#PLEASE just one murder okay. after one i'll stop (fingers crossed behind my back)

[mommysorryshizun]

I am TIRED of sad ruoyao I want them to KILL PEOPLE AND GET AWAY WITH IT 

[randomshyperson]

Wanda Maximoff x Reader - Angrily in love

Summary: Wanda and Reader are on the run after a mission goes wrong, and they do not have a good relationship. When Wanda is approached in a diner by strange men, Reader confronts them. And some other things. Based on prompt from stay-casual, thanks again dear.

Warnings: Language; All fluff, but also humor. enemies stubborn idiots to lovers.

Words: 3.002 K ////// Read on AO3

Marks > @stay-casual @mionemymind @wandamaximoffpuppy

You and Wanda didn't get along very well.

Which was a problem since you were running away together.

It all started two and a half weeks ago, and honestly, you would blame Steve if anyone asked.

You were both assigned to an infiltration mission into a drug trafficking headquarters in Mexico. It was not your typical job, but there was evidence of Hydra involvement.

And so you and Wanda were team partners, and everything was going very well, until she pissed you off for some reason, and the two of you started to argue. Maybe you miscalculated the impact of your words, because the second you call her "angry little witch" Wanda used her magic to push you, but before you could think of fighting back, there were about fifteen rifles pointed at both of you.

Disguise completely blown, Wanda was quick enough to get you two out of there, and with the entire country on alert, you needed to keep a low profile until it was safe to return to the compound.

So now you were forced to deal with each other's company, and you broke your cell phone when Natasha sent a emoji and a message telling you guys to enjoy your vacation.

At this moment you were driving the van that you managed to steal from the barracks before you left, while Wanda slept in the passenger seat. You reached out to turn on the radio for a bit, but when you started humming the music, it stopped playing. Looking quickly to see what had happened, you let out an incredulous sigh as you saw the familiar red light dissipate in the air.

- I'm sleeping. - Wanda grumbled, and you frowned in irritation as you turned on the radio again.

- Not my problem.

The music started again, but then stopped. You let out a angry whimper.

- Be quiet. - She said without opening her eyes.

And then you turned the sound back on. And Wanda turned it off. And then you did it again. This went on for three minutes, until you hit the brakes, and Wanda opened her eyes with the sudden movement.

- My God, what is your problem? - She shouted, and you ignored the honking sounds behind you as you took the keys off.

- You know what, Maximoff? - You replied angrily, unbuckling your seat belt. - You're driving now.

You dropped the key in her lap, and got out of the vehicle. Turning around, you opened the back door of the van and climbed in. You heard Wanda grumble angrily as she jumped into the driver's seat, but you just leaned against the wall of the van and closed your eyes. A minute after she started the car, you heard the sound of the radio.

Ignoring the urge to break the equipment, you decided to fall asleep.

//-//

Driving for about three hours, Wanda finally parked the van. The lack of movement woke you up, and you yawned lightly as you stretched.

You heard the door open and close, and caught a glimpse of Wanda's red hair as she walked away from the van, so you got out next.

It was a motel, and judging by the amount of cars in the parking lot, it was decent enough to not have diseases in the sheets.

You hurried to catch up with Wanda, and when she entered the reception area, she didn't hold the door, and you almost hit your face on the wood. Swearing softly, you then entered.

- Good evening. - You heard her greet the receptionist, who didn't look very pleased to serve more people. - Two rooms please.

- Sorry, honey. - He said chewing on a small stick between his teeth. - We only have one spare room.

- Wait, what?

- It's the season for Los Muertos, senorita. - clarified the man, and seeing Wanda's expression, he added. - All the places will be crowded with tourists, you are lucky to find anything available around here. - He says with a fake disappointment in his voice.

Wanda let out a sigh, while you were distracted by the fish in the aquarium on the premises.

- It's okay, Wanda, you can sleep on the couch. - You tease without looking at her, but she ignores your comment and hands the money for the room to the receptionist.

- Have a nice stay. If you want something to eat besides the minibar, there is a dinner behind the pool area. - The man says as he hands over the key. Wanda doesn't smile, and leaves the place, you lightly tap your fingers on the aquarium while smiling at the fish before following her.

You two walk to the room in silence, and you sigh as you enter, observing the place. It was simple, yet cozy. The redhead commented softly "thank god" when she notices that there are two beds, and threw the bag she was carrying on top of one of them, before walking to the bathroom, while you start looking for the remote control.

//-//

Two days sharing the same room, and you were surprised that you hadn't killed each other yet. There were a few arguments, mainly over having to share the television, or the delay in the shower, but otherwise things were going pretty well.

It was lunchtime, and you had just used the street phone to try to get in touch with Natasha when you saw Wanda leave the room in the direction of the dinner. She gave you an angry look before she left, and you rolled your eyes before following her, after all, you were starving.

- Why are you following me? - she asked angrily as you walked beside her.

- I'm not following you, I'm going to lunch. The restaurant is not yours. - You retort, and she rolls her eyes.

- God, and you have to have lunch with me now?

- Who says I'm having lunch with you? - you retort impatiently. - I intend to sit fifteen tables away.

- Great!

- Great indeed! - You retort as she opens the door and hurries inside, taking a seat at one of the first empty tables. You curse softly to yourself, and then enter the restaurant.

Unfortunately the only empty table you can find is the one in front of Wanda, and you can see her staring angrily at you. You smile wryly in her direction, and she waves her middle finger at you. But then the waitress approaches, and she looks away. You scold yourself for holding your gaze on her longer than necessary, and then you are served next.

The restaurant was considerably crowded, there were many groups of diverse people eating together, and you noticed that there were also truck drivers, and families, and even young people your own age. Fortunately the service was very good, and soon you were having some fries and meat.

You were finishing your milkshake, slightly distracted by the newspaper that was left on the table for the customers, when a sound of male laughter caught your attention.

Two men, considerably older than you, approached Wanda's table, both exchanging mischievous laughs.

- Come on, let's ask her out. - You heard one of them remark with a chuckle. And then you were already getting up, anger boiling in your chest.

- Hi there, sweetheart, what's your name?

- I'll give you five seconds to leave before I shove my shoe up your ass! - you shouted before Wanda could answer anything. Both men looked at you with a mixture of surprise and disbelief.

- Who the hell are you? - One of them sneered, but you shoved him hard enough to make him realize that you were no ordinary girl as he stumbled backwards, his eyes flashed with fear.

- Leave her alone.

The man stumbled backwards poking his friend in the chest, and they both gave you a angry look before leaving. The restaurant was bubbling over with small comments, but you exchanged a glance with the waitress and she didn't seem willing to kick you out for this.

You turned to Wanda next, and she had a very annoyed expression on her face.

- Fine, Wanda, what is it? - you asked impatiently when noticing her face.

- I don't need your help. - She retorted angrily. - I can handle these things just fine on my own.

- Wow, you are really ungrateful. - You sneer, crossing your arms. You look around for a moment, and notice that men in the same profile are still assessing Wanda from afar. You feel your body boil with irritation at the malicious looks they cast at her, and you stare back at them, a murderous expression on your face. They exchange a startled look and you wait for them to stop looking before turning your attention to the redhead - Can I sit with you?

- Excuse me? - she asks angrily, but doesn't even wait for you to answer. - No way! Piss off!

- You are so annoying. - You grumble before going back to your desk.

But you're not even hungry anymore, feeling a strange irritation at the tip of your stomach as you remember the way the men looked at Wanda, so you take the last sips of your milkshake and stand up again. Wanda pretends you don't exist as you walk past her table, and you roll your eyes at the childishness.

- Good afternoon. - You greet the cashier with a smile. - Sorry for the mess. The idiots were harassing my...colleague.

The cashier smiles, accepting the money you gave her. Then she frowns at the amount, and you clear your throat when you say to include Wanda's table bill as well, and she just nods in agreement.

- She's a pretty girl. - The cashier comments as she separates the money. You make a noise of agreement, without really paying attention. - She seems like the kind of girl who breaks not only boys' hearts.

She gives you a suggestive look, and you blink in surprise, averting your eyes and feeling your face heat up.

- Thank you. - You grumble as you get your change.

Leaving the restaurant afterwards, you chide yourself for immediately looking for Wanda through the windows. Turning your head forward, you go back to your room.

//-//

Wanda really got annoyed with your little scene in the restaurant, and didn't talk to you when she came back to the room, not that you were complaining.

And then it was time for her to watch some stupid program, and you left the room, because you were not in the mood of arguing about who's turn it is to watch.

You thought about getting a drink, so you returned to the restaurant, which at this time was considerably emptier.

The cashier from earlier was now serving tables, and smiled at you when you sat down at the counter.

- What will you have, dear? - She asked.

- A hot chocolate please. - You asked, leaning your elbow on the table and your face in your hand. With your free hand you tapped your fingers lightly against the counter.

It didn't take long to get your order, and you and you got a little pensive when the waitress returned, wiping the counter beside you.

- That was quite a scene earlier today. - She comments with a smile. You laugh, slightly embarrassed, but willing to talk.

- Yeah, sorry about that.

- No problem, sweetie. - She comments. - Young people are always so nervous when jealous.

You choke in surprise, feeling your face heat up.

- Jealous? I wasn't...

The waitress giggles, placing the cloth on her left shoulder.

- It's all good, child. - she says. - My husband used to be jealous of truck drivers in this region too. And with a beautiful girlfriend like that, I imagine it's hard for you.

She remarks with a smile before going to serve another customer, and you widen your eyes in surprise, feeling your face very warm.

Then you spent the next five minutes frowning, repeating how absurd it was that anyone would insinuate that you were jealous of Wanda, until the waitress was back again, serving you a doughnut that you didn't ask for but accepted anyway.

- Just to clarify. - You start between one bite and another. - I am not jealous.

The waitress giggles, arranging a few things on the counter.

- I also noticed that you two sat at separate tables, reminded me of my Miguel. - She says with a smile. - We used to fight so much that he would sleep on the balcony.

You laugh lightly, running your hand through your hair.

- But you know, all the fights were just an excuse to get each other's attention. - She says, leaning her hands on the counter in front of you. - To this day, I still believe he would leave the key off the key chain just to hear me grumble and squeeze my butt when he apologized. - She says with a smile that makes you laugh.

And then she is pouring you some more chocolate, and you are ignoring the growing nervousness in your stomach at the thought of her insinuations that you and Wanda were like a couple fighting.

- Rosa. - You call out after reading her name on the badge, she looks at you curiously. - How... How did you know you were in love?

- During a fight, of course. - She says, laughing. - We are in high school, and we had a fight during a soccer game. It was so hilarious. We started fighting about who would play the penalty kick for our team, and one of our classmates tried to get into an argument with me, and Miguel punched him in the nose, yelling that no one could fight with me but him.

You widen your eyes in surprise, but then laugh, finding the story a bit absurd. But the waitress has a nostalgic look in her eyes, as if she is missing something, and you frown.

- What... what happened to Miguel?

You watch her smile slowly die, and something in her gaze change. And then you cough uncomfortably, feeling a pain in your stomach.

- My Miguel was trying to improve our life when the German agents arrived. - She said in a somber tone. You stumbled out of your seat, trying to breathe. - The avengers had no right to take him away from me.

Fucking great, you thought wryly as you felt your throat closing. You stumbled out of the restaurant, falling to your knees. You think you saw a red light before you lost consciousness.

//-//

Something was moving, and it took many minutes for you to realize that it was the surface you were lying on. And then you slowly opened your eyes, blinking as you progressively tried to regain awareness.

- Finally, spitfire. - A female voice commented with irony, and you were startled to see Natasha sitting beside you. You tried to sit up in bed, feeling your body ache to do so.

- Damn it. - You complained of pain, and then you realized that you were on a spaceship. - Wow, how did I get here?

- By being the worst field agent. - Nat scoffed lightly, getting up from her seat to get you some water. You noticed that you were in the medical compartment of the ship. When she handed you the glass of water, you let out a satisfied grunt, drinking it all quickly.

- Let me guess, that lady really poisoned me. - You say, handing the glass back, and Nat sits down beside you on the bed, laughing lightly.

- Seriously, you went out on a simple recognition mission, and now you have shooting, escape and poisoning in your report.

You laugh before you ask.

- How did you find us anyway?

- Wanda, of course. - She tells. - I think you collapsed and she wrecked the whole place. We arrived before the Mexican government arrested you two. Also, the waitress will be questioned, but I don't think she knows much.

- Wait, what do you mean by wrecked the whole place?

Nat laughed, shrugging her shoulders.

- You know how Wanda's magic gets when she is nervous. And well, she was very nervous.

You nod, looking away, feeling a warmth in your cheeks and chest. And then Nat is getting up again.

- Well, I have to tell Steve that you are awake. You've had enough sleep so join us when you can. - She comments with a smile before leaving.

When you look down you notice the needle marks on your arm, where the antidote was probably placed, you sigh slightly.

You stand up, realizing that you feel almost no discomfort in your muscles. Before you can move toward the other room however, there is someone coming in.

- You're really awake. - Wanda comments seriously, stopping in the doorway.

You laugh lightly, deciding to tease her.

- Ah, yes. And I heard that you lost your shit when you saw me pass out. It's touching, really.

- And you are still a complete idiot. - She retorts as she approaches.

- Yes, and yet you still love me.

- I do.

- Wait, what?

But then Wanda advances on you, kissing you on the mouth. It takes a microsecond for you to overcome the shock, and kiss her back with your hands on her waist. You both sigh against each other's mouths, and when air is needed, Wanda pulls her face away slightly.

- Don't ever do that again. - She says breathlessly.

- I didn't choose to be poisoned, you know. - You retort with mild irony. Wanda rolls her eyes smiling as she lets her hands go up to your cheeks.

- I don't want to lose you, even if you are an annoying jerk. - She says and you laugh lightly.

- Thanks for the compliments, dear. It helps my self-esteem. - You reply with irony and Wanda laughs, stealing a few kisses from you.

- Don't be such a crybaby. - She jokes, but something in her eyes changes. - You're also brave, and funny. And sweet, and infuriating attractive.

- Wow, this is turning me on. - You mock lightly, stroking her back and making her laugh. And then you're stealing kisses between your giggles, until you rest your foreheads together. - Just for the record, even though you are a temperamental annoying little witch, I am completely in love with you.

Wanda nods smiling, kissing you again.

[merakiui]

My love for mafia/assassin au and the inspiration from that gorgeous cosplay created this! Please enjoy it! :D

(cw: mafia, mention of murder/crime, kidnapping, subtle threats/blackmail)

After unknowingly and unintentionally getting wrapped up in the business of Liyue's most feared mafia syndicate, you're yanked from the streets, knocked unconscious, and shoved into a shady car that takes you to who-knows-where. Upon waking up, you find yourself bound to a chair in an opulent-looking office. There's a short man with his arms crossed standing beside the desk, which is made out of a grade of wood that's most certainly expensive, and he's glaring at you. You have every right to feel anxious under his stony gaze, which threatens to slice you to pieces should you make any sudden movements.

If the room's tense atmosphere doesn't kill you, this man certainly will.

To your luck, he isn't given a chance to act out any murderous desires because the door opens and a taller man walks in, coming to sit comfortably behind his desk. He sends a nod of acknowledgement in the shorter man's direction before addressing you. Even though his expression is stern and cold, his amber eyes hold a mysterious warmth that the other man's eyes do not possess. You figure he's the most reasonable in the room—a logical man with a level head who won't send you to your death immediately.

At least, you hope that's who he is.

"You must be confused and uncomfortable," he says, stating the obvious as if it isn't clear on your face. "Xiao, undo all of the bindings."

He moves at once upon hearing the order, working swiftly to untie the ropes that hold you against the chair. When it comes to the tape on your mouth, he rips it off harshly and you wince, doing all that you can to avoid showing your pain. You send a glower at Xiao and he scoffs, returning to his place near the desk.

"You may call me Zhongli." You open your mouth to give your name, but he raises his hand to stop you. "I'm already aware of who you are, (Name)."

"Then why am I here?"

"I'll get straight to the point." His hands interlace, slender fingers closing around one another so perfectly. Ever the picture of patience, he gathers his thoughts before speaking again. "We had our sights on a specific target who was meant to die today. Unfortunately, with your unforeseen interference, he has managed to get away unscathed. As I'm sure you can imagine, this isn't good for us."

You hazard a glance at the beautiful landscape painting behind Zhongli as your brain struggles to comprehend his words. "So you're a murderer."

Zhongli blinks, ignores your statement altogether, and continues with his explanation. "Additionally, you have become a witness to the dealings of the mafia."

"Oh..." It comes crashing down on you all at once and you inhale a sharp breath. "Wait. The mafia? But I didn't do anything! I was just trying to get home and I saw that guy was in trouble, so I thought to help him and—"

"And you completely ruined our operation!" Xiao interrupts with a hiss. He looks like he's ready to pounce on you, but Zhongli holds him back with a subtle hand gesture. He can only grumble under his breath, subdued for now. "Idiot.” 

If your life wasn't on the line, you might throw a colorful word his way. But you hold your tongue and focus all of your attention on Zhongli.

"I'm sorry. Really, I am. I didn't know anything!"

"Of course you didn't and I don't expect you to. It's okay."

It's really not, you think while chewing on your lower lip. I’m totally in for it now, aren’t I?

“However, we can’t allow you to return to your normal life. As easy as it is to live in solitude, you’ve seen and heard far too much. It wouldn’t be wise to take such a risk, nor would it be okay to put my faith in the fact that you’ll keep quiet.”

“So… So what are you going to do?”

“You’ll join us. I couldn’t help but notice your great skill in hand-to-hand combat. That will certainly be of use in this line of work.”

“But that was just basic self-defense!” you protest, abruptly standing up in your chair. “And I can’t join the mafia! No way! That’s insane!”

“That’s a shame,” he says, his shoulders drooping. It’s weird to see him deflate like this, as if he doesn’t have the power to sic Xiao on you like he’s nothing but a rabid dog and you’re a poor slab of meat. And from the looks of it, Xiao is fully ready to dig his imaginary claws into you. “I wouldn’t want to trample upon your relationships in order to gain your compliance.”

“What?”

“Your friends and family,” Xiao snaps. “Either you follow Morax’s orders or you’ll burn with those who are closest to you. Your decision.”

In other words, it’s a ‘pick your poison’ type of scenario, with both options being horrible.

You ground yourself, rooted to the floor under their heavy gazes, and ask, “What should I do if I join?”

Zhongli perks up at that, a small smile blossoming on his lips. “Well, you must swear your loyalty to me, among other things, and you’ll have to keep a low profile from now on. Unless you’d prefer it if everyone knew who you were. Although I wouldn’t recommend it. The law can be quite a pain at times and it wouldn’t benefit you if the authorities knew of your face.”

“Right… Anything else?”

“You’ll have to leave your current life behind. Whether you quit and run away from it all or fake your death, you’ll have to abandon everyone and everything in order to avoid suspicion. Instead you’ll start anew with fresh relationships.”

“I doubt I’d need to do any of that. Wouldn’t it be better to tell everyone I’m with the mafia now? It’s not like anyone would try to look for me.”

“You’d be surprised,” Xiao mutters, crossing his arms in irritation.

“The underworld is your oyster,” Zhongli adds. “Whether you choose to open it and explore its possibilities is entirely up to you.”

You don't have much of a choice, though. They know all about you and the people you’re close to, so any sort of rebellion from you will be met with pain and suffering. You could end up like the target they were pursuing today and no one would help you. Your family and friends could get tangled up in something dangerous all because of you! Not only do you hold their fates in your hands, you also hold your own. Do you want to introduce yourself to a life of crime for the sake of keeping those you know safe? Is that a risk you’re willing to take?

It’s a risk you must take. Either you comply and live another day or you object and die, forever silenced.

“Please let me think about it.”

“I’m afraid I can’t, (Name). If I did that, you’d be here all night and it’s not exactly comfortable in this office. I hope you'll understand.”

Once you’re in, you’re in. No way out of this now. This is the price you must pay for trying to be a helpful person.

“Okay, fine! I’ll do it,” you finally say after much deliberation. “But only because I don’t want anyone else to pay the price for my mistakes!”

“Wonderful. I’ll retrieve the contract now and have you sign it.” Zhongli opens a file cabinet beside his desk and begins to rifle through it. “Then I’ll explain in detail about this organization and what it does, you’ll be shown around briefly, and we’ll work on improving your physical and mental strength. Living arrangements will be taken care of, so you needn't worry about that for the time being.”

“Okay.” You stare down at the floor, ashamed. If only you hadn’t jumped in to help that man, you’d be at your home: safe, happy, and blissfully unaware of the dangerous people who lurk in the dark. “Thank you.”

“There’s no need for that. This is a contract. You fulfill your end and I’ll fulfill mine. That’s how this works.” Zhongli, having retrieved the contract, sets it down on the desk. “If you would, read over this document and sign it. This will officially bind you to me—legally, of course.”

You feel sick as you approach the desk and that foreboding contract, but you pick it up and scan it nonetheless. Your unease doesn’t settle as you glimpse all sorts of red flags and warning signs veiled within the carefully crafted contract. This isn’t right, but you can’t do anything to object or else you’d put yourself and everyone you know in danger.

“And once you’ve adjusted to this new life, you’ll begin training.”

Your eyes snap up to meet his. “Training?”

“Of course. Basic self-defense will only get you so far. That’s why I’ve taken it upon myself to assign you a personal trainer.” Zhongli gestures to Xiao and your heart drops so deep into your stomach that it feels like it’ll stay there permanently. “Xiao will teach you everything you need to know.”

In unison and in the same shocked tone, you and Xiao can only utter one word: “What?”

This is an oyster you would’ve preferred to keep closed, but now that it’s open there’s nothing you can do.

[itsthestutterforme]

Escort 1/2 (Jang Hanseok)

Summary: You're an escort that Jang Hanseok has had his eyes on for a while. He finally invites you to his house for the night.

--

"What's his name again?" You ask your madame, and she hands you a file in response. You open the file to see a familiar looking man. He was the CEO of Babel, Jang Hanseok.

And for some odd reason, he chose you to be his escort for the night. There were plenty women prettier and more experienced but he chose you. "He paid for the entire night," your madame explains. "But what about my regulars?" "They were pushed until tomorrow,"

"How did they take that?" "They're big boys, they can handle it," she says, making you chuckle. "Make sure to have fun, I've heard he's like a tiger in bed." "What does that mean?" "You'll see,"

**

You smooth your hands over your silk black dress after you ring the door bell, careful not to cross your arms to seem closed off. Your heart was starting to race as you heard footsteps acend towards the door. Pull yourself together, Y/N. He's not your first client.

The door opens to reveal the chiseled face of Jang Hanseok. He's rubbing his hair dry with a towel and standing before you shirtless and wearing gray sweatpants. He definitely hits the iron because every peck and crevice of his chest is solid and defined.

He knows exactly what he's doing. He throws the towel over his shoulder and reaches out to touch your face.

He draws his thumb over your cheek. "Soft," he says to himself before turning away and walking back into his loft. You follow him in and close the door behind you. His loft is like many of your clients, vast and spaceous with minimal decor and life.

Your eyes fall to a small version of the Babel Tower with it's light flashing. "You like it?" "Is it really going to be a hundred floors?" "What's wrong with that?" "Well if you don't see spendung have your time in the elevator as a problem, then no." You say, making him chuckle softly.

"There it is," he says. "There what is?" He grabs your chin and pulling you towards him. "Your smart mouth," he whispers against your lips. "You know, when I first saw you, you put a man in his place because he thought it was okay to touch a woman as she walked by." He adds.

He leans in so close you would practice taste him. "And that was the hottest thing I've ever seen." He sizes you up before pulling away from you. You surpress the whine from the loss of contact.

He sits down on his couch and man spreads as he turns on the TV. Leaving you hot and bothered, you toss you purse on the counter and sat across from him. He just sits there with one hand on his lap and the other clicking through the channels.

"So are we just going to watch TV all night?" He doesn't respond, but glances over at you. You huff with annoyance. Watch him be the type that wants me to beg. Well he has the wrong woman tonight because you don't beg.

He seems patient enough, let's see how far he'll let you go. You stand from you spot on the couch and slowly approach him but he doesn't move a muscle or acknowledge your existence.

You sit in his lap and roll your hips to get comfortable. He clears his throat but you could tell that he was trying to suppress a moan. You take his chin into your hand and sharply turn his face to look at you.

He raises an eyebrow at you which probably means that I was traveling on thin ice. You have his attention alright, the question is what do you plan to do with it? You pull away from his chin and grab his wrists to pin against the back cushions of the couch.

You press your lips to his and gasp when he nips at your bottom lip harshly. He yanks himself out of your grip and pushes your back into the sofa. "You are such a brat, you know that?" He scolds as he wraps his fingers around your throat and uses his other hand to cup your pussy.

"How else was I suppose to get your attention?" You ask, whimpering as he rolls your clit between his index finger and his thumb. "By being a good girl. Now I'm going to have to punish you," he says, grabbing his tie from the table.

He ties your wrists together and places them above your head. He slowly trails his hands from your arms to your chest and cups your breasts before burying his face in them. Humming with satisfaction, he licks up the valley of your breasts, making your entire pussy throb against his hand.

"Do you like that sweetheart?" You moan in response and he bunches your dress at your waist before pull it over your head and out of the way. He unclips your bra and tears it in two since he couldn't take it off regularly with your hands tied.

He takes one of your nipples into his mouth and rubs the other with the pad of his thumb all with sliding his free hand into your panties. He slides two fingers into your slick and curls them hard and slow. You arch your back off of the couch and tried to roll your hips and match the rhythm of his fingers

He stops his movements and you fall back on the couch so he could resume his movements. "Damn it, I'm sorry." You whine but he ignores you and continues to pump his fingers at the painfully slow pace. Your orgasm was slowly acending your belly, but you had to lay back and ignore your want for friction because otherwise, he would stop.

You were on the verge of tears once your first orgamn finally came. "I'm s.. I'm sorry, Hanseok. Please don't," you trail off when he pulls away from your nipple with a satisfying pop. He kisses down your stomach and pulls your underwear down as your legs and leaves kisses on the freshly exposed skin.

He tosses your underwear across the room and holds your swole thighs in his hands. He rolls onto his back and brings your off of the couch all in one motions. You land by straddling his chest and he lifts you up slightly so he could slide himself right underneath your bare pussy.

He draws figure eights with his tongue and you body folds forwards. You rest your joined hands on the arm cushion of the couch. He spreads your legs even further so you are literally sitting on his face. When you try to get up, he digs his nails into your hips, making you cry out.

He flicks his tongue side to side across your clit before dipping inside and dragging it across the top wall. Your stomach grows sore from tensing it for so long. He repeats his motions and your knot grows in your stomach. You find yourself rolling your hips against his mouth and gasps when his tongue finds another gspot deep inside you.

Sinks a finger in and curls that spot over and over again until you came apart in his mouth. Humming in satisfaction, he kept the same pace until you were at the brink of your next orgasm.

Loud knocks on the door makes you yell out in surprise. "Jang Hanseok, this is the police." A man booms from the other side of the door. You climb off of him and stand on wobbly legs.

"What's happening?" You ask with your heart racing. "Please tell me you're not a murderer or something," "Relax, I'll be back by morning. Don't go anywhere." He says, wiping his face with a paper towel. "Wh-" "Don't go anywhere," he repeats and you collapse back on the couch.

He opens the door and converses with the police officers. You covered yourself from the prying eyes of the police officers. He runs upstairs to grab a shirt and shoes before leaving with the police. There you are, sitting on the couch, naked with your wrists tied together, feeling completely humiliated.

Using your teeth, you loosen the tie from your wrists and stare down at your torn up clothes. Your legs trembled as you stand once again from the couch and walk up the stairs to his room. You open his drawers and took out a black shirt and grey sweatpants.

You walk back downstairs and grab your purse before strapping on your heels and walking out the door. If he knows what's good for him, he'll stay the hell away for you.

**

"Absolutely not," "Why would you let one bad experience steer you away. He's a platinum client." "I could care less, he humiliated me." "A boo hoo, a man made me feel like shit so I'm not going to see him again. Please tell me you're not one of those hate all men snobs." Your madame snaps.

Your mouth hangs open with disbelief as heat creeps up the back of your neck. Clenching your jaw, you stand from the chair and anger explodes in your chest. You grab the coffee from her desk and toss the liquid in her face.

She shrieks as she wipes the coffee from her eyes. "In case you're having trouble putting two and two together. I quit, you arrogant, incompetent, man-pleasing pig." You spit. Reaching into your purse, you grab $100k as a termination fee the madame mentioned at the start of your contract and slam it on her desk.

You advance to the door with a wide grin tugging at your lips. For once you finally felt free. Walking to your car, your blood runs cold in your veins when you see Jang Hanseok leaning on your driver's side door.

He could be a criminal. What if you were a witness to something and he needed to get rid of you? You think to yourself. "Now I thought I told you to stay in the loft," "The last I checked, I have a mind and free will of my own." You snap.

"You're angry at me, why?" "If you really have to ask that question, I'm not going to bother explaining it to you. Please move out the way." "Not until we talk," "You're treading on thin ice, Hanseok." He kicks off from where he was leaning and advanced towards you with his hands stuff in his pockets.

"Say it again," "Say what?" "My name. I like how you say it." He tried to reach out and touch your cheek but you slap his hand away. "Wow, I really pissed you off, didn't I?"

"You left me naked and humiliated for those losers to look at. What make you think that's okay? Sex workers are humans too, Hanseok."

"Of course I know that. I just didn't.. I thought that they were proud of their bodies and wanted to show them off. I w-" "Not all of us are the same. Some have more dignity and self respect than to be treated like garbage." You snap. "I didn't know, okay. You.. you were my first one."

You spend a few moments looking at him. You're having a difficult time figuring out if he was geniune or not. "I quit, so if you're still experimenting. You're going to have to find another woman." You state, trying to step around him but he stands in your way again.

"Hanseok," you warn. "I don't want another woman. I want you." He leaned in to touch you again and this time you let him. He lifts your chin up gently with the crook of his finger. His touch the complete opposite of a couple days ago.

"Well that's too bad. If you look hard enough, you'll find a girl that'll do exact what you say. That doesn't have a... what was the word you used? A smart mouth." "I'll buy you anything you want." "Really, bribing? You can't buy your way out of this one, Hanseok."

"Just spend the day with me. The entire day, and I'll prove it to you." He cups your cheeks and maintains eye contact with you. "Prove what?" "That I'm worth it,"

**

Jang Hanseok examines the map of the mall with a perplexed look on his face. You're watching him with a similar expression. He's been.. different since the time you first met. He's more relaxed and serene.

You first went to a hot pot and competed to see who could the spiciest food. You won, naturally, but the entire time he would crack jokes and compliment you.

He really did make you feel special, but of course there was a small voice tucked in the back of your head saying that he could have bad intentions.

So you play along and listen to you gut on this one. "I found it!" He says excitedly. "Found what?" "Jump on my back," he says before crouching down in front of you. "You sure you want the carry me the whole time?"

"If my face can handle you, what makes you think my back can't?" He states and blush creeps onto you cheeks. Rubbing the back of you neck, you bite your lips nervously. "Come on, princess." He encourages and you finally climb onto his back.

You wrap your legs around his waist and your arms around his neck. "Why did you have to call me out like that? Someone could have heard you," you ask embarrassingly. "What? There's nothing to be ashamed of, you taste amazing by the way."

"Hanseok!" You scold, slapping his shoulder roughly. "Ouch, you have a mean swing." "There's plenty more where that came from."

After you left the mall, you had bags fulls of stuffed plushies, sweatshirts, sweatpants, crop tops and shoes. You told that you didn't need any of those things and he asked how many comfortable clothes you had.

When you didn't answer fast enough, he started putting every other thing in the cart. You were in the process of stuffing the bags into the trunk when he holds you from behind and pulls your back against his chest. You yell out in surprise before smacking his hand but he doesn't falter.

He buries his face into your neck and your eyes naturally close in response to his warmth. You lost count how long it's been since you've been held by someone. You unconsciously trail your fingers along the back of his neck and he sighs deeply.

"Tell me that this doesn't feel good. You can't, can you?" He mumbles into your neck. He loosens his arms around you and turns you around to kiss your forehead. What is he trying to prove? Holding the back your neck, he rests his forehead against yours.

"Let's start over,"

[robert-de-niro-only-fans]

Escape

Jimmy Conway x Paulie's Daughter! Reader

Hiiiii, this fic is a little surprise I've been working on and I've got a few others in the works. I hope you guys love it! ❤️

TW: smut, mentions of crime and crime families, murder, marriage, mentions of pregnancy

Word Count: 5.2k

As you stand in front of the mirror, your head spins from the morning you've already had. Women everywhere, whizzing around you doing your hair and makeup, getting you into your wedding dress. All that to make you a bride.

And you do look like a bride, you think as you stare into the mirror.

Behind you, you hear a familiar voice, "Ahem, ladies, could I get a moment alone with our bride?" Jimmy. He's being extra charming today, as many of the women left the room giggling because he spoke to them.

"Wow... (Y/N), you look gorgeous..." he creeps up behind you and delicately places his hands on your sides, as if he might break you. He looks at you in the mirror, before gently placing a kiss on your shoulder. "You're gonna stop traffic when you walk down the aisle. I can't wait to see it," he moves your veil and hair to give you a kiss on the cheek.

You don't say anything, just stare into the mirror. After a small pause, Jimmy turns you around, "Hey, you alright?"

Finally, you get a good look at him in his tux: all black with an off white shirt and a deep green vest peaking out from the lapels of his tuxedo jacket. You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding, "Yeah, I'm okay, just nervous," you put your hand on his chest, looking him over again, "I'm glad you're here. You always calm me down, and you look great by the way."

You knew it was an unconventional choice, but you wouldn't have picked anyone else to be your Maid of Honor. And Jimmy was happy to do it for you, even with Tommy and Henry making fun of him for it, at least until they got asked to be bridesmaids.

These were guys that in another life, you never would've been friends with, probably wouldn't have even known. And truthfully, your dad didn't want you being friends with them, because he knows what they are: criminals, nothing but criminals. But they're the only family you have, and Paulie had to admit that it was so cute seeing you get into trouble with Henry and Tommy and then go to "Uncle" Jimmy to get you out of it.

Jimmy wouldn't have done that kind of thing for the guys; they needed to get pinched and learn what it was like, but he would do anything to keep your pretty face out of jail. Since you've grown older, old enough for your father to let you get married, you and Jimmy have grown to be best friends. He's not so much the Uncle he used to be to you.

"(Y/N)?" Jimmy starts, "we got something to tell you, honey."

Just from the man's tone of voice, you can tell something is terribly wrong; you just know him too well. At that point, Jimmy opens the door, and Tommy, Henry, and your dad Paulie shuffle in.

"What's going on?" you say sheepishly, taking a step back from the men before you.

"You may wanna sit down," Jimmy motions to the little couch in the room.

Your dad reaches for one of your hands and you pull it away, "What is it, papa?"

"Sweetie, let's sit down, so we can talk," he places a hand on your back, and you both sit on the couch together. Jimmy, Tommy, and Henry all stand around looking like tough guys: arms crossed, keeping an ear out for anyone who might be listening outside the door, their faces looking stone cold with a bit of worry in their eyes.

"(Y/N), that guy out there," Paulie starts, referring to the groom waiting to marry you, "he ain't the guy you think he is."

"What?" you ask quietly.

"Well, uh, the guys here-" he looks up at the three men standing around you, "Jimmy, uh..." He just couldn't say it to you.

"We've been keeping an eye on this guy, scoping him out," Jimmy finishes for Paulie.

"What? You were spying on my fiancé?" you ask, feeling hurt.

"You didn't think we was just gonna let you marry anyone, did ya?" Tommy pipes up.

"And I'm glad we did," Jimmy cuts back in, "that guy out there, (Y/N), he's a liaison for another crime family! They were using you for information, and now he's able to identify all of us."

"What? No... He's- he's... a union rep," you cast your eyes down as it dawns on you; it was all a lie and a great cover up so he could talk about his friends and you wouldn't even realize. God, did you feel stupid. If anyone was gonna catch him in that lie, it should've been you. "I'm so sorry..." you whisper as tears drop down onto your wedding dress.

Paulie immediately pulls you into a hug, "Hey, hey, it's okay, baby girl. It's okay. The guys here have a plan." He tries to comfort you as you cry into his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, you know I'd never try to put any of you in danger. I'm sorry I was so stupid!!" You feel horrible and angry with yourself.

"Shhh... You gotta keep your voice down, honey," you feel Jimmy's hand rubbing circles into your back as he kneals next to you. "You're not stupid. It took us a long time to crack this guy. He covered his tracks well."

You turn to Jimmy, tears mixed with mascara running down your face. "Hey..." he says, pulling out a handkerchief and wiping the tears from your face, "Don't cry, angel. You shouldn't cry on your wedding day."

"But-" you get close to him, "it's not my wedding day anymore."

"Still," he pulls you up off the couch and into a hug, "you look too pretty to cry, and besides, we gotta get going."

You give him a confused look, trying to get it together, "Get going? Where are we going?"

"Well, uh, you and I are going on your honeymoon; Tommy and Henry know the rest of the plan."

"Honeymoon? We're not gonna cancel it?" you question.

"Listen, sugar," your dad grabs your attention, "this is the one day we can get your fiancé alone. He didn't dare bring any of his associates; we would recognize them, especially after all the recon we've done. So Jimmy's gonna sneak you out of here, and you're gonna go away for a while, and we're gonna get rid of this crook and tie up all the loose ends."

Just a few moments later, Tommy and Henry go back into the church to make it seem like everything is normal. No one is gonna think anything of Jimmy and your dad being with you, because that's the order the ceremony will go in. Your dad waits out in the hallway, as if he's waiting for you to put the last few finishing touches on your dress, and as everyone clears the hall to go to the church, he signals to Jimmy that it's time.

You and Jimmy quietly sneak out of your dressing room to head to the car. Before you run off, you turn back to your dad, giving him a big hug, "Please be careful, papa. I love you so much, and I'll miss you."

"I love you, too, (Y/N)," he gives you a kiss on the forehead, before you turn to head out the back hallway of the reception hall.

On the way out, Jimmy grabs a huge plate of hors d'oeuvres and holds the door open for you. You make your way out to this random convertible (probably stolen), seeing your suitcase in the backseat.

"Mines in the trunk," he lets you know, before setting the plate of food in the back and helping you in the car. Seconds later, you're peeling out of the church parking lot.

• • •

You and Jimmy can't help but laugh as you get further and further away from your wedding ceremony. You can't explain why you're laughing so hysterically, but it feels like old times getting into trouble with Jimmy. Plus, it's a welcome distraction.

"Jimmy," you interject the laughter.

"Yeah?" he asks, coming down from his laughing fit. You've already reached the highway heading from upstate New York into the city to get to the airport.

"Jimmy, I gotta get out of this dress," there's a serious tone in your voice that tells Jimmy this is more urgent than you let on.

He quickly whips out his switch blade, "Okay, lean forward." And then you feel the cool metal of the blade grace your back as he cuts the ribbons corseting your dress.

The dress loosens around you, and you look over at the man, "Thank you," is all you say before sliding the dress down over your hips, then throwing it up in the air, letting the wind take it down the highway. Jimmy has an impressed look on his face as he glances at you with a half smile on his face.

He reaches over, placing a hand on your bare thigh, pulling your wedding garter down your leg before holding it above his head and spinning it around like a lasso. "WOOOOOO!!!!" he yells at the top of his lungs as he flings the little piece of lace. Anything to make you laugh, and it does get a rise out of you.

There's a pause for a moment as Jimmy takes in the view of you in your white lingerie; his eyes don't linger for long though, because he doesn't want to make you uncomfortable.

Though, you can't help but feel sexy for moment before climbing into the backseat to change.

"Hey, bring that food up to the front seat when you're done," he says, looking at you in the rearview mirror. You smack his shoulder, realizing he can see you changing. He chuckles and flips the rearview up. You spend the rest of the trip leaning on Jimmy and snacking on the hors d'oeuvres on the tray, until you arrive at the airport.

Because you skipped the wedding ceremony and reception, you arrive way earlier than you're supposed to, but it's no issue, Jimmy already worked it out by moving your flight up. It also works out better, because there will be goons at the airport looking for you, but by the time they get there, you and Jimmy will already be gone.

• • •

After a few hours when you arrive in the Bahamas, Jimmy gently runs his fingers through your hair to wake you up from your nap. You were conked out on his shoulder, exhausted from this morning. "C'mon, sleepyhead, let's go have a honeymoon," he helps get you up and grab your bags.

"Mmmm," you yawn following him, "you say that like it's your honeymoon or something."

"Well, it is now," he chuckles, grabbing your hand to lead you off the plane. After a warm welcome from some locals at the check in desk, you head over to your private villa, right on the beach. Even though it's already dark, the island is beautiful. The warm breeze makes the palm trees wave; the sand is soft under your feet; and the sound of waves crashing is seriously so relaxing.

Inside your villa, it looks so cozy and clean, and you're so ready to get some dinner and go to bed. That's just what you do. Jimmy calls the office to order dinner to your little beach house, and you pop into the bathroom to take a shower and change.

By the time you're done, dinner is too. Jimmy greets you with a little side hug and pulls your chair out for you to sit down at the table. "Comfy? In your little robe and all?" he asks, eyeing you up and down quickly.

"Mm-hmmm," you moan, stuffing your face with delicious food. Jimmy chuckles at you before doing the same.

After getting your bellies full on tasty seafood, you decide that it would be a good idea to go to sleep, that way you can make the most of your time on this lovely island.

As you and Jimmy make your way to the bedroom, you're met with a reminder of why you're there in the first place: rose petals and candles littering the room.

Jimmy sees the way you pause, "Do you want me to get rid of this stuff?"

"I- uh, no... It's okay," you look back and forth between him and your bed.

"Here," he says, leading you to the couch, "Stay here."

He goes into the bedroom and closes the door behind him. For a few moments you hear huffing and thudding as he blows out candles and throws them in the trash, and you hear his arms hitting the bed as he wipes the rose petals away. Jimmy exits the room with a trash bag in tow, tossing it out on the front patio before returning to the living room, breathing a little heavy, and holding his arm out, motioning you to the bedroom.

You stand up and put your arms around him, giving him a soft kiss on the cheek, "Thank you, Jimmy."

He places his arm around your waist and presses a cheek to your head, "You're welcome, sweetie. Now go to bed."

"You're not coming?" you ask.

"I'll sleep on the couch. You have a good night, and sweet dreams," he gives your arm a squeeze before heading to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

As you settle into bed and try to sleep, it sinks in. Your relationship that you'd been so happy in is over... And here you are in another country for an undetermined amount of time while your ex-fiancé gets "taken care of." Even though his intention was to hurt you, you can't help but mourn what feels like the loss of your happiness. In fact, there's only one place you can feel happy right now, and you won't sleep until you're there.

"Jimmy?" you whisper through your sniffles. You stand before him as he sleeps soundly on the couch. "Jimmy?" A little louder this time, and that does the trick.

The man takes in a sharp inhale through his nose and his eyes pop open, "(Y/N), hey," he rubs his eyes, "you okay?" You just stand there quietly sniffling, and then Jimmy sees the redness in your face, "Hey, hey, c'mere honey, c'mere." He holds the blanket up for you to climb in, and he immediately wraps his arms around you, cuddling you in his cozy little spot on the couch. You simply bury your head into his chest, and let out a few tears. "Shhhh, shhh," he says as if cooing a baby, "it's okay, I'm here, everything's gonna be alright."

• • •

The sun brightly lights the whole open floor plan of your beach side escape, warming you and Jimmy in your bundle of blankets. You awake to the feeling of his fingers lazily combing through your hair, and when you crack your eyes open, you see him happily smiling down at you. You place a hand on his chest, and he covers it with one of his own, giving your fingers a squeeze.

"Morning, you hungry?" he greets you.

"Mmmm... Good morning, sweet man," you happily nuzzle into him.

He cups a hand on the back of your head, "Whaddaya say we get some breakfast, then ya wanna go swimming later today? Hm? We got that beautiful beach right out there." His head motions towards the large glass doors that look out onto the sand and sea.

"Only if we can stay here a little longer," you hum into his chest, perfectly content with just cuddling up to him all day long.

"Okay, princess, we can stay a little longer."

• • •

After a relaxed morning (yes, you both dozed back off to sleep for a while) and a nice breakfast of fresh fruits, juice, and pastries, you wait on the back patio for Jimmy to change into his swimsuit. When the sliding glass door glides open, you turn and see the man in swim trunks that hit about mid-thigh, short sleeve button up shirt that's unbuttoned, a gold chain, and a cigarette. Of course Jimmy dresses like that for the beach.

"Whaddaya think? How do I look?" he jokes at you.

You walk over and places your hands on his bare chest. "The view looks pretty good from here," you chuckle lowly.

Jimmy grunts, "You better watch those hands of yours," he warns, moving you off his chest before lightly taking your fingers in his. "Alright, let's go," he says, leading you towards the waves.

"Ya know, uh," Jimmy catches your attention.

"Hmm?" you chirp, hand still happily in his.

"How come you're still wearing this?" he asks, holding your hand up, and tapping his thumb on your engagement ring.

"Oh... um... I'm not sure, honestly," you look down at your hands, wringing them together and fidgeting with the little piece of jewelry. As you take your first few steps into the ocean, you slip the ring from your finger. "I guess it doesn't mean anything anymore," you ponder to yourself before chucking it into the water.

Jimmy raises his eyebrows in surprise, "You didn't wanna sell it?"

You turn around and pat him on the chest, "I know you and the boys back home will make me more money than that ring is worth. It wouldn't surprise me if it was fake, knowing what I know now."

• • •

Time got away from you as the two of you enjoyed your day in the sun. After walking along the beach and Jimmy dunking you in the waves a few times (don't worry, you got him back), it's already early afternoon. And boy, were you beat.

"Hmmm, I think it's time for a nap!" you yawn, "This sun has got me drained."

"Wanna go inside?" Jimmy points to your little beach house.

"Yeah, but I don't think I can walk another step," you whine playfully, giving the man puppy eyes.

There's a long pause as Jimmy gives you a serious look, but he's only kidding. "You want me to carry you, don't you?"

"Yes, please!"

And with that, your feet are swept out from under you. Jimmy walks you across the sand and through the sliding glass door, right to the bathroom.

"What are we doing in here?" you question as he walks right into the shower, "Jimmy?!"

"Gotta rinse all the salt and sand off," is all he gets out before the shower faucet sprays cold water on you and the man holding you. You squeal loudly and practically jump from Jimmy's arms! You hold onto him tightly for warmth; luckily the water heats up quickly though.

"You bastard!!" you yell and give the man a swift pop on the chest.

"OW!" he giggles and rubs the spot that is quickly turning red.

Your face forms a pout, feeling bad for smacking him, "I'm sorry." You take a step forward and rub your hand on his chest to sooth the spot. When you place your other hand on his chest, you look up at him. Suddenly you feel his strong hands gripping the back of your head, and his lips meet yours. Your back comes into contact with the shower wall, and you're completely surrounded. You feel the muscles of Jimmy's arms squeezing around you as his tongue urges it's way into your mouth.

You could hardly explain it: the timing and the situation feel so wrong, but he feels so 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, like everything you had ever wanted- no, 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥.

Water soaks your hair, your face, your bodies as Jimmy fiercely kisses you. He's almost scared to stop.

But when you gently suck his bottom lip into your mouth and give it a nibble, it's game over.

Your friend-turned-lover rips open the shower curtain and starts walking you to the bedroom, his lips and his body never leaving yours. His tropical shirt slaps the ground in a wet heap, quickly followed by his swim trunks.

His lips find your neck, and you finally get a moment to catch your breath. Pressed against him as you step backwards, you feel his hands frantically working the straps of your swimsuit. You pull back from him just enough to see his face, and he freezes like a deer in headlights.

You simply look each other over, taking in the features of the other's face for a moment, before you lean forward and place your lips to his chastely, kissing him just once or twice. His rough hands gently caress your back, and then things turn passionate again when he slowly removes your top.

You always thought you'd be nervous to be with Jimmy, but after all, this is a man that you trust with your life. Wait- always? Did this imply you'd thought about being with him before?

In the heat of the moment you couldn't make sense of it. All you know right now is that Jimmy already has you naked and on the bed. It feels like your emotions are in a whirlwind, but Jimmy makes you feel good and you want more.

Your hands rake through his still wet hair, as he showers your chest in affection by kissing and sucking at your collarbone and breasts. He travels further down your body with his ministrations, until he reaches your soft inner thighs. You can feel his five o'clock shadow scratching at the delicate skin there, before he stops and looks up at you nervously. You'd never seen this man look nervous before.

His eyes beg for permission to go down on you and his hot breath passes over your center. You simply push down on his head a bit as a signal to go.

With his elbows buried in the soft mattress, forearms wrapped around your thighs, and eyes closed in concentration, his mouth surrounds that little bundle of nerves, lighting a fire in your belly. The sound of him breathing through his nose and your moans fill the room. Every hair on your body stands on end and your toes curl at the feeling of Jimmy Conway giving you head.

Oh God, Jimmy Conway is giving you head... Jimmy Conway your best friend. Jimmy Conway your Maid of Honor? You quickly push that thought away, then raise your head to look down at the man happily working away between your legs.

This is something you never thought you'd do with Jimmy, yet here you are, and oddly, it feels so... comfortable. You aren't nervous at all. Of course, you can't speak for him.

You lightly scruff up his hair, breathing heavily, "Jimmy..." The first word anyone had said in a while.

"Huh?" he says just after a loud slurping noise. His mouth hangs open in a relaxed way as he catches his breath and looks up at you from under his brow bone.

You let out a laugh in the form of a puff of air and a smile. Jimmy returns the smile; it's a happy smile with a hint of playful mischief in his eyes. A giggle slips out of you, then you both start laughing. At what, you aren't quite sure... the situation, maybe?

Your lover crawls on top of you and cuddles you by pressing his chest to you and wrapping an arm around your waist. Your hands explore his back, lightly scraping your nails over his shoulder blades and the small of his back.

He lets out a soft but deep moan before moving to kiss you again. His fingers nestle in your hair as he softly shows you his affection with his mouth. Your hands rest on his cheeks as he centers himself on top of you, one of his hands gripping under your thigh.

"This alright, princess?" he says in a near whisper.

"Yeah..." you exhale.

"You ready?" He gives you a kiss on the cheek.

"Yeah," you repeat, "I am." You give him a warm smile, cupping a hand on his face again, as if framing it to take a mental snapshot.

His next actions are incredibly gentle, but it makes everything all the more sensual. He plants a few kisses on your neck and collarbone before sitting up on his knees. His arm wraps around your thigh, holding it up in the air, as he aligns the head of his member with your entrance. The tip slides in pretty easily because of your wetness, and you can see Jimmy's breathing deepen; after that, the man moves slowly entering you, making you feel every inch of his length.

You had barely started and you're already both a mess. The pleasure is almost too much to take. Once Jimmy starts to move his hips, he leans forward once again, hovering over you on his hands and knees. You look up into his eyes, feeling his hardness moving inside you. Wanting to be closer to you, he drops down to his elbows and brings his knees up. His hands stroke some hair from your face while his hips rut into yours at a teasing pace.

After appreciating your how pretty you are, Jimmy moves his lips next to your ear and lowly says, "You feel incredible, baby. You feel so good..." He gives you a series of sloppy kisses on your jaw and earlobe.

You simply close your eyes, relax into the man on top of you, and give him an airy moan in response, "You feel good too, Jimmy."

"Mmmm, you like this pace? Or you want me to speed up?" You can feel his hot breath against your neck.

"Maybe, um, deeper?"

"Deeper, huh?" he whispers in your ear, "You wanna feel more of me?" He throws a little chuckle on the end of his question, and he readjusts by hooking a hand under your knee and pushing it up towards you for a deeper feeling while remaining close to you.

With each thrust you let out a grunt or breath of some kind, "Oooh... T-that's- Hnnng!"

"That the spot, baby girl?" Jimmy smiles to himself, happy that he's pleasing you.

A very shaky "mm-hmm" is all you can manage.

Jimmy speeds up his movements just a little, but still maintains a leisurely and romantic mood.

With a gasp, you start, "Jimmy, I- I'm-"

"Cum for me, baby," he coos, lightly sucking and nipping at a little spot on your neck.

"Fuck- Jimmy..." your climax hits you hard, making your head spin, and the only thing you can think about is the man before you, "Jimmy, I- I love you. I love you, Jimmy!"

Before you even have a moment to think about what you'd said, you hear, "I love you, too, (Y/N)," and several grunts and groans as he finds his release inside you.

Jimmy rolls off of you and trucks himself into your side. You hold the man in your arms tightly as you both come down from the high you just experienced. You turn your head to see him nuzzled into the crook of your neck, almost as if he's asleep. He cracks his eyes open at you and props himself up, putting his face close to yours.

You feel... shy for some reason as you press your lips to his, almost as if this is somehow more vulnerable than what you'd just done. You kiss each other softly, over and over, for what feels like a few minutes.

"You know, I didn't know you were close to finishing too," you tell Jimmy, trying to break some tension.

"Mm, well, I told you you felt good," he gives you a half smile, "I didn't know you loved me."

"Oh, well... It just kind of came out, but, uh, it was true. Still is." Another sweet kiss.

"You remember when I told you I couldn't wait to see you walk down that aisle? That was true too," he tells you.

You aren't sure where that came from, and it confuses you, "But... You knew I wasn't gonna get married that day."

"Yeah, but I am gonna see you walk down the aisle one day... when you marry me," he looks down and bites his lip.

You let out a flabbergasted little breath, "Jimmy..."

"C'mon, (Y/N)," he coos, "I love you. I wasn't gonna ever let you marry that other guy. Why do you think I looked into him so hard?"

"I don't understand. Why didn't you just ask me out years ago?" your question ends in a whisper.

"'Cuz I didn't realize what I had 'til I saw it in another man's arms," he tangles his fingers in your hair for another kiss, "but I'm not gonna let it get away from me this time."

• • •

Needless to say, you didn't see much of the beach or much of anyone the rest of your time in the Bahamas. You two already knew everything there was to know about another person, so you spent a lot of time exploring each other... in new ways.

So, it's bittersweet going home to Brooklyn. You'd been away a few months to let tensions between the two crime families die down. You would miss all of the alone time with your new man, but you're so happy to see your dad again.

"Thanks for driving us home from the airport, papa," you say, giving Paulie a side hug as he unlocks the door to the house not too far from the cab stand. You're greeted with hoots and hollers from Tommy, Henry and Karen, Tuddy, and a few others as you step inside. "What's this?!"

"Oh, uh, just a little surprise," Paulie chuckles, "A welcome home party for Jimmy and my girl."

Everyone starts exchanging hugs, giving you and Jimmy a proper New York welcome. As you put your arms around Henry's shoulders, you hear Karen from behind him, "OH no! I know ya not still wearin' your engagement ring," she grabs your hand and pulls you toward her to inspect the ring closer. Her voice lowers a bit, "No, this one's different. It's got pearls on it."

The room is filled with confused faces, until Jimmy takes your other hand in his, "Well, uh, we were on a little island for 2 or 3 months, pearls was all they had!"

Suddenly you're surrounded with Ooh's and Aah's and an "Attaboy Jimmy!" as it dawns on everyone that you're engaged.

"Hey, wait 'til they tell ya about how I'm gonna be a grandad!!" Paulie announces, and again the room fills with noise from everyone's surprise and congratulations. Any other family might have found it odd that you rushed into a new relationship, but this group likes keeping a closed circle, and everyone had their bets placed on you and Jimmy from day one.

Speak of the Devil, you feel his arms slip around you and a hand rests on your baby bump. He whispers in your ear, "I love you both so much. This is the way it always shoulda been."

[shadowknight465]

The Wrath of Life

Light. Light of all colours in rainbow except for purple.  Surrounded by a golden aura. It was beautiful yet he is afraid.  When he tried to touch it. It burned him. Causing him screech a unholy sound with repeated phrases like. "Sinful creature and True spawn of hell."

There was a knock at the door.

Do these people have a life outside of bullying me?

He thought as he opened the door.  Except that the person was not who he is expecting, in fact he doesn't think he has ever seen him before. Before he could the stranger's name. He barge in straight to the guest room. "What a lovely house you two have, Nightmare." He said putting down his things . "Do you mind if you can run hot bath for me?" He asked.

"Um. First of all I don't even know you.  Second you can't just go to people's houses and expect them to treat you like royalty. " He said crossing his arms. The stranger look at him. "I thought Dream already told you about me." Nightmare thought of what Dream said before he left. "Neil?"

"That's me."

"Hold on if you are really Neil then give me proof."

Neil removed his cloak. Revealing that the cat has lost an arm. Nightmare felt guilty.  " Don't put on a sad face little boy.  You are just being protective of your home, and that I applaud you." Neil woke Nightmare with his thoughts. Neil then smile. " I guess I forgot that Dream told me you're not very trustful with strangers." Neil scratch his head "Speaking of which ,  Do you happen to know a person name Hubert Cumberdale or better known as Salad Fingers?" Nightmare gulped.  It's been awhile since he seen Hurbert his first and possibly only friend.  Last time he ever saw him was the time he had to take Hubert to the asylum. "Yes. I've know him." He answered. 

"Hubert wanted me tell you thank you." Neil responded.

"For what?" Nightmare asked.  He doesn't remember giving Hubert any kindness in fact he thinks what he did was horrible. "Because of your actions Huber is now married with a beautiful wife they had a lovely child." Neil responded.  Nightmare sigh in relief. " So I was worry  for nothing?"

"Yup. Now can you please run me a hot bath?" Neil responded. Nightmare decided this time he would run him as hot bath.

~~~~~

Dinner was not like what he was expecting.  Instead of him cooking it was Neil. But at least it was good. Baked beans with roasted ham. With a cup of wine. He felt comfortable knowing the person living with him for a while is friendly. "Hey Night, what time is it.?" Neil asked. Nightmare looked outside. "Well it is dark." He said. "Well time for me to hit the sack." Neil got up and went to his bedroom. 

Maybe I should go to sleep as well.

Nightmare thought. He took of his shirt. Brush his teeth with a dry corn cob. And went the his bed.  Falling asleep as soon his head hit the pillow. However instead of his normal nightmares this one felt wrong. He was wearing the same clothes Moon was except it was mostly black and sliver. He has markings all of him and he was behind a female paladin. Her skin was kissed by the sun itself. Her short hair looks like fire and her eyes were a red and yellow gradient.

"Sun. Is something wrong?" He spoke, but it wasn't his voice.  The paladin said nothing. "Sun?" The paladin turn with a flaming sword in her hand. "What are you doing?" He said backing away slowly, but the girl's eyes turned snake-like. And she jumped to him. Stabbing him with her blade. He quickly got the blade off of him screaming.  "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?" The girl didn't answer.  Instead she showed her snake-like fangs smiling. He knew this was a fight so he summoned his unprepared scythe. The girl called for help claiming Moon was a traitor again and all the women that came looks familiar.  "But Sun. Didn't Moon said-" One of girls tried the reason. "She lied to us again." She cut her off. Nightmare felt betrayal, but he doesn't understand why. None of the girls responded and attacked him. One tore his mask and shot him in his missing eye with a arrow.  A mix of magic and weapons overpowered him. He knows he can kill everyone if he takes his gloves, but he made a vow to never used his bare hands. So he decided to do the next self defense.  By placing a cursed on them. One where they are trapped in limbo. He place his scythe on the ground and chant in latin. However the paladin attacked him in the back. He felt his life draining from him as he hears a man scream. "Mi Nina." He shut his eyes for the final time with the feeling of wrath and sorrow.

Nightmare woke up in a cold sweat. As he looked around he saw that the scythe Moon gave him was with breaking. Eventually turning a bit bigger with a moth at the bottom. 

What just happened?

He thought. Maybe another vision? He eventually fell back to sleep. He'll think about it in the morning.

~~~~

The autumn harvest festival has arrived and Nightmare put on his more regal garment. Neil was getting a few beers and the townsfolk had forgot he existed.  He was thinking about looking into the lore of the festival until a mysterious stanger showed up wearing strange garments.  She was pretty however.  Skin that was kiss by the sun, flaming hair that's been put up by a high ponytail.  A gold-red mask covering half her face, but not fully her scar. 

The priest was the first to got up to her. "Hello madam." He said.

"Olá" She responded.  "Huh?"

"I said hello in my native tongue." She answered.

"Oh. Anyways  What a pretty thing like you brings in our beautiful village?" He said.

Here he goes again trying to groom someone.

Nightmare thought as he rolled his eyes.  He look at her again and felt off. Like he met her before.

It wasn't long till she spotted him. She walks towards him.  Later squinting her eye. "M-Moonie?" She asked almost crying. Nightmare felt awkward.  "No, I'm Nightmare." He said. She blinked. "Oh my mistake, you just reminded me of an old friend of mine." She said as she walk away whispering "Eu sinto Muito.". 

Why do I feel unsafe around her?

Nightmare asked himself.

"You best keep an eye on her." Nightmare heard a familiar voice.  He turned and saw Nox in disguise.

"What are you doing here?" Nightmare asked. "Errands." Nox reply.

"Hey, Nox can I have a word with you?" Nightmare asked. Nox set the large sack he was carrying down. "What is it?"

"That's scythe Moon gave me.  Is it perhaps any chance curse?"

"What makes you say that?" Nox reply. "Last night I had a dream where I was murdered.  But it wasn't me at all." Nightmare answer. "Maybe the scythe didn't like you." Nox said. Nightmare could feel the jealous aura coming from Nox.

What's make that scythe so important to him?

He thought. "I think there's something that you're not telling me.  In fact ever since we first met I could sense you have some grudge against me and I don't know why." Nightmare said. Nox glared at him than he towered over him getting ready to punch him. Yet he didn't.  Instead he just sighed. "Moon's soul stuck in it. And I don't want anything bad happen to him." Nightmare had seen this behavior before.  In both real life and in his books mostly his romantic novels. "Are you telling me that you're..." Nightmare begin. "No. Not like that." Nox begins to plea. "In love with him?.." Nightmare finished.  He's no love expert, but  He can tell Nox is in love with Moon. Nox blushed a purple hue before covering his face. "Look me and Moon first met we had a rocky beginning.  I was task with killing death by W.D Gaster. I would have succeeded if that man didn't spot me. When we met again  It turns out that both of us aren't so different after all and.." Nox stops himself and put his arm around his chest. "He was the only person I could talk to about these feelings of hate on being born with a uncomfortable body." Even though Nightmare can't understand he felt bad for Nox. "So what do you think about that dream I had? Does it mean something?" Nightmare asked trying to change the subject.  "I don't know myself. And I read all of Moon's books and scrolls." Nox answered. Nightmare watch Nox pack up. "Where are you going?" Nightmare asked. "Home. Hecate freaks out being alone at midnight." Nox replied. Nightmare took a breath.  Then music became louder and more vibrant, with the lights and fire becoming brighter and more warm. He turn and saw the stranger dancing with the strong man. Something doesn't seem right. Usually the strong man would refuse to dance for anyone, but the little girl he was targeting.  And he could've swore he saw scales of a snake on the stranger. The stranger later took the man to a small alley.  Nightmare thought that the man is just showing her around town. So he didn't pay much attention. He decided to try out the bobbing for apples he saw a couple of people did.  He should known better than to trust everyone when they pushed his head into the water. Luckily the little ones are making smores next to its fire they made themselves so maybe he can rest there.  As he headed to the campfire the little boy with the abusive mother grabbed him. "Nightmare, I don't feel comfortable with that girl."

"What girl?" Nightmare asked.

"The girl dancing with my mom." The boy pointed out. Nightmare took a look and saw that the stranger with the boy's mother.

Wasn't she with the strong man?

He thought. He turned to boy. "I'll keep a close eye on them while you have fun with your friends. Alright?" The boy nodded. Nightmare walks towards the dancers, but made sure that both of them can't spot him. He watch as the stranger convinced the abusive mother to go to the alley. Once there the stranger carefully removed the other woman's clothes. Nightmare thought they were going to court with each other so he turned away embarrassed. Even if he wasn't there the two women would eventually be found, and be hanged for committing homosexuality witchcraft. He left to tell the boy he might be getting two moms if they can convince the court. To his surprise the boy didn't pay no mind to it. In fact the boy just ask if it's okay with God. He doesn't know how reply due to him not being religious.  So they change the topic. Eventually Nightmare forgot about the stranger. Later he got tried and decided he had enough partying for tonight. As he went back home he heard a scream next to him. He turn to where the scream was and saw the unimaginable.

Everyone that danced with the stanger died in pools of blood and a demon snake mantis fire thing licking some from her hands. Nightmare backed away slowly until a woman scream caught the creature's attention. She smile and dash past Nightmare and grabbed the woman and begins to feast on her. By making her paralyze with the vemon in her fangs. Then she gutted her with her teeth. Later riping her limb from limb until she was nothing more than a pool of blood. Worst of all everyone saw it. While Nightmare ran.

Is that a Solarite?

He thought, but someone grabbed him and push him towards her. The Solerite took notice and held him down. Nightmare closed his eyes and hope that the death will be quick, except it never came. Instead she froze in place and is beginning to cry blood. Then stopped. "Você conhece o Nim?" She said.

"W-What?" Nightmare asked. "I said. Do you know Nim? You know that apple tree dryad?" She said.

"Yes. She's my mother." He said. She glared, but not at him. "Essa vadia...I know she would do this. But never to her own son."  She muttered.  "Nightmare, did you summoned this..thing?" A man yelled. "No. I barely even kno-" He was cut off. "As if you weren't evil enough you destroyed a sacred ceremony. " Nightmare look down.

Are they that stupid?

He thought. "Wait, I cause the massacre.  Not him. And how is he a part of it?" The solerite asked. "Didn't he summoned you?" Someone else asked. "No. I came by going on a boat by myself. " She answered.  "Well he bleeds black blood." A woman said. "I have a close friend who bleeds black blood and he would never harm someone unless he has too or is provoked." She replied. The solarite stood up and allowed Nightmare to stand up. Then she put her hand on his shoulder.  Surprisingly it didn't burn him. "Are you a scapegoat?" She asked. Nightmare took a deep breath.  "Yes." She turns to village.  "Raise your hand if you still think he cause the massacre?" Not surprisingly almost all of village raise their hands. "Good thing my pets love barbecues." She whispered. "Now come to me if you think he is innocent." All the children and some of villagers came forward despite their loved ones pleas and threats. She came up to them and pat them all on their heads. Later did the same to Nightmare. "Who are you?" Someone said. The solarite smile. "I am the wrath of life." She said as she turns into a snake and begins slithering away. Many tried catch her, but she was too fast. And those that did hands were burnt to a crisp. Nightmare took the opportunity to run. He went home grabbed Moon's scythe and spent the night at the in-hill. Planning to talk to Moon about her and about that dream.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Written In The Stars LX (Harry Potter xF!Oc)

A/N: We are almost over with book three which is amazing but also a bit scary like wow this is really going by so fast h e l p -Danny

Words: 4,552

Warnings: Yelling at kids and a tad of violence

Series’ Masterlist

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Chapter Nineteen: A Window to the Past.

"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow. Very useful, Potter, I thank you..." Snape threw the cloak aside. "You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here?  I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did... lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know. I saw you running along this passageway and out of sight."

"Severus —"

"I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout —"

"Severus, you're making a mistake, you haven't heard everything — I can explain — Sirius is not here to kill Harry —"

"Two more for Azkaban tonight," The man didn't care to listen. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this... He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin... a tame werewolf —"

"You fool– Is a schoolboy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?"

Thin, snakelike cords jumped from the end of Snape's wand and twisted around Lupin's mouth, wrists, and ankles; he fell to the floor.

"NO!" Mel ran towards him at the same time Black started toward Snape, but Snape pointed his wand straight between Black's eyes and Harry grabbed her wrist before she could move further.

"Give me a reason," Snape threatened. "Give me a reason to do it, and I swear I will."

"Professor Snape — it — it wouldn't hurt to hear what they've got to say, w — would it?" Hermione asked beside her.

"Miss Granger, you are already facing suspension from this school," Snape said harshly. "You, Potter, Dumbledore, and Weasley are out-of-bounds, in the company of a convicted murderer and a werewolf. For once in your life, hold your tongue."

"But if — if there was a mistake —"

"KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape shouted. "DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!"

"DON'T TALK TO HER LIKE THAT!" Mel yelled back, snatching her wrist from Harry's grip and raising her wand before she could think it through. "DON'T YOU EVER CALL HER STUPID AGAIN OR I'LL–"

"WHAT?" He roared. "You'll knock me unconscious and then what, Miss Dumbledore?! The Headmaster will feel beyond proud once he finds out he brought up a scoundrel!"

"Better a scoundrel than a petty, feeble man!" Harry pulled down her arm harshly.

"What are you doing?" He hissed. "You believe them?"

"If Black were a dark wizard he would've tried to kill us already," She turned to the boy and tried to pull her arm away. "Let go."

"No."

"Harry, I'll hex you if I have to–"

A short chuckle let out Black's mouth, he was looking at her from the corner of his eye, without completely turning away from Snape.

"You are your mother's daughter, Mel. But this isn't worth an expulsion– lower the wand."

Mel wanted to hiss at him something like 'You really think I'll listen to you?' but Snape was faster.

"Vengeance is very sweet. How I hoped I would be the one to catch you..."

"The joke's on you again, Severus. As long as this boy brings his rat up to the castle, I'll come quietly..."

"Up to the castle? I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black, pleased enough to give you a little kiss, I daresay..."

Black looked afraid for the first time that night.

"You — you've got to hear me out. The rat — look at the rat —"

"Come on, all of you," Snape ignored him. He clicked his fingers, and the ends of the cords that bound Lupin flew to his hands. "I'll drag the werewolf. Perhaps the dementors will have a kiss for him too —"

"The werewolf is my family and you won't drag him around like that," Mel growled, stepping forward between Lupin's body and the men in front of her.

Harry moved as well, but he crossed the room and blocked the door. He was a few feet away from her.

"Get out of the way, you're in enough trouble already," Snape spat. "If I hadn't been here to save your skin —"

"Professor Lupin could have killed me about a hundred times this year," Harry said. "And Mel about a thousand times more throughout her entire childhood. We've been alone with him loads of times, having defense lessons against the dementors. If he was helping Black, why didn't he just finish me off then?"

"Don't ask me to fathom the way a werewolf's mind works," hissed Snape. "Get out of the way, Potter."

"Stop calling him a werewolf, that's not all he is!" Mel's fist clenched. "He's as human as you are, and perhaps even better at it!"

"Perhaps," Snape said through gritted teeth, "they're right when they say women in your family go mental before coming of age."

She could've raised her wand and attack right at that instant... If it wasn't because Harry lost his temper at the same time.

"YOU'RE PATHETIC!" He yelled. "JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE A FOOL OF YOU AT SCHOOL YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN —"

"SILENCE! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!"

"YOU REFUSE TO SPEAK AT ALL!" Mel argued back.

"Like father, like son! The both of you– have just saved your neck; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You would have been well served if he'd killed you! You'd have died like your fathers, too arrogant to believe you might be mistaken in Black — now get out of the way, or I will make you. GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

"Stupefy!"

"Expelliarmus!"

The children had raised their wands at the same time, all of them pointing at Snape. The man's body flew and crashed against a wall, blood starting to drip from his forehead. Mel's spell had come out stronger than expected, and if felt as if part of her energy had gone out with it as well.

"You shouldn't have done that," Black said. "You should have left him to me..."

"No offense, but you didn't have that under control," Mel stated, walking over to the bed and retrieving Snape's wand. "And he's right– I'm like my dad, I don't kneel for anybody."

"We attacked a teacher... We attacked a teacher..." Hermione panicked. "Oh, we're going to be in so much trouble —"

"You better take in the fact that we're expelled 'Mione," Mel shook her head, tiredly reaching for her uncle at the same time as Black.

They froze for a moment, then Mel nodded silently once and the man reached to untie her uncle.

"Thank you," He said to the children.

"I'm still not saying I believe you," Harry told Lupin. He looked at Mel, waiting for her opinion.

It was hard to wrap her head around it, but the way Snape had reacted was still fresh on her mind, he'd insulted her father's memory and if she was honest, if there was any chance that Lupin and Black could prove that what they did was right– if she could save Hermione from getting expelled (and to convince herself that her uncle was a good man) she had to take it.

"If he is who you say he is, then turn him back," Mel said in sort of child-like demand.

"All right, it's time we offered you some proof," said Lupin. "You, boy — give me Peter, please. Now."

"Come off it," Ron said weakly. "Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean... Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat — there are millions of rats — how's he supposed to know which one he's after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"

"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question– How did you find out where he was?"

Black took out an old paper and showed it to them.

It was the photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the Daily Prophet the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers.

"How did you get this?" Lupin asked Black, thunderstruck.

"Fudge," said Black. "When he came to inspect Azkaban last year, he gave me his paper. And there was Peter, on the front page... on this boy's shoulder... I knew him at once... how many times had I seen him transform? And the caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts... to where Harry was..."

"My God," said Lupin softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again. "His front paw..."

"What about it?" said Ron defiantly.

"He's got a toe missing," said Black.

"Of course," Lupin breathed. "So simple... so brilliant... he cut it off himself?"

"Just before he transformed," said Black. "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself — and sped down into the sewer with the other rats..."

"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?" said Lupin. "The biggest bit of Peter they found was his finger."

"We've heard," Mel said bitterly.

"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or something! He's been in my family for ages, right —"

"Twelve years, in fact– Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?"

"We — we've been taking good care of him!" said Ron.

"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?" Lupin insisted. "I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again..."

"He's been scared of that mad cat!" said Ron.

"But Scabbers had been ill long before," Mel replied, knowing Harry and Hermione were thinking the same. "Remember? You bought the tonic for rats and that's how Hermione got Crookshanks..."

"This cat isn't mad," said Black. "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was right away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me... Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he's been helping me..."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.

"He tried to bring Peter to me, but couldn't... so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me... As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table..."

"Oh, Neville..." Mel sat down on the bed, feeling really, really drained.

"But Peter got wind of what was going on and ran for it...  This cat — Crookshanks, did you call him? — told me Peter had left blood on the sheets... I supposed he bit himself... Well, faking his own death had worked once..."

"And why did he fake his death?" Harry demanded. "Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!"

"No, Harry —"

"And now you've come to finish him off!"

"Yes, I have," said Black.

"Then I should've let Snape take you!"  

"Snape's a nasty man," Mel frowned. "They deserve to explain themselves– And that's all they've been doing since we got here, do you honestly think we're in danger?"

"Harry," Lupin urged, "don't you see? All this time we've thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down — but it was the other way around, don't you see? Peter betrayed your mother and father and killed Matthew in the process— Sirius tracked Peter down —"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE! HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID SO BEFORE YOU TURNED UP. HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!"

That one bit was true, but Black shook his head in what Mel could only think of as grief.

"Harry... I as good as killed them. I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use him as Secret-Keeper instead of me... I'm to blame, I know it. The night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, but when I arrived at his hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I was scared. I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies... I realized what Peter must've done... what I'd done..."

Friends dead, children abandoned. All because he'd trusted the wrong man.

Mel understood, more yet, she felt it the same way she could feel whether if an artifact had dark magic in it or not. She could sense his innocence, he lacked the darkness needed to cause that chaos.

"Enough of this," said Lupin. "There's one certain way to prove what really happened. Ron, give me that rat."

"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?"

"Ron, come on..." Mel pleaded, rubbing her forehead to try and disappear the weariness.

"Force him to show himself," Lupin assured him. "If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him."

Ron handed it over.

"Thank you."

"Ready, Sirius?" Lupin inquired.

Black silently asked Mel for Snape's wand. She gave it up.

"Together?" He asked quietly.

"I think so... On the count of three. One — two — THREE!"

A flash of blue blinded her momentarily as she heard Ron shouts and the rat's squeals, she heard them until they stopped sounded like squeals, and more like human yells.

He was a very short man, hardly taller than Harry and Hermione. His thin, colorless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who has lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers's fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose and his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Harry saw his eyes dart to the door and back again.

"Well, hello, Peter," said Lupin pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. "Long time, no see."

"S — Sirius... R — Remus..." Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted toward the door. "My friends... my old friends..."

Black's wand arm rose, but Lupin seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning look, then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.

"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Lily, James, and Matt died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking around down there on the bed —"

"Remus, you don't believe him, do you..? He tried to kill me, Remus..."

"So we've heard. I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'd be so —"

"He's come to try and kill me again! He killed them and now he's going to kill me too... You've got to help me, Remus..."

"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out," said Lupin.

"Sorted things out? I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!"

"You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?" Lupin frowned. "When nobody has ever done it before?"

"He's got dark powers the rest of us can only dream of! How else did he get out of there? I suppose He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"

Black laughed again, he sounded so animal-like that she shrunk in her place fearfully.

"Voldemort, teach me tricks? What, scared to hear your old master's name?" said Black when he noticed the way Peter had flinched. "I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?"

"Don't know what you mean, Sirius —"

"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years. You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things in Azkaban, Peter... They all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them... I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they? There are still plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways... If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter —"

"Don't know... what you're talking about... You don't believe this — this madness, Remus —"

"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat."

"Innocent, but scared! If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban — the spy, Sirius Black!"

"How dare you," Black growled. "I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter — I'll never understand why I didn't see you were the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to be us... me and Remus... James and Matt– Hell, even Emily had your back!"

"Me, a spy... must be out of your mind... never... don't know how you can say such a —"

"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I suggested it! I thought it was the perfect plan... a bluff... Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you... It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters– Not only that, but the youngest Dumbledores as well, father and daughter..."

Alarms were going off inside her mind but she felt too tired to fight them, she supported her head against Harry's side, still sitting on the bed, and closed her eyes for a moment.

"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione timidly. "Can — can I say something?"

"Certainly, Hermione," said Lupin courteously.

"Well — Scabbers — I mean, this — this man — he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he's working for You- Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?"

"There!" said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Ron with his maimed hand. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair of Harry's head! Why should I?"

"I'll tell you why," said Black. "Because you never did anything for anyone unless you could see what was in it for you. Voldemort's been in hiding for fifteen years, they say he's half dead. You weren't about to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, for a wreck of a wizard who'd lost all of his power, were you? You'd want to be quite sure he was the biggest bully in the playground before you went back to him, wouldn't you? Why else did you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for news, weren't you, Peter? Just in case your old protector regained strength, and it was safe to rejoin him..."

Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk.

"Er — Mr. Black — Sirius?" said Hermione.

Black jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though he had never seen anything quite like her.

"If you don't mind me asking, how — how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?"

Mel wanted to say 'Mione, always bringing up the best questions' but she could barely muster a smile. Merlin, why was she so tired?

"Thank you!" Pettigrew squeaked. "Exactly! Precisely what I —"

But Lupin silenced him with a look. Black was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he were annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.

"I don't know how I did it," he said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the dementors couldn't suck it out of me... but it kept me sane and knowing who I am... helped me keep my powers... so when it all became... too much... I could transform in my cell... become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know..." He swallowed. "They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions... They could tell that my feelings were less — less human, less complex when I was a dog... but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand...

"But then I saw Peter in that picture... I realized he was at Hogwarts with Harry... perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again..."

Mel decided to believe them, she believed because they were okay with telling a truth that had weighed on them for a long time meanwhile Pettigrew was eager to squirm away from it, he seemed small and helpless, ready to jump on anyone's throat if given the chance.

"...ready to strike at the moment he could be sure of allies... and to deliver the last Potter and Dumbledore to them. If he gave them Harry and Mel who'd dare say he'd betrayed Lord Voldemort? He'd be welcomed back with honors... So you see, I had to do something. I was the only one who knew Peter was still alive..."

"It was as if someone had lit a fire in my head, and the dementors couldn't destroy it... It wasn't a happy feeling... it was an obsession... but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog... It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused... I was thin, very thin... thin enough to slip through the bars... I swam as a dog back to the mainland... I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the forest ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry..."

She finally looked up at Harry, he was holding Black's stare, no hesitation in his eyes.

"Believe me," Black was looking intently to the both of them. "Believe me. I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed any of them."

Harry looked down at her and she immediately knew what he was thinking. That ache on Black's voice... it resembled so much the one they felt whenever one of them was in danger– the anguish she drowned in when Harry was about to die in Salazar's chamber,  or Harry's when he thought Quirrel had killed her.

"We believe you," Mel said. Harry nodded as a reply.

"No!" Pettigrew fell to his knees and crawled over to Black.

"Sirius — it's me... it's Peter... your friend... you wouldn't..."

"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them," Black spat.

"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked. "You don't believe this... wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?"

"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter. I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?"

"Forgive me, Remus," Black pleaded.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Lupin. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?"

"Of course," said Black, smiling weakly. "Shall we kill him together?"

Mel looked up. That wasn't what she was expecting to hear them say.

"Yes, I think so," Lupin replied lowly.

"You wouldn't... you won't..." gasped Pettigrew. And he turned to Ron. "Ron... haven't I been a good friend... a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you... you're on my side, aren't you?"

"I let you sleep in my bed !" He exclaimed in disgust.

"Kind boy... kind master...you won't let them do it... I was your rat... I was a good pet..."

"If you made a better rat than a human, it's not much to boast about, Peter," said Black.

It was Hermione's turn.

"Sweet girl... clever girl... you — you won't let them... Help me..."

"Don't touch her!" Mel stood up but immediately regretted her decision as the world started to turn upside down.

Harry put an arm around her waist and called her name with worry. She didn't respond.

Pettigrew crawled over to them.

"Harry... Harry... you look just like your father... just like him... Mel..."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY? HOW DARE YOU FACE THEM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES AND MATT IN FRONT OF THEM?"

"Harry," Pettigrew, insisted. She felt her body being pulled away from the man, Harry's arms around her waist to keep her steady. "Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed... James would have understood, Harry... he would have shown me mercy..."

Harry ignored him, his attention still on her.

"Mel," He continued. "Talk to me..."

"I'm all right," She mumbled, fighting against her dizziness.

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort," said Black to Pettigrew. "Do you deny it?"

"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done?" Pettigrew finally burst into tears. "The Dark Lord– you have no idea... he has weapons you can't imagine... I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you, Remus, Matt, and James. I never meant it to happen... He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me —"

"DON'T LIE! YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY, JAMES AND MATT DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He — he was taking over everywhere!" gasped Pettigrew. "Wh — what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" said Black, with a terribly fury in his face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"

"You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Black. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.

"You should have realized," said Lupin quietly, "if Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Good-bye, Peter."

Only then Harry returned his attention to the scene unfolding in front of him.

"NO!" Harry yelled.

Mel stepped away and sat back on the bed, Hermione immediately sitting beside her to see if there was anything she could do. At the same time, Harry had taken a few large steps to stand between the three men.

"You can't kill him... You can't."

Next Chapter —>

Taglist.

@tiphareth2018 @vampiregirl1797 @siriuslysirius1107 @celestialhayi @mikariell95 @thesuitelifeofafangirl @kylosleftbuttcheek @steve-thotgers @tomshollandz @reverse-hxlland @bloodorangemoonlight @omiwashere

[stanbillyhargrove]

Ghosts chp 14

Billy x Katrina

A/N: this is a multi chapter series that will contain smut, angst, fluff, substance abuse MURDER, GORE, HORROR

Katrina's POV

Billy and Steve had been glued to me since we got back from Salem, barely giving me a chance to breathe on my own. But I'd finally convinced them that I was fine, that they didn't need to watch me all the time. That I was only a wall away from Billy if something happened.

I padded through my apartment, rubbing sleep from my eyes as I entered the bathroom. Turned on the shower, sloughed off my clothes and inspected myself in the mirror. Took in the rough look of makeup that had started to wear off and smear and let out a tired huff before sliding into the steamy spray. Soaped up and let the hot water ease sore muscles until it started to cool. Stepped out and wrapped up in a fluffy towel to wander into the kitchen. I set a kettle of water on the stove and a mug with a tea bag on the counter before going back to the bathroom. Hung my towel on the hook and massaged sweet smelling lotion into my skin, taking my time to relax and enjoy this time by myself.

I pulled my pajama top over my head and caught a glimpse of something in the corner of my eye. Turned to see a glimpse of the twisted man from my nightmares. Just a brief second of his mutilated, bloody face before the kettle started to screech, making me jump and look away. When I looked back at my reflection, it was just me looking back, completely normal.

--

I was curled up in bed, on the brink of falling asleep when I heard it. A loud gurgling, choking sound. I jumped up out of bed, fumbling for my phone on the bedside table. Used one hand to pound on the wall that separated mine and Billy's rooms as my phone rang.

"Jesus, what?" Billy's voice was gruff, just this side of angry.

"Are you okay? I heard choking."

"Wasn't me, I was sleeping."

"Sorry, I just thought I'd check in. Night, Billy."

He hung up with a huff and I settled back onto my bed for a minute before I heard it again.

A wet, choking, "weak.."

-- March

"Babe, what are you doing?"

I shook my head and looked over at Billy who was staring at me with one eyebrow cooked, "what?"

"You just stopped and stood there in the mirror for a few minutes, you okay?"

I smiled at him, "yeah, I'm fine...I just zoned out. Come on, let's go get something to eat."

--

"Katrina?"

I hummed, turning around to see Billy and yelped when I realized we were on the roof. The last I remember, we were on the couch in Billy's apartment, curled up with Pudge and watching a movie.

"What? When did we come up here?"

"You just got up and left. You weren't answering me so I followed you up here. Are you sure you're okay? This has been happening a lot."

"Y-yeah, I'm okay. Just, stressed I think."

The corner of his mouth turned down, "right, well...let's go back inside, okay?"

-- April

"Hey! Katrina! Answer me!" Billy yelled, pounding on the bathroom door.

Everything felt heavy, and fuzzy like I was sinking underwater. I had to fight my way up through the fog and let out a shriek when my head cleared and I felt the scalding hot water burning my skin. Stumbled out of the shower, my soaked clothes streaming water on the floor as I tried to turn the shower off. The bathroom had filled with steam, so thick that it billowed out like a cloud when I opened the door.

"Holy shit, Katrina! What the fuck?"

Billy's hands gently skimmed my shoulders and neck, where the burns were the worst. I bit the inside of my cheek to stifle a cry, making Billy curse when a whine left my throat.

"This is pretty bad, we need Steve," he grabbed my hips and led me backwards to sit on the edge of the tub, "stay here for a minute, okay? I'll call him and then I'll come help you change."

-

"Miss, can you hear me?"

I jolted, inhaling sharply as I awoke and saw a woman in front of me. I took in the sterile white room, the woman's pink scrubs and started taking panicky breaths.

"Where? How, how did I get here?"

"Miss, you're in the hospital. Do you know your name?"

"Yeah, my name is very fucking confused!" I shouted, swinging my legs off the bed.

She held her hands out in an attempt to stop me, "you need to calm down before I have to sedate you," she waited, eyebrow cocked until I stopped moving, "good. You're safe here. You were found wandering outside, soaking wet with second degree burns. What's the last thing you remember? Did someone hurt you?"

I shook my head, "I was at my boyfriend's...it was an accident."

She eyed me closely, "Did he do this to you?"

"No. I, the shower...I blacked out, the water was too hot."

"These black outs, do they happen a lot?"

"No, not really."

"Okay, hun," she soothed, "you got someone I can call to come get you?"

--

I had just gotten home from work and was washing the makeup off my face when it happened the first time. My reflection leaned back without me moving, it's head cocking to watch me. I stared in horror as it's eyes narrowed and it's hands came up, one grabbing the bottom of my mouth and the other grabbing the top. Then it started to pull. I watched it's mouth open wider and wider until the skin started to stretch and tear at the corners. I couldn't pull my eyes away from the ones in the mirror even as the skin started to tear more and more. Blood was running out of it's mouth, mixing with saliva to create red rivers down it's neck. The skin tore all the way to it's ears before it was met with resistance. My heart was racing, palms slick with sweat where I was clutching at the sink for support. A sickening pop and it's jaw hung free, only held on by a few strands of skin. It's tongue lolled out, hanging limply down it's neck.

My stomach lurched and I scrambled to kneel by the toilet before puking. I got up after my stomach had emptied and stood in front of the sink to wash my mouth out. Took a hesitant glance at the mirror to find myself looking back at me, completely fine and only moving when I did, how I did.

I ended up sleeping at Billy's that night, using the excuse that I was lonely to not worry him.

--

It's happening again. One moment I was lost in thought staring out the window and the next, my reflection in moving on it's own. This time, a cruel smile on it's face as it reached up and placed it's fingers around it's eye. My stomach clenched but I couldn't move, couldn't look away. It's fingers curled and pressed into it's eyelid. Further and further it dug, it's sneer never wavering as it wrapped it's fingers behind it's eyeball. A wet pop and it's bloody hand was fully curled around it's eye. The hand turned, showing off it's prize and I noticed the eye was different. A circle of blue had started to form around the iris.

The eyeball hung limp against it's cheek when it let go to lick the blood from it's fingers. I scrambled to get away from the window and barely made it to the sink in time for me to be sick.

-- May

The twisted man had slowly been becoming more and more human every time I saw him. Limbs started to line up, making his movements more fluid, alive. His face moved back to normal, wounds closing up to stop the flow of blood and leaving only soft skin behind.

Everything about him was crisp, sharp. From his angular features to his thick, dark hair swept back out of his face. Steely blue eyes looked down on me whenever I saw him, a menacing smirk deepened the dimple in his cheek.

He was beautiful.

I could never bring myself to look away, I was mesmerized by his presence. He even started to talk to me, at first just when I saw him and then he started talking in my head, interjecting in conversations. Despite his cold looks, he was actually nice to me. Bordering on affectionate the way he called me 'my pet' and the charming smile he'd give when I asked about him, though he never answered my questions, just deflected them.

--

A man, dirty and beaten was on his knees in front of me. Tears pooled in the corner of his eye but didn't dare spill. His clenched jaw stopped any trace of a wobble.

"Please, brother...don't do this."

I looked from him to our captor as he regarded me with disdain. His lip pulled into a sneer and he started to turn away.

I shut my eyes and swung, hearing the blade slice through my comrades throat. Flesh gave way easily under my blade, like butter. Heard him choke on blood, gurgling as he toppled to the dirt.

"Anything for the mission," I muttered.

I turned away and opened my eyes to find myself back in my cell, smashed mirror all around me. Picked out a curved piece to hide away before someone came in to clean up. Dug it out in another blink to drag across my ribs. A quick, sharp pain and a slow trickle of blood that would leave a permanent reminder.

Another face, followed by another and another. A line up of faces, some pleading and crying, others stone faced and silent. Each one followed by a quick slice and a body falling to the ground. Each one remembered with another scar across my ribs. Each one easier than the last until I began to crave the feeling.

I jolted awake, looking around frantically at my apartment walls. I could still feel each slice on my ribs but when I felt around, there was nothing there. No wounds, no scars, just smooth skin. Just a dream.

--

"Tell me something about you," I murmured to the mirror, to him.

He hummed, "come now, pet. You can't be that interested in me."

I adjusted myself on the small vanity to turn more towards him, "I am. You've been around for months and I barely know anything about you."

A smirk stretched across his lips, "alright. What do you want to know?"

"Those memories I saw...killing those men, that was you, wasn't it?"

There was a brief moment where pain crossed his face before he collected himself, "yes. Those are my memories."

"Who were they? Why did you hurt yourself after each of them?"

"They were my brothers...we were recruited into a special operations unit in the war. Our mission was to infiltrate the enemy base and make them trust us. Anything for the mission, that was our motto. None of us knew what we'd go through once we were captured, just a bunch of young men being sent in blind. We were tortured, beaten for days until we agreed to join the enemy. But they would only let one of us into their ranks, so we had to choose. Kill or be killed. My brothers were weak, they wouldn't do it...but I knew the mission was more important. I slit each of their throats and was welcomed into the enemy camp. They saw my potential, made me The Butcher and trusted me to be their lead torturer. I slaughtered many of my own men in the interest of my mission. The scars were my way of keeping track of them all."

"Why? How could you turn on them like that?"

His eyebrows creased, "easy. Love is weakness...and I am not weak."

--

Another round of sleep paralysis. I'd been waking up in a cold sweat more often than not since the spell. But this time was different. I was frozen, standing in a forest. Thick woods surrounded me and a feeling of dread settled heavy in my gut. I could feel the trees shifting, like they were alive, closing me in. Holding me still. Suffocating me.

Then, through the trees, I could see someone coming closer. Gliding closer and closer and then all at once they were in front of me. My heart was racing, a scream threatening to burst my chest open.

It was me.

I was face to face with myself. But there was something wrong with this other me. She was covered in blood and dirt and her eyes. They were completely black. She cocked her head to the side, watching me as the pressure built in my chest, like she was waiting for me to explode. Slowly, her arm lifted towards me.

Then, in an instant, she was gone and I could breathe again. The pressure in my chest lifted and I was flooded with relief. The trees shifted, letting a man through, the man I'd been seeing. Calm and collected, he walked through the trees like an angel, ridding me of my fear. He walked up close to me and gently ran his knuckles down my cheek.

"It's time to wake up, pet."

-- June

I looked up after brushing my teeth and yelped when I saw my reflection. It was me, the other me, the one that was in the woods. Black eyes stared back at me, unblinking. She stared at me for a moment before opening her mouth in a grin, black blood pouring through her lips. Then she slammed her fists against the mirror.

I screamed, running out of the bathroom and into the kitchen. But, as I tried to catch my breath I realized she was everywhere. In every reflective surface, slamming her fists against the reflection and screaming. Screaming so loud it rang in my ears. I grabbed the tea kettle off the stove and ran back to the bathroom, throwing it with all my strength into the mirror. It shattered, raining sparkling pieces of glass all over the counter and floor.

I smirked down at the pieces when the screaming stopped. Breathed a sigh of relief. But then the laughing started. Echoing louder and louder in my head. I could see her cackling in the windows, picture frames and the other couple mirrors around my apartment. Frantically, I started covering everything reflective. Taped sheets and blankets over the windows and mirrors, covered the kitchen appliances with paper. Picture frames got the glass pulled out to be smashed. I was just finishing covering doorknobs and taps with cloths when I was grabbed by the shoulders and shaken.

"Katrina!" Billy yelled, turning me to face him, "what the hell are you doing?"

I stammered, "I..there was, she...it was so loud...why are you here?"

"I heard you screaming bloody murder and thought you were being killed," he huffed, "I didn't realize you were just going on a crazy rampage against your apartment."

"I'm..I wasn't..."

"I'm worried about you, Katrina. You're not yourself, maybe we should go see the triplets..."

The man's voice rang in my head 'tell him you're fine. Tell him you just need to relax.'

"I'm fine, Billy," I repeated, "just need to relax."

He frowned at me, "I guess I could take you out of the city for a while? We could spend some time out in the country?"

I smiled, "yeah, that sounds like just what I need."

"Okay, I'll start looking for places to stay."

--

"Rina...Katr...Katrina!"

I woke with a start, looking down at Billy's confused face. His hands were tightly wrapped around my wrists, holding them still. I gasped when I saw the blade in my fist pressed against Billy's throat. He watched me carefully as one of his hands moved to grab the knife.

"Billy?"

"Let go, Katrina."

I opened my hands, letting Billy take the knife from me and started shaking, "I...I'm sorry, I, I was...was having a horrible dream."

He huffed, "you think?"

He set the knife on the bedside table and looked up at me, worried, "I knew we shouldn't have done that fucking spell."

"I wanted to do it. Had to do it, for you. For Olivia. I think I just got in my head about what happened, made myself paranoid, y'know?"

He shifted me off him and got up.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"Back to my apartment," he mumbled, "until we figure out what's wrong with you."

--

Billy moaned against my lips before trailing down my neck, leaving a line of bruises in his wake. I arched into him, leaning heavily into the heat of his chest. Twisted my fingers into his hair and tugged gently to get my lips on his neck.

I started to get a little hazy, the edges of myself blurring. I swore I could feel Billy's heartbeat against my lips. Could hear it thundering in my ears as I nipped at his skin. He sighed, relaxing into me. I bit down a little harder, heard him hiss and groan. His heart was pounding between my teeth and I...I couldn't...I had to.

"Ah!" Billy cried, pushing me off him, "what the fuck?"

One of his hands came up to the side of his neck. When he pulled it away his hand was smeared with bright red blood. Beads of blood sprang up on his neck, in the perfect shape of my teeth.

"I...I don't, I didn't...I don't know what happened."

"That's it. If this weekend doesn't help you, we're going to the triplets. I'm not dealing with this shit anymore. Something is fucking wrong with you, Katrina."

He gave me a withering look before storming out of my apartment. Left me alone with the coppery taste of blood in my mouth and the fear that I was becoming something that I could never come back from. That I was becoming that monstrous version of myself and I'd never be the same again.

--

"Steve?"

He hummed over the phone, "yeah, what's up?"

"Are you real?"

"What? Katrina, are you okay?"

I sat down on my couch, twirling the spoon in my hand to look at my reflection. The dirty, broken version of me stared back.

"Can you help me? ...I need to wake up," I mumbled.

"What...you are awake, Katrina. What are you talking about?"

A sob bubbled up in my chest, choking me as I whispered, "I don't know what's real anymore, Steve."

'I'm real, pet.'

I could hear Steve mumbling, talking to someone else for a moment. I only heard snippets of what he was saying, things like 'panic attack' and 'sleeping' as well as Billy's cursing.

"We're almost there, Katrina. Just relax, okay? Just sit down, breathe, we'll be there soon."

@champagnesugamama @charmed-asylum @alias-b

[fortunatelyhauntedblackcherry]

Moonshine - A Beetlejuice Fanfiction 12

Warning: swearing, several mentions of murder, scaring people out of their pants, Beej being a creep, shotgun use, abusive ex.

The ground was shaking, the house was somehow glitching and green smoke filled the living room. The girls heard a loud, croaky, devilish laugh right before the room turned completely dark. Even the lightning stopped. Sofía held Rei close in fear, while Ari was looking around with lustruous eyes. All of a sudden, a gravelly voice filled the air.

- Welcome, welcome, welcome, lovely ladies! - a weirdly handsome, husky man with fluffy hair, which went from black roots to glowing, bright green tops and stubble colored the same way stood on the dining table. He wore a dirty striped suit with a stripey shirt; a green tie, which had several spots of moss on it; black suspenders; and dirty black leather shoes with stacked heels. He was grinning, showing his sharp double canines; his golden, kind of catlike eyes were shining in excitement. Some random spots of dirt and maybe rotting patterned his face. He put a spotlight on himself, and as he threw his hands above his head, a couple of red neon lights lighted up around him. Some of them were arrows, pointing at him, some of them were captions saying "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice". - Can all of you see me now?

- SHIT HE'S REAL. - screamed Rei.

- Wow. - gasped Ari right before the man jumped down from the table. He landed right in front of her. He locked his gaze in hers and offered her a hand. - You look WAY better than I imagined, based on the voice. - she put her palm in his. - Not so dead... - Beetlejuice lifted Ari up from the ground and as he did, he locked her in his arms, swooped her off her feet and planted a kiss on her lips. Which was followed by a bitchslap from the wide-eyed breather girl. Beetlejuice let Ari go, still smiling like an idiot.

- Sorry, sorry, I got overjoyed, I just had to, I couldn't help myself. Am I overstepping my bounds? - Ari nodded and smiled while she wiped her lips. This man can't be real. Crazy motherfucker is worse than I imagined. - It's just that this whole thing is so beautiful! - his voice got emotional and he put his hands on his chest, where Ari imagined his heart would've been. - You called me! You didn't have to, but you called me!

- The fuck you mean she didn't had to? - asked Rei who let go of Sofía to inspect the demon more closely. Beetlejuice raised an eyebrow, pulled a grimace, snapped his fingers and a couple pieces of furniture appeared before the winter garden's door, making a barricade.

- Solves all ya problems. - he turned back to Ari. - NOW! I'm gonna go, kill those suckers, have some fun, earn some screams, and leave chaos in my wake!

- Yes, good, get on it! - stated Ari, held Beetlejuice's wide shoulders, and turned him around to face the backdoor. - Get'em, tiger. - Sofía jumped in front of them, making Beetlejuice almost fall over.

- Wait, you really want him to do that?!? - Ari gestured with her hand and raised her eyebrows.

- Duuuh, I didn't summon him to play fucking yahtzee! - BJ chuckled and put his elbow on Ari's shoulder.

- I like your jokes but I like hu-mor. - he cooed with a tilted head and a cheesy smile. Ari flashed a kind of annoyed look at him and blinked fast.

- Later, Beetlejuice, later, please, we have so much shit to do and haunt and kill now.

- You can't do that! - said Sofía, still standing before Ari and BJ. - It's not just morally wrong, but don't ya think, Ariadné dearest, that if a bunch of guys get brutally murdered here, we'll have to bury them and having a shitton of mounds in our backyard would raise suspicion? AND since we have such a bad luck, I'm pretty sure the police would find the bodies somehow. - Beetlejuice layed back to the wall, inspecting his dirty black nails, sighing. There's so much trouble with living folks, they always find somethin' to ruin the fun. It's easier with dead guys, you have some problems with them, you just throw 'em to a sandworm and your problems are solved! WAIT...

- Hey, guys, sorry to barge in, but I just wanna state that if you push someone, that’s bullying, if you kill someone, that’s murder, sure, but if there is no evidence and nobody sees it... - he shrugged. - ...it’s a simple accident. - he showed a toothy grin, lightning flashing on his sharp double canines. - And those goddamn sandworms could swallow anyone alive.

- What's a sandworm? - asked Ari excitedly. BJ shrugged.

- Oh ya know, nothing much, just 10-meters-tall two-headed snakes with a killer appetite. If they eat someone, they automatically get deported to the Netherworld, or I dunno how ya folks call it, Purgatory. No problem with the body, or the ghost. - Ari smiled widely and launched herself at Beetlejuice. She hugged his neck tightly.

- YOU ARE A GENIUS! - Beetlejuice just stood still, not knowing what to do with the sudden hug.

- Well, being dead has its perks. - he said with a small, weird laugh. Ari made a disgusted face and quickly let go.

- Ew, you smell like rotten meat. Gross.

- Aww thanks babe! - ha cooed and put his weight from one leg to another like a little kid.

Rei cleared her throat.

- Isn't that swallowing thing still murder though? - Beetlejuice appeared right behind her out of thin air.

- Jesus Christ, Rei, you sexy son of a bitch, grow up! - he said and pinched her booty, then quickly reappeared on the dining table. - Please, sweethearts, shut up already! - he said in a nagging manner. - I'm ready for some people to die! Let me have my fun, you guys are like a snorefest! - the knocking started again, since the bad guys on the other side of the door realized they can't break it.

- Who's there with ya honey? - asked Matt, after hearing BJ talk. - Did... DID YOU HOOK UP WITH SOMEONE?! I AM ALL THAT YOU NEED! ARIADNÉ, DON'T MAKE ME COME IN THERE!!! - BJ pointed at the door.

- See, the stupid motherfucker's even asking for it!

The girls looked at each other. Rei was the first to talk.

- Well, I have a very little patience for stupidity. I say let's get rid of these jerks. - Sofía rolled her eyes and tried to say something but Beetlejuice quickly pointed at her and a metal plate appeared on her lips, making her unable to talk. She flashed an angry look at the demon. But he just shrugged with a wicked smile.

- Silence gives consent.

- There's only one more thing! - stated Rei, which made Beetlejuice do a huge eyeroll.

- WHATTTT.

- Kill only Matt. His henchmen don't deserve death, I mean at least I think so. - she said while looking at Ari. She nodded with pouted lips. - Only scare them. If you can do that. - Beetlejuice held his chest and dramatically made the expression of fainting.

- If I can do that?! What do ya think, what am I, a newbie? - he jumped off the table, booping Rei's nose. - Babes, I've been scaring for like a millennia. I'm the bio-exorcist of the Netherworld, giving houses enemas and shit. - he turned away. - Don't underestimate my power cause I'll be offended! - Ari laughed, jumped next to Beetlejuice who hold his arm out, so she locked arms with him. He stared deeply into her widely opened, emerald green eyes. - So tell me, little wolf, do you want to punish those who have wronged you? - he said in an arousing tone. His gravelly voice made Ari slightly shiver and gulp.

- Y-yes...

- Alright ladies, then let's turn up the juice and see what shakes loose!

With a snap of the fingers, all 4 of them teleported to the kitchen. The metal plate from Sofía's mouth disappeared, which made her kind of relieved, but still left her grouching.

- You snake-ass bitches don't respect the Sister Code... - she grumbled.

- Hey, d'ya want me to put the plate back on your slutty mouth, woman?! - asked Beetlejuice in a sharp tone. Sofía crossed her arms before her chest.

- ...I hate you. - Beetlejuice nodded then turned back to Ari with a devilish smile. His eyes were literally glowing at this point, and maybe he had sharper and a bit more teeth than an average human would have.

- Okay, so first thing first, I'm invoking the "No Judgement” clause of our friendship.

- What? Why? - asked Ari. Beetlejuice layed back to the middle kitchen counter and fixed his jacket. He flashed his glowing, hungry eyes at Ari and winked.

- Cause Imma get a little nasty... - Beetlejuice was interrupted by an angry scream. Matthias was banging on the door so loud at this point that Rei was sure he already broke some of his fingers.

- OPEN UP OR I'LL SHOOT THIS FUCKIN DOOR OPEN! - Ari's lower lip juddered at the sudden shouting. She cupped Beetlejuice's chubby face in her palms, took a deep breath and with heated determination in her eyes she said:

- Make him piss his pants.

- Your wish is my command, babes.

- I'M GONNA COUNT TO THREE! - Beetlejuice looked at the door and snapped his fingers. - ONE! - the furniture floated back to their original places. - TWO! - BJ let out a voiceless laugh as he wiggled his fingers and made the whole house pitch black. - FUCK IT! - and with that, right after the sound of barrel-loading a shotgun, the door of the winter garden opened with a creek.

One of the most sobering things in the world must be to experience a classical horror cliché in a house that is rumored to be haunted. There were 5 men standing behind Matt; he met them all earlier that night at a shitty pub, and they were all horny and drunk enough for Matthias to convince them easily to follow him and break into the house of his ex-girlfriend. Stupid boys thought that they'll get some easy pussy that night. Then they saw the house and all of them started to get second thoughts... But they quickly brushed them off, those rumors were just to scare the little townsfolk.

As soon as the door opened, Matt's henchmen looked at each other. Matthias hastily stepped into the house and looked back at the guys. They were stalling and shared concerned looks. Beetlejuice snapped his fingers and appeared with the girls hidden behind one of the huge cupboards of the winter garden. He leaned closer to Ari and whispered:

- Watch. This. - he pointed at one of Ari's big oleanders and started to wiggle his fingers. The plant started to grow, and as it got bigger and bigger, it became an anthropomorphic cross between a Venus flytrap and an avocado. It had a huge, nasty-looking pod which had shark-like teeth. Ari gasped and smiled widely. She always wanted to see this plant in real life. The men didn't notice the plant first, but then one of them started to sniff the air, which was filled with the smell of blood now, and turned around. As soon as he spotted the plant, he screamed like a girl. Beetlejuice opened his mouth in awe and circled his nipples.

- Oh how I missed that sound... - he purred. Ari laughed.

- Do the Voice, do the Voice, do the Voice! - she said excitedly and jokingly smacked BJ's upper arm a couple times. The demon showed his teeth, held out his hand like a sock puppet and immitated talking with it. As he did, the plant started to talk.

- FEED ME SEYMOOUUR! - the plant growled at the men before it. All 5 of them screamed and launched themselves into the pitch black room. They shoved Matt before themselves, who fell on his stomach, dropped his weapon and headbanged the hardwood floor. Beetlejuice snapped his fingers again, which made him and the girls reappear behind the sofa. He peeked out, threw his hand up and made a pulling movement. The burglars all got dragged deeper into the room. It felt like something grabbed their ankles and pulled them...

In the blink of a moment, the door slammed shut behind them, and maniacal laughter filled the air, like it came from every direction. Beetlejuice winked at the girls and got back to his normal, gravelly tone.

- Learn to throw your voice, fool your friends, fun at parties!

- Now THAT is cool! I wanna do that too! - said Rei in an excited tone. Sofía rolled her eyes; she was still very pissed at her sisters so she decided to not give a damn, doesn't matter what awesome things Ari's demon buddy could do. Ari peeked over the edge of the sofa and giggled at the expressions of the men. They looked so afraid. Beetlejuice quickly pulled her back and shushed her with a small laugh. He gestured towards the fireplace which instantly lit up. One of the guys let out a tiny scream, which made BJ rub his palms in ecstasy. He bit his lower lip.

- Mi mamá was right. - said one of the burglars, a shorter latino guy with wobbly voice. - This place... is cursed.

- No it's not. - stated the one next to him. He sounded clearly afraid as well, he just tried to cover it with confidence. - Anyway, what is it with you and curses? You're never happy without a good curse. Superstitious idiot. - he changed into a more sarcastical tone. - "This is cursed, that is cursed!"

- Give it a rest, will ya!!! - shouted Matt, who was looking for the shotgun. - Don't be pussies! It's just the wind, and my baby always had weird plants. You know what we came for. Let's head upstairs, 2 people per girl, and have some fun! - he flashed an evil smile at his "friends". And that made Beetlejuice's blood boil.

- Not on my watch, Mattyboy! - he hissed. He closed his eyes for a moment. Welp, hope I'm not rusty. - Let's see, what are you jerks the most afraid of?

He disappeared from behind the sofa. The girls peeked out, and clearly saw a shadow figure circling the men. It was audible that something was moving behind them. The burglars turned around but didn't see a thing. Beetlejuice's shadow form took a quick look into every men's eyes. Several scriptures from the Middle Ages tell us that if a demon looks into your eyes, they can see your biggest fears. Who would've thought that it's true?

- Got it. - said Beej as he reappeared behind the sofa with a snap. He took a quick look on Ari's excited faced, and flashed a toothy grin. - This is gonna be so. Much. Fun. Let's give those guys the fright of their lives! - Beetlejuice disappeared again, just to reappear next to the windows. His figure was vaguely illuminated by the random thunderbolts. He tilted his head sideways and dropped his left hand next to himself. His painted black nails grew into huge claws, his catlike eyes were glowing, just like his dark burgundy hair. It always looked like this when he was in a destructive, devilish mood. He flashed a wicked, Cheshire-like smile and started to scratch the windows. It made the girls' get goosebumps but the burglars' look was a good enough compensation for the unpleasantness. Ari was pretty sure that the guys saw BJ for a moment before he disappeared with a laugh again. He sounded so evil. Beetlejuice appeared next to Ari again, digging into his fluffy hair, eyes closed, wide smile on his face. Shit, that's hot, thought Ari. - I'm still the Ghost with the Most.

- What if they go upstairs? - asked Sof with a raised eyebrow, pointing at the burglars approaching the stairs. - Hmm? Did ya plan out something for that as well, Mr. Ghosty-ghost?

- Well I have ideas... - said Ari and leaned close to Beej. She whispered something into his ear which made him bite his lower lip. At this point his teeth were more shark-like than human-like.

- Shit babes, you're a natural... - he moaned and flung his hand towards the stairs. Matthias just stepped on the first step, but was stopped by the sight of 2 little girls standing on the top of the stairs, holding hands. Their eyes were all black.

- Come play with us, Matty. Forever... and ever... and ever... - they said in the same rhythm, with the creepiest child-voice you can ever imagine. The burglars stepped back. Ari couldn't hold back any longer and shouted:

- NOW!

The children started screaming histerically and in the same moment, blood started to wave down the stairs, soaring on the walls, splashing at the men. They all screamed bloody murder and tried to ran away, scattering in every possible direction. Beetlejuice's eyes were glowing with pleasure.

- Do you hear that sound, Ari? That BEAUTIFUL sound? - he said with a moan and bit his fist. - That is the sound, of clean, white, shorts turning brown.. - he looked at Ari. - Ain't it the sweetest noise around? - he laughed maniacally which made Ari and Rei giggle as well. - You guys stay here so you won't stay in the way, but you... - he grabbed Ari's hand and pulled her up to her feet. - ...you deserve to enjoy the show from first row, babes.

With a snap, they appeared in the corner, next to good old Long John Silver's skeleton. Beetlejuice wiggled his fingers and the pirate slowly came to life. One of the burglars, with terror in his eyes, tried to run away as far as possible from the reanimated corpse, but clumsily, he lost his foothold because of the dripping blood from his clothes and fell on his back. It made a huge thud. Ari burst out laughing, like the child she was in heart, but tried to cover her mouth with her hand. Beetlejuice was laughing too, but decided to top his performance and wiggled his fingers again. The pirate started rattling as he lifted his sword up, let out a warcry, and started to run in the lying man's direction. He let out an agonizingly high-pitched scream as he got up. BJ and Ari laughed more histerically.

- Did you hear that?! - wheezed the girl and slapped BJ's shoulder. - Oh my god let's make some more people scream!

BJ held Ari's hand, and pulled her over to the TV. The demon tapped the screen which instantly lit up in blue. Weird streaks appeared on it, then a hand from the inside, tapping the glass. Then another one. Then one more. Two guys, who now held each other, screamed out. BJ put his arm around Ari's shoulders.

- Panic and stress, oh ain't it the best? - he said an laughed with his head thrown backwards.

- You are such a weirdo! - she laughed and elbowed him in the side. He let her go, tilted his head sideways, hunched down and bit his lips in a weird, kinda creepy manner. Ari wheezed and scruffed his fluffy hair. Beetlejuice hunched down more.

- Now behind my ear... - he said with a moan. Ari pulled her hand back with a laugh. She looked around, admiring the sight of bloody men running around, but then her eyes found a specific person standing before the steps, staring at her with a shotgun in his hand. The smile from her face disappeared. She took a step back, and Beetlejuice instantly stepped before her, covering her with his body. He formed a little cup with one of his hands, held out the other dramatically and blew into his palm. A huge blob of fire appeared right before them, blowing up in Matthias's face. He screamed and BJ laughed. - No worries babes, I got ya. NOW WHERE WERE WE. - he turned around and after some looking, he pointed at a guy. He was trying to open up the front door, but it was shut. Beetlejuice made huge gestures and summoned a crazy eyed, killer looking dog. Ari awwed and crouched down. The dog acted all surprised when the girl scruffed his head, but in half a second he got really happy and wagged his tail. Beetlejuice raised an eyebrow and made an unimpressed face. - You are a hellhound, you are SO not supposed to do that. - Ari laughed, hugged the dog one more time, then pointed at the guy Beetlejuice was eyeing.

- Go, catch! - she said in an angelic voice. The hellhound started barking and running towards his target. Poor guy jumped up on the hall cabinet.

Beetlejuice snapped again. They now appeared in the downstairs bathroom. A burglar was leaning against the bathroom door, huffing, and as they appeared, he pointed at BJ in fear.

- YOU! - he shouted. - My dad told me about you! The stripey demon with the stupid hair who haunts the creepy house at the edge of the town! Nobody believed a young weedhead pizza guy but you ARE real! - Beetlejuice shrugged and flashed an evil smile.

- Well, why didn't you listen to him? I bet he told ya to stay away from this... - he rubbed his palms together. - ...creepy house... - he opened his palms, water pouring out of them. Ari climbed up on the washing machine, which was a good idea, noticing that something huge started to move in the water. A crab-like figure. The guy screamed bloody murder. BJ laughed and snapped. Him and Ari reappeared in the living room, right behind the sofa. Rei was clapping like an idiot. Shit, even Sofía looked a bit more enthusiastic now. What can I say, the guy IS good.

- Are you lovely ladies having fun? - Ari and Rei nodded exaggeratedly, Sofía huffed and rolled her eyes. - Well the real show is just about to begin! Take your seats! - Beetlejuice teleported the girls onto the sofa while himself appeared on the coffee-table. He started tapping a rhythm with his feet and out of nowhere, the sound of a guitar could be heard. Then came drums. BJ was kinda dancing around on the table, feeling himself. One of the burglars ran towards him with a glass thing he found on one of the shelves. BJ fixed his jacket and with a movement of a hand, he summoned fire towards him. Then laughed at the guy falling over. Now full on music was blasting. Theatrical weirdo, thought Ari. Rei clapped, BJ bowed. Then he raised his hands slowly, making big spiders emerge from the ground. Sof whined a little and closed her eyes.

- EWEWEWEWEW.

One of the burglars, who was sitting in the corner, legs pulled up to his chest, cried out.

- THIS IS JUST A LUCID DREAM! I'M DREAMING! - BJ turned his head backwards, then floated before him with a normal facing, tilted head, and grabbed the guy's chin.

- Really? - the girls didn't see what's happening really, but what they saw, was that BJ's head was getting bigger and that he opened his lower jaw like a snake. - Then tell me, buddyboy, why do I hear you screaming? - the burglar screamed out and turned white as a wall. Beetlejuice appeared next to Ari on the sofa. He wiped his teary eyes and laughed again. Ari grabbed his thigh with an excited smile.

- You are fantastic! Unbelievable! That was a sound that says I will never sleep well again! - she breathed in. BJ's eyes were glowing at her. Literally glowing. - I can't believe you are such a talented scarer. Hollywood should learn from you. - the demon looked down at his shoes and crumpled his jacket. A slight streak of pink appeared in his hair. Ari jumped back. - OH MY GOD YOUR HAIR CHANGES COLOR! - he pulled the differently colored streak and sighed.

- Yeah, it's like a moodring... Stupid thing always tells on me...

- THAT IS THE COOLEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN! - said Ari with excitement in her voice. - What does light pink mean?

- NOTHING. - stated Beej. With a little bit too much voice. He cleared his throat. - Imma tell ya later, but as you said, we still have so much shit to do, to haunt, to kill... - he winked at Ari who rolled her eyes and crossed her arms before her chest. Beetlejuice booped her nose, than pulled her up onto the table. He whirled her around in ecstasy, both laughing, BJ howling sometimes. - Nice moves, little hellion! - he laughed. The music in the background got louder and louder with each moment. BJ let Ari go for a moment. The guys were losing it at this point, most of them crying and running around. Beetlejuice looked at his pal. - Hey Ari, check this out! - he raised his hands, pointing at one guy after another, twitching with each move. All 6 of them stood up straight. BJ looked at Ari with a wicked smile. - Dance break!

To the rhythm of the music, the burglars all started to dance. They did the same moves BJ did, with a weird green fog in their eyes. Beetlejuice occasionally looked at the girls, who were laughing their asses off. BJ did The Thing™, which made them all snort. Beetlejuice didn't notice that it also made Ari check out his pelvic moves.

The music ended, Rei and Sof was holding each other, both of them teared up by laughter. Ari slapped her thighs. Beetlejuice bowed several times.

- Thank you, thank you, thank you! That was an old Scandinavian folk song. - the girls teared up again. Beetlejuice smiled like an idiot. Now his hair was more green then burgundy. He was having a great time. - I mean, yeah, I put my own spin on it, but... Hey, ya liked it!

And that's when their laughter was stopped by the sound of barrel-loading a shotgun.

[grapehyunshair]

Strawberries and cigarretes || Lee Donghyuck

A/N: photos are not mine, non idol!au inspired by a troye sivan song, probably kinda bad cuz i was in a rush but i couldnt get this idea out of my mind all day so here it is enjoy xx

Remember when we first met?

You said, "Light my cigarette"

So I lied to my mum and dad I jumped the fence and I ran

But we couldn't go very far

Cause you locked your keys in your car

So you sat and stared at my lips

And I could already feel your kiss

You met Donghyuck, or Haechan as he preferred to be called, on a Tuesday morning in school. You knew of him and of the things he did and sometimes you talked to him in class, but you didn't really know who he really was. You didn't really have to know much about him to understand the kid was trouble, from his black leather jacket to the million broken hearts he was responsible for breaking, you were pretty sure you didn't want to associate yourself with him. In fact, you didn't really want to associate yourself with anyone. You were a pretty closed up person and you found making friends pretty difficult so for the most part you found yourself hanging out by yourself at the back of the school. So that's where you were on that Tuesday morning, waiting for the lunch hour to pass while looking at the peaceful, blue sky when you heard footsteps from behind you and and someone plopping down next to you. No one really hung around the back of the school so you got startled at the sudden arrival and you turned to see who the person was, when you saw Haechan sheepishly grinning at you while mumbling "Sorry, I just needed a breather I hope that's okay with you."

You nodded quickly, too intimidated to actually say anything and faced the front again. None of you actually tried to break the silence that existed between you, both of you too consumed in your own thoughts and busy enjoying the peaceful environment. That was until Haechan spoke up, nudging you softly with his elbow making you turn and look at him once again.

"Hey Y/N, can you maybe light my cigarette?" He asked softly, taking you by surprise both at the request and at the sudden realization that Haechan was breathtaking. You of course, knew that Haechan was one of the most handsome guys in school, the number of girls swooning over him being the receipt, but you never had the chance to admire his face from up close. And with the way the light fell on his face, you could finally understand why he had all those girls following him all those school years. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." He said chuckling.

"What? Oh right, sorry. U-um I don't actually smoke so..." You trailed off, looking at him apologetically, "You know, you should stop smoking though, it's bad for your health and totally gross." You said, furrowing your brows and snatching the cigarette Haechan had just placed between his lips, away from him.

"Oh? And who are you to tell me what to do?" He said, smirking, one of his eyebrows raised like he was questioning you. You scoffed and turned away from him again, blushing before mumbling, "I'm just stating facts." You could hear him chuckling from beside you before he suddenly said, "This place sucks want to get out of here?"

"You mean as in skip school?" You asked shocked. "No way, first of all my parents will kill me and second of all I barely know you, why would I want to skip school with you?" You raised your eyebrow while crossing your hands over your chest. "For all I know, you could be a killer."

"Oh c'mon Y/N. We've known each other since elementary, I'm pretty sure you'd known if I was a serial killer. Plus you're a teenager dude, live your life a little."

"Correction, I really don't know who you are besides all the rumors who may or may not be true and I won't be able to live my life if my parents find out and murder me." You saw Haechan falter a bit at your words, like what you said hurt him a little, before regaining his posture and playfully pouting at you, "C'mon pleaaase. I promise they won't find out a thing." He said and you don't know what came over you but you muttered a soft "fine" and that's how you found yourself jumping over the school fence with Haechan on a Tuesday morning and run the streets until you both got out of breath, so you stopped and opted for sitting at a nearby park.

"Sorry, I locked my keys in my car so I walked today." He muttered apologetically, while walking next to you.

"Don't worry, it's okay, I walk to school everyday so it's not a big deal." You shrugged and turned around to take a look at his face, only to realize that he was already staring at you with a look in his eyes you couldn't really understand. You blushed at the sudden proximity, before you started running and shouted "Hey whoever reaches the benches last, buys the other one ice cream." Haechan laughed and quickly followed you, purposely losing and buying you ice cream, before you both sat down and started talking like you were friends forever. So that's how, you spend your Tuesday in the park, having the best time you've had in a while, getting to know aspects of Haechan you didn't know existed. And when your parents asked you later in the evening how school was, you looked them in the eyes and smiled, lying to them by saying it went great.

Long nights, daydreams

Sugar and smoke rings, I've been a fool

But strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you

Headlights on me

Racing to 60, I've been a fool

But strawberries and cigarettes always taste like

Blue eyes, black jeans

Lighters and candy, I've been a fool

But strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you

After that day, you two found yourselves reaching for the other's company more often each day. Haechan felt like he could be his real self with you and he really enjoyed hanging out with someone who he knew wouldn't judge him based on what the others said. You also found yourself enjoying his company, the once assumptions you had of him, thrown out of the window from the first day you started hanging out with him and you were really thankful that someone actually took time out of their day to hang out with you. At first, your friendship was restricted at the back yard of the school, were you both sat next to each other, many times not really talking yet enjoying the endearing silence, while other times none of you could stop talking. After a few months though, Haechan found himself calling you at any time of the day, just to hang out with you, whether that was stopping by your house, or taking you out for night drives. The later normally happened when he had a lot in his mind and he just wanted to see you. And soon, that became a part of your day. He became a part of your day. He would pick you up to go to school and drive you back because he didn't want you to walk on your own and after a few hours he would probably call you up to go on a night adventure. On a cold winter night, while you were sleeping you suddenly heard your phone go off. Alarmed at the sudden noise, you shot up and reached for you phone picking it up, not bothering to look at the caller's ID, already knowing who it was.

"Hyuck?" You said, calling him by a nickname only you were allowed to call him, "Are you okay? It's like 3 am." You said, a yawn escaping your lips.

It was silent for a while before he answered. You could hear his ragged breath through the phone, making your eyebrows furrow and your heartbeat increase. "Can we please go for a drive?" You heard a whisper, making your heart break a little. He wasn't okay.

"I'll be down in 5." You said, "Arrive safely yeah?" You heard a small yes and then he hung up.

You sighed and plopped down into your mattress again. To say Donghyuck had now a firm place in your heart now, would be an understatement. You loved him and not only in a friendly way. Somewhere along the laughs, the hugs, his jokes and his stories you had developed a stupid crush on him and your heart broke at the realization he would never love you the same you loved him. However, you promised yourself you wouldn't tell him anything, too afraid of losing what you had, even if it wasn't what your heart wanted the most. That's why, you wore a pair of sneakers and sneaked out of the door quietly, running to his car and slipping in before he drove away. At first it was quite, but that was until you reached for his hand with your own and he stopped the car near a cliff turning around and looking you with glossy eyes.

"Why am I never enough?" He said, voice breaking and you resisted the urge to reach out and hug him, chosing to listen to him instead. "It's like, whatever I do, my parents don't really care you know? Even after all this time, after all those things I've done to gain their attention they still won't acknowledge me. I-I have no idea what to do goddamit. They only care for their money, like it's the only thing in the world. They're so caught up in their jobs that they can't even see their marriage is failing. They can't even see what a failure of a son they have." He said, raising his voice and he hit his hand on the wheel, startling you.

You knew of his family problems, from brief mentions in the past, but you didn't know it affected him so much. Suddenly it all clicked. Now you understood, why Lee Donghyuck was the person he was, why he never let anyone else know the real him, why he caused problems. He was just a kid, wanting to get love and attention. You cupped his face with your hand, your fingers wiping the stray tears that escaped his eyes and he tilted his face to the touch of your palm sighing in content at the feeling.

"You're not a failure. You're one of the most interesting people I know. The smartest. And if your parents can't realise that then it's not your fault. You're an amazing person Hyuck. It's not fair to you to hide behind a mask. I know who you can be and who you are. And I'm proud of you for pulling through all this time. It's time to prove to yourself, who you are too." You said, voice barely a whisper while Donghyuck's hand found it's way towards your own free hand and held it like his life depended on it. And before you could even mutter another word, he reached out and gave you a bone crushing hug, mumbling a soft thank you before kissing your temple. You sighed at the familiar scent of cigarettes and strawberry gum, his favourite flavor, before sneaking your hands around his waist to hold him closer. And you stayed like that for what it seemed hours, comforting one another.

That night you went home and cried until you fell asleep, because what you felt for him was so strong yet so stupid because you knew he would never feel the same way.

Remember when you taught me fate?

Said it'd all be worth the wait

Like that night in the back of the cab

When your fingers walked in my hand

Next day, nothin' on my phone

But I can still smell you on my clothes

Always hoping that things would change

But we went right back to your games

"Do you believe in fate?" Donghyuck had asked you one night where you both laid in the park, your head on his chest while he played with your hair, while you were gazing at the stars. Over the span of your friendship, Donghyuck had in fact fallen in love with you as well, but he was too scared to act on it, both from the trauma of his parents broken marriage and from the fact that he could lose you. That didn't stop him from doing anything he could to feel as close to you as he could in that way, confusing both you and him at the progress.

"Hm?" You said, looking up at him, only to see him looking at the stars above you. You took the time to admire his face and the way his features were painted silver by the light of the moonlight and there was nothing you wanted more in that moment than to softly kiss his lips. But you knew you couldn't so you just looked at him, grateful for the fact that you could at least share those moments with him.

"I don't know, fate, soulmates, do you believe in all of that?" He said, taking his eyes off the night sky to admire your face and the way your big eyes looked at him.

"I mean, it'd be pretty cute if that was true. Imagine having a person made to be with you. Your person. Like the universe came together, just to find two people that were made for eachother. That shit's romantic." You chuckled and raised your eyebrows and him. He grinned and caressed your face with his hand, making your heart almost leave your chest and you prayed he couldn't feel how hard it was beating.

"I should get you home." He whispered, still looking at you, his fingers brushing against your lips, "It's getting late."

That night, he had forgotten his keys again. So you took a cab back to your house together, him not wanting to leave you alone until you were safe inside your house. His hand never left yours the whole ride, his fingers walking in your hand, while you rested your head on his shoulder, listening to him humming a sweet melody. That night, before he left you to go to his house, Donghyuck couldn't resist you anymore. That night, he kissed you for the first time, in your doorstep, hands softly holding your waist as if he was afraid he'd break you. That night you slept in bliss, hoping that finally things would change, that he actually felt the same about you, while he went home mortified at the thought that he would ruin something as pure as you. That's why the rest of the days, he did anything in his power to avoid you. He stopped picking you up, stopped picking up your calls, stopped hanging out with you. He'd see you at the halls and would change direction, breaking your already broken heart even more in the process and making you wonder if all this was just a game to him.

And even if I run away

Give my heart a holiday

Still, strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you

You always leave me wanting more

I can't shake my hunger for

Strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you

Yeah, they always taste like you

Long nights, daydreams

With that sugar and smoke rings

Always taste like you

Running away from you and his feelings had to be the most stupid thing Haechan had done so far and he had done a lot of stupid things. He was aware of that yet he didn't know how to fix what he broke. Ever since he stopped talking to you, he wasn't able to eat, he wasn't in the mood to do anything and he had pretty much returned to the person he was before he met you, which he absolutely hated. Most importantly he missed you like crazy, he missed your laugh, he missed the way your face scrunched when you were confused, he missed listening to you talk, he missed the way you cared for him. The quick holiday his heart had taken away from you made him realise the one thing he already knew but was too afraid to admit. He was hopelessly and utterly in love with you. He wanted to be your person, the person you share your happiness and your struggles with, the person that you feel closer to you than anyone.

You weren't much better actually. That week without Hyuck was probably the worst of your life. He had made himself such a constant in your life, that you still waited for him to call you up in the middle of the night to drive you places, resulting you in not sleeping for the past week. You couldn't do anything other than sleep to ease the pain, seeing as literally anything else reminded you of him and your heart couldn't take it. The worst thing was that you literally felt played and humiliated. How could he get so close to you only to toy you like that? How could he show you this side of him and then play you like he played all those other girls? All those thoughts were occupying your brain, yet you still felt the same way about him. You still loved him and that upset you more than anything.

On a Saturday night, you were moping around the house, watching a sad movie and eating ice cream when you heard the doorbell. You looked at the time confused, seeing as you weren't expecting anyone but nonetheless you still went ahead and opened the door. And the minute you opened it, you wished you had just pretended to be asleep because there in front of you stood Donghyuck, his hair disseveled like he'd run his hands through it too many times, dark circles decorating his beautiful eyes and a regretful look on his face. You tried to close the door but he stuck his foot in the house, blocking you from closing it before he entered the house and threw his hands around you, engulfing you in a desperate hug. You stood there frozen, not knowing what to do, wanting to hug him back but knowing you shouldn't. He took you out of your dilemma by pulling away and taking your face between his hands making you look at him.

"Can we please talk?" He said softly, his eyes searching your whole face. You unfroze from your position and took a step back, your hands crossing in front of your chest defensively.

"I don't think we have anything to talk about. You've already made it clear Haechan. It was your game. You've won, you got everything you wanted." You said, your voice breaking, making him know how upset you were. You saw the hurt in his face, when you called him by the name everyone else called him, like you didn't know him.

"Please Y/N. I swear what you believe is not the truth." He said desperately, taking a step towards you while you took one back.

"Oh and what do I believe then? Tell me Haechan, what do I believe? You kissed me, you asshole, you made me fall for you and then what? You ignored me? Like we never meant anything to eachother?" You said, your voice accidentally raising, while tears you didn't know had found home in your eyes fell down your cheeks.

"I got scared okay?" He said, throwing his hands in the air, "I've never felt this way about someone Y/N and I got scared. God, I'm stupid, I know that but I'm also utterly in love with you and that mortifies me."

"Y-wait what?" You whispered, looking at his face and saw that his eyes were as well glossy with tears. "You do what?"

"I. Love. You" He said and took a step towards you, reaching out and taking your hand in his, putting it on his heart. "Feel this? You're doing this to me. And I- I didn't know how to handle it. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me and I felt that if I was with you, I'd ruin you somehow. But at the same time, I just can't get enough of you. And I don't know when you took my heart and made it yours, but as much as I know that I'm bad for you, I can't stay away from you. I-" You cut him off by placing your lips on his, softly while your hand found a place in his hair softly tugging it. He froze at first, but soon deepened the kiss, resting his hands on your sides, lips softly moulding together with yours.

You pulled away and looked at him before slapping his head playfully. "You idiot, stop making choices for me. I love you and I can't imagine a better person for me than you. I love you so much." You grinned, happy tears falling from your eyes before he wiped them and kissed you again.

"I love you so much. I'm sorry I'm such an idiot and I'm sorry it took so long." He said and smiled sheepishly with the same smile he had when you first met him when he joined you at the backyard. "Can we go cuddle and make up for the lost time now?" He pouted and you laughed while hugging him.

"Sure, come on."

And that's how you spent the whole night, wrapped up in each others embrace, talking and laughing, happy to finally belong to one another.

[wlovat]

surprising return : chapter 2, part 2

here’s the second part of chapter 2! it may have some small spelling errors.

_____

“What did you say?" he asked and sneered as he sucked the blood on his fingers and walked to the stands, the sacks of flesh moving as far away from him as possible and clearing the way for him to pass. 

He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and tilted his head, waiting for an answer, which to the damn luck of all humans here, Sam gave him "I said you can take him. No one will stop you" she explained and he climbed the steps to the top, taking a white handkerchief from his pocket to wipe some of the blood on his mouth and hands while Mona moved to stand protectively in front of Sam. As if that would stop him if he decided to kill her. Humans, he thought and rolled his eyes.

Ignoring everyone around him, he walked over to Josh and crouched beside him, listening to his heartbeat and the roar of his blood rushing through his veins and out the wound behind his head. He would surely be a delicious meal but unfortunately this one he couldn't eat, Eli was coming back.

Feeling like himself again, Eli didn't give a fuck to the fact that he was covered in blood or that he had just eaten human flesh, flexible morals. He just analyzed Josh's bruises and turned his head to check the concussion, being kinder than anyone who became what he was now should be possible when he bended the steel from the restraints and pulled them out of Josh's arms, tearing off the collar too since this was probably one of the things that annoyed him most in his friend's current view. Josh belonged to Eli as well as the mall, no one was allowed to do that to him just as no one could destroy his mall.

Slipping one arm behind his back and the other behind Josh's knees, he easily lifted and settled him in his arms, because of his height, his forehead resting on the back of Eli's neck and his arms stopping on his chest. Rising, Eli turned his back on Sam and was about to start down when he heard her voice "What are you?" she questioned and he didn't even bother to look at her when he answered.

"I'm Eli fucking Cardashyan, Sammy, but better than ever" he walked down the stairs and sincerely loved to see the effect his gaze had on the same idiots who fucked with him and his things before, shitting their pants in sheer terror. How fucking awesome it was to have power.

As he passed the American Ninja Idol stage and distanced himself from the structure, the ghoulies resumed acting as themselves and writhed over the fence desperately to escape and eat the bodies of the two dead jocks as Eli walked toward his motorcycle and their meeting point where his favorite gay samurai and his dog should be waiting for him. But as he walked, Eli noticed Josh struggle to wake up and fidget in his arms, probably thinking that he was a fucking teddy bear because he soon felt long arms wrapping around his neck as his friend settled into his chest, what could have made Eli smile. But when he smelled the effects of the concussion on Josh's body and brain, Eli moved faster in the moment that his friend passed out again.

Approaching the tree on which his motorcycle was leaning, he saw Wesley and Turbo step out of the shadows and run toward him, Wes immediately hovering over Josh as soon as he stopped. "Why are you soaked with fucking blood, man?" he looked a little scared but certainly more concerned about Josh. 

"It's not mine, loser" that was the only thing he could say, after all, he didn't want Wesley to freak out and it wasn't as if he could just say something like this to him, Hey, I just devoured a few pieces of two people and drank their blood, what was one of the best experiences of my fucking life. Please don't lose your shit and try to kill me.

When he looked at him, he could see that these words wasn't enough for him and Wes wanted to ask more questions, but he seemed too worried to give a fuck about it so he got close to Eli to take his friend "Okay, whatever, we have to go. Let me carry him" but the moment he tried to touch Josh, Eli pulled away and soon saw Wesley's confused and angry look as he did so.

"So besides being an idiot, are you stupid too? He has a concussion, asshole, which means he has to get to the mall as soon as possible before the ghoulies come to devour his pretty little head and the only person who has a fucking motorcycle here is me. And I'm not lending it to you so I'm your best option to take Josh safely" he explained and tightened his arms around Josh, feeling Wesley's anger and how Turbo reacted to it starting to be nervous too but the smarter of the duo knew he was right. And he couldn't do shit about it.

"Fuck! Okay, Eli, but I think it's good for you that he's fucking the same as when he left here in the moment we get there to see him or I swear that I'll…" he threatened and pointed a finger at Eli, who interrupted him before he had to hear the same shit twice. "I know I know. You will finish me, completely. Now can I get on my bike and get your dear friend out of here or not?" he asked sarcastically and passed them without waiting for an answer. 

Sitting on his baby's rump, he manipulated Josh's limbs and sat him in front of him with his back against his chest, while his head hung back on his shoulder. Which could have been a mistake since the scent of blood was stronger but Eli knew he could control himself even being so tempted. 

Unfair. He looks delicious.

Well, we don't always get everything we want. I've eaten two people to you so stop being greedy.

Turning on his motorcycle, Eli drove quickly to the mall, taking some minutes to get there and parking in front of one of the few entrances only he knew, but if Wesley and Turbo came running and managed to avoid the ghoulies, he wouldn't have too much time to realize his plan.

But now it was the time.

Eli walked through the mall's main revolving door and soon saw Angelica and Mr Crumble waiting for him, the dwarf having a murderer look on her face as she approached him already screaming "Where's Josh? Where's Wesley and Turbo and why is there blood on your clothes? This is their blood, right?! You betrayed them, asshole. I knew we couldn't trust you. I knew, you son of a bitch" she tried to hit him and then pick up her flamethrower but Eli grabbed her arm at the same time as Mr Crumble growled.

"Hey, calm down, dwarf. This blood is not theirs and as for Wesley and Turbo, they are coming with Josh and" he stopped and looked at his Patek wristwatch "will probably be here in ten minutes. So, relax girl!" he grinned and patted her head before releasing her arm and backing a little as Mr Crumble put her hands on her shoulder. 

"Do you really think I'm gonna believe in any fucking word you said? I'm not stupid, prick, so I think you better start telling the truth or I'll fucking fry you" she accused and threatened before shooting Eli with her murderous look again, and honestly it wasn't good that he was getting used to it. 

"Well, I'm sorry if you don't believe me but it's the truth! Josh has a concussion and to distract the ghoulies, I came first and diverted them from the path here. And why would I be a fucking bait? Because Wesley doesn't trust me with Josh and Turbo is a supportive boyfriend but not a patient one, so I came here risking my beautiful little neck to tell you to arrange the things to receive your idiot friend, so he won't get worse and you losers will accomplish your part of the deal" the lie came out of his mouth easily, and Eli certainly deserved a fucking Oscar for being able to keep his serious face while Angelica analyzed him with those judgmental eyes.

"You are a megalomaniacal liar, narcissistic and selfish dick that only cares about yourself! So, yes! It's hard to believe in anything that you just said" she cursed him and he rolled his eyes at that, of course he didn't expect her to trust him. 

"I can be everything you said and I'm proud of it, shorty, but if you don't believe my words, then let's wait for them" he shrugged and grinned, walking over to what was once a coffee shop chair and sitting on it before patting the seat next to him. 

"I have all the time in the world since this area is part of my section and to prove to you the shit of being a bait just to help your stupid friends, we'll wait for them here. Or are you afraid of being wrong?" he challenged as he leaned back in his chair, his lips curving upward as he caught a glimpse of Angelica sitting along with Mr Crumble in two seats a few feet away from him. "Okay, you degenerate motherfucker, but if this is a lie I'll turn you to ashes" she threatened one last time before turning to the witch and starting talking to her.

Crossing his arms, now all Eli had to do was wait and expect that the suckers for once would act like fucking normal people act. Soon, he would have Josh only for him and they wouldn't be able to stop him.

They spent a few minutes sitting and waiting, meanwhile the blood on Eli's clothes was becoming sticky and fucking gross. He had realized that the blood of the assholes he ate had a horrible smell, like rotten food, and all he wanted now was to take a shower and get it off his beautiful body. But why was it that when two of the best jocks in school had to run fast, they decided to act like fucking slugs?

Finally, he heard the mall alarm and smiled with it, watching Angelica and the witch run toward their section of the mall, where the alarm sound came from. He put his hands in his pocket, and began whistling as he walked and followed the losers, leaning back against the pillar of a store right on the boundary between his section and theirs, he waited to see what would happen the moment Angelica let Mr Crumble behind and standed in front of the store where they had installed Josh's room a few feet away from him, soon seeing Wesley and Turbo that he could smell besides the corner. 

They approached and Eli could hear everything from where he was, as if he were sitting in the front row of the theater watching the final stretch of a good movie "Where's Josh? Weren't you guys with him?" Angelica screamed more than asked, concerning clear in her voice as her words caused his favorite gay to frown.

"What the hell are you talking about, Angelica? No, Eli brought him here on his motorcycle. Is he not already with you?" he questioned as it was obvious he was trying to stay calm, running his hand over his hair in momentaneous confusion.

And it was at that moment when they looked at each other and turned to face Eli with anger shining in their eyes, that he saw that they had finally realized the trap they had fallen into. But it was too late because all he had to do as they ran toward him, was take the control of his pocket and push the button to finally divide his sections from theirs, waving and smiling as they slammed their bodies against the metal gate already closed.

"Eli! You liar son of a bitch, bastard motherfucker! I knew you were lying. We shouldn't have gave you a chance…"

"Eli! I warned you what would happen if you fooled us. I trusted you…"

They both cursed and banged their fists on the gate at the same time, causing his eyes to roll as he said. "Hey, hey, hey! One at a time, suckers, I can't hear your crying and appreciate it if you whine together" he mocked.

"Ahhh!! I will kill you! I'll toast you, Eli, and no one will miss your asshole face!" Angelica clung to the metal gate grate and Eli moved closer to her, keeping a little distance. 

"Would you risk it now that I have Josh, dwarf?!" he asked sarcastically and watched the effect it had on them. Their expressions became immediately scared and worried as he had fun with it. The good old bluff would always be useful, but today he wasn't in the mood for that.

"Where is he, Eli?" Wesley asked in his quiet voice, obviously calmer but not so much as Eli could see a drop of sweat running down his face.

"Josh is alive" he said with a shrug and turned to face him "Don't worry about him" he winked at him before he started backing away.

"No, c'mon man, you already got what you wanted, okay? You don't need Josh. If you want we'll even leave the malls as long as you give him back to us" Wesley tried to negotiate, his tone almost begging and Eli knew how humiliating it must be for him but there was no shit as going back now.

"You don't get it, do you?" he said and shook his head, Eli looked into Wesley's eyes as he continued "Now, and only now not when you gave me back part of my own mall, I got what I fucking wanted since the beginning" 

Smiling satisfactorily and walking away, Eli turned his back on them, ignoring the curses and calls to his name before saying goodbye "Bye, bye, suckers. I have something to take care of" he waved at them and went his way.

Eli calmly crossed his sections until he reached the safest spot in that mall, where by his abilities to perform, Hollywood lost him if it was still there, all his and Josh's things were there as well as everything he would probably need. He stepped into what should have been a major security office company before, the idiots who worked here would lose their shit if they were still alive and saw that someone like him would have the whole place to himself as well as the mall, he thought as he passed the chairs and tables around him to reach the elevator.

Climbing to the second floor, Eli stepped out of the elevator and passed through the smaller offices until he reached the largest one, which had the size of a store in his mall. The boss of this place should be one of those white, slack, capitalist whores who did what they wanted before, summing it up, like a certain president. Eli opened the large door and passed it, closing it as he walked into his office and watched his surroundings. The windows were open but the curtains prevented the view from outside, on either side of the door had sofas while in front of them were small tables, one with food, blankets, pillows and clothes on top and the other with medical supplies and medicines that didn't need temperature control.

Where once there was a table, now had a large bed in the middle of the room with a massage chair on either side and two mini-fridges in the opposite corners. Inside the left one were some drinks and water bottles while on the right one were needles, medicines that needed refrigeration and blood bags that had no effect on Eli. 

Taking off his clothes, Eli put them near the door and planned to burn them afterwards since the smell of rotten blood had already permeated. He put on a dark green shirt and black jeans, his attention quickly shifting to the person lying in bed when he heard a voice from there. "Eli? Is that you?" Josh had a medical bandage around his head since Eli had already cleaned his wound, his head was propped against two pillows as his clothes were changed to a sweatshirt and sweatpants with a blanket covering his body until above his waist. 

"Hey, sleeping beauty" he said without malice as he approached the right side of the bed, sitting in the massage chair.

"I don't get it. I don't get it, Eli"  he said in a heavy, sleepy voice as he moved his arms wildly and tried to get up, the concussion clearly leaving him unable to do so. 

"Shhh! It's alright, Josh. I'm here, you can sleep" he grinned and put his hand on his friend's chest to keep him from moving and to calm him down. Which seemed to have an effect as he leaned back against the pillows again.

"No, I can't. You won't be here" he said even more tired, trying to keep his eyes open. "I said I was going back. I'm not going away again" he stated and saw that Josh wanted to say something else but his eyes were already closing. The only thing he could do before his breath slowed was to hold Eli's hand as Eli whispered next to his ear, his mind too far away to understand what he said.

"I will always be here, Josh, and you will always be mine"

[shall-we-imagine]

Loosen up. (Bodyguard!Klaus Goldstein x Reader)

Requested: 66. "I like you. You're different." + 73. "You couldn't handle me even if I came with instructions." From the promt list.

Genre: Fluff/idk if this also counts as suggestive? Only if you're very innocent I guess? And if you're on tumblr then you probably aren't so nvm 😂

A/N: sorry for being so inactive lately I've been busy with studying and such so I generally couldn't find it in me to write so yeah :/ (I have a trial tomorrow so like idk pray for me 😂) but here I am! ヽ(゜～゜o)ノ Also yes I'm aware this isn't how Vincent acts and he's not filthy rich but for now we're gonna let it slide okay? Cool. 😂

(Second Person Point of View)

"That's when I decided it was time to buy my fifth car; I mean who attends their first day of college with the same old cars, right?" The man laughs. You suspected that if he stopped boasting for longer than 2 seconds, he'd suffocate and die. You kind of hoped to witness that.

It'd been 2 hours already, yet you weren't allowed to leave the party until your dad says you could. You'd even tried to convince your bodyguard to let you leave without your father knowing anything of the incident, but Klaus was far too strict and responsible; he'd never do such a reckless thing.

Yeah, sure, it's good for your dad to have found such a trustworthy employee, but when you've been stuck talking to these blatantly boring and arrogant people that only viewed you as a good deal to obtain more wealth, well, let's just say: it makes you sort of wish Klaus cared less.

However, that was not the case. In fact, while all bodyguards waited outside, Klaus remained inside -only a few feet away from you at any given time. He also seemed to always be giving you a look that could only be describe as the look a mother gives when you have people over, and she's daring you to mess anything up.

Now, you weren't the stereotypical bratty child that refuses to take over their parents' company. You knew your responsibility and always hoped to make them proud; you just weren't a big fan of the world surrounding all the important people in business. Therefore, it made you yearn for messing around from time to time.

Today was one of those days. You so desperately hoped Klaus would get off your back for even just a few moments, so you could escape the exhausting setting. But he continued with the angry-mother-glare; it almost seemed like he'd gotten the expression tattooed on his face after the endless times he had to get you out of trouble.

There was definitely a bright side to that extra attention, though. You suspected Klaus had a thing for you. After all, he was known to be very good at his job; he could easily quit and get a job less demanding with an equal pay or even a bigger pay if he wanted, but he didn't. He decides to stay with a teenage girl that enjoys pushing his buttons. He was professional, so he wouldn't say anything or let it show, but you had this feeling in your guts that he at least felt intrigued by you.

And, surely, you were ready to use this to your advantage.

You glance towards the blond at the corner of the room, ensuring he was still staring (threateningly, but still staring nevertheless). His eyebrow arches slightly, sensing you were about to do something dumb. You could almost hear him think God, what is it this time?!

You focus your attention back on the man whose name you'd forgotten about 2 seconds after he introduced himself.

"So, I heard you're staying at the hotel here for the entire duration of the event." You smile sweetly.

"Yeah, I am." He takes a sip out of his drink.

You begin flirtatiously twirling a strand of your hair. "Well, how about you take me to have a look upstairs?"

Startled by the unexpected implications of your request, he chokes on his drink and starts coughing. You try your best not to appear disgusted, giving him a smile when he's done with his coughing session.

Sure enough, he agrees and links your arms together, leading you towards the exit of the section the party was held in.

"Miss (Y/N)," Klaus speaks through gritted teeth. He wore a smile and kept his voice quiet, but there was no denying he was ready to scold you. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Upstairs." You smile, playing dumb.

"What do you mean up-" after losing his calm for a second, Klaus cuts himself off to take a deep breath and let it out before proceeding. "Would you please excuse us, Mr. Knight?" Klaus bows lightly before dragging you to an empty corner.

"You think just because you're leaving with a guest, I'll allow you to go?" Klaus whispers in annoyance.

"What? Are you jealous?" You wiggle an eyebrow at him, knowing well enough that wasn't the reason (well, not the main one, at least).

Lips pulled into a pained smile, Klaus glares. "Are you asking for an insult? I think you're abusing that service I provide for you a hundred times per minute."

"Come on, Klausie; loosen up." You poke his chest with your index finger. You knew the redhead -or Mr. Knight- was probably still waiting for you, but you couldn't care less. You wanted to stretch out the process of bugging Klaus as long as possible, since it was the only way to spend time with him. It was also fun watching his nose scrunch and his eyebrows furrow in such anger. He would try to mask his frustration, but it was obvious he had a short temper when it came to you. To put it nicely, he was done with your shit.

"Don't, under any circumstances, call me Klausie." He threatens. "And I don't need to loosen up; you need to stop being so careless!"

"Sure." Rolling your eyes, you step away from him.

Before you could take two full steps, Klaus had already grabbed your arm. "Going somewhere?"

You pull your hand away. "The bathroom. Am I not allowed to answer the call of nature either?" You raise an eyebrow questioningly.

"Touché." He raises his hands in defeat, but once you begin walking away, he follows.

"Where are you going?"

"Just ensuring you don't get any funny ideas." He shrugs.

Huffing, you decide to ignore him. Thankfully, he was only planning to stand near the door; it didn't seem too strange imagining Klaus walking in for "safety measures": the guy was crazy when it came to his job.

"Man, another pretty dress gone to waste." You sigh, looking into the mirror. The sparkling violet fabric clung onto your body till your waist then flowed freely, reaching to merely graze the floor. It was one of the dresses you really liked; you loved the way it showed your shoulder blades and only a portion of your back; it was sexy yet classy. The glittery purple was certainly your colour too! Alas, your dad would scold you for rewearing a dress more than he would scold you if you were to kill a person (as long as you've hidden the evidence well, that is). Murder can be covered up, but 'horrible fashion choices' cannot be hidden, according to your father. Sometimes you went against that, but most of the time, you just complied, even though it's an absolute waste of money.

"You're taking too long, you know that?" Klaus calls from outside, impatience clear in his voice.

You bite back a response when you realize there's something much better you could do. Quietly checking the stalls, you ensure you're 100% alone inside.

"Could there be a valid reason you're not responding to me?!"

Ignoring his question, you just scream in response. "Klaus! Klaus, help me!" You screech frantically.

The door bursts open, and Klaus steps inside aggressively. Before he could realize what's happening, you push him back against the door, slamming it behind him.

Smug about catching him off guard, you smirk at the taller male, whose body was closely pressed against yours. "Were you worried?" You tease.

"About losing my job? Yeah." He scoffs, turning his head away from you but not bothering to push you away.

"Why is it always about the job?" You tilt your head to meet his eyes again.

"Because I'm at work?" He states with a raised eyebrow, as if it sounded stupid for you to even ask that.

You run your hands gently over his chest; even through layers of clothing, you could still feel the firm muscles concealed by the black suit. "Well, maybe it's time for a break." You grin innocently.

"You do know you can't fool me, right?" He takes one of your hands away from him but doesn't let go of it.

Rolling your eyes, you move away from him. "I'm not fooling you; I want us to have fun! Neither one of us is enjoying this anyway." You cross your arms.

An unexpected response sparks excitement within you. "Well, what do you suggest we do?" You knew he was only being sarcastic, but it gave you a pathway for more methods to push his buttons and witness his reactions.

Closing the distance between both of you once more, you stand on the tip of your toes as you wrap your arms around the back of his neck. "Oh, I have a lot of suggestions." You whisper in his ear, feeling him flinch lightly at your suggestive remark. You could tell he was trying to hide it and pretend he wasn't phased, but you'd already noticed it, and he knew it.

"You're gonna get me fired." Cheeks slightly red, he turns his head away and gently parts your bodies from each other. "God, why is it so hard to handle you? It's like dealing with a troublemaking child."

"You couldn't handle me even if I came with instructions." You stick your tongue out at him. "Plus, father won't know anything if neither one of us told him." You point out what seemed to have escaped Klaus's perception of the situation.

"You want me to lie to your father." He laughs in disbelief.

"Mmhm, not quite. More like not telling him the full truth."

"That's exactly what lying is."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

"No."

"Yes."

"Okay, stop! Fine, lie! I don't know!" You fling your arms in the air out of frustration. A novel sound catches your attention, immediately flushing away the frustration. Klaus was laughing. Not sarcastically. No, a genuine laugh was echoing across the bathroom.

"I suppose it wouldn't be the worst thing if we talk a walk for some fresh air and come back." He smiles. "Just this time though!"

An uncontrollable grin spreads across your face, and you immediately throw your arms around Klaus. "Thank you!"

"You gotta stop..doing..this.." He awkwardly pats your back, careful not to touch your bare skin.

"No promises!" You shrug, before grabbing his hand and rushing outside, making your way to the exit.

"Miss (Y/N)?" You freeze in your spot. "Where are you going?"

"Oh, um.." you stutter, not expecting to have to explain yourself to your companion from earlier.

"We got an emergency call; we'll be right back." Klaus, in his usual composed state, 'explains' to Mr. Knight.

"Ah, I see." Red head may be an idiot, but he wasn't stupid. He could tell something wasn't right, but he either chose to let it slide or he just didn't care. Regardless, you were thankful. "I'll be waiting for your return then." With a smile and a bow, he left and disappeared into the crowd.

"You'll catch a cold." Klaus states, watching you twirl and run around in the chilly October weather.

You weren't cold, or maybe you didn't dislike being cold. It wasn't the type of cold to make you unable to take a few proper steps and force you to do an awkward penguin walk; rather, it was the type of cold to merely caress your skin, decorating it with goosebumps. "Don't worry; I'm alright."

"Just take my jacket. Your back and shoulders are exposed; you must be cold." He spoke with such certainty that it almost made you rethink for a few moments about whether you actually felt cold or not.

"Are you worried or are you just intimidated by how sexy I look?" You strike a pose far from seducing.

Klaus, who had his jacket held out for you, resumed walking as he put his jacket back on. "You know, on second thought, it might be a good thing if you catch a cold and stay at home for a week or so." He passes by you, leaving you and your sexy pose alone.

"Hey! That was mean!" You catch up to him.

"Nothing new, then." He shrugs, a slight smirk forcing itself onto his pink lips.

You speed up a little then turn around to face him once you're slightly ahead of him; you remain walking, but backwards this time, allowing yourself to look at him during the conversation. "How could you be mean to such a beautiful lady?" You pout.

"What beautiful lady?" He looks around, pretending to search for something.

You let out a dramatic gasp. "How could y-" Your sentence was inconveniently cut off by your stumble; or perhaps, it was a slightly convenient situation when you think about it from a different perspective: Klaus, as sharp as usual, was able to grasp your arm, preventing you from falling.

"Uh, thanks." You breathe out, nodding slightly. Once you begin to straighten yourself up, Klaus lets go of your arm, only to watch you fall to the ground immediately after. "I think my heel broke.." you frown, staring at your left shoe, now with its heel lying a few inches away.

"You think?" Klaus earns a glare, urging him to put aside the sarcasm and help you up.

"Those were such a cute pair.." you sigh, placing your arm around Klaus's shoulder for support. Your arms were already hurting due to the height difference; it was like hanging from a cliff but not quite.

Klaus places an arm around your waist. "Well, I can buy you another one. You need another pair to get back to the party anyway."

"What if I don't?"

"Don't what? Get back to the party? That's not what we agreed on! Your father-"

You cut off his rant, "We'll get back there, and I'll call dad and inform him that my heel broke; he'd immediately allow me to leave. It's already late anyway."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

######

"Yes, Klaus, I'm sure he'd let me go home if I tell him my heel broke! Of course, Klaus, there's no way he would have some other plans for me!" Your bodyguard mimicks your voice and tone (terribly), as you sit in the back of the car your dad sent with a brand new pair of shoes.

"How would I have known he would do this?!" You complain, tightening the straps of the new shoes around your ankle.

"Well, hurry up, knight dude is probably waiting for you." Arms crossed, he taps his foot impatiently. You merely groan in response.

"I can't believe he didn't even tell me he booked a room for me at the hotel! And that I have to attend the same event tomorrow too! I didn't even bring any change!"

"Um, Miss (Y/N), your father asked me to hand you this too.." the driver quietly places a small suitcase on the back seat next to you.

"There you go; he packed stuff for you." You weren't sure if Klaus was trying to tease you or comfort you, but either way, you just let out a sigh.

After a long, mentally and physically exhausting night, you were finally allowed to leave. And boy, were you delighted to recieve the news.

"This one." You pause in front of the room that had the same number on the keycard. Klaus had already placed your bag inside earlier, but it was your first time viewing the room. "At least the room is pretty." You shrug.

"Didn't think you'd admit it." Klaus chuckles. "Well, I have to go; so, good night, Miss (Y/N); I'll be back here tomorrow." He bows.

"Wait!" You stop him before he steps outside the room.

As I have reached the 100 block limit, I'll complete this in Part 2...which I'll literally post now and it'll be shorter than this cuz it's just the ending 😂

[ghostbustermelanieking]

snow in april chapter 4

deadalive au, casefile

one /// two // three

warning for discussion of death, general eerieness, references to mulder’s abduction. the goosebumps book that anna references is the scarecrow walks at midnight, one of my childhood favorites.

They ended up eating lunch at Haswell’s while they waited for her coworker to show up: sandwiches and soup. Haswell and Scully did that thing girls did where they bonded easily and chatted about things that weren't probable murders - impending motherhood, for example. (Or maybe it wasn't just girls, maybe it was normal people in general.) Haswell asked how far along Scully was, and Scully said, “Eight months,” and Haswell said, “Oh, in the long stretch, huh,” and Scully said, “Seems like it.” Haswell cast a few looks over at Mulder like she was expecting him to comment or confirm fatherhood. Mulder didn't say much, just ate his soup.

The little one, Lyla, slurped her soup and grinned at them through orange-red tomato-stained teeth. She asked a lot of questions about the FBI - namely what it was and if it was cooler than her mom's job. Anna didn't say much of anything either, just shuffled her soup through the spoon grumpily. It was probably one of the more bizarre meals of Mulder's lifetime - and it was, he realized, very likely his future, considering the possibility that Scully didn't get pissed off and kick him out. (The more he fucked up, the more likely it seemed.)

Haswell’s coworker showed up after lunch, letting himself in with his own key. (Mulder wondered if this meant that his and Scully's key-sharing practice was normal.) “Uncle Jeff!” Lyla squealed, running to hug him around the legs.

“Hey, kiddo,” the man said, tousling her hair. “Think your mom and me need to do work stuff right now, okay?”

The kid pouted, slinking off into the living room. Anna followed, offering a brief fist bump to the guy as she went. “Uncle Jeff” came around the table and offered a hug to Haswell. “These your FBI agents, Mari?” he asked, tousling her hair.

He seemed to have an easy repertoire with Haswell, a close relationship, but in the moment it looked kind of one-sided: she shrugged him off and motioned towards the other people in the room. “This is Agent Scully and Agent Mulder,” she said. “The federal agents and witnesses from yesterday… they have some insight on the case.”

“Jeff Renner,” the guy said faux-politely, offering his hand. Mulder and Scully took turns shaking it. “So, y'all gonna explain why I had to pull a bunch of files on heart attacks?” he said like he was joking, grinning at Haswell like Scully and Mulder weren't there.

“Heart failure,” Scully said pointedly, crossing her arms. (Forever a pathologist, Mulder thought.)

“Yeah, right, sure,” Jeff said, uncertain. “So what's the deal, Mar? This seems pretty run-of-the-mill.”

"I'll let them explain it,” said Haswell. “They'll do a better job than I will.”

So they took turns explaining the entire thing to Jeff, who watched them quietly, hand smoothing over his beard. Mulder managed to hold back most of his paranormal suspicions, outside of explaining the X-Files, and let Scully do most of the talking (for once). He thought Scully could convince anyone of anything. Still, by the end of it, Jeff was shaking his head. “Calvert? You gotta be kidding me, Mari,” he said.

“We know virtually nothing about him,” Haswell said, running her fingers through her hair. “And he's the only link between the victims, at least the tourist victims, besides the cause of death.”

“Victims? Mari, this is heart atta- failures, pardon me.” (Scully looked like she wanted to kill him in that moment, and Mulder wouldn’t have blamed her.) “These are not murders!”

“The amount of victims by heart failure is statistically improbable,” Scully started, voice teeming with annoyance, at the same time Mulder said, “Even if some of the deaths can be explained, most cannot, especially when you consider the health of some of the victims.”

“I don't care,” Jeff said, firm. He turned to Mari, his backs to them. “I've known Calvert forever - Mari, we both have. You know he didn't do this, and so do I. No offense,” he added, towards Scully and Mulder, looking briefly over his shoulder, “but just because two big-shot FBI agents come in here and start telling me things doesn't mean I have to listen.”

Scully looked annoyed. Mulder was used to it after all these years but the prickle of irritation never completely went away. “Jeff, you have to see the connection,” Haswell said quietly.

“There is nothing here.” Jeff folded his arms over his chest, as if everything was final. He stalked towards the living room. “I'm gonna go say hi to the girls.” And that was that, it seemed.

Haswell collapsed in her seat, looking defeated. “That,” Mulder said, “is the kind of reaction I expect from most.”

Haswell laughed bitterly. “I'll… I'll figure something out here,” she said. “I am not letting this go uninvestigated. I really think you could be onto something here.”

“We'll head back to the cabin for now,” Scully said. “You have my cell number if you find anything?”

“Yeah.” She had deflated completely like a parade balloon, chin sagging forward on her arms. “Thank you for your help, Agents.”

Lyla sing-songed a goodbye to them from the living room, and Scully smiled tenderly back at her. The smile faded when she saw the snow fluttering down from the gray-cloaked sky. “Shit,” she muttered. “I was really hoping to get out of here tonight.”

Genuinely astonished, Mulder turned to her in amazement. “I thought we were on the cusp of something here,” he said. “I thought we'd stay until it was finished.”

“And I thought that Haswell could handle it from here, or maybe we could send Doggett in.” Scully ignored his hand, extended to help her to the car, and shuffled through the snow on her own. “Mulder, aside from the fact that neither of us are in crime fighting condition… you fit the MO for the victims.” She lowered her voice for the last part as they climbed into the car.

“What do you mean?” Mulder asked, almost scoffing, as he turned the key in the ignition.

“All of the victims had an appointment with Calvert, which indicates that all of the victims had a near death experience,” Scully said. “And, Mulder…”

“Scully, I wasn't near dead, I was dead,” he said, maybe a little harshly.

“Still, it's not far off, Mulder, and it scares me. I'm not entirely sure we can trust Haswell.”

“What makes you think we can't trust Haswell?” Mulder snapped.

“Did you see how she was acting? Mulder, she clearly knows something; she went from ‘these aren't murders’ to ‘Calvert did it’ in all of five minutes! This could easily be a trap.”

Mulder was silent; he didn't have a good retort. Scully was right, Haswell didn't ooze trustworthiness, but she was willing to help them. She'd given them information. Her daughter had suspicions about Calvert. It was a lead, at the very least.

“Just… forget about it.” Scully's small hand brushed his arm. “Please? For now? I'll send Doggett up here as soon as we get back, I promise.”

There were a lot of things Mulder was planning on doing in the back of his mind, but forgetting this case was not one of them. (Scully should know that, he thought, hurt.) But he nodded and Scully seemed satisfied with that.

---

Mari Haswell sat slumped at her kitchen table even after the agents had left. The files lay in front of her like a scattered, dead thing. Now, she thought, the vultures would come to roost. There was no stopping the inevitable.

Jeff came up behind her, his stupid black shoes creaking on the floorboards. The house was ancient, god, she needed to repair it. Every time the girls went down for water in the middle of the night, she got panicked about burglars or worse. And there was worse; she'd seen it.

Jeff’s heavy hand came down on Haswell’s shoulder and she shivered. Normally she liked Jeff; the girls adored him, always had. Today, she wasn't sure. She was never sure of herself when things like this happened.

“You know we can't do this,” he said, quietly. “You should've sent them away, Mari. Bad things are going to happen now; you know that.”

She knew. In the moment, she said nothing; there was nothing to say.

---

Scully headed for the bedroom when they got home, saying something about a nap and how she hoped the goddamn snow would stop by the time she woke up. She didn't indicate whether or not she wanted Mulder to join her, and Mulder didn't push it; he had plans. As soon as she was most likely asleep, he pulled the card from yesterday out of his jacket pocket and called the number.

He'd expected some receptionist, but he got a man with a thick Southern accent who said, “This is Dr. Terrence Calvert,” with a great deal of dignity.

“Dr. Calvert,” Mulder said, leaning against the counter. “This is Fox Mulder, I'm a tourist in the area.” He hoped his resurrection hadn't made the news. It was the type of thing he’d be all over if it popped up in his news feed, if it wasn’t him who’d experienced it. “I know I don't have an appointment, but I heard about your practice and I thought it could… help me.”

“Oh,” Calvert said good-naturedly. “So you've had a recent near death experience, Mr. Mulder?”

He did not want to talk about this. He swallowed hard and said, “Yes.”

“Well, then. I think I can fit you in this afternoon. Does four o'clock work for you?”

“Yes,” Mulder said again, pressing his forehead into the wood of the cabinet. You can do this, he told himself. Justice for the victim, it had always been about getting justice for the victim. If he could get a little bit of justice for the Roberts, he thought he'd be okay.

Calvert sounded happy about the appointment; it could've been because of money or an unavoidable need to help others, or because he was a serial killer who preyed on his patients. Mulder didn't think he was in danger, though, not yet; all of the victims had left their appointments alive. He scribbled a note to Scully saying that he was running to the store and grabbed the keys off the counter, tromping through the snow to the car.

Snow made everything quieter, he'd told his mother once as a kid, and it was still true. The mountaintop was almost silent, white trailing eerily from the sky. The row of scarecrows outside Calvert’s house were dusted with snowflakes when Mulder climbed out of the car. For a second, he thought their blank button eyes were following him, but it seemed too fantastic (even by his standards). It's too Scooby-Doo, he thought. (And then, absurdly enough, he wondered if the kid would like Scooby-Doo.)

Calvert, by all standards, looked pleasant: a homey-looking man with a beard. He motioned Mulder in and offered him a cup of tea. “I'd normally ask for more information before seeing someone, but in cases like these it can be drastic,” he said.

Eagerness noted, thought Mulder. “Right, well, it's appreciated,” he said awkwardly, hands in his pockets. “It's been hard.” Lay it on thick, he instructed himself firmly, even though part of him knew it wasn't a lie. It had been hard.

“Of course. Near death experiences are life changing events, and not always for the positive.” Calvert gestured Mulder towards a couch and sat in a chair across from him. “I get all kinds of patients who have all kinds of things they want to work on. I try to help them all.”

“I'm sure,” Mulder said. “You must get a lot of people… lot of walks of life.” He was reaching, but he hoped Calvert wouldn’t notice.

“Mmm,” Calvert replied mildly. “You could put it that way.”

Mulder tried again: “So, what kinds of people usually come to see you?”

“Oh, all kinds,” Calvert said. “Let's stay focused on you, Fox.”

“It's Mulder,” he said, jaw clenched.

“My apologies, Mulder. It's just that it seems to me like you're stalling, putting off confronting your feelings about this trauma you've been through. And while that's understandable, you also need to face that fear or else you'll never be able to move past it.”

Mulder fidgeted awkwardly on the couch. You're a murderer, he thought, how the hell can you help me?

“We can ease into it, Mulder,” Calvert said comfortingly. “Would you like to start at the beginning?”

No, Mulder thought. “Like… recount my death to you?”

“I think it would help.”

Fuck, he hadn't come up with a cover story and he didn't feel like explaining the whole abduction-alien-virus-buried-for-three-months thing. “I'm in the FBI,” he started uneasily. I will catch you, you fuck. It's a federal crime to mess with me or Scully and you'd better fucking keep that in mind. “Cases can be… dangerous.”

Calvert nodded, scribbling on his pad. “I'm sure.”

“I was… kidnapped,” he added awkwardly. His knee was bouncing. “By a drug ring,” he lied. “They kept me for three months, as leverage. They… tortured me.”

(slice of the blade the smell of blood is overwhelming the other abductees are screaming too)

Calvert’s pen scratched over the paper. “I know that must've been hard, Mr. Mulder. Do you want to talk about it?”

(drills in his teeth on the roof of his mouth and it hurts Scully Scully help)

“No,” Mulder said hoarsely. “It's, uh… it's all a blur, I can't remember.”

(he can hear her calling for him in the desert and he calls back but she can't hear and her voice is fading as she walks away)

“Okay, Mulder, that's fine.” Calvert’s voice was soothing. He'd read somewhere that serial killers voices were usually soothing; he remembered Pfaster and shuddered. “Would you like to talk about your death?”

He couldn't remember his death; it all softened into a rapid blur of senses and then blackness and then Scully saying his name as he struggled to the surface. “They were interrogating me,” he lied. Enough to get information, just enough to stay in the house. “Waterboarding. I… drowned. My partner found me and resuscitated me.” As he said it he could almost see it: some cold, wet warehouse floor, him not breathing, Scully hunched over him in her usual grim, frantic determination that just barely warded off grief, her small hands pumping his chest. If she’d tried to revive him when she'd found him dead in Montana, it hadn't worked. She couldn't save him for the first time. He was just as surprised as she must've been; Scully was always able to save him.

“And when you were dead, what did you see?” Calvert asked.

“Nothing,” said Mulder, shifting again; he couldn't seem to get comfortable. “Nothing I can remember. It's not… like that, that's not the problem. I can't seem to get past the time I spent in captivity. Or my death.” It was like an insurmountable wall, he'd been trying to climb it for days now with no luck. He swallowed, tried to continue. “I've had… flashbacks. To my time as a captive.”

Calvert stopped writing, setting his pen on top of his notepad. “That's very understandable, Mulder. Trauma like that tends to stay with a person.” He folded his hands in his lap. Mulder stared at the callused knuckles and thought about the likelihood that Calvert was a murderer. “Discussing it can sometimes be therapeutic,” he added softly, encouragingly.

---

Mulder talked for the better part of an hour, his voice running on and on like a smooth motor, telling as much of the truth as he could. He caught himself a few times, reminding himself that he was talking to a suspect. Which is why he tried to avoid lingering over Scully, mentioning her as little as possible. But he couldn't stop himself from spilling everything to Calvert; fucked up as it was, the man was right, talking about it seemed to help. He was honestly startled when the end of the appointment came.

Calvert honestly didn't seem very suspicious by the end of the appointment; but then again, maybe he was just trying not to be. Still, he didn't ask about where Mulder was from or who he had up here with him or why he was here. And Mulder didn't offer that information. At the end of the appointment, he did say, “I assume you're staying in the cabins right outside of town?”

Scully, Mulder thought. “No, we're staying with family members.”

“Hmm.” Calvert closed his notepad. “Do you plan on a follow up appointment?”

“Yeah, we'll be probably be here a while unless this snow lets up,” Mulder said easily, trying to make his tense shoulders relax. “This kind of weather normal for April?”

“Normal enough, I suppose,” Calvert said. “I don't get many visitors… do you think the day after next would be a good time for another appointment?”

Mulder shrugged and Calvert jotted it down. He wanted to get out of here, was slightly horrified that he'd talked so much. He draped his jacket over his arm as he stood. “Hey,” he said. Casual, be casual, you've been undercover before goddamnit. “My… aunt told me there'd been recent deaths in the area… two tourists, married couple. You know anything about that?”

“No,” Calvert said, nonchalant. “I'm afraid I don’t.”

“She said it’s pretty normal,” Mulder adding, his voice sharpening slightly. I'm an FBI agent, you fuck; I know you counseled the victims. “Tourist deaths, that is. Town this small, you don't find it unusual? That so many tourists die.”

“I suppose so.” Calvert checked his watch, an escape as unsubtle as Mulder's questions. “If you'll excuse me, Mulder, our hour is up and I'd like to get to dinner.”

“Of course,” Mulder said, trying to be amicable. He stalked out of the room, biting his lip so he wouldn't say more.

The house was about as dark as you'd expect a Hollywood serial killer's house to be. Shadowy fucking hallways. Mulder took a wrong turn at the place where he could go out to the cheery home waiting room Calvert had built into his house. (It even had a damn fish tank, like a dentist's office.) He went further into the house instead, heart thudding as he tried not to make any noise.

Near a staircase was a table with a leather bound book lying open. Mulder drew closer, half holding his breath, and bent over the pulpy pages. Pinned to the top was a picture of the victims. Cara and Kyle Roberts. They were alive and happy; he was kissing her cheek with his arm around her and she was laughing into the camera.

Under the photo was a scrawl of quick information: wife died from accidental electrocution, husband brought her back. From Kansas City, no children. Wife experienced an out of body trip “to the sky”.

He flipped further back in the book, pages thick between his fingers. A picture of the second victim, Layla Tanner, was pinned to the second page: drowned, from Milwaukee, wife back home. Says she talked to God. A picture of the three Youngs in snow suits and ski poles: son was sick and flatlined, paramedics brought him back miraculously. Didn't see anything. From Atlanta. Parents protective, unlikely to leave him alone. The two victims from 1997 - shot, revived by paramedics, saw red light and heard maniacal laughter; flatlined during surgery, heard nothing. The Hendricks - shared near death experience, saw each other in described heaven. All of the victims lay out in this book, a grisly game of show-and-tell. Mulder held his breath.

“Mr. Mulder,” someone said from behind him. He jolted, book tumbling to the ground. Calvert was standing behind him, and he didn't look particularly happy. “Door's that way,” he said, pointing over his shoulder.

“Of… of course,” Mulder said. His heart was still pounding, palms slick with sweat. He brushed past Calvert without  word, jaw clenched in some kind of fury. He'd wanted to take the book but he definitely couldn’t get away with that, not with Calvert right there. Next appointment, he thought firmly.

He didn't go back to the cabin, at first; he went to Haswell’s house. He figured she'd be more willing to help than Scully, at the moment. Haswell looked surprised when she opened the door, like she hadn't expected him to come back. “Agent Mulder,” she said with some surprise.

“I went to Calvert’s,” he said in lieu of a greeting. “I made an appointment with him pretending to be a patient.”

Haswell blinked. “That… actually does not surprise me,” she said. “You don't seem like the type of person to give up easily.”

“I’m not giving up on this just because your partner said there’s nothing there,” he said. “No offense.”

She sighed, leaning heavily against the door frame. “Jeff’s a piece of work sometimes,” she said. “Did you find anything?”

“Something along those lines,” Mulder said. “He didn’t seem too suspicious… more interested in my NDE than in my personal information; the only personal thing he asked was where I was staying. I lied and said with family.”

Haswell raised an eyebrow. “Come in, Agent Mulder; you’re letting out all the heat.”

“Just Mulder is fine,” he said, stepping inside. Snow from his shoes shook loose on the carpet. “I found a book in Calvert’s house, though,” he added. “It had the victims in it; the Roberts’ and Layla Tanner and the Youngs… it had information about their deaths and pictures, personal pictures. I wasn’t able to get a good look at it, I don’t know if all of them were in there. I tried to get ahold of it but Calvert caught me.”

“That’s something, but it’s not much,” Haswell said. “It could just be his patient notes; that’s what anyone would say if we went after him with it. We’ll need more evidence.”

“I have another appointment in two days,” Mulder said. “I can look for more evidence then.”

A little head poked around the doorframe to the kitchen. Mulder raised his eyebrows at her. “Lyla, go back and eat your dinner,” Haswell said without turning around, and Lyla scrambled away from the door and across the kitchen floor. “You didn't happen to see Anna on your way in, did you?” she addressed Mulder. “I've called her for dinner five times now.”

“No, sorry,” he said.

She looked annoyed, but went back to the subject at hand. “We need a plan,” she told him. “Some way to definitively prove that Calvert is involved. The first three victims are buried here; do you think you could get Agent Scully to do an exam if they were exhumed?”

He tried not to shudder. “I can try,” he said. “I don’t want anything to happen to her, though. I don’t want to put her in any danger.”

Haswell nodded like she understood. “I’ll make sure she’s protected,” she said. “Nothing will happen to her or the baby.”

He gulped. “Okay,” he said. “Okay, I’ll talk to her, see what she says. I’ll call you again and let you know, but I’ll leave now and let you finish dinner.”

“Thank you,” Haswell said, not without humor. Mulder offered some sort of smile before turning towards the door to leave.

“Agent Mulder?” He turned to face her. Her hand was clenched around the railing. “Have you had an NDE recently?”

“No,” he lied. “Just a lie for Calvert.”

She nodded. “Look, whether Calvert is the killer or not… you should be careful,” she said. “There’s a pattern, and you’ve just inserted yourself into it, FBI agent or not.”

“I’m being careful,” he told her. “I’ve done things like this before… made myself a target.”

“Okay,” said Haswell. “I’m just saying… my husband passed away when Lyla was a baby. I know what it’s like to raise a baby without another parent, and it’s not easy.”

His fingers clenched hard and awkward around the doorknob. “How did you know?” he asked, uncertain.

“I could just tell,” she said. “There was no good explanation of why you and Scully were here together if you weren’t on a case, and you both seemed very protective of each other.”

That’s one way to put it, he thought.

“I’ll be careful,” he said, because there was no other choice. He wasn’t going to die again. He nodded at her before opening the door and leaving the house.

“Hey, FBI guy.” Mulder turned towards the voice and found Anna Haswell standing in the front yard bundled up in a coat. She was staring at him solemnly. “You believe in, like, ghosts and shit, right?”

“Something like that,” Mulder said, amused.

“Okay.” She bunched her mittened hands together, scarf blowing in the wind. “Okay, so you should know about the scarecrows.”

He blinked. “The… scarecrows?” he repeated, casting his eyes down the road towards Calvert’s house, the row of scarecrows on his front fence.

“I know it sounds like that one Goosebumps book, but I swear, it’s true,” Anna said in a frantic whisper. “I’ve seen them move. Walk around and shit.”

“You’ve seen them?” Mulder turned to look back at her, raising his eyebrows in a question.

The girl nodded briskly. “I’d be careful,” she said in a low voice. “If I were you.”

---

It had seemed, at the time, like a good idea to sneak off during Scully’s nap, but his stomach thunked when he realized the repercussions. How bad he must’ve scared her.

It was still snowing when he finally pulled up at the cabin, the white coating everything. Mulder tried not to slip as he went over the stone path and cursed the unusual weather. It was dark inside, and he hoped briefly that Scully was still asleep as the door swung open.

“You went to see Calvert, didn’t you.” It wasn’t a question.

Mulder fumbled for the light switch, turning it on. Scully was sitting on the couch and staring at the darkened TV screen. “Scully…” he started.

“I could’ve given you about twenty reasons as to why that was a bad idea,” she said, still not looking at him. “But who knows if you would’ve listened.”

That was irritating; he took a sharp breath and rounded the couch to face her. “Scully, listen. I lied to him about what happened to me, I told him I was staying with family, and I didn’t tell him you were here with me. I think I’m onto something; I found a book in his house that has pictures and information about the victims in it. Haswell said…”

“If you really wanted to keep investigating this case - which I’ve made clear I think is a bad idea - the least you could’ve done is have the goddamn decency to tell me where you were going,” she hissed, getting to her feet. “You left me a fucking note saying you were going to the store and weren’t back for hours; do you have any idea what finding that note was like? I am your partner, Mulder, and if you insist on digging into this, we need to work together.”

“I didn’t tell you because I knew you wouldn’t like the idea,” he muttered. By the look on her face, he could tell that was the wrong thing to say.

“You’re right, I wouldn’t have, and this is exactly why. You put yourself in danger! You could’ve blacked out on the way over there and crashed the car, for one thing, and more importantly, you practically made yourself a target, if your theory is correct. Mulder, he could’ve poisoned you, you could be dying right now.”

“He didn’t poison me,” Mulder said matter-of-factly. “He couldn’t have, I didn’t touch him or eat or drink anything.”

“You don’t know how he does it; he could have coated the fucking couch you sat on with it.” Scully was tense, hands curling into fists by her side. “And that’s not the goddamn point, Mulder.”

“Well, what is it?” he snapped. “What is the goddamn point, Scully? I’ve been hurt a hundred times before and I’ve still investigated cases! Hell, you were pissed that you couldn’t work in the field after you went into the field! You kept working cases when you were dying, Scully, and I am in perfect health.”

“This is different,” she whispered, furious.

“How? How is it so different? I was worried about you, Scully; I was watching you die every damn day and you wouldn’t slow down! Do you know how many days I was worried were going to be your last? Do you know the cases I let slide by because I didn’t want to put too much strain on you? And god forbid I express my concerns, because the untouchable Dana Scully can’t let anyone take care of her. It doesn’t matter what anyone else is thinking or feeling…”  

“This is fucking different,” she shouted. Mulder was momentarily silenced and so she kept going, barreling through him like a freight train. “You watched me die, Mulder? I buried you. I was in love with you, and I buried you. I watched you go into the goddamn ground. I found you cold and stiff in a field and I knew there was nothing I could do to bring you back.”

Mulder swallowed against the building lump in his throat. “Scully…” he tried.

“You want to know what it was like? I found out you’d been abducted about twenty minutes after I found out I was pregnant, and all I could think about is that I had to find you. I ran all over the goddamn country to try and find you. I wouldn’t let them have the X-Files because I thought if I did that they wouldn’t let me find you.” She laughed bitterly, wiping under her eyes. “Doggett was a good partner but he wasn’t exactly… open to the paranormal cases that the X-Files deal with, so I tried to goddamn fill your place and offer up those theories you always come up with. I almost fucking died in the Utah desert because a cult shoved a fucking slug they worshipped up my back. I ended up in the hospital because I thought they’d done something to my baby, that it wasn’t… human.” She swallowed hard. Mulder could feel his hands shaking; he shoved them in his pockets. He wanted to hug her more than ever. “I tried so hard to be you, to fill your empty space, Mulder… and it wasn’t enough. You still died. I couldn’t save you. I buried you and I tried to move on… do you even know how hard that was? Do you know how many nights I spent in your bed? I couldn’t leave your apartment and I fed your goddamn fish and I prayed for a goddamn miracle every night. And I got it.”

He was crying. He realized that in the moment, and he said her name again, softly.

Scully looked down at her shoes. A tear hit the rug. “I can’t expect you to be anything other than yourself,” she mumbled. “God, I wouldn’t want that. But, Mulder… you just got back. And I am not burying you again.”

The words made his stomach clench, made him feel sick. “I know,” he said softly. “But… I have to do this.”

(There was something inside him who wouldn’t let the damn thing go. It was the same thing that had led him to look for his sister for decades, to not give up when Scully had been taken or was dying. He hadn’t given up on Lucy Householder. These people needed help, too.)

Scully didn’t look up, her jaw clenching. “That’s what I thought,” she said fiercely. Mulder swallowed and searched for something comforting to say, but he had nothing. No excuses. “Do you know what the worst part is?” she hissed, angry, fists clenching harder. “It’s the fact that you were dying for goddamn months beforehand and you never said a thing. I’m halfway convinced you don’t give a damn about your life, Mulder, or how it affects the people around you.” She paused, continued shakily: “Maybe you wouldn’t have left if you did.” And then she turned and went into the bedroom, the door snicking shut quietly. It was almost worse than a slam.

Mulder stood in the living room, hands clenched awkwardly in the fabric of his jacket pockets. He stood until he could move without getting sick. He went upstairs and stood under the heavy warm stream of the shower in the other bathroom. When he came downstairs, the door was still closed so he grabbed a quilt and crawled onto the couch. He lay still, trying to forget everything, the fight, but Scully’s words kept coming back to him. He felt like he was falling apart from the inside out.

He fell asleep restless, freezing cold even under the downy quilt.

---

Lyla could see the beam of the flashlight dancing at the space below her door. Usually it meant that Anna was sneaking out, which usually meant that Lyla had to stay in bed and not tell or she would be (in Anna’s words) dead meat. But she didn’t think she cared in that moment. Something was about to happen; she could feel it. It was like electricity in the air.

Lyla slipped out of bed, socked feet sliding across the hardwood floor, and crept to the door. She thought she could sneak up on her sister without making any noise, but the door creaked when she opened it. Anna whirled on her, light shining right in her eyes. “What are you doing, squirt?” she hissed. “Go back to sleep!”

Lyla shook her head firmly, pushing into the hallway. “I’m coming,” she said in a loud whisper. “And you have to let me, or I’ll tell Mom on you.”

“Wanna bet?” Anna snarled.

Lyla raised an eyebrow in challenge and crept towards their mom’s bedroom door.

“Fine, fine, come on,” Anna whispered frantically, putting her hand over the flashlight to muffle the light. “But you have to promise not to scream.”

She made Lyla put on her coat and boots, which was annoying, but Lyla was mostly just happy she was letting her come. Anna opened the door and pulled it open silently before holding a finger to her lips and leaving the house. Lyla followed, nerves tingling with excitement. As soon as they were out on the porch, Anna turned off the flashlight and there was only the moon.

They walked silently up the dirt road, leaving footprints in the snow. Lyla clenched her teeth together so they wouldn’t chatter and looked up at her sister. “Are we going to see the scarecrows?” she whispered.

“Shh!” Anna growled. And then: “Yeah, if we’re lucky. They always walk when someone new comes to town.”

Lyla shivered, looking back up towards the road. They were approaching Calvert’s fence, and it was empty, void of the usual row of scarecrows. “Anna,” she said. “Hey, Anna, it’s empty.”

Anna turned and saw it, sprinted over to the wooden fence. Lyla struggled to keep up with her, too-big boots flopping almost comically. When she got there, Anna was staring at the poles with a look of disgust. “Shit, we missed it,” she said.

“You shouldn’t say shit,” Lyla said sadly, reaching out to touch an empty pole with her cold hand. “Mom’ll get mad.”

“You just said it, squirt,” Anna retorted, kicking at a pile of snow. And then her eyes lit up with interest. “Hey, Ly, look at this.”

Lyla turned, curious, and gasped at what she saw. There were spurts of bright red liquid on the snow, and beside it, unusual marks. Almost what she thought straw might look like if someone pressed it into the snow. “Look,” Anna said, pointing up the road. “They went that way.”

“You’ve really seen them walk?” she whispered.

“Yep. I hide in those bushes, over there; I’ve never let them see me.” She was whispering in terrified excitement. “I don’t know what would happen if they did.”

Lyla stared at the footprints with frightened awe, eyes wide. “Where do they go?”

“I don’t know,” Anna said. “Nowhere good.”

---

He was hanging from a cliff, and Scully had him by the hand. I won’t let go, she whispered.

Scully, the baby, he said. You have to take care of the baby.

I won’t bury you twice, she said, and he could suddenly feel the clots of grave dirt in his throat, choking him, closing him out. He coughed, swinging wildly from Scully’s hand.

Agent Muuuuulder, someone sing-songed below him. He looked down and saw the victims at the bottom, dirt caked in their hair and coating their face. Cara Roberts was looking up at him, her husband holding her hand; she waved at him, a wiggly-fingered greeting. Ready to come down here?

No, he said. I’m gonna be a father.

I won’t let go, Scully said again. Her fingernails dug into his skin; blood ran down his hands. Don’t leave me, please.

I won’t, he said, but someone yanked hard on his ankle. Scully shrieked as he slipped further through her fingers.

You can’t escape this, Cara Roberts said gleefully. You have to come back to the ground.

He was choking on grave dirt; he couldn’t scream. Scully cried out as his hand slipped out of hers and he started to fall.

Mulder jolted away, his cheek pressed into the patterned upholstery. He was breathing hard. Moonlight streamed through the window, drawing a white path along the rug. He sat up, feeling an unavoidable need to see Scully. He wanted to apologize.

He turned and saw the burlap face at the window, nose curving forward like a beak, stitched mouth curved upwards in a grimace.