#Sadly my uncle did not leave early the other day but I finally had some time and finished them!

[somegrumpynerd]

Assorted Horror and Killer doodles since there aren't enough of them c:

Killer by Rahafwabas Horror by Sour-apple-studios

[morningstarascending]

Life No Longer Silenced - Part 3

In St. Charles Junior High I was then forced into FLAG football, guess what, bullies on the teams. I walked away with bruises and some blood from scrapes, teacher didn't care. One weekend I found on on two different days my father was still abusing my brother and sister, I was so upset, I was quiet for weeks. I went home one day after school and mom force me to watch and Oprah special. I was on incest pedophilia and a switch was flipped. I no longer wanted to lie, I always wanted to tell the truth and be honest, though recently I was finally told I was come of too rough even though I am honest. Still working on being a better me. I went to tell my mother everything. I ended up leaving school and living with her parents again, failed home-schooling. She didn't divorce him and still lived with him and with my siblings, my brother and sister became more toxic. I am the only one to at work through my trauma, long time though. Still I was people pleasing, taking false outside acceptance, and false love. I then at one time my thoughts on suicide became really bad and I cut myself. That did absolutely nothing, it added more physical pain ontop of the other physical pain and emotional. Also ended up hating myself and belitting myself. Wearing adult mens clothing in middle school with being overweight. One happiness I lost at an early age was my Uncle Keith, he was to loving and caring. Made me felt like I was important and never hurt me like any other family mamber. Others would chance or act different around him. At one point in middle school I started a lawn business to be able to have the stuff I want and need, sadly my brother ruined it for me after my parents force me to include him and split the money. Eventually I find out my aunt said he brother my dad did same stuff to her and no one believed he. She talked to me about it and right after attack me and all male member other family but her husband and sons. Eventually I turn eighteen and start officially working for others business' and do an adult education program. I learned real fast that nothing change. Bullies just like in school, abusive slave driving bosses and, more gossiping/rumours. So many jobs love to violate human rights, federal laws, labor rights, false highering practices, osha violations. Many businesses complain about about not keeping employees and having bad customers. Treat everyone better. I even had toxic female boss', racist boss', all with a false open door policy, sexist male/female co-workers, false me-too co-workers, thiefs, racists, ones that enjoys causing pain in others. It has come to a point where I only want to be kind only in actions and words and remain a lone wolf. Being surrounded by toxic low level people is so tough mentally when I am an empath but there are a few small kind lights mixed in. 2016 was a tough year, I was run over by a car thief, that is all I know. I am still missing 24 hours of memory missing but it still affects me. Everyday I am in pain, headaches and nerve pain in my left limbs and, mostly my back. I had two severe brain concussions based on how the doctor worded it. One on the front left lobe and one on the back left lobe. It gets worse during high heat advisories and bad rain storm, so when the electrical gets high or heat making the pain worse. Sometimes I dissociate and others think I am tired when I try to hide the pain. I try to ignore the pain caused by other while dealing with my own physical pain. I do well enough to work though all my traumas and I will own up to my mistakes. One disapointing element is discoving past people, even the toxic ones stalking me on social media, I have no idea what is hoped to be found. I am me and will always be unique. No facade, and emotional and confident person that cares about the health and safty of others. I never want others to go though pain, especially what I have and still do. This is some chunks of what I can remember and more and more might come out. I have made mistake, even bad ones. I still cry and I think that makes me human.

[eaaaazygurl]

'Do you think he knows me?'

Pairing - Arthur Morgan x F'reader

Summary - Many years have passed since your sweetheart and husband, Arthur Morgan, had died upon that mountain. Now situated in the mountains within a small cabin just some feet away from your husbands resting place, you have a daughter - Arthur's daughter. One short trip away leaving your child to her own devices suddenly results in the most heart breaking and heart warming shock of your life.

Word Count - 3089

Warnings - Death, mentions of murder, some swears and some pretty upsetting material.

Key Word - Y/d/n means 'Your daughters name'. Thought I might as well give you some creative freedom on that front!

● Ohhhkay so I did write it up in the end. It is short and bittersweet but I've been feeling pretty bittersweet myself lately so what better way to vent your emotions than write a short story about your favourite character and even better yet - make it an 'X reader' fic?! Hope ya'll enjoy. This is my first time posting a short story and I'm not very good at it, so yeah. Thanks for your time and patience ^^

● This LOOSELY follows the canon of RDR1 & RDR2, take this as an AU.

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The early morning spring sunshine kept no prisoners when it came to waking, seeping it's stunning golden rays into the inner workings of your little log cabin, falling upon your perfectly sound and peacefully sleeping face.

Your eyes had flickered open at the disturbance of the bright glow against your closed lids, drawing a long winded yawn from your very core as you slowly pulled yourself up and out of the thick Elk pelt blanket that lie on your masterfully crafted bed.

Already the harmony of songbirds and chittering of love-crazed squirrels gifted your ears. It was barely past 6am, life here in the mountains demanded an early rise unless grey clouds cursed overhead; you knew you could sneak in an extra hour under the cover of disturbed weather within the sleepy sky when it had rolled in.

Alas, today was no different than the last few. Blue skies blessed the day ahead, promising yet another warm and forgiving twenty four hours.

When you finally decided to leave your bedroom and trapse slowly into the dining room, a flash of blonde caught your eye within the largest room of the house, sitting idol against a little wooden stool, fixated on something within their soft pink hands.

You gently placed a foot in front of the other creeping into the room, making your way silently closer to the little girl that had, what you came to realise, a little photo; two people sat practically joint at the hip upon a beautiful white steed, arms linked and hands entwined, cheerful smiles lightning their expressions. Your eyes fell upon one such figure in the image; a man dressed in almost all black attire, a charming smile, sparkling eyes and a neatly trimmed beard that was not quite cleanly shaven, two little unique scars trailing across his chin, and a unique leather hat with bolo cord wrapped around it's base.

"Lookin' at pictures of your father?" As you spoke, the little girl shot you a surprised expression with a small gasp, her brilliant blue eyes wide and startled, blonde whisps of long hair obscuring her vision: "You scared me half to death!"

"Sorry Y/d/n" You came to stand beside her, brushing the loose strands from her eyes and wrapping an arm around her waist as you drew a spare finger across the image, smiling sadly, "What are you doing up so early?"

"Uncle Charles came to deliver some fresh food about half an hour ago, he woke me to tell you that it's already been cured." Y/d/n gestured her hand towards the dining hall, indicating that Charles' delivery was somewhere within that room. He was a good man, he cared for you and Y/d/n deeply, having been a good friend of you and Arthur back when the Van De Linde gang still ran. He had found you cradling Arthur's body on top of that hill all those years ago, gently consoling you, burying Arthur with you and taking you to stay with John and Abigail whilst you recovered. After learning from Abigail that you were carrying Arthur's child not long after, he had made it his duty to provide for you. He and John had worked on building you a little log cabin just feet away from Arthur's resting place, surprising you one day with your new homestead. From then onward, Charles would visit you on a regular basis with medicine and food, helping to deliver your child and even going into hiding with your own daughter whilst you sought out Micha to kill the bastard.

Now, you were safe. Micha was dead, as was Dutch. The Pinkertons were disbanded, Bill was six feet under, Javier was who knows where in some long distance cell... all of those people who you'd concidered family once who had turned mad and dangerous, gone. Even the good men and women you respected were either dead or elsewhere, so far you couldn't possibly track them. John, Abigail... gone.

Charles and not-so-little Jack were the last of the gang you saw now.

Y/d/n slumped into your embrace with a soft giggle, but then that cheery grin was replaced with an expression you could only describe as confused, upset and perhaps even a bit lost. She spoke quietly, almost as if what she was asking was to be frowned upon, "What was he like?"

"Your father? He was amazing." You had both spoken about Arthur's life before, though you'd known that y/d/n was far too young to understand and comprehend you back then. Perhaps now would be the right time to explain things better.

"Your father was a good man, despite what he ever thought about himself," You began, gazing upwards to watch the flames of the fireplace dance and twirl, "He did bad things- we all did bad things when we were younger, but all for the greater good no less. We were dealt bad hands when we were small you see... but in the end, your father got the redemption he had been searching for. He saved a lot of people during his life, gave others opportunities they'd never imagined and dealt with those who sought to harm others." Your mind wandered deep into past memories, recalling that one time you and Arthur had met, him rescuing you from the O'driscolls, and then to the more light hearted time when Arthur had foolishly attempted to mount another man's horse in order to return the scrawny nag, only to be bucked off right into the creek beside you both. He'd stank of that bog for days afterward, but you remained by his side whilst others avoided him like the plague.

"What he would have given to see you now..." a crack within your voice threatened to draw tears, but you refrained, turning to face your daughter with a proud smile, placing a little kiss onto her forehead, "He'd be smitten."

"Do you think he knows I exist, wherever he is?" The expectant tone of y/d/n drew a pained smile from your lips, carding fingers through her impossibly soft, long, blond hair, "Of course he does," You continued, briefly catching the time with your eye; 6.50am, work in ten minutes.

"Whenever you feel lost or down, just remember that your father is always by your side, even if you can't see him." Placing another gentle kiss against your daughters head, you removed yourself from the embrace and fixed your jacket onto your shoulders from the wall as well as the same leather black hat Arthur once wore onto your head, "Be good today. I'm just off to check on the stables." You ruffled Y/d/n's hair, planting one last gentle kiss against her crown and headed for the door, taking another brief look back with a soft smile before leaving.

*  *  *

Home alone once again. It was something Y/d/n was accustomed to after spending much of her life sheltered away from all of the bad in the world.

Y/d/n hadn't blamed you, though. The world was indeed cruel. Oh so very cruel. She had hidden away whilst you stalked to the ends of the West and beyond, hunting down all of those who threatened your daughters life, all down to the very last.

Y/d/n made her way to the dining hall, carefully picking her way past the little table where the wrapped sections of cured Mountain Goat meat had been stored from Charles earlier that morning. She ran her hands past the wooden counter top and reached for the little wooden box next to the wash basin, pulling the tiny doors open.

Just as she'd expected: An empty jar labeled 'Wild Mint.'

Cooking was Y/d/n's calling, it seemed. She'd learnt many a trick from you over the years, but it was Charles who taught her the most.

He had explained the importance of each herb around the Grizzlies, where to find them and what their properties were, and especially how to store and prep them for cooking. Wild Mint was a common plant, but it also meant she had used it the most. It made for a wonderful seasoning afterall, and thus that meant running low on the particularly smelly plant was an all too common occurrence, and so Y/d/n raced towards the front door, whipping a large blue winter coat over her flowery dress onto her incredibly small body, pulling her little dark brown satchel bag over her shoulder, leaping into smaller boots and burst out into the open world.

Spring brought with it the last whisps of winters cool breath. It blew gently across the wooded landscape, catching the underneath of Y/d/n dress that made her quake, grasping the large edges of the dark blue fabric and tugging them tightly around her small figure, burying her face into the fur-lined neck of the coat, inhaling the faintest smell of raspberries and cigarette smoke.

Ocean blue eyes scanned the mountain range, vast verges and sloping hills carrying on for miles around. Drawing her attention over towards the little wooden cross, Y/d/n gave the object a faint smile, bowing her head ever so slightly with a little wave and whispered "I'll be back soon."

Y/d/n had only made it some thirty foot down the hillside before she came to the first thick stretch of woodland. It was heavy with the smell of pine needles and tree sap, damp earth and mycelium. As she strode deeper into the confines of the wood, a faint lingering scent of fresh mint leaves tickled her nostrils. Not far to go now.

There it was, a bundle of stretching stems flush with tiny green leaves grasping for the twinkle of sun rays through the treeline: wild mint.

They were situated at the foot of a large pine tree surrounded by various little rocks, likely from a previous rock slide within the area. Y/d/n scampered over, unravelling the little leather cord to pull open the fold of her satchel and clapped her hands together, rubbing them viciously so that the friction warmed her skin. Next, she settled at the base of the mint, digging fingers into the dirt and began to claw at the dark brown earth. Hooking under fresh, light brown threads, Y/d/n tugged, listening to the sound of snapping roots and felt the sensation as the cords of the mint began to click away from eachother. The first stem of mint finally came free, Y/d/n delicately removing the leaves from the stem and placing them into one jar whilst the bare stems were placed into another.

That's when the sound of snapping twigs sent a bullet of terror through the heart of the little girl.

Crystal eyes scoured the scene ahead of her in quick jerking actions as she stayed motionless in a crouch, one hand outstretched and hovering whilst the other stabilised her against the trunk of a tree.

The sound came again, closer, and finally Y/d/n caught sight of her stalker.

Just ahead of her stood a magnificent White Tailed Buck, perhaps the largest she had ever seen. It's crown of antlers bore eight points on either side, wide and almost intimidating yet elegant and luxurious. Beautiful eyes seemed to gaze into Y/d/n's very soul, and as she gazed back, she could have almost swore she saw a flicker of blue within the Buck's irises as it began to slowly sauter closer towards her.

The atmosphere within the surrounding woodland suddenly felt at ease, as if there was a complete and total shift within the universe. The Buck grew closer and closer and Y/d/n did not shift. She held her outstretched hand out towards the brilliant creature, gasping softly as it's muzzle pressed delicately into her palm, eyes slowly closing and it's heavy breathing faltering to a relaxed and slow huff.

Thundering hooves against the hard unstable ground alerted Y/d/n; a horse had been tracking her movements from the house, now making ground towards her location in quick sucession. A flash of silver and black came screeching to a stop just some feet away from her, whinnying at the harsh flicker of pebbles and stones against it's broad limbs, old age had caught up with the big brute of an animal.

You had found Y/d/n, a flash of relief sparking within your eyes as you met your daughters mesmerised gaze, and you opened your jaw to call out a loud cry of relief before your voice hitched - caught within your throat at the very sight before you.

The Buck had not fled at your arrival, rather it turned it's attention away from Y/d/n and set it's gaze upon you, ears pricking slightly almost as if it had recognised you.

Some strange force of nature - almost like a beckoning drew you from your mount and slowly stepping over towards the handsome creature. Your stomach tied into large knots and your heart fluttered within the confines of your chest cavity, and without an understanding as to why, you felt a sudden urge to come to the Buck's level, crouching down to meet it head height.

The wonderous creature took a small hoof step forward, drawing in your scent through it's nostrils, brown fur catching the wind. Slowly, he drew himself closer and closer until he had paused only inches from your face. There was a moment of uncertainty between you both - at any moment this majestic  creature could very well strike out at you, goring you in the exposed flesh of your throat and head with each individual point of his antlers.

You, however, remained seated.

Throughout all of your years hunting crazed ex-gang members, finding yourself crawling out of an explosion in hopes of finding a health tonic and finding the deceased bodies of fallen loved ones, you had always briefly acknowledged a White Tailed Buck guiding you along, watching you, following you and even guiding you towards help.

You'd always pinned it down to some sort of whacky reoccurring hallucination but now...

The Buck turned it's nose upwards. Slowly, he began to ever so gently nudge the black, beaten leather hat that rest upon your head. He nibbled delicately at the worn and tired leather bolo cord that hung loose against the inner rim of the accessory.

You let out a sudden, soft gasp, eyes wide with pure emotional shock and understanding. You felt every inch of you freeze and burn into a thousand suns, your stomach bunching up and head speaking a billion silent questions without answers.

You knew what- or who- this was.

The Buck slowly pulled away, giving you and Y/d/n some space as it gazed longingly at you both. You drew yourself onto your feet, eyes still wide and bright with shock and a confusing concoction of emotions as you came to stand behind your daughter, hands resting upon her shoulders and giving them a soft reassuring squeeze.

Your smile was as delicate as fresh rose petals, a timid flush crossing your cheeks. Your eyes glistened as tears began to form in the corners, creating tiny little gemstones of water, twinkling golden within the spring sunshine.

As you held your sights upon the Buck, you felt a rush of old memories and emotions flood you like a sudden tidal wave. Your body almost trembled at the sight now, the feeling of pure love and loss encasing you so confusingly at the same time. But you remained, and the overwhelming sense of dear calmness overtook each and every frightening feeling that chipped away at you.

A familiar smile lased your expression now, one that had not been since since you found yourself in the warm and loving embrace of Arthur. It was a sight to behold indeed, and to your surprise, the Buck's ears perked once more and tail flicked as if it had acknowledged that expression upon your face.

Y/d/n did not make even the smallest of sounds. She simply stood there, lips parted in a grinning gaup and eyes pinned directly onto the Buck in pure emotional awe. She huddled herself a little deeper into the blue winter coat at the passing bluster of a sudden breeze, gaining an acknowledging small, almost silent squeak from the Buck himself.

You wished this moment would last forever, but as the winds grew a little stronger and the sound of a distant bear call echoed in the distance, the Buck turned to give you an almost pleading look as if to say 'get yourself home into saftey.'

Tears welled within your eyes again as you allowed them to trickle down your soft flushed cheeks, giving the creature a small nod in silent understanding agreement.

You watched him back up slightly and turn to face the thick cover of the woodland, spreading out into a vast, dense forest.

It had almost felt as though time came to a standstill as the Buck began it's decent into the heavier tree line. You felt a longing to call him back, to grasp at him - anything to keep that small flame of awe alive.

You remained silent.

Before the creature pushed itself into the shadows, it took one last look back at you both.

A sad smile caught your lips and your voice finally released itself from your throat, quietly speaking a "Thank you for everything."

Bowing it's head ever so slightly, the Buck then pushed itself back through the treeline and into the shadows, leaving you to stare ahead, hands still pressed against Y/d/n shoulders.

The ride home had been a silent one. Dusk was now breaking, and the evening chorus was a gentle reminder that Y/d/n's bed time was creeping up slowly.

You had ushered her to bed accompanied with a little jug of water placed upon a tiny bedside table. You allowed her to wriggle herself into a much comfier position before tucking the Elk skin sheet up, giving Y/d/n a little peck on the forehead, exchanging a tender "I love you" between yourselves before you made haste for the doorway. Charles had arrived to help you prepare yourself dinner, and there was a lot to tell him about.

"Ma?" Y/d/n was gazing at you with wide, questioning and innocent ocean blue eyes.

"Yes, sweetheart?" You paused, leaning yourself against the door post as you gazed back into the room, meeting her ocean blue eyes.

"Do y'think Father will come visit again? Like today?"

There was a brief silence, but not one of sadness or regret but rather of seldom hope and genuine happiness as you replied with a simple -

"Yes darlin'. Turns out he's been here all along."

[thejustmaiden]

So out of nowhere I was tagged and quoted by a SR shipper for a blog of mine posted in August of last year. Talk about throwback but, hey, gotta appreciate that level of snooping. 😉

Back in the day I actually used to encourage discourse amongst Inuyasha fans- both shippers and antis alike- but I've since realized that it's a lost cause. But for you, @feministmetalgreymon , I'll grant this exception. Just 'cause it's been a while so why the hell not. haha

I want to assure you, however, that nothing you say will ever convince me that Sesshomaru and Rin are meant to be together romantically or that the story intended it so. Nor will you find any validation here. You can ship them for all I care, but please for all that is good and holy while I have your attention try- I mean really try- to understand why it is so many of us Inuyasha fans are so against this pairing in the first place (newsflash: it's not about ship wars), and why we believe a romance between the two of them is completely and utterly out of character.

For those of you interested in reading this, the blog of mine in question that the above shipper mentions in their counter-argument is here for reference. It's titled "Jaken = Rin's Dad?" I'm going to try and keep this short, but I'm also making no such promises. After all, I'm not exactly known for my brevity. haha Now let's get crackin'!

Like you, feministmetalgreymon, did for your recent blog here where you took screenshots of mine to address certain parts, I will be doing the same and dissecting yours accordingly.

[Snippet 1]

I worked with kids for many years as a teacher, and many people in my family have too or still do. Two of them happen to be just over 5 feet which is quite short for the average adult woman living here. I've also worked alongside many a women of short stature, and never did I hear any of them complaining of issues with their students having difficulty differentiating them from their own peers just because they were short as well. I'm sorry but that's just ridiculous. Kids are quite smart and pick up on a lot more than you seem to give them credit for. Height is not the only characteristic they look at to determine who's an adult and who's not, and it's foolish to suggest otherwise. So unless you're a babysitter who's still in their teens and/or who has very childlike features or behavior then I'm afraid what you're getting at is total hogwash. This is just another example of how you shippers offer nothing of real substance to your reasoning, it's only ever cherry-picking or strawmanning from you guys. Stop deflecting from the real issues please, because this certainly isn't one and only winds up being a complete waste of time for all parties involved.

[Snippet 2]

Okay, calm down now. I wasn't insinuating that relationships between parents and children can't change over time in terms of how they get along. Of course that's possible, as all families experience their fair share of estrangement and abuse. What I was speaking about was in reference to the overall dynamic between the two. Because a bad mother or father can still be viewed as a parental figure to their child even if say they're not in said child's life anymore. Since Sesshomaru and Rin share a healthy bond- and just a friendly reminder that in my blog I even said that he doesn't have to necessarily be labeled her father but that a romantic relationship later would still be inappropriate- I didn't deem it necessary to address what you brought up. Plus, it kinda, umm, misses the point?? Please, let's stay on topic. And it's not captured in the screenshot, but stop acting like there isn't a small part of them that idolizes their parents at some point during childhood. Just like you mention later on how it's normal for kids to have innocent crushes on adults that they eventually grow out of? Well, guess what, the same concept applies here. Kids eventually learn that their parents are far from perfect and make mistakes too. Rin is so damn young in the OG series though that we never even get to see her reach that maturity level.

[Snippet 3]

LOL! Alright, okay, so the "unbreakable bond" bit you're mentioning was actually me quoting you sessrinners. Did you not catch that? I literally spelled it out. *sigh* The whole point I was making is that shippers like yourself make hypocritical and contradictory statements all.the.goddamn.time. One moment you guys claim that Sesshomaru and Rin were essentially strangers and meant very little to each other, only to say in the same breath a few seconds later that they were destined to be together and their bond is like no other. I agree, their bond is special, but why must that mean they're going to fall in love?

That is the root of the matter here. Too many animes/mangas have romanticized this older adult man & young girl growing up falling in love trope that it's become way too normalized and widely accepted across the world- and yes, in some cultures more than others. Sadly, you lack the awareness to recognize how this all works. You know how we know that? When we see that you shippers are so desensitized to sexualized images of girls in the media that you share posts like this one below which *subtly* imply a future romance although one half of that pairing is still just a child in the pic and then try and pass it off as cute. That's like super fucking problematic and it scares me that you can't see that (or deny you do). 🤢

After all that's said and done, Sesshomaru leaving Rin in the village with Kaede is to me the strongest indicator more than pretty much anything else he's done for Rin that proves he is her adoptive father. It's so funny to me how you somehow see the exact opposite though. 🤔 What I think is happening is that you got yourself on some squeaky clean ass shipper goggles fresh out of your little echo chamber. Because I hate to tell you, but what you're fantasizing is what you want to see and not what's actually there on screen or was written into the story. I'm strictly talking about Inuyasha and the manga of course. [For the TL; DR version skip to the last paragraph.]

Parents looking after their kids is what parents are supposed to do. A good parent will do anything to keep their child safe and ensure they are cared for, so what he did for her by leaving her there was in her best interests clearly. Besides, as a babysitter, you more than most people should understand that parents aren't always able to be there for their kids so sometimes others gotta step in to help. Haven't you heard of the saying, "it takes a village to raise a child?" Which in Rin's case is literally true! 😂 Sometimes kids are even sent off to stay with grandparents and that's who raises them instead. Or maybe they have to temporarily live with an aunt or uncle because their single parent's job requires they work out of town 4-5 days of the week so they're hardly home. But that doesn't mean that the parents care or love their kids any less, and it's foolish to assume that Sesshomaru must have thought very little of Rin simply due to the fact that he made the decision to leave her in the village. Come on, y'all are acting like he abandoned her there!!

It's just given the circumstances Sesshomaru finally came to learn that Rin traveling with him was no longer safe. I also like to think it's because he wished for her to live a more normal life and to learn how to fully trust humans again. Plus, continuing to travel with him as young as she was would have proven dangerous and unwise. Now for you to know all this and still manage to turn his past actions towards her while she was just a child into a romantic gesture is what boggles my mind. Regardless of how you look at it, from my perspective or your own, Sesshomaru is in the wrong. Either he's a father figure who impregnates his daughter at the young age of approximately 14. OR he's this man she used to travel with who maybe isn't a father to her but who nonetheless basically rapes her since kids her age can't consent to sex with an adult. Idk about you but it sounds to me like nobody here wins with either scenario we're given. In other words, you should be just as mad as we are. If only one side didn't choose to forsake their morals they know we both have in common for the sake of a ship. Welp. 🤷‍♀️

I agree, incest is disgusting but that's not the only problem we have with this pairing. A romantic bond forming between Sesshomaru and Rin would also constitute as grooming.

You realize that over the years he visited her in the village that he brought her gifts too and essentially watched her grow up right before his very eyes, right? I mean, I know you do, but I really shouldn't have to explain further why pursuing a romantic/sexual relationship with each other is plain and simple wrong. And before you say it's not because he didn't have any malintent, please understand that considering their history and power dynamic up to then that yes this is still considered grooming even if Rin supposedly "wanted it" or "made the first move." Whether you consider him her father or not, as the adult who took on a role resembling that of a caretaker in her early life- a critical developmental time for a child- Sesshomaru is obligated to turn down any advances by Rin and most definitely should not initiate any himself. As the first close adult figure she's had in her life since her parents died, it's unfathomable to imagine how Sesshomaru could go through with taking advantage of this young girl who was under his care and supervision since they met. To think he could be capable of betraying that trust sickens me to the core.

This. Now THIS is how a parent/guardian or a similar adult caretaker (babysitter, teacher, etc.) talks to a child. And, in turn, this is how some young children talk to adults. You'd be insane and delusional to deny it! We see it in our everyday lives, do we not? From where else do you think our stories draw most of their inspiration? Yes, obviously these fictional universes have aspects of fantasy that don't exist in the real world, but so how then do you suppose we're able to relate to them? The reason for that being is because these stories are written by people for people, so naturally there are going to be real life aspects embedded throughout. Sure, a little escapism doesn't hurt as we don't need to take everything so seriously, but ultimately we all need to recognize that the messages in the stories we tell matter. Most stories possess a combination of both light and dark themes, but when it specifically comes to the latter we gotta be careful with how we tackle this in children's media since kids are far more impressionable.

So if at the center of a story we have two of the main protagonists whose mom is basically their same age and to top it off she knew their dad when she was just a girl and who just so happened to help raise her, wouldn't you say that's beyond fucked up or at the very least so fucking weird? Like why would we think it's even remotely okay for our children to watch this garbage?? Really think about it. Try and be objective for once and think about how it would sound explaining this storyline to an outsider who's never watched IY or HNY. Well, antis have tried this before many times and we always get the same reaction: Ewww!

Like I said earlier, if you wanna ship it then fine, but 1) please stop seeking our approval or trying to change our minds - your ship wish came true didn't it, so why do you need us to validate it? 2) even though it's not canon, respect that we don't support this sequel portraying pedophilia in a positive light. It's harmful af to not only allow but glorify the continuation of sexualized images of young girls everywhere. And I shouldn't have to say this, but just because this trope is popular as you say does not make it right. Lolicon themes in the media have been an issue forever and it needs to stop. Yes, even some people in Japan or "the East" would agree. Shocker!

We're pissed off and rightfully so because Yashahime's TV rating is 14, not to mention it airs at the prime time kids in Japan watch TV after getting home from school. That's Towa and Setsuna's age, true, but if Rin being the mom when she's like only a year older than them (please don't argue w/ me about the math- antis have so far been right every time with it) is straight-up disgusting and not something we should be supporting or endorsing. Rin's a whole ass child!! Please don't start with the "but times were different then so her having kids at 15 is acceptable" argument either, because we've already debunked that and every other single excuse you guys throw at us. Besides, how or why would you expect young viewers to know these historical "facts" anyway, especially if as you suggest fiction doesn't affect reality so what does it matter? Yet here we are, arguing over a fictional show in real life almost a year and a half into the "Sesshomaru fucks?" sequel being announced. My ass, your ass, hell all our asses fiction doesn't affect reality!

Look, I do apologize if the tone of this blog came off as snippy or condescending at times. I do not wish you any ill will, it's just I'm not really sure what you expected to get out of all this besides maybe getting on my nerves perhaps. haha A lot of you shippers have been desperately scrambling to interact with us, lurking in our tags, jumping onto our posts screaming canon and getting so defensive even though you sought us out first. We've been sticking to our tags, so how about you stay in your lane too. By the way since we're on the topic, have you seen Twitter or Reddit?! SR shippers there are the actual worst and many Inuyasha fans (not just antis) have complained of not feeling welcomed to engage in fandom spaces anymore. Shippers swarm them and scare them off simply because fans don't like your ship and refuse to accept it. It's pathetic, really. No one should ever be bullied or harassed just because they don't like something you might. We're all fans of Inuyasha, aren't we? So let's act like it. Yashahime on the other hand, you guys are welcome to that pungent heap of trash. Fans have a right to criticize it too, but if you like it then good for you, so keep on liking it and don't mind us.

I'm almost done, but real quick back to Jaken! Let's not forget about how the official Yashahime website- which came out after my blog, mind you- described Jaken. This translation isn't the best one available but it's the only version a fellow anti friend could track down. They do recall a better one done by a native Japanese speaker who was also an anti, and that member confirmed that Jaken is indeed called Rin's babysitter. So you see, I was right in my interpretation. In the original post I did compare Jaken to a brother, but after talking to others (some comments can be found under said post) I did acknowledge that he's more of a reluctant babysitter who's not related. And if he's not at least a brother to Rin, then he's definitely not her father.

At the end of the day, the creator Rumiko Takahashi has the final word. Which is guess what? Hogosha. 💖 Probably should've just started out with that and saved us all the trouble, huh? Good day/night to you.

Papamaru bids you adieu now. 🤞

[henryobsessed]

The Veterinarian and the Werewolf - Chapter 8

Word Count: 1879

Warning: trigger - hunting, and demeaning verbal abuse.

A/N thanks again to my beautiful @sillyrabbit81 for your editing and @amberangel112 for your encouragement.

Chapter 8

Henry could not understand why Jessie was still considering going out with this jerk. He huffed at Joe’s words and was pleasantly surprised at Tom’s reaction. Pleased to have someone in his corner, he nuzzled into the young man’s arms. It felt nice, an odd feeling of loss and regret pulled at his soul. He hadn’t seen his nephew in five years, he would be fifteen years old now four years younger than Tom. Memories of their last time together flooded his mind, the feel of his hands running through his fur. Even then he had refused to change, sadly his nephew had never known him in Human form.

The packhouse was large, made of local stone it would be considered menacing to outsiders. But for those invited in, it was a house filled with love. They had found Henry and his nephew Adam just outside their forest line, half-starved, dehydrated and desperate for care. The pack doctor had tended to Henry whilst one of the pack's mothers had shared her milk with the little pup. Adam had captured the mother’s heart and at Henry’s approval had adopted him into the pack. Henry had grieved the loss of his only kin but been so grateful to them. He knew he could not look after the little one, not with his heartbroken in pieces.

Over the next ten years, he had come and gone from the house checking up on Adam, watched as he grew strong, not only physically, but emotionally he had developed into a beautiful soul. Their last time together they had sat just like he was now with Tom. He had curled up next to Adam, his head in his lap, Adams fingers running through his fur. “I wish you could change for me Uncle, I see all the other dads and sons playing together and I love the idea that when I change next year we can run together. Then I can finally talk to you and hear your voice back. But I want to know what you look like, to be able to hug you like I see that others hug their dads.” His face had added to Henry’s grief looking so heartbroken and longingly at him. He had tried at that moment, had attempted to honour his request but his human side was so lost, hidden in pain. He had left the house that day, knowing even if it broke his heart, he needed to let his nephew grow with his new pack and not be held back by him.

Now nestled against Tom he regretted that decision. He heard a chuckle soft and happy. “Well look at you two. I would never have guessed Wolfy could be so comfortable with another human. I haven’t seen him like that with anyone except with me. What’s your secret Tom?” Her bright eyes landed on Tom who had continued to scratch behind Henry’s ears.

“I don’t know Miss Jessie, but I have always loved wolves, well any kind of animal really but especially wolves.”

She seemed thoughtful as she eyed them both making Henry wonder what she had planned. “Tom, are you free tonight? I have a date and I really don’t want to leave Wolfy alone again.” Henry felt Tom stiffen. Wondering what was wrong with the request, he moved his head to look up at the boy.

A brief look of disapproval flashed in his eyes before they softened as he looked down and saw Henry watching him. “Yes, Miss Jessie. I would love to spend more time with this beautiful boy.” Internally he chuckled at Tom’s words, if only he knew he was twelve years older than him.

That afternoon Henry, Jessie and Tom spent out in the garden. Tom seemed to fit beautifully into their friendship group kneeling beside Jessie as they planted new flowers and shrubs where they had pulled up the weeds. Together, Henry dug the holes, Tom placed the plants and held them in place whilst Jessie filled the soil around them. Henry enjoyed hearing the light conversation between his Mate and his new friend until it became heavier. “So, Tom, when did you begin to love wolves? I know your father traps them, so I’m interested as to why you don’t follow his belief.”

Tom continued to work, as a gentle hum was heard working up from his throat. “I know why Dad does it, although I don’t think he is correct. He blames the wolves for his loss of cattle, but I haven’t seen that many around. The wild dogs are more to blame but he won't listen. They have a group that meet purely to discuss the wolf problem, but in my whole life, the only large group I have seen was back when I was four. It’s the first and last time Dad allowed me to come to a hunting party. Mom was horrified that he was taking me, but I wanted so much to be with Dad, and he wanted me to be just like him.”

Henry shuddered as the boy spoke as if by some force of nature, he knew that he was about to hear what had happened that day. He also sensed the grief radiating off the boy, wanting to calm him he pushed his body into Tom’s side. Nuzzling his head as if to say, “It's ok, I’m here for you.” Tom let out a heavy chuckle as if he had heard Henry’s voice.

He sat back looking down at Henry as he spoke, “Thanks Wolfy, you would think that I would not remember something that happened that long ago, but it's imprinted in my mind. They had been tracking a pack that had only just entered the area, convinced the rest of the ranchers that they were a risk to our lively hood, that we couldn’t let them nest here. So, the best of their marksman left, when we found them all, sitting around a tree, curled up sleeping, all I wanted to do was go play with the cuddly animals. Dad kept pulling me back holding me still and quiet. I didn’t understand until the loud bangs began.”

Tom’s voice wobbled at this point and Jessie who had been silent up till this time also came closer. She pulled him into her side, her arm encasing his thin body as his shoulders began to shake. “I started screaming as I saw a single wolf with a baby on its back running away, Dad aimed for it but I managed to push the barrel up making him miss. I got the thrashing of my life that night. I couldn’t sit for a week, but it was worth it. I was never allowed to come again after that, not that I wanted to. It took a while, but Dad eventually began to trust me enough to check the traps. I am glad too because it meant I could help this fella.”

Jessie held the boy as his sobs subsided. Henry was trying to hold his anger in, these were the people who had destroyed his family. And yet this one boy had not only saved him once but twice, his gratitude was the only thing stopping him from wanting to go rip the throats out of the group. Ignorance and fear were the driving forces that ended his family, if only they knew the wolves would only ever take a sick animal, and sometimes the young, never the strength of the herd. They would never kill without need. But the wild dogs he had seen were giving us a bad name.

Jessie's voice interrupted his thoughts, the softness not hiding the grief in her own. “Was that near here Tom?” How did Jessie know?

“Yes, Miss Jessie, by the tall tree in the middle of the forest.”

She silently picked up the tools, both animal and human watching her, wondering what she was thinking. Sighing she stood up, “Come, it’s getting dark and I need to get ready for this date.” She walked silently back into the house. The boy and the wolf looked at each other before both followed.

Jessie fixed dinner for Tom and Henry then left to dress, leaving the pair to their own devices. Tom seemed quiet after revealing his early childhood trauma and Henry was eager to help calm the boy. After eating, he plodded into the living room, jumped up on the couch and yipped in Tom’s direction. Chuckling, Tom responded, “You want to watch some TV boy?” Nuzzling the remote, he yipped eagerly hoping to distract the boy from his thoughts.

Tom settled next to him and picked up the remote, they settled on watching a rerun of M.A.S.H before they both heard the clicking of heels and the rapping of knuckles on the front door. Open-mouthed both Henry and Tom sat dumbstruck as Jessie walked down the stairs in a light yellow sundress her dark hair flowing softly twisted into waves. “Wow Miss Jessie, you look amazing” got in first before Henry followed with his eager Yip. Giggling Jessie smiled softly at them both, “Ok I won't be out late, but even so, don’t get up to any mischief”

This caused both Henry and Tom to laugh, one sounding more like a series of yips. The door opened and closed and Jessie was gone. Together the two sat, watched movies and shared some popcorn that Tom had found in the pantry. Just as the end of a Witcher episode finished they heard yelling coming from outside. “I don’t give a dam Boyd, you had no right to hit that poor man, It was an accident.” The front door opened as Jessie stormed inside, the front of her dress had a brown stain down the side of her skirt.

Next Boyd came crashing into the room his face red as he reached out to grab Jessie's arm, this caused Henry to jump into action his snarl reaching the ears of the big man before he saw the wolf racing towards him. Jumping back almost stumbling over the kitchen chair Boyd’s face grew hotter, “Keep that mutt controlled Jessie otherwise I’ll control him for you with my shot Gun.”

The air went still as Henry felt Jessies and Tom's hands on him, “That is enough Boyd Hatfield, you are no longer welcome in this home. Get. Out!” Surprise filled Boyd’s face as he not only recognised Tom but registered his marching orders. Menace replaced the look of surprise, “Listen here little girl, you better watch that attitude of yours. I’ll allow you to cool off but we are not finished talking, and if you value the life of that mutt you will do as your told.” Punctuating the statement with a nod of his head he turned and strolled out the door.

Heart pounding he turned looking up at Jessie who seemed to have lost her speech, her face pale and her hands shaking. Tom moved swiftly pulling her into his arms as she began to cry, frustrated that it wasn’t his arms holding her, Henry pushed his body against her to show he was there, but inside he was furious. That man had threatened not just himself but Jessie, but he had to focus on her right now, she was more important no matter how much he wanted to go after him.

Chapter 9

[robininthelabyrinth]

LXC is the legal guardian and adopter for LSZ or LJY, and NMJ has questions.

part 2 of the LJY-adopted-by-LQR fic (now also on ao3)

-

“So, did I knock you up before I went to war or something?” Nie Mingjue asked. “Because I feel like you should’ve mentioned it if that was the case. Possibly in a letter.”

Lan Xichen was so tired that it took him a solid minute to parse what was wrong with that sentence and how to respond, and it was not by following his first instinct to apologize that he should’ve written better letters.

“Stop making fun of me,” he said instead, groping towards some measure of dignity.

Sadly, dignity was in very short supply when you were taking care of babies. Multiple babies. Well, one baby and one toddler, which was somehow worse?

Lan Xichen was pretty sure they’d figured out how to time their crying off each other.

“I would never,” Nie Mingjue said, like a liar, and then he picked up little Jingyi and – Lan Xichen simply cannot find another way to put it – shook him, in a manner not unlike testing a melon for freshness.

For some reason, this made Lan Jingyi stop crying and start making snuffling little giggles instead.

“How did you do that?” Lan Xichen asked, eyes wide.

“Do what?” Nie Mingjue tucked the baby into the crook of his arm and scooped up some food off the table, offering it to him, and Lan Jingy actually ate it. “Xichen, are you feeling all right?”

“Shhh!” Lan Xichen hissed, eyes fixed on the baby, which was neither spitting up everything nor wailing as if his heart was broken. “No unnecessary noise during meals.”

Nie Mingjue snorted in amusement. “Sure,” he said amiably, in the tone Lan Xichen had long ago learned meant ‘nice rules you’ve got there, it’d be an awful shame if someone found a loophole in them’. “This isn’t a meal, though; it’s just a snack.”

Lan Xichen eyed the still-not-crying Lan Jingyi and decided that now was not the time for a spirited debate on the virtues of discipline and fulfilling the merits rather than the word of a rule.

“Where’s monster number one gone?” Nie Mingjue asked abruptly. “He must be very good at hiding, because I looked away for a blink of an eye and he was gone.”

Lan Xichen’s eyes slowly dropped down to where a cloth-covered lump was not-so-sneakily edging towards Nie Mingjue’s foot.

Nie Mingjue was one of the foremost front line fighters of their generation, and possibly the previous one as well. His physical ability was matched only by his incredibly keen senses.

There was no way he was not aware of the lump.

“It’s a real shame, too,” Nie Mingjue continued. “I was planning on doing a test of how far you can throw children, but I think monster two here’s a bit too small to make the test worthwhile. But I guess it just wasn’t meant to be –”

You can’t throw children, Lan Xichen was about to say, except Lan Sizhui was tearing off the tablecloth and jumping up in excitement, shouting, “Here! Here! I’m here! I’m big enough! You can throw me!”

“Why does he want to be thrown,” Lan Xichen murmured, bewildered. He’d never wanted to be thrown around as a child. Had he?

In fairness, he wasn’t sure. No one had ever offered.

Apparently, though, Lan Sizhui did very much want to be thrown around, and Lan Jingyi even condescended to allow Lan Xichen to hold him while he watched.

“Higher! Higher!” Lan Sizhui shouted.

“Really? Is this high enough?” Nie Mingjue held him up at eye level.

“Higher!”

“Like this?” Above his head.

“Higher!”

“You sure?”

“Yes!”

“All right. How about –” Baxia slithered out from her place by the door, zipping over until she was right in front of Nie Mingjue, allowing him to step onto her like a stair, and then zipping upwards to about hip-height, lifting Nie Mingjue and Lan Sizhui with her. They very nearly hit a tree branch with their heads. “– this?”

Lan Sizhui shrieked with laughter.  

“It’s too early to introduce them to flying,” Lan Xichen objected, because it was. “Mingjue-xiong…”

Nie Mingjue hopped down with a laugh. “All right, one last toss,” he told Lan Sizhui. “Then you nap. Okay?”

“Okay!” Lan Sizhui, who had never once willingly succumbed to naptime in the entirety of the time that Lan Xichen had known him, promised earnestly.

Back into the pile of soft grass he went, giggling the entire time, and amazingly enough he really did fall asleep afterwards. Lan Jingyi, too, had fallen asleep at some point.

“I’ve decided that your brother needs more experience running a sect,” Lan Xichen told Nie Mingjue, who raised his eyebrows. “Starting immediately. I promise to allow you to leave when Jingyi is, oh, shall we say five years old..?”

You could reason with a five year old. 

Nie Mingjue laughed.

It was a type of laugh that suggested that he thought Lan Xichen was making a joke. This was incorrect.

“You’d be amazed at how serious I am,” Lan Xichen told him threateningly, “I’m sect leader here, this is my territory, I can have you arrested any time –” but by that point Nie Mingjue was already bundling him off to bed, too, combing out his hair and plying him with snacks and –

This was not helping his argument that Lan Xichen should be allowing him to leave rather than keep him trapped in the Cloud Recesses as a babysitter-slash-love-slave. 

Well, he wouldn’t really do that, of course. He’d let him go. Eventually.

It’d probably be good for Nie Mingjue’s stress levels, honestly.

“Seriously, though, how did you do that?” he asked, his head on Nie Mingjue’s lap. “They didn’t cry once.”

“I’m good with kids,” Nie Mingjue said, his fingers digging into Lan Xichen’s scalp in just the right way. “Now can you explain to me how exactly you ended up with them? Two, no less?”

Lan Xichen groaned and covered his eyes with a hand. “Sizhui’s Wangji’s,” he explained. “Not biologically, but he’s put his name down in the family register under his own. But, you know…”

“I know.”

Lan Xichen appreciated that he didn’t need to go into it. The doctors had estimated that Lan Wangji would regain full mobility within three years, so that was the period the elders had mandated for his so-called ‘seclusion’, but with Lan Wangji being locked away like that – even with visitors, even though he was trying his hardest to care for the child from where he was – meant that someone had to care for the child’s day-to-day life until his brother was ready to resume the role.

“Jingyi is a cousin, I think,” he continued. “His parents are dead, and uncle accepted guardianship for him…I think he’s going to adopt him, actually.”

“Then why is he with you?”

“I volunteered.”

“Xichen, I say this with a full heart of affection and tremendous respect for your capabilities,” Nie Mingjue said. “But why in the world would you go and do a stupid thing like that?”

Lan Xichen sighed. The worst part was, he couldn’t even argue that it wasn’t stupid – he was, quite obviously, terrible with children.

“Uncle’s still injured from the war,” he admitted. In fact, his injury was probably even older than the war, dating as far back as the burning of the Cloud Recesses – his uncle had never been much of a fighter, his impressive cultivation strength stemming almost entirely from gentler arts like music and learning and meditation, but when his home and his family and his students were at risk, he’d fought, while Lan Xichen ran. Not just fought; he’d kept fighting long past the point that his body allowed. It only made sense for the bill to need to be paid. “He had a recurrence of an old complaint, not long ago; he started coughing up blood. The doctors insisted that he try to avoid anything that might cause him  stress.”

“Stress. Like, say, a rowdy infant?”

“Exactly like a rowdy infant,” Lan Xichen agreed, glad that Nie Mingjue did not mention that what had happened with Lan Wangji was also likely a source of stress. At least the two of them had slowly started to repair their relationship recently – the heartbreak would kill their uncle sooner than anything else, and Lan Xichen might be weak, but he really couldn’t tolerate the idea of suffering any more loss.

And also, if Lan Wangji could see his way to forgiving their uncle, he might one day agree to forgive Lan Xichen, too.

“I see. So you ended up with the little one, too.”

“Yes. And they hate me.” Nie Mingjue coughed a little. “No, don’t deny it. They clearly hate me. They always cry and spit and yell -”

“They’re children, Xichen,” Nie Mingjue said. “Traumatized children. They do that.”

Lan Xichen didn’t need to open his eyes to know that Nie Mingjue was frowning in memory of pain long past. Lan Xichen remembered, with painful clarity, how young Nie Huaisang had been when Lao Nie had died, how badly he had taken it.

There’d been a lot of crying and vomiting and yelling there as well.

“You’re good with kids,” Lan Xichen said instead of commenting, trading delicacy for delicacy; he would not touch Nie Mingjue’s still-bleeding wounds just as Nie Mingjue avoided his own. “Very good.”

“Well, I like to think so, anyway.”

They remained in blissful, comfortable silence for a while.

“How would it have even worked?” Lan Xichen finally asked. His eyes were still closed, Nie Mingjue’s fingers running through his hair; he never wanted to move again.

“Hmm?”

“If you knocked me up before you went to war. I mean, they’re not even the same age.”

“Well, one of them’s from the affair, obviously.”

“I’m sorry, am I cheating on you now?” Lan Xichen opened an eye and pinned Nie Mingjue with a fierce look that instructed his lover to reconsider.

“Of course not,” Nie Mingjue said, mock-solemnly. His eyes were dancing. “You were so distraught after receiving incorrect news of my untimely demise that you conducted a ghost marriage with my spirit, and then went and had a child to continue my name.”

“…they’re both surnamed Lan.”

“So what? Are you saying I’m not good enough to marry into your sect, is that it?”

Lan Xichen’s cheeks were hurting from trying not to laugh. “I wouldn’t dream of implying such a thing.”

“There you go, then.”

“Can I ask why I felt the need to have a child to continue your name if I had one already?”

“…well, fuck,” Nie Mingjue said. “I’ve got nothing.”

Lan Xichen burst out laughing.

[scribblingfangirl]

WITH LOVE, THE GOSTS | Julie and The Phantoms - Part Three

.•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•.

Author’s Note: I decided that this fic trilogy occurs a year after the season one final, making Julie and Y/N almost (or already) 17. Also… this part turned out waaay longer than expected. Which is why there is going to be a fourth part because I have one last idea but didn’t want to rush to write it. And to think this all started because of a rushed (haha) 1k Oneshot. I should really start to write more spontaneously, it seems like good things come out of it. Anyway, Enjoy! :D

Songs mentioned in this chapter (in this order): Now or Never & Wake Up by JaTP | Don't Stop Me Now by Queen | Rude by MAGIC! | Don’t Laugh At Me by Mark Wills | Don’t You Worry ’Bout a Thing by Tori Kelly | Still Learning by Halsey | Ayo Technology by 50 Cent | My version of My Name Is Luke by Trevor Wilson | Let’s Forget About It by Lisa Loeb | Let's Just Get Naked Lyrics by Joan Osborne | Hey by Pixies

word count: ~ 3.9k

summary: Even after meeting the boys they still aren’t tired of helping you out and they each have their own little ways to do it.

warnings:  // (english is not my first language, not beta-read)

| PART ONE | PART TWO |

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Knowing that ghosts existed was an absurd feeling (even though you had always believed or hoped that there was more out there than just this world, especially with all those planets that had been discovered by NASA), but knowing that there were three certain ghosts that liked you enough to kindly haunt you, well… that was just plain unimaginable somehow. Yet, still less anxiety awakening than you expected. 

After Julie let you meet the guys for the first time you thought you were prepared to accept that you would not be able to talk to them unless they played something (after all, you had Flynn to groan about that), but the occasional giggle from Julie and her glances into nothing still sent chills down your spine.

So you started to always look around very suspiciously whenever you were over at her house and make obscene hand movements just to be sure that the boys would move before you walked somewhere or sat down (which just earned chuckles from Flynn and annoyed sighs from Julie - “Just because you can’t see them, doesn’t mean they can’t see you. They know where you are, so please stop, or else my dad will call your parents and send you to Dr Turner as well.” The boys found it hilarious and liked to imitate you whenever they came too close to you.) 

The boys also still kept doing little things for you, just not so in secret anymore (though… Reggie was never one for subtlety). Whenever you seemed to have had a bad day (or whenever they just wanted to make you smile) you knew you could count on them having something prepared for you. 

You soon discovered that anything related to food (which sometimes were extremely odd and bizarre combinations) was Luke’s doing (except for pizza and meatballs, according to Julie that was always Reggie). And you knew it was Alex whenever it was something more calm and soothing, yet sometimes a little bit clumsy. And whenever it was blatantly obvious and/or slightly weird (in a good way!) it was Reggie. 

Well, no. Not always in a good way. One time you came back from school and your whole room was filled with glitter and butterflies and a small note with a little ‘Sorry!’ on it was pinned to your desk - cleaning that had been a pain in the a-. But you couldn’t be angry at Reggie, even though you weren’t quite sure what his ultimate goal would have been. 

Speaking of REGGIE...

All those helpful little deeds and nice gestures were always done within the limits of your house (mostly room) or Julie’s house and the studio, which is why you almost let out a loud yelp when suddenly during a math test your pen started to move on his own, filling out the empty space (because yes, you hadn’t been doing very much other than staring helplessly at the paper in front of you). Quickly you grabbed the pen as well (loosely and while trying to ignore the fact that you were practically holding hands with one of the guys) so that nobody would see a floating pen as you did a few weeks ago at Christmas.

From the corners of your eyes, you saw Julie slightly move her head towards you, as if she was listening to you - or rather someone right beside or behind you. ‘Of course. I can’t see them, so the only way to help me is by physically grabbing the pen, but Julie can hear and see them, so they (whoever this is - because let’s be honest, none of the guys really looks like a math genius) only have to tell her the corrects solutions and how to get there. My money’s on Alex.’

You were kind of shocked, and weirdly proud when Julie came up to you after class and said: “Reggie’s not so questionable after all, huh?” (Though… you should’ve guessed it, you did say subtlety wasn’t Reggie’s strong suit.) So you just giggled and shook your head while leaving some of your books in your locker (alongside the fact that Reggie was probably almost (if not!) hugging you from behind - you shuddered at that thought, it’s not like you were already awkward around living boys your age, no need to add ghosts to that list!)

A week later you and Julie entered the studio with blank faces and hanging shoulders. Julie threw a weak little wave towards the piano and sighed while you threw the blankets and snacks you were holding carelessly on the ground and let yourself fall face-first onto the couch, not being able to hide your smile anymore.

“We got our math exams back… yes the one Reggie helped us with.”

You couldn’t see what Julie was doing, but you heard her gasp and whisper “No! Reggie…” after a while. Then she was standing beside you, nudging your shoulder and willing you to sit up, but you didn’t bulge, needing a few more seconds to wipe the smile off your face again.

Faking to disgruntledly accept defeat as Julie’s nudges got stronger (the couch was really comfortable, you totally understood Luke now) you sat up and looked at Julie. “Who’s going to tell them?” you said with a heavy voice and felt how the couch dipped beside you. Raising your eyebrows you quickly glanced to the side (obviously not seeing anybody or anything) and looked back at Julie questioningly. 

She nodded, telling you that it was indeed Reggie and gave you the okay to drop the bomb.

You sighed as you turned back around, facing the wall on the other side of the studio and hoped that Reggie would ignore the fact that you were probably talking to his ear or something. “So Reggie… the help you gave us on the math final? Well…,” you couldn’t keep your face straight any longer and jumped onto the couch, “WE ACED IT! I WOULD HUG YOU IF YOU WEREN’T MADE OUT OF CUTE AIR!” (Okay… maybe there was a little bit too much serotonin involved.)

Julie added smiling, “And I’m happy to announce that due to my good grades my father allowed Julie and The Phantoms to play at the upcoming Summer Music Festival!”

A guitar riff filled the studio, followed by a short drum intro and with a ‘puff!’ the boys appeared in front of you, beaming and glowing at the news. Reggie even threw a wink at you when you smiled back and said: “Thank you!”

Don't look down 'Cause we're still rising Up right now And even if we hit the ground We'll still fly Keep dreaming like we'll live forever But live it like it's now or never!

This allowed LUKE…

The music festival was an experience you would never forget. You were very happy Ray managed to persuade your parents to let you accompany Julie (sadly Flynn had no such luck). Not only did you turn 17 and the boys made sure to have the whole crowd sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to you (as soon as you were back home you would add an extra point to your to-do: ‘find out how to kill ghosts a second time’), but the boys rocked the stage and Julie stood up taller and shined brighter than ever before. 

Gone (yet not forgotten) were the painful shocks and the fear of never performing again and the serenity of the guys was visible. 

It was the last night of the music festival when Julie got the phone call from her father. He would come by to get her the next morning and they would drive directly to visit other family members and spend the rest of the summer holidays there. 

Of course, Julie was excited to see her cousins and aunts and uncles again, but she also felt bad to leave you to drive back alone (you had come with your car jam-packed with all the necessary equipment you needed and that wasn’t provided by the festival).

“Don’t worry! It’s only a four-hour drive! I’ve got good music, podcasts and audiobooks to keep me company and back home Flynn will be waiting. It sadly looks like I’m going to survive without you.” 

Early the next morning Julie and some newfound fans of Julie and The Phantoms helped you load the equipment into your car and you said goodbye to Julie. Expecting the boys to just directly puff back to Los Feliz you didn’t waste any time and entered your car, connected your phone with the stereo and started to blast your favourite Broadway musicals.

You must’ve been on the road for half an hour when suddenly the playlist stopped and ‘Wake Up’ started to play.

So wake that spirit, spirit!

Confused you scrunched up your nose and touched the touch screen displaying the music system, trying to change it back to your playlist. But instead, the music changed yet again.

(Don't stop me now) 'Cause I'm having a good time (Don't stop me now) Yes, I'm havin' a good time I don't want to stop at all

“What the hell?” you muttered, staring at your stereo for a quick second before focusing back on the road, “Why you always going crazy on me dude?”

Once again the music switched.

Why you gotta be so rude? Don't you know I'm human too?

It took you a hot minute to understand what was going on and then you couldn’t stop laughing. 

Don't laugh at me, don't call me names Don't get your pleasure from my pain

“Oh, I’m sorry,” you said mockingly, looking at the empty passenger seat, guessing that that’s where your invisible friend was sitting. “Your pain? I’m not the one who is able to puff wherever and whenever their heart desires and who sneaks up on innocent people.”

Silence. 

“For what it’s worth. I’m sorry. I really am. It’s not like you choose this life, you deserved better than this. But I’m really glad I was able to get to know you. I’m really thankful for the light and happiness you brought back into Julie’s life.”

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

But I'm still learnin' to

using technology

You laughed. “Impressive skills nevertheless. Knowing three fitting songs and then changing them at the right time? Let me guess, Luke? Because I don’t think all of you three would fit into my tiny car full of musical equipment.”

At first, there was no music yet again, but then the slow melody of a (for you) well-known song flooded your car. It was the one Trevor Wilson song you never understood until you met the boys, the one song that was so totally different to his usual rock sound (except for the refrains, which, as you later would find out, were parts of the original lyrics Luke wrote for his version of the song).

I sing to remember the stories that used to be But I don’t write to create what could have been And as I scream words into the darkness around me They come out like a dying whisper

The kindest thing to do is to silence them and let them die To unleash my heartfelt sorrow into the sky  And diminish the will to fight That pulses like fire and screams with pain through my veins

But life’s not always beautiful, it’s rare So I’mma chase it, watch you make it

Don’t need to introduce himself You will want to know his name Pushing your foundations down  He is here to stay

Don’t call him a breeze when he’s a hurricane Don’t call him a tremble when he’s an earthquake Don’t call him an inconvenience Please just say his name

Leaving lyrics in my hands That I swallow like pills Like hurtful words, they rip and claw And press painfully against my chest

But no matter how painful they are I will soak them up, thinking of our hopes and wishes And as each word pushes a new pulse through my veins I keep staring out on the grave of our shared space of mind

Life’s not always beautiful, but it’s rare So I’mma chase it, watch you make it

Don’t need to introduce himself You will want to know his name Pushing your foundations down  He is here to stay

Don’t call him a spark when he’s a lightning bolt Don’t call him a flicker when he’s a raging flame Don’t you dare to underestimate him Please just say his name

But even when the word flood finally comes to an end Fidgeting hands remind me of music never played

I owe him my voice I owe him my sound

So I give him this time I give him this space To sing it out loud To let him declare And let me be proud

What’s his name? (His name is Luke!) What’s his name? (His name is Luke!) What’s his name? (His name is Luke!)

How long do we say his name? (Until we explode!)

My name is Luke! (Tell your friends!)

Tears were rolling down your cheeks, the song now more emotional than ever before. You couldn’t imagine how this song must affect Luke. Thinking that his bandmate abandoned him (which honestly… he kind of did, only mentioning him in one song, not giving any money to their parents and so on) up until he heard the song for the first time.

“Luke…”

Forget about it Let's forget about it

The ensuing silence wasn’t awkward. You hummed along to the music Luke selected, sometimes it were old classics (probably his favourites), other times it seemed to be random newer hits he probably never heard before mixed with some songs from your favourite playlists.

It was nearing midday and your stomach made itself known. As if on cue a road sign hinted at a diner just up ahead. Setting the blinker you pulled into the parking lot a few moments later.

“I hope you don’t mind. I know home’s only like an hour away, but...” you began to trail off, not knowing where to look at and your stomach finished your sentence. And before you were able to grab the door handle it sprung wide open. 

“Uh, what a gentleman. Thank you very much.”

The meal was over in a flash and once more you realised how much the boys actually knew about you without having actually interacted with you (perks of seeing other people without being seen themselves?). 

It’s like Luke could read your wishes just from your facial expressions. Whenever you needed salt or pepper they were right there. Whenever something was too salty or had too much pepper on your drink was being pushed closer to your side. And when you accidentally spilt something and needed more napkins they magically appeared.

When you then spotted a cute little guitar keychain that reminded you of Luke that was being sold as a souvenir at the check-out it was suddenly safely tucked into your back pocket (though that was really really risky, and while you did not condone it you couldn’t really stop a ghost).

Back in your car, you didn’t even bother to turn on the stereo, knowing that Luke would take over as soon as your hands were on the steering wheel again. 

However, a glance to your right presented you with a map of your surroundings, a big x hastily drawn over the Silverwood Lake in San Bernardino, which was basically just around the corner.

“You want to go swimming? We- I just ate! And my bathing suit is somewhere under that mountain of equipment on the backseat.”

Let's just get naked, just for a laugh Let's just get naked It's a trip and a half

You laughed at that, rolling your eyes and shaking your head, before stowing the map away and turning on the car. “I guess catching Reggie in the shower isn’t enough anymore?”

Hey!

“You started making it weird buddy.”

It had started to rain when you finally pulled up in your driveway, but you couldn’t be bothered to rush inside, enjoying the feeling of the cooling wetness on your skin.

“Look at that,” you said to nobody in particular, not knowing if Luke was still around or if he puffed back to the garage, “I didn’t even need to go swimming after all.”

He was. Sitting in the passenger seat, face on his arms while he leaned on the open car window, he watched you dance in the rain with a smile on his face. He was glad he decided to stick around and keep you company on that road trip. You gave him the courage to listen to My Name Is Luke for the first time (and getting to see you smile while showing off his impressive music knowledge was a bonus too). Because without knowing, you were doing little deeds for the boys too.

And made ALEX…

Whoever wrote that “Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning how to dance in the rain”-quote totally forgot to mention how dangerous small summer storms can be. 

Well sure, it might have been your fault for staying out for too long and deciding to let the sun that came out a little bit later dry you instead of changing into fresh and dry clothes, but whatever happened happened and you got sick. (It’s not like you had anything better to do during the last few days of your summer holidays, right?) 

Flynn had been a great friend and hung out almost daily at your house, playing board games, watching movies or tv or even just discussing upcoming Julie and The Phantoms possibilities with you. But your dearest little helper had been Alex.

The blond drummer had turned into the tall brother you never had but always wanted (focus on tall because the age thing with ghosts is seriously confusing) even if he was invisible to you 100% of the time. You had the same interests and were able to bond without actually having to say any words, little gestures and reciprocations on your side were more than enough.

Julie had come up with an easy solution and had bought you some of those sound buzzers (like the ones that dogs and cats use to communicate with their owners) and recorded some simple words and phrases the boys liked to use on them. Now the boys just had to press them to be able to communicate with you without having to use pen and paper or Julie herself (sure your parents were a little bit weary and confused, but you said it was for a longer school research project and that shut them up).

Now, feeling way better than during the last few days, but still very tired, you were sitting in your bed, not really focused on the tv show (or was it a movie?) that was playing on your computer. You had been contemplating and mentally preparing yourself to get something to eat and to drink for the past 15 minutes, but the thoughts alone were exhausting and binding you to the bed. Just then a tray with a water bottle, meds and a fruit bowl floated into your room. 

Suddenly wide awake and full of energy you clumsily jumped out of your bed and grabbed the tray, throwing a quick glance out of the door to see if your parents were around and slammed the door shut, wincing at the loud sound and hoping that Alex had walked out of the way (not that it would have hurt him, but you know - rude).

“Rude.” 

See? He thought the same. (Julie had to specifically add this word for Alex.) 

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. But I would like not to get murdered or have Sam and Dean Winchester on my back because my parents think I’m possessed and need to be exorcised.”

“Me.”

“You what?”

“Me.”

“Alex… I need more context.”

“I do. Me.”

You just blinked blankly at the sound buzzers, trying to piece together what Alex was trying to say.

“Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. Me. M-”

“THAT’S ENOUGH Y/N! WHATEVER THAT SCHOOL PROJECT IS, TELL IT I HEARD IT AND I DON’T CARE WHAT IT WANTS!” you heard your father's scream come muffled through the door.

The audience laughter from sitcoms filled your room and you groaned, grabbing a pillow and smashing it against your face.

Faintly you heard the telltale sound of a pen scribbling something on paper and when you peeked from behind the pillow a note was floating in the air in front of you. “You mean exorcise ME! You would be the one surviving!” 

“What? Oh my god… yeah okay, YOU get exorcised… same thing. Both aren’t allowed to happen. Forgive my fever brain.”

“No.”

“Fork you, Alex.”

“No.”

“I have Carlos on speed-dial, I’m sure he already came up with other methods to get rid of ghosts other than the salt thing. He already told me that he’s sorry and that he thinks I might get haunted by you too with the amount of time I spend at their house.” 

“No. Food.”

Confused at that topic change it took you a few seconds to answer. “What?” Looking around your gaze landed on the tray that you had deposited on your desk. “Oh right! Boy, I completely forgot how thirsty and hungry I am. Did I say thank you? Fang u!” you mumbled with your mouth full of fruit. 

“No. Food.”

You swallowed down your food and took a big gulp of water. “Yes Alex, thank you. I am eating. You see? Here I am, here’s the food. The food is here and now whoops - ifs gan!”

You could basically feel the annoyance radiating from the ghost and weren’t really shocked when the pen started to scribble something down again.

“No! Argh!” He really wrote Argh… that dork really wrote Argh! “You can be worse than Reggie sometimes, but you do it on purpose and I’m just sorry for Reggie. A) Carlos thinks he got rid of us by making a french dip and B) You’re awfully lively for a supposedly sick person. I might need to use the buzzers more and see what other reactions I can provoke from your parents.”

Crumbling the note in your hands you thought ‘Challenge accepted’. “You know what? I think I’mma go back on Reggie’s offer and actually let him introduce me to Wilbur. He might know some stuff I could use to blackmail you. And you’re right! I feel much better, just very tired, but that’s nothing a little bit of fresh air can’t fix! Toodles!” 

You left your room, leaving a flabbergasted ghost behind who had lost his snapback with the number of times he had been combing through his hair with his hands. And while angrily pressing a pink buzzer, the buzzer wasn't the only thing that screamed “WILLIAM!” after the girl. (That was another important sound Alex wanted to have recorded.)

.•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•..•´¯`•.

Taglist: @sunsetcurvej​​ @ifilwtmfc​

[ibijau]

Futures Past pt 20 / on AO3

(posting early this week because I might not have time tomorrow)(also, because of the upcoming xisang week, I’m not sure yet if I’ll update this fic next week)

With some help from Su She, Nie Huaisang gets his wangxian ship sailing.

Nie Huaisang guiltily twisted his hands as they left the classroom, already half crying as Wei Wuxian finished retelling his first day of punishment with Lan Wangji. 

"I really am so sorry, Wei-xiong!" he lamented. "I really wish I could help you. Maybe if I could find a way to copy part of the rules for you and pass them to you…" 

"Lan er-gongzi would surely notice," Meng Yao softly objected. "And then you'd both be punished again." 

"Aren't you busy enough with your own punishment anyway?" Jiang Cheng huffed. "You'll be lucky if you can even attend your music lessons with all that extra homework you were given, right?" 

With a miserable sigh, Nie Huaisang nodded. Cheating was more work than he'd thought, and he'd have to find a better way to do it if he were to pass that year. Though really, it had been Lan Wangji’s fault for joining the lectures, which he hadn't done the previous year, and also Wei Wuxian's for taunting Lan Wangji by looking at him. Of course Lan Wangji had gotten curious, and he'd noticed the cheating, and… 

For some reason, Lan Qiren had decided that Wei Wuxian was the instigator in this business, so he'd been punished the hardest. But Nie Huaisang had been given a lot of essays to write, and he didn't dare to ask Lan Xichen to help, fearing to be scolded for his dishonesty. Meng Yao and Jiang Cheng, who hadn't cheated at all, offered little sympathy and even less help, the first because he was still catching up, the second because he didn't feel like it. Hopefully Su She might give a hand, if Nie Huaisang cried a little. 

"It's really not so bad," Wei Wuxian said carelessly. "I won't say that first afternoon in the library with Lan Zhan was fun, he's even more boring than his uncle, but I think I can entertain myself. I bet before the month is over, I can get him to break his self control. Now that'd be fun!" 

Nie Huaisang stopped on his tracks and grabbed him by the arm, not a trace of tears in his eyes. 

"Wei-xiong, why do you have to antagonise him so much?" 

"Why wouldn't I? I'd like to be his friend, but he's too stuck up. Pissing him off is the next best thing." 

Baffled by that logic, Nie Huaisang looked at their two friends. Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes, while Meng Yao was trying his best not to smile. 

"Wei gongzi is like that, don't question it too much. He likes to tease people, and thinks everyone understands it's meant in a friendly manner."

Judging by the tone of his voice, Meng Yao himself had been a victim of that friendly teasing, and that perhap it hadn't gone so smoothly between them. That would explain why Meng Yao seemed to prefer Jiang Cheng's company, who was less fun to have around, but also a little quieter when he wasn’t shouting at Wei Wuxian.

Personally, Nie Huaisang preferred Wei Wuxian out of the three, but was getting a little annoyed at him right at that moment. 

While Jiang Cheng and Meng Yao went their way to enjoy their freedom for the rest of the day (they would waste it studying, they seemed the type), Nie Huaisang decided to accompany Wei Wuxian all the way to the library, so they could chat a little. He still had a plan to put in motion, orders from his future self to obey, and his own natural desire for fun to satisfy.

“I don’t understand why you’re like that with Lan Wangji,” Nie Huaisang said as they took the longest path possible toward the library, trying to keep his tone casual. "If you want to be his friend, there are better ways. Why don't you talk to him nicely?" 

Wei Wuxian did not even hesitate. "I've tried, and he ignores me." 

That was sadly true, as Nie Huaisang had seen a few times. It didn’t help that Wei Wuxian naturally sounded like he was trying to tease people, even when he was sincere. He was so fun to have around that most people didn’t mind it, but for someone like Lan Wangji...

"Well maybe if you apologised to him?" Nie Huaisang suggested.

"I've tried that too, but he thinks I'm insincere.”

"Because you are!" Nie Huaisang pointed out, fighting a smile.

Wei Wuxian just laughed, but that was an answer in itself.

"Please, at least don't make him any angrier," Nie Huaisang pleaded. "He'll never be your friend otherwise!" 

Hearing him get so distressed about that, Wei Wuxian stopped in his tracks, his expression more serious than Nie Huaisang had ever seen so far. He was a little scary like that, something about his height and the shape of his eyes making him look cold and distant when he wasn’t grinning and laughing.

"Listen, Nie-xiong,” Wei Wuxian said in a voice that had lost some of its warmth. “I want to be his friend, sure. I think there's something interesting about him, definitely. I’d really like it if I could be close to Lan Zhan, and given the chance I’ll do it for sure. But if he only becomes friends with me because I start acting like someone I'm not, then we're not really friends, and it's not worth the effort."

“Wei-xiong, I didn’t expect you to be wise like that,” Nie Huaisang whispered, a little awed.

“Only you would find that wise,” Wei Wuxian mocked, and Nie Huaisang found that he could breathe a little more easily now that the other boy was laughing again. “If Jiang Cheng heard me, he’d say that my personality is too awful for anyone to like me! And Meng Yao would say something about compromises. I’m pretty sure they’re the wise ones, but I just don’t feel like acting so seriously.”

Nie Huaisang grinned, a little envious of such a bold way of living. He was not always likeable, according to a lot of people (himself included, when it came to the man he was supposed to become), and so he would never have expected people to fully like him as he was. Nobody except his brother, who had little choice in the matter, and maybe Su She who probably felt like he couldn’t be too picky when it came to friends, and… well, Lan Xichen seemed to like him as he was, too, but that was just because he was so nice.

It was so bold of Wei Wuxian to expect to be fully accepted as he was. But then again, Lan Wangji also wasn’t the sort to make efforts to get others to like him, so at least they had that in common.

As they arrived near the library, the topic had to be dropped. Wei Wuxian, with a grimace of fake agony, went inside to sit with Lan Wangji, while Nie Huaisang had the pleasant surprise of finding Su She about to leave the library, and free to spend some time with him. Lan Wangji had asked for his help to put some order in a section of the building while waiting for Wei Wuxian to arrive, and Su She couldn’t decide if he was flattered or annoyed that the request had been made to him rather than another disciple.

Su She ranted about that for a little bit as they walked away from the library, before complaining about his classes, and then about a letter from his mother who wanted him to send home some talismans because she was still convinced their house was haunted even thought he’d visited during winter and hadn’t noticed anything amiss. Nie Huaisang listened, and even reacted here and there, but couldn’t quite focus on his friend’s problem that day. Su She noticed of course, and asked what hung so heavy on his mind that he couldn’t even laugh at his description of a clearly fake haunting.

“I might have a silly question to ask you,” Nie Huaisang replied. “But please, don’t make fun of me for it. It’s kind of important, and I think you could really help me.”

“That sounds very worrying, but fine, ask me.”

"How would one seduce a Lan?" 

Su She gave him such a long, serious look, that Nie Huaisang started feeling he’d rather have been laughed at after all.

"So you're finally doing something about Lan gongzi?” Su She asked. “About time, it was getting annoying how clueless you are. And, well, if you want my opinion…" 

"Oh, no, this is about Lan Wangji, not Xichen-gege!" 

Su She stopped walking and fell silent for a moment, his expression turning complicated. He looked as if he’d eaten a very sour lemon that also happened to be moldy, all while there was a cut in his mouth.

"Lan er-gongzi? Really?"

"Yes. See, I think Wei-xiong and him could be good friends,” Nie Huaisang quickly explained, startled by that strong reaction, “so of course I want to help. But they're the two most difficult people in the world, you know? Xichen-gege is helping, but a second opinion never hurts." 

"Ah, it's just that," Su She said, instantly relaxing. 

He resumed walking away from the library, and Nie Huaisang followed.

"Well, yeah. Why did you think I needed help about Xichen-gege?" 

Su She hesitated, and even opened his mouth a few times to say something. Eventually he frowned and shrugged.

"If you're too stupid, it's not my problem,” he said. “Let's talk about those other two instead, since you’re so preoccupied. Aside from being equally good at fighting, what do they have in common?" 

Nie Huaisang crossed his arms on his chest and shook his head.

"Nothing at all." 

Su She nodded.

"Then I guess they need to fight again. Maybe in public."

"You think that'd help if they had an audience?" Nie Huaisang wondered.

"No idea,” Su She said with a wicked grin, “but I'd like to see Lan er-gongzi in a fight that makes him break a sweat."

Nie Huaisang poked him in the ribs.

"Mean. But… Wei-xiong can be pretty full of himself,” he admitted. “I guess I'd also like to see if he's as good as he thinks. How to get them to fight though?"

They’d reached a more isolated part of the Cloud Recesses, a small garden that rarely saw much use, just at the border to the wilderness. They found a bench, and after removing some dead leaves they sat there to continue chatting in peace.

"In two days, you get a day off from lectures, right?” Su She asked. “Get your Wei-xiong to the training grounds after lunch. Lan er-gongzi is always there at that time on a free day, and I'll do my best to be as well. It'll be pretty easy to get them to spar." 

"Su-xiong you're just the best!” Nie Huaisang exclaimed, hugging his friend who barely even grumbled against such effusions. “What would I do without you?" 

"You'd be less efficient for sure. Now can we talk about something less boring than Lan er-gongzi?”

“Yes, yes! Tell me more about your parents’ haunting, I’ll really listen now! If it’s not a ghost, then what is it?”

Pleased to return to a more fun subject, Su She started discussing his theory about some wild cats and a few squirrels that he suspected to have found their way into the currently disused ‘haunted’ room, and talked about it with such indignation that Nie Huaisang was soon in tears from how hard he laughed.

-

Although nobody had been warned of the duel to come, a small crowd had quickly assembled around the training grounds once it became understood that Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian were having a friendly fight. They were both reputed to be insanely skilled after all, and rumours about their first duel under the moonlight had spread fast. 

So far, Nie Huaisang had to admit that both boy's reputation was deserved. If anything, they were both more talented than he would have expected. They exchanged blows and parried them as if it were easier than breathing, making for a beautiful show. Su She, who stood on Nie Huaisang's right at the very edge of the training grounds, appeared consumed with admiration and envy. He'd fallen silent a while ago, and perhaps regretted this fight he'd helped organise. 

On Nie Huaisang's left, Jin Zixuan was almost as upset, just a little better at concealing it. 

"I can't believe such talent has been wasted and given to the world's most obnoxious person," he complained as Wei Wuxian dodged a blow. 

"Apparently, that's also Lan Wangji’s opinion," Nie Huaisang cheerfully replied. "But I think he's warming up to Wei-xiong now." 

Lan Wangji, after a moment of surprise at the way Wei Wuxian had avoided his attack, lunged at him again with renewed vigour. 

"Yes, I can see they're on their way to becoming best friends," Jin Zixuan sneered. "Well, that's getting boring. I was hoping to see Wei Wuxian put in his place, but now he's just going to be more insufferable. I'll see you later, Nie gongzi." 

He left, but the spot next to Nie Huaisang didn't remain empty for very long. Lan Xichen quickly made his way there. Nie Huaisang immediately smiled at him, but unlike the rest of them, Lan Xichen didn't appear to pleased by the show. 

"Huaisang what's going on here?" he asked. "What are they fighting about? Did something happen?" 

"Oh they're just fighting for the sake of it!" Nie Huaisang cheerfully explained, only for Lan Xichen to look even more distressed. 

"Wangji got into a fight without reason? How?" 

Alerted by his tone, Su She tore his eyes from the fight and gave Lan Xichen a quick bow. 

"Lan gongzi needs not worry. They're not actually fighting, this is only a friendly spar." 

"Yes, we thought it'd be good for them, so we made it happen," Nie Huaisang confirmed. “I think it’s going great! Wei-xiong looks like he’s having the time of his life!”

Reassured that no rules were broken and no serious harm was intended by either party, Lan Xichen finally properly looked at the ongoing duel. He observed the two fighters for a moment before eventually nodding.

“Wangji too is enjoying this,” he said after some consideration. “I’m glad for him. It is so rare for him to get an opponent of his level. Other juniors are rarely a match, and adults won’t spar with him because they don’t want to lose to someone so young. You had a good idea, Huaisang.”

“Oh, that wasn’t even my idea,” Nie Huaisang replied, beaming. “It was Su-xiong who suggested it, and who asked to see them spar.”

Lan Xichen turned his attention to Su She, who appeared a little uncomfortable. Nie Huaisang realised, a little late, that scheming to make people fight, even in a friendly manner, was probably against some of Gusu Lan rules.

“I am glad you have such a good friend helping you set your plan in motion,” Lan Xichen said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Still, don’t drag him into too much mischief. I would be very disappointed in you, Huaisang, if you caused Su-shidi to get in trouble. He’s worked so hard to prove himself to our teachers, let’s not ruin his efforts just because you like to have a little too much fun.”

“Of course not!” Nie Huaisang exclaimed. “Su-xiong, you wouldn’t let me cause you real problems, right?”

“I only agree with Nie gongzi’s ideas if they don’t contradict the rules,” Su She confirmed, bowing again toward Lan Xichen. “And I wouldn’t let Nie gongzi do anything dangerous or ill-advised. Lan gongzi can be at peace, I won’t let anything happen to his friend.”

Lan Xichen smiled stiffly. 

"I know I can trust Su-shidi to take good care of Nie gongzi. I am… quite happy to leave him in your hands, where I know he'll be safe." 

It was a rather odd way to say that, and there was something a little too cold in Lan Xichen’s tone which did not quite please Nie Huaisang. But Su She himself seemed unbothered, so this might just have been Nie Huaisang imagining things. It was probably just that Lan Xichen still remained doubtful regarding Lan Wangji’s potential friendship with Wei Wuxian, which had to affect his mood.

But things really were going quite well. In fact, they were going much better than Nie Huaisang had hoped. After fighting a little more, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian eventually stopped when a Lan teacher approached them to explain that he needed the training grounds for his own class. There didn’t appear to be a clear winner between them, as far as Nie Huaisang could say. Later, when he asked Su She, his friend gave his more expert opinion that although they had completely different fighting styles, they were equals in strength and capacity. It would be interesting, he said, to see them fight side by side instead of against each other.

For now though, they politely bowed to each other, and Wei Wuxian, grinning more brightly than Nie Huaisang had ever seen him yet, asked if they might train together again in the future.

It was quite funny to see Lan Wangji’s conflicted expression. On one hand, Wei Wuxian was nearly a criminal in his eyes, who had disrespected his uncle, broken many rules, and cheated during an exam, all of which was unforgivable and marked Wei Wuxian as beneath his consideration. But at the same time, this looked to have been a very fun sparring session, Lan Wangji had been forced to use all his skill to keep up with his opponent, and that was something too precious to be easily dismissed.

At a loss, Lan Wangji turned to look at his brother, hoping for guidance. Lan Xichen, in turn, only briefly glanced at Nie Huaisang before nodding at his brother with an encouraging smile.

“Behave in class,” Lan Wangji ordered with a slight frown, before turning away.

Wei Wuxian looked disappointed by what he must have mistaken for rejection, but Nie Huaisang saw that answer for what it was and ran to his friend to explain that Lan Wangji had, in fact, very warmly agreed to fight him again.

[crimson-mage-02]

Curse of the Immortals

Summary: Rachel Roth, an agent to a secret organization is a single mother and works night shifts hunting monsters and demons to ensure her home’s safety until one day, evil has spread over the city and is forced to work together along with a half-demon and half-angel Damian to hunt them down. 

A/N: This is day 2 prompt: Enemies to Lovers/Fantasy and Fairytale. Mixed with Alternate Universe. I hope you will enjoy this because I do enjoy this a lot! I have been considering this as my new series! Let me know what you all think if you want to see more of this concept! 

Please sit and enjoy reading! Please comment and give feedback!

In a rainy night, she was reading a book in her hand and was looking around at the customers that were minding their own business, going about their day, and walked around the mall. She drank her warm coffee and felt a ball hit her foot, almost startling her.

The young, beautiful woman with black hair and purple streaks, bent down and grabbed the ball and past it to the young girl who smiled at her cheekily. “Here you go.”

“Oh, sorry about that.” The mother apologised sheepishly.

“You are good, kids these days, so spirited.”

The mother chuckled and nodded in agreement and rubbed her daughter’s face. She looked back to see the young woman in front of her has a badge on her and a holster. “Oh, you are a cop?”

“No, I am just an agent. I am off duty. Just….be myself, I guess. I’ve forgotten what it feels like.” The young woman replied, putting her hair behind her ear where her piercings can be seen.

“Where are my manners? Sorry, what’s your name?”

“My name is Rachel Roth, but my friends call me Raven.” Rachel replied, shaking the mother’s hand. “And you are?”  

“Sharon. I am a teacher nearby this mall. And I just picked up my daughter. On the way home.” Sharon chuckled.

“It is nice meeting you.” Rachel smiled as the mother and daughter took their leave while she watched them crossing the street. She smiled at the sight of Sharon interacting with her daughter and reminds her of her mother.

She heard some clanging noises and saw the waitress was giving her more coffee. She nodded politely at her and then drank more coffee while finishing up her book. She stood up and returned the tray to the employers.

She walked around the food court and looked at her phone seeing dozens of text messages keeps on coming. She looked at the GPS seeing a red dot appearing. She sighed. “Back to work.”

Rachel made a turn to go walk down the fire escape to the alley and saw her fellow agents getting their gear on. “Ready?”

“All set, sir.” Rachel said as she got her black leather jacket off, revealing a bow on her back and on her waist, there was her quiver filled with her arrows and on her thigh was a pack of knives along with her gun.

“Ten seconds.” Said her leader, looking at the GPS on the computer. Rachel got herself ready with an arrow pointing out in the air, waiting for the demon to come. She heard faint running footsteps and then she shot her arrow with an explosive with a demon appearing and roared loudly in agony, with blood spilling out from its eye.

The people around them all cried out in fear and all ran away from the demon with a truck coming to retrieve the demon back to their secret base. Rachel sighed as she lowered her bow down and helped her fellow agents.

She was in the truck with her closest friend Donna who just came back from her mission in getting another demon from another street. “Look at them. People are just so afraid. The world is no longer safe.” Donna said deeply as she took off her gauntlets of her arms.

“Someday, the world will be different. Someday.” Rachel hoped as she put her arrows away in her quiver. Donna nodded in agreement as she held onto her shield, that once belonged to her sister. She always wanted to become an agent just like her. Now she is. She wanted to make her proud.

“So, how is she?” Donna asked her with a smile.

“Hmm? Oh, Arella? She is doing just fine.” Rachel replied with a chuckle.

One of the men had stopped the truck with the creature roaring and growling at them as they entered a garage to a secret base. Rachel and Donna got off seeing all of the other agents all walking around with files in their hands and held on the tablets, looked through some video feeds. There are more demons on the loose and every day they hunt them in the middle of the night.

More agents were out in the field and are capturing more demons. She and Donna only take the earlier shift to capture the demons, since they both have their real-life jobs other than demon hunting. Donna checked their charts and then frowned. “Hey, Rach?”

Rachel looked at her friend while tying up her hair in a high ponytail. “Yeah?”

“It says we have another shift in about two hours.” Donna said to her as Rachel looked at the chart. She sighed deeply and then walked down the hall from the lockers and marched to the office seeing her boss, Diana holding the papers in her hands.

“I promised her. I promised my daughter that I come home for her.” Rachel said feeling guilty for her daughter.

“I am sorry, Rachel. We are on short of agents tonight.” Diana apologised to her fellow agent. “But I have given you those two hours to be prepared and have little time with her.”

Rachel nodded with a tired smile. She smacked her lips together. “Alright, thanks. I’ll give you my report over the weekend.”

“Of course, Rachel.” Diana smiled gently at the young woman. “And no need rush on those reports, you can pass them to my sister if you like.”

“Great. Thanks.” Rachel nodded as she walked out of the office. She walked along the hallways and greeted some of her co-workers with a smile and a nod like always. She walked down to the lower section of the base. She opened the door with a key card and walked in to see if her daughter was up.

“Arella? I am back.” Rachel called out to her daughter. She placed her weapons on the couch and saw a pile of books all over the place. She chuckled softly and slowly grabbed the books, putting them back on the shelves next to the tv. She also folded the clothes and put them in the closet and in the cupboard. She also put the bowls in the sink and the plates in the dishwasher. Turned off the TV.

Then she heard a door opening with her smile lit up, watching her daughter running towards her. “Mama!”

“Oh, Arella, my darling. How are you today? Did you read the book I have given you?” Rachel asked her, putting her hair back in her ear.

“Mm hmm! I was good the whole day. And Uncle Garfield has given me a new snack I could eat, but I waited because I want to try it with you.” Arella replied, going into the kitchen to show her the snack.

“Honey, I think I do need to have a healthy discussion with your Uncle Garfield about the snacks after dinner.” Rachel said seriously as she looked at the package.

“But it looks tasty.” Arella pouted, looking up at her mother. She sighed softly and then bent down to her level.

“Okay, how about this? After I finish with my work tomorrow, we can try this out. Alright? Does that sound good?” Rachel asked her, rubbing her arms.

“Yeah! That sounds good.” Arella smiled cheerfully hugging her mother tightly while Rachel frowned sadly, seeing she is going to be leaving her more in their small home. She was worried that her own daughter might resent her more. “Mama, I do understand that your job is so important to you. I will be okay. I can hang out with Auntie Diana today.”

“Is that so?” Rachel said, getting up and put the snack in the cupboard as she put the cutleries in the drawers while wiping the table.

“Yeah, she promised.” Arella nodded with her bright emerald eyes. Rachel smiled as she cleaned up the kitchen and then got her dressed up for the night so that she can walk around the base properly with Diana.

She got ready for her next mission and walked with her daughter in the hallway out of their home. Arella ran excitedly when she saw Diana opening her arms for her to run towards her. She hugged the little child in her arms. “Oh, I hope you are up for some hot chocolate and some movies.”

“Yup!” Arella giggled.

“Thanks again. You mind if you could get her to bed early? Unlike the last time, she read her new books late at night.” Rachel chuckled.

“Not to worry, Rachel, I have this wonderful warrior in bed in no time. Just be careful on your mission.” Diana smiled as she set the girl down on the ground and letting her get in the office. “So, Donna will be assisting you. And other agents will help you. Have you heard anything from Arella’s father yet?”

Rachel put her quiver on her waist behind her. She hasn’t heard anything from her ex and he barely was in her daughter’s life. She and him never got the chance to contact one another. “Um, no. He is off the grid. In fact, I never told him that I was pregnant.”

Diana looked at her friend with a sympathetic expression and placed her hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry. But I am sure you made a right decision in raising her here rather than up there.” She was well aware that her daughter was a quarter demon and angel, though she has never shown to have any supernatural abilities.

“Okay, Arella, be good for Aunt Diana. I’ll be back in the morning to spend time with you. Alright.” Rachel smiled at her daughter.

“Alright, Mama, I’ll be good.” Arella smiled as she waved goodbye to her mother.

(~)

Up in topside, puff of smoke appeared with the lights blinking brightly on the billboards. He walked along the footpath. He also sensed something from behind him and he sighed, taking a right turn into the alley. He got rid of his cigarette aside and then pulled down his hood, revealing jet black hair with emerald eyes.

He got out his charms in his hands and saw the dark cloaked figure in front of him, preparing to fight him off. “So, you finally appeared, you son of a bitch!” He got out his twin katanas in his hands and swung his blades at the demon in front of him with blood spilling out on the ground as he cut off its head off. He looked to the side seeing more demons were after him. He made a run for it in the streets, but he was grabbed by the leg by the demon dog and dragged back in the alley. “Oh, shit!”

Meanwhile on the road, Rachel was getting her bow ready for their hunt. Donna was driving the truck while listening to the music softly. She hummed to the song cheerfully until they saw people running away and then a figure was thrown onto their windshield.

Both girls shouted in surprise while Rachel got out of the truck and saw the man was their other co-worker. “Damian? What the hell are you doing? You were supposed to be with your team.”

“I very much prefer to work alone, Rachel.” Damian huffed, getting off the truck, getting off the shards of the glass off his jacket.

“It doesn’t matter, you have to report back to Diana.” Rachel pointed out while getting her gun out while Donna yelling to the people to get to safety. “And what happened to you?”

“I found another demon. Seemed to be sucking the lives of innocent people in the city.” Damian replied, getting out his whip and then captured a dog while Rachel shot at it with blood spilling all over the road.

“Hey, I had that!” Damian exclaimed, seeing her jumping on top of the car, and shot all of the demons up in the air while Donna jumped up and captured them with her lasso. The two girls and Damian all worked together to get the people to safety.

Then he saw one man from the building was falling down. He got his white wings out and flew straight up to save the man from his death. He got him down to safety, but the man squirmed and cried out in fear seeing him in front of him and ran away from him. “Yeah, you’re welcome, human!” Damian shouted out to him.

An arrow was shot onto the demon’s head behind Damian, and he turned around to see Rachel shooting the demons that were coming straight at him. She kicked one with her foot and shoved a gun in its mouth, shooting inside.

“You’re welcome.” Rachel said to Damian who scoffed and walked away from her. “You should’ve let Diana know you were patrolling the city and we thought you back in Gotham.”

“I was in Gotham. But I got kicked out.” Damian gruffly replied until he pushed her aside with a demon attacking her from behind until he used his whip to capture him and be burnt onto the road.

Donna got most of the people to safety, leaving things to the police. Rachel and Damian had cleared the main road together and walked towards her. Then the citizens started to jeer, swear, cuss and threw heavy metal and rubbish at Damian. He growled in annoyance with the other agents were getting the people away from the scene.

They all had retired for the night as Rachel and Donna both taking Damian to their base. Hopefully, the night will not be long. Hopefully, Diana won’t be giving him another lecture of not informing his return back to New York from Gotham.

The two girls got out of the trucks with Damian leaning on the side of the truck, smoking a cigarette in his mouth. He glanced at Rachel who was checking in with the other agents. He noticed she has been a lot busy the last time he had seen her. She was more reserved, more assertive, more focused, and distant. He was about to approach her, but he smelt the scent of Director Diana arriving in the garage and approached him with her hands on her hips.

(~)

In the secret agent base, Diana rubbed her temple as she leaned back on her chair with a frown while Damian sat on a chair as he glanced at Rachel who looked at her oldest friend who hasn’t said a word since his return to New York. “You have broken protocol, snuck out the base and disobeyed orders from your superiors. For what reason, Wayne?” Diana asked him tiredly.

“I do have a very good reason. To stop monsters from hurting human kind. And to stop whoever is sending up there, killing innocents.” Damian replied as he sat up on his chair. “And my father have informed me that someone from the surface was a traitor and had unleashed evil.”

“And that’s the main reason why you are here?” Rachel asked him.

“Yes, that is the real reason why I am here, Raven.” Damian nodded, taking out his cigarette out of his mouth with a puff smoke coming out.

Diana narrowed his eyes at the young hybrid in front of them. “Alright. I will make sure I have other agents to handle it rather than a hybrid scaring the people off on the streets.”

The demon scoffed softly and looked away from the director and then raised an eyebrow hearing a noise from behind him and saw a little girl holding a book. He gasped softly and watched Rachel bending down to hug the little girl. “Oh, sorry, Rachel, I had Arella walk to the library again to get a book again.” Diana chuckled.

“Oh, it is fine. And besides, it is her bedtime.” Rachel chuckled lightly as she carried her in her arms, holding her book.

Damian stood up from his seat and then cleared his throat loudly getting the two women’s attention. Rachel sighed deeply while Diana cleared her throat and then continued. “As I was saying, until further notice, you are to stay in your quarters. Rachel will be your partner again until we let you go up to the surface.”

Rachel was about to protest but she doesn’t want to argue in front of her daughter who has fallen asleep in her arms. Damian was left shocked, not liking what he had heard from the head agent of this secret agency. “I am sorry, Rachel, but it has been years since the two of you had quit being partners and well, together. I thought this would be a good opportunity to mend some bonds.” Diana smiled, encouraging the two work together as a team again. Possibly try to work things out between each other.

Diana walked out of her office with Donna by her side and walked along the hallways. “You really do think this will be a good idea?”

“Well, we have no choice, sister. Besides, this will be a good lesson for the both of them.” Diana replied as she looked at the files and photos of the scene from the traffic.

Meanwhile, Rachel was walking back to her room with Damian following her but walked silently not to wake her offspring awake. He wondered when she had her daughter and who was the father and why he hasn’t seen him in the base.

“You used my room? Where will I sleep?” Damian asked with annoyance but saw Rachel was still ignoring him. “Rachel? Where will I sleep if I am going to stay here? You have a spare room?”

“Yes, but that is my room now and you will sleep on the couch tonight.” Rachel replied with a huff opened the door with one hand. She hurried to her daughter’s room and tucked her in with the dimmed lights on.

Damian walked into her little home seeing all of the pictures on the walls. Photos of her and her daughter. No sign of the father. He raised an eyebrow seeing a box of letters. He grabbed it and saw they were the letters that he once had sent her. His past may had held her back and now she had moved on. He put the box back on the shelf, remembering the moment he had betrayed her, and they decided not to be partners anymore. And realised that a demon and a human can never be together.

He turned around to see Rachel was gathering some bed sheets and blanket for him on the couch. “Rachel, I know you are furious of what had happened years ago and the other reason why I came back is that I want to set things right.”

“Well, you are too late for that. I already moved on, Damian. I have a job, I have a home, I have a daughter to care for.” Rachel said not looking at him in the eye. “You still betrayed me that day. You worked for that demon who terrorised innocent lives.”

“He was my grandfather, and he was going to make the world a better place.” Damian argued with his nails growing slowly reacting to his anger.

Rachel stayed still from where she stood. Looking into his emerald eyes and looked away from him. “I still believe that your grandfather wasn’t really going to make the world a better place. From what I had heard, your father had you trained, but you still haven’t changed one bit the last time we saw each other. But I am willing to try and help you and in return you help us.”

Damian nodded agreeing with the terms. As he took off his leather jacket and shirt to change with Rachel glancing at his scars on his back. She bit her lip and then grabbed the sheets and laid them down on the seat and had the pillows placed on top. “Make yourself comfortable. And get some rest.”

“One last thing, Raven.” Damian called out to her as he sat down on the chair looking up at her then glanced at her daughter who was sleeping peacefully on her bed, hugging her soft toy in her arms. “Your daughter……those eyes……” He looked up at her again with his eyes filled with curiosity. “Is she, our daughter?”

A few moments of silence had passed with Rachel breathing in and out shakily before speaking up to the devil prince of the Al Ghul Royalty bloodline. She was afraid he might find out the moment he had seen her. Damian waited for her to reply, but it looked like she wasn’t going to answer, seeing her shaking and trembling. He was about to say that there was no need for her to reply so quickly. He had loved Rachel, he loved all of her even though she is human and doesn’t care what others and other demonic beings say about him.

“Yes.”

“What?” Damian’s eyes widened and looked up at the agent before him.

“I said, yes. She is….in fact, our daughter. And you betrayed me, left us for your precious little demon world.” Rachel replied bitterly as she walked away in her room, leaving him all alone in the living room. She closed the door behind her and rubbed her face tiredly while sliding against the door, falling to her knees in exhaustion. She has never, ever felt so drained in her entire life.

(~)

Later that night, Talia Al Ghul had gotten word that her son, Damian has remerged into the surface. She grinned slyly as she drank her glass of blood in her hands. “It seems the humans had made him soft. And you…you have what I have ordered, Shiva?”

“Yes, my lady. It is all here. Little damned creatures will soon eat the flesh of human scums.” Shiva smirked.

“Excellent. Inform my father. Let him know of what has become of his grandson. Surely, he’ll be disappointed how he turned out to be after a very, very, long time.” Talia chuckled softly as she put the glass on her table and walked past her servant.

(~)

Damian explored the base and walked around to see if he saw anything familiar, but they had changed a lot of things after he had left the agency in New York. He also heard a few agents were bad mouthing him, whispering to each other while he could hear them due to his enhanced hearing as a demon.

He just ignored them as he made a turn to the left and then saw Donna who dropped her files. “O-Oh, sorry. I wasn’t looking.”

Damian took a step back from the human woman and sighed deeply, helped her to get the files. He gave them to her while being mindful of his nails. The very same claws he had slain other demonic and angelic beings. He was held back by his father who claimed he could change him for the better. He is the grandson of all Demons, but he is also the son of an angelic being, Bruce Wayne.

A blade was pointed at his neck and he glanced up seeing Donna looking down at him if he were a slave. He put up his hands to show he wasn’t going to hurt her or anyone in the base. “So….” He smacked his lips together before speaking up. “You were just here to kill me?”

“No. Just making sure you are not going to hurt Rachel, unlike the last time. You left her to care for her daughter.” Donna hissed at him.

“You mean my daughter? She’s mine and Rachel’s.” Damian smirked slyly.

Donna held onto her blade tightly and then lowered it down as she breathed out slowly and softly. She stormed away from the demon prince but before she does, she turned to the Prince. “If you do hurt her, that’ll be the time I’ll be sure to kill you. For real.”

Meanwhile, in Rachel’s room, she was cleaning her guns and arrows while hearing the door opening and saw her daughter wide awake. “My little bird, why are you still up?”

“I can’t sleep.” Arella replied rubbing her eyes.

“Oh, come here. Would you like to sleep with me tonight?” Rachel asked, taking her in her arms and let her lay down on her bed, she stroked her head and kissed her goodnight.

“Mama? Who was that man from earlier? He seemed so scary.” Arella said as she hugged her soft toy in her arms.

Rachel smacked her lips together and then caressed her daughter’s cheek softly. “He was an old friend of mine who came to visit us. And he is not that scary. He is just…misunderstood. I’ll explain everything later. Now, go to sleep.”

She put the blanket over her and kissed her goodnight before she turned off the lights and then walked out of her room only to see Damian was not present in the living room. His weapons were still on the table unfortunately. She sighed thinking he was just out of the base to get some fresh air.

As it has been said, he was taking some fresh air, smoking a cigarette until he had heard muffling from one of the guards. His head tilted to see as he jumped off the roof and then saw one of the guard’s soul was being sucked in. He grabbed his katana to fight him off until a gun shot was heard seeing a bullet came through a demon’s head and fell down onto the ground with blood staining the grass.

He looked up to see Rachel with a gun in her hand. She panted softly seeing a demon in front of her and then looked up at Damian who approached the guard and helped him up. “You alright?”

“Yes, I am fine. C-Can you let go of my arm?” The guard asked as Damian did not realise how his grip had hurt him and slowly let him go. He watched the guard walking past Rachel who put back her gun in her holster. “And why were you out here? I thought you were asleep.”

“I was getting some fresh air. Until I heard one of my friends nearly got killed by this monster.” Rachel gestured to the now-dead monster she had shot.

“it is not any kind of monster, I am afraid, Miss Roth. It is a demon from the Underworld. Sent by the demon lord.” Damian said with a glare.

“You mean the man who you used to work with and betrayed them? Your grandfather Al Ghul?” Rachel glared at him with her bow and arrow in her hand as her lavender eyes stared into his dark piercing emerald eyes.

“I suppose. But that man has exiled me. I have no choice but to come to my father. He was the one who vouched for me. And I yielded. I wanted to become a better man, a better demon……and angel.” Damian vowed with his eyes glowing in the dark. “I am on my very own mission to hunt every last of these demons to find him and take him down.”

“And what will that accomplish? You being welcomed back to your people once more?” Rachel glared at him.

“Yes, indeed. Claiming my title as the Prince of the Demon World. As you humans, don’t seem to be very fond of me being here.” Damian nodded, putting his katana back in its sheath. “You don’t want me to be anywhere near our daughter. And I do understand that. Remember, we are working together only for 6 months. After that if we completed my mission, we can all go to our separate ways.”

Rachel huffed softly and then looked to the side as she sighed. Thinking through of their deal Damian had offered. She knew for sure he wasn’t bluffing about working together and he was desperate to take his own grandfather down. But she cannot detect whether or not, if he’ll keep his word in leaving their daughter alone and not harming her. “You swear that you’ll never go anywhere near Arella? And that we’ll never see you again?”

“Yes. You know, I never lie, my beloved Raven.” Damian smirked as he offered his hand out for a handshake.

She looked down at his hand and then back at him seeing he was still smirking. She hated that smirk. She hated every little bit of him. But she has no choice but to work with him to finish the job faster so that she can spend more time with her daughter. “All right, but to make this less painful and fair. I’ll let you spend time with your daughter. She also needs a father, Damian.”

“Last time, I checked, I am not a father material.” Damian scoffed.

“Just for 6 months only. And she needs to know who you are until our deal is off. I don’t want to lie to her anymore.” Rachel pleaded softly as Damian sighed in defeat. Of course, deep down he cannot resist those beautiful lavender eyes of hers.

“Oh, what the hell, fine. Deal. As long as we can cooperate with each other. We are enemies and allies to each other.” Damian shook her hand as she nodded in understanding. Shaking their hands on their alliance with each other.

[hanniiesuckle17]

Anything But Normal

A/n: this was such cute Idea I hope I did it justice. It’s been a while since I’ve written a comedy piece. There are probably spelling errors I’ll go back and fix them later. also I love Jon Favreau as Happy so I had to put him in. (i swear he is one of my favorite actors) btw this is not edited (i’ll come back and do that eventually)

Requested by: @tokiokiedokie​

Warnings: Cussing,(come on it's me guys), partial nudity.

Member: Han Jisung

Summary: When Y/n’s best friend goes through a drastic change he starts keeping secrets. Secrets that include him being New York’s one and only friendly neighborhood spiderman. Shit hits the fan when his new secret life is exposed and she gets dragged into it.

Genre: Spiderman!au, romance, comedy, friends to lovers!au, little bit of angst

There are only three things that truly matter in life. Good friends, good pizza, and a good story. So far I had two of those at the moment. Sadly I was lacking a good story. Our school newspaper had been quite dry despite my efforts to discover new and intriguing stories. 

“Stop sulking and eat.” My best friend said, shoving a piece of cheese pizza in my face. Jisung laughed when I bit the end before returning to look at my laptop. We were at our usual pizza place seated next to the window with the big bright red neon sign lighting up our faces. The sun set over the New York skyline making the moment almost perfect. If only I was writing an exciting article. Instead, I was putting together a riveting look into the school’s menu changes. 

“You know I invited you because I thought you were going to be good company.”

“Please. You invited me because Felix was busy with a stupid Lego project and no one else will eat pizza with you.”

“Whatever.”

Jisung and I weren’t the most popular people in our senior class. To be frank, Jisung was my only friend. So going out and eating pizza every other day at ten o’clock at night was often the highlight of my week. Having had enough of the lack of attention Jisung slammed my laptop closed and removed it from the already small table. “Hey! I didn’t save!” 

“That’s what Google Docs is for.”

He was right. I needed to stop working. I had been slaving over that stupid and boring article all week. He didn’t have to be such an ass though. “You are such a teenager.” I scoffed, watching him shovel yet another slice of pizza down his throat. “Oh, and you are such an adult!” The mocking tone of his voice threatened a laugh. 

“I swear you are God’s punishment for enjoying sex. Everyone’s libido just disappears when you are around.”

“Hey don’t ruin our date. I was considering sleeping with you tonight.”

He laughed when I threatened to smack him. It had been like this for as long as I could remember. Just me and Jisung. My parents had been friends with his before they passed away in a car accident. Now Jisung lived with his Aunt May and his Uncle Ben a few blocks away from me. 

I remember after the crash I would wake to a tap on my window to see an eight year old Jisung on my fire escape. Not wanting to bother his Aunt with his nightmares, Jisung had run all the way to my apartment and climbed the fire escape to my room on the sixth floor. I would open the window and let him sleep in my bed. My eight year old brain used to think maybe my bed was like force field keeping away the bad dreams about his parents.

“Hey, what are you doing tomorrow?” Jisung asked bringing me out of my thoughts. 

“Mr. Finoli asked me to take pictures of the science field trip so I’m going with you guys. Why?” A look of realization crossed Jisung’s face making him freeze. “Did you forget to ask May to sign your permission slip?”

“I forgot to ask May to sign my-...you can be a real ass sometimes, you know that?”

Laughing I pulled a ten out of my wallet and left it on the table. “Come on, you’ve gotta get your slip signed, dummy.” “I can pay, it’s no problem.” He said watching me pack up my stuff. “Nah, you can get the next one.” Bellies full of pizza, we left Tony’s Pizzeria and headed in the direction of Jisung’s apartment, his arm draped over my shoulder and talking my ear off about some random experiment they had done in Physics that day. 

The next day I woke up bright and early to meet the class at the New York Museum of Science. Camera bag on my shoulder and camera around my neck I stood outside the museum with about ten other students and two teachers. My tired eyes brightened when I saw Jisung step out from the subway, May right behind him.

I laughed as he wiped a kiss from his cheek before waving goodbye to her. His dyed blonde hair was messy and blew slightly in the wind. Jisung waved when he saw me and jogged over. His hoodie lazily hung off his shoulder and his shirt and jeans were somewhat wrinkled. “Don’t you look nice?” I couldn’t help but chuckle at his appearance. 

“Shut up.”

He laughed throwing an arm around my shoulder, leading me closer to the group. Soon the tour began and I busied myself with taking photos of the group for the paper and yearbook. Jisung followed the group, only half-listening to the teacher as he looked at other random exhibits. 

At around one in the afternoon, the group moved outside to have lunch on the steps. I sat off to the side with Jisung, his legs spread out across the stairs and his elbow rested on the step above us. It was refreshing to be next to him talking about absolutely nothing. Even if he stole my food. 

Eventually, we were all called back to resume the tour. I angled a shot of two students looking at a bug exhibit, but just as I took the picture Jisung jumped in the frame throwing up a peace sign and crossing his eyes. “Hey! Stop hitting me!” He yelled as I smacked his shoulder over and over again. “Look I’m just innocently observing the exhibit. Leave me alone crazy woman!”

Sighing, I pushed him away and resumed taking photos. As the group was moving onto the next room I noticed Jisung was missing. It wasn’t unlike him to wander off into a room he wasn’t supposed to just to look at probably like some DNA model or some other weird science shit. I could never get over the fact Jisung was super into science when he gave zero fucks about his other classes. 

“Jisung?”

“Ji?”

“Ji, we are moving on,” I said looking for him. My eyes landed on a semi-open door marked ‘Lab’. He wouldn’t. He did. Just as I started to walk towards the door, he exited with a goofy smile on his face. “Y/n! Dude, they have all these cool spiders and test tubes in there it was so cool! One of them bit me!” Like an excited three-year-old, he showed me his wrist where he indeed had a red spider bite. 

“Ooooooh! Take a picture!” 

He shoved my camera into my hands and held up his arm pointing to the spider bite making the dopiest smile. Knowing he wouldn’t shut up until I complied, I took the picture. 

“Let’s catch up with the group,” I said taking his hand and dragging him back to the class. When we reached the group a teacher looked over at us his brows furrowing. “Excuse me, Miss L/n, is your friend okay?” He pointed to Jisung, a concerned expression on his face.

“Jisung? There are certainly things wrong with him but he’s oka-”

My words stopped when I turned to look at my best friend next to me. “Ji- Oh my god! Ji are you okay?” His face had obviously paled and he looked dizzy. A thin layer of sweat lay on his forehead. 

“Hell yeah. I’m doing fine, baby.” His voice sounded drowsy.

“Miss L/n he is not alright. Does he have anyone who can come get him.” The teacher said pulling out his phone. I shook my head. May worked in the day and his Uncle Ben was on a business trip. “No, they are working.” 

He sighed and turned to me. Jisung was clearly getting worse by the second and was wobbling a little. “What about you? Can you take him home?” Jisung laughed and wrapped his arms around me loosely. “Fuck yeah, I’d her take me home.” 

“I have a test in my last period.”

“I’ll write you a pass and send it to your teacher. Take him home please.”

Nodding he typed something on his phone and returned to the group who had started to move once again. “Okay Ji, let’s get you back to May’s.” Slowly we started moving to the exit. Before we made it to the doors, Jisung practically turned green. He pushed away from me and burst towards the nearest restroom. 

“Jisung!” 

Ignoring the looks and yells I followed Jisung into the restroom and looked for the stall he was in. “Hey, lady get out of here!” A man standing at the urinal screamed. 

“Oh please. Get over yourself.”

“Ji?”

Following the coughing and gagging sounds, I pushed the final stall door open. Jisung sat on the floor his mop of blonde hair hanging over the toilet. I crouched next to him and rubbed his back gently. “Oh god, I hate puking.”

“Jisung everyone hates puking.”

“Yeah well.....your face likes puking.”

“Nice comeback.”

Feeling too terrible to respond, he just threw up the contents of his stomach again. When he seemed able to stand the two of us made our way outside and down the subway. Jisung leaned most of his weight on me as I slid my metro pass through the scanner. How I managed to get him through the turnstile and onto the metro I have no clue. Thankfully there was once last seat free for Jisung to sit down in. 

“Y/n, I don’t feel good.” 

“I know,” I said softly as he rested his head against my stomach. The train turned sharply making me hold onto the strap, not wanting to fall into Jisung. Soft whines and groans came from him every now and then. This was the worst I had ever seen Jisung. 

I listened to the stations being called out as I ran my fingers through his hair, hoping that would calm him down a little. We were only four stops away but more people were getting on the train. Jisung looked up at me a sick expression on his face. It changed when he looked at the passengers boarding the car. 

“Here, Ma’am. You can take my seat.”

“Thank you so much, young man.” An older woman said taking his seat as he got up. “Jisung, you feel terrible. Are you okay to stand?” He shrugged latching onto the strap next to mine, his face paling again. “I’ll be fine, it’s only four stops.”

Jisung’s eyes started to droop as the train started up again. His body began to act heavier than it was so he resorted to leaning on me and nestling his head between my neck and shoulder. I did my best to make sure he didn’t fall over.

“You two are very cute together.” The old lady said with a smile.

“Oh- we aren’t--” 

“You better hold onto a good man like that, sweetie. Handsome and kind. Those are hard to come by.”

Before I could respond we turned again, and I had to keep Jisung from falling in this poor nice old lady’s lap. I felt his skin burning against mine. Could this train not go any faster. Soon enough our stop came. I said bye to the old woman and helped Jisung get off the train and up the subway stairs. 

“Come on, Ji. We are almost there and we both know I cannot carry your ass.” 

Eventually, I made it up the stairs of his apartment building to the fourth floor and managed to drag him to his door. “Jisung, where’s your key?” Trying not to hurt his head I propped him up on the door frame. He laughed when I started searching through his pockets.  

“Y/n if you wanted to cop a feel just ask. That tickles.” 

“Jisung where are your fucking keys?” 

“Back pocket.” He said drowsily. I sighed and reached behind him. My hands searched through his jean pockets for the cold metal keys. “Having fun back there, because I’m sure enjoying it.” 

I suppressed the urge to punch him in the stomach out of fear he would vomit all over me. Finally finding his keys, I unlocked the door and threw my stuff inside, before lugging him in as well. Jisung leaned on the couch while I put my stuff on the table.

“Y/n it’s burning up in here.” 

“Jisung, you just have a temperature.”

“It burns like fucking hell! It’s too hot!”

Before I could stop him Jisung was shedding layers like a snake. He tossed his shirt somewhere in the small living room. He was sweating like crazy, his blonde hair sticking to his forehead. “Ji, come on let’s get you in the shower.” I started running a cold shower for him before rushing back to the living room to call May. It would only be a couple hours until she got home, but I should still let her know what’s going on.

While Jisung was in the shower, I grabbed some medicine from the cabinet. I had absolutely no fucking idea how to treat a spider bite. Antibiotics? Hearing the shower turn off I knocked before entering. Jisung had a towel wrapped around his waist and was leaning his head against the wall. “Y/n...”

“I’m right here, Jisung.” Cautiously I led him to his room and watched him collapse onto his double bed. Rummaging through his drawers I found some mostly clean sweatpants. “Ji, do you even do laundry?” 

“Y/n, I feel a little too fucking sick to do chores now.”

“I know. I know.” He slipped on the sweatpants and let me dry his hair. I wrapped his arms, covering the bite so it wouldn’t get more infected then it already probably was. Jisung’s temperature flipped like crazy. One minute he was burning up and the next he was freezing. 

A sigh of relief left my chest when I heard May call out in the apartment. “Y/n thank you so much for taking care of him.” She gave me a short hug before running to go get more meds. She would know better than I would, being an ER nurse. “Ji, do you want me to stay? I can call my parents and tell them I’m staying the night.” He slowly shook his head.

“No, it’s okay.” 

“I can stay really-”

“Y/n, I’ll be fine. You can go home.” 

He gave me a half-assed smile and squeezed my hand. There was no arguing with Jisung sick or not so I gathered my things and left. May promised to keep me updated and I told her I would have my phone next to me.

The walk back to my apartment seemed longer than usual. I couldn’t stop thinking about Jisung. When I got home, my parents greeted me before telling me they would be working tonight. My dad was a cop and my mom worked at a hospital downtown. It was rare they were even home, to begin with. Exhausted from taking care of Jisung, I rolled onto my bed and fell asleep.

This boy really texted me at five the morning telling me to meet him at his locker three hours later. If he wasn’t still sick I would for sure have throttled him. Except for the fact that Jisung didn’t look sick. Not at all. He looked perfectly healthy as he walked down the hall towards me. In fact, he looked...really....good. It pissed me off. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be sick?”

“Yeah, I got better.”

Jisung opened his locker like it was any other day and got his books. “What did you want to talk about?” He sighed and looked over at me. There was something different about him. Did his jaw always look like that? No. No jaw looks like that. 

“So this morning I woke up and like I felt completely fine. In fact, I felt the best I have in years. And this weird thing happened to me on the subway-”

Jisung’s words were interrupted by the sound of his locker closing, only the entire row of metal lockers rattled as his shut. “The fuck? Did we have an earthquake or something?” I asked looking around. “What? No. New York isn’t on a fault line.” Shrugging it off I turned back to Jisung.

“You were saying?” He seemed distracted now, looking at his closed locker. “Ummm.... I wanted to thank you for yesterday.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him. “Ji, you don’t need to thank me. I’ll always take care of you if you need me.” As I pulled away his hands stayed on my waist, which wasn’t totally out of the norm. Jisung was always a really touchy and flirty person. It drove me crazy sometimes, knowing that it was just his personality and not him acting on something else. 

“So this weird thing happened on my way to school this morning. My hand-” Again Jisung was interrupted. This time by the bell ringing for homeroom. “Hey Jisung, I’ve gotta go, but you can tell me at lunch right?” He nodded, his expression becoming more uneasy. As I turned his grip on my waist stopped me.

“Ji, I know you wanna tell me now but I have to go!” I said with a laugh. A nervous breathy laugh escaped his lips as he tried to pull away from me. “Well, you know how hard it is for me to keep my hands off of you.” Arching an eyebrow I chose to ignore his weird behavior and walked off to my homeroom. 

When the lunch bell finally rang I took my food outside to where Ji and I normally ate. However, he was nowhere in sight. As if he could read my thoughts, my phone notified me of a text from Jisung.

Lix asked me to help him with some Chem work. Sry I can’t eat with you :(

I sent him a quick reply saying it was okay. It wasn’t the first time I had eaten alone and it surely wouldn’t be the last. To no surprise, Chaeyoung and one of her friends walked by. “Have you seen that kid? What’s his name? Jihyun?” She said in her shrill voice. It was hard not to hear her conversation even from twenty feet away.

“No, I think his name is Jisung. Han Jisung. He is in my physics class. Kind of a dweeb if you ask me.” 

“Well, that dweeb filled out. He was probably just a late bloomer, but like all of a sudden, he got really hot. Have you seen his arms and his chest? Oh my god! A girl could die.” 

The girls laughed and continued to objectify my best friend. They were right. Jisung had seemed to have had a huge glow up overnight. His lanky form did seem more toned and his arms were much more muscular than I remembered. 

“Can you believe he still hangs out with that new junkie girl? Like, please. He could get any girl he wants now. Why stay friends with that waste of space?” 

“That bitch is so full of herself. Literally, no one even likes her.” Chaeyoung said laughing. Having heard enough, I got up and decided to go to my next class early. It didn’t necessarily bother me what she had said. Chaeyoung always liked to mess with me.

All my classes seemed slower than usual and Jisung was answering my texts. At this point in the day, we would probably be having a meme war or a stupid conversation ignoring our teachers, but my phone was silent. Not a single notification. 

By the end of the day, I was feeling totally depressed. English was my last class and thank god I had it with Jisung. No doubt he would be late though. He rarely ever showed up on time to class. But, as I walked through the classroom door I did a double-take seeing my best friend in his usual seat right beside mine. 

He gave me an innocent smile. This was strange. Jisung was never early. He looked...normal. I mean other than the physical overnight puberty storm. He slouched in his chair his long legs spilling into the aisle, not that he cared, and he twirled a pen between his long slender fingers. 

“Yo, wassup, cutie?” He said as I sat down. “You seem to be the talk of the school.” He shrugged and shuffled through some physics work he had on his desk. “You jealous?” That stupid smirk appeared on his mouth. “No. Just confused.”

“Okay, class. Settle down. We are going to be returning to our analysis of Austen’s novel Sense and Sensibility.” 

I busied myself with taking thorough notes knowing Jisung would just fall asleep again or just play a random game on his phone. The teacher droned on making a seemingly not boring book a complete snooze fest. The lecture continued without end threatening to send me to sleep as well. Out of habit, I looked over at Jisung, except he was not asleep. Jisung was wide awake and he appeared to be listening intently. 

As if he sensed I was looking at him he turned and smiled at me before returning his attention to the front of the classroom. This was too weird. Where was my Jisung? Maybe he was still sick. That could explain the weird behavior, right? 

The harsh sound of the release bell brought me out of my thoughts. Jisung was already packing up his stuff. “Hey, you wanna stop by Tony’s on the way home? You can buy me a slice!” I said latching onto his arm. The girls were right. Jisung had filled out. Feeling myself starting to blush, I let go and looked back up at my best friend. 

“I can’t. I’ve gotta run some errands fro May and then Uncle Ben asked me to pick up dinner and some other stuff.”

“I can come with you?”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll text you later!” 

Without another word, Jisung raced out of the classroom. I knew Jisung pretty well and it was clear he didn’t want me around today. Alone-again- I rode the subway back to my apartment to be greeted by an empty living room. My mom had left a note on the counter leaving me money for dinner and saying Jisung was welcome to come over. “Yeah, well he’s too busy,” I said to no one in particular. 

It got dark pretty quick. All my homework was finished. I even managed to submit the stupid article on lunch menus. Eventually, I had nothing to do but stare at my ceiling. The news was getting pretty boring. After the whole Avenger’s fiasco, things had quieted down, and no interesting stories were in sight. By 11:30 I had given up hope Jisung was going to text let alone call so I did the next best thing. 

“Hi, May! Is Jisung busy?” 

“Hi, sweetie! Jisung got home about an hour ago. He said he was out with Felix. Should I tell him to call you?”

“No, no. It’s fine. You don’t have to tell him. I’ll talk to him later.”

“Okay, honey. Goodnight!”

Han Jisung you filthy little liar. If he didn’t want to hang out with me he should have just said so. Deciding I had finally had enough of this awful day I curled up under my covers and fell asleep.

Months had now passed and Jisung had started acting normal again. Well as normal as Jisung could be anyway. Our near daily trips to Tony’s had decreased to only twice a week and Jisung always seemed to be busy after school, though he made sure to text me back for fear of facing my wrath. 

“What do you think of this Spiderman guy?” I asked typing away on my laptop. Jisung lounged across my bed, the Saturday afternoon light casting a warm glow over his face.  He looked up from his place beside me. “Uhh...I don’t know. What do you think of him?”

“He seems a little childish and amateur, but he is a great story. Vigilante helping out downtown New York? That’s gold.”

“Childish? What do you mean childish? He’s professional as fuck. I heard he stopped a bank robbery the other day.”

“Yeah, and they found the criminals hanging from a lampost by their underwear.”

Jisung laughed and ran a hand through his blonde hair before looking up at the ceiling. “You’ve been talking about Spiderman a lot lately. What do you have a crush on him?” I scoffed, fingers flying across my keyboard. “Please. I don’t date children. Besides, I just think he is a great story.”

“You wanna order takeout?” Jisung asked reaching over me to get my phone. My dad was on duty and my mom was on call so Jisung had come over to keep me company. I did my best to pretend I didn’t notice how amazing he smelled as he leaned over me. “You know you should really stop eating junk food. You are what you eat.” I said distracting myself from how close he was.

“Well then if we are what we eat, I guess I would be fast, cheap, and easy.” 

Jisung winked at me, making my eyes roll. Jisung had grown at home in his new body and somehow he got even cockier than he was before. He groaned at my lack of response and instead let his head rest in my lap, giving him a good view of my screen. “Play with my hair, bitch.”

“Excuse me, dick. I’m working.” He laughed and unlocked my phone. I often wondered why he liked just sitting with me. I think I remembered him telling me once that he liked the sound of me typing. He said it had sort of a rhythm that only belonged to me. How he could pick up on that I had no clue. Like he had superhearing. 

“I ordered sushi. Don’t worry, I’ll pay.” Jisung said, adjusting his body slightly so he wasn’t at an awkward angle. I smiled continuing to write about our masked arachnid hero. “Please tell me you got boba too.” I sighed suddenly craving the sweet drink.

“Of course, baby. I’ve got you.” 

There was a moment of silence. Any minute now Jisung was going to break it. The boy couldn’t go three minutes without talking. “Do you think Spiderman is hot?” Jisung blurted out. 

“Jisung...do we need to have a talk?”

“What- no! Oh, what- no! I mean like do you think he’s hot?”

“The guy wears a mask; how am I supposed to know?”

He shrugged and played on my phone. “I don’t know. What do you think he looks like?” With Jisung’s mind, he wasn’t going to drop this until he got an answer. Saving my work, I closed my laptop and moved it onto the side table. “He’s probably like thirteen. I’m mean he is skinny enough to be a pre-teen.”

“No, like his face.”

“You are weirdly obsessed with this you know.”

“Answer the question already. I’m getting bored.”

I thought for a minute, my hand unconsciously moving to run through his blonde locks. What would spiderman look like? “He is probably just some random white dude. Dark hair, blue eyes maybe?”

He nodded, seemingly satisfied with my answer. The topic changed after that. Jisung told me about spending time with his Uncle earlier that day and we talked about his weird physics experiments. Soon enough, the food came and Jisung paid for it like he said he would. We spent the next several hours sitting in my bed eating sushi, drinking boba, and watching a drama Jisung insisted I ‘needed to see or my brain would explode out of my ears from being lame’.

After several episodes, my room was obscenely dark and my parents had yet to come home. My back rested against Jisung’s chest letting me feel the vibration of his laughs. “Hey, it’s late. You should probably head home.” He smiled when I made no attempt at moving or letting him up. “Do you want me to stay?” “Yes  please.”  He chuckled and pulled out his phone, calling his uncle and letting him know. 

Soon I began to grow tired, my head slumping back onto his shoulder. He poked my side, trying to wake me up. “Hey, go change for bed.” Sleepily, I nodded and shuffled out of bed to sift through my closet for a nightshirt. Jisung moved around getting comfortable while I changed. 

As I walked back over to the bed Jisung shut my laptop and placed it on my nightstand. When I climbed back into my bed he pulled me on top of him, wrapping his arms around my waist. It had been quite a while since Jisung had stayed over. It felt so nice just to be next to him, feeling the warmth radiating off his bare chest. The sound of his heartbeat lulled me to sleep. 

Jisung’s ringtone blared in my small room quickly waking me up. “Ji-” I said shoving my head under the covers. “I got it. Go back to sleep.” A quick glance at my clock told me it was two am. Who the hell was calling Jisung at two am? Jisung reached over me and grabbed his phone off the stand. He tried not to move a lot because my head still lay on his arm. “Hello?”

“Happy? What’s wrong?”

“Jisung tell the Disney dwarf to hang up. I wanna go back to sleep.” I whined, drowsily. Snuggling back into his chest, I reluctantly listened to him sleepily talk on the phone, Jisung not being fully awake himself. “Where am I? I’m at Y/n’s.....Yes....Yes, you can add the location to the list.” I felt Jisung run a hand through his fluffy hair and sigh.

“Mr. Stark said what? Yeah, yeah I have it in my bag....What now?....She’s gonna kill me....I can be there in ten.” Jisung hung up and started to get out of bed. “Woah, where the hell are you going? I need my personal space heater.” Jisung let out a tired laugh as he slipped his baggy shirt back on and rummaged through his bag looking for something. 

“I’m really sorry, but I have to go.”

“Jisung who the fuck is calling you at two am? What is so important that you have to leave?” I asked still not really awake and comprehensive. “Uhhh....my....internship.”

“Your what?”

“My internship.”

“Your what?” 

“My internship.” 

“Yeah-Ji- you keep saying ‘your internship’ like my half-asleep half murderous mind will understand what your saying.”

 “I got an internship with Stark Industries. They have uh... a problem....with some of the...code that I wrote....last week.” 

Jisung started slipping his socks back on as I stared at him in confusion. “When did you get an internship with freaking Tony Stark -You work with Ironman?!” He laughed and started searching for his shoes. 

“Y/n, go back to sleep. I’ll see you on Monday.” Then he left. I was alone once again in my room. A random siren went off in the distance and I just sat in bed. Suddenly, the police scanner on my dresser crackled to life. My dad had given it to me for my birthday a few years ago. 

We have a 647g Disorderly Conduct at 284 Hickom Av.

647g? Why bother calling that in at this time of night? That was just loitering. Sighing, I got up and walked over to turn the radio off. Another voice coming through stopped me. 

Disregard suspect has left the premise with another group of guys. Headed south down Hickom. 

South down Hickom street? What had my dad said earlier this week? Something about several high arms deals going down near there. If I could catch one in the act this would be a great story! Throwing on some pants and slipping on my sneakers, I grabbed my camera and put on my jacket. “Finally a great story!” 

Hickom Avenue was maybe about ten minutes away. The streets were pretty dark at two am, but it didn’t really bother me. My curiosity overpowered any fear I should have. My eyes scanned the area looking for any sign of the guys the scanner mentioned. Just as I was about to cross in front of an alley I saw them. Quickly I doubled back and pressed against the wall. 

“If I’m paying 4k for some lightsaber shit, I’d better get a demonstration, man.”

Carefully I peeked around the corner. Seven men stood in the hallway. Three were next to this heavy-duty van with blacked-out windows. This was definitely an arms deal if I had ever seen one. Which....to be fair...I hadn’t. But it was pretty clear. 

A guy with muscles bigger than my head pulled out a large weapon with green glowing lights. Quickly I pulled out my camera and started snapping pictures. They proceeded to fire this huge light cannon around the alley. Holy shit. This thing was powerful.

“Okay, you got a deal. I’ll take four-”

Let’s dance the night away,

Let’s  dance the night away,

Yeaaaahh

One, Two, Three! Let’s go!

“Fuck,” I whispered ripping my phone out of my pocket and struggling to turn it off. “Turn off, come on.” Finally, I silenced the phone and turned to see if they had heard. Instead my eyes met a broad chest only a couple inches away. 

Okay....think, think, think. Too busy panicking. Can’t think. Uhhhhhh......fuck. I followed my first instinct and threw a punch at the guy’s nose. His head did not recoil like it was supposed to. He just simply cracked his neck and glared down at me.

Okay.....instincts bad.

Before I knew it I was struggling against the man’s grip as he dragged me into the alley. “We’ve got a visitor.” He said throwing me onto the ground in front of all the other men. They sneered and inched closer clearly quite upset I had interrupted their little party. 

“Make that two. Hey, how are you guys doing?” 

All heads turned to the roof of the liquor store we were next to. My eyes widened. There was Spiderman. Complete with the red and blue suit and cocky childish attitude. “Who the fuck are you?” The buff guy, who now had his foot digging into my stomach, said.

“Bro....Come on. I’m Spiderman. You know. I shoot webs and kick ass.” 

“Isn’t he that guy from YouTube that did the flip on that building?”

“OH MY GOD, THAT WAS ONE TIME!”

The man scoffed and pressed further onto my stomach, making me wince slightly. “Scram, Arachne Boy.” The men around me laughed at I assumed the leader’s joke. The hero sighed and shook his head.

“See now I have to beat you up. You can’t just make fun of my name. That shit hurts, bro.”

“What the fu-” Before he could finish his sentence a web shot and grabbed onto his face and flung him into the side of the building. Soon a fight broke out. Trying to remove myself from the situation I crawled away as Spiderman fought all the men. 

“Ah!” 

A strong hand grabbed the back of my neck and hoisted me off the ground. “You aren’t getting away that easy, little girl.” The man sneered. A huge welt was on the side of his face from Spiderman’s attack. My airway’s started to close as he squeezed tighter. My hands tried to pull his fingers away and slapping at any place I could reach. Meanwhile, the last thing I would hear before I died would be Spiderman yelling something about Naruto running a dude into the next Millenium. 

As the edges of my vision started to fade, I heard another voice come closer. “Get your fucking mutant hands off her!” It screamed. I was dropped to the ground. Air filled my lungs as I took huge gasps. Looking up I saw Spiderman taking on the huge monstrosity of a man with nothing but his own two hands. 

“I was told never to play with guns. But I think today might be the exception.”

A web shot out of his fingertips and pulled the weird contraption into his hands. A bright light emitted and fired at the man, blasting him into the building wall. Within seconds Spiderman had wrapped up the villain in a little cocoon of sticky webs, keeping him secure. A quick look around told me he had already done the same to the others. 

The boy in the red suit danced around like a weirdo, while I sat on the ground. “Go Spidey! Go Spidey! Hell yeah! I made all of you my bitches!” I coughed still trying to get air back into my lungs. The white eyes on his mask widened. It must be some pretty advanced tech in that suit.

“Holy shit- Are you okay, Y/n...........I mean...wait-...random citizen I don’t know who means nothing to me personally. Are you okay?”

His voice weirdly got lower halfway through his sentence. Dazed, I looked back up at him. He offered me a hand up and gratefully I took it. “Thanks for helping back there,” I said, voice coming out a bit sore. He shrugged and puffed out his chest. 

“Yeah, I did kick some serious ass didn’t I?”

Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my camera and started to walk away. “Wait! Where are you going?” He swung from a lamppost and landed in front of me the suit’s eyes widening and shrinking again. His suit must have facial readers or something. 

“I’m going home. I’ve got my story; I’m done.”

“Hey it’s not safe. Let me take you home. What would your friends say if you weren’t at school tomorrow?” 

Spiderman continued to follow me as if he were a lost puppy. I laughed when he almost tripped over a trashcan. “Okay, one- how do you know I’m a student? And two- I don’t really have any friends. People don’t like me at school.” He stopped in his tracks. 

“What do you mean- Are you getting bullied at school?” His words stopped me. He sounded genuinely concerned. By now we were halfway to my apartment. I simply stared at him as the old streetlights flickered and struggled to light up the sidewalks we were on.

“A couple people bother me, but I just ignore them. Look I’m gonna go home. Thanks for back there. You were a real hero.” 

He looked between me and my hand as I stuck it out for him to shake. Slowly he took it, his grip firm, but cautious. “You know, usually heroes get a thank you kiss for rescuing such a gorgeous girl.” I scoffed and pulled my hand away. 

“Sorry, Spidey. I’m not interested in cocky little shits who run around wearing masks.”

“Yeah well, you’d be surprised. What is your type? Bet, I’m still it.”

My eyes lit up thinking about him. “I guess I’m more of the boy next door type. They say you always fall for your best friend right?”

He blinked as if he was processing my words. What I thinking? A horny fourteen-year-old boy wouldn’t understand. “Night, Spidey. Thanks for the save.” Not letting him say another word, I headed back to my apartment. My apartment was still empty when I returned. My parents wouldn’t be back until after I left for school in a few hours. Reluctantly I went back to my bed, missing the space where Jisung lay only a few hours earlier. It was harder to fall asleep without him next to me.

My legs carried me as quickly as they could. I ignored the crazy looks from people on the street as I raced to May’s apartment. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I burst through the building’s main entrance. Knowing the elevator would take too long and it was probably broken again, I took the stairs up to the fourth floor. 

The door was unlocked when I ran into the apartment. “May? May!” I called, looking for her in the living room. Hearing small cries I turned to find her exiting the kitchen. With open arms, I let her hug me and cry into my shoulder. 

We sat in the kitchen in silence. Occasionally one of our cries would slip, but the emptiness would return. He wasn’t answering any of my calls. I was beginning to worry. May said they were together. Where was he? It had been hours since May had called me. The sound of the door opening made us both stand from our seats. 

Jisung walked in with heavy shoulders and blood on his forehead and smeared across his shirt. He had dried tears staining his cheeks. I had seen the footage of the shooting on the news with May, but the sight of Jisung standing before us made my heart break. 

I held myself back as May went to her nephew. They needed each other. I could wait. Whispers between the two were shared, most likely about her husband. She had already gotten a call, but hearing it from Jisung seemed important to her. After a moment she excused herself, saying something about wanting to go to bed. 

The two of us stood in silence. I had no idea how to comfort him. How could you comfort someone who just watched their uncle die? Jisung started to slowly move towards his room. Wordlessly, I followed. 

After I closed his door, I turned to find him staring at the walls small cries coming from his form. There were pictures of him and his uncle all over his room. Jisung sighed when I wrapped my arms around him from behind. He turned around so he could hold me to his chest. Hot tears fell against my neck as he cried. 

It felt like hours before he calmed down. Gently I led him over to the bed and sat him down. All he could do was stare at his hands as I grabbed a clean shirt from his closet and a wet cloth from the bathroom. There was no fight from him as I lifted the bloodied shirt from his body and put it in the hamper. 

Carefully, I lifted his chin and gently started cleaning the blood away from his face. I tried not to wipe away the tears that slowly ran down his cheeks. He looked broken-and tired like he hadn’t slept even before today’s events. My heart shattered when he finally looked me in the eye. 

“I’m not ready for this.” He whispered, more tears falling. 

Wrapping my arms around him, I let the clean shirt fall to the floor. “I know...” I tried to keep tears from falling from my own eyes. I concentrated on running my fingers through his hair and how tightly he held onto my waist. “You’re never going to be ready for it.” He cried even harder, making me want to scream for him. 

Slowly, I laid back onto his bed, holding him on top of my chest. “No one is ever ready for what you are going through,” I whispered. His body shook from crying and he buried his nose into my neck, holding onto me as if I were the only tether keeping him from floating away. “But, you are so strong. We aren’t faced with challenges we can’t overcome.” His breathing started to steady as my hand traced patterns on this bare skin of his back. “Sometimes I wish I was normal,” He whispered.

“Ji, you are anything but normal. And that’s okay. But for now...you can just be here. I’ll be with you. When you’re ready you can do whatever you need to. But...just stay here for now.”

He nodded and held onto me even tighter. I listened to his breath, gently rubbing his back and playing with his hair. When I knew he was asleep, I let myself do the same. Tomorrow would be another day. I would most likely have to leave and let Jisung and May grieve, but for now, I could be with him. Hopefully, that was enough. 

Early the next morning, I woke up to an empty bed. Jisung’s covers were loosely wrapped around me and his window was cracked open, letting a strip of sunlight in. Slowly, I sat up and rubbed my head. It was quite unusual for him to be up this early. Well, it was quite unusual for me to be up this early, but it was like my body had a sensor for when he was gone. I pulled my phone from the table and started to text him.

The sound of the window opening caused my attention to turn. I froze as I saw Jisung climbing through the window. “What the fuck!” He froze when he saw me. My eyes widened, taking the sight in. Jisung was standing before me wearing a familiar red and blue suit, a mask in his hand. 

“Y/n, I can explain...”

Was Jisung Spiderman? Was my best friend Spiderman? Holy shit! “Okay explain!” He simply stared at me, eyes wide. His hand came to scratch the back of his neck. His eyes avoided mine as my arms crossed my chest. 

“Jisung, might I suggest explanation protocol #38 for Miss L/n?”

“Oh my God! Friday, shut up! You aren’t helping.”

I watched as Jisung said to the AI apparently in his suit before he tossed the mask onto his desk. “You have an explanation protocol for me?” The look on his face showed that he knew he was in trouble. 

“See the thing is...I’m not Spiderman-...” He stopped when I glared at him. “Okay, I am Spiderman. This is my internship with Mr.Stark.” Without hesitation, I got up from his bed and started slapping his arm.

“This doesn’t even hurt, does it? You have superstrength. Oh my god, I’m going to fucking murder you.” An aggravated sigh left my chest. “So this whole entire time you have been swinging around the city saving people and doing flips on buildings and I was none the wiser?” I said turning back to him.

“That was one time! But...yes.” He stood awkwardly in his own room. “Look, I’m sure you have a lot of questions.” He gulped when my stern gaze turned back on him. “So, anything you ask I’ll answer.” 

“Who else knows?”

“Mr. Stark, Happy- the guy who is my supervisor-, and Felix.”

“FELIX?”

He flinched as my voice raised. Taking a breath, I calmly sat back down on his bed. He watched as I crossed my legs and turned off the sound on my phone. No way was I gonna let my parents interrupt this conversation. “How did you become like...this...” I asked pointing to his clearly toned physique.

“At first I thought it was just like another puberty thing. But, like puberty doesn't make me shoot webs out of my hands. I think it was that spider from the lab.”

“So do-...are all your...bodily fluids...like...webs? Like do you shoot webs out of everywhere or-”

“You wanna find out?” Jisung said with a smirk, coming closer. I did not hesitate to slap him. 

“You couldn’t think of a better name though? Spiderman, really? You couldn’t come up with something more aggressive?”

“Well, I mean...like - spiders are cool, okay!”

I could tell he was uncomfortable. Usually, Jisung always stood up straight and had some sort of a smile or smirk on his face, but he was truly nervous. He watched me expectantly, waiting to answer whatever questions I asked next.

“So when you said you were away on a company retreat for the weekend. That was actually you who was fighting Captain America and all that shit in Prauge?”

“Yes.”

“When you left that night, did you go to the arms deal?”

“Yes.”

“So, it was you who saved me.”

“Your welcome.”

“Don’t push it.”

Nervously, he let out a laugh. No matter how many questions I asked...he was still my best friend. I was proud of him. He was doing so much good. Don’t get me wrong I was still very pissed at him for not telling me. “You owe me pizza at Tony’s for the rest of the fucking year.” A sigh of relief left his chest and he wrapped me in a hug. 

“That’s fine by me. I’m honestly surprised you didn’t ask about the whole crush thing.” I pulled away to see that fucking smirk on his mouth. “I think it’s cute you’re in love with me.” He tugged me closer to his body, gripping my waist.

“Who says I’m in love with you?”

“Me.”

“You’re an asshole- you say a lot of stupid shit.”

“I’m an asshole, not a liar. There’s a difference.”

My breath caught in my throat when I saw his eyes glance down to my lips. I could practically feel my heartbeat pulsing through my entire body. It was true and he knew it. I was in love with him. “Well....what are you going do about it? Prick...” I said in a shaky breath. He let out a soft laugh, his eyes lighting up. 

“Kiss you....bitch.”

My heart went crazy as he pressed his lips to mine. Closing my eyes, I melted into his touch. This was definitely the craziest two days of my entire life. I never would have imagined I would have to comfort my best friend, find out he was a superhero running around New York, and then have him kiss me in his bedroom.

Jisung smiled as I kissed him back, draping my arms around his neck and threading my fingers through his blonde hair. Never in my wildest dreams had I thought kissing Jisung would be like this. Without his mouth leaving mine he pushed me up against the wall of his bedroom. He sighed when my teeth caught his bottom lip.

“Fuck...do you know how long I’ve thought about this?” He asked before returning to my lips. 

“Kissing me?”

“To be honest I’ve been thinking about more than that since I was thirteen.”

Ignoring my scoff, Jisung continued to attack my lips like he had found water for the first time after walking in a desert. His hands slid under my legs, making me shriek when he picked me up. In one swift motion, he turned around and threw me onto his bed, before hovering over me. “I love you,” He whispered, before placing a soft kiss on my lips. Slowly, he moved down to my neck, my hands running through his soft hair. Impatiently, I pulled him back to my lips. 

Our little makeout session was interrupted by the sound of Jisung’s phone ringing. He sighed and dropped his head onto my shoulder. “I have to get that,” He sighed and pushed himself off the bed, walking over to pick up his phone. My eyes couldn’t help but rake over him. Now, I could freely ogle how gorgeous his body was. I bit my lip, looking at the lines of his broad shoulders go down to his slim waist.

“Happy, now is not a good time.”

“Yes....among other things...” A blush flooded his cheeks as he looked back at me still laying on his bed. 

“Can’t Mr. Stark send someone else?”

“I’m not just going to up and leave.”

Getting bored, I got up and wrapped my arms around him. He tried to look over at me, but I just buried my face in his chest. Patiently, I waited for him to finished the call with Happy. Finally, he threw the phone onto his bed and kissed me again. “Do you have to go?” I asked against his lips. He pulled away another smirk filling his face.

“You want to go to Berlin for a week?”

“What?”

“Mr. Stark needs me in Berlin. Something about S.H.I.E.L.D and an Avenger thing. But, there is no way May will let me go. Especially after yesterday.”

“Why am I going?”

“Happy said I could take you with me, you know to convince May to let me go.”

I laughed and kissed him again. “Sure. I’ll go to Berlin with you.” He laughed and spun me around the room. “However, you are gonna be the one to tell my dad that we are going alone with no chaperone to a country where the drinking age is sixteen.” 

“Fuck.”

“Good luck, Ji.”

Requests are open, just send an ask my lovelies!

Masterlist

[popculturebuffet]

Ducktales Della Arc Reviews: The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!

Hello all you happy people. I’ve been dreading this one.. not because it’s bad. Quite the oppisite. In fact on rewatch I was marveling at how brilliant this one was and remembering why it was on my best of list. But because the ending, as you all well know, is the most gutwrenching part of the entire series. Three seasons and lots of other heartrending moments.. and the ending of this episode from the big reveal to that final shot above tears you the fuck apart. It’s hard to watch even know it all works out in the end and that i’d be watching the conclusion the next day instead of having to wait a rather painful week like I did at first airing. It’s just that good. So join me under the cut for a review of one of the series finest half hours and some of David Tennant’s best work as we crash the Sunchaser one last time.. for this season... and i think Launchpad crashes it again in the finale so I don’t get that title. 

So our plot for the episode is that 

Yes Clan McDuck is taking their version of a vacation. It’s off to Monocrow for the E.X.C.E.S.S. Expo! Yes it’s the EXCESS Expo! With the latest in racecars lasers and many more! The EXCESS Expo! With booths from such welcome guests as Stark International, Muppet Labs, S.T.A.R. Labs, VenTech, The Franklin Sherman Memorial Fishmobabywhirlomgig Institute, TCRI, Gryzzl, Sumdac Systems, G-Heavy Industries, Tylerco, Lexcorp, Wayne Enterprises, Quickstart, The Gizmonic Institute, Alchemax,and Baintronics! But that’s not all! We also have huge paneeellls! Hank Pym’s “The ethics of dating your robot grandaughter”, Reed Richards “How to Dispatch an Evil Council made up entirely of yourself!”, Victor Von Dooms “CURSE YOU RICHARDS I’M SMARTER FOR I AM DOOM”, Stanford Pines with “How to Kill a Godlike Demon and Get your Smile Back”, Dr. Bunsen Hondedew with “How to abuse your assitant in 2020″ Dr.Light with “The Ethics of helping your robot child fight an evil albert einstein”, Profesor Henry Hidgens with “The incoming apocalypse with songs from Working Boys: A New Musical” Ray Palmer “Welcome To Pain”, and you know our friend Ass Dan will be in full effect> yeah bitch you know he’s going to live forev... what’s that? He’s dead. oh shame. Someone call rusty venture. Yes I know i’m typing this. Shut up. THE EXCESS EXPO. BE THERE OR WE’LL SEND OUR ROBOTS AFTER YOU. 

... Where.. Where was I? Oh yes, big vacation. Monocrow.. which sadly is not just a big field with just Crow T. Robot in it. Someday you’ll get MST3K/Ducktales Jake, someday. Point is our heroes are excited, and Scrooge is also there to find the Maltese MacGuffin, a mysterious artifact no one’s ever seen. And the kids and Scrooge have their own specail guest joining them: Bentina! Yeah turns out she has hundreds of vacation days built up, and simply hasn’t used them so she’s using a few to join them. It also once again shows how much less of a heartless money monster this Scrooge is as any of his employees asking for a vacation, paid or not, in the comics would result in this:

So their off on their greatest adventure.. with Louie having’ bought something mysterious along with him he’s only telling the other kids about. On with the intro!

Beakly.. is intstantly not at ease as they take off after driving their jeep into the plane. She feels launchpad is reckless, rightfully so not helped by a lack of seatbelts on the plane or his cheefully saying the closest he’s got, a floatie, will help “When” we crash. She’s also equally annoyed by Scrooge’s cavalier attitude, having intrusted the kids to him only to find out what the adventueres are really like. And this is the only part of the episode that REALLY doesn’t work. She KNOWS these two idiots too well for this to be beliviable. Launchpad wrecks part of the mansion at least once a day, and before Duckworth she had to clean that shit up. He’s there all the time.. and more damingly HE DROVE YOU AND YOUR KID, YOUR KIDS BEST FRIENDS, AND YOUR KIDS GIRLFRIEND TO THE FUCKING MOVIES. I can’t buy given how bad a driver launchapd is she didn’t wrench the wheel from him to prevent their early graves. Scrooge meanwhile is her BEST FRIEND. And until season 2 for her and 3 for him ONLY friend. Sure she works for him, but outside of one incident in this episode he treats her as his equal more than his housekeeper for the entire series. They trust each other more than anyone else at this point. And the only other two people Scrooge ends up trusting as much are Donald and Della. She’s been around him enough to know how he is. What did she THINK he was going to be like with the kids? She’s met the twins, and even mroe so is on good terms with Donald even into the pilot and they only got off on bad terms due to clashing over house rules. So she KNWOS this is what he does with children. You can’t be shocked Scrooge took children on death defying adventures in a barely secured plane after all this time. It’d be like giving Donald a turkey to carve and being suprised when it ends in this...

It just dosen’t work especially with a professional spy! Her job is reading people! And yes I know many of you are going to say “Well she misread Bradford”... but so did Scrooge and so many others. NO ONE suspected him. He’s that good. So her suddenly having a complaint about all this stuff when she could’ve come along anytime to check it out or just looked at the plain bothers me a LOT. Thankfully it’s only really present at the start as while it sets off her concern their back and forth soon has a far deeper meaning. But Scrooge insists Launchpad take her on a tour to ease her worry, seems like a contrdictary set of sentences there, while he flies. How hard could it be. Somewhere on the Moon, Della has the sudden urge to kick her uncle’s ass. 

So meanwhile in a secret base set up in a cargo box, the kids are working on the Della mystery. Turns out what Louie smuggled aboard was the documents shredded on the date the boys found on the Spear of Selene plans. Louie got them by smooth talking Quackfaster who even he found nuts. It also once again shows Dewey was only holding things back by keeping the other boys out as in jus weeks, since chronologically there were two other episodes between this and the last Della episode versus just one, their almost to the truth as one document from that day is simply torn into pieces and simply needs to be re-jiggered like a puzzle. Like most puzzles though naturally once they get it all together they find there’s one goddamn piece missing and it ends up loose int he plane flitting around... just as Scrooge majorly screws up and bumps things, leading Beakly to wonder where the kids are and them to scramble out. 

So yeah Scrooge seemingly crashed the plane.. except Launchpad notes that if they crashed.. why are they still airborne? This leads to everyone finding out their precariously perched on a VERY narrow rock that’s skewered the plane. Orignially the crew decided to strictly adhere to the concept that any movement would rock the thing.. but realized i’td make things boring visually so they allowed themselves some artistic license. 

So yeah our heroes are stuck in a hard place and Scrooge stubbornly digs in insisting he can fix this and turns on the plane.. which sends it spinning and prevents Dewey from getting the piece which ends up wedged in the jeep. Huh I think we need some appropriate music for going in circles. 

So yeah all Scrooge did was blow up one of the engines... I mean the blow up the engine button is right there, would’ve saved you some time. So Beakley berates him for not calling for help and digging in and for it’s next plan it’s time for Handyman Corner where he’s going to show you how to jumpstart a plane with a jeep’s engine. Beakly is not impressed and Scrooge’s case is not helped as Louie feigns fear , with Huey and Webby following his lead, so Dewey can get the piece. Unfortunately pointing out the very REAL dangers they face, with Huey giving the odds and Webby pointing out unlike most dangers they face there’s no easy way out and no villian to fight, sends Louie into an actual panic, jumpstarting the car  and causing the cargo bay to open, leading to one hell of a sequence: From Bentina driving a butterfly knife into the ground to hold the kid’s secret base crate (and wondering why it’s so heavy), to Launchpad desperatley platforming his way to saftey to scrooge swining in with his cane to rescue them. It’s some whopper animation that really shows off how damn good the team was and how gorgeous this show truly was at it’s best. 

The results aren’t good: the plane’s ballnce is now off so even a slight movement can move it, a holdover from the original idea simply saved for when it’d create the most tension. As a result Dewey can’t get the last piece as he can’t move and Scrooge berates the kids and has thems tay still watching the end credits of darkwing duck (It’s launchpad’s inflight movie and the tape is jammed to that section.

IT’s here the Scrooge and Beakley stuff went from poorly written to “oh shit” in one line. Scrooge is getting more and more desperate to prove he can take care of the kids on his own but Beakely’s demeanor has turned from annoying scolding.. to genuine concern and PLEADING with him not to go through with another dumb stunt that will leave them in a worse situation, int his case using the parachutes as counterweights to fix the engine. He refuses both rebuffing her as “your boss” (Which gets her rightfully pulling on the cord too tight) .. but then that one line comes in “I can protect her”. Beakley is confused.. but it instantly makes clear this is about Della and on rewatch now knowing the reveal at the end.. it makes it that much more heartbreaking. Part of his refusal to backdown is his natural nature as a stubborn ass. It’s been well displayed throughout this season and the ones after it: HIs refusal to backdown from nevverst, his jealousy of Dewey for being better at him and his refusal to accept it.. the man just does not back down and while it’s good in tight spots and against bad guys, as he finds a way out for him and his family with sheer grit and badassery... it’s a massive character flaw when dealing with people, as refusing to actually talk to them like a ratoinoal adult only makes things worse. And boy oh boy is he about to make things worse. But the other part is he can’t admit to himself there’s a risk in his lifestyle and that he can’t keep everyone safe constantly.. that theres inherent danger. He’s bought into the “because i’m scrooge mcduck” mantra here not out of his ego, entirely, but because he can’t let that not be enough again. He can’t LOOSE someone again like he lost Della and he can’t fail again. So his worst trait and his greatest trauma have mixed to make him act so rashly even Launchpad takes some shouting to agree to give him the other parachute. It’s clear he’s endangering EVERYONE to prove he can save them. 

Eventually though things reach their head as Dewey CAN’T take the wait anymore. He’s waited his whole life to find out about his momma, and the answer’s feet away... and he can’t let it sit any longer. He HAS to know what happened. So he goes for it, though the rest of the kids are against it since i’ts highly risky and they can wait Huey ends up agreeing to help using his Junior Woodchuck knowledge (Where Newton apparently got the idea), to counterbalance hsi weight and guide him via walkee talkee. It’s a really nice moment, not only showing off Huey’s skill and intellect but also how much they care for her. Dewey may of screwed up last time but their still the duck boys and if he can’t talk him out of being sucidially reckless.. Huey’s going to at least give him a fighting chance. 

Unfortunately Scrooge spots him mid argument with Beakley and naturally wants him to give it here... but once the ship buckles when Dewey tries we get the scene that makes the episode. Up till now the tension has been top notch, ratcheting up by bit, not knowing if the kids would get caught, if something would happen with the plane all building to this. Scrooge and Dewey’s final chase. Dewey uses the distraction to make a runner for it with Scrooge following.. and Launchapd using the fact he’s still attached to the airbag to stop him. It’s a small but excellent character moment, showing that as much as Launchpad loves his boss.. he loves his best friend and eveyrone else’s saftey more. SCrooge of course uses it to knock him back while Beakley and the kids counterbalance. We also get the best joke of the episode as Beakley tells them to stop running.. only for them to simply start tip toeing, with Bentina’s reaction being a perfectly resigned “That’s not what I meant and you know it”. 

It’s a tense chase, with both sides using the enviorment to their advantage from the parachute to the crate.. and it’s breaking open reveals something’s gonig on and causes Beakley to notice Webby has the blueprints in her pocket and once she unfurls them and finds out what they are.. she can only give a sad, remorseful “oh children, what have you been up to” She’s not even mad like they seem to think.. she’s just sad, knowing the wound that’s about to be reopened for her closest friend and the one that’s about to be inflicted on those poor children, and knowing that they’re ALL made it worst by hiding it. Toks deserves all the praise for her delivery here. 

Eventually the piece blows outside of the plane and Dewey refuses to give up and go after it. Things get their most tense as everyone BEGS him not to come back, it’s not worth his death to get this. It’s not worth all of this. But he simply chucks the walkee away and ignores them. We then get Scrooge going from scolding grandpa.. to dearly begging Dewey to come back... David’s delvery here is just heartbreaking “I can’t protect you. Is that what you wanted me to say. Please lad just tell me what it will take to come back inside?” And Ben Schwartz meets it with an utterly emotional “Tell me about the spear of selene”. The animation here is once again some of the series best with Dewey’s determined face and Scrooge’s heartbreak as he realizes he has to finally stop hiding this from them and he’s not ready. So he takes his uncles hand.. and if you thought all of this is painful.. oh boy.. we’re just getting started. 

So back in the plane, with Launchpad setting up a table and a proper counterbalance so they can all sit, Scrooge finally explains and the boys, webby, and us int he audience all get the answers we desperately wanted: It was 10 1/2 years ago. The Original Trio had journeyed the world, having all sorts of adventures and making themselves into legends. But eventually you hit a wall and they’d realized they’d been just about everywhere. They could still globetrot of courser and as Season 3 would bear out there were some places they didn’t know about.. but the earth was about used up. So Della, being an aerospace wunderkind, thought of the next logical place to go. The stars. The Spear of Selene was a rocket, her pet project to give her kids, who she was expecting at the time the stars. 

Thing was Donald wasn’t on board with this at all. And the clash between the two, which we see in the flashback but don’t hear since Scrooge is narrating all of this over some cool looking semi-still images, was inetiviable. As I coverd in the spear of selene review I feel Donald was burnt out at this point. That he was tired of adventures and just wanted normalcy even before Scrooge forced his hand with what was to happen next. So to him Della should just settle down, live a regular life and raise those kids. The problem is... Della WASN’T burnt out. She didn’t need a break to live a normal life like Donald badly needed. She wanted to keep going and it was her choice. While Donald ultimately was right about the risk, he was wrong to try and force her into a life she didn’t want and project on her like that. 

What happened next though was all on Scrooge and Della. Scrooge simply did the thing that’s likely part of why Donald resents him so much and it took so long to fix thing: He ignored what Donald felt and thought, sided with Della and built the ship without telling either of them. His selfishness, thinking he knows what best and treatment of donald.. all backfired horribly. Della sussed out the ship.. and I still feel she was suspicious on her own.. and that Bradford telling her was him simply handing her a lit fuse knowing it’d go off and WHATEVER happened as a result of this would break scrooge. Even if the rocket had gone off saftely and everything was fine.. he could easily claim Della threatned him,k which she probably did and he simply went with it, and either way Donald would be unable to forgive either SCrooge or Della for the deciet. It just went better, and worse than he could’ve anpiciapted: much like the fantastic four she took the ship in the dead of night and hit a cosmic storm, with Scrooge only finding out in time to try and help her.. but the storm hit the ship.. and unlike the ff instead of gaining the power to turn invisible, she simply disappeared. She was lost. He and Donald didn’t speak again after Donald found out till 6 months ago. 

If that wasn’t heartbreaking enough.. it gets worse. The kids, full of fresh pain and anger over Scrooge’s part in things, their mom abandoning them, and their uncles hiding this for decades.. take it out on the one person there. Frank and Matt recently said in an artcle detailing the best 7 episodes from one site, or at least what the site considered to be the best, that Donald was absent because  he also knew and would’ve told them sooner. I also feel it’s because he would’ve disarmed this conflict, at least admitting what scrooge did alongside beakley. As mad as he was.. his own anger had started to disapate. The wound was fresh to the boys and thus they lashed out. 

Dewey blames him for it outright, Huey tell shim he should’ve called her back, and Louie tells him he shoudl’ve sent a fleet of ships to find her. As we find out in the somehow even MORE crushing ending he did the last two and as I made clear, and the show does, this was Della’s horrible decision. She took an unfinsihed rocket, she left her kids, she did this. While she regretted it and I don’t hold it against her because she spent 10 years away from the mon the moon, she’s suffered THROUGHLY for it and I don’t feel I need to pile on, Scrooge wasn’t wholly responsible. Still partly. Dewey makes things worse by impling scrooge GAVE UP ON HER because it cost too much. 

Look the rest of it is valid, if misguided, as Beakley tries to chime in on it and correct them knowing the full story. But claming, no matter how greedy he is that Scrooge would ABANDON HER.. that’s just wrong and he knows it. It’s why Scrooge gets so upset.. and why he pushes the last two people in his corner away. Webby critisizes building the rocket and Scrooge belts out “This is a family matter, your not family”. runing his position and poisiong his one ally by lashing out at someone who DID NOT DESERVE THIS. Make no mistake, this is present day scrooge’s WORST action. The past scrooge did worse, we saw that, but this is almost worse than the goat thing. Telling a child h’ed basically adopted, ignoring the finale twist for this as it’s irrelvant and all it does is twist the knife deeper, that “she’s not family” just because he wants someone to be mad at besides his boys... that’s fowl. Everyone’s against him except launchpad and tha’ts where his stubbornesst ragically comes in: he digs in his heels refuses to explain.. and the plane crashes due to it. though safely. Their safe.. but the family is broken. 

So we get our hell of an ending scenes. Donald cheerfully announces to the boys, who earlier had no intention of leaving anyway, the boats finished.. only for Dewey to inform him “We know abotu the spear of selene” . Donald is heartbroken, not only that they know.. but that he didn’t tell them. 

But since “it gets worse” is this episodes motto, we end on Beakley, Webby and Duckworth all leaving on vacation. How a ghost does vacations I dunno, maybe he’s going to go to Amity Park. Point is Webby, despite EVERYTHING , is crestfallen he’s not even going to say goodbye and still worried. As I said in my review of the finale.. it’s her heart that makes her and while Scrooge may be a dick right now.. he’s family. So we get the final lines of the episode Beakley: Well, you've successfully pushed your family and everyone who ever cared about you away... again. I hope you're happy. Scrooge:I AM

It’s just damn heartbreaking.. once again he’s lost everything and is too bitter to admit it and try and get it back. And as we see between the lines.. the boys were wrong: He drained his bin and his buisnesses creating a fleet to get Della back, and kept going despite the expense. He did everything he could to call her back. Nothing worked.. and he only stopped because the board yanked him away, Bradford sneering with pride as his plan, which backfired HORRIBLY, had at last finally gotten him what he wanted: a broken scrooge tired of adventure. And as Scrooge sits in his chair seething.. he’s broken again, angry, with tears in his eyes, loving nobody.. and nobody loving him, eerily mimickcking his first appearance in comics. 

Final Thoughts: 

This episode is a masterpice. It’s perfectly paced, with only a minor flaw tha’ts qwuickly snuffed out for a gripping drama. This was a gamble, taking 9 minutes where ther’es almost no jokes and just pure tensino and heartbreak.. but it paid off. This episode is one of the series finest and leads to one hell of a finale but on it’s own.. it’s nigh untouchable. This is the series at it’s best, and the finale and later information (More about Della and the spear, WEbby’s true origin, bradford’s role in all this and role as head of fowl), only make it better, with all those things being aware to the creators but not us. They really made us wait for this reveal but damn if it wasn’t perfect. 

Next Time: Webby, Bentina and Launchpad try to desperatley piece the family back together before the boys and donald leave forever.. and Scrooge’s darkest hour leaves him vunerable for his greatest foe. It’s finally time to get back to Lena as the Shadow War descends over our heroes.

If you liked this review, follow for more and you can comission your own reviews by paying me 5 bucks to review any episode you like. Message me to talk it over. And if you’d rather get a gaurantted review every month, hit up my patreon at patreon.com/popculturebuffet. For 5 bucks a month you get a review every month and as of now special thanks in each review. Even a buck a month gets the thanks and helps and my next stretch goal, which is 5 bucks away nets everyone a review of darkwing duck everymonth for my lovely patreons to vote on. Special thanks to my patreons Emma and Kev, and I will see you at the next rainbow. 

[siriuslyshewrote]

Deep End

John Shelby x Reader

Set in Series Three, 1924. John is 29, and Reader is 28.

“I don’t want this to break you, but I’ve got no one else to talk to.”

The kitchen was silent, completely and utterly, the opposite of usual, when you would have five small children screaming and causing mischief. Your hands were wrapped around a cooling mug of coffee, a cigarette dangling from your lips, a plate of uneaten plain toast in front of you, from hours ago, made by Polly, before she took the kids to hers. You couldn’t have them here, not tonight, not after the bombshell Poll had dropped on you this morning.

Well, perhaps ‘bombshell’ was not the right word. You’d had an inkling for weeks, one that you pushed out of your mind, stomach bubbling with stress (or morning sickness, maybe). Because, of course, some part of you knew that you were pregnant - of course you did, hell, you’d already had five of them. This, however, would be the first pregnancy you had cried about ; really, truly, sadly, cried about, since you discovered about the existence of Katie, on your sixteenth birthday. Katie, however, had turned into a surprise you became ecstatic about.

You couldn’t see that happening, this time, though.

You twisted the wedding ring on your finger, the one that you had taken off several times this week, telling yourself it was just because of how swollen your fingers were. It wasn’t, deep down, you knew that. For the first time in twelve years of marriage, you were suddenly thinking of not being married at all. You and John had had some horrific arguments over the years, but somehow, it was the not arguing that made you contemplate leaving John. The traitorous thoughts had been whirling in your head for a while, making you cry yourself to sleep in the cold empty bed half the time - because John never came home before the early morning anymore.

It was the long nights, the worry and the crippling fear, that his work would result in a terrible ending - with either he, or one of your children dead. It hadn’t ever been something you had thought so in depth about before, as the children grew up without incident ( Katie being thirteen in a few weeks ), but with the knowledge of a new baby, came the anxieties you always had when pregnant, but this time ten-fold. Your brain had been haunted all day, with images of your newborn being targeted by one of the many enemies the Shelby’s had, or taken like Charlie had been. It occurred to you, how naive you had been before, to let the children roam the street, alone. You couldn’t help but -

The door opened, loudly, creaking hinges that John had promised to fix months ago. You jumped in fright, hand almost reaching towards the cool gun that lay on the counter top, before you heard the familiar sound of John kicking off his shoes in the hall, making more of the familiar scuff marks on the wallpaper you’d picked out yourself when John first showed you this house, when he put his hands over your eyes, guided you down the street carefully, Katie, a small toddler at the point, hanging off his back. When he’d laughed, as you opened your eyes, given you the cold keys, when you’d cried with hormonal joy, throwing your arms around him. When he still had the time to be around his family, when you felt more like a treasure than a burden.

“Hey.” His voice was hoarse, like he’d yelled a lot today, and preoccupied, like his mind wasn’t really in the room.

You didn’t look up, surprised he was home so early, just swirled the tea around in your cup, watching the pale liquid move back and forth in little waves. Usually, you’d get up and put the kettle on the stove to warm, or pour a drink of whiskey, depending on the hour, but your ankles were sore and you felt sick, and most of all, your emotions were churning.

“Hey.” You spoke quietly, running your nail through the grains in the wooden table, dented from years of raucous family dinners.

You heard the clinking of a glass, the slight strain to reach the tallest shelf, where the liquor was kept, far enough to evade the grabby hands of the mischievous younger children.

“Where’s the kids?”

“Polly said she’d have them tonight.” You couldn’t stand staying sat, staying still, so you went to the fridge, began to pull out food that you could cook for dinner.

He let out a humoured snort. “God help her. They’ll fuckin’ destroy her house like they ‘ave ours.”

“Or maybe that’s you when you’re pissed off your head.” You snapped.

“What’s up with you?” His voice was half confused, half irritated. “You’ve been in a foul mood all week.”

You snorted, pulling out a frying pan from the jumbled cupboard, one of Edwards stuffed teddies falling out along with it, god knows why.

“I’m surprised you’ve noticed.”

“Hey.” His voice was quiet, hand tugging on your wrist gently. “What is it?”

You pulled away from him, tugging at the material of your dress absently, not able to meet his eye.

“I need to tell you.. Well, I need to talk to you.”

He laughed, but it was anxious. “What is it then? Come out with it.”

“I’m pregnant.” It was blunt, not said with tears or smiles or laughs. Said with a sad voice and blank eyes, and a heavy heart.

His mouth lifted up at the corners in a wide smile. Every single one of the kids, John had been overjoyed with, and you knew this one was the same.

“That’s what you’ve been upset about, eh? That’s good, ain’t it?”

He almost moved to hug you, but you turned away, throwing some vegetables into the pan.

“No. No, it’s really not, John.” Your voice cracked.

“Y/N, you’re scaring me , now.. What’s up - I thought you’d be happy-“

“How can I be happy, John, eh? I’m fucking exhausted. I’m tired, of running after the kids all day and all night because heaven forbid Edward sleeps through the night. Or George wets the bed and wakes up the other lads. Or Elizabeth has a bad dream. And you know, they all want you, but you’re never fucking here, and so I get it. And I get hit with the ‘where’s daddy?’ Over and over and over. And I can’t fucking tell them because I don’t know myself, do I? Should I tell them their dads at some whore house, or in London, or at Uncle Tommy’s, or Pols? Cause I surely don’t fucking know.”

Your words jumbled together, talking so fast you barely said a word, desperate to get the words out, off your chest.

“Would you prefer me not to work then? For us to live in this shitty house for the rest of our lives, with the kids crowded into two bedrooms?”

“This shitty house was enough for you, once.”

“This family was enough for you once. But clearly we’re all a burden to you, eh?” He was angry, but his eyes flickered, as if dreading your response.

“Don’t you say that! Don’t you say my children are a burden to me, John Shelby!”

“So it’s just me that is, then! Have you finally decided I’m not good enough, then? God knows your fucking mother tried to tell you enough times-“

“When have I ever said you’re not enough!”

“It was only time before you got sick of this life wasn’t it? Before you wished you had your old life back with your big fancy country house and your parents posh bloody titles, and-“ John continued, lighting a cigar, his hands shaking.

“I’ve never missed that! This is the life I chose, okay! You know what I do miss, John? I miss the old you. The one who would bring flowers home, or dance in the kitchen with me while the baby’s bottle was warming up, or take us on day trips to the country. I miss the husband who was there for me. Who didn’t take the risks that put our whole fucking family in danger.”

John was silent for a few moments, as you breathed heavily, your eyes full of tears, and not from the cooking onions. You heard him get up from the chair behind you, and you turned, to see him hold out a hand.

“Can I have this dance, then?” He spoke quietly.

You sniffled, wiping your nose with your hand, like a child, but took his hand all the same. Because it was John, and you could never resist John. Because you loved him, because you were loyal to him, because you wanted so desperately to keep the family you adored.

Your chests were close together, his heart beat - faster than usual - pressed against your ear as you cried quietly into his striped shirt.

“I can’t keep doing this. I can’t.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I know.” He spoke, hands running through your tangled hair.

“I just miss you. I just want you home.”

“Please stay. I’ll make it work, okay? I’ll be home more, I’ll help with the kids more - I’ll make it work. I’ll make you happy again.”

You nodded your head. You weren’t sure if everything was going to work out, or if you would be having this conversation in a few weeks time with a different outcome. But for now, with the promises from John, and his strong heartbeat in your ear, you knew you would stay.

Because, whether it be for an hour or for a month or for the rest of time, you had your husband back, the same boy you’d known when you were sixteen, who’d promised you the world.

Permanent Tag List (comment to be added ✨)

@haphazardhufflepuff

@meteora-fc

@cass-danvers

@peppermintbars

@smallheathgangsters

@lovemissyhoneybee

[backtothestart02]

Remember That Night - 1/? | westallen fanfiction

A/N: Yes, another new fic...but this one I’m rly inspired for and might write more of this weekend if I get some genuine feedback! It’s based off the song of the same name by Sara Kays. I’m going to go beyond where the song ended, but it is my jumping off point and a good portion of the story. I hope you enjoy it!

...

Synopsis: AU - The mysterious cowboy walked out of Iris’ life without a second thought, wracking her entire world just as much when he walked back into it again.

...

Chapter 1 - Gone

The morning started like any other. A mixed ray of colors in the sky morphed into blue, clouds parted and birds flew overhead. The West ranch was still quiet in the early hours of the morning, though any minute now Uncle Jesse would emerge from the main house to tend to the horses in the barn. His wife, Aunt Cora would be cheerfully making breakfast – pancakes and eggs with fruit, as was her usual.

But in the guest house on the far side of the property, all was still silent, completely unaware of the onslaught of emotions that would bombard its interior within minutes.

A vision on the king-sized bed, Iris’ dark eyes finally opened into the morning light with a flutter of her eyelashes. Her first instinct was to curl into the reason for her pure ecstasy all summer long. Barry Allen, ranch hand for her uncle for the summer.

He’d first appeared at her birthday party two months ago. While they’d shared little more than small talk and a hand shake at the event, Iris couldn’t help but feel there was something between them instantly. A magnetism that she couldn’t ignore even if she wanted to. And she didn’t want to.

He was twenty-one, and she was nineteen. She had a little place in the city, but she found excuses to drive out almost daily to visit with her family – really, to spy on Barry and see if there was something there.

There was.

Within days they were wrapped up in each other and hardly apart except for when he had to tend to his work. And even then she lingered just to be near him. Sometimes she helped out too. Something she’d sworn she’d never do again after a summer at her uncle’s when she was 13 proved ranching was hard work too. She was convinced it was worth it this time though.

As the hot months started to dwindle down, a feeling of dread settled in Iris. She’d be going back to college soon, and then what? Barry would stick around? He’d only signed on for summer employment. Would he stick around for her?

He hadn’t even told her he loved her yet.

Iris had told him though. He’d responded by kissing her, and then making love to her. It was such a magical night that it wasn’t until much later that Iris realized he hadn’t said it back.

She figured he would in time. Maybe he just wasn’t used to opening up like that.

But time was ticking away, and she worried maybe he never would. Maybe he’d disappear from her life as if he’d never been there and hadn’t completely changed her entire world.

No, he wouldn’t do that, she tried to reassure herself.

Would he?

Finding him absent from the bed when she woke up set her emotions into high gear, but she ordered herself to calm down. She sat up, pulling the sheet up over her bare breasts and called out for him.

There was no reply.

Frowning, and more than a little worried now, she pulled the sheet with her as she got up and went to his dresser, searching for one of his t-shirts that more or less drowned her because of how tall he was compared to her petite size.

There was only one left. The rest of the dresser was bare.

Her heart started racing.

She put the shirt on over her head, and sure enough, it fell to mid-thigh, the short sleeves hovering around her elbows.

She turned to look out through the open doorway and heard the slight commotion of dishes in the kitchen. She breathed a sigh of relief, figuring it probably wasn’t a robber out here in the wilderness.

“Barry?”

“I’m out here, Iris,” he responded somewhat impatiently.

Her brows furrowed, but she tip-toed out into the hall and found her way into the kitchen. The sun was streaming over the breakfast he’d prepared for them sitting on the table. It looked like he’d just finish washing the dishes as he’d waited for her to get up. Which was kind of backwards thinking to her, but she decided not to mention it and walked over to him, tipping her face up for a kiss.

He obliged her, then gestured to the table, where they sat and had their meal in a cozy silence, sharing almost no words till they were almost finished.

“Here, I’ll take that,” Barry said, relieving her of her dirtied plate, so he could wash it quickly.

Iris was amused, and now couldn’t help but commenting.

“You know, I’m all for efficiency, and I love that you cook and clean, but uh-”

“What?” he asked, looking back over his shoulder.

“You seem a bit…rushed this morning, even tense.”

He laughed shortly.

“When have you ever known me to be tense?”

That was true, Iris admitted to herself. He’d always been particularly casual, laid-back, easy-going.

“Rushed then.”

“Because I don’t want to see dirty dishes sit all day long?”

“Barry,” she said, softly.

He finished the dishes, put them away, and returned to her.

“It’s a busy day, Iris. That’s all.”

She was doubtful of that, and watched him steadily as he put the food away in the refrigerator.

“Working today?” she asked, scanning the room for any sign of something different. Unease was creeping up in her, and she couldn’t shake it.

His next words tumbled out the minute she saw bags packed up and his cowboy boots sitting nestled beside them with his cowboy hat on top by the door.

“I’m leaving.”

She spun around, her eyes wide.

“I’m sorry… what?”

He sighed.

“Today. Now. That’s why I’m making sure everything is clean and put away. I’ve already let your uncle know. He says I’ve reached enough days in my contract, and I can go now if I’d like to.”

“You’re leaving?” she asked.

Her heart fell. So much for thinking he might ask on to stay longer so he could be with her.

He nodded.

“Yeah.”

“But what about… What about-”

“Us?” he finished for her.

“Yeah!” she said, starting to panic.

He came closer, almost setting his hands on her arms to calm her but pulling back at the last second.

“Iris, you knew this was never going to last.”

Her jaw dropped.

“You’re in college, I’m in-”

“What?” she spat.

“Life,” he said simply. “I have to go. That’s all there is to it.”

He walked around her to start putting on his boots.

“Were you even going to tell me? If I hadn’t gotten up now, would you have even-”

He straightened.

“I probably would’ve left the food out for you with a note.”

A note?! She seethed.

When he approached her, this time she backed away, and he sighed.

“You know I don’t like to wake you when you’re sleeping. You always look so peaceful.”

Her eyebrows narrowed.

“I can think of a time or two when you woke me to serve your own needs.”

His lips thinned, then he took two steps forward, so they were inches apart.

“As I recall, you didn’t mind the wake-up call.” He smirked slowly.

She wanted to scream. Here he was seducing her as he walked out the door!

“It’s been fun,” he said, his eyes dipping to where her nipples pressed against the fabric of his shirt she was wearing.

“Is that all it was?” she said, anger turning to tears welling in her eyes.

Sadness filled his eyes, and he leaned forward to kiss her forehead.

“I’ll never forget you, Iris West.”

I love you was stuck in her throat. She couldn’t push it out.

The next minutes passed by in a blur. She watched, her eyes glazing over as he walked away from her and loaded up his truck with his bags and finally got inside. He hesitated for a moment, and that moment was enough to jar Iris out of her trance and get her to run outside.

“Barry!”

He turned to look at her just as the keys turned in the ignition.

“Don’t go,” she pleaded.

He looked at her sadly, and then, instead of saying goodbye, he said what he always did when it was too hard to say what he needed to.

“You look beautiful in the sunlight, Iris. Did I ever tell you that?”

Her lips parted in disbelief.

He tipped his hat to her, then drove away, down the long driveway and onto the highway. Out of her life. Forever.

At least she had thought.

...

*will be posted on AO3 and FFnet when beta’d.

[modern-vellichor]

Just Like Her Mother

Chapter Three

Summary: Its your birthday, and a new side of you is seen.

Warnings: alcohol consumption, cigarettes, smoking, lakes :)

Tuesday morning rolled around, warm sun slipping through the curtains of Charles' room. He slipped out of bed and got dressed. His hair was still a mess as he lumbered down the stairs. He could see you waiting anxiously by the open door.

You were watching the driveway excitedly. Charles stood behind you and yawned.

"What's happening?"

"Theo's coming," you stated.

Just then a car began to drive up to the house. You started rolling back and forth on your heels, excitement oozing out of you. Charles watched with half-asses interest. When the car was halfway up the drive, a door opened and a boy around your age jumped out.

Immediately the two of you began running towards each other. The car kept driving and you lept into the boy's arms. He lifted you off the ground and spun you around. You walked back to the door still in each other's arms and Charles rolled his eyes.

"Charles!" You called out, beckoning for him to come to the car.

He stepped into the fresh morning air with a soft scowl.

"Charles, this is my cousin Theo"

Suddenly Charles felt bad about all the hassle he gave you about Theo. He faked a welcoming smile and shook the boys hand.

Other people exited the car. Theo backed away to fetch a baby out of the back.

You introduced him to your aunt and uncle, and to the two other children, both only young.

You ushered them all inside, Charles hung back so he could walk with you.

"hey," he whispered. "I'm sorry, about... you know"

"it's okay," you whispered back. You jogged away to catch up with your family.

When Charles arrived in the dining room, the table was laid with breakfast. You sat across from Theo, feeding a cooing baby in your lap. You were all sitting towards one side of the table, the seat at the head was free. Charles sat down and dished for himself.

Your uncle talked to him with great interest, asking him all sorts of questions. You spent the entire day with your family, laughing and drinking and smoking. As non hit and the sun was blazing down on the house, you all moved into the garden.

As Charles followed you through the backdoor he realized he had never been this side of the house. He took in his surroundings as you all walked the little path to a small patio with a table and chairs.

You propped your feet up on the table, a cigarette in one hand and a full glass in the other. The two young children played quietly at their parents feet. Everyone at the table had a cigarette but Charles. Your uncle lazily threw one across the table at him.

"So, Charles," he drawled. His English was good but you could tell it wasn't his first language. "Y/N tells me you've spent time in Italy"

"Oh, leave him, Uncle!" You giggled.

You were a different person now that your family was here. Charles could tell it wasn't an act either. You were happy and free spirited.

"oh no, it's okay," Charles mumbled quietly to you before turning to your Uncle.

You spent most of the afternoon like that, occasionally going inside to fetch another bottle of whatever they decided to drink next. They were up until late in the evening, after the children were put to bed. Eventually Charles excused himself but he could hear you laughing into the early hours of the morning.

Charles slept in late the next morning. Your uncle's car was missing from the driveway. He looked for you before finding you in the drawing room. The fire was crackling softly and you had a cup of coffee on the table in front of you. Theo sat across from you, reading the newspaper out loud. A young girl played at your feet and a baby cooed softly in your lap.

Charles sat down in a free seat next to you. You mumbled a soft good morning and Theo read on. Charles poured himself a coffee from the pot on the table.

"Who's the little guy?" He asked softly.

"this is James," you said, bouncing the baby softly. "And that's Adeline," you nodded to the girl on the floor. She was no older than five.

"Where's your uncle?"

"They've gone out for the day, won't be back until late"

Charles fell silent as Theo turned to you. He didn't even spare Charles a glance as he spoke to you. His voice was soft and in a language Charles didn't speak. His Italian was good, but he didn't speak French. He recognized a few words but the two of you spoke so quickly that Charles gave up and picked the paper up off the table.

His interest only piqued when he heard his name muttered. But the two of you still conversed in French.

"Charles?" You asked softly.

He hummed in response, not taking his eyes off the paper, though he wasn't reading.

"would you like to bring the children out with us?"

In his peripheral, Charles could see Theo shaking his head lightly.

"oh, no. You two go ahead, I'll hang back"

You murmured softly but got up anyway. You patted Adeline on the back and took her little hand, leading her away from Charles' feet.

You and Theo were out for the whole afternoon. Charles didn't even see you when you got home, you took the children into your office. Charles walked past the open door and stole a glance. You and Theo were sitting on the floor playing with Adeline and James.

Charles did get to see you at dinner. This time he was included in the conversation. You kept snapping softly at Adeline, who was hanging off of Charles' leg and asking him silly questions.

"Adeline," you whispered angrily. "come sit over here and stop bothering uncle Charles"

With wide eyes she waddled sadly over to the seat next to you. Charles chuckled quietly into his drink.

The three of you made awkward conversation as you ate. Eventually you fell asleep, little James asleep on your chest. Theo turned to Charles.

"I'm gonna take Addie and James to bed."

Charles nodded and watched him lift James out of your arms and lead Adeline towards the stairs.

Charles pushed out of his chair and made his way over to your sleeping form. He hooked an arm under your knees and one behind your back. He grunted softly as he lifted you out of the chair. You didn't stir. He carried you up the stairs and towards his bedroom, it was closer anyway. He laid you in his bed, tucking you in, before slotting in on the other side.

You woke up in the middle of the night when James began to cry. Charles woke up and watched you hurriedly walk out the door. A few seconds later the baby grew quiet again and Charles didn't see you until morning.

You all sat at the table, sharing coffee and cigarettes. You and Theo laughed loudly and your aunt and uncle watched proudly. Charles observed the scene from where he sat at the head of the table. He couldn't help but notice how domestic it all felt to him.

"so, Y/N," your uncle finally said and the table quieted down. "Your aunt and I have a little something for you"

You shook your head politely, eyes wide in soft surprise. Your uncle placed a neatly wrapped parcel on the table in front of you. You gentle untied the ribbon and unfolded the paper to reveal a thick leather bound book. You rifled through it with a smile and thanked your uncle. Charles watched in mild confusion as Theo also pulled out a little box that contained a necklace.

"happy birthday, lady bug," he said as he smiled softly.

"Any big birthday plans?" Your aunt chuckled loudly.

"uhm," your gaze fell upon the confused face of Charles. Suddenly you grew nervous. "Yeah, we're having a party. Some family friends, some of the locals are coming too. Mum planned it a while back and you know how she is so,,,"

"how is she?" Charles asked, it was the first thing he had said all morning.

"Her parties are always lavish, lots of people in expensive clothes and big dresses, you know," you choked out the words as you spoke to Charles.

You continued to tell the group the plans for the evening before excusing yourself from the table and disappearing upstairs.

The last time your mother was home, which was a long time ago. She had slipped Hilda a box with strict instructions.

'Do not give this to Y/N until her birthday'

And of course Hilda followed them and kept the present hidden. She knocked gently on your bedroom door. You called out and she pushed it open, box in hand. She left in on your bed with a smile. She gave you a quick hug and muttered a 'happy birthday, sweetheart' before leaving.

You slid off the lid and opened the tissue paper to reveal a rather extravagant gown. It was long and silky and dark, you pulled it out and laid it on the bed. In the box there was a piece of card covered in your mother's handwriting.

Happy birthday, Y/N

I'm sorry I cant be there, wear this tonight, for me.

Love, mum

You smiled sadly at the note and slipped the dress onto a hanger and into your closet.

The party was loud and full and boring. You sat, slumped in a corner next to Theo. Charles hopped from conversation to conversation lazily, always keeping an eye on you.

Every time a young man would walk over to you Charles' blood began to boil. Everytime someone asked you to dance or asked about your love life Charles nearly raged. But he kept it cool because he knew you were uninterested. And deep down he wished it was because of him.

A few boring hours passed and Theo turned to you with an excited look. He whispered in your ear and your face lit up, you nodded frantically and the two if you hurried towards the door.

Charles followed you out of the house, through the backdoor. He raced back inside and up the stairs to his bedroom, he gazed out the window, searching for you. You came into sight at the far end of the garden, by a little pond. Charles could hear your faint laughter. He rushed back down the stairs and through the garden. He slowed down as he neared the edge of the lake, half hiding behind some hedges. He arrived just in time to watch you and Theo jump into the lake, shrieking and laughing. Your dress was soaked, and Theo resurfaced to throw his sodden jacket on the grass.

The wet fabric of your dress weighed you down but you didn't care as you and Theo dived under the water once again. Reeds grew from the lakes floor. The lake wasn't really part of your garden, it wasn't part of anyone's garden. It was always busy during the summer as the surrounding houses brought their kids for a swim.

The moon was high in the sky and the evening air was cold. You could hear faint music and see distant lights from the party ongoing in the house. People would be leaving soon and you knew that. The sooner they left the better, you thought.

Charles finally left the protection of the hedge, calling out for you, feigning worry.

"Y/N?"

He heard you mutter a curse and hurry out of the water.

"Charles? What are you doing? You should be at the party," you muttered angrily, still dripping.

"so should you," he stated coolly, with a sly grin.

"what do you want?," you snapped, annoyed by the man.

"Nothing, I was just worried about you!" Charles mocked.

You rolled your eyes and dived back into the water. Charles called out for you as you disappeared under the dark surface. He stood on the edge of the grass, looking out over the glassy lake. Suddenly two hands emerged, grabbing onto him and tugging him into the black water.

It was cold and unexpected. He gasped and sputtered as he surface, you a few feet away from him, laughing loudly and uncontrollably. He glared angrily at you and you just swam away, still giggling.

Charles adored this new side of you. This playful, and free, and happy side of you. He longed to see it more often. Deep down, Charles hated himself for being soft and caring, but you seemed to bring out the best in him, for good or worse.

[chayacat]

Devil’s Sweet Star (19)

Fandom: Dead by Daylight

Ghostface x Female Reader  

Rated M for Violence, Language and Smut  

***

Ahhh...Love. The most wonderful thing in the world for anyone. Being in love and loved by someone can make you grow wings... figuratively. Life seems more radiant, exciting, fun, enjoyable when you are in love. A bond is forged between you and the one you loved. This bond can become, at the end of each road, stronger or more fragile. This is what I will call: gold yarn and black yarn. The golden yarn represents a strong love, a love that has gone through all the trials and that has come out stronger and stronger. This yarn is unbreakable.

The black yarn on the other hand... Represents a broken love. A love that ends up cracking on all sides. A love in which arguments follow, which sometimes comes to the hands. A love that, despite the desperate attempts of one or the other, ends up broken permanently. And in the end, we separate, each one rebuilding his life. Sometimes you get there. But some can't stand it... and the consequences are irreversible.

But let's go back to the positive side! It is in a serene, cheerful mood that you got up this morning. After all, there's enough! You and Jed are dating now! last night was the best night of your life. Knowing that it’s reciprocal, and that, despite the arguments to come, he will support you when it’s necessary, makes you feel lighter, more soothed. It will all be very different compared to Alex... you promised yourself that.

You and Alex dated for two years. You’ve met him in high school, he was a little genius and a sportsman, while you were more linguistic and theatral. While the first year was pleasant and fulfilled, the second was a disaster. He cheated on you from the beginning with someone else, but he didn't want to tell you. The worst part is that for him, all this was normal, the other girl was prettier, more... generous in terms of her forms. While you were just a little girl in her eyes. It broke your heart and you kicked him in the ass.

“This is all he deserves for doing that to me. Bastard.” You said to yourself.

And you’re right. No one should play with feelings. No one. But Jed is different. You know that. He'll never let you down for another one. But... What if another woman tries to steal him from you? What if she used her charms to seduce him? And that it worked? You couldn't stand it; you couldn't bear the fact that you were still abandoned because of a hottie who only wants sex and nothing more.  

Don't start thinking about that! this is just the beginning of your relationship. You've got time. And knowing Jed, you think he won't be stupid enough to succumb to the charms of another.

“I’ll treat you like a queen. Do you prefer a boring life to that? Think carefully...He or I.”

The words of Ghostface came back to you. It's true that you like to have a life of risk. That you're willing to do crazy things. But you have your own business now. Maybe it's time to think about a more settled life. Quieter. And with Jed, you can't dream better. And then, Ghostface treating you like a queen? What a good joke. You imagine Ghostface bringing you a cup of tea... filled with sleeping pills. And once asleep.... he could do whatever he wants with you.

And then, if in the early days it would be "nice", Later it will be blows. insults. And in the end, he will force you to participate in his massacres. A life that would shame your parents if they were still alive. In a sense, and even if it's sad and mean to admit it, you're glad that your parents are no longer here, or that you don't live in the same city as your uncles and aunts. Who knows what Ghostface would have done? Kill them? Surely. To use them to blackmail you and never leave him? Also. And you don't even dare imagine if you had children with this lunatic. Explain to your child that his father is a murderer, but otherwise everything is fine. You're talking about a family life.

Today is your day off. Yes, technically you spent two days in the hospital because of a fool who had the good idea to attack you in broad daylight in front of everyone. Let's hope he enjoys his time in prison. So, in real life, you could have worked today. But you're not sure you'll have a lot of people. Melina isn't working today either. It's her day off. She sent you a message last night saying she would come by today to discuss it. So, she's going to hear the news from you. And knowing her she's going to bother that poor Jed, as soon as she gets back to work tomorrow.

“Melina is Melina. I don’t think that anybody can change her. But at least, it may be better that she is so. You never get bored with her. And then... I know that she will move away all those who want to separate us, knowing her temper.” you said to yourself, laughing.  

First thing to do...clean the apartment a bit. Because since you've been here and especially since your short stay in the hospital, you live with dust sheep. And if you personally don't care, to receive guests it's not very elegant. And after cleaning, a good shower is required. Then kitchen operation! Knowing that Melina will surely come to eat at your home, hurry to know how yesterday's evening went.  

You spend a good hour cleaning everything before you shower and you dress comfortably. That's when Melina knocked on the door. All excited she gave you a big hug, a little too tight for your liking. But she finally lets you go and both go into the living room. You serve her a glass of rosé, the only alcohol you have for the guests. While for you, a homemade orange juice is deserved.

“Then tell me! How did it go last night? How was he dressed? What did you eat?? Did you kiss? Are you together??” She asks, excited like a child waiting to receive his gift at Christmas.  

“Calm down, calm down. I'll tell you all about it. But stay quiet, you look like a little girl at Christmas or in an amusement park.” you respond laughing, seeing your friend's enthusiasm.

“Sorry! It's just that...when he told me that you have a dinner with him, I was so excited to know how it happened!”  

“Well... he was really cute. Very elegant, we had a good laugh. And we eaten very well. He had made everything from starter to dessert. And we explained and...”

“Aaaaaaand ?”

“We kissed. Twice. So, we can say that we are officially in a relationship.”

“I knew it, I knew it, i knew it! Oh (y/n) you don't know how happy I am for both of you! She answered so happy.

you can't help but laugh. She's really sweet. You both eat a small pasta salad, with surimi, piquillo's, and a little tuna followed by a strawberry pie. Melina had taken the cheese and bread; she was not the type to come to someone's house empty-handed. You talk about everything and nothing, laughing at jokes, innuendo and other stupid things like that. It was good for you. You needed it. Then the phone rang: Mr Parkson. There was a click in your head.

It's been a week. And you haven't even thought about inheritance. What are you going to tell him? To give you an extra week? impossible, he had told you: a week no more. He warned you that he'll be here in an hour to talk. Then he greeted you before hanging up and when Melina saw your face restless, her smile disappeared. No choice... you’re going to have to tell her, too.

“Somethings wrong?” she asks worried.

“It was Mr Parkson. He'll be here in an hour.”

“Your Banker? It must be important for him to come to your house.”

“Well...He’s not my banker.” you answered by going back to sit down.

You tell her everything in detail. The death of your parents, the fact that you are the only heiress, that you've pushed back, all this time, that fateful moment because you're still struggling to accept this... Melina had listened without saying anything, going from attention to emotion, very sad to know the reason why, you have family photos everywhere at home.

“Well...you lie. But that is clearly understandable. No one wants to tell that kind of thing. We would like to forget it or that it never happened. We always hope that it was a nightmare and that when we wake up, we see our loved ones or call them. But deep down... we know very well that it’s real. And so, this guy... is there to carry out their last will. But you're the only one? no other family member can touch it?” she said confused.

“No. I’m the only Heiress. But my uncles and aunts deserve their shares too. My parents bequeath their house to me, and the total of their life insurance. As well as a small pecul that they had set aside. And the jewels. But I don't want it. It would hurt me too much.” you respond sadly.

“I understand. But you should take it. And then give it to your uncles and aunts. Or ask him if he can do it. “

“Yeah...you’re right.”  

Melina changed the subject to make you smile, cheer you up. She's so adorable. She's the perfect best friend for you. And yet, you only know each other recently. After an hour, Mr. Parkson knocked on your door. You don't even wonder how he knew your address, he said it to you: when he has to find someone, he's looking for information. He greeted Melina and you explain to him that she knows about it and that so she can stay. He nodded and settled down to a chair coming out of his little briefcase the documents. you offered him a coffee which he accepted as well as a coffee for you and Melina.

“Right. I don't think I need to remind you why I'm here. I left you another week to think. Now I'm going to need an answer: yes, or no?” He said placing his glasses on his nose.  

“Yes. But I want to be clear: my uncles and aunts inherit on the one hand. Everything I want to keep from my parents... are their wedding rings. Plus, my mother's amethyst. Everything else, the house the money and everything else will go to my uncles and aunts. Do you understand that?”  

“...As you wish. But your parent’s life insurance goes obligatory to you. It will be paid into your bank account automatically. It will be up to you to withdraw the money and give it away or send it to your uncles and aunts if you wish. As for the rings... I've got them here.” He replied before taking out a small jewellery pouch where your parents' wedding rings and your mother's rings were.  

“I knew your parents well. They were great people and very good friends. They wanted you to give their wedding rings for your wedding day... and your mother absolutely wanted you to give her jewels. The amethysts is there, too. If you'd rather keep only this one and give the rest to your family, I will." He said a little smile on his face.

“Thanks a lot Mr... I appreciate it. Have... Have we found the murderer? Or at least, did we find clues to know his identity?” you ask.  

“Unfortunately, not miss. He vanished. And he may even be dead by now. I am afraid that unfortunately we never know the answer to this terrible question.” he responds.  

You sign the documents, to which he adds notes on your exchange, then got up, greeted you and Melina before leaving. He left you a copy of the documents and, as requested the desired rings. Then it was Melina's turn to leave after 2 hours of discussions to cheer you up. Again. She left you her phone number and you gave her yours, so you could communicate.  

You clean the table, do the dishes and sit on the couch, the rings on the coffee table. You take them gently in your hands, tears rising slightly in your eyes. From the beginning, they intended to give them to you on your wedding day... Day they will never attend now. the rest of the day was sullen. In the evening even more. All you wanted was for Jed to be there, to hug you right now. But the poor man already has a lot of work, it's better to let him rest for now.

He sent you a message to find out if everything was okay, and you answer him by lying so he wouldn't worry. The poor man replied that he had a lot of work to do between the two Ghostface murders, but with a little coffee, he was going to make it. He wished you good night hoping to see you again soon, and you did the same. You put your phone on the table before looking at the rings again, no longer holding back your tears. They hadn't done anything...

“Well, if I knew I would have brought a handkerchief. Unless you prefer a hug? I'm very good at comforting people you know... especially women.”

You look towards Ghostface which was leaning on the table making you this little hand sign so special of the character. he's the last person in the world you want to see right now.

“Are you really going to come to my house every night? You have no better thing to do like killing poor innocent people like the sick you are? Or am I doomed to support you for the rest of my life as you told me so well?” You said a little grumpy.

“But it's that we're a little cranky tonight... my poor darling, I sympathize with your sorrow.” he said, approaching you.

“You? have compassion??? You kill innocent people who have asked for nothing and you DARE to say that you have compassion for me???”

“hey calm down my angel. I’m maybe a psycho to you but I'm still a human. I know what it's like to lose those you love. Especially when they are killed without them being asked for anything. In those moments when you have the murderer in front of you, you want only one thing: to make him regret. But back to us. I see you've made your choice quickly. I wonder if he enjoyed your lips as much as I loved them. Definitely I think I would never understand women.”

“What does that have to do with you? I much prefer Jed than you!”

“Sweety; sweety, sweety... You don't realize how lucky you are. I keep you alive because I have a soft spot for you. I could have killed you, gutted you, dismembered you, made you the most beautiful of all my masterpieces.” He lay you down on the couch, blocking your arms and legs with all his weight, and through his mask, you can guess a demonic, unhealthy smile. He drew his face closer to yours, very close to your ear. “Compared to him, I can take you beyond the seventh heaven... You'd be happy every night.”

He freed one of his arms, holding yours with the remaining arm to raise his mask slightly at the level of the mouth. Then he lifted your t-shirt stripping you to the chest. Then he lowered his head to your belly button and threw a tongue at it. Little by little, he went up his tongue to your chest. He smiled as he felt your skin shivering at his touch, while you're holding out a single sound. With his free hand, he unbuttoned your jeans, just enough for his hand to attack your privacy. You bite your lips, holding you to moan at all costs. Don't give him what he wants. Or he'll benefit even more.

“Are you resisting? How cute. I like it even more. I don't like easy women. There is no pleasure.” He replied, pressing his finger against the sensitive point, causing you to startle a little.

He chuckled, passing his finger up and down on your intimacy, which eventually made you let go of a little moan. He continued for a few minutes before stopping and getting up, hiding the bottom of his face again, allowing you to get dressed. he recoiled, sneering, while you stare at him, ashamed and angry.

“I'm going to make you languish a little. That'll be your punishment. maybe it'll make you think. or maybe not. But in any case, I'm going to enjoy it. Remember that you belong to me.  On this... I wish you good night my sweet little star. Sweet dreams.”

Then he vanished like usual. you sighed, slightly annoyed by what had just happened. He's strong, very strong even. But at least you know he's lost people in his life. At least that is what he suggested. If that happens, it had nothing to do with him. But keep that in mind. That's a good clue. In the meantime, it's time for you to sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, and you need all the rest you need.

Sleep well...

Little one.  

***

(And that’s it! I'm not too far from being able to pass my code exam! but I confess that driving does not enchant me too XD but hey it's always like that at first, right? If you have any questions, feel free! Oh, one last thing! I wouldn't normally be present from April 6 to 8. So, the current chapter at that time will come out a little later than expected! this will also be the case on April 16, 17 and 18! I apologize in advance I would do my best to advance them as far as possible! Good weekend everyone! See ya!)

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Chapter 15 -- Perfect Harmony | Charlie Gillespie

Summary: Emily Fox is a talented 17-year-old with a passion for all things music. Her dream is to become a successful singer-songwriter one day. But to achieve that dream, she needs to get into one of the most prestigious music schools in her district – it’s all been part of her plan since she was six. Sadly enough, those schools cost a ton of money that her parents don’t want to invest. They don’t even want her to pursue her dream. So, now Emily’s hustling, working at the music store to save up to get into college. That’s until she meets Charlie, an annoying seventeen-year-old boy with the same dream as her. The only difference is, he’s just doing it. He doesn’t need a fancy college to pursue his dream to become famous with his band. He just writes his songs and books small gigs here, there and everywhere. Will meeting Charlie defer her from her dream college, or will he actually help her achieve the dream?

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x OC (Emily Fox)

Warnings: mentions of death, sexual assault

Important note: the characters of Charlie, Owen, Jeremy and Madison are based on the characters they play on the show and i do not own their names, only OC are mine. The songs aren’t mine either, they’re all from the show except for one.

Chapter fifteen 

~|Emily Fox|~

I don’t think I have ever run this fast. Not even in PE class when I was graded for it. But I have to get to my house as fast as possible, knowing Madison would still be there waiting for me. Uncle Mitch probably would’ve told her to wait. When I arrive, I find Madi sitting on the porch in front of the red door, playing with the bracelets around her wrists. My heart breaks at the sight of how sad she looks. “Mads, I am so, so, so sorry!” She looks up at me, the sadness vanishing into pure anger as she gets up from her spot. “What was more important than hanging with your best friend?” she asks me. I can’t answer. I don’t dare to. Not honestly at least. “I’ll tell you, your stupid band and your stupid boyfriend you never bothered to tell me about!” I flinch at the loudness of her voice and the truth brutely smacking back into my face. “Since when do we keep things from each other, Emily?” “I’m so sorry, Madi. I just—” I take a deep breath to try and find the correct words. “You what? You just forgot about your best friend?!” “No, Mads, of course not!” “Then what is it?!” Madison never gets angry at me. Ever. “I just didn’t know how to tell you about something I didn’t even understand! I joined a band when I have never written or sang songs with anyone else but Uncle Bobby, and I don’t even know how this thing between Charlie and me happened. I just wanted to make sure either of those things is what I wanted before I told anyone!” “Oh, but you go and flaunt your little relationship and play a gig at Brianna Holly’s party. Brianna Holly’s party, Emily!” She has a really good point. “I thought you’d rather die than go to Brianna’s party, but I guess you’d rather ditch your best friend instead.” The volume of her voice has diminished, and she sounds a lot more broken and hurt now. “Madi, that’s not—” “Save it, Emily,” she cuts me off, and pushes past me. Ever actually felt your heart break? Because that’s what I’m feeling right now. I can’t believe I never told Madison about Charlie or Sunset Curve. That’s about the stupidest thing I’ve ever done. It even beats ever trusting Jake. “Muffin,” I didn’t even hear the door opening through the sadness filling the air around me, “Come inside.” I turn around and walk into Uncle Mitch’s open arms as he guides me inside and towards the living room. “I’ve done something so stupid,” I cry out in between sobs whilst Mitch goes off to make me a hot cocoa, I assume. “I should’ve never kept Charlie or the band from Madi. She’s my best friend. I share everything with her, all the time.” “Why didn’t you share this thing?” Uncle Mitch asks from the kitchen. “I don’t know… I wanted to make sure that it was what I wanted before I told anyone?” “You told me,” he points out, but I shake my head. “I told you about the band, you figured me and Charlie out with your love-dar.” I can’t help but chuckle at the memory of last night. “Technically, no,” he captures my attention with this, “I knew something was going on when you talked about the band and talked about this Charlie kid you wrote songs with. You couldn’t stop smiling and your eyes just sparkled,” he walks into the living room again with two cups of hot cocoa. “Besides, you don’t think I didn’t notice the both of you sneaking onto your balcony, did you?” My eyes widen at his confession. Uncle Mitch is all-knowing. Nothing ever gets past him and I should’ve known. “You were careful, right?” I nearly choke on my hot beverage. “We just hung out, Mitchell!” He raises one hand in defense. “Just making sure, Muffin.” I shake my head at him. He’s unbelievable. However, it did make me forget about the fight I’d just had with my best friend. Or at least for a moment until it dawned on me again. “Hey,” his voice makes me look up again, “Any clue what you’re going to do about Madi?” I shake my head glumly. “I doubt she’ll ever talk to me again…” “Then don’t give her the chance to talk. You talk or something else that might capture her attention…” I raise my eyebrows at him. He’s onto something, but I doubt he’ll tell me straight up. Mitch is all about the mysterious hints rather than revealing his thoughts. He’ll get you thinking about an answer instead of giving it away. But it does put a thought in my head of which I think is what he means.

“Hey, Mads…” I start when I see her at school the next day. She simply huffs at me. “I know you don’t want to talk to me, and I get it. I’ve been a terrible friend, but please, let me make it up to you? I have a little surprise for you tonight.” She looks up now, eyebrows risen with the scowl still on her face. “Come to the Music Store at 8pm tonight and you’ll see.” “Maybe,” she simply replies before leaving to get to class. At least that’s something.

“How are things between you and Madi?” Charlie asks when he and the boys meet me at the music store at closing time. He kisses my cheek before getting to his spot at the counter to sort through the invoices again. “Terrible… She’s really angry at me and didn’t really talk to me at school today…” The boys all give me a sympathetic look. Charlie probably told them about me bailing on Madison yesterday. “But! I asked her to come to the store at 8.” I reach into my backpack to grab my songbook. “I worked on a song for Madi last night and I was hoping you guys would help me surprise Madi with it?” They glance at each other before installing everything for an early rehearsal. Sorting invoices and cleaning up we’ll have to do later. I show them my lyrics, and they help me out with a melody and a beat. We rehearse it for about an hour until the bell over the door rings, signaling someone entering. My heart beats faster, hoping it’ll be Madison. “So…” she starts once she’s in front of us. “You wanted to show me something?” She still has that same scowl on her face. “Yes!” I walk up to her from behind the keyboard and grab her hand. “I wrote you a song last night and the boys helped me out with a killer melody. It’s not perfect yet, but I hope it’ll make you happy.” She lets out a small smile, but immediately hides it again, as I lead her towards a chair in front of our setup. I walk back to my keyboard and shake my hands nervously. “It’s called Flying Solo,” I tell her before starting to tap the soundboard to create a fun beat, just like we’d rehearsed. I then press the ‘loop’ button, so it keeps playing, and I can start playing notes on the keyboard. “If I leave you on a bad note Leave you on a sad note Guess that means I'm buying lunch that day” I glance up at Madi to find her nodding her a little. “I know all your secrets You know all my deep-dish Guess that means some things they never They never change We both know what I, what I What I mean When I look at you it's like I'm looking at me” The boys join in with their instruments now, bringing in the rocky sound we love using, and sing along during the chorus. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” “Hey!” The boys yell, making Madi jump slightly. “Yeah, yeah.” “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” I get out from behind the keyboard and walk up to Madison, kneeling down in front of her and grabbing her hand in mine. “Yeah, you know who I'm likin' way before I liked them, duh 'Cause you liked them first And if somebody hurts you, I'm gonna get hurt too That's just how we work, yeah, that's just how we work” A smile cracks through her angry façade. She’s warming up finally. “It will never change We both know what I, what I What I mean When I look at you it's like I'm looking at me” I pull her up from the chair and lead her towards the band. First, we jam a little with Jeremy. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” We now walk up to the drums together, Owen smiling at us from behind them. “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” We walk over to Charlie, who offers me one of his beautiful smiles while still singing along with me and the boys. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” I pull Madison away from Charlie now whilst they still play their instruments. “I’m so sorry, Madi. I know I shouldn’t have kept all of this from you and I don’t have a decent reason why I did, I just… I can’t have you angry at me. Will you please forgive me for being stupid?” Her smile widens, and my heart finally calms down. “As long as I’m allowed to be your roadie, your tour photographer and your marketing manager all in one,” she offers with that teasing grin of hers that always makes me the happiest. I glance over at the boys, awaiting their response. Charlie smiles, “Welcome to the crew of Sunset Curve!” Madison shakes her head and wags a finger at him, confusing the hell out of all of us. “No, no. She’s not joining your band. You’re joining hers. Y’all need some rebranding with your new lead singer.” Charlie gives me a questionable look, asking for some assistance. “Yeah, I’m going with what she said.” Charlie’s smile widens again as he shakes his head at the both of us endearingly. We pick up the pace again and continue with the chorus one more time. This time, Madison and I dance together too. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you Hey, yeah, yeah, yeah Hey, yeah, yeah My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” The music slows down as I pull Madison closer to me, our foreheads touching while I hit the final high notes. “You” I wrap my arms around Madison’s neck for the tightest hug she’s ever gotten. Over her shoulder, I glance up at Charlie, who’s already looking at us with the most precious smile. “Thank you,” I mouth, which earns me a wink.

Madison stays for the entire band practice and even helps cleaning up with the boys. I swear, they’re doing my job for me and I’m getting paid for it. To be fair, there’s no one I’d rather spend time with than these four people right here. “Emily and the Foxes!” Madison suddenly exclaims loudly and excitedly when we’re almost done. The band and I look up at her in confusion. “Your new band name!” “Oh! Because we’re foxy?” Jeremy questions, wiggling his eyebrows. Madi and I glance at each other. She has a questionable look on her face, almost as if she’s scared for his health. “No, Jere,” I reply, “Because my last name is Fox.” “Oh! Right!” He snaps his fingers and then points a finger gun at me. “I like it!” Owen chimes in and runs his fingers through his hair. “When’s your next gig?” Madi asks us as all of us rejoin in the middle of the store after the cleanup. Charlie comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, and pressing his lips to my cheek. “I was thinking we could do Open Mic Night next week?” I suggest and place my hands on top of Charlie’s. “It’s basically where I fell in love with your music.” My cheeks flush at the confession. “And with Char,” Jeremy mumbles, earning a high five from Madi. “Don’t encourage him, Mads,” I tell her with a shake of my head. “Anyway,” she goes on after shooting me an apologetic look, “Do you want me to promote you guys on social media and stuff? I’ll make you an Instagram account and everything?” The band exchanges some glances again. “Uhm, yeah, sure?” I reply after a silent agreement from the boys. “Some exposure won’t hurt. We’ll talk about the setlist another time. Uncle Mitch wants me home before midnight.” I pat Charlie’s hands, and he lets go of me so we can grab our backpacks. “Can we ask your Uncle Mitch to sing that song about Hollywood with us?” Jeremy ask as all of us exit the shop together. None of us really respond besides an airy laugh. I sometimes wonder what’s going on in that head of his. All I know for sure is that I love these guys so much. All of them. I doubt I could get through a day without seeing them anymore. They changed my entire life.

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