#Murder on the Orient Express x reader

[multifandomsimagine]

Imagine you and Helena convincing Rudolph to go to sleep

Rudolph hadn't heard either of you enter his study. As his responsibilities as a diplomat focused more on the political side of things, his work mainly focused on research and drafting up reports about local development which meant lots of late nights. To not wake you and Helena up when he left in the early morning and came in late at night, he had taken to sleeping in his study. Setting himself on his recliner, he draped a blanket over himself and called it a night before doing the same thing all over again the next day.

But as much as his thoughtfulness was appreciated by the two of you, it didn't lessen how much you both missed him. You rarely saw him as he spent most of the time in the study. He didn't even leave for food as you and Helena had to bring it to him so that he could eat something before throwing himself back to his work.

But there was only so much you both could take before you and Helena had enough. This is why both of you had come up with a plan to bring Rudolph out of the study and have him finally get a good night of sleep.

Jumping when he felt a weight on his left shoulder, Rudolph turned his head and was met with the sight of Helena resting her head there as she wrapped her arms around the chair to give him a hug. He was about to speak when he suddenly felt something on his right shoulder. Turning to the right, he saw you as you also put your arms beside Helena's to hug him as well.

"Rudolph, come to the bedroom and sleep," Helena said, giving him a kiss on his cheek.

He feels you nod at her statement. "It's been weeks since you've slept well. You never leave this room. We miss you."

Grabbing your's and Helena's hands in his own, he presses a kiss to each of your palms, first Helena and then you. Rudolph lets out a sigh. "There is still much work to be done."

"But you won't get it done if you are not well-rested." Helena softly chides." Standing upright, Helena tugs at his hand and he makes a move to stand. She smiles when she sees him do so. Taking the lead, she begins guiding you both toward your guys' bedroom.

[ghnaim24]

To my fellow Willem Dafoe simps and writers I have some ideas/requests from some of his characters if anyone is interested in writing them. It would make me the happiest person in the world please 🙏😁

The following ideas/requests below:

For Joe Cribbens from Dead for a Dollar the reader is Max Borland’s daughter and is a hunter like her father but more young, beautiful and kind. When she meets the infamous Joe Cribbens in prison he is smitten by her.

For Bobby from The Florida Project I’ve had this idea in my head that the female reader is young and works as a maid at the motel and watches over the kids sometimes and that Bobby appreciates how hardworking she is. They have a crush on each other and end up confessing their feelings to each other and it leads to smut (if you are comfortable with that).

For Raven from Streets of Fire I was thinking that Raven x female reader where he kidnaps the reader who is opposite of him sweet kind and understanding and wears cute dresses. He takes her back to his gang’s hideout and within time they grow romantic feelings for each other and it turns into smut.

For Vance from The Loveless like Streets of Fire the female reader is opposite of him. She is a regular at the diner in the beginning of the film always reading and drinking a milkshake and when Vance enters and both set eyes for each other it’s love at first sight/opposites attract. They get to know each and as the reader hangs out with him and his friends for the day, it becomes to much that they can’t keep their hands off each other leading to smut.

For The Writer from The Night and The Moment I was thinking that the female reader is like Belle from Beauty and the Beast who loves to read and is opposite to all the other women from the film. The Writer becomes intrigued by her and tries to charm but she keeps pushing him away and eventually falls in love with her. You can include smut if you like to this one.

For The Electritian from Basquiat the female readers power goes out in her apartment and is in need of an electrician. When he comes over to fix the readers power it’s love at first sight. As he is fixing her power they get to know each other and he eventually asks the reader out for a date maybe to an art gallery and when they come back to readers apartment they make love to each other.

For John Geiger from Speed 2 on the cruise he sees the female reader from a distance with her family who is cute and innocent and becomes enchanted by her. During the heist he kidnaps her and they are able to escape with the diamonds to an island and it turns to a Stockholm Syndrome relationship.

For the Prison Guard (whatever you want to name him) from Cry-Baby the female reader is a cute and sweet nurse at the prison and she has a crush on the Prison Guard. While she is treating a prisoner from a fight the prisoner tries to hurt the reader but the Prison Guard comes to save her like a knight in shining armor. After the incident she confesses her feelings for him and he returns the same feelings to her.

For Klaus from Life Aquatic of Steve Zissou I was thinking that the female reader works with Jane as a photographer. When they meet with the Zissou crew at the beach in the night it’s pretty much love at first sight for Klaus when he sees the reader. And as her and Jane travel with the crew their relationship starts to develop into more romantic

For Barillo from Once Upon A Time In Mexico the readers father has a debt to pay him back but doesn’t have the money. He decides to visit the mansion along with the reader who is sweet, innocent and shy to tell Barillo he can’t pay him back, but once Barillo sets his eyes on the reader he knows how her father can pay him back by letting him marry his daughter/reader.

For Earl in Animal Factory the female reader is sent to prison for a crime she didn’t commit but it was actually her sister. But because she loves her family so much she decides to take her place. After the trial she is taken to the male prison instead of the female one because their is no more room for her. When she gets to the male prison where Earl is at because she is the only female she is harassed by the other inmates. Once Earl sets his eyes on the reader him and his crew do everything they can to protect and make her feel comfortable. As time goes by Earl and reader become more involved with each other and eventually she is moved from her solo cell to the cell where Earl is in.

For Dick McMahon from The Last Thing He Wanted the reader is a home nurse and is taking care of Dick that they start to fall in love with each during their time together.

For Gerhard Hardman from Murder on the Orient Express the reader is an artist/dancer and is on board the train where she meets Gerhard in there shared quarters. It’s love at first sight and during the journey they get to know each other and before they depart they decide to stay together.

For John Petty from Out of the Furnace the female reader is the younger sister of the Baze brothers very sweet, kind and has a crush on John. When she hears her brother is fighting for money again she heads to John office to please help her brother and when he agrees to help her, the reader kisses John that they end up confessing their feelings to each other.

For George Deckert from XXX State of the Union the reader is the president’s daughter and Deckert is both obsessed and possessive of her that his plan is to have her all to himself once his plan is succeeded.

I know this is probably a lot to ask for. I don’t expect all of these to be written, but I just wanted to put my thoughts out there. I would love if at least some of them were written but I know that’s not up to me. I apologize if I sound very demanding. I also apologize if some of these ideas/requests sound lame lol 😆.

[honeykaes]

inside/out

wriothesley x convict!reader II 2.6k

warning: smut, 18+ content, minors do not interact, afab!reader with no set pronouns, convict!reader,  fingering, squirting, marking, biting, piercings, rough sex, hate sex, office sex, semi-public sex, unprotected sex, creampie, you and wriothesley are exes, angst, degradation, domestic disputes, set in fontaine before the traveler comes, fontaine plot points references, discussions of legal systems and injustice, mention of drugs, discussion of murder, open ending for interpretation, unedited

synopsis: you swore that you would leave the fortress of meropide when your sentence was done. And when you do, your relationship with wriothesley sours as your two break up. Five years later, you're shocked to end up right back in the iron prison where he’s there waiting for you.

The world seemed so distant to you. The whispering throughout sounded as if it were an untuned violin as they lapped up the drama they so desperately craved in their lives. The Oratrice Mécanique D'analyse Cardinale clicked in the irritating orchestra about to come up with its verdict. 

The lawyer next to you fumbled with his papers with a look of shame and defeat in his eyes. Out of everyone in this room, you felt for him. He would surely bounce back with the next chum in your position.

The loud smacking of a cane caused the whispering to dissipate as you finally lifted your head up to witness the Iudeux of Fontaine.His eyes seemed heavy with sorrow. This wasn’t the first time you had witnessed this expression directed at you. Your eyes flickered to your God, Furina yawning as she whispered something to herself in her boredom.

 You can’t help feeling irked at her expression; at all of their expressions.

Why were these people allowed to judge you? 

The only answer you could find was justice was only for the privileged lucky, and you clearly had run out of it.

The contraption glowed, as Neuvillette collected your sentence.

“Under Article D of the Fontainian Code of Law, you are found guilty of fraud. Under Article J of Fontainian Law, you are found guilty of tax evasion…” he rambled on as you bit your lip.

It seemed that the rumors were right, after all. Most people who come out of the Fortress of Meropide find themselves right back in.

”And finally you are guilty of 1st degree murder of your former business partner, Henry Maugham. As a result, you will be serving a life sentence at the Fortress of Meropide,” Neuvillette announced.

You couldn’t help chuckling, covering your mouth from the cruel smile on your face. The whispering sparked once more, heavy eyes judging every movement you made. You finally lifted your hand away, smiling at the judge, but your eyes remained cold on Neuvillette’s somber ones

”Glad to see you never change, Monsieur."

The Melusine officers escorted you down to the Meropide, with only a small sack of clothes you were allowed to bring. From the photos, to the pat downs, it all seemed nostalgic to you. How many familiar faces would you see? You assumed quite a few.

This underwater prison you desperately wanted to escape from in the past, would be your sole future.

Finally finished with orientation, you threw your sack on your assigned bed sitting down, looking down on the steel ground.  With the bed squeaking, your roommates whisper, feeling the heavy air as they make their escape and let you have some space.  

Just as you sigh, thankful to have the room briefly to yourself to process, credit coupons hovered in your view as you looked up to see a tiny girl. Her long ear twitched in anticipation, ruby eyes gleaming at you, but at the same time, held pity in them.

”It’s nice to see you again. I really thought I wouldn’t have the opportunity once you left five years ago,” she chimed, brushing a bit of her baby blue hair.You looked at the tickets trying to give it back to her silently but she puffed her cheeks and shook her head.

”No! Think about it like this; this is for all the birthdays I missed,” she reasoned. You sighed, moving to massage the headache threatening to form.

-”...Sigwienne…why are you here? I’m sorry but-”

”Don’t apologize!” she interrupted, ears slightly drooping. “I, of all people, knew how much you wanted to get out. I-I’m here because the Duke wanted to see you.”

”No.”

”Please! I thought you wouldn’t be mad at him anymore,” she pleaded as eyes blew wide, pleading.Your gaze grew more bitter: 

“So he sent you to soften the blow or some shit,” you grunted. Sigwienne furrowed her eyebrows in disappointment before you clicked your tongue catching your mistake.

”Sorry…language. I know…” you muttered. Your eyes looked up to see a guard at the door, glaring down at you. It seems she was the nice “cop” and if you kept refusing her, he would get involved. You turn back to Sigwienne’s pleading gaze.

”Fine. Lead the way…” you grumbled getting up from your place. Sigwienne smiled, clasping her tiny hand with yours. 

”Off we go then!”

The only solace Sigwienne gave was a timid smile, waving as the door to the Duke’s office closed, leaving you with a man you haven’t seen in five years.

Your former boyfriend. Honestly, the man you naively thought you’d have happily ever after with.

He took a sip of tea before sighing, throwing papers on his desk as he leaned into his chair that creaked from the shifting weight. His hair was the same, black with odd streaks of gray hair he always had. He had a few new piercings on his ears though. 

”In all these years, I didn’t think I’d see your face again,” he murmured.Your jaw tense and eyes narrowed. His voice seemed as irritating as he’s ever been.

“You think I wanted you to see your sorry ass again, Wriothelsey?” you barked back. -He clicked his tongue, rolling his icy eyes.

 “I can see you’re not over our breakup..” he grumbled, drumming his fingers on the desk. You crossed your eyes, looking down with him with all the defiance you could muster up.

”If that’s what you want to call you being a selfish prick, sure,” you replied back.Wriothesley's nostrils flared but he didn’t spout any insults back.

”I thought you said you wanted to change for the better,” he asked, grabbing a file and holding it up. Of course he knew everything. He knew the second you were preparing to dive down to the Meropide.

”I did and I was. As if I wanted to come down here again. You know that out of everyone! But, I forgot something, people are cruel. And now, I’m stuck here for the rest of my life,” you raised your hands out, proclaiming loudly.

”...Just like you wanted.”

”I did not want that and you know it!” he shouted. It seemed his temper had started to reflect out. Tension was thick in the air as you laughed.

”Oh, right. My mistake. No you wanted to stay in this shithole and be the king of it, how could I forget? Your heart only had room for one person—the Meropide— not me!”

He rose from his seat, face beginning to go red in anger.

”Don’t! I’m not playing this game with you! You know how much I loved you. I loved you so much but you knew there’s nothing out there for me.”

Nails dug in your palms hearing his response as your emotions were beginning to get to you. 

 “Well you would have made something with ME out there!” you yelled, tears beginning to weld in your eyes. You turned away, wiping your tears and shuttered. You felt embarrassed being right in the same position as you were when the two of you first broke up and crying in front of him again after years.

”...I wanted us to build a new life together. Our sentences finished at the same time. You could have left with me, but you didn’t,” you whispered, angrily wiping your face. Silence fell the both of you besides your occasional sniffle and his heavy footsteps walking closer to you.

-”...And I wanted us to build a new life together here. But I wasn’t going to stop you from getting out of the Meropide.”

A frustrated grunt ripped from you as you couldn’t hold your irritation anymore. You marched to him, glaring at his form towering over you. 

To your surprise, he leaned down and kissed you. And shocking you both, you kissed him back with just as much fervor. 

”Selfish. Blockheaded. Smug dick--” you stammered out  among the heated kisses, claiming your lips with every second. Nibbling on your bottom lip, his tongue darted in your parted mouth as you threw your arms around his shoulder. His kiss was of the familiar taste of Earl Grey you remembered he was so fond of.

“Moody, Frustrating, Manipulative asshole,” he grunted back. Article after article of clothing, fell on the floor as you fell onto his couch with a plop. Your hands ran across his firm stomach and chest.You gasped feeling his large palm cup against your sex.

”Still wearing the same underwear I smuggled in for our anniversary. I see you’re still a cheapskate or are you just sentimental?” he grunted  in your ear. His finger firmly brushed across your clit, pleasure soon beginning to reverberate throughout  your lower form. You groan, hitting his toned thigh.

”Shut the fuck up!”

Wriothesley slid your panties down until they caught on your ankle as his fingers glided along the bare cunt. He rubbed your clit with his calloused thumb.

”I see you still have rough ass hands,” you chimed. Wriothesley rolled his eyes, before chuckling.

”Yet you can’t get enough of them as always” he shot back. Fingers slowly sank inside of you as you threw your head back. His digits curled and stretched you out, tenderly pumping at a decent pace as you squirmed under his touch.

His hips bucked slightly against your thigh where you could feel how hard his cock was, desperately pressed against his gray slacks.He hitched your legs over his broad shoulders as he nibbled your inner thighs—leaving a wake of discolored marks and soft bite marks.

”Fuck! Fuck!”you whined out, hands shooting out to pull his soft hair. Your legs caved in closer to his cheeks as he pumped his faster.

He leaned in, letting his tongue brush against your clit as it was the last thing to push you over. Back arched, fluid spraying from you as he continually lapped at your overstimulated cunt as the liquid made a mess of his face and the couch. 

As your body fell, breath heavy from your high, his fingers pulled out of you—walls unconsciously tightening, wishing they would stay. Satisfied with your fucked out expression, he smirked wiping his hand with his chin from your fluids. You narrow your eyes at him, watching him swirl his tongue around cleaning his fingers that were coated in your essence.

”Your face, it’s pissing me off,” you grunted. Wriothesley briefly laughed. Your heart fluttered momentarily. You hated how much you missed it.

“Said the person who squirted on my face. Been a long time hasn’t it, hm?” he teased. You glared before his eyes softened to something genuine.

”..Yeah, me too.”

He sat on his couch, shifting his pants down as his cock slapped on his lower stomach

He stroked his length as it pulsated in his grip. Every once and a while, a wavering moan left his lips. It seemed he had a new piercing too.

A Prince Albert piercing, glinting from the light and precum budding at his flushed tip.You shifted your hips, contemplating if you should go to the next step of someone that was your ex, but seeing him shutter, muffling his mouth and hearing your name was the push you needed.

”Fuck I missed you inside of me,” you groaned, kissing him. You hovered over his cock lining yourself up before sinking down. His hands found their way to the globe of your ass, grabbing the mounds tightly before you managed to reach his hilt.

”Like old times…” he whispered  out, hazy lust gazing over his eyes.

”Just like it…” you moaned.

His pace was relentless as you called out his name. His jaw was clenched, watching your slick dripped down your thighs and his cock as he continued to slam you down on it. Your whole body jumped, as his hips moved up to meet him pulling you down his cock.

”I missed you so fucking much. Your smile. Your voice…fuck your scent. I couldn’t sleep properly for months when you left.” he groaned. 

”I-I couldn’t either…fuck! There! Right there!!” you yelled out. HIs cock continued to press against your soft walls, hitting the spot that caused your voice to reach higher and higher, stomach churning as you almost hit your release.

“ ‘Thesley,” you cried out, nails harpooning into his back as you brought him closer to you. Your body shuttered, walls quivering and tightening. He clenched his jaw, having a harder time bouncing you on his cock.

”...I still fucking love you!” Wriothesley grunted, sinking his teeth into your neck. With one final rough thrust— his hips faltered—as thick ropes of cup jet out and inside of you. He slowly thrusted, moving to try to nurse down his high.

You shifted your neck, leaning his chin up before you kissed him once more. 

For a second, just for a second, it was like you never left him. That you two were still together.That you were in your early twenties, dumb and in love.

Wriothesley broke the kiss first as your fantasy was briefly shattered. His eyes were soft but clearly searching for something within yours. 

“...You still never told me why you are back here,” he replied. You groaned, and rolled your eyes pushing his face away as he grunted. You rose from him, his cum and your slick drooling from your hole before you went to grab your panties and put them back on.

Wriothesley merely sighed, lifting his boxers and pants back on. 

”...I was framed,” you admitted, putting your bra on. Just as Wriothesley was about to put his shirt on, he looked up in shock.

”What”

”Out there, I owned a small cute cafe. You know the one I always talked about based on a beloved classic, Les Aventures d’Alice au Pays des Merveilles,” you chuckled to yourself, recalling reading it to Sigwienne with Wriothesley at times. 

“ I didn’t have funds. Who would fund an ex-convict, y’know. But I met Henry, the aristocrat who promised my dreams. I thought things were going well until I discovered he had used the business as a front to sell absinthe.” You looked down, finally buttoning your shirt on and looking at Wriothesley’s somber face.

“He tried to kill me, I killed him first.”

Wriothelsey briefly closed his eyes processing the information before buttoning his own shirt.

“..But you know this country more than anyone else. He had power after death, and I was pinned with the crime by his frustrated associates,” you whispered, adjusting your color to hide the marks you knew Wriothesley left.

“I can help. We can catch them and get you back--” 

“There’s no point.” you sighed, but smiled. You chuckled humorlessly, walking to the door to his office. You clenched the handle, your back turned to hide your expression. 

Your real expression.

”I guess I wasn’t meant to be out there after all."

[wafflefries13]

Murder on the Mr. Bluebird Express (TWST x Reader)

Summary:

It's your birthday! To celebrate, Malleus has scored you and all your friends tickets on the famous Mr. Bluebird Express. As you all board the train, isolated with no cell service, the night can only go well, right? ... Right?

Warnings: Slight depictions of blood and gore (?), character injury, happy ending (I promise, guys, I can't follow through with angst to save my life), can be read as platonic or romantic, afab reader with she/her pronouns

Cross posted on my AO3 TheGhostInTheKitchen

Author's note: I've always loved mysteries, so this is my first try at actually writing one. Not sure how good it actually is, but if you never practice you'll never get any better at it. I got the idea from an episode of Detective Academy Q, if anyone has ever seen that anime. Thanks for reading!

“Your birthday is soon, isn’t it?” Malleus asked as if he hadn’t marked the date on his calendar months ahead of time. “You must tell me what you would like for a present. No object is out of reach.”

(Y/N) waved her hand at him. “No, don’t worry about it. It’s on a weekend, which is good. Having the day off is pretty much all I really want. Well, you know, as much a day off as I can get. I’m sure Crowley will find something else for me to do.” She rolled her eyes dramatically. “Ooh, maybe we can go into town. I wouldn’t mind if you get me lunch from that one cafe in Foothill Town.”

“Nothing would make me happier.” He said, putting a hand to his chest and bowing regally. (Y/N) laughed, shoving him playfully. Green fireflies swirled around them, the only light accompanying the stars on the moonless night. Although it was late, Malleus and (Y/N) had become more than accustomed to their late night walks at this point that they were both wide away at this time of night no matter what.

“Oh, don’t let me forget,” (Y/N) said suddenly. “Sebek lent me a book the other day. Would you be able to give it back to him for me? We don’t have any classes together tomorrow.”

“Of course. What book was it?”

(Y/N) spread her hands wide in front of them, as if displaying the title. “Midnight Rose. It’s a murder mystery about the bookworm daughter of a crazy professor. There’s a bunch of mysterious, animal attack-like deaths in their small country village, and her father is blamed, so she has to find the real murderer while teaming up with a local nobel with a dark secret. Apparently it’s a classic here. I used to love reading mysteries back in my world. My favorite classic author was Agatha Christie. She had amazing stories and I loved trying to guess the end.”

“Do tell,” Malleus said.

“Let’s see. She had a bunch of really famous ones. And Then There Were None is about a bunch of seemingly unrelated people being invited to an isolated island before mysteriously dying off one by one. Murder on the Nile is a locked room mystery on a boat during a newlywed party. Crooked House has this big sprawling mansion and a ton of suspects. Oh, one of my favorites is Murder on the Orient Express. That one’s on a train and it’s really cool because the culprit is-” She cut herself off with a sly smile. “Well, spoilers for a book that came out, like, a hundred years ago and you’ll probably never be able to read, but still.”

“It sounds like a thrilling experience.”

“Oh, yeah. I think that one’s my favorite because it all takes place on a train. A lot of other countries in my world have these really extensive train networks with all these fancy cars, but it’s not too common in my country. I guess I like to romanticize something like that. Even with the murder.”

Malleus’ eyes twinkled. “Ah, I see. Unfortunately, my dear child of man, we may have to reschedule dining at the cafe. I believe you’ve given me a much better idea of how to celebrate your birthday.”

And that was how a gaggle of Night Raven College students found themselves waiting in a train station, late evening light casting long shadows across the marble floor. The station was almost empty this time of day, only open for the specialty train they were waiting for. (Y/N) looked around her group of friends, giddy that they had all agreed to come on such short notice. Even Leona and Idia, who she knew would rather avoid most responsibility or social situations, had somehow been wrapped up in attending.

Everyone had dressed up for the occasion, as based on the proposed dress code that had been attached to the ornate invitation Malleus had sent out earlier that week. To (Y/N), it reminded her of old Roaring 20’s glamor, suits with detailed beadwork, fancy hats, suspenders, glittering accessories, and slicked styled hair. (Y/N) had found her own flapper-style dress in one of the many abandoned rooms of Ramshackle. A doting Professor Crewel had volunteered to revive the painted silk dress for her special day, including lending her an elegant strand of pearls she looped several times around her neck. Apparently, the style was to reminisce about when the train first came into service during the golden age of non-magical transportation. Whatever the reason, it made (Y/N) feel daring and fancy, like she was a secret princess about to escape into an elegant speakeasy.

“(Y/N)!” Ace called her. She walked over to the Heartslabuyl group standing in front of a large mural depicting their train and the route it would take.

“The Mr. Bluebird Express,” Grim read out. “What a weird name for a train.”

“Is it?” (Y/N) asked. “I always thought trains were like race horses, they always have crazy names. The California Zephyr, the Twilight Limited, the Flying Pussyfoot.”

“I think it’s cute,” Cater said, catching the last of the dying light to get the perfect selfie. “It’s a really famous luxury line. My sisters were super jealous when I told them we were coming. Happy birthday, (Y/N)!” He pulled her into another picture and she smiled and waved.

“Of course, we’ll only be on part of the line tonight,” Riddle said, tracing his finger along the diagram for the scenic ride they were taking for dinner. “Thank you for including us on your birthday.”

“Of course! I wouldn’t want to spend it with anyone else!”

“I’m impressed we were able to get so many tickets last minute,” Trey said. “But, well, I guess Malleus is Malleus.”

“Who cares about scenery!” Grim said, jumping off (Y/N)’s shoulder to hover in the air. “A fancy ride like this probably has super fancy food! When do we get to eat?”

(Y/N) laughed, reaching forward to readjust Grim’s new bow. “The train should get here soon. You won’t starve.”

“Says you. Ugh, I’m fading already. Head, fuzzy, everything going dark.” He dramatically put a paw to his forehead, rolling his eyes and drooping in the air. (Y/N) caught him, holding him close and scratching behind his ears until he perked back up and purred.

They all looked up as a train whistle sounded off in the distance, rapidly approaching. Each dorm group made their way out to the platform, necks craning down the track to watch the train pull into the station. It was a beautiful almost pearlescent dark blue with gold filigree swirling and dancing around the engine and cars. A tall smoke stack on the engine car blew out white steam that twinkle with starburst sparks. Mr. Bluebird Express was written in elegant, swooping golden script along the side of the train. The train hissed to a stop at the platform, a side door clicking open.

Malleus stepped forward, dark and elegant in his black and forest green suit. He held out a black glove clad hand. “Happy birthday, dearest (Y/N).” He said. “After you.”

Kalim whooped behind them. “Happy birthday, (Y/N)!” That started up a round of applause and well wishes from the crowd, even the more reluctant and serious members.

(Y/N) smiled at her friends, heart swelling. She couldn’t believe how incredibly lucky she felt at this moment. The people who mattered most to her in this world, who she had been through so many trials and tribulations with, who she had seen grow and change and had grown and changed with them. Even in this strange world, she knew she wouldn’t want to be or with anyone else. She blinked back happy tears, turning back to Malleus and taking his hand, stepping up the small stairs into the train car.

Her feet immediately sunk into the plush maroon carpet of the train car. She spun around to take in the beautiful interior. The dining car had large rectangular windows, dark wood booths along one side with elegant white dishes and sparkling silverware. There was a bar curving along one end of the car, stocked with crystal glasses and all manner of bottles. A three-tiered blue and white birthday cake sat on top, sparklers fizzing from each tier.

“Wow,” (Y/N) breathed. Malleus stood next to her, eyes sparkling and smiling so wide his fangs were visible. “Hornton, you really pulled out all the stops.”

“I’ll admit,” Leona said, sounding reluctant as he fell into one of the overstuffed leather chairs, putting his hands behind his head and closing his eyes. “It’s not too bad.” (Y/N) thought he looked like a prohibition mob boss.

“I haven’t even been able to secure tickets for the Mr. Bluebird Express before,” Vil said, admiring the detailed work on the wainscotting. His hair was swept to the side, dressed in an elegant dark purple suit that went from fitted around his chest and arms to sweeping, almost skirt-like, around his legs.

“So this is what it feels like to be rich,” Ruggie smirked, standing next to the bar that seemed to have one fewer expensive bottles of bourbon than it did before. “I can see how you can get used to it.” He readjusted his fedora, ears poking out to twitch at the sides. As everyone filed into the dining car, the door clicked shut behind them.

After a moment, they felt the movement of the massive wheels below them, the train pulling away from the station with another whisted from the engine.

“Should there be staff?” Jamil asked. “A conductor or ticket taker?”

“We have the entire train reserved for ourselves,” Malleus said. “While the usual route has staff to attend to guests, as this is a shorter trip the train is limited to only the necessary attendants in the engine. Anything else we would need is supplemented by magic.”

As if waiting for his cue, sparkles swirled around the plates, food appearing and glasses filling out of nowhere.

(Y/N) slid into a booth at the far end next to the bar with Grim, Ace, and Deuce. Each booth was occupied by another group of four. Next was Riddle, Trey, Jamil, and Leona. Second was Kalim, Cater, Lilia, and Ruggie. Past them was Malleus, Sebek, Vil, and Rook. Fifth was Idia, Ortho, Floyd, and Epel. In the last booth were Azul, Jack, and Silver. The car filled with conversation and laughter, people frequently leaning over other booths to talk to the different groups. At one point, Floyd and Ortho started confiscating everyone’s salad forks to build a complicated tower by linking all their tines. Once everyone had finished each course, the remnants would be magically whisked away and replaced with the next, much to the annoyance of Grim who kept trying to lick his plate clean.

Finally, it was time for the centerpiece dessert. Both Jack and Rook held up the cake on its round silver platter, bringing it from the bar to (Y/N)’s table. Some of them slid out from their booths to crowd around (Y/N)’s table, the others standing or watching from their own. “Happy birthday to you~” Everyone started singing.

The train whistled, sharp and loud, reverberating down the train.

“Happy birthday to you!”

Outside the train, the twilight scenery went black as the train entered a tunnel, the only light the glow from the magical floating lamps and sconces in the car.

“Happy birthday, dear (Y/N)~”

The lights flickered, a few voices faltering to look up at the quivering illumination.

“Happy birthday to-”

The dining car plunged into darkness. Every light snuffed out at once, even the flares on the cake fizzling out at the same time. There were a few gasps of surprise, low murmurs of confusion.

“Hang on!” Cater called out. He already had his phone out, filming the song. With a quick swipe and tap, his phone light was on, sweeping it around the room. “I got it… huh?”

The train barreled out of the tunnel, blue evening light flooding back in through the windows at the same time the interior lights clicked back to life. There was a collective sigh of relief, the terror of uncertainty in the dark banished once again.

“That was weird,” (Y/N) said.

“Who cares?” Grim said, eyeing the cake. “Let’s eat!”

“Easy,” Deuce said. “(Y/N) gets the first sli-”

Kalim screamed. Everyone spun around to look at their booth. Kalim was half way standing in his seat, back pressed against the glass. His eyes were wide, locked in place on something next to him (Y/N) couldn’t see as it was blocked by the back of the booth. Jamil immediately darted forward, vaulting himself over the chair of his own booth to practically tackle Kalim out of the way and onto the floor. Jamil forced Kalim to look away, the latter's eyes bubbling with tears and he started sobbing into the formers’ dress shirt. Ruggie yelped, tripping over his own feet as he tried to quickly back away. He fell on his back, hat flying off his head.

“What?” (Y/N) said, panicked, standing. “What happened?”

Malleus turned to her, hand out and eyes wide, already pale face even paler. “(Y/N),” He said, and she could feel the seriousness of the situation from his use of her real name. “Don’t-”

But it was too late. A jerk of the train caused her to stumble closer to the far booth. Her arms pinwheeled out, trying to regain her balance. Still, she stumbled and fell on her knees in front of the booth. With the sound of Kalim crying behind her, and the gasps, strangled screams, and yells of the others in the group, (Y/N) looked up, straight into the cold ruby red dead eyes of Lilia Vanrouge.

The clatter of screams, shouting, and horrified rationalization dulled to an incoherent roar in her ears. She stared up at Lilia, brain slowing down, trying to rationalize what she was seeing. He was slumped over in his seat, face turned to the side to stare out unseeing, arms dangling limply at his sides. A silvery thin round disk protruded from just below his neck, lodged in his spine, blood dripping down the back of his white dress shirt. Shaking, her hand reached out, almost without her own volition. Just before her fingertips could tap Lilia’s hand, arms wrapped around her from behind, hauling her up and away. Deuce lugged her dead weight down the train car, depositing her back in a far booth facing away from Lilia’s body.

Lilia’s body. Lilia’s body. (Y/N) suddenly jerked up, head whipping around. “Where’s Silver?”

Jack rubbed the back of his neck and pointed with his chin. Silver was sitting in his booth, head tilted back and eyes closed, asleep. (Y/N) wasn’t sure when his narcolepsy had taken over, but she hoped it was before they went through the tunnel. Ortho was sitting next to him, holding his hand. Idia stood between Ortho and Lilia’s booth, blocking his little brother’s line of sight, although he kept casting worried looks over his shoulder, whipping his head back down immediately after. Grim practically threw himself into (Y/N)’s stomach, burying his head into her middle. She clutched him tightly.

Leona came up to her booth, Ruggie close at his heels. “(Y/N),” Leona said. “Stay close to me, okay?”

“Okay.” She almost didn’t recognize her own trembling voice. Malleus was standing nearby, his back to her, staring out the window at the passing scenery. His shoulders were back, tense, hands clasped tightly behind his back.

“Hornton?” (Y/N) asked, hand reaching out to touch his arm. “Are you-?” Are you what? Are you okay? Of course not, no one was. Her mind zipped through a thousand possibilities of what to say, what might possibly be the right thing, but everything fizzled on her tongue. He looked at her, once, expression unreasonable, before turning to walk farther into the car.

“We need to call the engineer,” Malleus said, voice breaking through the icy tension in the room. “We’ll need to stop at the nearest station and contact the authorities.”

“I’ve got it,” Azul said, tugging his gloves down farther on his trembling hands. He cleared his throat before reaching for an old fashioned corded phone on the wall by the door to the next car. Everyone’s eyes were locked on him as he waited for the other end to pick up. After a moment, Azul’s forehead wrinkled in confusion. He looked down at the phone, then pressed the dial flip a few times, phone back to his ear. “The line is dead.” He winced at the phrase.

“What?” Sebek snapped. His eyes were red. Beads of blood dotted his lower lip from where he was biting it to keep from wobbling. He marched forward and shoved Azul out of the way, jerking the phone up to his ear. After a frustrated second, he snarled, slamming the phone back on the receiver. “Then we’ll just have to go tell them in person!”

“Are we able to go up through the train?” Riddle asked.

“There are fewer cars than normal,” Malleus said. “But we do have access to the entire train. I’m sure the engineer wouldn’t be expecting us, but I believe they’ll understand our circumstances.”

“This car is at the very end,” Jade said. “I believe there were three others between us and the engine.”

“We don’t all need to go,” Jamil said. He still had an arm around Kalim, who had tears silently tracking down his face. “There’s too many of us to move quickly. And some of us should stay with…” He didn’t need to finish the sentence.

“Two groups, then,” Jade said. “Enough to stay here and make sure the crime scene is preserved, and another to go to the front. That way we’ll have plenty of extra eyes watching our backs.”

“Crime scene?” Riddle echoed. “You’re not suggesting that we - that one of us is responsible for-”

“Who else? Razor sharp plates don’t just appear in people of their own accord.”

“I think,” Trey said. “It’s from the cake.”

“The cake?” Ruggie balked.

“It’s to separate the tiers, I think.” Trey nervously adjusted his glasses, falling back into something familiar to ground himself. “Bakers use them to keep the tiers from sinking into each other. Usually they’re not made of metal like that, of course. Look, the middle tier is already going down.”

They all looked over to the bar where the cake had been abandoned. Sure enough, the middle tier was leaning on one side, falling further into the bottom. There was a smear of frosting from where the separator plate had been yanked free.

“You didn’t make the cake?” Deuce asked.

“No,” Malleus answered for Trey. “I had it ordered to be delivered on board before we arrived. It was made by a local bakery near the station. I didn’t mean it as a slight, Clover. I didn’t want to distract anyone with work.” Trey lifted his hand, brushing away the concern.

The group quickly decided who would go up to the engine and who would stay behind. Malleus, Sebek, Vil, Jade, and Jack would go through the three other train cars up to the front, battering down the engine room door if they had too, while the rest of the group stayed.

“I don’t like this,” Ace said in a quiet voice to (Y/N). “Splitting up, I mean. It’s like no one’s ever seen a horror movie before.” Still, the group headed out in a solemn mood.

Someone had draped Lilia’s dark blue and lime green pinstripe suit jacket over him. It bulged awkwardly over the plate stuck in his spine. (Y/N) swallowed hard at a sudden wave of nausea.

The dining car was quiet, filled with the sounds of the wheels chugging underneath them and the whispered conversations of those left behind. Every once and a while there would be a muffled cry and sniff. No one really seemed to know what to do with themselves, ever switching before sitting stone still, fidgeting, or pacing around the car.

(Y/N) spotted Cater sitting on the floor near the door where they had entered, legs spread out in front of him, eyes locked on his phone. His forehead was creased in concentration, teeth worrying his lower lip. She tapped Leona’s arm so he could let her slide out of the booth and walked over to him.

“Cater?” (Y/N) asked.

Cater didn’t look up from his phone. He kept tapping it, dragging his finger to restart a video, watching, then rewinding it again.

“Cater?” She said again. This time he startled, looking up.

He flashed a warm smile that felt out of place in such a dour setting. “Hey, yeah, what’s up?”

‘What’s up?’ (Y/N) thought. Out loud, she said, “What are you watching?”

He showed her the screen as she sat next to him. “It’s the video I was taking earlier, when we were singing to you.”

(Y/N) felt a lump form in her throat. She watched everyone’s happy faces on the tiny screen, dread sloshing in her stomach in anticipation of what she knew was coming. The flickering lights, the black out, a murder in the dark. Right on cue, the screen turned black. She almost felt like she could see movement from the camera swinging around in confusion, the lens rapidly trying to adjust to the new lack of light. She closed her eyes hard, fighting back a lightheaded feeling.

Cater drew his phone back. “Sorry, I get that you wouldn’t want to see that.”

“I don’t understand,” She said, voice cracking. She sat down hard next to him. “Who would do this? How, even? He’s on the same level as Hornton, magic wise, I can’t imagine anyone sneaking up on him. And why?” Hot tears bubbled along her lashes. Cater put an arm around her and pulled her close. “I don’t understand.”

“Neither do I,” Cater said. “That’s why I was watching this. When I had my flashlight on, I thought I saw something weird. I’ve been trying to find it again. Maybe it could be a clue. Do you…Want to see?”

She pressed her lips together hard. Finally, she gave a stern nod. Cater shuffled closer, holding the phone back up to play the video from the beginning.

The camera swung up as the video started. It swept over the car, showing everyone smiling and jovial. A few of them stood, taking their positions as Jack and Rook collected the cake. (Y/N) saw Lilia catch the eye of the camera, giving a wink and waving. She gulped hard. Their singing came out in low, tinny volume from the phone speakers. (Y/N) felt strange as she watched the lights flicker, knowing what was about to happen, watching her own face blink and look up in confusion. Even though she knew it was coming, she still startled a little as the screen suddenly went black. The camera swung around in the dark, black shapes against a black background. Cater’s phone light turned on, sweeping across the room to briefly illuminate blurred figures. Shortly after, the lights came back on. Cater had focused back on (Y/N)’s table. She could see the smear on the cake frosting already, even though it was still being held up. Her heart dropped in her stomach as she heard Kalim’s scream. The camera whipped around to Lilia’s booth, just in time to catch Jamil leaping across to drag Kalim to safety. She saw herself fall in front of the booth, looking up at Lila. The camera focused on the scene for a handful of chilling seconds, before dropping down to the floor and cutting out.

“Did you see something?” She asked. She pointed at the screen, just after the phone light came on.

“Maybe? I think so, that’s why I was watching it back. I just can’t figure it out.”

“Well, two pairs of eyes are better than one, right? Play it again.” Cater pulled back on the recording. The video played out the same two more times. On the third, (Y/N) stopped him.

“Wait!” She said suddenly. “Go back! Just a few seconds.” Cater slowly pulled back the replay, the dark scene reversing frame by frame. “There! See?” She jabbed a finger at the screen.

Cater squinted. “I don’t see anything.”

“Exactly! That’s Lilia’s seat! He was there before the lights went out, and he was there when they came back on, but he’s not there when it’s dark!”

“Oh!” Cater said, excited. His face fell again. “What does that mean?”

“I… Have no idea. But it has to be important right? Was he still sitting at the booth before he was…” ‘Say it,’ (Y/N) thought. ‘If you’re going to have any chance of finding out what happened, you have to say it.’ “Before he was killed? Does that mean that someone moved him?”

Cater looked back down at the screen. “The lights were only off for-” He checked the video timeline. “Eleven seconds. I turned my flashlight on after about 6 seconds, here, see?”

“So not a very big window of time. And look, Kalim is sitting next to Lilia by the window and Epel is standing on the outside next to him. How would they have not noticed if he was moved?”

Cater bit his lip again. “You know,” He said slowly. “There’s something else that I-”

“Did I miss eating cake?” Silver said. He was rubbing his eyes, blinking at everyone’s shocked stares.

“Silver,” (Y/N) started, after several moments of tense silence. She felt responsible, somehow. That because it was her birthday party, she was the reason Lilia had been put into the exact right, or wrong, circumstances that lead to his death. She stood, holding her hands up as if she was going to confront a terrified animal. “It’s… I’m sorry, Lila is…”

“Father?” Silver asked. He stood, looking around the room. “Is he with everyone else? Where did they go?”

“No, Silver, I don’t know how to say this, but, but he-”

“(Y/N)!” Cater hissed, jumping up, fingers digging into her arm. She turned to him, Cater pointing frantically to the booth where Lilia’s body was. Or, rather, where Lilia’s body had been.

The seat was empty. Lila was gone.

Everyone immediately started looking around. (Y/N) knew it was useless from the beginning, but joined in anyway. What else were you meant to do when your recently deceased friend disappeared from a small room with only one door out?

“It’s just like the video!” She said. “Maybe this is the way he was moved during the blackout.”

“What video?” Jamil asked. (Y/N) and Cater told everyone about Lilia disappearing before, everyone crowding around the phone to see the video.

Silver gasped at the end, showing Lila’s body. “That…” He started. He shook his head. “No, that’s not real, it can’t be. Father wouldn’t-” He started blinking fast, looking around. “I need to find him.” Silver pushed his way out and barrelled through the door to the next car.

“We should go find the others anyway,” Riddle said. “To let them know about Lilia.”

“I’ll go,” (Y/N) volunteered.

“I’m coming with you,” Leona said. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but I don’t want you or anyone else alone.” Ace, Deuce, Cater, and Epel also volunteered.

The next car was a viewing car. The entire upper half was made of glass with a series of swiveling round backed chairs lining the sides. It would have been a beautiful place to spend the evening counting stars and watching the moon rise. The dark night outside seemed to encroach on their group and they rushed through the car to the next. The next car was a luggage car, stuffed with packages and cases from previous voyages. The lights were off. Leona flipped the switch several times, clicking uselessly.

“Watch your step,” He said.

The luggage car was stuffed with crates and pallets among other suitcases and hat boxes. A rough path had been cut through the center, and they had to walk single file. The light was hazy, only filtering in through the small windows in the doors at the front and back of the car.

“So,” Ace started, trying to break the unnerving silence. “Any idea how Lila could have been moved?”

“Maybe there’s some sort of hidden hallway?” Deuce theorized. “Or like a service entrance?”

“Isn’t that kind of a trope?” Epel said. “Secret passages?”

“That feels more like an old mansion sort of thing than a train, like Ramshackle,” Deuce said, “I can’t imagine there’d be any room.”

“I’ve found a couple, actually, in Ramshackle” (Y/N) said. “There’s one behind the bookcase in the guest room that leads upstairs. I think I might make it a second guest room, too, since it-” (Y/N) was cut off as she tripped. She caught herself just before she tumbled down. “Careful,” She said, looking back and aiming her phone flashlight to see what she had tripped over. “There’s something-”

She stopped short, words withering in her mouth. Her light trailed up a shoe, leading to a leg that ended abruptly at a crate. She took a sharp step backward, crashing into a luggage cart. It rattled behind her, something heavy and warm falling against her arm. Her heart already thundering, she turned to push it off. Only to be met by Jade’s face, lips going blue, eyes frozen open in shock, cut off at the waist in a pool of dark red, placed precariously on top of a suitcase.

She screamed, throwing herself backward, Epel clumsily catching her as they both stumbled away from the corpse. Panic quickly overtook the group as, between yelps and thundering hearts, they sped through the rest of the car, throwing open the door at the other end and launching themselves across the divide and into the next car. Ace pressed his back tightly against the door of the car, as if he could physically bar the image of Jade’s bifurcated body from their minds.

“(Y/N)?” Vil said, looking over the blundering group. The rest of the first team that had left to find the engineer looked back at them, confused. Vil took in their smaller group, the wide eyes and gasping mouths. His expression flitted between a mix of frustration, concern, and terror. “What are you doing here?”

“It’s- It’s Jade!” (Y/N) said, hot tears spilling down her cheeks as her voice scratched her throat. “We found his body!”

“What?” Jack said, ears going flat. “He just left. Are you sure?”

“Yes, we’re sure!” Ace snapped. “He was cut in half!”

Malleus’s hand on (Y/N)’s tightened as he helped her stand. “That’s not possible. We only sent him back to you all a minute ago.”

“The engine is empty,” Sebek said gravely, waving his hand at the door at the other end of the car to the engine room. “Jade was going to go back to the dining car and let you all know.”

“What did I say?” Ace said. “You can’t let people split up like this.”

“Wait,” (Y/N) said, looking around. “Where’s Silver?”

“He’s not still asleep in the dining car?” Sebek asked.

“He woke up and we told him what was going on,” Epel said. “He, you know, didn’t take it well. He ran out of the car this way to try and find you guys and we came after him.”

“It’s not like there’s anywhere else to go,” Deuce said. “He couldn’t have vanished into thin air between the dining car and here.”

“Speaking of disappearing,” Ace said. “Where are Cater and Leona?”

“Maybe they went the other way out of the car? Back the way we came in?” (Y/N) said.

“I told you!” Epel said. “There has to be some kind of secret passage! Maybe they went the same way whoever took Lilia went.”

“Who took Lilia?” Malleus asked.

(Y/N) tried to quickly summarize what had happened after the first group left, from Cater’s video, to Lilia’s body vanishing, to Silver charging ahead, to detailing finding Jade’s body in the luggage car.

Vil sighed sharply and ran a hand through his hair. “As much as I hate to admit it, Ace is right-”

“Hey!”

“We shouldn’t stay split up. Let’s regroup in the dining car. The train has to stop eventually. Either we can contact the police when we stop at the next station or if we pass through an area with cell service.”

(Y/N) clutched Grim to her chest at the idea of going back through the luggage car. She felt oddly ridiculous, like a child with a well loved stuffed animal asking their parents to check the closet for monsters. But how could she not feel the rising panic bubble in her chest at the thought of seeing one of her friend’s bodies again?

She jumped as Malleus brushed his fingers against her shoulder. He gave her a small smile, offering his arm. “Close your eyes and we’ll go through quickly,” He said in a low voice.

(Y/N) swallowed hard, threading her arm through his and pulling close, Grim clasped so close the heat from the blue fire in his ears warmed her face.

Whatever quiet conversation there was ceased immediately as they stepped back in the dark car. Phone lights came out, casting ghostly search lights across the car, bouncing on and over the clutter of bags and boxes. (Y/N) closed her eyes tight, pressing her face in Malleus’s arm.

“Jade’s not here,” Jack said.

(Y/N)’s eyes snapped open. “What?” She looked around the dark and cramped space. Sure enough, every body inside was breathing. She let go of Malleus’s arm and took a step forward. “No, wait, he was right here. He was like, half way though, right? I tripped over his legs right here.” She pointed to the floor where Jade’s legs had been splayed out. Only… No, wait, was that the same crate she had seen before? She scanned along the narrow walkway through the car, trying to find the familiar box, but she couldn’t find anything that matched the morbid memory in her head. The cogs in her brain churned. It was dark, but had these boxes been moved? Was this the same path they had taken through the car the first time? She turned back to the other first years. “You guys saw him too, right? I’m not just imagining things?”

“No, he was definitely here,” Deuce confirmed. “And besides, you still have some, uh, blood, right here.” He tapped his shoulder.

(Y/N) lifted her hand, touching the spot Deuce had indicated. Her fingers came away sticky, a sheen of red coating them in the low light. Jade’s blood must have dripped when his upper body fell against her. She felt her stomach clench and flip.

“Jade wouldn't be the first person to disappear tonight,” Epel said.

As they made their way through the observation car, with still no sign of Cater or Leona, (Y/N) felt her panic rise in anticipation of what might greet them in the dining car. Her heartbeat roared in her ears, muting any other sound. She felt clammy, breaking out in a cold sweat as Sebek reached for the door to the next car.

“There you all are,” Azul said in a relieved sigh. “What did the engineer say?”

No one said anything, the group who had stayed staring at the group who returned until the silence stretched and stretched, taught and uncomfortable.

Floyd’s head poked out from a booth, where he had been playing a card game with Riddle, Ortho, and Idia. “Where’s Jade?” No one answered. Several of them started shifting uncomfortably. Floyd frowned, eyebrows coming together. He stood. “Where’s Jade?”

“He-” (Y/N) started. She felt like she had a responsibility to break the news.

“We don’t know that,” Sebek interrupted. “He wasn’t there.”

“Lilia’s not here either,” Ace snapped. “But we’re pretty sure he’s dead, too.”

Azul stumbled back, going green, Floyd jumping up, teeth gnashing. The car exploded in a cacophony of raised voices, panicked questions and sharp words flying around. With a sinking feeling, (Y/N) realized Cater, Leona, and Silver weren’t present. They had vanished, too. And, if the only other ones who had disappeared were dead, what did that mean for them?

“I need some fresh air,” She murmured. She let go of Malleus, stumbling to the door at the back of the car. She pushed it open, standing on the tiny balcony as the rushing wind pulled at her hair and dress. She gripped the intricate wrought iron fence around the balcony until her knuckles went bloodless. She took deep, gulping breaths of the cold night air until her lungs hurt. She slumped forward, pressing her sweaty forehead against the cool metal.

She nearly jumped out of her skin as a hand touched her back. She whipped around to see Ace holding his hands up.

“Sorry, sorry,” He said. “Should have said something first.” Deuce stepped out behind him, sliding the door closed.

“It’s okay,” She sighed. “I just… needed a second.” The two of them stood on either side of her, quiet as they stared out at the rushing landscape, train tracks blurring together into a solid road beneath them.

“Here,” Deuce said, offering her a handkerchief from his blazer pocket. “For the… blood.”

“Right, thanks.” She dabbed at the spot, trying to think of a way to explain to Professor Crewel how the dress he had worked so hard on had been stained. Even if it was able to be cleaned, she wasn’t sure she would ever want to wear it again. Her mind wandered for a second, until her hand froze, pressed against the damp spot on her shoulder. She pulled the handkerchief back, staring at the red stain. And then licked it.

“Whoa!” Deuce exclaimed.

“(Y/N)! Gross!” Ace cringed.

“It’s not blood,” (Y/N) said. She shoved the handkerchief at them. “See? It smells and tastes sweet. It’s like some kind of syrup colored red.”

Ace cautiously leaned forward and sniffed. “I’m not going to pretend I know a ton about merfolk biology, but I don’t think they have corn syrup for blood.”

“Did you lean against anything else?” Deuce asked.

“Not that I noticed.” She groaned, head falling into her hands.

“Curiouser and curiouser,” Ace muttered.

(Y/N) drummed her fingers against the railing. She stared down at the tracks rushing below them. Her eyes unfocused, trying to make her mind go blank instead of having every body and disappearance and unusual circumstance bounce around her head. Dirt and dust clouded behind the train, kicked up by the heavy wheels. Except… Suddenly, she jolted up so fast both Ace and Deuce jumped. “I need to check something,” She said. She spun around marching back into the dining car, the two boys close behind.

There were a couple of curious glances as she knelt by Lilia’s booth, everyone else keeping a wide berth from it. She looked underneath, running her hand along the bottom of the table, then across the booth seat, checking for any seams or latches. Her hand brushed along something soft on the edge of the table, where there was a smear of blue frosting.

“There was something in the video…” She said to herself. The idea itched in her mind. There was something missing, something she knew Cater must have noticed. Is that why he had been spirited away? But she had watched the same video with him multiple times. Wouldn't she have seen whatever clue she was sure was there?

Unless… The ideas crashed together all at once, almost too cluttered for her to organize them. Cater had been the only one with a light, the only one able to see around the darkened car. So, what if he saw something in the dark, something that wouldn’t show up on camera? Then, watching it back, the discrepancy would have subconsciously stuck out.

She pulled herself out from under the table, chewing on her bottom lip. She scanned the room. Her eyes passed over then jerked back to Jamil, setting down an empty glass on a side table. Tiny white sparkles flitted around the glass as it magically refilled.

Her hip jammed into the table as she whirled around, pulling her phone out of her bedazzled clutch. She grabbed a discarded glass from the table and drained it in two gulps. As she set it back on the table, she hit the record button on her phone, holding it close to the glass. The sparkling magic swirled around the glass, just as it had been doing all night.

“(Y/N)?” Riddle asked, confused.

She replayed the video, only a few seconds long. Sure enough, she watched the glass refill, but the magic around it was invisible.

Without a word, she whirled around and marched to the door to the observation car.

“Wait!” Ace called at her retreating back. “Come on, what have I been saying about splitting up?”

He, Deuce, and Grim followed behind her as she quickly moved through the next car to the luggage car.

“Epel was right,” (Y/N) called over her shoulder to them. “People don’t just vanish.”

“So you think there are secret passages?” Grim asked.

“Not exactly.” She pulled her phone out as they stepped into the luggage car, tapping her light on. She swept it around the room, dust motes floating in the air. “Back in my world, movies use a lot of cgi for special effects. But there are some older ones that use practical effects, puppets and makeup and stunts. They take a lot more work, but audiences also really like them, and they generally look better since they’re tangible, really there with the actors. Recently, some movies have been combining the two, computer generated images with physical props.”

“So?” Ace asked, confused.

“So,” She said. She stopped in front of a pile of luggage. She pushed them aside, not caring as they clattered in an untidy heap on the floor. Behind them was a wooden crate, a thin line of sticky red smeared along the bottom. “I think we’ve been thinking about this the wrong way. Whoever has been doing this is using a combination of methods, both magic and non-magic.”

“Magical murders?” Deuce said. “That’s like what the Arcane Special Defense Unit investigates.”

“But if they’re using magic to commit the murders,” Ace said. “Why use non-magic, too?”

(Y/N) crouched down, turning the crate around. Her heart clenched in her chest as she revealed a hole cut into the cut just above the bottom. “I think I might have an idea, but…” But she didn’t want to say it out loud. She didn’t want to admit she was suspecting one of her friends. She didn’t want to admit that one of them might, in fact, be capable of something like this.

Grim groaned. “Why does this kind of stuff always happen to us?”

“Don’t be dramatic,” Ace said.

“I mean,” Deuce said, rubbing the back of his head. “He’s kind of right. There’s Overblots, that monster in the mines, kidnappings, that one Halloween in the Spectral Realm, that other Halloween in Fleur City where our magic got eaten, the VDC, that one time there was a magical virus and we all got turned into kids, not to mention all the potion accidents in alechemy class-”

“Wait!” (Y/N) shouted. “Say that again!”

Deuce looked confused. “Uhh, that we kind of seem to attract trouble everywhere?”

“No, about Halloween! That’s it! I’ve got it!”

“You know who the murderer is?” Grim asked.

(Y/N) was grinning way too big for such a morose topic. “Yes! And I think I know where everyone who disappeared is. But I need help from you guys. Have you ever heard of a parlor scene?”

(Y/N) explained her revelation to the boys, quickly giving them instructions to meet back with her in the dining car later. Separating, (Y/N) stopped in the observation car, taking a deep breath. Then, she flung the door open, striding into the room.

“Alright, everyone!” (Y/N) said sternly. “It’s time we wrap this whole thing up!”

“You know who killed Jade and Lilia?” Azul asked, eyes red.

“In a way,” (Y/N) said. She clasped her hands behind her back, walking through the room. “Let’s start from the beginning of the night. First, we all board a train with no conductor. The cake is made with a dangerous metallic disk, brought on board before all of us arrived. The lights just so happen to all go out at the exact moment we enter a dark tunnel, giving the murderer the perfect opportunity to strike. The crime, then, must have been planned ahead of time by someone who knew the exact route, timing it perfectly to when the cake would have been closest. Then we’re separated, leading to a locked room where Jade is murdered. Not just that, but cut in half and placed in such a way that should have taken way longer than the brief time he was unaccounted for. And none of that accounts for the disappearances, of both the deceased and the theorized living. We’re on a moving train, the only entrance and exit carefully monitored by those in the car, so it would, or should, be pretty obvious if anyone were trying to sneak out, especially if they were carrying someone.

“Our culprit, then, is someone who has had complete and perfect control of the train and those on board the entire time we’ve been here. Someone who not only smuggled the murder weapon in, who knew we were isolated, who knew when the train would enter the tunnel, who purposefully separated us to orchestrate the second murder, and who has the ability to make multiple people vanish into thin air.”

Everyone was getting restless, shuffling and looking around, casting suspicious looks at the only person (Y/N) could be referring to. (Y/N) took one more steadying breath. Facing the culprit straight on, she lifted an accusing finger. “The only possibility is you, Malleus Draconia!”

There was a collective gasp as Sebek jumped up, inserting himself between (Y/N)’s allegation and his prince. “How dare you!” He shouted.

Malleus’s eyes were steely cool as he looked down at her. “Oh?” He said. “That’s quite the accusation, child of man. I do hope you have evidence to support your theory.”

(Y/N) looked at Malleus with a scowl, hands on her hips. Before long, her lips twitched as she started to laugh. She whipped away a stray tear with the heel of her hand. “Hornton, you really have a twisted sense of humor, you know that?”

Sebek’s head whipped back and forth between the two, Malleus joining in with her laugh. “Wait, what? My lord, you, did you really…?”

“It might seem pretty complicated on the surface, but it’s actually pretty simple, just like a lot of old fashioned murder mysteries,” (Y/N) said. She turned, shouting out, “Okay, come on in, boys!”

Through the door that led to the end of the train, Ace, Deuce, and Grim burst in, dragging Lilia, Jade, Cater, Silver, and Leona with them.

“Hello, everyone!” Lilia said jovially. “I do hope you haven’t been having too much fun without me.”

There was a blur of teal and black as Floyd launched himself across the car, tackling Jade in a squeezing hug. He started sobbing, fat, dramatic tears now freely flowing down his face.

“My,” Jade said, eyes touched with compassion, petting his brother’s hair. “I wasn’t expecting such a welcome.”

“Jade,” Azul said, trying to sound stern despite the crack in his voice. “If you ever do something like that again, I’ll fry you up and add unadon to the menu.”

Jade placed a hand to his chest. “Aww, you do care.”

Kalim was jumping between Cater and Lilia, hugging them close, holding their faces to double and triple check they were unharmed, and babbling through tears.

“So,” Leona said, carelessly dropping into a booth, hands behind his head, a smug smile on his face. “I guess everything went according to plan?”

“Does anyone want to fill us in on what is going on?” Idia asked desperately.

“Gladly,” (Y/N) said. “That’s the point of a parlor scene, after all, pointing out the culprit and explaining exactly how they committed the crime. First, we need to establish that almost everyone who disappeared was an accomplice.”

“Almost everyone?” Jack asked.

Cater shyly raised his hand as (Y/N) said, “Cater was the odd one out, but I’ll get to that in a second. Before we even got to the train station, Malleus had recruited Lilia, Leona, Silver, and Jade to his plan. He’s the one who had the metal disk brought in with the cake, a cake he specifically ordered. And speaking of the disk, Lilia, do you still have it?”

With a smirk and a flourish, Lilia produced the silver disk, bloody colored corn syrup cutting across it in a gorey line. He ran his finger along the edge before pressing an almost invisible button in the middle. The side of the disk suddenly compacted, retreating in so the disk became a half circle.

“I’m guessing it’s some kind of stage prop,” (Y/N) continued. “It looks perfectly solid and deadly until you activate the hidden mechanism. Lilia himself was the one who retrieved the disk from the cake, since he has amazing night vision. There was a smear of frosting under the table where you must have brushed your hand after getting the disk, Lilia. But, this was also the reason Cater got involved.” (Y/N) held out her hand and Cater handed her his phone, the incriminating video already pulled up. (Y/N) held the phone up, panning it around the room so everyone was able to see. “Lilia wouldn’t have been able to simply walk over to the cake, he was boxed in by Kalim and Epel, not to mention everyone else standing around. So, he teleported. But there’s a problem. When Lilia or Hornton teleport, there’s these magic green sparks. Since Cater was already looking around to film, he would have seen these sparks. But he wasn’t paying close attention to such a small detail while we were all in a panic with the lights going out. When he watched the video back, they would have stuck out subconsciously in his mind and it would have been confusing as to why the video didn’t perfectly match up with his memory. And that’s because those kind of magic sparks don’t show up on camera. Eventually, Cater would have connected the discrepancy, possibly revealing the whole plot early, which is why he had to go.”

Cater shrugged. “I literally figured it out as soon as we got in the luggage car. Too bad Leona here tackled me out of the way.”

“I can’t believe you went along with one of Malleus’s plans,” Ruggie grumbled, casting a strong side eye at Leona.

Leona shrugged nonchalantly. “It gave me a chance to get a nap between everything. And I thought it would be really funny.” He grinned at Ruggie’s glare.

“If you’ll remember,” (Y/N) continued. “It was Hornton who suggested we separate and go try and find the engineer, an engineer he knew from the beginning wasn’t on the train. The whole point of splitting up was to get the next murder ready. Back in the dining car with the rest of us, Silver ‘woke up,’ when in reality he had been awake this whole time. He was meant to serve as a distraction, giving Lilia a chance to teleport away and set up Silver storming out to find the other group. At the front of the train, when everyone realized we were the only ones aboard, Jade would volunteer to go back. He and Silver would meet up in the luggage car and stage the next scene for us to find. There were boxes with holes cut out. Silver hid in one with his legs sticking out, exactly in the middle of the path so we would trip over them, and Jade stood in one so only his upper half was visible. The lights had been tampered with beforehand so it would be too dark for us to pay close attention, not to mention the added panic of thinking we had just found another one of our friends dead.”

Azul smacked Jade’s arm. “Why in the deep blue sea would you agree to something like that?”

“Oh, I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be dead,” Jade said with a smile.

“Ace, Deuce, Grim, Epel, and I all ran one way,” (Y/N) continued.

“While I’m guessing Leona grabbed Cater and went the other. As for how they disappeared, I’m guessing Lila had something to do with it, too.”

Lilia clapped his hands. “I did! I was waiting in the luggage car for you all. You wouldn’t have seen me hanging from the ceiling. Once you all had left, I grabbed the others and we teleported out to our hiding spot!” He stretched his back. “I had to make a few trips, though. These old bones aren’t as spry as they used to be.”

“But,” Ortho asked. “Where did you all go?”

“That’s the last secret,” (Y/N) said. “There’s a secret caboose car! When I was out on the balcony outside this car, I noticed that the dust jumping around was behaving oddly. If you paid close attention, you could see the dust and dirt swept up by the train bouncing off something invisible. My guess is there was a secret 5th car added to the end of the train that everyone was waiting in. That’s where I sent these guys,” She waved to Ace, Deuce, and Grim. “To find everyone.”

“You’re lucky we like you so much,” Ace said. “It was insane jumping off the back of the dining car when I couldn’t see where I was landing.”

“But…Why?” Vil asked, perfect mouth pulled into a perfect frown. “Why do all this? Why put us through all this stress? Why make us think we were trapped with a murderer?”

(Y/N) snapped her fingers. “That’s what I kept getting caught up on, too. When I started figuring everything out, that was the only part that didn’t fit. I couldn't, wouldn’t, believe that Hornton would intentionally hurt any of us. But then Deuce said something that made it all click.”

“Yeah!” Deuce said proudly. “What did I say, again?”

“Halloween! More specifically, the first Halloween I was at NRC. After we got rid of the Magicam Monsters, do you remember what happened?”

“We all went to the Spectral Realm,” Sebek said slowly. “Where we thought people had been kidnapped and possessed by ghosts.”

“Which turned out to be Malleus pretending to be possessed to gather us all together for a Halloween party,” Riddle finished.

“LIke I said,” (Y/N) said. “A twisted sense of humor.”

“But a murder?” Trey said, fiddling with his glasses. “That’s still pretty extreme.”

(Y/N) sighed. “And that’s the last part. This whole thing might be my fault. I’m guessing I gave you the idea, Hornton, when I was talking about that mystery novel from my world, Murder on the Orient Express?”

He smiled wide, eyes glittering in pleasure. “I thought it would be a fine surprise. Anyone can read a mystery. It’s another matter entirely to be in the middle of one. But there is one more thing you didn’t catch.” Malleus snapped his fingers. The blurring scenery outside warped and spun, like sand being shaken in an hourglass, before settling back down. He opened the door, revealing the train station they had all boarded from. “We never actually left the station.”

Everyone clambered out of the train, some much more quickly than others to put as much distance between themselves and it as fast as possible. Inside the atrium, there was a new cake, sans trick metal disks, with candles flickering gently. The cake was quickly sliced up and served as Malleus directed everyone back to the train platform. As the group ate cake, fireworks burst in the sky, casting glorious multicolored lights across their faces.

“Thank you, Hornton,” (Y/N) said. “This is beautiful. But-” She suddenly punched his arm, her face as serious as she could make it. “If you ever make me think that my friends are hurt or in danger again, I’ll make you regret it.”

“Of course, dear child of man.”

“Don’t ‘of course’ me. I’m threatening you. Be threatened.”

“Of course. Happy birthday, (Y/N), and many more besides.”

[cherrycherrylady2024]

Christmas with the Grimes'

Christmas with the Grimes'

(Dilf! Rick Grimes x reader) Word count: 1,945

Warnings: 18+, descriptions of dilfs? This one is pretty tame tbh

Chapter 1: Mr. Grimes

Packing your bags for winter break, you thanked your lucky stars you had somewhere to call home for the next month and a half. There was the option of staying in the dorms but you came to terms with the fact that that would simply be too sad. Plus you certainly couldn’t go back to your parent's house, you hadn’t spoken to those two since the day you graduated high school. You were finally well and truly on your own. College was everything you had dreamed it would be. Partially thanks to Judith, your roommate, for dragging you out of the dorm that first week of school. 

You purposely picked the earliest move-in date and had already been living in the dorm for two weeks before Judith even arrived. You tried your best to spruce it up with what little decor you had and sat wringing your hands all day for this girl to appear. With random roommate assignments who knew what you’d be getting? When the door began to open with a click! of the handle, your stomach dropped to your toes, but the second Judith walked in you knew everything would be okay. She immediately ran over to you and almost knocked you over with a bear hug. She was the sunshine that brought you out of your shell, and you two were BFFs since that very day. When she invited you to stay with her family over winter break, it was nearly impossible to say no. 

~~~

“C’mon y/n we’d have so much fun! I can show you around my town, I mean what little there is to see, but still! We can go ice skating, watch movies, have snowball fights with my brother- plus my dad makes some seriously fucking good eggnog.” Judith chatted into your ear as you were finishing up your last essay for finals. You sighed and pushed away from your desk, rubbing your eyes. This paper would be the death of you, especially with Judith's distractions. “That all sounds great, really, but wouldn’t it be an imposition on you guys? I mean Christmas is kinda special and I don’t want to be intruding on your-” Judith cuts you off. “Please intrude! We do the same stuff every year, it gets sooo boring. Anyways, I’ll miss you too much, so I’m not really asking at this point.” Judith plops on her bed and opens her laptop. “This is a kidnapping now?” you ask. Judith types furiously on her computer, “For the greater good. You can’t sit here and mope for the next month and a half, that’s too depressing.” She pauses for a second, staring at her laptop screen. “Is an 8 am train too early?” 

You sigh, and lean back, stretching, mulling it over for a moment.

 “Way, way, too early,” you say.

Judith looks up at you and smiles.

~~~

So here you were, bags packed and ready to go. You two took the bus to the Amtrak station and boarded easy-peasy. “Y’know, I always thought train travel would be like Murder on the Orient Express, but this is like… shanking on the shitty express,” you remarked as you examined the stained seat, shabby carpeting, and… let’s just say, unusual fellow passengers. You quickly corrected yourself, “I mean- not to sound ungrateful or anything.” Judith rolled her eyes in agreement, “Believe me this isn’t my first choice either. It’s only a four-hour drive, if my dad would let me bring my truck up we wouldn’t have to-” she was interrupted by the train starting up. It began to slowly peel away from the station. “Here we go!” you exclaimed, surprising yourself with how oddly excited you felt. Judith yawned, shifting in her seat. “I should’ve gone with the noon train, even 10 am feels like the crack of dawn.”

20 minutes later you were bored as hell and Judith was fast asleep, snoring every once in a while. Your phone had spotty service as it was, but now going through the countryside it was virtually impossible to do anything. You occupied yourself by looking out of the window. When that got boring you too tried to close your eyes, but Judith's snores were becoming increasingly loud. You looked at her and contemplated throwing goldfish into her half-opened mouth, but decided against it. 

Studying her for a little, you concluded that she looked a lot like her dad, from the one time you met him. 

It was the day Judith moved in.

~~~

Judith pulled away from the hug, “Y/n, right? I’m Judith. It’s so nice to meet you! I like your energy already,” she held your hands as she said this. “That's so sweet of you, you too!” you responded. “And this is my– dad come on!” Judith turned to the door, ushering in her father. The man was balancing two large moving boxes, labeled aptly as Judith’s shit, which obscured his face. “Jesus Judith, what’s in here? Boulders?” He shuffled over and plopped down the two boxes on the twin bed across from yours, breathing out in a huff. “Just my rock collection.” Judith teased. Her father wiped his face and turned to you, making a clack sound in his cowboy boots, “Nice to meet ya, m’Rick” he said, extending his hand to you. 

You froze.

Damn. 

He was handsome. 

You didn’t typically use that word to describe guys. They were always “cute” or “hot,” but this wasn’t a guy: this was a man, and he was fucking handsome. His skin was a little bit bronzed from the summer sun, and you immediately found your mind wandering to where those tan lines might end. Rick's hair was dark brown, thick, and pushed back, ending in perfect curls. You were instantly enraptured by his stunningly blue eyes. How do eyes that blue even exist? Rick had a strong and direct gaze, and you got the feeling that from one look, he could know all about you. Was it crazy to say he had a sexy nose too? You had never liked facial hair until this day. This was nothing like the scraggly high school mustaches you were accustomed to. Rick had a short, slightly salt-and-pepper, beard that perfectly accentuated his high cheekbones. His voice was deep and rough, with a sexy southern drawl that you clocked immediately. He wore a plain white t-shirt which, due to the August heat, stuck to him in just the right places. 

Damn. 

The dark blue jeans fit him perfectly, paired with a black belt cluttered by loops and pouches, what for? You weren't sure. The only thing you could identify on the belt was the gun holster, and the revolver snugly clasped in it. 

You took all this in in the few seconds he had turned to you. His hand was still outstretched when you came to.

“Oh- hi Mr. Grimes, I’m y/n.” You shook his hand gently in a daze. His hands were warm, a little rough, and covered yours completely when he brought the other one on top. “Nice to meetcha y/n. And just Rick is fine.”

Rick. Rick. Rick. Rick. Rick. Rick. Rick. Rick.

You nodded your head fervently and withdrew from the handshake. You did your best to act normal but your eyes drifted straight back down his body to the revolver. Judith had already made herself busy unpacking, and didn’t even need to turn around to know what you must be wondering, “Dad I told you to leave your gun in the truck, it freaks people out.” She turned back to the both of you, holding a teddy bear, “Don’t worry y/n he’s not in the mafia or something, that’d be way too cool for him.” Rick shook his head with a smile, his hand on his hip, “How do ya know I’m not?” Judith moved swiftly past him, grabbing something from his belt. “Hey!” Rick laughed. She tossed it to you and upon catching it, you turned it over in your hands. It was a shiny gold sheriff's deputy badge. 

Officer Rick Grimes.

Damn.

You chuckled lightly and handed it back to him, your fingers brushing his, as Judith entered the bathroom with a box labeled shower shit. “Don’t let your mob buddies see that badge,” you teased. Rick smiled (Damn.) and put it back in his belt pocket, “Thanks for the tip.” 

Judith emerged from the bathroom, “Dinner?”

The dinner was unfortunately quick, mostly Judith talked and you listened. Rick chimed in now and again but it was more for you two roommates to get to know each other. You couldn't help but sneak a few glances at Rick throughout the dinner. You watched as his muscles flexed in his forearms, studied when he’d crack a smile, and nearly swooned when he leaned back and swept a hand through his hair, his arm outstretched on the booth behind Judith.

It was like he was magnetic. Every time you looked away you felt a calling for more. You shook the feeling as best you could and focused on Judith. You found out she had a younger brother, Carl, who was a bit of a troublemaker. Through mouthfuls of pasta, Judith put it bluntly that their mom had passed away years ago. "I'm sorry to hear that," you responded. You glanced at Rick for a reaction, finding nothing. You told Judith about your family, sugar-coating some of the details as you swirled your pasta around, not making eye contact. She seemed to catch on fast and didn’t pry. You already liked that about her.

After paying for dinner, and you thanking him profusely, Rick escorted the two of you back to your dorm building. He gave Judith a bear hug goodbye, “I wish I could stay longer sweetheart but I gotta get up early in the mornin’.” He looked over to you and winked “Mafia stuff.” You smiled (oh my god) back as Judith pulled away. “It’s alright, I’ll see ya at parent's weekend pops!” She kissed him quickly on the cheek and headed towards the stairwell to the dorms. Rick chuckled, then shrugged his shoulders and looked to you, “She’s keepin' it all inside.” He said, patting his heart. You laughed, “I’m sure.” Judith yelled to you from the door, “C’mon y/n we gotta lot of catchin’ up to do!” You turned back to Rick, “Thank you so much again for dinner. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Grimes.” He clasped a hand down on your shoulder (fuck). “No problem, you girls be good now, ya hear?” He leaned down closer to you, whispering, “Don’t let her drive you crazy”. You titter nervously, a little overzealous, as he pulls away. Oh my god Oh my god Oh my god.

You could smell his cologne. Or maybe it was just him. A rich, woodsy, musk that you wanted to stuff your face into.

“I heard that Dad!” Rick spun on his heel and began walking away, his hands in his deputy jacket pockets. “Goodnight girls.” You watched him walk away for a moment, then followed after Judith.

~~~

That was nearly 5 months ago, and the last time you’d seen Rick Grimes. You didn’t have a crush per se, I mean, he was a grown man and you were….…well, technically of age, but it would be weird, right? Right??

I mean maybe it's not so bad if- NO. You need to snap out of it. You hadn’t even thought about him (much) the whole semester, but the notion of seeing him again gave you butterflies that you desperately tried to squash. He is your best friend's dad for god's sake. Not that anything would ever happen, but there was no reason to make things weird for yourself in your own mind. He’s Judith's dad, and he just so happens to be good-looking, nothing more nothing less.

Well- really good-looking. And funny too. Very charming. But nonetheless your best friend's dad! 

A dilf and your best friend's dad. 

This was going to be a long winter break.

***

notes: ahhhhhhh! ok so this is my first fic ever and I already have a few more chapters written and planned so lmk what you think! All comments, reposts, etc. are very much appreciated <3 stay tuned for more!

[mypoisonedvine]

I LITERALLY ADORE YOUR WRITING!!! since drabble requests are open what do u think abt dark!neil lewis x reader. hes a harmless loser but,,, theres always an incel hidden in the filmbro crowd!!

you're so right for this omfg

warnings: dark/noncon, nice guy/incel vibes, touch of misogyny

"Why won't you just give me chance?" he laughed, but the anger in his voice wasn't very well-hidden.

"I-I told you Neil, I don't feel that way about you," you promised.

"It's because of that brainless, jock boyfriend of yours, isn't it?" he assumed, and you rolled your eyes. "'Cause I'm so much better for you than him! God, why do great girls always go for such assholes?"

"He's not an asshole, Neil-- just because you don't like him doesn't mean--"

"You told me he was a dick!" Neil reminded you.

"I told you he was being a dick, once," you corrected, "because I thought you were my friend and that I could trust you to not be weird if I vented to you!"

He stepped closer to you, and your heartrate picked up a little bit. "C'mon, stop trying to deny it," Neil pleaded, "I know you feel this, too. That night you came over and we watched Murder on the Orient Express? Don't tell me you didn't notice the chemistry."

"Neil," you sighed, "we're just--"

He grabbed you, making you yelp as he pinned you to the wall. "Don't fucking say that," he begged. "Don't say we're just friends again, it's driving me crazy. You know we're more than that."

You looked at him as your heart raced, realizing what he was about to do and that you were helpless to stop him. He kissed you suddenly, breathing in deeply through his nose-- you could tell that in his head, it was some great romantic gesture that would convince you to fall for him, but you just shut your eyes tight and tried to turn your face away.

He grabbed your jaw and forced you to keep kissing him, pulling your hips closer to his until you whimpered as you felt him getting hard against you. "Fuck," he sighed, "I know you want this. You don't need to be afraid, okay? I won't tell your boyfriend."

"Neil, don't," you whined, "please-- you wouldn't really..."

"If this is what it takes to make you realize we're meant for each other," he breathed, "yeah, I would. Don't worry, baby, you're gonna like this."

[totesnothere04]

I Found You Pt.3

Grace Augustine x Male!Avatar!Sully!Reader

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the fanart, gifs, or screenshots.

Warnings: Fighting, death, angst, murder?? justice?? I guess it depends on your point of view on things.

Part 2

Nearly a full year later you were escorting the kids to school the way you do every day they have class. Sylwanin and Tsu'tey were walking side by side, while Neytiri ran, jumped, and climbed with her friends. You felt an emotion you had never experienced flutter in your stomach, but you shook your head reminding yourself that it would probably never happen to you and Grace to have children together. She is a scientist too focused on studying the world around her to welcome a child into the universe. While you were a bit more grounded, and family-oriented, and you thought more about regular things. Like which one of these kids would win the next game of tag.

When you finally reached Grace's school you hadn't even realized Sylwanin had disappeared from the group and Tsu'tey had started conversing with one of his friends. When you walked in Neytiri and her friends grouped together and watched with anticipation as you leaned over and gave Grace a quick kiss. The group of girls started to giggle and some even started talking to eachother excitedly.

"Oh? You think that me loving my mate is funny?" You ask playfully and Neytiri immediately recognized the tone of your voice.

"No!" She immediately giggled out as she took off running and you chased after her. When you finally caught up to her you started tickling her sides and she squirmed and laughed, fighting to get out of your grasp. Tsu'tey and the others had become accustomed to the two of you play fighting and laughed along with the two of you.

Unbeknownst to you, Grace was watching with a fond expression on her face. Her thoughts of starting a family with you only increased at the spectacle infront of her.

"Okay, okay. Break it up you two." Grace says with a chuckle and she takes her place infront of the older kids. You went over to the younger kids and started your usual day of keeping them entertained while Grace taught.

Your ears perked when you heard distant shouting, the beating of hooves, and the tale-tell sign of heavy machinery. Tsu'tey noticed it as well and became just as alert as you. You hush the small children and climb up into the rafters to see who is approaching from a small opening at the top of the building. You see Sylwanin and some of her teenage friends coming toward the school fast and behind them were RDA forces.

"Everyone get down!" You call out and the older kids who know how to speak English drop to the floor, but Grace goes to the little ones and gets them down. You drop down from the rafters just as Sylwanin and her friends run into the school.

"Sylwanin! What happened?" You ask her quickly, but you don't have time to get an answer since shots start being fired at the school. You grab Sylwanin, pull her down, and shield her with your body. When the shooting stops you slowly get up and look around. Tsu'tey is holding his ear and blood seeps through his fingers.

"Grace... check on Tsu'tey." You tell her and she does as asked. You look back down at Sylwanin and your blood runs cold. "Oh my god..." You say and immediately put pressure on her bullet wound. "Sylwanin, just keep your eyes open. Listen to me okay?"

Her eyes blink rapidly and her breathing becomes labored. She looks up at you and you can see her accepting her fate, as the life fades from her eyes. You tried to wake her up to no avail and you nolonger felt like you were in your body. Like you weren't on Pandora anymore.

Distant gunshots are heard and you look up to see a group of kids hiding in the remains of what was once their home, an orphanage. You got up quickly and ran over to them ushering them away to a safer place, killing any enemy that you crossed paths with.

You snap out of whatever trance you're in when you get thrown. You shake off your shock and get to your feet. When you look around you see many RDA soldiers lying dead or injured on the floor. Only a few on foot still stood and the other 4 were in exo-suits. You saw Grace standing in the doorway of the school looking shocked and the kids behind her. With the attention being on you, you decide to take off, luring the rest of the soldiers away from the school. Away from the kids... Away from Grace.

After you're sure you lost them you call for your ikran and fly off to Hometree. When you land you make your way down to Eytukan who takes notice of you immediately and Mo'at starts looking over you for injuries.

"Tsu'tey told us what happened... That you turned on the demons and protected the children." Eytukan says and you nod.

"It's true, Eytukan." You tell him out of breath and Mo'at ushers you into the healers area.

"Tsu'tey and a few others are on their way to your base in the mountains." Mo'at says and you look at her confused. "Grace gave him your location. He is on his way to get you so that you may become one of our people permanently." Mo'at says and waves a small leaf under your nose, and you pass out shortly after.

You get out of your link pod as fast as you can and grab an exo-pack. You turn to Grace who's watching you sadly and you give her a quick hug. She sniffles a few times but ultimately backs away from you after a moment.

"You need to go. There's no telling when they'll realize it was you." Grace says and you nod. You pull her in for a kiss and back away hesitantly. "Go... I'll be okay, and I'll let them know what happened." Grace says and you nod.

"I love you." You say emotionally.

"I love you too." Grace says and you turn and walk out of the airlock after putting on your exo-pack. Tsu'tey lands his ikran and helps you onto its back, then takes off in flight into the night.

When you get back into Hometree you feel weird being so short compared to everyone else. When you get down to the bottom Mo'at and Eytukan have the entire clan gathered as they speak about what transpired earlier in the day. They take the time to announce Neytiri as the next Tsahík and Tsu'tey keeps his eyes to the ground. Not wanting to look up to see any looks of pity. They announce Sylwanin's burial to be in the morning and you sigh sadly.

"Tomorrow during eclipse we will be performing a ceremony to allow (Y/n) to become one of the People." Mo'at says with finality and she turns and walks away with Eytukan following shortly behind her.

The next day felt like torture. Nobody truly wanted to get too close, and you couldn't bug Grace like you usually do... You felt like you were stuck in a moment that had long passed, long before you were on Pandora. Until Mo'at and a few other healers came and told you it was time. The ride to the Tree of Souls felt like it took forever, though that was probably because you were riding on the back of Mo'ats pali. Everything on this moon was really far too big for human use. Eventually Mo'at feared you would fall from her pali and moved you to sit infront of her. Which you are man enough to say felt a little embarrassing, especially since her mate was right infront of you.

When you arrived to the Tree of Souls Mo'at guided you off to the side and started removing your clothing. You stuttered as she did so because it felt far too intimate to let a mated woman undress you.

"M- woah uh Mo'at why-" She didn't allow you to finish speaking.

"Eywa must beable to touch your entire body... Be warned (Y/n) Sulí... You must pass through the Eye of Eywa and return, but you are strong. I can sense it." Mo'at says and her skin of her brows pushed together in confusion from the sight of your scars. "Your own people did this to you?"

"Not my people... I fought in a war back on Earth and I was shot in battle." You clarified for her and she frowned. She didn't ask anymore questions as she draped vines to cover your lower body. Once again you felt awkward as she did because as a human you were well endowed, but to their standards...

"Come." Is all Mo'at says as she leads you through the gathered clan. They had all gathered around the tree sitting in a pattern, their tswins all attached to the ground behind them. They were chanting quietly and a few different male members of the clan carried your avatar to the base of the tree. They laid him down in the fetal position and Mo'at took her place on the highest part of the roots infront of your avatar. Neytiri gave your back a gentle push to join your avatar and you did so. You laid down in same position and just as Mo'at started leading the chanting your eyes closed. After a moment the darkness gave way to bright light and you blinked in surprise.

"(Y/n) Sulí, I have expected you for a long time." An omniscient voice says from amongst the bright light.

"What do you mean?" You ask confused.

"I have expected you... As I expect all of my children." The voice says and you cock your head to the side. "Many of my children do not reside within the Na'vi... They are within your human scientists. For many must be born blind to see properly."

"But... why me?" You finally ask after a few moments of shock. "I'm just a marine."

"You are important for the survival of my children. You will not understand today or anytime soon, but will know when the time comes." It says.

"So, you are Eywa?" You ask and you feel a nudge on your back forcing you to step forward. You continue walking forward since that what they seem to want.

"Yes. I am Eywa the Great Mother." She finally says after moments of silence.

"So you are real." You say amazed.

"I am, and I have watched over you and your brothers for your entire lives. You have never been alone." She says and a round-ish portal looking thing from those games that Jake and Tommy used to play comes into view. "Pass through my eye, and return to your rightful body. But, I have a request."

"I, uh, have never spoken to an all-knowing deity so I have no idea what to say." You admit and there's a rumble around you, almost like a laugh.

"There is an abandoned human base close to Hometree. Go there and get it to work. The future happiness of two of my children relies on it." She says and you nod.

"Yes, I can do that. What-" You stop as you get right infront of the portal thing. "What about Grace? My mate. She's still in the human base. Will she ever get to join me?" You receive no answer as you feel a hard shove to your back and you're sent through the portal.

Your eyes open almost immediately after and you hear the joyous laughter belonging to Neytiri.

"He did it, Sa'nu! He came back!" Neytiri says to Mo'at who pats her daughter's back. You sit up and look down at your hands, big and blue, then you turn around and see your body lying behind you. You frown as you realize you will never get to see your brothers again, but you get to your feet, and Eytukan hands you a tweng. He doesn't speak as he does so, and you quickly put it on.

"The Great Mother has given me a task... I must carry it through." You tell Eytukan and Mo'at. Mo'at nods and steps aside to allow the clan to see you.

"And you will, but tonight we celebrate life. Both those gained and those lost." Mo'at says and the clan cheers at her words. Everyone starts to run to their ikran or pali.

"What will happen to my human body?" You ask Mo'at.

"He will be laid to rest near Sylwanin. Do not worry, go back to Hometree." Mo'at says and a few others join her side as they collect your old body. Eytukan leads you away and the both of you call for your ikrans.

Three Years Later (Third Person POV)

Jake was led to the center of Hometree by his tswin and pushed until he was infront of an important-looking clan member. He spoke in his native language meaning Jake had no idea what he had no idea what he was saying. When he stepped forward offering his hand to shake when Neytiri informed him this was her father, the hardwood of a bow smacked down on his hand.

A harsh hiss sounded from next to him and a very tall, blue version of his older brother stood infront of him.

"Tommy?" His brother asked as his ear perked forward. Jake didn't get to correct him as a loud call in the Na'vi language cut the interaction short. She circled him like a vulture.

"What are you called?" She asked and Jake cast a quick glance to his brother, trying his hardest to apologize with his eyes.

"Jake Sully." Jake said and he watched as his big brother looked at him in confusion, but he didn't say anything. Mo'at pricked him with a small blade from her headdress, and ran the blood on it over her tongue.

It wasn't until Jake had beenable to get changed and went to eat with the clan that he was able to catch his brother. It wasn't hard to distinguish him from the rest of the Na'vi, due to his brothers height.

"(Y/n)." Jake greets his brother, who looks at him with narrowed eyes.

"What are you doing here, Jake?" (Y/n) asks Jake seriously, but quietly so he doesn't catch anyone else's attention.

"Fulfilling Tommy's contract." Jake says without hesitation, but at the look of worry (Y/n) gave him he wanted to take back his words.

"And why isn't Tommy doing that?" (Y/n) asks quickly. Jake hated seeing that look in (Y/n)'s eyes he had seen it way too many times throughout his youth.

"(Y/n)... Tommy died a week before his deployment. Some idiot with a gun wanted what was in his wallet." Jake said sullenly and at that (Y/n)'s tail went still and his posture sagged as his face fell. Neytiri sat next to (Y/n) and immediately noticed his solemn attitude.

"What is wrong, (Y/n)?" Neytiri asked him and (Y/n) leaned a little closer to her and whispered. Her eyes immediately held sympathy and her hand found his shoulder. "I am so sorry, (Y/n)... I know how much your younger brothers meant to you."

"This is actually one of them." (Y/n) said and gestured to Jake. "He's the stubborn one." Neytiri makes a face as if saying 'Ah, okay.'

"I fear I'm not hungry anymore... I will just go to sleep." (Y/n) says and he goes to stand only for Neytiri to yank him back down and push his food back to him.

"You must eat. You have been working too hard to go without food." Neytiri says sternly and (Y/n) sighs.

"Neytiri no. I'm tired and I'm not hungry." (Y/n) says in protest only for Neytiri to pull his ear and lightly jab his ribs with her fingers.

"No... Eat." Neytiri says forcefully and (Y/n) sighs and then complies. Neytiri turns back to her food with a pleased look on her face.

(Back to regular POV)

You woke up the same time you do every morning and ran off to the top of the tree to get your ikran. The abandoned human base was near completion and you had worked hard to get it back to where it was now. Mind you that came with attacking threats to the clan territory and scrapping through the remains of samson's, exo-suits, and other human machinery that was collateral damage. Sometimes Neytiri would accompany you and she would poke around the machinery that belongs to humans. Her face a mixture of curiosity and a little disgust.

You jump on the roof of the little base and crack open the panel on the roof. You'd spent the majority of the last few years getting this base away from the power mainframe, so it wouldn't be trackable. There was a long strip that you had taken out and reshaped so it would run off of power cells, but you had... Maybe... Stolen a solar panel hookup from another small offsite base that seemed like it hadn't been touched in years. However, the solar panels themselves had seen better days.

You sighed as you counted again, still needed four power cells. The others you had in storage ready to be put to use later on. Your ikran nudged you with its nose and squawked.

"Yeah, yeah... I know we need to go back." You say with a heavy sigh. You really didn't want to. The idea of going out and facing your little brother was causing you a sense of unease. You had always beenable to tell when the twins were hiding something from you. In your opinion they were both terrible liars, it got even worse when they tried to withhold information.

Though it might also just be that you're not used to having your brothers with you anymore... That had to be it. Jake wouldn't do anything diabolical. You put the panel back in place and stand up.

"Go sit in the shade in the trees for a bit. I've got things I need to take care of." You tell your ikran, Trent, who flies off. Probably to hunt down some food.

You go inside the small outpost, basically having to crawl through because of your size. You close the door to the airlock and look around for probably the millionth time. There's a set of monitors and a ton of other machines inside that you barely had any knowledge of their purpose. You go to the back of the room, being careful to keep your tail tucked to your side so you don't break anything, and you open the door in the back of the room. This you know its purpose, but you didn't know for what or whom... Yet.

A glass pod, that avatars are grown in, sits in the middle of this room along with all equipment necessary to watch vital signs. You had cleaned the pod inside and out many times over to keep dust from settling. Just incase it's an emergency that this pod became of use. You doubted that though, considering Eywa had said the happiness of two of her future children would be determined by this one thing. You sighed and made your way back out of the building, calling for your ikran.

The next day you were finishing breakfast, when you spotted Neytiri making her way over to you out of the corner of your eye. You turned your head and greeted her, and she greeted you in return.

"(Y/n), I have a request." Neytiri says quietly.

"Alright... What do you need?" You ask hesitantly.

"I want you to help me train Jake. Maybe he will respond better to a teacher he knows." Neytiri says hopefully and you shake your head.

"I'm not the big brother he remembers, Neytiri." You tell her and she shakes her head.

"It is about him being familiar with you. He trusts you." Neytiri argues quietly.

"Neytiri I don't think it w-" You stop talking when you see Jake wandering down into the main area and he makes his way over to you and Neytiri.

"Neytiri, (Y/n)." Jake says once he gets close enough and Neytiri gives you a pleading look.

"Fine." You say slightly defeated. "What are you teaching him right now?"

"She's teaching me to speak Na'vi." Jake says.

"And what all do you know?" You ask him and you give him the stern 'spill it because I'll find out later' look. Jake seems a little unsettled but keeps a straight face.

"Nothing." Jake finally says and you sigh.

"You really weren't ready to take on this kind of thing yet were you?" You ask and shake your head. "I want to speak with my mate before I make any decisions here."

"You have a mate?" Jake asks incredulously.

"Yes he does, but she-" Neytiri starts to say but you shoot her a look that says 'stop'. You get up and make your way out of Hometree and into the forest. You pull your secure comlink from under your other chokers and necklaces. You press the buttons, but don't say anything waiting to see if she's available and alone.

"(Y/n)?" You hear Grace on the other end of the comm.

"Grace, I need to talk to you." You say slightly rushed and trying to be quiet.

"We're in the mountains." Grace says and you call for your ikran. The ride there was long but it felt longer because it had been a long time since you had been with her. When you arrived you landed at the top of the mountain and made your way down. Grace was in her avatar infront of the mobile unit and she smiled when she saw you.

"Grace." You say in a soft voice with a small smile.

"(Y/n)." Grace says and she jogs up to you and wraps her arms around you. You lean down and meet her lips in a kiss, which you both melt into instantly.

"Grace... What do you know about Jake?" You ask when you finally separate.

"He's why we're in the mountains." Grace says with a bitter look on her face. "Max caught him talking to Quartich and Selfridge about Hometree. Not sure what he's told them, but it's never good when it's either of them."

"There's nothing definite about what you know he's doing?" You ask and she shakes her head.

"No. But I wanted to try and nip it in the bud to protect you from being disappointed in him. Why do you ask?" Grace asks curiously.

"Neytiri asked that I help teach him." You tell her honestly.

"Do it." Grace says quickly. "You may just be the key to saving him from becoming a jarhead mercenary." You stop and consider what she just said. It's a possibility.

"Oh, hey (Y/n)." Trudy says as she comes out of the mobile unit with a tall lanky guy behind her.

"Trudy." You greet her and the lanky guy's eyes go wide when he hears you speak. "I'll try my best... But I need you to be ready to send the emergency signal. I can feel something different happening now." You say quietly and Grace nods.

"I keep it on my person at all times." Grace says quietly.

"Did you do the thing they asked you to last time?" You ask her and she nods.

"Everything they asked of..." She cut herself off and shot a quick look at the tall lanky guy. "'Terra' and I, is finished and ready to set into motion."

"Good. Keep your eyes and ears open, and keep your guard up." You say quietly and she shifts a little uneasily.

"They asked me to take some of your blood too... Just in case." Grace says and your brows pinch together.

"My human body has been dead for years... Buried near the tree of souls." You say in a confused manner and she sighs.

"They still requested it." Grace says quietly and you nod.

"It will need to be quick. There's no telling when my dunderhead of a little brother will come out of the link." You say and walk over to the stairs of the mobile link unit. You set your arm on your leg as you wait. Trudy comes out of the unit and hands the familiar small black case to Grace. Grace gives Trudy a quick nod and she takes the tall lanky guy back inside.

"Who is that?" You ask after the door closes.

"That's Norm... He's one of my new scientists." Grace says honestly. "He's bright... But he has alot to learn."

"I had alot to learn when I came out here, but you took me under your wing and taught me no problem." You say quietly and you give her a tender look and she chuckles.

"You did, you learned fast, and so will Norm. It will take time for Jake to learn." Grace says and she packs up the small black case once she gets what she needs.

"But I'm afraid that by the time he learns, it will be too late." You say and you rub the back of your neck nervously as you think about the future and what it may hold.

Taglist: @ducks118, @random-3455, @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed, @kenzi-woycehoski

[noforkingclue]

Hey how are you? Are you still battling the heat? I hope work is okay.

If it's okay with you I would like to request a Dhawan!master x reader request where the reader is a huge fan of Agatha Christie and the master notices this and so he takes the reader to meet Agatha Christie as a surprise. The reader meets Agatha Christie but when this happens there is a murder and the master is framed for the murder, the reader works with Agatha Christie to prove the master's innocence.

Sorry for making such a long request, I know that you like Agatha Christie. If you're not comfortable writing this then it's okay. I hope you have a great day/ night.

P.S not sure if you saw the commonwealth games closing ceremony but there was Peaky Blinders tribute featured.

Note: requests are currently closed

Oh yes! I do love Agatha Christie. I got the complete collection and I'm currently writing my own murder mystery.

Title: Whodunit

Doctor Who tag list: @v4n1r, @queerconfusionthings, @yourneighbourhoodclown, @love-of-fandoms, @emilythezeldafan, @fabulous-jj-style, @theseeker945, @pleadingeyes, @kjaneway1, @truthbehindthemysteries, @im-a-muggleborn, @startrekkingaroundasgard, @mythandmagik, @geocookie21, @zerocanonlywriteshit, @thewinterpoet2, @anteroom-of-death, @night467, @clarasoswaldd, @sessa23, @mxacegrey

Dhawan!Master tag list: @agentmalfoy24601, @b-bae-27, @praxeus-13

Everything tag list: @greenrevolutionary, @byebyebreezywrites, @spngingerbread21, @layazul, @lov3vivian, @simonsbluee

You folded your arms and raised your eyebrows at the Master. The Master just rolled his eyes and sat down on the bed.

“I didn’t kill that human.” He said

“You were standing over the body,” you said, “you must see how it looks.”

“People stand over bodies all the time.”

“I haven’t.”

“Then I’ve been showing you the wrong things.”

“I haven’t no desire to see any more corpses.”

“I can’t grantee anything, love.”

You sighed and sat down next to the Master. You nudged him gently and said,

“Some treat this turned out to be. You promised to take me to see my favourite author and you got accused of murder. Only with Agatha Christie right?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“It’ll be like us going on the Orient Express or a Nile river cruise and there being a murder. Bit of a coincidence don’t you think?”

“Isn’t life just made up strange little coincidences?”

You wrinkled your nose in disgust and the Master smirked at you.

“That sounds like something the Doctor would say.”

“Now why would you insult me like that?”

“And why-“

It was at the moment the door to the room opened. You sat up straight and felt your face get hot as you came face to face with your idol. Agatha Christie stood awkwardly as she shut the door behind her. Silence fell over the three of you and eventually she cleared her throat and said,

“The police have been called.”

“Oh joy,” the Master said, “Twentieth century human policing. I’m sure they will be very effective.”

Agatha frowned and said,

“You really do say the strangest of things. You remind me of someone but…”

She trailed off and shook her head.

“I really must be going now. I only came here to inform you of the update.”

Once she left the room you look over at the Master and said,

“What was that about?”

“I had another reason for taking you here?”

“There always has to be an ulterior motive with you, doesn’t there?”

“Time energy.”

“Huh?”

“There’s residual time energy surrounding her. It’s a mystery.”

“And you can’t let a mystery go unsolved.”

“I have a strong suspicion I know who is involved.”

“Ugh,” you groaned and shook your head, “can’t we have one trip without the Doctor being involved.”

“With how much she’s travelled we’re bound to bump into her sooner or later. However,” the Master held up a hand when you opened your mouth, “next time I’ll be sure to find a place te she hasn’t graced with her presence.”

“Next time,” you grimaced, “if we manage to get out of this situation.”

“Then you better get out there and find out whodunit.”

You rolled your eyes and stood up. Before you left you pressed a brief kiss against his forehead before you slipped out of the room. You stumbled slightly when you realised that Agatha was outside the room. She seemed embarrassed when she spotted you and you said,

“Miss Christie, umm, err, hi. I just wanted to say that I’m a big fan. Oh, you probably get that all the time but I…”

You trailed off, your face hot.

“You probably that all the time.” You muttered

“Yes, well,” Agatha gave you a small smile, “it’s always good to meet a fan.”

“Can I ask you something?” you said quietly

“Yes. I’ve been meaning to ask you something as well.”

“What are you doing out here?”

“Ah,” Agatha looked away, “it’s actually linked to your friend in there. I don’t believe that he is the man we’re looking for.”

“Really?”

“Yes. What do you say that you and I do some investigating? I have a feeling that I’ve come across something like this before and not a plot in one of my books.”

“Investigate a murder with Agatha Christie. I’d love to help!”

Maybe this trip wasn’t going to end in disaster after all. 

[spiky-berry21]

Just out of curiosity, would y'all like to see a Murder on the Orient express inspired fic... But make it a Lackadaisy au??? With a possible x reader plotline???!

As always, have a spectacular day/night! 😘

[ichipercent]

That feeling when you want to read your favorite x reader stories from five years ago only to find out that it has been deleted by the writer and they deactivated their account.

I remember their username in quotev is H2O (or similar variation) and I read two of their stories that are so delicious I still think about them until now.

The first one is 'Comadreja', the reader and the love interest are both in college. They live in a world with super heroes and super villains. There is one strongest super hero named Comadreja and it is actually the love interest. The reader worked at a pottery store I think and has repeatedly said his cynical believe about the authenticity of heroes to the main lead.

The second one is 'Train of Thought'. It's a murder mystery inspired from The Murder of Orient Express. The reader worked at museum, handling old documents I think. In their town, there is this one big mystery from decades ago about a first class train that took the journey across a mountains at winter with a dozen of passengers. But when it arrived at the destination, the train is empty with its three employees tied and gagged at the machine room (?), the passengers are missing. Somehow the reader got transported in time and as murders occurred in the train they have to figure out the murderer before it's too late. I remember the passengers had roles, like the salesman, the foreign married couple (who actually a weapon dealer?), the war veteran, the doctor, the governess, etc. I remember the story is almost finished and has reached the second ending of the story.

I really really really want to read these stories again I feel so restless rn

[multifandomsimagine]

Imagine Rudolph threatening the reporters and paparazzi when they harass you

You knew that being in a relationship with Rudolph would mean that your life would not be private anymore. He was not only a nobleman and a diplomat but also a world-renowned dancer. Everyone’s eyes were on him, waiting to see his next move: from fans of his dancing wanting to get autographs and photos to news reporters and photographers wanting to get a scope about his diplomatic work. You thought you knew what you were getting yourself into when you agreed to be with him but you would soon come to realize that you were out of your depth.

This was supposed to be a nice evening out. You and Rudolph hadn’t been able to spend much time together recently due to each other’s jobs. With only enough time for a quick kiss hello and goodbye, the two of you were running off to work and when you came back home, were greeted with the sleeping visage of the other as one came back late in the night. So when your days off were finally aligned, the two of you had decided that the best way to celebrate was to enjoy some fine dining and hopefully have a nice day out.

And it was for the first part. The two of you had ordered some delicious meals that you shared with one another and pairing it with recommended drinks. But after leaving the restaurant, you were bombarded with flashing lights and yelling.

“Count Andrenyi!” / “Rudolph, look over here!” / “Can we get a comment on this!” Sentences blurred together as reporters and paparazzi tried speaking over one another, hoping that their requests would be granted. Paying no mind to your personal space, all of them rushed toward you and Rudolph in an effort to get the best picture or the clearest sound all as the flash of their camera obscured your vision.

Taking the lead, Rudolph held your hand as he tried making his way through the crowd toward your driver’s car. Using the other hand to make a clear path, he stayed quiet as he ignored the screaming, having probably gotten used to it after all these years. Trailing close behind him, you followed his lead through the crowd did not make the task easy as the crowd got closer and closer in the chance Rudolph decided to break his silence.

Looking at your husband’s back, you tried following his lead and ignoring everyone else but you were taken by surprise when you felt a hand grab your arm and pulled you to face them. In shock, you pulled your hand out of Rudolph’s and tried using it to push the man away but to no avail as his grip on you only tightened. Ignoring your discomfort, he instead shoved a microphone to your face as his partner snapped away with his camera, trying to get pictures of you in the hopes of landing the front page.

You didn’t have to wait long for rescue as the moment Rudolph felt your hand slip from his, he stopped and turned to see what had happened. Eyes narrowing at the tight hold the man had you in, he was quick to reach you and push the man away. Moving in front of you to block the man’s view of you, he wasted no time punching the man, sending him back onto his partner who, in this attempt to catch the reporter, dropped his camera, sending it smashing into the ground. Not waiting for the man to recover, Rudolph grabbed the man by the lapel of his shirt with one hand before punching him again. Ignoring the man’s pleas for mercy, he did not let up, instead, each new punch seems to have more force than the last.

The rest of the crowd has fallen into silence. Each of them watching in shock at the violence the count was displaying but none of them do anything to stop him or even document it; too afraid that they would become the next target if they did.

Instead, that fell to you as you reach out and grab Rudolph's arms, making him stop in his track. When he turned away from the man to give you his attention, you spoke. “Rudolph, please. Let’s just go home.” Motioning to the wide breadth the crowd - who watched your husband’s actions with wary and nervous eyes - with your head. “I’m sure he’ll remember his manners next time.”

Knowing he wouldn't - couldn't - say no to you, you laced your fingers with his and began leading him away from the crowd.

[ghnaim24]

If anyone is writing or taking requests of fics for Murder on the Orient Express (2017), please let me know I would love to make a request for Willem Dafoe’s character Gerhard Hardman. Please and thank you 🙏

[anonymousewrites]

Happy New Year!

I hope you all have a wonderful 2024! You guys all rock!

Here's my plan for what I know I'm writing so far in 2024:

A Study of the Heart and Brain Book 3

Adolescent Antichrist Book 5

One Hell of a Love Book 3 (once the season comes out :))

Don't worry, there will be more than that, but right now that's the definitive plan.

Some possible stories I'm considering:

AOS Logos and Pathos

AU Dazai x Reader

New Father Figure x Teen! Reader story

Also, for fun, here is the list of the books I read in 2023:

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

The Grimrose Girls by Laura Pohl

A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair

A Duel with the Vampire Lord by Elise Kova

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

The Stolen Heir by Holly Black

Radiant Sin by Katee Robert

The Stranger by Andre Camus

We Free the Stars by Hafsah Faizal

Kingdom of the Feared by Kerri Maniscalco

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

On Writing by Stephen King

The Little Book of Talent by Daniel Coyle

League of Liars by Astrid Scholte

King of Wrath by Ana Huang

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

Hades by Carly Spade

Black Coffee by Agatha Christie

King of Pride by Ana Huang

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Lord Edgware Dies by Agatha Christie

Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

Mrs. McGinty’s Dead by Agatha Christie

The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake

Bloodmarked by Tracy Deon

Apollo by Carly Spade

Ares by Carly Spade

Eros by Carly Spade

Poseidon by Carly Spade

Zeus by Carly Spade

The Mystery of Three Quarters by Sophie Hannah

Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie

Pestilence by Laura Thalassa

The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene

Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

A Duet with the Siren Duke by Elise Kova

Still Life by Louise Penny

A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny

L’Ultimate Notte Della Nostra Vita by Adam Silvera

War by Laura Thalassa

The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny

Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco

A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny

King of Greed by Ana Huang

Kingsbane by Claire Legrand

Lightbringer by Claire Legrand

Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong

Foul Heart Huntsman by Chloe Gong

The Righteous by Renee Ahdieh

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson

The Blue Machine by Helen Czerski

A Rule Against Murder by Louise Penny

The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny

The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

The Harlequin Tea Set and Other Stories by Agatha Christie

Starter Villain by John Scalzi

Last Violent Call by Chloe Gong

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie

[bookishkates]

Ask Me About My Uterus by Abby Norman (BIG recommend)

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (literally changed my life)

Medieval or fairytale (can you tell there's a theme there)

Don't really have one (willing to take recs though! I just don't read a lot of science fiction)

Near-future, biopunk, and feminist science fiction (I'm actually currently writing something with these)

Payback's A Witch by Lana Harper and I Kissed A Girl by Jennet Alexander

Enjoy: enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, opposites attract; dislike: smut (depending on execution), tragic queerness, the booktok man (if you know, you know)

Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag (I have The Deep Dark locked and loaded for the next read)

Murder on The Orient Express by Agatha Christie

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (ugly sobbed at this book)

A Lesson in Vengence by Victoria Lee (but this book is SUPER low on my book ranking list bc horror books need to meet a certain threshold for me)

The Last Thing He Told Me (again, the bar is on the floor bc this book didn't impress me either)

Don't have one

Mystery, thriller, horror, romance (sometimes), fantasy

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson (they're on my shelf to be read, but they're probably the best I can do)

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan (basic, I know, but I can't help having taste)

I don't read series generally for the reason of them not being finished and also being a big time commitment

I try to! It depends on what I find in a store or on TikTok. I love the Blind Date with a Book boxes, so I usually just go with whatever I get in those.

Again, bookstores or TikTok. I cannot walk into a B&N or a BAM or even Target without getting a book.

The Great Gatsby; The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis; The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

Percy Jackson

Don't have but want one

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard

The Biscuit the Dog books and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Goodreads 1000%

178 and counting

3

Physical copy always

Molly Knox Ostertag and Casey McQuiston

Pretty much never now that I'm out of high school

N/A

Predictable endings in horror books; most horror books have had an ending I predicted from chapter 5, which ruined the experience as a reader

Talia Avramov (Payback's A Witch) and Lilah Silver (I Kissed A Girl)

The Last Thing He Told Me (kind of)

10 but I'm hoping to read another this weekend

Depends on the book. If the top reviews on Goodreads are bad, I generally don't pick up that book or add it to my tbr.

Yes, and I still do! Working on lots of things right now

Depends on location and travel method but generally 1 or 2.

No, but I have one exception in that I bought the collector's edition of RWRB.

My Harry Potter books (that I got literally probably ten years ago) because my mom and extended family have borrowed them to read.

Seven Husbands, Go the Distance by Jen Calonita, and The Night Circus

SEVEN HUSBANDS PLEASE and also I Kissed A Girl because I think it would have similar vibes to Scream (2000)

I like horror, witchy, autumnal, and sapphic books, please give me recs!

The Last Thing He Told Me, The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, and Jagged Little Pill by Eric Smith

Every book I've read since getting my Goodreads has a review, and I don't hold back.

Depends on the day, the vibe, and what I want. Generally I like funny or upbeat books for romance/sapphic reads, but I will always take sapphic rep in my horror/thriller/mystery books.

MORE GAY COWBOYS! AND PIRATES!

Ask Game for us Self-proclaimed BOOK WORMS 📖🐛

Name the best book you've read so far this year.

Favorite fantasy book(s).

Favorite fantasy sub-genre(s). (high fantasy, urban fantasy, portal fantasy etc.)

Favorite science fiction book(s).

Favorite science fiction sub-genre(s). (dystopian, superhero, aliens etc.)

Favorite romance novel(s).

What kind of common romance tropes do you enjoy and what kind do you dislike?

Favorite queer fiction book(s).

Favorite detective novel(s).

Favorite classical literature.

Favorite historical fiction.

Favorite horror book(s).

Favorite thriller(s).

Favorite humor and satire book(s).

Which genre(s) are your favorite?

Favorite trilogy.

Favorite finished book series.

Favorite unfinished book series.

Do you read new and less known books or only the big bestsellers?

Where and how do you find new books to read?

The book(s) on your school reading list you actually enjoyed.

Favorite example of a Chosen One trope in a book.

Favorite heist story book(s).

Favorite Young Adult book(s).

Favorite Middle Grade book(s).

Favorite novella(s).

What was the first book you remember reading as a kid?

Goodreads or StoryGraph (or something else)?

How many books do you have on your 'to-be-read' list?

How many books do you have on your 'currently-reading' list?

Do you mostly read through e-reader; reading app on phone; on your laptop; a physical copy; or by audiobook?

Name your favorite author(s).

How often do you read by listening to audiobooks?

Favorite book narration voice actor(s).

Least favorite trope in your most favorite book genre.

Your absolute most favorite character(s) from any book you've ever read.

The only example of your least favorite trope being written in such a way that you enjoyed it.

How many books have you read this year?

Do you read reviews before picking up a book?

Did you ever want to be a writer?

When you get ready for a week long trip to somewhere how many books do you download/pack inside the suitcase?

Do you buy hardcover book copies for previously purchased paperbacks and library books you enjoyed reading?

Title of a book you own that's in the worst physical condition you have. Explain what happened to it. Post a picture if you want.

The book(s) whose stories have become part of your very makeup.

What book(s) would you sell your soul to get a TV or movie adaptation of?

I like _____, recommend me a book to read, please (insert a book, or trope, or character, or... anything you like before asking for this one).

What are the last three books you read?

Do you leave reviews for the books you've read? How often?

Do you prefer hopeful, humorous, very emotional or darker books?

What kind of book have you never read but always hope to find at some point in the future?

[arianadevareux]

Imagine...

Some scandalous photos being found of you and Ratchett.

(For vivi9is9my9name)

You never knew that a brief affair with a stranger would end up being such a big to do, but after some salacious photos of you with a man named Ratchett ended up surfacing in your collective social circles, you’d been dragged into an uncomfortable situation.

It had been nearly a year since you’d last seen him when rumors started going around about the two of you and some salacious photos. Someone had claimed to see them in Ratchett’s things, and eventually one had been taken from him that showed you, undressed.

‘How bothersome.’

The situation had to be remedied, and fast. You reached out to Ratchett and found that he’d been attempting to do the same. Through a series of telegraphs, it was decided that he would handle the situation on his end, as he’d been the one to lose one of the photos. The two of you planned to meet, discreetly, so that you could be the one to keep the photos. 

They’d been kept neatly in a decorative box. It wasn’t sealed, but it was quite nice. 

“There are a few missing, if I remember correctly.”

“Are there?” Ratchett asked, feigning innocence. 

He’d returned nearly all of them, though any that had clearly shown his face were kept behind.. “Do you intend to keep those safer than you did these?”

“I’ve taken care of everything. No need to fret. Come, let’s grab a drink.” 

(Note: I can’t tag that user anymore *^* Do any of y’all know if they changed their name or something?)

[i-write-sometimes-blog]

Interviews (Daisy Ridley x Reader)

Request: @aleyann asked for some Daisy Ridley x female reader, so I'm here to provide it!!♥️ I hope you like it!

Words: 1,240

A/N: have you seen those interviews where Daisy just can't stop laughing? Well I adore them and so that inspired this one.

Shifting uncomfortable over the small padded chair you focused on the new question the young interviewer asked looking directly at you.

“So, Y/N, I heard this is your first big role. How are you feeling about that?” asked the smiley boy.

“It’s a bit overwhelming” you told him “I went from playing characters that had just two lines and had like five minutes on screen, to be the supporting actress with a whole monologue that last ten pages” you explained. “It’s cool but also intimidating”

This interview lasted longer than you had expected, the guy just had a lot of questions written on the paper cards he kept on his lap. This was the very first time you were interviewed about a movie and you were very insecure of what to say to his endless questions, but gladly she was there to help you everytime you wouldn’t find an answer, your co-star, Daisy Ridley.

“Alright, now how was it like to work with Daisy?” he asked and you turned a bit to see her smiling softly at you.

“Amazing” you said, your gaze still focused on her, remembering the first day you came to set, how nervous you had felt about pretty much everything. “She was the very first person I got to work with and what can I say? she’s awesome, she killed it in the table read and I was just hoping I wouldn’t get fired”

“Of course no, there’s no way you could have been fired” said Daisy. “Y/N is so talented, I don’t know what she was so worried” she told to the interview.

“Alright we’re running a little out of time” the interviewer said. “For this movie we know your characters are kind of rivals, can you tell us something about that?”

“Yeah, they are not enemies exactly but like they can’t stand each others” Daisy rushed to answer, she seemed so calm contrary to you but it made sense, she had done tons of interviews in the past and you knew how good she was at having conversations, you admired that.

“They’re very similar to be honest and I think that’s way they hate each other so much” you added as the guy just kept nodding. By the corner of your eyes you caught Daisy’s smile growing wide as she chuckled a little.

“You know? it’s funny, there’s this scene where we have to scream a lot and…” she started to laugh “I couldn’t do it”

A smile formed in your own lips as you remembered that specific scene she was talking about and the many takes you had to do to get it right. A small fight between Daisy’s character and yours that involved you pulling a strand of her hair and then she one of yours, classic female small fight in an 1800’s movie, but neither of you could contain the laughs filming.

“Oh, I loved that scene, it’s by far my favorite” you said chuckling. “It’s a very funny one and yet very intense one, and I just couldn’t scream at her because I knew for the script that she had to cry a little and I just can’t bear to see her sad” you said as you took her hand, she gave you a lovely look that made your heart melt.

“And the director keeps telling me to scream at her with hate, she told me ‘you hate her, you detest her with all your soul’ and I was like but I love her” you said winning a soft ‘awww’ from the interviewer.

"You see how sweet this girl is?" Said Daisy looking at you "I mean, how not to love her when she's just so cute?" you felt your cheeks beginning to color a little with a soft pink blush.

Then a man in the other side of the room indicating you to hurry up, there was not much time left. Daisy saw him and quickly got back to the interview.

“Y/N was really upset in the first takes” she said before she started to laugh again.”But then I made her laugh”

“You did” you agreed giggling.

“I was supposed to pull her hair…” she just couldn’t contain the laugh, you loved her laugh so much and the fact that it would not let her end her sentences most of the time. “so I pulled, but I did it too hard and I ended up ripping off her entire wig” then all the people in the room bursted laughing with the funny story.

"That's a great story. Daisy, Y/N, thank you so much for being here with me tonight"

"Thanks for having us" said Daisy.

Then the guy announced your movie one more time looking at the camera before you heard a voice letting you know the interview was over. You sighed as you got up your seat, didn’t remember how many time you had been sitting there but you felt like it was quite a lot.

“So, where next?” you asked waiting for Daisy to pick up her stuff.

“I don’t remember” she said smiling “probably to London, we have some press conference there”

“More interviews?”

“For sure” she said before grabbing your arm to walk outside the small room. “Oh, I remember now, I’m going to London and you’re going to New York, I think.”

“Wait, we’re not doing the whole press tour together?” you asked a bit worried.

“Not all the interviews, but most of them” she said.

“And how am I going to survive it?” you said dramatically, but sure you wanted to spend more time with your girlfriend, you loved to be around her and by this time after nearly a year and half of seeing her every day you felt a bit sad to let her go.

“Oh, come on, Y/N” she told you as you walked with her. “You were great back there, you just have to trust yourself, love” Daisy said.

“But what if I don’t know how to answer?” you said, after all this was the first one and a lot of questions made you a little nervous.

“You answer them as if you were talking to me, baby” she said planting a soft kiss on your cheek. You giggled and stopped walking a few meters away from the door of the building.

“Alright I can do that” you told her, you took a look of her soft features not knowing how long you would be separated. “I’m gonna miss you so much, Daisy”

“So will I” she said “It’s not like you’re not gonna see me again, Y/N” she giggled before pulling you into her embrace, her perfume surrounding you as you enjoyed the warm of her hug. Then you glanced into her eyes for a moment before you moved closer to brush your lips on hers pulling Daisy into a warm and delicate goodbye kiss. As you slowly back away you saw her bright smile dancing on her lips.

“That’ll do it for now” she said biting down her bottom lip. “See you in the next conference, sweetheart” she said smiling before she walked to the exit.

“Until the next interview, Daisy” you told her as she walked out the door and got inside the black car waiting for her outside. Then you sighed and got out too as the flashing light and the flashes of the cameras blinded you.