#OR the true for real actually happened story of how they got beaten by the marlies zamboni driver EBUG

[sassthatsarcasm]

like how the leafs only allow hat tricks from ghosts of hockey players past and the innkeeper npc of a video game, they only get goalied by like call up #15 from the AHL

[ottosinventory]

Knight in shining armor

(Hazbin Adam x singer!male reader)

(Not my art, idk whose sorry I got it from pinterest but credits to the artist cuz he would SO wear that I cant😭)

Warnings: fist fight

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"FUCK YEAAHHHHHH THATS MY BOYFRIEND MF" yelled Adam to a random person at your concert.

He always did that. Whenever he went to one of your concerts (always, I am not kidding the man has not missed a single one) he yelled to every one of your songs because he knew them inside out and after each song he yelled to someone that you're his boyfriend.

It was sweet in your eyes he was truly your number one fan. However on more than one occasion this has gotten out of hand. Like right now.

Sometimes people get annoyed at his yelling even though it is a rock concert he is still the loudest one. But this time it was different. This time something happened that actually bothered him.

He was yelling about how much he loves you and how you are his boyfriend again when he overheard something that he didn't like.

"For real? That gorgeous singer is dating that flop no fucking way."

"I know right? I gotta say I wouldn't mind hearing the singers voice moaning my-" Adam didn't wait longer to hear the end of the sentence he straight on punched that guy.

"I fucking DARE you to finish that sentence." Adam literally growled. Even though this was heaven, assholes were present here too.

The fight got so big that you had to stop your performance and stop it.

"Adam- Adam stop" you tried to get your boyfriend off of the two guys who he was now fighting.

"Let me go babe, I'm gonna fucking murder those two mother fuckers-"

"Adam, they already had enough you won." You tried arguing with him while you dragged him to your dressing room. The two guys laying on the floor beaten to pulp.

Once you closed the door, the ruckus outside got just a bit quieter and you could finally take a deep breath.

"What happened this time?" You asked your boyfriend while getting the first aid kit and patching him up. He was much better of than the other guys thats true. But he still had some scratches and a black eye.

Adam told you the whole story of what happened and you listened intently while gently putting some alcohol at a deep cut on his nose.

"And then I was like- aww fuck babe warn me next time" he started whining because of the alcohol.

You sighed.

"Listen Adam, I appreciate what you did, those pigs said some disgusting shit and you were a great knight in shining armor but I worked really hard to get this gig and you know that" you said trying to be as gentle as possible.

"Babe, your boyfriend is the fucking Adam, tell me where you want to preform and you'll get in within seconds I can take care of that."

"I know Adam but I really wanna accomplish some things on my own." You sighed again.

Adam knew he fucked up, he sees first hand how much work you put into your music. But he just couldn't help it this is the kind of thing that pisses him off to no end. His first two wives left him for someone else and even though he might act confident he was terrified that you would leave him, too. He didn't want to loose someone he loved so much.

You put your hand on his cheek and made him look at you.

"Hey, its ok I understand." Thats all you needed to say. You knew about Lilith and Eve leaving him. And you knew how insecure he actually felt. You have been dating for almost 6 years now you knew him way too well.

You kissed him to let him know that you weren't mad. He kissed back with enthusiasm, he loved kissing you. It might be true that he has kissed a lot of people before you came along but he always said that you were his favorite kisser of all time. He just loved the feeling of your lips against his.

"(Y/N)...I- listen I mean what I said really, wherever you wanna play I can hook you up."

You chuckled lightly. You knew this was the closest thing you are gonna get out of him as an apology, the man was not good at apologizing. But you already knew that, and loved him nonetheless.

"I know honey I know." You put your forehead on his.

The wholesome moment was interrupted when you both started hearing chanting from outside.

"Is that-?"

"THEY ARE CHANTING YOUR NAME BABY COME ON GET YOUR BRETTY ASS OUT THERE"

And there he was again, your stupid boyfriend.

You laughed an snatched up your guitar.

"All right baby you wanna watch from back stage?" You asked back as you held out your hand to him.

"FUCK YEAAHH"

And with that you two walked out of your dressing room laughing.

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

HE IS JUST A STUPID LITTLE MEN HELP I LOVE HIM SM IDK WHY😭😭

Hope you guys enjoyed😘~

[avianconcept]

Agency, value systems, and growth: the fate of the Perfect Court tattoos.

Been thinking about the Perfect Court tattoos today, and I’ve finally decided what I personally hope happens to Jean’s. I know there's a lot of discussion about a cover up like Kevin’s, suggestions like a flower, a sun, a fleur-de-lis; and I see that, but I raise you: he gets it completely removed. 

I think it has something to do with what the tattoos mean to each character. More specifically, how each character got them, and what that means to them. Most of this comes from a quote I found on my last re-read of TKM: 

The first time someone asked about Riko’s and Kevin’s tattoos, Riko hadn’t beat around the bush. He was the best striker in the game, he said, and he wanted everyone to know it. The story changed a little when Jean made his first public appearance with a “3” on his face. Riko was supposedly handpicking the future US National Team. He called it the ‘perfect Court’, and even though it was unofficial and unbelievably arrogant, his talent and upbringing gave some credibility to the idea. ‘

According to Neil in the first book, Riko and Kevin had been sharpie-ing on their numbers since they were children. This quote adds some more crucial context to that. It establishes that Riko and Kevin’s 1 and 2 came before the perfect court, and that the perfect court was what Riko decided their 1 and 2 (and newly minted 3) meant. This bit is what changed it for me, I think. 

Riko and Kevin are both referred to as the sons of exy. Both are heirs to the game, Riko through his uncle and Kevin through his mother. They do it to signal their place in the world of exy– heirs, future best in the game, destined for greatness. And then Jean comes along, and Riko changes the narrative. He comes up with the perfect court, and tells the world. The perfect court are his chosen players (read: his property). It furthers his control and possession of Kevin, who is allowed to be excellent, just not better than Riko. Kevin can be good, he just has to be good Riko’s way, subscribe to RIko’s model of success. 

Riko dies with his tattoo on his face. He dies clinging onto the idea of the perfect court, that he is the best, and that the only way to be the best is through pain and abuse. There is no real change for Riko in the series, so it fits that the way he’s marked himself (read: the way he defines himself) doesn’t change either. 

Kevin gets his covered up with the infamous chess piece. For Kevin, the challenge is reclaiming the sport that is also his birthright. He is physically free of Riko and Tetsuji, but mentally, he isn’t. Even with states between them and a new team, he is still understandably afraid of standing up to Riko. It goes against the status quo that has been beaten into him, and it takes him a while to be able to fully leave them and their limits behind. What holds Kevin back is that his greatness has always been defined. It has been defined by Riko, upheld by Tetsuji. He can be second best, a Raven, a prince to Riko’s King. Kevin changes his tattoo right before the final game– in order to beat Riko, he has to first reject Riko’s hierarchy, the limiting belief that was forced onto him that Riko was best, Riko was king. To me, its extremely fitting that Kevin’s evolution involved him putting his own mark on his talent. Instead of challenging Riko for ‘King’, or for that 1, he invents his own symbol. For Kevin, it's a reclamation of a game that was always partially his– just on his terms now. 

Neil’s tattoo gets burnt off by his father’s henchmen. This also fits well in my mind, because in my opinion, Neil’s number one challenge wasn’t actually Riko. Riko was Neil’s adversary, but Neil’s true terror was his father. The tattoos and their removal/evolution appear to be symbolic of the character’s growth, so it makes sense that Neil’s wasn’t on his face for long, and was taken off by (basically) his father. Each of the perfect court members had something keeping them trapped, things that wouldn’t let them grow into who they were supposed to be. Riko’s was the wound of his fathers rejection, and the toxicity created and maintained by Tetsuji. Kevin’s was Riko, and by extension Tetsuji. Neil’s is his father. Unlike Kevin, Neil’s not trying to be the best exy player in the sport. The sport makes him feel less like no one and nothing, and his continued playing is an expression of his will to live and his desire for personhood and a future. Neil wants better than what he has at the beginning of TFC, and the thing keeping him from that isn’t Riko. Sure, Riko is connected to the Moriyamas, and Ichirou owns his contract now, and Neil fights with Riko a lot. But to me, the thing that caused him real terror and stripped him of his personhood and autonomy was Nathan. Riko branded him with the 4, and Nathan’s people took it off, as if to say, “No, Riko isn’t who you have to reckon with, it’s me.” Neil’s internal fight was with being the butcher’s son, not with being number four. 

Jean’s situation is best described by a line in the EC– Jean never asked for this. 

In his own words, he loved exy, and was excited for what he thought was an opportunity to improve, but it doesn’t seem like he was ever vying for greatness. Then his father sold him, he was given the 3, and he was made perfect court. 

Much like Neil, didn’t have a say in his involvement. Unlike Neil, Jean adopts the mentality and hierarchy of the perfect court as his truth. Riko’s estimation of his value becomes his own. 

For Jean, the 3 has a lot to do with pain and self worth. In TSC, the only time Jean speaks positively about himself is when he calls himself perfect court, or when he talks about himself as a backliner. He has been conditioned that the only place he has worth is on the court. Nothing is important about him, just about what he is, the position he occupies. Where his personhood and bodily autonomy is denied over and over, his talent cannot be denied on the court. He is allowed to matter on the court, and nowhere else. In a sense, that 3 becomes the only thing about him that could be his. 

The other thing about the 3 is that he didn’t ask for it, but he has bled for it. So much of his relationship with the Ravens is defined by his rank.  Even though the Ravens do not like Jean as a person, they want to be his partner, to have that 4. The reason someone protects Jean from repeated sexual assault is that 3, and how it could lead to a 4. This is why Zane strikes a deal with him, why Grayson goes all the way to the Gold Court to hurt him. It is what the sexual assault from the backliners is blamed on. The 3 was given to Jean as a mark of something he didn't ask to be a part of, and then he was forced to fight tooth and nail to keep it.  It became the defining part of his identity because he wasn’t allowed to have anything else. He wasn’t even allowed to have his name. 

In my opinion, I think that the ultimate expression of Jean’s growth would be to take the tattoo off. He doesn’t have to subscribe to that value system. Covering it would feel like half assing it. He can change it, but he has to keep a tattoo of some sort, because Riko put one there. 

Note that I don’t think of the cover up the same way for Kevin. For Kevin, exy was likely always going to be important to him, with Kayleigh as his mother. He is inheriting it, same way Riko is, and this inheritance is symbolized by that 1 and 2. Kevin wanted to be the best, and so the ultimate expression of his healing is him becoming the best his way. Jean has his tattoo because he is seen as an object, a talent investment belonging to the Moriyamas. What is a limit for Kevin is a brand for Jean. 

For Jean, I think true freedom wouldn’t be freedom to be the best, it would be not having to be the best. It would be not having exy be the most important thing in his life. To not need to defend something he didn’t want. I hope he becomes so sure of his worth in the world, and so sure of his own autonomy that he doesn’t need the 3 to tell him he’s worth something. I hope he realizes that he is his own before he is anyone else's, and doesn’t need to carry around a value that someone else gave him.  

In TSC, the legacy, abuse, and dehumanization of the Nest is killing Ravens as soon as the Nest is taken away. Without the strict environment and the imposed value systems the Nest and team gave them, the Ravens crumple. They seem to feel they can't go back (I suspect that whether ‘back’ means back to their old lives or back to the Nest is different for every Raven), and that death is their better option. Ravens don’t seem to be meant to survive outside the Nest. It is designed to be all consuming. Jean doesn’t know who he is if he isn’t a Raven, if he isn’t perfect court, if he isn’t ‘3’ anymore. To live again, he has to leave the perfect court and its poison behind. He has to learn himself again, to rebuild and repair and create out of nothing. 

Neil says it about Grayson, that he could have chosen to walk away from Riko’s poisoned legacy, but it applies to all Ravens. To survive, to live a life worth living, they have to chose to fight their way out of that kind of thinking. Taking the tattoo off feels like him choosing to leave the Nest behind. Jean taking it off represents him shedding that entire ideology. No three, no expectation, just him and whoever he wants to be. 

In short, the toxicity that the perfect court represented killed Riko with its symbol still on his face. 

The Moriyama’s never really owned Neil, and they weren’t who he had to overcome. The tattoo was never going to be around long. 

Kevin was held back from his birthright. His potential was conditional, and there was a leash on him. He needed to reclaim the game that would always be his, mark himself in his own image. 

Jean needs to see himself as a person beyond his place on the court. He needs to walk away from the perfect court ideology and reclaim himself, with no one’s mark on him. 

[fraternum-momentum]

Who is your favorite Wrestler? :3c I've been getting into the WWE. It's so campy and dramatic and fun. Everyone always brings up how it's fake, and yeah that's low-key true, but the athleticism is real! They are REALLY getting tossed around and thrown into the announcer table! PUT SOME RESPECT ON THEIR NAMES

im actually not a big superfan of wrestling QJHS my little brother just makes me watch wrestling with him and i kinda got invested in some of the storylines, supereyepatchwolf's videos made me more interested in it tho :]

BUT OFC ITS RHEA RIPLEY CMON HAVE U SEEN HERRRR LIKE FUKCJHVWDHBWDBBD PLEAQSWWEEE PLEASWWEE IM ON MY HANDS AND KNEES PLEQQSSWEEEEEEEEEE

her current storyline with dominik is SOOO dgshit though like what is this telenovela bullshit why is liz and rhea fighting over A MANNNN AND DOMINIK OF ALL PEOPLE like cant they just kiss each other instead ?????? like cmooon what is this,,,,,, didn't they used to be in a tag team togetherrrrr

EDIT:

ALSO JADE CARGILL BC HELLO ??????????????? thats mother right there idk whats happening with her beef with damage ctrl but all im saying is that it shouldve been me getting tossed around and getting beaten up i mean what ahahaha

GOLDEN LOVERS 🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️ their whole storyline is insane thank u youtube wolfman for telling their story i owe them my life

BUT YES !!!! i used to be one of those annoying people who said 'arhmmm u know it's fake, right? ☝️🤓' and yes. yes, we all know it's fake,,,,, it's called kayfabe,,,,, like think of as theater, and they have to be in character at all times, in and out the stage. but it's super intense theater where they all do the stunts and stuff :3 it's super cool

(without context this is so funny 😭 ishowspeed barked at randy orton this is my favorite moment evrrr)

[lizhly-writes]

laying facedown on the couch. au where kim dokja's dad realize he's being a terrible human being and 1) gets sober 2) actually makes an attempt at parenting.

that's too early of a change. kim dokja grows up with two present parents and a far more emotionally healthy childhood than his canon self. imagine that! a childhood where neither of your parents were murderers; a childhood where you were never called a son of a murderer; a childhood with no murders involved at all, not even your own.

there's no reason to find any ways to survive a ruined world if your world was never ruined, you see?

at this point... that's a completely different character, isn't it?

kim dokja was his mother's child, and in his childhood, he learned from her example.

here, this is how you read a book. here, this is how you show love. see, it's fine, sweetheart. It doesn't matter what happens to me as long as the people i love are fine. i know it hurts, but that's love. this is the only way i know how to love at all.

it's true that i haven't read this story in a while. i've forgotten some things by now. still, i think he learned the art of self-sacrifice from her.

it's that tragic backstory he's got. there are some characters whose every action bears the shape of their past. that's kim dokja. what is he without tragedy?

his father never dies. his mother never leaves him alone. this is a different sort of love than he should have learned. he grows up decently liked and decently treated. an average korean man, by all standards. it never, ever occurs to him that he should protect people he loves by throwing himself headfirst into the fire.

picture this: two identical men turn twenty-eight. the first man has at least two messages from his parents congratulating him and perhaps mentioning going out for a birthday dinner, and possibly some friends he made in high school. the second man doesn't have any messages from a real person at all, because no one has fucking bothered to remember his birthday except for those automated "get a free <item> on your birthday!" promotion deals.

come on. there might be some nuance there, but it's not hard to decide who's living the happier life.

knowing this, you have to wonder: why?

in some alternate timeline, kim dokja has a much more well-adjusted life. why is that? why was it that this kim dokja's father decided to sober up, for once? what changed?

it's hard to say whether that timeline is better than what actually occurred. without his mother's example guiding him, without the lessons beaten into him as a teenager, would kim dokja have reached the end to the story he'd wanted? would it still be worth it after everything was over?

still, you have to wonder: why was it that timeline and not this one? "why was it you and not me?"

you can come up with a thousand reasons, driving yourself mad trying to figure out why. did your father love you more there? were you a better child in that world? somehow, were you more worthy of happiness?

...that's enough.

kim dokja lives a happy, normal life. you don't need to see anymore. this isn't a timeline you need to watch. doing so makes you... unhappy isn't the word.

whatever. it doesn't matter. let those windows flicker off and away, glimpsing into some other possible past and future -- this is only one worldline out of many. it's not even one you need to watch. it's unimportant. it's not the story that you loved - love -- so much.

go on. forget about it. you've forgotten so much already. one more story doesn't make a difference.

that kim dokja could never be you.

[razorblade180]

As we've sort of seen how it happened with Weiss, how did Jaune end up falling for the girls in their respective aus? How long did it take for him to notice and for him to act on those feelings?

I should really find an efficient way to deep dive into my archives because I know for sure I have this written I. specific details Thank goodness I write things often enough to remember the fundamentals of my stories.

Rosebud- It’s probably the simplest. Ruby always had a crush in this AU. They started getting intimate with one another during their journey as RNJR; out of sense of comfort, stress, and growing affection. Ruby made the first move. They didn’t officially get together until sometime during V5 time frame at the inn. It was pretty much unspoken that they were going to love each other forever, and that only became more true when after Salem was beaten. At that point their love could really flourish. The silver eyed hero that saved the world at 17 was happily married at 19 and Jaune couldn’t be happier.

Lasting Embers is slightly more complicated but I’m not about to get nitty gritty in this specific post. Yang and Blake’s relationship got messy and tense after the revelation that was Adam being alive and the several run in that happened on the journey. After the break up, Yang was incredibly down and upset and it was mainly Jaune that helped get her through the funk. Eventually they got together but it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. There were several fights and even a breakup that mainly stemmed from the tense journey and Yang’s emotional baggage. Jaune even briefly dated someone else who Yang believed was better for him and deeply cared about him. However, after what could be described as the most selfless act of a lifetime, the two of them were able to try again and it was wonderful. They continued to love each other and let down walls that eventually led to a marriage that remains vivid in everyone’s memory.

So for Knigtshade context, Jaune and Blake were actually pretty friendly during Beacon days. Nothing crazy happened but they had similar music tastes and quiet spots to think. Also one of the major differences in this universe is they managed to lock Salem behind a relic door for a few years in order to train properly and prep the world for the real fight. It was during this time. Like Lasting Embers, Blake and Yang got into some drama, but this was ten times worse. So bad that it rocked the entire group. Ruby ended up making the executive decision that when it came interaction between Menagerie and the nearest Anima area, it would be Jaune and Blake while Yang essentially worked with Ren and Nora. The constant back and forth as well as the problem solving Blake and Jaune had to do together for so long naturally led to them getting to know each other more and being there to listen. They both fell for each other slowly. Things were a little better with Yang for a while until she noticed the signs. Eventually marriage became a reality and so was a family. Things were never really the same which is a little disheartening. Nobody is hostile to anyone but little Lucas could only wonder why someone so important to his family always felt a little distant on the rare occasions they met.

[stardewlegends]

[Part 2] The Day After The Day Before | Sebastian x Reader, Platonic!Sam x Reader (Angst, mild Fluff)

Category: Angst, Fluff (Mandatory) Age: 18+ Trigger Warnings: Implied non-con, implied sexual assault, physical violence, blood, miscarriage, forced pregnancy, physical violence, verbal abuse, bleeding, head injury, hospitalisation, explicit language Ship: Sebastian x Reader, Platonic!Sam x Reader, implied Sam x Sebastian x Reader Summary: She'd heard so many good things about her best friend, Sam's, father, Kent, and it was true, he was lovely! Right up until he wasn't. How was she meant to tell Sebastian? Sam? The answer is simple: she couldn't. But apparently she couldn't hide it either. Request: N/A Contains Spoilers for: N/A Word Count: 6k

---

Almost six months have passed since the day (Y/N) learnt she was pregnant with that monster’s child. She decided to keep the baby. It was a hard decision, unsure whether she’d permanently be traumatised every time she looked at her child but thought about it more prominently as Sam’s brother than Kent’s son or daughter.

Sebastian and Sam, as promised, supported her the whole way. It’s not like she had anyone else. Harvey and Maru were judge-free too and have been helping her throughout the entire process.

Sebastian and Sam moved on to the farm with her, Sam occupying the spare room whilst Sebastian shared hers. It was fun. They helped her grow once again into the bright, chatty woman she once was before he took it all away.

Jodi never welcomed Sam back into their home after that Godforsaken day. She spread rumours about Kent’s beaten up face. Said that Sebastian had gaslighted Sam into abusing the family. Said that Sebastian was the one who raped (Y/N). Oh, yeah, a real likely story. Robin and Demetrius tried to get answers out of Sebastian about what actually happened, but he didn’t give them any information. He simply told his mother that he was moving onto the farm with (Y/N) and Sam to support her as she’s pregnant. Clarified it wasn’t his child. Robin didn’t interfere much more than that, Demetrius making snark comments at the boy which is just ignored.

Abigail regularly came by when she could, but Caroline forbid it. Naturally, Jodi opened her mouth and made the farmer the talk of the town. No one really gossiped about it except Jodi. She would do anything to protect her husband, and if that meant making everyone in Pelican Town hate the little bitch who took over the farm then so be it.

On the farm, Sam absolutely adored her chickens. Who knew the skater boy enjoyed farming so much? Sebastian enjoyed collecting fruit from all the trees, being sad in Winter when that wasn’t something he could do. They always went out foraging for some crystal fruits though. The pair made sure that she didn’t have to lift a finger anymore. Not whilst pregnant.

“I wanna go to the saloon.” (Y/N) admits one Friday night as the trio are watching some grid ball game on the television.

The two men look at her with surprised expressions on their faces.

“You serious?”

She nods but keeps her eyes on the screen across the room.

“I miss playing pool on Friday nights. I miss Gus and Emily listening to my boring farm talk, I miss Clint telling me about what cool shit he managed to forge together out of the leftover ore I had, I miss Willy’s voice shaking the place as he tells Clint all about some huge as Scorpion Carp he found…” The woman trails off. “I miss being normal.” “Then let’s go to the saloon.” Sam states. “People are gonna stare…” The woman trails off. “Let them; you look stunning.” Sebastian tells her, watching her blush and curl into him. “He’s right.” The blond adds, smirking and flashing a wink. “Come on, you’ve got me and Seb by your side - nothing will happen to you. Besides, as much as my mom is capable of opening her huge fucking mouth, the town adores you too much to listen.”

(Y/N) wishes she believed him. She’s trying to.

Sam calls up Abigail, asking her to come down and meet them at the saloon. She’s never been so excited to watch the boys play pool.

They walk down, basking in the late-Spring breeze that surrounds them.

“I’ve missed town.” (Y/N) sighs, smiling at the sight of the buildings around her in the town square. “I dunno why, it’s shite.” Sebastian remarks, the trio chuckling at the sarcasm.

They come to a halt outside of the Stardrop, the two men patiently waiting for the woman to be ready to go inside.

“It’ll be okay. My family don’t even come in here.” Sam reassures.

She nods and they finally enter. Peoples heads turn to acknowledge whoever has just walked in and the chat immediately dies down.

(Y/N) wonders if Sebastian is nervous, knowing the rumours were that he’s the one who knocked her up without consent. He doesn’t seem phased. The truth is he isn’t. The people who matter know the truth, and anyone who believes the lies aren’t worth having around.

The farmer’s convinced everyone heard her gulp.

Sam and Sebastian don’t falter, the latter reaching for the woman’s hiding and offering an encouraging smile. He’ll take anything that is thrown her way. Both of them will. She knows it. She’s grateful.

As Sebastian leads her into the pool room, Elliott’s voice speaks up.

“(Y/N),” He calls, the woman freezing. Sam and Sebastian do too. The trio turn to look at the man sitting at the bar, everyone’s eyes on them. “It’s good to see you back.”

The tears that well up in her eyes are staining her cheeks before she can even attempt to hide them.

Elliott smiles and stands up, Leah admiring his confidence, approaching the farmer, opening his arms for a hug which she graciously accepts.

“Thank you so much.” She whimpers into his burgundy jacket. “No need, little lady. We’ve missed you more than you know.”

The red-head offers a smile at the two men whom the farmer walked in with, them returning it with a nod.

“How many weeks are you now?” He asks, admiring the prominent bump under the woman’s dress. “Twenty-four.” She whispers, naturally resting her hands there. “You know if it’s a boy or a girl yet?” “Keeping it a surprise.” “Nice.”

Elliott heads back to the bar, taking a seat by Leah, and (Y/N) continues her path toward the pool table with Sebastian and Sam.

The tension is already gone thanks to Elliott and the night is pretty relaxing. Abigail joins them shortly after they arrive, her constantly talking to the baby bump as if it’s gonna respond.

“I’m gonna go order a drink from the bar - I wanna chat with Gus and Emily.” (Y/N) states, her three friends nodding and smiling in admiration. “Okay, doll; we’ll be right here.”

She nods at Sebastian with a smile before heading over to the bar, standing beside Elliott.

“Hey, Gus,” She greets, the bartender offering her a warm smile. “Evenin’, farmer. Good to see ya face again. What’re ya havin’?”

She giggles at his attempted farmer’s accent.

“Just a blackcurrant and soda water, please?” “Comin’ right up, ma’am.” “It really is good to see your face again, (Y/N).” Elliott comments, turning to face the woman once again. “I appreciate it so much.” She whispers, tearing up again.

He smiles and wraps his arm around her before picking up his drink.

“Ladies and Gents, if I could have your attention, please,” The red-head begins, (Y/N)’s eyes widening. “I’d like to raise a toast to our sweetheart of a farmer who joined our wonderful town and naturally made it a better place. She hasn’t been able to have our support lately but I’d like everyone now to raise a toast to this little lady in congratulations of the wonderful baby they’re carrying.” He announces, eyes locking with everyone in the bar. “To (Y/N)!”

And everyone does toast. Drinks in the air. Everyone cheering. Hell, even Clint does and he’s as quiet as anything.

The woman hides her face in Elliott’s jacket in embarrassment. He chuckles and strokes her back.

There’s some fun chat and banter throughout the bar as (Y/N) catches up with everyone, quickly feeling a lot more welcome in her local despite what her worrying thoughts warned her about.

So much fun going on that she doesn’t acknowledge the saloon doors opening.

“Well, well, well, this all looks awfully friendly.”

(Y/N) freezes up at the voice. She’s stood at the bar talking to Emily, the door directly behind her, along with the wife of that monster.

“Surprised the whore actually decided to show her face again.”

The farmer’s eyes clench shut as she fears everything that’s about to happen. Sam and Sebastian hear the voice and stride over to the archway that connects the pool room to the main bar.

“I presume you’ve also fucked the bitch by now, Samson.” Jodi snarks, turning to look at her son who stares her down.

Sebastian looks ready to kill.

“Jodi, I’m afraid if you’re going to be rude, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” Gus states, trying to remain professional.

The woman smirks.

“Why do I have to leave when that little rat has been spreading her legs for everyone in order to ruin my life!?”

(Y/N) is trembling now, hands gripping onto the bar as if it’s keeping her from collapsing.

“Jodi,” Elliott speaks up, giving the woman a glare that tells her not to start. “Gus asked you to leave.” “Are you all stupid!?” “Mom-” “Don’t you dare call me your fucking mother!” Jodi instantly interrupts her son, pointing her finger.

Sam gulps but is prepared to fight this battle.

“And you!” The woman continues, pointing at the dark-haired boy standing beside her son. “You manipulative, gaslighting little shit!”

Sebastian doesn’t falter at her words. She’s delusional.

“What did you think you’d gain out of making my own son hate his father!?” “Kent did that himself.” The boy remarks, Jodi’s eyes flaring up with more anger. “You’re sick. You’re fucked in the head.”

Sebastian’s convinced that if his mother was here, she’d have lost her shit at Jodi by now.

“Perhaps, but my husband didn’t rape someone half his age whilst still married, so I guess I’ve got that going for me.”

The tension in the room is suffocating. People’s eyes widen as they acknowledge the truth in Sebastian’s words. Kent was the one who got her pregnant.

“Let’s just go.” (Y/N) manages, turning to look at her two best friends.

Jodi scoffs.

“Yeah, that’s right, run back to that petty little farm that you can’t even run properly so drag those two down with you. My son had a future before you fucked him up!”

The farmer sighs and turns around to finally meet Jodi’s glare.

The woman’s eyes widen at the sight of her belly and (Y/N) very rapidly realises that Jodi didn’t know.

“You have got to be fucking joking me.”

The woman at the bar freezes, shaking once more.

“I’m just gonna go home.” She manages, taking a step forward and turning toward the archway where her two best friends are standing, but that’s when Sebastian screams.

“NO!”

Everything happens too fast.

(Y/N)’s head whips back around just in time to see Jodi lunging for her, shoving the farmer with enough force to send her stumbling back into the bar, knocking the wind out of her, before falling into the bar stools and to the ground.

Sebastian and Sam dove forward but weren’t as fast as the silent man in the blue Joja jacket who grabs Jodi by her throat and slams her up against the wall of the saloon.

(Y/N)’s breaths are heavy, moaning in pain, hands wrapping around her belly as her two best friends drop down beside her, along with Elliott and Leah.

“I was always taught to never hit a woman but you’re no fucking lady.” Shane all but growls as Jodi gasps for breath, hands clawing at the man’s hand in an attempt to alleviate his grip. “Shane-” She gasps, eyes wide. ���I could fucking kill you, you know that?” The man warns, grip not faltering. “You had the audacity to tell everyone in this town that Sebastian touched her without permission when in reality it was your shit-eating husband.” “Shane…” Marnie’s voice manages to reach his ears. He forgot she was here, to be honest. He doesn’t care.

Marnie isn’t telling him to stop, no. Marnie agrees wholeheartedly with his actions. He knows that. She’s warning him to be careful. To not get caught.

With another shove into the wall, Shane drops the woman, Jodi dropping to her knees as she gasps for breath once more. The man spins around and acknowledges Sebastian and Sam helping the pregnant woman stand up.

And that’s when he sees it.

“Get her to Harvey.” He states, eyes wide. “Yeah, no shit.” Sam manages, not intending to come across harshly. “No, seriously,” Shane adds. “Guys…” Elliott speaks up, Sebastian and Sam looking down and seeing the red stains on the floor where (Y/N) was lay.

The same red stains at the bottom of her dress. The same red stains leaking down her legs.

The two boys’ eyes widen and they look at one another before looking at the girl they’re holding who’s eyes are also on the mess.

“No…” She whimpers, legs giving in but Sebastian and Sam catch her. “Come on, baby, we’ve gotta get you to Harvey. The dark-haired boy manages, heading toward the door. “No, no, no, no, no, please!” She’s screaming. Sobbing. Her heart is shattering and everyone can see it.

Shane opens the door for the boys, sprinting ahead and banging on Harvey’s door.

“HARV, OPEN UP! EMERGENCY!” He yells, Sam and Sebastian slowly approaching with the screaming woman in their arms. “FOR FUCKS SAKE, HARVEY, OPEN UP!”

The doctor sprints to the door scared that Shane has relapsed once again, but this is so much worse.

“She’s bleeding.” They’re the only words Sam manages as he meets the scared gaze of Harvey.

He nods and ushers them inside, quickly preparing a bed for the woman where he injects her with some substance or other to knock her out, her screams dying down.

Sam and Sebastian are stood by the bed, bloodstains on their clothes, eyes wide as Harvey begins to work on the woman.

“Guys, come on, you’ve gotta let him work.” Shane attempts, they listen. They stare at the woman with lost eyes but let Shane lead them outside of the room.

They’re lost. Sam and Sebastian. Shane is talking to them both but neither of them can understand any of the words he’s saying. They simply manage to find each others’ gaze and cling onto each other in a bone-shattering hug.

Shane’s breaths are heavy. He isn’t exactly best friends with the farmer but she’s the only one who never judged him. She would always sit with him and have a drink. Buy him a pint or two. Saved his life when he hit an all-time low. He saw her as a friend, and she saw him as an equal. That was more than enough for him.

When he heard the gossip that Kent was attacked by Sebastian because the soldier threatened to expose that the quiet emo both was a rapist, he didn’t believe it. How could he? (Y/N) treated Sebastian with the same amount of care that she treated himself with. Now he knows he was right. Sebastian isn’t a bad guy, but that fucking asshole…

Hours pass. How many? Neither of the men are sure. Sebastian told Shane to go home after he calmed down. Thanked the man for defending (Y/N). Shane could only apologise that he wasn’t quick enough to stop the initial hit - Sam and Sebastian told him it wasn’t his fault. He wishes he believed them.

Harvey’s footsteps echo across the surgery, Sam and Sebastian immediately up on their feet and looking at the man with so much anticipation

“She’s still out but will probably wake in the next hour or so.” The doctor begins, the men somewhat nodding but awaiting the more important information.

Harvey sighs and removes his glasses from his face and ruffling his hair.

“Gents, I’m sorry, but the baby didn’t make it.”

Sebastian’s body starts to shut down. He remains frozen, eyes staring lifelessly at the brunet in front of him.

“Seb,” Sam whispers, noticing the absence of life in his friend.

The blond’s heartbroken. He’s crying. Not only was that his best friend’s kid, it was his half-brother.

Sebastian’s face turns to look at Sam, still remaining stoic.

“Why her?” He whispers, Harvey tearing up at the question. “What did she ever do to deserve this?”

Sam lets out a sob and shakes his head, looking around the room for the answer that doesn’t exist.

“She didn’t deserve this.” Is all he can whisper.

Another two hours pass. The two men are sitting on either side of her bed as she stirs. No words have been said between them.

A groan rumbles in her throat as the blinding light of the hospital room takes over her vision.

Sebastian is holding one hand whilst Sam is holding the other.

“Take it easy.” Sebastian whispers.

When the room finally starts to make more sense, the woman glances over at Sebastian and Sam.

“Hey…” It’s muffled against the oxygen mask covering her face. “Hi, gorgeous.” The dark-haired boy murmurs, forcing a smile despite his painfully obvious tear-stains.

She takes a moment to remember everything that happened but the gasp that escapes her follows a number of beeps from the monitors she’s hooked up to.

“Woah, hey, hey, hey, baby, calm down,” “Woah, (Y/N), it’s okay!”

Sam and Sebastian are both up on their feet trying to calm the now frantic woman down.

“Breathe, baby, breathe.” Sebastian attempts, watching her head drop down and hands jump to her, now, flat belly. “No, no, no, NO, NO, NO!” She’s ripping the mask off of her face, tearing at all the wires in her body, throwing the bedsheets off of her as she gets a better look at her stomach.

Sebastian wraps his arms fully around the woman, cocooning her against him, whilst Sam stumbles back and throws his head back against the wall. His fists are clenched as silent tears pour down his face.

It took the woman months to come to terms with her pregnancy and decide she wanted it, picturing the perfect life with Sebastian and Sam by her side, but it's been ripped away from her.

“WHERE’S MY BABY!? WHERE’S MY BABY!?” She’s screaming, Sebastian sobbing and trying to keep her trapped against his body to stop her flailing about. “(Y/N), doll, shh, it’s okay, it’s okay, breathe for me.”

Harvey comes sprinting into the room and sees the state of the woman who’s just woken.

“SOMEBODY TELL ME WHERE MY BABY IS-” The woman’s screams fade out as Harvey injects her with some sort of drug to knock her out. “I’m sorry, I was upstairs organising some files.” The doctor utters, Sebastian pulling back from the woman so Harvey can fix up her wires.

The two boys don’t respond.

“What do we do, Harvey?” Sam whispers, still leaning against the wall, staring aimlessly at the unconscious woman. “She’s going to take a while to recover but with the right support around her, I think she’ll be fine.”

More silence.

“Can she ever get pregnant again?” Sebastian manages, voice barely above a whisper. “Yes.”

It’s barely enough to relieve either of the men.

“Can she have sex?” The darker-haired boy continues to ask as many questions as possible, wanting to be ready to answer everything the woman may have when she wakes again. “Yes, but I would recommend waiting a couple of weeks before inserting anything into her vagina. Her cervix is open so she’s prone to infection.” Harvey answers all the questions with explicit professionalism. “Is she gonna be in pain?” Sam manages, his eyes flitting to Harvey for a moment before returning to (Y/N). “Some pain in the lower abdomen, similar to menstrual cramp pain, is quite common after a miscarriage,”

Sebastian’s eyes clench shut at the word itself.

“This should only last a couple of days really; if there’s any noticeably bad pain then you can come back to me and I can offer painkillers, but I won’t let her out of here until she feels up to it anyway.”

They both manage a nod.

“Is there anything we can do for her?” “She needs to continue to eat and drink plenty even though she may not feel up to it. Try and stop her doing physical work on the farm, she needs rest.” The boys continue to nod in understanding as Harvey speaks. “She will probably struggle to sleep for a while honestly.”

There’s silence after that as Harvey switches about the wires and tubes in the woman’s body.

“If she wakes up again, press this button and I’ll be right in.” “Thanks, Harvey.”

It’s an hour later when the doctor returns with a knock at the door.

“Sorry to interrupt, gents, but Robin is here and has asked if she can see you, Sebastian?” Harvey states, Sam looking at his friend, curious for the response. “Is she welcome in here?”

Harvey nods.

“Of course.”

A moment later, another knock followed by Robin’s entry. She looks like she’s going to cry when she looks at (Y/N)’s, practically lifeless, body laying on the medical bed.

“Hi…” She whispers, looking at her son with uncertainty.

Sebastian stands up and hugs his mother in that moment.

“Oh, Sebby…”

A sob escapes the boy’s lips.

“She didn’t deserve any of this, mom.”

Robin remains silent for a moment, glancing over at the blond across the room who’s staring at the floor, crying once again.

“What’s gone on, Sebastian?” She whispers, hands stroking the back of her heartbroken son.

The pair pull back and sit down, Sebastian’s eyes returning to the unconscious woman.

“(Y/N) and I have had a ‘friends with benefits’ arrangement for a little while now - discussed dating and stuff but decided we’re not quite ready for it,” The boy begins, Robin holding his hand and stroking it. “I know full well I’ll never love another woman the same way I love her.”

He pauses, trying to find a starting point.

“When you and Demetrius were away on your anniversary trip, I had Abigail, (Y/N) and Sam over to play some video games and shit. Everyone left except (Y/N), but she was packing her stuff as if ready to leave; she normally stays the night. I wrapped my arms around her and asked if she was leaving already but she froze.” He pauses, remembering the exact moment he held the woman he loves in his arms and she froze up like he just made the worst mistake of his life. “Like, really froze. It scared me. I let go. She said she had some farm stuff to take care of and started heading toward the door but I grabbed her wrist - not hard! But she fucking screamed. Stumbled into the wall and stared at me like I just burnt her.”

Robin doesn’t tell the boy off for swearing on this occasion.

“She ran out after that. I was scared shitless. I saw it in her eyes that she was fucking traumatised. She’s never been like that - certainly not with me. She loves physical affection and shit, she would never react like that. Anyway, I sat and thought it over for a while, worried about what the fuck I’d done to make her so fucking scared of me, and realised I hadn’t done anything, and even if I had, she would’ve told me. We’re best friends, she tells me everything…”

Robin is tearing up as she listens to what her son has been through whilst she’s been completely oblivious.

“I decided to deal with it later cause it was late. Next morning I call by Pierre’s to ask Abby for her help, grabbed Sam too, and told them what had happened. Sam immediately suggested that someone’s hurt her, agreeing that it’s not like her to turn down physical affection, especially screaming from a touch. We went to her place - she was still in the same clothes she fell asleep in which worried me too. We asked her if someone had hurt her and she lost it. She broke down in tears as we asked her more and more questions trying to get to the bottom of whatever the fuck had happened.”

Sebastian pauses as he sniffles and wipes the tears from his face.

“She told us she was raped; admitted it was Kent. Said she didn’t wanna tell us because he’s Sam’s dad. She didn’t want Sam to lose the father he’s been waiting years for.”

Robin’s eyes turn to the blond across the room, seeing his eyes clenched shut, fists tight, tears falling.

“Sam didn’t believe her first - I don’t blame him, but I knew (Y/N) would never lie to us, especially about something like this. Sam stormed out and gave Kent a hefty punch or two, I followed - scared Sam might take it too far.”

He fucking deserved it. Those are Sam’s unvoiced thoughts.

“He fucking deserved it though.” Sebastian voices his thoughts anyway. “I went in and Kent was mouthing off some shit about how she was asking for it and shit-talking her, so I lost my fucking cool and gave the guy a good hit.” “Or ten.” Sam quietly remarks, a very brief smirk on his lips. “The asshole deserved it. Anyway, I was stopped because (Y/N) and Abby turned up and I didn’t want her to see that. She passed out after Kent spat out some more utter bullshit. I carried her up to ours since you guys were away - figured she could do with somewhere away from her own house and that fucker’s.”

Robin is crying but lets her son finish.

“I just let her rest for a few days. She didn’t say or do much, we just watched some TV, I read to her, made her food, bla bla, then one day she asked if she could speak to Maru as she realised she could have damage, infections, possible pregnancy, which I hadn’t even fucking thought about.” “You can’t beat yourself up over this, Seb.” Sam manages, sparing a glance at the dark-haired boy.

Sebastian gulps but continues.

“I asked if she was sure and she said yes, so we spoke to Maru who got us in with Harvey that very evening. Found out she was pregnant. We slept on it since she was unsure what she wanted to do. Sam came over the next day to see how (Y/N) was doing - and because Jodi and Kent kicked him out, Jodi losing her shit and saying I was gaslighting them both or some dumb fucking shit,” He takes a deep breath, trying to remain calm. “We eventually agreed to move to the farm, all three of us, and she decided she was going to keep the baby - wanted to try and get something good out of this whole shit show.” “So when did Kent actually…” Robin trails off, not wanting to break her son even more. “End of Spring - like, a fucking week after he came back to Pelican Town.” Her son confirms. “Anyway, I’m sure you’ve heard the drama of what happened in the saloon. (Y/N) decided she missed going out. We were all very aware of Jodi spreading utter bullshit in order to protect to darling husband and whatever, so we’d all been on the down-low for a while. We decided to go to the saloon, Sam and I very ready to protect her from any bullshit thrown her way, but Elliott grabbed our attention as we came in and said she’d been missed. Later in the night, she was chatting to everyone, Elliott raised a toast to congratulate her on her pregnancy, it was really nice to see her smiling again.” “She was glowing.” Sam whispers, Sebastian managing a momentary smile. “Yeah. Anyway, Jodi turns up at like eleven PM, starts shit-talking (Y/N), me, Sam… You probably would’ve smacked her.”

Robin attempts a small chuckle.

“(Y/N) says she’s just gonna leave and doesn’t want to cause any drama, but Jodi obviously wasn’t aware she was pregnant and lost her shit, shoving her back into the bar. She fell down, smacked her body on the stools and her head on the floor. Sam and I were too far away to fucking stop it. Shane stepped in though, pinned the bitch up against the wall and threatened her. (Y/N) was bleeding… a lot. Shane helped Sam and I get her here, but she, uh, the baby didn’t make it.”

Silence.

“And now we’re here.” “What time even is it?” Sam manages. “Just after one PM.” Robin confirms.

The boy nods.

“I’m sorry you felt like you couldn’t talk to me about all this. I can’t even begin to imagine how hard this has been on you. Both of you.”

Sebastian attempts an appreciative smile but it barely lasts a second.

“Come here, Samson.” Robin adds, standing up and opening her arms for the boy. “Robin, thank you, but-” “Come here.” She doesn’t take no for an answer, simply smiling and accepting the embrace. “You’re always welcome into my home.”

He squeezes a little tighter.

“Thank you.” “You and Sebastian have always been like brothers anyway.”

He pulls back and smiles

“He drives me crazy like a brother.”

She manages a chuckle.

“He drives me crazy like a son.” “I’m right here.” It’s a sarcastic remark from the dark-haired boy. “Has she woken up yet?” The carpenter asks, taking a seat back beside her son. “Yeah, but she realised her bump was gone and lost her mind; Harvey had to inject her with some anaesthetic or something to knock her back out.” “Oh, bless her.”

Some time passes and Robin says she’ll head off, not wanting to intrude when the woman wakes up once more. What she doesn’t tell either of the men is that she’s going to add some renovations to the woman’s farm, free of charge, to help accommodate all three of them, and a baby in future if she wishes to try again.

Sam stands up and walks over to sit beside his best friend, taking his hand.

“I’m sorry, Seb.” “Do you think she’ll be okay?” Sebastian whispers, not taking his eyes off of the girl.

The blond pauses, contemplating his answer.

“We’ll make sure she is.”

Another forty-five minutes pass before the woman begins to stir, Sebastian immediately noticing the way her eyelids twitch. He presses the emergency button to contact Harvey straight away, praying that they can keep her calm enough to stay awake this time round.

The running footsteps resound in the small medical room the three of them are occupying, Harvey unlocking the door with worried eyes.

“She’s twitching a little - stirring - I think she’s gonna wake up; I figured I’d get you here first.” Sebastian briefs, the doctor nodding and checking over her machines and stats once again.

The woman groans, feeling exhausted, which is bizarre given that she’s waking up. Her body feels like it’s got the weight of Lewis’ truck resting on it.

What the hell?

“(Y/N), can you hear me?”

Is that… Harvey’s voice?

“If you can hear me, love, can you try and give me a sign? Wiggle your fingers or toes?”

Why the hell wouldn’t she be able to hear him? He sounds like he’s right beside her.

Nonetheless, she complies and attempts to move her digits.

“Perfect. Okay, (Y/N), I’m going to tell you a few things but I need you to remain calm, okay? Despite everything I’m reminding you of, you’re one-hundred percent safe right here right now.”

She’s clearly in the hospital.

Another mining accident? She usually can hear Marlon nagging in her ear by now though about how reckless she is.

“You’re in the hospital due to getting hurt when in the saloon. You were pushed and fell to the floor. Do you remember?”

Who in the hell of Stardew Valley would push her?

“(Y/N)...”

Sebastian?

“Can you hear me, doll?”

Attempted finger movements.

She also tries to turn her head toward her best friend’s voice but her eyes aren’t assisting just yet.

“Hey, pretty girl,” She fails to see the soft smile on Sebastian’s face, perfectly paired up with the tears staining his cheeks. “You remember Sam’s family?”

Vincent?

Jodi?

Oh, fuck-

Jodi.

Kent.

Another gasp and she feels multiple hands on her body as if pinning her down.

“Breathe, doll, it’s okay.” “(Y/N), remember that you’re safe.” Harvey inputs. “Don’t panic, you’re okay, I promise.”

The pet name ‘baby’ is on the tip of Sebastian’s tongue, but there’s a time and a place for that…

“Just focus on staying calm, doll, or else we can’t help you.”

She was pregnant.

The saloon.

Elliott.

Jodi was pissed.

Jodi didn’t know she was pregnant - how!?

She was pushed.

The blood.

Bleeding.

Her baby…

“Try and stay calm, (Y/N).” Harvey’s voice interrupts her thoughts once more; it’s then that she realises how obnoxiously loud the beeping of her heart monitor is as it gets faster.

With struggling efforts, the woman manages to move one of her hands across her body to her flat stomach.

She lost the baby.

There’s no way she had the baby - she had two months left.

Is that possible?

Perhaps this was the way it was meant to be.

With strain, she manages to open her eyes, the blinding hospital lights barely hurting in comparison to the loss of her baby.

“Welcome back, (Y/N).” The doctor greets, but she hasn’t even looked at any of the men in the room yet. “Just to make you aware, I’m in the room along with Sebastian and Sam.”

Sam…

“Hey, (Y/N).” The blond comments.

She doesn’t respond.

Eventually, she manages to turn her head and acknowledge the doctor beside her. He offers a reassuring smile and waits patiently for her to feel comfortable.

She then rolls her head around and sees the two boys standing side by side, both crying and looking like they haven’t slept in days. Or showered. Or eaten.

With slow, mechanical movements, the farmer reaches up and slowly slides down the oxygen mask covering her mouth. She licks her lips and moistens her mouth, feeling just how dry her throat is.

“You two look like shit.”

Sam can’t help the laugh that erupts from his throat, mixed with a sob or two. Sebastian simply smiles and shakes his head.

“Missed you too, gorgeous.” The latter mutters. “You’re not lookin’ too hot yourself, farmer.” Sam adds, jokingly.

She attempts a smile before turning to look back at Harvey.

“How long have I been out?” “Eighteen hours-ish.” The doctor confirms. “You woke up about ten hours ago but weren’t doing so good.”

She nods.

“I lost the baby?”

The anguish on Harvey’s face is enough to know.

“I’m really sorry, (Y/N). I tried everything I could.”

She simply smiles and nods before turning to look at the two boys on the other side of her.

“Are you mad?”

The men's faces contort into confusion and shock.

“Mad? Why on Earth would we be mad? Of course we’re not mad, doll, we’re just glad you’re okay.” Sebastian assures the woman, resting a hand on her matted hair. “(Y/N), I’m just glad you’re alive and breathing.” Sam adds.

Harvey answers every question the woman has, brings her some food and drink, and leaves the trio to chat amongst themselves.

“I love you both very much.” “We love you very much, pretty girl.” Sebastian smiles. “My mom came by earlier, by the way - I told her everything.”

(Y/N) nods.

“Does she hate me?” “Of course she doesn’t hate you, (Y/N).”

Silence.

“I want to go home.” “We can go home whenever Harvey says so.” “Will you both stay with me?” “(Y/N),” “Doll,”

Sam and Sebastian begin at the same time, (Y/N) giggling at their synchronisation.

“I think I can speak for Sebastian as well as myself when I say we don’t plan on leaving your side for the rest of our lives.”

It was at that moment that (Y/N) looked at Sam in the same light she looks at Sebastian in.

Love.

Adoration.

Romantic?

But three’s a crowd.

Right?

Sebastian sees the conflict in the woman’s eyes and it makes him grin.

“We’ll figure it out, pretty girl.” The emo boy comments, flashing a wink as she realises he can read her like a picture book. “I love you both.” “We love you too, farmer.”

[tatertotcosmonaut]

JJK 231 Leak Discussion

Okay so these leaks, whew boy these leaks. Imma be real I don’t know how to feel about them. Theres some things I really like and some things that make me really disgruntled.

First let me state this. I’m not mad about Yuta using Gojo’s body like this. Gojo has already stated that he doesn’t really care too much what happens to his body, and I think it fits well into this tragedy of Gojo still being used as a weapon even in death (like he’s literally being piloted as a flesh mecha). The disgust that it has caused is very intentional, because it is indeed revolting and as Yuta has accepted, an inhumane thing to do. But Hakari and Maki said that in a fight against Sukuna, a concern over what’s moral should be on the back burner.

Although he said this to Yuuji, Sukuna has already said that he will break down someone’s morals and worldview- and he is doing that. His sheer presence his pushing people to become “monsters” in hopes of beating him down. They have hope in Gojo being the “strongest” and have hope that even in death Gojo will somehow save him.

Now onto what I’m critical of. Even though Yuta and everyone else has faith, this is a “if all else fails” method, I truly think that Yuta will still fail and as a consequence he will die. While this isn’t a “power of friendship” story, it’s a story where brutal decisions do sometimes have to be made, it is as much a battle of philosophy as it is a battle of strengths.

Gojo, Kashimo, Yorozu, and Higuruma’s deaths are not just them losing battles of the strongest. It is them losing and failing to answer the philosophical question that has been looming since the culling games. What is love? What can you teach me (Sukuna) about it? What is the worth of love? Why keep going in the face of such adversity? Yuuta originally got his shit rocked for the exact same reason, while yes love is a theme of his character, philosophically he is not challenging Sukuna on anything.

Jujutsu Society and thus this new generation are still pivoted in this view of there being a “strongest”, in the need for there being a “monster of society”. But by losing their morals, by continuing to feed into Sukuna’s own philosophical views (he has a very “the strongest” view as well) the cycle just keeps continuing. Sorcerers still die, at a fundamental level society does not change. A society cannot function properly if it is constantly leaning on a pillar that will topple and crumble everything if it dies, this is as much a story about the need for community and love as it is about making tough decisions and sacrifices for future generations.

Yuuji is the only one who is challenging Sukuna on a philosophical level (even though he is not doing son intentionally). He irritates Sukuna so fucking much, because he is an exact narrative foil to Sukuna. Yuuji is someone who does not give up, he is someone motivated by love, by community, he is someone who is naive in ways that Sukuna absolutely hates. Some of the only times where Sukuna has actually been stunted or truly angered is by Yuuji and his philosophy, his absolute refusal to not stop loving and to keep reaching for Megumi.

The Mahito fight is a good example of the importance of philosophical battles and the power that a philosophical shake up has, and why it is necessary. Mahito didn’t start running in fear and crying just because Yuuji had physically beaten him down. The true fear showed when he became vulnerable mentally, when his world view was shaken. That is when Mahito finally started to run.

This is why I am very annoyed with Yuuji being constantly sidelined. And this narrative that Yuta is the “true MC” (I do not hate Yuta, I think that needs to be clarified).

“But Faust, Yuuji also has become jaded and now sees himself as a cog in a machine. He has literally changed his body to gain power-“ mhm! And that is presented as a negative thing. Yuuji losing his spark, become consumed by this mentality that it’s okay to die and be disposable (like the higher ups see sorcerers in general) is seen as a BAD thing. Jujutsu society IS unfair, it IS cruel, it is something that Yuuji needed to learn…but does it have to be this way? Yuuji’s character very much reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

This should not be a world where jujutsu sorcerers are seen as disposable. Where tough decisions must be made, where literal high school students have to be sacrificing their minds and bodies for others. In order for Sukuna to go down, for Gojo to see the world that he hoped would prosper from his students, for the youth to take control of themselves so they can be selfish (which is also a theme), this world must be philosophically shaken. The notion of a “strongest” must be challenged, if not abolished, and there must be room for community, love, and naivety.

Thank you for reading my rant lol.

[bobbie-robron]

Robron Fanfiction Recommendations (Apr-2024)

The below were recommended on Twitter in April 2024.

Two Hearts, One Love (2016) 6.4K words, rxbron

Alternative Robert Return. It’s 2016 and Vic and Adam are getting married, an event that had Vic inviting Robert to, the brother she hasn’t seen since 2009. They do indeed get married with Robert showing up at the reception. Robert and Aaron make eyes at each other obviously showing an interest in one another that leads them to stealing themselves away for a bit of nookie…

What came before won’t count anymore (2020) 6.5K words, softlass27

Reunion 3.0. It’s not fourteen years but four years that Robert spent in prison. He’s been back in the village for three months now and getting to know Sebastian again (Aaron has been his sole caregiver to him since whatever disaster you can dream up of happened to his mum). There’s so much sunresolved between Robert and Aaron but still… that doesn’t mean they should remain apart until that time is it? As the two decide how to move forward, we learn just how bad prison was for Robert…

Honest Love series (2015) 7.3K words, HermioneJBlack

Two stories. After Aaron leaves Bar West, he is attacked and beaten. It is Robert that finds him and calls for ambulance. With how close he got to losing Aaron, Robert makes a life-altering decision choosing between Chrissie and Aaron. The second story takes place a year later as Robert has a surprise for Aaron on Valentine’s Day.

Pretend boyfriends!AU (2016) 4.7K words, reinacadeea

Home Farm has been in the possession of the Sugdens for years with Robert handling the bulk of the business. Things turn hostile when Diane gives Andy & Katie 33 percent of shares infuriating Robert. When the Sugdens take a trip to London, Robert brings his (pretend) boyfriend (who he only met recently getting his car looked at) to irritate Katie. Well, being pretends boyfriends might not actually last long as Aaron has a positive effect on Robert… and contemplating Aaron’s question if he’s happy might actually give Robert a clearer focus on what actually makes him happy…

Robert’s dilemma (2016) 5.9K words, Margorobron

With the ‘drama’ unfolding with Charity, Cain & Moira, Charity offers to sell Robert her share of the pub at a lower cost than before. This leaves Robert pondering whether he should seriously consider buying the shares though the reason for it no longer holds. That also brings up another option he was considering… buying aa cottage for him and Aaron. Well, such an important decision isn’t for him alone so he and Aaron talk it through…

Operation Idiots (2020) 9.9K words, raelee514

Reunion 3.0. Robert has been back in the village for a few months getting to know his now twelve year old son, Sebestian, who has been raised by Aaron and gets along okay with his live-in boyfriend, Tim. The thing is, Aaron & Tim had parted ways weeks ago and now the chip off the old block Sebastian is plotting to reunite the two idiots who are no more than mates currently but clearly make each other happy using a tried and true scenario from the past. How can Sebastian lose?

I’m on my way to believing (2019) 14.6K words, softlyspoken

While out with Adam and Matty at a bar, Aaron notices a blonde dancing like a maniac but when said blonde tries to chat him up, is brushed off. It’s at this time that Clive bets the blonde, Robert, a grand that he won’t be able to make Aaron like him in three weeks. This leads Robert back to the village to reconnect to Vic… and Aaron. But Aaron continues to run hot and cold, mostly cold, toward him. But there is more than meets the eye when it comes to why Aaron is how he is and it’s not because of things ending with Ed. That bet, while it brings them together and real feelings arise, will rear it’s head at some point and… oh boy….

Courtroom reunion (2020) 2.3K words, SugdenLovesDingle

Reunion 3.0 AU. In this reality, Sarah is still alive and standing up for Robert against a certain villager while he is in prison as well as supporting Aaron. They are working to get the idiot to agree to an appeal using a solicitor Sarah knows through a friend. Oh, and Aaron continues not to sign off on any divorce nonsense!

the long way home (2021) 60.6K words, softlyspoken

Adam and Aaron have opened up a taxi business and who is the lucky (or is it unlucky) first client for Aaron… Robert! Let’s just say it’s not like at first sight or even second sight. But Robert continues to pop us as that dick client until little things start to seep out giving tiny hints that Robert is more than his usual annoying self. But it’s still very much more cold than hot most times but a drunken kiss shifts things between the two. Robert is deflecting (more like running) and threatening while Aaron sees him as a coward hiding from himself. Something’s got to give but what?

[hypermascbishounen]

Interesting that you point out how babied Lenore was in S4, because

yes, she was. She was written like such an immature brat, making stupid jokes and constantly whining that she was so boooored and no one needed her anymore and oh no she's so scawed of mean cawmiwwa 🥺 and it feels disingenuous, no I'm sorry I get that the context is different but the Lenore who cries that Carmilla lied to her is not the Lenore who was able to gaslight Hector into believing that actually he was lucky that he was beaten and imprisoned.

this is yet another way her character got disrespected, if you care about her. Remember, the other council vampires clearly had a poor opinion of Lenore. Carmilla made fun of her for her tendency to take care of animals, Striga implied that she saw her as a hopeless romantic, Morana talked about her like a silly little girl living in her fantasies. And the most charitable explanation as to why Lenore snapped and beat Hector to an inch of his life when he threatened her is precisely that he, too, saw her as a young defenseless girl: to be fair, would he have thought to attack any of the other three? Probably not. And Lenore clearly resents this situation so much, which is why he beat him way past self defense, which is why she had fun dominating him, which is why she was eager to humiliating him in front of her sisters, who both admired her for her genius and were disgusted by her sexual comments (a way to keep the control of the conversation)

I like this idea. Both Hector and Lenore are the "weak link" of their group, looked down on for their apparent "softness", but while Hector apparently didn't know, didn't realize or didn't care (if the writing was good, I could say that it's because he lived a life of abuse so he doesn't realize his own worth), Lenore very much did, and she rebounded too far in the opposite direction. Her kindness can almost be seen as a subtle way to feel powerful, more subtle than simply beating people into submission: sure, taking care of someone is a nice act... but also, they depend on you, and they're more malleable to your wishes.

So yeah, from this perspective, her constant 🥺 face in S4 is infantilizing an abuser. Lenore did nothing wrong. She always wanted to protect Hector, really. He was having fun when she manipulated him into sex, so what's the big deal. They are such good friends who understand each other. Of course Hector would love her and protect her with barely a second thought. Who wouldn't? An evil person? But they're so cute together 🥺

(btw, I'm interested to know who is the other Beatrice you mentioned lol! As for the Sugarman one, she is such a fascinating character who is so, so pitiable for what happened to her, but still not woobiefied for the horrible way she took her misery on her innocent son)

(also sorry for the ask lol, I didn't want to make a long post longer than it already is)

(no worries, feel free to send asks or messages! I always have more to say than I know what yo do with lol)

The other Beatrice is from Umineko, a series of murder mystery visual novels in the wider When They Cry series. She's hard to describe without spoilers tbh, but relevant atm: she can be a real smug sadist while still containing genuine tragedy, and her relationships get to actually mean something. Here she is expressing true opinions about nfcv:

I feel like a Lenore whose loss of humanity was allowed to be explored as a legit Dracula parrelel, could have almost been interesting. Oh well.

The biggest issue imo, is that she can't really exist as a character without Hector, but the story itself feels threatened by Hector being a character compared to her. This means that no matter how much they try to build her up by contrast, she gets dragged down anyways. So now all they have is two ruined characters for the price of one.

Personally, I think maybe the catharsis granted from a character who does bad things, is only as good as the work lets you engage with them on that premise. If you keep dragging it back to how they're basically in the right anyways, it can lose the emotional opportunity for the audience to explore dark feelings. This doesn't mean you can't write them to be sympathetic ever, but it does mean they risk falling into a weakened power fantasy or cheap fanservice, if you effectively just preach to the audience about how cool they are, esp at the expense of other characters.

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

Hay. Been a while. But I've got a: brothers choose ask if you want to do it:

Imagine if (young justice TV series season 1) Conner faced match and the two had a fight. But match (somehow I don't know how) was capable of talking and reason and tried to convince Conner to join him and luthor and even using his biological/DNA ties with Conner even calling him his brother which causes Conner to think about it. However (10 year old) Jon shows up and reminds Conner that he already has a family and a brother. Wanting to get Jon out of the way match attacks Jon only for Conner to protect him and even fight match:

1: what would match say to Conner about how the two of them are biologically related.

2: what would Conner say specifically when he tells match that he already has a brother.

3: would Conner call Jon his real brother because unlike him with match Jon loves Conner and would never hurt him.

4: what would Conner say about why Jon is more his brother then match is.

5: even though Conner knows match has all of Superman's power while Conner doesn't would Conner still fight if it ment protecting Jon.

6: what would Conner say about how he has a real family with people and a little brother how love him.

7: would Jon help Conner fight to show match why he's more Conner's brother then match is.

8: related and unrelated question if Conner was forced to pick between match and Jon to consider a brother who would Conner pick?

1. It’ll be some TV ing around the lines of “It’s not too late for you to take back what’s your true cause; Superman is a threat waiting to happen and only the three of us together can make sure that never happens. Does he even care about you?” Hell try to tap into not just Conner’s past with what he was created to be but also those feelings of not exactly being welcome by Clark, whether they have by this point talked things out or not.

2. “I get what you might think I want but…I already have someone that’s technically also my DNA I can call family and he’s considerably a lot less of someone who wants to hurt others than you are”

3. More or less, he might not have to say it outright but his actions when protecting the latter send that message pretty clear to Match

4. Basically because whereas Match only either tries to seduce and tempt him to taking a road he feels wholeheartedly would lead to no good, the younger Kryptonian instead invites Conner to his life with love, care and actually a willingness to listen to what Conner wants

5. He’ll do what he can to take on his wicked doppelgänger to protect friends and loved ones no matter what it takes

6. He basically lays out what this real family that took him in despite his origins and original purpose have taught him and what in turn he was able to teach them, just by his small perception on things. He’d tell Match about all the bonding and heart to hearts he had with each of the family, all of which helped shape him into being a better person and gave him a new purpose in being said better person as they have taught him.

7. Very much so; doubly so since the younger Kryptonian has all of Match’s strengths and powers to boot despite still learning how to properly control them. It’s that combined with Conner’s more well rounded experience despite lacking some powers himself that allow the two of them to balance each other out in their battle.

8. Jon, no doubt about it. Though I can better once Match is beaten down and down for the count, Conner might try to offer him a second chance, an offer for Match to instead join him and reject Luthor, choosing a path like he took though in his own unique way….that though would be a story for another time

Thanks for the ask @we-cross-universe-king-relate , it’s appreciated ;-)

Tagging @spider-jaysart @camo-wolf @certainvictori

[detectivereads]

Poppy Playtime thoughts and conspiracy theories

This post is for fan entertainment, I am not being paid.

Hi everyone,

While I’m waiting for news about the FNAF game Into the Pit, I thought I would try my hand about giving some thoughts on Poppy Playtime. I have watched playthroughs of other people playing Chapters 1-3 (so I am caught up with the main story of what’s happening with in the game.) But my friend and I started shooting out ideas about chapter 4 or just over all ideas for the end game with Prototype.

Now I haven’t really watched any game theory videos about Poppy Playtime, except the recap videos that some people do. So, I could be repeating things, or they might be far-fetched.

Conspiracy theories: Now these are just things that I have thought about I have no idea if they are true or not, but these are my thoughts.

My friend and I are both still untrusting of Poppy, we both think that she is using us (the player) to get rid of the Prototype so she can be top dog, since she couldn’t get rid of them on her own. But she does pose a threat to the Prototype, since is why she is locked in the case at the end of chapter 1.  Classic betrayal when we the player have beaten the Prototype she will come with classic nifty-shifty and stab us in the back (I mean she already kind of did that with the train). Or secretly she is trying to get to the prototype in order to help them, since the overall game (Chapter 3 shows this) That toys have little to no power (Hierarchy), that the Prototype can’t mimic a human, one of the escape attempts Prototype had try to do, they had to get a child (Theo) to help them. With failure of this escape the Prototype had learned they would have better luck with an adult. So, they need the real human in order to release the Prototype and other toys out in the world.

Could the Prototype be the good guy?  Prototype may have been trying to protect the rest of the toys in their own way, from Poppy or from themselves. Now I really haven’t thought this one through all the way, but maybe coming in to contact with Poppy or us, it is showing a more hostile side of the toys. Much like the red smoke in Chapter 3; Poppy’s scent could start making the toys a little more unhinge. Why else would they stay down in the factory for so long. Catnap could have got Prototype out after the Hour of Joy.

The Prototype could be the creator of Playtime Co. that maybe Elliot Ludwig was playing with some Frankenstein mad scientist stuff to transfer his mind into a toy? Why would the Prototype keep Poppy around if she was dangerous, they in some recess of their psyche could have emotional attachment to Poppy. (Would explain why Ludwig was reported to being seen at the factory at weird hours.)

Ollie is the Prototype, in some of the video tapes that we found out that Prototype can talk, or mimic human speech.  If Ollie is an actual kid, they would be like a young adult or teenager by this point since we, the player, are coming back to the Playtime Co. 10 years later. Maybe at one point in chapter 4 Poppy and Ollie are going to have a disagreement and a falling out. But if some how Ollie is a real child, and not a toy. How did they survive after 10 years of being in the building?

Questions:  This area is just for some questions that I have been thinking about, but I don’t really have theories yet.

What happens to the kids in the Play Care? From what I have watched in chapter 3 the Hour of Joy seemed spontaneous. I would like to think that the Prototype didn’t dispose of them like the workers. From what I have watched it seems that the kids are in the same boat as the toys, that I can’t really see them being a threat to the toys and Prototype.  Chapter 1 takes place 10 years later after the Hour of Joy.

There is still so much we don’t know, and I love games that give us such a fabulous story line and lot of loose ends to investigate.

[adamwatchesmovies]

I, Tonya (2017)

They could make a hundred movies about Tonya Harding and there would never be another like I, Tonya. This stylish, sometimes exaggerated telling of the figure skater’s story may actually be more authentic than a real-life documentary could ever be.

Cruelly raised by her mother (Allison Janney), skating prodigy Tony Harding (Margot Robbie) suffered years of emotional and physical abuse but nevertheless emerged a champion. The film, based on contradicting testimonies from the Olympic skater, her mother, her no-good husband Jeff Gillooly (Sebastian Stan), his best friend/Tonya’s bodyguard, Shawn Eckhardt (Paul Walter), and her skating coaches explain how it all went to pieces.

If you don’t know the Tonya Harding, you’ll probably be able to piece what’s going to happen to her career about 40 minutes in. That's not a flaw. This film is the rare instance where knowing how it ends actually makes the movie better. Director Craig Gillespie knows why the audience is tuning in. “Tonya Harding? Isn’t she the one who attacked Nancy Kerrigan and bashed her knee with a baton right before the olympics?” Some of that is right but not quite and even if you know what actually happened, this movie’s still got ya. It’s an outrageous tale you’d swear was fiction. I mean, come on. They made Shawn Eckhardt (Paul Walter) into a moron whose head is so thick he’d have trouble getting out the house in one piece. There’s no way… oh wait. Is that a clip of the real-life guy? Well. I guess they nailed it then. The more you know, the more you realize how many stars had to alignn for this to happen the way it did. You’re ready to laugh, and you will… but then the movie’ll turn around to face you and damn if it doesn’t deliver a bombshell that’ll stop you dead in your tracks.

They don’t make movies like this. Whenever we see the words "based on a true story", you know you're in for an inspirational movie; it’s that one time the team caught lightning in a bottle or the one time the odds were beaten. I, Tonya is not that story. Tonya Harding was born into trash and the world never forgot to remind her of that. Every time she managed to claw her way up the cliffside of poverty, something or someone was there to knock her back down again. Frequently, it was her mother or her husband but more than once, it was the very sport she loved so much and maybe one time… it was even us. The movie gets downright savage but it’s also so outrageous, so funny you happily jump on for the ride. In every scene that breaks the fourth wall, director Craig Gillespie seems to suggest that no matter how bad things get - and they will get bad - it only makes sense to laugh a little. It’s not as if one person no matter how talented or determined can really change our destinies, after all.

Repeat viewings keep revealing fresh and tasty decisions made by the filmmakers. You get to fully appreciate the performances, for instance. Margot Robbie plays Tonya Harding from a teenager to a grown woman and you buy her all the way because she’s so utterly committed to the role. Allison Janey is so evil you expect her to turn up with a suit made of Dalmatians… but she’s too trashy even for that. Everyone we see is great.

I, Tonya hilarious and heartbreaking. The performances alone would make this movie great even if the story was boring, which it’s anything but. There’s just no other movie like this one out there. (June 7, 2019)

[sophsicle]

if you're open to a conversation, start addressing stuff you've been called out for. for example, how poorly you handled Mary's SA in Choices. one of your only POC characters got SAd and then a victim of SA covered it up. afterwards, Sirius cheats on Remus with her. which is another big plot point of yours, cheating. almost every queer couple in Choices cheats.

TW Discussions of SA Okay

So

First, I would like to say that I have actually addressed all of these things, some of them various times

Which is fine, I don’t expect you to go through every ask on my blog that’s insane there’s a bunch

But also, if you’re not gonna do that, perhaps approach this with a little less accusation

Mary Macdonald is canonically attacked by Nicolai Mulciber, in fact that is literally the only thing we know about Mary Macdonald

That is why Mary is the character who is attacked in Choices. I had her actual attacker be Barty instead of Mulciber because Barty was more relevant to the story.

Now, you can argue with me that it shouldn’t have been SA because you have a right to your opinion. I’m not sure if her being beaten up or tortured would have felt better to you for some reason but fair enough, I could have written her being attacked in a different way.

Mary’s attack is SA because in my life that is the way men have attacked me and my friends and the people around me

It’s what I know, it’s what felt the most honest for me, and it was a way for me to work through my trauma. This, I think it is important to remember, is a Fanfic, I wrote it first and foremost for myself.

On top of personal experience the attack was also based loosely off of something that happened at a school in Canada that made national news in which a group of male dentistry students created a facebook group in which they joked about "hate fucking" and chloroforming their female classmates. Once this facebook group was discovered the university bent over backwards to protect the identities of these male students, saying if the female students targeted by these posts wanted the university to do anything they would have to come out publicly, meanwhile the male students got to remain anonymous. I believe 12 out of the 13 male students were allowed to graduate and go on to become dentists where they would have access to the drugs they joked about using to rape people. You can see how the callous way that Dumbledore and Hogwarts handled Mary's attack was somewhat inspired by these true events that had a big impact on me when I was going to university. I point this out just to say that, once again, I drew a lot of this from my real life not just out of nowhere. I was trying to realistically portray what it would be like to be at a school where people who believe that they are better than you have access to things that can be used to render you helpless eg. drugs v.s magic Now, Regulus. Trauma, in my experience, does different things to different people. Regulus has not processed what has happened to him in any way shape or form. He is coming from a place in which his SA is dismissed and ignored. He himself has repressed it as much as he can. And he repeats the narratives that he is told: "I was hardly a child" "I didn't stop him" "It was my fault" etc. ect. When Regulus walks into that dorm room he essentially walks into his worst nightmare, though he couldn't really articulate to you why. He's basically in shock for the entirety of the last of that chapter and he goes into survival mode. And he also does what he always does to cope with the horrible things that happen to him - he creates narratives that are easier to stomach. Regulus feels that he has to protect Barty because if Barty is implicated in this his father will see him punished to the furthest extent of the law which means that Regulus could lose him. And while Barty and Regulus are not close, he is one of the only allies Regulus has in a world full of people who are constantly abusing him. So the idea of losing Barty is scary. So he protects him. And he tells himself that that's okay because nothing happened to Mary because he stopped it. And even if something happened to Mary it didn't matter. Because it can't matter.

Because if what happened to Mary matters, than what happened to Regulus matters. And what happened to Regulus can't matter - not if he's going to continue to function. Now these sorts of narratives break down throughout the story and by the end Regulus can't really convince himself of them. People who have been abused do, sometimes, abuse other people. And while Regulus isn't abusing Mary the way that Lucius abused him, he is abusing her the way that his family has abused him - which James points out in chapter 51 “One of these days you’re going to have to come to terms with the fact, that what you did to her is exactly what your family did to you when they pretended they couldn’t see what Lucius was up to.”

Not to mention that him messing with her memories is exactly what his mother did to him and Sirius. Is this upsetting? Yes. But it is also real. Like trauma is upsetting and it is messy, and portraying it otherwise feels disingenuous to me.

Now the cheating thing I don't know what to say at this point. We have different views. Sirius kisses Mary. James kisses Regulus. This, in my adult life, in my adult relationships, is just not the horrible thing some of y'all seem to think it is. Both of those people tell their partners what happened, they talk about it, they work through it. In stressful situations, Complicated situations, Emotions and relationships get messy. Like Sirius doesn't kiss Mary for any sexual reason, he kisses her because they know one another very well. And because in that moment he feels so far away from everyone and so alone and he doesn't know how to connect with anyone any other way. So he kisses her. It's not the right thing to do, but to me it is a very human thing. A very vulnerable human moment. And Mary calls him on it and Remus calls him on it. Y'know, yeah, James kisses Regulus. It's bad. It's not good. But people can do bad things without being bad people and every mistake does not demand retribution and James and Lily literally spend all of chapter 55 - which is two years - working through it. So I'm not really sure what you want from me in that regard. If you want to disagree with me or argue my points feel free to, they are not infallible, nothing about this story is infallible.

[skyfallslayer]

The Devils Are Caught In Red Strings || Chapter 1: Into The Ring

-Matt Murdock x Parker!OFC-

Series Masterlist

AO3 Link

♡Series Summary: Childhood friendships are a sacred thing... But so are secrets. This story revolves around a girl named Anya Hughes, an attorney by day and a vigilante by night. Join her into the struggles she’ll face, like her path coming back to haunt her, then facing a man who holds all the power, all while she develops a crush on her close friend. How long can she take all this until she falls apart? ♡

♡Chapter Summary: Anya finds equally dangerous challenges at her and her partners’ new law firm and her nighttime job of crime fighting, with a murder case linked to a corporate crime syndicate. ♡

♡Date: 9/29 ♡

♡Rating: Explicit ♡

♡Word Count: 11145 (Long one boys and girls) ♡

♡Warning: Spoilers for the show; Canon Typical Violence; Minor Blood; Minor Language; Vomiting; Poorly Executed Fighting Scenes; Near Death Experiences; Talks of Murder. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!! ♡

♡A/N: Here it is. The first chapter of the series. Hopefully everyone enjoys it :) ♡

Maybe she should have listened to her gut and arrived early. Maybe… maybe her arrival would’ve prevented all this. 

The first thing she noticed when she got off the bus across the street was that all the lights were on. Frozen by the sight, but quick enough to pull herself out to check her watch. The tiny hands stroking past midnight was enough for her sprint across the road. 

The lights shouldn’t be on. The lights shouldn’t be on. Maybe only the office lights, but not all of them. The lights shouldn’t—

A long phrase she plowed through in her mind as she fumbled with her keys. It took her a lot of strength to make sure her hands wouldn’t shake as she unlocked the front door. It eerily creeks open straight out of a novel she would read. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary in the front, except for her parents’ shoes laying askew on the floor, and not on the shoe rack as they’re supposed to be.

That’s when she started noticing all the small, out of place, things. Her eyes quickly glanced at the living room. A throw blanket was a heap on the floor, along with a half-drunk cup of tea on the side table; An old book left wide open on the cushions. Then, with her enhanced sight, she caught the small droplets of red by the stairs that led upwards.

She takes in a shaky breath, swallowing too as she carefully maneuvers herself around the liquid, slowly wandering up the beaten up carpet. The trail led her to the main bedroom, and all she saw was…

Red. 

All she saw was red. 

Green eyes widened like molasses at the scene that was straight out of a horror film. Her mouth slightly opened in a silent gasp. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

No… No way… She thought in disbelief.

Her memories started to roll in like a tidal wave. Drenching her, and adding salt into her ever opening wounds. The memories that she wishes could burn away with a match.

.

.

// She’s sick. We have to leave //

.

.

A lie. 

A complete lie. Just like these damn walls. These floors. The furniture. The–

Everything. But all this she’s seeing was real whether she wanted to believe it or not. The stench. The blood. The scene. This was real, and not one of her gut wrenching nightmares she would wake up screaming and covered in sweat. The very ones that made her old roommate move out of their college dorm. They’re…

They’re made in the devil’s kitchen.

.

.

// Now we have to stay hidden. Take on a new name. We can’t let anybody know we’re alive. Okay, sweetheart? //

.

.

Oh…

If only. A daily thought she could never dismiss.

She only wishes she actually ‘died’, maybe her life wouldn’t have just been better. Her familys’ lives would have been better. But now… after so many years of living a lie, she is finally facing something that's cold-heartedly true. And was this all happening because lies have very short legs?

She walked further into the room, stopping before her boots could touch the giant blood stain on the carpet, before she could soil the evidence. She swallows again, trying to calm herself enough to get a proper look around the room, eyes prying away from the two bodies scattered around; positioned like they were surprised by death.

.

.

// Don’t tell anybody what we’ve done. We can’t make anyone upset, okay? //

.

.

She catches a glimmer of something on the wall. A knife was reflecting in the lamp’s light. Her heart pounds in her ears as she walks over her mother’s body on the floor, stepping until her arm reaches out. Her fingertips brushed over the paper under the weapon, ripping it off cautiously to try not to damage it too much.

She unfolded it slowly, the thick feeling paper was covered in blue ink. The words upon it were in immaculate handwriting.

.

.

// You haven’t told anyone who we are, right? You haven’t told anyone at college, right? We’re safe, right? //

.

.

Another soundless gasp as she took the note all in. The reasoning, the point, the threats. It made her stomach shift in ways she didn’t know was possible, and emotions she thought she buried started crawling back to the surface. Her hands soon found their ways into a fist, anger pumping now as she calmly folds th—

.

.

.

.

.

-Present Day - 2015-

She jolted awake so quickly, so suddenly by her loud alarm that her head hit her lamp. She groans and touches the throbbing spot.

“Fuck…” She said, now fully awake and aware. 

She quickly sends her alarm clock a death glare before turning off. It was early. Too early in her opinion since in reality she only got four full hours of sleep. She groans again.

Now why did she become a vigilante again?

She throws the covers off, not bothering to even make the bed as she starts her daily adventure to get ready.

All before her phone started to ring with her best friend’s face plastered on the screen.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Shouldn’t you know where he is?” Someone asked her as they trekked along the busy streets of Hell's Kitchen.

She rolled her eyes at friend's usual antics. The morning had come too quickly in her opinion, but she wasn’t going to complain too much because today was the day; The day her and her business partners will make the next move that could change their lives. It made butterflies form in her stomach at the thought of it. So she let a sly smirk play on her plump, peach lips as he went about. He was always so… Extra. Never really changing after College, which again, she couldn’t complain. She would never want him to change the way he is.

"You know, just because I've known him since fifth grade doesn't mean I know his every move, 24/7." She points out, and takes a sip of her steaming cup of macchiato (One she so desperately needed since last night's events).

"Well, you should. It'll make this so much easier." He quips back, using his hands to speak.

"Then just call him, Foggy. I'm sure he'll love for you to nag him this early in the morning."

"Don't tempt me, Anya. I will."

She grins a little wider, her eyes a bit mischievous. "Then do it you big chicken."

"Hey!" He hits her playfully in the side. "I will. And I bet Matt would love my charming voice in the morning. "

She holds back a wince after he makes contact. He had touched her bruised side, which was pretty much just the color of an eggplant now. With her nightly activity, she had found herself tumbling off the roof she was scaling and hitting the rail on a fire escape. How she didn't break a few ribs was beyond her.

Anya watches him fish out his phone, dialing their friend’s phone number. He listens to the rings, his fingertips brushing delicately through his slicked back hair.

“Does my hair look fine?” He asks, casting her a glance. “I wanna make a good first impression.”

She chuckles and nods. “Yes, for the millionth time this morning, it looks fine.”

The phone stopped ringing, and was replaced with a tiresome voice of their partner: 

‘Hello…?’

Foggy grinned at his achievement. “Good morning, Sunshine!” He says, boisterously.

Anya listened in closely, using her enhanced hearing to eavesdrop. She faintly heard the man on the other side take in a sharp breath of air.

‘What time is it?’

“Half past get the hell up. Let’s go. We gotta meet the real estate agent in-” Foggy checks his watch quickly. “45.” 

Anya tried not to let her odd look creep up onto her face when she heard moaning coming through the phone. She almost rolled her eyes because for some reason her blind best friend always seemed to wiggle his way into some girl’s heart (or bed in that case).

“What was that? Was that a moan?” Foggy asked, shocked/intrigued. “Do you have somebody in bed with you?”

Anya gasped playfully, perking up at the (no so) new news. “Did Matt get laid?”

Foggy chuckles. “I think he did.”

Matt furrows his brows on the other end, still a bit groggy. 

‘Anya’s already with you?’

“Who was it? The paralegal?” Anya asked, remembering that specific woman from last week’s encounter.

Now it was Foggy’s turn to gasp. “Yes! Was it the paralegal, Matt? Is it the para over at…” He shakes his head at himself. “Never mind, I don’t want to hear about it. No, I do wanna hear about it!” He smiles. “What was she like?”

Anya heard him wincing, almost like he was in pain.

‘Violent.’ 

Foggy turns to her. “He says she was violent.”

“Wow, you got yourself a kinky one, Matty.” She says, a little bit louder so he could hear. She even ponders at her own statement, recalling an old girlfriend of his. “But again, that’s kind of your type.”

That made Foggy laugh. “I gotta get the blind thing going. It’s so unfair.” He said, sarcastically before turning stern. “Oh, hey! Real estate agent, not your type. Very homely. Might be genetic. No need to be charming. And she kinda told me she thinks blind people are ‘God’s mistake’. ”

Anya hears Matt chuckle dryly as she elbows Foggy in the arm.

‘That’s a horrible thing to say, Foggy.’

“I know! In this day and age?” Foggy replies, teasingly. “All right, shake it. We gotta go bribe a cop.”

Anya shakes her head at that one. “Nah, ah. I had nothing to do with this. Hear me, Matty? Nothing! ”

A tired sigh. 

‘Guys–’

“Kidding, NSA, if you’re listening. But seriously, yeah, we gotta bribe a cop.” Foggy finishes, and hangs up.

“You’re really pushing these boundaries, Nelson.” Anya points out, taking another long sip of her drink. 

“Well, in the spot we’re in right now, I gotta play all the cards I have in my deck.” He replies, smiling and gesturing for her to follow quicker. “Come on, I see the subway entrance.”

Sure enough they got there right on time to catch the person who they were looking for. Dressed in a dashing navy blue attire was, by Anya’s standards, a good looking man who seemed less happy to see them. Foggy waved happily, getting his full attention.

“Officer of the law. Defense attorney. We’re supposed to be enemies.” The cop said, facing soften upon Anya. “Ms. Hughes. I see Mr. Nelson here keeps stringing you along.”

“Officer Mahoney.” She says, nodding. “You know how he is. And for the record, as always, I have nothing to do with this.”

“Oh, I know.”

“First off, Lady and Gentleman–” Foggy begins, looking between the two. “We've been enemies since we were four, Brett, so let’s not blame it on career choices. Secondly, I’m not a particularly good defense attorney, so helping me is like helping yourself. And finally, these are for Bess.”

Foggy hands over the paper bag, which the cop took on look inside, and shook his head. 

“Please stop giving my mom cigars, Foggy.” Brett said, protectively.

Anya smacks her lip and casts her friend a look. “Told ya.” 

“What? She’ll outlive all of us.” Foggy continues, ignoring the last comment. “Look, I’m not asking you to do anything immoral. Just give us a heads up if something, you know, interesting walks through the door.”

Brett scoffs. “You’re right. It ain’t the careers.” He turns and walks away. 

“Thanks, Buddy!” Foggy yells out, earning a quick wave. He chuckles. “I think that went well.”

“You’re insane, Foggy.” Anya replies, as they start their journey again.

“Hey, both you and Matt wanted to commit to this with me. Just remember that.”

She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, Yeah. Don’t remind me.”

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“-You’ve got a reception room, a conference room and three offices.” 

Anya listened to the real estate agent closely while she showed her and Foggy the place. It was… decent. Cute in some ways. Could use a few touch ups though. As they entered the main area, she picked up her other friend coming up the stairs.

Fashionably late again, I see. She tells herself.

“-The one corner suite has a view of the Hudson. You two can flip a coin with your other partner for it.” The woman finishes up.

���Uh, it’s fine. They can flip a coin for it.” Matt announced as he closed the door gently behind him. 

The agent turned around, an apologetic frown on her face. “I’m so sorry. I-I didn’t mean to.”

“Of course not.” He smiles to ease her nerves.

“Susan Harris. Midtown property solutions.” She says, holding her hand out.

Oblivious for obvious reasons, he just sets his bag against the wall, standing straighter afterwards. “Matt Murdock.”

She chuckles nervously and bows.

“She just curtised.” Anya clarifies. 

“And it was adorable.” Foggy adds, truthfully.

“Well, it’s nice to know that chivalry isn’t dead.” Matt replies, still smiling. “Susan, would you mind walking me around the space?”

“Of course. My pleasure.” Susan said, taking his arm (All while Foggy and Anya shook their heads at his flirtatious matter). “As I was telling your associates, this office was barely touched by the incident, which is why it’s on the market already. The neighbours weren’t so lucky.”

“‘The incident’?” He asks, curiously. “Is that what we're calling it now?”

“Well, it sounds so much better than ‘death and destruction raining from the sky, nearly wiping Hell’s Kitchen off the map’.”

“Well that’s shorter too. Ain’t it, Matty?” Anya asks, touching her friend’s shoulder.

“It certainly is.” He agrees with a cunning grin, his shoulders perk up slightly, responding in a whisper. “New perfume?”

“Yep. You can thank Miss B across the way for her lavender collection.”

He snickers at the mental picture of the older woman, before turning away when his face felt hot. Anya clears her throat and turns away too. Luckily everyone else was preoccupied to see their embarrassment. 

“Owner figuring in the delightful views of cranes and scaffolding?” Foggy asked, pointing out the window to the view of a construction site. He makes a face at it. “Feels like we're getting pre-incident prices.”

“They're a quarter of what they used to be.” Susan points out.

Anya’s eyebrow shoots up as she makes the numbers in her head. “A quarter? Jesus, no wonder nobody wants to move here anymore.”

“Well, Hell’s Kitchen on the rebound, Ms. Hughes, and in 18 months, you won’t be able to rent a broom closet at this price point.”

“We’ll take it.” Matt strikes first before any of his friends could speak.

Foggy scoffs, holding up a finger. “We will talk about it.” He replies, as they follow the blind lawyer to the front again. “Because we're not even sure we can even afford this… palace , unless we can make some changes to our current clientele policies.”

“And… here we go.” Anya sighs, trying to keep a straight, peppy face.

“My partner and I are having some disagreements over the direction of Nelson, Hughes, and Murdock. I believe we’re here to defend the innocent.” Matt explains, casually, repeatedly like he (and he has) done this many times before.

“And I believe the innocent include everyone not convicted of a crime. You know, as the law states .” Foggy fires back with a bit of force at the end of his sentence.

“He tends to use fancy terminology.”

“And my partner fails to recognize that, as defense attorneys, we’re never gonna be able to keep the lights on, waiting on a horde of innocent souls to stumble into our loving arms.”

“At this point, I just settle for just one.”

Nobody would know what weight those words would hold until later on, instead, Anya clears her throat, trying to get the awkward tension out of the air. 

“Uh, guys you know I could pull about a thirds of it if you want?” She begins, both the boys already shaking their heads before she could finish. “Guys, I have the money.”

“Yeah, we know. But that’s… that’s your inheritance.” Foggy points out.

“We can’t ask you to blow all that money.” Matt adds, shifting uncomfortably.

“Listen, I have more than you think. Secondly–” She shrugs. “I was already planning on using most of it to start the business. I mean… this is our dream! And not to mention this building is on one of the busiest streets of HK. Can you imagine how many customers we can get once our names get tossed around?”

Once her words settled, both men looked torn between two worlds. Part of them wanted to say yes, and the other part wanted to keep on declining. So they tried the ladder.

"Well–" Begins Foggy.

"Guys, if you want to pay me back that's fine, but really, let me do this." Anya explains, her face morphing into something bittersweet. "Consider this a thank you for what you've done for me this past year."

She tries not to remember the horror she found last year. She could still picture the lifeless bodies if she closes her eyes right now. I guessed they must have noticed this and finally caved in.

“Alright, fine. You win.” Matt said, and held one finger up. “But this is the last time you’re going to spoil us.”

She smiles.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It was late. Very late into the night when they finally got the keys in hand. Matt was carefully taking things out of his cardboard box when Anya poked her head into his office (which was already starting to smell like his cologne); her chestnut curls bouncing off the sides of her face from the fast movement.

“Need some help?” She asked, leaning against the door frame. 

He quirked his head at her, one eyebrow raised. “You’re already done?”

She shrugged. “I didn’t bring that much stuff. Remember? My car’s in the shop. I can only carry so much.” Which… was a particle lie. She could carry a lot more than she did. But she could only imagine the stares and rapid questions she'd get if she did. “So… anything?”

He smiles. “You can help me unwrap a few things.”

So she did, and the two of them stayed in a comfortable silence until Foggy’s cell phone started ringing. Both, unknowingly to each other, Matt and Anya listen closely.

“Hey, Buddy.” Foggy answers, bubbly. That tone of voice could only mean one person was on the other side of the line:

Officer Brett Mahoney.

‘Homicide. Female suspect found at the scene. Definitely qualifies as interesting.’

He furrowed his brows, intrigued. “Has she been charged yet?”

‘Assistant DA hasn’t made a call yet.’

“Do you have a name on the suspect?”

‘Yeah. Page. Karen Page.’

“Karen Page.” He tests out, and snaps his fingers a few times getting his partner's attention. “We’ll be there. Thanks, Brett.” He hangs up the phone.

“A case, Foggy?” Anya asked, pretending she didn’t hear a word.

“Yep.” He pops the last letter before painting a sly smile. “And you told me to stop bribing the cop.”

“What’s the case about?” Matt asked, also pretending to be oblivious. 

“A homicide. Female suspect named Karen Page.” Foggy replies, already gathering his stuff. “And from what it sounds like, she needs a few good lawyers.”

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

When they arrived at the station, they met with two Detectives who rudely introduced themselves as Blake and Hoffman. They seemed irritated when they explained who they were, and even more annoyed when they said they wanted to see a Karen Page. They tried to sweet talk their way out of it, even making a slightly inappropriate comment to Anya, but that made the lawyers even more determined to stay and help.

Once they broke them down enough, The trio trails behind the two Detectives, wandering into a room with a deeply shaken blonde woman. 

Anya sighs frustratedly. “Jesus Christ, guys. She’s scared out of her mind. You didn’t offer her some water or blanket at least?” She asks, enraged.

“Yeah, can we please take the handcuffs off the 110-pound woman?” Foggy says, agreeing.

“Miss Page, can you tell me who these people are?” Detective Blake asked, after rolling his eyes.

“We’re her lawyers.” Matt cuts in, unnervingly calm. “Uncuff our client and give us the room, please.” 

Even with his glasses on, the two men could feel the blind man’s cold gaze. Instead of arguing, they swallowed their pride and uncuffed the woman. The sound of the cuff being taken off made him mentally smile.

“Thank you, Detective.” He says, just before they frown and leave the room. “Miss Page, my name is Matt Murdock. These are my associates, Foggy Nelson and Anya Hughes. Do you mind if we sit down?”

Karen looks away, shifting uncomfortable under the three sets of eyes. Both Anya and Matt could practically hear how her heart beats nervously. 

“She gave a vague shrug.” Foggy said, keeping his two friends unknowingly leveled.

“I say we go with it.” Anya says, nodding. 

“Agreed.” Matt said, as they started pulling chairs out (Foggy grabbing an extra one in the corner for himself). “We understand you’re in some trouble. We, uh, may be able to help.”

“Can you tell us what happened, Miss Page?” Anya said, notebook in hand, smiling softly to help with Karen’s nerves. Yet, it didn’t seem to work as she shifted under their gazes again.

“Why don’t we start with what we know, then?” Foggy said, deciding to take a chance to crack the ice. He flips open his own notebook that was already dotted down with notes. “You were found in your apartment with one… Daniel Fisher.”

“Who appears to be the victim of a homicide, and currently, you’re the only suspect, Miss Page.” Matt adds, straight to the point.

“Who the hell are you guys?” Karen asked, skeptical.

“I’m Matt. He’s Foggy. She’s Anya.”

She raises an eyebrow. “Who sent you?”

Matt shook his head. “No one sent us.”

“So, what? You’re just a couple of Good Samaritans?” She looks between the three and shrugs. “Today’s just my lucky day?”

“I bribed the desk Sergeant with a box of cigars for his mom.” Foggy said, proudly, trying to see if that lightens the mood (news flash: It doesn’t).

“ Foggy…” Anya whispers, harshly.

“Our practice is relatively young, Miss Page, and we are aggressively pursuing new clientele.” Matt answers before also scolding his best friend. “You gotta stop giving Bess cigars.”

“You two know she likes to smoke. It’s a free country.” Foggy says, defensively, and still proud of his answer.

“So how long have you been practicing law?” Karen asked, starting to become doubtful of the trio's behavior. It wasn’t exactly screaming… ‘lawyer’ behavior to her; And neither was their next reply.

The three of them paused at this question, a bit taken back because they were expecting any other questions, except that specific one. 

“What time is it?” Matt asked, feeling around on his braille watch while his partners looked at theirs.

Foggy was the first to reply with, “It’s 12:22 am.” 

“About seven hours.”

Karen then made a strange noise along the lines of disbelief and losing instant hope.

Anya faced him and pinched her brows together, slightly confused. “Seven? If you go from when we pass the bar–” She begins, but is cut of with:

“I was going from when we got our own desks.” 

“Oh, then, yeah.” Foggy nods, then flashes his goofy smile to the woman across from them. “Seven hours.”

Karen looked at them like they were the most insane people she’s ever met; Completely baffled by their casual talk of strategy. “You've never done this before?” She asked, voice quivering at the end.

“If you were to hire us, then, yes, you would be our first client.” Matt replies, truthfully, also smiling.

“Technically, yes.” Foggy adds, with Anya humming in agreement.

Karen blinks, and with a guilty expression she nervously says, “Well, I don’t… I don’t have any money.”

Foggy barely misses the beat, as he closes his notebook and starts standing up. “Well, it was lovely to meet you, Miss Page.”

Matt clears his throat as he tugs on his friend’s sleeve, a quick gesture to tell him to wait. “You don’t have any money and we don’t have any clients. Maybe we can help each other.”

“We gotta start somewhere, Fog.” Anya flashes him a pleading look before she returns her attention to their now client. “Tell us, how did you know Mr. Fisher?”

Karen inhales slowly, gathering her thoughts. “We worked together.” She begins, still a bit weary.

But it was good enough for them, as Matt made a writing motions to his friends, telling them to get ready. Anya was already on it, Foggy soon trailing behind her as he sits back down and snags his pen.

“And your place of employment?” Foggy asked, opening his notepad back up.

“Union Allied Construction.” Karen begins, pausing to think again. “I’m a secretary. Daniel worked downstairs in Legal.” Another pause. “I-I didn’t know him very well. But he was always nice, you know? But it’s hard to meet people in this city, so I asked him if he would have a drink with me.”

Matt looked slightly surprised. “You asked him?” he said, clarifying. 

As soon as he said that, He, along with Anya started tuning in to Miss Page on a deeper level. 

Karen's lips quivered, eyes starting to glass over at the thought of the now dead man. “Like I said, he was a nice guy.” She said, shaky. “We met at the Three Roads bar, on 49th street. We had a few drinks, and the next thing that I remember is waking up on the floor of my apartment covered in blood. His blood. ” 

She felt Foggy’s unconvinced stare on her, and immediately started pleading her case. She leans against the table, making sure they were really listening.

“No, I’m not stupid. I know how that sounds. But I am telling you we met at the bar. We had a few drinks. And I don’t know what happened after that.” She continues, her heartbeat was growing faster, but not in the way a liar’s would.

Anya kept a neutral expression, seeing if anything on her client’s face would tell her otherwise.

“It wasn’t me.” Karen said, crying. “Please. Please, you have to believe me. I didn’t kill him.”

Anya feels her own heartstrings being tugged, and opens her mouth to speak, but Matt beats her to it.

“I believe you, Miss Page.” He says, and Anya immediately nods.

“I second that.” She says, gently. “We believe you.”

And with those words, the three of them had opened Pandora's box.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It was inching past 2 am, and the three of them were back at the office. Both Anya and Matt were preparing to take on this case, while Foggy was preparing to go a different route.

“I’m friends with Gary Feinstein in the DA’s office.” Foggy tells them, pacing around, lightly tossing a baseball in the air. “I’ll give him a call first thing in the morning, see where their heads are at. I’m guessing they’re gonna puff their chests, but they have to know murder two’s a risk. We end up at manslaughter, we get the right judge, maybe she’s out in 5 to 10–”

“We’re not taking a deal.” Both Anya and Matt said unintentionally at the same time. They both shared a quick surprised glance because of that. 

Foggy blinks. “No, this is why they have deals, guys. So the straightforward cases don’t waste everybody’s time.”

“I don’t think she did it.” Matt says, standing his ground.

“I agree. I don’t think she did it either.” Anya replies, and fastly holds her hand up when she sees Foggy about to speak. “And before you accuse me of taking his side just because I’ve known him longer, I’m not agreeing with him because of that. I really do think she’s innocent, Fog.”

Foggy chuckles in surprise. “She’s the sole suspect found at the scene, covered in blood.” He snags a wired phone off its receiver, holding it up to his mouth. “With the murder weapon and no defense wounds.” He sets it down. “If they offer anything it’ll be a gift, and we will take that gift. We do not want this to go to trial.”

Anya slowly nods at his explanation before countering with, “But… from what this looks and sounds like, they don’t want this to go to trial, either.”

“Exactly.” Matt says, pointing in her direction. “Why hasn’t she been charged yet?”

“They have 24 hours. And it’s the weekend. They’re going to take every last second to collect the evidence before they move.” Foggy counters back.

“But Foggy, they’ve got the evidence. You just laid it out yourself. I mean…” Anya gestures to herself and shrugs. “If I was a cop I would jump the gun on this. In anyone’s eyes this is a fantastic arrest. We should be reading about this in the papers already.”

Foggy groans, throwing his head back. “Guys.”

“Fog, there’s something not right about this case.” Matt says, still persistent. “She can feel it. I can too.” 

Foggy pauses, and stares in his direction. “You can feel it?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Anya purses her lips, already knowing what he’s implying. “Foggy…”

“What? I’m just gonna say this once, and then we can move on.” He takes a moment to find the right words. “You don’t necessarily show the best judgment when beautiful women are involved, Matty.”

Matt’s lip twitched. “How would I even know if she’s a beautiful woman?”

“I don’t know. It’s kind of spooky, actually.” Foggy says, while starting to gesture to everything and everywhere as he speaks. “But if there’s a stunning woman with questionable character in the room, Matt Murdock’s gonna find her and Foggy Nelson is gonna suffer.”

He sighs, and continues with, “I mean, look at Anya! I’m starting to think that’s why you’re agreeing with her.” He gives her an apologetic look. “Not trying to hit on you Hughes, just trying to make a point. Well…” His eyes widened for a second. “Wait, you guys have known each other since you were young, maybe that’s why you’re always agreeing!” 

She chuckles, holding down a big chunk of laughter. “Okay, Fog, have you seen my 5th grade picture?” Anya asked, getting Matt to laugh.

“Oh, yeah, you were so dorky. With those…” He gestures to his own face. “Big buck teeth and those glasses.”

“See?” She said, getting her point across. “I was not hot back then.” She looks at Matt again. “I can’t believe you hung out with me.”

“Yeah, well… okay.” He nods with a grin. “All right, I don’t disagree with anything our dear friend Foggy is saying.”

“Thank you.” Foggy says with a grateful smile. Until…

“But I need you to back us up on this.”

Foggy groans again, hands clasping around his baseball and bringing up to his forehead. He exhales through his nose, thinking. “Alright. Fine. Let’s start with the obvious, then. If she didn’t do it, who did? We’re dead in the water if we don’t give them an alternative.”

“Agreed.”

“We need another run at our client. She may not be guilty, guys, but that doesn’t mean Miss Page is telling the truth.”

Anya frowns, crossing her arms. “And… that’s true.”

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

When Foggy got the call from the station early the next morning, he was livid. They all were. So as they rode back from the place they felt like they just left, Anya could hear her friends’ hearts racing and blood boiling. I mean…

Could you blame them though?

The three lawyers stood in the back of the… ‘Most convenient spot’ in the station to talk. But Anya Matt had a sinking suspension it was used as something else.

As soon as Detective Hoffman and Blake arrived, they immediately pulled the chairs out and sat down; All stern and but pissed calm.

“I’m going to make this easy, detectives.” Matt begins, bitterness in his undertone. He could already tell the two men were on edge. “Get the ADA in here to release Miss Page and we’ll recommend to our charming, media-friendly client that she not plaster the airwaves with how she was nearly killed in your custody.”

“And I’ll agree not to make cooing noises for the rest of this meeting, when I think of the civil suit that we have on our hands.” Foggy adds, his smile not reaching his cold eyes.

“Basically, to sum it up in case you don’t understand, do as you’re told because we have the high ground.” Anya clarifies, copying his expression. 

“How do you know they’re not charging her?” Det. Blake asked, his heartbeat unsteady as he played with his hands.

“Besides the fact that you were required to do so four hours ago. If you were going to do so.” Matt replies, sensing the hateful gaze towards him and his partners. 

“That’s an excellent question.” Foggy agrees, and tilts his head, puzzled. “Along with how the security cameras on Miss Page's detention area went on the fritz right before the assault."

“Yeah, we'd like to speak to Mr. Farnum about that, as well as what–” Anya adds before she was rudely cut off.

“Get in line. He'll be arraigned in the morning.” Det. Hoffman replies, saying in the most professional tone, but still had a slight edge of irritation (His heartbeat was quick too). 

“Get my client released.” Matt bites back. “Don't make me ask again.”

Det. Blake tensed up, looking like he was ready to throw hands before Det. Hoffman scoots in close and whispers something Anya and Matt couldn’t hear. But they did hear his pulse pounding more out of anger.

“I'll call the ADA.” Det. Blake said, standing up. He leans down just a bit, getting into the blind lawyer’s personal space; His voice laced with venom.  “But you take that tone with me again, I don't care if you're blind, I'll kick the shit out of you.”

“Really? We're going there?” Foggy said, as the Detectives looked at the three of the over one more time before leaving.

“Wow, I would totally recommend you to a friend.” Anya said loud enough for them to hear, before rolling her emerald colored eyes.

He scoffed. “That was pleasant.”

“It doesn't make any sense.” Matt says in a low enough tone for just the two of them to hear. “ADA had everything they needed.” His slight pause to think about his own words made him realize something. “Unless they had too much.”

“What?” Both Anya and Foggy reply, watching him stand up.

“What are we missing?” Foggy asked, as the two of them followed him.

“Maybe someone else was in her apartment that night. Maybe they have evidence.” Matt suggested, which was starting to make sense now that he says it out loud.

"That's Brady material. They'd have to turn that over."

Anya perks up at that, saying, "Only if she were charged, though. But–” 

“But if he hangs herself in her cell, this all goes away." Matt finishes. 

Foggy exhales shakily. "Let's get her some clothes and get the hell out of here."

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

After rummaging through lost and found, and going back and forth for hours with the Detectives, they finally could bring Karen back to their office, just before the rain started to come down in the night.

“Couldn’t find any milk. I hope It’s okay.” Foggy said, handing over a steaming beverage to his client, while his partners made more room to sit.

“We have tea now?” Matt asked, raising a slight brow at how bitter the green tea smelled.

“I stole it from the financial office next door.” He replies with a nervous chuckle.

Anya ignored both comments and the odd smelling tea and got straight to the more important questions. “How are you holding up?” She asked the other woman gently.

“Better.” Karen said, cradling the mug close to her chest (like it was a protective barrier for her). “Thanks for getting me out.”

“Don’t thank us just yet. Just because they released you, doesn’t mean they won’t eventually bring charges.” Foggy replies, frowning at the reigniting fire.

“Which means it’s crucial you don’t speak to anyone other than the three of us about what happened.” Matt says, sitting down across from her.

Karen nods slowly. “I don’t have anyone to talk to, anyway.” She replies, eyes pinned to the floor as she takes another sip of tea.

“Do you have somewhere you can stay tonight?” Anya asked, noticing the way her heart beat at the mention of ‘anyone’. It was a quick little beat. One she’s heard when someone is in sorrow.

So… she doesn't have anybody. Anya realized, making her frown. 

Poor thing.

“My apartment’s not far.” Karen answers which already has Foggy shaking his head.

“You can’t go back there.” Was his reply.

“Miss Page, our immediate priority is to keep you safe. And in order to do that, we’re gonna need to have a frank discussion.” Matt explains, putting in the right amount of force in his tone for her to consider.

Karen inhales, and nods once more, her face showing a bit of confidence. “Okay.”

“Do you know who’s trying to kill you?” The blind man asked, bluntly.

She shook her head, holding back tears again. “No.”

“Do you know… why they’re trying to kill you?” Anya asked, cautiously.

It must have struck a chord with Karen, because her eyes trailed to the three of them separately, then back to the floor, then back to them before quietly muttering,

“Yes.” 

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

When they set up a proper table and chairs, the three lawyers sat around, carefully waiting for their client to tell them she was ready before turning on the recording machine. 

“I, uh, work…” Karen bite her lip. “ Worked in the financial department at Union Allied. They’re overseeing the bulk of the government contracts for the West Side reconstruction.”

“I’ve seen their signs all over Hell’s Kitchen.” Foggy said, notepad in hand, already taking notes.

“The last two years have transformed the business. There’s new owners, new grants, new contracts.”

“Yeah, the world watched half of New York get destroyed. That’s a lot of sympathy.” Matt said, listening closely.

“Let me guess, Union Allied benefited from it?” Anya asked, listening too.

“Yes. Every dollar of it.” Karen replies, swallowing in disgust. “I was the secretary for the chief accountant. And one of my jobs… was to coordinate the pension claims for the company. About a week ago, I was emailed a file called, ‘Pension Master’ . It must have been meant for my boss, but I made the mistake of opening it.”

“I’m guessing it wasn’t the pension fund.” Matt asked, already knowing the answer.

Karen played with her hands, which Anya guessed her nervous tick for thinking something over.

“It wasn’t the size of a pension fund.” She cleared up. “I couldn’t believe the numbers. But it was still designated as company pension. And it was constantly adjusted. Money coming in and money going out.”

“Going where?” Foggy asked, puzzled.

“I don’t know. It was coded routing numbers, but we are talking a lot of money.” 

“What did you do with the file?” Matt asked.

“Well, I told my boss, Mr. McClintock, about it, and he laughed it off. He said that it was a theoretical model that they were screwing around with. I knew something was wrong. I Just…” Karen shrugs. “I thought it was just him, you know? Embezzling or whatever.”

Anya frowns at the small skip in her heartbeat. “So, how did Daniel Fisher figure into this?”

“Danny worked in the legal department. And I didn’t know him very well. But he was nice, so I asked him to meet me after work.” Karen starts fighting back tears again at the memories. “I don’t know how they knew. They must have people watching me. They must have people everywhere.”

She starts shaking her head, angry at the people who followed her.

“All I did was ask him for a drink.” She continues, lip quivering. “And I started to tell him about what I found and things got blurry. Like I-I was drugged. And the next thing I know, I wake up… back in my apartment, Covered in blood.” She looks down at her drink, averting their worried looks. “They killed him… because of me. And he had a family. A l-little boy.”

Karen covers her mouth, feeling like the dam was about to burst.

She bolts from her chair. “I need to get out of here. I’m sorry.”

“We can’t advise that, Miss Page.” Foggy said, standing up and blocking the door.

“No, you don’t understand. Either you’re with them or you’re not. And if you're with them, then I’m dead already. And if you are not, then I cannot have anybody else die because of me.”

“We can protect Ourselves, Miss Page.” Matt says, eerily calm.

“No, you can’t. Not from them.” Karen snaps.

“Miss Page-” Anya begins, standing up too.

“No!”

“We can’t let you go home.” Foggy said, his hovering over her like she was a fragile doll.

“Please, just…"

Karen curls up on herself, sobbing into her hands before falling into her lawyer’s arms. Foggy gently holds her close, rocking her slightly.

"She can stay with me.” Matt replies. “Just for tonight, until we figure something out."

"You sure? I could try to make some room.” Anya asked, worried.

"I know your apartment's small, I have plenty of room.” He kept his face neutral, even after all eyes were on him. His next words hold a lot of promise and weight. “I'll keep you safe, Karen."

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

I really wished my apartment wasn’t so small.

Anya dons her makeshift suit, which consists of a jacket with a hood, some cargo pants, boots, and a bandana she uses as a mask. Kind of cliche in her book, but I guess what could set her apart from the cliche was she made sure her eyes stayed a shade of purple; Courtesy of a special serum running through her veins.

She knows what she’s doing is… wrong in some lots of ways; And honestly she really shouldn’t distract herself from her main goal as a vigilante but…

If my client's in danger, then I should be here on standby. Both as a lawyer and a vigilante.

She crouches down on the rooftop across from Matt’s place, ignoring the colorful lights from the billboard and tuning out the heavy rainfall. Her hearing was much better than the average person, but she was still lacking some skills when it came with it. Growing up and going to school with rowdy kids was hard, so hard that she tuned everything and everyone out. It was a skill that she regrets now, especially when she needed her hearing to find out what her friend and client were talking about.

She heard her client muttering ‘thank you’ after being handed over something, and before you know it, she took her shirt off, exposing her bare chest. 

Anya felt herself flush, both out of guilt and second hand embarrassment. But then, she remembers her friend can’t see.

Still though, he’s– Her thoughts were interrupted again.

-“Can I ask a personal question?” 

Karen asked after setting her drenched shirt aside. She sounded… nervous.

-“I haven't always been blind.”

Matt said which sounded rehearsed at this point.

-“I guess that's what everyone wants to know.”

-“That or, ‘How do you comb your hair’?"

-“How do you comb your hair?”

-"Honestly, you just hope for the best.”

Anya watches him hand over a mug, flashing that big goofy smile of his. That big goofy smile that made her–

-“-ank you.”

Karen said, holding the mug close like she was doing back in the office. 

-“You wanna sit?”

Matt asked, making her nod. They soon sit down.

-“How did it happen?”

-“Car accident. When I was nine.”

Anya frowns as she remembers that day. One moment they’re heading home from school to his house, and then the next she finds Matt throwing his bag down and pushing an elderly man out of the way from a truck. And his screams…

She shutters.

His screams from when the chemicals ruined his eyes still haunt her.

-“-Do you mind if I ask you some questions now?”

Matt’s voice pulled her back once more. Karen seemed a bit stunned at first, but didn’t shut down. She nods.

-“Uh…Go ahead.”

-“You just nodded, right?”

His quirks a smile that makes her chuckle.

-“Uh, yeah.”

-“Okay. Here's what I don't understand. I'm the man in charge of the pension funds and I find out one of my secretaries has discovered my illicit activity. To make matters worse, she's now telling people about said activity. Which, obviously, I can't have. So I decided to take action. But why don't I kill you?”

Anya narrows her eyes, thinking. Because her friend is making a valid point right now. How come they didn’t kill her?

-“They tried.”

Karen counters back, but Matt explains with,

-“Yeah, the second time. In jail. But the first time, they left you alive. Why? What were they trying to do? Frame you? Now, the second time, maybe that's a change of plan. Something doesn't go their way, something sloppy at the crime scene. Three lawyers show up out of the blue before their people can get to you."

Anya finds herself nodding at his words, all while a nasty feeling crept inside her gut. She realizes if she and her friends didn't show up when we did then…

Karen would've definitely died if we didn't take her case. She frowns, and clench her fists.

Thank god for Officer Mahoney being on our side. She’ll have to remember to thank Foggy in some way too. Thank him for being his boisterous self and getting a cop to like him.

-"So they figure, okay, maybe Karen hangs herself in her cell, and this thing gets swept under the rug. But the first time, they're not trying to kill you. They're trying to discredit you. They're trying to scare you. And the only reason that they would do that is if you have something that they want. So, I've been trying to think about what that could be—”

As Matt spoke, Anya could make out the smallest beat of Karen’s heartbeat, one that was starting to grow unalarming fast.

-“-and the only thing I've come up with is the Union Allied pension file. Did you keep the file, Karen?”

Anya tilts her head, her client’s heartbeat was practically overtaking her eardrums now. Which means…

She’s lying. Come on Miss Page, tell the truth. We can help you. 

But when watched the blonde shake her head, she knew there was more troubling coming their way.

-“No. As soon as I asked my boss about it, he took it away from me. The IT guys, they came and they wiped the computers. Believe me, a part of me wishes I'd made a copy for myself, but I guess I'm just not that smart.”

-“Ah, well, it was just a thought.”

Yeah...

Just a thought.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Meanwhile, on the other side of town a ‘secret’ meeting was being held at the Union Allied parking garage. Four out of five people waited patiently for their last member as the other one complained about the night time weather.

“It's freezing this high up. Next time we're meeting at Per Se.” An older man, Leland Owsley, said before looking at the two Russians. “I'll domesticate you boys yet.

“This would be a balmy day in Samara, Leland.” Vladimir Ranskahov quips back, clearly showing his distaste for the elderly man.

Leland nearly rolls his eyes. “Yes, it's perfect Chechnyans-kidnap-a-preschool weather, Vladimir.” He sighs, and looks over at Nobu Yoshioka. “Can you at least pretend to be cold? It's unsettling.”

Madame Gao starts laughing before muttering something that sounded pretty silly in Mandarin. 

Leland looked lost by it. “Anyone here speak Chinese?” He asked, getting dirty looks sent his way. “Nobu?”

The sharp dressed man could practically kill anyone with the look he sent the accountant’s way.

“The man is Japanese.” The other Russian, Anatoly Ranskahov, replies, irritated.

“I know, I know. I just thought that…” He waves them off. “Forget it.”

Soon the elevator opens, revealing another sharp dressed man with slicked back hair and glasses. His newly shined shoes splashed against the puddles from last night’s downpour, which made everyone look in his direction with a respectful expression. This was a man you did not want to cross.

“Oh, please tell me he's right behind you.” Leland practically begged, but the man shook his head.

“Unfortunately, my employer is attending to other matters. He apologizes to you in particular, Madame Gao.” James Wesley replies, bowing his head apologetically to the woman.

Anatoly curses under his breath in his native tongue, causing his brother to take a menacing step forward.

“We do not deal with lap dogs.” Vladimir says, with a cold stare. “Tell Mister–”

“We don't say his name.” Wesley says, sternly, which causes the Brothers to brush past him with irritation.

“Woof, woof.” Anatoly mumbles, as they start heading for the elevator. 

“He would like to know why you're short on the cargo totals.” Wesley fires back, igniting the spark some more.

The brothers stopped and gave each other a quick look before replying,

“There was a problem on the docks.” Vladimir begins.

“Barrett and our men were attacked. Some mudak in a black mask.” Anatoly finishes.

Leland laughs. “And you bought that?” He scoffs.

Vladimir glares and starts marching towards him with a threat in Russian. 

He holds his hands up in defense. “Okay, calm down. Fine, we'll go with the man-in-black story.”

“Our men would not lie.”

“I said I'm on board.” Leland looks over at Wesley to make sure he was listening to his next words. “I'm glad to hear there's some new blood running around out there. Heroes and their consequences are why we…” He gestures to the open air. “Have our current opportunities. Now can we review the latest numbers and–”

“Tell me more about this man.” Wesley asked, intrigued. 

“Took Barrett and our guys out while they were loading the container.” Anatoly explains, which made Madame Gao speak up in interest.

Wesley chuckles in amusement. “She wants to know if this man stole the shipment for himself.”

“No. He let the women go.” Vladimir clarifies. 

“He took out your men. How?”

“Caught them by surprise. Beat them. With his bare hands.”

Wesley raised an eyebrow. “Four men with his bare hands?”

“That is what we were told.” Anatoly said.

“Perhaps you should have been there yourself.”

Leland scoffs, shaking his head. “Again, I have to ask, why do we care?” He asked, before bubbling with joy. “Every time one of these guys punches someone through a building, our margins go up 3%. We should be celebrating.”

“This is different.” Wesley snaps, but his voice is still alarmingly calm. “My employer will be…” He grits through his teeth. “Displeased… we're being inconvenienced by a lone vigilante.

“Then he should tell me to my face.” Vladimir snaps as well before deflating slightly under his gaze. “But unfortunately, that's not all.”

“There's more?”

“Yeah. Apparently there's a woman as well.”

“A woman?” Leland scoffs again. “You're joking, right?”

“We wouldn't joke.” The Russian glared. “She attacked our other shipment on the other side of town. But from the sound of it, I don't think she was originally there for the women.”

“So, she was looking for something else. Let me guess, she fought four men too?”

“Ten, actually.”

Wesley shoots his brows up. “Ten?” It was his turn to scoff. “Now I've heard it all. This is on you. Deal with the two of them. Quietly.”

“The man we can handle. The woman? Well…” Vladimir frowns. “Our men mention she has some… supernatural abilities.”

“Oh, so now we have a fucking Avenger coming after us?” Leland said, throwing his hands up. “Great.”

Anatoly rolled his eyes. “Look, We will be quiet, yes. We would not want another Union Allied situation, would we? Big, loud, lot of questions.”

Wesley clenches his jaw. “We're handling it.”

“Like you keep saying you're handling Prohaszka?” Vladimir fires back.

“We're in the process of negotiating with Mr. Prohaszka.”

“Negotiating?” Anatoly nearly scoffed. “Maybe we handle our problems the same way. Sit down with this man and woman in black, break bread.”

Wesley jaw clenches again as he takes a dangerous step towards him before Leland gets in the way. 

“I think what Anatoly's trying to say is that it would be in our best interests for Union Allied to be tidied up as expeditiously as possible.” 

Wesley sighs. “As I said… we're handling it.”

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Anya perked up at the sound, and then she peaked around the corner and looked down at the window. 

She watches as Karen passes Matt sleeping form on the couch, and disappears behind a wall, most likely she was heading for the front door. Part of Anya wishes to see her client taking the long way to the kitchen, but after a few minutes of nothing, that’s when saw the woman exiting the apartment building.

Oh, Karen. What are you doing? 

She pulls her hood down a little bit more before leaping off the roof.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Scaling up the fire escape and hearing Karen’s scream made Anya’s stomach drop. But still, she couldn’t risk leaving a trail behind herself. So instead of the flashy -breaking-through-the-window-to-save-someone- trope, she quickly phases through the glass.

The attacker stopped in his step, the dagger glistening in the moonlight. Anya could feel Karen’s confused gaze from her spot on the floor. She made sure to step in front of her, positioning her hands up, fingertips laced with special venom.

“Your move, bastard.” She growls, deepening her voice. 

If I can just nick him a little bit, then I can subdue him until the police arrive.

The man’s jaw tightened, and went to take a step–

The door burst opened, and to everyone’s surprise, they found the masked man standing in the doorframe. Anya only heard rumors of this man from her nights of stealing information, and let her say that…

Those were some heavy rumors to swallow.

He was quick to attack and to start a fight; Anya takes it as a small blessing to turn around comfort.

“Are you okay, Ma’am?” She asked, crouching down.

Karen’s eyes peeled away from the fight towards her, blinking with confusion (or maybe it was startled-ness from the abnormal eyes). “Who…” She begins. “Who are you?”

“That doesn’t matter. I know you have a file. Where is it?”

“The man with the knife has it. He–”

The sound of broken glass reached their ears, and both women drew their attention to the now broken window. Karen shrieks, covering her mouth as Anya sprung up to her feet.

Shit!

“Stay here!” She orders, taking off. 

She phases around the broken glass, planting her feet on the metal floor. Her eyes quickly found the man in the mask laying on the ground, with the attacker coming off the last flight of stairs with his knife. 

She felt her veins run hot and her fingertips bubbling. 

Guess I have to save another person’s ass tonight.

“Hey, Masked man! Watch your 5 o’clock!” She yells, before propelling herself off the escape.

As soon as those words were spoken, the masked man pushed himself off the ground, leaving behind a trail of saliva and copper; His fists eager to start a brawl again. The two men rumbled and tumbled around, and Anya only intervened when Karen’s potential attacker had his hands wrapped around the vigilante’s throat.

Anya went up and body slammed the attacker, her extra force sending him flying into a large rain puddle. She winces when she his shoulder crack under the pressure.

Shit. Gotta work on that. She tells herself, and cocks her head upon hearing the other vigilante getting up.

He sent a cold stare through his…

Mask with no eye holes…?

That made her tilt her head even more. 

“Listen no-eyes, I’m on your side.” She replies, using the fake voice from earlier.

“Are you?” He asked, his voice also scruffy and deep. A façade as well.

“Look, we’ll talk when this asshole is taken care of. Okay?”

Right on cue their attacker stood up, and the two of them shifted into a fighting stance. Then it was two-V-one. They all equally spared kicks and punches. The masked man throws him to a nearby wall, and then Anya manages to run her nails across the side of the attacker's neck, watching as his whole body froze upon her touch. He became pale and wide eyed when his muscles felt completely numb.

“C-c-can’t… mo-move…” He mumbled.

“What did you do?” The masked man snapped, dangerously stepping close into her personal space. 

Anya raises an eyebrow. “I paralyzed him. With my venom.” She replies, and even under his mask she could see his perplexed face.

“Venom?”

“Who…?” Karen’s voice broke through their conversation. She looked completely baffled by what just happened in a short period of time. “W-What the hell?”

“I'll get this into the right hands.” The masked man says, snagging the harddrive from the attacker’s pocket.

“No, you can't.” She begs. “You can't take it to the police. You can't trust anyone!”

“Then we tell everyone.”

“And we can take him in too.” Anya suggested.

And that would be the one and only thing the two vigilantes would agree on tonight.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

After dropping off the attacker at the front steps of the police station, along with the file, the two of them stare from above on a nearby building, each taking it as their own personal victory.

Anya sighed after a while. “Well… time for me to leave.” She says, spinning on heels in the direction of her apartment. “See you around, no-eyes.”

“Not so fast.” The man growled, snagging her by the upper body, pinning her against the brick lining against a chimney. “Who are you?”

She scoffs. “Same as you. A masked… somebody.”

He grits his teeth. “I’m not playing games.” And then his nose scrunched up. "Why do you smell like peaches?"

"Why do you smell like my grandma’s perfume?” She chuckles at his silence. “Kidding. Axe body spray, correct? Which… I’m assuming it is correct because your heart skipped at that.”

Another painful silence. 

Another round of chuckling.

“Yeah, you aren’t the only one with special little abilities.” She badgers.

“Yeah, I can see that. Wait…” He replies, and pins her a little more. “How do you know about my abilities?”

“Rumors.” Her quirky expression vanishes into a more serious one. “Look, I normally don’t do fights, I’m only out at night to find some information for myself; and as much as I would like to withdraw, I think you and I both know this whole thing isn’t over yet. I think… this is just the beginning.”

“So what? You want to… team up?”

“No. Not if you don’t want to. I’ll do my thing, and you do your thing. Deal?”

He got closer, his nose practically touching hers. "This is my city."

She narrows her purple orbs. "Oh,  yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Well… it's also mine." She plants her palms on each of his shoulders. "See you around no-eyes." 

She gives him a push, just enough to make sure she would be the only one Phasing through the chimney. Once she was on the other side, she bolted, using her enhanced stamina to gain ground from him.

Finally, when she was about twenty blocks away, and checking if the coast was clear, she pulled her bandana down and vomited.

Damn… I overdid it. She closes her eyes, taking slow gulps of air. 

She felt her veins start to cool, and her eyes fade back to her usual green. She sighs once her heartbeat is steady.

That man. Who…

She could still feel his cold stare on her, his muscular arm pinning her body against a wall. He gave a threatening aura. Like he was the hunter, and she was his prey.

Who the fuck is that guy?

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•° 

His employer was displeased by these unexpected turn of events. But things change whether people want to admit that or not. James Wesley rode in the back of the SUV, carefully explaining the ‘clean up’ state he’s rolled out already.

“DNA evidence will put Rance at the murder scene. B and E gone sideways. His records altered in support. Mr. Farnum's bail has been arranged through the usual channels. Leland's to cover our exposure on the financials and McClintock takes the fall for Union Allied.”

‘We can't have McClintock speaking to the authorities.’

“Pills.” Wesley simply states, casting a quick look on his watch. “He overdosed less than an hour ago. The remaining concerns will be attended to shortly.”

‘Rance was a professional. How was he subdued?’

He frowns. “I'm looking into it. What about the girl? Should I make the appropriate arrangements for her, along with the three others?”

‘No. Everything she knows is already in the papers. And her lawyers are who exactly?’

“Ambulance chasers. They're clean. Although-” He grins with a malice intent. “One of them you might find interesting.

‘How so?’

“Well, one of the lawyers happened to be named Hughes. Anya Hughes. Ring a bell?”

It took his employer a second to process, or maybe he was reeling from the fact that the woman they both knew was still in Hell’s Kitchen. 

‘Huh. So she never truly left this place, but I can’t say I blame her though, especially when she has… family here.’

“Sir?” 

‘Start a file. They may be of use. And… keep an eye on Miss Hughes. If she really is the same person, we may have a problem, or a blessing.’

“Understood.” 

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The sun was up and shining, setting the perfect mood in the office, and the perfect mood for a celebration. Nelson, Hughes and Murdock had won its first big case. A case that they’ll remember forever, especially when they couldn’t let their client go just yet.

“Here you go. So I know it's not much in the way of repayment.” Karen says while setting a hot cooking pan down. “But it is, um, my grandmother's recipe, and she made me promise only to serve it to my future husband.” That got the three lawyers to laugh, and get her to smile. “You know, it's, like, filled with virtue or something.”

“I thought I detected a whiff of virtue in there.” Matt jokes, a grin still plastered on his face.

“I think Miss Page might need to teach me a few lessons.” Anya said, as the food started getting passed out. The smell of the dish was so divine, she could practically taste it on her tongue already. 

“What?” Karen asked, raising an eyebrow. “Can't cook?”

Anya sheepishly smiles. “Well, When a blind man can cook better than you, then there might be a problem.”

Matt points to himself proudly. “I make a mean chili.”

“Not that I'm complaining, but you really should be thanking the two nuts in the mask.” Foggy said, making his two - completely unaware of one another- friends hide their knowing expressions.

“They're not nuts.” Karen said, shrugging a little. “I mean, they're a little weird, maybe.”

“We're just glad you're okay.” Anya said, smiling softly.

“Well, if it weren't for you three, I'd still be in that cell.” 

“Job's easy when your client's innocent. All you did was tell the truth.” Matt said, her heartbeat skipping quickly.

“Yeah, but you listened.”

“That's all we can do.” Anya adds, before gesturing to her friend. “Well… what he can do.”

“You know, you're pushing it today.” Matt teases, making Karen laugh.

“Okay, Settle down, children. I told you we're having a guest over.” Foggy said, giggling. “Oh, and don't get us wrong, Miss Page, we're still gonna bill you. Just as soon as we figure out how to make bills.”

“I told you law school was a scam.” Anya replies, then gets lightly kicked in the shin by him.

“I did notice that you could use some help around here. And I owe you. Maybe I could clean the place up a bit?” Karen asked, nervously playing with her hands. 

Matt tilts his head. “Is this place messy?” He asked, and Anya covered her mouth.

“Oh, shit. He's onto us, Nelson.” She says, cheeky.

“Our firm is very prestigious and discerning, Miss Page.” Foggy begins interviewing. He tries his best to hold in his laughter. “Do you have any prior experience hiding electrical cords up in ceiling tiles?”

Karen shakes her head, also holding back. “Uh, no, but I'll work for free.”

“Yeah, you're hired.” Matt says, not missing a beat.

“You just got hired!” Foggy said, throwing his hands in the air.

“Congratulations! Welcome to our firm.” Anya said, hands showing off the place.

The blonde blushes at all the praise, and thanks them all for this opportunity. 

An opportunity that’ll send the four of them down an ever going rabbit hole.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Anya sighs into her desk chair after a long day. Unknown to her, her enemies were making all kinds of moves. 

Leland was transferring money.

Someone finds Mr. Farnum, the man who tried to kill Karen in her cell, dead.

Mr. Rance had suspiciously hung himself.

Madame Gao watches her drug empire grow.

Nobu looked over the construction plans for this city.

And the man in the mask was out hunting for more prey.

Another sigh, and she straightens up in her chair. “I can’t believe the rumors were true.” She mumbles, and shakes her head. “I usually don’t get involved in this kind of thing, but this is too suspicious to let go.”

She pulls off the sheet in front of her, revealing a large board covered in everything you could imagine. Newspaper clippings, photos, evidence from her parents’ death. It was all too… different to let anything go.

She frowns and stands up, pinning another clipping to the board. It was a recent article, one that showed about Karen and her Union Allied experience. She takes a small step back to soak everything in. 

“I’ve heard Union Allied name too many times to be a coincidence.” She said, crossing her arms. “There has to be a connection to everything. I just need to find it.”

(TBC)

-Taglist is Open-

[tenebrius-excellium]

About How to Seize A Dragon’s Jewel: first of all, congrats on getting to this book! It’s definitely one of the meatier ones, with a lot of amazing lines and passages that’ll stick with you. I actually forgot about Stoick’s talk with disguised!Hiccup, but just reading that tiny snippet made me tear up a little :’) He got so much depth in that one scene!

As for the bleak tone, it’s unfortunately going to get worse before it gets better. When they said this was a story about becoming a hero the hard way, they MEANT IT. Hiccup is going to have a lot more trials and tribulations to overcome, but the good news is that there will also be small but significant wins! This is the part of the story where all of the seeds Hiccup has planted over the past several books are bearing fruit, so he’ll get help in unexpected places (but also some unwanted attention from old enemies…beware! >:D)

Also, how old is Eggingarde supposed to be??? I haven’t read the books in awhile so I could be wrong, but I’ve been picturing her as a 7 year old this whole time, so I saw your comment about shipping her with Fishlegs and was like ??!? Does the book mention her age at all? I can’t remember now.

Hope you enjoy the rest of the book!!!

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Thanks!! “Meaty” describes it somewhat. I’m completely in the dark as to what’s still to come, and I am terrified by everyone’s ‘knowing’ little smirk. You guys are cruel. XD

I admit I’m personally starting to grapple with the bleakness, because at my core I remain an idealist and I’m like “this can’t be everything… it just can’t.” Life shouldn’t be this hard all the time, and especially not for a kid - even if they grow up in Scotland lol. I’m currently pondering the thought in my real life too, and it’s affecting my faith especially. I must ask myself whether I had a really shitty childhood despite being raised Christian AND believing in God myself, and if yes why. Because the nature of God is, as per my current understanding, a nature of overwhelming victories, of ends and new beginnings, of faithfulness and reward, and not a seemingly endless struggle with only a few rays of sun shining through. So I’m wondering how that was able to happen despite my whole family theoretically striving to follow him. I hurt for everyone, including myself, whom life has beaten into thinking everything’s just going to go from bad to worse. I’m gonna be honest, I totally want my idealism back and I want it to be true.

As for Eggingarde, OH MY GOSH you are so right, I made an instant edit to the og post, they are both minors and Eggingarde is clearly under 10 years old. I’m so sorry. The thing is, she is described as a kid who has aged beyond her years. She’s an old soul. Fishlegs must be what, 15 now? Anyway, I think Eggingarde’s vibes are rather about her being tiny than her being so young. I don’t know. I want to protect her, and so Fishlegs seemed like the ideal protector, but then HE got lost, and so… Idk I care more about character dynamics sometimes, like the way Eggingarde’s and Fishlegs’ personalities are described, than their ages. Of course this is unacceptable in local context, so no. No shipping. I’m really sorry. Great job for pointing it out.

Thanks for sending an ask!!! This was really fun to respond to! I do feed off other people’s thoughts a lot. The Httyd books are worth discussing!!!

(Also thanks for everyone who bears with me through my Avatar 2 phase)