heard. -- "I won't let you involve my family in your schemes anymore!" Stan shouted to Haruko from the other side of the empty swimming pool. "And I don't want to be involved here!" Arnold cried begging to be let go. "Please Stan, Pacifica will kick your ass hard when she hears about this!" "Oh? You think I'm the bad guy for getting your family all tangled up in my schemes, pyon?" Haruko playfully mocked standing on the other side with her red jacket over a blue one-piece. "For a wannabe white knight, you sure are quite the hypocrite." "Arnie, bass." Stanley commanded his great-great nephew as he pushed a button on the armrest of his wheelchair that transformed it into a miniature exoskeleton to help him walk properly. "Wait, since when could you do that?!" Arnold exclaimed in shock while unveiling a certain Jazzmaster for his great-great uncle to use. "There are tons of things about my wheels that you never knew about, and some you'll never know about." Stan stated taking the guitar and slinging it over his shoulder with both hands. "Well what're you waiting for? Come at me!" "Okay. Let's do this." Haruko chummily declared just as her former friend angrily charged, but she quickly blocked the bass with just her feet. "I know you're super old, but you really got no talent nya." she groaned in disappointment. The wasp continued blocking all of Stan's attempts to land a hit and when it seemed like he was finally about to score one, instead came being kicked into the pool shed. "You learned how to fight with your back, right? Cause it seems like time has made you forget!" Stan was just about ready to surrender until he spotted Arnold nervously sitting on a deck chair and got an idea. "Tag me out kid! Tag me out!" he called for the boy while reaching out his hand. "Wait, you're serious? You want me to fight her?" Arnold said curiously. "Well, this could be a chance for me to be manly without a certain duo threatening my life." The pair high-fived and Arnold picked up the Jazzmaster to use. "I'm the boss, I'm the boss, I'm the boss, I'm the boss!" he quietly chanted to himself while charging forward and preparing a mighty swing, but Haruko then swiftly dodged it. "Whatever you wanna do blondie, you gotta do it with strength!" she announced sticking a perfect landing. Arnold however remained resolute and began muttering "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!" "This is where Stan wanted to fight Raharu!" Ford explained to Gwen & Tyrone while the three arrived at the pool but instead of seeing the other grunkle fight her, it was instead Arnold taking off his sweatervest and trying to swing again. "Use your hips, arms relaxed, chin tucked in." Haruha instructed her opponent after yet another nimble avoidance, but Arnold simply didn't listen and escaped from her grasp. "You're no good m'boy, no good at all!" "JUST STAY AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!" Arnold howled rigorously trying one last time to smack her, but was knocked down with a small tap and a declaration of "Oint." "Stan, do you have any idea what in God's name you're doing to Arnold?!" Ford hissed from the other side of the chain fence to his brother. "Don't go accusing me, the kid's just as much a victim as the rest of us!" Stan replied with a holler. "Okay, maybe I am partially to blame." "Go get'er cuz, show her what we've taught you!" Tyrone cheered for his cousin before he suddenly realized that he cheered a bit too late. "Oh right, you're down for the count. Sorry!" "If strength was measured by the hits one took, then you wouldn't be considered such a loser." Haruko said to Arnold while her bracelet began tingling once again. "To be honest, I thought you'd be better given your heritage. That's why you were taught all those things, to increase your manliness I heard. But I guess all those were for nothing because you know just about as much." As Gwen watched, something in her began trembling and her hat glowed faintly. "That's where you're wrong Raharu. You don't know anything either." Arnold argued bravely to her confusion. "The truth is, I'm completely unsatisfied!" This angered Haruko before she decided to remove her jacket right on top of the boy, which finally made Gwen go berserk. The force given off by her beanie blasted the door away and rapidly sucked Arnold inside her head. "Wait, what's going on!?" "He was right. Pacifica's gonna put all of us in the morgue." Stan regarded fearfully realizing his huge mistake when the absorption concluded leaving everyone shocked. All that was left was a bizarre black cutout with Arnold's Northwest ring on the finger. "Uh, my bad! Things will probably get worse than usual this time around." Haruko sheepishly apologized before mounting on her Vespa and preparing to take off. "I'll be waiting. She zoomed off leaving the four Pines and what was left of Arnold at the pool. "Hey, get back here you bitchy bassist! We still haven't settled our score yet!" Stan cursed angrily shaking his fists at the clouds. Gwen in comparison was utterly heartbroken by what she did to her cousin. "Oh I am so sorry about what happened to Arnold little lady." Ford said trying to comfort her. "You know, this reminds me of my Backupsmore days. Our school just won a cross-country event and we decided to celebrate by tearing everything apart. You should've seen the pool! They flipped the bitch!" "Where were you during that time?" Tyrone asked. "My roommate and I didn't want to take any part in the riot for safety reasons, so we went out for Italian." his genius great-grunkle answered. "I only wanted to lighten the mood after what happened just now, but I'm not sure how it'll work." -- Across town, business was booming at the amusement park with dozens of excited visitors of all ages stampeding through the entrance, most of them being couples. The Ramirez children were among these couples most notably Leia & Ezra, leaving Ian to watch over Juan, Jorge and Abby. "Does anyone have an idea on where Imelda is?" Ian asked his younger siblings while taking a bite out of some confectionery treats from the food stands. "She said that she got a part-time job here but hasn't come back." "While I'm just as concerned for Mel, all I want to know is WHERE IS AIKO?!" Juan cried out furiously typing on his phone. Elsewhere in the park, Tonkichi quietly observed two men fighting for the love of a girl and accidentally getting caught in each other before a red force took over their heads. "Excuse me sir, how much longer will this test ride go on?" Imelda asked Tonkichi. "Oh not too much longer." the theme park owner assured the seven-year-old. "All you gotta do is just stay right there my girl." As for Masurao, he was currently examining the park's webpage with Eyepatch. "Wait, hold on. Not that one." his senior citizen superior stated. "What? I thought it was Mr. Dodo." Masurao replied. "Don't you forget that we're dealing with super top secret stuff here, so that means we must activate the hidden communication mode." Eyepatch advised the younger male. "Go to the shopping section and push the little kiwi strap." "Which one?" Masurao exclaimed trying to find that strap. "The fluffy one right down there." On Eyepatch's commands, Masurao clicked on the image of a kiwi that led the two to a dining menu page. "Are you sure? The link went to a menu." he muttered in confusion. "Now just push She's So Chicky Wings." When he clicked on the menu item, it then guided to an article on one of the rides. "The Icarus Fall is the world's third-fastest falling ride?" "Wait wait wait, go back up!" Eyepatch shouted. "That's gotta be it, the falling one!" he added excitedly. "Uh, they're all falling." Masurao responded not knowing what his boss just said. "The one with the little emu!" "But which one?" "The one with the fluffy wings!" "You have to be more specific!" "THERE!" With a smack of his cane, Eyepatch made Masurao tap the emu which made Tonkichi appear on a video screen in his dodo costume. "Hello there, it's Mr. Dodo!" he merrily greeted them. "It's me." Masurao stoically greeted. "Don't be so sorry. Sometimes a kid will come calling me." the receiver grimly replied when another child greeted him. "Hi Mr. Dodo!" "Hey kid!" Tonkichi waved his wing at the passing child before returning to his teammates. "And any updates from Kanda?" "Nothing yet, though he has promised." Masurao answered. "But we did see the recently installed viking ship. We'll also have to deal with Immigration matters, but I don't want to rush you too much." "And what of the flower pot? Is it complete yet?" Tonkichi continued asking. "Uh sure. It can be activated at any time." Masurao muttered nervously. "The plant is online, alright!" Eyepatch declared, but their partner was too busy trying to greet a pair of girls who didn't want to be near him. "Can you please focus on your real job and see the data I sent you?" the younger redhead groaned incredulously. "This is a real job too!" Tonkichi argued. "Don't you know that this park helps fun-" "Do you think we can make do without that pot?" Eyepatch asked his colleague as the latter closed the video on Tonkichi and Aiko overheard their conversation. "I doubt it." Masurao groaned in defeat. "If you can't activate the flower pot, any backup plans we come up with will be useless!" "Shut up, I know that!" Aiko's father exclaimed while his daughter went upstairs to look for money she made off her dating service in a jack-o-lantern situated in her closet. "Aiko." Masurao called for his daughter while she frantically closed the closet door. "What is it?" the girl asked and her dad just looked down for a moment. -- "So which one of us do you think Pacifica will kill first?" Stan asked while Tyrone helped put his wheelchair back together, Gwen examined the balloon that was once her cousin and Ford collected some leftover pool water that he put into a beaker. "Personally, I'm betting on you poindexter since you started all this by bringing Gwen here." "I started this?!" Ford shouted angrily. "You're the one who's fostered this animosity with Raharu for literally twenty years ever since she first left us!" Still fuming, the scientist examined the beaker he had just used along with four others containing radioactive waste, soy sauce, machine oil and a strand of pink hair. "And what are you up to?" Stan asked gazing at the beakers. "Just been experimenting on some substances to make a superhuman formula. Just got some pool water from here, soy sauce from Little Asia, radioactive sludge from Scuttlebutt Island, machine oil and some of Raharu's hair." "How is that going to do anything of substance you nerd?" Stanley hissed. "Well, other than probably give you a killer stomachache." "It's still highly experimental brother, so maybe there is a chance of a killer stomachache." Stanford agreed before the two great-grunkles gazed at Gwen holding the balloon in her arms. "S-so thirsty." a familiar voice croaked through Arnold's ring. "W-water." "Great Caesar's ghost, he's alive!" Tyrone exclaimed while his big sister took the balloon to the pool showers. "Hey, put on a smile sis! Arnold's still out there!" he tried to cheer her up when the showers seemingly activated on command. "I don't want to remember what happened this morning." Gwen monologued reminiscing to earlier that day in manga form. -- "Oh good morning Gwennie!" Wendy greeted her daughter coming down the stairs. "Check it out, Jinyu left us so many clean & unbroken plates." Gwen however wasn't interested. "Something the matter my little pecan pie?" her mother asked. "I'm just back to my normal self, that's all." "No, you seem eerily different." Wendy said concernedly just as her daughter stepped outside and she realized something. "I've...changed?" Gwen stuttered going back inside to find her mom packing some small boxes. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Just...have fun at the Shack little dude. And tell Stan I send my condolences." Wendy said trying to dodge the question. "And also tell Arnold his aunt says hey!" "Seriously mom, why are you packing? Are we going to move?!" Gwen shouted suddenly getting angry. "I thought Dad wanted to stay here to catalogue all the weird crap going on here and hang with Aunt Mabel!" Wendy frowned to herself over her daughter's feelings before turning back to her. "I think it's time we try something different. Y'know, I always wanted to live in Portland." That was when Gwen's beanie beeping began to coincide with her bursting into tears. -- Returning to the present, the shower stopped and the balloon began to inflate in Gwen's arms. "Hey, is this about losing Jinyu, Greatkle Stan getting mad at Haruko, or losing Arnold?" Tyrone tried to console the older girl. "I'm here for you if you wanna shoulder to cry on." The balloon reached its maximum size and drifted to the ceiling above the kids. Taking a poolstick, Gwen grabbed it and took it outside where it was properly able to ascend. And then, as her beanie began blinking once again, she made a miniature crater beneath her feet which horrified her present family. "Find, the others, now." Ford muttered. -- "Hi, I'm Mr. Dodo!" Tonkichi greeted the happy couples in his mascot costume, but none were paying attention. "Looks like everyone's having a great time, am I right? Hey! Boys and girls!" he exclaimed while a group of employees armed with firearms assembled behind him. "You're all just little brats who still don't have all your hair down there! Sorry, but you're all pretty much useless!" The employees then aimed their weapons at the unknowing parkgoers on command. "FIRE!" Tonkichi ordered. "Sorry, wrong voice." he realized clearing his throat and switching to a deeper voice. "FIRE!" The weapons launched a series of red beams that tagged everyone and making the same red force appear in their heads. "THIS IS WHY I DON'T TRUST THEME PARKS!" Ezra screamed in pain as he and Leia became victims as well. "If I don't make it out of here alive, I want you to know Leia that I really do love you, and I'm basically a tsundere!" "Ha, called it!" Leia chuckled before she went back to screaming and gazed terrified at her brother. "Ian, get the kids away and we'll all catch up later! You four are the only single ones here!" she shouted to Ian. "Right! Juan, Jorge, Abby, come with me!" "But where do we find them? Where do we find Mommy and Daddy?!" Abby cried as Jorge took her arm. "Not sure, but they're probably just as lost as all the other couples here are!" Juan exclaimed racing off. The energy collected from the visitors soon filled up all the big rides at the park and caused them to lift themselves out of their supports. "They started already?!" Masurao shouted watching the chaos from afar. "I have to warn the Pines." Tsukata declared gazing through his binoculars. The attractions gathered around the big castle at the center, including the viking ship that Imelda was trapped on, and formed into a giant robot. "Captain, I don't think we'll make it!" one of the employees shouted. "We've got to do it! No matter the cost, we'll show them all!" Tonkichi declared bravely as the castle bot faced the upright Medical Mechanica iron. "They may smooth out our brains, but they'll never smooth out our freedom! START THE ATTAAAAACK!" The castle robot launched everything it got at the giant iron, but nothing worked and the factory in turn blasted a giant laser that instantly burnt the opposing machine to cinders. -- Far above Earth, Arnold's inflated husk drifted out of the atmosphere and towards an Immigration Control Center satellite storing lost items. A mechanical hand snatched the balloon and tossed it down the chute to be scanned & later dumped into the old Gravity Falls junkyard which attracted the attention of a familiar-looking robot dog. "Well I'll be. Aren't you just the cutest little thing?" Older Man McGucket greeted the little mutt. "Hey I know you! You're that spindly johnny who followed the kids around!" The genius hillbilly scooped up some of the trash from the box it was dumped in, including Arnold's remains, and put it in a dog bowl for the canine machine to eat. "Eat up now little feller!" -- Back at the amusement park, Haruko was spectating the whole battle when she felt her stomach return to its normal size. "So they're still doin' it, huh?" she mumbled getting back to her entertainment when she saw a few familiar faces. "For the record, we already knew something was up long before you warned us!" Ford shouted to Kanda when he spotted Haruko. "Raharu! Can't believe I'm saying this, but we got a problem!" Along with the Stans, Tyrone, Dipper, Mabel, Wendy, Ian, Leia, Juan & Jorge, Abby, Ezra, Soos, Melody, a very angry Pacifica preparing to use a broken bottle as a shiv and Kanda was a now cybernetic Gwen glaring furiously at the Vespa Woman. "Lookin' good Gwennie!" Haruko complimented with a wolf whistle and a nosebleed. "You're really killing it!" Gwen didn't reply with her words, but instead with a gold battering ram launching from her robot arm. "Just so we can all reach a compromise, all of you are to blame for this!" Pacifica shouted tranquilly. "Whoa, hold on all y'all!" Haruko exclaimed avoiding the younger girl by jumping on the roller coaster tracks. "Stop it, I didn't do nothing wrong!" "BULL-FUDGING-SHIT RAHARU!" Stan cursed as Gwen followed his former partner preparing to use the other Mustang to help his great-great niece. "All I did was give you all a little nudge, reignited some old passions, helped you with your dreams, s'all!" "Give him back! Give Arnold back!" Gwen screamed continuously attempting to hit her. "Wah-ho! Guess the Pines still have quite a lot of fight in them!" Haruko exclaimed before she found Dipper, Mabel and Pacifica right behind her. "Give me back my son or else." Pacifica hissed arming herself with Jinyu's Jazzmaster. Before anyone of them could fight, Haruhara surfed away further up the coaster rails. "In the end, you're no different from the rest of us!" Gwen snarled leaping away from her family to give pursuit. "It's all because you're in love with that weird bird, right? You're just another girl stupidly in love!" "See, like I kept telling you Raharu! You can't force someone to love you!" Dipper agreed with his daughter. "Oh quit parroting Mason or I'll shove crackers down your throat to shut you up!" Haruko shouted to the Pines father before she noticed her bracelet starting to react to something amiss. "Huh?" "Uh, dudes!" Soos exclaimed gazing up at the reddening sky. "Is the multiverse going all kaput or am I thinking of some other cataclysmic event?" he asked cuing the others to look up as well. "No. Way." Ford & Kanda boomed in shock. Soon everybody important to the story gazed up at the sky and Haruko realized just who it was. "It's Atomsk." -- AT LAST, IT IS DONE! I started kinda late on this chapter, but it was all worth it to finally beat my deadline. What will become of the Pines family and friends? Will Haruko finally control Atomsk? Why does McGucket recognize that oddly familiar dog? Join us next time for the final chapter of Fooly Falls 2: Ride on Shooting Star and be sure to read my other works for more!

[kewltie]

“It’s still not too late to make a run for it,” Heechul suggest slyly, his elbows resting on the table because he has absolutely no manners.

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that and elbows off the table, please. How many times have Lady Haine had to yell at us about that already,” Donghae says snidely. He doesn’t have the time to entertain any of Heechul’s silly ideas, not anymore anyway, instead, he looks out toward the sky garden—lushes green, hanging waterfalls, and an endless stretch of blue that opens up above them. It’s a picture of serenity and quiet beauty painted with an array of sweeping colors from flowers at bloom.

If Donghae can ignore the shadow of Serpentine guards close by keeping an eye on him, one part deterrence and the other his jailer, it’s almost perfect.

Heechul scowls but removes his elbows from the table anyway because even when their wetnurse is currently buried seven feet under in Terra, the fear she had instilled in their younger selves is good enough for Heechul to complied even now.

Donghae lets the silent settle comfortably between them once more, they had known each other too long to have the need for words to bound them together, contents to relish this rare peaceful moment while they still have it with each other. Heechul’s presence here in Donghae’s wedding party is unnecessary; he isn’t Jeongsu who is master of diplomacy and negotiating or Kangin whose skilled on the battlefield will assure Donghae’s safety and that the wedding will go on unscathed but Donghae is quietly pleased that his cousin is here all the same. 

Let Jeongsu and the rest of the Avian’s council work out the diplomacy of having to arrange a hotly controversial marriage, while Donghae and Heechul enjoy this beautiful view out here without any of the thinly disguise politic hovering over them.

A gush of wind blows past time, ruffling Heechul’s hair and causing Donghae to shiver. Despite the beginning of spring’s spirited step into the region, the open air is cool and biting up here on Orion forcing Donghae to pulls his winter cloak closer. Heechul, annoyingly, remains unbothered as he pats his hair down again despite the natural inclination of their race toward heat and warmer weather.

Everything is different here in Orion, from the strange weather and stranger creatures that inhabit this space that Donghae is supposed to call home. He doesn’t know if he can get used to it, to look up and see the sun or moon above them, to plant his feet on the soil and know that this piece of land isn't anchored to the earth, and to look upon one of the shadows and see distinctly human figures with giant wingspan upon it. All of this while Donghae is several hundred miles above ground.

But even higher still, massive flying behemoths circle the floating islands that made up the Sky City of Orion—the living heart of the mighty and fierce Avian’s kingdom.

Donghae had only seen the legendary city in the old pages of history books and tall tales told to children to warn them to behave. “Be good my dear or a winged beast will swoop out of the sky and take you to their holy city where you will never be seen again,” Lady Haine said to the five years old Donghae, who looked so horrified by the thought of that he’d made sure to eat all his greens for that week.

Orion is a part myth and a cautionary tale, a paradise made by the terrors of the sky. But for all its beauty and allure, when Donghae close his eyes he sees the dim figure of a city cloaked in darkness and build in the belly of the earth.

Terra stands in stark contrast to Orion with it stone pillars that hold up the earthy roof over their head, the underground lake and rivers that are the lifeblood of their city, and their only form of light comes from the artificial fuse created by thousands of lamps that line their city and the living light gave off by the luminescence bugs. Terra is dark and grainy but life flourishes unrestrainedly and it is home to Donghae; he will miss it dearly.

Heechul suddenly perks up, eyes alight with another idea and Donghae knows he is already dreading what comes next. “We can steal one of their cute flying rodents—”

“They're called aroo and they’re not meant to ride on,” Donghae corrects because the journey to Orion took four and a half days even by the standard of their fastest komodos so he had plenty of free time to waste. Jeongsu had prepared a stack of books on Avian’s lore and customs for Donghae to read lest he offend his new in-laws by blinking or smile the wrong way but it was the long hours and idle curiosity that eventually led him to devour all the books he had in his possession.

“Whatever,” Heechul says, rolling his eyes. “If we leave now we can make it to the closest human town before sundown.”

“And what’s going to happen to the wedding then?” Donghae asks, deciding to humor Heechul’s madness this time around. “Who is going to replace me? Because Kangin is not going to be pleased if he has to chase us down the night before my wedding.”

Heechul hums thoughtfully. “We can offer up Kyuhyun instead,” he suggests, face completely serious.

Donghae raises a brow. “You think Kyuhyun will readily accept marriage to a stranger and live among a group of people we have hated and been at war with for over several hundred years? Nobody in their right mind would do it.” 

“Well,” Heechul says, stretching out the vowel pointedly as he stares at Donghae, “don’t we have one right here who did?”

Donghae makes a face. “I’m just finishing what Donghwa started. He’d always wanted to see this war come to an end and now that we have it, I want to cement that goodwill between our two races.”

Heechul slam one of his palms against the table harshly because he clearly hasn’t outgrown his dramatic flair since they were children. “It doesn’t mean you have to marry him!” he hisses. The glamor on his face breaks with his emotional outburst and sleek black scales appears around the corner of his left eye and stretches down to his cheekbone.

Donghae pointedly taps at his cheek to clue Heechul in and it takes a couple of seconds for Heechul to regain his composure again and for his scales retreat and human skin once more take over. He at least has the grace to look chagrin about having slipped his fine control and fall upon such animalistic instinct; they’re not like Avians who gave into their beastly side and shamelessly untethered their wings, showing exactly how different the two race view the other side of their humanity. More beast than human so are the Avian but the Serpentine hadn’t come this far to go backward. They cling to every visage of their human self because the Avian can sweep their wings across the sky and others would turn their eyes to it and call it beautiful but a glimpse of a Serpentine’s scale is akin to a demon.

Heechul mustn’t forget that and neither can Donghae.

Heechul coughs awkwardly. “Thank you,” he says, scrunching his nose and before Donghae can open his mouth and reply, Heechul plows through any further interruption and continues his lecture. “Anyway, he had terrorized our army for five years and kept Kangin and the Dragoons on edge and so paranoid that they only spoke his name in hush whispers and dying prayers. Donghwa was the only one who managed to keep him in check all these years but,” Heechul pauses, casting a keen look at Donghae, who now had carefully don a blank expression over his face to not give away any of his true feelings on the matter, “since he no longer here we were afraid he was going to finally make his way to Terra and raze it to the ground. Instead, he’d chosen to let the centuries-old grudge and infighting be buried and peace is now within our grasp. The King and Elders are all too happy to eat up this peace treaty knowing if they continue with the war we’re only going to lose but I don’t buy it for a second. It’s too easy, there must be more to this.”

“I think,” Donghae says slowly as though he is speaking to a small child, “after several centuries of war and seeing the people you love die in a conflict that you didn’t even start but you inherited from past generations, I would be tired of it as much as anyone and any mean to end a war that had plagued our people for so long is a small price to pay for everlasting peace. I know it may seem bizarre to you right now, even I can’t fathom the stalemate that we have, but quite frankly you worry too much. Everything is going to be fine.”

“Of course I can’t help but worry, you ignorant brat!” Heechul says viciously, nearly jumping out of his seat but the words that come out are lace with familial concern. “In what world is it sane and normal to see your favorite cousin is marrying the man who killed his brother?! That shouldn’t be a prerequisite for peace!”

Donghae’s eyes light up as the corner of his mouth twitch. “I’m your favorite?” he asks.

“You knew that already,” Heechul snaps but his anger is already deflating as he settles back down in his chair.

Donghae really did, but, “It’s nice to hear a verbal confirmation anyway,” he says, tucking a small smile between the pressed of his lips. Donghae was practically raised by his wetnurse and Donghwa when their parents died in another Avian’s raid, but Heechul was a strong presence in his childhood memories growing up. He was always there like an overgrown fungus but as much as Donghwa had held up Donghae’s world, Heechul had shaped it greatly. He is one of the few people Donghae will miss with an aching clarity when this is all said and done with.

Heechul sighs, sinking further down into his seat. “Tell me you want really want this. Tell me you’re not doing this to further your own agenda,” he says, and it almost sounds like a plead at this point. The crack of his cool armor reveals itself to Donghae. “And most importantly, please tell me you’re not going to do anything stupid.”

Donghae blows out a heavy breath. “I won’t,” he insists.

Heechul gives Donghae a considering look, scrutinizing every movement he makes and every facial expression he wears as though he can reach out and rip Donghae’s mask off and see through all the lies and plans he has been hiding. If it was anyone else Donghae wouldn’t be afraid and let them really look because Donghae’s secret is locked and stowed away deep within his ironclad heart. The only person who had the key to it is dead. Nobody can read him, nobody can touch him now but Heechul knows him.

Heechul knows him well, a little too well and he must not have forgotten the early months of Donghwa’s death when Donghae had locked himself in Donghwa’s room for days on end and refused to come out for nothing and nobody. Despair and anger had been his sole companions those two months as he was swept up in the grief for the beloved brother he had lost. He had cried and cried, cursed the name of the man who had taken his brother from him and sworn vengeance until his throat gave out.

Heechul had seen it all. He’d saw Donghae at his lowest point when hatred had burned itself deep in his heart because as a much love and entitled child of the Serpentine Royal Family, Donghae’s love is a heavy thing and Donghwa carried it effortlessly. Having lost his parents at young age, Donghwa had been Donghae’s everything. His parent, his brother, and his best friend all wrapped up in one singular being and Donghae knew love as it existed in a person and not within his heart. And in turn, Donghwa had spoiled him religiously and gave him everything he wanted and wish for.

For all the moment since Donghae has been alive, Donghwa had been with him every step and every breath. He had never known what it's like to exist without Donghwa by his side until now and as he found out it was a lonely and empty existence. 

He’d eventually come out of his catatonic state of mourning just in time for the King to select someone to consolidate the peace between their two kingdoms by marrying off one of their own to the Great Hero of Avian-Serpentine War, Lee Hyukjae. Donghae was the first to volunteer himself for the marriage much to the surprise and delight of everyone involved.

The spoiled and much useless nephew of the King had finally grown up and was now ready to fulfill his duty to his people and kingdom with a subdued maturity and a willingness to see peace bear fruit between two enemies. But the hatred wasn’t gone completely, it was only honed and sharpened as a blade that will bring Lee Hyukjae closer to Donghae.  

“I wouldn’t dare to jeopardize our hard-won peace for something as selfish and petty as revenge,” Donghae says solemnly, painting a carefully hurt and weary expression on his face as he wring his hands under the table. “I thought I have shown you and the Council these past few months that I have matured and outgrew my childish anger. I know Donghwa wouldn’t like to see me obsessing over his death so all I want to do now is to fulfill Donghwa’s last wish for peace and let his death be the beginning of something new and good for us all.”

Donghae had practiced his speech many, many times over the last few days but going up against Heechul’s keen eyes won’t be easy.

Heechul is silent and for once the silence between them is agonizing and suffocating as Donghe waits to be judged, then finally a drawn-out sigh leave Heechul’s lips and Donghae knows he had won the battle. “At least make sure to come back and visit us sometimes,” Heechul says, a tender and sad smile makes its way to his face. “Donghwa may be gone now but no matter where you are, you are always a Serpentine and a part of the royal family. You are always welcome in Terra.”

“I know and I’ll definitely come back to Terra one day,” Donghae says, and it’s another lie added to the larger pile still that Donghae had collected ever since he stepped out of his room, walked straight toward his uncle, and said, “I want peace.”

If it all goes well as planned then this will be the last time he’ll share the same space with Heechul before tomorrow night because since the moment Donghae had agreed to marry Lee Hyukjae, he knew it won’t ever stepped back to his home soil again. Even his family can’t save him from his crime of treason against the kingdom.

“Tomorrow will be a memorable day for us all,” he says, thinking of Lee Hyukjae and the dagger tucked deep in his wardrobe chest that he had taken from his family treasury; it’s a family heirloom that had passed down from generation to generation as a protection charm but this time Donghae will use it for another purpose.

On his wedding night, Donghae will betray Donghwa’s greatest wish and shattered the fragile peace that they all had been fervently wishing for in order to avenge his brother murder. He won’t ask for forgiveness because knows it’s too heinous of a crime to ever hope to be forgiven for but at least he hopes Donghwa will accept this final last selfish act of his willful younger brother.

[returntothefalls]

IQ-tie (preview)

Preview excerpt from Chapter 3 of Return to the Falls, a Gravity Falls fanfiction

Here’s the preview I promised for the anniversary!  Hope it hypes you all up for what’s to come!

Gravity Falls came to life with the lavender light of the dawn.  The birds were the first to stir, flitting out from their nests in search of the early worms and rousing the rest of the land with their cheery song.  Once the birds were on the wing, it wasn’t long until the rest of the town’s inhabitants followed suit.  Manly Dan rose with the sun and marched into the woods with his boys in tow, axes in hand and ready for another day of chopping wood.  Shandra Jimenez downed the last swallows of her espresso as the camera began rolling for the morning news while Toby Determined slept face first on the desk beside her.  Sheriff Blubs and Deputy Durland hit the streets in their patrol car, loaded up with enough coffee and sugary cereal to power them until their afternoon energy crash and subsequent power nap.  Business carried on as usual.  One could almost forget that the town had been besieged by rampaging vines just the previous evening.  Even the Mystery Shack, nearest the epicenter of the attack, enjoyed a morning of restful peace – for a certain value of the word.

“Sassafras is correct! That’s seven points for Dipper and one point for Mabel.”

Mabel stomped her foot in disappointment as Soos and Dipper high-fived.  Two bowls of soggy Trivi-o’s sat ignored on the table; the children had more pressing matters at hand.  Abuelita insisted on buying the allegedly-educational cereal for Soos – “brain food, mijo” – and although the cereal itself tasted suspiciously like dog food, the quiz on the back of the box at least brought a competitive flair to breakfast.

“Next question,” Soos said, squinting at the box.  “What valuable blue mineral is found in the American Southwest?”

Dipper’s raised his hand immediately.  “Turquoise!”

“Correct again, dude!” Soos said.  “I would have guessed rock candy.”

Mabel hunched forward in her chair, mouth set in a determined line.  “Watch out, boys, this next one has Mabel written all over it!”

“Last question of the box,” Soos said.  “So this one’s for all the marbles.”  Dipper and Mabel sat at the edge of their seats, their bodies tensed.  “The mythological sphinx has the face of a woman and the body of a what?”

Mabel’s hand shot up a split second after Dipper’s.  “Lion!” he said.

“Correct!” Soos said. “We’ve got a new champion of Turbo Lightning Breakfast Trivia!”  Dipper laughed and jumped out of his chair, pumping his fists.  Soos gave him a fist bump, complete with dramatic explosion sound effect.

“Aww come on!” Mabel said, crossing her arms sulkily and sinking back in her chair.  “I knew that one too!  Dipper was just faster.”

“Don’t sweat it, Mabel,” Dipper said, still grinning.  “It’s just a game.  A game I won!”  He high-fived Soos again.

“You know the nice thing about livin’ on a boat?  You don’t wake up to a house of screamin’ kids.  Screamin’ seagulls, maybe, but I can fry those up for lunch.”

Stan hobbled into the kitchen, looking rather sore and groggy – in other words, he was his usual grunkley self.  His red stocking hat was now adorned with the familiar golden symbol from his old fez, which Mabel had sewn on the night before.  Without hesitation, he picked up a bowl from the table and swallowed a spoonful of pasty cereal mush.

“Sorry, Grunkle Stan,” Dipper said.  “Trivia gets me excited.  Especially winning.”

“I knew a bunch of the answers too,” Mabel said indignantly.

Stan patted Mabel on the head.  “Don’t worry about it, sweetie,” he said.  “I know what it’s like havin’ to put up with the smart twin.”

Mabel frowned.  “You think Dipper is the smart twin?”

“Well yeah, of course,” Stan said.  “But that’s alright.  Maybe he’s the smart twin, but you’re the fun twin!  A real chip off your ole Grunkle Stan!”  He winked.

Mabel gave a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.  “Thanks, Grunkle Stan,” she said.  “Trivia isn’t exactly the Mabel Pines specialty anyway.”  

“Now what are you all standing around for?” Stan said.  “In case you forgot, a demonic salad monster took the world’s most destructive Shack tour last night.  We’ve got a lot of work to do!”

“Soos is keeping the Shack closed today,” Dipper said.  “We thought it would be nice to take some time to relax this morning.  I mean, I did get briefly swallowed by a plant yesterday. Doesn’t that earn me some down time?”

“No,” Stan said.  “I don’t care if this place is under new management, I’m not gonna stand to see the Shack left like this.  So let’s work hard to upgrade her condition from ‘miserable’ to ‘quaintly pitiful!’  Who’s with me?”  He was met with unenthused mutterings from Dipper and Mabel and a genuine hoorah from Soos.  “Good! Now someone go find my nerd brother, tell Corduroy to get her butt over here, and we’ll get this done together!”

Stan turned and left the room with Soos close behind, chattering about how happy he was to be fixing up the Shack with Stan again.  Dipper turned to Mabel and shrugged.  “Guess there are worse ways to spend the morning,” he said.  He carried his still-full bowl to the sink, cringing as he watched the wet cereal clumps swirl down the drain.

Mabel started to follow Dipper out of the room, but the Trivi-o’s box on the counter caught her eye. “Hey Dipper, hang on a sec.” Dipper looked back at her inquisitively and she paused a moment before continuing.  “Do you think of yourself as the smart twin?”

Dipper’s expression was instantly apologetic.  “Mabel, don’t take that to heart, Stan didn’t mean anything by it.”

“But it’s true, right?” Mabel said.  “You’re the guy everyone goes to for help with homework, or for advice on monster hunting, or anything like that.”

“Yeah, and you’re the girl people go to for everything else,” Dipper said.  “It doesn’t matter what anyone thinks about your smarts, they love you for you!”  He smiled. “Stan’s right about you being the fun twin.  That’s something to be proud of!”

Mabel nodded.  “I am happy that people think of me as a hip-hop-happenin’ girl, but I wish they would see me as both fun and smart.”

“For what it’s worth, I think you’re both fun and smart,” Dipper said.

“Thanks, Dip,” Mabel said, putting a hand on his shoulder.  “But you’re my bro, you have to say that.”

“Doesn’t make it any less true,” Dipper said.  “Now come on, we’d better get to work before Stan chews us out.”

“Hopefully it won’t take long,” Mabel said.  “The Shack can’t be in that bad a shape, can it?”

There was a loud knock at the back door, followed by a muffled crack.  A second later, the “S” from the Shack’s sign tumbled to the ground outside the window.

Stan walked into the kitchen, glanced out the window, and sighed.  “I’m gettin’ too old for this.”

“Mr. Pines?”  Soos’s voice called from the entry room. “There’s a nice lady here asking for you.”

Stan immediately straightened up, the corners of his mouth twisting in a sly smile.  “A woman in Gravity Falls who wants to see me? That’s a new one.”  He looked down at himself.  His once-white tanktop was stained yellow with sweat and various food smears, his boxers were tattered and threatened to fall apart at any moment, and a mysterious pulsating fungus coated the exterior of his slippers.  He turned to the kids.  “How do I look?”

Mabel waved her hand in a “so-so” gesture and Dipper simply shook his head.

“Great!” Stan said.  “Watch and learn, kiddos, this is how you charm a lady.”

Chest puffed out with confidence, Stan stepped into the entry room.  He opened his mouth to speak, but as his eyes settled on the visitor, all words froze in his throat.  Every trace of his bluster deflated in an instant.

Dipper and Mabel hurried after him, driven by concern and curiosity in equal measure.  The old woman standing in the doorway was unfamiliar to them, yet the dramatic impact she’d made on Stan was unmistakable.

Mabel poked Stan’s side, but he didn’t respond.  “He’s speechless,” Dipper said.  “Never thought I’d see the day.”

The woman gave a small wave and an even smaller smile.  “Hello, Stanley.”

Finally, Stan croaked out a strained reply.  “Hiya, Hotpants.”

Carla laughed.  “Can I come in?” she asked, grinning sheepishly. “I’ve got a lot of explaining to do.”

[accio-ambition]

Who’s in the mood to meet some fishermen? Anybody get seasick? I’d suggest getting off this ship now. It’s only going to get more intense from here.

As always, a million and seven thank yous to @sotheylived for betaing this story, @shipsxahoy for the lovely cover art, and @queen-icicle-fandom for the hand-drawn art. (Go give them some love. Follow them, they’re great people, scouts’ honor.)

Summary: Bouncing around with her son for the majority of her life, Emma Swan has told herself she’s happy in the city. It’s where the most camera operating jobs are, and that’s how she makes her money. But when an old friend calls her and asks for her help on a new project in small town Maine, Emma finds herself in a place she’s never been with people she doesn’t know filming a profession she knows nothing about. But when the captain of the ship she’s filming begins taking a keen interest in her and her life, she finds herself wondering whether she might just catch something other than fish. Deadliest Catch AU Rating: M Content warning: Character death, some violent situations

FFnet/AO3/Cover art/Snapshot art

Chapter Five

It’s early in the morning, and far too chilly to be late June. Her research did say that the weather would be cooler, but this? It’s like 60 degrees, if that. Last week saw record-breaking heat and now it’s freezing at the end of June. Stepping through the dewy grass gets her toes wet in her sandals and soaks the bottom of her jeans, making her even colder than she should be.

Right now, Maine is not at all the smartest move she’s made.

Jefferson, being the one to orchestrate this show – this entire ordeal really – leads them toward the water. He chatters away in the manner of nonsense, like he tends to do. Even when she first knew him, Emma thought he was mad as a hatter, or at least sometimes as creative as one.

At their dinner on Friday evening, in which she and David signed contracts that promised them exorbitant amounts of money, and while Grace and Henry chased each other around yard, Jeff explained to Emma and David that he’d managed to set up a bit of time with the crews of the trawling business so they could all get to know each other. The more Jefferson talks about it, the more Emma feels like she’s being prepped for the first day at a new school. She’s walking into this group of people who have known and worked together for who knows how long and here she is, the new girl in a man’s world.

Needless to say, her stomach gurgles with nerves.

Jefferson’s leading them toward a huge group of people all hanging about by the edge of the water. Even from afar, she can tell the group consists of men. Baggy jeans, flannels, combat boots. If they weren’t by the water, Emma would think she’s intruded on a lumberjack convention.

Leaning toward David, Emma asks, “What is with all the flannels? Do they know it’s June?”

David looks over at her with a smirk. “Says the girl wearing a sweatshirt.”

Emma shrugs. “What? It’s windy,” she retorts. David sends her a side-eye of knowing deflection that makes her blush. Arms crossed over her chest to keep warm, she can’t help the slight blush that washes her cheeks.

“It’s alright, Em,” he says, knocking into her side gently. “I know how guys somehow fluster you.”

She scoffs. “Please. Nothing flusters me.”

Jefferson comes to a stop at the backs of the crowd, and Emma and David halt behind him. He claps his hands to get the attention of the group. This is where Emma corrects herself: the flannel-clad group is made of mostly men, with one woman.

Girl power, she thinks. Way to represent.

“Alright, crew,” Jefferson says loud and clear, in his usual dramatic flair. “These are the two folks who are going to be operating the cameras on your ships.” He gestures toward her and David with open palms. She scowls while David, on the other hand, gives a small wave. “At some point in the near future, I’d really appreciate if you took these two landlubbers on board and taught them the ropes a little bit.”

There’s an uncommitted hum of agreement and understanding from the sailors. Jefferson spins around, his coattails flying behind him, to address her and David. “You camera folks, I want you to look for some places you’d think make for good mounted cameras. Think the corners of roofs, break rooms, whatever.”

“Of course,” Emma says simultaneously with David’s much more casual “Yeah, no problem.”

Jeff sends them a slightly crazed smile and a thumbs up before turning back to the crews. “Okay, why don’t you kids split off into your crews,” he says. Over his shoulder, he continues, “Mr. Nolan, you’ll be with the Jewel of the Realm. It’s the bigger of the two boats and your captain runs the family business. Em, you’re with the Jolly Roger.”

She can’t help but roll her eyes. “Really? Like the pirate ship?” It would figure: Henry mentions piracy, calls their move Operation Pirate. This is really too much.

With a shrug, Jefferson says, “I ask not where inspiration comes from or when it hits.” And with a flick of his hands, he starts walking back toward town. It seems that she’s been dismissed.

While David is already laughing it up with the larger of the two breakout groups, Emma strolls up to the smaller group. There’s four men: two with scruff, one with strikingly blond hair, and one whose attitude rolls off him in waves. She’s not intimidated by them, but she’s jealous of David. At least if she was assigned to the larger boat, the woman would be there, just so she’d have someone to talk to. Maybe. At least she would have a better chance of understanding where Emma was coming from.

But no, she’s got to babysit four grown men who probably act like teenagers. Especially that moody one. God, if Henry is a fraction as angsty as that guy come his teen years, she’ll have to ground him until he goes off to college.

She takes a deep breath to steady herself and then settles in to her tendency to be bossy. These guys will listen to her, respect her, if it’s the last thing she does.

“Okay, boys, I’m Emma Swan,” she starts, her voice strong, unquestioning, perhaps (hopefully) even threatening. “I have no qualms beating you into shape, but this is supposed to be a reality show, so I can’t do it that often. Don’t make me.”

The four of them chuckle. “A woman who’s not afraid to throw a man around,” the blond one says. “I like a woman in charge.”

Emma shakes her head and her hand flies up in the universal symbol for stop. “Gross. No, not happening,” she says with finality. Looking each one of them in the eye, she adds, “That goes for all of you. This –” she gestures to herself, “and that –” she gestures to each of them, “will not happen. We are coworkers at best, and that’s it. Understand?”

She’s happy to see a touch of fear in the blond one’s eyes, but he ultimately nods. One of the scruffed men steps forward and offers her his hand. “Won’t be a problem, Ms. Swan. The name’s Robin, Robin Locksley.”

“Nice to meet you, Robin.” She takes his hand and shakes it firmly. Internally, she breathes a sigh of relief. At least one of these guys seems to have a good head on his shoulders. “I look forward to working with you.”

“Likewise.” Robin grins, then points to the blond and the moody one. “This here is Victor Whale and this bastard’s Will Scarlet.”

Whale nods respectfully while Scarlet offers her his hand as well. “Lovely to meet ya, luv,” he greets her.

With a grimace, Emma takes Scarlet’s hand, then looks to the only one who she’s yet to be introduced to: the second scruffed man. He’s sort of hanging back behind his crewmates, dark hair swept over his eyes and a brooding look about him.

Great, this one’s got an attitude to, she thinks. Can’t wait to deal with that in the middle of the ocean.

“And you are?” she asks leadingly, bordering on patronizingly.

The man swaggers forward. “Killian Jones,” he says in a low accented voice. “Captain of the Jolly Roger.”

His eyebrow cocks up at the statement, as if he’s waiting for her to faint or gasp or be impressed. He seems full of himself, so naturally Emma decides to take him down a notch.

“Alright, captain. There’s no need for an attitude.”

“No, luv, you don’t understand.” Scarlet steps forward to explain, a hand flying up as if to keep one of them from attacking the other. “He fancies himself Captain Hook.”

Emma audibly scoffs and rolls her eyes. “Of course you would.”

“And what’s the tone there, Swan?” Jones asks. Disregarding Scarlet’s arm entirely, he comes closer to her, invading her personal space without a care. “Careful, many a lass has found themselves drawn to the captain himself,” he warns her.

And, to be quite honest with herself, she can see why – the whole bad boy thing really works in his favor, what with the general darkness surrounding him and then the pop of his startlingly blue eyes – but she’s been scorned more than once and knows how to react to those asses.

“Right,” Emma monotones. “Anyway, if you guys could give me a tour of the boat-”

“Ship, love.” It’s Jones that interrupts her and she can tell, just knows, that he’s going to do that for the entirety of this project. “The Jolly Roger’s a ship, not a boat.”

“Not your love,” she mutters. And then, under her breath to self, she mumbles, “Really not your love.”

In a moment, he’s somehow magically appeared at her side instead of in front of her, breaking all her boundaries. “We shall see, Swan,” he whispers in her ear. “We shall see.”

Emma jumps, if for no other reason to hide the dissipating goosebumps on her skin.

“Gimme a tour of the ship-” she looks pointedly at Jones- “like Jeff said and we can all get on with our lives.”

With a single nod, Jones strides off, leading the way down the docks, Whale and Scarlet following not too far behind. Robin, however, hangs back with her.

“Welcome to Storybrooke.”

“Thank you,” she says on a sigh. Though the sun is up, the sea breeze keeps the temperature lower than she desires, so she hugs herself to keep from shivering. The sweatshirt was a great idea. “It’s a nice change in scenery.”

“Really? Where are you coming from?”

“The southwest, where it’s really fucking hot all the time.” Her hand flies to her mouth and her eyes go wide. This guy is supposed to be a coworker. She’s supposed to be professional around them, but the cold is really throwing her off her game, among other things. “Sorry.”

Robin chuckles heartily. “Not a problem,” he tells her. “I have a feeling you’ll fit right in with this crew, Ms. Swan.”

Emma brings her hand away from her mouth. Glad at his admission, she requests, “Go ahead and call me Emma, Robin.” He nods. “Honestly, I just pull that out to assert myself. Sometimes guys see a pretty face and their dicks take control of their brains.”

Robin laughs again. “I completely agree. My wife and I are trying to raise my son specifically against that.”

With relief, she smiles. This. This is familiar. This she knows how to approach. “How old is he, your son?” Emma asks.

“A very insistent four and a half.”

She laughs. “I remember those days,” she says with fondness. At that age, they lived in a city and Henry demanded he pet every dog they passed and told their owners how old he was. When she glances at Robin, he’s got the question on the tip of his tongue, which she is more than happy to answer. “My son’s ten now.”

(Robin’s nice. He’s not a dick like his captain, at least. And he’s married, so he won’t hit on her, with a son of his own, which she can relate to, maybe even advise him on from time to time.

Emma thinks she might have just made her first new friend in town.)

“Probably a right young gentleman,” Robin compliments.

“I think so,” she says. “You know how it is with kids. They come into your world kicking and screaming and take over your every waking thought shortly afterwards.”

“Yes,” he agrees with a chuckle. Neither of them talk for a minute as they navigate the wooden slats of the dock. Robin steps ahead of her ever so slightly to lead her to the Jolly Roger. “Well, I hope you both like it here. Once you’re a little more settled, you should come over to our place for dinner. My wife’s lasagna is to die for.”

Emma nods. “We’d love that.”

There are three signs telling her they’ve reached the proper ship. The first is the most obvious – the boat in front of her bears bold black letters at the tip: THE JOLLY ROGER. The second is Emma can spot David’s blond hair and shoulders on the larger ship next to it.

The third is Jones’ loud, already annoying voice interjecting itself into her and Robin’s conversation. “You already inviting the lass to ship dinners?”

“Did he tell you about Regina’s lasagna?” Whale shouts from some unknown corner of the deck.

“More importantly, her apple pie?” Scarlet asks, his head poking over the side of the ship with a wry smile. “I’m tellin ya, mate, songs should be written about Regina’s pie.”

Robin chuckles. “I’ll be sure to send the compliments along,” he says humbly. Then, addressing his captain specifically, he adds, “I was trying to welcome Emma to town. I was saying how we should have her and her son over for dinner soon.”

Jones’ eyebrow goes up. Way up. “Son?” he echoes. Even with the distance between them, Emma catches his eyes flick down to her left hand where it lies across her chest. She’s tempted to hide it all together, just to watch him squirm, but figures he would’ve already caught a glint of wedding band if there were one.

“Yeah,” she responds. “Is that going to be a problem?”

To his credit, Jones doesn’t react to her ringless finger, nor does he react poorly to learning of Henry’s existence. “Quite the contrary, I would think,” he says. “Would he like to become a pirate?”

Robin ushers her up the few steps to the deck while Emma groans. Jones watches her the entire time, like a hawk on its prey, as she clomps up the stairs. “Don’t even joke about that. You should have seen his face when I had to tell him this show wasn’t about pirates.”

Robin and Jones both chuckle at that.

Thankfully, Jones isn’t the one giving her the tour. There’s something about him and the air he gives off that unnerves her. Not in a way that sets off her motherly instincts, makes her want to keep Henry safe from any pervert she comes across. No, this sets off a completely different alarm, and, at the moment, Emma can’t decide whether that alarm is good or bad.

Instead, Robin shows her around the boat, interspersing facts and figures of the vessel with quirky little stories about his son and wife. In turn, Emma feels comfortable enough to ask questions - not that she would care because it is her job on the line. She searches for spots that she think would hold smaller, mounted cameras on the frame of the ship: one inside the galley where the crew hangs out, a couple outside the crow’s nest, another on the rope reeler.

Every once in a while, Whale or Scarlet pops up out of nowhere, adding an unnecessary sexual comment or a snarky jibe. It’s like they wait their turn for the new toy - her.

Robin, to his credit, doesn’t seem fazed. He answers every question she asks in terminology that makes enough sense to her and explains the machinery as they pass by it.

The whole tour doesn’t last very long – the ship’s only about 35 feet long, mostly covered with ropes and cages.

“It’s much roomier once we’ve set the cages down at the bottom,” Robin says. “Little more elbow room, I promise.”

Their final stop is the captain’s roost, where Jones is sitting behind the wheel and making calculations. He looks up but doesn’t say anything while Robin talks.

And, figuring that she won’t be in this place without the captain, Emma allows herself to zone out, let Robin’s voice turn into white noise and dull to a buzz while she studies Jones.

He’s handsome, she’ll give him that. Sharp jawline, laser focus, shaggy hair that manages to fall artfully over his face and ears. She wonders if he wakes up and leaves it like that or if he, like some of the kids at Henry’s school, spends far too long making it look that way.

(He must do something to it. Otherwise, it surely wouldn’t so neatly cover the pinched points of his ears, would it?)

Robin claps his hands, breaking her concentration. “I think that’s it,” he says, glancing at her. “Have any questions?”

“Yeah, can we ‘ave lunch yet?” Scarlet shouts from below. “I’m starved.”

All of them laugh aloud. “Seems like privacy doesn’t exist even up here,” Jones mutters with a pained smile. He yells down to the deck, “You lads can go ahead to Granny’s. I’ll field any questions from Swan.”

“I actually think I’m good,” Emma says as Robin takes his leave. “I just need to compare notes with Jeff and David and then we can start installing the stationary cameras.”

His crewmates shout something back that she can’t quite make out, but he waves them on with a smile. She can tell when they’re back on the docks and on to town by the way his grin falls ever so slightly. He tries to hide it, but she’s always been more observant than the usual person. From his spot at the window, he still somehow manages to swagger up to her in this small space. This time, Emma holds back her eye roll.

“Then if you don’t mind, I’ve got a few queries for you,” he says simply. With a jerk of his head, Jones ushers her down the ladder. His feet hit the deck only a couple seconds after she moves from the bottom rung of the ladder. “These cameras, would you mind telling me where you wish to place them?”

She cocks an eyebrow in curiosity. “Why?”

Turning to face her, Jones tilts his head. His voice goes low again, low and serious. “My brother’s just instated me as captain of this ship and I take that responsibility very seriously.” Straightening his spine, he walks to the side of the ship and looks out toward the sound and open water. “You’ll come to find that the sea can be a fickle mistress. These planks and nails are built to precision.” The way he speaks of the vessel – what Emma thought only this morning as an organized pile of wood and nails – as if it’s a lifeline. And, as he continues, she begins to realize why. “It will be the only thing keeping you from sinking to Davy Jones’ locker in a summer squall, just as those men will be the first people to risk their lives so you can come home to your boy.”

He faces her again, turning his back on the sea. Her eyes quickly flit over him until they connect with his, almost imperceptibly different from the waters he was just observing. There’s overwhelming honesty behind his eyes when he says, “I need to make sure that every man I take out to sea comes back to shore unharmed.”

The ferocity of his tone surprises Emma. It’s in this moment where she can really, really see the character he fancies himself. She wouldn’t want to run into him in a dark alley.

(There’s a moment, a little tickle at the back of her brain, that mentions how much she might enjoy dragging him out into said dark alley, but it’s neither the time nor the place for that sort of thought. Not now, not ever.)

But she shows her appreciation for his protectiveness with a nod. “I don’t think it’ll mess with aerodynamics or anything like that, if that’s what you’re worried about,” she tells him. Emma quickly points out the locations she wants to put the cameras.

“They’re small, no larger than my outstretched hand,” she assures him. Jones asks about the specific dimensions, and Emma shrugs because she just doesn’t know offhand. “I’m telling you, it shouldn’t throw anything off kilter. If you’re really that concerned, talk to Jefferson or David or the captain of the other ship.”

Jones grumbles something to himself, skating his hand over the shadow of hair on his chin and jaw. It seems their conversation has come to an end and, with it, Emma sees the captain in a new light. They’re not too different in at least one aspect: they’re protective of their loved ones. The severe tone of his voice when he speaks about his crewmembers is similar – gruff and unquestionable – as hers is when another parent tries to tell her how to raise Henry.

Her ponderings are interrupted when she hears footfalls joining them on deck. Slowly, she turns on her heel to meet David and another man. He’s tall with curly hair and blue eyes she could pick out of a line up. He sticks his hand out immediately, kind smile wide.

“You must be the Emma Swan I’ve heard legend of,” he says. “I’m Liam Jones, owner of these two fine ships and this is my little brother.”

Off behind her, Jones protests, “Younger brother, Liam, we’ve discussed this.”

“I hope he’s been nothing but a gentleman during your tour?” Emma can’t tell if Liam is serious when he asks the question, but she suspects a hint of teasing.

She smiles at Jones and is tempted to rat him out or make him sweat, but there’s something about him that makes her answer, “Chivalry embodied.”

“Good,” Liam says jovially. He slaps his brother on the shoulder. “Might you two want to join us all for lunch? Granny’s Diner is the place to eat in town.”

Emma looks to David for her answer. He’s already shaking his head. “I promised my wife I’d help her decorate the living room once we finished up here,” he explains.

In her mind, Emma’s already disregarded the Jones brothers’ invitation. In a new town, she finds herself acting a lot like she did in high school and college: she didn’t go anywhere where she didn’t already know one person. She’d spent so much of her childhood losing friends and families that she got sick of making new ones without a solid backup to fall upon when they eventually ran away.

But Jones doesn’t know that.

“And you, Swan? Care for a bite of food?” he asks, raising an eyebrow. He’s got a very expressive face, Emma thinks, as he leans closer. In a tone meant only for her, Jones adds, “Perhaps a bite of something else?”

Emma gulps. Like, really gulps, like she’s some nervous cartoon character, for Christ’s sake. And is that a blush she feels rising on her cheeks? She tries to be sly in checking it, pretending to push her hair behind her ears by first brushing over her cheeks. Clearing her throat to buy her even a second more of time to compose herself, she finally responds, “I probably should, but I left Henry all alone at the house this morning, so I’ve got to go back and make sure he hasn’t set the place on fire.”

The Joneses share a look before bursting into laughter. Liam bends at the waist to catch his breath and Jones leans on his brother’s back for support. Emma sends a questioning look to David, who unhelpfully shrugs, and then back to the brothers.

“Love, if there was a fire, you would’ve heard the sirens,” Jones says, the last of his chuckles dying. He sniffs and wipes under his eye. “Alas, I understand. Your boy needs you first.”

And, like a fool, Emma snaps her fingers and sends him finger guns of approval. “Rain check.”

To their credit, neither of the Joneses – or even David for that matter – react. Liam nods and disboards while Jones smirks. “I’ll hold you to that, Swan.”

Biting on her lower lip, Emma nods and waves. Jones winks at her, shakes hands with David, and follows his brother off the ship.

And her eyes follow him. For no reason, she assures herself.

David bumps her shoulder, shocking her from watching the brothers walk away. He’s got a knowing smile on his face.

“Yeah, nothing flusters you,” he chides her in that big brother manner of his. “Nothing at all.”

She doesn’t need to feel her cheek to know the heat of a blush is there. Her lips pursed and arms crossed, all she can think to mumble is, “Shut up.”

[mewmewchann]

RWBY: Y.v.S - Shatter

As the Battle of Beacon rages on, it seems that the huntsmen have gained the upper hand. But - as an encounter with a high-ranking White Fang member proves - good things never last...

(Once again, sorry about taking really long! Hopefully this chapter was worth the wait...)

(If you have any questions about RWBY: Y.v.S, feel free to ask!)

(And I’d honestly like to see your reactions to the ending XD)

"Running away again?" Adam asked condescendingly, glaring towards Blake’s terrified expression. “Is that what you’ve become, my love? A coward?”

Blake was still in a sense of shock.

“Wh-” She started. “Why are you doing this?”

Adam ignored her and continued.

“You and I were going to change the world, remember?” He began to walk to another area of the room. “We were destined to light the fires of revolution!”

Blake noticed an Atlesian student on the ground. To her horror, she realised that Adam was walking right towards them.

He pinned the student to the floor with his foot and raised his sword.

“...Consider this the spark.”

Before he could attack the student, Blake suddenly charged forward and blocked the attack with her own sword. The student panicked and ran away from them.

Blake glared at Adam.

“I’M. NOT. RUNNING.”

Adam laughed. “YOU WILL.”

He kicked Blake to the ground. A beowolf suddenly charged into the area and leaped towards them, but Adam pulled out his gun and shot it.

“But...” He continued, walking slowly towards her. “Not before you’ve suffered for your betrayal, my love.”

When Adam had started talking again, Blake looked through a window. The outside of the area was starting to be surrounded by beowolves.

“Dead!? What do you mean ‘she’s dead’!?”

“I don’t know!” Neptune answered. “She was pinned by a Grimm, my gun was jammed, Velvet dragged me off, and...” He gestured towards the small puddle of blood.

Sun glanced at it. “That’s unnaturally small for someone who was mauled by a-”

“Shut UP! Stop reminding me about it!”

“Okay! Okay!”

“You aren’t seeing the POINT, Sun!” Neptune turned towards him angrily. “Weiss is dead and it’s all my fault!”

“Look, just because your gun wasn’t working and Velvet dragged you off, that doesn’t mean that it’s your fault.”

“But it-”

“Neptune, you need to get back to the group.” Sun said firmly. “Sulking about it isn’t gonna stop us from losing anyone else. And, uh, besides...We kinda NEED you back there.”

“What? Why?”

“Let’s just say...Dragon.”

“Dragon? What do you mean ‘dragon’?”

“I’ll explain when we get there!” Sun took Neptune by the hand. “Just come on!”

Neptune sighed, and eventually nodded. They both started to run back towards the city.

In the night sky, a Grimm Dragon was soaring through the air. While it was flying, it was spawning more Grimm using black liquid from it’s wings.

From below, someone was haphazardly firing ice dust bullets at it.

“Rose, I don’t think this is a good idea. It’ll only draw it’s attention TOWARDS us!”

“Aw, c’mon, Marina!” Rose replied, continuously firing at the dragon. “Someone needs to fire at it at some point.”

Crimson, who was nearby, added her opinion.

“She has a point. We’ve gotta stop that thing before it does major damage to the city.”

Marina sighed. “Isn’t there a way we could do it so we don’t grab it’s attention?”

“Uh, no, apparently!” Crimson replied.

They were interrupted when someone behind them spoke.

“Maybe I could be of some assistance?”

Crimson suddenly turned around.

“And who the heck are you?”

The person who had spoke was standing on top of a nearby building. He had a blue outfit; consisting of a blue top, a dark-blue vest and trousers, white and blue boots and a white, blue and gold cape. He looked pretty pale and had shining golden eyes. He had short brunette hair which covered his right eye with a semi-messy fringe, and wore a blue, white and gold hat. He was wielding a pair of massive obsidian gauntlets in both hands.

The stranger bowed.

“Mago Lorre of Atlas Academy, at your service.”

“Wait a sec...You’re one of the guys who fought the two guys from Haven in the doubles rounds!” Crimson replied, recognising Mago almost instantly.

Mago nodded, wearing a condescending smirk on his face. “Correct.”

“Okay, allow me to introduce myself.” Crimson started. “I’m-”

“Crimson Foxx. Age: 17. Currently attending Shade Academy and leader of team CLMR.”

“...How do you-”

“Species: Fox Faunus. Weapon: ‘Raging Flame’ - a dagger filled with fire dust. Semblance: The ability to create and manipulate steam to use for smokescreens. Status-”

“Okay, do you mind telling me how you know all of this!?” Crimson sudednly asked.

“Hm? What are you referring to?” Mago answered.

“THAT!”

“What’s going on over here?” Marina asked, running over to Crimson’s side.

“And who the heck is THAT?” Rose seconded, quickly following.

“One of the Atlesian guys from the doubles.” Crimson answered.

“Oh, yeah!” Rose said. “You’re...Uh...Mago-something.”

“Indeed.” Mago answered. “You too are correct, miss Petalle.”

“Waitwhat-”

“Rose Petalle. Age: 14. Also attending Shade Academy and is a member of team CLMR. Species: Human. Weapon: ‘Atomic Heart’ - a hammer/rocket launcher filled with ice dust. Semblance: Cryokinesis. Statu-”

“How the heck are you doing that?” Rose interrupted.

“It must be something to do with his semblance.” Marina guessed. “His semblance must give him the ability to see the basic information of other huntsmen.” She looked over to Mago. “Let’s test this. Try it with me.”

“Okay.” Mago replied with a nod, before reeling off more information.

“Marina Aqua. Age: 12. Is also attending Shade Academy and is also a member of team CLMR. Species: human. Weapon: ‘Tidal Lux’ - A staff filled with water dust that can turn into a compact shotgun. Semblance: Hydrokinesis. Status...” He quickly looked over to Rose, then looked back to Marina. “...Debatable.”

“So,” Marina replied. “Am I right?”

“Yup.” Mago answered nonchalantly. “My semblance is the ability to see the basic information of others.”

“Like the ‘CHECK’ option in a videogame?” Crimson asked.

“Exactly.” Mago replied.

“Wow.” Rose said, impressed. “That’s...Pretty overpowered.”

“Eh, not really.” Mago shrugged. “Most of your semblances add to your attacks and defence. Mine’s is just a way of being able to know things – and that’s only when the person fighting me gives me a chance to actually USE it.”

“Okay, I think we get the idea.” Crimson replied.

“I know.” Mago continued. “Anyway, Rose is right about the dragon and that it needs to be dealt with. But all it’s doing right now is flying around and spawning more Grimm. It isn’t attacking us directly.”

Crimson looked over towards the dragon. “Yeah, you’re actually right.” She said. “It even looks like it’s flying away towards somewhere else...”

“Exactly. But the majority of the Grimm are in the centre of the city, and we also have the White Fang and rogue Atlesian robots to deal with.”

“Um...” Rose started. “What?”

“Long story short, the real fight’s over there.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“Wait,” Marina said. “You just came here to take us there?”

“Nope.” Mago replied. “We did.”

As soon as he said it, someone suddenly joined him on the building.

He wore a blue outfit, a purple set of armour and a purple cape. He held a spiked longsword in his right hand – the blade of which was golden with purple highlights and had a ruby embedded at the bottom of it. He had blue hair, and his face was partly concealed with a silver mask.

“These guys causing you trouble, Mago?” He asked.

“Nah, Metta.” Mago replied. “I’m just helping them. Are Tayren and Galaxy in the city?”

“Yup.” Metta nodded. “Tayren’s taking out pretty much every Grimm that they see.”

Mago laughed. “They’ve always had a flair for fighting...”

“Wait a second!” Rose said, recognising Mago’s teammate. “You’re the other guy!”

“Oh, allow me to introduce myself.” He replied. “Metta Naito.”

“Okay, now that we’re together,” Mago stated. “Let’s go kill some Grimm.”

He led the way towards the city. Metta followed his team leader pretty quickly, and the two both disappeared into the shadows.

“Okay, how they left was pretty cool.” Crimson said. “Let’s go, guys!”

The three chased after them towards the city.

“I admit,” Roman said, condescendingly twirling his cane around. “You’ve got some spirit, red!”

Ruby was near the edge of the ship. Neo and Roman had given her quite a fight, and her scythe attacks seemed to be doing nothing against the duo.

“Without these ships,” Ruby started, breathlessly. “The Grimm will destroy everything! What do you get out of this!?”

“What do I get?” Roman replied. “Well, I can’t afford to lose!”

Ruby charged at him, but Neo parried her attack with a spin-kick. She was nearly sent over the edge of the ship, but managed to lodge her scythe into the edge at the last minute.

“Well, I may be a gambling man, but everyone knows that there are bets that you just can’t take.”

A thin, sharp blade suddenly protruded from the top of Neo’s umbrella. She began to approach Ruby with her weapon ready.

“Like it or not,” Roman continued, as his colleague was going towards Ruby. “The people I’m working for are gonna change the world! You can’t stop ‘em! I can’t stop ‘em!”

When Neo reached the edge of the ship, she pointed her umbrella blade in Ruby’s general direction.

But when Neo reached her, Ruby noticed there was a button on the side of Neo’s umbrella. Guessing almost immediately what it does, she began to reach towards it.

“Well, you know the old saying: If you can’t beat ‘em, cheat-”

Before Roman could finish, Ruby had pressed the button.

Neo’s umbrella suddenly opened. With a gasp of surprise, Neo’s umbrella was caught by the wind and she was sent flying over the edge of the ship.

“NEO!” Roman desperately called out. Ruby had managed to climb back onto the ship, but had left her scythe lodged in it’s side.

“You’re wrong, Torchwick.” She said. “They aren’t unstoppable. We will beat them!”

She charged towards him.

“BET ON THA-”

But before she could attack him, Ruby was knocked back by a bullet from Roman’s cane.

Far above them, a Nevermore had noticed something below it and started to fly towards it.

"You think you're the young heroine who could save the world someday!?” Roman said, walking towards her. “Grow up, kid!”

He hit Ruby with his cane, knocking her to the ground.

“The world is full of hate and hurt!” He continued, hitting her again. He prepared his cane for another attack, but Ruby kicked him backwards. He got back up, and continued talking.

“Do kids like you REALLY think they can make a living going around saving people?” He said. “I turned to crime, 'cause it's the better way to go! So you do your hero thing! As for me...I'll do what I do best! Lie! Steal! Cheat! AND SURVI-”

But before he could finish, a Nevermore suddenly flew down and swallowed him whole.

Ruby watched in shock and surprise as the Nevermore spread it’s wings and cawed at her. She came to her senses, grabbed her scythe and shot it towards the back of the ship.

The Nevermore crashed into the ship’s back, causing part of the ship to explode.

Okay, gotta get out of here...Ruby thought.

But before she could leave, she heard something moving at the back of the ship.

She turned around.

Then something jumped out from the rubble of the explosion, six swords hovering around it in mid air.

Crap! It’s Penny! Ruby realised.

Penny landed on part of the ship and sprinted towards Ruby.

As she felt the ship malfunction and start to fall out of the air, Ruby jumped off of the ship and into the night sky.

“Are we almost there!? It feels like we’ve been parkouring over these buildings for hours!”

“We’ve only been ‘parkouring’ for a few minutes, miss Foxx. And we are pretty close.”

Mago and Metta had been jumping and backflipping over building after building, and even the usually agile Crimson was having trouble catching up to the pair.

“Can we at least stop for a bit!?” She asked, landing on a building’s roof.

Mago, who had landed gracefully on the building ahead of her, turned to face the fox faunus.

“We can’t afford to slow down too much.” He said sternly. “The others in the city need our help.”

Metta swiftly landed on the same building as Mago and added his input. “Despite what Mags and I know about them, I doubt that Galaxy and Tayren can fight on their own for any longer.”

Rose and Marina had arrived on the same building as Crimson.

“Can you two at least tell us if we’re close!?” Rose exclaimed.

Mago smirked. “Well, let’s just say you’re in luck. We’ll be there in a few more jumps.”

“Good.” Marina replied. “We can’t leave the others to fend off the Grimm on their own forever.”

“Wait,” Crimson started. “Instead of jumping across the buildings, can’t we just go down to the streets and run there?”

“But with that,” Mago answered. “Comes the possibility of encountering more Grimm. And we can’t waste our auras on the journey.”

“True,” Rose replied. “But it does use less energy if we run past the Grimm as opposed to jumping over them.”

Mago glanced over to Metta, who nodded.

Mago sighed. “Okay, we’ll stop building-jumping for now.”

The three of them leapt from the building onto the street and began to run back to the city. After a short period of running, an Ursa leapt down from a ledge semi-constructed out of rubble to intercept the group.

“SEE!?” Mago exclaimed, gesturing towards the monster. “I TOLD you we’d only run into more Grimm!”

“Oh, shut your condescending mouth!” Crimson replied. “We don’t have to FIGHT the thing!”

“Actually, it’s blocking our path, and will most likely chase or grab us if we try to run past it.” Metta explained. “So, yeah. We kinda do.”

Crimson growled annoyedly, and readied her sword. “Okay, fine. We’ll just have to-”

Before she could finish, a white steel blade – which seemed to be connected to other small pieces of white steel – suddenly pierced through the Ursa from behind. The Ursa flailed it’s claws helplessly for a moment, before going limp and starting to disintegrate.

Mago looked over to Metta. “You don’t think…?”

Metta nodded, and smiled. “It is.”

As the Grimm disintegrated, it’s attacker was revealed behind it.

It was a huntress. She had dark red eyes and long, flowing pink hair – secured with a gold clip in the shape of a star. She was wearing a dark leather jacket over a white top, dark navy jeans and pink and dark gray shoes. And – most likely for style – she was wearing a pink necklace in the shape of a star.

Metta smirked knowingly at the girl.

“Thanks for saving us, Galaxy.”

The girl smiled back, retracting her whip-like weapon back to the form of a lance. “You cannot keep out of trouble, can you, brother?”

“Wait, BROTHER!?” Crimson started.

“Oh, right. I forgot to introduce you.” Metta said, turning to face the rest of the group. “This is my sister, Galaxy Naito.”

“She’s also our teammate.” Mago added.

“It’s nice to meet you all.” Galaxy said respectfully.

“Uh, yeah.” Rose replied. “Pleasure to meet you!”

“Wait a second.” Marina said. “If there’s you, Metta and Galaxy; then who’s the fourth?”

“Fourth?”

“Your fourth teammate.”

“Oh, don’t worry about them.” Galaxy replied nonchalantly. “They’ll be here any second now...”

After Galaxy had said this, a Griffon jumped out behind her.

“Aaaaand...Now.”

Suddenly, six disembodied robotic hands flew out from behind the Griffon and grabbed it’s wings.

“Wha-!?” Crimson started.

“Don’t worry,” Galaxy said. “Sit back and watch.”

Four of the robotic hands pinned the Grimm to the ground. The other two swiftly flew towards it’s head, folded into knives and dropped downwards, finishing the monster off.

When the Grimm had fully disintegrated, the user of these weapons finally walked forward.

They had [pale skin, short white hair and a pair of golden goggles on their fringe so they won’t cover their eyes – one of which being lilac and the other being dark purple. They were wearing a green and purple outfit and had six arms.

They walked forwards. The weapons – the two knives turning back into their hand forms – flew back to them.

“Whoa...” Rose said, impressed. “Who IS that?”

“Our fourth and final teammate.” Mago answered. “Tayren Zara.”

“Tayren, huh?” Rose said. “Uh, sorry if I’m being rude, but are you a boy or a-”

“Nope.” Tayren replied. “I don’t do pronouns.”

“Oh! Sorry, I-”

“Don’t worry about it!” Tayren said reassuringly. “A lot of people get mixed up when meeting me for the first time.”

“Okay,” Crimson started. “So it’s Mago, Galaxy, Metta and Tayren...M...G...M...T-”

“I actually use the initial from my last name.” Metta said.

“Oh. Alright. M...G...N...T. You’re team MGNT!”

“Yup.” Mago nodded. “It’s pronounced ‘Magenta’. We are team MGNT of Atlas Academy.”

Crimson was impressed by the Atlesians, and her teammates felt the same.

“Hold up,” Metta said suddenly. “Tayren, Galaxy – what are you two doing here?”

“Well,” Galaxy answered. “Tayren and I were fighting a few Nevermores back in the city, and they suggested that we come to get you two, because you had been gone from the city for a while.”

Tayren nodded. “And it appears that you brought back company.”

“Yeah, I had decided to go after the dragon.” Crimson replied. “Then Mago came and suggested we head back to the city to help the others. And besides, we can’t leave Luce on his own for too long.”

“’Luce’?” Tayren asked quizzically.

“My teammate. Or, more specifically, our teammate.”

Tayren nodded. “You need to get back to them. Let’s go.”

Team MGNT began to run back to the city, with Crimson, Marina and Rose closely following behind them.

Yang was lucky that Coco had found her earlier. She had given her more bullets so she can reload her weapons, and Yang was now taking out Grimm after Grimm with Ember Celica, with the unnaturally soothing ambience of Coco’s machine gun firing in the background.

“I think the rest of my team are up that way.” Coco said, gesturing over to a direction.

“You suggesting we go there?”

“They could need our help.” Her machine gun retracted back to it’s handbag form. “Besides, there’s not much Grimm left here.”

Yang nodded in understanding and followed Coco through the city, being wary of any Grimm that would cross their path.

They found Velvet before long. Or, more accurately, Velvet found them.

“There you are!” She said, holding a hard-light copy of Jaune’s sword and shield.

“Are you okay?” Coco asked. “Where’s the others?”

“We’re fine.” Yatsuhashi added from across the area.

“We’re also right here.” A nearby Fox seconded.

“And I’m here too!” Someone standing on the side of a building said.

“And who are you?” Coco asked.

“Lucifer Graye.” Lucifer answered. “And I assume you’re the leader of this team.”

Coco smirked. “How could you tell?”

“I asked the tall one.”

“Oh.”

“And it appears you have Yang with you.” Fox said.

“I found her a while ago.” Coco explained. “She looked like she was having trouble, so I helped her, gave her some spare bullets – she had run out of ammo – and lead her here.”

“Uh...” Yang started awkwardly. “Hey, guys!”

“Hey.” Fox responded.

“There’s no time for nonsense.” Yatsuhashi said. “By the looks of things, that dragon is getting closer and closer to the tower.”

He gestured in the general direction of the sky, where the dragon was slowly circling the large city.

“It wasn’t being that much of a threat earlier...” Lucifer said. “Crimson, Rose and Marina decided to try and go after it while it wasn’t doing anything, but they’ve been gone for-”

“Hey!” Crimson’s voice called out from behind.

“Speak of the devil. Where the hell have you three been?”

Lucifer leapt down from the building’s side to meet his teammates, who were closely followed by team MGNT.

“Well, some guys from Atlas figured that it’ll be better if we were back here.” Crimson replied.

“I can see that.” Lucifer answered, looking over at the Atlesian team.

“Look, we have no time to waste!” Tayren said. “That dragon’s most likely spawning more Grimm as we speak! And we still have the White Fang to deal with-”

“I can deal with the Fang.” Marina added. “I actually think I killed one of their main lieutenants...”

“Wait, you killed someone?”

“Doesn’t matter. Continue.”

“Oookay...Anyway, with the Grimm AND the White Fang, we loads of lives on the line!”

“Yeah,” Velvet seconded. “We can’t have a repeat of what happened with Weiss!”

“Exactly! We-”

“Wait.” Yang interrupted Tayren and glanced quizzically at Velvet. “...What happened to Weiss?”

“Uh...” Velvet started uncomfortably. “She’s-”

Suddenly a Nevermore landed nearby the group, cutting Velvet off.

“Huh. That Nevermore interrupted her before she could say anything.” Mago said nonchalantly. “Should we call this an instance of Deus Ex Machina or shouldn’t we?”

“Mago, now isn’t the time! Galaxy said, readying her lance.

But before any of them could attack the Grimm, it’s wings were suddenly sliced off and a laser beam ripped through it’s head with a flash.

Mago recognised who the attacker was almost instantly.

“Oh, I never thought I’d see YOU again since the doubles!” He said with a laugh. “Isn’t that right, mister Aya-”

“Shut up, you should at least be grateful that I killed the Grimm for you.”

“Okay fine, feisty.”

“Wait...” Yang realised who Mago was talking to. “Sage!?”

“Yup.” Mago responded. “The guy from Mistral who can stop time. Aaand...” He paused for a minute. “Looks like he brought some more guys from his team.”

“How could you tell?” Metta asked.

“Come on, everyone knows that strength is greater in numbers.”

Just as Mago had predicted, Sun and Neptune were close behind.

“See?” Mago said. “Told you.”

“Looks like the majority of the others are back here.” Sage said.

“Well,” Neptune added. “Except for team JN-”

A Griffon flew past them, but someone jumped into the air and smacked it out of the sky with a pink and gray hammer.

“...I stand corrected. Anyway, it looks like almost everyone’s here.”

“Wait...” Sun started. “What about Ruby?”

“Me, Fox and team CLMR helped her in the arena.” Velvet answered.

Crimson nodded. “Yeah, and then she went after a robot, so don’t worry about her.”

“Okay, so we have Ruby...Yang...” Sun muttered to himself.

“Anyway,” Neptune continued. “While Sage and Sun and I were on the way here, I had an idea that I thought-”

“Wait a second!” Sun interrupted. “Where’s Blake!?”

“Sun, I’m kind of in the middle of-”

“We have to make sure we don’t lose anyone else! Where is she!?”

Everyone was eerily silent for a while, before Fox answered him.

“Weiss said where she was a few minutes ago.” He said, gesturing in the direction that Weiss had pointed out moments before. “She went that way.”

Without saying anything, Sun ran off in the direction Fox had pointed out.

“Sun, WAIT!” Neptune called out, but he had already left.

“This could have been OUR day! Can’t you see that!?”

“I never wanted this!” Blake said, getting out her weapons. “I wanted equality! I wanted peace!”

She tried to shoot Adam with her weapon, but he blocked it with his sword – which was glowing more with each shot.

“What you want,” Adam withdrew his sword. “Is IMPOSSIBLE!”

He slapped Blake across the face, and she was knocked to the ground.

“But I understand.” He continued, walking towards her. “Because all I want...Is YOU, Blake.”

Blake desperately readied Gambol Shroud, but Adam kicked it out of her hand.

“And as I set out upon this world and deliver the justice mankind so greatly deserves,” He knelt down to her, wearing a condescending smirk. “I will make it my mission to destroy EVERYTHING you love.”

Blake was almost ready for Adam to kill her, when all of a sudden, they both heard something.

“BLAKE!”

Blake and Adam suddenly turned towards the direction of the interruption.

What was there was the last thing Blake wanted to see.

It was Sun. He was outside the building fighting a Beowolf. After pushing the Grimm away with his staff, he called out for her again.

“BLAKE, WHERE ARE YOU!?”

Blake’s eyes widened in horror. No, no, no…

Adam noticed Blake’s horrified expression and, not taking his gaze off of Sun – who didn’t seem to notice them – said:

“...Starting with him.”

Blake gasped and grabbed Adam by the leg to stop him. Adam barely noticed, and shoved her off.

“But first...Let’s try getting his attention.”

Adam readied his sword, and stabbed Blake near the abdomen with it.

“Gah!” She cried out, immediately catching Sun’s attention.

“Huh!?” He turned around to see Adam removing his sword and preparing it again with a smirk.

His confused expression turned to pure rage. “Leave her ALONE!”

“No...” Blake said desperately. “Please...”

Without waiting a single second, Sun immediately reformed his staff into nunchucks and leapt towards Adam to attack.

Unfortunately, Adam was anticipating this.

He flipped his sword out and, before Blake could object, stabbed him with it.

Everything was silent.

Blood was pouring off of Adam’s sword. Without saying anything, Adam made a swinging motion with his weapon and threw Sun to the side.

Blake’s eyes were widened in horror. She wasn’t able to do anything.

“SUN!!!!!!!!!!”