#Oh she won't tell prowl...

[xretiredcommanderx]

"That shouldn't be too difficult."

"Monitor and extractions. Simple enough and easier maneuvered under the radar."

"I think we have ourselves a plan."

"Then we only blow up the weird looking ones."

"We'll have to keep a record of what's changed. Maybe check out a few camera feeds that happen to point at any of the statues."

"Fair enough. We already know would be a little too into causing a bit of property damage."

[maxislvt]

Sink Your Teeth In

pairing(s): vampire!natasha romanoff x werewolf!reader

summary: Vampires and werewolves were known enemies, but Natasha is more than willing to change that. Even if it's just for one night.

warning: amab!reader, blowjobs, sub!reader, slight dubcon

a/n: ummm nat gives the best head case closed

Event Masterlist

Werewolves and vampires were always at odds with each other. Not a thousand years could go by without vampires attacking werewolves or werewolves attacking vampires. It was all the same bloodline ending bullshit. 'Your father killed mine and now I must kill you!' over and over again. Some of those fathers weren't even worth killing anyone over. It was truly a shame that no one could see how compatible the two factions were. Vampires were strict, organized people that valued loyalty above all else. Werewolves were nothing short of loyal and obedient, you just had to train them. Natasha was so close to finding the perfect werewolf for her to prove that. 

Natasha had tried many times to tame a werewolf, but she'd run into a number of problems. They could be taught, but not many of them were willing to learn— especially not from a vampire. As disappointing as it was, it wasn't exactly a shock. A millennium long feuds were rarely ever one sided. Her previous attempts were also foiled by pride, shame, and simply being too boring to have any real fun.

So, Natasha spent another Friday night on the prowl.

Club Sonar was a rather interesting place. A tall building in the middle of nowhere buzzing with all forms of life. Monsters from all over the globe came together under the moon just to party. It was a messy place. The music was loud, bodies grinded against each other without a care, and secrets of all kinds were shared over the strongest alcohol. Though cultures mixed, money did not. 

Each floor of the bar was more expensive than the last. The alcohol got smoother, the music got slower, and the floors actually got cleaned. Upper floors were for people who supported the cause but had no interest in getting dirty. Natasha had more than enough money to sit at the top floor, but that wasn't any fun. She'd never find what she was looking for if she stayed up there. 

Werewolves were just as wealthy as vampires, but they were rowdy. They liked to play rough and get dirty. Big fancy houses just didn't appeal to them as much. Fancy clubs appealed to them even less. Natasha wasn't looking to tame someone — not to say her hand couldn't be forced — she was looking for someone soft and easy to mold. 

You weren't the easiest to find. Despite your size, the people on the dancefloor had no trouble pushing you around. You kept your head down no matter where you went. Natasha could tell you weren't there on your own, which made it harder to take you home. Not too hard though.

"This really isn't your scene," she said when she took the bar stool next to you. It was hard to keep her eyes in the right place. Your shyness was adorable, but there was no denying what she was really feeling. 

You looked around to make sure she was actually talking to you.  Though you weren't opposed to the conversation, it was hard to believe such a pretty woman had approached you. "Um, no. My friends wanted to come here. I mean it's cool just…couldn't we have a library or something? There's no point in intermingling if you're too drunk to remember what you're kissing."

Natasha laughed and scooted closer to you. "I guess you're right, but there's no shame in being curious. Right?" She looked at the glass in front of you. "Oh, that just won't do." Before you could interject, she tapped the countertop twice and brought over the bartender. It was a quick exchange, you didn't even see Natasha pull out any cash. Despite your confusion, you didn't put up a fight. You were exactly what Natasha was looking for. 

Guilt filled your eyes when you looked down at the fresh cocktail in front of you. Was it more rude to let it go to waste or ask the bartender for a refund? "Oh, you really didn't have to do that." Your hands hesitantly wrapped around the glass before taking a sip of the alcohol. The burn hit you immediately, but you tried to play it off. You tensed up to hold in the coughing fit building up in your chest. "It's…great, thanks," you forced out through a tight chest. 

Natasha gave you a firm pat on the back to force you to cough. She took away the glass and slid this towards you. "I would expect a werewolf to have a stronger alcohol tolerance," she said teasingly. Her hand stayed on your back even after your coughing had subsided. 

You shook your head. "A lot of us have sensitive pallets. I can taste whatever crappy oak barrel they made this in." There was an unexpected comfort in the way she touched you. "I should have asked this earlier, but what's your name?" You sat up straight as her hand moved down your back. You never really paid attention to your posture, but you had the strange urge to be better around her. 

"My name's Natasha, but you can call me Nat if you want. What's yours?"

"My name is Y/N. I don't really have a nickname, but whatever you come up with is fine." 

The conversation continued without trouble. Natasha seemed so enamored with how strong your pallet was. At the expense of Natasha's wallet and your sobriety, you had tasted just about every drink the bar had to offer. Eventually, you settled on just drinking strawberry daiquiris while you two talked. 

Natasha pulled your seat closer to her and she leaned down to whisper in your ear. "So how many more of those little smoothies do I have to buy to take you home with me?" Her hand slid up your thigh and gave it a firm squeeze. She could feel your dick twitching already. "I promise I'll only bite where it feels good."

You practically jumped out of your skin when Natasha kissed your neck. It was quick, but you could feel the pointed tips of her fangs brush against your skin. "Um..Can I finish this one first?" Before Natasha could say anything else you pulled out your phone and texted your friends. 'Leaving with a hot lady, ttyl!' was all you sent before cutting off your phone and downing the last of your drink. 

Natasha adored your enthusiasm. "I promise I'll get you home safe in the morning." She kissed your neck one last time before dragging you outside to her car. It was a good thing she brought her chauffeur along because there was no way she'd be able to keep her hands off you the entire ride home. 

You stumbled behind Natasha as best you could. Vampires were usually weaker than werewolves, but you were a little too tipsy to show your strength. You let Wanda push you into the backseat of her car. One sniff of the air and you could tell someone else was in the car. "You have a chauffeur?" Natasha covered your mouth and pushed you further into the backseat. 

"Home," was all she told the driver before closing the partition and focusing her attention on you. "Yes, but I promise the back of the car is soundproof." It certainly wasn't, but she needed to hear how whiny you could get. Natasha practically pounced on you after she closed the door. The kiss was hot and passionate. Your fangs bumped against hers every time your lips collided. "Can you taste what I drank earlier?" She asked with a giggle. 

A whine escaped your lips when Natasha pulled away. "Um…a lot of vodka and cooper..?" Your answer earned you another kiss. Natasha's lips felt like heaven against yours. She overwhelmed all your senses in the most delicious way possible. You didn't even notice how hard you'd gotten. "You smell…really good." You mumbled in the handful of seconds between kisses. 

She chuckled but didn't respond. You were too cute. "I'm going to make you feel so good tonight." Natasha's kisses moved down the side of your jaw until she reached the base of your neck. Her hands wasted no time undoing your belt and tossing it on the car's floor. One of her fingers circled around the tip of the tent in your pants while she watched you squirm. "You're so sensitive."

You opened your mouth to speak only to be interrupted by a string of cursing and desperate whimpering. "Sorry, I'm just new to all of this," you confessed. It was a little hard to imagine your first time going to a bar would take such a turn. 

"Don't tell me someone as cute as you is still a virgin." Your silence was enough. It was as arousing as it was disappointing. Natasha didn't want to go slow by any means, but the thought of getting to corrupt that innocent little mind of yours was exhilarating. "I promise I'll be extra gentle with your little friend." 

The car parked before Natasha could pull down your boxers. Natasha's lust-driven craze left you in quite an awkward position while waiting for her to unlock the door. Holding your pants up only made your bulge stand out more and there was an obscene amount of lipstick covering your neck. You hoped Natasha wasn't secretly vampire famous or else you'd be in real trouble. 

Natasha pulled you into her home and wasted no time undressing you. Your shoes, shorts, sweater, and T-shirt littered the soft carpet. Natasha had you completely naked by the time she pushed you onto the bed. "You're making a mess already," she whispered seductively as she crawled onto the bed. Her eyes focused on the way your member throbbed and leaked precum. 

Your eyes followed Natasha's as she began stroking your member. It was tortuously slow, but it felt good. A near-pornographic moan fell from your lips as your head tilted back. "Your hands are so soft," you whimpered pathetically. All your willpower went into staying still. You didn't know what to do with yourself. "C-can I touch you too?" You blindly reached out and grabbed the first thing you could feel. Mindlessly, you groped the soft flesh in hopes that it would make Natasha feel good too. Your face burned bright red as she moved your hand to where her breast actually was. “Sorry…I wasn’t looking,” you mumbled. 

Natasha kissed up the underside of your cock before licking all the way down to the base. “A good pup would pay attention to someone making them feel this good.” She waited until you looked down at her. Once she was sure you wouldn’t look away, she swallowed you down to the base. Her cheeks hallowed out as she began sucking you off.

Your hips twitched and your eyelids fluttered, but you tried your best to keep your eyes open. As your orgasm got closer, you found it harder to control yourself. An animalistic growl ripped through your throat as you tried to control yourself. Your fangs forced themselves out of your mouth and your claws had nearly ripped Natasha’s sheets. “W-wait, slow down,” were the only words you could get out before it happened. 

Hot white cum painted the inside of Natasha’s throat as she swallowed down everything you gave her. Natasha didn’t give you a break and continued until you pushed her away. “Is that all you have left?” She blew on your bulbous tip before giving it a kiss.

“N-no, I just…I need a second. That’s all.”

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s2 episode 9 thoughts

whew! i had a busy day so it's nice to unwind with some scully and mulder time. although by the end of the episode i didn't feel very unwound tbh. it was still time spent with the babygirls, so i can't complain.

so we start with some volcano research. my only note here was "i know a geologist" which is true! shoutout to my one professor. you were chill but i hated that class.

there's a dead guy in the volcano which tbh doesn't seem too surprising... i mean volcanoes are very deadly. but it seems to be one of the dudes involved with the project so that's weird because why would he go down there?

there's this stream going on of the inside volcano and something is disrupting it... hate to see a streamer interrupted :(

then we had the title sequence but for some reason i was wondering, do you think if they got married they'd hyphenate their names... scully-mulder... mulder-scully... does it roll off the tongue? hmm...

so firewalker (the title of our episode) is a robot that goes into the volcano. noted.

here i wrote "holy fuck scully is beautiful". all she was doing was standing there but man.

the scientist who has come to them requesting help is like, this lead scientist named trepkos started this project, and scully says "i always heard he was brilliant", which raises the question: why is scully keeping up with volcano science? nerd

at this point the visiting scientist was explaining how he and trepkos had a professional breakup kinda thing and i'm very sorry for them but i genuinely could not take my eyes off of scully. hope they work it out or whatever. i have bigger priorities.

she wants to get out there and investigate but mulder says "i don't think it's a good idea for you to go" AUGHHH. i am wailing and tearing my shirt. she says that she's fine!!! really!!!

and he has this look on his face that says "i cannot tell this woman what to do, even after she just woke up from a coma, and i never will be able to" and he's very right in that regard

HELICOPTER TIME! mulder is such a gentleman helping her climb out

she has very messy hair at this point and the scientist seems a lot more concerned about his equipment than the fate of the people trapped inside the compound and she seems so thrown off by this

next we have some BIG ASS FLASHLIGHTS!!!! WOOHOO

at this point i made a note that i think i might have been going feral because mulder also looked SO good prowling around that creepy base. and i don't take back my observation but i will psychoanalyze it a bit later. reluctantly.

a creepy dude is hanging around the corner. OH SHOOT he tries to bash mulder's head in and he is MAD "do you always greet people this way?" LMAOOO he took it personally

the other scientists in the base seem to regard the missing trepkos as a threat... hmm...

i really like this jesse character, who is a student and is here to do some research with her advisor

mulder asks for the data on the research trepkos has been doing and she says he destroyed his field journals and computer discs. ahh, computer discs. my old friends. i used to have some games on discs when i was a kid. positive memories.

mulder sees scribbled in some of the notes trepkos didn't destroy that he had written about a "new life form" which honestly kinda happens a lot. like people are always discovering new life forms but the gag is they're beetles. everyday we find new species of beetle. they just won't stop coming. so i'm thinking, well they wanted this to be all dramatic, but statistically it's probably just a volcano beetle this guy found.

mulder and scully have an exchange and again i'm distracted by her freckles but she says he's being paranoid and i'm like. yeah that's kinda his whole deal. mulder being paranoid is like a fork spotted in the kitchen.

so the other scientist who was checking on his equipment was, at this point, killed by trepkos. with a rope. and we get the great closed captions "(neck cracks) (body thuds on ground)" which were very descriptive of the whole process

mulder and scully are having a science based argument on the probability of a silicon-based life form and it was really funny to me because it was a nerd off. and frankly i wouldn't go into a science debate with a doctor but mulder is going full steam ahead. it's getting heated and i'm like damn does this ever lead to them kissing because i can see it happening. anyway she's like no trepkos did not discover a silicon-based life form (spoiler alert: he did)

he's looking around like damn. i'm glad she's back but she's such a pain in my ass <3

scully goes to talk to jesse by knocking on her door and asking to chat and then not waiting for an answer and coming in because that is my girl!!!

jesse says trepkos stopped taking his pills that treat his bipolar disorder and he started being weird, saying they polluted his mind and that she was "polluting his body" which has... implications i prefer not to think about?

(why must we make erotic the bond between a student and their thesis advisor? there is no stronger connection! but. not in this way, tv writers, not in this way. i mean Maybe it wasn't meant that way but it seemed like it was)

mulder is streaming the descent into madness of trepkos because he recorded his ramblings which is probably what my friends on my private story think each time i post. but he's going on about finding a silicon-based life form.

this whole time one of the scientists has been very noticeably coughing and losing his voice and i knew it was gonna go somewhere but all of a sudden he collapses. and mulder yells for scully who is undergoing her shift to Doctor Mode. but we see his neck... pulsate? is that the best word to describe it? augh i don't want to even think about it so we'll leave it there

(jesse was also looking super suspicious but i liked her...)

anyway they put the sick guy on a stretcher and he's down and out until he isn't, and now he's making a RUN for it. he runs and runs and falls in a ditch until a THING takes over his body and explodes. i thought it was a worm at first and it was sososo gross i started sweating. i do not like body horror. the things i endure for these two.

so scully's doing some testing and she's like, yeah this is a silicon-based fungus. and poor jesse is having a nervous breakdown because she has been in this base for 8 months and she just wants to go HOME but now they have to quarantine and i felt so bad for her.

then i remembered the line about her "polluting his body" and things were adding up... and they were NOT looking good for her... no... i cannot do this...

scully's really worried about jesse which is justified because this poor girl is freaking out. but mulder is really worried about scully! he wants to go look for trepkos and he's making excuses why she shouldn't come and finally settles on the need to autopsy the body which he seems to both genuinely believe and also say to keep her back at the base

she knows he's being protective so she says "i'm here and i'm not going anywhere" which is sweet but girl you were in a coma. they had your gravestone made. you are lucky he has not put you in bubblewrap entirely. you can't blame the man for needing you to be safe!!!!

he says he's counting on her and grabs her shoulder with some heavily lingering eye contact that, when i see in gif form, i will surely slam the reblog button upon because. good lord.

jesse is talking to the other guy and he says something like "do what we said" and i'm thinking oh man, they're gonna try to get mulder (spoiler alert: they did not quite do that)

the guy is like "you need a guide to go get trepkos" and i'm even MORE suspicious but his reasoning kind of does make sense- it is a volcano maze, after all- still, when mulder goes with him i was tense

BUT THEN he immediately gets shot with a FLARE GUN? which i did NOT see coming. and trepkos emerges from the back of the volcano caves all burned and wild-looking.

he's covering the newly dead body with gasoline and mulder's asking why he's trying to kill him twice when we see the parasite wriggle in his neck (GAG) so then he shoots him with ANOTHER flare to burn up the evil creature. and he's explaining how if you're exposed to the parasite's spores you're gonna be sick...

and scully is back at the base with jesse... who was exposed... so she's not going to be safe...

and we see jesse in her room gagging and convulsing... oh man... it's not looking good....

trepkos is not letting mulder leave, but mulder does not give a fuck LMAO he says "you're gonna have to shoot me then" and goes to walk out... this man was really thinking "they are NOT gonna take scully from me again" and i know that is exactly right!!!!!

NOOOO the lights go off in the compound........... NOOOOO JESSE ATTACK.....

she's handcuffing her and scully together!!!!!! but scully was smart enough to get her behind a door really fast before jesse collapses and the fungus explodes...... but the handcuffs... was the door open a crack?? was it enough to get her infected???!?!?

mulder BURSTS in to see her handcuffed and she keeps repeating "i'm okay, i'm okay" but he must be so shocked because he asks "you alright?" and gently cups her face and at this point i wanted to do some powerful screaming to let out the things i was feeling

we see trepkos come in and look at jesse's body and he says that he told her how this experience would change her life... and i'm getting callbacks to when mulder told scully it would be a nice trip to the forest, but then the whole evil bugs thing happened in s1 ep20... and i am filled with a deep sadness...

so the duo has been sentenced to a month long quarantine, which i'm sure had to absolutely drive them wild. but i think my mutual wrote a fic on this subject so i just simply have no choice but to go read it now! and i assume that, since there are more seasons, the spores did not actually infect them

(and mulder, who was earlier suggesting time off for scully, must be some mix of terrified that any day now the symptoms will start showing and the end will be near, deeply satisfied that she has been forced into getting rest and healing like he wished, and regretting his words that she should take a break, because here she is taking a break. with him. and they're driving each other crazy)

we see trepkos hiking back into the volcano maze with jesse's body and it was actually really sad :(

overall a good episode, another one in the vein of s1 eps 8 and 20 where there is some sort of contagion and we must figure out from where it started and to whom it has gone... but the formula in these episodes keeps me on the edge of my seat and allows for a convergence of doctor scully and protective mulder, two things i am deeply invested in seeing. and seeing mulder try and keep her away from the case after her whole incident made me emo as hell!!!! he is never going to let her out of his sight again unless he has to go keep her safe by finding the wild man in the volcano!!!!!! and even that backfired!!!! ugh my heart!!!!! i love them so deeply!!!

rip my girl jesse i thought u were rad in the brief time we knew each other

[measuringbliss]

Spider-Man Read-Through 083 Unmasked (SSM 87-89)

MASTERPOST

Well well well...

After revealing his workplace to Black Cat, Spidey decides to show her his home. They have a romantic swing for a moment, but then Felicia is less than enthusiastic about Peter's home.

I love this, it's just so good. It's the first time Peter reveals his identity to someone (excluding sort of Debra), and it goes terribly. Oof.

Oh, it's absolutely awful, but I love it. Peter's "Oh. I get it." is so, SO painful, but it's so good! It tugs at my heart strings. It's horrible. Likely the cause for a billion years of therapy. But hmpf! It makes me vibrate!!!

It sends Peter spiral so hard, because until then, the issue was Spidey. And for once, it's Peter! How interesting too that we get this storyline just before the Alien Costume Saga.

Peter figures that he can deal with that, they kiss, then a shriek interrupts them. They fight together and are very cute, and end the night at Felicia's place, while a phone rings at Peter's...

In #88, Mr Hyde has beef with the Cobra. Elsewhere, Peter compares his relationship with Black Cat to Steve and Bucky... That confirms the gay then.

They go on a prowl and stumble on the villains I mentioned earlier. "Oh no! Not them!" Peter says. He just reads my thoughts!

Peter's scared that the Cat will get hurt.

Spidey gets knocked out eventually.

I really like Felicia in this moment. It's the Cobra who shot these darts, by the way. Felicia takes care of them in a smart way, but then gets away when she sees Spidey's alive, because she doesn't want to be a liability. *sigh*

#89 time!

Gorgeous!

In his Chelsea flat, Peter's angsting.

I love this. He was ready to say he was proud of her!!!

Anyway, Robbie comes knocking! He has assignments to give to Peter. Seeing that Peter's in a mood, he tries to get him to confide in him, to no avail.

Anyway, Felicia goes at Stane International to get powers but learns that Stark no longer possess the company. Oops. Pym and the F4 are not helpful either. So she tries Avengers Mansion. It doesn't work. She goes back to the Baxter Building... Sue rightfully tells her that if she has a problem with her relationship, more power won't help her.

Her search proves completely fruitless until...

Hmm! Mysterious.

It's probably the Kingpin, but she's ready to do anything, including not telling any of it to her boyfriend...

Give me that same energy for Peter please. Thanks.

And surely enough, that's how Black Cat manifests her "Bad Luck" power, something she previously tried to fake. Interesting evolution!

Of course, it is the Kingpin behind the glass, and he intends to use Black Cat for his schemes.

Elsewhere, Peter enters another world for take part in some very Secret Wars...

[magicfootballstuff]

Demons (lena oberdorf x reader)

Summary: Lena soothes you back to sleep after a bad dream

(mild cw: nightmares, sleep paralysis)

------

You wake up on edge.

There's somebody else in your bedroom. Lena sleeps soundly beside you, but you know there's something else too. You can hear its breathing as it sniffs around you, some kind of four-legged beast prowling for its next meal, and you lie deadly still in the hope that it won't harm you.

But you quickly realise that staying still is not a choice. You can't move, your entire body frozen in place. You forget about the creature and it seems to back away, your focus instead on trying to move one of your arms to wake Lena up, but your whole body is paralysed. You try to scream, opening your mouth, but no noise comes out. Your lungs feel like they're being smothered by a weight on your chest, pinning you in place and stopping you from being able to cry out for help.

Suddenly the growling of the beast is back and there's nothing you can do.

Lena jolts awake in bed next to you and for a few seconds you're sure that she must have sensed the creature too, because she turns to you in panic. But when she throws the covers off, she's not wearing her sleep clothes, but instead her full Wolfsburg kit, complete with shin pads and boots.

"Come on," she urges you. "We need to leave now, or you'll miss the game."

She races out of the bedroom, studs clattering against the wooden floor, before you can say anything in response.

Great. Now you're alone in bed, still unable to move, about to be mauled by some invisible demon monster, and you're late for Lena's match.

"Babe," Lena's whisper emerges from amongst the growls of the beast that haunts you.

Though she's not in the bedroom with you anymore, you can hear her voice as if her mouth is right next to your ear. Maybe it's her you can hear breathing, not this invisible monster.

"Babe," Lena says again, this time louder.

There's a weight on your arm, not more or less real than anything else you feel but definitely different, and as that comfort pulls you from one consciousness to another, you realise that the weight is Lena's hand and that she is still next to you after all.

You sit upright in bed, all signs of the demon gone, with Lena propped up on her elbow beside you as she looks at you with concern.

"Were you having a bad dream?" Lena asks. "You were asleep but you seemed restless."

"I... it was so real," you tell her, still looking around the moonlit bedroom, waiting for the creature to emerge from a shadowy corner. The dream, if it was one, was so realistic that you can't be entirely sure that you're not still asleep.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"You left," you try to explain, "and I was alone with this thing. I think it wanted to eat me. But I couldn't see it." You remember the rest, and add, "Oh, and I was late for your game."

Lena's face softens at this.

"Baby, it's three in the morning, my game isn't for another ten hours. Anyway, you don't have to come if you don't want to."

“I want to,” you insist. “I like watching you play.”

You’re still feeling uneasy. It was more than a stupid dream - you're more than a little bit anxious as Lena tells you the time and you realise you need to go back to sleep, terrified of repeating the feeling of pure helplessness that you felt in your dream.

But Lena, always the doting girlfriend, seems to sense this, and wraps her arms around you as she pulls you in to snuggle against her chest.

"I've got you," she says, as she presses her lips to your forehead. "Do you want to go back to sleep or do you want to be distracted for a bit?"

Your heart fills your chest. Lena has a big game tomorrow and needs a full night's sleep in order to be at her best, but here she is offering to stay up to keep you company because she knows you won't be able to go back to sleep straight after your night terror. She has to track her sleep and the results are monitored by the performance staff at Wolfsburg so you know she risks probing questions and getting into trouble if they sees she's been up in the early hours, not to mention the teasing from her teammates about some middle-of-the-night action if it reaches them, but the fact she'll do this for you anyway is one of the many reasons you love her.

"Tell me about your away game last weekend," you say, knowing that just hearing the soothing tone of Lena's voice, the vibrations of her chest beneath your head, will bring you at least a bit of calm after your nightmare. "Tell me about the assist you got again."

Lena doesn't question the fact that you've already heard this story (and declared annoyance when she forgot she told you and recounted it again) but instead tells you about the match for a third time, her voice low and soft as your eyelids flicker shut and you let your breathing sync up with the rise and fall of Lena's chest.

Lena’s voice soothes you until your heart rate calms and your breathing slows. You’re not sure exactly how long it takes you to fall asleep again, but this time you’re not plagued by nightmares, instead enveloped in a cocoon of feeling safe and warm, protected from demons by your girlfriend.

Lena is clingy in the morning when you finally wake to daylight. You don’t speak of the incident in the middle of the night, but she wraps her arms tightly around your middle and nuzzles her face into your neck, no longer the protector but the one who needs to know she’s loved. You oblige, holding Lena close even after your alarms have gone off, and if you could stay like this forever, safe and alone with the love of your life, then you would.

Unfortunately, one of you has to play football today.

“Lena, it’s time to get up,” you remind her, keeping your voice soft so that you don’t startle her out of her position of comfort against your side.

“Nope,” she mumbles back, burying her head into your chest.

“Well, I’m going to the game,” you say. “And I’m sure your teammates will be delighted to have me there cheering them on, but it’s not them I want to watch.”

Lena lifts her head, brown hair in a bun that sits lopsided on the top of her head, adorably tousled from sleep.

“Oh yeah?” she asks, mouth curling up in a sleepy smirk.

“Yeah, there’s this midfielder I really like watching. About your height, wears the number five shirt. Loves getting stuck into a good tackle.”

“She sounds perfect,” Lena grins.

You concede - five more minutes in bed won’t hurt - and pull Lena back in for a cuddle, grazing your lips against her hairline as you reply with sincerity.

“She really is.”

[floofyfungi]

if any autobots ever manage to *rescue* alexis, starscream wouldn't take it well. Neighter would alexis.

Oh it would be such a mess.

It's been a year since Alexis was kidnapped. If the Autobots discovered her alive there would be shock, disbelief, and a whole lot of guilt. Especially from Optimus and Bumblebee. They accidentally abandoned her to the Decepticons. Others are wary, especially Prowl, like why the fuck is Alexis still alive? It makes no sense, she must be useful to Starscream in some way.

They're obviously going to try rescue her. But that is no easy task. The Autobots don't have a skybridge, and the groundbridge can only teleport them around Earth. Alexis is trapped on Cybertron. It will take the Autobots months to reach the ruins of Vos. And then they will somehow have to infiltrate a fortress crawling with seekers and escape with Alexis. It's practically a suicide mission.

Bumblebee volunteers.

Sari would want to come too. But the Autobots forbid it. There's no organic food on Cybertron, and at least their energon supplies don't rot. Bringing enough food for Alexis will be already be hard. Besides, putting Sari anywhere near Starscream is a supremely bad idea.

If the rescue was successful Alexis would view it as a kidnapping. She believes the Autobots are just as bad as the Decepticons and will constantly be on her guard around them. She thinks their kindness and friendliness is just a facade and she's waiting for the pin to drop. Alexis would be overjoyed to reunite with Sari though (and Fanzone).

Sari would try to get Alexis to warm up to the Autobots, but it would be a long hard road. Alexis trusts Sari, but she doesn't know what the Autobots have done to her. She would be planning her escape, secretly using her gemstone necklace to check on Starscream.

Starscream is not vibing. He is furious that the Autobots stole from him, enraged that it was Alexis they took, and livid that his soldiers failed to stop them. He has half a mind for Skywarp to just teleport him over Trimot so he can burn it to the ground. But Optimus Prime and hundreds of Autobots are in Trimot, even Starscream knows he cannot take them alone.

At least he knows where Alexis is and that she's alive thanks to the necklace. It's essentially an inbuilt tracker. Starscream would put every last plan on hold until he rescued Alexis.

But yeah the whole situation is a mess. Starscream and Alexis will not stop until they are reunited. And Alexis knows she has to hurry before Starscream does something drastic. The people of Trimot are innocent, she doesn't want them caught up in all this. Escape won't be easy though, not with Prowl and Jazz watching her every move.

Alexis tells no one of her friendship with Starscream, continuing the facade that she was a prisoner. She desperately wants to tell Sari, but knows she won't understand.

If Alexis does manage to escape and 'rescue' Sari from the Autobots in the process, things are going to get spicy.

[petitelepus]

Could I get a part 2 of this? https://www.tumblr.com/petitelepus/720941719332454400/tfa-team-prime-and-elite-meets-an-animal-wild-bot I’m thinking like where the Autobots see her in action and surviving fatal wound from the cons or she hanging out with wreck gar cuz ya know, dumb buddies!

Time passed and the Autobots hadn't heard anything about you. Maybe it was for the best, it appeared that your place really was in wild nature and Bumblebee was so thankful that he wasn't told to go and try to find you. The minibot truly hated nature.

And since they hadn't heard of you they slowly almost forgot you.. But only almost.

"Oi, we have a situation!" Ratchet snapped as he made his way to the common area, "There are some idiots wreaking havoc in the dumps!"

"Are there any signals?" Optimus asked and the cranky medic nodded, "Not just one, but two!"

"Are the Cons at it again?" Bumblebee asked.

"It could be her...?" Prowl mumbled mostly by himself, but he was heard anyway.

"Who?" Bulkhead asked and the Cyberninja glanced at his friend, "The feral femme we met some time ago."

"Oh, the one that made Sentinel scream like a sparkling?" Bumblebee asked and Prowl nodded, "Exactly the very same one."

"We have no time to waste. Autobots, roll out!" Optimus ordered and every Autobot transformed and took off... After a short drive, they arrived at the dumps, but they weren't prepared for what they saw.

"This is fun!"

"It is!"

"You're a funny guy!"

"I'm Wreck-Gar! I'm a funny guy!"

"What the frag is happening here?!" Ratchet snapped. It was you, most likely the dangerous and mysterious beast Bot...

But instead of wreaking havoc, you and Wreck-Gar out of all the Bots you could run into, were eating garbage like it was the most delicious thing ever.

"They seem to be enjoying the trash...?" Bulkhead wondered out loud.

"I think..." Bumblebee gagged, "I think I'm gonna be sick...!"

"Oh, no you won't!" Ratchet shouted, "I'm not cleaning after you!"

"We have to move on and secure her before Decepticons can," Optimus said and looked at the cyberninja, "Prowl, you got through her last time, didn't you?"

"I did make a small bond with her, yes." The sleek Autobot said and Optimus nodded, "Do you think you can try and talk to her and maybe Wreck-Gar also to join us?"

"I can try." Prowl said and Bumblebee gagged, "Please hurry before they eat something that crunches like bones!"

So Prowl moved to approach you and Wreck-Gar, but as soon as he made his way forward, you snapped your helm in his direction...

"Powor! Did you bring more candy to the Queen of the Forest?" You exclaimed and it took a moment for everyone to realize you were talking to Prowl.

So you had heard his name and remembered it!

...Somewhat?

Also, Queen of the Forest? The Bots shared confused looks and Prowl nodded quietly with a small smile, "No, but I got more candy back at our base. Would you like to come with us?"

"Us?" You blinked as you looked ahead and saw the rest of the team Prime standing there in a safe distance.

"They are friends," Prowl was saying but you scoffed, "Weaklings!"

"Hey!" Bumblebee snapped, "I heard that! We all did!"

You hissed as you got up and Prowl could tell that you were ready for battle...!

But Wreck-Gar smiled as he patted your back, "My Queen, would you like some snacks?" He asked as he showed you his palm and to Prowl's great confusion the Junkbot had gotten his hands into some energon candy.

"Gimme!" You immediately calmed down as you wolfed down the treats as if you hadn't eaten something suspicious just minutes ago.

"I see you are fond of candy," Prowl said, trying to talk and gain your trust. You glanced at him from the corner of your optics, "Yeah, so what?"

"Like I said, we have some candy back at our-!"

"I'm the Queen of the Forst and I'm staying here with my funny servant!" You exclaimed and the ninja nodded.

"Alright, I must warn you, there are many bad guys who might come after you." Prowl tried to reason with you, but you only scoffed.

"Let them come!" You boasted proudly, "I'll kick their asses!"

"I see your point," Prowl nodded, "Fine, I'll let you be, but you are always welcome to come and visit us at our base?"

"Hmp!" You scoffed, and the cyberninja quickly corrected himself, "I mean, if you stay around here, maybe me or one of my friends could come and check on you and how strong you have gotten?"

"Hm..." You pondered your words and Wreck-Gar smiled, "I'm Wreck-Gar and they are good guys!"

You nodded and crossed your arms over your chassis, "Fine, but you better bring me tons of candy!"

"We will," Prowl nodded and left you and Wreck-Gar to enjoy your treats. Once he made it back to his team, the Autobots looked at him in confusion.

"What happened?"

"We can't force her or Wreck-Gar to come." Prowl said, "We must build trust between us and her, like Wreck-Gar did."

"Uuh, have you seen those two!?" Bumblebee snapped, "One is a crazy idiot, and the other one is an egoistic beast!"

"Be as they are, they get along and we must thrive for the same."

"Well said Prowl." Optimus nodded, "Alright team, we are going to check on them every day and take turns. Prowl went today so are you alright coming here tomorrow Bulkhead?"

"Yeah, I'm fine with it." The big green Bot nodded and Bumblebee groaned, "Fine, but I won't be happy about it!"

[v3nusxsky]

May I request a platonic Lady Lesso x Student Reader? Where instead of Sophie, Rafal chose to use Reader instead. Then he decided to mind control them and Lesso tried her best to snap Reader out of it. Once Reader comes back, they feel extremely guilty because they accidentally hurt Lesso but Lesso's like "It's fine, sweetheart. I'm okay." Basically just hurt/comfort. I live for soft and motherly Lesso <333

I also just want to say that I really admire you. You're very talented and I love all your stories, they bring me so much comfort. Thank you, and I hope you're doing well!! :DD

-🦝

Hello my lovely 🦝anon, I really appreciate your kind words darling.I’m so glad my work brings you comfort.

I didn't mean to

*Authors note ~ My darling anons I must say I'm loving all of your requests and hearing from you all, thank you for making my life that little bit better with all your love and support*

Trigger warning~ manipulation mind control accidental violence

Prompt ~see ask ^^^^^

Rafal was truly a piece of work, you knew that. What you didn't know is why he wanted you. He could've picked any other Never student, yet he picked you to do his bidding. For a Never you were pretty well behaved, but ever since Rafal appeared you'd been doing things without thought, without a rhyme of reason.

At first people let it slip, maybe thinking you were just finally embracing your Never roots. But after a month or so, you began to take it too far. By now you had no control, your head hurt more often than not and you felt like another person entirely. Your heart hurt as you battled with yourself, why couldn't you feel in control of your own body and mind? Simply, it was because you were not in any form of control. Rafal had a plan and you were nothing more than a pawn to him in his very complicated chess match.

Leonora was fed up with this behaviour and she set out to put a stop to it. She had ordered you to be sent to the Doom Room, hoping she could scare you into stopping this or maybe even telling her why you were all of a sudden interested in mayhem. When she saw you strapped to the chair her heart ached, truly you were her good dove, she'd never thought you'd be here like this. "You, you, you" she purred prowling towards you. That was all it took for Rafal to enter your mind, only this time he allowed his voice to speak through you. "Leonora" he growled and she felt the colour drain from her face, "Rafal" she spat back watching as you some how managed to break through the restraints, well he did.

"Let her go Rafal, your problem is with me not her" she kept her tone harsh and firm showing she meant business yet all he did was cackle. "Your perfect soulmate hmm! Tell me why i shouldn't kill you and make her watch for fun and then kill her too." He taunted waiting for the reaction she gave instantly and instinctively coming towards your body, "fucking try me you bastard, you won't hurt her like you did me"

"Oh... but I already have" and with that your hand made contact with Leonora's face. Over and over again before tossing her body to the ground, your foot coming to press on her right knee that coincidently was injured by Rafal a few years previous. Very un Leonora like she let out a pained whimper and that seemed to awaken you from Rafal. You fought mentally to push him away and get to Lesso, after a few minutes successfully riding yourself from his clutches, his final words to Leonora being a reminder that he will be back, you'll both never be free of him.

You're head hurt, the room was spinning and your vision blurred at the corners of your eyes. What on earth had happened? You were trying to make out the blurry lump that lay on the floor in front of where you stood. When had you been let out? Your heart broke when you realised it was Lesso on the ground whimpering in pain, you quickly scanned the room realising no one else was here, you must have hurt her. But why would you do that to someone you love?

"I'm sorry I'm so so sorry Nora, I'm sorry I'm so so sorry" you apologised over and over coming to kneel down by her head. "It's fine, sweetheart. I'm okay." She all but whimpered out. "You're in pain! Because of me! I hurt you" you sobbed as the reality sunk in. "Sweetheart, listen to me. You didn't hurt me not you. You're such a good little one, it was Rafal, I'm so sorry I didn't protect you sweetheart but I promise that will change now. I'll protect you from him" at the promise you threw yourself into her arms.

You both sat on the floor, you whispering apologises and Leonora trying to tell you it wasn't your fault and Rafal was manipulating you based on the fact Leonora had feelings for you. You were are part to play in his idea of hurting her. It broke your heart and you only wished you could've been stronger. That you could've fought him harder. But here and now you had each other and you'd fight Rafal together, never leaving each others sides.

Word count ~ 900

[moa-broke-me]

PJO characters and what I think their music tastes are (by the way, the internet? No longer an issue for the purposes of this post)

Rachel Elizabeth Dare: Oh, she's cool. Her playlist is made up, almost entirely, of artists you've never heard of until just now. Think about it, she's in New York City, so many talented people are prowling for a chance to strike it big, and as a rich person, she feels she owes it to them to give them a chance, and if she likes them, to endorse them publicly. She's canonically part of the avant-garde performance art scene, so this really isn't much of a stretch.

Percy Jackson: I think he tells people he likes Jimmy Buffet and other people like him, and he does, especially 'brandy you're a fine girl', mostly for nostalgia's sake because Sally used to play that on long road trips, so it's not a lie. But it feels like one. He knows that when people ask that question, they're trying to figure out what kind of person you are, and wants to convey that he's just this easygoing guy, y'know? Easy, breezy, beautiful, covergirl. Harmless and unassuming and kinda goofy, not much going on under the surface. But there IS a lot going on under the surface, he IS angry, and listens to a lot of angry, angsty music. Smashing Pumpkins, Insane Clown Posse, that kind of thing. But if you hand him the aux, he's not gonna play any of that personal shit for you unless he really trusts you.

Annabeth Chase: She's that girl that pretends not to like pop music because she doesn't wanna come across as a vapid airhead, but she's also learned that answering 'classical' won't win her any cool points, so she caves and just says she doesn't have a preference. Most of the time she's listening to music, it's not even like... With intention. She's just listening to music because she can't clean her room in silence. And for the most part... Yeah it's Taylor Swift. With some Journey and Bo Burnham thrown in there for flavor. Although she does have some weird things in there picked up from the weather reports on welcome to nightvale, because she's a podcast girlie.

Nico diAngelo: I think his time in the casino has exposed him to a dizzying variety of music in really quick succession, meaning he's very open-minded and genuinely will listen to just about every genre, every era, at least once. Also, he doesn't think to catagorize by genre, or even vibes, he just puts them all into the same playlist the minute he finds out they exist. Dean Martin, Will Wood, and everything in between is home in his playlist.

Hazel Levesque: Hazel, on the other hand, was dead for all that time. So while she's open to new music, she hasn't had the opportunity to adjust to this generation's sonic landscape, so she mostly prefers the classics of her time, or modern music that tries to recreate that sound. Think 'I will always think of you' from the Bojack Horseman soundtrack.

Will Solace: He loves Dolly Parton and the Dixie Chicks with his whole Texan heart. His playlist contains mostly that, and some of his mom's work too, although he feels a little weird listening to it because, like, that's his mom. It feels weirdly personal to share that with other people, but it's nice too, having that closeness with people. He's more open than Percy, more willing to be vulnerable with the people he loves, because he doesn't see his authentic self as something to hide.

Piper McLean: She's a theater kid through and through. Yes, once upon a time, she wanted to be just like daddy. And she loves, absolutely loves, belting her heart out to the entire soundtrack of whatever musical she couldn't get out of her head. Last week it was Twisted, this week it's West Side Story, next week, who knows?

(If there's anyone you want me to cover, just ask!)

[aeonix-posts]

what are your current relationships for characters? (including or not including past relationships)

Let me summarize the relationships, I won't be explaining then FULLY since it'll be too long and complex. I'll start with Megatron!

Megatron - starscream: toxic exes, literally "wrong person, right time" hates each other but at the same time sympathizes for each other. Pure hatred and resentment

Megatron - Optimus: bitter exes who still aren't quite over each other just yet

Megatron - ratchet: never really got along, just enemies in general

Megatron - elita-1: really hates each other, megatrons happy that she's 'dead'

Megatron - Jetfire: Only knew each other during war, killed jetfire

Megatron - Thundercracker: Fond but not too fond, finds her useful and competent. She dislikes him for what he did to sts

Megatron - Skywarp: Only finds her teleportation ability useful, otherwise doesn't like her, and finds her annoying. She only uses hm as a source of income, doesn't care if he dies or anything

Megatron - Bumblebee: He dislikes the scout, and vice versa

Megatron - Ultra Magnus: Used to be acquaintances, no longer sees each other that much even on the battlefield

Megatron - Rodimus: Finds Rodi interesting, annoying, and laughable at the same time(in a negative way). Rodi dislikes him because he thinks Optimus is like that because of him, views him as a villain and nothing else

Megatron - windblade: finds her annoying, too assertive. She finds him annoying and will scold or bicker with him any time there's a temporary truce

Megatron - chromia: doesn't know who she is, sees her on the battlefield only. She knows him but never interacts(well, every autobot knows him)

Megatron - smokescreen: Rodimus 2.0 but more childish. Smoke also dislikes megs

Megatron - shockwave: dislikes his lack of emotions, but finds him useful nonetheless. Shockwave is loyal, but questions his choices sometimes

Megatron - soundwave: close, only one he trusts. Vents to him because soundwave prefers to listen rather than talk, close friends in general. Soundwave finds him bratty but still stays loyal and a close friend.

Megatron - lugnut: finds his loyalty and preaching annoying. Lugnut literally looks at him like he's primus.

Megatron - strika: he sees her as valuable asset. She has no opinions on him, still loyal though

Megatron - other seekers: useful and useless at the same time, they're expendable. They see him only as their leader, otherwise they aren't too fond of him in general

Megatron - cyclonus: Bickers with each other. No longer sees cyclonus since tailgate died.

Megatron - tailgate: who? Oh, that minibot STS killed? Ok.

Megatron - wheeljack: doesn't see him in battle often, knows he makes bombs. WJ likes to bomb him.

Megatron - Prowl: avoids each other at all costs

Megatron - Jazz: finds each other annoying

Megatron - cliffjumper: isn't that the guy I killed?

Megatron - blurr: hates each other in general

Megatron - arcee: "who?" Arcee only sees him in battle, finds him intimidating

...

Tell me if I missed anyone important! I'm trying to remember every character I know from the top of my head so I might have not mentioned the TF chars you were looking for🥲

[higekki]

@tetsunohai wrote: [ DODGE ]: sender tackles the receiver out of the way of an attack. /for hitomi? :ooooo

for such a slender individual, they hit like a train at full speed. the sudden impact knocks the wind out of her lungs, all breath escaping her in a single gasp for air as she twirls her sword, angling the blade so it won't hurt either of them in the fall. there is a shriek that cuts through the air in response to the narrow miss, but rather than striking fear in her heart, it drives her back to her feet, sword held tight in her hands. it's her job to protect sanataka-san until sunrise.

well, it's truthfully her job to defeat the demon before sunrise, but she doesn't want to leave sanataka-san on their own. they're capable, certainly, but there's no telling for sure how many demons are prowling about which means there's no way they could have accurately prepared for every possible situation. right? yes - it's her job as a strong swordswoman to protect those who are not as strong as herself.

" sanataka-san, please try to remain behind me! " her voice is firm and sharp, the voice of a girl who grew up learning to bark orders at anyone who crosses her path. but despite the harshness of her tone, there is nothing but concern in her words, eyes searching for their assailant in the darkness. " o-oh, and thank you for saving me! i shall repay the favor by killing this wretched monster and then i shall order you some ramen from one of the stalls back in town! with whatever toppings you want! money is no object for me so i refuse to take any objections! "

[transingthoseformers]

So warlord Twitch will also explain her logic to Mirage because besides Twitch he really only has arcee because he's not allowed in the prison area. So of course Mirage is young enough that Twitchs twisted logic makes sense to him as she just continues the circle of gaslighting herself into thinking this is okay(this will have consequences for Mirage) and yes you're probably right Twitch is probably far more insane than Megatron was near the end of earthsparks war

So Tara and Prowls history, they dated before and during the war until Prowl found out Tara lied about being neutral in the war because Tara was a con, so of course they had an awful break up and Prowl was angry for years

Smokescreen gets along really well with drift he likes his uncle

Yeah Starscream 100% feels betrayed by Novastorm and Skywarp he feels like he's been replaced with Arcee. He's not happy about it, Skywarp has debated talking about the issue with Starscream but she won't because she knows he won't listen

There are nights where Nightshade will sit infront of the three Stasis bots and tell them about what's happening and sometimes they'll just stare at Megatron and wonder what he would think about this situation

Ratchet will have Jawbreaker help him in the med bay to help Jawbreaker focus his anxious energy

Damn no yeah, poor Mirage. This will definitely influence his upbringing and his future role in the war not gonn as lie

oh twitch... this will not go well for you girly

Ohhhoh now that's an interesting taraprowl history, because I can see why Tara lied about being neutral (based on what i saw in canon i full well believe that Tarantulas never wanted to be a Decepticon and that he was forced to be one), and i can see why Priwl was pissed and heartbroken

Oooo on the trine drama because yeah.

ohhh nighty, yes. They're the protector of them, but that doesn't mean Nightshade has to forget they exist. I'm betting sometimes Nightshade contemplated bringing the trio out of stasis early.

Ooo, JB in the medbay and JB getting close to Ratty? That's gotta be interesting considering Ratchet's personality

[elfmoon3]

A Shadowy Mist Chapter 6 (Transformers Animated story)

Pairing: Prowl x Oc

Summary: The intruder turned out to be Meagan. What does she want with the Autobots?

Location: Autobot Hideout in Detroit, Michigan.

Meagan stood there in front of the Autobots and Sari. "Why'd you come in dressed up like, no offens to Prowl and Shadow Mist, A NINJA?!" Bumblebee yelled in question. "Better yet, why are you sneaking around?" Ratchet asked. "I saw something else sneaking in here. I think it is the reason why the train stopped on the railway." Meagan answered,"That still doesn't answer my question." Bumblebee said,"I'll get to your question later. Right now, we need to.." She was interrupted by the power going out. "Oook, now I'm scared!" Bumblebee screamed. "Everyone remain calm." Optimus commanded, "Let's investigate." He added. Meagan grabbed her mask and glasses and pressed a button on the side of the glasses to see in x-ray vision. And sees someone behind Optimus that ran off knowing they've been seen. "Optimus, to your left!" She yelled, Optimus grabbed his axe and threw it to block the intruder's escape. The power then comes back on to reveal that it was a small decepticon in black and red. "BrakeDown?" Shadow Mist said in surprise. The con known as BlackOut put his servos up and surrendered. "I guess I'm at a disadvantage." He said

Later

Shadow Mist and the others stared at BrakeDown, who is in stasis cuffs. "How'd you find our base?" She asked the con. "The same way I found your lab. By following you, I can't believe you stayed at that old place all those cyber cycles." He answered. "I still don't forgive you for what you did to Master Shade." She said, taking her katana out. But Prowl put his servo on her shoulder to tell her it's not worth it. She sighed, "Call the Elite Guard. They'll take care of him." She said, heading to her room. Prowl followed her. "Shadow Mist, wait." He said. She turned around and looked at him, she can't get over the fact that BlackOut would kill Shade. "Was BlackOut a student of Shade?" He asked. "He was, but his processor isn't all there. To be honest, he's crazier than Blitzwing." She commented. Prowl walked up to her. "Revenge isn't the best form of justice." He said as he lifted her head up with his servo. She felt that weird feeling again. As if her spark felt his. "Um, yeah, I guess you're right. But I still won't forgive him." She said, backing away and going into her room. Prowl sighed. He also felt that strange feeling. But he doesn't want it to think about it now. There's a decepticon in their own earth home.

Later the next day

BrakeDown somehow escaped, but he left something behind. "I'll see you again, creepbot?" Shadow Mist said his message out loud. "Bumblebee, weren't you talking to him earlier?" She asked. "No! Honest!" He said in panic. Prowl then noticed something on her head. "I think I know why he's been following you." He said, grabbing a tracking device that was attached to her head. She looks at it in shock.

Meanwhile, in the sky.

BrakeDown was in the sky talking to Starscream. "I told you I'm good at what I do. Now, we'll have the codes for Megatron's plan." He said. "Oh, I'm sure he'll be proud of you, BrakeDown." Starscream said sarcastically. "Hey, no need to be jealous, I'm not gonna take your position. Besides, my goal is far better than yours." He said as he switched to his flight mode. Starscream sighed and did the same as the two decepticons flew off.

To be continued...

[measuringbliss]

Spider-Man Read-Through 087 Puma (ASM 256-258, Ann 18)

MASTERPOST

Today, MJ's back and we get some revelations. Also, a wedding!

ASM 256 starts with a long battle where once again, Felicia takes pictures until she gets fed up and uses her powers. It's fun to see her powers, but otherwise, nothing new on the horizon.

Later, Peter finds his spare red-blue costume and wonders if he could ask his costume to look like it... but no, he can't dwell on his past.

Oops, the symbiote seems to not take kindly to someone suggesting it gets a bit more colorful. So it's clear that it takes Peter out on nights to prowl. And that night, it's the second time Spidey interferes with the Rose's business, which leads to one thing: he calls for Puma's help. He's basically Kraven.

Love those panels. Also love these two guys.

At the Bugle, Robbie tells Peter that he can't coast on the public's interest in photographs of Spider-Man forever. We know how that goes. Then, suddenly...!

Love her!

Her new gig calls for a party, but Peter's exhausted and declines. MJ asks Betty what's up with that...

This issue has nice panel work, by the way.

Spidey hurts his arm as he avoids the projectile.

Oh, I can feel the edginess, like those 3 random issues recently with a lot of blood. Not sure I like it. In the comments, someone says the arm thing has stayed in their mind for a long time, I can see why. It's kind of out of nowhere.

In #257, Felicia intervenes and quickly gets rid of the Puma. Peter's still hurt, however, and they get home. For a moment, the costume doesn't obey Peter's command...

Felicia's all of us, hahaha. She says he really should go see Reed Richards like he said he'd do.

Elsewhere, Fisk's unhappy about the Rose (his subordinate)'s decision to confront Spidey and calls for a meeting.

...Or the animal? Peter's kind of a jerk, that was never an issue before.

Felicia leaves, and just as Puma approaches Peter's flat (uh-oh), MJ arrives.

It's a bit chaotic. Just as Spidey manages to throw him and Puma out the window, MJ barges in again.

Elsewhere, Fist's meeting with the Rose gives us the opportunity to stare at his magnificent body.

He makes it clear that Spidey must not be harmed.

The fight continues and we get the same extremely repetitive exposition. I wonder when it will stop.

Eventually, Puma leaves and he later gets a visit from the Rose's partners-boyfriends, who tell him he has to stop. Puma's relieved.

But it's not the end, because the Hobgoblin's back and ready to help the Rose.

Change into his civvies?? The costume does it for him! A slight proof that the writer is on autopilot.

Upset, MJ confesses to Peter that she knows his secret.

By the way, I love this new logo we got going on.

In issue #258, MJ explains she left NY because she couldn't handle being so worried about Peter.

Then Felicia barges in, because of course she does. Oops.

Felicia, girl, calm down. But Peter suffering is a joyous sight, so let's take it in. It's now more clear than ever that Spidey/Black Cat won't last much longer. I wish it had actually been more dramatic, because as it is, MJ isn't given many pages...

Bahaha, she gets right back in his arms.

Meanwhile, Puma prepares for his rematch with Spidey, and MJ gives us her backstory.

Ooooh.

Oh this is great. Very meta but also canonically true. And on-page, the symbiote takes possession of Peter.

It clearly doesn't know about recommended sleep conditions. And oh boy, does Peter dream.

I'm pretty sure there's a similar scene in TAS. But the sky is pink there, it's better.

Given that last panel, I'm fine with Peter's new choice of underpants. And Peter fiiiiinally goes to Baxter Building.

Because we need three fight scenes in each issue, we get one where the Hobgoblin proves he's the real deal to the Rose. It also helps reestablish him, of course.

And finally...

Oops.

The symbiote resolutely refuses to separate itself from Peter, but Reed uses his sonic blast to get it off him.

There's a "Kick me" sticker behind his back, hehe.

Spidey stops a crime in this suit and gets harassed by journalists wanting to know who he is. Interesting to see how the public's perception of super-heroes has evolved.

In Reed's lab...

What a great concept.

Meanwhile, MJ visits Peter. She's ready to tell him about her past.

In annual 18, that I'm skimming through, Jameson and Marla Madison get married! Nice.

PETER KEEPS KISSING MEN.

Jameson goes to visit his son to a care facility, and John is not happy about the wedding. I'll be honest, I don't know what's going on with him ever since he disappeared from that big bridge. Meanwhile, McGargan (The Scorpion) escapes from prison and captures John, Peter's the only Bugle employee to not have received an invite, and Ned's back.

Oh...

Anyway, action ensues, John sees that Jonah and Marla would do anything for each other, and he decides to intervene.

Ooooh...

Love this. And of course, Jonah asks the Scorpion to kill him.

Spider-Man intervenes, naturally.

This is very much "dad talks to his gay son" talk.

This is nice.

[jjungkooksthighs]

“Suck on my fingers, whore. Since you like to use your mouth so much, let’s put it to good use.” He brusquely orders. As he finishes, he runs the pads of his fingers along her soft tongue, her spit wetting them as he does. He’d never forget the first time he’d taken him into her mouth. Gods, she had been exquisite. Dressed in that gown that had been the color of wheat, its gossamer material had been spun of the finest white thread. That perfectly fitted bodice had opened along her chest in a ‘v’ that the inside of her breasts had peeked through. Underneath that, a thick band the same color circling her waist. And gods, when she’d gotten down on her knees and that skirt of hers had pooled around her, she had been the picture of regality. He’d wanted to ruin her. Even the facial colorings she’d had around her eyes had not been smeared when she’d tentatively taken his cock between her lips for the first time. But oh, he remembers how her eyes had watered when he’d pushed his cock so deep into her mouth that he’d hit the back of her throat. It had been an ecstasy he had never known existed. He’d had so many fantasies about her that he’d lost count. So many nights he’d held himself in his hand, his mind full of imagined scenarios and happenings that only included her as the main attraction. Nothing could ever compare to the real thing. And she certainly had become skilled in giving. He’d made sure of that.

That is why he has no reservations when it comes to playing with her mouth as draws his fingers up and down her warm, wet tongue and she lets him. With each pass of his fingers over it, her eyes gradually flutter closed as if she, too, is thinking of the his cock is so much heavier, so much larger, than his two fingers.

“Close your mouth and suck, slut. Do I need to tell you again, or is it that you want me to fuck your face like the whore you are?”

She whimpers around his fingers, and the vibrations draw a guttural moan out from him. His eyes threaten to grow heavy, closing them just for a second as he lets himself get lost in the sensation of it all. Fuck.. she was not even trying yet, and he was already losing control. Wait.. why wasn't she trying? "If I have to tell you once more, omega.. you won't like it." he threatens, his eyes flying open again to gaze down at her disheveled form. She looked like sin incarnate. If he could, he would have taken her against the fucking floor by now. But, she didn't earn it. Not yet. The growl in his voice has her scampering forward, her lips trembling as she down at the ground her eyes flitting around nervously. She couldn't tell why she was so.. shy, all of a sudden. A low snarl leaves him, and that is enough have her get to the task on hand. Slowly, she wraps her lips around the length of his fingers, a small whine leaving her when she feels him press down on her tongue once more. Her heart stutters in her chest, and her already weak legs feel like jelly beneath her. Why was she so shy?!

Her thoughts are skittish as a doe all alone in a meadow. They hide in the grasses of her diffidence, and he prowls before her knowingly.

Of course she would choose now to begin to yield. He’d taken from her the ability to run. He’d rendered her incapable of leaving him. Even if she wanted to, and he knew she didn’t, she couldn’t.

Those now innocent, widened eyes gaze into his, and when he feels those tentative lips of hers close around his fingers, he groans and rubs his fingers along the soft tissue of her tongue.

“You wonder why you’re so shy, omega.” His irises flicker to the valley between her breasts, his sight attached to the way those perfectly round breasts move up and down as she swallows the air he grants her with the momentary lapse in the force of his grip he has around her neck. “It’s because you’ve realized now that there’s no escape for you. You have your safe word, but we both know you won’t use it.” His thumb sweeps itself down along the side of her throat, the pad of his digit brushing along the largest of the raised punctures, “we both know you want what is going to happen because you want me.” His other fingers curl inward so his nails lightly graze her skin. At the same time, he inches his digits even deeper into the cavern of her mouth. “You know, deep down, that you deserve to be punished. You you want it rough. You want it hard. And you want it fast, don’t you, omega?”

She can’t deny it. The evidence is there between her legs. It is there in the scent of her arousal that fragrances the air like a fucking censer.

She needs him. Needs him to do something. Anything to relieve the need flaring in her core.

Please… she begs. Please alpha.

He tuts. “Ah, ah, ah. That’s not the answer I’m looking for. Try again.”

[zarvasace]

It All Began, 5/5

This whole fic is silly. Oh well. Suffer with me. Here's the end! (after like four months aha whoops) It's about 4k, rated T for scifi guns and explosions. AO3 link to this chapter is right here. :)

--

After they left the too-familiar, small room, Shadow took them on a short detour. Zelda had never seen this ship, at least outside of other people's memories, but she trusted him enough to follow him. The thought made her pause and inspect her own feelings a little closer. 

She followed him closely, never straying more than a step or two behind him. A few guards and custodial workers prowled on their routes, and though Zelda wouldn't have thought it of him, Shadow seemed to know exactly where those routes were. He avoided the guards easily. The two of them began to descend, using narrow staircases to go down into the very hull of the ship. 

Yes, Zelda felt affection for him, a shallower, newer version of what she'd always felt for Link. She didn't think they were out of the woods yet, but she decided to do what she could to help them all survive, and not kill each other over past offenses. 

She also felt a little pity, she realized as she watched Shadow grab at his pendant for the upteenth time. (She would never, ever tell him that. He'd snarl at her.) To Zelda's limited senses at the moment, he wasn't doing well physically. Emotionally, she couldn't be sure, but she'd guess that wasn't much better. 

"Are you all right?" she asked lowly, under the pneumatic hum of the door in front of them sliding open. 

"Still no," Shadow said with a bite in his voice. Sparks danced over his exposed arms, and he didn't look at her. They proceeded, then paused in front of the next door that slid open with a wave of Shadow's pendant. 

"Can I… do anything to help?"

"No. Let's just… do what we came to do. Don't make me regret bringing you along."

Zelda smiled, struggling to turn it into something not sad. "Oh, don't worry. You won't. Where are we?" The room he'd taken them to was fairly large for a ship this size, cluttered with desks and chairs along the walls, with one massive pillar in the middle. 

"The engine room. It's just a stop. I need…" Shadow disappeared behind the pillar for a moment, then reappeared to snatch a piece of clothing from the ground. He held it up and slid it on—a jacket. She wondered if he'd just dropped it earlier, and why they'd taken a detour to come get it. 

Shadow's face didn't give her much. The engine's light threw airbrushed shadows over his translucent skin. He didn't look real. 

He nodded to himself and went to pull up some holoscreens above one of the desks. Zelda stood behind him, watching as he pulled up schematics and different overlays on a map of the ship. She couldn't quite follow, but he pointed to one of the sections. 

"That's where they are. I think they're fighting him right now, a lot of guards have been deployed to that section. Can you shoot?" 

"I'm not bad," Zelda responded, frowning at the map. They weren't far. 

"Here." Shadow opened a panel in the wall, revealing several weapons. He slid one of the full, glowing force capsules into a zap rifle and handed it over. The capsule bled through the body of the rifle, lighting it up. 

Zelda took it and looked it over, making sure she could figure out what everything did. Luckily, it wasn't an esoteric model. She slung it on her back and took the other weapons Shadow handed to her, one after the other—a bandolier full of smaller force capsules, at least three handheld blasters, a plasma knife, several different kinds of grenades, an armored vest that felt full of more toys, a first aid kit… Honestly, she didn't think she'd need it all. But the weight comforted her a little. 

Shadow took a few things for himself, then led her out of the engine room. The doors burned with red light as they closed, and he mentioned that they were locked from both sides, now. They walked quickly through the corridors, just shy of running. 

It didn't take them long to get to a long, dark, chilly room that houses six cryotubes. Zelda's heart remained in her throat the entire time they remained in that room, fiddling with the settings of the tubes and carefully loading them into the lifeboats at the side of the room. She had always known they were here, but to actually see them for the first time since they'd disappeared… Well, she resolved to think about it and be emotional later. 

"They'll be safe and cared for at the castle," Zelda said, inputting the coordinates into the lifeboats controls. She left the small ship and watched the doors close. "They'd be so mad at me if they knew that I'm not going with them."

"With any luck, they won't ever know." Shadow tapped a screen on the wall, and the lifeboat disappeared, launched toward the bright spot of the Plains in the distance. "Come on, we have other things to do."

"Right." Zelda turned away from the doors and followed him back out into the ship's network of hallways. They picked up a quick pace again. 

As they walked, Zelda kept hearing muffled shouts and explosions. That could only be the Links, her friend-now-friends. He'd always loved explosions, and she'd always find him at the center of all the chaos. Her ears rang with anxiety. 

It didn't take them long to run into the first squad of guards. 

"Captain," Shadow snapped. Zelda folded her arms behind him and wished that she'd picked up a mask or helmet of some kind. The emergency strip lights cast a lot of pale shadows, so perhaps they wouldn't notice her. 

"Sir," one of the guards said, standing straight. "We're responding to the summons—"

"You're no longer needed," Shadow told them. "You can go back to your post."

One of the other guards held up a communicator, still clearly pulsing red. "The summons hasn't ended…"

"What did I say?" Shadow snapped. 

Another squinted into the darkness around Zelda. "That's the princess…"

Shadow sighed, then pulled out a blaster. A bright bolt of blue hit one of the guards in the chest, and they went down. The others scrambled to find cover or pull out their own weapons. 

Zelda's own heart rate shot up as she backed up to one of the walls, finding a hidden spot behind a support strut. She unhooked a smaller blaster from her belt and tapped her thumb on the safety. It powered up with a slight whine. 

In the middle of the corridor, Shadow hadn't moved. The dim light worked in his favor as he harnessed a limited amount of magic to bend the darkness around him. He drew fire, but every bolt careened the wrong way at the last second, directed by his hand, leaving him untouched. 

The energy expenditure clearly strained him, though. Shadow kept one hand wrapped around his pendant, and he nearly glowed with power. It worried Zelda, but she focused on aiming at the guards instead of tuning into his physical health. She kept her blaster on low, stunning the guards rather than killing them. Perhaps they could find their way off this ship before it was destroyed—if they ended up destroying it. Chances were probably good. 

A shot grazed Zelda's arm, but if she ignored the very real danger, she could enjoy the adrenaline. She'd been locked up for far too long. 

When the last bolt flew and the last guard fell, Zelda ran up to check on the guard Shadow had shot. Her fingers found their pulse, and she sat back. 

"I didn't kill them," Shadow said, somewhat petulantly. He didn't glow anymore, but the darkness still clung to him, and he didn't let go of his pendant. He looked worn out. 

"I realize. Shadow, you'll burn yourself up if you keep going like that." Zelda stood, though she didn't holster the blaster in her hand. 

Shadow waved. "I'll be fine. Come on, that won't be the last group of guards we run into before we get there. The more we take out, the easier it'll be for them."

Though she hesitated, Zelda nodded. She didn't reach out with her hand, but she poked him with her senses, and had to hold back a grimace. They kept walking. 

They took care of four more groups of guards, working together better each time. Zelda wasn't an awful shot, and hit more than she missed. Although Shadow's aim was better, he defended more than he fought. The two of them may have had their blasters on low, but the guards didn't. One singed eyebrow was enough for Zelda. 

The sound of a small battle reached Zelda's ears long before she saw the flashes from the blasters. She and Shadow paused at the intersection, the last few guards dropped unconscious under their feet.

Someone swore out there, loudly, followed by a burst of quick gunfire. 

Shadow and Zelda glanced at each other. 

"Vaati has regeneration," Shadow said quietly and quickly. "They're probably dealing with that right now. I can stop it, but it'll also set the ship on a self-destructive course. Once the regeneration is gone, they'll probably get him quickly, and then you—we'll all need to get out of there fast. There's a small ship called the Dragon out in the dock that way, less than thirty seconds if you run." He pointed.

Zelda narrowed her eyes, but nodded. "What do you need to do?" 

"I need to get to the computer." Shadow's free hand reached into the pocket of his jacket, clutching something she couldn't see. 

"I'll cover you," she promised, switching out the small blaster she'd been using for the zap rifle on her shoulder. 

"You need to stay safe." Shadow hesitated, pulsing with that ubiquitous cyan light, then pulled the necklace off his head and handed it to her. "Take it."

Her hand reached out to hold it before her mind caught up. The crystal-shaped pendant felt fizzly and warm against her skin. "Wait, you need this."

"Not for dealing with the computer. You'll need it to start up the Dragon if I'm not there." His expression didn't let her argue. "You need to go on ahead and get it started as soon as I get to the computer bay, all right?" 

Zelda hesitated, but nodded. She strung his necklace over her head. "All right. But don't forget that you still owe me some debts for all those six-seal slap games I won." 

Without his pendant and the force it brought, Shadow already looked sick again. But he managed to twist a wry smile. "Yeah, I know. A couple spa nights and a chocolate cake, right?" 

"And your life story," she reminded him, matching the smile. 

"Right… I forgot I bet that." He shook his head and peeked around the corner. "On three."

Penumbra

 "—three!" Shadow said, and Zelda followed him through the wide-open doors. 

Thankfully, this airlock was not the same one that he'd almost tried to throw Vio out of. This one was about twice as big, meant for trash and small ship docking in an emergency. It had the same basic configuration, of a service room that looked out into the pressurized chamber with hexagonal windows, and a raised computer bay to the side. Usually, crates stacked in the corner provided little nooks and crannies to hide in, but anything stored in the room had already either been blown to bits or lay askew and charred. 

The boys' strategy here appeared to be pretty similar to before, at least from what Shadow could tell. Blue had another barricade set up, this one much heftier than the one he'd used before. It used steel struts to support the force field. Blue and Red sat behind it, distracted for the moment as Red tended to a rather nasty, oozing graze on the side of Blue's face. 

Vaati had not been caught unprepared. He clearly knew their plan was to shove him out the airlock, and he was not amenable to being shoved any farther than he already had been. He'd messed with his own DNA too many times, and the regeneration left ugly brown streaks across his graying skin. 

At least they'd gotten him into this room, though it would be difficult to get him out the airlock. He didn't have his power armor—thank the stars—but he did have rather tough normal armor, a lot of magic, a number of guards, and that Din-damned regeneration. 

Each hit Green landed with his sword (where did he find a plasma sword? Shadow thought those were banned for guards on this ship) marked up Vaati's armor, but each wound closed with a flash of cyan glitter. Vaati's skill couldn't stand up to Green's, but it didn't matter if he just couldn't die. 

Vaati shouted when Green managed to cut off his hand. It grew back in a matter of seconds, but Shadow let himself smile at the small victory. 

The guards at the entrance of the room seemed to have a hard time deciding what to do. Shadow didn't see a commanding officer among them, which made them easier for Zelda to pick them off and clear a path for Shadow to get up to the stairs. Shadow didn't dare use more magic than he had to, he could already feel his skin itching. This body wasn't strong enough to exist without force, and he didn't have another one waiting, but he just had to last long enough to finish this.

Vio stood up by the computers, using a rifle much like Zelda's to keep any enterprising guards off of the others' backs. He had the commands for the airlock ready for the moment that Vaati got stuck behind the windows. He noticed Zelda immediately, his eyes going wide, but didn't see Shadow right off. 

"Zelda?! We've been looking for you!"

At his call, Red and Blue looked over, too, their expressions lightening at the sight of the princess standing there, absolutely kitted out with explosives and a blaster in her hands. 

Zelda smiled and found a spot near the corner to help take care of the last remaining guards. "But we found you first, so I guess we win!" 

"We?" Vio's eyes sought out another person, and found Shadow, making his way up to the computers and hidden by the smallest amount of magic. His face went white. "Oh, right. Clone. You had another…." His voice trailed off. 

A burst of sharpened wind made them both duck beneath the rail at the edge of the computer bay. Something sparked, and the light bounced off of Vio's bright eyes. Shadow could almost imagine that the two of them were back yesterday, hiding from the guards with a bag of chocolate snacks between them. 

"Body?" Shadow finished. "Yeah. Get up and help Zelda get rid of the guards."

"What are you going to do?" Vio asked, readjusting his hold on his rifle. He peeked over the rail and let a shot fly. Somewhere out there, Green shouted, and a larger explosion went off. 

Shadow rose and disabled the airlock controls. "I'm gonna turn off Vaati's regeneration." 

"You can do that?" Vio asked, standing at his back.

The explosion settled, leaving Vaati sparking and hopping mad, but still alive. He yelled at the guards, who jumped into chaotic action. Steam and smoke billowed through the air, and Shadow knew he'd have a hard time aiming, but Vio didn't miss. No wonder Green hadn't actually died. The number of guards dropped steadily. 

Shadow didn't answer Vio's question. He reached into the pocket of Vio's jacket and pulled out the chip he'd seen video-Vio tuck in there, just before deciding to not kill Shadow. It… well. Shadow wasn't over it. But he appreciated that Vio hadn't actually gone through with it. Would he have, eventually? Maybe. It didn't really matter, because Shadow was doing it to himself, now. 

He plugged the chip in and pulled up the commands. It really was an elegant little program, simple but extremely effective, and irreversibly devastating. Vio was amazing. 

A sharp pain in his left wrist made Shadow hiss and pause in his task to grab at the spot. Under his fingers, a growing crack in his skin leaked drops of darkened blood. The crack spread along with the pain, forking and branching across his hand and up his arm. 

Vio glanced at him, lips tight. "You need force—don't you have a spare necklace?" 

"Zelda has it," Shadow answered, pulling his hand away from his wrist and pushing through the pain to finish loading the program. "Y'all need it to get the Dragon started and get out of here."

"You are not initiating meltdown," Vio said harshly. "Don't you dare. I thought you were dead."

"To be fair, I was."

It wasn't as if they had another option. Shadow glanced out at the room, at Blue thrown against a wall, at Red with a few angry burns across his face, and at Green, who didn't appear to have much more time to fight effectively. He was closer to being thrown out the airlock than Vaati was. That plan might have worked under other circumstances, but… 

If Vaati won this fight, Shadow probably wouldn't survive, anyway. He wouldn't ever be Vaati's little henchman again, even if Vaati could look past freeing Zelda and the Maidens. But if Vio and the others won this fight, they'd be free, with a nice little ship and Zelda and a not-insignificant amount of money hidden away in the hard drives. Shadow wasn't ever meant to exist. He might as well accept it. 

Shadow pressed the keyboard button that started the program, a small little noise that set off a chain reaction. He looked back at Vio defiantly. 

A light in the computer bay began to flash red, and then a few others joined it. A deep sound echoed through the ship, and the ground under their feet bucked once. The main lights dimmed, while the emergency strip lights flickered on. 

More wind cut across Shadow's face, but the abrasive blow didn't exactly hurt as much as the destabilization crawling across his left shoulder. His hand didn't move anymore. He grimaced, but leaned against the rail to watch the end of the fight. 

Green distracted Vaati with a well-placed strike on his leg, while Blue popped up behind him to land a shot in his back. They both looked surprised when Vaati fell to a knee and didn't immediately heal up. Red came in next, throwing what looked like a fishing net on fire so it wrapped around Vaati's torso. Shadow had to hold in a laugh. It kind of felt good to watch them wail on him. 

With another few small shots from Vio and another big one from Blue, Vaati went down. They'd broken through his subdermal plating and crushed his brain, and without the engine up and powering his regeneration, he didn't get back up. 

Speaking of the engine… Shadow glanced at a screen, noting the progression of the meltdown. The safety measures installed meant that the engine probably wouldn't explode, and that the ship would continue drifting safely through orbit for a while. The pain of the destabilization crept up Shadow's neck, and his hand had all but dissolved into ash, leaving a faint structure of bone and tendon behind. 

"What happened?" Green called, stumbling over with Blue and Red close behind. They eyed Shadow with outright suspicion and hostility, though Red maybe looked a little sadder than that. 

"Engine meltdown," Vio answered, setting his rifle to standby and pushing it behind him. "The life support systems should keep working for a while, but this ship isn't going anywhere anytime soon."

Blue scowled. "We're trapped?" 

Zelda climbed up to the computer bay and pulled the necklace off her head. "No, there's a ship we can take. Here, Shadow, take this, you need it." She pressed the pendant into his uninjured hand, but Shadow pushed it back. 

"The engine's down," he began, but the cracks spread across his throat, and his voice faltered. His heart beat erratically, and his stomach cramped with more than just the cracking. He'd known this would happen, but it was pretty awful. The vision in his left eye tunneled slowly. 

Vio answered for him. "That—and pretty much every other force capsule on this ship—was powered by the engine. With it down… Come on. We'll get out to the Dragon." He put his shoulder under Shadow's right arm. 

Shadow tried to shake his head, to refuse to slow them down, but time and thoughts slipped through his mind like the sands of Ridgeland into its canyons. It did make him feel a bit better to have Vio dedicated to saving his life, though. He didn't know if he could be saved, and he was pretty content with what he'd managed to accomplish, but it felt nice to have someone try. 

His feet left the ground, and Shadow ducked his head into whoever picked him up. The pain consumed pretty much every thought he held onto. 

Things moved. Things rumbled. People spoke and shouted. Shadow decided not to worry about it. 

He fell, and something cool surrounded him. 

Hearth

Red pushed the last crate into place, latched the buckle, and pulled the strap tight to prevent it from moving. This ship—Shadow's, according to Vio—was well-stocked, for the most part. There was a little food, plenty of water, and plenty of ammunition. He'd found a small stack of novels in the munitions closet, too, stories that seemed like the sort Vio might enjoy. He didn't know what Shadow would like. 

The Dragon slipped smoothly through the stars, quiet inside as they recovered from that last fight. Red sported a few patches of his own, healing the burns on his face, though he hoped that he got to keep at least one scar. He left the closet and crept through the ship, checking on the others. 

Green and Blue shared the cockpit, talking quietly about supply lists and next steps. They'd decided to head to Lost Haven first, a wet world with arboreal creatures like the Deku and the fairies, to pick up anything they needed and contact the Plains. Just because Vaati was gone didn't mean that the danger was. Sorcerer Enterprises had a large reach. 

With the ship's controls in his hands, Green looked more at ease than ever, and Blue's responses came slowly as his eyelids drooped. Red caught Green's eye and shared a quiet smile and a nod. They were safe from randomly exploding bombs, probably. 

Red slid the door half-shut and continued. Zelda had passed out on one of the bunks not long ago, so he stepped lightly through the living space. She'd told them a bit about her stint in a cell, and how she and Shadow had sent the Maidens back to a safe place on the Plains. Hopefully she'd be all right, both coming out of that and dealing with four Links where there used to be one. 

The Dragon had the bare necessities when it came down to the tiny medbay. Red peeked inside to see Vio napping in the single chair, Shadow's jacket draped across his lap. The stasis tube laying next to him cast a faint orange glow across his face. 

The tube held what was left of Shadow. According to Vio, he could be revived in theory, but none of them were medical experts. Shadow's body had apparently always been rather unstable, and Vio expressed the desire to do something about that, if possible. Red didn't know how that would happen, but they might be able to get some clues from the fairies on Lost Haven. And if they didn't know, maybe the Zora on Domain would. Their healing talents were legendary for a reason. 

Content that everybody on the ship was safe and getting the rest they needed, Red grabbed one of the blankets from the living space, one of the more interesting novels from the closet, and wedged himself between a window and a supply crate to pass the time.